Chapter 12:

"We don't know anything yet," she wasn't exactly lying; the squad really didn't have any leads. Still, Sharon felt bad for not telling him the whole truth.

"Oh... What about your… husband?" he asked hesitantly. Sharon's heart skipped a bit. "Is he giving you any trouble?"

"Me? Oh… no, not really," she tried to smile.

"If you need help with him, tell me," he said and muttered "ouch" as he moved the wrong way.

Sharon looked at him and sighed. "And here I was, thinking that this visit would be all about you," she smiled at him. Flynn always saw something comforting in her smile. She didn't use it a lot, but he liked it when she did. He put his hand on hers and smiled back. Sharon looked at his bruised knuckles and put her other hand on top of his as she looked at him. Flynn bent forward slowly and gave her a soft kiss on the lips. Sharon froze, afraid to hurt him.

"Ouch," he chuckled when he pulled back. Sharon smiled again and released his hand.

Two minutes later she was already walking back to her car, after saying goodbye.

(***)

In the evening, Provenza declared he was going to visit Flynn, and anyone interested in joining him is welcome. His words resulted in the entire squad leaving with him, except for Sharon, who said she had to go and pick up Rusty, who was about to return from the field trip.

After the squad left, Sharon grabbed her purse and jacket and walked to the elevators. She pushed the button and waited. The silence around her was dense, and it was like a signal for her mind to start working. Her thoughts sounded loud and clear inside her head as she stood there alone. She couldn't help but worry about Richard and his schemes. She was still sure he wanted something from her.

The elevator doors swung open and John Martin stepped out of it, surprising her. "John… I thought you left," she stuttered.

"I did," he said, looking somewhat embarrassed, "but you've been avoiding me, so I decided to come back and… ask you out again."

Sharon arched her eyebrows in surprise. "I…" she seemed to be reacting the same hesitanting way every time he brought that subject up. She let out air, thinking about the right thing to say. "Why do you even want this? You're about ten years younger than I am."

"Age is just a number, isn't it?" he asked, smiling.

"But…" Sharon had no idea how to get out of this one.

"Are you seeing someone? Is that it?" Martin asked and squinted as he tried to study her facial reaction.

"What? No," Sharon said, hoping she sounded credible. If FID found out that she was having an affair with one of her detectives, it would be the end of her career.

"So there shouldn't be any problem if we go out, right?" he asked. Sharon kept quiet for a moment, trying to find an excuse, but her mind was blank.

"I guess not…" she muttered and Martin smiled.

"Great, so… Friday?"

Sharon said yes, and they both entered the elevator. Martin was happy he finally got a straight answer from Sharon, who was still trying to find a way out.

(***)

Sharon picked up Rusty and took him home after they stopped for dinner. He was exhausted but happy. When they arrived home, he went straight to bed after taking a shower.

The next day, there was a faculty retreat in Rusty's school, and he could stay home and sleep in. He woke up just before noon and walked lazily towards the kitchen, rubbing his eyes. At the entrance to the living room, he stopped dead. There was a woman sitting on the couch, alone.

"Excuse me?" he said carefully. The woman turned her head quickly to look at him and yelped in surprise, getting on her feet.

"Oh, my god! Are you Rusty? You scared me!" she said quickly, her hand on her chest and breathing fast.

"I scared you? Who are you?" Rusty asked in confusion.

"I'm Catherine… but everyone calls me Cat," she pushed back a lock of ginger hair.

"Wait… you're Sharon's daughter?" Rusty asked in shock. The young woman in front of him couldn't have been more different than Sharon. Apart from her red hair, she had a completely different vibe and the black mini skirt with the see-trough pantyhose were not something he could imagine Sharon wearing. The white knitted sweater was wide and gave contrast to her bottom half, but her overall look was pretty hot in his opinion. "I thought you were a brunette," he muttered, thinking about a picture of hers that Sharon had showed him once.

"WERE is the key word," she smiled. "I've been a proud red-head for five years now."

"Oh… cool. Did Sharon tell you to wait here for her?" he asked, taking two steps forward absent-mindedly.

"She doesn't know I'm here yet. I arrived from San Diego like an hour ago."

"Right, Sharon told me you were living there. Said you're a kindergarten teacher."

"Yep, that's me. She never said it in words, but I'm pretty sure she wanted me to be a doctor," Cat smiled.

Rusty kept quiet for a moment, not sure what to say. "Why aren't you going to see her at work?" he asked eventually.

"I'm not sure I know where it is," she said, shrugging, "I know they switched buildings a few years ago and I haven't visited her at work for ages."

"I can give you the address," Rusty said and watched Cat as a mischievous smile appeared on her face.