Chapter 21:
"So where do you wanna go? A restaurant?" Flynn asked Sharon quietly as they were standing in a hallway outside the murder room. Sharon had a folder in her hand, and whenever someone passed by, they acted as if they were discussing a case.
"No. We should meet at either your place or mine. Somewhere discrete," she whispered. A patrol officer passed by them and she pointed at a random spot in the folder, seemingly explaining something about the imaginary case.
Flynn waited for the officer to get out of sight before he spoke again. "If you want discrete I can take you to a cheap motel," he smiled mischievously. Sharon sent him a piercing look. "Okay, okay. I know where we can go. I'll pick you up around nine."
"Where are we going?" Sharon asked but Flynn shook his head.
"Don't wear heels," he said quietly before he turned and left the hallway, leaving Sharon intrigued.
(***)
At night, Flynn arrived right on time. Sharon told him to wait for her on the street, so he leaned back on his car and watched her as she walked towards him from the building's entrance. Her coat was in her hand, since it wasn't that cold, and she was wearing a dark purple, tight dress that revealed very little of her thighs. It had long sleeves and a tiny cleavage, and Flynn thought that she looked completely different than he had ever seen her.
She reached him and said, "I had to," with a shy smile on her face as she looked down at her dark purple heels. Flynn's gaze rolled down slowly from the little part he could see of her thighs all the way to her feet.
"We'll manage," he muttered and smiled, still looking at her legs. Sharon moved forward and closed the gap between them, placing a little kiss on his lips.
"This is weird," she chuckled awkwardly.
"What is?" Flynn asked, confused. Sharon wanted to say that this was their first date, but she decided not to. Calling things by their names made them official, and it scared her.
"Nothing. Where are we going?" she changed the subject quickly.
"You said you wanted discrete," he said vaguely and opened the car door to let her in. She looked at him for a moment, wondering if she should insist on knowing their destination, but then decided to play along.
"You're being so mysterious," she said as the car started moving.
Flynn smiled. "I just know you wouldn't wanna go there if I ask you."
"So you're taking me somewhere you know I wouldn't want to go to?"
"Oh, you'll enjoy it eventually," he said in his low, insinuating tone.
Sharon nodded quietly for a moment. "What do you expect will happen, eventually?" she asked slowly and suppressed a smile.
"I can give you a list of things I imagine will happen eventually, but we'll arrive there before I finish," he said and put his hand on her thigh. Sharon turned to look outside the window and smiled slightly.
A little while later, Flynn stopped the car at a deserted point by the beach. It was almost pitch dark, only there was a light coming from the porch of the big house behind them. Sharon arched her eyebrows in surprise.
"You were right. I wouldn't have wanted to come here," she shook her head, but Flynn was already outside, walking over to her. She watched him as he passed in front of the car. He was wearing light blue jeans and a grey buttoned shirt that was not tucked in. Sharon thought it was nice seeing him in something other than the suits he wears for work, even though she would've preferred to see his shirt tucked in.
"Come on," he said when he opened the door for her.
"You've got to be kidding me. What are you, sixteen?" she asked. The thought of being in that dark beach wasn't very assuring.
"Seventeen. Come on!" he said and took her right hand in his to help her out. Sharon sighed and bent down to remove her shoes. Flynn released her hand to let her do it, and then grabbed it again before she had time to regret, and helped her out.
"I hope you know that this is insane," she said calmly, feeling the soft sand under her feet. Suddenly Flynn seemed much taller than the usual.
"There are crazier things we can do," he said with a mischievous smile.
Sharon rolled her eyes but smiled. Somehow, she felt that being in this dark, deserted beach was not scary at all if Flynn was there with her. Chills went through her body as the wind blew hard for a moment, baffling her hair a little. She wrapped her arms around him quietly and laid her head on his chest, allowing his body heat to penetrate her skin. He rubbed her back with his hands for a few seconds, trying to make her warmer.
"Let's go," he said eventually and pulled away.
"What about the people in this house?" she asked in a last attempt to convince him to go back.
"This is my friend's summerhouse. There's no one there," he answered and started walking away from the car with her hand in his.