37.

Brooke eyed Sonny skeptically. The two of them had been on the boat for twenty minutes, but they were nowhere near ready to actually get out on the water. Sonny had a checklist of instructions and he carefully read and checked each box.

"Have you driven this before?" Brooke asked, trying to sound supportive and make the question more like small talk than an interrogation. The boat wasn't terribly large, she estimated sixteen or so feet, but there was plenty of room for them and their cooler. The Staten Island marina teemed with families and couples like them, and, in between scrutinizing her date, she marveled at how it seemed worlds away from Manhattan.

"Couple times. It's my mom's neighbor's and he's takin' care of his sick mother, so boat's all ours."

"A lot of these people probably just stay docked during the show, huh?" Brooke murmured.

"Oh, no," Sonny replied confidently, "They'll go out. Okay. Everything's ready. Got sunset in about an hour. You hungry?"

"Not really," Brooke reclined against the bow's bench seat.

Carisi gazed down at her. "I like your hat."

Brooke borrowed one of Sarah's floppy beach hats for the afternoon and she appreciated the compliment since the headwear was a bit of a fashion risk for her. She played with the ends of her bobbed hair which flipped out and flapped in the breeze. "Thanks."

"Drink?"

"Sure."

"Got a few different beers and some white wine."

"Beer is good."

Sonny held up a large bottle. "Wanna start with this Hefeweizen?"

"Sure."

He split the contents into two plastic cups and garnished them with orange wedges. "Here ya go."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sonny became nervous all of a sudden, "Sure you're okay doin' this? And skippin' being with your family?"

"I've never been on the water for the Fourth before," Brooke said, "This is where I want to be."

Sonny leaned down and kissed her, smiling into her lips, "Good to hear."

….

Ed got out of the shower and dried off, taking a minute to study himself in the mirror. He was pleased with his reflection—for a guy in his mid-fifties he was fit and muscular, even if he'd almost completely abandoned lifting weights and working out. Every other day or so he made sure to push himself to do as many push-ups and sit-ups as possible, and running around with Noah at the park on a regular basis certainly didn't hurt. Gray hair threatened to overtake his entire head, but remnants of his dark locks lingered, refusing to surrender to time. He hadn't shaved in two days which was unusual and his whiskers poked through his skin; he thought about shaving, but decided against it. The last time his face went a few days without a razor, Olivia seemed to like it.

He towel-dried his hair, put on navy shorts and a red polo, and went to see about Noah. The sun was starting to set, and even though Sarah made sure to reserve their space, he didn't completely trust the building's residents to honor their marked territory. Entering Noah's room, he thought the boy was still asleep, but Noah lazily lifted his head, smiled, and said, "Hi Daddy," in his soft, sleepy toddler voice that melted Ed's heart.

"Hey, No." Ed sat on the edge of the bed, "How's my boy?"

"I good."

"Ready for the fireworks?"

"Uh-huh. The chairs on da roof."

"Yeah, Sarah told me. And she's got the food and everything all ready. You wanna get up or you wanna lay here for a little longer?"

Noah gave Bernie a squeeze, sat up, and rubbed his eyes. "Get up." He inspected Ed's clothes. "You have red shirt."

"Yep." Sarah put Noah down for his nap shirtless. "Whatcha want to wear?"

"Red shirt."

Ed looked around. "Where's the flag shirt you wore to day care?"

"In da box." Noah pointed to his hamper.

Ed got up to inspect it. The shirt was damp, so he rummaged through Noah's bureau and found a red t-shirt and a red polo similar to what he was wearing. He held up both shirts. "Which one?"

Noah pointed to the polo. "Dat one."

"You got it, bud."

Ed dressed Noah in the red polo and khaki shorts with anchors embroidered on them and carried him to the kitchen where Sarah had everything ready to go.

"Alright, let's get up," Ed said.

"Mommy coming?" Noah asked, searching the room for any sign of his mother.

"She's at police, bud," Ed replied, "She's gonna try to get here before the fireworks start."

"We call her on da phone?"

"Sure pal. We'll call her from upstairs, okay?"

"Kay, Daddy." Noah held Ed's neck tightly, "Gotta show Mommy da red shirts. Sare bear have red, Daddy have red, Noah have red. All Tuckers RED! Lessgo!"

…

Rollins and Fin hung out on the chair and sofa in Olivia's office early that evening. So far, the day and night had been incredibly slow, but the three experienced detectives figured the phones could start ringing at any minute, or, at the very least, they would ring late that night. The three of them all had children in their lives and took turns showing photographs—Fin's grandson was at his first beach trip, baby Jesse was toddling everywhere and talking more and more, and Olivia flipped through Noah's soccer action shots.

Rollins peered closely of one of Noah and Ed. "Tucker sure looks proud," she remarked.

"He was, ah, excited that Noah was on a soccer team."

"Did his daughters play sports?"

"No. So, you can imagine."

"Yeah," Rollins replied, "I'll get Jesse into something next spring. Is it too early for her to start swimming lessons? Probably not, right?"

Fin hoisted himself out of the chair, "I'll leave you two moms alone for a while."

Olivia pretended to be offended but then answered Rollins' question, "Not at all. I started Noah's lessons right before he was two. Here," she wrote down the name of Noah's instructor, "They're really good."

"Do I have to get in the pool too?"

"No," Olivia replied with a knowing smile, "That was one of the main reasons I chose them."

"Good deal." Rollins pocketed the information. "Hey, why aren't you home? Aren't you doing fireworks?"

"Ed's on the roof with Sarah and Noah. I'll join them if we don't get a call."

Rollins frowned slightly. It was almost eight o'clock and she didn't understand why the Lieutenant would choose to stay if she didn't have to. The whole point of having a second-in-command was so that she didn't have to constantly be on duty, and Rollins took her insistence on staying personally. She wanted Olivia to trust her.

"Where's Jesse tonight?" Olivia asked, her tone kind and friendly.

"She's with Kim," Rollins took a deep breath, "And my mother."

Concern clouded Olivia's face, "How long has your mom been here?"

"Since the weekend. It's been…okay so far…I've been able to give my nanny some time off, but I almost want her there, ya know?" She forced a laugh.

"I can imagine," Olivia replied, "How's it going, with your sister? Seems to have been quiet?"

"Yeah, she's on her meds and going to school. Makin' good grades. It's been…surprising, to say the least, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to completely trust her. Like, right now? I wouldn't have left Jesse with just her for the whole night."

"I get it." Suddenly, Olivia felt comforted by Rollins' presence and realized it was nice to have another woman, another mom to talk to, "I've been lucky. Ed's daughters, they're both so good about watching Noah. We're gonna lose Lucy soon."

"She about done with school?"

"Yes. She's not sure what her next steps are, but it won't be long."

"Well, you know, my nanny loves Noah, so, if you're just gonna need someone every once in a while, she might be interested."

"I'll definitely keep that in mind. It would be good to have someone I don't have to vet."

Rollins appreciated Olivia trusting her judgement, at least as far as nannies were concerned. "That was a nerve wracking process."

"No kidding." Olivia saw that is was getting increasingly darker and knew the fireworks would begin within the hour. She closed her laptop decisively. "Know what, I'm gonna go."

"Good. Tell Tucker I said hi."

"Will do."

Olivia gathered her things. "Sergeant Rollins?"

"Lieutenant?"

"I…probably don't say this enough…but, you're doing a great job. I'm glad you got the promotion."

Rollins stifled a broad grin and, instead, offered a casual smile. "Thanks, Lieutenant. Have a good night."

"Call me if need be."

"Of course."

….

On the Tucker rooftop, Noah and Sarah sat side-by-side in the chairs munching on sandwiches and chips while Ed stood nearby chatting with neighbors. The fireworks were still about thirty minutes out, and the building's residents, mostly families, were mingling and getting to know the mostly unfamiliar faces. Typically not one to enjoy much small talk, Tucker found himself engaged in a lively conversation with a man and his wife who were actually retired NYPD detectives and lived just one floor below them.

"We're using this place mostly as just a pied a terre," the man said, "We're in and out a lot. Our kids live in Florida and in Texas."

Ed nodded. "My older girls are here the city," he gestured to Sarah, "and my son, well, he's here with us for a while," he joked, smiling. "No, come here, bud!" Sarah helped Noah climb out of the chair and he scampered over. "Say hello to Mr. Bryant."

"Hi," Noah whispered and hugged Ed's leg.

"How old's he?"

"Three. He'll be four in December. Just finished his first soccer season."

Bryant's eyes widened, impressed, "Wow, that must've been fun!"

"Yeah," Ed said, nudging Noah, "How many goals didja score, bud?"

Noah held up a hand. "Dis many."

"Five? Wow!"

Ed beamed with pride, "Yeah, the rest of this summer, we're gonna throw the football around a little. Maybe the baseball too."

"I frow tighsiral!"

"Tight spiral," Ed translated.

"Nice that you're in CIU," Bryant remarked, "Sure is hard to raise the kids when you're on the job all the time. Least you have some reliable hours."

"Definitely." Ed's displeasure with his new job was fading fast.

"Daddy, I firsty!"

Ed excused himself and went to open the cooler. He bypassed the water and the beer and found a small can of ginger ale he'd put in there specifically for Noah. "Get a straw outta the bag, bud."

Noah practically dove into one of the bags and produced a straw. Ed examined it.

"Hmmm, kinda long. Sare, you have a knife?"

Sarah regarded him with a sarcastic scowl, "A knife?"

"Or scissors?"

"Daddy, I really appreciate you assuming I'm that prepared, but, no, I have nothing sharp."

Ed asked his new friend Bryant if he happened to have a knife, and Bryant handed over a corkscrew. Ed sawed the straw in half and handed the soda to Noah.

Bryant raised his eyebrows in amusement. "Good to see…you're not one of 'em too worried about soda."

Ed grinned and looked around, "I'm not. But his mom is. So, that's kinda our little secret."

Bryant offered a conspiratorial smile, "Me and my son? It was McDonald's. To this day, she doesn't know how much we ate there. It was kinda, the after school treat."

Ed thought of the dozens of hot dogs and pretzels he'd purchased for Noah after picking him up from day care, "Yeah, we got a lotta those after school treats goin' on, too."

…..

Carisi steered the boat into the heavily trafficked harbor. They left the marina early, wanting to get a spot in view of the Statue of Liberty. They were about to drop anchor when a coast guard boat approached and explained they weren't allowed in that particular area and directed them to another nearby vicinity.

Anchored, Carisi opened the food, using the cooler as a table. "Got pasta, of course, and some meatballs, I made 'em smaller, they're still warm. And…for dessert, tiramisu. I didn't make that," he admitted.

"Looks and smells great," Brooke said, "This is really, really nice Sonny. Thank you."

Carisi stopped what he was doing and sat on the cooler, directly across from Brooke. "You say thank you a lot," he teased.

"Well, I was brought up right," Brooke retorted.

"I should be thanking you."

Brooke screwed up her face, genuinely confused. "Why's that?"

"I know, at the beginning, I was, I really wanted to be with you, but, I know you thought and Sarah thought and probably Lieu thought I had somethin' goin' on with Rollins. I get caught, a lot actually, trying to be there for everybody. But, Brooke, lately? I wanna be with you. I don't even wanna work. The whole time I'm there, I'm thinkin' about we're we're gonna have for dinner and where we're goin' for drinks and what movie we're gonna watch."

Brooke thought she saw Sonny start to get down on one knee and she reached out to him and grabbed his shoulders. "I…I should probably say something."

"Go ahead."

"I'm…I'm sorry." Carisi obviously wasn't expecting an apology, so Brooke quickly continued. "I've been, um, kind of ignoring you. Because I'm nervous. A little scared. I've never been in this deep before."

"Ignoring me?"

"About the living together. And…you saying you're falling in love with me. I haven't really responded, and it's not because I don't feel the same way, it's just…this is very new for me."

"Hey," Sonny reached out and cupped her face, "I don't want you to do or say anything you're not ready for and I don't want to pressure you…but…I don't want to keep everything bottled up either. I am falling in love with you. Every day. I would like to live with you. But…it's your call. I'll wait until you're comfortable. And…in the meantime…we're here, with this great view….and just us. So," He touched his glass to hers, "Enjoy. Cheers."

"Cheers."

Sonny kissed her and grinned as he pulled away. "I really do love that hat on you."

"It's Sarah's."

"I know. That's why I said on you."

….

"Should be starting any minute," Sarah remarked as she refilled her wine glass. "Noey, wanna sit with me?"

"Okay." Brownie crumbs clung to Noah's mouth and Sarah wiped them with a paper towel before helping Noah into her lap.

"When they start I'll hold ya like a baby so you can see!" Sarah tipped him back as if he were an infant and Noah giggled.

Ed looked on, thinking of the talks he and Olivia had had in the past week. The idea of a baby, a biological child with Olivia, still existed as a nagging thought in the back of his mind, and Sarah unknowingly brought it back to the forefront. At the same time, he kicked himself for being so glib about his first two children—when his ex-wife was pregnant, the impending children only made him work harder and longer to ensure they were financially stable. He hadn't been emotionally into those pregnancies or those first years. Part of the reason why he wanted another baby was to prove that he could do it better the second time around, but, that was selfish, and he was definitely redeeming himself with Noah.

Sarah tipped Noah so he was almost upside down and had a view of the entire rooftop. He was the first one to see Olivia.

"MOMMY!"

He scrambled to get to his feet and ran to her. She'd already changed into casual clothing and her entire aura oozed with love as she took Noah into her arms. "Hi sweet boy!"

He allowed his mother to hug him and then leaned back to look at her face. "We waited for you to start fireworks," he declared, his eyes wide and serious.

"Thank you, sweet boy," she cooed back at him and kissed his forehead, "I didn't want to miss the fireworks with you!"

"Daddy and Sarah over dare," he twisted his body and pointed to the two other Tuckers. Ed pulled another chair from its sleeve and set it up next to his.

In the distance, a pop echoed and the first of the collective oohs and ahhs resonated among the crowd. Olivia hurried to take her seat and Noah reclined against her.

Ed leaned over for a kiss. "You made it."

"I did."

"Wanna drink?"

"In a minute."

"Let me know." Ed reached for her hand and interlaced his fingers with hers as he tipped his head back and settled in to enjoy the show.

…..

The show came to a close with an impressive finale blazing with red, white, and blue skyrockets. Noah could hardly contain himself and Sarah videoed some of it and sent it to Brooke with the message, feel free to send your own vid, if, you two still have clothes on. Brooke quickly responded with a selfie in which both she and Carisi were rolling their eyes.

Having had a late nap and wound up from the fireworks, Noah showed no signs of fatigue and objected to changing into his pajamas after they returned to the apartment.

"Not tired." He stomped his foot indignantly. "Sare bear, play hide seek!" He disappeared into his bedroom and when he realized nobody followed, he shouted, "I under da bed! Find me!"

"Noey! I'm going home! Come give hugs and kisses!" Sarah called back.

Except for the sounds of Olivia and Ed stowing the leftovers, Sarah's request was met with silence.

"Oh fine," she grumbled. In Noah's room she laid down on her stomach and peeked at Noah. "Found ya!"

"You winned! Now. You hide, Sare bear!"

"I gotta go home Noey. It's late and I have to work tomorrow."

"You work at p'lice?"

Sarah laughed, "No. Not all Tuckers work at police. I work at accounting."

Noah screwed up his face at the word "accounting."

"I count all day." She clarified.

"Wiff Oreos?"

"Nope, well, right now, with Euros."

Another confused expression.

"Okay, yes, with Oreos. You should stop by sometime."

"I go to see da big kids!"

"No kids at my office. Just a bunch of adults in suits and ties."

"I have ties."

"I know. Okay. I haveta go. Are you staying under there or are you gonna come out and give me a hug?"

"I stay here."

Sarah blew him kisses. "Alright. Adios, amigo!"

"Adios!"

Sarah sauntered back into the kitchen and grabbed her purse. "Good luck with that," she jerked her neck towards Noah's bedroom. "See ya later."

Ed and Olivia thanked Sarah for helping with Noah and the fireworks set-up and she left, leaving them to wrangle their uncooperative, wide-awake son. He was still under the bed when they went to check on him, but he'd found the iPad and was working with his drawing app. He'd set up a black canvas and was concentrating on adding multicolored streaks. The dim light illuminated his face and Olivia almost lost her motherly resolve.

Ed read her mind, "You can't make him go to bed now," he whispered, crouching down and smiling sweetly at the cherubic face. "He's drawing the fireworks."

"Noah?"

He briefly looked up, "I drawin."

"I see. Finish your picture and then we'll read stories."

"Kay Mommy."

"Do you want to draw out in the living room on your beanbag instead of under the bed?"

"Uh-uh."

"Daddy and I will be out there. Ten more minutes."

Ed tugged at her belt loops as they walked stride-for-stride into the living room. He nuzzled the back of her neck and murmured, "Ten minutes. What to do in ten minutes?" He reached for the dimmer on the wall, turned the lights down low, and turned his wife around.

He swayed her in the space between the sofa and the dining table. When he wasn't kissing her he was whispering in her ear, telling her how much he loved her, how lucky he was to be married to her, how he would do anything for her and for Noah.

Olivia soaked up the love and returned the compliments, deepened a few kisses, but, eventually had to pry herself from his arms.

"Noah," she reminded him.

They both predicted he'd still be stubbornly planted under the bed with the iPad and they did find him in the same place with the device, but, he'd fetched Bernie and was now sound asleep, using the bear for a pillow.

Ed flattened himself against the carpet and strained to reach his son. He managed to pinch his shirt sleeve and slide him a few inches to get a grip on his arm. Noah whimpered a bit and did nothing to help Ed extract him from his little den.

"C'mon, bud." Finally, Ed lifted him out and Olivia deftly removed his shirt and shorts and replaced them with pajamas. They placed him under the covers and made sure he had Bernie.

"Night, sweet Noah." Olivia said, kissing him on the cheek.

"I drawed fireworks," Noah mumbled faintly.

"I know, sweet boy. Night night. We love you."

He smacked his lips and rolled over on his side. "Luvvyou."

Olivia spun around and turned to leave, but Ed wrapped his arms around her and fixed his eyes on Noah. "Stay here for a minute," he requested softly, nuzzling her neck again. "I never wanna forget this."

….

#Tuckson