When Hank arrived home, he found Erin at the dining table with a large pizza that she was about half way through eating. There was a large glass of cola in front of her, as well as her phone, on which she was watching a Youtube video or some kind of TV show. The sight worried him. The way she was obviously not taking care of herself had been on the back of his mind ever since she had shown up. Demolishing a large pizza was not going to help matters.
"Hey," Erin said, stopping the video on her phone. "Before you saying anything, yes, I'm stuffing my face with the dirtiest pizza I could get my hands on. But it's for a good reason. Tomorrow I'm dieting and hitting a gym. Already registered earlier. Tonight, I'm enjoying one last binge."
"Well, good for you," Hank said pleasantly, standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame. "How was your day?"
"It was good. I tried calling Jay and I got him. Turns out he still has the same number. He didn't answer, but he did call me back. It was tough at first, but we both said some things that needed to be said. In the end we talked for nearly an hour. Tears were shed, on my end. Grievances were vented, on his end. I was mortified to learn he intended to propose to me before I booked it to New York."
Hank grimaced, unsure what to say. "How did your conversation end?"
"I told him I plan to stay in Chicago. He told me he'd get in touch when he returns, but he doesn't know when that will be."
"And his marriage?" Hank asked, picking up something between the lines of what she was saying. There was still romantic interest there, at least on her part.
"Sounds like that's all but over."
"Not sure Hailey knows that. If Jay does come back here, he needs to deal with that before you... you know."
"Being the third party in a marriage doesn't interest me," Erin assured him, returning her attention to the pizza. "So, how was your day? Was Kalinda okay with you after I spoiled your evening?"
"Yes, fine. She didn't hold it against me. In fact I'm only here to get changed, then I'm going to meet her at a hotel."
"Where you can hook up without me cramping your style," Erin said, grinning. "Don't worry, I'll find myself a place as soon as I can."
"No rush. Kalinda's on the apartment hunt herself. It would be nice to have you stick around to be honest. The house not being empty when I come home is a nice change."
Erin eyed him suspiciously. "Who are you and what have you done with the real Hank?"
"I've, uh... Things have happened that seem to have changed me, Erin. We'll talk about it all tomorrow night. We'll have dinner or something. Right now, I need to get ready to go see Kalinda."
"No judgement this time. But, Hank, you're hooking up with one of your detectives? You don't need me to tell you how much of a shit storm that will kick up if the higher ups find out."
"I know," Hank admitted. It was a very real problem that he knew he had to think about. But not tonight. "I've really got to go. All that pepperoni has tempted me though. Can I get a slice?"
"Help yourself," Erin said with her mouth full.
As promised, Hank had received a text from Kalinda with the name of the hotel she had checked into, along with her room number. She had also told him that the door would be unlocked when he arrived, and he should go straight in.
The sense of youthful excitement had returned once more by the time he approached room 331. That feeling was so good that it had an addictive quality to it. He didn't want to stop feeling it, which meant he didn't want to cool things off with Kalinda. In fact it was quite the opposite, regardless of the fact that she was his subordinate at Intelligence. He intend to go full speed ahead with whatever was developing between them. At some point there was going to have to be a serious conversation about what exactly it was that was developing. Now though, talking was not what was on his agenda.
Hank reached door 331 and knocked lightly on it before trying the handle. He noticed the 'Do Not Disturb' sign was in place. Sure enough, the door opened. He stepped in, finding the lights on, but no sign of Kalinda. From the door, he couldn't see the bed. It was past the bathroom, around the corner in the main body of the room.
"Kalinda? Hi," he said after closing and locking the door.
"Hello, Hank," Kalinda said in that soft, sexy English accent as she walked around the corner. The accent was the last thing on his mind in that moment. She had long leather boots on, along with leather pants and long leather gloves that finished beyond her elbows, all in black. The only thing that wasn't leather was her bra, which was black lace. Apart from that she was topless. He felt awestruck, and also overdressed in his smart pants and shirt.
"I hope you like what you see. Went with as much leather as possible, especially for you. Couldn't do much about the bra."
"You look... stunning," was the only word he could find. He was so spellbound by her beauty and allure that he hadn't even moved towards her. Instead, she came to him. He registered the fact that her hair was up, in the style that annoyed him. Not for long, he decided.
"This isn't too much, is it? I mean, I was right about what's happening here tonight? Right?"
"You were right," Hank assured her, trying to pull himself together. Again, he couldn't believe that the temptress in front of him was fifty. She didn't look or act like it, and he found that such a turn on.
"That's good," Kalinda said, getting close to him and backing him against the door. "You can let my hair down. Or kiss me. Or both."
"Both," Hank announced. Reaching up, he removed the pin from her hair and watched it fall free over her shoulders – yet another turn on. It had been more years than he could remember since he had felt such excitement.
Now his brain finally caught up with the situation he was in, and he began to assert himself. As he began to kiss Kalinda, he spun them both around so that it was her, not him who was pinned up against the door. Their kissing was almost frantic, as if their lust had been building for months rather than days. Kalinda brought her gloved hands up to his cheeks to hold his head in place, not that he wanted to move it away, and she began moaning in pleasure into his mouth between their kisses. She tasted of coffee, which barely registered with him, let alone bothering him.
"I don't... just want... to kiss you," Kalinda said in between further kisses.
Hank pulled his head back for a moment. "I don't want you to just kiss me."
"Then you had better take me to the bed."
Not needing to be told twice, Hank put his hands on Kalinda's butt, liking the firmness of it as well as the feel of the leather pants, and picked her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, continuing to kiss him as he carried her towards the bed.
It was morning. Early morning, Hank judged based on the light he could see at the bottom of the hotel room's curtains. His mind conjured up memories of the night before. Beautiful Kalinda in her sexy leather outfit, beneath him as they had sex. Her eyes closed, moaning in time with his thrusts. It had been a wonderful night – one he wouldn't forget. Unfortunately his performance hadn't been notable. A man his age simply didn't have much sexual stamina. But Kalinda hadn't complained. In fact she seemed to have enjoyed it as much as he had.
Hank carefully turned around to face Kalinda, being careful not to wake her. It worked. She was lying facing in his direction. Even while she was sleeping, she looked beautiful. Studying her for a moment, he wondered if he might be falling in love. Yes, it was fast to consider that. Very fast. But there was something deep between them. A deep connection, along with passion that belied both of their ages.
All of a sudden, Kalinda's eyes opened.
"Hey," Hank said quietly.
"Good morning," she replied tiredly. "How long were you lying there looking at me?"
"A few seconds. I just woke up. That's probably what disturbed you. Last night was... incredible."
"It was. Made me feel young again," Kalinda said, a smile appearing on her face. "It seemed like more than sex too. Do you know what I mean? Or was it just me who felt that?"
"A deeper connection between us?" he ventured.
"Yes, exactly that."
"I felt it too, Kalinda. In fact I've already been feeling it. My life feels different somehow now that you're in it. Better."
Kalinda smiled. "That makes me happy, and I feel the same. It's like we were two lonely, miserable people lost in the wilderness who somehow stumbled across each other and started helping each other to safety." She paused for a second. "That was terrible. I can't do metaphors when I've just woken up."
Hank smiled too, then kissed her on the lips. "You did fine. There are problems though. Dating someone who works for me..."
"Not now, Hank," she interrupted softly. "I know that's a conversation we need to have. Just... not now. Let's enjoy the moment."
"Let's do that," he replied contentedly.
To his surprise, seconds later he felt Kalinda slip a hand down the front of his boxers. As if that wasn't pleasant enough, he could tell by the texture against his skin that she was still wearing the leather gloves. He had forgotten that she had kept them on when they had settled down for the night.
"Mmmm, Hank," Kalinda breathed as she felt him begin to harden.
Hank rolled onto his back to make things easier for her. What a night it had been. What a morning it was already. Kalinda Rai made him feel so many emotions that had become foreign to him over the years. She was turning his life around from what he now realised had been a horrible existence consisting of little more than loneliness and pain. She was helping him heal.
If only life was that simple, he thought. But no. While happiness possibly lay ahead, so did some big problems.
A/N: Hank hooked up with Kalinda and they slept together. But a sergeant dating one of his detectives is obviously unacceptable from CPD's point of view. How do you think he should play things moving forward?