Hey guys, happy Wednesday! Hope you're doing great!

Sorry for taking so long, but here is the next chapter!

Hope you enjoy it, I sure did.

Thanks again for all your love and support, it's so heartwarming to get all of that from you. You definieron me going!

Warning: some parts are rated M

Happy reading!

Xoxo,

Nina

The mood at the pub was very similar to the mood of the kids during field day. Everyone was happy and sparky with a drink in their hands.

Brett was relieved to see Kim walk through the door. She got along wonderfully with her colleagues and was pretty good friends with a couple of them, but nothing like the bond she and Kim shared.

On her way to the pub, the brunette had texted her friend explaining the reason for her delay and even though the blonde was big on punctuality, she couldn't be mad at Kim, especially when she was allowing herself to feel good for a change.

Both of them knew that the Ruzek subject was going to pop up at some point, especially because everyone was aware of Kim's situation with Grace.

"So Kim, how are you handling everything with Gracie?" Gina asked. She was lovely, but she also enjoyed gossip.

"It's been great actually. She's a great kid and to be honest her uncle is working really hard to make it as easy as possible on me."

"That's amazing!" Kim smiled because she knew that Gina was being genuine.

"Her uncle seems kind of a douche." Yeah, that was Ian's input. Who's a douchebag now? Kim laughed to her insides remembering what Adam had said earlier.

"Um, he's not." Sylvie Brett jumped in Adam's defense making Kim look at her and smile. By doing this she was not only standing up for Adam, but she was also avoiding her friend from entering dangerous territory. Kim was not the only one who looked at her, Gina, Ian and some other girls from the group did too."

"Wait. Are you and him…?" Ian trailed off, it would be perfect for him if Adam and Sylvie were to be dating.

"No, they're not." Now it was Kim the one who jumped in the conversation. At this point she was dying to tell everyone that she was dating Grace's uncle, but she wasn't going to do that when the girl didn't even know. It's not like a teacher was going to tell her, but Kim was certain that once they let those news out, they were going to be everywhere. "And Ian, he's not a douche. He's a cool guy, who's doing the best he can to be there for his niece." She shrugged because she refused to give away any more information than that and did her best to veer the subject away. Sylvie felt like a proud mama bear, seeing how far her friend was coming.

The rest of the night was fun, they dropped the Adam subject and just talked about everything between drinks and dancing.

When she got back to her place and when she was getting ready for bed she realized she had one unread message from Adam.

I'm home and Kevin sent you a kiss. Hope you're having a good time. Have fun and drive safely.

Good night.

It was a stupid message but she felt she was melting, so she wrote back.

Thanks for letting me know. Just got home and I did have fun. But something tells me it would've been more fun staying with you.

She was playing with fire, mainly because right now she wanted to get burned.

Crap. I knew I should've locked ourselves in your apartment when I had the chance. Lol

Would've probably stayed willingly…

Kim, if you want me to go to sleep and just wait until tomorrow to see you, these messages are not helping.

Sorry… there's something about you tho… I can't stay away for too long.

I feel the same way

It is crazy how someone can be so straightforward when texting. If Kim felt she was melting before, right now she was just a big pile of fluff.

This guy was what she never expected, what she thought she'd never have again. She was trying to move on, to feel good, to open up to him because she truly felt this was worth it. She felt that Adam Ruzek was worth that internal fight she had with her own fears.

They exchanged a couple more messages and finally fell asleep.

The day was beautiful. Sylvie was determined to live this like another prom, just like she joked about. She picked up her friend early, and decided to treat themselves to a mani and pedi before getting ready for the night. They were going to do their hair and make up together, but they were getting dressed in their own houses since both Adam and Matt had insisted on picking them up.

"Are you ready for tonight?" The blonde asked as they were getting their nails polished.

"I am, and I'm really looking forward to it. It's kind of stupid, but I kind of miss him when he's not around."

"Aw, Kimmie, are you falling in love?" She asked, teasing her friend.

"Shut up!" Kim shot back as she blushed. "I don't know. I haven't really labeled my feelings yet, but I definitely feel something. I can't deny that anymore."

"Why would you deny it?"

"It's very hard sometimes to fight my own ghosts, you know? I think about Andrew and it's like I'm cheating on him or something."

"Kim. Stop. I understand, I really do, but you have to stop thinking that. You're not doing anything wrong. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be happy again and I think Adam makes you happy."

"He does." Kim answered softly as she nodded.

"That doesn't mean that Andrew will disappear. You were lucky to find love with him and now you're lucky to get a second chance with Adam. Not everyone gets that Kim, enjoy it. Please." Sylvie said with her sweet voice trying to reassure her friend. "Stop beating yourself up, because I'm sure Andrew isn't."

"I swear I'm trying Syl, but it's so much bigger than me sometimes." Sylvie pouted because she really understood what her friend was feeling.

"I know you are, and you're doing great. Just keep in mind that you still have a life to live and we all want you to live it." She took a deep breath and looked Kim straight in the eyes. "So tonight you put on that stunning dress of yours and you have the night of your life. I'll be right there if you need me although I doubt you will even acknowledge my presence considering that Adam will be there." Sylvie said that last part pretending to be offended, but she really hoped Kim would loosen up tonight and enjoy Adam's company.

When she got to her apartment with her make-up ready and her hair in a loose bun and two delicate strands of hair framing her glowing face, she quickly put on her dress. It was a little late and she didn't want to keep Adam waiting, although he wouldn't mind at all.

She finally decided on a beautiful yellow silk dress with a lovely v neck that revealed just enough cleavage and the most gorgeous low back. The simple necklace she chose drew attention to all the right places.

Not only did she look gorgeous, but she felt like she had just come out of a fairy tale.

"Wow." That was the only word that came out of Adam's mouth as his hand absentmindedly moved to his chest. She turned around, just like she had done the previous night, revealing her whole look. His mouth was halfway open and nothing else came out of it. That kind of sacred Kim, had she overdone it?

"Is it too much? Should I get changed?" She asked nervously.

"No. Not at all. You, you just left me speechless, that's all. Kim, you look so incredibly beautiful."

"You don't look too bad yourself." She said blushing. Adam was wearing a gray suit with a matching tie. Kim thought it was the hottest thing she had seen and her very primal thoughts were just thinking about ripping all of that off him and jumping his bones, but she managed to sound calm and under control.

"Thank you." He said kindly but still couldn't take his eyes off of her.

"Why are you staring? You're making me nervous." She asked and she just chuckled as he placed his hand on the small of her back and walked her over to his truck. She felt Lightning bolts hitting her body as soon as she felt the contact of his skin against hers.

"I'm just thinking about how Gracie is totally right." Kim looked at him in total bewilderment. "You're so princess Belle. I'm going to need a picture of us to show her, she's gonna freak out." Kim laughed sweetly before she answered.

"Who knows, maybe you can make a decent prince Adam." She shrugged and continued speaking. "Although, if you're not even going to kiss me hello, I don't think you're up to a good start." She added with a mischievous grin. Adam stopped on his tracks and pecked her lips sweetly.

"Is that better?"

"Yes, it is."

The party was great, Kim and Sylvie got to dance and goof around even though most of the time they were sitting at different tables with their respective dates.

Hailey was super sweet with Kim, which was great because even if Kim would have never admitted it, having to interact with the blonde detective was something that kept her a bit nervous.

The brunette quickly realized that there was lo need to feel like that, they all made her feel totally included and part of the family, which they all assumed she was since this was the first time that Adam brought some to one of these events.

For keeping things low key they were pretty out there, especially when Adam officially introduced her to Voight. He said that she was Gracie's teacher, but it was obvious to anyone in the room that Kim was so much more than that.

"Cut it out you two." Kevin said as he walked to their table where only Kim and Adam were sitting, way too close to each other, his friend leaving kisses in Kim's jaw line.

Kim and Kev got along just great, which was a relief to Adam and surprisingly she also talked with Jay a lot during the night, mostly about the army. That had scared Adam a bit, he was afraid that maybe Kim would get overwhelmed or sad and maybe run away like she didn't last time, but he felt today was different.

Everytime she felt like she was going to lose it, Kim

looked for his hand, and the soft rubbing of his thumb against her knuckles would put her back at ease.

Adam was really happy that they were finally finding a way to sort this out.

"Come in Kev, let us enjoy the night." Adam responded.

"Exactly, you should enjoy the night over there, on the dance floor." Kim looked at Atwater as he spoke and a crazy idea popped in her head.

"Kev are you single?" she asked out of the blue. Adam had no idea where that had come from and Kevin looked at her with a charming smile.

"I am, but I don't usually go out with girls my friends are dating." Although it was totally true, he was being funny because he knew that's not where Kim's comment was coming from.

"Nah, I'm good with this one." She said leaning into Adam's shoulder, making him smile proudly. The couple of gin tonics she had taken surely helped her loosen up. "But I have a friend I think you'd like."

"Hum." Kev said, rubbing his chin. "Sounds tempting, but I don't want to piss off Casey."

"I'm not talking about Sylvie. I'm talking about the art teacher, her name is Celeste and she's great and a total cutie."

"We could have a double date or something." Adam contributed and Kim nodded.

"What do you say?" She asked with the biggest and most irresistible smile. Kevin was beginning to understand how it was that his friend had lost it over this girl so quickly.

"Sure, I'm in." He agreed and Kim cheered. "Now, you guys do me a favor and go dance a little." He didn't have to say it twice. Adam stood up extending his hand to Kim, which she quickly took and followed him to the dance floor.

The place was packed, but to them it was like they were the only two dancing.

The touch of his hands on her hips and the warm and steady rhythm of his breath on her neck was driving her crazy. She didn't want to let go of him or that feeling ever.

Intelligence was the last to leave, Sylvie had left with Matt fifteen minutes ago, not before going over to her friend and saying goodbye to her and the rest of the gang.

Kim and Hailey had really bonded that night, the blonde had even invited Kim for drinks the following week and Adam was shocked when he tried to include himself in the plan and Hailey specifically stated that it was a girls thing only, making Kim smile and Adam shake his head. He was happy though, he really wanted his girls to get along and apparently that's what was going on.

On their way to Kim's place they were interrupted by an intense spring rainfall.

"Maybe we should stop. It's raining too hard and it's impossible to see." Kim suggested.

"We're two blocks away from my place, how about we stop there, get some coffee and wait for the rain to stop so I can drive you home."

"Sure, that sounds great." She said with a smile while she placed her hand on his thigh.

They got out of their truck and ran to his building's door as they chuckled and in a matter of just minutes they were in his apartment. Adam took off his suit jacket and left it on the coat hanger next to the door.

"It's a shame you're taking that off. It looks incredibly hot on you."

"Thank you. I was hoping you'd like it." He said with a sexy smirk.

"I do, very much." He walked over to her and enveloped her waist with his arms. "I'm glad you do, because I sure enjoyed the lovely view I had all night." He closed the distance between them and kissed her soft lips. "I'm going to the bathroom real quick and when I come back I'll get the coffee ready." He didn't really want to break away from her, but they've been there before and he wasn't sure how he felt about keep on building sexual frustration between them.

"You do that and I'll get the coffee started." She offered and lightly ran her hand through the hair on the side of his head.

He came back to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sight of Kim's almost bare back as she looked outside the balcony's sliding doors.

"You love that, don't you?" He interrupted her thoughts.

"It just…" she trailed off a bit and turned her head to look at him. "It looks beautiful every single time, no matter the hour, no matter the weather. It's lovely."

"Very much like you." He slowly walked towards her and placed his hand on the low of her back, feeling how she immediately leant into his touch.

"I doubt that." She said.

"I beg to differ. You're always beautiful no matter what you're doing or what you're wearing. You shine every single time and I never get tired of just watching you. I love discovering little details about you that I never realized before, like the way you delicately lick your upper lip when you're really concentrated. The way you comfort me, reassure me. I honestly have no idea what you're doing right here with me right now. I don't know what good deed I did in life to make me deserve you even looking at me."

"Stop that." She turned in his arms and hugged him around the neck. "You're amazing, kind, honest, supportive. You have no idea what you make me feel every single day." She rested her head on her chest and was enjoying the beating of his heart.

"I might not know what you feel, but I definitely know what I feel. I'm totally falling in love with you, Kim. And I wouldn't have it any other way." Adam had never been as honest and open with any other woman. He had never exposed himself this much, he didn't want to seem vulnerable in front of her, but he also wanted her to know exactly what he felt. He needed Kim to know that this was real and that it meant a lot to him.

There was a turmoil of emotions inside Kim right now and she had no idea what to say, so she didn't speak at all. She moved her face away from his chest and focused on his glimmering eyes which just reinforced everything that had just come out of his mouth. She smiled at him and crashed her lips into his, feeling the immediate response.

Kim took a hold of his neck, as her tongue explored every inch of his mouth and he slowly moved his hands on her back enjoying the skin to skin contact.

She began to tangle her fingers in his hair causing his breathing to pick up speed. The frantic kissing continued until they had to pull apart for air, she looked at his hungry eyes and smiled. Kim decided that tonight she was going to take the reins of the situation, she didn't want him to feel like he was pressuring her or pushing her into anything, instead she wanted to show him that she wanted this as much as he did.

She lightly placed her hands on his chest and devoted her lips to kissing and lightly biting his neck. Yes, they had never been intimate before, but their past interaction showed her just how much he enjoyed that.

Adam closed his eyes in complete delight and moved his head a little to give her better access.

He was still caressing her back and every now and then he would move one hand lower cupping her bum and trying his best to pull her closer to him. It wasn't until he felt her mouth on his earlobe that he completely lost the little self control he had left. He walked, taking her with him and pressing her against the glass sliding door. The cold material mixed with the heat in her body made a million goosebumps appear on Kim's skin.

Now it was him kissing her neck. His right hand was looking for the slit on her dress that would allow him to finally touch her thigh. When he found it, he felt as if he had reached the sky, his fingers dug into her muscles and tried lifting her leg and hooking it on his hip. She helped with that task, holding him harder by the shoulders trying to keep herself steady and absentmindedly grinding her hips against his groin.

Their hearts were beating a thousand miles an hour and the feelings they were experimenting with were just incredible.

One of his hands was on her shoulder, pushing away the strap of her dress so that he could continue leaving kisses along her collarbone. As the dress strap fell, another part of her body was being exposed to him.

Kim felt lightning bolts running through her spine and Adam felt every single inch of his skin tingle. He kept on kissing her as she rested her head against the glass and took in the feeling of his warm lips against her chest.

Adam was exploring unknown territory and it felt so damn good. As his lips got closer to her cleavage and to the bare breast that was exposed to him, he stopped. His breathing was heavy, and his brain was cursing for having stopped this.

"What happened?" Kim asked, trying to catch her breath.

"Kim, I really like this, but I don't want you to think I told you all of that to get you to sleep with me." Kim couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was he adorable or what?

"I never thought that."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Ok." Relieved, he took a deep breath. Kim's leg was still on his hip and she had no intention of stopping anything. She grabbed his face with one hand and devoured his lips with hers.

"Please, just continue what you were doing." She said almost pleading, causing him to smile. He didn't speak, he just obeyed.

His mouth went back to her chest and while his lips were getting close to her bare breast, his hand started to massage the one covered by silk. As soon as she felt him kissing her most delicate skin she moaned, pinning herself as much as she could to him.

Her hands started to get wild in the search for the buttons of his shirt. When she found them, she almost ripped the shirt open and ran her hands all over his chest, but what she was really looking for was the button of his trousers.

When he felt her wandering hands, he helped her unhook her leg and held her hips tightly leading her to his bedroom, their lips never losing contact.

As they got to the room, he parted his lips from her face and they both smiled when their eyes met. Her hands were lightly placed on his chest again as she began to push his shirt off while she looked at him and bit her lower lip seductively. Once the piece of clothing was on the floor, she kissed his neck and continued to pepper all his chest with kisses, going all the way to his navel and kneeling to reach his hips with her lips. Kim unbuttoned his trousers and pulled them down leaving him in only a pair of black boxers that we're totally selling him out.

Adam grabbed her hands and tugged on them inviting her to stand up. He didn't kiss her this time, he just looked her in the eyes and used both hands to lower the straps of her dress, and helped gravity pull the whole thing to the ground. She was only in a nude thong, he observed her body and thought that he'd never seen something so beautiful. He stepped closer to her and kissed her gently as they both began to move towards the bed and fell onto it.

They took their sweet time exploring each other, kissing and caressing every part that they didn't know, enjoying the touch of their fingers, feeling electricity run through their skin. When they couldn't hold the desire anymore, when both of them craved the most intimate contact, they got rid of the last piece of fabric covering their bodies to finally become one.