Okay so first off like three or four guest reviewers asked me if I could seriously hurt or injure Anna. Really? Why would I ever do that? Yes it could show her how much Danny cares for her and it might change her attitude towards him but she's 16, and despite what is shown on TV some people go their entire lives without ever being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Anyway, big thanks to all those still reading and putting this story on their favorite/alert lists. Thanks to TillyPan, Jlmayer, monkeybaby, decadenceofmysoul, and the guest becca for reviewing the last chapter.

That afternoon, Anna waited on the sidewalk in front of her school for a good five minutes and, not seeing her dad, she sighed and headed home, resolving herself to call the DMV when she got there to cancel the appointment. She was just out of sight of the school when a blue sedan pulled to a stop next to her on the curb. Anna looked at it curiously and found her dad behind the wheel when he put the window down. "Get in," Danny ordered. Anna stepped up to the car and looked in the window.

"If I'm going to test in this car, I have to drive it at least once. Please? Unless you want me to fail. That's your plan isn't it?"

"Don't get pulled over." Danny put the car in park and, after checking the mirror to make sure no car was coming, he climbed out and walked around the car.

Anna smirked as she walked around the opposite direction. "Oh, I can imagine that. Uni runs the plates and finds out they've pulled over an unmarked police car. Wonder what Grampa would say?" she asked as she checked for cars then opened the driver's side door.

"He'd wonder why I let a 16 year old civilian drive an unmarked police car," Danny answered, sliding in the passenger seat.

Anna tossed her backpack in the back seat and got settled behind the wheel. "So what did you tell your sarge?" Anna questioned.

"Oh, you know, following a lead." Danny shrugged.

"He accepted that?"

"I'm good at my job. Anna, are you really going out with this guy tomorrow?"

"Yes. And my friends Derrek and Krista are going with us."

"What if I said you couldn't go? That ever cross your mind? Did you ever think of asking?"

"Why do you think me not asking you means I didn't ask? I'm 16 and there are some things a 16-year-old girl doesn't ask her dad. Mom knew since Saturday night. She said it was okay."

"Of course she did." Danny shook his head.

"Are you mad?"

"Your mom said yes? No. She could have told me though."

"She tell you everything? Better question, do you tell her everything?"

"There are some things I can't tell your mother. She knows that and if it was about you kids, she knows I'd tell her."

"I'm sorry. It's kinda my fault."

"Anna," Danny started.

"No, it's my fault. I could have asked you both and I didn't."

"I know why you didn't and I don't really blame you. Take a left at the next light."

"I'm still sorry," Anna admitted.

Danny nodded. Anna checked in with the lady at the desk who handed her a clipboard and told her to fill it out. She breezed through the forms until she came to the last two. The first was information on the car she'd be using for the test and the second was the form that confirmed she had the required hours of driving with a supervising driver. She handed the clipboard to her dad who filled out the first form and looked at her. "If I don't sign this, you don't get your license and I can keep you in pigtails and princess dresses."

"Dad!" Anna was outraged.

"But," he went on as if she hadn't spoken, "that also means you won't talk to me for three weeks." Anna stared at him. "I know what I'd prefer," Danny said. He scrawled his name across the form and he handed her the clipboard back.

"Love you." Anna kissed his cheek then returned the clipboard and forms to the desk.

The woman looked them over then looked at Anna. "Okay, just have a seat at that computer and follow the onscreen instructions. When you're done, have a seat back over there and an instructor will be will you shortly." Anna nodded and took the written test. Not long after that, Anna sat back down with her dad.

"Well?" Danny asked.

"It didn't say, but if I did pass, the instructor will be out soon," Anna told him. "How come we didn't go home first? We could have brought my car and you wouldn't have gotten in trouble for letting me use an unmarked police car."

"Because your car has a burnt headlight. I did go there first. Figured I'd pick up your car then pick you up. I saw the headlight and figured the sedan was the best bet because you've never driven the Jeep. One of the worst things you can do is take your test in a car you're unfamiliar with and fail your test. Especially if they make you do parallel parking."

"That's what the book says."

"You'll be fine. Remember what your uncle and I taught you and you'll be fine. Relax."

"Thanks, Dad."

"Ms. Reagan, a moment?" The clerk motioned her over. Anna looked at her dad nervously but went over to the clerk. "According to our system, the car you'll be using for the road test is an unmarked police car. Is that correct?"

"Yes, ma'am registered to the 5-4 squad out of Manhattan."

"And may I ask how you got the car to use?"

"See the man I was sitting with? You'll see a gold badge shaped object on his belt, that's my dad and that's his gold detective shield for the NYPD. Richmond County still falls under NYC and NYPD jurisdiction. I've read the driving guide cover to cover and googled the rules for the road test. When it comes to the car, all it says is it has to be in good, working condition with working lights, seatbelts, and airbags. Nowhere does it say the car has to be in my name, just registered and insured, which as you can see, it is."

"I see. Okay. The examiner should be out in the next few minutes."

"What was that about?" Danny asked as Anna plopped into a chair next to him.

"The car. She was trying to say I couldn't use it because it's a cop car. It's all straightened out now though."

"Okay." They waited for a few more minutes before the examiner came out and called her name. She stood and walked over to him. He took her permit and they went out to the car. He looked it over then told her to turn on the lights and each turn signal. He checked the back then climbed in the passenger seat.

"Ms. Reagan, I'm Instructor Smith, whenever you're ready, put it in drive and pull out to that intersection," he said, scribbling on the paper on the clipboard in front of him. Anna nodded, checked her mirrors, and started the car. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out to settle her nerves before pulling out of the parking spot. They drove around for close to 20 minutes and then he told her to go back to the DMV. "Now, park between those two cars on the curb there."

Anna looked at the black and gold cars and worked herself up to it. She pulled up next to the front car and slowly backed into the spot. She straightened the car out and shut off the engine. "Is that good?"

"This your first licensing test?" Mr. Smith asked. Anna nodded. "You've done better than a lot of other 16 year olds have."

"So ... I passed?"

Mr. Smith looked over his paperwork before he looked back at her. "Keep an eye on your speed, Ms. Reagan, or eventually you'll lose your license but yes, you passed." He handed her a piece of paper. "Take that to the receptionist and she'll take your picture. You'll get your class DJ license in two to three weeks in the mail. Have a nice day."

"Thank you." They got out and went inside. "Hey, Dad," Anna said, walking over to him and keeping her face neutral.

Danny did his best to discern the results but for once he couldn't tell. "Yeah, kiddo?" Danny hoped for the best.

"I passed." Anna grinned.

Danny didn't show how relieved he was. "Of course you did," he stated. "Never any doubt." Anna smiled widely and walked to the counter. It wasn't long before they were on their way. Danny dropped her off and went back to work. Anna meanwhile got started on her homework. She had just finished Math when the front door opened. Anna looked up, debating for a brief moment whether or not to go for her dad's gun in the closet, then saw her mom and brothers.

"I made it, Anna!" Jack told her.

"That's great, Jack," Anna answered.

"Me too," Sean said. He sounded less happy than Jack did though.

"You don't sound quite as happy," Anna said as Linda set the pizza boxes on the table.

"It's a different team," Sean said.

"A chance for you not to be known as Jack's little brother. You'll get out there on the field and show them how amazing you can be and not as Jack's little brother."

"Thanks, Anna."

"I know it's hard, not having your brother there because you'll miss him but it'll help you get ready for next year when you and Jack are in different schools okay?"

Sean nodded. "Did you get to take the test today?" he asked.

"I did, and I passed. I get my license in two weeks in the mail."

"But you passed?" Jack asked confused.

"It's the way New York does it. Mom, are you okay? You haven't said anything since you came in." Anna looked at her mom.

"I'm fine. Did your dad say when he'd be home?" Linda wondered.

"No," Anna answered, shaking her head.

"Okay. Go ahead and eat," Linda told them. She smiled at her kids and went back into the living room. Anna stared after her mom for a minute but went into the kitchen and got plates, glasses, and milk. After dinner, the boys rushed outside to enjoy the last few hours of sunshine and Anna put the extra pizza in the fridge before joining her mom on the couch.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Anna asked.

"I'm fine, sweetie," Linda answered, staring at her magazine.

"Is everything okay between you and Dad?"

Linda looked at her daughter and smiled softly. "Don't worry about it, sweetheart."

"But Mom—"

"Sometimes couples go through tough times. I have no doubt that your father loves me and he knows that I love him. A lot of things can play into it. We'll work through it."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, go play with your brothers."

Anna watched her mom for a moment but stood and went out back with her brothers.

Wednesday afternoon the doorbell rang just after five and Sean raced to answer it. He opened the inside door and looked at the boy. He looked very familiar but he wasn't sure where from. "Hi, can I help you?" he asked.

"I'm looking for Anna," the boy answered.

The outside door was pushed open by a hand over Sean's head. "Come on in, Derrek," Linda said from behind Sean. Sean moved and Derrek entered the house. He ran a hand through his dark hair as Sean bolted off to find Anna. "You can relax. Danny's not home." Derrek relaxed; thankful he didn't have to go through a round of 20 questions. "Is Kyle in the car?" Linda asked.

"Uh, no. He had football practice so he's going to meet us there. It's a diner not far from here. We'll have her home by 9:30," Derrek said.

"Good," Linda said.

"Hey, Mom, Derrek," Anna bounced down the stairs towards them.

"Ready to go?" Derrek inquired.

"Yep. I'll be home by 11," Anna grinned.

"Your curfew is 10:30 and Derrek already said you'd be home by 9:30," Linda said.

"Derrek!" Anna wined.

Derrek stared at her. He shrugged and rolled his eyes. "What? I have to have Krista home by 10. Unless you want to wait in the car while I make out with her, I'm dropping you off first."

"Whatever. I'll text if plans change," Anna told her mom. "Derrek and Kyle's numbers are on the fridge and it's the Bluebird Diner on Thompson Street. I have my cell if something comes up."

"Okay, stay safe," Linda cautioned.

"Yes, ma'am," Anna replied. Anna bid goodbye to her brothers then walked out with Derrek to his car. As they drove to the diner, Anna leaned into the front seat and glanced from Derrek to Krista. "So what exactly does one talk about on a first date?"

"Interests, hobbies, movies, just get to know him," Krista suggested.

"Find out what he does for fun, his favorites; tell him the same about you. Worse comes to worse, you can always talk about the Giants," Derrek said.

"Makes sense," Anna said.

"Hey, we'll be right there. You run out of things to talk about or it gets uncomfortable, we'll cover and if you ever want to go home ..." Derrek stopped at a red light and looked at her.

"I'll let you know," Anna agreed. That didn't happen though. They talked about food, school, movies, music, and football. They didn't talk about baseball. Anna wondered about it but figured it was because they liked two different teams that had one of the longest rivalries in the MLB.

Anna got home to find both of her parents on the couch enjoying a bottle of wine. When she shut the door, they looked at her. "You have fun?" Danny asked.

"Yeah," Anna answered, leaning back against the door.

"The least he could have done was walk you to the door," Danny said.

"He could have but it would have been Derrek, not Kyle. No way was I getting into a car with a guy I don't know well."

"That's our girl. Oh, speaking of, how are classes this year?" Linda asked.

"Mom, it was the second day of classes. But I looked at the syllabus and it doesn't look too hard. As long as I stay organized. Uh ... there's a football game on Friday, first home game of the year, and a bunch of my friends are going. Can I go too?"

"Last minute, Anna? You know better than that," Linda said.

"I know, Mom, but I didn't know I wanted to go. It's just at my school, lot of people around, no danger. Please?" Anna asked.

"Curfew on weekends?" Linda pressed wondering what the girl would answer.

"11. I don't know what time the game is over but it can't possibly take four hours, could it?"

"What do you think, Danny?" Linda turned to her husband.

"We trust her, more than we did last month. It's at a high school, a lot of people will be around, to include family friends. What could go wrong?" Danny suggested.

Anna and Linda both stared at him in disbelief. It was very rare for him to take Anna's side. "Please, Mom?" Anna asked, turning her eyes back to her mom.

Linda looked from her husband to her daughter and back. "Okay, you can go," Linda said.

"Thanks, Mom. Gotta go tell Beth." Anna moved towards the stairs. Danny stood and slid in front of her giving her a look. "Thanks, Dad." Danny hauled her into his arms and held her tight. Anna rolled her eyes but gave him a quick hug. When he let her go she rushed upstairs and texted Beth who told her that was great and she could give Anna a lift if she needed it. Anna thanked her and got online to talk to Sofie about the date.

Come Friday night, Anna found herself huddled in her St. Agatha's baseball hoodie during a rainy halftime in the student section. Beth was supposed to be coming back with cocoa but there was no sign of her as of yet. Something warm wrapped around her shoulders and Anna looked to see Jim's brother standing there. "Mom sent me over. Said to make sure you were warm and dry. She would have sent Jim but she's not sure where he disappeared to," he told her. Anna looked down to see he had wrapped a beach towel around her shoulders.

"Tell her thanks," Anna said, looking back at him.

"Sure, have fun." Jim's brother walked off and a few moments later Beth was back.

"Nice towel," Beth said, dropping into the seat next to Anna.

"Thanks, what took you so long?" Anna asked.

"My mom wanted to talk." Beth handed over Anna's cocoa. Anna took it and wrapped half the towel around Beth. "Where'd you get the towel? Did I miss a free give away?"

"Jim's mom sent it over."

"She did?" Beth raised her eyebrow and gazed at Anna skeptically.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Anna snapped. She stared at her friend trying to figure out what was going on behind those hazel eyes.

"Nothing, nothing at all," Beth said. She smiled trying to look innocent.

"But?" Anna wasn't buying it.

"Well ... Jim kinda goes out of his way to take care of you."

"And?"

"And ... Well ... have you ever considered he could like you?"

"We've been friends since the seventh grade, of course he likes me."

"As more than a friend, Anna."

"Come on, he does not. He's a friend."

"So you don't have any feelings of the romantic variety towards him?"

"Even if I did, he doesn't like me like that. If he did, why would he try to set me up with Kyle?"

Beth shrugged. "Mates before dates?"

"He could have told Kyle I had my eye on someone else and it was a no go," Anna answered.

"Sometimes we have to have our heart shattered before we can see what's right in front of us."

"Don't quote me back to me."

"It's what you told me when Jason and I broke up. Still don't know who's right in front of me but ... Anyway. You can't only date your soulmate. Sometimes you have to see what's out there before you find your way home."

Anna shot Beth a look as any verbal response would have been drown out by the thunderous applause for their team returning to the field. After the game they met Jim, Derrek, Krista, Todd, Sara, and Josh in the parking lot. They talked about the game for a bit waiting for Kyle and few other friends to join them. When Kyle did come out, he walked up behind Anna and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "So, where's everyone going from here?" Kyle asked, looking around the group.

"How about we head to Crash's?" Derrek mentioned. "Milkshakes, food, video games." Almost everyone agreed.

"Would love to but I can't," Anna said.

"Come on, babe," Kyle groaned, "it's not a school night and it's not even Saturday."

"Yeah, but my parents will flip if I'm not home by curfew."

"Call them; see if they'll extend it."

Anna glanced at Jim and Derrek, both who shrugged. They didn't care either way. As long as she wasn't getting in trouble they'd love to have her but if she would they'd rather have her go home. She could always come out with them some other time. "Hello?" Linda answered the phone.

"Hey, Mom. I know my curfew is 11 but—"

"But?"

"Well, my friends were talking and we were wondering if maybe you wouldn't mind if we went to Crash's. Extend my curfew by half an hour?"

"I don't know this kid. I'm not sure ..."

"Mom, Crash's is the name of the nearby bowling alley. Milkshakes, nachos, and an arcade."

"Oh. I'm sorry, Anna, not tonight. Maybe next time."

"But Mom!"

"I said no, Anna."

"Fine, I'll be home soon." Anna hung up and looked at Kyle. "Sorry, handsome, my 'rents are a no go."

"You sure?"

"Dude, her dad's a Marine, no means no," Todd mentioned.

"He's right, they won't let me go. Somebody give me a ride home?" Anna asked.

"Sure, come on," Jim answered.

"I'll see you later, Kyle," Anna said. They hugged, then she kissed his cheek before leaving with Jim.

"Do you think it's weird? You leaving with me instead of with him?"

"Jim, I barely know him or trust him. I know you and you would never hurt me."

"How much longer before you think you can trust him?" Jim asked, opening the door for Anna.

"I don't know, I've known him for a week." Anna climbed in the cab of the truck.

"He's a good guy, Anna. He's never cheated or hurt any girl that I know of. Just trust him."

"Give it a few more weeks and if you don't like me not trusting him so much, then stay out of it."

"Fine." Jim was silent the rest of the ride home. "Home sweet home."

"Thanks for the ride. And thank your mom for the towel," Anna said. Jim nodded.

Oh, hey, if any of my old reviewers, who haven't reviewed in a while are still out there, I'm glad you're still reading this even if you find nothing to say.