Only five reviews this time but over two hundred reads. Thanks to everyone who's read it. It continues to give me hope that it's still a liked story. Thanks to decadenceofmysoul, Fairybratt02, patrickpopp, and the guests: Coco and Lalalla76849. All reviews make me happy though I do understand that sometimes you can't find anything to say or get busy so that reviewing is hard. I appreciate the reads. I do hope you enjoy this chapter.

Contains references to 7x13.

The last weekend of January 2017 blew a storm across the Carolinas and Virginia, making Anna's 17-hour trip into a 21-hour trip. Instead of getting in at 9:30 pm Thursday night like she was supposed to, it was closer to one am. Though she knew her grandfathers wouldn't mind the surprise visit and would open the door for her, so would her parents, she didn't want to wake them. She drove to an apartment building in Queens instead. Jim smiled as he opened the door. "Always knew storms blew in the drowned cat," he teased.

"I thought I'd get a better welcome here than in Brooklyn or Staten Island. Guess I was wrong," she answered.

"Oh." He shut the door in her face before saying anything else. She stared at it a little shocked and confused until he opened it again. "Anna, you look amazing. Please, come inside so we don't wake my neighbors at oh-dark-early," he said.

She stepped past him into the apartment and he shut the door behind her. She looked down at her drenched hoodie and jeans, her wet hair falling in her face. She pushed it back impatiently then looked up at him. "I really don't look all that great, but thanks for letting me stay. I hope I didn't wake you." She gripped her duffle bag strap and looked around the apartment. Her eyes settled back at him and saw he was still in his paramedic uniform.

"Nah, I worked second shift today, 2:30 till 11. Same time tomorrow, later today rather, then I am all yours. For this weekend at least," he answered, locking the door, and moving towards the bedroom.

"I can only stay till Monday morning. They have me working nights starting on Tuesday night. Wait. Does that mean you have to miss family dinner?" His family had dinner every Friday night as opposed to the Sunday night her family did.

"I do. Doesn't make my parents very happy but they understand. Let's get some sleep," he said. He slipped into his bedroom and returned shortly in a pair of pants and t-shirt. "You can take my bed; I'll sleep out here."

"But—"

He waved his finger at her, his clear blue eyes intense as they watched her. "Nope. Won't hear any different. Bathroom is through there." He motioned to the door to the left of his bedroom door.

She nodded and headed for it. "Fine, night, Jim."

"Don't go to bed angry," he called after her.

"Just go to bed," she answered. She paused at the bathroom door, looking at him. She couldn't say that she was really mad at him just that she was disappointed that she was putting him out of his own bed when he was the one with the grueling shift the next day. All she planned on doing was bingeing on TV on his couch or maybe seeing her grandfathers. She hadn't made that decision yet. Either way, it wasn't fair to him. She could see on his face however that he wasn't going to back down from taking the couch so she relented. She was about to apologize when he beat her too that too.

"I'm sorry, Anna," he said.

She frowned. "Me too. Night, Jim." She changed into her pajamas then bunked down in Jim's bed. When they both woke up the next morning, Jim took her to brunch at a nearby café and they talked for over an hour before he had to head into work.

She met Derrek and Krista that night for dinner. It was refreshing to see a couple so in love. Once they had finished their food, his arm came to rest on her shoulders as they sat back in their chairs. Krista's hand came up to tangle her fingers with Derrek's and he got this proud look on his face. Even when Krista would pull her hand away and lean forward to animatedly talk about something, Derrek would brush his hand along her back. It looked to Anna, who got paid to read behavior, almost subconscious on Derrek's part.

"So, when's the wedding?" Anna asked as Derrek signed the receipt. His hand jerked away as his eyes came up to look at her.

"You can't just ask something like that out of left field," Derrek scolded.

Anna and Krista grinned. "Don't listen to him. Probably six to eight months after he proposes," Krista said.

Anna smiled at Krista. "And when is that?" she asked lightly.

"When you and Jim become official," Derrek said. Of course he'd try to get her back but being used to playing poker against men who thought they were smarter than her when she typically held most of the cards or could bluff with the best of them meant she barely even flinched at his statement. He set the receipt aside and put his card back in his wallet as he was watched her suspiciously. She wondered what he thought he knew.

She stared right back at him, trying not to smirk. "You're going to base your decision on me and Jim? Sounds like poor life planning on your part."

"Maybe." He rolled his eyes then smiled. "No, Krista and I want to be in a good place when we start that phase of our lives. We're not in that kind of place yet." She wondered briefly what he meant by a good place. They looked pretty good together now.

"But waiting until you are could mean you miss the good things while you have energy for them."

"Never thought of that," Derrek said.

"That is something to think about, we should go do that," Krista said. They walked outside with Anna leaving a tip on the table. "Listen, this has been fun and something we should do again."

"Oh, definitely. Next time I'm in town. Maybe then you'll be announcing your engagement," Anna commented.

"We'll keep that in mind," Krista agreed. The setting sun caught her red hair as she flicked it over her shoulder.

Anna hugged Krista first then Derrek. "Take care of yourself," he said in her ear. "Security job my butt. Your job is dangerous, no doubt, but not security. Just be careful and if you need anything, please let me know."

"Of course, I will. I promise," Anna answered. She watched the brunet and redhead climb into Derrek's car on the curb. She waved until they pulled out into traffic then slowly made the walk back to the subway to take her back to Jim's place. While it could be dangerous for her to be walking alone, it was dinner time and she was a cop who knew some basic self-defense so she wasn't too worried about it.

"So, how'd your dinner with Krista and Derrek go?" Jim asked as they had a late breakfast before the wedding on Saturday.

"Decent, though they did mention they were waiting on us to become official before he proposed," Anna answered as she downed some orange juice. The pancakes he had made were some of the best she had ever had though she wouldn't mention that to her great-grandfather.

"That's poor life planning on his part."

"My thoughts exactly. I do care for you, Jim, but—"

"I know. We've had this conversation before and we both agree."

"Right. He did go on to say that he wanted to be in a good place before they start that phase of their lives."

"Probably financially and job wise."

"Maybe, or getting to know one another. My Aunt Erin married shortly after high school and that didn't exactly workout."

"But on the other hand, my parents married three weeks after my dad got hired as a firefighter at 19 and they're still together. To each their own, I suppose." He shrugged as he ate his last bite of pancake and sat back in his seat. Her parents had also been together for over 20 years so sometimes things did work out for the better.

"Yeah, maybe." As she finished her pancakes, she let her mind go down the rabbit hole of picturing a future together with Jim. Maybe it was the upcoming wedding, maybe it was her dinner with a really sweet couple the night before, she wasn't sure but it was making her wonder if she could get used to the sight before her. Sitting across from him at the breakfast or dinner table, sleeping in bed with him every night, lazy Saturdays together in the park or running errands, it all sounded like a fairy tale to her right up until her mind thought back over the previous day where she had barely seen him. She wasn't sure if she could deal with that. Not that she would know what it was like but she did get a sense that it wouldn't be all that great to have a day off when he was working. She wondered if that was how her mom felt when she had a day off, the boys were in school, and her dad was working. She shrugged it off. Jim looked at her questioningly but she just smiled and shook her head. Once she finished, he collected both plates and cups and went to do the dishes, which he insisted.

As Jim parked the car a few blocks down from the church, a thought occurred to Anna. One she hadn't thought of before.

"Jim, do you think she invited my family?" she asked him. Her family hadn't mentioned it and she wondered if it was because they weren't invited or if they were they didn't want to rub it in that they were going and risk her being upset at either not being invited or not knowing about it.

"Do you think she would?" he asked.

"I mean maybe. For three years we treated her like family and I know we have nothing but fond memories of her."

"Why don't I go get us a seat and you wait out here for them?"

"Thanks, Jim," Anna said. He went inside the church as Anna stood out front. She did have to admit, as she watched him walk inside, he cut a fine suit. There was something about seeing him in that dark blue suit that made her wonder what he looked like in his paramedic dress uniform but then remembered she was here to attend a wedding for a friend and needed to keep an eye out for her family. She turned her attention back to the street and waited nearly as long as she could and at the last moment, well almost, Henry walked up. "Pops!" she said happily.

"Anna," he said shocked, "I didn't know you'd be here."

She wrapped him in a hug. "Was invited back in October."

When he pulled back, he looked her over. She nervously brushed her hands down her blue dress. "Why don't you head inside, save us a seat, and I'll wait for the rest of the family." So they were invited, they must have just been trying to protect her by not bringing it up the same way she was kinda trying not to hurt them by mentioning it.

"It's covered," she said, waving a hand, "really, Pops, I don't mind," she added when she knew he was going to protest.

"Alright."

Fortunately, the rest of the family showed up not long after that. She was only slightly surprised when she didn't see Nicky and the boys though the more she thought about it, the more that seemed to make sense. "Anna? What are you doing here?" Linda asked.

"We can talk later. You're cutting it close as it is," she answered. They filed into the row Jim had saved, putting Anna between Jim and Jamie.

Jamie leaned over towards her. "This is the friend you were talking about, isn't it?" He motioned to the front of the church. The Facebook friend who was getting married that she had been worried about.

"Back around Halloween? Yeah," she answered. They couldn't say anymore because the ceremony was starting. For a wedding, it wasn't all that bad, in fact, she could even say she enjoyed it and Angie looked really happy. It went a long way to settle her resentment of how things ended between Angie and Joe, though Anna knew it wasn't really her fault, nor could she have done something about it.

When the Reagans and Jim sat down at their designated table, the Reagan men turned to Anna. She rolled her eyes. "Everyone, in case you don't remember, this is my best friend, Jim Miller. Jim, I do think you've met them all before, right?" Anna asked.

"Your parents, your Uncle Jamie," he pointed them out, "your grandfather, your great-grandfather, and um ... " He trailed off as he looked at Erin. He knew he had seen her before, he just wasn't sure where.

"My Aunt Erin," Anna supplied.

"Nicky's mom, right?" Jim asked. He glanced between the two women.

"Yes," Erin answered.

"She's an A.D.A in Manhattan," Anna answered.

"So, Angie invited you?" Frank asked, drawing Anna's attention.

"Uh yeah, back in October. I have to admit, it was a bit suspicious at first, especially when I saw photos of her fiancé online, but I figured I should trust her because she never struck me as the type to use her connections to get ahead."

"Did you ask her?" Jamie asked.

"Looks like I don't trust her if I do that."

"You are too much like your dad," Linda told her.

"Maybe, but you love my dad," Anna grinned. "I mean you married him over 20 years ago and you're still together."

"She's got you there," Henry said. Linda didn't say anything to that.

After dinner came dancing and by the sixth or seventh song, not that she was counting, she took Jim's offered hand and followed him onto the dance floor. Jim smiled down at her as they spun around. "Your family didn't seem too suspicious of us being here together."

"'Cause all we were doing was talking, now on the other hand ..." she trailed off as she glanced at the table. "Now though, if looks could kill."

Jim spun her a bit so he could look. "But that's not how you feel," Jim said, looking back at her.

To someone who didn't grow up around detectives, who didn't do what she did for a living, who didn't have all the training she had, it would have just sounded like a statement. Almost like an off-the-cuff remark but to Anna, who could practically hear the unsaid "right" at the end of the sentence and see the vulnerability in his eyes, she knew he struggled a little with fitting in and knew it was a question she had to answer. "Of course it's not. You know I care about you, a lot. I invited you because I wanted you here. You didn't have to come."

"I know that, but I wanted to. Besides, how could I pass up seeing you in this dress?" He spun her out to get a better look at the New York winter-weather, wedding-appropriate dress she had on. It was dark blue, form-fitting for the most part, and had sleeves that came down to about mid-bicep. It was more girly than she'd normally wear, but with the flats she was wearing, she felt good in it. She had bought it online near Christmas when it had been half priced. On the plus side, it also matched his suit, not that she had known that when she had bought it.

"What? This old thing." She grinned. Jim smiled back and squeezed her hand as he pulled her back in.

"I'm not convinced you and Krista didn't go out and buy that yesterday before dinner."

"You're funny," Anna deadpanned. A slow song started and she moved closer, leaning her head on his shoulder. Jim held her closer. For the first time in a while, she felt safe and like nothing could touch her there. Briefly, she wondered if her mom felt like this in her dad's arms. She pushed that thought aside and enjoyed being with Jim.

Jim ducked out not long after that to use the restroom and Anna dropped back into her seat at the table. It didn't take very long for every head to turn toward her. Before they could say anything, she cut them off again. To be honest she was getting a little tired of the scrutiny and was instantly reminded why she had moved clear across the country. "Yes, he's the same Jim I've known since I was 12 and that came to the hospital when I was …" she trailed off when she saw her mom wince. Linda didn't like being reminded her daughter had been shot. Anna, for her part, didn't really like talking about it so she corrected, "four months ago. Yes, I do have some feelings for him but since neither of us is willing to move at this point in time, there can be no relationship other than a voice at the other end of the phone line. He came today because I asked him to. I wasn't sure if you all were coming and it's sad to go to a wedding by yourself." She hoped that covered all the questions her dad and grandfathers had.

"You're happy with the way things are?" Erin asked.

"Unless one of us is willing to move or find someone else," Anna answered.

"As long as you know what you're doing," Henry told her as Jim returned to the table.

"Does anyone ever?" Anna asked. Angie and her new husband stepped up to the table then and Anna shot them a smile thankful for the distraction. "Angie, dear, you look positively radiant today," she said.

"My grandma told me that too, just like that."

"Are you calling me old?"

"Not at all."

"Did I tell you I love your hair. I liked the brown but the blonde seems to be working for you too," Anna said, noticing the change. The woman looked happier too, than when Anna last saw her.

"I rediscovered myself in Portland. Not that I didn't like who I was, but it's good to find a different side of yourself after everything."

"Of course. You remember the family?" Anna paused for half a beat "Ugh, why does it sound like the mob when you put it like that?"

"Because you're Irish, not Italian," Jim said. It was the Italian Mafia, Irish Mob. Apparently, there was a difference.

"True. Angie, this is my best friend, Jim."

"Hello there," Angie said.

"Pleasure. Congratulations," he said, breaking the ice.

"Thank you, and thank you all for coming. I didn't mean to put any of you in any kind of awkward spot. You just meant a lot to me that I wanted you here," Angie said.

As the rest of the family made small talk with her, Anna was content to sit back and watch. At least, until she noticed the detective looking uncomfortable every time he looked at Henry or Danny. She looked as well and saw the judging looks on their faces.

"Steve, right?" Anna asked, getting his attention.

"Uh, yeah," he answered, looking at her.

"Don't let them get to you, they like to mean-mug everyone. Based on the photos online, Angie's great taste in men, and what I know about narcotics detectives, you've gotta be a great guy."

"I really try to be," he said. "And I know how much Angie cared about Joe. I could never try to replace him. I just want to love her the best I can. And be good enough for her."

"You are better than I could ever ask for," Angie told him.

Anna turned to her dad. "I like him. Leave him alone," she said. He held up a hand and backed off. After taking a few photos with the couple, Anna found her father beside her.

"Dance with the old man," he said, offering her his hand.

Anna scoffed. "You are not old." She took his hand anyway and followed him to the dance floor.

"Everything's ok in Miami?" Danny asked.

"Everything's fine. You?"

"All good."

"I know what you're thinking," Anna said.

"And what's that?"

"You're thinking about doing this if I get married."

"You're my little girl. Every girl-dad has those dreams. Even if his little girl is more tomboy than girly-girl. So, how 'bout it?"

Anna thought about it for several long moments. "I can't promise to get married any time soon but I have never felt safer than when I'm in your arms. I hope that didn't sound weird."

"No. As your parent, that's all a dad wants to hear. That and that you're happy."

"I am happy, Dad. I could be happier, but someone once told me that you can't get everything you want in life."

"You mean Jim?" Danny said.

"I do care about him, a lot, and I know that goes against a lot of what I've said—"

"Despite stereotypes, you are allowed to change your mind. As people get older, feelings and relationships change. Jamie told me that while you were in the hospital, Jim showed up within 30 minutes of getting the call. He cares about you too."

"Well, you do read people for a living."

And speaking of reading people, he was doing it at that moment. Studying her and trying to read what she was thinking. She was doing it to him too. She wondered if he was getting any more from her face than she was from his because she wasn't getting a whole lot. "Your mom would like you to come to dinner tomorrow." She wondered what he saw that made him change the subject. Tomorrow would be the family dinner Sunday that she was kinda trying to avoid.

"Just her?" She questioned scanning his face and hoping for some insight as to whether it was just her mom who was hoping for a visit.

"You know the family." A non-committal answer. She really hated those coming from her dad. Two could play that game.

"I do." Anna waited, wondering if he'd say what he really meant or if he'd just drop it. She didn't have to wait very long.

"I'd like it if you came to dinner."

There it was. Him actually flat out asking for what he wanted from her. That she could deal with. "Yes, I'll be there."

"Good," Danny said. The song came to an end and Jamie held his hand out. Anna hugged her dad then took Jamie's hand. They didn't talk much during their dance other than him checking in to make sure she was ok. The same was true of Henry and Frank.

I hope you guys didn't mind the scenes between her and Jim. I know there are some of you who don't see the romance between them or don't want the romance with them. Also some family scenes in there though none with the boys or Nicky. Would like to know what you think.