That evening, at Kalinda's suggestion, Hank and Erin were joining her for drinks at a local bar. Hank and Erin would be ordering food too, Erin having decided not to bother cooking once she had received the invitation for the night out. Hank was pleased that Kalinda had encouraged him to ask Erin to come along. It showed that she really did want to get to know his daughter and hopefully form a bond with her, if that was the right way to think of it.

Because both of them wanted to be able to drink alcohol, Erin had ordered an Uber to take her and Hank to the bar where they were going to meet Kalinda. During the journey, Hank had just informed Erin that he had made an offer to Kim Burgess to join their private detective service.

"Getting Kim would be huge," Erin gushed. "Of all the people I've ever worked with, she's right up there with the best. I know you rate her very highly too. The question is do you think she'll go for it?"

"Honestly? I think that decision could go either way. In our favour, work that's less dangerous, as well as fewer and better hours. Those will all be big considerations for her now that she has a family. Plus she nearly died a year or so ago when someone shot her twice."

"Holy shit. I don't know that story."

Hank gave it to her in brief.

"Damn," Erin said, shaking her head. "That kind of experience would mess with anyone's head. She's done amazingly well to return to Intelligence after that. Like you said, work that isn't as dangerous is bound to have appeal after that."

Hank nodded. "On the other hand, she's about to start studying for the promotion to detective. There's potential for further promotion in CPD too. Plus she gets to work with Adam where she is now. So, as I said, I figure she could go either way on it."

"So the rest of the team know you're leaving?"

"It's a strange situation. Kim knows because I told her earlier. Adam will know by now because Kim will have told him. They obviously need to discuss her next move. Kalinda knows because I'm in a relationship with her. Hailey won't care because she's a couple of days away from moving on, and she's already got a job lined up. So the only people who need to know are Kevin and Dante. The thing is, the people who do know aren't aware that anyone else knows, so I'm going to announce it to the whole team tomorrow. I guess half of them will have to pretend to be surprised."

Erin chuckled. "Yeah, I guess they will."

The Uber pulled into the parking lot at the bar they were going to visit. It seemed quite busy based on the number of cars in the lot.

"I don't think this place was here before I moved away," Erin said. "Certainly don't think I've been here before."

"I came here on a case once, trying to track down a suspect who had been seen here. Haven't been as a customer."

They thanked their driver and got out of the car.

"You said Kalinda's friends recommended the place? Have you met them yet?" Erin asked.

"No I haven't," Hank replied. He hadn't thought about that until now. It seemed likely that Kalinda would want him to meet the friends she had lived with for a while, probably sooner rather than later.

"Let's get inside. There's a gin and tonic with my name on it."

"I'll stick to beer," Hank said dryly. "Those fancy drinks have never done it for me."

Erin laughed. "You'd look good with a G and T in your hand."

"Sure I would."

They went into the building. Seeing no sign of Kalinda, they stood at the bar and Erin insisted on getting the first round in. Once he had his beer, Hank turned his back to the bar and surveyed the room. It was fairly busy, but not crowded. People seemed to be having fun, chatting, playing pool or enjoying the music. It was what Hank thought was called dance music - not to his taste but pretty standard fare for a bar. The atmosphere was good, as Erin seemed to agree.

"I like the vibe here," she said happily.

Hank tried not to dwell on the fact that he found himself thinking about Kalinda being closer to Erin's age than his. Being a significantly older partner in a relationship was new to him, and he wasn't yet comfortable with it. The age difference between him and Kalinda seemed even bigger than it was too, thanks to her looking younger than her age.

"How big can an age gap be before it's odd?" he asked Erin.

"Huh?" she said after taking a sip of her drink. "Who cares how old people are, so long as they're both consenting adults? You're obviously talking about you and Kalinda. How old is she anyway?"

"She's fifty."

"No! Seriously?" Erin said in near disbelief.

Hank downed some of his beer to hide the smile that her reaction brought on. "Doesn't look it, does she?"

"No. I'd say she wasn't much older than me. Maybe forty-five at most. What's her secret to not aging?"

"I don't know, maybe you should as her? You didn't answer my question."

"Sure I did. I said who cares how old people are? You see someone you want to be with in Kalinda. She sees someone she wants to be with in you. Stop questioning it and be happy. If I had to guess, she probably likes an older man. That's fairly common. Plus you're an alpha male. So, I'm not surprised she likes you at all."

Hank drank some more beer and took that in. It was an ego boost for sure. Erin was right, too. What was he doing questioning the relationship with Kalinda? Things were going great so far. His effort needed to go into making sure that continued, not into wondering how they had come this far.

Then his phone rang. He could just about hear it over the music. Taking it out of his pocket, he saw Kim's name on the screen. One way or another, this was going to be an important call. He quickly showed Erin the screen then hurried towards the bar's entrance. Once he was outside, he answered the call, catching it just before his voicemail took it.

"Kim."

"Hi, Hank."

"You've got a decision for me?" It was more of a statement than a question. Why else would she be calling?

"Yes. Adam and I have talked things over and, uhm... I'm in!"

"That's great!" Hank said enthusiastically. Kim was a huge get for the new company, as Erin had said earlier.

"I should say I'm in assuming we come to an agreement on money. We like the idea of one of us having more manageable and flexible hours. It'll make things so much easier with Makayla."

She hadn't mentioned the safer work aspect. Hank didn't doubt it had played a part in her decision, but he wasn't going to bring it up. As far as money was concerned, he was confident a deal could be done. Kim was worth paying well, he knew.

"We'll work something out. Let me crunch some numbers and we'll have a conversation. I'm pleased you've decided to join us. Erin will be too. Maybe the three of us can get together for coffee or something soon?"

"That would be good. We've got plenty to talk about. I can hear you're out somewhere, so I'll let you get on with your night."

"Thanks, Kim," Hank said and ended the call.

While the call had been coming to an end, Hank had watched a white Uber pull into the lot, and Kalinda getting out of it, immediately exciting Hank with her look. She had gone for a black dress that finished well above her knees, showing plenty of her shapely legs. She wore a black leather jacket, open, over the dress. The customary leather boots and gloves were present, as was the frustrating hair style. Hair down was definitely a treat for his eyes only. Nearing acceptance of that was starting to lessen the frustration.

"Hi. You look stunning, as always," was his greeting as she approached.

"Hello, my handsome man," she gushed before planting a kiss on his lips. Hank could have gone for a lot more of that, but this wasn't the time or the place.

"We'd better get you inside. That's not a Chicago winter outfit."

"I've got a leather jacket and gloves on," she pretended to protest, knowing exactly what she was doing by mentioning the leather he liked so much.

"Yes, I know. And very sexy they are too. But you'll still freeze out here. Come on." He offered his arm and Kalinda linked hers with it. Hank felt proud walking into the bar with her on his arm. He had noted that she hadn't questioned him about who he was on the phone to, although she had seen him finishing up the call. He liked that a lot. A simple, no drama relationship would be ideal for him.

"I'm told it's a good time here," Kalinda said, taking her first look around the room.

"People seem to be enjoying themselves. The service was quick and friendly." That was a big deal for Hank. Grumpy or disinterested service staff annoyed him. On the way to the bar, he noticed a couple of men looking at him, not with the racially-motivated glares that Kalinda had warned him of, but with envy because Kalinda was more attractive than the women they were with. That was another ego boost for Hank. It wasn't only him who admired her beauty, not that he was surprised by that at all.

"Hey, Kalinda. I've got to say, I love your style," Erin said in greeting. "You always pull off your outfits so well."

"Oh, thank you," Kalinda said with a big smile. "You look great too, and I'm so jealous of that smile of yours. It's absolutely radiant."

"Radiant? I like that," Erin said.

Conversation started flowing naturally, and continued to do so for the next three hours. At one point they did consider moving on to another bar, but ultimately decided against it. When the night was coming to a close and they went outside to order an Uber, Hank found himself thinking how much he had missed such simple pleasures for so many years. A night out for some drinks and bar food with his partner and his daughter, something that probably millions of people did everyday, was something he was determined not to stop appreciating. Time with loved ones was precious.

Was that what he felt for Kalinda, he wondered, looking at her. Was he in love with her? If he wasn't, he wasn't far off it. Her mere presence with him made him happy. Even better was the fact that the feeling was mutual, he could tell. Kalinda noticeably lit up when she was around him.

"Shall we share an Uber?" Kalinda asked.

Erin looked at Hank and he could tell what she was trying to say with her expression: 'Invite her to come home with us.' Good idea, he thought.

"Why don't you come back to my place?" he suggested. "No need to call it a night yet."

"Good idea," Erin said, wanting to show that she also welcomed Kalinda into what was currently also her home.

"Alright, I'll come to your place," Kalinda said happily. She moved closer to Hank and he put an arm around her, pulling her closer still as Erin busied herself on her phone, ordering the Uber.

"This is where I belong, Hank," Kalida said quietly, for his ears only. She meant in his arms.

He leaned down slightly and kissed her on the lips. "Yeah, you do."

A/N: Kim has agreed to join the private detective service. Do you agree with Hank and Erin that she is a big get for them?

I've seen chapters like this described as fluff in other stories, and it's not usually the kind of thing I write. However I think it's important to show in this story because after all the point of the story is Hank healing from the utterly broken mess he was after Anna's death. These simple good times with Kalinda and Erin will help him heal more than he likely even realises himself.