Thank you so much for the comments on my first chapter. I hope you enjoy this chapter, too.

Pick Up on Aisle 10: Chapter 2

Frank finally realized staring out over the city below wasn't going to give him any answers on how to proceed. He had sent Baker home hours ago, her unasked questions left unanswered.

Hell, he didn't have answers to his own questions.

Did he believe her?

Probably. He couldn't imagine why she would lie about it. After all, she had said that she didn't want anything from him

Yet.

She could always come back.

Making demands. Threatening to go public.

Though he wasn't sure what that would gain her.

"Sir?"

He realized the SUV had arrived at his home and his driver had opened the door, waiting for him to alight. He blinked, nodded his thanks, gathered his belongings and headed to the door.

Letting himself in, he set his briefcase down, divested himself of his overcoat and headed for the the bottle on the sideboard. He grabbed a glass and filled it, gulping it down quickly before refilling it.

"I was going to ask if you wanted a drink before dinner, but I think I know the answer to that question," a voice commented from behind him.

Henry Reagan watched his son with a raised eyebrow.

"Rough day, Francis?"

Before he could answer, the older man directed him to sit, then disappeared into the kitchen. Frank heard the sound of dishes, then his father returned and placed a plate in front of him.

When he tried to push away, Henry pushed it back in front of him.

"If you're going to be drinking like that, you need food in your stomach."

"Thanks, Pops," he responded. As he started eating, he realized that he was, in fact, hungry, and he quickly polished off the meal his father had reheated for him.

He took his dishes back to the kitchen for clean up while Henry refilled both of their glasses. He sat, waiting patiently for Frank's return.

When he came back into the room, he nodded his thanks to the older man and sighed heavily as he resumed his seat. He took a drink, then sat, staring into the deep amber liquid.

A heavy silence fell, broken only by the sound of their glasses clinking on the old wooden table. Finally, the older man spoke.

"You want to tell me about it, Francis?"

Frank raised his eyes for a moment, meeting his father's gaze. He gave him a tight smile before looking back to his glass.

He finally cleared his throat.

"I had a visitor at the office today."

"Not unusual."

"This one was…unexpected."

He took another drink.

"You remember the whole thing with the gangbangers and the hostage situation at the grocery store a couple of months ago?"

"Not something I'm likely to forget," Henry confirmed.

"There was a woman there."

"Lucy something, right? Cute blonde doctor? Full of spit and vinegar, I believe you said."

Frank grinned. "That's her. Lucy Makenna."

"I got the impression you had taken a bit of a shine to her."

"I suppose I did."

"But you hadn't mentioned her again since then."

"No, I suppose I haven't."

"And she was your visitor?"

"She was."

"But this was your first contact since that night?"

"It was."

"You hadn't called her or anything?"

"I couldn't. I didn't get her number."

"Why not?"

Frank shrugged, looking down at his glass again.

"Embarrassment, I suppose. Shame, maybe."

He finally looked up, meeting his father's eyes.

"I took advantage of her that night, Pops."

Henry's brows raised. "You what?"

"I took advantage. When I took her home that night. We ended up sleeping together," he admitted.

"I know that, but it was consensual, right?"

Frank looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean, you know?"

The older man looked over the top of his glasses at his son.

"I may be long retired, but I still have those skills that made me a good cop. You didn't come home for several hours after you had called to tell me that the situation was resolved. You looked disheveled. Your hair was messed up. Your vest wasn't buttoned, nor were the top few buttons on your shirt. You were carrying your suit coat and your tie was stuffed in the pocket. And you had that guilty little boy look on your face."

Frank grunted. "Never could get one past you."

"Nope."

There was another silence as both men sipped at their drinks.

"What do you mean you took advantage, Francis?"

The younger Reagan sighed.

"It was a difficult experience. Stressful. But she was amazing. Tough. Strong. She stood up to them, didn't let them intimidate her. Did what she needed to do. She held it together for so long."

"Until?"

"Until we were on the way to her house. The adrenaline was wearing off and the reality of what happened was setting in. I walked her to the door and she just kind of broke down. Shaking and sobbing. I…"

"Held her?"

"Yeah. Held her. Tried to reassure her. It was over. Everything was fine. She was safe. All that."

Henry nodded, waiting for him to continue.

"When the worst of it had passed, she looked up at me. I could see the fear in her eyes. The relief. The vulnerability. And I took advantage of that. I should have left, but I didn't. I kissed her. Touched her. Let myself get carried away in the emotion of the night."

"Did she say you took advantage?"

"No, she didn't."

"Then give yourself some grace, son. All that stuff she was feeling? The fear? The vulnerability? The emotion? That all applied to you as well."

"I'm trained to deal with that stuff, Pops."

"Doesn't mean it can't get to you."

"No, I guess it doesn't."

Another silence stretched between the two men.

"So, why did she finally come looking for you after all this time? It's been, what? A couple of months?"

Frank lightly smacked the table a couple of times and sighed.

"As I said. It just kind of happened. No inhibitions. No planning." He looked at his father. "No protection."

Henry's eyes widened as realization struck.

"Is my 60 something year old son really telling me that he got some woman pregnant?"

The younger man shrugged. "That's what she told me."

"Did we not have that conversation, son?"

"Yes, Pops, we had that conversation. It's been over 50 years, but I still remember every awkward, embarrassing word of that conversation. Just like I remember every word of that same conversation I had with Joe and Danny and Jamie."

"And yet…"

"It happened."

"How old is this woman, Francis?:

"I'm not sure. I didn't exactly check her identification. Mid forties, at least, I think. She was married for almost 8 years, she said, and she's been widowed for over 20. Her husband was one of our officers who died in the 9/11 tower collapse."

"Oh. Well, do you think she's telling the truth? About it being yours? About even being pregnant, for that matter?"

Another shrug. "I'm not sure why she would lie about it. Especially since she said she's not expecting anything from me."

"She told you that?"

"Told me that she wasn't demanding, asking, or even expecting anything from me. That she was perfectly capable of handling things on her own."

"Then why come to you at all?"

Frank sighed. "She said she though I should know. Probably because of Joe. When we were waiting for them to take our statements, we did a lot of talking. I said that I was glad to have him in our lives and I kind of understood Paula's logic in keeping him from his father and us, but that I still am pretty angry with her for doing so. That I felt my son should have had choices."

Henry nodded his agreement. "So, what are her plans? What did you have to say?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing. I was in shock and wasn't sure what to say. Then she got up and left before I was able to get my thoughts together."

"What are your thoughts? Now that you've had some time to think?"

"Still working on that," his son admitted with a small grimace.

"Would you actually be okay with her taking care of everything? With not being involved?"

"No, I wouldn't," he replied, looking up to meet the older man's gaze again. "I don't know if she's planning to have it or to keep it if she does, but if she does so, I definitely want to be a part of my child's life. I want my child to know me, to know his or her family. To be a part of this family. Be a Reagan, with all the good, the bad, and the ugly."

Henry nodded again. "What are you going to do next?"

"I need to talk to her. Find out what her plans are."

"Back in the day, there was no discussion. You got a girl in the family way, you married her."

"I suppose that's an option, but in this day and age there are a whole lot more options. People divorce or never marry, but still manage to raise kids together. 'Coparenting' I think they call it."

"Shuffling them back and forth. Not really an ideal situation. I know how much it hurt watching Erin and Nicky navigate that."

"It did. And sometimes, you have to settle for a situation that is less than ideal, but it's doable for everyone involved," Frank argued.

Henry snorted to show his displeasure.

"Look," his son reminded him. "We've got plenty of time to get things figured out."

"That's what you think, but that 9 months goes awfully fast, so you need to get a move on those plans. Give her a call and set up a time and a place to meet and talk. Find out her plans, tell her yours."

"Except I still have the same problem as before. I still don't have her phone number."

"Francis!"

"But I know where she lives and where she works, so I should be able to catch her one place or the other and get the ball rolling."

"Okay. When are you going to do that?"

"First thing tomorrow, Pops. First thing tomorrow."

This chapter was a little shorter, but it seemed like a good place for a break. Please review. I would love to know your thoughts on this story. Next" Frank hunts down Lucy and a discussion is had.