DISCLAIMER: I do not own these characters except Matthew and Moxie. The rest belongs to James Duff and the Major Crimes Franchise.

A/N: Thanks for the great reviews so far! I know a lot of you hope that they are able to go on their date...you'll just have to keep reading. I don't know how many chapters this story is going to be. Writing again has been cathartic for me. And now, on with the next chapter...

Chapter 11

Lieutenant Provenza was standing over the scene in front of him. There was a body discovered in the pool of a well-known pastor, Mark Wesley, in the Los Angeles area. The body had been id'd as the pastor's estranged wife, Marla. The scuba divers were retrieving her body out of the pool as Lieutenant Flynn and Commander Flynn arrived at the scene. As Sharon walked over to join her second in command, Provenza met her halfway. "Ah, Commander, I told Flynn not to disturb you this morning" Provenza greeted her. Andy glared at his partner and Sharon shook her head. "Nonsense, Lieutenant" she dismissed his greeting. "What do we have?" she asked as the three of them moved towards the pool.

"Well, from what Sykes gathered while she interviewed the husband, he arrived home last night from a fundraiser and went to bed, he heard a commotion outside early this morning and when he rushed outside" Provenza gave air quotes and then continued, "he saw his estranged wife lying face down in the pool" he finished as he looked at Sharon. "Was there any sign that he had tried to save his wife?" Sharon asked as she looked at the body that was now laying on the concrete next to the pool. "Surprisingly no, Commander" Provenza answered. Sharon nodded her head as they continued to walk. "Lieutenant, can you stay with Kendall and get the preliminary information on the wife" Sharon asked Andy and he nodded, watching Sharon and Provenza walk further away from him.

Andy kept thinking that their date tonight was going to be postponed now that they caught this case. He didn't hear Kendall call his name until the third time. "Lieutenant Flynn" Kendall called again. Andy looked over at the technician and walked towards him. "What you got Kendall?" Andy asked as he knelt down to meet him. Meanwhile, Sharon and Provenza met with Amy. "Commander, the husband, Mark Wesley, is the pastor of the Elevation Church located on Wilshire" Amy started to brief Sharon. As she was listening to her detective tell her more, she glanced over at the husband and took notes for herself. She noticed that he wasn't distraught at all as he stood there watching everything.

"Ok, let's bring Mark Wesley downtown for an interview, meanwhile, have we checked with the neighbors?" Sharon asked Amy and Provenza. "Yes, Julio and Mike are speaking to them now" Provenza told her and she nodded. She glanced across the scene and saw Andy speaking to Kendall still. "Are there any cameras in the yard or around the outside of the house?" she turned around and looked at Provenza, who gave her an answer by shrugging his shoulders. "Uh, Commander?" Buzz called over to her. "Yes Buzz" Sharon turned and walked over to where he was standing. "I'm done videotaping the crime scene, is there anything else you need?" he asked her. "Yes Buzz, could you do me a favor and find the makes and models of all the cameras Mark Wesley has on the outside of his house, for a warrant" Sharon told him. "Yes ma'am" Buzz left and started looking for the different cameras.

Sharon glanced at her watch and noted it was now quarter to six, and Rusty was going to drop Matthew off at the park district for his day camp at seven. She had told Matthew that he needed to bring his backpack with him to the camp, and that he would give it to Nicole or Dean, whoever was dropping off Avery and Colin this morning. She walked over to where Andy was standing with the body. The morgue technicians were now moving her. "Did Kendall give you any information on the victim?" she asked as she stood in front of him. "Yeah, uh, preliminary time of death was around 1:30 this morning" Andy informed her, watching the features on her face, as he continued. "He found a gun shot wound in her back as well" he added and she nodded her head, "and bruising on her arms" he finished and she took a deep breath.

"Ok, patrol is bringing Mark Wesley back to the Murder Room for an interview" she told Andy as they walked back towards the entrance of their scene. "Julio and Mike are interviewing the neighbors" she told him as they met back up with Provenza. "Mike and Julio are done here Commander, they are heading back to the PAB" Provenza told them as Sharon placed her hands on her hips, looking around one more time. "Right, ok, let's head back ourselves" she told them and they started to walk out to their cars. As Sharon slid into the passenger seat of their car, she pulled out her phone. Andy closed her door and made his way to the driver's side, getting in himself. "I'm going to call Rusty to make sure Matthew is up and getting ready" she told him as he started the car. "Ok" Andy mumbled as he drove them towards the office.

"Hello?" Rusty answered his phone as he stood in their kitchen. "Good morning, Rusty, I just want to know if Matthew is up and getting himself ready for camp" Sharon asked optimistically. "Uh, yeah, he's up and getting ready" Rusty told her. "Ok, let me talk to him, please" Sharon asked him. Andy glanced over at her as he drove, wondering why she didn't just call Matthew's phone. Sharon heard Rusty call Matthew over the phone. "Hi mommy" Matthew said into the phone. "Hi sweetie, are you getting ready?" Sharon spoke softly to him. "Yes, I'm all dressed and going to have breakfast soon" he told her. "Ok, good. Oh, don't forget to bring your backpack that we packed last night for your stay with Nicole, Dean, and the boys tonight" Sharon reminded him. "Yes, mom I will bring it with" Matthew answered as he sat down at the kitchen table. "Ok, sweetie, be safe and have fun" Sharon said and waited for Matthew to say something. "I love you" Sharon responded and Matthew returned the sentiment. She smiled as she hung up her phone.

"Everything good?" Andy asked her as he pulled their car into the parking garage. "Yes" she turned and smiled at him, grabbing his right hand and giving it a gentle squeeze as he parked the car. "Um, before we go upstairs, I just want to" Andy started to tell her but she stopped him midway. She placed her finger on his lips and shook her head. "Andy, we are going to go on our date tonight" she sweetly told him. He took a deep breath and smiled. "Unless other circumstances dictate" he muttered and shrugged his shoulders. "Andy" she whispered looking deep into his eyes. She leaned in and kissed him. He looked disappointed as she broke their kiss. "Come on Lieutenant" she said as she squeezed his right hand again, in a reassuring gesture. "Yes, Commander" he replied and then they both stepped out of their car.

As Sharon and Andy stepped off the elevator on their floor of the PAB, they headed towards the hallway for their office. Chief Mason was standing just before the door with Provenza. "Chief" Sharon addressed Mason. "Good morning, Commander, Lieutenant Provenza was just telling me about the case your team caught this morning" Mason looked at Sharon. "Yes, the husband should be on his way here with some patrol officers" Sharon told him as she stood and then glanced over at Provenza. "Ah, yes, well, Flynn and I will get the interview room ready for our guest" Provenza stated and then gestured for Andy to follow him inside the Murder Room, leaving Sharon and Mason in the hallway. Mason cleared his throat before he spoke again. "I heard Chief Davis cornered you after our meeting the other day" Mason stated. "Nothing I couldn't handle Leo" Sharon simply told him. "Of course, of course. Keep me apprised of this case" Mason told her and then walked down the hallway towards his office. Sharon took a deep breath and then entered the Murder Room.

When Sharon walked inside and headed towards her office, she did not see Andy or Provenza. She opened her office door and inside on her desk was a bouquet of roses. She smiled as she stepped closer and read the note card with them. The note read 'Sharon, I Love You – Andy' as she placed the card down on her desk and placed her work bag on the floor. She wondered when Andy had them delivered to her office. She looked up to see Provenza and Andy walking back towards their desks. Andy saw that Sharon was in her office now and walked over to meet her. He knocked on her door. "Come in" she said. "Hey" he muttered as he looked at her. "Thank you for the flowers" she smiled as she looked at him standing in her doorway. "When did you" she started to say. "Have them delivered?" he finished her thought for her and she nodded. "I wanted them to be here early this morning so that when we came in to work, they would already be on your desk" Andy explained. "I ordered them before we caught this case" he added in a lower voice. "Well, I love them, and I love you" she told him as she walked over to stand in front of him, placing right hand on his tie and giving a gentle tug.

Just then, they heard a commotion coming from the hallway and as they both stepped out of Sharon's office, Mark Wesley was walking in with the two patrol officers. "Do you think I'm some sort of suspect!" he was yelling. Amy was behind them, followed by Julio and Mike. "He's been yelling since they took him out of the car" she informed everyone. "Mister Wesley, you need to calm down!" Sharon told him in a stern voice. Mark Wesley just looked at her. Andy sensed some hostility coming from Mark. "Show him to interview room 1 please" she directed the patrol officers and they escorted him towards the room. "This should be an interesting interview Commander" Provenza chimed in as he stood up from his desk and joined Sharon and Andy. "Lieutenants, please join him in the interview room" Sharon told them. Andy placed his left hand on her right shoulder before joining Provenza. They then walked towards the room where patrol just placed Mark inside. Sharon walked towards and entered Electronics and joined Buzz, Mike, Julio, and Amy. Sharon took a seat next to Buzz and waited for the interview to start.

Andy and Provenza sat down across from Mark Wesley. "Mister Wesley, I'm Lieutenant Flynn, this is Lieutenant Provenza, first of all we are sorry for your loss" Andy told him. "Thank you" Mark muttered as he sat there. "Uh, can you tell us who would want to kill your wife?" Provenza asked Mark. "I don't really know; we have been separated for the past 6 years" Mark answered as he fidgeted in his chair. "Where was she living then?" Andy asked. "At my house, we were separated but I let her continue to stay with me because it looks better if a pastor of a big church is happily married" Mark explained and both Andy and Provenza glanced at each other.

"Hmm, so he wanted to give the appearance of being happily married but in reality, they weren't?" Sharon stated in Electronics. "Amy, can you run the financials on both our pastor and his estranged wife" Sharon told her as she turned her chair back towards the monitors. Amy acknowledged and walked out of the room. "Julio, can you gather the information we have so far and work on the board?" Sharon asked and Julio nodded. "Yes ma'am" and he left the room.

"Did your wife, Marla, attend this fundraiser last night with you?" Andy continued to ask Mark questions. "She was there but she left early, I don't know where she went" Mark answered. "Do you know what time your wife got home last night?" Andy asked as he leaned forward with his hands clasped in front of him on the table. "No, look, I don't know what else to tell you, when we were not at a fundraiser or at the church, I didn't hang out with her, she did her own thing" Mark answered and was getting more agitated. "Listen Mark, we are trying to figure out who would kill your wife" Provenza interrupted Mark's rant. "Ex wife!" Mark shouted and slammed his hand on the table causing Andy to stand up. "Hey! You better control your temper, Mark!" Andy pointed his finger at him and Mark took a deep breath and calmed himself down.

"So, is she his ex-wife, estranged wife, or what?" Sharon asked out loud as she continued to watch the interview. "I'll do some digging" Mike said as he exited the room and headed to his desk. "For someone who's suppose to lead a congregation, he sure has a short temper" Buzz stated and Sharon glanced over at him. "He does, doesn't he?" Sharon agreed and nodded her head.

"Ex wife? I thought you were just separated from her" Andy asked as he sat back down. "I had filed for divorce a couple of months ago, but she didn't want to sign the papers" Mark answered. "Why not?" Provenza asked as he leaned back in his chair. "I don't know, she never really told me why" Mark said. "So then why did you file for divorce?" Provenza wondered as Mark was fidgeting again in his chair. Mark looked up at Provenza and Andy before he answered. "Because I had met someone else" Mark muttered. After hearing that, both Andy and Provenza looked at each other and nodded their heads. "What's her name?" Andy asked him. "Why? She had nothing to do with this" Mark told them. "We'll be the judge of that" Andy grumbled as he was losing his patience with him. "Tell us, don't tell us, we will find out one way or another, Mark" Provenza told him as he and Andy stood up from their chairs and started to exit the room.

"Wait, I'll tell you the name" Mark called out. Provenza stopped and turned around. "Michelle Robbins" Mark told them. "And where does Michelle Robbins reside?" Provenza asked him as he stepped back into the room with Andy behind him. "Santa Barbara" Mark told them. Provenza nodded and turned around to exit the room again. "Ok, Mark, you can go home now, but if we need to ask you any more questions, we will contact you" Andy told him and then he signaled for the patrol officers to escort Mark out of the office.

Provenza and Andy walked into Electronics and joined Sharon and Buzz. "Well, that was odd" Sharon stated to her Lieutenants as Provenza closed the door behind them. "Yeh well, first their estranged and then their divorced or" Andy gestured with his hand and Sharon stood up from her chair. "Right, so again, who would want to kill Marla?" Sharon asked as she walked through the door that Provenza had opened for her and made her way towards the Murder Board. The two of them followed her there. As she walked closer to the board, she saw that Julio had the main characters on the board so far and had constructed a time line of events. "I started working on the time line of what we have so far and what Tao and I got from the neighbors, ma'am" Julio held the dry-erase marker in his right hand as he continued to put things up on the board. Sharon nodded and then turned her focus over to Amy.

"Where are we with the financials Amy?" Sharon asked her as she leaned up against the empty desk in front of her. "Just printing out the reports now" Amy stood up to retrieve the papers from the printer, stopping at Provenza's desk to deposit some change she had with her into his 'copy' jar. "There's something interesting here in Marla's report" Amy pointed at the report as she showed Sharon. Sharon tilted her head as she read it. "Where did she get this money from?" she asked. "From what I can tell, Commander, it looks like it came from the church" Amy answered as she sat back down at her desk. "Was she embezzling the money?" Sharon asked out loud as she handed the report to Andy. "Well, like I always say, it's always the husband!" Provenza stated as he sat down at his desk. Sharon gave him a look and shook her head.

"If she was embezzling the money, who found out about it?" Julio asked the group. "Well, whoever found out, probably killed her" Andy chimed in as he returned to his desk and looked over the financial reports of both Marla and Mark. "Mike, did you find anything interesting?" Sharon asked Tao as she walked over to his desk. "Yes, so Mark filed for divorce 2 weeks ago" he said as he pointed to the report on his computer screen. "He made it sound like it was longer than 2 weeks ago" Provenza chimed in. "Yes, well I think Mark hasn't been truthful with us" Mike suggested and then pointed to another report on his computer screen. Sharon looked at what he was pointing at, stood up, and folded her arms across her chest. "She signed the divorce papers?" she stated as she glanced over towards Andy.

"We can have patrol turn around and bring him back if you want, Commander" Provenza said as he leaned forward at his desk. "No, not yet, Lieutenant" Sharon waved him off. "Have we found Michelle Robbins yet?" changing the subject, Sharon walked over to the board. "I called the Santa Barbara Police Department, they're doing a knock and talk for us, ma'am" Julio answered her. "So, Marla was embezzling money from Mark's church, did Mark know about it?" Sharon asked the group. "Possibly, that's why he filed for divorce" Mike answered as he read the divorce decree on his computer. "It says irreconcilable differences, but then underneath it states money misappropriation" Mike continued and leaned back in his chair. Sharon pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes before turning around and walking towards her office. Andy watched her enter her office from his desk. Before he could follow her in, Buzz walked back into the office carrying a box of bagels and doughnuts. "I went out and picked up breakfast for everyone" he stated as he placed them down at a desk. Both Provenza and Andy gave him a look. "The Commander sent me out" he explained.

As Sharon sat at her desk, admiring the flowers that Andy had sent, she wondered why Mark was not being truthful in the interview, what was he hiding, and who would kill Marla. A knock at her door brought her back. "Come in" she said and sat up in her chair. Andy walked in with two bagels and closed the door behind him. "I brought your favorite kind" he told her as he handed the blueberry bagel to her. "Hmm, thank you" she smiled as she took the bagel with cream cheese on the plate from him. She glanced at the clock in her office. It was now 8:30. "So, what are you thinking?" Andy asked her as he took a bite from his bagel.

She placed the plate with the bagel down on her desk before she answered him. "Mark didn't seem too distraught this morning when we were at his house" she told him. "Yeh, for someone who had just found his former wife dead in the pool, he didn't seem too remorseful" Andy agreed. He noticed that she hadn't touched her bagel yet. "Sharon, you need to eat something" he said in a low voice. "I am" she responded and then picked up one side of the blueberry bagel and took several bites. He gave her a knowing look, the 'you can't fool me' look he gives her whenever she forgets to eat because a case starts bothering her. Another knock on her door made Andy turn around in the chair he was sitting in. "Yes?" Sharon called out as she finished the half of bagel. Julio walked in. "Sorry to disturb you, ma'am but Santa Barbara Police just called, they said when they went to the apartment of Michelle Robbins, they found a gun with her" Julio informed the both of them and Sharon leaned back in her chair and shook her head. "They're bringing them both down here to us" Julio finished. "Thank you" Sharon nodded her head and watched Julio leave her office, closing the door behind him.

Before she could say anything to Andy, her desk phone was ringing. "Commander Flynn" she answered the phone. Andy never got tired of hearing her say that whenever she answered her phone. "Yes Doctor, we will be down shortly" Sharon said and then hung up her phone. "Doctor Morales is ready for us" she said as she stood up from her desk and Andy joined her at the side door. "I know I was worried about our date tonight, but I can call the restaurant and cancel our reservation" Andy spoke in a low voice again, just so she could hear him. "Don't do anything yet, Andy" she ran her hand down his chest and sighed. He nodded and then opened her door as they both stepped out. "Doctor Morales called, he's ready for us" Sharon told the team as she walked towards the main door. "Lieutenant Provenza, will you join Andy and me there" she asked as Provenza stood up and placed his suit jacket on. "Lieutenant Tao, if Michelle Robbins shows up while we are still at the morgue, show her to Interview Room 2 and if you and Amy could start the interview with her" Sharon instructed Mike and he acknowledged.

"Ah, Commander and Lieutenants, nice of you to join me this morning" Doctor Morales stated as he stepped out of his work area and greeted them in the lobby. Sharon, Andy, and Provenza were all wearing medical gowns over their clothing and were ready to step inside. "Please, come on in" Doctor Morales held the door open for them and they all stepped in one at a time. "So, cause of death was not the 9 millimeter gun shot in her back, but drowning from being in the pool" Doctor Morales stated as he pointed to the gun shot wound in Marla's back. "There's bruising on her arms, Doctor" Sharon stated as she looked at Marla. "Yes, I'm guessing by the shape and angle of the bruises, she struggled with someone while in the pool, then got knocked out with a blow to her head" the doctor pointed out and then showed the head wound to them. "There were pieces of concrete in the head wound" Doctor Morales pointed to. Sharon thought through what the doctor was saying. "She hit her head on the side of the pool" she concluded. "Or her head was forced into the side of the pool" Andy suggested as he watched Sharon.

"Thank you Doctor" Sharon told him and then left the room. Doctor Morales looked at the Lieutenants and then nodded as they also left. "It seems a little personal to me, Commander" Provenza chimed in as they removed their gowns and threw them away in the garbage can. "Yes, Lieutenant, it does" Sharon said and then walked towards the elevators away from them. Andy sighed as he watched her. "I can't believe I'm saying this but you two really need to go out on your date tonight" Provenza patted Andy on his shoulder as he left his friend and headed towards the elevators and his Commander.

TBC