Come the Rain

by Kadi

Rated: M

Disclaimer: It isn't my sandbox. It is my favorite place to play, however.

Chapter 13 – Epilogue

Andy watched the sky with some concern as he left the police station. The clouds that had been building off the coast were moving closer. The storm was promising to be a good one. It would be the first real rain of the summer, and they needed it. The spring and early summer months had been too dry, and the storm promised to unload a few inches of much needed rain. They would weather the damaging winds and power outages that it would bring in exchange for that precipitation.

The road to recovery had not been an altogether easy one, but it was not overly terrible either. It just reminded him that he was not as young as he used to be. When he had first gone back to work, he found that he tired more easily. That had passed, but it had given him pause. He thought more about retirement more than he used to. This job was never meant to be a permanent one; it was just something to fill his days at a time when he was not ready to be completely without his badge.

Andy wasn't sure that he was entirely ready for that step yet, but the thought was there. The idea no longer filled him with dread. It was something to look forward to.

At the moment, he was more concerned about that storm. He kept an eye on the clouds as he made his way home. He had a couple of officers on duty for the evening, and the rest of his small department was going to be on call throughout the night. He was planning to get home before it hit. He wasn't the only one with that idea, he realized, and noticed as he drove through town that some of the shops and businesses had closed early. Fewer people out and about later in the evening would be a good thing. It would be less to worry about once the storm rolled in.

As he pulled into his driveway, his concern gave way. A smile split his face at the sight of a familiar sedan. Andy parked his car alongside it and slid out of the vehicle. He shrugged out of his jacket as he walked toward the house. Once he was inside, Andy dropped the jacket on the back of the couch. He pulled off his badge and gun and left them laying on the breakfast bar and walked through the house, looking for the owner of that sedan. He wasn't surprised to find her on the back deck. It was her favorite place.

She was watching the storm roll in. Andy moved behind her and let his arms slide around her waist. He drew her back, grinning as the wind lifted her hair. "I thought I told you to stay in LA." He hadn't thought she would make it home before the storm, and he hadn't wanted her on the road when it hit.

"I considered it." Sharon settled back against him. She drew his arms around her, but her gaze remained on the dark horizon. She had only gotten home from taking Rusty to DC the day before. She had driven down at the beginning of the week to help him pack. The months preceding his move had been spent in moving herself. The rest of what she could not live without was in the two boxes she had brought with her from Los Angeles. Afterward she had officially closed up the condo and started north. "It was a long week," she said. "I was ready to be home."

"How's the kid?" He turned his face into her neck and let his lips brush the soft skin beneath her ear. "Did you get him settled?" They had only spoken briefly before and after she had gotten on the plane back to LA. Andy knew that she was coping with the move. When she had dodged his questions with only the most basic answers, he had let it go. She would talk about it when she got home.

"He's good." Her arms tightened around his. Sharon drew a breath and let it out slowly. She already missed him terribly. Rusty was so excited, though, it was hard to not be excited for him. "You should have seen him; the way his eyes lit up when he saw that campus." She chuckled softly. "He couldn't push me out the door fast enough."

"I don't believe that." He held her more tightly. "He's going to miss you, too." Andy kissed the side of her head and let his eyes lift toward the horizon. The storm was getting closer. It would be upon them soon. "How many times has he called?"

"Twice." Sharon smiled warmly. There had been numerous text messages too. Her boy was settling in well. He was going to be okay, and so was she. Sharon rested her head against Andy's shoulder. The rumble of thunder could be heard in the distance and was moving closer. "The apartment is bigger than the pictures made it seem. They didn't do it justice. It's in an old brownstone. He couldn't be happier."

"Good." He was just glad to have her home. Living together was an adjustment. It was certainly a lot different than their brief visits, but he had gotten used to having her around. Sharon worked from home. She had turned one of the spare rooms into an office, but he found her on the deck with her computer more often than he found her in her office, weather permitting. Consulting gave her a lot of free time, more than she had when she was still a Police captain. She spent a good deal of it on the kids. When she wasn't with Nicole or Ricky, she was flying to New York to visit Emily. While it had seemed a little daunting at first, her move had ended up being good for them all. The firm she worked for was based in LA, so she flew down at least once a month. Andy usually accompanied her.

Now that Rusty had moved, he expected that their schedules would settle down some. They could finally take the grandsons camping again. His hands rubbed up and down her arms. The air was becoming more humid. Andy's hands curled around Sharon's. His thumb swept over the ring on her left finger. He had put it there just a few weeks before. Planning a wedding might be something else they would have more time for now. Time wasn't infinite, but they had a lot more of it. The ticking clock was finally silent. She wasn't going anywhere. Neither was he.

The wind picked up, and with it, a few drops of rain fell around them. Andy turned his face into Sharon's hair. "We should go in," he told her. "It's going to rain."

The sky was becoming angrier. The sight mesmerized her, but then, it always had. Her head tilted as she watched it. Sharon settled comfortably against him again. She could smell the moisture in the air. There was something sweet and just a bit alluring about how clean the air felt and smelled right before it rained. Her eyes closed. A smile curved her lips. She shook her head slowly as she turned in his embrace.

The last few months had been very busy for them. She had transitioned out of a job that she never expected to leave, but she had done it happily with the knowledge that her life was evolving. If Lieutenant Provenza called her twice a week to complain about the fact that he saw more paperwork now than should exist, she only laughed each time she answered the phone. One day, he would get the hang of the budget reports.

Her new job was fulfilling in a way that it gave her something to do, but still left her free to explore all of the changes in her life. She liked having more time for her children. Afternoon coffee with Ricky and weekend shopping trips with Emily had become a luxury that she would never take for granted. She had enjoyed having the time to help Rusty make his move. To be able to take days to help him pack, and then be able to travel with him without the thought looming over her head that she might have to rush back for a case. While there were some parts of her former career that she missed, she was embracing all of the good that had come from retiring from the LAPD.

The man in front of her was certainly one of those things. Sharon's arms wound around his waist. She tipped her head back to smile up at him. There were definitely moments when he tried her patience, and she was certain that the same was true of her for his. She wouldn't give him up. They argued, and they talked, they laughed, and they loved. He had the best view in town, and even watching a storm roll in, she didn't miss her balcony. She would have it again the next time that they were in Los Angeles, but she had come to love the waves, the cliffs, and the trees far more than she ever loved the gleaming glass and steal of the city.

A few more drops of moisture fell around them. This time Sharon felt one of them hit her hand. She shook her head as she leaned up to touch her lips to the tip of his chin. She had missed him this week, but it was not the crushing weight of loneliness that she had felt before. She wanted to tell him all that was happening. She wanted to share it with him. She could do that now. She could tell him how many times that Rusty had packed and unpacked before settling on what he was taking east with him. She could tell him about staying up all night with her son over a box of pizza and cans of soda because he was too excited to sleep. She could describe the look of abject bliss on Rusty's face as he got his first look at his new city, and the peace that had settled over him when they stepped onto campus. She would tell him about the silent tears she cried on the way back to the airport, and the moment of terror she felt as the plane lifted off and her baby was left behind.

Sharon could also explain that she had left early and was almost halfway home by the time that he told her to stay in Los Angeles. She could tell him that she had needed him, and wanted to be home just as badly as he wanted her there. She did not know if she could put to words her elation upon crossing into Morgan Bay, or her relief upon stepping into the house. She would say that she loved him and this life that they were still building.

There were so many words that were circling around in her head and her heart, and beginning to take form on her tongue. She could tell Andy all of those things and more, but he would already know most of it. He would know her. He wouldn't push. He would wait. It was just what he did. They began this journey together years ago, and while they had not always moved at the same pace, they were always on the same path. His stride was longer, and sometimes hers was faster, but as long as they were going in the same direction, they always found their way.

For now the wind was picking up around them, and Sharon was just happy to be back in his arms. As his hands cupped her face, she smiled again. "Let it come," she told him, "I like the rain."

~FIN

Thank you all again. It has been a joy to share this. I have so much appreciation for you all!