I apologize for my lengthy absence. Things got a little busy for me, and I was finding it hard to find time to sit down and write. I am incredibly grateful to all of you that have stuck with me this far. Y'all are truly the best!

A huge thank you to my partner in crime, IReadAndWriteSometimes, for keeping me motivated and putting up with all of my crazy in the process.

CHAPTER SEVEN

They had taken their time getting ready that morning, and ended up having brunch rather than breakfast when they arrived at the bakery. Now they were slowly walking hand-in-hand through the Farmers' Market. As a result of their busy schedules, it had been almost a month since they had gone. Andy wanted to pick up a few fresh ingredients for the dinner he had planned, and Sharon simply enjoyed perusing the stands, grabbing a few staple items she had been missing since their last visit.

They were coming up to their last stop, the artisan bread stand, when Andy's phone chimed with a message. He slowed his pace to a stop and pulled the device out of his pocket. His eyebrows raised in surprise when he noticed it was from Nicole. Unless they had a big family gathering planned, she and Dean liked to spend their Sundays with the boys, separate from everyone else.

*Hey, Dad. Did Ethan leave a pair of tights at your house when they stayed over last weekend?*

Andy had taken the boys to their lesson last Friday, then he and Sharon kept them overnight to give Nicole and Dean some time together. He didn't recall seeing them, but found it odd that his daughter was just now inquiring about them.

Andy looked over the screen of his phone at Sharon who had stopped alongside him. "Did E leave some tights at the house?"

"Oh," Sharon lightly tapped the side of her head with her fingertips, "yes. I had washed them and intended to drop them off this week," she shrugged apologetically, "but I forgot."

Andy slid a hand down her arm in a gentle caress. When he reached her hand, he gave it a light, reassuring squeeze. "It's not your fault." He grinned crookedly at her. "I was the one who was in charge of making sure they gathered all of their things."

Before she had left that morning to make an impromptu visit to the gallery, Sharon had reminded Andy several times to check and make sure the boys had packed all of their stuff before he took them home. It was not uncommon for one or two of their belongings to be left behind.

"I wasn't going to say anything, but since you pointed it out," she shrugged a single shoulder and smiled a little too sweetly at him, "it is entirely your fault."

"It usually is," he playfully mumbled, while he responded to the text.

*Hey, sweetheart. Yea, Sharon found them and washed them. I can drop them off tomorrow.*

*I was hoping I could stop by this evening and pick them up.*

Andy frowned and he felt his heart rate quickly increase.

*Does it have to be tonight? I don't mind dropping them off tomorrow. I can even stop by before you take them to school.*

He didn't glance up from his phone when Sharon nudged him out of the way of the foot traffic.

*What's wrong with my stopping by tonight?*

*What's wrong with my stopping by in the morning?*

Andy was really hoping to avoid giving her the real reason if he could, but Nicole was proving to be her typical persistent self.

*Dean and I are both traveling for work tomorrow, and we will be leaving early. The boys are staying with the Nelsons tonight, and I wanted to grab the tights on our way to drop them off so Ethan would have them for tomorrow.*

Andy let out a sigh that turned into a groan. The Nelsons had a son, Ian, who was in the same ballet class as Jake and Ethan. Nicole often traded off with Ian's mom on getting all the boys to practice during the week.

"Everything okay?" There was more than a touch of concern in Sharon's tone. She had watched as the crease in his brow gradually deepened with each exchanged text.

"Of course," Andy responded a little too quickly. He tried to smile reassuringly, but it turned out to be more of a grimace. "Just trying to work around Nic's busy schedule to get them back to her, that's all." When it chimed again, he tucked the phone against his chest to hide the screen. "Why don't you go ahead and pick out the bread for tonight while I take care of this?"

"Okay," she said at length and eyed him skeptically. "You're being weird."

"I thought I was always weird," he laughed nervously.

"More so than usual." Sharon's eyes narrowed further. "If you would just tell me what you have planned for the day, there would be no need for all the subterfuge."

This time Andy's laugh was sincere. He admired her tenacity, but he wasn't about to give in so easily. Choosing to ignore her wheedling, he jerked his head in the direction of the stand and simply said, "I'll be over there shortly," and bent down to place a chaste kiss against her downturned lips.

Even though she didn't like being left out of the loop, she reluctantly did as he suggested. "I'm gonna get the rye bread that you hate so much," she called over her shoulder.

"If that's the one you want, then so be it." He winked at her when she scrunched her nose at him.

His smile quickly faded when he turned to look at his phone that had chimed two more times while he was trying to distract Sharon.

*So what's wrong with me stopping by tonight?*

*Dad?*

*Are you ignoring me now?*

"God almighty, if I could just get through this day," he grumbled as he hit the call button under his daughter's name.

When his daughter answered, he forewent any of the usual niceties. "Tonight's really not a good night, Nic."

"What's the big deal? I've dropped by on several other occasions before and you never minded."

That was exactly the point. She had stopped by several times before, and she and Sharon always ended up talking, extending Nicole's visit much longer than she intended. Typically, Andy didn't mind. He loved that his girlfriend and daughter got along so well, but tonight he didn't want there to be any distractions.

"Doesn't Ethan have a spare pair of tights?" Andy anxiously rubbed the tip of his chin. "Why does he need this exact pair for tomorrow?" He threw his hand out, then dropped it down against his thigh. When a young couple gave him a strange look as they passed by, he scowled at them.

"He ripped a hole in the others, and I don't want to go buy another pair." Her voice became muted when she covered the phone to answer the man's voice that could be heard in the background. She quickly returned to the call. "Dad, what's going on?"

Andy tried offering a different solution. "Can you stop by this afternoon while we're out? You have a key." He glanced at his watch, mentally calculating how much spare time he would have if they left now to take the groceries home and grab the tights. "Or we can drop them off at your place after we get done here at the market, when we're on our way to the musical."

"Dad." Nicole groaned in frustration. She didn't understand why he just wouldn't tell her what the issue was.

Andy rubbed a hand over his face repeatedly, mentally cursing nosy children. "I just have a dinner planned for Sharon," he tried to sound unperturbed, "that's all."

"Dinner?" Nicole asked a bit incredulously. "You two always have dinner together." The eye roll could be heard in her tone. "What makes this one so special?"

Andy dropped his head back in defeat. He already almost had this exact conversation with Rusty. He hated having to tell one more person, it increased the chances of Sharon finding out beforehand.

"Nicole," Andy said in a tone that he hoped would get his point across without him actually having to say it.

There was a brief silence before a shout came through the phone. "Oh!" Andy pulled the device away from his face and cringed. Even with it no longer being held up to his ear, he could still hear his daughter. "Oh, Dad, really? I'm so excited. It's about time!" Andy rolled his eyes but couldn't help the huge smile that transformed his face. He risked lifting the phone up to his ear once again, when it seemed she had gotten over her initial excitement. He only hoped that Sharon would be just as excited as two of their kids were.

Dinner was in the oven, and while they waited on it to finish cooking and for Sharon to get home, Andy and Rusty sat at the table playing a game or two of chess. Andy honestly didn't know why he bothered; the kid kicked his ass. Rusty didn't seem to mind that he wasn't a worthy opponent though, since more often than not, he was the one asking Andy to play. They were on their second game, and other than the occasional small talk about each other's week, they had mostly been playing in silence.

Andy had increasingly become fidgety and distracted. He groaned when Rusty took out his knight that he had just moved. It was a rookie mistake, and even he should've known better.

"So, uh-" Andy paused and cleared his throat, "you still have plans with your sister this weekend?" He wasn't looking Rusty in the eye. Instead he was attempting to appear nonchalant, and focused his attention on the bishop he managed to snag earlier, pinning it between his finger and the table to roll it around on its base.

Rusty eyed the other man skeptically. He wouldn't have thought anything of the question, if it weren't for the fact that this was the third time this week that Andy had asked him about his plans for the upcoming weekend. Realizing that something was up, he decided he might as well have a little fun.

"Oh, uh, no," he responded, mimicking the same casual tone that Andy had used. "I'm just going to be hanging around here all weekend." He was unable to control the teasing inflection that entered into his tone.

When he applied too much pressure, the bishop Andy had been fiddling with fell over with a thwack to the table, then rolled off the edge. "What?" he practically barked out. He shook his head and breathed out a deep sigh, taking the time it took him to retrieve the piece that had landed under the table to compose himself. "Why the change in plans?" His voice had returned to a normal octave, but his tone was still gruff and he was unable to prevent the frown that crinkled his brow.

It took great effort, but Rusty maintained a neutral expression during Andy's fumblings. He casually shrugged and moved a piece on the board. "Emily had something come up." He steadily held Andy's gaze, blinking innocently when the older man's face twisted further in displeasure. "Check."

Andy quickly looked down at the board in surprise, trying to determine the move that was just made. Unable to focus well enough to figure it out, he decided to ignore the game for a moment. "What was so important that she changed her mind last minute?"

Rusty lifted his hands in an 'I don't know' gesture. "She didn't say."

"She bailed on your plans," Andy's eyes narrowed, "but didn't give a reason why?"

Rusty diverted his gaze. "You know Em," he vaguely answered. He wasn't as prepared for the little game as he thought, and hoped Emily's notorious whimsical behavior would be explanation enough.

Andy heavily sighed. "Yea."

"It's your move," Rusty prodded, attempting to distract him.

Andy nodded absentmindedly, staring at the pieces on the board, but he wasn't really seeing them. "You don't have anything else you would rather be doing than hanging around here this weekend?" he asked, delaying the game once again.

"Nah," Rusty answered with a flimsy flick of his wrist. "Figured I would just catch up on some reading for class." Not wanting to pass up an opportunity to poke at Andy a little, he smoothly added, "Maybe see if mom wants to watch a movie on Netflix or something."

Andy barely contained the groan that threatened to burst out. If Rusty suggested doing something together, Sharon would not hesitate to agree, and Andy only had himself to blame. Not wanting to raise her suspicions, he hadn't made any concrete plans with Sharon for the weekend. He figured since the kid was supposed to be gone, it wouldn't be necessary. Now he was regretting that decision, and also that he didn't come up with a backup plan.

Andy slapped a hand down on the table when an idea occurred to him. "What about Ricky?" His tone was hopeful and he had a smile to match. "Could you do whatever you were going to do with him instead?"

"You know," Rusty started, hoping he was correct in thinking this was the moment to go in for the kill, "I'm starting to get the impression that you're trying to get rid of me." He managed to supply just enough hurt in his tone to make it believable.

"What?" Andy's spine straightened and panic overcame his features. "No… Never… That's not…" He was stumbling over his words, afraid the kid really believed that. It had been an issue when he and Sharon first discussed moving in, but he thought they were past that. "Why would you say that?"

The corners of Rusty's mouth twitched, almost giving away his delight in having Andy right where he wanted him. "You keep harassing me about my plans this weekend and you flipped out when I said they got cancelled."

"I did not," he emphasized with a point of his finger, "flip out."

"Yea, you did." Rusty looked at him pointedly, "You're practically sweating bullets over there."

It was a bit of an exaggeration, but Rusty had a point. He failed miserably at keeping his cool, and now the kid was on to him. "I just have a dinner planned for your mom and me here at the house," he shrugged, "that's it." It was the truth after all–for the most part.

"You two always have dinner together," Rusty rolled his eyes, "what makes this one so special?" He laughed as he added, "You planning on proposing or something?" His eyes widened when his mother's boyfriend just stared intently back at him with a raised brow. "Oh, my god." He stood up swiftly, knocking the chair into the wall behind him. "You're going to propose!"

Andy motioned with his hands for Rusty to chill out and sit back down. "Will you keep it down?" He frantically looked around, even though they were the only two home. It would be just his luck that Sharon would walk in the door at that exact moment. Thankfully, that was not the case. "It doesn't matter now, does it?" he asked, sarcasm dripping from his tone. "Your plans have been cancelled," he threw his hands up in defeat, "therefore, so have mine."

"Actually," Rusty smirked cheekily, "they haven't."

Andy turned his head, and eyed Rusty from the side. "What do you mean they haven't?"

"You were acting all weird lately," his face scrunched up and he waved his hand in a circular motion at Andy, "so I thought I'd figure out why," a mischievous smile transformed his face, "and deceiving you seemed like the best way to go about it."

Andy almost lost his temper over the fact that the kid thought it would be funny to yank his chain like that, but his relief for not having to change his plans overpowered his irritation. "So," he cocked his head sideways and regarded Rusty cautiously, "your plans with your sister aren't cancelled, and you will be gone this weekend?" He didn't even try to disguise the hopefulness in his voice. "Not that I'm trying to get rid of you," he quickly added.

"Don't worry," Rusty snorted a laugh, "I never thought that, and no, your plans are not ruined."

Andy was quiet for a moment, seemingly deep in thought. When he spoke again, it was much quieter and lacking his usual bravado. "You don't think they'll have any issue with the proposal, do you?"

Rusty's brow momentarily knit in confusion before realization dawned on him. "You mean Ricky and Emily?"

Andy just nodded. It's not that he would change his mind depending on Rusty's answer, but he thought it would be nice to know what to expect.

Rusty scoffed. "You're kidding, right?" He rolled his eyes. "Ricky has been waiting on you to," he made air quotes with his fingers, "'make an honest woman out of our mom' since before we moved in with you. Emily," he waved his hand dismissively, "will just be excited she can actually call Nicole her sister."

Andy chuckled. The kid had a point. He dropped his head back and sighed in relief. He sat like that staring at the ceiling for a few beats before jolting upright again. "Please," he clasped his hands together in front him in a pleading manner, "for the love of God, do not tell your sister. She cannot keep a secret to save her life."

"Yea, she's just about as good as you in that regard."

Andy groaned. "Why do you have to be such a damn smart ass?" He began standing when the oven timer went off, but he glared at the younger man over his shoulder on the way to shut it off.

"In the words of the Lieutenant," he said referencing their grumpy old neighbor, "It's all a part of my charm." He leaned back, kicking his feet out in front of him, and intertwined his fingers behind his head. It was the perfect impersonation of Provenza.

Andy grunted in amusement, then began pulling items out of the fridge to prepare a salad. It wasn't long after that when Sharon arrived home. For the most part, both men managed to keep the suspicious behavior to a minimum. Any odd looks or quips could be chalked up to being part of their typical banter.

Sharon pretended to be browsing the bread options, while actually keeping a furtive eye on Andy. She trusted that she would enjoy whatever plans he had made for the day, but that didn't mean she liked being left out of the loop. That fact only made him enjoy teasing her even more. Still, she wasn't prepared to give up on trying to coax the information out of him. A small smile twitched at her lips while she watched him pace in tight circles and become increasingly more animated with the use of his hands. He could get worked up faster than anyone she knew. However, her delight was overcome by concern when he abruptly stopped and his shoulders slumped in what seemed like resignation. She was just about to go check on him, but when the group of people that had momentarily blocked her view moved out of the way, she noticed that the smile she adored so much had erupted across his face. Nicole must've given him some good news.

Deciding that everything was indeed okay, Sharon shifted all of her focus on finally choosing a bread. She didn't truly intend to get the rye, despite what she told Andy. She wasn't exactly sure what he had planned for dinner, but she had a pretty good idea based on some of the ingredients he picked up already, and she was in for a treat if he was in fact making her favorite raviolis. That thought alone had her reaching for something they would both enjoy.

After promising Nicole he would call with all the details the next day, Andy quickly ended the call when he noticed Sharon was heading back his way. As she stopped right in front of him, his face turned down into a faux pout. "How much rye will I be eating this week?" He flipped a lock of hair over her shoulder.

"None," Sharon tugged on the zipper of the light jacket he was wearing, "if you promise to make that olive oil mixture to go with this very plain italian loaf I picked out."

"You got yourself a deal." He leaned down to give her a very brief kiss.

Before he could fully straighten, she cupped his cheek and gave him one more light peck. "Did you get everything sorted out?"

"We did." He took her hand and started walking them back towards the car. "She will be stopping by the house this afternoon while we are still out."

Once Nicole was made aware of his plans for the day, she didn't mind altering her schedule just slightly to work around them. Andy was afraid his daughter's excitement would tip Sharon off, so they agreed she would drop by the house while they were out.

"Oh, we won't be there to see her?" There was no small amount of disappointment in her tone.

"Not this time," he lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed it by way of an apology, "but I promise you will love where we are going."

"And where would that be again?" Sharon asked as though he had already shared the information with her.

Andy shook his head in amusement at her. He wanted to tell her she had to wait and see, but the hopeful glint in her eyes had him caving. "To go see that musical you have been dying to see."

Sharon's eyes widened in surprise. "You hate musicals though."

Andy looked at her knowingly. "But you enjoy them."

She had been planning to go with Gavin, but they could never find a time that worked with both of their schedules, particularly his. It was the final weekend that it would be playing and Sharon was disappointed she would be missing it. At the last minute, Andy had managed to snag a couple of tickets to the final matinee showing with the help of Emily. He wasn't particularly excited about sitting through the show, but he would suck it up for Sharon.

She released his hand in favor of wrapping her arm around his waist, and holding him close. "You're too good to me, Andrew Flynn."

"I don't know about that." He pressed his lips firmly against her temple. "I just like to make you happy."

. . .

The musical ended up being more bearable than Andy thought it would be, and when Sharon teasingly threatened to drag him along from now on, he found that he didn't quite mind the thought all that much. They had only been home long enough to get changed into comfortable lounge clothes, and Andy was ready to bestow his next surprise on her.

He looped an arm around her shoulders as they exited their bedroom. "Wanna help me make dinner?"

"You mean do I wanna sit at the bar and enjoy a glass of wine while you make dinner?" She retorted sarcastically.

She had offered her assistance on numerous occasions, but he always politely, for the most part, refused to let her in his kitchen while he was cooking. She had managed to cook a few meals of her own, but never one alongside him. At the restaurant, he was forced to work with others, therefore he preferred the solitude in his own kitchen.

Andy rolled his eyes. It could never be said that she wasn't capable of dishing out the snark as effectively as he did. "No," he drew out the word, "I meant what I said." He spoke slower this time, enunciating each word. "Would you like to help me make dinner?"

Sharon brought them to an immediate halt at the end of the hall. She turned so that she was standing in front him. "You're not just teasing me?" There was no disguising the eagerness in her voice.

Andy offered her a flirtatious wink. "Not this time, love."

She gripped his shirt and tugged him towards her so she could shower kisses across his face. "You hate sharing your kitchen here at home."

Andy smiled affectionately. "I've decided to make an exception."

"Why now?" she asked with a curious smile.

"Well, you've completely taken over my house," he nodded towards the living room where most of her furniture now sat, "and my wardrobe," he tugged on the t-shirt that she was wearing that happened to be his, "so I figured I might as well give in now and get you barefoot in my kitchen." He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Sharon swatted his chest in playful admonishment. "You are in-"

Her words were cut off when Andy pressed his lips to hers. "Incorrigible," he smirked lopsidedly, "I know." Kissing her one more time before releasing her and stepping back, he gestured with his hand towards the kitchen. "Shall we?"

Sharon grabbed his extended hand and practically dragged him with her. "What are we making?" She was practically bouncing on her toes.

Andy laughed boisterously at her exuberance. "You know what we're making," he said, knowing she paid very close attention to the ingredients he picked up at the market.

The smile she bestowed on him made his heart clench in a very good way. He was now wishing he had let her join him much sooner, and silently vowed he would do so more often.

. . .

It was no surprise to Andy that Sharon turned out to be a very fastidious student, even in the kitchen. She followed every instruction he gave, right down to the the tiniest detail–except when it came to stuffing the raviolis. Despite his warnings that they would bust open when boiling, she desperately wanted to put extra filling in each of them. More than once he caught her dolloping an extra spoonful when his head was turned, and each time he would remove the excess that she had added. She claimed it was because it was the best part, but he knew she was only doing it to drive him crazy. He finally agreed to let her fill five of them with her desired amount, only because he was looking forward to saying 'I told you so'.

Andy had his back directed towards Sharon as she stood at the stove stirring the sauce while it completely heated through. He was in the process of slicing up the bread when she suddenly bumped into him, causing the knife to slice him across the finger. "Son of a-" He grabbed the dish towel that was sitting on the counter next to him, and quickly wrapped it around his finger.

"Andy," Sharon gasped. "I'm so sorry." She was now standing in front of him reaching for his towel covered hand.

Andy slightly turned away from her and swatted at her hand. "It's fine," he grumbled darkly. "It's not like I haven't been cut before."

Sharon narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't respond to his surliness. Instead, she turned to the drawer that contained a small first aid kit. Once she had it, she reached for his hand again. "Will you please let me look at it, so I can see how much damage I've done?" Her brows lifted in warning when he tried to swat her hand away a second time.

"Fine," he thrust his hand toward her. "Now you know why I don't let anyone in my kitchen," he said with a litte more petulance seeping into his tone.

Sharon tsked. "Seems to me like you should since you don't know how to properly fill a ravioli," she quipped, referencing the fact that only one of the five that she 'overfilled' actually busted open during the boiling process.

Andy's lips pressed into a thin line. "You got lucky."

Sharon smiled up at him through her lashes before returning her attention to his damaged finger. She slowly peeled the towel back, exposing the cut. "It's actually not that bad." Most of the bleeding had stopped and she could see that it wasn't too deep as she had feared.

"You got lucky again." There was a teasing intonation to his voice this time. He could tell by the relieved sigh she had let out that she was really worried she had seriously hurt him.

Sharon quickly wiped the small wound and the surrounding area with an antiseptic wipe, before wrapping it. "There." She placed a light kiss on top of the bandage. "You'll live."

Andy wrapped a hand around her waist before she could step away and tugged her tightly against his body. "Thank you, Nurse Raydor." His lips lightly trailed across her jaw to her ear. "I may need a full physical examination from you later."

She snorted at his corny line, but it quickly turned into a moan when he rewarded her with a few well placed nips to her ear and the sensitive spot just beneath it. "I'm willing to take that under consideration," she sighed when his lips brushed further down her neck, "after," she finally gathered enough strength to push him away, "we finish dinner."

. . .

After cleaning up their dishes from dinner, which Andy reluctantly allowed Sharon assist him in doing, they withdrew to the patio to relax by the fire pit. Sharon was turned sideways on the bench, with her elbow braced against the back cushion with her head pillowed in her palm, and her feet resting in Andy's lap. She had been surreptitiously observing him the past few minutes. He had gone almost completely quiet since they had finished dinner, mostly responding to her with grunts and single syllable words. At the moment, his brow was slightly furrowed as he stared into the fire and absentmindedly stroked her shins with one hand, and toyed with a toothpick in the other.

"Andy." When he only grunted, she reached out and stilled his movements by entwining their fingers. She gave his hand a light squeeze, prompting him to look at her. "Everything okay?"

Andy internally berated himself when he noted the look of concern that had settled over her features. "Of course," he quickly assured her.

She nodded towards his bandaged hand when it lifted to put the toothpick in his mouth. "You're not still mad that I made you cut yourself, are you?"

Andy scoffed a dry laugh. "I was never mad at you." He squeezed her hand when she smiled sweetly at him.

He had been impatiently waiting for this day to come for over a week, and now that it finally arrived, he was suddenly very nervous. His mouth clamped down on the toothpick one more time before he removed it from his mouth, intending to get rid of it so he would stop fidgeting. When he slipped it into his pocket, his hand brushed against the small box that had taken up residence there since he bought it.

"I can't believe you ignored my advice," Provenza grumbled, as he trudged behind Andy.

The old reprobate had already been through the same rant twice, and Andy wasn't sure how much longer he could listen to it. Typically, after his grumpy neighbor got it out of his system, he would move on and be a supportive friend in his own Provenza way. Apparently, that was not the case this time. He had plenty of objections, none of which were a valid cause for reconsideration, and he wanted to make sure Andy heard every single one–multiple times.

Andy scrubbed a hand over his face, attempting to calm himself so he didn't physically try to shut the old grouch up. "I can't believe I thought it was a good idea to bring you along." He spoke through gritted teeth.

"I mean seriously Flynn," Provenza removed his white bucket hat as he stepped through the door the other man had surprisingly held open for him, "the woman is already living with you," he grasped Andy's arm to make sure he was listening, preventing him from walking by, "as well as her kid," his voice raised to a higher pitch, conveying his bewilderment, "so what's the point?" He lifted the hand not gripping Andy's arm in a questioning manner.

Andy shrugged out of his grip. "I'm not hashing this out with you again."

"All I'm saying is," Provenza held his hands up in defense, "that it didn't work out for you the first time," a look of perplexity crossed his features, and his tone changed to match it, "why set yourself up for failure a second time?"

"You blew it five times before, but that didn't stop you from proposing to Patrice," Andy crossed his arms over his chest, and took up his own defensive stance, "so you tell me?"

"Because," he laughed out each syllable of the word, adding a few more in the process, "I'm so irresistible the ladies practically beg me for a proposal." That he believed his words was made evident by the self-satisfied smirk that covered his face.

Andy scoffed and removed his sunshades from his face to hook them through the hoopon his necklace. "Oh yea?" he asked sarcastically, looking forward to wiping the arrogantsmirk of the old reprobate's face. "If you're so irresistible, why is it that what's her name rejected you," he reached out and flicked the other man's tie, "even after you spent a fortune buying a hideous new wardrobe from her?"

Provenza's fists clenched tightly at his sides and he took an aggressive step forward and scowled up at Andy. "We agreed to never talk about that again!"

Andy smirked, satisfied by his friend's outburst. "Then shut your trap and help me look."

Provenza glared at the back of Andy's head for a moment longer before finally turning toward the nearest display case. He quickly scanned the first section, but only found brooches and pendants, so he moved on to the next one. He only looked at it for a few seconds before practically shouting, "There!" He jabbed his finger down on the glass. "That one right there." Each word was emphasized by a forceful tap.

Andy eyed the older man skeptically, doubting he had found a viable option so quickly. His suspicions were confirmed, when he stepped up to the display case where Provenza was still rapidly tapping on the glass. Andy could see the sales clerk glaring in their direction, but the young couple he was currently assisting prevented him from stepping in.

"Knock it off." Andy swatted Provenza's hand away. "You're being a nuisance." He ignored the older man's sputter of disagreement, and peered through the glass, but gave it nothing more than a cursory glance when he noted the case's contents. "If you're not going to take this seriously, you can just go wait in the car," he practically growled out.

"You didn't even look," Provenza shot back in disbelief, "how do you know which one I was pointing out?"

"There's nothing but sterling silver in that case." Andy stopped himself just short of bringing his fist down on the glass. "I might as well buy her ring out of a fifty-cent machine."

"Now you look here," Provenza shook his finger in Andy's face, "you're the one that said she doesn't wear much jewelry, and you were looking for something simple." He made a sweeping gesture towards the case, indicating he had found just that.

Andy's eyes narrowed. "Simple doesn't mean hideous or cheap." He was also going to add that it was no wonder he'd been divorced so many times, since he had such poor taste in jewelry, but instead, he just turned and walked back toward the case he was looking at previously.

Provenza wordlessly mimicked Andy behind his back, before voicing his own rebuttal. "Well, I'm not a mindreader, how was I supposed to know what you meant?"

Rather than respond to the other man, Andy started mumbling to himself, "I could've brought anyone else." His eyes rolled heavenward and he shook his head, regretting that he had only told Provenza about his plan so far. "Nicole, Emily, or even Ang. Hell," he forcefully rubbed his hand across his chin, "even Sharon herself would've been better. But no," he continued to berate himself, "I want it to be a surprise."

"Andy," Sharon spoke quietly, drawing his focus back to her, "what are you thinking so hard about?"

He palmed the small box one more time before releasing it, and then he turned slightly so that he was facing Sharon more fully. "Actually," his now free hand reached over and trapped hers between the two of his, "I've been thinking a lot lately," he lifted their joined hands toward his lips and kissed each of her knuckles, "about you," he dropped his hands to grip each of her thighs, and tugged her closer so that she was practically sitting in his lap, "and me." His hands dropped to rest on her hips.

"Hmm," she let out one of those wonderful hums he loved so much, and draped her arm over his shoulders, resettling herself against him. "Anything in particular?"

"Yea," Andy rasped out. He had to clear his throat before he could continue. "I've kinda been reflecting back on our time together, and how wonderful it's been." His gaze briefly dropped down to where his fingers were fiddling with the ends of her shirt, before looking straight again to steadily hold her own. "It's been one helluva ride since that first date." He smirked crookedly and gave her a wink. "Even our not-so-great moments turned out pretty," he huffed out a short laugh and blandly added, "great."

Sharon laughed softly. "They did." She ran her fingers through the hairs at his temples and placed a light kiss on his jaw. "I can honestly say it's been better than I could have ever expected."

"Yea," his gaze became unfocused and a wistful smile spread across his face, "it really has." Andy's expression turned pensive as his attention returned to Sharon. "It's gonna sound crazy," he rolled his eyes at himself, "but after I first met you, and we kept running into each other," an anxious chuckle escaped him, "I was convinced that someone was giving us a sign." One of his hands lifted and he nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "Like our meeting was…" He shook his head, not sure how to explain it.

"Kismet," Sharon said knowingly. She had thought the exact same thing. What else could explain why she kept running into the handsome stranger that caught her attention the first time she met him?

"Exactly." Andy sighed heavily in relief, thankful she understood. "I'm so glad I wasn't my usual stubborn self, and I actually listened to whoever," he twirled his hand in a circular motion, "or whatever it was that put you on my path."

"Me, too." Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears when she leaned forward and placed a gentle, lingering kiss against his lips.

"Anyways," he said a little too loudly, his nerves returning full force, "here we are," he gestured between them, "living together now, and that's had me thinking that could only be the beginning."

Several emotions flickered across Sharon's features as she tried to determine if this conversation was going where she thought it was going.

Andy reached inside his pocket and finally pulled out the box, setting it atop of her thigh. "Sharon." He flipped open the lid, and turned it so that she could see the contents.

She looked down to the object that he had set on her leg, and her jaw dropped. "Andy," she gasped.

"Marry me?" Andy asked quietly, just barely above a whisper.

A single tear slid down her cheek and she slowly began to nod. "Yea."

"Yea?" Andy choked out in a mixture of surprise and relief.

"Yes, of course!" she said with a teary laugh.

Andy plucked the ring out of its resting place and tossed the box somewhere behind him. He gently lifted her hand and slowly slid it onto her finger, placing a kiss over it once it settled perfectly in place.

Sharon stared down at her hand in a daze, the moment finally catching up with her. It wasn't that she was having second-thoughts, but she never imagined having a moment like this again. She was brought out of her reverie when Andy cupped her cheek and tilted her face up to look at him. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him forcefully. When he laughed happily against her lips, she trailed small kisses along his jaw and tucked her face into his neck. She was still too overcome with emotion to say anything, but Andy understood and held on to her just as tightly.

Neither of them ever expected that running into a stranger at a dance studio would change their lives so drastically, yet so wonderfully at the same time. It was as Andy had said, they were put on each other's paths for a reason, and giving in to that little nudge that fate seemed to be giving them was one of the best decisions.

~THE END~

A/N: I'm sad to say that this is the end of this adventure for the Sharon and Andy of this little world. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please leave me a review, and let me know what you think about this final chapter.

IReadAndWriteAndSometimes and I have been given a prompt by the wonderful maidenpride, and we will be tackling that project together. We are very excited about writing it, and hope you will enjoy reading it, so be on the lookout for it!