The first thing Tim saw when he woke up was Lucy's head on his chest. Just to be sure, he lifted up the blanket, and she was completely wrapped around him with their limbs tangled together like the previous instance where they woke up together when they were staying in the cottage. Only this time, Tim was in Lucy's bed in her apartment and neither of them were wearing any clothes (quite the upgrade in his opinion). When she started to stir, he peppered her head and face with kisses.
Lucy smiled sleepily as she started to open her eyes.
"Morning, baby," he rumbled.
"Morning," she grinned and pecked his chest.
Tim dragged a digit down her arm until he interlaced fingers and saw her engagement ring back on her hand. "We got engaged last night."
"We did," Lucy beamed.
"Are we insane? We only went on one real date before we got engaged."
"It was a great date, though, and besides, you can still take me on dates as my fiancée." Now that Tim really was her fiancée, the title felt more sacred somehow.
"As long as afterwards," his hand on her back started traveling lower, "we end up in bed together."
"I'm glad I didn't see those two interruptions as signs we shouldn't have sex. Wouldn't have wanted to miss out on what we did last night."
He wore a smirk and replied smugly, "Oh, I wasn't talking about sex. When I said I wanted us to end up in bed together, I meant I wanted to lay down and have my favorite barnacle wrapped around me."
She chuckled but refused to detach from how she was holding on to him. "I swear I've never been like this before."
"I love it. I would like a lifetime of waking up with the most gorgeous barnacle."
Lucy showed him her engagement ring and said, "That's exactly what you're gonna get."
"Good," he murmured and leaned down to kiss her. First it was slow, but then Tim shuffled until he was laying on top of her, and soon his movements grew fiercer.
"Amy," Lucy managed to gasp to ensure they did not go too far yet. "We said we'd call Aunt Amy this morning and tell her the good news."
He dropped his forehead to hers and took a deep breath. "Yeah, you're right. Let's call Amy, and then I want you."
She nodded and felt her heart skip a beat.
"Phone. Let me find one of our phones," Tim volunteered and started peeling himself off of his new fiancée, eliciting a groan from her. "Just a second, baby," he promised and climbed off of the bed to search their discarded clothes for his phone. "Out of battery," Tim reported when he found his.
"Mine is in the bathroom."
"Also out of battery," he sighed and plugged them both in to start charging.
She reached for him and smiled, "Guess we have a few minutes until our phones turn on, but I'm already turned on."
He laughed. "Really? Me too," Tim said before diving in for a kiss.
Some time later, Lucy started dialing Amy and put the phone on speakerphone while curled into Tim's side.
"I was expecting a call much later in the day unless you two haven't gone to sleep yet," Amy answered the phone.
"Hi, Amy," Tim greeted and chuckled into Lucy's hair.
"You sound happy," Amy grinned.
"My fiancée hasn't stopped smiling all morning," Lucy mused.
"Fiancée? It's real this time? You're not pretending any more?" Amy wanted to confirm.
"It's very real this time," Tim promised and lazily drew circles on Lucy's side.
"About damn time!" Amy said emphatically.
"Aunt Amy, we only went on one date," Lucy retorted.
"You know why normal couples go on dates? To get to know each other. I know couples who've been married for 20 years that don't understand each other the way you two do," Amy explained.
"That's a fair point," Tim nodded and pressed a kiss to Lucy's temple to make her smile brighter.
"I'm always right. I was right when I told you to go for it and ask my niece out a million times, but you were so stubborn you asked that Barbie out instead. You would have a baby by now if you listened to me!" Amy was certain of that.
"You got what you wanted. Our plan worked, and that's all that matters," Dave's voice came out faint from the other end of the phone.
"Hi, Dave," Lucy said.
"I can't believe both of you didn't know we were actually engaged and just let us pretend for the entire week," Tim shook his head.
"Are you kidding? That was nonstop quality entertainment. I'm still convinced if I could've kept you in town for a few more days, I could've swindled you two into actually getting married. Talk about trapping you so you actually get together," Amy smiled mischievously.
"I told you I'd never let them actually go through with getting married for your entertainment. Marriage is sacred. They needed to be in love first," Dave insisted.
"Before they came to town, they were already in love. Couldn't you tell?" Amy asked her husband.
"That's true." Dave saw her perspective.
"Okay, well, it doesn't matter now, because we're really together and some day, we're really getting married," Lucy could not stop smiling.
Tim did not resist the urge to kiss the corner of her lip.
"Such great news! We're so happy for you two!" Dave said happily.
"So, how did he ask? Or, did you ask? No offense, but Tim can move a little slow, so it's okay if you had to take matters into your own hands," Amy chuckled.
Lucy looked up at Tim who had moved to lay on top of her, his whole body completely pressed to hers. "It was really simple. I was just sitting at home. I had just taken a shower, and I was still in my robe when he showed up, and we talked, and before I knew it, he was putting my ring on my finger." She paused and let out a laugh. "Oh my God that's how it happened the first time, too."
Confused, Tim asked, "What first time?"
"When you and Amy went out to buy me the ring, you showed up to the cottage after I had just gotten out of the shower, and that's when you gave me the ring the first time. Guess that's how it was meant to be. Simple, unconventional, and so us," Lucy beamed.
Tim had completely forgotten about that, but she was right; their fake engagement had gone the same way.
Amy laughed, "That was a pretty brilliant stroke of genius to buy you the ring. I thought it would add some fun and authenticity to your little ruse."
"Hey, now, it was my idea to call the jeweler to open the store early," Dave chimed in.
"You're right. That was great. Thank you, dear," Amy grinned.
"Between Amy and Lucy, it sounds like our kids are going to be little evil geniuses," Tim smiled.
"I'd like your kids to inherit my boldness, since we all know neither of you are. Seriously, it shouldn't have taken so much scheming to convince two people who are already in love to actually take a chance at love," Amy shook her head.
"We get it, Amy. We were both idiots," Tim tried to sound unamused, but staring at Lucy under him made him far too happy that he could not keep the smile off of his face or out of his voice.
"Understatement of the century," Amy agreed.
"How about we make the trip to the city soon and see the kids now that they're actually engaged? Maybe we can tell if there's a difference in how they act around each other," Dave suggested.
"I would LOVE to see if they can look any more in love than they already did in Carmel. Maybe they're like cartoon characters with heart shaped pupils now," Amy chided.
"Nah, Tim already stared at Lucy like that," Dave tried to stifle his laughter, but it was no use.
Lucy and Tim heard Amy and Dave laugh for another minute. "Okay, are you guys done teasing us?" Lucy asked.
"Never. You're never living this down. I told Tamara she has to tell your kids that their infamous Great Aunt Amy is the reason they exist," Amy responded. She heard Tim groan and added, "Speaking of kids, you two get back to trying to give me grandkids. We can talk later."
"Bye, we love you," Lucy smiled.
"Bye, Amy. Bye, Dave," Tim added and hung up the phone before removing it from his fiancée's fingers. "We did agree we're supposed to listen to her from now on."
"You're absolutely right," Lucy nodded.
He started kissing a line down her neck. "Just gonna follow orders right now," he mumbled against her skin.
"Mhm," she hummed as her eyes slipped closed and let Tim's mouth travel wherever he wanted.
♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡ ˙⋆ ⟡ ♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡˙⋆ ⟡ ♡
Much later to the point that they were running late, Tim and Lucy left her apartment to start driving to the station. He settled a hand on her thigh as he started taking the usual route to work.
"Can you make us pancakes for dinner?" She wondered.
"Pancakes for dinner? Who eats breakfast for dinner?" He scoffed.
"Well, I wanted you to make me pancakes this morning, but we didn't have time to eat, so I'd like them for dinner, please."
"Are you complaining about the reason why we skipped breakfast this morning?"
"Not at all. Especially since we were helping the environment by conserving water when we showered together."
"I wasn't thinking about the environment," he glanced at her hungrily where she was seated beside him in his truck.
Lucy blushed. "Stop looking at me like that! We have to focus at work today."
"We will. You won't distract me."
"Good."
"I have to set up my new office, and...oh, the forms!" Tim remembered.
"The forms to declare our relationship to H.R.?"
"Yeah, I left them in the sun visor. Grey wanted us to turn them in this morning."
"Okay, I'll fill the forms out now." Lucy reached for the paperwork to find that the documents were completed. "You did it already? We weren't even talking yesterday."
"I was feeling optimistic."
"Seriously?"
"We love each other. I was sure we could work it out."
Lucy swooned and picked up his hand on her thigh to interlace their fingers and kiss his knuckles. "I love you."
"I love you, too."
"So, what should we tell everyone about when we're getting married?" Lucy asked.
"Everyone already asked us that yesterday, and we didn't say anything."
"Yeah, because it wasn't a real engagement before, but now it is."
Tim shrugged. "We can stay engaged for a little while, since we haven't really been together for that long."
"Yeah, we don't have to rush."
He squeezed their joined hands and ran his ring finger across her engagement ring. "For the record, I would marry you any day at any time that you wanted. I don't need to wait."
"As long as Amy's there, I agree."
"Of course. We do sorta owe her for getting us together."
"I'd like to think we would've figured it out on our own at some point, though," Lucy smiled.
"Maybe, but we don't have to wonder about that now."
"You know what we do have to worry about? Moving in together. I'm obviously moving into your house."
"Sooner the better. We can stop by your place tonight to get some of your stuff."
"No, I think we'll be too busy tonight, but maybe tomorrow after shift."
Tim smiled, "Deal."
"We should repaint. Your house is too plain, and my plants will definitely brighten up the place."
"Sure, baby," he agreed and spent the rest of the drive listening to her list ideas for how to turn his house into their home, and Tim loved every single suggestion simply because of the way she smiled as she spoke.
When they parked at the station, Lucy appreciated how her fiancée is such a gentleman who outstretched a hand to help her climb down from the cab of the truck. To her surprise, after he shut the car door, he pushed her against it and slammed his mouth against hers.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the future Mr. and Mrs. Bradford," Angela commented sanctimoniously when she came upon the couple who were very enthusiastically making out.
Shocked, Lucy broke the kiss and panted, "Angela."
The detective crossed her arms and said, "I let you two off the hook yesterday to give everyone a chance to get their jabs in, but seriously, why did you try lying to me when I asked if you two were engaged?"
"I screwed up, okay? I was trying to protect our new relationship from everyone's judgment, but Smitty sorta let the cat out of the bag," Tim winced.
"Yeah, we already started planning you a surprise engagement party for tomorrow night unless of course you show up married, then it'll be a wedding reception," Angela smirked.
"We get it. You think we're moving fast," Lucy rolled her eyes.
"Oh, GOD no. Nyla, Aaron, Tamara, Grey, and I had bets on whether you would come back from your UC Vegas gig hitched. There are plenty of chapels on the strip," Angela remarked.
"You do realize I had a boyfriend at the time, and Tim had a girlfriend?" Lucy sassed.
"I'm surprised you remembered Ashley and Chris exist. I saw you guys in the casino, and if you two had already practiced kissing before you got there, I can only imagine what other PRACTICE you would be doing in that hotel room if you stayed there all night," Angela quirked her eyebrow suggestively.
"EVERYONE knew we had feelings for each other?" Lucy whispered.
Tim shrugged. "Guess it wasn't just Amy."
"I've gotten used to how you are around each other. That's why I thought there was something weird about you two yesterday. So awkward. So much tension. Strange, really," Angela noted. Then, she caught her eye on Lucy's bejeweled left hand. "Woah, I didn't see THAT yesterday."
Lucy smiled and showed off her ring, beaming.
Angela inspected the beautiful diamonds and asked, "Who helped you pick this ring out, Bradford? You don't have good enough taste to find something like this on your own."
"I could have! I have great taste if my choice in fiancée is any indication," he smiled and looped his arm around Lucy's waist.
She blushed and nuzzled his neck. "Stop," Lucy murmured.
"I can't," Tim smiled and kissed her head.
"You guys are gross, and you're about to get in trouble if you stay out here making out any longer," Angela said.
"We should go," Lucy looked to her fiancée to say and took his hand to lead them into the station. "Also, you were wrong. You clearly got distracted back there when we were supposed to be walking into work. How are we supposed to manage the rest of shift?"
"I didn't get distracted. I checked my watch, and I knew we had a little time. Instead of listening to everyone chit chat in the break room, I made the calculated decision to stay with you for a few more minutes and kiss you."
Lucy noticed the way he was glowing and mused, "Being in love looks good on you, Mr. Bradford."
"Being in love looks good on you, future Mrs. Bradford."
She felt her knees go weak at the realization that being married to him would mean she would become Mrs. Bradford. It was more exciting than Lucy could put into words.
"Go ahead and change. I'll take the forms to Grey," Tim smiled and pecked her cheek before releasing her hand. He watched her walk into the locker room, and then he went to Grey's office to find that the Watch Commander was standing in the doorway staring at the couple.
Grey had never seen Tim BEAM that way before, and there was an actual spring in his step.
"Sir, here's our paperwork," Tim grinned.
"Thanks for this, and...Tim, you better be good to her," Grey said seriously.
"For the rest of my life," Tim nodded.
"Good. Now, I better not find out you're having a baby from Smitty's blog. You should come to me first from now on."
"Yes, sir."
Grey watched Tim go, and he knew that he was no longer upset with his two officers who kept their relationship a secret from him. How could he be mad at a couple who are so happy?
When Lucy finished changing, she looked at herself in the mirror and wondered if she looked different, because she FELT different as if being with Tim changed her on a molecular level. She looked the same in her reflection, yet Lucy felt as though a part of her had been unlocked and now she could reach her truest level of happiness. After staring at herself for too long, she rushed into roll call and took a seat next to Aaron.
"You're happy today," Aaron commented. Though Lucy is always sunshine-y, she looked even brighter than the sun somehow.
"Tim and I are engaged," Lucy smiled.
"I know. The whole station can't stop talking about it. No one's really surprised, but it's nice to know we weren't just delusional thinking there was something between you guys."
"No one's surprised? We literally weren't dating as far as anyone knew."
"Lucy, seriously? When I met you guys, I asked Nyla if you two were married."
"Really?"
Her question remained unanswered as Grey called for everyone's attention to begin the morning briefing. Roll call ended with riding assignments, and Lucy was happy that she was partnered with Aaron for their shift.
As they walked towards their shop with their stocked war bags, Aaron noted, "Everyone's wondering when you two are getting hitched."
"We haven't set a date yet or anything, but we're not in a rush."
"Okay, I know I don't get a vote, but I'd like your wedding to happen sooner rather than later."
"My Aunt Amy would probably agree with you."
"I know a guy who can plan you the most romantic Hollywood wedding in under a week. You say the word, and I'll give him a call."
"Slow your roll, Aaron. Tim and I probably want something simple, and a week is pretty fast."
"Says the woman who left town single and came back engaged. How in love do you have to be to go straight to engaged?"
"We DID go on a date first."
"A single date?" He scoffed, since Lucy had just proven his point. "I guess the saying is true- when you know, you know."
"Yeah. Exactly," Lucy grinned and stepped around to climb into the drivers side of the shop.
♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡ ˙⋆ ⟡ ♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡˙⋆ ⟡ ♡
Since they had returned to the station to book a suspect, Lucy suggested she and Aaron should go see Tim's new office.
"Hi," she greeted warmly when she came upon her fiancée in the hallway carrying a cardboard box of his belongings.
"Hey," Tim tried to say as casually as possible and override his instinct to drop the box he was holding in favor of pulling Lucy into his arms.
"Is this your new office?" She asked and pointed at the small room down the corridor.
"Yup. About to get settled in." He walked with her to enter his office that was long and narrow. "This is it."
"I love it," Lucy beamed.
"You would love it if it were a converted broom closet. As long as there was a plant and some mug with a cheesy saying on it."
"That's not true," she frowned. "There needs to be a picture, too. Something to really personalize the place."
"I don't have a good picture of us yet, baby, but if you want me to get a frame and put your face in it, I will," Tim guaranteed.
"Oh, I've got loads of pictures of you guys on my phone. We can go get one developed on our lunch break," Aaron butted in.
"How do you have pictures of us?" Tim asked, horrified.
"Tamara sent me a BUNCH yesterday when I texted her for an inside scoop on your engagement. Smitty's blog post didn't have ANY details, and you two weren't saying much, so I asked her for more information. She said she took plenty of candids of you guys when you were out of town," Aaron explained and showed Tim and Lucy his text thread with Tamara and the stream of photos of the couple that were shared.
"We didn't pose for any of these," Lucy commented as she scrolled through the candid shots.
"I noticed, but you guys look so adorable. You looked really happy on the beach," Aaron smiled.
Tim leaned over to observe the photos and found one of him kissing Lucy where they stood in the shallow ocean water. He liked how gorgeous his fiancée looked in her bikini, the way the sun made her hair look shinier, and how happy they were as they kissed. "I want to put this one on my desk."
"Yeah, I like that one, too," Lucy beamed up at Tim. They stared at each other, and the rest of the world fell away.
"I'll just go...get some coffee," Aaron said awkwardly, since the couple clearly had not heard what he said for the last few minutes.
Lucy heard the office door shut, and she flashed her eyes over to confirm it was closed and they were alone before standing up tall on her tip toes to cover Tim's mouth with her own.
He gripped her hips and backed her against his desk, then, he helped her sit on the edge and stood between her legs to get closer to Lucy.
She pulled at the hem of his Metro t shirt to kiss his collar bone. He moaned, so Lucy smiled and started working on sucking a mark on the spot as she started untucking his shirt from his pants.
At some point, there was a knock at the door that surprised them. "Yo, Bradford. We've got training in 10," a Metro teammate called and stalked away from the closed office.
Tim groaned and opened his eyes to find that Lucy's duty belt was on the desk next to her, and her shirt was mostly unbuttoned. "We can't do this every shift, you know. We have to figure out how to work together without me constantly wanting to touch you."
"I thought you said you wouldn't get distracted by me. This morning, you acted like it wouldn't be a problem."
"I might've been wrong."
"Tim Bradford? Admitting he was wrong? Sounds almost as impossible as him falling in love with his former rookie."
"Almost impossible but not quite," he smirked and helped her button the last button of her shirt. "Guess we have a lot to discuss over pancakes tonight. Starting with how to set boundaries at work, so we don't hook up every shift, and then a list of all the stuff we need to get to redecorate the house how you want it."
"Sounds perfect," she finished fastening her duty belt and gave him one last soft kiss. "Technically, we haven't agreed to our work boundaries yet."
He pulled her face back to his and smiled against her lips, "If that's the case, I guess one more kiss wouldn't hurt." Tim reveled in tasting her one last time before watching her leave his office. He thought he had never felt luckier in this life.
♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡ ˙⋆ ⟡ ♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡˙⋆ ⟡ ♡
Lucy was happy to be back in Tim's truck as they drove together to his house. She practically flew inside to find Kojo and started to cry the second her favorite dog was in her embrace. "I was so scared I'd never see you again," she whispered into the pet's fur.
Tim thought he must have misheard his fiancée, but he did find it odd that her eyes had welled up. "You just saw him the other day."
"I know," she sniffed and scratched behind Kojo's ears. "I...I really missed him."
"Clearly." He watched his fiancée and his dog remain huddled up together on the floor as her tears started to subside but her hold on Kojo had not lessened. "Why don't I start on the pancakes while you guys keep cuddling, and...I can't believe I have to say this, but the second dinner is over, you're all mine, and Kojo is staying out here."
"Okay," Lucy agreed and continued to snuggle with her favorite dog.
As Tim finished flipping the last pancake, he felt her arms wind around his waist as she rested her head against his back. "If I were a jealous man, I'd say I don't like having to compete for your attention with our dog."
"OUR dog?" Lucy wondered.
"OUR house, OUR dog," Tim reasoned.
"I love our dog," she said happily and looked down to find where Kojo was seated next to them.
"You better love me more."
"I think so," Lucy replied noncommittally.
"That wasn't very convincing."
"Pancakes might sway me."
He took the last pancake out of the pan and turned off the stovetop. Tim laughed and tried reaching for plates to serve them their dinner with Lucy holding onto him tightly; it was a struggle to move with his favorite barnacle keeping him close, but Tim did not complain.
They sat together at his kitchen counter with Kojo licking their ankles and Tim stealing syrupy sweet kisses that tasted like pancakes and Lucy, and for the first time in their lives, both Tim and Lucy felt complete.