Part 56 (1/2)

”It's okay,” I said.

”I'm sorry.”

”Really, it's fine. For the record, we went to Rome.”

”Was it great?”

”It absolutely was,” I said. ”Right up until I broke my arm.”

”You broke your arm on your honeymoon?”

”Yep. I tripped and fell down the Spanish Steps while eating a double scoop of chocolate gelato.”

She started to crack up. For someone so attractive, she had this really goofy laugh, almost like Arnold Horshack's from Welcome Back, Kotter. I liked it.

”I know-how clumsy, right?” I started laughing, too. ”d.a.m.n good gelato, though.”

It occurred to me that up till now Sarah and I had barely talked about our lives outside of work. Felt pretty good. Natural. I could sense she thought so, too.

”So tell me about your two boys,” she said.

”Ah, my favorite subject...”

I told her about Max and John Jr. while trying to keep the excessive fatherly pride at a minimum. Still, it was hard not to gush, especially given how much I was missing them. When I finally shut up about how great they were, Sarah simply stared at me and smiled.

”What? What's that look for?” I asked.

”I was thinking how lucky they are to have you as a father,” she said. ”They mean the world to you, don't they?”

”They do, but it's the other way around. I'm the lucky one,” I said. ”Now, what about you? Do you and your boyfriend both want kids?”

She shot me a look. ”Nice try, O'Hara. You just want to know if I'm dating anyone.”

”Well, we are on our honeymoon, after all. It's only fair that I know.”

”In that case, the answer's no. I'm not currently cheating on you with anybody.”

I opened my mouth to say something, but she stopped me with a raised palm.

”And please don't tell me how surprising it is,” she said. ”You know, the fact that I don't have a boyfriend.”

”Actually, all I was going to say is that I understand. It's got to be hard for you.”

She looked at me, unsure. ”How do you mean?”

”You're a female FBI agent. You're trained in hand-to-hand combat and you carry a gun,” I said. ”Most guys would be intimidated by that.”