Just a Kiss

Chapter 1: Caught Up in the Moment

The Barrel

Mayville, WV

November 21, 2017

After investigating a catfishing case that leads them to West Virginia, Amanda and Dominick go out to a bar called the Barrel with Chucky, a local sheriff, to unwind, and perhaps gather more information from the staff about Heather Parcell, the prime suspect. Chucky has a little too much to drink, so he excuses himself to the bathroom. Amanda asks Buck, a bartender who went to school with Heather, what he knows about her. She can sense he's flirting with her, but she dismisses it and returns to her table with Dominick.

They have a fun, friendly conversation as they have their drinks. She tells him about Roy Jr., the son of the owner of a favorite bar she used to go to in Georgia, and they start laughing. When Dominick smiles at her, she suddenly feels drawn to him in a new way. They look at each other just a moment longer than usual, but then Dominick gets up and says he needs to check on Chucky in the bathroom. Amanda wonders what just happened. She's never felt this timid around Dominick before. He's just a friend, a partner. No reason to be nervous, right? Before Amanda can process what just happened, a waitress brings an unexpected round of shots...on Buck. The bartender smiles and waves at Amanda, who smiles politely, but his smile just doesn't have the same effect on her as Dominick's.

As soon as Dominick returns with a still nauseous Chucky, they accidentally bump into their waitress, who is carrying a tray of drinks only for the drinks to spill all over her and two customers, a man and a woman. Dominick tries to apologize and offers to buy them a round, but the man gets angry and picks a fight with him. As Dominick tries to defend himself, someone else comes after him. Amanda joins in to assist her partner, and then others join in after her. As the brawl escalates, Amanda slips and falls onto the wet floor. Dominick reaches his hand down to help her only to get knocked down himself, landing on top of her. They're uninjured but rather close to each other, gazing into each other's eyes for a few extra seconds in the chaos that surrounds them.

Lyin' here with you so close to me
It's hard to fight these feelings
When it feels so hard to breathe
Caught up in this moment
Caught up in your smile

"Rollins, you alright?"

"Uh huh," she says.

"You're not hurt or anything?"

"No. You?"

"Nah." Dominick helps Amanda up off the floor as any good partner would, except these partners can't take their eyes off each other.

Just then, the angry customer grabs Dominick and Amanda uses her skills as a cop to make him let go. He thanks her and she smiles. Then, someone starts throwing beer bottles in their direction. That's their signal to leave the bar. Automatically putting their arms on the smalls of each other's backs, they run like mad until they're out the door. It's alarming yet exhilarating at the same time!

Dominick has harbored a crush on Amanda for at least 2 years, maybe 3, and this is the closest he's ever come to being on a real date with her. He doesn't want to spoil the evening, but he wants to at least get some idea of her feelings for him, so he decides to walk her to her motel room, as a true gentleman would, since it's not too far away from the bar. He also wonders if she would let him...maybe...kiss her?

I've never opened up to anyone
So hard to hold back
When I'm holding you in my arms
But we don't need to rush this
Let's just take it slow

Walking back, they laugh and talk about how fun it was to get into trouble and not have to act like cops all the time. When they arrive at Amanda's room, she gets that warm, fluttery feeling again. She thinks it might be the alcohol and or the adrenaline from the brawl talking, but whatever it is, it makes her feel so wonderful that it scares her. She has never felt this way about a "good" guy before and doesn't know what to expect. She hasn't had these kinds of feelings in a long time, and on the rare instance that she does, it always ends in disappointment or heartbreak, mainly because they were the wild, "bad boys". But Dominick, he's just so good in every way and he deserves to be happy, and she hopes that maybe she could contribute to his happiness in one way or another. She deeply cares about him, their friendship, their work relationship, and his bond with Jesse, and she doesn't want to ruin anything, but she can't stop thinking about what it would be like to feel his lips on hers. Just once.

Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight
Just a touch of the fire burning so bright
No, I don't wanna mess this thing up
No, I don't wanna push too far
Just a shot in the dark that you just might
Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life
So baby, I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight

"We could have taken all those guys."

"Oh, I know we could."

"Hey, ya know you're a helluva partner."

"You, too."

"You've got my back, and I can't tell ya how much I appreciate that...not just tonight."

As he leans into her, clearly indicating he feels the same way, she thinks maybe just start with a kiss, call it a night, and let tomorrow be damned. Being a recovering gambler, she's not sure about risking her friendship and partnership with him, but she wants him to at least know how she feels. So instead of hooking up with him, and thus "betting it all", she thinks, maybe just a goodnight kiss, a much smaller bet, would be safe. She certainly knows him well enough to not expect him to move that fast in the beginning, given both his Catholic upbringing and gentlemanly manner. It doesn't matter that the setting consists of a dive bar and a one-star motel. All Amanda Rollins wants is this moment with Dominick Carisi Jr.

I know that if we give this a little time
It'll only bring us closer
To the love we wanna find
It's never felt so real
No, it's never felt so right

Amanda smiles and they lean in closer. He strokes her cheek as he smiles back, and she puts her hand on his chest and slowly moves it up to his neck as they share a sweet, soft kiss, which barely breaks when Amanda goes in again and Dominick responds. This time her arms go around his neck as his hands hold her waist. This kiss is still soft but longer and more passionate with just a hint of tongue. It's sweet and romantic yet sexy and electric all at once! His lips are moist, sensual, and so delectable that it was all she could do to keep from inviting him into her room and letting lust compel her to up the ante. As much as Dominick desires Amanda with every fiber of his being, his respect for her is far more important so he lets her take the lead, feeling hopeful that it's only a preview of what will happen in the future with them. Feeling his growing arousal beneath her, she slows down and gently breaks the kiss, choosing to savor and preserve their beautiful moment. They smile.

"I'll a, bring you a coffee tomorrow, ya know, for the road."

"Ok, thanks."

"Good night, Rollins."

"Good night, Carisi."

Dominick turns to leave, and she watches him until he goes into his room, 5 doors down from her. He glances at her, and she turns away. He smiles as he goes in.

No, I don't want to say goodnight
I know it's time to leave
But you'll be in my dreams

Tonight
Tonight
Tonight

Once inside, Amanda falls back onto her bed and sighs. She doesn't remember ever having been kissed that way before. Kissing Dominick felt so different from her past heavy make-out sessions that all too often led to meaningless sex. This is the best "date" she'd been on in a long time, if not her whole life. No man has ever acted more like a gentleman with her than Dominick and she hoped it would become something beautiful that would stand the test of time. She knew they'd have a third person in the car with them on their return to New York, and they'd eventually have to get back to work, but for now, she just wanted to relish the giddy excitement of seeing him again tomorrow...and how he'll look at her after what transpired between them. She closes her eyes, thinking about him and pretending she's locked in his embrace as sleep overtakes her.

Let's do this right

With just a kiss good night