Break In (Part 3)
Summary: The reader goes on her ride along but is getting bored fast. Meanwhile, Tim comes to the realization that he needs to start including the reader in all aspects of his life if he doesn't want to risk losing her...
Pairing: Tim Bradford x reader
Part 1 Part 2
Word Count: 4,000ish
Warnings: language, smidge of angst, teasing
A/N: Please enjoy!
âGood morning, handsome,â you said, setting a plate and cup of coffee down at Timâs kitchen table. He slowed his soft padded footsteps, narrowing his eyes. âWhat?â
âYou made me breakfast on a Friday? Is this the start of the apocalypse? Am I about to be the victim in a lifetime movie?â You scoffed, Tim crossing his arms and cocking his head.
âCanât a girl make her guy homemade sausage and egg burritos with bacon and hashbrowns and toast?â you asked, Tim mid way to an eye roll. âMaybe I was being nice?â
âYouâre buttering me up because you have your ride along today,â he said, taking a seat. He took a bite out of his burrito, pausing mid-chew. âDid you put avocado in this?â
âYes and hot sauce,â you said, grinning to yourself as he muttered under his breath. âWhat was that?â
âI said youâre bribing me with my favorite breakfast.â You shrugged, sliding over next to him, wrapping your arms around his shoulders.Â
âIs it working?â You kissed his cheek, Tim emitting a low growl. You brushed your lips over his earlobe, his body tensing ever so slightly. âIâll let you try that thing you wanted to try tonightâŠâ
âAre you trying to bribe me with sex?â
âYes,â you said, kissing under his jaw, Tim biting back a cough. âAnd itâs not a bribe if itâs something we were going to do anyway.â
He turned his head, looking you up and down. âI thought you said no way were we doing that.â
âI said no way on my damn period and mother nature has exited the building for the next few weeks so I mean, if you donât want to-â
âNo, no, I want to.â You ruffled his hair, Tim rolling his eyes. âTomorrow night.â
âTomorrow?â you said, taking a seat with your own cup of coffee.Â
âYeah, cause tonight, Iâm going to torture the hell out of you for the pain and suffering youâve cause me this week. You can have it tomorrow,â he said, smirking back at you.
âItâs so cute when you think youâre in charge.â You hummed behind your coffee, Tim going back to his breakfast. You paused a moment, the playfulness gone from the room. âWill you be distracted today if I do this ride along? Because I know youâre worried about me but Iâm not putting you in danger and real talk, I need an honest answer from you.â
He finished his bite, swallowing it down. âBoyfriend me? No, I donât want you to go. Cop me? Ride alongs are pretty safe and generally only easy calls are taken. My friends will be extra cautious with you and I would trust you in their hands.â
âI appreciate that but you didnât answer my question, honey.â He bit his bottom lip, letting out a sigh.
âI see the worst parts of this city every day. Sometimes, I get nervous when you meet with new producers or book people or whatever alone. I wish you took someone with you for safety. Honestly, Iâll be less distracted today knowing you have basically two bodyguards for the day.â
âThat is an alarming change of view from the guy that was freaking out I was alone in a police station three days ago. What changed?â
âI had my therapy appointment,â he said shyly.
âIf you ever leave me, it better be fore that therapist of yours,â you said with a gentle smile. He returned it, leaning forward in his seat.
âI mean, heâs way hotter than you soâŠâ you lightly smacked his arm, Tim chuckling.
âEat your damn breakfast, Bradford. We got work to get to.â
One Hour Later
âHey,â said Tim, coming over to you in the garage. He pulled you away from the shop, grabbing your hand. âYou get scared at all, just tell them and theyâll bring you back. Or call me, okay?â
âIâll be fine,â you said, Tim setting down the bag in his hand.Â
âDonât get mad at me for this.â He opened the duffel, holding up an item that looked suspiciously like a bullet proof vest. You glanced at him, Tim nodding. âYes, youâre going to be balls hot and itâs going to be heavy and the odds of you needing it are nill and-â
âWould you help me put it on?â you asked, shrugging out of your jacket. He did that soft goofy little smile he did sometimes when he truly relaxed. God, what you wouldnât give to take that weight he carried off of him for good. But youâd take the moments when you could.
He had you hold out your arms and slipped it over your head, the weight of it settling on your shoulders.Â
âYou wear this under your uniform every day? No wonder youâre so damn sweaty when you get home.â
âItâs saved my hide more than once.â He tightened the velcro straps on the sides, your hand reaching out and grazing his lower left hip. He put his hand on your own hip, matching where heâd been shot years ago on your body.Â
âWhy doesnât it go all the way down your torso? It would have protected you if it had.âÂ
âIf you make this,â he said, tugging on your vest, jerking you forward, âToo long it protects you but limits mobility. I canât bend as easily, duck out of the way. The heavier it is, the slower I run. Thereâs pros and cons and different style vests for different situations. This one is for day to day use. If you were going on a SWAT raid for example, youâd have something heavier duty.â
âSave the intense calls for the SWAT guys today then, roger that.â He sighed, kissing your forehead.
âBe safe, stupid.â
âYou too, moron.â He hugged you tight, pecking a quick kiss on your lips before he pulled back. âWill I see you at all today?â
âWeâll try to tag up at lunch. Promise.â
Six Hours Later
You forced a smile when you met up with Tim and a few other patrols during their lunch break. They were spread out at a few different tables, Tim finding a quiet place off to the side for the two of you.Â
âYou alright?â he asked when you picked at your food, Tim putting a hand to your forehead. âIâve never know you to turn down street tacos.â
âIâm fine,â you said, watching his friends talk vibrantly across the way.Â
âDidâŠyou want to sit with them? We can, I just thought we could eat together-â
âIâm so bored,â you groaned quietly, Tim blinking rapidly. âAll weâve done is drive around in circles for hours. They did a wellness check to see if an old guy was dead. Apparently he was just on vacation. Oh, and I got to pee in a gas station bathroom. Iâm getting some real good feel for police work here.â
âWell, thatâs what most of the job is,â he said after a beat, brushing his arm against yours. âRide alongsâŠitâs our policy to take the lightest of calls. They canât put you in a dangerous situation.â
âI know but Iâd take a fender bender. I feel like Iâm on a road trip to hell and I feel bad cause your friends are bored out of their mind too. I should just go home. Itâd make everyone happy,â you said, poking your taco with a frown. Tim scooted closer, leaning in.
âDid Nolan and Juarez tell you that you should leave?â he asked, your head immediately shaking.
âNo. I like them. Cracking jokes with them is the only reason we havenât all gone insane.â You turned your head, his face so close to yours. âYou donât want me out here. Iâll go make up an excuse and get an uber home, okay?â
Tim POV
âDonât call an uber, justâŠstay here a second.â I got up and walked over to the other tables, my feet moving without my say so. Did I want her to go home? Yes! A million times yes. But she was sad and disappointed and after how much of a dick Iâd been this week, she deserved better. This wasnât just about her screenplay. She wanted to know what I did all day, why some nights I just came home and didnât want to talk.
The sting of pain Iâd felt when Lucy told me how disappointed Y/N was when she realized I didnât have her picture on my desk was right there at the surface too.
If I didnât start letting her in more, this was going nowhere and I wanted to go a lot of places with her. A whole fuckton. God, was I really about to do this?
âWhy do you look like youâre about to vomit?â asked Lucy, my eyes closing.
âBecauseâŠY/Nâs not having a good time and I need to show her what we do all day. Itâs important and the little crap ainât cutting it. Now how do we do it safely?â
Angela leaned back in her chair, tsking at me.Â
âDo you have an idea or are you just insulting me?â
âI will solve your problem if you bring Y/N on a double date with me and Wesley tonight,â she smirked. I clenched my jaw but that woman had never been intimated a day in her life. âOne little date and all your problems go awayâŠâ
âFine,â I grit out. Angelaâs eyes lit up in a way that would make Hannibal Lector proud. âWhatâs this-â
âA nice place. You do own a suit, Bradford?â she teased. I breathed deeply. âLucy, you free tonight? You should come too.â
âI am totally down for that,â she said, my jaw dropping.Â
âSuit. Tie. Flowers. Upscale restaurant. Say yes before I invite more people to this dinner,â said Angela.
âFine, satan,â I grumbled, Angela grinning happily. I turned to the rest of them, flexing my shoulders. âFor the record, Iâve taken Y/N out to plenty of nice places. Just cause you bozos werenât there to see it-â
âNow everyoneâs invited,â said Angela. I twitched my eye at her, that evil look back. âSay thank you Angela or Iâll invite Smitty.â
âThank you, Angela,â I muttered.Â
âClose enough,â she said, standing up, glancing over at Y/N. âTomorrowâs Saturday right? Take her to Metroâs training center. Itâll be closed. Run her through combat with some paintball guns, let her get immersed in some different drills. She gets the feel and her heart rate up without the danger. And for the rest of it, ask Grey if she can watch your bodycam footage from today. You never know, he might let her.â
I stared at her, mouthing opening slightly, words caught in my throat.
Why the fuck didnât I think of that?
âBecause youâre a stupid boy and yes, you said that out loud,â said Angela. I flicked her ear, Angela smacking me back.Â
âAll of you are helping me run drills tomorrow,â I said, earning a few eye rolls. âPenn, Juarez, the practice will be good for you and the rest of you? Revenge for that stunt you pulled in the station the other day hiding Y/N.â
âTo be fair, I was as out of the loop as you were,â said Nolan. I shot him a look, John picking up his coffee and slurping it slowly.Â
âWe could make it interesting,â said Lucy with a mischievous look. God, she spent too much time with Angela. âGirls versus boys tomorrow. Losers buy lunch for the winners for a month.â
âHowâs that fair to Y/N, she doesnât eat lunch with us,â I said. Lucy narrowed her eyes and I scoffed. âWhat the hell is that look for?â
âProbably the fact your girlfriend is sitting over there watching us probably thinking my boyfriendâs embarrassed of me,â said Harper with a shrug. My hands went to my hips, more than a few of them making faces.Â
âKnock it off,â I snapped.Â
âThey do have a point,â said Nolan.
âWhat the hell are you talking about?âÂ
âYou keep her secret for half a year, you still havenât put up a picture of her at your desk, Iâm sure you were a dickhead about the ride along which she clearly regrets going on and you banish her to the other side of the courtyard. If I were her Iâd think youâre either cheating on me or embarrassed.â Angela picked up her drink, sipping through the straw, the words caught in my throat. âWild idea, maybe you can invite the girl that works from home to lunch with us sometimes?â
Jesus, was I that much of a moron?Â
â...Does she look upset?â I mumbled.
âMore like the new kid on the first day of school,â said Lucy, standing up with her basket of fries. She brushed past me and over to Y/N, unease crawling up my spine as Y/N perked up when Lucy sat down at the table with her.
âGet it together Bradford or that girl will walk.â
I swallowed as I headed back to the table, pausing as Angela watched me carefully. After a beat I sat across from Y/N, Lucy and her engaged in some deep conversation already about some reality TV show they both watched. I flipped open the last bite of my taco, flipping it closed again and back open. A foot nudged me under the table, my eyes shooting up to catch Y/Nâs, a question in them.
You okay?
I smiled and nodded, Y/N lingering for a moment before giving Lucy her full attention again. I picked up the trash and carried it over to a bin, flinching when Angela was suddenly right fucking there.
âIf you ever give up police work youâd make a great assassin,â I said, her hand catching my arm and pulling me around to the back of the trucks. I raised an eyebrow, her own shooting up. âWhat?â
âTimothy, Iâm your best friend. I know when somethingâs wrong. Talk to me, why were you really hiding Y/N? She got a relative thatâs a criminal or something?â I stared at her. I could lie. I knew how to lie extremely fucking well. Instead I sighed, looking past her.
âI didnât want to say anything because honestly, I thought sheâd have broken up with me by now. After the way Iâve acted this week, Iâm shocked sheâs still here. The only thing Iâm embarrassed about is how when she realizes the mistake she made, all of you will give me that sad puppy dog look. Iâm running out of time to find someone and I thought Iâd be married and have a couple kids by this point, not be still dating. Sometimes I think, maybe she and me couldâŠIâm just going to screw it up.â I crossed my arms, Angela stepping closer in my periphery.Â
âSo youâre scared sheâll hurt you pretty much.â My jaw clenched but I didnât look at her. âListen, I get people have hurt you your whole life and this is hard to unlearn at your decrepit age and youâre always going to be you but that girl? Buddy, she wants to be in your life more, not less. Why the fuck do you think we want to get to know her? Now put on your big boy pants, get over your personal pity party, and just tell her you want to get more serious. You can thank me at the wedding.â
âWoah, we are nowhere nearâŠand you left,â I sighed. I found Y/N standing near the table alone when I returned, everyone veering off towards their vehicles.Â
âSo Lucy said you guys came up with a thing for me to do tomorrow thatâd be more fun? And we have dinner plans with everyone later?â I hummed, interlacing my fingers with hers. âTim, I donât want to cause any trouble-â
âThis is my life and youâre part of it and I want you to see it, even if that means subjecting myself to a long ass dinner where I have to wear a fucking tie,â I said, Y/Nâs face softening. âWhy you lookinâ all cute like that?â
ââCause I like you,â she said, pecking a kiss on my lips. I hummed, returning it before my radio crackled on my hip. âGo on. Save the world while I go dress shopping.â
âOh you donât have to go buy a newâŠâ I closed my mouth when I saw annoyance creep back in her features. âRed.â
âYou want to see me in a red dress?â she asked, her eyes darkening ever so slightly. âInteresting.â
âDoes that meanâŠâ she shrugged, smiling back at me.Â
âGuess youâll find out when you pick me up tonight,â she said, my radio crackling again. âSounds like you got a robbery to get to.â
âIâll text you later,â I said, managing to catch her cheek before I was skirting past for the shop. âMove it boot!â
Reader POV
âJust me!â called Tim as the front door opened.Â
âOne second!â you shouted back, fixing your hair one last time in front of the bathroom mirror. You darted across the hallway to your bedroom, grabbing your clutch and slipping into a pair of nude heels before you spun around, Tim leaning in your doorway. He had on a black suit, white shirt unbuttoned, no tie. The look worked for him though and you couldnât help but flush under his heated gaze.Â
Out of nowhere the silliest thing happened. The heat turned softer, that look on his face like he was so damn happy. Ugh, why was he so flippinâ adorable?
âYou look stunning,â he said quietly, smirking when you stepped in front of him. âAnd taller.â
âI got a pair of black pumps in my closet you could borrow,â you teased, Tim shrugging.
âI would but I wouldnât want to show you up,â he shot right back, his grin widening every second. âWe went with red I see.â
âWe did. How do we like the red?â you asked. He stroked a finger down your arm, just barely grazing the fabric by your waist.
âI should take you out to nice places more often. I will.â You tilted your head. âYou deserve reasons to show off how good you make that dress look.â
âYou okay, honey? You seemâŠdifferent.â He shrugged.
âIâm good,â he said, smiling while dancing his fingers down your arm. âFor the first time in a long time, Iâm really good.â
âOkayâŠâ You said, Tim holding out his arm, letting you slip yours through. âDid you feed the dog before you came over?â
âYup,â he said, walking you down the hall and stopping at your kitchen counter.Â
âIf weâre doing that training thing tomorrow, maybe we can install the security system on Sunday?â you said, checking that the fridge door was closed after itâd been popping open lately. Maybe Tim could help you fix it-
âNo, I think Iâll return it.â You raised an eyebrow, Tim turning his head towards you, a big smile there.Â
âWhy would you return it? You just bought it,â you said, TIm tilting his head like you were doing something cute much to your annoyance. âBradford, why would you send it back?â
âBecause like I said earlier, I want you in my life more. I think weâre both ready for it but that stupid break in happened so I was my stupid self and tried to be all mature instead of asking for what I actually wanted.â
You blinked once, Tim tracing your jaw with your thumb. âMove in with me.â
âI thoughtâŠâ you trailed off, his face falling the longer you stared at him. It was as if you could see a wall shoot up in front of you in real time. âHey!â you barked. He startled, confused as you walked him back against your kitchen wall, Timâs brow furrowed. âDonât shut down on me. I am processing, okay?â
âSeems like a lot of fuckinâ time to process,â he said. You put your hands on his chest, taking a deep breath. âItâs fine that you donât want to. Itâs too soon-â
âWhat did I just say Bradford? Can you just stand there and look pretty while I figure out how to say this?âÂ
His mouth snapped shut, gaze drifting downward. You let your hands fall downwards, taking his large ones in yours.
âTim, Iâve been thinking about moving in together probably longer than you have. For nearly two months.â His head snapped up, a question on the tip of his tongue but he held it back. âI want to and not because some guy broke in my house earlier this week. I am not scared to sleep alone and I didnât honestly want this big stupid alarm system you bought either but I didnât want to argue with you when you were clearly as shook up over the break in as I was, maybe more. So before I give you an answer, I need to know why and I need more than you want me around more. Why-â
He pulled you into a harsh kiss, your breath hitching as his hand held the back of your neck with one hand, the other on your cheek.
âBecause I love you,â he growled against your open mouth. âThis isnât temporary for me and youâre wrong. Wanting you around more is a perfectly valid reason. I want you around all the time and Iâm ready for more. I want you taking over the closet and leaving your empty coffee mugs on the counter and not replacing the toilet paper because you are so shit at that and it drives me nuts and I still want you to move in. Is that good enough for you?â
You stepped closer, pressing your bodies together, your hands grabbing his hips, Timâs eyes dark.Â
âIf I move in, Bradford, I ainât moving back out,â you said, a rasp to your voice that his hands shifting to your waist, squeezing you just enough to make you gasp.
âGood,â he said, a whiff of his cologne filling your nostrils. âWeâre on the same page then. So give me a damn answer.â
You stepped back from him, a flash of pain on his face but you only smiled as you went to the box of alarm system equipment on the counter. You picked it up, holding it out to him. âYou should send this backâŠas soon as humanly possible.â
He smirked as he took it. âThat can be arranged. You want to move in next weekend?â
âAfraid youâll be too tired after my team wins your little training thing tomorrow?â you teased. He put the box down, stepping over to you. He caught your chin with his hand, tilting it upwards.
âYouâre being a brat on purpose.â You smiled, Tim pretending to pout, pulling your mouth against his. âYou play dirty.â
âBecause youâre such an esteemed gentleman,â you returned, Tim looking smug. âWeâre going to be late if you keep looking at me like that.â
âSo?â he hummed, kissing under your jaw, sucking lightly.Â
âIf you give me a hickey I swear to god-â He nipped at your skin, your jaw dropping. He pulled away slowly, licking his lips. âYouâŠyouâŠyou better hope this restaurant is dark as shit.â
âI see why youâre the brat so much. Itâs fun,â he grinned, taking your hand, leading you out of the kitchen. âReady to go, dear?â
âYouâre going to regret that when I kick your ass tomorrow,â you said as he opened the front door for you.
âI really canât wait to see you try, honey.â
A/N: I'm thinking I'll be doing one more part of this little series so keep your eyes out!














