Perri sat in silence as she ate her lasagna. "Okay." She said breaking the awkward silence. "I get why Danny is here, but why are the rest of you here?"

"Danny needed a few extra hands to move his stuff." Luke said before taking a bite of his lasagna.

"Danny doesn't have that much stuff." Perri stated looking at her brothers. She then looked at Danny and Liam and glared at them. She knew that if she stared at them long enough, one of them would break.

"We are here because Kady got into UCLA and we are helping her and Kelly move their stuff here." Liam confessed

"Wait Kady got into UCLA? What happened to Northwestern or Berkeley?" She asked looking at Kelly.

"She got waitlisted at Northwestern and Berkeley. She was going to take a year off but then the letter from UCLA came and she decided to go there." Kelly said with a smile.

"Where is Kady?" Perri asked looking at her brothers and her father.

"She'll be here tomorrow with Maggie and the girls. Nyla thinks that the whole reason why we are here in California is because of Disneyland." Liam said.

"Well, you have promised her so many times but then life gets in the way. And knowing Nyla, she will find a way to go to Disneyland." Perri smiled as she took another bite of her food. "Which idiot came up with the brilliant idea to have the girls travel here all by themselves? I mean, sure Maggie, Kady and the twins can take of themselves but Nyla twenty pounds of sugar in a ten pound bag." She rambled.

"Oh don't forget about the baby." Danny smiled at his sister.

Hearing the word 'baby' made her eyes go wide, "Baby? I-I have a new niece or nephew?" She asked looking at her brother.

"Niece actually. Ben's baby." Danny said pointing at Ben.

"You have a kid?" She asked looking at Ben. "This better not be a prank."

"Unfortunately he is telling the truth. Long story short, he had a one night stand with a girl and then nine months later three month old baby appeared at his door step." John said plainly as are his food. Once he finished speaking, his children looked at him.

"Definitely sounds like Ben." Perri said.

Right as Ben opened his mouth to speak, the voice of his father interrupted him. "I find it ironic how my sons have daughters." Johnathan said. "It took your mother and I many tries before we finally had a girl."

"Perfection takes time." Perri smirked before biting some lasagna off her fork.

"I think you mean crazy." Ben said. His comment earned chuckled from his brothers and a glare from his sister.

~~~~~~~~~

Perri was in the kitchen of Buck's apartment, covered in flour and cookie dough. Music played in the background as Perri danced and sang as she made the cookies that would be for her nieces.

So immersed in the music and baking, she didn't hear the door open. When Buck entered his apartment, the first thing he heard was music and looked around to see where it was coming from.

A light chuckle fell from his lips as he shook his head at the sight of the red head in his kitchen. Walking over to the table to set his jacket down before making his way over to Perri.

The sight of seeing Perri dancing and baking cookies in his kitchen made his heart flutter. It was a scene he always wanted to see when he got home. He never knew what to expect to see when he came home. Buck hoped that Perri would keep surprising him.

Perri smiled feeling hands wrap around her waist, she turned down the music on her phone, "Welcome home." She said softly. "Are Danny and Ben all moved in?"

"They are." Buck sighed softly.

"I still can't believe that they are living in the apartment across from me." Perri shakes her head as she let out a sigh as she placed the cookie on the cookie sheet.

"Technically they are living across from Paxton. You spend all your time over here. You even took it upon yourself to take over half my closet." Buck said as he leaned down to her ear. He could smell her shampoo and perfume, it was a happy mix of watermelon and citrus scent. He loved that smell.

Buck didn't mind that Perri was spending so much time at his place. It was practically her place as well.

"There is only so much that I can take of Paxton. I love him, he is my twin but I draw a line at his dates buck naked in the bathroom or kitchen at three in the morning." Perri shook her head at the times she walked into the bathroom or kitchen for her late night raids of the fridge only to find a naked guy standing in the kitchen with a glass of water.

"At least they wait until you are asleep before they, you know..." Buck said. He wasn't sure how to finish that sentence.

"I don't care when they do it." She said softly. Perri smiled turning to face him, her hands resting on his chest. "Besides, the only guy that I want to see buck ass naked in my bathroom or kitchen or yours is you."

She smiled at him taking in his scent of sweat and cologne. It was a scent she loved, she knew with his line of work that the smell of sweat or ash was the norm but she didn't care.

Buck chuckled as he licked his lips, "I can make that happen." He smirked leaning down to kiss her. Since she wasn't wearing any shoes, she was a bit shorter than normal. And she would have to stand on her tip toes so Buck doesn't have to always bend down as much. Plus there was a small chance that he just pick her up to everything easier.

Perri smiled as she stood on her tip toes to kiss him, there was so much emotion evident in the kiss that it could be seen by the blind. Perri let out a soft moan before pulling away, biting her bottom lip as she did so. "Let me put theses cookies in the oven and then I am yours for the next forty five minutes."

"Yeah, why are you making cookies again." Buck asked as he looked over Perri's shoulder, down at the tray of cookies that took over the kitchen counter.

"For my nieces and my sister in law." Perri said with a proud smile. "I'm their fun aunt and I never want them to forget it."

"So putting them in a diabetic coma is your version of fun?" Buck asked as he reached for one of the already cooked cookies. He took a bite and looked at the cookie and then at Perri, "I stand corrected."

"My cookies are too die for." Perri said as she turned to face the stove, grabbed the cookie sheet of raw cookies, opened the stove and carefully placed them in the oven. "They are almost as good as sex." She said as she set the timer before turning to look back at Buck.

There were many things that Perri is good at, and one of them is cooking or baking. Having a café one day was a plan b if being a cop didn't work out or if she got injured in the line of duty. She wasn't the type to sit at a desk.

Perri had been cooking since she five, one day Yaya was babysitting her, Paxton, Danny and Ben while their dad was at work. Perri had helped Yaya prepare dinner in the kitchen. After a while, Yaya would just stand by and watch the girl as she cooked. And Perri loved it, cooking and baking was an escape. The looks on her father's and brother's faces when they tried something she had cooked was all she needed to keep going.

"I beg a differ." Buck retorted as he finished the cookie. He smiled as he wrapped an arm around her waist again and pulled her close.

"I said almost as good as sex. Clear out your ears Buckley." Perri corrected as she wrapped her arms around his neck, so they stood chest to chest. So close that they would be able to feel each other's hearts beating rapidly. The feeling of his calloused hand on her bare waist sent tingles through her body. It was a feeling that made her go weak in the knees.

It didn't take long before the two were in a heated make out session in the kitchen. His kiss was a wave of warmth that caused all her thoughts and worries to disappear. Perri wasn't aware of what her hands were doing, they had already slipped under his shirt, his skin smooth and radiating in warmth against her finger tips. Their kiss became more passionate as they devoured each other and explored each other's body with their hands.

His hands slipped under her shirt more, feeling her soft skin against his calloused hands. They inched up her side slowly, stopping just below her bra. It amazed him how soft her skin was, it was a nice contrast to feel against his rough calloused hands. There were times when she felt so tiny when she was in his arms but she liked it.

Soon clothes were scattered haphazardly around the kitchen and dining room as the two made their way to the couch in the living room only in their underwear. They took in the sight of each other's body, Perri's eyes first landed on his chest, her left hand faintly tracing over the tattoo that was on his left peck. How she could just look at him shirtless all day.

Buck's eyes drifted from her almost bare chest to her olive green eyes. He could not believe how lucky he was to have her, to be with her. His love life has been a bit chaotic but that didn't keep him from trying.

Their fun was cut short when the timer went off. "Oh, I have to get that." She moaned softly, not wanting to move. The feeling of Buck's lips on her neck and his hands roaming all over her body made her forget the world around her.

Buck's lips danced around her neck in a pattern that he discovered would make Perri go crazy. His hands felt every part of her above the waist, a hand resting on her waist and his thumb lightly brushing over the scar where she had been shot. As much as he hated the idea of her getting hurt, almost dying, the scars present on her skin turned him on ever so slightly. He liked her scars. It was proof that she alive and well and with him.

"Five more minutes." Buck muttered against her neck as he continued to nip at her neck just below her chin. He could careless about the cookies. Or the possibility of his apartment burning down.

"There won't be five more minutes if the place burns down..." she moaned out as she tried to negotiate with the firefighter. Knowing that the blonde above her was just as stubborn as she was. "And if you let me check the cookies, I can do that thing that you like..."

All of sudden, the feeling of Buck's lips were gone from her neck. Propping herself up on her elbows, she smiled, "I'll be a minute."

Perri got up and jogged to where Buck's orange shirt was laying at on the floor, she threw it over her head and pulled it down and over her body as she made her way over to the stove. Buck watched as she picked up the shirt that he was wearing and made her way into the kitchen and to the stove. Perri grabbed the oven mitt that she left next to the stove, she turned the dial to 'off' before opening the door of the stove and pulled out the tray of cookie and carefully placing it on top of the stove.

Throwing the oven mitt back on the counter, she rushed back over to Buck. And the second she sat back down on the couch, there was a knock at the door which caused Buck to groan, "I'll get it." He sighed as stood up.

Perri watched as Buck walked towards the door in nothing but his boxers. "Perri, it's for you." Buck called out.

Perri was confused at who was at the door, only Paxton knew that she and Buck were dating and he was told to call or text. She made her way to the door and saw that it was her father at the door. "Dad!?!? What are you doing here?" She asked as she pulled at the hem of Buck's shirt, that was practically a dress on her, trying to hide the fact that she practically naked.

"I went to your apartment, and a strange man in a towel answered the door and then Paxton told me that you were probably with 'Buck' and texted me the address." Johnathan said looking between Perri and Buck. "Did you forget that you were showing me around today before the girls get in."

Perri thought for a moment and then sighed in defeat when she finally did remember. She did tell her dad that she would show him around the city "Damn, I did. I-I lost track of time. I was baking cookies for the girls." Perri told her father.

"From the looks of it, you were shaking and baking." Johnny smirked looking between Perri and Buck. "Are you going to invite me in? I mean I don't mind waiting outside while you two get ready, it is beautiful outside."

Johnathan didn't mean too intrude but if he was going to be honest, he actually wanted to get to know Buck. He wanted to make sure that Buck was good enough for his only daughter and he wanted to make sure that would not break her heart like Caleb did.

"Y-You want me to come with?" Buck asked a bit confused. He was a bit nervous given the situation. He and Perri had been seeing each other for a few weeks and he thought that everything was going good. To be honest, he was afraid to say something stupid or something that he would regret and ruin his standing with him.

"Yeah. It'll give me a chance to get a chance to get Perri's new boyfriend." Johnathan said softly looking at Buck.

Perri knew what her father was doing and figured that she and Buck should get dressed. "Okay, Buck why don't we get dressed and dad, you can wait inside." She said as she started to walk towards the stairs. She had ahold of Buck's arm and pulled him with her and then pulled him up the stairs.

Once they were upstairs, Perri made her way to the closet. She pulled off shirt of Buck's she was wearing tossing it over to Buck so he could put it back on before reaching into the closet for a sweatshirt, Buck's sweatshirt. She paired the sweatshirt with a pair of jeans and tennis shoes. "Finish getting ready. I'm gonna check and make sure the stove is off and make sure my dad doesn't try to bug the place." she said quickly before rushing down the stairs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The drive around L.A. was a long and quiet one, or at least that what it felt like. "So, what do you think of L.A., dad?" Perri asked turning in her seat slightly to look at her father who was in the back seat.

"It's definitely not Chicago, that's for sure." Johnathan said lightly, looking out the window. "I'm in the mood for a drink. Are there any decent bars around here?"

"Dad..." Perri said in a firm voice, looking at her father.

In the end, Perri had lost to her father and soon they were at a bar that a lot of cops and firefighters frequented. Johnathan made a beeline for the bar and ordered a whiskey which caused Perri to rush over to the bar and gulped down the liquor which caused her get a confused look from Buck and an annoyed look from her father.

Her action made Buck look at her and her father ordered another whiskey before walking over to a near by booth. Perri stayed at her place at the bar, talking to the bar tender telling to not to bring any more drinks to her father.

Buck and her father were now at. "Uh, why did she-?" Buck asked following the older man.

"She is worried about my health. A few years ago, I had a health scare and ever since then, she has been hyper focused on keeping me on a diet, even all the way from L.A." Johnathan said. "Before work, I always go to this diner, Lucky Lou's and order eggs, bacon and toast and coffee and sometimes extra bacon because it's bacon. I don't know how but I get a text from Perri telling me to put the coffee down and to not eat the bacon or order anymore." Johnathan chuckled lightly. "She even called Lucky Lou's, told them everything and had them try not to give me any bacon even if I ordered it. It almost worked but she forgot that I am friends with the owner Lou."

Buck chuckled at Johnathan's comment, "Yeah, when I got out of the hospital after my leg got crushed, Perri came by every day with food and to keep me company." He told the man. "I regretted giving her a key to my place."

Jonathan chuckled at Buck's last comment, "I think growing up without a mother made her motherly instincts into overdrive."

Buck knew that deceased parents and asking how they died was a tough subject to talk about. "Uh, if you don't mind me asking...w-what happened to her mother?"

Buck knew that Perri's mother died when she was young but she didn't talk about it and he didn't want to ask about and make her upset so he left it alone.

"I don't mind you asking. Everyone says talking about what happened makes things easier, less painful." Jonathan sighed softly. He sighed as he looked at Buck once again. "Dot was a paramedic. One of the first women to join the medic program in Chicago back in mid-70s. She didn't tell me until after I came back from Vietnam. Told me that she wanted to help people before they got to the hospital and she was studying to be a nurse so she thought that it was like killing one bird with two stones. Long story short, there was an explosion. Dot and her partner were on a call when it happened. And to make matters worse it was Christmas Day. Perri and Paxton were two months away from turning three."

"Oh. I'm sorry." Buck said. It was all he could say. He couldn't even imagine what Jonathan had gone through or what life must have been like for him or Perri and her brothers. He knows how difficult it is to be a first responder and to have a family.

"It's fine. As the years go on, it gets easier." Jonathan told Buck. "You probably already know this given your profession, but life is fleeting so live as much as you can. Love as much as you can because you never know when it will be gone."

Buck opened his mouth to say something only to be interrupted by Perri who was making her way over to the table, with a plate of nachos, "I hope he isn't giving you a hard time, Buck." She smiled lightly at Buck, leaning against the side of the booth that her father sat.

Perri had just gotten done threatening the bartender not to give her father anymore drinks no matter what her fathers does or says but she was able to talk the bartender into giving her free nachos.

"No not at all." Buck smiled back. "Do you have nachos?"

"I thought about trying to scare him away but then we got to talking and turns out I like him more than the last one." Jonathan said looking up at his daughter.

Perri smiled at her father before she made her way to the side of the booth that Buck was at and sat down next to him. "I do. I talked Mikey over there to give me a free plate of nachos if he keeps alcohol away from my dad."

Johnathan chuckled at Perri's comment and watched as she sat down. "Care to tell me how you two got together?" Jonathan asked looking at Perri and Buck who sat across from him.

Buck and Perri looked at Johnathan, both of them unsure how to exactly tell him. "Uh, you remember when I told you that I was going to Katie and Caleb's wedding with Buck well..." Perri started

"And let me guess...Caleb said something which probably caused one or both of you to want to knock him out but instead you decided to steal their room key, order take out and get drunk which ultimately ended with you guys sleeping together?" Johnathan stated with a smug smile on his face as he looked at the two.

"How-How do you know that? I-I never told you..." Perri questioned before finally realizing how he knew. "Paxton. I'm going to kill him." She muttered shaking her head in disbelief.

"I already went ahead and asked Paxton about what he thought about Buck and he might have let the whole wedding incident slip out." Johnathan said before reaching for a nacho and tossing it into his mouth.

Perri glared at her father, "Really?"

"What? I'm a cop. And I am naturally suspicious and paranoid especially when it comes to my daughter dating" He said grabbing another nacho. "Plus you being my only daughter, I am overly protective. More now than ever."

"I can take care of myself and Buck is not Caleb." Perri said looking at her father and then at Buck, placing her hand in his.

"I know but a father always worries about their children. Well, I worry more about you than your brothers. I mean I love the boys but the world is not as cruel to men than it is to women." Johnathan said looking at his daughter.

"I'll make sure to tell the guys you said that the next time we hang out." Perri smiled sarcastically.

After a few moments of silence, Johnathan spoke again. "Heard there was a tsunami a week ago or so?"

"Dad!?" Perri snapped looking at her father in disbelief. She knew that the tsunami was traumatic for Buck since he lost Christopher and thought the worst.

"What?! I'm curious. The only kind of dangerous weather we get in Chicago is snow and ice and lots of it. Let's not forget below freezing weather."

~~~~~~~~~

Finally finished with part 2 of Something in the Air. I had planned to publish the chapter the first week of January but parts kept getting deleted and I had to edit it as well.
Hope you all like it!!