They were supposed to meet at Anton's tonight. It wasn't Jamie's usual choice, but it made sense since it was Tuesday. So that meant Eddie got spoiled with an all-you-can-eat menu. He didn't mind, though, really. They'd been hanging out every night since the forced partner switch. He missed her during the day. Nights were quickly becoming his favorite time because he got to see her.
He knew this was dangerous; spending so much time with her off duty. Not being partners at the moment ended up being a great excuse for both of them to let their guards down and allow their feelings to come bubbling back up to the surface. It had become a natural routine that they both slipped into easily. It was going to be a hard habit to break once they became partners again.
He was just going to duck home to shower and change and then head over to the restaurant. So when he opened his apartment door, he wasn't expecting to see her curled up on his couch taking a peaceful nap. He couldn't deny the warm protective feeling that ran through the center of his chest at the sight of her sleeping; to him she was beautiful with her long blonde hair spilling across the scrunched up pillow. She was laying on her side with her hands underneath her head. He followed the dip in her waist to the curve of her hip and let his eyes roam over her shapely legs which were covered in tight denim, ending with her bare feet which were just slightly touching the other end of the couch. He smiled and wondered how long she had been here.
He gently tugged on the pillow and pulled it out from under her as she stirred and lifted up her head. "Hey, you're home!" she said groggily.
He laughed at her softly as he sat down and put the pillow in his lap, pulling her back down into her original position. His fingers immediately went to work caressing her hair, running them through the soft strands. "I thought we agreed the key to my apartment was only for emergencies," Jamie murmured as he looked down on her, mesmerized by the way her luscious glossy lips broke out into a smile.
"Oh, but this was an emergency," she responded coolly. "I was missing you, and this couch smells like you, so…"
"This couch smells like me? That's kind of gross."
"No it's not." She burrowed her nose into the pillow and inhaled deeply to prove her point.
"Well, I'm here now. So you can stop sniffing my furniture."
She let out a giggle and then relaxed as his hand ran down her shoulder and started to run up and down her back giving her a light massage. She sighed and wondered how much longer they were going to continue to blur the boundary lines that used to be set strictly at the professional level. There was a lot more hugging and touching and holding going on these past few weeks. Although they hadn't dared to start kissing again, it probably wouldn't take much to start to blur that line too. Which would ultimately lead to the blurriest line of them all and then there would be no going back…spoiled for life. All of this blurriness was the elephant in the room. But for now she was enjoying the sensations from his touch that soothed her body and made her feel like she belonged to him.
"Any leads on the serial killer?" she asked. All precincts had been put under pressure to find the guy responsible for killing eight innocent elderly people and to stop him from killing even more.
"The detective on the case thinks I'm off my rocker, but I can't help think that there's something about this Evan guy."
"That detective should know better than to question 'The Reagan Hunch'!" she joked. "You think Evan did it?"
"I don't know…maybe. After dinner tonight I was going to go out and follow him. He seems to be in all the right places at the all the right times."
Eddie jumped up out of Jamie's arms excitedly. "Let me come with!"
Jamie narrowed his eyes, the Boy Scout in him now starting to show again. "Eddie, we're not supposed to be working together right now."
"Oh come on! We'd both technically be off duty! So it wouldn't matter, right? And besides, we've done this dog and pony show before…I still have the wig and the cane! You know I make a great old broad!"
Jamie was quick to respond. "Eddie, no. I can't drag you in on this."
"Why not? You don't even have to mention that I helped. I'll even let you have the collar if we catch the scum bag," she promised.
"It's not about that."
Eddie grabbed Jamie's arm and tugged on him. "Come on, Jamie! It'll be fun! Twelve David back in action! We SO got this!"
"Fun? Eddie, this guy murders elderly people. Murders. Not robs. He kills them. It's not like the last time we did this."
Eddie's shoulders dropped in disappointment. "Oh. So you think I can't handle a murderer."
"That's not it, either. Come on, Eddie, you know I think you're a kick ass cop."
"Well then why don't you want me along?" she whined.
Jamie opened his mouth to speak but then closed it again.
Eddie's eyes softened as she gazed into his. He looked nervous. His words echoed in her mind…a murderer, not a robber… Then she realized it. Jamie was being over-protective, not because he didn't think she could handle it, but because he didn't like the personal risks associated with using her as bait to a murderer. Now the elephant in the room appeared too large for her not to say something.
"You think we shouldn't work together anymore because of our feelings for each other?" she dared ask.
"I…" Jamie started but couldn't finish and shrugged his shoulders.
Eddie stood up from the couch. Her first instinct was to run out the door and say 'Just forget I mentioned it, Reagan.' But she couldn't move. No more ignoring it. This needed to be hashed out.
"I'm so tired of this," she said in a whisper.
Jamie stood and grasped her hands in his. "Me too. I don't think I have to tell you that I want both. I've been struggling with this for a long time. But we can't…we made a choice. And I know I've been sending you mixed signals. This time that we've had away from the partnership…it's just been too easy for me to cross that line, and I'm sorry."
Eddie pulled away and sat back down. "Well maybe we made the wrong decision. We've had other partners for a whole month now. It hasn't been too horrible," she said, trying to convince herself that her partnership with Welch was working out fine. Jamie caught on to the white lie she was telling.
He sat next to her and sighed. "Yes it has. Tours really suck without you."
This made Eddie laugh. "Oh! So you finally admit you lucked out with me as your partner!"
"Shut up," Jamie teased. "You don't seem real thrilled with your new partner, either."
"Yeah, well, okay, you're right. You wanna know what his problem is?"
"He's a jackass."
"He's not you," Eddie corrected.
Jamie hummed in response.
"Ok, look," Eddie offered. "We both recognize we have feelings for each other. Those feelings have been there a long time. So how is it that we have the house record for the partnership with the most collars. It's because we are so in sync with each other and we have proven we can be professional. We deserve capes. So why can't we have both?"
Jamie instantly went into his usual argument and they both said it together at the same time: "Because it's a bad idea for a lot of reasons."
Eddie rolled her eyes. "It could also be a good idea for a lot of reasons!"
Jamie gave Eddie an authoritative look. "It's against the rules."
"Debatable," Eddie smirked. "You and I know plenty of partners who've hooked up and haven't gotten in trouble for it."
"Only because they've kept it secret. It's bound to jam them up at some point."
"But it's not kept secret. You know how word gets around. It's not very secret if we know about them and most of the precinct already knows about them, right? And we already know most of the house believes we're hooked up already…"
Jamie was going to say something to retort but in typical Eddie fashion, she was on a roll so she just kept on talking.
"…and you did say, and I quote: 'Since everyone's already thinkin' it, we're paying the price for something we didn't get the benefits of.'"
Jamie exhaled loudly and squirmed. "I did say that, didn't I."
Eddie grinned. "The way I see it, we've already been compromised since…since…well, when did you start having feelings for me?"
"Oh no. We're not going there. I plead the fifth," Jamie quickly responded and held up his hand.
Eddie raised an eyebrow. "Whoah, now wait a minute! Just how long have you been carrying a torch for me, Reagan?" she gushed.
Jamie fidgeted a little but thought back to the very first day they met and smiled. "The end of our first tour. It was the first time I saw you out of uniform and you zoomed away in your Porsche. Total turn on."
Eddie's mouth fell open. "Jamie Reagan!" She hit him in the chest and he started to laugh. It actually felt good for him to finally admit that.
"Yeah yeah. Ok, I spilled, now how about you?"
She took her time answering him. She had so many favorite memories of their four years together where her heart beat fast for him, but when she really thought about it, it was the worst memory that ended up being the start of her feelings for him. "When Jake..." she swallowed and started over. "When you told me I wasn't going to be alone. And then you went with me to arrest him. As much as Jake took my dignity away, you gave it back to me. The way you cared for me…I hadn't had that in my life for the longest time. From then on I knew I could trust you to do the right thing and that you would always have my back. And I began to realize what a great guy you truly are. I've never met anyone like you."
Jamie took her hand in his and squeezed. "But you have no idea how badly I wanted to kill that guy for what he did to you."
"But you didn't kill him. And instead you took me to Anton's," Eddie finished. "And that's what really turned me on. Which reminds me, I'm hungry!"
Jamie pulled her up off the couch. "Well we better get to Anton's then. And after that, you and I will go set up Evan and see what he's up to."
Eddie smiled, happy that he relented. "Sounds like the perfect evening!" She turned to head to the door.
"Eddie…" He stopped her and pulled her toward him. Before she knew it, his lips were on hers. The kiss was soft and slow and Jamie took his time tasting her. Eddie allowed him to take lead and she melted into him. The last time they had kissed, they had both savored it because it felt like it was going to be their last time crossing that line. But this felt like a whole new beginning. Jamie broke first and planted his forehead to hers. "Now it's perfect," he whispered.
He had taken her breath away and she stood still for a moment. But then she surprised him with a swift swat to his butt before turning towards the door. "No, NOW it's perfect!"
"Do you always have to get the last say?"
"YES!"
