This story is dedicated to my dear friend, NancyReviews for her birthday. Wishing you a very happy birthday, Jamko styles and many happy returns of the day!
Eddie wouldn't trade her new partner for the world, mostly because his existence meant that she and Jamie were finally married. After five long years in the car together, Jamie had finally broken down and not only declared his love but proposed marriage in the same day. Eddie remember like it was yesterday. She could still feel the cold steel blade of the small yet sharp pairing knife next to her neck. Eddie could smell Jamie's anxiety, she could read him like a book. Thankfully, his voice never betrayed him, his body stayed firm and steady as he spoke the words that were exclusively for Reagans and Reagans only. "Please don't hurt my family."
Eddie remembered Jamie's stories about subway drills and playground rehearsals, those five words had been drilled into his head and those of his siblings for years. When Jamie spoke them to Eddie, he meant them, and he prayed she would remember his childhood anecdotes and drop to the ground.
Eddie went limp the second she heard Jamie speak those five words, he made short work of putting two bullets in the assailant's shoulder. While the suspect was cuffed and hauled away, cursing in pain, Jamie got tunnel vision and dropped to the floor to pull his partner into his arms. "Are you okay? You're bleeding."
"I'm okay, it's just a scratch," Eddie replied. "I'm okay. Are you okay? Jamie?"
The only word Eddie could describe for Jamie's face was funny. It was a cross between horror, relief, panic, triumph and one other emotion, dare she think it…
Yes, love was the fifth and final emotion playing out in Jamie's eyes. They had flirted, they had talked, they had decided…But that day, on the floor of a grimy and dingy storage facility, it all boiled over. Jamie pressed his lips to the cut on her neck before placing a handkerchief there…"I meant what I said, Eddie," Jamie told her later as she got her neck sewed up at the hospital. "I meant it when I called you family. You are my family, in a whole different way that Danny or Erin, you are part of my heart as much as we want to deny it. I can't anymore and you shouldn't either. I want to make you my family, Eddie. I want you to be my wife…"
That was six months ago. The wedding was simple and quick, neither wanting to wait any long than they had to now that it was finally out in the open. For the last two months, she had been Mrs. Jamison Reagan and in a car with Paul Regetti. Jamie had a hand in that she was sure. Regetti was a seasoned cop, calm, cool, and always in control. He was a partner they both felt safe with.
It was a freezing February night and minutes before end of tour. Eddie was a few steps ahead of Paul trying to keep herself warm in the whipping wind. A weather system had dumped ten inches of snow on the ground. Eddie and Regetti had been helping people out of tough spots all night. This next car appeared to be no exception.
"Ma'am…" Eddie knocked on the window with her asp as the wind continued to whip around her and Regetti. Eddie was layered in a flap hat and heavy socks but was still shaking with the bitter cold. "Ma'am, NYPD, Are you all right?" Eddie could hear crying from the embanked car. "Paul, we have a baby in here." The car wasn't just snowbound, it had wrecked. "We've gotta get them out!"
"12-David to Central, we need a bus and fire rescue squad, forthwith at this location. One female and one infant…vehicle is disabled and snowbound." Regetti tried to force the door open. It looked like the driver had spun out and got stuck in the plowed snow. The vehicle was off, there was no telling how long they had been there. Eddie's female instinct kicked in, she had to save that baby. "We have to start digging until the fire department gets here," Eddie sighed. The air was so dry, Eddie's lungs burned.
"Okay…let's do it. We don't have much time."
Eddie and Regetti worked as fast as their bodies allowed. Eddie was sucking air pretty hard as she dug, but they were barely making a dent. The baby's cries from inside the car had nearly stopped. "Where is that rescue team?" Eddie asked trying to catch her breath. It's getting colder and Eddie felt her legs going number. Her fingers were beginning to burn as much as her chest, but finally it seems that the shoveling was making a dent. "Ma'am, unlock the door..Ma'am…we are police officers."
Eddie and Regetti were working on the car over and hour before they finally got the door opened. The woman inside was close to dead from injuries not visible to Eddie and Regetti's eyes. The bus had been waylaid because of the snow and the number of accidents, the baby is ice cold.
"Regetti…" Eddie gasped and stripped her jacket and uniform shirt to wrap the tiny girl. Eddie held the baby to her bare chest trying to get the small child warm. Finally, the sound of sirens could be heard announcing the arrival of the bus.
One of the buses took the mother, pronounced at the scene, and the baby off to the hospital. The EMT crew, assured us the baby had a fighting chance. Eddie nearly collapsed with relief against Regetti. The second ambulance crew wanted to take a look at Eddie. She couldn't' get warm, her hands were frozen and her feet were painful and numb at the same time. Eddie refused to let the ambulance examine her, she wanted to go home to Jamie, he was what she needed. Regetti agreed to take Eddie home to Jamie.
Jamie paced back and forth in front of the window waiting for his wife to arrive home. It was horrible weather, ice cold, and Eddie was out there. Jamie knew she was a capable cop, trained well if he did say so himself, but she was the most precious thing in his world and he preferred her home in his arms safe and sound. Bliss was the only word to describe the last six months. Eddie was not only his best friend, but proving to be a wonderful wife. He hoped she would say the same about how he was a husband. Jamie paced again and looked down, not even seen footsteps on the snow. Jamie busied himself getting blankets and other things for when Eddie did arrive but he still couldn't help but wonder where she was.
The time passed too fast and too slow at the same time. Jamie made a few phone calls to settle his nerves and learned from Renzulli that Eddie and Regetti were on the scene on an accident and had called for rescue units. Jamie trusted Eddie could get the job done, but the bitter cold was cause for worry. They were trained to deal with the elements in the academy for such a time as this. Still, Jamie worried, the temperature was dropping and the snow was beginning to fall fast.
Jamie sat on the sofa, his phone in his lap, waiting to hear more news. Jamie knew in his heart she would be home soon, safe and sound. Eddie was strong and whatever the situation, she would come through okay. Still Jamie couldn't sit still, he started a pot of hot water for Eddie's favorite tea, when Eddie got home, she would welcome a steaming mug of it.
Finally Jamie heard shuffling outside the door and the scratching of someone trying to get a key in the lock. Jamie hurried to open the door and found Regetti with Eddie curled into his side wearing only a shock blanket from am EMT unit. Eddie is still, even though Jamie could tell by the look of Eddie's face she was cold. It disturbed him that she wasn't shivering. "Oh dear God, Eddie!" Jamie gasped and pulled her into his arms.
Eddie almost fell into Jamie's arms, thankful she was finally home. "Thanks for bringing her home, Regetti," Jamie said with a smile.
"No problem, Reagan," Regetti replied. "She did great, you should be proud of her."
"Always," Jamie replied as Regetti left.
Once Jamie shut the door and locked it, he turned his attention to Eddie. "Let's get you changed and get something warm for the inside of you. I made tea and I have a warm fleece blanket waiting for you."
"I can't even walk….it's so cold…The baby was so tiny…she was so cold and she…" Eddie rambled as she tried to catch her breath. Jamie was bearing nearly all of her weight.
"Sweetheart just slow down and catch your breath." Jamie soothed. "Take a few deep breaths.' Jamie helped Eddie peel off the wet layers and assisted her frozen limbs as she put on warm dry cloths. "Let's get you that fleece blanket ,and some hot tea."
Jamie gingerly wrapped Eddie in his freshly dried Harvard fleece blanket and handed her a cup of her favorite chocolate coconut tea. Eddie frozen fingers throbbed as she curled them around the ceramic container. Eddie hissed at the pain of the circulation coming back into her hands and fingers. "They didn't' come for so long…why? There was a baby in there…she was still even when I held her to my chest…she was still." Eddie wanted answers that she knew Jamie did not have.
"Just before you got home, my Dad called. He knew you'd be concerned. The hospital has the baby listed as stable," Jamie told his wife as he rubbed her arms and cuddled her close to his body to warm her.
"Good," Eddie sighed. "Her Mom's gone…I know she is. I hope that poor princess has a Daddy someplace. Jamie take this, it hurts…" Eddie's hands are bright red and her feet are still numb. My hands are red and my feet at still numb. "I wish we were at your dad's in front of the fire. I'm so cold…"
Jamie took the tea cup and helped Eddie sip at it so she didn't have to hold it. "The mother is also okay, the cold dropped her body temperature and the ER team was able to help her. She should be just fine." Jamie placed the tea cup on the side table and got up to plug in the space heater to bring extra warmth.
"Oh good," Eddie smiled but Jamie can see she is having trouble staying awake. Eddie's eyes are closing but even her exhausted state, she knew she had to stay awake. The parts of the body Eddie can feel were still cold, Jamie hands were working on taking offer Eddie's boots and socks. "Jamie…I'm so cold stop…"
"I took your boots off earlier and you put them back on. Why?" Jamie asked and shook his head. Jamie removed the boots again, "Put your feet up near the heater."
Eddie obeyed and was willing to do whatever Jamie asked of her to feel better. She trusted him completely. While Eddie warmed her feet, Jamie checked her hands. They too were bright red. Jamie held Eddie's hands to his bare chest, if his love and admiration for his wife could warm her, she would need a bikini.
"I'm so tired," Eddie sighed and leaned into the couch. "My feet burn…." Eddie was in visible pain from the blood rushing back to her extremities. She is finally starting to get the chills. Eddie's teeth chattered and her eyes began to fall closed. Jamie can tell how much Eddie wants to sleep, but instead she erupts into a fit of hard coughing.
Jamie rubbed Eddie's back and helped her sit up a little better. "It's okay," Jamie soothed. He helped her drink more tea, the warm liquid helps to quell the coughing. "There you go. Much better." Jamie wrapped another blanket around Eddie, this time an old quilt his mother made.
"It's not helping," Eddie sighed. "My skin is burning….and all I can think about is that poor little baby. She was…maybe a month old, Jamie. And she was colder than I was. Her poor little body must hurt so much if my larger on does. I thought when we got the door open…" Eddie's eyes welled up but she can't afford to cry.
Jamie rubbed the blankets and tried to move the heater closer. It seemed to help and Eddie snuggled even closer to Jamie's body. "Is Mom's quilt warm?"
"You are warmer," Eddie replied. "I just wanted to get home so badly. I think after while I just thought about…getting home you know? Your Dad really has to talk to FDNY about communicating with us better we were waiting for them to come help."
"Let's talk to Dad about that soon then," Jamie said with a little rock. Jamie felt himself beginning to get tired as he destressed with his wife in his arms. Jamie checked Eddie's hands again, the redness was going down. Such a relief.
"Let's go to bed," Jamie suggested. "I'm tired and I want to snuggle in the covers." Eddie pushed herself out of the blankets and went to put weight on her legs. Pains shot through her feet forcing Eddie to sit down with a gasp. "I can't stand."
Jamie stood up and lifted Eddie, blankets and all into his arms. He carried her the short way to their bed and laid her down on her beg. Jamie took one of Eddie's small feet in his warm hands and massaged it gently restoring more of the blood flow.
"That feels good," Eddie sighed in total exhaustion as Jamie's hands cupped her feet and legs, rubbing so gently, but firmly too. I sigh trying not to give into total exhaustion. Jamie's hands cup my feet and my legs, rubbing so gently but firmly too. Jamie leaned forward and gave Eddie a kiss; long and romantic, just the way she likes them.
Eddie opened her mouth to kiss Jamie deeply. She was so glad to be home with Jamie and lay in his strong arms. Eddie sighed against Jamie's lips, "Warm me…Jamie," Eddie whispered as their foreheads touched.
It was easy for Eddie to forget the cold, the pain in her feet, everything being cuddled to her husband's chest. Eddie leaned into Jamie and held him tighter. "I love you…"
"I love you too. You really scared me today," Jamie finally gave voice to his own worries.
"I'm so sorry," Eddie whispered. "I'm so sorry, I didn't want to upset you. I had to do it Jamie. That baby was going to die if we waited for FDNY…" Eddie sniffled and kissed Jamie again. She felt much better just being in his arms.
"We should get some sleep." Jamie said and kissed Eddie's forehead. "It's certainly been an excitement filled day."
Eddie sighed and let her eyes drift shut as she listened to the beat of Jamie's heart. Eddie fell asleep in her husband's arms feeling warm, safe, and above all else loved.