Hello all. I haven't stopped my other stories, new chapters will be here by the end of the week, but this is the idea that couldn't wait and it is a little lighter than my other stuff. I hope nobody minds a bit of a shift in mood.

The More Things Change

Chapter One

Sunday morning was the one day in the week the Dunbars could, occasionally, be lazy. Today there were no trips, no concerts; no shifts to cover because of other's issues or covers to shift to other issues. Nothing needed to be done… hurrah.

Jim rolled over to his sleeping wife and buried his nose in her hair. Inhaling deeply, he wondered just which shampoo Christie was using now. Lilacs… he loved lilacs; it always reminded him of spring on his grandmother's farm. He pulled her closer and began to nuzzle her neck and felt Christie shift ever so slightly as she woke up.

"Morning, beautiful," he whispered and nibbled her ear. 'Oh god,' Jim thought as Christie spooned into him, 'she's purring.'

Then, Christie hiccupped, slapped her hand in front of her face and bolted out of the bed straight to the bathroom. Jim followed as quickly as he could and ended up holding her hair out of the way as she vomited into the toilet. Hard, shaking spasms shook her slender body and when she had finished Christie leaned back into Jim and cried.

"I take it, it was a good thing I didn't eat the fish?" Jim smiled as he heard a small laugh break through her tears.

"Yeah," Christie's whispered back.

"How about I fix you some tea and toast?"

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"First, back to bed and then I nurse you for a change."

"Frank Daniels, super chef, able to scramble extra large eggs with a single whisk," Frank pushed into his bedroom, breakfast on a tray balanced on his knees, ready to serve the pretty lady who now occupied his bed.

"I can't eat all that," Karen Betancourt groaned as she surveyed the eggs, ham and toast that was placed in front of her.

"Good, cause I intend to help," Frank laughed as he transferred from chair to bed, snuggled close and swiped a piece of toast. "A boy's got to keep up his strength when he has a girl like you."

"You're incorrigible," Karen said before she kissed him on the nose. Soon she was giving Frank every other bite of breakfast.

"No napkins?"

"I'll just have to lick off your fingers… among other things."

"I love a tidy guy."

Monday morning should have been the usual rush at the Dunbars, if Christie had not been worshipng the porcelain god once more. This time it was Jim who insisted on calling the clinic and who sat nervously while Christie got poked and prodded in an exam room. Soon Doctor Fischer's nurse called Jim into his office.

"Mr. Dunbar, Mrs. Dunbar," the young doctor scanned his notes while the couple settled in, "I believe that we may be dealing with a simple case of food poisoning. It happens frequently during the summer months… can't be sure about anything you buy off a street vendor, actually." Fischer looked up at the handsome couple in front of him and smiled. "I'll have most of the blood test results back by end of the day and if there is anything you need to know I'll get in touch with you. In the meantime, Mrs. Dunbar, go home and let your husband pamper you for the next three days. Bland diet and no caffeine and you should be as good as new on Thursday."

Jim got Christie home and tucked into bed before he headed to work. Food poisoning, that didn't seem right. He had eaten the same thing as Christie except for the catfish at the Bayou Bleu. Slipping into the subway, Jim began to feel a tiny little fear creep into his consciousness. He sucked in a long breath as he boarded into the waiting car and wondered what would happen if…

Karen sat of the edge of the tub and checked her calendar again. Damn. One, two, three, four, five days late! Damn!

Behind her Frank walked into the bathroom. Using his leg braces and crutches he was much more awkward than in the wheelchair, but there were days when he felt he needed to look a client right in the eye.

"Why are you still in here?" he pivoted toward Karen. "It's been a half an hour?"

Karen dragged her eyes from her pocket calendar to Frank's face. She looked as if the weight of the world had just landed on her shoulders. Frank reached down, took the offending booklet from her hand and studied it carefully. Reality dawned and he hoped Karen didn't see the terror on his face.

"Oops," Karen whispered and waited for the explosion.

It never came. Instead Frank took her left hand and ran his thumb over her small fingers.

"I always wondered what it would feel like to be so in love with someone that even a seeming catastrophe would turn into a blessing. Now I know."

"Karen's late, Dunbar's late, tell me this ain't an indication that something's going on." Marty sneered as he stared at the empty desks by the windows.

"You have a dirty mind," Tom chided his partner, "I bet it's just a co-incidence."

"Do you believe in the Easter Bunny too? Argh!" Marty twisted to see Karen behind him ready to deliver another bitch slap to the back of his head.

"You have a dirty little mind, don't you Russo," the voice of Lieutenant Fisk came from his office. "Dunbar took his wife to the doctor, some kind of an emergency. So, Karen, what's you're excuse."

"Nothing, just a quick stop at the drugstore and then over to Frank's office to drop him off."

"Young love, ain't it grand," Marty lisped and rolled his eyes at the evil look Karen threw at him.

"What's grand?" Jim asked as he and Hank got off the elevator.

"Young love, according to Marty." Karen groused as Jim made his way to his desk, somehow managing to shove the papers off Marty's desk in the process.

"Hey, you did that on purpose," Russo shot back as he grabbed the files mid-air.

"Prove it." Jim smiled insincerely in Marty's direction.

"Play nice, people. I'd like to get through Monday without bloodshed, especially in the house." With that Fisk closed his office door.

Tom and Marty went out on a robbery call and things got really quiet in the section. Karen tapped her pencil against her teeth and imagined how ridiculous she and Frank must have looked in the cramped men's washroom at Walbaum's waiting for the little plus sign to show up on the pregnancy test. When it did show up she had cried while Frank held her and told her everything would be all right.

"Karen, have you heard a word I've said?" Jim's voice cut through her memory.

"No, I haven't. What did you want to know?"

"I was asking you what you thought about career women having babies."

'Oh, my God, when did Jim start reading her mind?' Karen thought before she opened her mouth. "Why would you ask me that?"

"Because I wanted to hear from someone who might actually have put some thought into the question. I figured you might actually want to have a kid sometime."

"Truthfully, I haven't given it much thought. I kinda wanted a boyfriend at least before a kid showed up."

Jim smiled, "what about Frank? Isn't he a boyfriend?"

"Ask me after tonight."

Jim clammed up. What could be happening now? He knew Karen had a bad track record when it came to men, but he was sure that Frank Daniels would be the 'ONE'. Maybe he was wrong.

"Hey, you two," the Bosses voice broke through the heavy silence. "I need you to head to Hester and Bowery. A DB was found behind a dumpster and judging by the description it definitely wasn't one of the locals."

"We got it," Karen called as she pulled on her leather jacket and headed to the elevator barely one moment ahead of Jim and Hank.

btc