Prologue:
Harley squinted her eyes open, groggy with sleep. Chills ran down her back and up her arms when the cold air of the small dingy apartment raised goosebumps on her smooth skin. Winter was not kind in Gotham, but with her student loans and her husband's stagnant run with the local comedy clubs money was tight and heating an apartment even one this small was pretty expensive.
She rolled over ready to shuffle closer to her husband and personal space heater but found that the left side of the bed was empty and cold. "Jack?" She called softly and sighed when she was met with no response. Grumbling half-heartedly she pulled the blanket from the bed around her shoulders and stumbled clumsily from the bedroom to find Jack seated on the couch with his head in his hands mumbling to himself. In front of him on the dinged up coffee table was a mess of bills and bank statements.
Harley sighed quietly walked behind him to place her hands on his shoulders. She brought her face down to his ear. "It's late darling, come to bed," she chided him softly.
" How am I supposed to sleep knowing I can't support my wife or our future child," he said with a frustrated tremor in his voice. " I never should have left that job at ACE. If I had just sucked it up we wouldn't be in this mess right now. Why did I ever think I could make it as a performer? I'm not even funny. You must be so ashamed of me Harls. You deserve more than a dead beat like me."
"Hey, don't you say that. I love you more than anything. I don't need a big house or expensive gifts, fancy dates. All I want are you and little J.J." Harley murmured as she wiped the tears trickling from Jack's eyes and placed his hand on her abdomen with a soft smile. "I'm so proud of you for leaving a situation that was making you unhappy and striving to find your dream. Everything else will fall into place and we will be fine. Now come to bed, please? Your Harley needs some snuggles from her Puddin," she pleaded with a giggle.
Jack's lips stretched into the beautiful grin that had made her fall in love with him in the first place. He placed his hands on either side of her face and pulled her lips into a soft but passionate kiss. He pulled away to find Harley with that dopey love sick look and slight blush she always got when he showed her any affection. "Then snuggles she shall have," he said dramatically with a flourish of his hand. "You go settle in and Daddy will be there in a moment okay Doll?" Jack gave her a light smack on her bottom as she turned and all but skipped back into the bedroom with a squeak and a giggle.
Jack smiled fondly after her for a moment before his grin started to falter and he glanced at the phone anxiously. He tentatively picked up the receiver and dialed the number the man had given him after their meeting earlier that day. The ringing stopped and a harsh male voice answered with a "What?!" Jack swallowed a couple times before he was able to get the words out
"I'm in."