In Love and In-Laws

Eddie and Jamie are walking back to Eddie's apartment after having dinner in Chelsea Market. The partners have been engaged for almost two weeks and things are going great, but one thing weighs on Jamie's mind.

He looks at his fiancé and decides to just broach the subject.

"Eddie?" He squeezes their joined hands.

She's looking straight ahead at a woman walking a small mixed breed puppy, but she pulls her eyes from the dog to look over at Jamie.

"Yeah?"

He takes a deep breath – which makes her tense – before speaking slowly. "I know you and your mom don't really talk anymore, but are you going to tell her about our engagement? Invite her to the wedding?" He wants to say more but he doesn't – Eddie has only mentioned her mother twice in their 5 year partnership and he doesn't want to push her.

Eddie doesn't say anything for a long time, but she doesn't let go of Jamie's hand either, he takes that as a good sign.

Finally she speaks.

"I know I need to tell her, I mean, I already told my dad and he's in jail, I just… I don't want to open that can of worms. Before everything happened with my dad I could read her emotions and thoughts like a book, but now I have no idea how she'll react to anything I tell her. I don't know if I can handle it if she's upset about us."

Jamie stops suddenly making Eddie jerk back into him. He puts a hand on her waist.

"Why would she be upset?"

Eddie doesn't want to answer. She decides she needs to.

"My mom and I's relationship used to be amazing; she was one of my best friends. I could talk to her about anything and she never judged me and she always encouraged me to do anything I wanted. When my dad got in trouble her attitude changed. She got really snippy and cold and I really didn't understand why. Yeah, my dad did a terrible thing and most of our things were being repossessed and we had to move but we still had each other. I thought that would be enough. I went back to college for my last year and she never called. I only saw her for Christmas that year and at my graduation – which, honestly, kind of surprised me.

"I hadn't told her that I was planning on going to the academy but I knew I had to, so I did while we were out to dinner after my graduation and that was a big mistake. She threw a fit, started crying and yelling and saying I could do so much better with the degree I'd just spent four years getting. I told her there would be no changing my mind and she walked out. She just left me there in the middle of dinner and I haven't seen her since." Eddie pauses; she rests her forehead on Jamie's shoulder.

"I called her once, after I graduated from the academy – the day before I met you actually – and she told me I was wasting my life doing a job that would only make me hate people or get me killed. She told me that as long as I'm a cop I shouldn't expect to hear from her and it broke something in me, Jamie. I'd already lost my dad – and I was so mad at him, you know that – and then I lost her too and all I had left was the job and you and that eventually became enough."

She looks up at Jamie. "I love you, I wouldn't trade you or being a cop for anything but I still miss her. I just don't know if I can handle telling her that I'm engaged to another cop and having her saying you aren't worthy. She wanted me to marry this horrible guy, Robbie Swintell, whose family owns a bunch of banks on the east coast; marry into the same social class and all that. When dad went to jail that went up in smoke for her – I would have never married him by the way – and I think she's never let that dream for me go."

Jamie decides to try and make her laugh. "Would it ease her mind at all if she knew we are actually in the same social class? Blue blood marrying blue blood – even though the definition might be different than she's used to."

Eddie smiles a small smile. "Definitely not the blue blood she was thinking of. I'll call her when we get home, which reminds me, I heard about an apartment that we should look at. Two bedrooms, two baths, and an office – it almost sounds too good to be true, but I'll set up a walk through." She grabs his hand and they start walking again. Jamie decides not to mention her quick change of subject and only hopes her mother won't say anything to hurt Eddie further.

Eddie is staring at her phone, Jamie is staring at Eddie, and none of them are making a sound. She closes her eyes before finally picking up her cell phone.

Eddie dials her mother's number for the first time in years. It rings three times before her mother's soft soprano voice answers; her Serbian accent still slightly audible.

"Hello."

"Hi, mom, it's Eddie."

The line is silent for a long time before Katarina Janko speaks again.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, why do you think something's wrong?" Eddie is honestly confused by her mother's words.

"Well, we haven't spoken in years; I just assume you must be in trouble or something, to give me a call."

"Nothing is wrong, mom, I actually have good news." Eddie takes a breath, looks at her newly made engagement ring, "I'm getting married."

Again, her mother says nothing for a few seconds, "To whom?"

Eddie's eyes close for a second time. "His name is Jamie, I…we met at work." Jamie raises his eyebrows at her lack of the full truth but says nothing.

"I assume 'work' still entails wearing a badge and carrying a gun," the couple can both hear the disdain in her voice.

Eddie notices the slight wince Jamie elicits and decides not to take any of her moms's shit anymore. Her voice hardens, "Yes, mom, it does. I am a cop and Jamie is a cop and we both love our jobs. I didn't call you to get reprimanded, I called you to tell you that I'm getting married and that if you want to come to any events that go along with that then you need to stop telling me I'm wasting my life protecting people and just come enjoy this time with me. I love you and I miss you and I want you in my life, but you have to stop being so disappointed with the way our lives turned out. I'll text you anything wedding related, respond if you want to. Bye." Eddie is about to hang up when her mother tells her to wait.

"I don't like that you're an officer, Edit, but I am… excited that you're getting married. How about I come to the city next Friday, I'll make a reservation for five and we can all get to know each other."

"Don't you mean three?" Eddie asks.

"Doesn't Jamie have parents? I'd like to meet them too."

Eddie throws Jamie an alarmed look; he returns the look with alarm of his own. "Make it for four, his mom passed away," Eddie's voice is a whisper. "Text or call me when Friday gets closer with the details, I have to go now. Bye, mom."

"Goodbye, Edit."

Eddie puts her phone down and Jamie is immediately by her side.

"Are you ok?" He asks.

"Yeah, that went better than I thought it would. I didn't realize we'd all end up having to go out to dinner though, I wish I could have avoided that." She turns to look Jamie straight in the eye. "I'm not sure if we should tell her your dad's the PC."

Before Jamie can object, she trudges on.

"Just hear me out for a second. She doesn't like the police; she's made that very clear to me so learning that your dad is the top cop in the city will automatically make her not like him. Second, he's a power figure which, despite the contrary, will make her a little too excited. I'm not sure she wouldn't try to use that to her advantage. She knows you're a cop, which means she's already going to be wary of you; she doesn't need to be wary of your entire family. Besides, I'm sure she'll look you and your dad up after we have dinner. Do you think your dad would agree to this?"

Jamie can tell that Eddie is completely serious. He knows his father won't like withholding the truth but he'll try. "I honestly don't know, but all we can do is ask him. We'll head to dinner early on Sunday so we can talk to him about it, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you, for listening and for making me call her." Eddie cups her fiancé's face in her hands, "you're always trying to make things right with people which I used to think was annoying, but now it makes me love you a little more." She kisses the tip of his nose, then his right cheek, the corner of his mouth. "What do you say to helping me forget the last half hour?" Her lips touch his neck.

Jamie, being somewhat ticklish, moves Eddie's face up to his, puts his lips right up to hers. "If you want a distraction, just say the word," he kisses her fervently and they both forget the last week.

It's Friday afternoon and Eddie is slightly freaking out. Dinner with her mother is in three hours and her breathing has been haggard for the last two. Jamie watches her from the table, glancing back and forth between her and the files he's studying. He tried talking to her earlier but all she did was glare at him so he gave up pretty quickly. Their shifts end twenty minutes later and they both get up to change.

Jamie has to wait for Eddie a little longer than normal but she finally emerges from the locker room and they head for Eddie's apartment.

After walking in the door Eddie immediately goes to lay face down on her bed. Jamie follows and lies down beside her.

"Eddie, listen to me, this dinner is not going to be a disaster, it might be uncomfortable at times, but this is a step in the right direction. And, how about, we come up with a phrase to bolt if you really want too, something silly like 'I've always wanted to be arm candy.'" He waits for her to smile. She does, if faintly.

"Okay," she says quietly.

"Okay I get to be your arm candy tonight or okay to the phrase?" He teases.

Eddie looks up at him with another smile, "Okay to all of it. I love you, you know, even if you are only arm candy."

Jamie rolls his eyes but plays along. "I knew it all along, that's why it took me so long to make a move." He stands up at the foot of the bed.

"Oh, shut up, I made all the moves, you just finally said yes. Now help me up so I can get ready." He does as he's told.

"What's wrong with what you're wearing now?" Jamie thinks his fiancé looks amazing in dark jeans and sparkly tank. She gives him a Jim Halpert like camera stare.

"Are you serious, Reagan? A, this is my mother, my mother who's used to designer clothes and dinner parties. B, we're going to a five star restaurant, jeans aren't allowed and C, I'll be damned if she says I'm underdressed because she's already going to be judging us for everything else. Now, I need to put a dress on and you need to put on that navy suit I like so much." She kisses his cheek quickly before disappearing into her closet.

"I don't have that suit with me; I don't have anything that nice here." He thought the khakis he had on were going to be appropriate but he was mistaken.

"I have it in here, I planned ahead." Eddie comes out of her closet carrying his suit, she's also only in a delicate, lacy black slip. "Now change, I want to beat my mom there," and she disappears again.

Jamie changes.

*Okay, so I've been working on this too long and decided just to post it. The last part will be posted soon. I'm just making guesses here on what Eddie's mom is like. I'm pretty sure she's alive, in the show she was mentioned in the present tense, but that was a while ago. The only reason I can think we don't hear about her often is that her and Eddie's relationship isn't in the best place. Hopefully you guys like this, happy reading!