-Author's note: Hey! Thank you guys for the support! I know the last chapter was short but I had a little block. This one's a little longer, hopefully you guys like it!-
Joss placed the last piece of cantaloupe on her tongue and debated whether or not she could actually physically eat it. She had eaten every single morsel of food on her plate except for the bacon; she was saving that for Bear. Joss was a fat girl trapped in a skinny girls body and she could put it away. She chewed the cantaloupe despite being on the verge of exploding. I could be on Man vs. Food, she thought dryly, pushing away from the table to start getting ready. Her hips popped as she stood, eliciting a grown from the small woman. She was a smart woman, she knew she was close to the proverbial hill, but she wasn't about to let her self admit it.
The bathroom looked just as bad as the rest of the apartment with her hair products and dirty clothes scattered throughout the small room. The only part that had any semblance of order was her make-up. She dabbed on her favorite foundation and lightly brushed on some neutral eye shadow. She leaned into the counter to do her mascara, absentmindedly parting her lips. A coat of clear gloss later and she looked fresh and ready for the day. Only one problem: her clothes. What the hell was she supposed to wear? Harold was always so immaculately dressed, she felt like she needed to impress him, but she was going to be spending the day with a gurgling, slobbering, puking infant. She flicked off the bathroom light and trudged to her closet. She opened the louvered doors and stared blankly at the color-coded sea of clothes. Joss wondered if Harold would be wearing his signature attire even though they were going to be playing house together. After pulling out all of her most comfortable slacks, she gave up on the idea of dressing to impress and went to her dresser for her most worn out, comfortable pair of jeans ever, and her ratty old Howard sweatshirt. She hadn't worn these two items together since Taylor was a kid but she would be comfy as hell in them so to hell with what people thought. As she was pulling on her jeans her phone buzzed to life on the kitchen table telling her that she had gotten a text. Probably from Fusco, that man was a pain, a cute, adorable, pug-ish kind of pain.
"Dammit Fusco." She mumbled under her breath as she stomped off to the kitchen, her jeans still unbuttoned. Lifting the offending device, she saw that she actually had a text from an unknown number, read: Harold.
"Whenever you are ready, my car is waiting out front." He really had freaky timing. Her hands deftly closed her jeans, grabbed her phone and purse, and closed the door behind her, being sure to lock it. A black Lincoln Town Car was parked in front of her building's steps, a burly man with short blonde hair leaned against it with his arms folded.
"Good Morning, ma'am." He greeted as he opened the backseat door for her. She didn't even get a chance to respond he shut the door so quickly. This man was used to being discreet, she guessed. The driver expertly maneuvered through the crazy streets of Manhattan, taking her to god knows where. Her phone buzzed, startling her. Fusco.
"Have fun with Glasses, partner. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Joss rolled her eyes and stuffed the phone back in her jeans. Dammit Fusco.
The town car rolled to a stop in front of a cute two-story brownstone. The driver swiftly got out and opened her door. She cautiously walked up the steps and raised her hand to knock when the door swung open. Standing there was Harold, dressed perfectly as usual, but not in a suit. He wore a grey and red checked button up with a dark charcoal gray cardigan, with the sleeves were rolled up, reminiscent of her first meeting with Harold as Burdett. His pants were tan corduroys and he had on a pair of dark brown Clark's. He wasn't in a masterfully tailored suit but Joss couldn't help but note that he looked very, very good. She pulled her eyes away from him to Leila, sitting regally in his arms. Joss' face lit up, as Leila seemed to recognize her and held her chubby little arms out to the detective.
"Good morning, Detective." Harold's own eyes drifted down Joss' body and took in her college casual outfit. Her jeans seemed made just for her toned legs, as they gently clung to her curves. He could feel the tips of his ears blushing, so he pealed his eyes away from her. He nodded to his driver and the car sped away. Joss barely noticed as she kissed and cooed at the infant.
"Hi Harold. I hope you don't mind being seen with me in these old rags, but I just couldn't bring myself to dress up." Joss held Leila tight as she apologized, the words coming out like water out of a faucet. He made her nervous standing there watching her so intently. Normally it was her job to make someone feel nervous, having the tables turned never made her feel right. Harold wasn't judging her, she could tell that much, but she felt an overwhelming need to explain her disordered appearance. 'I could have at least worn a decent shirt…' Joss chastised herself when Harold didn't immediately respond.
"Please, don't trouble yourself. There's a high likelihood you'll get thrown up on, and I wouldn't want you to ruin a perfectly good outfit because of that." He said the words throw up with a faint shutter; he had definitely experienced that much taking care of Leila. He moved out of the doorway, letting her enter. Joss' eyes widened as she took in the beautiful home.
"Oh, Harold, this place is amazing! It's right out of a magazine." Joss moved around and marveled as Harold stood just inside the doorway and smiled meagerly. The entryway had high vaulted ceiling that went straight to the roof, the kitchen and living room were one big room with an island acting as a divider. The living room had wonderfully big couches in a soft, earthy shade of green. Brown and orange accents gave it a warm feeling with out being overly tropical, like a hotel in Florida might be. The living room flowed effortlessly into the kitchen, taking the orange highlights with it. The cabinets were colonial inspired white with thick butcher-block countertops. Walnut hardwood floors covered the entire first floor that she could see, and to Joss' well-trained eyes they looked original. There were big, beautiful plants everywhere Joss looked; she knew she'd have no problem spending her days here. Harold watched her moving in and out of the rooms, watching for an appropriate pause to offer her the grand tour. Finally, Leila protested to being held and Joss looked at Harold.
"Oh, her playpen's in my office." Harold led Joss down a hallway that she hadn't noticed before, and opened a tall set of double doors. To Joss his office looked like a library. Three out of four walls were floor to ceiling bookcases with a large wooden desk in front of a set of bay windows. The desk played host to multiple computer monitors and there was a constant whirling noise in the background. Joss was a little dumbfounded at the scene.
"So is there where you hack into all those places?" Harold winced at the word.
"I don't hack, Joss. I merely let myself in. Hacking makes it sound so- violent." Harold flicked his hand to emphasize his point. Joss was arching an eyebrow at him, clearly not convinced.
"It's illegal." Harold returned an eyebrow arch. Joss huffed, knowing she had lost, and placed Leila in her jungle themed playpen. She immediately picked up the nearest toy and stuffed it into her mouth; drool ran down her chin. Joss smiled widely at the baby, and turned back to Harold.
"Would you like the grand tour?" Harold asked, holding out his hand like a butler. Joss cocked her head, and finally shook it.
"Yes." Ever the gentleman, Harold gestured for Joss to go first, as he quickly pocketed the baby monitor. In the hallway he held his elbow out for her to take. She slipped her slim arm through his and kept her pace with his slower gate. He pointed out the flooring, confirming that she had been right about them being original. The house was over a century old and had gone through many unfortunate renovations, he explained. He had bought it years ago and had been restoring it back to its original glory. She could feel his enthusiasm as he told her about the painstaking restoration. Harold was a lover of antiques, this she had been able to tell the first night she met him in that small restaurant for some explanations. His suit had practically screamed vintage, and he looked like he had stepped out of the late 30's. That style fit him well, as he looked quite handsome in his bold patterned waistcoats. She didn't know much about men's suits anymore but she knew his had to be in the thousands at least. Harold cleared his throat to get her attention; she had been staring at him for a few momenta, no longer listening to him.
"So, where's Leila's room?" Joss tried to recover. Harold's eyes lit up and he led her up the steel spiral stairs.
"These aren't original but I am a sucker for a spiral staircase." He pointed out as he limped up the stairs. Joss smiled, grateful he couldn't see her. She could spot Leila's room all the way from the starts. The pink and purple letters were unmistakable.
"May I?" Joss asked.
"Please." Harold once again held his hand out, reminding her of a butler. She carefully made her way to the end of the hall; she was always overly conscientious when she was in someone else's home. A habit she had from the force, she supposed. She turned the brass knob and walked into the room. The smell of baby power wafted in the air, bringing back memories of when Taylor was a baby. To Joss' surprise a tear pricked her eye and rolled down her cheek. A swell of emotions was threatening to overflow so she took solace in the plush rocking chair in the corner. She held back a sob at the thought of Taylor. He was almost ready to leave the nest, he wasn't a baby anymore, but he'd never stop being her baby. Having an episode of empty nest syndrome was the last thing she had expected to feel when she woke up, but she couldn't stop it now. There was a box of tissues stashed in the changing table so she helped her self to a few. She stifled a few more sobs, and dabbed her eyes. Maybe looking at Leila's things would help? She moved to the wall of bookshelves. The pictures of John and Leila made her laugh out loud. John was making an absurd face in almost all of them, except for one that had caught him smiling down at her as she was looking up at him and laughing. It was a beautiful picture that caused a tug in her belly. It wasn't looking at John that made her feel her biological clock at that moment. It was Leila. She was absolutely perfect. She had that wonderful baby smell, she was always ready to laugh, and smile, and she was going to be a heartbreaker with those big blue eyes. Those big blues drew in everyone that laid eyes on the infant, making them swoon and coo. She looked away from the picture as her attention was drawn to the walnut closet door, and she carefully opened it. The closet held the cutest baby clothes she had ever seen. Joss had always secretly hoped for a girl so she could dress her up in cute clothes like these; this closet was like walking into a dream that she was finally getting to live out. Joss finally had the chance to dress up a baby girl. It didn't matter to her that Leila wasn't hers; she was going to make sure that that kid was always stylish. She wiped her eyes again, and blew her nose, tossing the tissues into the little trashcan. She gathered herself and left Leila's room, trying her best to act as if she hadn't just had a little breakdown.
Harold wasn't in the hallway when she closed Leila's door behind her. Joss glanced around to make sure she wasn't going crazy, and realized that he must have gone downstairs to Leila. There were 3 other doors and the first one she opened was a linen closet. Doors number two and three were bound to be a bedroom and bathroom, nothing too special, so she went downstairs to find the duo sitting on the couch with a book.
"I don't think she can read yet, Harold." She smiled as she slipped her shoes off before sitting on the couch next to them. His blue orbs found her brown ones and they wrinkled as he smiled at her.
"I know, but I want her to be as informed as possible." He was completely serious.
"Well, I think she'll be okay for now if she doesn't know about Mr. McDonald's farm." Harold actually, genuinely laughed at her joke, it was a soft sound, but pleasing. Leila stuck her chubby fist in her mouth and started to whimper.
"Uh oh." Harold exclaimed softly. Joss was lost.
"What? What's wrong?"
"She's about to have a fit. This is the reason I need your help. I don't know what to do when she's like this. I feel… helpless." Harold looked absolutely pathetic to Joss, like a kitten that fell into the bathtub.
"Let me see her. I have a feeling about what's bothering our little angel." Joss felt that tug in her belly again as she said it and again when her hand brushed his as he handed the baby to her. She expertly pulled Leila's fist from her mouth and gently tugged her small lower lip to check her gums. Two hard, white, little rectangles were trying to breach the surface of her lower jaw. Joss kissed her patients forehead for being so good and looked at Harold.
"She's teething, Harold." He didn't look relieved.
"What do I do?"
"Well, you can put some whiskey on her bottles to numb her gums…" Harold's eyes widened.
"Or, you can buy some numbing gel, teething rings, and some teething cookies…" He blinked in relief. Joss looked at Leila and got an idea.
"Why don't I take her to the store with me and we'll get her what she needs and I'll get some stuff for us-I mean food, and stuff." Joss blushed, she hadn't meant for that to come out that way. Hopefully Harold hadn't noticed…
-Poor Joss, Taylor will be flying the coop soon :(. Yeah, it ends a little abruptly, but we might get to find out why Harold has Leila in the next chapter! Grocery store cuteness, as well. And Leila is so gosh darn cute. Thanks for reading!-
