Author's note: As usual, here I am, excuses out my ass. BUT, I do have so many good reasons why this was late. 1) I've been having to write primarily on my phone, 2) I've been working on graduating from technical college and I DID IT, and 3) I've been in a depressive episode and haven't had a ton of motivation to do anything, if I'm being honest. Anyway, I'm doing better now, and I hope you all enjoy this one. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram at my main account, TeamJamko, and my writing account, KatyWritesJamko.

Eddie

You have made one hell of a recovery.

Dr. Coleman's words were still bouncing around in Eddie's brain even as she and Jamie were walking out into the brutal cold towards where Danny and Baez were parked, just across the street.

Eddie nor Jamie had any idea what "one hell of a recovery" meant. Eddie thought that maybe, at the most, the hematoma may have shrunk a bit and perhaps her wrist may have healed for the most part. She had gone in with very low hopes — if any hope at all — that much progress had been made.

Jamie's hand was gripping Eddie's just like it is now when the doctor defined "one hell of a recovery."

She'd told them the best news first: the hematoma hadn't just shrunk. It was gone. Between the corticosteroid and anticonvulsant, and Eddie following directions to rest for the most part, the hematoma had disappeared.

Next they'd found out that Eddie's blood had shown no signs of infection from her shoulder wound, but she was referred to a wound care clinic to make sure it stayed that way as well as monitor the healing wounds on her back.

It was also determined that what Jamie had been afraid was pneumonia was, in fact, an upper respiratory infection which, luckily, would require no treatment besides Tylenol and steam inhalation unless it worsened, in which case additional tests would be ordered.

The last bit of news was a combination of good and bad. The good was that her wrist was healing, and now only one area of injury remained. The bad news was that said area of injury was severe enough that the doctor wouldn't give her the green light to return to the beat until they'd done an x-ray in two weeks, along with another CT scan.

Dumbstruck over all this new information, Eddie just looked at Jamie, feeling like laughing and crying at the same time. He bent and kissed Eddie's temple, letting his lips rest there for a good, delicious few seconds.

After she gathered herself, Eddie put all this information in order in her brain, trying her best to sum everything up. The good far outweighed the bad… something neither she nor Jamie were used to lately. Quite opposite, in fact.

"So… I'm going to be okay?" She felt pathetic the second the words left her mouth. Even to herself, she sounded small and weak, AKA two things that Eddie Janko never wanted to be. Nothing she would ever let herself be, not if she could help it.

The tears beginning to form in Eddie's eyes caught Jamie's attention immediately and she felt his grip tighten. That muscle in his jaw was twitching, which signaled to Eddie that he was either angry or anxious. It was obvious in this case that it was the latter.

Dr. Coleman looked up from her clipboard with a genuine, honest-to-God smile — not the kind doctors typically use to placate you — and Eddie felt herself relax a little.

"You are absolutely going to be fine. Don't run any foot races just yet, but for the most part, you're almost out of the woods physically. Your progress has been unbelievable." The words were genuine; Eddie could tell by the way the doctor was smiling as she said them. Her smile was contagious, her face filled with hope.

Eddie felt cautiously optimistic, because, in all honesty, everything had gone to hell and she had learned not to get her hopes up. But right now, she couldn't help but smile and feel the tiniest little bit of something that was as close to hope as anything she'd felt in a long time.

Jamie, on the other hand, was looking at her with a smile that took her breath away. His eyebrows were raised in a silent I told you so.

Dr. Coleman went on and explained, in closing, that Eddie would be continuing on her current medications until her next appointment, to be confident that there were no further complications hematoma-wise.

"Mentally," the doctor added lastly, "I can't officially determine your progress as it's obviously not my area of expertise, but… just make sure you reach out for help if you need it, alright?"

Eddie looked over at Jamie and then back at Dr. Coleman, nodding and giving her a little hint of a smile.

By the time the doctor was finished and Eddie's next appointments were scheduled, both Jamie and Eddie's heads were spinning, and they were still spinning as they walked out into the frigid air that took their breath away. Jamie was holding Eddie's bag and prescriptions in one hand and holding her hand with the other.

Armed with so much information they wished they'd taken notes — thankfully a lot of what Dr. Coleman had said was in some of the paperwork in Eddie's bag — Jamie and Eddie climbed into the back of Danny's blissfully warm car.

Jamie pulled the scarf off Eddie's face and smoothed her hair back. His nose was bright red, just as she was sure hers was, and there were snowflakes on his eyelashes. "You alright?" he asked her with a smile as Eddie buckled in, and she felt Jamie's fingertips on her forehead, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

Eddie nodded, trying to still her shivering body. "Are you?" Her teeth were chattering as she spoke, and she cringed at the sound.

Jamie, of course, noticed immediately and, before Danny could ask any questions, he put his hand on Danny's shoulder and said, "Can you crank the heat up even more?"

"Of course, kid." Danny reached for the dial and set the heat as high as it could go. Then as Jamie and Eddie buckled in and got situated — "situated" meaning that Eddie was tucked beneath Jamie's arm — came the question.

"So? What did the doc say?" Danny asked as he pulled away from the curb, the snow crunching under the tires.

Both Jamie and Eddie explained what the scan and blood results had said, beginning to end.

Apparently Danny caught Eddie's disappointed expression in the mirror, and it was obvious he knew what she was thinking.

"Janko, I know it's difficult not being on the street," he said as he stared straight ahead. "Believe me, I get it. Baez and I both do. But with Brian still out there and potentially with Damian doing his dirty work, it isn't safe for you to be on the beat again yet anyway."

Baez turned in her seat and nodded sympathetically, even reaching back an arm to pat Eddie's knee. "You can always consider taking the next two weeks off, if you don't want to be stuck at a desk doing paperwork."

Eddie turned to Jamie — who was already looking at her — with her eyebrows raised in question. Eddie shrugged, chewing her lip. "I would almost rather be stuck in the apartment than sit at the precinct, watching everybody else function normally while I'm sitting there with my thumb up my ass, doing paperwork." She rolled her eyes as she said it, staring straight ahead out the windshield.

The car's other occupants all chuckled at Eddie's colorful phrasing and language, causing Eddie herself to let out a raspy chuckle and lean over onto Jamie's shoulder.

"Alright, well," Danny began, taking a long sip of his coffee, "we got a call while you were out. Mustang will be done in the morning. Until then, you guys need groceries at the safe house, huh?"

Eddie was nodding vigorously before Jamie could even process what Danny was asking. "I'm dying for ice cream. And I want cookies, and those mini frozen pizzas you always make fun of me for." She shot playful daggers at Jamie. "I'm tired of takeout. I'm over it."

Jamie widened his eyes and feigned shock so well Eddie almost believed it. "Let me get this straight… Edit Marie Janko is tired of takeout?" Despite a hard smack from Eddie with her good hand, Jamie continued. "Somebody write this down… It's 12:19 PM on December-"

Jamie was silenced as Eddie slapped her hand over his mouth. "Shut it, Reagan," she teased as every single occupant of the car started to laugh, including Jamie from under Eddie's hand. "Douchebags." Eddie mumbled the word through her own laughter, shaking her head.

"And I'm assuming you want to do the grocery shopping yourself?" Danny asked through his laughing as he glanced at Eddie in the rear view mirror.

"You're damn right," Eddie quipped, staring out the window at the snow with a grin on her face. As much as she didn't want to be snowed in and unable to go anywhere, the snow itself was beautiful in a way she'd never really noticed before.

When they were almost to the grocery store closest to the safe house — one Jamie nor Eddie had ever heard of, called Market on Tenth — the snow was falling heavier than when they'd left, and there was a good amount of accumulation on the pavement.

Eddie didn't mind it, but Jamie was on guard immediately as Eddie opened the car door and started to climb out. "Ed, wait. Stop." He tried to grab at her jacket to stop her, but she was out of reach and standing just outside the car before he could catch her, grinning.

"Dammit, Eddie," Jamie muttered, shuffling out of the car behind her , his face pinched up with stress. "Hold the hell on."

Truthfully, Eddie found that stressed, worried expression Jamie made to be one of the cutest things she'd ever seen. That's why she couldn't help herself; she stretched up and planted a kiss on the corner of Jamie's mouth, effectively changing his worried expression. "I'm fine. I feel great," Eddie assured him. It wasn't a lie, per se; she did feel great, but not physically. She did, however, feel hope deep in her chest after everything Dr. Coleman had said.

Hopefully, her body would catch up to her mind eventually.

When Eddie looked over at Jamie, he was giving her major side-eye, but there was a small smile tugging at his lips. He took her hand in his, thumb stroking her knuckles (one of her new favorite things), as Danny and Baez pulled away from the curb, both with knowing smiles on their faces.

As they waited to cross the street, Eddie could still feel Jamie's eyes on her, but in a different way this time. The snow was falling even harder now, and it made the moment all the more beautiful.

Jamie squeezed Eddie's hand, effectively getting her to turn and look at him, and the adoring look on his face damn near knocked the breath right out of then before she could say anything, Jamie's lips were on hers and his hands were framing her face and her knees were weaker than they'd ever been.

Damn him, she thought as she returned his kiss fiercely, not giving a single shit that they were standing on a street in front of a grocery store, with bright red cheeks and snow soaking their hair. God only knew who was staring at them, and it was clear neither of them cared. Jamie's hands were cradling Eddie's face and Eddie's fingers were tugging at the hair at the nape of Jamie's neck.

When they finally pulled apart, both were breathless and covered in chill bumps (neither caused primarily by the cold, although Eddie could feel her lungs burning more than they probably should have been).

Eddie was at a loss for words, and luckily, Jamie had her back. He leaned in and whispered, with his mouth under her ear, "When we get home," and then merely backed away from her, wearing a smile that shot straight to her core.

Eddie was frozen — physically and metaphorically — in her spot, and Jamie reached forward to grab her left hand with a chuckle.

Eddie was still dumbfounded and insanely flustered — her cheeks were burning in five-degree weather — even as he lead her across the sludgy road to the store, telling her

Damn him.

Jamie

The kiss had flustered Jamie a shit ton more than he was letting on, and as he and Eddie began to cruise through the unfamiliar grocery store aisles, he was grateful as hell that he had learned over the years to hide his insane physical attraction to Eddie (for the most part).

They hadn't brought a list, but that didn't seem to matter to Eddie. Jamie grinned as he watched her pull whatever apparently looked good to her off the shelves and throwing it haphazardly into the cart over her shoulder (Jamie had had to reach out twice to catch things that would have missed the cart).

"Okay, question…" Jamie started as Eddie inspected a box of cereal bars with Lucky Charms in them. "Don't we have enough cereal and things made out of it?"

Eddie chuckled happily as she looked over her shoulder at the cart that was packed with at least five different kinds of cereal and two boxes of cereal bars. "I existed on cereal from junior high pretty much until I got out of the Academy. It was always comforting to me, for some reason, and let's be honest, we could both use some comfort right now."

"But cereal, though, Janko? How did I not know this about you?" Jamie shook his head in amusement as Eddie finally moved on from the cereal and towards the coffee, peanut butter, and breakfast food section.

Eddie shrugged, eyebrows raised. "Hell if I know. I could have had anything I wanted and I chose cereal." She looked incredulous herself as she scooped two jars of peanut butter and two of jelly, placing them neatly in the cart.

"Well, obviously your tastes have expanded."

The moment the words left Jamie's mouth, he knew he would get shit for it, and he didn't regret it even a little bit. The expression on Eddie's face was priceless and worth it all.

One eyebrow was raised, and the look on her face was devious. "Jamie Reagan, are you trying to imply that I have a big appetite?" She dug her tongue into her cheek, and Jamie could tell she was trying not to laugh.

Jamie nodded once and threw a canister of Folgers into the cart. "That's exactly what I'm trying to imply. But you're still the most beautiful woman I've ever seen." He shrugged like he'd just simply told her the time or what the weather was like outside.

But he could see what it did to Eddie. She stopped smiling and stared at him for a minute before recovering and rolling her eyes at him. "Even when I'm stuffing my face with my 'expanded tastes'?"

Now it was Jamie's turn to roll his eyes. "You're never gonna let me forget that, are you?"

"Nope."

"But for the record, the answer is yes, you absolutely are beautiful even when you're stuffing cinnamon rolls into your face." Jamie was obviously primarily talking about earlier at the safe house when Eddie was stuffing cinnamon roll pieces into her mouth like it was going out of style.

And he was telling the truth: she did look beautiful. She had the remains of snowflakes that had landed on her and she was smiling the brightest smile Jamie had ever seen and everything felt okay. Jamie was grateful for that feeling, as it had been so fleeting lately.

"You sure are good at the flattery, Jamie Reagan," Eddie stated sarcastically, still smiling at him over her shoulder.

The two continued their usual banter as they stocked the cart with everything they thought they would need for however long they would be in the safe house. They kept the mood light, but a cloud was looming over their heads, and Jamie could tell that Eddie felt the same ominous feeling that he did.

Just as they were approaching self-checkout and bickering about who was going to pay, Jamie's cell phone rang loudly from his coat pocket. His eyes met Eddie's, and the fear he saw in her expression was far too familiar. He couldn't believe that they were in a place where the guy who tried to kill Eddie could possibly be on the other end of the line when Jamie answered.

He breathed a sigh of relief when Danny's name flashed on the screen, and Eddie visibly relaxed as well, obviously seeing Jamie's relief.

"Yeah, Danny?" Jamie answered, propping the phone between his ear and his shoulder while he unloaded the cart, lifting the heavier stuff out before Eddie could hurt her wrist trying to do it.

"Hey. Baez and I are parked just outside the store's back entrance."

Jamie immediately went rigid, and as hard as he tried to keep the fear out of his voice, he failed miserably. "The back entrance? Why the back entrance? What's going on?"

"It's just a precaution. There's been a development with Brian, so we're not taking any chances."

Jamie felt the most bizarre mixture of relief and fear, but apparently fear won over his facial expression, because Eddie literally dropped what she was doing and stared at him, blue eyes wide.

Jamie used his free hand to rub her back and tried to wipe the fear off his face. "Hey, it's okay," he whispered evenly, despite the fact that he was just as scared as she looked and everything was not okay. "Fill us in in the car. We're checking out now." He didn't wait for a response before he disconnected the call and returned back to scanning and bagging. He could feel Eddie's eyes on him.

"Jamie? What was that?" Eddie resumed handing Jamie different items, but her eyes were boring into him and the fear in her voice was crystal clear.

"Nothing, babe. It was just Danny," Jamie explained, but the fact that he wasn't looking her in the eyes was suspicious, and Jamie knew it.

Eddie saw right through him immediately. "I know who it was, Jamie. But what's going on? I can tell it was something important. Nobody has to go out a back entrance unless shit is going down."

She's too sharp for her own damn good, Jamie thought as he bagged the last item and swiped his debit card before Eddie could protest and insist on paying.

He sighed deeply, finally meeting Eddie's eyes. "All I know is that there's 'been a development with Brian.' That's all Danny said. He didn't sound panicked, just… Urgent."

Eddie's worry-laden expression changed ever so slightly, and she reluctantly followed Jamie as he pushed the cart straight down an aisle and to the back, where they paused at the door to the "back entrance," which actually opened into an alleyway.

"Stay here," Jamie commanded gently, causing Eddie to roll her eyes. She knew exactly what he was about to do, and she shot him an exasperated expression that made it difficult for him not to laugh. Despite Eddie's attitude, he stuck his head out into the alley, body taut and braced for a fight; he seemed to live like that now.

When he saw Danny and Baez's car and the coast was obviously clear, he grabbed the bags out of the cart, pushed it aside, and turned to Eddie. "Is the coast clear, Officer?" she said with a wry smile.

Jamie cracked a smile of his own and freed his left hand, looping the grocery bag handles on his wrist so his hand was empty. Eddie grabbed it and held on tight. "Stay behind me, smartass. Let's go."

The car was running and as Jamie and Eddie approached, Danny climbed from the driver's seat and literally took every bag from Jamie's hands. "Get in, you two. I got this."

They did as they were told, but not before exchanging panicked, confused glances. Typically, Jamie was so sober-faced and always tried to keep his negative emotions — especially fear — in check, usually so as not to panic Eddie. But this time, he didn't have a chance, and he silently cursed himself for likely making her even more scared at seeing him scared.

"What the hell is going on?" Eddie hissed quietly as she and Jamie climbed into the backseat, low enough that Baez couldn't make out what she was saying from the front seat.

Jamie just shrugged, wishing he could answer and wishing he couldn't at the same time, and put his arm around Eddie's shoulders. He could feel the tension in her body that perfectly matched his, and he found himself leaning to kiss her temple, rather than trying to comfort her with words. It was pointless (frankly he wondered sometimes if comfort was even a thing anymore).

Both of them were about to jump out of their skin with anxiety, and Baez's silence was frustrating. Finally, when Danny climbed into the driver's seat, he locked the car and turned around, facing Jamie and Eddie as much as he could.

He didn't look scared, or even worried; it was more of an anxious expression, as if he were about to explode with whatever information he had. Both Jamie and Eddie relaxed ever so slightly.

Thankfully, Danny got right to the point. "First off, you two can wipe those panicked looks off your faces because this isn't necessarily bad news."

"'Necessarily?'" Eddie sputtered in an attempt to interject.

Danny put his hand up to stop her from going into the panic mode that she seemed to exist in. "Ah, ah, ah. None of that. If this was what you're probably imagining, you guys wouldn't even be out of the safe house right now."

Eddie scooted a little closer to Jamie and went silent again, probably knowing it was the only way Danny would keep going, and he did. "The good news is that Brian is still in New York, and he was stupid enough to come back to Brooklyn. There was a robbery at a pharmacy on DeKalb last night — place called Stillwell's — a little after 3:00, and the owners recognized Brian's face from the news when they looked at their surveillance."

Jamie and Eddie exchanged confused glances, and Jamie felt Eddie's grip on his hand tighten. It was obvious that both of them were having a hard time sorting out what was good news and what the bad news could possibly be.

Before either of them could say anything, Danny continued. "The fact that Brian is still in New York serves as the bad news, too, because the robbery itself suggests that—"

"He's getting desperate," Eddie mumbled, cutting Danny off. There was no question in her tone at all; it just sounded like she was stating the obvious, a truth that was staring her in the face.

And really, that was exactly the case.

Danny nodded and pressed his lips into a thin line, his face full of sympathy. It was a side of his brother that Jamie rarely saw. "Exactly. He's desperate, and he's ready for it to be over with."

Neither Jamie nor Eddie had to ask what he meant by Brian being "ready for it to be over with."

Brian Yates wanted Eddie Janko dead — period — and he was at a point where he had nothing left to lose. And the fact that he apparently had Damian by his side made everything even more terrifying.

Jamie felt Eddie go completely rigid in his arms and he pulled her as close as she could possibly be, so close he could feel that she was shaking. He threaded his fingers through her hair, willing himself to stay composed for her sake.

It was an indescribably difficult feat, but it was something that Jamie had become an expert at. There had certainly been times where he wanted to scream or cry or both.

But he didn't. He couldn't. He couldn't lose control for fear it may push Eddie even further towards the edge, and he would never forgive himself if she'd gone completely over it, falling into the darkness that had been around them constantly. He was barely keeping himself and Eddie from being swallowed by it.

That darkness seemed to be even closer, and there was a lonely feeling again, their lighthearted bickering in the grocery store forgotten.

Jamie, Danny, and Baez all exchanged knowing glances but said nothing (what was there to say, anyway?), and Eddie startled them all by practically screaming, "I'm right here, you guys! Stop sitting there, frowning at each other, and say it out loud: Brian is getting desperate, and that means he probably wants to finish me off. I may not be a detective or a Reagan, but I know what it means when a criminal realizes he's shit out of luck."

Eddie's voice had gotten louder with every word, and by the end of her tirade, it was hoarse.

"Eddie, we're not trying to—" Danny began, but he was still looking at Jamie with a panicked look on his face.

"I know what happened to Cara Thomas," Eddie interjected, her voice quieter now but still cracking with emotion. "I saw the damn crime scene photos, and I know how horribly she suffered merely because of the fact that it was Brian's face she was looking at as she died. Just—"

Eddie's fear-filled words were cut off abruptly by a cough that shook her entire body and ripped the breath out of her lungs. Immediately — it was second nature to him now — Jamie put his arm around Eddie and rubbed her back as the coughing continued into a full-blown hacking fit.

"Shhh," Jamie hushed, forgetting Danny and Baez were even there. It was just the two of them in that moment, the way it always should be, in Jamie's opinion. "Shhh, it's okay. Just breathe. You're alright."

After the coughing had lessened and Eddie wasn't nearly dry-heaving anymore, she leaned into Jamie and turned her face up to his, and that was when he saw that somewhere throughout all the yelling and coughing, she'd started to cry.

Realization flashed on Eddie's face and she swiped her uninjured hand across her face, then flinched when she scraped the cuts on her face from the accident.

Jamie pulled away from her and studied her face, gently wiping the few tears that kept falling. "You okay?" he asked her quietly as Danny and Baez glanced back at them occasionally, their faces sympathetic and full of the same worry they were all feeling.

Eddie nodded, keeping her eyes fixed on Jamie. "I'm okay." She took a deep breath, in through her nose and out through her mouth. "Sorry about the meltdown. I have them a lot lately." She looked at Jamie with a lopsided, half-hearted, exhausted smile.

Danny practically scoffed as he pulled out of the alley and onto the road, the snow — which was still falling — crunching underneath his tires. "Eddie, you have no business apologizing to us, and you're entitled to have meltdowns whenever you need to."

"Thank you guys. For everything." She was looking at Jamie as she said the words, and the look on her face — one he couldn't have described if you'd paid him — conveyed everything that needed to be, without a single word more.

"You're very welcome." This time it was Baez who spoke, and her tone was more gentle than Jamie had ever heard it.

Eddie smiled up at Jamie again and snuggled as far into his side as her seatbelt would allow. She looked exactly as exhausted as Jamie felt, although he was sure hers would outweigh his any day.

Thankfully, the ride to the safe house was quiet and uneventful. Eddie had fallen asleep not five minutes into the drive, and Jamie kept peeking down at her, looking for any sign of panic or pain. She looked bizarrely peaceful, and as they pulled into the safe house drive, Jamie cringed at the thought of waking her.

Danny and Jamie decided to unload all the groceries so that Eddie could go in and go straight to bed if she wanted, without having to worry about helping Jamie get everything into the house.

When it came time, Jamie grimaced before scooping his arms under Eddie and carried her against his chest into the house. To his complete shock, she only stirred a little, just sighing a little in her sleep before her head slumped right against his shoulder. She was out cold.

Briefly — but long enough to freak him out — Jamie got a flash of carrying his and Eddie's sleeping child into the house after a long day. Somehow, right then, he just knew that he was seeing something that was definitely going to happen.

Just for those couple of moments, he could feel the small weight of a child — half him, half Eddie — in his arms, and even after this bizarre flash was long gone, Jamie was covered in chills and he found himself grinning as he carried Eddie close to him.

Before he even had a chance to get too caught up to ponder it more, though, Jamie felt himself — and Eddie — collide with another body, and he realized that his daydreaming had caused him to bump smack into Danny in the safe house doorway.

Eddie jumped and Jamie held her closer as Danny stared at him in annoyance before proceeding into the house. "Shh, it's alright. Shh…" To his relief, Eddie's eyelids just fluttered a little more and then she relaxed back into him, her head falling against his shoulder once again.

Danny paused as he sat two grocery bags down on the counter, nodding towards Eddie. "Lay her down. Get her comfortable. Baez and I will unload everything," he murmured to Jamie, his voice gentle as a lamb, a tone that Jamie was positive he had only heard aimed at Linda or the boys until now.

So Jamie did what he was told, walking straight back to the bedroom and, after using one hand to pull the covers back completely, he laid Eddie down on the bed that suddenly looked heavenly. The exhaustion from the day — the exhaustion that had clearly hit Eddie — was beginning to settle over him like a warm blanket, and he felt drained.

Ready to crawl in next to Eddie and sleep for days, Jamie removed Eddie's shoes as gently as he could, frowning when he felt that her socks were wet and her feet were freezing as he peeled the material away.

Just as he was trying to figure out whether or not he should wake her up to get her warm or just leave it alone, Jamie heard footsteps behind him, and he turned around to see Baez standing in the doorway.

"She's out, huh?" Baez noted with a smile, nodding her head towards Eddie. When Jamie just laughed awkwardly, Baez stepped forward and clapped Jamie on the back. "I'll get her clothes off and get her situated."

Jamie tried his best not to audibly breathe a sigh of relief but failed miserably. Luckily, Baez just chuckled softly, both of them staring at Eddie's sleeping form. "Thanks, Baez," Jamie whispered, squeezing Baez's shoulder before walking sluggishly through the living room, into the kitchen.

Danny was just finishing loading the groceries into the cabinets and refrigerator when Jamie walked in. Jamie stared at his brother, surprised by how quickly things had been put away.

"How are you done already?" he inquired, gesturing to the lack of cereal boxes and soda cans and frozen dinners. "It would have taken me an hour just to get the fourteen kinds of cereal Eddie got put away."

Danny chuckled, shrugging his shoulders. "I got kids," he explained. "Trust me, you learn efficiency pretty damn quick. You'll find out for yourself some day."

The last sentence threw Jamie for a loop and luckily Danny caught on, because he continued onto another subject. "Is Eddie alright?" Danny asked, nodding towards the bedroom.

Jamie nodded, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck as he walked to the fridge and grabbed a soda, downing half the can before answering. "Yeah, she's alright; kind of out of it. Baez is helping get her comfortable." He took another swig, stalling a bit, trying to pinpoint which questions to ask. "So… Brian stole medical supplies from Stillwell's, I'm guessing?"

Danny nodded, unapologetically grabbing a soda out of the fridge for himself and popping it open. "Yeah, and Oxy and Percs. So now he's homicidal and high off his ass. Idiot."

The brothers stood in the kitchen talking nonsense for the next fifteen minutes, until Baez came out of the bedroom and joined them.

"I had to wake her up, but I got her in some comfy clothes and in bed," Baez reported with a smile.

It was clear that both Baez and Danny liked Eddie and had both his and Eddie's backs, and Jamie was beyond thrilled about it and grateful for it. "Thank you, Baez." Jamie crossed the kitchen and wrapped Baez in a hug, then gave his brother one of those half hugs that men are famous for. "And thank you. I don't know what we would have done without you guys today, or any other day since this started."

Danny downed his soda and tossed the can before making his way towards the door alongside Baez. He waved Jamie off, practically rolling his eyes. "Oh, please. You guys would have figured something out. But of course we wouldn't ever let you." Before Jamie had a chance to say another word, Danny added, "Speaking of: we'll be here tomorrow morning with breakfast. Text me when you wake up so we don't… interrupt anything."

Danny knew good and well that the last two words he'd said were the reason Jamie suddenly turned bright red. "I'm going to pretend that you didn't say that last bit. My god, Danny," Jamie sputtered once he could speak again.

Danny, meanwhile, couldn't speak because he was laughing too hard, so Baez spoke for him, "What this jackass was going to say also is that we'll have two cars watching the house all night, but call us if you need us."

"Thanks, Baez," Jamie said sincerely before turning to his brother and adding, "And thanks, Danny. I think."

They finished their parting words amongst laughter and eye rolling, and Jamie was smiling even as he locked the door behind them.

Jamie stood there for a few moments, took a few deep breaths, and padded back to the bedroom, ready to lay around and do nothing but be with Eddie. He felt like he could stay inside with her for the rest of his life and still be happy.

When he entered the bedroom, Jamie found Eddie on her left side, presumably asleep, and he quietly continued on through the bedroom to the bathroom.

After he had pulled on a pair of sweats and brushed his teeth, Jamie quietly crept into the bedroom, only to find Eddie sitting up in the bed, wide awake and smiling tiredly at him.

"I thought you were knocked out," Jamie murmured with a smile that only got bigger when he realized that it was his t-shirt that Baez had dressed Eddie in, one of the black ones he wore often, no less. "Nice t-shirt."

Eddie grinned and put her hands up in mock-surrender. "Hey, Baez picked it out without paying attention, thinking it was mine. I just… didn't correct her. I was 'knocked out,' you know." She shrugged, playing clueless, but the grin on her face was sly and knowing.

Jamie rolled his eyes playfully as he climbed in beside her. The thought flashed in his mind that it was baffling how normal sleeping beside Eddie had become, something that would have seemed so bizarre only months earlier.

The thought was only allowed to circle around in Jamie's brain for a few seconds, because suddenly Eddie's lips were on his and his hands were tangled in her hair and her fingers were on the back of his neck, nails scraping his skin, and holy shit, it was like fire raced through his entire body.

The kiss got deeper and deeper and their bodies got closer than either of them knew was possible. Before they knew it, Jamie's fingers were under Eddie's t-shirt — his t-shirt — and her hands had moved to the hem of the shirt he was wearing .

When they finally pulled apart, both were breathless, and the first words out of Eddie's mouth were, "I'm not gonna say I'm sorry for that, because I'm not one bit sorry." Jamie just raised his eyebrows, too stunned and turned on to immediately respond, so Eddie continued. "I'm recovered enough, so if you're paranoid about that still, don't be. I want you so bad…" She trailed off, practically batting her beautiful blue eyes at him.

Then Eddie licked her lips, and Jamie was done for.

Not another word was uttered before Jamie pulled Eddie close once again, pressed his lips to hers, and he felt her melt into him.

It was only when Eddie was underneath him and his mouth was pressing gentle kisses to the skin behind her ear that Jamie realized that the tension that had been between them from day one was coming to a head.

As Eddie pulled Jamie's t-shirt up over his head, the only coherent thought in Jamie's head was one mere word:

Finally.

Author's note: Don't y'all worry. This isn't a false start, and you can expect a sex scene (A RATED M ONE!) in the beginning of the next chapter! Thank you so much for reading and review, review, review!