When she returned home from work the next morning, Eddie said goodnight to Ellie and slipped away to the bedroom to catch a few hours of sleep. She had one more shift until the three of them were all off together, then Eddie had three rotations, or 20 days off, to acclimate to motherhood. The list of To Do items for her leave was long, including choosing a daycare that Jamie could easily drop Ellie off at on his way into work, acquiring some cold weather gear for the baby and a million other small things she had added over the past few days. Most importantly though, the list included introducing Lena to her new granddaughter. That was keeping Eddie up with anxiety. She and her mother had made such progress, but Lena could be difficult when she saw her daughter making choices she feared would prevent her from having what she called "options".
While Eddie had come to realize that Lena's uncompromising standards were born of fear, it didn't make it easier. Eddie knew that her mother never felt like she had opportunities in life, even before Armin Janko's arrest limited them even further. She wanted her smart independent daughter to succeed in every way. Eddie agreed, but her version of success was different from her mother's. Lena had been traveling for the real estate company she worked for when Ellie first came into their lives, missing the introductions that the Reagans got at the hospital. Tomorrow night she would be coming over for dinner with Frank and Henry to see the baby for herself. She had taken the news over the phone surprisingly well. Eddie was optimistic but nervous.
Eddie had used last night's shift to go over her plans for the dinner with Rachel. She would sleep for a few hours, then head out with Ellie to take care of some errands. Some take out from a restaurant around the corner needed to be preordered, her outfit not to mention Ellie's needed to be chosen, plus there was wine and dessert to buy. It was going to be a busy afternoon. As tempting as it sounded to join Linda and Ellie in whatever game was going on in the living room, she needed her sleep to accomplish everything on her list.
Sydney had worked at the office just long enough to file some paperwork and return the phone calls that had been waiting for her when she arrived. To the chagrin of her co-workers, she was masterful at concisely describing the important billable hours she had spent away from the office to her supervising partner. The senior partner who was in charge of her reviews despised the kissing up that most of the junior partners engaged in. After a brief and thorough progress meeting with Sydney, he was satisfied enough to once again focus on other matters. Secretly, he relished the fact that she seemed self-sufficient and confident. As long as she won cases and billed enough hours to their clients, he really didn't care what kept her out of his line of sight. Sydney took only another hour or so, looking at the pictures on her phone of Jamie and the child that should have been hers, before she decided she would see what he was up to. She knew Jamie was heading home soon and she wanted to be there when he arrived.
It was her luck that as she pulled in, she was just in time to find a great spot in her favorite parking lot, grab a coffee and settle in to wait. Suddenly Eddie appeared from the building. She was maneuvering out the door with one of those strollers that Sydney knew she would have to have when she decided to have a child. It was exactly the kind all of the women at her upscale gym pushed around when they dropped their kids off in the childcare room. It was also the kind that all their nannies used to shuttle the kids around while the parents were working. It was like a luxury car for babies. Sydney seethed with annoyance. Grabbing oversized shades and scarf from her bag and a manilla envelope to "deliver" if she was caught, Sydney approached the building. When she saw another woman with two small kids in tow coming towards the door, Sydney approached and held it open for her. The woman faltered just a minute realizing that she should probably ask the stranger to buzz herself in, when she noticed the expensive shoes and coat, not to mention the package in her hand. Allowing her eager children to pull her towards the park, she simply thanked her for holding the door and kept going.
Once inside the building, Sydney tingled with excitement. She loved the feeling that she could be caught at any moment. Quickly noticing the garage door, she slipped from the lobby into the stairway to the parking area, using a pen to prop the door slightly ajar. Surveying the area, she returned to the lobby. Realizing Jamie was due home momentarily, she pulled out her phone. Facing away from the door, she put on the British accent she had perfected when she needed to appear like less of a "Yank" in London. As predicted, Jamie entered a few minutes later and politely ignored the English woman with her back to him as she talked animatedly to her "Mum". After Jamie let the elevator door close behind him, she put her phone away and left.