Jumping ahead a few weeks in this chapter. Hope you enjoy.
Eddie's coming up on her twelfth week of pregnancy, almost into the second trimester, and she can't wait to hit that next milestone. Her hormones are out of control and mood swings have become more prevalent in recent weeks, and she's hoping to at least be free of the morning sickness soon. She's almost a month into desk duty and still, her Sergeant, nor Captain Espinoza either one has come up with any special assignments to use her on. She is getting fed up with answering phones, filling out reports for other officers, and filing old cases away. She and Jamie still haven't done anything they talked about doing yet, and she is on the verge of another emotional breakdown.
To make matters worse, Jamie was supposed to meet her at the precinct Thursday after court so they could ride home together, but since he was done earlier than expected and she still had a few hours left answering phones, he told her to just meet him at their apartment when she got off. He could tell she wasn't in a very good mood when he talked to her so he decided that he would surprise her with her favorite pancake dinner when she got home.
Eddie walked into their apartment Thursday night huffing and puffing, in the midst of another intense mood swing, and pissed that she had to drive home alone, instead of with her husband as they had planned, and she shut the door behind her harder than necessary and slammed her bag on the counter with enough force to make sure her aggravation was obvious to Jamie.
"Hey...what's wrong," Jamie questions as he watches his wife's tantrum from the kitchen.
"Everything is wrong!" Eddie complains as she blusters towards him. "I had to drive home by myself, traffic was a bitch, I'm tired of answering phones, we still haven't done anything we need to do and my damn pants are too tight!" she finishes through a sigh of frustration and flicks the button open on her jeans for a little physical relief at least.
Jamie is trying not to laugh at her conniption, he hates that she's upset, but her little outburst is actually kind of humorous to him because this pregnancy is revealing a whole new side to his wife. Things that never would have bothered her before, do now, and he sort of finds it adorable. But he'll never tell her that.
"Why are you smiling, it's not funny, Jamie!" she exclaims as she enters the kitchen and he sets the spatula down to meet her halfway.
"You're right, it's not funny," he says sweetly as he pulls her into a hug. She's not too accepting at first and doesn't wrap her arms around him right away. She's still busy stewing.
"I'm sorry you had to drive home alone. I love you," he says as he squeezes her a little tighter. Over his shoulder, she sees the box of mix, the large bowl on the counter, and a pan on the stove, and Jamie's hold finally begins to release the tension from her body. She slides her arms around his back and rests her head on his shoulder.
"Are you making pancakes," she mumbles into his shirt and her voice is riddled with guilt as she realizes her husband is doing something for her that he knows she loves and she feels terrible now for the little tantrum she just threw.
"I am," he answers, rubbing soft circles along her back.
"I love you," Eddie says quietly. Jamie hears a tiny sniffle and pushes her away as he turns her head to face him and there are tears in her eyes.
"Hey, what's wrong," he asks, a little more concerned about her emotional state now. If he had known she would get this upset he would have just met her at the precinct.
"I don't know," she sniffles again and tries to look away, but Jamie's hands hold her head in place and he wipes a tear from her eye. "I'm sorry...I don't even know why I'm crying. This is ridiculous," she says. She tries to laugh at herself, but more tears fall instead and Jamie realizes he is going to have to figure out how to handle the pregnancy hormones and mood swings with a little more delicacy and pulls her into another hug.
"How about this," Jamie says as he holds her tight against him. "I'll finish the pancakes, we can eat and then I'll run you a bubble bath and you can relax?" he adds, hoping to cheer her up some.
"That sounds great," Eddie sighs. "But I gotta get out of these pants first," she says as she pushes away from Jamie and disappears into the bedroom.
Eddie changed while Jamie finished cooking dinner and when she walked back into the kitchen, wearing his sweatpants again, but this time a tighter fitting tank top, he thought maybe she was starting to show. He knew she was having a terrible day, and while she was looking even more beautiful to him, he wasn't sure he should mention the tiny bump that he could now see.
After dinner, Jamie drew Eddie a bubble bath as promised, dimmed the lights in the bathroom, and lit a few candles for a relaxing ambiance. He held her hand as she slid slowly into the water, and was about to give her some time alone when she tugged at his hand and looked up at him with inviting eyes. Jame is the only one who can ever make her feel better and tonight, she just needed him near her.
He hates that she is experiencing so many discomforts, and he knows it will only get worse. He will do whatever he can to make her feel better tonight and strips out of his clothes to join her. Sinking in the tub behind her, Eddie leans back against Jamie and he rests his chin on her shoulder and their cheeks press together. He wraps his arms around her waist, placing his hand across her stomach and he can definitely feel a tiny bump there.
"Why are you smiling," Eddie whispers. She can feel Jamie's smile growing wider against her cheek and she lets her eyes drift shut.
"I think you're starting to show. I can feel it," he says softly as his fingers trace the outline of the barely noticeable baby bump on her belly.
"Emm…" Eddie moans softly at the gentleness of her husband's caress. "I thought only I could tell," she says, her voice barely above a whisper now. Her discomfort is getting better in the presence of Jamie, but her exhaustion is deepening. Her eyes remain closed, but she reaches her arms around Jamie's, resting her hand over his and nestles into him a little more as Jamie places a soft kiss on her cheek.
After a few minutes of silence, nothing but the crackling of the flames on the candles as the build-up of leftover char on the wicks burns away and the lavender-scented bubbles effervesce around them, Eddie is seconds away from dozing off in Jamie's arms when the faint sound of his voice interrupts her near slumber.
"Eddie…" Jamie's voice is so low she can barely hear him.
"Yeah?"
"I'm sorry you had a rough day. I didn't mean to make it worse," Jamie murmurs as he rubs circles over her stomach.
"You didn't…" she whispers.
"But I should have met you at the precinct like we planned," he says softly and Eddie can sense the unnecessary apology in his voice. She doesn't want him to feel responsible for the way she was feeling earlier, because it really didn't have anything to do with him, despite her tantrum before.
"Really Jamie. I don't think anything would have helped the mood I was in earlier. That's not your fault. And everything you've done for me tonight is perfect." Eddie turns slightly in his arms and tilts her head up towards his. He's already leaning his head down towards her and their lips collide together slowly. Jamie's hand leaves her stomach and drags a quick path along her breasts before cupping her cheek in his palm as Eddie's lips open wider and Jamie deepens their kiss.
After a few seconds, Eddie pulls away and re-positions herself against his chest again and Jamie's hand slides back down to rest over her stomach.
"I have an idea," Jamie says as he begins to rub small circles along her belly again, and Eddie drags her fingertips gently across his forearm. "How about we go to the dealership on Saturday...see if we can get a new car. That'll be one less thing we have to worry about later."
"That sounds great," Eddie says. The idea of marking at least one thing off their list does make her feel a little better. "Don't forget we have our next doctor's appointment on Tuesday," Eddie reminds him.
"3 o'clock...I know. I already put in for the afternoon off," he smiles as he kisses her cheek again.
Friday morning at the precinct, Jamie is getting ready to leave for his second day of court when he looks up from his desk at the sound of a soft tap on his window and sees Detective Davis rounding the corner to his office. Jamie's caught off guard as Davis enters, since he's done a good job of avoiding interaction with him since their confrontation over the UC mission with Eddie last year, and wonders what the hell he is doing in his office now.
"Detective Davis," Jamie says calmly as he turns towards him and rests his arms on his utility belt.
"Sergeant Reagan, you got a minute?" Davis asks carefully. He knows Jamie doesn't care for him or the way he handled the mission either, although he didn't understand back then, he does now.
"A minute," Jamie says as he glances at his watch. "I'm heading out for court," he adds.
"This won't take long. I hear congratulations are in order," Davis says and he slides his hands in his suit pocket, assuming a similar stance across from Jamie. Jamie tries to hide his suspicion with a smile, wondering what Davis is up to this time.
"Thank you. What's up detective?" Jamie says directly as he glances at his watch again.
"Okay, straight to the point. I heard Officer Janko is on light duty until...well, you know…"
"And?" Jamie questions flatly. He's not sure how much he likes where this is going.
"I'd like to ask your permission to use her on some open cases," Davis says. "Not in the field of course," he adds quickly, as he can feel the tension bouncing off of Jamie. "But I've got a stack of cases piling up that need a fresh set of eyes," Davis finishes.
"Well, I'm not her Sergeant. It's not my permission you need," Jamie says as he crosses his arms over his chest. He was prepared to shut Davis down quickly if it was necessary, but he realizes that as long as Eddie's just offering another set of eyes on cases, and not out on the street, this may actually be a great opportunity for her.
"Okay, I'd like your blessing then," Davis says honestly as Jamie's brows furrow in confusion. "Look, I know we didn't get off on the right foot last year, but Officer Janko does great work. I'm honestly surprised she doesn't have a gold shield yet, and I could use her investigative skills to help close some of these cases," Davis adds.
"You ask Officer Janko?" Jamie questions.
"No. Figured I owed you the courtesy first," Davis answers.
"You have my blessing," he tells Davis as he reaches out to shake his hand. Jamie knows Detective Davis is right. Eddie should have her gold shield already and now that she is married to him, it's going to be even harder. If this opportunity can help her in the long term, he won't stand in her way.
Eddie is just finishing up for the day when Captain Espinoza and Detective Davis approach with the assignment to help Davis starting next Monday. They were quick to remind her that it was still a desk assignment only, that there would be no fieldwork involved and Eddie was thrilled for the opportunity.
Jamie was on his way back to the precinct so they could ride home together because he certainly wasn't going to make the same mistake as yesterday, and Eddie couldn't wait to tell him. She isn't too sure how he is going to react since it is Davis, and she knows how Jamie feels about him, but she hopes she can warm him up to the idea because it sounds so much better than answering the phones for the next six months, and she already agreed to it anyway.
Eddie walks out the front door of the precinct as Jamie pulls up. He can tell by the look of pure joy on her face as he steps out of the car, that they've already talked to her about the assignment and he's happy to see her happy, especially after the week she has had.
"Hey beautiful," Jamie says as he approaches her on the sidewalk and pulls her into a quick hug. "How was your day?"
"Amazing! You're never gonna believe what happened today," Eddie says with excitement in her voice that Jamie hasn't heard in the last few weeks and his smile grows wide for her.
"Detective Davis requested my help with some open cases while I'm on modified assignment," she proclaims. "I know you don't like him, but hear me out all the way first, please?" Eddie begs, eager for Jamie to understand how important this is to her.
"Okay," Jamie responds. He's still playing as though he has no idea, partly because he isn't sure how she will react when she finds out Davis approached Jamie before he asked her and he doesn't want to ruin this moment for his wife.
"I'll just be reviewing the cases and digging around a little. Maybe I'll catch something they've missed," she says as she reaches for Jamie's hands, lacing their fingers together. "I won't be in the field at all so there will be no risk to me or the baby...isn't this great, Jamie!" she exclaims. Jamie can tell she almost wants to jump up and down with excitement and he sways their arms gently at their waists.
"That's great. I'm so excited for you," Jamie tells her honestly with a smile that matches hers.
"Wait? That's it? Nothing snarky about Davis?" Eddie questions. Her suspicions are growing now, wondering why her husband isn't objecting, even a little, like she suspected he would do.
"Okay, he might have stopped by my office this morning," Jamie admits with a playful grin.
"What?" Eddie asks with a look of confusion on her face, thinking now that maybe Jamie had something to do with it, even though he knows she doesn't like it when he gets involved that way.
"He just asked for my blessing, that's all," Jamie assures her. He can see by the look on her face that she thinks he had more to do with her new assignment.
"And you gave it to him," Eddie asks? Now she's surprised, she didn't expect to hear that.
"Of course. I admit my beef with Davis wasn't personal, you know that...not one of my finer moments. And he's right, you do great work and you'll probably close all of his cases and get your gold shield before the baby is even born," Jamie adds with a smile as he places a quick peck on her lips.
"Let's celebrate, I'm taking you to dinner. What do you want?" Jamie asks as he walks her to the car.
"Chicken Wings!" Eddie responds as her eyes light up like a child's. Jamie smiles and shakes his head at his wife's choice of celebratory meals and guides her down into the passenger seat of the Chevelle.