(18)
Jay set his eyes on the stack of dishes waiting to be done in the sink, rolling up his sleeves to get working on those immediately. Erin was still in the bedroom so he had time to spare and the Army had practically drilled the mantra 'if you have time to lean, you have time to clean' in his head. So he got to working: scraping the leftover food into the trash, wetting the sponge with dish soap, scrubbing and rinsing until the plates were clean to his standards.
There weren't a lot of dishes— just what they used during lunch— so he was done relatively quick. So that meant Jay was left looking around the kitchen to see what else needed to get done. Seeing that the sugar was running low, he set out to refill the jar. After that, he wiped down the counters, put away the mugs that they weren't using and folded all the washed and dried tea towels and put them away into the drawer.
Now, Erin's kitchen was looking more like his kitchen.
He kept that thought to himself though. It was best not to mention Erin's less-than-thrilled attitude about keeping things spotlessly clean like him who always needed to tidy up here and there. He was just considering himself lucky that she hadn't kicked him out and made him return to his own condo yet so he was trying not to push his luck.
After all, it had been about a couple of months that he had last gone back to his own condo, at least went back for longer than it took to grab new clothes and to wipe down the surfaces before dust could collect. After his shooting, Erin had lived up to her promise of being Nurse Erin and had been taking care of him, insisting that he stayed at her place while he recuperated. He understood that Erin had wanted to keep him close by where she could be reassured whenever she needed that he was alright. And honestly, it wasn't as though he could've or would've refused her anyway. Just one look into her hazel eyes and pouty lips that he loved so much and he was promising her everything she wanted. And if what she wanted was to shower him with her attention and heal him with her kisses then the least he could do was be accommodating and just bask in the glow of her love.
But he was healed. 100% and had been back at work for a couple of weeks now. Yet, Erin hadn't mentioned the possibility of him going back home or spending a night at his place instead. To be fair, Jay hadn't brought it up either— too busy enjoying being in Erin's space, carving out a space of his own in her home like he wanted to be there as long as she would let him. So if he was subtly trying to prove his worth as a good roommate to Erin, then it was his little secret.
"Ow! Fuck!"
Jay turned his head toward where the cussing came from.
"You okay, babe?" he yelled out.
A few more cuss words escaped Erin. "Yeah," she finally replied. "That fucking hurts!"
Frowning with concern, he headed towards the bedroom to see what had happened. When he got there, he found Erin looking into the mirror, getting on her tippy toes to get a closer look.
"What happened?" he asked as he edged closer to her.
"Burned myself with my curling iron," Erin murmured, still tilting her head to one side to check the damage. Jay stepped closer and gently turned her body towards him.
"Let me see," he prodded, gently pushing her hair to one side. A patch of her normally smooth skin was red and getting redder by the second. "Oh yeah, you got yourself good there."
Erin huffed at him stating the obvious. "I was rushing and the stupid curling iron just slipped." She winced when his fingers ghosted over the burn. Jay held onto one of her shoulders while he reached for a towel with his other hand and ran the towel under the sink. He then placed the cool towel on her skin, shushing her softly when Erin grimaced again.
"Keep it there for a sec," he instructed her, helping her hold the towel while his other hand held her face. She closed her eyes, letting the cool towel help with the burn. "Keep it there," Jay said again before letting go so he could grab the aloe vera gel he knew Erin kept in the medicine cabinet.
He directed Erin onto the bed and sat her down while he uncapped the ointment and dabbed a good amount on her neck. He finished off his ministrations by blowing on her neck, causing Erin to giggle.
"Thank you," she smiled, holding his hand. Jay returned her smile with one of his own before bending his head down to kiss her hair.
"You've been a good nurse to me so I thought I'd return the favor," he quipped, screwing the cap back on.
"Please, I really didn't do that much," Erin argued although Jay would disagree with her statement.
She had made his recovery infinitely better. She had been the perfect nurse to him. She had made sure that he didn't miss a meal, slept when he was supposed to, helped him shower and pretty much nursed him back to perfect health. Even just sitting with her on the couch and binging old sitcoms had helped him tremendously because she was there and she was close.
They had binged through several shows during the past months— seasons of sitcoms that Erin haven't seen. Like Friends. Jay had been horribly aghast when Erin told him years ago that she had never seen Friends and Jay swore that he would change that. Life and other things got in the way but now he finally had time to fulfill his mission. So far, they had only started the first season but watching Erin laugh as Rachel failed miserably at doing her own laundry while Ross tried to teach her had Jay thinking that he made the right choice in making Erin watch the show. Of course because he was a genius, he kept the comments of how Rachel did laundry in a similar way as Erin to himself.
"Let me finish getting ready and then we'll head out," Erin said, patting his arm as she stood up from the bed and headed back to the bathroom.
Jay couldn't wait to come back home later tonight and resume their streaming party.
So far, they had binged through the Good Place (Erin's choice), Arrested Development (his) and they decided on Brooklyn 99 together, wanting to see if it was truly possible to make a police procedure show funny. Jay had to admit it had been funnier than he thought it would be. It was outlandish and so not close to what being a cop is really like but then again, if it was closer to reality, then it wouldn't be so funny. Just imagine someone like Platt on the show and see how it'd go.
Speaking of whom.
"Jay, are you done? I don't want to be late," Erin stressed from the bathroom.
He headed to her and leaned against the doorway. "I've been ready, babe. Just waiting for you."
As if she was agreeing with him, Frankie barked on cue, her tail wagging by his feet.
"Oh. Just give me a minute and I'll be done," Erin mumbled while putting on her lipstick.
"Take all the time you need," Jay returned. "Really. If you take all night, even better."
Erin side-eyed him, tossing him an unimpressed look. "I don't know why you're so scared. It's just dinner."
"Yeah," Jay scoffed. "It's dinner, it's Thanksgiving dinner, at Platt's house," he stressed. That earned him another unamused look from Erin as she capped off her lipstick. "Can you even imagine Platt being all hostess, cooking the whole dinner?"
"Why not?" Erin asked, leaning against the sink with her hand on her other hip.
"Uh, it's Platt, for one." Erin scoffed at his reasoning. "Are you sure it's not some elaborate plan of hers to get us all in the same room so she can do whatever she does? Are you sure we're not walking into some 'Get out' scenario?"
Erin shook her head and approached him. "First of all," she started as she held his jaw in her hand. "You're an idiot. Second, I've never seen 'Get out' so I wouldn't know."
"You've never seen 'Get out?" Jay asked incredulously while Erin just looked at him innocently. "Oh ho, we are so adding that to the list."
"Sure, babe," Erin chuckled, patting him on his chest before going around him. "I don't know why you're still scared of Trudy. She's perfectly harmless."
"That's because she likes you," Jay reasoned. "Not all of us are lucky in that department."
Erin beamed. "Can you blame her though?" she asked, giving him a wink. "Everyone likes me," she claimed, spreading her arms out.
Jay grabbed one of her arms and pulled her, Erin bracing herself before colliding with his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and tugged her closer to him so they were flushed together, chest to chest. He smiled at her before catching her lips. "As long as you remember, I love you the most."
Erin nodded, meeting his lips again. "I'll try but you know my memory isn't the best. I think I might need another reminder."
That was an easy order for Jay as he kissed her again. He would've continued to kiss her all night but Erin pushed his chest, stopping their connection.
"Come on, we got to go." Erin bent down to carry Frankie, rubbing her fur. "Don't tell Jay but I love you the most," she whispered just loud enough for Jay to hear, grinning at him over her shoulder.
"Wait, what?" Jay exclaimed before running to catch up with them, pulling Erin back in his arms for a brief kiss on her cheeks. "Alright, let's get this over with."
xxxxxxxx
Jay whistled to himself as they pulled up at Platt's home, an expensive looking townhouse in the good part of the city.
"Guess she's living large," Jay commented as they exited the car and climbed the stairs.
"Jay, this was her father's house," Erin reminded him of the attack on Platt and her father that left him dead. "He left it to her and she and Mouch moved in a few years ago."
Jay just nodded as he remembered the ordeal, holding Frankie in his arms as they waited for Platt to open the door. The Sergeant was all smiles when she finally did.
"Oh, finally! You're here," Platt exclaimed before immediately pulling Frankie from Jay's hold and cooing over the dog. "Oh, you're just the cutest thing ever!"
Jay would never get used to seeing this side of Platt, the one that turned into a complete mush at the first sight of seeing a dog. It was so far removed from the sarcastic side that he saw everyday.
"Come in, guys!" Platt waved them inside, Jay taking Erin's coat and hanging it up at the coat rack. "You're late, by the way. Do you really need that much time to pretty yourself up, Halstead?"
Yep, that was more like the Platt he had to deal with everyday.
"Sorry, Serge," Jay offered, exchanging a look with Erin who looked more amused than anything.
"Sorry, Trudy. It was my fault," Erin stepped in as they followed Platt to the living room. "I had a little incident with a curling iron."
"Oh so it's not Halstead's lips that's responsible for that thing on your neck?" Erin's hand immediately went to the burn mark on her neck at Platt's comment. "I'm almost disappointed in you, Halstead. I could've forgiven you being late if you guys were too busy getting some nook…."
"The turkey smells great!" Jay chimed in, interrupting her before she could finish the sentence and embarrass them any further. The last thing he wanted to hear tonight was Platt talking about his and Erin's sex life.
"Of course it does. It's from Parson's," Platt retorted, looking at Jay like he was an idiot.
"We brought pie," Erin said, holding up the pie that they bought earlier. "Don't worry, it's store bought. We didn't bake it. Where should I put it?"
"There's room in the fridge, you can leave it there," Platt pointed to the kitchen. Jay almost followed Erin to the kitchen but was stopped by Trudy. "Halstead, the guys are in the living room watching the game. Go get yourself a cold one and join them."
"Yes, ma'am," Jay muttered under his breath and headed to the living room.
The rest of Intelligence minus Voight was already gathered in the living room as well as a few of the Firefighters that Mouch worked with. They all called his name when they saw him come in, Kevin getting up to hand him a beer.
"Thanks," Jay said, sitting down next to him. "Who's winning?"
"The Bills by a score," Kevin answered. Erin joined them in the living room, sitting down on the empty spot next to Jay after saying hi to everyone. Jay reached for a bottle of beer from the table and handed it to her.
"Thanks," she smiled, taking a sip. "Good game?"
"Better than the slugfest earlier," Adam replied. "But this one isn't good either. I'd rather be eating," Adam said deliberately loud so Platt could hear.
"Yeah, yeah. I heard you the first three time, Ruzek," Platt replied. "Blame those two for coming late."
Jay had the sense to look apologetic and Erin patted his thigh before getting up.
"I'll help in the kitchen, Trudy," Erin offered, giving Jay a smile before following Platt into the kitchen. Jay started getting up so he could help out too.
"It's alright, Halstead. It's more of a two-person job," Platt stopped him.
"Yeah, me too," Kim said, following the two women, only this time without any objection from Platt.
"That's code for they want a girl's talk and they don't want us interrupting," Adam deduced, giving Jay a knowing look. Jay just shrugged, returning his attention back onto the game. But the game only held his attention for so long before he found himself eyeing what he could see of the kitchen. He heard voices and laughters coming from there and it got him curious. Kevin caught his eyes a couple of times and just laughed in his face.
"Don't worry, I'm sure they're not talking about you," he teased and got Adam laughing. Kevin turned to Adam. "Don't know why you're laughing Ruzek. Did you forget that Burgess is in there with them also?" Kevin's words got Adam quickly shutting up and got Jay going. At least he had someone to join in his misery.
"Dinner's ready!" Platt finally announced about half an hour later to the cheers of everyone.
"Finally!" Adam shouted, rubbing his hands together and making a beeline for the kitchen. "Oh come on! The dog got fed before us?!" Adam whined when he saw Frankie eating out of his tiny bowl in the corner.
"Of course. My favorite guest gets the first serving," Platt scoffed. "Keep it up and she'll get your share too." Adam held up his hands up, nodding.
Jay went over to Frankie and crouched down to her level. She seemed to be enjoying her meal, barely paying any attention to Jay.
"Hey girl, remember me?" Jay asked but Frankie didn't even lift her hand up. "You'd forget about me this easily?" Jay pouted.
"Sorry babe, guess you just can't compete with Turkey from Parson's," Erin teased as she placed her hands on his shoulders comfortingly.
Jay just scoffed. "Yeah? See who'd rub your belly at night, then." His comment finally got a reaction from Frankie as she lifted one of her paws and placed it on Jay's wrist although her full attention was still on the food.
"Smart girl," Erin commented as seeing Frankie's cute paw on his wrist completely melted Jay.
"Alright, belly rub when we get home tonight," Jay conceded, rubbing Frankie's fur. He stood up and met Erin's eyes who was looking at him like he was a complete sucker.
"Come on, let's wash up for dinner," Erin said, pulling him so he could wash his hands and they could finally eat.
xxxx
Jay groaned and leaned against the couch. He was completely stuffed from dinner and felt like he could barely move. Even with Platt's expensive looking sofa that was more form over function, he felt like he could fall asleep right there. Jay felt his eyes slipping close.
"Thanks for dinner, Trudy. We're going to head out now."
He peeked one eye open and saw Hailey and Vanessa saying goodbye to Platt and Mouch at the door. He wasn't really surprised that they would make their exit as soon as they could since Vanessa wasn't as close to everyone here as the rest of them and things were the way they were between him and Hailey.
Before Jay had been released from the hospital, Hailey had come into his room and apologized for the part she played in him getting shot. Jay knew that she was remorseful and he could see her face riddled with guilt. He didn't like seeing her like that, especially knowing that he was the reason why she wasn't happy. And Jay knew that something had to be done to salvage what little friendship between them as they could because if they continued to just ignore the problems between them, resentments would just continue to build and sooner or later, it would end with one of them leaving Intelligence.
So as gently as he could, he had assured Hailey that he didn't blame her but it was a good idea for them to switch partners for a while. Hailey didn't look happy at his suggestion but she saw it on Jay's face that he had made up his mind so she agreed. And that was the last meaningful conversation they've had since then. Jay had been partnered up with Kevin since he got back to work while Hailey had opted to work with Rojas.
They remained professional and had tried to stay out of each other's ways. As much as Jay would like to return to the previous friendship he had with Hailey before things got complicated, he wasn't going to push her. Time and distance seemed like a good idea for them. But it didn't stop Jay from feeling guilty whenever he saw both Hailey and Rojas distancing themselves from the group. He didn't want them feeling left out or isolating themselves from the rest. No matter what happened between them, they were supposed to be a team. But it wasn't up to Jay and he wasn't going to dictate their friendship.
He felt Erin's hand on his and he turned to look at her. She gave him an understanding smile like she knew what he was thinking about. He squeezed her hand, letting her know that he was okay. He didn't want Erin to feel like any of this was her fault and knew that Erin was already feeling bad about it. Erin had initially tried to deny Platt's invitation to dinner, thinking that she didn't have a place here. She tried to convince Jay to go alone and insisted that she'd find something else to do. That was a completely ridiculous notion to Jay. He'd never go without her or even allow her to think that she was some kind of an outsider or a nuisance to the team. Erin may not be a part of Intelligence anymore but he knew that she'd always have a place on the team. Maybe on a good day, he considered Intelligence his second family but Erin and Frankie were his family. Everyday. Thankfully, Platt had stepped in and gave Erin no choice in the matter.
As horrible as it sounded, the atmosphere got much better after Hailey and Vanessa made their exits. Erin seemed much more relaxed and at ease. He knew that she was holding herself back earlier and distancing herself from the group to make things easier for Hailey. Being extra careful with her actions so she wouldn't be shoving their relationship in Hailey's face. But Jay wanted her to feel easy and comfortable. He wanted her to feel like she belonged here.
The night wore on and Mouch's friends left one by one until it was only the remaining Intelligence members left.
"Remember that time when you wouldn't retake mine and Kevin's ID pictures? No matter how much we begged?" Kim asked, laughing as she recalled the old memory of her patrol days.
"You were wrong for that one, Serge," Kevin chimed in, having been the other person who had to suffer at the hands of Platt. "You had me with my tongue out and you wouldn't let me retake it."
"Really? Because she fixed Erin's hair for her and offered to give her a copy," Jay recalled, remembering the way Platt had fussed over Erin while Erin couldn't care less about having a good picture.
Kim gasped. "I knew you had your favorite," she said, pouting while Erin just laughed and shrugged.
"So sue me!" Platt dared. "Oh or just blackmail me like you did to get the pictures retaken."
"What?" Erin gasped. "Oh I got to hear this. How did you blackmail Trudy?"
"I might've gotten her mother involved and some very interesting looking pictures of when Trudy was a teenager," Kim replied cryptically, looking more proud of herself.
Jay laughed. "I think you should share the pictures with the group, Serge."
Platt just glared at the group for laughing. "To this day, I have no idea how you found out my mom's contact information. Who gave it to you?" Platt asked while Adam just looked down sheepishly, guilt written all over his face. Adam's reaction made it obvious to everyone who was responsible. "It was you?!" Platt shouted. "Oh you are so dead, Ruzek!"
"I…." Adam sputtered, "In my defense, I was helping out a friend. Doing a good deed. Plus I'm sure those pictures were adorable," Adam added, trying to placate Platt.
"Guess we'll know what happened when Adam's body ends up missing," Kevin commented, laughing at seeing the terrified and guilty look on Adam's face.
Jay just laughed along, feeling Erin's body shake with laughter next to him. He took in a happy sigh, just enjoying the moment. He had to admit it had been awhile since he had spent any sort of time with his team like this, just strolling down memory lane and thinking about everything they had been through together. The good times and the not-so-good times. It was nice, he realized, to feel like an actual family again. And with Erin here with them, it finally felt whole.
xxxxxxxx
They were still full of laughter and joy as they finally returned home, Jay placing the doggy bag in the fridge. Platt had made sure to give them an extra share of turkey specially for Frankie and more of the stuffings that Erin loved. Frankie was tired and had started drifting off to sleep as soon as Erin placed her in her bed by the fireplace.
"Nightcap?" Jay asked as Erin sat down by the kitchen counter. Erin nodded and Jay pulled out the bottle of wine they had saved and poured each of them a glass.
"That was fun. Better than what I was expecting," Erin said and Jay nodded, agreeing with her. He wasn't sure how Thanksgiving dinner at Platt's house would go but it had been better than he was expecting.
"Trudy's house is really nice," Erin continued. "But guess that's what a couple of millions bucks in the city would get you."
"Yeah it's nice but…" Jay started as he dropped his elbows on the counter to get closer to Erin. "I don't know. I'm partial to this place myself," he hinted, looking at her.
Erin held his gaze like she was trying to understand what he was really trying to say.
"I'll say," she replied. "You haven't left here in….two months now?"
Jay shrugged. "What can I say? Your place is nicer."
"It's the same layout as yours, Jay," Erin reminded him.
"Yeah, but your bed is more comfortable. Plus your sheets smell better," he argued, raising one of his eyebrows suggestively.
"Mmm," Erin hummed, understanding where he was going with this but playing it off like she had no clue. "It's called doing your laundry and washing your sheets, Jay."
"I do laundry," Jay retorted back. "But it just doesn't smell as nice as yours."
"Probably because you use Uberweiss?" Erin joked, referencing to the laundry detergent that Ross used in the episode of Friends they watched earlier.
"It's extra tough," Jay reasoned, trying to hold in his laughter. "You know for extra tough men like myself."
"Uh-huh. Well, don't worry. I'll let you borrow my Snuggles so your sheets could smell good."
Jay shook his head as he walked around the counter over to Erin. She shifted in her chair so she was facing him and he stepped in between her legs. "I can't be lugging something that heavy back and forth. Have mercy on me, babe."
Erin pressed her lips, trying to hold in her smirk. "What happened to you being a tough man?"
"Only in some cases," Jay replied. "In this case, I'm weak. Very weak. Can barely lift a pound."
Erin hummed like she was deep in thoughts. "So what should we do about it?"
"Erin," he said her name, almost sounding like a whine.
Erin wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him closer to her. She tilted her head up to meet his eyes. "Jay," she began, her eyes sparkling in the light with excitement. "Will you move in with me?"
"Finally!" Jay exclaimed, happiness filling his whole being at Erin's question. She squeezed his waist, waiting for him to say 'yes'. As if he could ever say no. He sighed and brushed her hair back tenderly. "Yes, Erin. I will move in with you."
Her face broke out into a smile and she nodded, completing their agreement. He dropped his head down so they could seal the deal with a kiss.
"You know it makes sense too," Jay added, Erin giving him a questioning look. "We're probably gonna need a third income with the way Frankie wolfed down that Parson's turkey."
"True." Erin laughed softly. They looked into each other's eyes, both of them smiling like complete idiots. Happy idiots.
"Thank you for asking," Jay whispered softly as he held her face, running his thumb over her jaw.
Erin nodded, leaning into his touch. "No problem. It's not like I don't enjoy living in a clean home and not having to do the dishes."
Jay glared at her jokingly. "So that's the real reason why you asked me to move in."
Erin shrugged. "Maybe." He poked his fingers to her sides, tickling her. Erin squirmed, laughing until he stopped. She sighed, placing her hand on his chest. "The fact that I love you is just a bonus." Jay rolled his eyes, feeling nothing but fondness towards her.
He couldn't help but kiss her again and again, holding her as close as he could.
"Jay," Erin whispered, sounding out of breath as she broke the kiss. "You want to show me what a tough man you are?" Erin asked, her hands running over his back, sending heat all over his body.
Jay was getting worked up, feeling his arousal grow at the sexy tone of her raspy voice. "Yeah, I'm up for the challenge," he replied, sounding breathless himself.
Erin's brow hitched and she smirked. "Then carry me to the bedroom and show me," she whispered raspily, her hands cupping him through his jeans.
"Yes, ma'am."
That was all the invitation Jay needed as he lifted Erin up in his arms, her legs wrapping themselves around him as he began to carry her to their room. Erin giggled before Jay smashed their mouths together as he made his way inside, ready to show Erin just how much he loved her.
(19)
Erin scrunched her nose at seeing the display of eggplants— the bane of her existence. Why did anyone enjoy eating something so rubbery and tasteless, Erin would never know. So she just pushed her cart faster before Jay came back, spotted the eggplant and started his spiel of how Erin would learn to love eggplants if she'd just try Jay's secret recipe for it. Erin didn't see that happening, no matter how talented Jay was in the kitchen so it was better to put a stop to it before it started.
Instead she busied herself choosing between heads of lettuces. She'd never really be a salad girl and her biggest nightmare was having to be a vegetarian but she was getting better with getting her greens intake. And she had Jay to thank for that.
"Got your favorite yogurt."
Erin grinned when Jay placed a carton of her favorite yogurt in the cart and her grin grew bigger when she spotted her actual favorite dessert next to the yogurt— cupcakes. She looked up at Jay and he just gave her a small wink, looking pleased with himself that she was so happy. Erin sighed happily. Jay did spoil her like no one else.
"The eggplants look fresh," Erin said, gesturing over to the pile of eggplants. Jay looked surprised at her suggestion. "What?" Erin shrugged casually. "You said you had a good recipe for it right? Why not give it a try?"
Jay just grinned and nodded. "I promise you, you'll love it," he said, heading over to it and picking one out. "It has a ton of cheese in it."
"You should've led with that," Erin replied, happy that she made Jay happy. By doing something as simple as agreeing to try something he liked.
But she guessed that was what being in love was about. It was about give and take, compromise. It was about showing interest in things the person you loved was interested in. It was about doing something mundane as grocery shopping on a regular Sunday afternoon and having a great time doing it.
They continued their shopping, Erin pushing the cart while Jay stood behind her with his arms around her. They weren't in a rush, just enjoying their day off together. Taking a break from moving Jay's things to her place.
"Look, your favorite protein powder is on sale," Erin pointed. "You want to stock up?" Jay agreed so Erin grabbed the large bottle and dropped it in the cart. "Just one?"
"Yeah, one's fine. That thing's huge. It's gonna take me forever to go through it."
They resumed their shopping and finally came to Erin's favorite aisle— frozen pizzas.
"Now we need to stock up on this," Erin said, already pulling a couple of their go to frozen pizzas. With work and the moving, sometimes they just didn't have the energy to do anything more for dinner than just shove a frozen pie in the oven and call it a night. Even with better options literally a phone call away, sometimes it was just easier and faster to go with the frozen option.
Jay, a self-proclaimed pizza snob, wasn't too fond of the frozen variety but he gave in, letting Erin grab enough to fill their freezer.
"Erin?"
Erin turned to where the voice came from, coming face to face with her boss.
"Mr. Brennan," she greeted the man, who looked different dressed casually than he usually looked in his suits. "Hi."
"Grocery shopping too," he replied. Erin nodded, keeping a small smile on her face. It was awkward to see her boss in an outside setting like this. Jay shifted closer to her and shook her boss' hands. "Ah, Jay, right?"
"Yes. How are you?" Jay returned.
"Good but I'll be better if Erin would agree to take the offer for the promotion," Mr. Brennan said. Erin groaned to herself as she felt Jay's eyes on her at what her boss said.
"Mr. Brennan," Erin began, trying to avoid Jay's questioning stare. She knew that he must have a thousand questions. "I.."
"Ah," Mr. Brennan held up his hand to stop Erin. "I don't want to hear the answer right now. Not until you really think about it. This is a great opportunity for you, Erin." He turned to Jay. "Try to convince her to take it, will you?"
Jay, thankfully, kept up pretenses in front of her boss and just gave him a small nod in reply. Mr. Brennan seemed satisfied with his answer anyway.
"Okay, I'll let you guys get back to what you were doing." He looked carefully at Erin. "Really, think about it, Erin. Don't let this opportunity go."
Erin just nodded quickly, wanting to get the conversation over it already. But her small answer seemed to be all that he needed and her boss left, leaving Erin and Jay alone.
"Anything you want to tell me?" Jay asked, confusion coloring his voice.
Erin turned to Jay and met his eyes for a quick second before dropping it. It was easier to tell him without having to look at him. "Um, my boss offered me a promotion to head up the Counter-terrorism department."
Jay frowned. "You mean your old department? Did your old boss leave?"
Erin shook her head. "No. It's not in New York." Erin could see the small sigh of relief that escaped Jay at that, which only made what she had to say next even harder. "This position is in Washington D.C."
She watched Jay's reaction carefully, the way his eyes widened at the job being in D.C. She saw the way Jay was trying to control his expression, to keep his face as unreadable as possible but she saw something slip through anyway.
"Jay," she called his name. "I…" She didn't know what to say. Didn't know what else she could say in the middle of a grocery store to fix this.
Jay just took a deep breath, holding back all of his thoughts and emotions. "Let's go. We should get home."
Erin just nodded and followed Jay's lead, knowing that he needed time to process the information that she just hit him with. She could already see him shutting down, closing himself off at the information that she was offered a job in another state. But she needed to explain to him and explain herself why she hadn't told him about the offer.
But she knew sometimes it was better to give Jay some space so she kept quiet.
The car ride back home was tense and quiet. They didn't say anything the whole way and while Jay kept his eyes on the road, Erin knew that he was deep in thoughts.
Even when they got back home, Jay just started putting the groceries away immediately. Busying himself.
"How about the sausage pizza for dinner?" Erin asked, starting the conversation. Jay just nodded and resumed putting the food away. Erin sighed. "Jay, we need to talk."
She felt Jay flinched at her words but he nodded, closing the fridge door and facing her.
"When was the promotion offered?" Jay asked, his question catching Erin by surprise.
"A couple of days ago," Erin replied honestly. "Thursday."
"So four days ago, you got the offer of a lifetime and you kept it to yourself," Jay said, his tone unreadable. "You already made up your mind, didn't you?"
Erin met Jay's eyes and nodded. He just knew her so well.
"I wanted to give Mr. Brennan my answer right away but he refused. Said I should take time to really think about it." She reached for Jay's hand and was relieved when he didn't push her away. "Jay, I was going to tell him 'no'."
She saw surprise flashed through Jay's eyes at her answer and relief followed for a quick second before confusion took over. "What?"
"I'm going to say 'no' to the promotion," Erin stated. She held onto his hand tighter. "That's why I didn't tell you yet. I promise you I'm not trying to keep it a secret from you but I...I guess I just didn't want to bring it up when it didn't matter in the end."
Jay studied her face, searching. "Erin, do you understand what you're passing up? It's the head of the counter-terrorism unit. In D.C. You take this promotion and it's one step closer to becoming the director of the F.B.I. That's….big."
"I know."
"Then how can you say 'no' this easily?" Erin sighed and sat down on the stool. "Erin, if you're passing this up because of me then I won't let you do this. I won't stand in your way."
Erin felt herself loving Jay more with what he said. She knew just how hard it was for him to get past her leaving in the first place, how long it took for him to stop being scared that she might get up and walk out of his life one day. Yet here he was, putting his fears and feelings aside because he wanted the best for her.
"Jay, listen to me. I don't want this job. Okay? I don't want to be the head of counter-terrorism. I don't want to be in D.C. Not when I can be here, with you."
"So it is because of me."
She sighed and held his face so he was meeting her eyes. "I would be lying if I said that you didn't have anything to do with my decision. But I swear to you, Jay, that's not the only reason." He still looked doubtful so Erin knew she needed to really explain herself. She didn't want Jay doubting himself or blaming himself. "Jay, I'm so happy right now," she began, holding his hands. "I feel like I haven't been this happy since….I can't even remember. You, me, us moving in together? It has been amazing."
"Me too," Jay confessed. "But we can….we can make long distance work."
Erin laughed softly and she cupped his jaw. "Look at me, Jay," she demanded. "I don't want this promotion. Not just because of us but because I love where I am at. I love my job. I love what I do. I love my team. I love being able to go to work, make a difference and come home to you. Are you hearing me now?"
Jay nodded and he gave her a small smile, brushing her hair back. "I just don't ever want to be the one to stand in your way. I watched you at that party and I just know you can do anything you want to do. You have so much potential, Erin and I'm not the only one who sees it. And I don't ever want to be the one that stops you from reaching that. I won't."
She smiled. "I love you, you know that?" She ran her fingers over his jaw. "Jay, I spent most of my adult life putting my career first, thinking it's what I needed to do. I've put my happiness second, my ambition first. But I'm older now and I'm wiser. And I'm smart enough to realize that I have everything I've ever want or could want in my life right now." She wrapped her arms around him, lacing her fingers at his back. "I have you. That's all I need. And I also have a great job that I love. What more could I possibly need?"
"Are you sure?" Jay asked her again, his eyes searching hers.
"100%," she replied, slowly bringing her head up to kiss him, waiting for him to stop her. But when he didn't, she smiled and slowly placed her lips on top of his. He sighed into the kiss, relief and love pouring into the connection and Erin deepened it, taking everything Jay was giving her.
When they pulled apart, Jay rested his forehead on top of hers, their breaths mingling in the middle.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner and that you had to find out like this," Erin apologized. "I just...we are so happy and things are going so great. I just didn't want something that wouldn't matter to ruin that."
Jay just nodded, his nose nuzzling hers. "I understand but I want you to know that you can tell me anything. I want you to tell me everything. I don't want you to keep secrets because you're scared of how I'd feel or because you don't want to hurt me."
"Okay, I promise," Erin agreed. "And I'm sorry I didn't tell you this time."
Erin knew she was forgiven when Jay kissed her again, his hands holding her face gently.
"I love you," Jay whispered. "And as much as it would kill me to have you in another state, I want you to be happy more."
Erin smiled. "Well, it's a good thing that what would make me happiest is being here with you." She held him tighter. "You make me happy. No job, no promotion could ever compete with that. So you're just going to have to deal with me for the rest of your life."
That got Jay grinning. "Hard job but someone has to do it." She smacked his butt lightly at his remark but she was happy that Jay was back in form. "Come on, I'll cook us that eggplant."
Erin was just so happy that even the eggplant sounded appealing to her. "Extra cheese, please."
Jay just rolled his eyes playfully at her. "Of course," he said, pressing his lips to the side of her head as Erin released him so he could get started on dinner.
The smile remained on her face as she watched him work in the kitchen. She had zero doubt in her mind about turning down the offer and now, she was even more sure about it.
Being here in Chicago was what she wanted. Jay was her home, no doubt about it.