"You okay over there, Janko?" Officer Cunningham asked, glancing over at his partner who had her eyes closed, leaning her head against the window. It was Eddie's second day back at work after almost three weeks off. She had a little bit better control of her morning sickness but still wasn't feeling that great. At the moment, no one else besides her, Jamie, and Hattie knew about the pregnancy.

"I'm good," she replied, opening her eyes and looking over at him. "Just not feeling too hot right now."

"Do you want to stop and get you some medicine?" he suggested, brows furrowing in concern. "There's a bodega a few blocks from here."

Eddie gave a small tired smile. She had grown fond of the older officer since they've been paired, seeing him as an older brother figure. Her and Jamie had hung out with James and his wife a few times, all of them becoming close friends.

"No," she replied. "It's okay. I brought some medicine with me."

"Alright," he said. He kept driving for a little longer, giving her the occasional glance over. "Why do you think you're feeling bad? Did Scarlett bring something home from school again? It can't be the food poisoning, can it? I thought you were over that."

"I am," she confirmed. "It's just… um… well…"

Eddie had been debating whether to tell James about her pregnancy. She knew that he'd be happy for her but she didn't want him to treat her any differently because of it.

"…I'm pregnant," she finally let out. "I'm eight weeks along today. That's why I've been feeling so lousy and why I was gone for awhile. I found out that I have Hyperemesis Gravidarum again with this pregnancy so that's why I haven't been feeling too great."

"Wow…" he replied with a small nod, then looked over and gave her a smile. "Well, congratulations. I'm really happy for you. I know Patty will be too, if it's okay for me to tell her."

"Thank you," Eddie said. "And I'm okay with you telling her. Since I have HG, my doctor doesn't want me to go around telling people yet, trying to be on the safe side until I hit twelve weeks. But I figured I should tell you, just in case something were to happen."

"I appreciate you telling me," he answered. "Now I see why you were acting off when we did that arrest earlier."

"Yeah." She took a deep breath, "I was kind of debating on telling you because… I don't want you to treat me any differently. I can still do my job."

"I know you can," James replied. "I have no doubts about that. But promise me one thing."

"What is it?" she asked.

"If you're feeling bad or just feeling off, you need to tell me. I don't want you to all of sudden pass out or something worse to happen. I would never intentionally try to keep you from doing your job unless I felt like it was for your own good."

"I know. I would never put myself in a situation that would be risky for me and the baby." She paused for a minute then reached out and patted his arm. "I don't know if I've ever told you this but I'm really glad we're partners. There's no one else if I'd trust to watch my back."

He smiled, "Same Janko. You're not just my partner… you're family now. You, Jamie, Scarlett and the new baby. Me and Patty would go to the ends of the earth for you guys. I hope you know that."

"I do," she replied. "Thank you."

Later that day, Eddie swung by Hattie's apartment to pick up Scarlett, who was snoozing on the couch after a long day at school. She leaned down and kissed the little girl's cheek before joining Hattie in the kitchen.

"How was work?" Hattie asked. "Did you make it through okay?"

"Sort of," Eddie responded, smiling as Hattie set down a slice of cake in front of her. "We arrested a perp that had a very pungent smell. Thankfully, Cunningham took care of the arrest. I felt pretty poorly for the rest of the day after that."

"Baby," Hattie said, giving her a worried look. "Are you sure that you can stay on working, especially since you have HG? I know you said you can but I don't want you heaving over trash cans all over the city for the next nine months. I remember when you were pregnant with Scarlett, your morning sickness was pretty intense until you gave birth."

"Yeah," Eddie drawled out. "But I really don't have much of an option right now, Hattie. Jamie and I are doing okay financially but bills are going to start piling up soon. Scarlett is going to start at that new school in September and we're probably going to need more space once the baby is here. I'm going to try and keep working as long as I can. I can't leave it all on him to deal with."

"I know that sweetheart. But just remember, you and the baby's well being is the most important. To have a healthy baby, you need a happy and healthy mama."

Eddie sighed, "I know. I'll be okay, Hattie. I can handle it."

"It took two extra stories but she's finally down," Jamie commented tiredly a few hours later as he dropped down beside Eddie in bed. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "How're you feeling?"

"I'm okay," she replied with a yawn. "Just tired, that's all."

He reached over and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "You definitely look tired. How'd go today? I wanted to ask you earlier but there's only so much we can say in front of the munchkin."

"It started off good," she began. "But then we arrested this guy who didn't smell too great and it ramped up my morning sickness. I was able to hold it in until after we processed the arrest."

"Did Cunningham suspect anything?" he asked.

"Yeah, well... I know we said we'd keep it to ourselves but I told him. He's my partner and I just felt like he should know, just in case something were to happen out there."

"That's alright, Eddie. I was expecting you to tell him. Like you said, it's better if he knows about it."

"I was honestly debating on it," she admitted. "I know pregnant officers are not ideal to have out there. But we can still do our job."

"I know that," Jamie said, taking a deep breath. "And I'm sure Cunningham knows that. But perps don't, babe."

"Of course, I know that," she replied matter-of-factly, then tried to read the look on his face. She knew that he had some concerns about her still being on patrol. "I know you're not the biggest fan of me being out there. You don't say it, but the look on your face when I told you I still wanted to work gave me an answer."

"I'm never going to be the one to tell you what to do," he began. "But I honestly don't think it's a good idea."

"Any why not?" she asked shortly, getting a little heated now. "I can do my job just fine, Jamie. You even said it yourself."

"I don't worry about you and your capabilities," he replied gently. "I know you can take care of yourself just fine. It's everyone else I worry about. People don't give a damn, Eddie. And with this pregnancy being high risk because of the HG, I don't want to chance it. I don't want to risk you or our baby's life. If something happened to you, I honestly don't think I'd be able to take it."

She immediately softened as she saw his eyes well up. She reached over and hugged him, burying her face in his neck.

"I can't say that nothing's going to happen," she whispered. "But I promise you that I'll be as safe as I can out there. I wouldn't be doing this if I felt like I was risking myself or our baby."

"I know," he finally replied, pressing a kiss to the side of her head. "I love you."

She smiled, "I love you too. More than anything."

Do you think Eddie should continue working, especially in dealing with HG? How do you think the family will react once they find out? Also, I need baby name suggestions for boy or girl!

Thank you to everyone who has stuck by this story for the last two years :) We're starting to near the end of this story. I appreciate all the feedback and wonderful comments.

FYI: I'm always open to fic suggestions so if you have any ideas, send them my way :)