By Didi
Disclaimer: Anyone out there that still thinks that I might actually own anything in association with this story after reading the other hundred disclaimers for every story I've ever written to have their reality checked for stalls. Thanks.
Timeline: I'm not even going to try to guess on this one now. Anything that was on the show beyond "With Grace" needs to be ignored and forgotten while reading this. Everything else… read the other chapters of this story for it. Thanks.
Rating: PG-13 boarding R
Author's Note: This is one of those in-between chapters. Transition Chapters is what I called them. Not a whole lot of action but I wanted it in here to move the story along. Bear with me.
Summary: What would you do in the name of love? Meet the family.
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Chapter Nineteen~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I cannot believe you're still here!" Jackie rolled her eyes and tossed a Twinkie she had been stashing in her office at the distracted doctor. "Aren't you tired of being here yet?" She slouched against a counter and watched as Jules Keating scribbled madly at a note.
"I feel like I'm going be the next candidate for the insane asylum," Jules fumbled with the Twinkie for her a moment, giving Jackie a grateful look for providing her with the much needed sugar, "But then I remember that I've got patients waiting for me and I don't have time to go crazy."
"I would hate to be you," Jackie commented as she sighed and then spotted another fellow doctor down the hall making his way over. "But then again, if I had a gorgeous guy waiting for me I won't give a damn that I'm overloaded and just go home."
"What are you talking about?" closing one patient file to open another.
"I'm saying that you've a cute Brit doc waiting to take you home and give you a good massage to ease the day from your shoulders, I won't be standing here filling in patient information like you. I'd be getting my purse and heading for the door to heat up that massage oils."
"I've got paperwork," Jules informed her and wished that she could take up the advice with a clear conscience. Her nap had helped but after half an hour, she was too worried about her workload being backlogged that she had decided to go back to work. Now at ten to seven, she was beyond exhausted and still had a five hour drive to do.
"Hello, luv," Matt nuzzled her neck and waited for the inevitable wiggling to get out of his hold in public; he wasn't disappointed. "Are you ready to leave?" pressing a kiss into her hair before he pulled away, much to the amusement and enjoyment of Dr. Collette. "Good evening, Jackie. How are you?"
"Heard you had a crasher today," she said with a smile.
"Yes, and no, it's not time to consider plastic surgery yet," he grinned back and waited patiently for Jules to complete whatever it was she was trying to complete. Except for the five minutes it took for Kokoris and Jordan to update them on their patients' conditions follow post-op, he hadn't seen her since leaving her to nap. "Let's wait a bit and see if she makes it through the next few days first." He watched as yet another record is pulled out and worked on. "Aren't you done yet?"
"No," she answered.
"Why not?" he asked, making a shooing motion to Jackie.
Rolling her eyes again, Jackie sighed and moved on. She needed a man in her life.
"Because I'm not done yet," Jules answered, making another note to herself on follow-up. "That nap cut into my work time."
"I think that unexpected case did that," he looked around and kissed her neck, wrapping his arms around her. "Can't that wait?"
"No," she said, pulling away and looked around. Turning her head, she gave him a quick peck on the lips before getting back to her notes. "I want these updated while I'm gone."
"You still want to drive down today?"
"I have to."
"Why? Besides seeing your only family."
"Because. . . " She paused, not wanting to jinx this, not after all the false hopes they've had in the past. She'd tell him in the morning, she promised herself. "I have my reasons."
Already suspecting what they are, and given the earlier hints, he didn't push. "All right then. Shall we get going so we can arrive hopefully before midnight?"
She glanced at the two charts still in front of her. "Hold on," and found the little markers that Jenny always puts in for her to sign off on telephonic orders. "Okay, I think I'm done here. Your place for a bag and then we're on our way?"
"Dinner, darling?" he asked, escorting her toward her office.
"Think we have time? We can eat in the car," she suggested.
"We will not eat in my car," he stated firmly. He was not going to allow crumbs in his fifty thousand dollar car. Plus how she expected him to eat and drive at the same time was beyond his comprehension. Drinking coffee in the car is not the same as putting food in there. "I'll stop somewhere for a bite."
Reframing from stating that it was so like a guy to be so careful of their precious car, Jules grinned and grabbed her purse and coat. She had actually remembered one this morning. Well, to be honest, it had been Slingerland that remember and forced her coat on before she could rush out the door, five minutes late as usual. "Okay, but I don't want to hear complaining about arriving after midnight from you if we're going to a sit down meal."
"You won't," he said and noticed several pick memos on her desk. "Phone calls?"
"Harriet," she informed him.
"That's right; she was looking for you earlier."
"Yeah I know, I stopped by her office after my last patient but one of hers had gone into labor and she wasn't available."
"You want to stop by now?"
"I doubt she'd have time," Jules replied turning her collar over as she searched her purse for a moment. "Besides, I asked Bonnie if there was urgency on the meeting and she said no. There wasn't even a post-it on what it's about."
"Consultation?" He pulled her toward the elevator when she reached for the door to the stairs. "No bouncing down stairs anymore."
Making a face at him, she rolled her eyes at his attitude about this. "Maybe," shrugging, "But Harriet didn't say. I left message for her to have me paged and we can do a conference call if need be. And why is it that men become such idiots when the woman is pregnant?"
"It's a guy thing. You ought to think about a cell phone soon," he suggested waiting for the elevator.
"Why would I want to do that?" giving him a look horror. "And weren't you the one that said that the radiation from a cell phone is. . ."
"I want you able to contact people when you need to, especially if you have a baby on the way," he said and then had to clamp his mouth shut quickly when the door to the elevator opened with a haggard looking Kokoris inside. "Nick! What happened to you?"
Growling something unintelligible for a moment, "I think I'm in the Admin's black books again."
"Why do you say that?" Jules asked as she peered at the surgeon's tired face. "Geeze, you look worse that I felt earlier."
"That bad?" he replied with a half smile.
Jules scowled at him.
Matt smiled and rubbed Jules's back gently. "So what happened?"
Nick made a face. "I'm pulling a double."
"You're kidding?" sympathy was conveyed with softening of pretty eyes and a slight tilt of the head. "How are you holding up?"
Slanting a quick at Slingerland, Nick leaned closer to Jules. "I'd feel better if I had someone to go home to. Maybe that's why the admin thinks it okay to keep me here for days on end. No spouse to complain."
Laughing, Jules nudged him gently with her finger. "Maybe you should get yourself a nice girl."
Mouth wide with glee, Nick's eyes was positively sparkling with mischief. "Are you volunteering for the job, Doctor?" This couldn't have worked better if he had planned it, which was impossible given his mind felt like mush at the moment. Lord he was tired.
"Nick!" Matt warned and pulled Jules back to put himself between the two and glared at the annoyingly brilliant surgeon. There were moments when he really wanted to break the man's nose and this was most assuredly one of the. But Nick already looks beaten up as it is with all the hours he's been pulling in the OR. Still, there were certain things a man's got to stand up for. And one of them happens to be the fact someone may not, under any circumstances, innocent or not, blatantly flirt with his woman in front of him. Behind his back was another matter but still. . . He glared at the Greek, "Find your own woman, Kokoris."
"But the good ones are all taken," Nick pouted as Jules laughed and shrug off Matt's attempt at taking possession of her hand. "Then again," leaning back to look around Slingerland to smile at Dr. Keating, even looking like something the cat dragged in through after the rain, he was devilishly charming. "You aren't marry and therefore fair game."
"Hey!" Matt gave Kokoris a light shove, half serious.
Jules rolled her eyes. "Like that would stop you." Slingerland's head snapped over to look at her as Kokoris went sober instantly. Jules could have bit her tongue and slashed her throat for that thoughtless comment. The tension in the small elevator suddenly weighted about two tons. "Nick," taking a deep breath and rubbed her forehead. "I'm sorry. That was totally out of line and. . . "
"I deserved that," Nick replied softly.
"No," she sighed and felt small. "You didn't. I'm sorry, that was a really low blow."
Looking at the two, Matt had the disconcerting feeling that he was slightly lost as to the venue of the conversation. "Is there something going on that I need to be informed of? Or don't I want to know?"
"No," Jules responded just at the elevator opened, letting Kokoris off at Internal Mediation Department. "Nick," stopping him with a hand on his sleeve. He turned to look at her, "I didn't mean it."
"Yes you did," he smiled, showing her that he wasn't the least bit angry but more sad than anything. "Or at least you should. God knows there are times that I've regretted it."
"Still. . ." her eyes saying ten times more than she could voice.
"Thank you, you're an incrediably good person." He replied and patted her hand. Giving Slingerland a pointed look, "Better take good care of her, Slingerland, she's something special."
"And don't I know it," pulling Jules back as the door began to close. Once they were by themselves once more. "Want to tell me what that was about?" feeling no anger or jealousy over being excluded. Strange, he could have thought that their sharing a secret would bother him more than the mild flirtation Kokoris was enacting, and he knew it was an act. Yet he felt more disturb by that than the shared confidences between the two just now.
Jules looked at him, thankful for his discretion and sensitivity at her faux pas. "Not my story to tell."
"But there is a story?"
"Yes."
"Hum. . . " He remembered a conversation not too long ago about hospital gossips and the problems it causes. "He's a lot better at this than I thought."
"What was that?"
"Nothing."
~~~~
"Bonnie," Harriet dropped the stack of patient reports on the countertop. "Find Claire and tell her that she's going to be pulling a midnight shift with me again. I just got paged on three patients coming in within the hour." That last delivery had taken longer than she could have expected and now her back was paying the price for it. "And did I get a return call from Dr. Keating?"
"She stopped by, actually," Bonnie said as she pulled the sticky note form her desk. "Said to page her call if you really need to talk to her this weekend. Said she's going to be at her sisters."
"You don't believe her?" she asked with a raised brow. "Wait, she's gone?" a little less than pleased with that news.
"Yeah, said she had to leave for the weekend," Bonnie glanced down the hall. "Between you and me, I think she's spending it with Dr. Slingerland which is why she's so hot to leave today."
Running a quick hand over her tired face, than silently berating herself because now she's ruined her makeup, Harriet took a deep breath to suppress some of the frustration she was feeling at the moment. There was nothing like not being able to get something done to make a sane person do crazy things. And at the moment, she wanted enough chocolate to put her in a sugar coma, which would inevitably solve her dilemma of how to tell bad news to a good friend. "Can I get Dr. Keating's pager number?"
"Want me to page her for you?"
"No," glancing at her watch. It was nearly nine now. And dispute Bonnie's speculations, Harriet didn't have any doubt that if Jules said she was going to her sister's, then she was most assuredly on her way to see her sister. And given that she had been told not to do anything strenuous for the next few days, Dr. Lenning was positive that Jules was currently driving south on the I-5. "It's too late in the day. I'll do it tomorrow myself."
"Is this a personal thing?" Bonnie asked exerting a great deal of sympathy.
Though loyal and one heck of a nurse, much like her sister Betty, Bonnie couldn't keep a secret to save her soul, except when it came to patient confidentially. Harriet shook her head. "No, I just wanted to discuss a few things with her."
~~~~
"Did you by any chance tell your sister that I will be joining you on this little excursion?" Matt glanced sideways at his travel companion, who was currently staring out into the dark night. The oncoming traffic illuminated the inside of the car. "Jules?"
"Maybe this isn't such a good idea," turning to him suddenly.
"We're fifty miles out of Los Angeles and you tell me that?" he asked and switched lanes. The guy behind him was following a little too close for comfort. "What's wrong, love?"
"I don't know," making a frustrated motion with her hand.
Matt was quick to grab those fluttering fingers as they were distracting and blocking his view of the mirrors. Curling his hand around hers, he held it for a moment as he expertly drove one-handed and took a moment to decide if pulling off the freeway would be a good idea. "You want to stop and talk?" Women don't always appreciate highhandedness.
"No, let's keep going," Jules murmured, turning her hand around to link her fingers with his. She didn't question why it felt better to have physical reassurance. "I want to get there before midnight."
"Are you sure you're all right with my coming along?" he asked, his accent a little more pronounced as he stole glances at her. He didn't like the silence she had settled into as they drove down the I-5 at a speed he knew was well beyond the limits allowed by law enforcement but really couldn't help it. He had purchased his car for the sole purpose of being able to race down a highway when the mood and need strikes him. And here was a perfect opportunity that he wasn't about to miss… not that he ever misses one.
"I said that I was, didn't I?" she asked softly.
"Yes but correct me if I'm wrong, but you're silence tells me that you're having some second thoughts about introducing… formally introducing me to your sister and her husband."
"It's not that," she said with a sigh. Shifting in her seat, she turned to look at him in the on-coming traffic light. "Matt, there is a reason that I really need to be San Diego this weekend and it…"
"Allow me to hazard a guess," he interrupted reaching over to pat her knee reassuringly. "This urgency has to do with the same reason that you were hot to conceive a child." He glanced over to gage her reaction. "What's happening with your nevvie? I take it that it is good news since you were wearing a glow like I've not seen in some time now."
A smile tugged at her lips. "Let me ask you a question."
"Go right ahead."
"Are you watching me?"
"I'm always watching you, not in a stalker like manner, mind you, but because you're radiance would not allow me to do otherwise."
She could feel her cheeks grow hot. "Yes, there is news with my nephew."
"A new donor appeared on the scenes?"
Hazel green eyes widened, "How did you know that?"
"A guess. I can't think of any other reason that would put that delight in your eyes." He grinned into the darkness and watched the road signs for how many miles was left in their journey. "Tell me the details, I need something to occupy my mind while I drive."
~~~~
"So…"
"So…"
Cleaning his throat, David glanced briefly at the stairs before turning back to the tall Englishman currently sitting rather uncomfortably in his living room. "Thank you for driving Julia down tonight. I know how important it is for Jenna to have her sister here for tomorrow's meeting… um… You do know what tomorrow is all about, right?"
"Yes, Jules and I have talked some during the drive," Matt replied taking a deep breath. "May I make a request?"
"Of course, though I may not grant it."
"Fair enough," he stood. "I'd like to accompany you all tomorrow to the hospital. Jules is nervous, she wants to maintain her professional detachment and see this case as she would any of her own patients, but…"
"It's her blood," David nodded his head slowly, his own concern for tomorrow's events slowly surfacing. Though the months, he's held his strength, unwilling to burden his wife with any more concerns. "I know that Julia and Jenna are strong, but this is too close to home. We'd welcome a third party view if it won't trouble you."
Matt have a gentle laugh. "I just drove five hours so I can be here for Jules, this is nothing. Besides, I'm the one that made the request."
David smiled, understanding why his wife liked the man that her sister has chosen to father her children. Gesturing to the chair, "Tell me something, Dr. Slingerland…" taking a seat.
"Please, it's Matt."
"Matt," nodding his head. "What's going on with you and Julia?"
Grinning like a happy puppy because they were coming to his favorite topic, "I'm pursuing a relationship with her; real one, outside the complexity of this whole embryo situation." He looked at the stairway, where the Keating sisters had retreated to check on Little Kevin, and smiled as if she was there. "I think it's working out rather nicely."
"Really?" brows shooting up in reaction; not because of what Matt said but the way he said it. David knew a man in love when he saw one. The brilliance in the man's eyes when he talked of Julia… a dead give-away. The poor sap. "Can I give you an ounce of advise that you don't have to take from a man that's been married to a Keating woman for a good seven years?"
"Go right ahead."
"Having lots of chocolate on hand at all times.'
"I beg your pardon?"
"Chocolate. It solves many problems and arguments in life and probably will save your life one day if you and Julia…" he made a slight gesture and shrugged. "Oh and never argue with her in bed. You'll be in the dog house for longer than you wish if you do," he grimaced at his own experience in that department. "And Keatings never say die, be prepare to arguing a point to death if you wish to get into a debate with one of them. And if you hurt Julia, I'll come after you with an ax. But that'll be after Jenna gets down with you."
Lips curled with amusement and not just a hint a respect, "They stick together pretty tight?"
"I cannot name two others that are as close that Jenna and Julia," David grinned. "She likes you, you know?"
"Jules?"
David paused. "Well… I'm sure Julia does too but I was talking about Jenna."
"Excuse me?"
"Jenna, she likes you. Thinks that you're good for her sister," a gentle laugh rolled out. "Julia has been locked in her role as a good doctor for so long that she's almost forgotten how to live. My wife worries about her little sister a lot, too much at times. Hum… I think that's one of the reasons Julia moved so far up North, to get away from Jenna's watchful eyes. And while I think that Jenna is too protective at times, I do agree with her on the subject of Julia's almost hermit like habit of late."
Matt's brows knitted together. "And how exactly am I reportedly good for my darling Jules?"
"You'll liven her life, keep her on her toes."
"I think it's the other way around," Matt offered.
"Is it?" David grinned. "From what I hear, you're pretty popular with the females."
Matt could have groaned. "I um… I…"
Laughing, David shook his head. "Relax, we're not going to hold it against you as long as it stays in the past."
"It will," he assured him.
"Good," David concluded. "Want a drink? I could use one or I'm never getting any sleep tonight."
"Sure," Matt said following his host into the kitchen. "May I inquire as to where I will be lodged tonight? Jules's said that she'd take care of it but with everything that's been happening since we arrived…"
"Well, since you and her appear to be going hand and hand," pouring Scotch from a bottle. "I suppose it'd be okay for you and her to share the guest room. But if Jenna objects…"
"You're living room appears to have a nice coach."
David grinned. "You know what? I'm going to like having you around."
~~~~
"He's cute."
"You're a married woman, Jenna," Jules reminded her sister mildly as she reached over and brushed a lock of sandy hair from her only nephew's forehead.
"So? I'm married, not dead."
"What would David say if he were to hear you now?"
Jenna grinned and folded her son's blankie. "You didn't tell me you were going to bring Dr. Slingerland along this weekend." Not that she was very surprised by it either.
"It wasn't exactly planned," she admitted softly, her eyes still on her nephew. Like so many untouched by the outside world, he looked like an angel; she could almost see the soft white feather wings folded gently behind him and the light by the bed formed a halo around his head. "You know, not that I'm bias or anything, but of all the babies I've seen in my career, I still think that Kevin is the pretties of them all."
Chuckling quietly, Jenna turned to watch her sister in the pale light of the room for a moment. "I think you'll though on that will change once your own little one comes along. How's that coming along by the way?"
"Pretty good," wishing she had a camera. "I'll need two weeks to know if I'm carrying or not."
"And how's Slingerland taking this?"
"What?"
"You being pregnant."
"I guess he's fine with it," shrugging her shoulders. "He was at the procedure."
Emerald green eyes went wide. That little piece of information was new and unexpected. "What?"
"Yeah," Jules sighed, finally turning from the sleeping perfection to look at her staring sister. "He kind of showed up and decided to stay through it," she picked up little shoes that fit into the palm of her hand just to avoid looking at her sister's stunned face.. "Helped though. Being a doctor, I didn't think I'd be nervous or scared of the procedure, I've seen it like three billion times… but I was."
"And it helped to have him there?" Jenna asked quickly, shaking herself out of her surprised state. Her eyes filled with speculation as her sister played with the toys by Kevin's bed absentmindedly.
"It was nice not to go at it alone," Jules admitted with a sigh. It was better than nice and she knew it. "I guess that's why they made parenthood a two person job rather than one."
"I have to admit that it's easier to have David around than not, though the man could be more exasperating than his son at times." Jenna turned her face and grinned silently at a drawer full of baby clothes. "It's nice to have someone to shared the burden, not that a child is a burden in the bad sense of the word."
"Don't, Jenna."
"Don't what?" she asked innocently.
"Don't get your hopes up," Jules warned as she stopped the baby shoes and cross the room to look at her sister in the face. "Matt is just…" she stopped herself, feeling that it was unfair to lie like this… at least unfair to Matt. "He and I are taking it slow."
"You sleeping with him?" came the blunt question.
"Jenna!" Jules hissed glancing over her shoulder at her nephew.
"What? Perfectly good question," ushering her sister out of her room and into the guest room where Jules usually stayed when she visited. She was rather eager to find out how things were progressing on her sister's social life front. "Are you sharing your bed with him?"
Sharing was a good word for it. "He stays over occasionally."
Jenna's brow rose. "And occasionally, do you stay over at his house?" knowing a good word play when she saw one.
Jules frowned, hating the fact that her sister knew her so well. "Occasionally," she admitted feeling her cheeks heat. "Look, it's nothing like that okay?"
"Why do I get the feeling that when you guys have sleepovers, the other person isn't sleeping on the couch?"
"You're real nosy, you know that?"
"And you get defensive when you're uncomfortable," she pointed out calmly. She was gleefully happy. Jules hadn't looked this glowingly happy in a long time. "But that is part of human nature so I won't hold it again you."
"Thank you ever so much," Jules said dryly as she flopped over on the bed. These girl talks with her sister haven't gotten any easier since their teenage years. "Hey, would you mind if Matt comes along tomorrow? I think it would be better to have an objective person along."
"Sure, you asked him yet?"
"We talked."
"Talked?"
"Yeah," nodding her head and wonder how she was ever going thank him for the amount of support he's shown her so far. "He's agreeable to the idea if you are comfortable with it."
"Sure, why not," shrugging her shoulder and struggling not to grin. "He's almost part of the family anyways."
"Jenna!"
~~~~
"George?"
"Yes?" looking up from his tea and biscuits. "What is it, Millie?"
"Have you heard from our son of late?" Millicent asked as she twisted a string of pearls around her finger. She was to attend a garden party this afternoon for the Society of Third World Advocates that will no doubt attempt to part some money from her. Having skipped the last four parties, she was fresh out of ideas as to how to avoid this one.
"No," George muttered irritably. "And my attorneys haven't received a sign copy of the…"
"You might as well surrender that dream, George," Millicent said quietly as she sipped her tea. "It's never coming back to you signed and sealed."
With a deep sigh, George nodded his head. "I suppose you're right."
"George?"
"Yes?"
"I think something happening with Matthew."
"What do you mean?" raising a brow over his reading glasses.
Starting out the window at the right morning sun, "You didn't find his behavior a bit peculiar when last we saw him?"
"Our son has always been a bit peculiar to me, Millie, his behavior in the past weeks have only reinforce that idea in my mind."
Millicent reframed from pointing out that their son had the same peculiarities that his father had. "When I called him last, he was a bit distracted." And he still hadn't RSVP on the Rademacher-Leverson wedding. She'll have to call and remind him of that; one mustn't forget one's social obligations.
"Distracted? How?"
"I'm not quite sure, darling."
"What do you think is happening?"
Phrasing her words carefully, Millicent turned to regard her husband of nearly four decades with eyes that was bright with intelligence. "I think we should be prepared for the next step."
"Next step? What next step?"
"The step that Matthew has not informed us as of yet."
"Millie, you're not making a whole lot of sense."
"I know," with a sigh. "I cannot explain any better than I already have. But have the strangest feeling that our son has done something that we need to prepare ourselves for as far as Dr. Keating is concerned."
George made a face. "Well as long as he didn't fly off to Monte Carlo and married the girl, I won't worry."
"Hum…" Millicent didn't want to tell her volatile husband that she suspected that their only child might have done something equally non-reversible.
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To be Continued…