CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

An hour later Jed pulled into the driveway of Rachel and Tom's new house. Rachel was sitting on the couch reading a book, while Tom was nervously fidgeting in the kids' rooms. When she heard the vehicle pull in, she put her book down.

"Tom, I think they're here," she shouted towards the stairs. She heard a mumbled reply and then heard his footfalls as he came down the upper hallway and then down the stairs. She could see the nervousness radiating off him. She got up from the couch and stopped him at the bottom of the stairs. She placed a gentle hand over his heart and smiled calmly at him.

"It's going to be okay," she said softly. He smiled a tight smile and nodded slowly.

"I hope so. I feel like I'm preparing for a battle," Tom said. Rachel could hear the desperation in his voice. She leaned in and he met her halfway, as they indulged in a quick kiss. Then the kids were at the door with Jed.

Tom went and opened the door as Rachel hung back in the living room. Sam came bounding in first and threw himself at his father. Tom caught him up easily and wrapped him into a giant bear hug.

"Dad!" Same squealed, and Rachel couldn't help but laugh. Her hand went to her stomach.

"Sammy," Tom breathed out. "I missed you so much, Buddy." Tom set the boy down and Rachel watched the two grin at each other. Ashley then came through the doorway with her head down, ear buds in her ears, eyes downcast. "Ashely," Tom said but she ignored him as she dropped her suitcase and shifted the backpack to a more comfortable position.

"Tommy," Jed said as he came into the house. "Rachel," he continued as he shook Tom's hand and looked over at Rachel sitting on the couch.

"It's nice to see you all," Rachel said, and she watched Ashley roll her eyes.

"Where's my room?" Ashley asked in a sullen voice and Rachel saw Tom frown.

"It's upstairs, I can show you. Don't you want to…"

"No, I want to go to my room and unpack," she said a little angrily. Tom looked at Rachel and she gave him a reassuring smile, but she didn't think it did much.

"Hi," Sam said to Rachel, and she smiled at the little boy.

"Hello, Sam. How was your trip?" Rachel asked as Jed had gone back out to his vehicle to get some things.

"Ashley was mad, so it was rough. She fought with Grampa all the way here."

"Shut up, Sammy," Ashley yelled from the top of the stairs where she was following Tom to her room.

"Ashley," Tom said sternly. "Don't talk to your brother that way."

"Whatever," she mumbled and put her ear buds back in place.

"See, she's in a mood," Sam said with a shrug.

"Well, your dad and I are really glad you guys are here."

"Yeah. Grampa says we got to live here now instead of our old house."

"That's right," Rachel said softly. "Your dad took a job here in St. Louis."

"So no more big ships?" Sam asked and Rachel thought she heard a hint of disapproval in the boy's words.

"No more big ships. No more lengthy deployments."

"He's going to be here all the time?"

"Yes, that's the plan, Sam," Rachel said with a smile. She looked up at she heard Tom coming down the stairs and Jed coming in the house.

"Sammy, go get your stuff from the truck," Jed said as he set the couple boxes he was carrying down.

"Okay, Grampa," he said and rushed out the door. Tom walked towards his dad.

"I'll bring stuff in, why don't you sit down with Rachel," Tom said. Rachel thought he sounded down. It made her heart hurt for him. Jed nodded and walked over to the couch, sitting down with a sigh as he stretched his legs out.

"Rough drive?" Rachel asked. Jed closed his eyes and leaned his head back along the top of the couch.

"Yes," he said solidly. Rachel nodded. "Ashely argued the whole time about why we had to move in the first place."

"Didn't she want to come live with her dad?" Rachel asked.

"Umm, it wasn't…" Jed started but trailed off Rachel get the picture.

"Oh," she said sadly. This was going to be harder than they anticipated.

"She was mad she found out I was moving too. She wanted me to stay in Virginia and she live with me."

"I understand, leaving friends behind came be hard, especially at her age."

"Yes," Jed said with a forced smile. "Also, this living…arrangement, will be an adjustment too."

"You have no idea," Rachel mumbled before she could stop herself. Her hand mindlessly went to her stomach again. Jed frowned.

"Is there more to the story I haven't been privy to?" Jed asked and Rachel looked up at him. She took a deep breath and simply smiled. She wanted to wait until Tom was there to tell him. Jed seemed to understand her reluctance to answer him. Tom came in carrying a load of boxes and Sam came in behind him.

"Where's my room, Dad?" Sam asked.

"Let me set these down in the kitchen and I'll show you."

"Okay," Sam said as he waited for his dad to come back. Tom was gone a short time and came back empty handed. He then took Sam upstairs to his room.

"We should probably start unpacking those boxes in there," Jed said as he pushed to his feet. Rachel stood with him, and they walked into the kitchen together. "This is a really nice house."

"Yes, we found a nice pair. I think you'll like your house too. It's just a couple houses down the block."

"I look forward to seeing it," he said as he opened the first box. Rachel stepped up next to him and they started to put things away in the kitchen.

Tom brought in the rest of the boxes as the kids put stuff away in their rooms. Rachel and Jed had knocked out a lot of the boxes putting things away in their places. Once all the boxes were in from the truck Tom sat down at the kitchen table.

"Dad, come sit down," Tom said as he looked at Rachel. She also came over and sat down next to Tom. Jed walked over and sat down, eyeing his son.

"What's up?" Jed asked cautiously.

"I…we…have something we want to tell you," Tom started, and he picked up Rachel's hand. She smiled and felt the nerves fire in her stomach.

"Okay," Jed drawled out.

"We have some news to share," Tom said. He paused and took a deep breath. "Rachel is pregnant. We're going to have a baby."

Jed looked from Tom to Rachel, and she smiled at the older Chandler and nodded slowly. Rachel could see him processing the news, then he smiled a wide smile.

"That's great," he said finally, then he paused, and a look of concern came over his face. "It is right?"

"Yes," Tom said as he pulled Rachel's hand up and kissed it. "It is. But I'm not sure how to tell Ash and Sam."

"They're not going to be as excited about it, especially Ashely. I know you and her had talked before you redeployed but she is really struggling with living here…with the…two…of you." Rachel felt overwhelmed. She looked at Tom and watched him bite at his lower lip.

"I'll talk with her," Tom said softly. "How's Sammy taking all this?"

"He's not sure either. He likes the idea of having his dad around all the time, but he's really missing his mom."

"I know how they feel," Tom said softly then gave Rachel an apologizing smile. She smiled and then looked down at the table.

She knew this was going to be hard. Darien was still very much a part of their past, and it was very soon for her and Tom to be in the position they were in. She didn't regret the timeline, but knew it was going to cause issues.

It was getting late in the day and Rachel decided to prepare a meal for them. She cooked some spaghetti, while Jed and Tom sat at the table and talked. She tuned them out and concentrated on cooking. This was going to be an interesting adjustment process. She wondered if her and Tom living together was a great idea. She thought maybe she would bring up to him that she stay with Jed for a while, as they let the children get used to the idea of Tom and her being together.

She knew Tom would not like that idea, and quite frankly she wasn't so keen on not being with him either, but if it helped the children, she would be willing to sacrifice. She could even take the second house and Jed could live here for the start. As she finished the meal, she turned to the two men at the table.

"Food is ready," she said softly and set the noodles and sauce on the table. Tom got up and went upstairs to get the kids while Jed and Rachel fixed plates for themselves.

"This smells delicious, Rachel," Jed said.

"Thank you, hopefully it tastes good too," she chuckled. He smiled. Tom returned with Sam in tow but no Ashley.

Sam took a seat and Tom helped him get a plate ready. The boy then dug into his meal and slurped down the spaghetti. Tom made himself a plate and the three adults ate in relative silence. Sam took off as soon as he finished.

"No Ashley?" Jed asked.

"No. She said she was not hungry."

"Tom, maybe we should rethink the living arrangements," Rachel said with pursed lips. Jed and Tom both looked at her and she cringed at Tom's face.

"What?" he asked shocked.

"Just for now, I mean, Jed can live here, and I'll take the house just down the road, and…"

"No," Tom said sternly. Rachel looked down at her hands. Jed seemed to get uncomfortable, and he cleaned up his plate before excusing himself to the living room.

"Tom," Rachel said after Jed was gone.

"No, Rachel," he said. He reached over and grabbed her hand. She licked her lips and looked out the window. "We can get through this."

"But at what cost?" she asked.

"I want my family under one roof."

"I understand that, Tom, but your children need time to heal and adjust."

"Rachel, I don't want to spend nights away from you," he whispered, and she heard a desperation in his voice. She looked down at their hands.

"Are you willing to risk your relationship with your daughter?"

"I'll talk to her. It's going to be okay."

"And Sam?"

"What about Sam?"

"I'm not sure he understands yet, and when he does, I don't think it's going to be like you think."

"Rachel," Tom said, and she could hear the exhaustion in his voice. He pinched the bridge of his nose, and squeezed his eyes shut.

"Tom," she said softly, pulling her hand free so she could cup each side of his face with her hands. "This is going to be a hard rough road. We need to make it as easy as possible."

"That's not making it easier," Tom protested.

"For you," she sighed. "But it might for the children…and me."

"So, I'm the only one that suffers?" Tom barked and she cringed at the anger in his voice.

"No, I…this is new territory for me."

"Me too, Rachel. I've never had to introduce my kids to my girlfriend, who is pregnant."

"I know, Tom, but," Rachel said earnestly.

"No, we need to stick together. I know it's going to be hard."

"Let's at least keep it as an option," Rachel said as she dropped her hands. He leaned in and kissed her quickly, then rested his forehead against hers.

"A last resort option," he whispered.

"Dad?" Sam's voice carried to them, and they both pulled back and Rachel started to clean up the table. Tom got up and walked into the living room. Rachel took a few deep breaths and worked to stop the tears that were building in her eyes.

To Be Continued…