Silly Love Songs
Part 8
By: ioanhoratio
A/N: Ok, so there will be one more chapter after this. (I'm really terrible at gaging!)
Special Thanks to: tar heels superstar, kcatlin, afrozenheart412, kdzl, and webdlfan. Thanks guys!!!
Now can't you see, what's wrong with that?
"I know, I know," Danny grumbled as he threw his hands up in the air in surrender. He motioned for Hawkes to enter the apartment then whispered, "Jus' don't say anything to Linds a'right?"
"You owe me big, Messer," Hawkes whispered back, giving Danny an exasperated look--effectively communicating, 'I told you so.'
"I'll make it up to you Doc. I swear," Danny promised.
"Yeah, yeah," Hawkes harped as he peeled off his coat, "Where is Lindsay?"
"She's gettin' dressed," Danny answered absently. Lucy was currently tugging on his pant leg begging to be picked up. He swung her up to rest on his hip. She shyly smiled at Hawkes before burying her face in Danny's neck.
"Oh, ya gonna be shy now?" Danny asked her playfully.
"Hey Lucy," Hawkes cooed at her. The baby girl turned her face so she could see him better. Lucy had spent a bit of time around each member of the team, but Danny suddenly realized she might not be too happy being left at home. His thoughts were interrupted when the doorbell rang.
Hawkes gave Danny a questioning look.
"'Scuse me," Danny said just before looking through the peep hole. He knew whomever was out there was one of two people, but one always needed to be safe in the Big Apple. After receiving visual confirmation, Danny opened the door.
"Hey Flack," Danny greeted. He received the same look from Don that he had been given moments ago by Hawkes. Danny sighed, "I know, I know!"
"You owe me big, Messer," Don griped as he walked in, "And $80."
"$80!" Danny exclaimed, then immediately wince and asked quieter, "$80?"
"You told me to get somethin' good," Don explained easily as he handed Danny the bag containing a bottle of wine, "I believe your exact words were 'Yo Don, I massively screwed up Valentine's Day for my wife. I need your help desperately. Will you please leave your nice warm apartment, drive across town, pick out a good bottle of wine--since I know squat about such things-- and then drive back across town to bring it to me so I can fix my mistake? I will forever be in your debt.'"
Danny huffed, "I don't think those were my exact words."
"Funny," Don frowned, "that's what I heard. Hey, Doc. You get roped into helpin' this clown too?"
Hawkes laughed, "I'm the babysitter. Technically, I offered, but let's just say Danny is going to be finding creative ways to pay me back. I'm thinking it will probably involve a dumpster."
Don chuckled. Danny groaned. Lucy gazed wide eyed at the circle of men.
"Don't sit there lookin' all cute," Danny chided her, "One day you'll be givin' some guy hell too. Actually, come to think of it, that would be fine by me. Just take pity on your daddy tonight please."
Lucy stared at him then reached a hand up and grabbed his nose before trying to shove her other hand into his mouth.
"Thanks a lot Luce," Danny mumbled around her tiny fingers. He let his arm go lax and she fell forward, giggling as she hung upside down.
Any further conversation was cut off as again the doorbell rang.
"Wow Mess, how many people does it take to fix this?" Don teased.
Pulling Lucy back up, Danny gave Don a look of warning before checking to see who was on the other side of the door. Just as he had done moments previous, he opened the door and immediately said, "I know, I know. I owe you big time."
"You sure do Danny," Stella confirmed, "I mean what kind of idiot doesn't plan for Valen...
"Shh!" Danny cut her off harshly, "Look, I know I screwed up, but Lindsay doesn't know that and if you guys have any compassion for me at all or care about Lindsay you'll keep this a secret."
The three exchanged looks before Stella said, "Fine, but I'm fairly certain we're all doing this for Lindsay."
The other two nodded heads.
"Yeah, me too," Danny agreed quietly.
Despite her ire, Stella felt her heart melt slightly towards the new husband. "Where do you want this?" she asked, indicating the bag of food she held.
"You take her and I'll take it."
Danny handed Stella the baby and took the bag from her. Lucy looked at Stella. It was too much outside her normal routine, so Lucy's eyes began to well up with tears. Stella tried to sooth the child, but Lucy was not interested in any of it. She twisted in Stella's arms are reached out for her father.
"It's ok Luce," Danny tried to comfort her, "I just gotta put this stuff in the car. I'll be right back. You know Stella, and Don, and Sheldon."
Lucy began to cry harder, huge tears rolling down her cheeks as she pushed off Stella.
"What's going on?" Lindsay asked as she walked into the room.
Danny quickly shoved the two bags in his hands behind his back.
At the sight of her mother Lucy began wailing, "Momma" over and over again.
Lindsay didn't hesitate to cross the room and take the squirming child in her arms. Lucy immediately wrapped her arms around her mom's neck and rested her face against her shoulder, crying softly. Lindsay rubbed her daughter's back and softly comforted her. Soon Lucy's crying turned into tiny whimpers.
"What's everybody doing here?" Lindsay questioned once she was sure Lucy was alright.
After a moment of silence, where the four adults shared a look, they all began speaking at once.
"Oh, ah..." "Well, you see..." "I was..." "They brought..."
Lindsay held a hand up and laughed, "Wait, wait. One at a time."
Everyone turned to Danny.
"Well, ah, Hawkes is goin' to watch Lucy for us, and Don and Stella are here because...they ah..
"We gave Hawkes a ride 'cause we were headed this way," Stella supplied for him. The three men nodded quickly in agreement.
Lindsay looked confused and pointed out, "I thought I heard the doorbell ring several times."
"TV," Don answered then winced as he realized it wasn't on and added lamely, "on next door."
Lindsay's frown appeared and Danny knew she was going to ask more question, so to stave her off he said, "I'm gonna run down to the garage and warm up the car. Be right back." He tried his best to keep the bags out of view as he ran out of the apartment.
"You better run," Hawkes mumbled under his breath.
"I'm sorry?" asked Lindsay.
"I said, I hope you have fun," Hawkes smiled. Don began to choke.
"You ok Don?" Lindsay questioned. He just nodded.
"So," Stella began, trying to distract her, "Do you know what Danny has planned?"
"Not at all. All he's told me is to dress warm." Which explained the boots, jeans, and thick pink hoody she was wearing. "Do you guys know anything?"
All three shook their heads.
"Well, I've gotta say you had me convinced you didn't know anything about this," Lindsay said to Stella, "Remind me to use you guys if I ever want to surprise Danny with something."
"Yep," Stella agreed, "Hopefully it seemed like I had no clue."
Lindsay's response was cut off by Lucy babbling. The little girl had again become comfortable in her own home, safely secured in her mother's arms.
She quickly became the center of attention. Hawkes, Don and Stella all doing their best to entertain the child. She became so delighted by their antics that Lindsay was able to put her down. Lucy stood close to her mom until Hawkes picked up a ball, knelt down closer to Lucy's level and rolled it to Don. He also knelt down and was soon followed by Stella. They rolled the ball back and forth and Lucy watched enraptured. She finally decided she wanted to play too and wandered into the middle of the group. She was soon laughing and chasing the ball around.
"Damn, she's cute," Don commented. Stella whacked him on the arm, which Lucy found hilarious.
"Oh, sorry, I mean dang, she's cute," Don corrected, giving Lindsay an apologetic look.
"Don't worry," Lindsay assured him, "Danny does his best, but 20 years of swearing is a hard habit to break. Trust me, she's heard much worse."
Danny chose that moment to return. He held up a finger indicating he needed just a moment. He slid past them, making his way into the master bedroom. A moment later he returned carrying a black gym bag. He had also pulled on his big green sweat shirt.
Lindsay's curiosity grew.
"A'right. Ya ready babe?" he asked his wife.
She shrugged, "I guess so. Are you going to tell me where we're going."
"Nope," he grinned at her, "Your just gonna have ta trust me."
Lindsay grinned back at him, despite herself. She couldn't help it. When it came to Danny Messer she was an absolute sucker. It just happened to work out that he felt the same about her.
"So Hawkes, you're staying with Lucy right?" Lindsay asked.
"Yep," he confirmed standing up, "Anything I need to know?"
Danny jumped in, "I just fed her dinner so she should be good. If she does want somethin' to eat there are those little yogurt bite things she likes in the pantry or Cheerios and she likes water in a cup with a straw. She is surprisingly good at drinking with it. The cups are in the cabinet above the sink. Just be careful when you put the top on that you take the straw out first or the water will come shooting out. I also just changed her diaper but if you need to change her there's a basket on that bookshelf by the tv that's got everything in it or there's her changin' table in the nursery. And to warn ya, you will probably have to sing to her while you change her to keep her from tryin' to roll away mid change. She thinks it's hilarious to run around naked but unless ya wanna risk cleanin' up a mess I recommend keeping her diapered. I also left a set of pajamas out for her. She had a really late nap so don't worry about fightin' her to go to sleep. If she looks like she's gettin' tired you can give her the bottle I left in the fridge, turn on the Teletubbies I left the dvd in the player, and just sit on the couch with 'er and her pink bunny. She should fall asleep on her own. Then feel free to watch what ya want. Trust me, she will sleep through it. Once she's asleep, she's out for the count. We'll move her when we get home. She loves to be read to and there are bubbles above the washing machine incase you get desperate to entertain her. She's really good at playing with blocks but the first time she throws one you'll have to take 'em away. We are tryin' to teach her not to do that. We've got our cell phones if ya need us, but we should probably be back by around 9 or 10."
Hawkes, Don, and Stella just stared at him, stunned.
"What?" he asked.
"You are one sexy Daddy," Lindsay supplied, smiling happily at him, "and I am one lucky wife."
"Whatever," he murmured good-naturedly. He bent down to say goodbye to her daughter. Lindsay followed suit. As much fun as Lucy was having with her friends, she was suddenly desperate for her parents. She abandoned the game and ran for them. They hugged her and assured her everything would be alright. It took everything Don, Stella and Hawkes had to distract her but finally Lindsay and Danny were able to leave.
"Was that Danny Messer?" Hawkes asked his comrades.
"Never thought I'd see the day," Don added.
"Well, I guess we should be heading out," Stella said. Lucy chose that moment to hand her a book.
"You guys are welcomed to stay," Hawkes said.
"I ain't got nothin' better to do tonight," Don told them as he settled down on to floor.
"Me neither," Stella empathized, "Anyone for pizza?"
Happy Valentine's Day!
Tomorrow will be the actual conclusion!
