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Disclaimer: Not mine.

Chapter 7

Mac was stood looking out of the window. The night sky was clear and so he could see every star shining brightly. The majestic moon stood out in particular, like a shiny silver coin. He turned his back to the window and looked over at the hospital bed where Jo lay. Her eyes were closed and she lay so still it actually frightened him. He watched her chest rise and fall as she breathed in and out.

He walked over to her bedside and sat down in the chair that he had placed next to it. He then leant forwards so he could take hold of her hand. He noticed her wrist and how bruised it was, her other wrist was concealed under a cast so he couldn't check that one. He glanced up at her face, that too was covered in angry bruises and cuts, yet he couldn't help but think that she still looked as stunning as ever.

He lifted her hand up to his lips and placed a soft and loving kiss on it. He let his lips linger there and closed his eyes and thought about how much he loved her. He had known there was something about her the first day he had saw her up on the balcony at the lab. The butterflies he felt every time he had saw her ever since then had only gotten stronger.

"Tyler….Ellie…"

Mac opened his eyes and looked up at Jo as she muttered her children's names again. He stood up and gently placed his hand on her head. He gazed down at her, not quite yet believing she was coming to. "Jo. Can you hear me?" he asked.

"Mac? Where's Ellie, Tyler?" she asked groggily as she opened her eyes.

"They're both fine." he told her, "Tyler had to be admitted for the bump on his head, but he's doing great. Ellie's staying with Lindsay and Danny. Little Lucy's really taken to her, Next thing she'll be asking you for a sister." he joked. Jo smiled and just looked at him. He could tell she was still thinking about Tyler and Ellie. "They're fine, I promise you." he said.

Jo smiled and nodded, she believed him. "You gonna give me my hand back?" she asked him, he had yet to let go of it. Mac smiled at her and shook his head.

"No?" she asked with a small smile, it was all her bust and swollen lip could manage.

Mac climbed onto the bed next to her, the whole time keeping hold of her hand. He wrapped his other arm around her shoulder, immediately Jo nestled against him. It felt so good, and she felt so safe, in his arms.

They sat in one and others arms in silent for a moment, just enjoying each others embrace. Finally Jo had to ask what was on her mind. "Was John killed?" she asked. She remembered hearing a shot just before she hit the floor.

"Yeah" Mac told her.

"What about Samuel?"

She noticed how Mac didn't answer her, just wrapped his arm tighter around her. She pushed herself up and looked at him. "Mac?"

He looked at her and hesitated before he said, "Samuel got away. He broke though a window in the basement. We have people out looking for him. We think he snagged his leg on the broken glass, he will probably have to check into a hospital soon."

Jo pulled herself out of his arms and slowly pushed herself up, her body protested against the movements and the pain it caused her.

"Jo where are you going?" Mac asked as he climbed down off the bed and followed her as she limped over to the door.

"If he's still out there then I want to be where my kids are. He'll come after them again." she panicked.

"No he won't, Jo and if he does he'll be caught. We have officers all around the hospital including outside Tyler's door as well as people outside Danny and Lindsay's place."

"Mac, he's not going to give up until I'm dead, or my kids are dead. He blames me for his brothers death and right now he's probably blaming me for his fathers too." Jo told him.

"Jo you've had surgery, you're in no shape to be running around…"

"Mac, I don't care what shape I am in, I will fight until my last breath to protect my children." she told him.

Mac sighed and looked at her and saw the determination on her face. "I'll make a deal with you." he said, "You stay here, get back in bed and rest, let me stay with Tyler and Ellie. Jo you know there is no way I will let anyone hurt them."

Jo looked at him, she now saw the determination in his eyes. She thought it over for a while before she said "Ok, but only for tonight. I want to take them both home tomorrow."

"You need to stay here longer." Mac told her.

"I need to be with my kids." she said, correcting him.

"Ok so I'll make another deal with you. Tomorrow you can take them home and you can go with them but only if I can stay with you too. You'll be there to look after Tyler and Ellie and I'll be there to look after you." he said, flashing her his best smile.

She smiled back at him and decided it was probably easier to agree with him than argue with him. "Fine, but you'know I'm not getting much out of these deals." she told him with a seductive smile.

Mac stepped right up to her and placed a soft kiss on the only part of her face that wasn't bruised. "You will." he whispered to her.

Jo just laughed slightly. "Go!" she said, playfully hitting his chest.

Mac walked over to the door grinning like a fool. Jo walked over to the bed and climbed back in. She liked the idea of rest but she would much rather be with her children so she knew they were safe, but if she couldn't be with them there was no one other than Mac she would trust to take her place.

"Hey, Mac!" she called before he stepped out.

He turned to face her, still smiling. "Yeah?"

"How much do you charge, an hour I mean?" she asked.

Mac was clearly confused. "What?" he asked, laughing.

"For babysitting." she said with a smile that made his heart skip a beat.

"Get some sleep Jo." he said to her as he walked out.

Jo laughed as she nestled back down in the bed. She couldn't wait to be out of the hospital and back in her apartment. She wanted to get in her own bed and be surrounded by her own things. She closed her eyes and decided that sleeping would make tomorrow come round quicker.

~0~0~0~0~

5 weeks later.

Jo was sat on the couch with Ellie as they watched TV. They were both huddled under the same warm blanket. Jo had a cup of tea in her hands and Ellie had a glass of fruit juice.

Jo's body was healing quick, the bruises had all well and truly faded and her cuts were all healed up. Her gun shot wounds had also healed nicely and almost completely, but she found that they would still ache at times.

She'd been given some strong pain meds from the hospital but had stopped taking them over a week ago as they were beginning to make her feel nauseous all the time and she didn't even feel like she needed them anymore. Both her and Ellie looked over to the door when they heard a knock on it. It was Jo who got up to go see who was there. She looked through the peephole and had to smile to see Mac standing there.

She pulled the door open for him and stepped aside to let him in. "What's in the bags?" she asked.

She shut the door and followed him into the kitchen where he placed the bags down on the counter. She watched as he reached in and pulled out some food containers, takeaway. "Dinner." he said to her as he pulled open one of the containers.

The smell of Indian curry quickly wafted up around them. He couldn't help but think is smelt fantastic, however, the moment Jo smelt it she had to put her hand over her mouth. She spun round on her feet and shot to the bathroom. Mac could only watch in confusion. He heard the bathroom door slam and made his way towards it.

He walked across the living room and glanced over at Ellie who was watching, confused. "She's been like that all day." she told Mac. "I don't know what she can possibly be throwing up though, all she's had all day is tea, she's not eaten."

Mac smiled at her and said, "It's probably just the pain medication that she's taking, don't worry yourself sweetie."

He walked down the hall towards the bathroom and stood outside. He could hear Jo inside, throwing up. He wasn't sure whether or not he should give her some space but in the end he knocked lightly on the door. "Jo!" he called out.

He didn't get a reply and he knew it was because she was still throwing up. Hesitantly he pushed the door open. He saw Jo knelt hugging the toilet seat as she heaved into it. He walked over to her and took hold of her hair. Holding it back in one hand as he gently rubbed her back with his other hand.

After a moment Jo pulled away from the toilet and reached up and flushed it. She moved right back from it and leant against the side of the bath tub.

"Want me to help you up?" Mac asked her.

Jo closed her eyes and let her head lean against the tub, "No, but I do want you to sit with me." she said looking up at him with her best pleading eyes.

Mac laughed and got down next to her. He snuggled up right next to her and she leant her head on his shoulder. "I think I'm sick." she told him after a moment.

"That or you really don't like Chicken Korma."

"Please, Mac, you know me I'll eat anything."

"Maybe we should take you to see a Doctor. You could be having some sort of allergic reaction to the pain medication you're on." Mac suggested.

"I stopped taking them days ago, when I first started feeling like this." she said. "It's probably because I haven't eaten properly in days. Every time I get a whiff of food I need to throw up."

"That really isn't like you at all." Mac joked.

"Hush." she told him playfully with a smile. "You know the only other time I was like this was when I was…." Jo said, suddenly stopping herself and sitting up straight.

Worried, Mac turned to face her. "When what?" he asked.

"Was when I having Tyler….when I was pregnant." They both looked at each other, both as confused as each other. Mac was about to talk when Jo beat him to it. "There could just be some other explanation." she said.

"Maybe. There's only one way to find out." Mac replied.

She knew he was right and she knew he meant she had to do a pregnancy test. She suddenly felt very sick again.

~0~0~0~0~

It was early morning the next day, 6.30am. Jo and Mac were both sat on the couch in silence, staring down at the pregnancy test that lay upside down on her coffee table. There was a watch next to it, counting down the minutes.

Mac turned to look at Jo. He could see the worry in her face, he could also see how see was bouncing her leg, clearly nervous. He reached out and placed his hand on her knee, stopping her. "Relax." he said.

"Oh I wish I could. I just keep thinking about if it's positive. I'm not sure I should be having a baby, I'm over forty and that can risk health problems for the baby…"

"Jo your fit, your healthy. There is no reason why you won't give birth to a perfectly healthy baby." he said to her. "Women in their fifties are even having children now more and more."

"I suppose. I just don't know how I'm going to manage this job, a new baby as well as Ellie and Tyler."

"Jo, you're not going to be alone in this." he said to her. She turned to face him as he said, "If you are pregnant then I guess that will make me a father to be and that's something I take very serious. I'm gonna be with you through every step of this."

Jo smiled and had to hold his face as she pressed her lips against his. Mac kissed her back and reached up to hold her face. The kiss lingered for a little longer before Mac pulled away. He reached out and picked up the watch. He looked at it then turned it to face Jo. "Time's up." he said to her.

Jo took a deep breath before she reached out and picked up the test. She closed her eyes as she turned the test to face her. It was only after another deep breath that she was able to open her eyes and look at the test.

Unable to talk she just turned it to face him. He saw the result and then looked up at her, smiling.

TBC

Okay so I know that this may seem a little far fetched, Sela Ward is like 56 but I'm guessing Jo is supposed to be younger, more early forties and women can still get pregnant at that time and again it's something the show will never do so I figured I would. Like Jo said to Mac in Identity Crisis, he should have kids because he would make a great father, face the challenges of parenthood with her so why not have them do it together with their own child.

Anyway, thanks for reading. Please review.