Guess whose coming to dinner
"Tell me why there's so many good men
and the world's misunderstood
He's a dog, he's no good
I wish somebody would
disrespect my man
You're gonna have to come see me
I go hard for my baby
he's all that I need."
-A.N.G.E.L, Natasha Bedingfield
Thanks to my music maven Mauveine for yet another great song.
She looked beautiful. The simple royal blue wrap dress highlighted her fair, flawless complexion and made her eyes even more vibrant. It also clung to her like a second skin, highlighting her fabulous curves and womanly body, including that small yet visible baby bump that seemed to get bigger each and every day now. He always thought that those things took more time to come about. She wasn't that far along and neither of them were expecting anything to be noticeable for another month and a bit. Five months, according to the books, was the norm for a mother to begin showing. But there it was. And there was no denying what it was or how it had got there. He couldn't keep that stupid, proud as hell grin off of his face every time he looked at it or thought about that being his baby in there. That he had helped create something so amazing and magical and was fortunate enough to be going along for the ride of his life for the next eighteen plus years.
"You keep staring at me." Sam commented self-consciously as he parked the SUV and killed the ignition.
"I'm not allowed to stare at you?" he asked, reaching out to brush a strand of stray hair behind her ear.
"Makes me nervous." she replied, unbuckling her seat belt.
"Not like I'm some nut job on the street checking out your goods. And besides, I wouldn't call it staring, it's more like admiring."
She smiled and reached sideways to tighten and straighten his tie. "Thank you." she said. "For doing this for me. I know it's hard for you considering you and my dad aren't exactly on the same page with things."
"Your dad and I aren't even on the same planet." Flack said with a heavy sigh. "But if this will get him off our backs by him seeing we're serious about the baby and getting married, then going to dinner with the guy is the least I can do. I mean, he's gonna be my father in law in three months. He's my kid's grandfather. Not like I can avoid him forever."
"Just be thankful they live so far away and we won't be expected to visit a lot."
"What's his issue with me? Why's he hate me so bad? I'm not a bad guy. I don't treat you like shit or beat the crap out of you. I work hard and try my best to take care of you and make sure you and the baby are okay. What's his problem?"
"It's not personal, Don. Really. It's not. He just has a thing against cops since the whole Zack thing. And he also is majorly opinionated when it comes to certain things. And having babies before marriage is one of those things."
"Never rubbed off on you obviously." Flack teased her, nodding down at her stomach.
"Same way your parents' no sex before marriage talk worked on you? 'Cause judging by the things you do, you've had a lot of sex before marriage."
He grinned broadly. "I can never get one up on you, baby. You always have a come back of some kind."
"I keep you on your toes, Don. It's what you love most about me."
"I can think of a few other things before that." he said and kissed her long and soft.
"As much as I'd love to say let's just go home..."
"I would not argue one bit."
"We really have to get inside."
He frowned. "You do love torturing me."
She smiled and held his chin in her hand and kissed him. "Just the pleasurable kind." she said.
"That's the best kind of all." he told her and kissed her once more. "I guess we should go do this." he sighed.
"Sooner we start, sooner it's over." she pointed out.
"You're always so optimistic." he said and slipped out of the SUV and shut his door and pocketed his keys. He went around to the passenger's side and opened her door and helped her out.
"Someone has to be the ray of sunshine in this relationship." she commented.
"True. I leave the politeness and niceties to you." he closed her door and laid a hand on the small of her back. "You look amazingly beautiful and I love you." he said and kissed her gently. "And I would not put myself through this pain for anyone else."
She grinned. "You started that sentence out so well, Flack. Then your mouth took over your brain."
"Thought you liked it when my mouth took over." he teased her, taking her hand to lead her through the parking lot towards the entrance to the hotel.
"You do have a very talented mouth." she agreed.
"I'll remember that later when I'm putting it to good use." he grinned and backed up to avoid an elbow to his stomach. "Is it wrong that I am this nervous?" he asked her, dropping his hand off her back in favor of taking her hand. "I mean, I sit across interrogation tables from murderers and child molesters and gang bangers and your basic run of the mill scum of the earth yet I don't break a sweat. But the thought of being around your parents scares the crap out of me."
"My mother is a gem. You'll really like her. When she came by the lab she was all excited hoping she'd meet you right then and there. She was so disappointed when I told her you weren't there. She's not the one you have to worry about."
"Only your ex-soldier daddy with his gun collection who wants to disembowel me the first chance he gets." Flack said dryly, yanking open one of the doors leading into the main lobby of the hotel.
"I don't think it's your insides he's interested in ripping apart." Sam commented light heartedly.
He frowned. "Is that suppose to make me feel better? Knowing your father wants to chop my dick off 'cause I corrupted and tarnished his precious angel of a daughter?"
"Please. If he knew half the stuff I did by the time I was eighteen, he would have bound and gagged me and locked me in the basement for the rest of my life. He has this image of me and he's just pissed I put a dent in it. It's not personal, Don. It's nothing against you. It's against any guy in general that upsets that image."
"I'm a decent guy, Sam. I may come on strong to people and I know I'm a bit of a hot head and my sarcasm is a bit hard to take sometime, but you know me. Really know me. More than anyone else. And you know that I'm a good guy."
"I know that you're an amazing guy and that you have faults just like everyone else. And if you didn't, you'd be so damn boring."
"Boring I ain't." he said.
"My life was boring until I met you. When you came along, so many things changed. I changed. And my dad will see that. I promise."
They paused at the entrance to the restaurant and he leaned down to kiss her softly. "I think we've both changed." he said.
She smiled. "I think we both needed to. And that we helped each other."
He returned that innocent, sparkling smile with a boyish one of his own and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "If I don't make it out of this alive, my will is in a safety deposit box in the bedroom closet. And you're the executor. Just so you know."
"I promise I will process the scene thoroughly." she teased. "Every thing's going to be fine." she promised.
As they made their way into that restaurant, he hoped she was right.
Things started out well. For the most part. From the moment that they joined her parents at a cozy, candlelit table for four in the elegant, busy restaurant, Lynne talked constantly with her soon to be son in law. She asked about his job and how and where he grew up, listening intently and with interest at every little detail. She asked about likes and dislikes and other simpler things. Were you ever married before? Any other kids? The basic getting to know someone, feeling them out kind of thing.
Personally, Lynne didn't understand what her husband's issue was with this young man sitting across from them. As far as she was concerned, Clint was being way too harsh and unreasonable on both of them. Don Flack was well spoken and thoughtful and looked at her daughter with the utmost pride and love in his eyes. And vice versa. She could see how much her daughter cared with this man. So much more than Samantha ever displayed for Zack.
Talk turned to the baby. Lynne had been worrying since that afternoon when Samantha had mentioned there was a problem with the pregnancy. And when she brought it up now, she saw the worry and hint of sadness in both of their eyes.
"My triple screen test showed that the baby has a higher chance of having a genetic or a chromosomal error." Sam explained, picking at her appetizer of chicken Caesar salad.
"So what exactly are the doctor's concerned about?" Lynne asked, sipping red wine thoughtfully.
"The most common things are Spina Bifida on the genetic side and Down Syndrome on the other." Sam replied.
"Genetic?" Sarge frowned. "That's gotta come from someone. There's nothing genetic as far as I know on either the Ross side or your mother's."
"It could be possible way down the line." Lynne said. "But there's nothing I know of."
"Don has two cousins with Spina Bifida." Sam told them. "So we knew going into having a baby that there was a chance it would skip other members of his family and come to us. But it's no big deal. They're both in their late teens and doing exceptionally well."
"Having a baby with someone you know has this kind of thing in their family?" Sarge snorted. "Couldn't you find someone with a normal family?"
"Oh I'm sorry, dad." Sam shot back. "I should have asked him before we slept together if he had a normal family or not. I don't care about stuff like that. These things can happen to anyone. People have babies with Spina Bifida all the time and they don't even have it in their family. It's a neural tube defect that occurs during fetal development. And it can be caused by maternal factors, like the meds I was one after the attack. I didn't know then that I was even pregnant and I was on some heavy duty stuff. So if that's what it is that's wrong, there's no use playing the blame game. I don't blame Don and he doesn't blame me."
"And Down Syndrome." Sarge said, looking at Flack. "You got that in your family, too? 'Cause we sure as hell don't."
"Well if you knew anything about it, you'd know that that's something that happens right at conception." Flack informed him. "An error that occurs right at the start. No one passes it along. Unless it's a case of translocation and that's only two percent of the population and too long winded to get into. So right at conception, someone kicked in an extra twenty-first chromosome. No scientific way of telling who either. So if the kid has it, you can't blame anyone for it."
"And if that's what it is are you two still having it?" Sarge asked.
"We're having it regardless of what's wrong." Flack replied.
"Your decision or hers?" Sarge inquired.
"Both of ours." Sam said. "We made the decision together."
"It's a tough haul. Raising a mongoloid."
"Dad!" Sam hissed at him. "Don't use that word! I know way back when it was acceptable, but you don't use that anymore. Okay? Please don't use it."
"Gonna raise it at home or send it away?"
"Jesus!" Sam wanted to reach across the table and belt him one. "Are you stuck in the 1950s? These kids do better when they are raised at home and allowed to be in the general public and attend school with all the regular kids. It's called early intervention and integration. And whatever the problem is, if there is one, Don and I are raising this child at home like he or she deserves."
"Personally," Lynne said. "As much as I pray there isn't anything wrong, I want you two to know that if this is the case, it's still my grandchild and I'll love it and accept it no matter what. It's not the end of the world. It's still a baby and you two still achieved the miracle of life. Everything will work out. You'll see. Have you made any plans? Bought anything? I've all ready started to knit a blanket. White, yellow and green so you can use it for a boy or a girl."
"My mom loves to knit." Sam told Flack. "She's actually won awards for some of her things. It's her passion. She even knits hats and booties and mittens for the tiny preemies at the local hospital."
"And don't forget the dogs." Lynne reminded her.
"And she made blankets and sweaters and sent them to New Orleans to help keep the displaced pets from Katrina warm. If it has to do with babies or animals, she's on it."
"Samantha was always good with animals." Lynne recalled fondly. "They always seemed to like her. Until the day she shot the squirrel in the back yard."
"Mom! You're still going on about that!" Sam exclaimed.
"It was a very traumatic time for your brother when he witnessed that."
"I didn't mean to shoot the damn squirrel!" she insisted.
"Sure you didn't." Flack teased. "Keep telling yourself that and one day, you might actually convince yourself of it."
"You be quiet." Sam laughed. "You're always picking on me for being a squirrel serial killer."
"I'm not sure you should even be left alone with any animal." he joked.
"You're mean!" she said.
"You know I love you." he told her and smiled and winked.
She smiled as well and leaned into him and he kissed the side of her head lightly.
Lynne smiled also. She was pleased at how happy they seemed. How in love they were. Her daughter deserved to be happy after the turmoil with Zack. And Don Flack seemed good for her. He was intelligent and hard working and extremely respectful to her. And their child. And he seemed to adore her. It was in his eyes when he looked at her. She saw the soft, tender way that he smiled at her and touched her back of her hand or her hair. It also didn't hurt that he was tall, obviously well built and devastatingly handsome with the most lovely blue eyes she'd ever seen. Her grandchild, boy or girl, was going to be a knock out.
"So have you made any plans?" Lynne asked again, after a period of comfortable silence and the waitress had come to take their orders and offer more drinks. "Bought anything for the baby?"
"We're moving into a two bedroom apartment at the end of the month." Sam replied, sipping a glass of ice water. "Well, Carmen and I are moving in and then Don moves in at the end of October."
"That's convenient." Sarge commented dryly. "Two women under the same roof. You can have your pick. Someone to spend your time with my daughter isn't around."
Flack smirked. "You figured me out, Clint. That's exactly my plan. To have a wife and a girlfriend. I mean, what more could a guy like me want?"
Sam lightly squeezed his thigh under the table in hopes of calming him down. Two offhanded, pissed off men at one table was a volatile situation. And as much as Sarge believed he was the king of sarcasm and dominating other people came easily to him, he had met his match in Flack. She knew for a fact that he'd beat Sarge hands down at the assertive, aggressive and down right mean game.
"Carmen's moving in with her soon to be fiance in the new year." Sam explained. "So when she leaves, we'll have a bedroom just for the baby. But we haven't talked about things like decorating a nursery and we haven't personally bought anything. We'll give it a couple months and then worry about a crib and a stroller and car seat and everything else we'll need. Mind you, people we work with have been giving us tons of clothes and toys. And Carmen, as godmother, has made it her personal mission to spoil the kid rotten all ready."
"And my buddy Danny, he's the godfather and he went and got this tiny Giants jersey and somehow got it signed by Eli Manning the quarterback." Flack added. "Danny's a massive Giants fan so he's determined to make the baby his football buddy."
"And what kind of credentials to these people have to be god parents?" asked Sarge.
"We didn't exactly ask to see their resumes or ask for references." Flack replied.
"We picked them because they're great friends to us." Sam said. "Danny and Don have been best friends and have worked together for years. And we know we can count on him and Carmen to be there."
"And this Giants thing." Sarge said. "Kid can't be a Giants fan being raised in Arizona. Gotta be a Cardinals fan."
"Come again?" Flack asked. "Who said anything about raising him in Arizona?"
"Can't raise him here in this God foresaken place." Sarge replied. "All the drugs and violence. Can't walk two feet without someone pulling a gun on you or wanting to rob you."
"And this has happened to you numerous times in the past six hours?" Sam asked sarcastically.
"You know what this city is like. You work here. Why have a kid in a place like this?"
"We live here, dad. We like it. We have great friends and jobs we enjoy. Don's climbing the ladder in the NYPD pretty quickly and if he was to go to another city to work, he'd be stuck at the bottom all over again. And for less money. Not to mention he'd hate it there. He's a New York City boy born and raised. He doesn't want to leave."
"For one," Sarge said. "Men make sacrifices too. And two, I was talking about you and the baby moving there."
"Dad, you're mental. You really are. How many times do I have to say it? Don and I are getting married. We're becoming a family. And we're raising this baby together, here in New York."
"And if you think I'd let Samantha just take off and raise my kid thousands of miles away, you're seriously demented." Flack added.
"No one is stopping you from attending the birth or visiting on weekends." Sarge informed him.
Sam nearly choked on her ice water.
"You are seriously fucking demented." Flack declared. "Are you listening to yourself? You're the grandfather. That's it. You have no say in how or where we raised our kid. We. Because it'll be a cold day in hell when you take my wife and my kid thousands of miles away."
"Don..." Sam rubbed his back. "Please just calm down a bit."
"Grandparents have rights you know." Sarge shot back.
"Biological father's rights trump whatever you think you'd have up on me." Flack told him. "And I don't care how much money you have or how many people you know. You wanna push it, take it to court and I'll have it tied up with so much red tape for the next eighteen years you'll either be dead or the kid will be old enough to make his own decision. So try it. Go ahead and hire a fancy lawyer. Subpoena me. I've got enough connections of my own that if you're hiding the smallest secret, they'll find it all out and I'll bury you with them."
"Don't threaten me." Sarge growled.
"It's not a threat. It's just the truth. I don't play games, Clint. Waste of my time. I tell things the way they are. No bullshit. So you want to fuck with me, go ahead and let's see what you got and how far you get. You think you can just come here and threaten me? Threaten to take my wife and my kid to bum fuck country?"
Sam had her elbow on the table, a hand to her forehead. "Don...please...just calm down."
"She's not your wife yet." Sarge reminded him. "And if I have my way, she never will be. Taking advantage of her when she's at a weak point in her life?"
"Yeah. That's it, Clint. I took advantage of her. Raped her, held her against her will, keep her too scared to leave. You've got me bang on old man."
"Please, Don." Sam was nearly begging. "Stop."
"You think it's okay he's like this?" Flack asked incredulously.
"No. It's not that..."
Sarge fought back. "If you think some dim wit, two bit New York City cop is going to push me around..."
"Stop!" Sam cried. "Both of you just stop!"
"This isn't solving anything!" Lynne snapped at her husband. "Stop giving them such a hard time. He loves her. She loves him. Let them alone!"
"We're thirty years old, dad!" Sam informed him. "We're adults and this is none of your business and..." she suddenly winced and audibly gasped and grabbed her stomach.
Her mother was on her feet in an instant, rushing to her side and kneeling beside her chair. "Sweetie, are you okay? Tell me what's wrong? Are you in pain? Tell me what it is."
Flack glared at Sarge. "Great. Thanks. Now look at what you did. Happy? Does it make you feel like a big man, Clint?"
"That's rich coming from you!" Sarge defended himself. "You're the one that put her in the hospital the first time by picking on her!"
"It was not his fault, dad!" Sam said through gritted teeth. "We just..." she grabbed a hold of Flack's hand as tight as she could. "We need to go. I want to go home. Will you take me home?"
"Tell you what. We'll go to Women's and Children's and get you looked at." he got up from his seat and gently helped her to her feet, an arm about her waist. "Wonderful, Clint. Hope you're happy. Something happens to my kid and and I'll be on your ass before you know what hit you."
"Stop." Sam pleaded. "And no hospital. I just want to lie down. Somewhere nice and quiet. Please just take me home."
"I just think it's better if we get you checked." Flack said gently.
"Don't boss her around!" Sarge snapped.
"I forget." Flack said. "That's your job. You get off on bossing women around."
"Can we please just go?" Sam asked. "Please?"
"We're going, baby. Relax. We're going." he led her slowly out of the restaurant, his arm around her, her hand clutching her stomach. Lynne scurried alongside of them, frantic worry on her face and in her voice, while Sarge followed slowly at a distance.
Flack led the way out of the hotel and out into the parking lot. Pausing at the side of the SUV to unlock the passenger side door and then helping Samantha climb in.
"Maybe you should get her looked at at the hospital." Lynne fretted.
"I'll call her doctor. We've got her on-call pager number. I'll see what she says. Or I'll call Doctor Sheldon Hawkes. He's a friend of ours and he's always willing to help out." Flack closed the door. "I'll take care of her."
"I'm sure you will. You're all ready doing a wonderful job." she surprised him by wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug. "You make my daughter happy. And you love her. I can see that. Thank you."
"I just wish things could have gone down differently tonight." Flack said regretfully. "I'm sorry."
"You're not the one who should be apologizing. Trust me. Will you call me? If she needs to go and get checked out? She's my daughter and I'd like to be with her."
"I'll call you." he promised and then stepped around to the driver's side, where he found Sarge waiting for him.
"I'm warning you now, kid." Sarge said in a low voice, as Flack unlocked his door. "Don't fuck with me."
"I think you need to take a step back." Flack told him. Eyes blazing.
"I'm serious."
"So am I. So step back or I'll make you do it myself. And believe me, I don't get pleasure out of having to beat down a bitter old man."
Sarge stepped back a step. "You got a smart mouth."
"So I've been told. Now I'm giving you a warning. You can't accept me or this baby, then stay the hell away from my wife. She doesn't need this bullshit. Back off and leave her alone."
With that he opened his door, slamming it noisily as he climbed behind the wheel. Fishing the keys from his pocket, he started up the ignition and put the SUV into reverse. "That went great, huh." he commented. Then remembered the reason why they were leaving in the first place. "You okay?" he asked Sam, as he pulled out of the space and put the gear into drive.
"I'm fine." she assured him. "It's starting to go away. I'll be okay. Have they took off yet?"
"Maybe we should go to the hospital." Flack said.
"No. Are they gone?"
He checked through the rear view mirror. "Just went back inside. Why?"
"Thank God." she said with relief and straightened in her seat with a huge smile. "I was starting to think my acting wasn't very good."
"What?"
"I was faking. There's nothing wrong with me. I just wanted to get the hell out of there."
He frowned. "I don't know whether to kill you or kiss you." he said.
"I'd prefer the latter."
As they waited for traffic to clear so they could leave the parking lot, Flack reached across the seat and put a hand on the back of neck and gave her a scorching, toe curling kind of kiss.
"I'm sorry that things didn't go better." he said. "And if I got a little outta control."
"You didn't. You were defending me and the baby. That's your right. And personally, I like it when you go all knight in shining armor. Makes me feel special and important to you."
"'Cause you are. You and the baby are my entire life. My world."
"Not to mention, mixed in with the whole cop thing, it totally turns me on."
"Yeah? You turned on right now?"
She smiled. "A little."
"Just a little?"
"I'm more hungry. Sorry, honey. As badly as I need sex, your son or daughter wants to eat. We didn't even get past the appetizers and I'm starving."
"So am I. Wanna stop by that little Italian plce by the apartment and you can get some of the seafood linguine you love so much?"
"Actually, I have a craving."
"Uh-oh."
"Taco Bell."
Flack nearly gagged. "What? That stuff is gross. You'll poison my kid."
"It's what I want." she argued. "Soft tacos and fries supreme."
He shuddered at the thought. "I am not letting you feed my kid that toxic waste. We'll go somewhere with real food."
"But the baby wants Taco Bell." she insisted. "Trust me. It's what he wants. Humor him, Don. Before I am forced to throw a temper tantrum right here."
"The closest Taco Bell is like twenty minutes away!" he protested.
"And you're point?"
He sighed. "Fine. I will get you your damn Taco Bell."
"It's what the baby wants. Make the baby happy, Don. You make the baby happy, it makes me happy. And when I'm happy, you in turn will be very, very, very happy."
"Whatever. Just don't complain to me when you're up sick all night."
"And stop at McDonalds, too. So I can get one of them Flurry things. The oreo one."
"You ask a lot. You know that?"
"But you are so good at delivering." she told him.
He grinned. "Remember what I said earlier? About you making it up to me? Well I'm holding you to that."
"I had my heart set on it. You know, I read somewhere that some women become even hornier when they're pregnant."
"You know what that means? Considering what you're all ready like, I am in big trouble."
"Yes," she agreed with a giggle. "You are."
She couldn't sleep. Insomnia was not a common occurrence for her. Even after years of seeing dreadful, often horrific and gruesome things in the course of law enforcement, her mind was never haunted by nightmares. She had never woken up in the middle of the night screaming from a night terror and drenched in sweat and trembling. She'd always been a deep, nearly comatose sleeper save for the all the talking she did. But in the last two days, sleep evaded her. Too many thoughts and fears coursing through her mind. The argument with Sarge at the restaurant only making things worse.
They'd gotten home close to ten. Tired and weary from the incident, yet one kiss in the elevator had rendered them unable to keep their hands off of each other. Sam had never been that attracted to someone. Or had someone have that effect on her. A simple touch or look from him was sometimes enough to drive her wild. She hoped it would always be that way.
Two amazingly tender yet powerful love making sessions later, Flack was exhausted and spent and fast asleep beside her, his face buried in his pillow, muffling any snoring that came out of him. Usually he was a snorer. A loud one most nights that had her wearing ear plugs. But tonight he was completely silent. The only sign of life the rising and falling of his back with each steady breath he took. His shoulders and arms baring witness to the fact it was a good idea if she kept her nails shorter than they were.
Samantha rolled over onto her side and closed her eyes. She'd been staring at the cieling for more than an hour. The clock radio read 1:32 am. No matter how hard she tried, her body and her mind would not relax. After another half an hour of being denied rest, she decided to get up. Maybe some reading or watching t.v.in the living room would help her fall asleep. Or maybe it she finished up the paper work she'd brought home and had promised Mac she'd have done two days ago.
She slipped out of bed and into her slippers and housecoat and padded out into the living room. She went into the kitchen and made herself a peanut butter and banana sandwich and grabbed a glass of milk and then sat on the couch with the volume on the t.v. turned low enough so she wouldn't disturb anyone. Then she grabbed her lap top and sat it on her crossed legs and flipped it open and powered it up. The paper work lying on the coffee table begged for her attention, but she ignored it. She logged onto the net instead, her fingers pausing above the keyboard as she contemplated the decision she'd made while hopelessly awake.
She sighed and began to type in her search.
Airline tickets to Phoenix Arizona.
Thanks to everyone who is reading and reviewing. I appreciate the support. I am considering taking a break for a bit and would like to hear back from you guys.
Please check out the following stories:
Aphina: Devine Intervention and Finding Kate (over on the Miami side of things)
Madison Bellows: Positive
laplandgurl: A Magnet for Trouble
EvaFlack002: For Kate's Sake
And be kind to people. That's all I can say. There is no need for nastiness.