Braddock-in-Law

Disclaimer: I don't own Flashpoint and Rookie Blue.

My head-canon is that Luke is one of Jules' brothers (and I know I'm not the only one with this idea!). The show didn't bother to introduce her brothers to us properly, so Luke has become more real to me now than the brothers we got to see for only brief seconds in the finale. Enjoy.

"Aren't you one beautiful baby," Luke jiggled the seven month old, bouncing her feet on his thighs. "Right, Sade? Aren't you a cutie?" He planted a slobbering kiss on her stomach, provoking a laugh from the infant.

"Geez, Luke, at least shave first. You're giving my baby beard burn." Sam scolded when Jules' second oldest brother found another ticklish spot and blew a raspberry on the side of Sadie's neck, sending her into a laughing frenzy.

It felt like only last week that Luke preferred to stay on the sideline, saying he was fully content to watch them play with Sadie. Three nonconsecutive weekends had passed in a similar fashion before Jules simply put the baby in his lap, his arms instantly wrapping around Sadie's small torso to support her awkwardly. 'She's not half as dangerous as those toys you're playing with at work. Just don't forget to breathe,' she advised before going to the kitchen to fix Sadie her bottle.

Sam plopped down next to his brother in law on the couch and watched Luke interact with Sadie. Who would have thought the homicide detective was such a softy around babies? If he could get a decent snapshot, he would have blackmail materials in his hands.

Luke shot him a sideway glance and cleared his throat, seemingly self-conscious all of a sudden for having been caught red-handed letting his guard down. "She's not complaining. Right, Sadie? You adore your Uncle Luke."

"If you love her so much maybe you should consider making one," Sam snapped his fingers, loudly, just to mess with him more than anything. "Oh right, I forgot that you sorta messed it up with McNally." As far as he was concerned (or at least as far as Jules had told him because that's the only way he was privy to Luke's personal life), Luke wasn't really seeing someone. There was a slight mention of a blonde cop in passing, but Sam couldn't recall her name. Fleck? Speck? Something along that line.

Luke shifted beside him, composed face not betraying his real emotion. He tickled Sadie under the chin. "Keep it up, Braddock-in-law, that's old news. Perhaps you should start hanging out more with the cool kids, then maybe you'll get fresher gossip out of the oven."

Sam took one of Sadie's bare feet in his hand, tracing the unblemished, too soft skin of her sole warmly. He was still amazed at how tiny her toes were; how precious. "As old as the news of you missing your sister's wedding? I don't think so."

Now Luke did frown. His team had been hot on the tail of a major Jamaican drug smugglers for two months, and were ready to make a bust. He had made a big arrest at the end of that day, but he'd also given his family a free ammunition to use against him whenever they liked. Like now, for instance. "Now come on, that's just not fair."

"Just saying."

Luke glared at Sam for a few more seconds before turning his attention back to his niece. "You know what, Sade? Your father is one cold, mean bast-"

"Okay, quit that," Sam quickly cut him off before Luke could finish his sentence, kicking his ankle without real compassion. Sadie stared at both men, blue eyes wide with curiosity. "You finish that sentence and Jules hears it, I'm going to be in the doghouse for allowing it to happen. And you, well, she's probably going to ban you from visiting Sadie until she turns seventeen."

Luke sighed at Sam's exaggeration, but was relieved at the same time that Jules wasn't within earshot. He was fully aware of how deadly Jules' wrath could be; he's got first hand experience. She used to drive the whole house bonkers, him included, before he moved out when he was eighteen. They were never the poster children for siblings of the decade, and were still working on patching things up - slowly but steady. He reckoned he had to thank Sadie for giving them the opportunities to do it more often nowadays. "You think your mommy's gonna hit me with a broom if she heard me slip, Dee Dee?"

"You don't go around calling my daughter Dee Dee like she's a truck-stop waitress from the 50s, Callaghan."

"Sademeister?"

"You really want that broom, don't you?"

The older man grinned and moved Sadie to sit on his lap, balancing her on his thigh. It wasn't long before she reached out and picked at the buttons of his shirt. He studied her closely, from the soft barely there light brown hair down to the gentle slope of her little nose and the cupid bow lips that were pouted down now as she was determined to take the button off. "She really looks like Jules."

Sam rubbed her back. He found it rather ironic that they bonded over Sadie better than they had any other topic, not even hockey because Luke was rooting for a team he passionately disliked. It was a tricky situation, really. He was good buddies with Swarek, and given what had happened between his friend and Luke's former fiancee, Sam had to tread the water carefully as a middle man. "She does. As beautiful as her mother too."

"Thank God." Luke quipped. "No offense."

Sam rolled his eyes. "None taken." He took Sadie's small hand in his and leaned over to give her knuckles a kiss. She smiled and grabbed his forefinger in her tiny fist. "She looks like Jules, but her eyes, those are my eyes." His chest inflated with pride. He loved seeing the same pair of eyes staring back at him everyday. Sadie began to babble, as if agreeing with his statement. It only made her grin grow wider.

"Hell no," Luke countered. "Those are definitely my mom's eyes. Jules might not have them, but I sure do. Jake does too." To make his point, he lifted Sadie under her arms and turned with her to face the new father. Her legs kicking in the air. "See? Same shades of blue."

"Those are definitely my eyes," Sam remarked dryly, not completely sure if Luke was only pulling his leg or being serious. "As blue as the sea in the postcards. Not just any sea either, the Aegean Sea." He flicked a finger towards the photograph hanging by the front door.

"Good to know you've learned your Mediterranean geography, Braddock, but nah, she's got some green and brown specks around the iris," Luke leaned over until his nose almost touched Sadie's button nose. The baby thought he was playing a game with her and giggled, hand reaching out to grab his nose. He chuckled. "I've got the same specks. They look a bit greenish blue in the sunlight. And stop being such a sap, dear God. Is that how you swept Jules off her feet? Reciting a poem while gazing at her with those Aegean Sea blue eyes? She actually fell for that shit?"

Sam turned red, both from the annoyance building inside him and Luke's blatant -false- accusation. "She's my daughter, Luke, I think I would know if she's got the so called green/brown specks in her eyes." Spending time with Sadie had become one of his favorite things to do in his spare time. He knew every minute detail about Sadie. Every. Minute. Detail. And he wouldn't let anybody, not even Jules' biological brother, challenge him about it.

"I have some pictures of mom at my apartment, I'll bring it the next time I visit."

"Jules said she was thrilled that Sadie got my eyes. Ecstatic, even," Sam insisted, thinking if Luke kept up his attitude he would make sure there wouldn't be a 'next time'. He knew he didn't have to proof anything to Luke, but it's difficult to stop once he'd started. "Don't you think she would've mentioned anything if Sadie's blue was the same blue as your mom's eyes, who by the way, was also her mom?"

Luke shrugged. "She probably didn't want to hurt your feelings."

Sadie blinked, looking up at her father and uncle throwing remarks and shooting down reasons back at forth, her petite mouth agape. She was confused; she didn't understand what was going on, but she kept hearing them say her name constantly. Still, they were barely paying attention to her, and their voice had raised a notch. The vibe hanging in the air was not positive either. People said that babies were sensitive precious human being. It wasn't entirely untrue.

Their voice died in their throat at the first sniffle. Since Luke was holding her, he was the first one to feel the change in her small body.

Uh oh.

Sadie hiccuped twice, face scrunched up and broke into tears. Sobs quickly transformed to gut-wrenching wail. Fat tears slipped past thick lashes and slid down her marble cheeks. Argument forgotten, Luke jiggled her, swaying from side to side, alarmed as her wail continued. Her face was now red with splotches from the intensity of her cries and Sam wiped her tears, swallowing hard.

Sam scoffed at Luke, receiving the same intense glare directed at him.

"Idiot." They muttered at the same time.

"Well, at least we can finally agree on something." Sam muttered.

Luke continued to stare at him, blue eyes (with brown and green flecks around the iris) on another pair of blue for a short moment longer until the corner of his lips twitched. Sam cocked his eyebrows as if to say 'what?' and that was it, there went all of his inhibition - Luke snorted. It seemed as though Sadie had broken the spell between them with the first sob she uttered. Realizing they had made a fuss out of nothing and upset Sadie in the process, the accusatory angry glares turned sheepish. Situation turned yellow, Sam joined him, a laugh burst from his lips. Sitting between them, Sadie was still crying, completely unaware of the temporary reconciliation between her two favorite person.

"Okay, we'd better get her to stop crying before my sister wakes up from her nap and gives us both hell." Luke finally said, his laughter resigning to mere chuckles. He cautiously and delicately transferred the crying baby to her father like she was a ticking time bomb.

"The second time in a minute we agreed on something." Sam smirked. He gathered Sadie in his arms, stroking her back up and down and cuddling her close. "I'm sorry, Sweetheart, Daddy and Uncle Luke were being stupid."

Being stupid they were indeed. "Truce for now, Braddock."

"Copy that, Callaghan."

and yes, totally threw a bit of a Luke/Peck in there!