Jamie got to the office early. For the first time in weeks, he was clean shaven and not hungover when he arrived. And as he began to sort through the mountain of paperwork on his desk, he realized that he'd really fucked up his job during his drunken bout of self pity. He'd missed a few deadlines, something he never did. Even small things that he could have accomplished in a matter of minutes had been put off for later. The list of phone calls he needed to return was a mile long. And he still had a few office staff positions that were sitting empty despite the plethora of qualified candidates he had available to fill them.
It was late morning before Jamie finally forced himself away from his desk. His stomach was growling. And he needed a coffee in the worst way. Finding the office coffee bar devoid of anything but decaf, he grabbed his jacket and headed towards the elevator.
Thankfully, the line at the cafe was short. Jamie ordered an overpriced sandwich and ate it while he was waiting for the baristas to do whatever the hell it was that they did that made it take forever for them to produce a large cup of brewed coffee. As he sipped at the steaming liquid, Jamie knew he ought to head directly back to his office. It was Friday. And if he didn't want to end up back in there on Saturday, he really needed to power through. But still, he found himself drawn in the opposite direction.
Leaning against the building behind him, he stared across the street at Rachel's bakery. An 'opening soon' sign was hanging in the window. But it had been there for weeks. There didn't appear to be any workers coming in or out today. And Jamie wondered what they were doing to the inside of the palace to begin with. Part of the reason Rachel chose that location for her bakery was because the inside didn't need much work. But clearly, she changed her mind about that. Just like she changed her mind about him. Jamie took another sip of coffee, wondering why he kept finding himself drawn to the spot he was standing in. It's not like Rachel was inside.
When his coffee was gone, Jamie forced himself back to the office. He focused on work, putting thoughts of his personal life out of his mind. Powering through the piles and stacks of papers, he lost track of time. It wasn't until he had to sit back from his computer screen and rub his eyes that he realized that hours had passed. It was nearly five. He still had a lot to catch up on. But at least the things that couldn't wait until Monday had been dealt with. His stomach was rumbling. And before he could change his mind, he reached over and turned off the computer screen. If he looked at the fucking thing any longer, he felt like he might actually go blind.
There was a knock on his office door. And Jamie groaned. No one ever showed up fifteen minutes before five on a Friday with good news.
"Come in," Jamie called out, straightening the stacks of papers on his desk before he looked up to see who it was.
When Jamie glanced up, he was expecting to see his receptionist or maybe one of the other members of the office staff. He immediately jerked out of his chair when he saw Beth in the doorway. She had her signature smug expression on her face. But in this instance, Jamie was encouraged by it instead of being annoyed. If Beth looked that pleased with herself, he hoped it was because she was able to find out some information on Rachel. Something he'd been unable to accomplish for the last few months.
"You found her!," Jamie surmised, skirting around the corner of his desk and moving towards his sister. "Where is she?"
"You owe me," Beth announced, flipping him off before she stepped further into his office and out of the doorway.
Jamie's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. Not only was Beth able to find Rachel in just a little over a day, she brought her here. To his office. Rachel was hovering nervously outside the open doorway, still partially hidden by the doorframe. Her arms were wrapped around her middle, holding the large gray sweater she was wearing closed. She was biting her bottom lip as she fixed her observant blue eyes on him, waiting to see what his reaction was going to be to her sudden appearance. Jamie knew he ought to do or say something. But he was just standing there in front of his desk, completely flabbergasted. She looked so good. Even better than when he pictured her in his mind. Her dark wavy hair was down around her face. It was even longer and shinier than he remembered. And he wondered if it still smelled like vanilla and sugar.
"Hi," Rachel finally said, finally breaking the awkward silence.
"I ….uh," Jamie stammered. He glanced at Beth, wishing she would leave. This was already awkward enough without her standing in his office and staring at him like he was something the cows shit out. "I've been looking everywhere for you," he admitted, turning his attention back to Rachel.
Rachel stopped biting her lip as the corners of her mouth turned up into a hint of a smile. She looked down at her feet, the color rising in her cheeks. Seeing Jamie again was more intense than she expected. And her baby was reacting to the tension in her body, flopping around inside her belly like a tiny fish.
"I've been hiding," she told him, her voice soft and quiet.
Jamie took a step towards her, unable to hold himself back any further. When she didn't retreat, he took one more. His expression was hopeful when he stretched his arm out, offering Rachel his hand. She tugged her sweater tighter around her body, holding it closed with one hand before she lifted the other. She had to step further into the office before she could place her shaking hand in his. And then Rachel found herself being crushed against his chest. She wrapped her arms around Jamie and tucked her head into his chest. Willing her tears back with a few deep breaths, Rachel pulled back just far enough that she could see his face.
"I'm really sorry," he said, cupping the back of her neck with his hand and pressing his forehead against hers. The woodsy aroma of his cologne filled her. And she took a deep breath, sucking it in like she needed it to live before she spoke.
"I'm sorry too," she whispered.
Beth let out a loud disgruntled snort. Jamie whipped his head in her direction. To be perfectly honest, he almost completely forgot she was there. She looked even more bitchy and irritated than she did a few moments before, if that was even possible.
"I thought you were gonna give him the business," Beth huffed, throwing her hands in the air like this was the biggest disappointment of her life. It must have become obvious to her by this point that Rachel wasn't going to fight Jamie or scream at him. And she'd really been looking forward to seeing that too. Beth had no interest in watching them make up or make out. "See you at the house," she offered, heading for the door and shutting it behind her.
Rachel heard the click of the door as Jamie's lips pressed down on hers. She kissed him back, her sweater falling open as she pressed her body against his. Jamie ran his hands over the curve of her waist, settling them on her hips. Rachel gasped a little when she felt him move his hand forward. Jamie broke their kiss, raising his brow as he rested his hand on the round curve of her pregnant stomach.
"You're pregnant?," he asked, moving back just enough that he could confirm with his eyes what he felt with his hand. Without her bulky sweater to disguise it, the small rounded swell of her belly was plainly visible.
Rachel nodded, swallowing hard. This wasn't exactly how she planned on breaking the news to him.
"It's mine?," Jamie asked, one hand still on her belly while the other moved up to cup the round of her cheek. Rachel blinked, letting the tears spill down over her cheeks. He wiped them away with his thumb.
"It's your baby," she confirmed.
Rachel knew she should have told Jamie about the baby months ago. That would have been the right thing to do. If he was upset with her, she would understand. But he didn't look upset. It took a moment for him to process the situation. But when he did, his face lit up like a kid on christmas morning. Rachel couldn't help but smile back. Jamie pulled her close, holding her against him until he got his emotions under control.
"You're having my baby," Jamie said, a hopeful light in his eyes. "...and you want to be with me? We're going to raise this baby together?"
Rachel giggled a little through her tears. Then she nodded her head. She wasn't sure how much she could say without bursting into more tears. A choked yes was all she could manage. But that was enough. Jamie lifted Rachel off her feet and swung her around in a circle, laughing when he made her squeal.
When he set her back on her feet, he kissed her. Rachel kissed him back, parting his lips with her tongue. She'd been desperately missing him for months. The taste of him, the smell of him, the feel of his hard body under her hands, all of it was setting her raging hormones on fire. And Rachel might have let him take her right there on his desk if they weren't interrupted.
"What now?," Jamie groused. He could hear yelling coming from outside his office. And the sound of a scuffle. But it was the sound of glass breaking that sent him lurching for the door to see what was happening.
Jamie kept Rachel behind him as he swung the door open. The fight he heard seemed to already be mostly finished by the time he arrived. Beth's hair was mussed. And she was nursing a bloody knuckle. Sarah Atwood was on the floor with a broken nose and two missing teeth. With blood smeared all over her face, it took Rachel a moment to realize that the woman Beth just turned into hamburger meat was the same one that showed up at Jamie's house during their first date. The praying mantis woman that worked for whatever company it was that was messing with John and trying to take his land.
"What the hell is she doing here?," Rachel hollered. Obviously, the question was rhetorical. Because Rachel didn't wait for an answer before she pushed past Jamie and started charging towards the woman. While she might not have been comfortable defending her territory after a first date, she was more than willing to do so now. Especially when it came to running off a stick insect with less than honorable motives.
"I'm gonna rip your fucking face off," Rachel threatened as she advanced on the woman. Sarah scrambled to her feet, holding her hand against her bleeding mouth as backed away from Rachel.
"Oh no you don't," Jamie chided, gripping Rachel as gently as he could and pulling her back. He placed his body between them, his hand resting on Rachel's stomach. Beth was thinking about making him her next target. But since it was obvious that his concern was not for the wellbeing of the slut he'd been bedding but to stop Rachel from getting hurt, she decided to let it go.
"You're all goddamn crazy!," Sarah cursed, moving backwards towards the elevator. "The whole fucking lot of you!"
"Enjoy your flight back to New York," Beth taunted.
"I thought you went home," Jamie said, shaking his head at Beth and her bloody knuckles.
Beth rolled her eyes. She was going home. But on her way out, she spotted that market equities slut getting out of her car. She followed Sarah upstairs and caught her hacking into one of the office computers. That's when Beth jumped her and knocked out her teeth.
"Let's get out of here," Beth said. "I'm fucking starving." Rachel laughed, moving across the space and wrapping her arm around Beth. "You ready for Dutton family dinner?," Beth asked. Rachel laughed again before she answered.
"I was born ready."