Chapter 74: Eyes Wide Open

Eddie stands at the bay window pacing and continually looking outside.

"Eddie." Jamie sighs as he sits at the table "You're going to wear a hole in the floor."

"Well what is taking so long?" Eddie impatiently rushes out "They've been over there for like an hour already!"

"It hasn't even been thirty minutes." Jamie corrects.

"Feels like forever!" Mia adds in exasperation as she lays on the floor staring up at the ceiling.

Jamie glances at the young girl and shakes his head "Look taking this long is a good sign." He points out "It means they are hashing out the details – making a deal."

"Okay they're coming!" Eddie suddenly announces.

Mia scrambles to her feet and Jamie stands.

A few moments later the front door opens and Rosa and Henry walk inside.

"Well?" Eddie prompts.

Rosa grins "Looks like we're moving in."

"YEEEESSSS!" Mia cries in glee.

"On a trial basis for a week first." Rosa adds.

Mia's happy go lucky expression falls "What?" she whines.

"I need to be sure this job works out." Rosa tells her daughter "There is too much at stake here."

"That actually makes sense." Jamie agrees.

"So having said that…" Rosa begins as she looks at Mia, then Jamie and Eddie "I'll need to stay out here while she…" Rosa hopefully states as she looks at Mia "…stays with you in the city?"

Eddie nods "Yup. Makes sense."

"Starting when?" Jamie questions.

Rosa sighs "Week from Monday, that aligns with when Heather goes back to work and gives me time to pack some stuff and give notice to my kids."

Jamie and Eddie nod in understanding.

Silence.

"So…" Rosa states as she glances up the stairs "Guess its time to pick a bedroom?"

"YES!" Mia cries in excitement as she grabs her Mother's hand and starts to pull her up the stairs with her.

"Eddie please come." Rosa calls backwards.

Shrugging, Eddie starts up the stairs as well "Sure but you can pick whatever room you want."

"Oh no no, you say that now but you need to think about this Eddie." Rosa counters "You're pregnant. Which room do you want as your nursery? You're going to want to be close to the baby. Trust me on this."

"Okay good point." Eddie realizes.

"And Mia." Rosa continues "You will also NOT want to be next to the nursery – trust me on that."

Mia scrunches her nose up "Why?"

"Babies cry well into the night – all night at the beginning." Rosa explains as she walks down the hall taking stock of the layout "Okay five bedrooms total. On the left at the end of the hall is the master bedroom…" She notes "then the bathroom next to it and another bedroom then three more bedrooms on the right." Rosa notes as she turns to look at Eddie "And you said the room across the hall from the master bedroom was your room when you were younger correct?"

"Yes." Eddie confirms.

"That's because that's the room your nursery needs to be. Your parents had it right."

"But…" Mia begins to protest having already picked that room for herself.

Rosa turns to give her daughter a stern look "No."

"Oh Rosa…" Eddie begins to say "…it's okay if…"

Now Rosa turns to give Eddie a stern look.

Eddie immediately stops talking.

"Eddie you are about to become a parent." Rosa explains "You need to learn when to put your foot down. This is one of those times."

Mia looks at her Mother and knows she means business. She sighs "Alright what ARE my options then?"

"I'll take the room next to the stairs and the bathroom on the left." Rosa decides "You can choose either the room directly across from me or the one in the middle on the right."

"But if I take the one in the middle, I'd be next to the nursery." Mia points out.

Rosa smiles knowingly at her daughter "Exactly."

"Oh." Mia realizes "Guess I get the room at the end across from you."

"Good choice!" Rosa accepts.

"Hmph." Mia huffs as she walks down the hall and disappears into her new room.

"Rosa…" Eddie begins "It's really..."

Rosa holds up a hand to stop Eddie "Wait for it."

"OKAY IT'S NOT THAT BAD, I'LL TAKE IT!" Mia calls.

Rosa smiles in triumph.

Eddie looks at Rosa thoroughly impressed "How did you do that?"

"Practice." Rosa explains "But um there is also another very good reason for me suggesting this layout." She tells Eddie as she leans towards her so she doesn't have to speak very loud "Sex."

Eddie's eyes go a bit wide and her cheeks start to turn a bit red.

"If we are going to make this work." Rosa points out "We all need to go into this with our eyes open. You and Jamie are married. It will happen. It should happen." Rosa insists "This way Mia and I are at this end of the hall and you and Jamie are at that end. It's the practical set up."

For a moment Eddie simply stares dumbfounded at Rosa before she just starts to laugh and pulls her into a hug "Oh man I am going to LOVE having you around."

Rosa laughs and returns her hug but then pulls back to look at Eddie very seriously "It's sweet that you say that but I hope you and Jamie have really thought about this. With me and Mia here you will have no true privacy outside of your bedroom. You get that right? Because I need to think of Mia here."

"We know." Eddie reassures her "We were very aware of that every time she stayed with us."

"But this isn't for a week or even a month." Rosa points out "What we are proposing here is a long term arrangement and I need you to be sure. I don't want to do this and then a couple of months down the line it falls apart because no one thought about these kinds of things."

Eddie nods in understanding "I'll talk to Jamie." She promises as she turns to head down the stairs.

"Thank you." Rosa appreciatively accepts.

…..

When Eddie, Rosa and Mia went upstairs, Jamie sat in living room trying to iron out the agreement. He looks up though when he hears the door from the garage to the kitchen open and Sean enter with some tools. He takes a moment to just watch his nephew then making a decision, Jamie gets up and walk towards him "Hey Sean, can I talk to you for a second?"

Sean turns to face his uncle and frowns "It's the fence isn't it? I knew I should have gone with eggshell and not the pearl white."

"What?" Jamie interrupts "No, no…" he promises "…the fence is fine. EVERYTHING is fine. It's great in fact – more then great it's... it's… I'm sorry." Jamie just kind of blurts out.

"For what?" Sean counters confused.

Jamie rubs the back of his neck "Well for putting you in handcuffs for one."

"Oh that." Sean dismisses "Water under the bridge."

Jamie looks a little sideways at his nephew "Really?"

Sean nods and shrugs "Yeah, Beth is a firm believer everything happens for a reason and honestly I don't think I would have found my true calling if things didn't play out as they did."

"True calling?"

"Yeah. Renovations."

"Really?" Jamie states in complete surprise.

Sean nods.

"Huh." Jamie ponders in wonderment.

"I know. Who'd ah thunk it right?" Sean counters with a grin "But turns out I enjoy it and I think I'm pretty good at it."

"You are." Jamie sincerely admits "And with the right apprenticeship..."

"Already got one lined up for him!" Henry proudly boasts as he walks up.

Jamie shakes his head in awe at his grandfather "Of course you do."

"But don't think I did this all myself." Sean suddenly admits "Great Grandpa lined up a lot of professionals that were willing to come out here and mentor me."

Jamie nods his head up and down in understanding "Of course he did." he notes.

Henry grins at his grandson "Just wait until you get the bill."

Jamie lets out a cross between a scoff and a chuckle.

"No seriously." Henry warns "There will be a bill. Not a huge one but there will be a bill. I might still have connections but nothing is free."

"Oh…" Jamie slowly notes "Well… can you at least give me a ballpark figure?"

Henry nonchalantly shrugs before turning to walk away "Less then the roof but more then a can of paint."

Jamie opens his mouth to speak but then just recloses it not really sure what else to say at his grandfather's unhelpfulness.

At that moment Jamie catches sight of Eddie walking down the stairs "Hey." He greets "Everybody pick a room?"

"Yup." Eddie confirms as her eyes catch sight of the fireplace and a thought hits her "Hey listen can we talk for a minute?" She seriously inquires.

Jamie glances at Sean then looks at his wife a bit sideways "O…kay…"

"That's my cue." Sean notes as he makes a hasty retreat from the room.

"Let's go in the study." Eddie decides "But bring your chair because I'll likely want to sit." She adds as she picks up her own chair.

Silently, Jamie picks up his chair and follows his wife.

They walk into the study and Eddie shuts the door.

"Eddie?" Jamie cautiously questions.

"Rosa made some very practical decisions upstairs." Eddie begins as she sets her chair down and sits "Decisions I didn't even really think about before she brought them up."

"Okay." Jamie accepts as he puts his chair down across from his wife and also sits "Like what?"

"Like we are going to want to be close to the nursery and Mia won't want to be because the baby will keep her up and that we need to be at the opposite end of the hall from Rosa and Mia so that when we have sex they don't hear us."

For a moment Jamie just blinks his eyes at his wife "Oh." He finally states in realization as his cheeks turn a bit red.

"I know." Eddie chuckles a bit at seeing his face " I reacted the same way too when she brought it up but she's got a very good point Jamie. This is a long term situation. We both really need to understand what that means. We won't have the kind of free reign we would have if we lived here alone."

Jamie ponders his wife's words "Eddie we're having a baby. In a year or two we'd never have that kind of free reign anyway." He dismisses "This is just moving the timeline up a bit."

Eddie looks pointedly at her husband "Jamie – not even in front of the fireplace… or the Christmas Tree."

A look of sudden understanding appears on Jamie's face and his face falls a bit thinking of their Christmas tradition "Oh. Right."

"Yeah." Eddie flatly agrees.

Silence.

"No we can do it." Jamie decides "We just build it into agreement that once a month or something we get the house to ourselves."

"You mean like a date night but at home." Eddie clarifies.

Jamie nods.

"Hmmmm." Eddie ponders "And that could be like Rosa and Mia's night out."

Jamie nods "And then maybe one night we go out and they get the house to themselves."

"Interesting." Eddie ponders "You think that will work?"

"I will make it work." Jamie promises "Because I want my cake and I want to eat it too."

Eddie laughs "What?"

"I want to live here Eddie." Jamie explains "I know I resisted it for a long time but I do and the only way we can do that is for Rosa and Mia to live here with us but I will also make love to my wife in front of the fireplace and tree at Christmas – it might not be specifically on Christmas Eve anymore but it will still happen." He insists "It's a tradition."

A small smile curves up onto Eddie's lips "You ah, sound a little bossy there Bub."

"Well I guess you're rubbing off on me." Jamie tosses back.

Eddie slyly smiles at him "I definitely do." She suggestively states causing Jamie to raise is eyebrows at her.

Then Eddie sighs "And there will be none of that kind of talk either." She points out.

Jamie sighs "Understood."

"Good." Eddie states as she gets up and opens the door "Okay you Mr. Lawyer better get back to working on our agreement and I'll let Rosa know it's all good."

"Wait!" Jamie suddenly calls.

Eddie stops walking and turns to face her husband "What?"

Jamie walks over, picks up Eddie's hand and leads her to the front door. He opens it and pulls her out onto the porch with him.

Without a word, Jamie guides Eddie to a spot just on the opposite side of the door, then leans down and scoops her up into his arms bridal style.

"Jamie!" Eddie cries in surprise.

Jamie steps across the theshold of the door "Welcome home Mrs. Reagan."

At that exact moment Mia comes bounding down the stairs but stops short half way down at the sight of Jamie carrying Eddie "What are you doing? Wait never mind. Hold that thought." Mia decides before looking backwards up the stairs "MOM I NEED YOUR PHONE!"

Jamie goes to lower Eddie back to the ground.

"DON'T!" Mia commands of them before again calling behind her "MOM!"

"What already?" Rosa chides as she comes down the hall.

Mia points at Jamie carrying Eddie "Phone!" She demands.

A smirk plays across Rosa's face as she comes half way down the stairs to her daughter while pulling her phone out of her pocket "Got it." she accepts as she opens the camera app and snaps a couple of pictures "Did I mention no privacy?" She tosses at Jamie and Eddie.

"Noted." Jamie huffs out.

"Wait I think I blinked." Eddie states "Did I blink? Take another one."

"Hang on let me review..." Rosa counters as her finger swipe across her phone.

"Sure. I'll just wait." Jamie tosses out.

"No we're good." Rosa announces a moment later.

"Okay you can put me down now." Eddie instructs her husband so as Jamie complies, Rosa and Mia come the rest of the way down the stairs "Let me see." she instructs so Rosa comes over with her phone to show the pictures.

"OK that's a good one." Eddie commends "We can put it next to our other one now!"

"Other one?" Mia prompts as Jamie pulls out his phone and opens his photo app.

"Yes." Eddie begins to explain as Jamie searches his phone "He carried me across the threshold into our new apartment right after we got married. Jamie…" she begins to instruct "Find the…"

But Jamie holds his phone out to all them showing off the photo Derrick the apartment super took.

"Ooooo, now you have two!" Mia quips "I hope someone carries me across the doorway one day!"

At the thought, Rosa and Eddie get happy little pouts on their faces while for a moment Jamie frowns then like lightening, he pockets his phone, grabs Mia's hand and tug her with him two steps out the door and before anyone can say or do anything, Jamie scoops Mia up into his arms then carries her into the house.

"There." He decides. "You been carried across the threshold. You can now cross that off your to do list."

Eddie thumps Rosa on the arm and gestures for her to take a photo.

"Oh. Right." Rosa breathes out as she comes out of the stunned trance she was in to lift her phone and snap a picture right before Jamie puts Mia down.

"Okay well I better get back to that agreement." Jamie announces as he makes a beeline back into the living room.

Still feeling a bit stunned herself, Mia slowly looks up at her Mom and Aunt "What was that?"

Eddie smiles at the young girl "That was your Uncle trying to stave off the future."

"Huh?" Mia mutters out in even more confusion.

Eddie chuckles then turns to look at Rosa "You sure YOUR ready for this?"

Rosa smiles at the thought of Jamie and Eddie looking out for Mia like she was their own "More and more."

...