Chapter 110: Relationship Complexities

Jamie opens the backdoor to his family home and he and Eddie walk in to see Henry at the kitchen island putting rolls on a pan "Hi Pop." Jamie greets.

"Hey you two." Henry returns before shifting his gaze to look expectantly behind the couple. After a moment he frowns "Where are they?" he questions.

"Where's who?" Eddie counters.

"Rosa and Mia." Henry replies "Aren't they with you?"

"No." Jamie answers.

An unhappy look appears on Henry's face "Why not? They have been code blued – attendance is mandatory!"

"Ah because they went to visit Manny today." Jamie explains.

"Oh." Henry states in understanding yet disappointment. "I guess that's an acceptable excuse." He grumbles out.

Jamie and Eddie can't help but get amused expressions on their faces at his reaction…

…..

"And that's when Jamie said everyone must think we are pretentious." Eddie states as she tries to dominate the conversation around the dinner table looking for an opening.

"COMPLETELY pretentious." Danny agrees before taking a small bite of food "And I told you from the start all those two needed was a little time to work out their difference and now at least there is a bit more of a balance of testosterone in that house." He laughs.

"Both Jamko and Reagan are neutered." Eddie reminds her brother in law.

"Still both males though." Jamie notes in agreement with his brother.

"As long as its not you that's neutered Uncle Jamie!" Sean chuckles out.

Jamie looks at his nephew but points at his wife's stomach as proof he's not "Exhibit A." He pompously declares.

"Is there an Exhibit B?" Erin can't help but ribbingly chime in.

"There better not be!" Eddie replies.

Jamie holds his hands up "Not as far as I know."

"Well if there was." Erin notes "Technically they would be Exhibit A and this little bundle would be Exhibit B."

"Okay there is only Exhibit A!" Jamie promises.

"That you know of." Henry snickers as he gets in on the fun too.

Jamie turns to look at his grandfather with wide eyes.

"Well no one knew Joe had Joe." Henry pragmatically points out.

"Maybe Sydney had a kid she didn't tell you about when she left." Sean adds.

All eyes slowly turn to look at Sean.

"That's not funny." Jamie seriously tells his nephew "And no, she didn't. We've seen her. She doesn't have any kids."

Eddie internally smiles for she could not have received a better opening even if she had planned it "But she does have one thing…" Eddie slowly begins before her voice trails off as she takes a bite of some food and chews.

All eyes turn to look at her.

Eddie swallows "Okay I'm sorry..." She apologizes as she pulls an envelope out from under her plate and hands it to Jamie "But we got this in the mail on Friday and if you ask me, it's just too funny."

Curious, Jamie takes the envelope and opens it up. There he pulls out a wedding invitation and his mouth drops open "Is this?" He questions in disbelief of his wife.

Eddie nods her head up and down in confirmation "Yup."

Jamie tries to find the words but he literally just stares at his wife in speechless wonderment.

Amused, Eddie shrugs her shoulders "I know!"

Annoyed, Danny half gets up, leans across the table and snatches the invitation out of Jamie's hands before sitting back down to read and the second he does a "Whoa." escapes his lips before looking up at his brother "You're ex fiancée sent you an invitation to her wedding? Isn't that a little weird?"

"You want weird?" Eddie challenges "Look who she's marrying."

Danny glances back at the invitation "Some guy named Barry. So?"

Jamie points at his wife "She dated Barry."

Danny looks at Eddie and then at the invitation again "This Barry?" he tries to clarify.

Eddie nods.

"What?" Henry questions.

"Whoa." Sean breathes out.

"Get out of town." Erin rejects not believing the odds while Frank just shakes his head in disbelief.

"No it's true." Eddie confirms "I dated that Barry right before Jamie and I got together."

"Yeah." Jamie confirms "I showed up at the hospital after she got shot to take her home and who do I find in her hospital room? Barry. Knife right through the heart." He plays up for sympathy.

Eddie rolls her eyes "All you had to do was say something." She points out.

"Which I did!" Jamie defends.

"Yeah weeks later." Eddie tosses back.

"Wait." Sean interrupts "So were you still dating Barry when you and Uncle Jamie got together?"

"No." Eddie replies "I broke up with him about a week before."

"She cancelled on him to go out with me." Jamie arrogantly boasts.

"Okay no." Eddie rejects "I mean yes." She quickly corrects "I did cancel on him that night but I officially broke it off with him the next day."

Sean shakes his head "Brutal."

"That's not brutal Sean." Erin chime in "That's called dating."

"Are you going?" Danny curiously queries as he hands the invitation back across the table to Eddie.

Eddie jostles that around in her mind…

"So how did you break up with him?" Sean continues on to inquire of his Aunt.

Jamie looks at his nephew "What's with the 20 questions?"

Sean tries to nonchalantly shrug in deflection "Just curious." but as Eddie studies her nephew her brow crinkles.

"Sean…" Eddie slowly begins as she puts the invitation down on the table between her and Jamie "How are things going with you and Beth? You haven't mentioned her in a while."

Sean looks at his plate and pushes food around "We broke up - I think."

Danny turns to look at his son in surprise "What do you mean you think?"

"She called to cancel on me one night a while back but now every time I call her all I get is voicemail and she never calls back."

The entire table groans.

"Oh man. Sean." Eddie offers in sympathy "Sounds like you got ghosted." She adds before turning to look at and address her husband "I knew I didn't like her – we totally should have arrested her."

"Hey I wanted too!" Jamie reminds his wife "You wouldn't let me!"

"No you wanted to arrest him." Eddie points out as she points at Sean.

"Okay can we change the subject please?" Sean begs "I really don't want to talk about this anymore."

"You know Sean." Frank suddenly chimes in "Break ups happen and yes they hurt for a while but I think everyone at this table can agree that when you do find that right person it makes all the previous heartache worth it."

"Here! Here!" Eddie enthusiastically agrees as she lifts her glass of water in a toast.

"Ditto." Jamie agrees as he lifts his glass.

"Nicely put Francis." Henry commends as he lifts his glass.

"100%." Danny agrees as he lifts his glass.

"Yeah I'll let you know when it happens." Erin mutters out in annoyance.

Frank looks at his daughter and frowns slightly "Sorry."

"But see Sean…" Erin begins "You are a Reagan man so I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. They all seem to find that right person – which don't get me wrong is great but me…."

"But you had Jack." Eddie interrupts as she turns to look at her sister in law.

"HAD being the operative word." Erin emphasizes.

"But come on…" Eddie prompts "You guys do that whole on again off again thing though right?"

"Well we're off." Erin bites back.

"Thank God." Henry breathes out.

All eyes turn to look at him "What? He's a weasel." Henry sneers.

Erin heavily sighs.

Sensing the tension this is creating for his daughter, Frank jumps in and gestures towards Jamie and Eddie "So how about the wedding invitation huh?"

"Yeah right." Danny remembers "So are you going?"

"Yes." Eddie says at the same time Jamie says "No."

The couple turn to look at one another.

"What do you mean yes?" Jamie asks his wife.

"What do you mean no!" Eddie counters "Come on! It will be fun!"

"That is so not my idea of fun." Jamie rejects "And you should know that!"

"Hey." Eddie chides "You didn't want to go to Kasia and Baltazar's wedding celebration either remember but you went and look at the fun we had!"

Jamie shakes his head in annoyance at his wife knowing she's got him.

"Just buck up man and do what your wife tells you to do." Danny tells his younger brother.

"But if Uncle Jamie doesn't want to go…" Sean begins to protest "…he..."

"Oh he'll go anyway." Danny finishes "End of story."

"Why?" Sean presses.

"Because that's the key to a Reagan man's successful marriage." Danny replies "Just doing what your wife wants."

"Okay that's not true." Eddie rejects.

"Uh yes it is." Jamie counters "I mean just in the last month who was it that decided we'd get a Porsche SUV and a dog and what shirt…"

"Alright fine!" Eddie interrupts cutting him off "But don't tell me you don't love that SUV and that dog just as much as I do!"

"I didn't say I didn't." Jamie tries to sooth "All I'm saying is…"

"Just quite while your ahead." Danny interrupts cutting his brother off.

Jamie shuts his mouth.

"I hope you're taking notes Sean." Erin laughs.

Sean pulls out his phone and begins to type.

"No phones at the table!" Henry chides.

"But I'm taking notes!" Sean reasons.

Henry shakes his head "I miss the days of a pen and some paper."

Jamie swipes the wedding invitation off the table and offers it out to his grandfather "Here's some paper." But Eddie reaches across her husband "Give me that back!" She chides Jamie so Henry hands it over to her "Giving away our wedding invitation." She mutters super unimpressed to her husband.

"Um no, that is not OUR wedding invitation." Jamie corrects "It's a wedding invitation we received yes, but not OUR invitation – not the same thing."

With his fingers posed ready to type, Sean looks around the table for direction "So what is the note I should be taking here?"

"How not to piss off your wife." Eddie replies.

"Why do you want to go to this wedding?" Jamie seriously presses "I'd rather just leave the past in the past."

"Because it's a wedding!" Eddie replies.

"See now I'm confused." Sean interrupts "Because Uncle Jamie is still resisting. I thought he was supposed to just agree?"

"It's complicated Sean." Jamie tries to explain.

But suddenly Sean's phone starts to ring in his hands startling him.

"Hey..." Henry warns but Sean's eyes go wide "It's Beth!" so without waiting Sean answers his phone "Hi Beth!" He greets as he gets up and walks into another room.

"Well hey." Danny notes impressed "Maybe they aren't broken up."

But Eddie frowns and shakes her head "No, I bet it's the opposite actually."

"Oh?" Frank curiously notes.

"See Beth knows Sean would be in the middle of Sunday Dinner right now." Eddie points out "And she would know phones are not allowed at the table so she was calling at a time when she was sure Sean would not answer."

"Oh brutal." Danny groans.

"Wait." Jamie realizes as he looks at his wife "How would you know that?"

Eddie offers her husband a sheepish look "It's how I thought about breaking up with Barry." She admits "But I didn't!" She quickly adds on "He's a really great guy, he just… wasn't MY guy."

"Brutal." Danny repeats before looking at his brother "Look out if she ever wants a divorce."

"Not going to happen." Eddie promises "But if it did I would need to contact Alison for those camero cut photos!" She laughs out causing Jamie to drop his elbow onto the table and bury his face in his hands.

"Oh no." Erin rejects with a laugh of her own "You don't need to do that. We have copies of those right here in the house."

"Where?" Eddie questions in exasperation "Because I've looked!"

Erin chuckles "I can show them to you later."

"Fantastic!" Eddie quips in reply causing Jamie to grow annoyed.

"We really need to start having more regular dinners over at your parent's house." Jamie shoots at his wife.

Eddie whips her head in her husband's direction "Bite your tongue!"

"Oh fighting fire with fire." Danny notes impressed to his brother "Nice."

"Eddie." Frank interjects "I'll say it again, your parents are welcome to join us anytime."

Eddie looks at her Father in law and offers a forced smile "Thanks but no."

Frank shrugs "Hey just saying."

Eddie takes in a huge breath of air and then heavily lets it out "Fine!" She dramatically relents "I'll behave."

Having won the battle of wits with his wife, Jamie smiles a little smile then looks over at his nephew's empty seat "To bad Sean missed that…" he arrogantly boasts "…because THAT was a lesson he should have wrote down!" he playfully laughs out causing a look of annoyance to form on Eddie's face as she backhands her husband on his chest.

Henry let's out a boisterous laugh at the entertainment "God I love Sunday Dinners."

Silence.

"So I'm thinking of building an obstacle course in the backyard." Jamie suddenly begins "Like the one you talked about Danny. And suggestions?" he inquires as Eddie watches looks of giddy delight appear on every single Reagan family member's face so she simply throws her hands up in the air and rolls her eyes in defeat.

"But mud pits are out." Jamie quickly tacks on "This one…" he adds as he hooks a thumb in his wife's direction "…Kyboshed that."

"What?" "Ah man." "That's the best part!" people reply one on top of the other.

"Lord help me." Eddie mutters under her breath.

…..

Erin is standing in the kitchen doing dishes and glances at Eddie next to her emptying left overs into containers "You want to go to that wedding because of Mom's ring don't you?"

Eddie freezes at her sister in laws words "W…what do you mean?" she slowly deflects.

"You want to see Sydney's reaction to you now having the ring she gave back."

Eddie scoffs "No I don't."

"Yes you do." Erin insists "And I know you do because I would want to do the exact same thing but Eddie you have to know, that ring belongs with you. I liked Sydney but she and Jamie were wrong for each other."

"I know that." Eddie promises.

"But…" Erin prompts "…you just can't help yourself anyway?"

Eddie sheepishly nods.

Erin laughs "Welcome to being human."

"Please don't tell Jamie." Eddie pleads.

"On one condition." Erin prompts before a giddily playful schoolgirl like look appears on her face "I want a full account after the fact."

"Deal!" Eddie eagerly accepts.

Erin smiles "Pleasure doing business with you."

...