Who else caught glimpses of the Will Estes reel where he had a full beard and tattoos on his neck? And then the nanosecond long glimpse of Jamie sitting at the dinner table with tattoos on his arm? Was it only me? Was I dreaming about a tatted and scruffy Jamie Reagan? Whether it was real or not, yes please! So this is my take, silly as it is, on Jamie being assigned to an undercover operation, in a mysterious (but sexy) role and how it came to be and ended
Honey, I'm Home
Jamie walked into the apartment not at all resembling the normally clean-cut Sergeant Jameson Reagan his wife knew and loved. It was why he kept the sleeves of his sweatshirt pulled down as far as they would go and the hoodie secured over his head for the trek through the common areas of his building, not wanting to draw too much attention should he run into his neighbors.
The apartment was quiet. Jamie locked the door behind him and looked around their little home to take it all in, but there was one thing, or rather, one very important person, missing.
His wife.
Jamie sighed at the thought of Eddie on tour for a few more hours. As much as he was itching to, he purposely stopped himself from texting her that he was home. He shouldn't, not yet. After twenty-six days away, Eddie was liable to get distracted during the remainder of tour if she knew he was here. So what's a couple more hours after all of his time away?
Eddie would feel differently, though, and he might hear as much later. Lord knows they had some long, and sometimes tearful, talks about his leaving, especially knowing he wouldn't be able to contact her directly. All on top of the hell he put Eddie and the rest of the same family through after he was shot, the thought of an undercover operation terrified her. Hell, it scared him too, but that was his job.
He was a real piece of work, wasn't he? But she understood in the end why he had to go. She always did.
His only consolation, and hers, was having the the Commissioner posted daily on his safety checks which ppplwere then swiftly reported to his wife. Getting to those safety checks everyday was close to priority number one for him.
Jamie lost track of time as his mind wandered, his feet glued to the same spot as he continued to clutch an away bag in his left hand. Sleep had been limited while undercover and even then he had to sleep with one eye open. He and one other intelligence officer infiltrated a human and drug trafficking ring. It was months of intelligence work that got them in and it took weeks to finally bust them. He spent the last 12 hours wrapping things up with the task force, just enough to be released for a short break to get some rest. Everything else could wait until Monday.
And now he was here. Home.
A look to the right had him contemplating a shower, shave and change into some clean clothes as he rubbed the full beard he was now sporting. The damn thing was scratchy as hell when it was coming in, but he'd finally started to get used to it. That got him glancing down at his hand and the new artwork intended solely for his role as resident scumbag. The markings were still so foreign to him, even after the past several weeks away.
Nothing he could do about the tattoos for now, but at least he could hide most of them. The ones on his chest and biceps were easy, but the others that snaked down his forearms and dotted his neck would require more effort on his part.
What would Eddie think, he wondered.
His head turned to the left and his favorite, plush couch called out to him more. Maybe he could lay down, catch a quick nap first until the end of Eddie's tour, then he could call to let her know he was home. He'd still have plenty of time to clean up while she made her way back home.
Yeah, that was a good idea. Option two, please.
Still gripping his away bag and keys, Jamie walked over to the couch. He uncustomarily placed the keys and weapon on the far end of the coffee table. Then he tossed the bag on the floor. A fully-rested Jamie Reagan would have neatly placed his bag in the entryway, then proceeded to deposit his keys and gun in the side table. Right now, he was pretty absent minded, not caring where he dropped his belongings. Jamie plopped down on the couch, fully dressed and too tired to even kick off his boots. The hoodie was still pulled up over his head as he stared at the ceiling and let his muscles sink into the soft cushions. He was mesmerized by the mid afternoon shadows coming from the curtains. All too soon though, his eyes grew heavy as he let himself fully relax for the first time in almost four weeks. His last thought was of his wife and how much he looked forward to seeing her again…a smile crept onto his face as his eyes closed for some well deserved rest.
Eddie shuffled down the hall late that afternoon, questioning whether she should have taken her partner up on his invitation for drinks after tour. She jiggled her keys in one hand, replaying Padilla's words in her head…damn it, he was right.
She wasn't fun anymore. Not she had to be 'Fun Eddie' all of the time, but she wasn't the same Eddie Janko-Reagan he was used to. She just couldn't help it. This thing with Jamie left a permanent black cloud over her head ever since he left, and it would remain there until he was home safe and sound.
This was why she begged her Captain to keep them both at their usual posts at the 2-9 after Jamie was shot. If anything happened to either of them, the other would be the first to know. And it seemed like she would do just that, but the Captain still felt the need to feel herself in her new role and she transferred Jamie to intelligence. Sure, it was still out of the 2-9, but it wasn't his old post, in command of a squad, namely hers, and, most importantly, safely sitting behind a desk on most days.
Ah, who was she kidding?! She preferred to have him locked up in an office full time, if possible. But that's not who he was. And it wasn't her either.
She opened the door to the apartment, freezing suddenly when her spidey senses activated. Her hand immediately slipped into the purse at her hip, deftly grasping her off-duty weapon. She silently placed the bag by the door while scanning her home. No movement or sounds came from inside and nothing appeared out of place, at least not from her vantage point, but she couldn't help the feeling that something was off.
Eddie stepped further inside, scanning the apartment from right to left and froze once more. She gasped silently when her eyes landed on the limp arm hanging over the side of the couch. Dark, unrecognizable tattoos against pale skin peaked out beyond a black long sleeve.
Eddie glanced to the right once more before stepping closer. A still, male figure, clothed fully from head to toe, was passed out on her couch. Not an inch of him was visible, other than that arm, as he lay on his stomach, wedged against the back of the sofa.
Eddie's breath stopped momentarily when she spotted it - a weapon on the far end of the coffee table. She knew she had the element of surprise on her side and didn't hesitate to confront the stranger. And if he went for the gun, she'd have more than enough time to defend herself before the man could even get to it.
"POLICE! FREEZE, ASSHOLE!"
Later on, she'd question yelling the command, the guy was pretty much dead to the world. She would even question not calling for back up first (as Jamie would annoyingly remind her to do), but at that moment, her first thought was to apprehend whatever scumbag decided to break into their apartment.
Jamie would swear that the sudden fright from a dead sleep sent him ten feet in the air. But in reality, all he managed to do was yelp and flop onto the floor, landing squarely on his back between the couch and coffee table. He stared at the ceiling yet again as his arms automatically went up in a sign of surrender.
Eddie's eyes widened when the form fell over. The hoodie slipped down around his head and she finally recognized the bearded face of her husband.
"Jamie?! Oh my god, you scared the crap out of me! What the hell are you doing here!?" she shouted, finally lowering her weapon. Her shoulders moved up and down dramatically as her body sucked in gulps of air after those tense few moments.
"Honey, I'm home," he said sheepishly as he tilted his head back and admired his lovely wife. Jamie dropped his arms onto his chest where his own heart was hammering away.
"Jesus, you scared the crap out of me, Reagan!" she said, realizing she should probably close the door before a curious neighbor came by to investigate the raucous. Eddie did that quickly and placed her weapon in the side table before returning to the living room. She still couldn't believe he was here, but it was as she watched him struggle to his feet that she remembered how long it had been since they'd seen each other and her expression softened.
Jamie had only just gotten himself upright and on two feet when Eddie thrust her body towards his and wrapped him up in a hug that left no doubts that she had missed him.
Jamie's own arms enveloped her tightly and he inhaled her scent, kissing the top of her head. "I missed you too, Ed," he declared.
Eddie kept hold of her husband, mumbling into his chest, "Why didn't you tell me you were home?" she was practically on the verge of tears with relief.
"I'm sorry," he responded. "You were on tour and I didn't want it to be a distraction. I meant to call you at EOT, but I fell asleep."
It was then that she pulled her head from his chest to get a good look at him through watery eyes, but she was unwilling to let go just yet.
Surprised by his appearance, her eyes widened. "Look at that beard. I've never seen you like that," she said in awe. He had some scruff before he left but that was about it. Then she did a double take when she caught sight of the dark marks on the sides of his neck. Eddie forced herself to pull away, needing to take him all in, from top to bottom.
"Jesus, Jamie! You're covered in tattoos!" she gasped, forcing his sleeves up and finding no end to them.
"Surprise?" he joked, not able to clearly read how she felt about his appearance, aside from the shock.
"Please tell me you didn't have to get real tattoos as some sort of cover or initiation. I don't think Henry would survive that…or me," she worried. At least not as many as were currently marring skin. And how far did they go?
She looked him over yet again and she realized - she really had never imagined seeing Jamie like this. Maybe it was the loneliness she felt, but there was something oddly intriguing about him right now. This rough and tough Jamie Reagan was sending a momentary warmth through her belly. Her hands went up and explored his cheeks, enjoying the feel of the soft hair adorning his face.
"Not permanent, no. But they will take some time to fade," he assured her.
"Oh, Jamie. I missed you so much," she cried and finally gave him a proper welcome as she went up on her tiptoes to kiss his lips.
The intensity of the kiss said it all, they both missed each other tremendously. Eddie's feelings were compounded by the constant worry for him despite Frank's assurances that he was meeting his safety checks. And Jamie worried about her worrying about him.
When they finally came up for air, they held each other again. It felt too good to let go. After another minute, Jamie pulled away just enough to take a seat, pulling her down next to him.
Eddie's full attention was on her husband. He was a sight for sore eyes despite this look he had going on. She bent one leg under her, angling her body towards him while his arm wrapped around her shoulders.
A part of her feared this was only a brief break and chance to check in at home. "So you're done, right? You're through with the mission, got the bad guys and aren't going back out there?" she asked hopefully as a finger traced the smooth ink on his neck...holy crap.
"I'm done, honey. I swear. It's over. A lot of bad guys getting their dues," he assured her, seeing the fear and doubt in her eyes. He kissed her, hating to be the cause of that.
Eddie let out a deep sigh for the both of them. "That's great, Jamie. Really, it is. I know how badly you wanted to get them. Don't know how much you'll be able to share with me about it all, but I definitely need to hear the reason behind these," she grinned, tapping his neck before holding up his left hand to closely examine the ones there.
"And these…are you sure they aren't real?" she asked. They looked pretty damn real to her.
Jamie shook his head in amusement at how she was eyeballing him. "You don't like them? I think they make me look tough," he said.
Eddie snorted, finally meeting his eyes again. "Is that what you were going for? Tough guy?"
"That's me, rough and tough," he smiled, dropping his head against the back of the couch, happy to just be here with his love. She could poke fun at him all she wanted, so long as she was here by his side. And Lord knows what she would say about the others hidden under his clothes.
Eddie was relieved they weren't real but was still intrigued. They weren't so bad, at least temporarily, and might even be fun for a little while.
She couldn't say if it was the longing she experienced over the past few weeks or his temporary look, but suddenly she needed to be as close to him as possible.
"You know, Reagan," she purred and gracefully slid over his lap to straddle him. Boy had she missed him.
The tenor in her voice sent shivers down Jamie's spine as his hands grasped her thighs.
"Now that I think about it, I think it's only fair I see what you got going on under these clothes," she teased.
He caught a devious little twinkle in her eyes before her lips brushed against his.
"Oh, yeah?" he sighed as Eddie made his whole body come alive, in only the way she could. Gone was the exhaustion he felt earlier. There was always time for sleep later.
"Oh, yeah," she agreed before taking his breath away in another searing kiss that led to so much more.
"Come on, man. Where's Eddie?" Danny grumbled, hating to see his dinner grow cold.
"Anyone heard from her?" Erin asked, worried for her sister-in-law. Jamie's absence seemed to bring her further down with each passing week and no word on when he'd be home.
"I'm sure she'll be along any minute. Be patient with her," Frank responded, fully aware that Jamie had completed his operation and was back home. With the lack of contact since he'd been released on Friday, Frank was certain the young couple was on their way here after a nice Saturday to themselves. But the rest of them, except for Pop, didn't know that.
"When's the kid gonna be done with his op anyway?" Danny huffed, for both Eddie's sake and theirs. Truth be told, the longer his brother was away, the crabbier he was getting with worry. But it didn't stop him from deflecting all of it onto his sister-in-law, adding, "Eddie's been mopey the last couple of weeks. I don't want to be around when she goes into full depression mode."
"Be nice. She misses him. We all do," Henry said.
"And worries about him," Sean added. They all did, even him.
"That too, but he's good at checking in and his task force keeps him safe," Frank assured them.
What he was leaving out was that this operation caused him many sleepless nights. This had been tough on Frank, as a father. He couldn't keep Jamie from this operation. Lord knows he'd tried to do it once before when he was new to intelligence. Frank tried convincing himself then that his decision to deny Jamie's team a chance to bring down a trafficking ring was purely tactical. But Jamie knew better and didn't hesitate to call him out on it. Frank went on the defensive and used his Commissioner card to fight back, but he wasn't fooling either of them. He was still fresh from seeing Jamie shot and hurt months before, on a night when he failed to even be there for him and the family as he went off on his own recognizance mission through the city.
It had caused much strife between him and Jamie. Eventually, he came to his senses and realized it wasn't fair to his youngest to deny him the opportunity to do his job. He wouldn't do that to any other member of the department and he wouldn't do it to Jamie.
"How safe can you be surrounded by a bunch of animals like that. Seriously, dad, you couldn't talk him out of that operation," Danny argued while tearing a tiny corner from the roll on his plate.
"He's a grown man, Daniel," Henry reminded him.
"And a full fledged sergeant in the intelligence division. What do you want me to do?" Frank questioned.
Erin crossed her arms and eyeballed her brother. She hated this too, but didn't waste an opportunity to call him out. "You're gonna tell me that you'd pass on bringing down that drug ring, given the chance? Especially when they turned to human trafficking when the drug money they were raking in wasn't enough?" The group was notorious and her office would gladly prosecute those animals, given the chance.
"No," Danny conceded, folding his arms in front of him. His sister was very annoying. "But after last year, the least he could do was give us more time without having to worry about him."
Frank nodded, feeling the same way, but it wasn't up to them. "I get it, but we all got a job to do. And I trust him, like I trust you, to do it right," he stated.
"You saying you don't worry," Danny challenged.
"I'm a father. Of course I worry. But it's not for me to say what assignments he can and cannot take. Even if I have an opinion on it," he declared. And, boy, did he have opinions.
"Hello! Sorry I'm late," Eddie announced from the other room, still hidden from the family.
"It's about time!" Danny yelled back.
"I'm starving over here," Sean added as he eyed the potato casserole in front of him.
Eddie walked into the dining room, her face glowing despite her melancholy as of late, and casually pointed behind her with a flick of her hand. "Sorry, it's just that I found this guy and felt bad leaving him at home even if he looks a mess."
Bizzarro Jamie stepped into the room, a bright smile on his face at the expressions he received in return. And to say he was rested was an understatement, regardless of his and Eddie's activities yesterday.
A chorus of 'Jamie!' echoed across the room as all eyes widened, shocked by his sudden appearance and/or, well, by his appearance.
"Well, I'll be," Frank chortled, but rose from his seat to greet his youngest. He had not been briefed on that part of the operation and wasn't quite sure what to make of his son's look.
"Hey, dad," he returned with a big hug to his old man followed by one to his sister.
"Hey, everybody! Good to be home."
"Welcome home, son," Henry replied but was unable to get out of his seat and unable to take his eyes off the horrible marks all over Jamie's skin. The beard he could get used to, but tattoos? No way, no how!
"Thanks, grandpa," Jamie said, smiling sympathetically at the older man.
And in good old Henry Reagan fashion, the filter between his mouth and brain ceased to function. "Good to see you Jamie, but what in the HELL is that crap all over your skin?!"
Jamie wore a long sleeve button down. But nothing short of a turtle neck and gloves would hide his tats, so he said the hell with it and rolled up his sleeves. He was curious to see what everyone had to say anyway.
"Grandpa!" Erin admonished.
"Language, Pop," Frank reminded him.
"Told you!" Eddie snickered as she took her customary spot. She had fun with it on Friday night, and definitely all day Saturday too…and maybe she would have a little more fun before they faded away, but she would also be happier to have her tattoo-free Jamie back.
"No one likes my tattoos," Jamie pouted as he pulled his chair over to the table.
"What in the hell did they do to you?" Henry asked Jamie before turning to glare at his son. "And you! How could you allow this, Francis?"
"That's two H-E-double-hockey-sticks, Pop. One more and you're going to your room," Frank warned with a wiggle of a finger at his father.
"Ahh, stuff it, Francis. You should have warned me about this," he huffed back.
"I didn't know!" Frank swore, just before Henry addressed his youngest grandson.
"Jamie, your grandmother is turning over in her grave right now. Tell me you'll remove those, they got lasers now." Henry motioned the sign of the cross as he continued to fret.
"Dear Lord, they're on his arms and his neck. Where else do you have them?" he demanded to know.
Eddie smirked to herself. She knew exactly where each one was now.
Before Jamie could answer and put the old man at ease, his nephew jumped in.
"I think they look cool! I want one!" Sean smiled, eyeing the patterns on his uncle's forearm.
Danny had been silent until that point, also shocked by his Harvard-educated-by-the-book-golden-boy-little brother. "Hel-," he began before feeling his father's eyes land on him. "I mean, heck no, Sean! Don't even think about it!"
"Seriously, and look at your face," Erin joined in. "I never thought anyone at this table would have more facial hair than dad!"
Erin shook her head, then turned to her nephew. "Help me with another place setting, Sean," realizing Jamie sat before a bare spot on the table. They needed to fix that if they were ever going to eat.
"Sure thing, Aunt Erin."
While they got him sorted out, Jamie turned to his wife. "I was starting to get used to it, actually. What do you think, Eddie?"
"You're still as handsome as ever," she assured him, caressing his cheek. Then she made it clear it needed to go. "But I'll be happy when you shave tomorrow."
"There you go," Jamie shrugged, even though that was always the plan.
Jamie thanked the pair for the place setting as Danny asked, "But what about the ink?"
Turning to his right, he assured the man looking at him like he'd grown a second head, that all would be alright.
Eventually.
"Don't worry, grandpa, it's henna. It only lasts a few weeks," he said as he displayed his arms out in front of him.
"You've been gone for almost a month. That doesn't look like it's fading," Henry pointed out.
"When the operation ran long, I had to sneak away to get it touched up, so this is pretty fresh," he explained. That had been a major concern as the weeks went along. They'd almost passed on him entirely for the operation because of the lack of ink and gruff, but everyone else that could fit the bill didn't know the case like he did. So they figured out how to make him look the part with a back up plan to get the ink reapplied without suspicion, if necessary.
Looking at his arms, side by side, he agreed with the rest of them. "Yeah, it still looks weird to me too."
"Thank heavens for that, but I won't be happy until that and that are gone," Henry said while pointing to his arms and neck.
"Well, now that we know Jamie will be back to normal eventually, how about we say grace?" Frank proposed, tickled pink to have all his kids back at the table.
"Yes!"
"Amen!"
"I want to eat."
Jamie and Eddie shared a smile and joined hands under the table, at peace now that they were together again.
"Why don't you do the honors, Jamie?" Frank said.
"Gladly," Jamie agreed and joined the rest of the family in closing their eyes to give thanks.
That's it! That's my take! Now watch it be completely off base. A girl can dream.
Bittersweet feelings on the start of the final season. Rewatching season 13 which I didn't pay close attention the first time around. It's been better than expected and reminded me why I love this show.
Here's to the writers giving us more Jamko and going back to those storylines where our lovebirds wanted a family. Bring that back and make it happen before they ride off into the sunset!