Chapter 124: Partners

"I'm telling you…" Maria states from the passenger's seat of the squad car as Danny turns it into the driveway of Jamie and Eddie's house "…you'd never know they are on leave they way Jamie just summoned us to the house."

Danny snickers as he pulls the car to a stop "They probably need back up with Jessie from two experts like us!"

"They have an expert down the hall." Maria flatly points out as she opens her door.

Danny laughs as he opens his "Well according to Jamie she's on strike and making them figure it out."

Maria smiles at hearing that "Good!" She quips in satisfaction as she and Danny get out and her words cause Danny to freeze before he slowly and silently turns to stare at his partner across the roof of the car "What?" she challenges at seeing his look.

"You sound a little too happy at that partner." Danny points out.

Maria shrugs "Well they did steal her from me." She reminds him.

A smile creeps up on Danny's face as the partners shut their doors "Still bitter about that huh?"

"I wouldn't say bitter." Maria corrects as the pair walk up the path "Just…"

"Feeling a little vindicated?" Danny finishes.

Maria scrunches her thumb and index fingers together as they walk up the porch steps "Maybe a little." She admits in slight amusement causing Danny to laugh.

"Why Maria Baez…" Danny notes impressed as he lifts his hand and knocks but before he can say anything else the door swings open and Jamie appears in sweats and a tshirt.

"Hi." He quicky greets both before focusing at Danny "You got it?"

Without a word Danny reaches into the inside of his suit jacket, pulls out a small manilla padded envelope and hands it to his brother.

Maria looks at the exchange and her face scrunches up "What did I just witness a drug deal?"

Jamie and Danny both turn to look at her.

"That's cute." Danny tosses at his partner unimpressed.

"Then tell me what's in that..." Maria insists "...or I might have to arrest you two."

"Alright Detective." Danny relents with a slight roll of his eyes "It's the onesie I ordered for him."

"Oh." Maria accepts in remembrance "Forgot about that thing. What did it say again?"

"It says…" Danny begins but Jamie hisses out a "Shut up!" before quickly glancing behind him and back up the stairs.

"Oh right." Danny immediately adds in amused understanding "Still a secret from Eddie." He explains to his partner.

"Oh how cute." Maria notes with a smirk as she looks at Jamie just as Eddie's voice is heard from upstairs

"Jamie! Who's at the door?"

Quickly looking around Jamie tries to find somewhere to stash the envelope in his hands but there is nothing suitable right within his reach so Danny and Maria watch in amusement as he lifts his tshirt and jams the envelope into his sweatpants elastic band before pulling the shirt back down to cover it and calling back up the stairs "It's Danny and Maria!"

A moment later Eddie appears at the top of the stairs with baby monitor in hand "Hey!" She happily greets "You tell them yet?"

"No." Jamie simply replies to his wife offering her an innocent smile "I was waiting for you."

Danny and Maria's amused eyes both suspiciously narrow at hearing that exchange.

"Tell us what?" Danny prompts as he looks at his brother.

In response, Jamie simply gestures up the stairs at his wife "I'll let you do the honors."

"Oh you want me to tell them." Eddie notes as she slowly makes her way down the stairs and comes to stand beside her husband and in front of Maria "Okay!" She adds as she smiles up at her coworker "Better get your dress blues ready."

Maria looks a little sideways at Eddie "Why?"

"Well you Detective 1st Grade Maria Baez…" Eddie announces "… will be receiving the Combat Cross for saving my ass in the clinic."

Maria's mouth falls open a bit.

"And she…" Jamie adds as he points at his wife next to him "…will be getting the Medal of Honor for… well you all know."

Danny gets a very impressed look on his face as he silently looks at his brother to see him shrug in deflection.

"Um…." Maria begins in awe before letting her voice trail off.

"See!" Eddie quips "That was my reaction too!"

Danny leans towards his partner "And now we know why we were summoned here. Congratulations partner."

Jamie looks at his brother "Summoned?" he challenges.

Danny looks at Jamie "You used forthwith in your text to me." He tosses back right as Danny's cellphone begins to ring so he fishes it out of his pocket "Reagan." He greets into the device.

He listens a moment then sighs "Okay we're on our way." He notes before hanging up "Sorry, gotta go. Duty calls."

Jamie and Eddie nod in understanding as they watch Danny and Maria turn and head out and as Jamie goes to shut the door, Eddie hears crinkling of the envelope under Jamie's shirt so she scrunches her face up "Jamie why are your pants crinkling?"

"Hmmm?" He innocently deflects like its nothing.

Eddie eyes her husband then with lightening reflexes she reaches to lift up his tshirt and as much as Jamie tries to move out of her reach, it's too late and she sees the envelope "What is that?" She demands.

"Oh this?" Jamie deflects as he pulls the envelope out to hold it in his hands "It's nothing."

Eddie crosses her arms unimpressed "Then why are you trying to hide it from me?" She challenges as husband and wife silently stare at one another in a stand off but then Eddie flips her arm out with her palm facing up requesting the item so Jamie sighs in defeat and hands it over.

"Thank you." Eddie accepts as she takes it and looks it over "This is addressed to Danny."

"It is." Jamie confirms.

"What's in it?" Eddie questions.

"A surprise." Jamie unhappily tosses back "One you've now ruined." He points out with a frown.

"Oh." Eddie accepts as she looks down at the package then back up at her husband "Do you want it back?" she sheepishly adds.

"No." Jamie sighs in defeat "You might as well just open it."

"Great!" Eddie giddily quips as she rips the envelope open, reaches in and pulls out the custom onesie Jamie ordered. She tosses the envelope aside and then fans out and dangles the baby item before her as she reads 'My Mommy is a cop. She carries a gun and knows how to use it.' and she laughs out a "What is this?"

Jamie shrugs "You think guys with babies are like chick magnets so when I take Jessie out by myself she'll be wearing that."

Eddie looks at her husband and her face breaks out into the biggest grin "Okay, this Mr. Reagan is I think the hottest thing you have ever done."

Jamie raises an eyebrow at his wife as he watches her eyes give his body the once over "Um what are you looking at?" he laughs.

"If I hadn't have just had a baby." Eddie admits "I'd hall your ass upstairs…" She suggestively adds "… and show you what I'm looking at."

An arrogant grin breaks out onto Jamie's face "I thought we were never having sex again?" he amusingly points out.

"Never is such a long time." Eddie easily dismisses as she walks up to her husband "Thank you." She sincerely adds "I love that you did this and I love you." she promises before she leans up to give him a light kiss on the lips "But one isn't enough." She decides as she pulls back "Jessie's going to need multiples of this onesie." She adds causing Jamie to again laugh "Wait." She then realizes "You said this was custom right?"

"I did." Jamie confirms.

"Hmmm…" Eddie then ponders in thought "Can I order one that says 'Nice try but Daddy's taken?"

Jamie laughs "Okay I was trying to be subtle about it but…"

"Pfft." Eddie interrupts "That's you. I'm much more in your face."

"Very true." Jamie agrees.

"Let's go try it on her!" Eddie eagerly quips causing Jamie to give his wife a weird sideways glance "Um Eddie I know we aren't experts at this whole parenting thing yet but pretty sure we aren't supposed to be waking her up, she wakes us up."

Eddie groans in defeat "Yeah you're right."

Suddenly Jamie clutches his hand at his chest over his heart and he stumbles back a bit "Oh my god… did… did you just say I'm right?"

Eddie turns her head to glare at her husband "Ha ha." She retorts unamused.

"I think I might need to sit down." Jamie continues.

"Are you done yet?" Eddie counters unimpressed.

"Alright." Jamie relents as he drops his arm and stands back up straight "But just because you asked so nicely." He cheekily adds as Eddie yawns so Jamie waits and when she finishes a silence befalls the couple.

"What no comeback?" Jamie finally inquires.

At first, Eddie looks at her husband slightly confused but then she makes the connection "Oh, sorry." She apologizes "I think I'm too tired."

"Oh." Jamie accepts.

More silence.

"We've got milk in the fridge." Jamie points out "I can feed her the next go around if you want to sleep longer." He offers.

"No it's okay." Eddie rejects with a sigh.

"Eddie." Jamie prompts "I'm her Dad. Let me help. I WANT to help. I mean why should you get to be the one to feed her all the time. Is this a discrimination thing because I can't produce the milk like you can? I mean…"

"Okay fine." Eddie relents "I get your point, you can stop now."

"Good." Jamie counters "Because we're partners in this and I'm only home like this for two weeks so take advantage of me while you can."

Eddie's only reply is to nod in acceptance.

"Wow." Jamie breathes out "You really are tired if you have no comeback for that one either."

Again Eddie looks at her husband confused.

"Take advantage of me while you can?" Jamie repeats.

"Oh." Eddie again notes "Right. Sorry."

"Okay off to bed you go." Jamie instructs as he reaches for his wife "I'm going to bring Jessie down here with me..." He adds as he guides her in the direction of the stairs "…for a little Daddy / Daughter time while you nap."

"Okay that sounds good." Eddie admits without much of a fight.

Silence as they climb the stairs.

"Jamie…" Eddie suddenly adds "What am I going to do when you go back to work? Am I really going to be able to handle this myself?"

"You will." Jamie promises "But having said that if at any point you feel you can't I need you to tell me okay."

"Yeah." Eddie half heartedly agrees.

"No I'm serious Eddie." Jamie presses as he reaches out to stop his wife and gently turn her around to face him "I know you can do anything you set your mind too but I'm not naïve here either. You just gave birth – and not under the best circumstances either, plus your hormones are all out of whack again and…"

"I'm sorry what did you just say?" Eddie bites back on sudden edge at her husband.

"12 David Eddie." Jamie immediately states "Please just hear me out." He pleads.

Eddie takes a deep breath and crosses her arms unimpressed but gestures for him to continue so Jamie takes a deep breath.

"Okay let me start over." He begins "A lot of the time all anyone ever talks about is the joys that come with having a baby sprinkled in with the jokes of sleepless nights but it can truly be overwhelming on a lot of different levels and not all new mother's bounce back right away – and I'm not saying that's you." Jamie quickly adds "But the reality is your hormones are going through all kinds of changes again so I… I just need you to know that if you ever feel its too much, or even if its something little that you might think is stupid please, please talk to me okay? You're not in this alone okay?"

As much as she tries, Eddie can't stop the tears from well in in her eyes as she moves to hug her husband tight "Thank you." She emotionally whispers in his ear.

"Anytime partner." Jamie quietly returns.

"You truly are amazing you know that right." Eddie states as she pulls back "Most guys out there would just be all 'yeah yeah your fine' but not you. You look at things from all different angles and try to head off problems before they even start – even giving birth!"

"Ah well no." Jamie rejects "Didn't see that coming the way it did. I should have." He notes with regret in his voice "But I didn't."

At hearing that Eddie narrows her eyes at her husband "Jamie…" she slowly warns "Don't do that."

"Do what?"

"Try to overcompensate now for not having a crystal ball and predicting how and when I'd give birth."

"That's not what I'm doing." Jamie rejects.

"That's exactly what you're doing." Eddie insists "And I'm not saying it's a bad thing because I'm very grateful for what you just said to me but if you want me to be open and honest with you I expect nothing less in return from you. I've got your back." She promises.

Jamie shakes his head in slight awe at his wife "And I've got yours partner."

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