A/N: That muse struck again a couple of days ago. I started this and finally had time to finish it - granted I should have been sleeping instead but oh well!
...
Jamie and Eddie were not really the traditional wedding anniversary gift type of couple but every once in a while Jameson Reagan could really knock it out of the park in the romantic gesture department – and this was one of those times…
See it all started at Sunday dinner the day after their 5th wedding anniversary…
FLASHBACK:
Eddie stands in the kitchen of the Reagan Family home applying a bandaid to the accidental knife cut on her husband's hand.
"How did we get stuck doing dishes anyway?" Jamie whines annoyed he cut himself "Didn't they pick on me enough today? Ow!"
"Oh stop being such a big baby." Eddie chastises as she turns towards the sink that is already full of water and soaking dishes "I'm the one that has to wash now because you can't stick your hand in the water!"
A small smile begins to tug at the corners of Jamie's mouth as he suddenly steps behind his wife and using his body he pins her to the sink in front of her and presses himself onto her back. A playful look appears on his face as he leans towards her ear "See you will always have my back – I knew I got it right." he quips before placing a super quick, light kiss on his wife's cheek.
Slowly a grin creeps up on Eddie's face at his words and actions but the next second, Jamie pulls away and steps back grabbing a tea towel off the counter and slinging it over his shoulder "If you fall behind I'll wait up." he continues before leaning his own body back against the kitchen island and crossing his feet at his ankles and his arms over his chest "Now do you have any dishes for me to wipe or what?" he continues with an air of impatience "I'm waiting here." He adds as he tries to keep a straight face.
At hearing that, immediately the smile drops from Eddie's face and a slight scowl appears instead but not to be out done, Eddie runs with it. "I'll earn your respect and pay you respect every day we have." She simply recites before suddenly dipping her hand into the water, turning her body slightly backwards and doing the exact opposite of her words by flicking the water towards her husband.
"Hey!" Jamie immediately protests.
"Oh I'm sorry..." Eddie innocently queries "...not expecting that?" She adds with a laugh as the sound of their voices drift into the sunroom and grab Erin's attention.
"From my scout, my nightwatchman and my cavalry?" Jamie scoffs as he pulls the dish towel off his shoulder with his hands to wipe water off him "No."
"Awww." Eddie placates "But I'm still your medic…" She sweetly reminds him in triumph as she gestures to his bandaged finger "…your chaplain in our army of two."
Jamie eyes his wife a moment and before she knows what's happening Jamie drops the tea towel to the counter and rushing her while saying "No retreat, no surrender." as he again pins her to the sink and using his uninjured hand tries to splash her with dish water.
"NO RETREAT! NO SURRENDER!" Eddie declares as she fights back against him.
Unbeknownst to the couple, Erin had made her way into the entrance way between the sunroom and kitchen and with a smile on her face is now recording them with her phone.
"Okay, Okay!" Eddie finally pleads "Stop!"
Always one to respect the word stop no matter what, Jamie relents and pulls back.
"Look at us!" Eddie lightly chastises her husband while still laughing as she tries to shake water off herself.
Jamie takes in his wife's appearance and he smiles – she had always been beautiful to him but it was in these spontaneous moments that her beauty inside and out just consumed him "I am." He sincerely states as he swipes up the tea towel and takes a step towards her closing the distance between them "You can count on me." He softly whispers as he wipes some water droplets from her face.
Eddie looks up into her husband's eyes and for a moment the world around them falls away to just the two of them "And you can count on me." She whispers in return right before their lips meet in a tender kiss.
"What are you doing?" Danny's voice suddenly sounds causing Jamie and Eddie to break apart and look over and there they see Danny standing behind Erin in the doorway looking at his sister.
"Well way to break the moment." Erin chastises her older brother with a sigh as she lowers her phone from recording.
Danny looks from his sister to his brother and sister in law, then back to his sister "Oh sorry." He apologizes as he realizes what she was doing.
"Wait were you just recording us?" Jamie questions in disbelief.
"I was." Erin honestly admits.
"Why?" Jamie demands.
"Because…" Danny chimes in "...years from now, you can fondly look back and rewatch some of your spontaneous moments. Something I now wish Linda and I had done more of." He admits.
For a moment Jamie and Eddie just stare at Danny really letting his words sink in.
"Let me see." Eddie suddenly requests as she goes to take a step forward away from Jamie but then pauses, looks down at her wet shirt to see it sticking to her so she swipes the tea towel away from her husband and just drapes it over one shoulder and her chest before lightly back handing her husband.
"See I should have been recording that!" Erin laughs as she instead steps forward "Here." She instructs Eddie as she offers her phone out to her "Watch and I'll go get you a dry shirt from upstairs."
"Thank you." Eddie appreciatively states as she and Jamie focus on the phone in front of them.
"Feel free to send it to yourselves!" Erin calls as she disappears from the room.
Danny watches his sister go then turns his attention back to his brother and sister in law "And then I recommend you delete it from her phone." He prompts as he turns to walk away "Unless you want it printed and hard copy photos framed and plastered all over the house."
Jamie thinks about that a second "Good call." He admits a moment later as he grabs his sister's phone from his wife and does just that – he sends the video to both him and Eddie and when their phones ding in receipt, he deletes the original video.
"Jamie!" Eddie admonishes "That wasn't nice!"
"You want anyone other then us to have this video?" Jamie challenges "I love my sister but I'm not stupid."
Eddie frowns but does see his point "I guess not." She relents.
"Here." Erin states as she reenters the room with a dry shirt for Eddie "You send it to yourselves?"
"Yes." Jamie replies as he offers the phone back out to his sister.
"And then I assume deleted it from my phone?" Erin prompts as she takes it causing Eddie's mouth to drop slightly open in surprise.
"Yes." Jamie simply repeats.
"Great." Erin accepts "Will save me the trouble then. I'll leave you to it." She adds before spinning on her heels and moving to exit the room "Now finish those dishes you two." She prompts.
"YES MOM!" Jamie sarcastically calls back while the exchange with Danny repeats in his head and he looks over at his wife who has gone back to washing dishes Maybe a hard copy print wouldn't be such a bad idea… He thinks.
END OF FLASHBACK
And that's how it started so now one week later, Jamie and the rest of the Reagans sit around the dinner table watching his wife open the gift he had just handed to her.
"What on earth did you do?" Eddie questions of her husband as she goes to lift the lid on the flatish but long rectangular gift box covered in a weird pineapple patterned print.
In response Jamie just shrugs "Happy 5 year wedding anniversary."
Eddie eyes him a second longer then looks down as she removes the lid to see a carefully folded linen doily wrapped around a flatish object that looks way too small for the box it came in - it only took up about half the space.
"That's cotton." Jamie suddenly explains.
Not having the slightest clue why he would tell her that, Eddie glances at her husband with a weird look on her face before again looking down and opening the cotton like a flap to reveal the item underneath and the second it comes into view Eddie's eyes widen at the sight of a perfectly in focus framed screen shot photo of her and her husband right before their kiss in the kitchen last week. The emotion and love in their expressions perfectly captured for all time.
"Jamie…" is the only thing Eddie can get out as Erin looks over and as she does, her eyes take in the gift as a whole and in combination with her brother's earlier words of "it's cotton" realization dawns on her and a super impressed "Oh my god." escapes her lips "Damn Jamie!" she commends "Well done!"
Knowing his sister figured it out, a wide satisfied smile appears on Jamie's face "Thank you."
"Take note everyone." Erin continues as she looks around the table at her father, brother, nephew and grandfather before again looking back at Sean while pointing at the gift "Now THAT is an anniversary gift."
Stretching a little up and over the table so he can get a better view a look of confusion appears on Sean's face "Um, it's just a framed photo." He cluelessly points out but Erin shakes her head in rejection. "That is not just a framed photo – that is the ultimate framed photo – let me explain." She decides as she holds her hands out towards Eddie and gently inquires "May I?"
Still a bit stunned, Eddie slowly looks up at her sister in law to see Erin smile at her and gesture for the photo so Eddie picks it up out of the box and hands it over "Now…" Erin begins as she turns the photo round to display it to everyone "The 1st anniversary is paper – that's the photo itself…" She begins to explain. "The 2nd anniversary is the linen – or cotton – the napkin it came wrapped in."
Suddenly Jamie clears his throat interrupting his sister so when all eyes turn to him, Jamie simply points down into the box still on Eddie's lap "It's a doily." He corrects.
Eddie stares at her husband shocked he even knows that word then silently follows his finger down to see underneath where the picture frame was on the doily is their wedding vows embroidered onto a thin column in the center of the doily and her breath hitches.
Looking over, Erin's smile grows "And Jamie had their wedding vows embroidered onto it." She narrates for the table "Very nice touch." She admits in true appreciation of the gesture.
"Probably to make sure he doesn't forget them again." Danny laughs out causing both Jamie and Erin to shoot their brother unhappy looks.
Jamie for the comment itself and Erin for being interrupted.
"Now skipping ahead a few years…" Erin continues "…from last week we all know the 5th anniversary is wood…" she schools as she gestures to the wooden picture frame while Danny snickers in remembrance of the joke "But the 3rd anniversary is leather…" Erin presses with a bit of a louder voice to get Danny in check as she gestures to a thin strip of leather embedded into one of the indents all the way around the frame.
And the more Erin goes on, the Detective in Danny begins to see where his sister is going "And the 4th anniversary?" He curiously inquires now quite impressed himself.
Erin smirks and points at the box "The gift box itself – fruit slash flowers." She explains as she hands the photo back to Eddie "Jamie got all of the first five anniversary gift themes all rolled into one."
"I could have gotten the lily patterned box." Jamie quickly begins to explain to his wife as he focuses all of his attention on Eddie trying to gauge her reaction "But I didn't really like the pattern and I know how much you like pineapple so I thought this one would be more fun."
Completely and utterly speechless at the amount of thought Jamie clearly put into this, Eddie just blinks her eyes at her husband.
Now getting nervous, Jamie leans slightly towards Eddie really hoping he didn't make the same mistake he did with that whole love languages thing a few years ago by trying to do them all "Is it too much?" he cautiously inquires but his fears are quickly alleviated when Eddie begins to shake her head.
"No." Eddie promises as she finally finds her voice "It's perfect. I love it. Thank you."
Jamie lets out breath of air in relief as he smiles happily at his wife and she smiles back.
Beaming with pride himself, Henry watches his grandson and granddaughter in law before looking around the table "Now that is a romantic gesture." He proudly admits "I taught him that." He arrogantly boasts causing Danny to look over at his grandfather as a thought hits him "Maybe but I gave him the idea of the framed photo last week in the kitchen!" He reveals causing Erin to dismissively scoff "Yeah but none of this would have happened if I had not have taken the video in the first place!"
Sighing, the smile drops from Jamie face as he looks out at all his family all trying to take credit "Do I get any credit here?"
"Yes." Eddie reassures him as she leans over and gives him light kiss on his cheek "If you ask me, you get all the credit."
A happy grin again appears on Jamie's face before he again looks out at his family where his expression changes to one of arrogance "And that ladies and gentlemen is how you do it."
Danny shakes his head at his brother "Show off." he huffs out before a thought hits him "You know..." he then adds with an accusatory point of his finger at his younger brother "I bet you did this just because of the ribbing we gave you last week."
A true scowl appears on Jamie's face "Absolutely not!"
"Then why give it to her here at dinner..." Danny challenges "...and not back at your apartment where it's just the two of you?"
Jamie opens his mouth trying to quickly come up with a plausible response but Eddie saves him as she leans slightly towards her husband "I'm okay with it if that's the reason."
"Okay it was a part of the reason." Jamie admits to the table "Not the whole reason." he quickly reiterates before turning to his wife "And it didn't start out that way." He promises before relenting "...but a part."
Everybody including Eddie laughs.
….
Eddie stands in her apartment smiling from ear to ear as she places the new framed photo of herself and Jamie next to their wedding photo when Jamie walks up behind her and looks over her shoulder "Um you did that wrong."
"What?" Eddie questions in confusion as she glances backwards at him.
"Where's the box?" Jamie inquires as his eyes begin looking around but he sees it open on the kitchen table so without waiting for an answer from his wife he walks over and swipes it and the lid up. He walks back over to Eddie, picks up both their wedding photo and new anniversary photo frames and hands them to his wife "Here hold these." He instructs.
Having no choice, Eddie takes the items and watches Jamie first remove the doily from inside the box then puts the lid back on the box and place it on the shelf. Next he fans out the doily and places it over the box. He then takes both photos back, sets the original wedding photo down on the left side of the doily/box and their new photo down on the right and the second he does Eddie immediately notices their embroidered vows perfectly visible in the space between the 2 frames and a shocked expression appears on her face "Wait how did you…"
"I took some measurements." Jamie simply explains "And if we ever need to store the photos they will both fit in the pineapple box - that's why it's double the size."
Again, Eddie just looks at her husband speechless that he could even think of something like this.
Now feeling the pressure of the way his wife is looking at him, Jamie suddenly blurts out "Okay cards on the table – I had a little help from the sales girl in the gift store." he admits.
Eddie tilts her head and raises an eyebrow in a challenge.
"Okay a LOT of help." Jamie admits "They offer up some amazing gift ideas there and really know the right questions to ask to customize the experience and make us guys look incredible."
Eddie lets out a boisterous laugh "That's more like it."
"But getting the initial framed photo was completely my idea." He defends.
"And that's what counts." Eddie gently reassures him before dawning a slightly arrogant tone "But you realize I expect great things now for year 10."
A look of relief appears on Jamie's face at his wife's words "Oh thank god." He breathes out "I thought I'd have to do this every year from now on but if year 10 is all I need to worry about…" He dismisses "…then I'm good."
Eddie raises a slight eyebrow "Oh really?" She challenges.
"Yeah." Jamie confirms as an arrogant little smirk of his own appears on his face "Diamonds."
A smile creeps up on Eddie's face as she silently lifts one hand and lightly pats her husband a couple of times on his chest "See you do just fine on your own." She quips in approval before letting her eyes drift back to the new display before her "I really do love it Jamie." She again admits "Thank you."
Smiling, Jamie steps behind his wife, wraps his arms around her waist and lightly rests his head on one of her shoulders as he too looks at the photos "Happy Anniversary Eddie."
Resting her hands over his, Eddie contently snuggles into his embrace "Happy Anniversary Jamie."
...