Cheyenne; Heather's Apartment, Saturday Morning
When they had finally gone to sleep the night before, Jake was spooning Heather, her back pressed against his chest and her legs tangled with his. Dropping a kiss on her collarbone, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and waist. In the darkness, she found his hand and had clasped it in hers, holding it over her heart. Sometime during the night, they had shifted positions so that when Heather opened her eyes the next morning she was looking into Jake's face. She was happy to have this chance to observe him as he slept and could not help but think how peaceful he looked. She hoped that one day they would have the tranquility in their lives that she saw in his face at that moment.
She leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. It was enough to stir him and he slowly opened his eyes to the woman he loved. He wrapped his arms around her and rolled over onto his back bringing her with him. She laid her head on Jake's chest as memories of last night flashed through her mind. Her mother had been right when she had told her that intimacy between a man and a woman was the ultimate expression of love. The wait was well worth it; Heather had never felt as loved and cherished as Jake had made her feel the night before. He had been so gentle with her. His caresses, the way their bodies moved in harmony still had her feeling like it was all a delicious dream. And yet, lying this way with the man she loved, his skin against her skin, told her the dream was a reality. As her head rested on his chest she couldn't help but sigh in contentment as Jake began rubbing gentle circles on her back, sending shivers up and down her spine.
"'Morning, Babe. Are you feeling okay?" whispered Jake, concern evident his voice.
"Oh Jake," Heather said quietly as she lifted her head and looked into his eyes, her hands splayed on his bare chest. "I'm fine. Last night was . . . was so perfect," she sighed.
"No, Babe, you're perfect," Jake said while lifting his hands to either side of her face, tenderly pushing her hair back, before bringing her face down for a kiss.
When their kiss ended, she laid her head back down on his chest. This time he smoothed his hands up and down her back, sending another series of shivers down her spine. She slid off him, propped herself up on an elbow and ran her hand up and down Jake's chest causing him to draw in a sharp breath. When her hand traveled down and gently stroked Jake's thigh, he moaned as he pressed his hand over hers, stilling its movement.
Feeling heady and emboldened from the reaction she had elicited from him, Heather began to plant small kisses across her lover's chest as she pulled her hand out of his grasp and started to stroke his thigh again. "Jake?" she asked languidly glancing at her fiancé to see his eyes darken with desire. It excited her to see the power she held at that moment and she trembled with anticipation at the thought of sharing herself, completely, with the man she loved.
"Yeah, Babe," Jake barely gasped out as he started to feel a very physical reaction to her kisses.
Heather looked up and they locked eyes. She gave him a seductive smile and said quietly, "I want to give you . . . I want to do . . . for you . . . what you did for me."
Jake had no words to describe the excitement he felt at the thought of Heather's hands on him where his had been on her, the thought of her kissing him in the same places where he had kissed her. He moaned, "Ah, Babe," as he steeled himself for the onslaught of sensations and emotions he knew he would experience as the woman beside him continued to show him just how much she loved him.
Later that morning, convinced it was one of the most difficult things she had ever done Heather dragged herself out of bed. Unfortunately, as tempting as staying in bed all day with Jake was, real life was pressing.
She was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee when Jake walked in, his hair still damp from his shower. He stopped to give her a kiss before going into the kitchen to pour himself a cup of coffee. With cup in hand, he moved to the table and sat diagonally across from her.
Heather glanced at him and then looked down at her hands wrapped around her cup of coffee. "Umm...Jake?" she asked glancing at him and then looking away again.
Jake recognized the signs. Heather was obviously uncomfortable with whatever it was she wanted to tell him. "Yeah, Babe?" he asked soothingly. Heather slowly turned her head until she was looking at her fiancé with a soft blush on her cheeks. He reached across the table and covered her hand with his own. "It's okay, you can tell me," he said reassuringly.
"Maybe we should try to find something before we . . . you know . . . do it again?" Heather asked a little apprehensively. "I guess what I'm trying to say is -"
Jake knew what was worrying her and interrupted her by lifting the hand he held to his mouth, giving it a soft kiss. "You know, when I asked you to marry me, I was asking for the whole package, and sooner or later that'll include kids." He did not miss the tears that came to Heather's eyes before she turned her head. "What is it?" he asked gently.
Heather tried to take relaxing breath before turning back to him. "Times are different now, things could happen . . ."
Seeing where this was leading Jake gave Heather's hand a reassuring squeeze and interrupted her, "Ahh, Babe. I understand why you might be scared."
"When we were in New Bern Eric talked to me about April I saw what it did to him. I don't want -"
"What happened to April was no one's fault, it just happened. It doesn't mean it will happen to you - to us."
"But what if does? I don't want you to have to . . .," Heather said her voice trailing off unable to continue.
"As my dad said more than once ‘When bad things happen, we have two choices. We can either stop living or start living.' I choose to start living with you."
A few tears escaped Heather's eyes, "But that doesn't mean - "
"Babe, to be honest I'm scared too, but delaying the inevitable isn't going to prevent something from going wrong. We can't delay getting on with our lives forever." He gave her hand another squeeze and told her what he truly felt. "It wouldn't be fair to me or to you to decide not to have kids over something that may never happen. And most of all it would be unfair deprive our unborn children of having you for a mom." When Jake saw a smile starting to break through Heather's tears he reminded her, "Like I said, I want the whole package, kids included."
Heather's concerns melted away at Jake's words and any other argument she may have had flew out the window. "I want the whole package, too, and besides you there's nothing I want more than to be a mother to your children." She paused before asking, "But what if it happens sooner rather than later?"
"Well, to quote one of the smartest people I know . . . ‘all we need to do is to trust in each other and whatever happens we'll face together'." Jake lifted her hand and kissed the tender flesh of her inner wrist before saying, "If you think we should wait, I can try and find something."
Heather could not help but smile when Jake repeated her words from the other day back to her before saying shyly, "Only if you want to."
"Only if you want me to, although I have to admit that thought of a ‘Little Heather' has me intrigued," Jake replied.
Heather smiled and said, "Or a ‘Little Jake'. And I don't want you to. I just want us to be sure."
"We're sure. I'm glad we're on the same page," Jake said before leaning over the corner of the table and kissing Heather. As they were pulling away from the kiss, both their stomachs growled at the same time eliciting a giggle from her and a chuckle from him.
"We are hungry, aren't we? I'll go make breakfast," Heather said.
Jake made a big deal of looking at his watch and asked with a raised eyebrow, "Breakfast? It's noon, don't you mean lunch?
"No wonder we're so hungry! I'll be right back with our scrambled eggs and toast," Heather said with a smile on her face as she stood up.
"Need some help?"
"Sure, you can make the toast while I scramble the eggs."
A few minutes later, they were sitting at the table enjoying each other's company and talking about when they would get married. While they wanted to get married as soon as possible, both were adamant about waiting until they returned home to his family - their family, Jake insisted, squeezing her hand - and their friends so they could witness their commitment to one another.
Their conversation turned to other topics, one in particular that others might have considered mundane, but Heather's eyes sparkled as she talked about Jake's Roadrunner, which was evidently in need of some tender loving care.
"So Hon, are you ready to go take a look at your car?" Heather asked after she finished her last mouthful of scrambled eggs.
Jake glanced at his watch, "It's quarter to one now. Hawkins wants to meet at two today and then wants us to stay for supper. I don't think we'll have time, Babe." He stood up and offered his hand to Heather, pulled her up and into a hug and whispered huskily against her hair, "Love ya."
Heather turned her head and nuzzled Jake's neck before replying, "Love you too, Hon." She raised her head and asked, "Maybe after the meeting but before dinner?" Heather asked hopefully.
"You sound like you really want to work on my car."
"Yeah, I do. It's been so long since I've worked on anything mechanical, and I was looking forward to getting my hands greasy," She informed him, wiggling the fingers on both her hands.
"We'll have to see what we can do then," Jake said as he smiled.
"There's always tomorrow," Heather said, hopefully optimistic.
"As long as it's not too early, Babe," Jake replied as he bent his head, his breath tickling her ear, to whisper, "We ..." he nibbled her ear, eliciting a moan from his future wife, "have . . ." he trailed kisses along her cheek and whispered against her lips, "other plans." He felt Heather tremble and tightened his arms around her as his tongue played across her lips. The way he kissed her left no doubt in her mind what he had planned for the next morning.
Heather moaned her agreement into Jake's mouth and he became lost in the kiss. His hands slid under her shirt and he pulled her as close to him as was possible given the confines of their clothes. All he wanted to do was to take Heather back into the bedroom and make love to her. She excited him in a way that no other woman ever had and had showed him how thrilling it could be between a man and a woman when they truly loved one another. Not sure how much longer he could keep his desire in check he lifted his head and leaned his forehead against Heather's.
"Jake . . .Hon . . ." Heather pleaded breathlessly.
"I know Babe, I know . . . but we need to go . . ." Jake replied just as breathlessly.
"I know, but I don't want to," she pouted lifting her head to look into Jake's face. She watched him as he took a breath and shut his eyes as she felt him shudder with desire against her.
Heather moved her arms from around his neck and rested them on his chest. He dropped his arms from around her waist, reached up, and placed his hand over her hand that rested on his heart. "Save that thought Babe," he said as her brought her hand up and kissed it.
Recalling Jake's reaction when she had kissed and touched him earlier, Heather pulled her hand from Jake's grasp and wrapped her arms around his waist, skimming her fingers back and forth under the waistband of his jeans as she trailed kisses along his neck while whispering, "I don't want to save it, Hon."
"Ah, Babe, the things you do to me," Jake ground out huskily as he put his arms around Heather and ran his hands down her back.
Heather lifted her head and replied huskily, with hooded eyes, "The things you do to me," as she slid her arms from around Jake's waist, wrapped them around his neck and pressed hers body against his.
Jake groaned as he crushed his mouth against hers. Pulling away despite her silent protest, he mumbled against Heather's lips, "Be careful what you wish for," as he cupped her bottom and lifted her. When Heather wrapped her legs around his waist, he slid his hands under her thighs and carried her to the bedroom.
Jericho; Hawkins’ House, Saturday Afternoon
“Mom, Mom!” Sam yelled from his perch on the window seat that looked out onto the front yard. “I see her! I see her! Mrs. Green is here.”
As soon as Darcy walked into the living room, her son ran over to her, grabbed her hand and began to tug on it. The grin on his face betrayed his excitement, “Can I answer the door? Can I?”
“Okay, go ahead, answer it. Don’t keep Mrs. Green waiting.”
“Thanks Mom!” Sam all but ran to the door. With both hands on the knob he twisted the door open. “Hi, Mrs. Green, know what? I drew a picture of me and my mom and dad today. You want to see it?”
“Sam,” Darcy chided, “why don’t you ask if our guest wants to come in?”
“Do you want to come in, Mrs. Green?”
“I’d love to, Sweetie.”
When Sam opened the screen door Gail walked in and ruffled his hair, “Why don’t you go get that picture? I can’t wait to see it!”
“I bet you’ll really like it. Be right back.”
When Gail could no longer hear Sam’s footsteps on the stairs she turned to Darcy with a concerned look on her face. “Do you know what this is all about? I took the second shift at the med center last night and found a note from Eric saying that Rob wanted a meeting today.”
Darcy smiled at her new friend. “I agree the meeting is unexpected, but I assure you things are just fine.”
Gail raised an eye brow. “You know this because…?”
"Um . . . well because . . ." Luckily, Darcy was saved from further explanation when Sam came barreling into the room, picture in hand. As much as she was looking forward to Gail's reaction she deserved to hear the news from her loved ones and was grateful for her son's interruption.
Stopping in front of Gail and grinning from ear to ear, Sam held the picture out to her. "Look at this!”
Gail gave Darcy a pointed look that told her their conversation was not over before turning her attention to the boy standing in front of her. She took the picture from Sam’s hand and made a big show of looking at it.
The three figures that Sam had put in the picture were just like the ones her sons had drawn when they were Sam's age. The only difference was that Jake's pictures always had a plane, and for Eric, it was always a dog. She shook her head at the memory. It had taken an umpteen number of pictures and a lot of perseverance for Eric to finally convince his father to get one. Her heart clenched as she thought of the times that she and Johnston had laughed over the pictures that hung on the refrigerator while her husband tried to guess the message behind the pictures and who was in them.
A tug on her shirt startled her from her memories and she looked down to see Sam's excited face. She glanced at the picture again and saw a football in the air between two of the figures, and in the background a blue house. The third figure was standing on the porch. The blue sky held a bright yellow sun, its rays stretching toward the green grass. “What a lovely picture. Is that you and your dad playing football?” Gail asked as she held the picture down for Sam to look at.
"No, me and my mom. She plays a lot better than my dad." Sam pointed to the third figure, "See, that's my dad on the porch. He's watching us play. Didn't you recognize them?" he said with a frown.
"Hmm, let me have a closer look," Gail said as she looked over the picture another time. She glanced at Darcy with a gleam in her eye before looking down at Sam again. "Yes, I think I see the resemblance now."
Sam's smile was contagious and Gail couldn't help but smile back as she pointed to the picture of house, "This is your house right?"
Sam grinned, "Yeah. Doesn't it look just like it?"
"It sure does, Honey," Gail responded and then continued, "and it's such a bright and sunny day. You are quite the artist! The colors you chose were just perfect! Good job!”
Sam beamed at the compliment. “We hang all our special pictures on the fridge. Will you hang this one up with me?”
Gail glanced at Darcy who nodded her approval. “I’d like that. Let’s make sure we find a special place for it.” Sam took the hand that Gail offered and smiled at his mother before leading Gail into the kitchen. Darcy chuckled at the sight. There was no doubt in her mind that it wouldn’t be long before Gail considered Sam an adopted grandson, and for that, Darcy was very happy. Sam had been especially close to his grandfather and had asked repeatedly those first months after the bombs if he was ever going to see him again.
Darcy would never forget how her dad had been there for her and the children during the times her husband was away. She had been especially grateful for the time he had spent with her son, doing the simple every day things with him – like taking him to the zoo, to the park - the things that Rob should have been doing. Her father had also known about the troubles in her marriage and had encouraged her to stick it out, reminding her that Rob loved her and the kids, and that just maybe what he was doing was important and necessary. She had no idea at the time what he had been talking about but remembered being a little resentful that her father had taken Rob's side.
It wasn't until after the war with New Bern that she had learned the truth from Rob. Her father, who had a high-ranking position in the Pentagon, had served on the joint committee on anti-terrorism; the same committee that had tapped Rob to be on the task force that had been assigned to find out who had been responsible for the thefts of the nuclear devices and the planned terrorist attacks. Rob had gone on to tell her, that her dad had held a private meeting with him after he was given the assignment and had told him that he had objected to the assignment but the other committee members had reiterated what was at stake; and that the mission required the best – and his son-in-law was one of the best. It was a point he couldn’t dispute. He promised that he would watch over Darcy and the children and in turn, he expected that Rob would do his best to take her and the children to a safe zone should the task force fail in their mission. She smiled when she thought about what Rob had said he told her father in response – that there was no need to for him to make that promise, that he loved her and the kids, and that he would do everything in his power to keep them safe – that plans had already been put in place should the need arise.
Now, as she watched her son and Gail walking into the kitchen, she was grateful for the relationship that seemed to be forming between them. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when she heard a knock on the door. She opened it to Eric, Stanley, and Mimi.
“Come in, come in,” Darcy said as she held the door open.
"Mary wanted me to thank you for the invite, she couldn't make it – couldn't find anyone to fill in for her at the bar," Eric said.
Stanley held out a bag to Darcy. “We had some extra tomatoes, green beans, and squash. Thought you might want them."
"That's so nice of you. Thanks, Stanley," Darcy said as she took the bag from him. Sam and Gail walked out of the kitchen. Sam still had a smile painted on his face, “Mom, wait till you see the picture. We found the perfect place for it!”
“I’m sure you did! I’m going in there in just a minute. I’ll be sure to check it out. Did you thank Mrs. Green for helping you?”
“Yeah," he replied, shifting from foot to foot and looking away from his mother.
“Good.”
Gail spoke up, “Sam said that he has a coloring book with trees in it and he’s going to color the ones that he hopes we see on our walk tomorrow.”
“Yeah. I know just which ones they are. I’m gonna go up and color them now.”
“Before you go, say hello to our new guests,” Darcy said to her son.
“Hi everybody, bye everybody,” Sam said before turning and running up the stairs much to the amusement of all standing in the foyer.
“That’s some son you got there!” Stanley said earning him an elbow in the side from Mimi and laughs from everyone else.
“I couldn’t agree with you more! I know you're probably all wondering why I asked you all here. Well, I'm expecting a call from Rob. Apparently there's some news from Cheyenne –"
"Good! That'll give me a chance to remind that best man of yours to make sure he makes it back for the wedding.” Mimi interrupted.
“And we have some news for them, too,” Eric interjected, a grim look on his face. “Stanley, you can tell them what you told me about that farm next to you, and I need to tell Jake about my meetings with Gray yesterday.”
“Yes, he should definitely know, " Gail said.
The questioning looks that Darcy, Stanley, and Mimi threw Eric weren’t lost on him. He glanced at the three of them and snorted, “You’ll have to wait for the call. I don’t want to have to tell the story more than once.”
Darcy shifted the bag she was holding to her other arm. “I’m going to put these vegetables away. I’ll bring out water for everyone while I’m in there. You can all make yourselves comfortable in the dining room.”
“Can I help?” Mimi asked.
“Sure. Thanks.”
Stanley gave his fiancée a sideways hug and teased, "Look out, Darcy. She may try to rearrange the kitchen on you.” Mimi shot him an exasperated look that melted into laughter before following Darcy to the kitchen.
"What was that all about?" Eric asked.
"Private joke," Stanley said, laughing as he walked into the dining room.
A few minutes later, Mimi and Darcy rejoined the others and handed out the glasses of water. Mimi took a seat next to Stanley and while Darcy put down her glass of water she said, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get the phone.”
Allison walked in the front door as Darcy was walking into the living room. “Hi Mom.”
“Hi Honey. How was training today?”
“It was good. You know Maryann, who's in my training class?” Darcy nodded and Allison continued, “Since tomorrow is our only day off, she thought it would be a good night for me to sleep over her house. Is that okay with you?”
"Are her parents going to be there?"
Allison let out an exasperated sigh and decided to deal with all her mother's questions at once. "Her parents are gonna be there tonight . . . no boys . . . we're meeting up with the kids from class at the picnic tables outside the school for a game of Monopoly and after that we're just gonna hang out at Maryann's house."
Darcy smirked at her daughter, glad that her daughter knew the drill. It saved her from dragging the answers out of her. "You can go. If anything changes I want to know about it and please check in no later than ten tomorrow morning."
"Okay, Mom. No problem."
“I’ll be talking to your dad later. Do you want to stay long enough to say hello?”
Allison, looking at her watch, replied, “Wish I could, but we’re meeting up with everyone in half an hour. Will you tell him I said hi and that I’ll talk to him next time?”
“Sure. You know I saw Jimmy downtown yesterday. He said that you’re the best student he’s had. I’m sure your dad will be glad to hear that—" a smile crept over her daughter’s features “--and don’t let it get to your head, young lady.” Darcy teased.
Allison did an exaggerated eye roll, “Well, if I am the best, why not?” she teased back.
“Allison Hawkins!”
“Just kidding, Mom,” Allison said before she started laughing.
“You better be!” Darcy said smiling at her daughter. She looked at her watch. “Go on, get your stuff and get out of here. You only have twenty five minutes before you need to meet up with your friends.”
“Okay! I’ll see you tomorrow, Mom.”
“See you then. Don't forget ten tomorrow morning."
"I won't."
When Allison came back downstairs with her backpack, she heard Darcy in the dining room and went to tell her she was leaving. She walked in, saw everyone around the table and quickly greeted them. She caught her mother's eye and said, "I’m leaving now.”
“Have a good time. Remember by ten o’clock tomorrow.”
“Okay, see you tomorrow.” Allison took another quick look around, smiled, and waved. “Bye everyone!” she said, before turning and walking out of the dining room.
When Gail heard the door shut, she looked at Darcy and chuckled. “At least you get more than just the ‘hi’ and a ‘bye’ I used to get from the boys. Not much more I’ll grant you, but more.”
Stanley raised his eyes in surprise and said, “Aww, come on. That isn’t true, Mrs. G. We used to have a lot of good talks.”
An amused look came across Gail’s face, “Stanley, you tell me one time after you turned sixteen when you or Jake wanted to sit down and have a good talk.”
“Hmm….let me think….” Stanley said as he started drumming his fingers on the table. “Well, there was that time….No, I was wrong about that,” he said more than once as if he was talking to himself.
The giggles and laughter that spread around the table interrupted Stanley’s deliberations. He looked at Gail and said, “You got me!"
Gail reached over and patted Stanley’s hand, “That’s nothing new. You and Jake have never understood that I’m always two steps ahead of you.”
‘Well, I have some news that I know you’re not two steps ahead of,’ Darcy thought, laughing silently to herself.
Gail gave Stanley the motherly look he knew so well, the one that said ‘you should know better than to doubt me’ and he couldn’t help but say with a smile in his voice. “Here I am, thirty-three years old and you’re still looking at me and talking to me like I’m fifteen.”
“Well, you know what they say, Stanley, when the shoe fits . . .,” Mimi chimed in.
Another round of laughter including Gail’s and Stanley’s could be heard around the table.
“It’s time to call,” Darcy said when the laughter died down. “Is everyone ready?”
Each person at the table responded with either a nod or by saying, “Ready.” Darcy then picked up the phone and punched in the number.