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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:41:51 GMT -5
July 4th ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Harley stood in front of the full length mirror in her bedroom adjusting her sundress. Gus came out of the bathroom and stood behind her.
"Honey, you can't tell."
"Are you sure?" she asked worriedly.
"Harley, you've gained what, like a pound? You're not showing. No one will be able to tell."
Harley sighed and turned from the mirror, "I just feel so pregnant."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know, I just don't feel very good today, and I would rather just stay home in bed."
"Then stay home in bed, Harley. We don't have to go."
"Yes, we do. I'll be fine," she insisted as she slid on her sandals and headed downstairs to finish getting the boys ready.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Gus, Harley, Susan, and the boys walked into the backyard of the Bauer house which was already full of Springfielders. Gus was holding a sleeping Jude in one arm and holding one of Zach’s hands with the other. Harley had a hold of Zach’s other hand and Susan was in front of them carrying the jello salad Harley had made. While Susan put the salad on the table with all the other food, then went off to find Marina, Rick came over to greet his guests and took Jude into the house so he could sleep. Zach had already ran over to the sandbox where Michelle had Robbie, RJ, Will, and Clarissa.
“Hey sis!” Frank said as he got up and gave Harley a hug.
Harley and Gus joined Blake, Ross, Cassie, Frank, and Mel at a round table and the girls began yapping away. Rick returned from the house and brought two beers to the table for Gus and Harley. Gus took his, but Cassie and Blake quickly grabbed Harley’s before she could politely decline.
Harley shot them a dirty look and Rick looked at them confused.
“What’s the matter? It’s a beer, it’s not poison,” he teased offering her the bottle.
Harley shook her head, “No thanks. I picked the short straw, I’m the designated driver,” she covered with a laugh. “I’ll just get some iced tea,” she said as she began to stand up.
Gus stopped her, knowing she wasn’t feeling well, “Stay here, I’ll get it.”
Frank got up and went to the drink table with Gus.
“Hey, I heard you guys had a guest the other night,” he teased.
Gus laughed, “Oh yes. A good time was had by all,” he said sarcastically.
He took a glass of iced tea back to Harley and kissed her cheek. She looked up into his eyes and smiled at him.
“Thank you,” she said as he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her lips, then he went back over where Frank was standing as Rick came to the table with a plate full of pickles.
Mel waved him off when he asked her, then he turned to Blake.
“Blake,” he said with a smile, “I know you love these pickles!”
Blake smiled politely, “I sure do,” she said as she grabbed a pickle from the plate and took a bite. “Yumm,” she said exaggerated to please Rick.
“Cassie?” he offered.
“No thanks, Rick. Maybe later,” Cassie replied.
“And I know better than to ask you Harley.”
“You sure do,” she said smiling as Rick and Mel headed to another table with the pickles.
Blake looked at Harley, “You really wanted a pickle, didn’t you?”
“Yes!” Harley said, “What is it with pickles when I’m pregnant?” she said quietly laughing.
“Must be one of those weird hormonal things,” Cassie said. “So, you haven’t told anyone yet?”
“No,” Harley replied, “we just want to wait a while. Get through the first trimester, then we’ll tell everyone.”
“Well, that makes sense,” Blake said.
“Okay, can we talk about something else, please?” Harley begged as Rick and Mel headed back to their table.
“So do you have to work tonight?” Gus asked Frank.
“Uh no. I got the whole day off. Do you guys?”
“No- we had yesterday and today off, but we’re on tomorrow morning. Not like there’s much to do. Just paperwork. Pretty uninteresting stuff,” Gus replied.
“Yeah, I think we need another murder to -,” Frank began, but stopped when he saw Gus stiffen in response. “Oh Gus, I’m sorry, I didn’t think.”
“That’s okay, Frank. Really. So what’s been going on with you? Any hot dates lately?”
Frank laughed, “Uh no.”
“Why not Frank? You’re a smart, good-looking, nice guy. I bet there are a ton of women out there would pay good money to spend some time with you.”
“I don’t know Gus. It’s just all so complicated. I mean with Marina, and Eleni…” he tried to explain.
“Eleni? Frank, what does Eleni have to do with this? You guys have been divorced for a long time.”
“I know. I just have a hard time imagining my life with anybody but her.”
“Well, I can understand that,” Gus said, “but don’t you think it’s time you take that leap? You know, take a deep breath and go up to a pretty lady and say, ‘Would you like to have dinner with me?’ It’s really not that difficult.”
“Well, I’ve done that. Once- and got turned down,” Frank said.
“You asked someone out? Who?”
Frank hesitated, then replied, “Beth.”
“Beth- As in Beth Raines?” Gus asked and Frank nodded his head. “You didn’t…tell Harley about this, did you?”
“What are you kidding me? No.”
“Yeah. I wouldn’t if I were you.”
“Oh believe me, I don’t plan on it. If you want me to ask women out, I need to actually be breathing.”
“It would be wrong of Harley to, I don’t know, maybe tell you that you shouldn’t date the person you want to, wouldn’t it?” Gus teased.
“Okay, how long are you going to hold that against me?” Frank asked.
“For as long as I can,” Gus replied, “Beth Raines…must have been pretty desperate, huh?”
Frank laughed, acting offended, “Thanks.”
Gus shrugged and walked away. He went and grabbed Harley’s hand and pulled her out of her chair, “Come here,” he said as he led her out of the backyard. Then went around to the bench by the kitchen door and sat down.
Harley leaned over and gave Gus a kiss, “What’s up?” she asked.
“I was thinking- I know we were going to ask Blake and Ross to come to the game with us, but what about Frank?” Gus asked.
“Then what do we do with the other ticket?” Harley asked.
“What about Cassie?”
Harley just looked at him for awhile. “You want to go to the game with Frank and Cassie? Why do I have a feeling you have an ulterior motive?”
“Well, you know it’s been a long time since Frank was on a date and Cassie certainly hasn’t been seeing anyone since Richard died, and they’re friends. I mean, why not? Let’s play matchmaker,” he said excitedly.
Harley hesitated, “I don’t know, Gus. Cassie’s still pretty touchy about that stuff.”
“Well, don’t tell her we’re setting them up, just tell her we had an extra ticket- which we do. And come on, who better to set your brother up with than your best friend?”
“I’ll talk to her,” Harley surrendered. “You know, that pretty sweet of you, trying to set up Frank like this.”
“Well that’s me. Mr. Sweetness,” Gus said as he took her face in his hands and kissed her deeply. “Are you feeling okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m feeling better.”
“Good,” Gus replied as he stood up and pulled her into his arms for a hug.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Hey Frank,” Harley said as they walked back into the backyard.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“We have an extra ticket for a Cubs game next week. You interested?”
“Sure, why not. As long as I’m not working,” he replied.
“Nah, we’ll make sure there aren’t any murders that need solved that day,” Gus said with a wink.
Harley looked around the backyard for Cassie and spotted her talking to Reva by the hot tub.
“Excuse me, hi Reva, Cassie, can I talk to you?” she asked.
“Sure,” Cassie said as she followed Harley away from the crowd, “What’s up?”
“Gus and I have an extra ticket for a Cubs game next week and we were wondering if you wanted to come.”
“And be the third wheel?” Cassie asked, “Thanks but no thanks.”
“You won’t be the third wheel. Frank’s going too.”
Cassie looked at Harley accusingly, “Harley Cooper Aitoro, are you trying to set me and Frank up?”
“No,” Harley said innocently, “we just have an extra ticket, and I know you like the Cubs, I figured I’d ask. But if you don’t want to go, that’s fine. I’m sure there are tons of people who would be glad to take a seat right behind home plate for free. We’ll ask someone else.”
“Wait- right behind home plate?” Cassie asked.
“Yeah.”
“How did you get those tickets?”
“Gus’s friend from Chicago, Jeff has season tickets and can’t go that night, so he gave them to Gus.”
“Maybe you should set me up with this Jeff guy,” Cassie teased.
“He’s married. With two kids. Hence the four seats. So is that a yes?”
“Yes, that’s a yes. Thanks,” Cassie replied.
“Sure. It’ll be fun. We’ll make a night of it. Dinner, the game, it’s fireworks night- and you get a free bobblehead! Plus a night with your best friend. Could you ask for anything more?”
Cassie shook her head, “This is why I love you,” she said as she put her arm around Harley’s shoulder and led her back into the yard.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:42:23 GMT -5
The next week at the Cubs game… ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Come on Frank, let’s get these ladies something to drink,” Gus said as he got up from his seat.
“Sure. Cassie, can I get you something?” Frank asked as he shuffled out of the row of seats past Cassie and Harley.
“A beer would be fine, thanks,” Cassie replied.
“Honey?” Gus asked Harley.
“Water,” she responded.
Harley waited until Gus and Frank were out of earshot, then turned to Cassie.
“So, this is fun, right?” she asked.
“It’s nice,” Cassie answered. “Look, Harley, I don’t know what you were expecting, but don’t get any ideas, okay? Frank and I are just friends.”
“I know, Cassie. I just thought you needed to get out, even if it is just with a friend. And who knows what could happen.”
“I know. Harley, nothing more is going to come out of this than two friends going to a ball game,”
“Okay. Just, don’t just push anything away without giving it a chance,” Harley urged, getting only silence from her friend. “Cassie, don’t you want someone? Someone who…”
“Someone who loves me and takes care of me and my kids the way that Gus does you? I had that Harley.,” Cassie interrupted.
“I know you did, sweetie, but Cassie, it’s been two years. Don’t you think Richard would want you to move on and find that again and be happy?”
“I am happy,” Cassie replied, unconvincingly.
“No you’re not. Not really,” Harley said, obviously concerned for her friend.
“Can we not talk about this anymore?” Cassie said quietly, trying to hold back tears.
“Yeah,” Harley replied and a tense silence came over the two, even with the noise of the stadium.
After a few minutes, Harley couldn’t stand the silence anymore.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized.
Cassie nodded, “I know you’re just trying to help, but I’m just not ready yet. When I am, you’ll be the first to know.”
“I better be,” Harley teased, bringing a smile to Cassie face.
“So, how are you doing?” Cassie asked, changing the subject.
“I’m tired,” Harley sighed. “You know, having three kids, a husband that sometimes requires more attention than the children and a full-time job, is hard enough” she said with a laugh, “Stick a baby in me and sometimes I wonder how I make it through the day.”
“But it’s all worth it, isn’t it?”
“Every bit of it,” she replied smiling broadly.
“So how is Gus handling all of this?” Cassie asked.
“He’s wonderful,” Harley replied, “he’s just been so great.”
“Yeah? Does he want to wait on you hand and foot?”
“Sometimes- and it drives me crazy sometimes, but other times, it’s just so nice to have someone to share it all with. I mean, when I was pregnant with Jude, I was pretty much all by myself. I spent the first half of the pregnancy hiding it from everybody and the second half running from Rick and everyone else. But this time…it’s just a million times better when you have someone else. And it’s so much fun watching Gus go through it all for the first time. You should have seen his face last week when we heard the heartbeat. It was this mixture of pride and love and awe all at the same time. He’s going to be such a good father.”
“Who’s gonna be a good father?” Frank asked as he and Gus returned.
Harley looked up at them, not knowing how to respond when she saw Gus with a tray of nachos along with her water and a beer for himself.
“What is this?” she asked as she took her bottle of water from him, “we just ate!”
“Well, I’m hungry,” Gus said defensively.
“You’re always hungry,” Harley teased as Frank scooted past her back to his seat.
“Who’s gonna be a good father?” he asked again.
“Umm..this guy on this soap opera Cassie got me hooked on,” Harley said quickly.
“You know women and their soaps,” Gus said.
“Tell me about it. Marina drives me crazy with her soaps and all those reality shows. What is it? Married by the Real World, or something like that?”
“Oh, I know! Tammy is the same way,” Cassie agreed as the two of them began a discussion on teenage television.
Harley leaned over and wrapped her arms around Gus’s neck, “I was talking about you, by the way.”
Gus looked at her, “you really think I’ll be a good dad?”
Harley nodded, “I really do,” she said as her lips met his in a long kiss.
A kick at the back of Harley’s seat caused her to pull away and turn around.
“Oh, I’m sorry!” a young woman said genuinely.
“No problem,” Harley replied and turned back to Gus. She reached over, grabbed a nacho, dipped it in some cheese and stuck it in her mouth.
Gus looked at her, “We just ate!” he mocked.
“Hey,” Harley replied, “I’m eating for two now, so just shut up!”
Frank and Cassie’s discussion had just turned to soap characters returning from the dead when Harley butted in.
“You know, Frank, for somebody who doesn’t watch soap, you sure do know a lot about them,” she teased.
Frank cleared his throat and took a big gulp of his beer, “Well, would you look at this? They have cup holder attached to the seats! How about that?” he said, obviously trying to change the subject, causing the other three to laugh.
The four spent the rest of the game laughing and cheering for the Cubs. By the middle of the 9th inning, it was obvious the Cubs were going to win, so Frank spoke up.
“Why do we get out of here and watch the fireworks from the parking lot so we don’t have to sit in traffic all night to get out of here?” he suggested.
Gus shrugged, “You’re driving,” he said as he stood up and stretched. He grabbed Harley’s hand and she, Cassie, and Frank followed him out to the concourse. The four of them made their way out of the stadium and by the time they had gotten to Frank’s SUV, the fireworks had started, so they stood and watched them. As the finale ended, Gus and Frank went to the driver’s side of the car and Cassie stopped Harley before she got in the backseat.
“I did have a good time tonight, Harley. Thank you,” she said as she gave Harley a quick hug.
“I’m glad,” Harley smiled as Cassie slid in the front seat and Harley joined Gus in the backseat.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:42:44 GMT -5
“Detectives,” Chief Franklin announced as he came out of his office, “How quickly can you two be on a plane?”
“What are you talking about?” Harley asked.
“I just got a call from an Agent Matthews from the FBI in DC. They have a homicide in Pennsylvania they want you two to investigate,” he explained.
“What does a homicide in Pennsylvania have to do with us?” Gus asked, confused.
“They think it might be the same guy that’s been on the murder spree around here. Same M.O.”
“He left a number at the scene?” Harley inquired.
“Yep. On a torn piece of paper. Agent Matthews wanted the two detectives who have been working on this case, and he was thrilled to hear that he would be working with Detective Aitoro and his partner. He spoke very highly of you, Aitoro,” Franklin replied.
“Agent Matthews?” Gus asked, searching his mind for a face, “Kevin Matthews?”
“That’s the one.”
“Who is that Gus?” Harley asked.
“We went to Georgetown together. Went through training together and got into the agency at the same time. We always ended up working on the same cases. He’s a nice guy, always was a great agent.” Gus explained.
“Yeah, well, now he’s the one calling the shots at Quantico. Working himself up a very nice pension,” Franklin said.
Only Harley noticed the changed look on Gus’s face as Franklin continued.
“He’s calling me back with some more information, but expect to be on a plane within the next few hours. Get some stuff ready and do what you have to do. I’ll call you when I know anything more,” he finished as he went back into his office.
“Let’s go pack and make arrangements for the boys,” Gus said as he got up from his desk.
“Okay, we will. But first you’re going to tell me what’s wong,” Harley said as she got up from her desk.
“What do you mean? Nothing’s wrong,” Gus said, avoiding her eyes.
“Liar,” she said. “I saw your face when Chief said that Matthews was the top dog in DC. You guys went to school together and now he’s running the show at the FBI and you’re stuck in a small town where the most action you usually get is a bar fight. You’re disappointed, or regretful, or I don’t know- something.”
“Coop, I’m not, okay. Listen to me. There isn’t any place in this world I would rather be then here with you and the kids, okay?” he replied as he opened her car door and kissed her before she got in. He went around to the driver’s side and slid in the car, met by Harley’s expectant look.
He sighed, “Okay, so it kind of makes me regret some things I did while I was in the FBI. You know like setting up Danny and all that…stuff. But never for a second have I ever regretted being exactly where I am right now.”
“Are you sure?” Harley asked.
“Positive,” Gus replied with a smile as he pulled out the parking lot.
Two hours later, Gus and Harley were on a plane to Reading, Pennsylvania to see what this homicide was all about. They had made arrangements for Zach and Jude to stay with Phillip and Rick for as long as they would be out of town.
“You think this is our guy?” Harley asked Gus as she looked out the window of the airplane.
“I don’t know, babe,” Gus replied, “this place is a long way from Springfield. It’s probably just another nut. But if the FBI calls, you go.”
“Yeah. It would be nice to catch this guy though. I’m sick of finding these dead women all over the place, killed for no reason.”
“I know,” Gus agreed as he held Harley’s hand and kissed her cheek as the pilot came over the loudspeaker announcing they would be landing soon. “If this isn’t our guy, we’ll get him. We’re the good guys, it’s our job.”
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:43:04 GMT -5
Gus and Harley were met at the airport by a student intern for the FBI. He drove them from the airport out into the middle of nowhere. After their IDs were checked by some FBI agent who looked bored out of his mind, they were clearded to enter the crime scene. The body had been found by an old man walking his dog in the woods. The killer was either not very smart or in a big hurry since the body was laid in the middle of a clearing and there was no obvious attempt to even cover it up.
The intern led Gus and Harley over to a tall, handsome man with dirty blonde hair and a tan that was too perfect to be natural.
“Agent Matthews, the detectives from Springfield are here,” he announced as they approached the man.
“Gus Aitoro, long time no see, buddy,” Matthews exclaimed as he reached for Gus’s hand and the two old friends hugged.
“Kevin, how you doing?” Gus asked.
“Doing good, man, doing good. And look at you- small town life agrees with you!”
“It sure does,” Gus agreed with a smile, “Kevin,” he continued as he turned back to Harley and grabbed her hand pulling her forward, “this Harley Cooper, my partner, and my wife.”
“Wife and partner? Is that allowed?” he asked teasingly.
“It’s a really small town,” Harley laughed, “It’s nice to meet you Agent Matthews.”
“It’s nice to meet you too, but please, call me Kevin. Gus, I didn’t know you were married. How long have you been married?”
“Three months,” Gus answered him.
“Well, that’s great! Congratulations,” he replied.
“Thanks, Kevin. So what do you have here for us?” Gus asked, getting to the matter at hand.
“Oh right. Well, we have a female, early thirties found stabbed and beaten,” he replied, suddenly serious.
“Where was she stabbed?” Harley asked.
“The chest. She had five wounds around her heart,” he answered.
Harley looked at Gus and nodded. All the other victims they had investigated had five stab wounds around the heart as well.
“Where is the body?” Harley asked, looking around.
“They had to take it to the morgue cause it’s so damn hot out here. Bodies don’t stay fresh in hundred degree weather.”
“No, I guess not. What about this paper with the number on it? Can we see that?” she wondered.
“Sure. It’s right here,” Matthews replied, producing a plastic baggie with a torn piece of paper in it.
Gus came over from where he was checking out the area the body was found in and looked at the paper with Harley. The paper was white with blue lines, and it looked as though it had been ripped from a page of a notebook. There were seven numbers written on the paper in what appeared to be black permanent marker.
Gus and Harley looked at the number.
473 8179
“This is weird. It all matches our guy- the stab wounds, five around the heart, the number in black marker on torn notebook paper, but our guy has always left five numbers, not seven. And our guy is smart. He takes the time to cover his tracks, this one didn’t.” Harley thought outloud.
Gus nodded in agreement, “I don’t think this is our guy, Coop. Look at this number. Three, then a space, then four? Looks like a phone number without the area code.”
“Yeah, it does. Can we get someone to check this as a phone number? Try the area codes around here first.” Harley asked Matthews.
“Yeah, I’ll get someone on that,” he replied as he handed the baggie off to a uniformed officer that was standing by, “you heard her.”
“Agent Matthews. Reading Chief on the line for you,” another officer said.
Matthews took the phone from the officer, “Matthews. Okay. Uh huh. Did you bring him in? Did he know? Yeah, we’ll be right there.”
Harley and Gus looked at him, waiting for an explanation as he got off the phone.
“The M.E. found two different bloods on the body. The victim’s and her husbands. They brought him in for questioning and he confessed right away. They charged him for the two murders, but thought you two would like to question him too. I doubt he’s your guy, but just in case, it couldn’t hurt,” he explained.
Gus nodded, “Yeah, we should do that.”
“Did you say two murders?” Harley asked.
“Oh yeah. That’s the other thing. The victim was pregnant.”
Harley’s face dropped and she walked over to where the body was found. She crouched over a blood stained patch of grass, touching her stomach.
“Did he know?” she asked, her voice wavering.
“Yeah,” Matthews answered solemnly.
Gus was watching Harley and responded with disgust, “He knew she was carrying her child and he killed her anyway?”
Matthews nodded, “We should get to the station,” he said as he headed towards the car that the intern brought them in.
Gus went over to where Harley was still crouched down. “Honey, come on,” he said as he ran his hand through her hair.
She reached for his hand and rose to her feet. They walked to the car in silence and slid into the backseat.
As Agent Matthews pulled out onto the main road, he saw in his rearview mirror Harley kiss Gus’s cheek and bury her head in the crook between his shoulder and his neck.
Gus looked down at Harley, surprised at her display of affection on the job.
“You’re so good to me,” she said quietly.
Gus lifted her chin with his finger, leaned his forehead against hers and let out a heavy sigh. “I love you,” he said as his hand instinctively went to her stomach.
Harley placed her hand over his and ignoring the two men in the front seat, kissed him, realizing, possibly more than ever, how lucky she was to have him in her life.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:43:24 GMT -5
When they got to the Reading Police Station, the Chief led them into the interrogation room and brought in the man who had confessed to the murder of his wife and unborn child. Gus wanted to rough him up, ask him why he would do such a thing, but that wasn’t their territory. They were there to question him about the murders that had happened around Springfield and nothing more. Gus was fuming and impatient, while Harley was quiet and subdued, but somehow they got through their questioning. They concluded that he wasn’t responsible for the murders they were investigating. They walked out of the interrogation room frustrated and explained to the Chief and Matthews that this wasn’t their guy. Matthews wrapped up the FBI’s end of the case and invited Gus and Harley to dinner.
“We got a lot of catching up to do buddy,” he urged Gus, who was hesitant to stay, assuming Harley wanted to get home as soon as possible.
Harley noticed Gus’s hesitation and answered for him, “Gus, we can get a later flight. Kevin’s right, you have a lot of catching up to do.” She turned to Kevin, “We would love to join you for dinner, thank you.”
Gus nodded that they would stay and Kevin went to ask where a good place to eat was.
Gus turned to Harley, “Honey, don’t you want to get back home?”
“Gus, I’m sure the boys are fine, and you haven’t seen him for a long time. You should get to spend some time with him. We can get a later flight.”
He smiled at her, “thank you,” he said as Kevin came back.
“You guys ready?” he asked and they nodded in response and the three of them left the station.
The Chief had suggested a small, family-owned Italian restaurant in town, so they decided to try that out. The small restaurant was pretty busy, but the hostess quickly showed them to a booth along a side wall. Gus slid in next to Harley and Kevin sat across from them. The hostess offered them wine, but they all declined since they were technically still on duty.
After they had given the waitress their orders, Kevin surprised them with what he said next.
“Ummm, excuse me for being frank, but you know, I’m observant, I have to be, it’s in my job description,” he said with a laugh. “When I told you that the victim was pregnant, I don’t know, you two had a moment or something. Is it safe to assume there’s a little one on the way?”
Gus and Harley looked at each other in shock and Gus answered, “We didn’t think it was so obvious, but yeah, Harley’s pregnant.”
“Oh well, you don’t look pregnant, that’s not what I meant. I just pick up on little things like that. But hey, congratulations! When are you due?
“January,” Harley answered.
“January? Damn, you two didn’t waste any time, did you?” he teased.
They all laughed and Harley excused herself, “Speaking of time. I’m going to call the airport and see when we can get a flight and call home and check on the boys. Excuse me,” she said as Gus got up to let her out of the booth.
“Boys?” Kevin asked as Harley walked out to the lobby of the restaurant. “You have other kids?”
“No. Well, Harley does, but they’re not mine, technically,” Gus replied as he dug into his back pocket for his wallet. He produced pictures of Susan, Zach, and Jude.
He pushed the picture of Susan towards the middle of the table, “This is Susan, she’s 18, this is her senior picture.”
“She’s beautiful,” Kevin responded.
“Yeah, she is. She looks just like Harley. She acts like her too. Which is not necessarily always a good thing,” he teased.
“And this is Zach. He’s 4 and the little one is Jude. He will be two soon. I actually delivered Jude,” Gus continued.
Kevin looked at him confused, “But he’s not yours?”
Gus laughed, “No, well, it’s a long story. Harley and I didn’t get together until Jude was a few months old.”
“Well, they look like great kids, Gus. But I gotta say, this whole, small-town, perfect husband and stepfather thing surprises me. I never thought you’d be the kind of guy to settle down,” Kevin said.
“Well, neither did I. Before I came to Springfield, my life was just a mess. I had no one. All I had was my job, and that doesn’t keep you warm on those lonely nights, you know? Meeting Harley was the best thing that ever happened to me. She is my life, her and her kids and now this baby. They are everything I have always wanted, but didn’t know I wanted it, you know? They just make life worth living,” he gushed. “Sounds really corny, huh?”
“Kinda. But you seem very happy. I’m happy for you,” Kevin said. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Harley looked around for a payphone and when she found it, she flipped the phone book open to a page with a map of Reading and the surrounding area. With her finger, she searched the map and finally found what she was looking for.
“Aha! I knew it!” she said to herself as she searched the white pages for the phone number. She wrote the number in her trusty little notepad and then looked up the number for the airport. She called and booked two seats for a flight back to Springfield for the next afternoon and rented a car for them to pick up later that night.
She took out the number she had jotted down and called and made the arrangements she wanted, then she called Company and Marina answered on the second ring.
“Marina? Hey, it’s Harley, is your dad there?”
“Yeah, hold on…”
“What’s up, sis?” Frank’s voice came on the other end.
“Hey Frank. Listen, the boys are staying with Rick tonight, and Gus and I aren’t going to be back until tomorrow afternoon sometime. So, I’m going to tell Rick that he can call you if he needs to drop off the boys before we get home, is that okay?”
“Yeah, sure, that’s fine. What happened with that case? Was it your guy?”
“No. It was just some guy who killed his wife. We questioned him, but that’s about it. We’re actually at dinner right now with an old friend of Gus’s and I kinda have a surprise for Gus, so that’s why we won’t be back until tomorrow,” she explained.
“Enough said. That’s fine, I can take the boys if Rick needs me to.”
“Thanks Frank,” Harley said, “I’ll call you tomorrow before we leave.”
Harley made her fourth and final call to the Bauer’s to check on Zach and Jude. Of course, Rick had them out, but Mel said they were fine and she was sure Rick would love to keep them for the day tomorrow too. Harley thanked her and told her to give the boys kisses for her. Then she hung up and went back to the table.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
When Harley came back to the table, Kevin was filling Gus in on what he had been doing since the last time they saw each other.
“Hey,” Gus said as he got up and let Harley slide into the booth, “how are the boys?”
“Rick is out spoiling them. They’re fine,” she answered and saw the pictures on the table, “I see Gus was showing them off.”
“Yeah, he was. They’re beautiful kids,” Kevin replied.
“Thank you,” Harley said as the waitress brought their food, and the three of them ate their meals, talking and laughing the whole time.
By the time they finished their meals and got dessert, it was almost nine o’clock. As the waitress brought the bill and Gus and Kevin fought over who was going to pay, Kevin’s beeper went off and he pulled the bill away.
He called the waitress over and handed her a credit card, “It’s on the Bureau,” he said to Gus as he looked down at his beeper.
“Shoot, I have to go. They’re ready to head back to Washington and they’re waiting for me, I’m sure. It was so nice to meet you Harley, and it was really nice seeing you again, Gus. We’ll have to get together more often,” he said as he shook Harley’s hand and gave Gus a quick hug. “Oh, do you two need a ride to the airport or anything?”
Harley shook her head, “Nope, it’s all taken care of, thank you.”
Gus looked at her suspiciously and shook Kevin’s hand once more before he left the restaurant in a hurry.
He sat back down beside Harley, “What’s all taken care of?”
“Well, we need to get a taxi to the airport to pick up a car, and then I have a little surprise for you,” she said, teasing him with a kiss.
“Oh really? Well then, let’s go get a cab,” he said he took her hand and they left the restaurant.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:43:41 GMT -5
“So are you going to tell me where you’re taking me?” Gus asked as he tucked a few strands of hair behind Harley’s ear as she came top a stop at a red light.
Harley looked at him and shook her head, teasing him. He leaned over and kissed the spot right behind her ear that always made her go weak in the knees, hoping to persuade her to spill.
“Nope. That is not going to work this time. It’s a surprise! So why don’t you just sit back and relax,” she said smiling at him.
“Okay, okay, I give up,” he said as he raised his hands in surrender and sat back in his seat.
Harley drove through the night, looking like she knew exactly where she was going and Gus didn’t ask where they were going again.
After 45 minutes, Harley pulled off onto the side of the road and pulled Gus’s tie from around his neck.
“What are you doing?” he asked, confused.
“Just trust me,” she said as she put the tie around his head like a blindfold.
“You’re just full of surprises, aren’t you?” he said as she pulled the tie tighter and placed a kiss on his lips.
She pulled back out onto the road and drove a few more miles. She pulled into a parking lot and shut off the car. She turned to Gus, “I will be right back. Don’t you dare peek. I’m serious. Stay here,” she said as she got out of the car.
After a few moments Gus went to lift up the blindfold but changed his mind, “Nah, let her have her fun,” he said as he sat back in his seat.
Harley rushed into the lobby of the motel that Gus had surprised her with 2 years ago when they came to Pennsylvania to investigate Tory Grainger. The night Gus had planned got ruined then but Harley was going to make sure she made up for it this time. She got the key to the room she had reserved and rushed back out to the car.
She opened the door to the backseat and grabbed the bag they brought with clothes for the next day and then pulled Gus out of the front seat.
“Did you peek?” she asked.
“Nope.”
“Good. Come with me,” she said as she took his hand and went back into the motel. They got some funny looks from the front desk clerk, but they finally reached the door of their room. Harley opened it, threw their bag in, and led Gus into the room.
She reached up and untied the blindfold and pulled it away from Gus’s face. He rubbed his eyes and opened them to see what Harley had done.
He opened them to reveal a room much like the one they set on fire a few years earlier. There was a fire going in the fireplace and candles and flowers scattered around the room. He looked at Harley who was smiling.
“Look familiar?” she asked.
“Of course it does. Did you plan this? Is this why we couldn’t get a flight until tomorrow?”
“Well, you went to so much trouble last time we were here and it didn’t work out, so I thought maybe this time we could finish what we started. Preferably without setting the room on fire,” she laughed.
“Yeah, that would be good. We’ll have to be more careful this time,” he said as he pulled her into his body and kissed her deeply. “This is perfect, except for one thing.”
Harley looked around, “What?”
“We need some music to dance to,” he answered as he went over to the small stereo that was on the nightstand and looked for a good station. He caught the end of a Norah Jones song and knew it would be a good station to dance to.
He took off his suit jacket and laid it gently over a chair, keeping it far away from the fire. Harley laughed as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. He pulled her closer as a new song came on the radio and they danced like they had more than 2 years earlier on “Serial Killer Highway”.
I am amazed, when I look at you And see you smiling back at me, it's like all my dreams come true I am afraid, if I lost you girl To fall through the cracks and lose my track in this crazy lonely world
Sometimes it's so hard to believe, when the nights can be so long And faith gave me the strength and kept me going on
You are the love of my life, and I'm so glad you found me You are the love of my life, baby put your arms around me I guess this is how it feels when you finally find something real My angel in the night you are my love, the love of my life.
Harley ubutttoned Gus’s shirt and let it fall to the ground as he kissed her neck. His breath quickened as she slid two fingers into the waistband of his pants and went on to unbuckled his belt and unbutton his pants. He let her pull down the zipper and stepped out his pants as his hands went to work on her shirt. He unbuttoned each button of her shirt, letting his fingers tease her skin with each new exposure. He pushed the unbuttoned shirt off of her shoulders and kissed the soft skin of her chest as he quickly got rid of her bra. He knelt down to help her out of her pants and he looked up at her and smiled.
“What?” she asked quietly.
“You have a little belly. Where did that come from?”
She laughed, “It just popped up out of nowhere,” she said as he slid her pants down her legs followed by her bikini underwear. She stepped away from the pile of close and he took her into his arms again.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered in her ear as they moved closer to the bed and he laid her down gently and climbed on top of her.
This time, the only fire that was out of control was the one between them as they made love, making up for the last time.
Now here you are, midnight closing in You take my hand as our shadows dance with moonlight on your skin I look in your eyes, I'm lost inside your kiss I think if I'd never met you about all the things I'd miss
Sometimes it's so hard to believe, when love can be so strong And faith gave me the strength and kept me holding on
You are the love of my life, and I'm so glad you found me You are the love of my life, baby put your arms around me I guess this is how it feels when you finally find something real My angel in the night you are my love My angel in the night you are my love, The love of my life.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:43:59 GMT -5
“Aitoro,” Gus answered his phone after digging through a pile of stuff on the passanger seat.
“Gus. Where are you?” Harley asked.
“Honey, I’m sorry! This witness took longer than I expected. I am on my way, I’ll be there in 5 minutes. I promise.”
“You better be!” she warned as she hung up her cell phone.
“Harley? Can we get started? Is Gus coming?” Dr. Sedgwick asked.
“Uh, yeah, he’s on his way, but we don’t have to wait for him. I know you’re busy.”
Dr. Sedgwick nodded and they went ahead with all the routine check up stuff. An image just popped up on the sonogram screen when a knock came at the door.
“Come in,” Dr. Sedgwick called out as Gus poked his head in the room.
“Hi,” he said as he came into the room and shut the door. “Sorry I’m late. Hi, honey,” he said as he gave her a quick kiss, “did I miss anything?”
“Nope, you’re just in time for the good part,” Harley replied as she took his hand and they watched the sonogram together.
“Harley told me you were planning on telling the family tonight and I thought the boys would like to see a picture of their new little brother or sister,” Dr. Sedgwick said.
“Oh, they’ll love that,” Gus said, “I’ll love that,” he added, laughing.
“Harley, everything looks great. He’s got a strong heartbeat and looks perfect.”
“He?” Gus asked.
“Well, we can’t tell yet. That’s just a habit I’ve gotten into. And it sounds better than ‘it’.” Dr. Sedgwick explained.
“Oh.”
“We won’t be able to tell the sex of the baby for another few months, if you decide you want to know.”
“We’ll have to talk about that,” Harley added.
Dr. Sedgwick smiled, “Other than that, how are you feeling? Any problems?”
Harley shook her head, “Nope. Not at all. The morning sickness is finally gone. I’m a little tired, but other than that I feel great.”
“Well, you have three kids, you should be tired. Just take it easy. Let Dad here help you out.”
“Listen to her. She knows what she’s talking about,” Gus said.
Harley nodded, “I will.” ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Hey dad. Where’s Frank?” Harley asked as she and Gus walked into Company.
“Oh, he called and said he was gonna be a little late and not to eat without him. He said he’ll be here in about a half an hour.” Buzz answered.
“Oh, okay,” Harley said as she and Gus sat in some stools at the bar.
“So, do you think they’ll be happy?” Gus asked.
“Absolutely!” Harley replied. “They’ll love having another little one to spoil rotten.”
Gus smiled, “Good.”
Harley looked at her watch, “I’m going to run to the bank before Frank gets here.”
“Why? The banks are closed. Can’t it wait until tomorrow?” Gus asked.
“Well, yeah it could, but it’s a huge check from Phillip to put in Zach’s account and I don’t want to carry it around any longer than I absolutely have to. I’ll be back before Frank gets here,” she explained as she got off the stool and gave him a quick kiss goodbye.
“Alright,” he said, “I’ll be here waiting for you.”
Harley walked out the door as Buzz came out of the kitchen.
“Where’s Harley?” he asked.
“Oh, she went to the bank. She’ll be right back,” Gus replied.
A few minutes later, Company’s phone rang and Marina answered it.
“Ben Reade! Where are you? You were supposed to be here twenty minutes ago!” she exclaimed into the receiver.
“I know, I know. Look, I have to run to the bank first and get some cash, okay? I’ll be there soon,” Ben explained.
“Yeah, well, you better hurry up or the movie will be sold out,” she said as she loudly hung up the phone.
“Trouble in paradise?” Gus teased.
“No,” Marina huffed, “Ben just had to go to the bank.”
“Hmm. Small world, Harley had to go to the bank too,” Gus mused as Frank walked in.
“Alright. I’m here. What’s going on?” Frank asked.
“Well, now we have to wait for Harley. She should be back by now. I wonder what’s taking so long,” Gus said as he looked at his watch.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Harley dug in her purse looking for the check as she approached the ATM. When she pulled out the check, her sunglasses came out with it and fell on the ground. She bent down to get them and when she stood back up, she felt something sharp in her back.
“Keep your mouth shut and give me your purse,” a husky voice whispered in her ear.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:44:39 GMT -5
Harley gasped as she tried to think of what to do next. She slid her purse off her shoulder and handed it to the man.
He kept the gun in the small of her back, “Here,” he said as he handed her her wallet, “get your card out. We’re gonna make a little withdrawal.”
Harley searched her wallet with shaky hands looking for her ATM card. She found it and showed it to the man. He pushed her forward to the machine.
“Do it,” he said, pushing the gun deeper into her back, causing her to cry out in pain.
“Shut up!” he said angrily, but quietly, trying not to create a huge scene in case someone drove by.
There was no way Harley was going to stand there and let this guy hurt her. She was a cop, she could defend herself with the best of them. But the gun was still in her back and she didn’t want to take the chance of it going off if she startled him.
As she stuck the card in the machine, she tried to think of a way to get his hand holding the gun away from her body. As she went to enter her PIN number, she made her hands shake uncontrollably.
“I..I can’t hit the numbers,” she said, her voice shaking like her hands.
“Well, you better, or you’re going to die.”
“I’ll tell you the numbers, but my hands are shaking too bad to do it myself,” she said.
The man let out a frustrated and impatient sigh, “Fine,” he said as he pulled the gun away from her back and used that hand to punch the numbers that Harley told him.
“Seven…three…FOUR!” she yelled as she drove her elbow into his stomach.
“Ummph,” he exclaimed as the gun flew out of his hand and into a nearby bush.
“That was really stupid, lady,” he said as he grabbed Harley and threw her up against the brick wall.
Harley kicked him and tried to run, but he grabbed her and the two struggled for a while. He threw Harley back against the wall, the front of her slammed into it, cutting her cheek leaving blood running down it.
He threw her down on the ground and started kicking her. Harley covered her stomach with her arms and tried to roll so he was kicking her back instead of her stomach.
He stood over her and leaned down, pulling her head off the ground.
“You’re not very smart, are you?” he asked angrily.
Hrley brought her leg up as fast and hard as she could, her knee hitting his crotch.
He doubled over for a second, but never let go off her head. She yelled at the top of her lungs hoping someone would hear her and he bashed her head on the cement, knocking her out.
“Hey!” Ben Reade yelled as he rushed towards the man that was bashing a blonde’s head on the ground.
By the time the man turned and looked to see who was yelling, Ben had knocked him out with a right hook. He looked down at the woman on the ground as he pulled his cell phone out.
“Oh my God, Harley!”
He called 911 and was told an ambulance was on its way.
Ben tried to see where Harley was hurt, but all he saw were the cuts on her cheek and a puddle of blood under her head. He didn’t want to move her, so he checked her pulse and hoped the ambulance got there quickly. He kept an eye on the guy he knocked out and hoped he wouldn’t wake up before the police got there. He checked her pulse again as he heard the sirens down the street .
“Alright, Harley, it’s gonna be okay. Everything’s going to be okay.”
An ambulance and a police car pulled up and soon Harley was on a gurney and the man had come to and was shoved into the back of the police car. The ambulance sped away and Ben grabbed Harley’s purse off the ground before rushing back to his car.
He broke every law getting to the hospital, instead of going to the hospital, he pulled into the parking lot across the street and ran into Company.
“Gus!” he yelled when he saw him.
“Ben, what’s wrong?” Marina asked.
“It’s Harley. She’s at the hospital,” he answered.
“What? What are you talking about?” Gus asked worriedly.
“Some guy beat her up at the bank-“
“Oh my God,” Gus exclaimed as he ran out of Company with Buzz and Frank close behind.
Ben explained what happened to Marina and they got Lynn to watch the restaurant while they ran over to Cedars too.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:45:31 GMT -5
Gus, Buzz and Frank burst into Cedars as Harey was being rushed into the ER.
“Harley!” Gus exclaimed, running after her, but Rick stopped him before he could get through the swinging doors.
“Gus, you can’t go there. You have to stay here. We’ll take care of her,” he assured him.
“Rick, she’s …she’s pregnant,” Gus said, panicked.
“She’s preg-? How far along is she?” Rick asked.
“14 weeks.”
Rick flew into the room they were working on Harley in, “Get a fetal monitor on her. She’s 14 weeks pregnant,” he yelled to the nurses and doctors working on her.
Buzz and Frank looked at each other in shock as Gus stood at the window watching Mel check out Harley through the blinds.
“Ben, what happened?” he asked as he turned from the window.
Ben told them what he knew as Susan flew into the hospital.
“Gus! Marina called me. Where is she?” she asked worriedly.
“Rick and Mel are working on her. She’s gonna be okay, Susan. She has to be,” he said, his eyes filling with tears as he hugged Susan.
Buzz looked at Gus, “She’s pregnant?” he asked quietly, causing Susan to look up at Gus.
Gus nodded, “We were going to tell you all tonight,” he replied as Rick came out of the room.
He turned toward him, “How is she?”
“She’s stable, but she’s unconscious. I don’t think there’s any swelling or bleeding in the brain, but we have to watch her very closely. She’s not out of the woods yet, though,” he answered.
“And the baby?”
“We have a very strong heartbeat. Everything looks good, but we’re having Margaret Sedgwick come in and look at her. I assume she’s Harley’s doctor?”
Gus nodded.
“Okay. Well, the baby looks fine. Right now, Harley’s the one we need to keep a close eye on.”
“Yeah, but she’s gonna be okay, right?” Buzz asked.
“Rick. Tell me she’s gonna be okay,” Gus pleaded.
“If there’s no swelling of the brain, she’ll wake up with a headache…” Rick began, but trailed off.
“And if there is?” Frank asked.
Rick hesitated, “Well, let’s just hope there isn’t.”
Gus fell into the nearest chair and put his head in his hands.
“When can we see her, Rick?” Frank asked.
“I can only let one of you in for now,” he replied.
Buzz looked at Frank then put his hand on Gus’s shoulder. Gus looked up at him.
“Get in there. She needs something to fight for. She always fought for you,” Buzz said.
Gus rose to his feet, “Thank you,” he said quietly then followed Rick into the room.
Rick pulled a chair over next to the bed for Gus and he sat down. He took Harley’s hand, brought it up to his mouth and kissed it.
“Hey baby,” he said, “Can she hear me?” he asked Rick.
“Maybe. Talking to her can’t hurt,” he answered. “Where are they boys?”
“Cassie is watching them. I should call...” he said as he started getting up.
Rick put a hand on his shoulder to stop him, “I’ll call her. Stay here. If you need anything or if she wakes up, press this button. This is her heartbeat. And here’s the baby’s,” he explained pointing to the monitors.
Gus touched the screen that showed the baby’s heartbeat, “It’s so fast,” he thought outloud.
“Fast is good, Gus. It’s strong,” Rick responded.
“Yeah? Takes after Harley.”
“And you too,” Rick said.
“I don’t feel so strong right now…”
Rick nodded, “I’ll be out there if you need me.”
“Thanks Rick,” Gus replied never taking his eyes off of Harley.
“Did you hear that honey? The baby’s strong. He’s going to be fine. So you have to come back to us, okay? I need to see those beautiful green eyes of yours. Can you open them for me?” he asked, getting no response.
“Okay, baby,” he said as he stroked her hair, “that’s okay. It’s been a rough day, huh? I know…you just sleep. And I’ll be here when you wake up,” he continued as he bent down and kissed her forehead.
Her left cheek was all scratched up and the area around her left eye was beginning to turn black and blue.
“God, what did he do to you, Coop?” he asked as he ran his fingers over her cuts and tears that had filled his eyes finally fell down his cheeks.
“Gus?” Susan asked quietly, peeking in the door.
Gus wiped his eyes, “Hey. Come here.”
“Is she okay?”
“Yeah, I mean, she’s not awake yet, but she’s gonna be fine. She’s a fighter, right?”
Susan nodded as she looked at all the machines Harley was hooked up to, “Is this her heartbeat?” she asked.
“Yeah. And that’s the baby’s,” Gus replied.
“I can’t believe she’s pregnant. Again,” she said causing Gus to let out a light laugh.
“I’m sorry you had to find out this way, Susan,” Gus apologized.
“That’s okay. I’m happy for you guys. And I can’t wait to have another little brother or sister,” she said happily, considering the circumstances.
Gus smiled at her as Rick came back into the room. He handed a small envelope to Gus.
“Here’s her jewelry,” he said as Gus poured the contents into his hand.
He gave the necklace to Susan, who put it around her neck so she wouldn’t lose it. He picked up the ring that used to be Angela’s and placed it back on Harley’s right ring finger, where she had worn it since he gave her their engangement-for-real ring. He slipped her diamond on her left ring finger, followed by the wedding band that had ‘Gus loves Harley’ engraved on the inside and kissed the rings.
“When is she going to wake up, Rick?” Susan asked.
“I don’t know, Susan. We just have to wait.”
Susan started to cry and Gus quickly got up and wiped the tears from her cheeks.
“She’s going to be fine,” he said, trying to calm her down, “We need to keep thinking that. That’s what she needs right now. She needs some good vibes from her family, okay?”
Susan nodded and hugged him, then let Rick lead her back out into the waiting area.
Gus sighed and fell back into his chair after Susan left the room. He wiped her tears away, but there was no one who could wipe his. Only Harley would be able to do that. So he laid his head down on the bed beside her and let his tears fall onto her pillow.
The evening slowly turned into a long night for the Cooper family. Buzz tried to convince Marina and Frank to go home and get some sleep, but they both refused to go anywhere until Harley was awake. Susan sat in a chair with her knees to her chest all night, dosing off for only a few minutes at a time.
Harley’s condition remained through the night and for most of the next day. Gus was insistent on not leaving Harley’s side until Rick convinced him to go get some coffee and food at the cafeteria.
“I’ll be right back, baby,” he said as Rick practically pushed him out of the room. Buzz went in and sat by her bedside in his place.
Gus stopped on his way to the cafeteria to call Cassie and check on the boys.
“They’re fine, Gus. Don’t worry about them, just concentrate on Harley, okay?” Cassie assured him.
“Thanks, Cassie,” he said.
“Gus, Zach wants to talk to you,” she told him.
Gus sighed and bit his lip, “Put him on.”
“Hi, Gus!” Zach’s little voice came on the phone.
“Hey, buddy, how you doing? You having fun playing with RJ?” Gus asked cheerfully.
“Uh huh! Guess what we did?”
“What did you do?”
“We went to the beach and we built a big castle out of sand!” he exclaimed proudly.
“You did? Wow. I bet it looked great!” Gus played along.
“Yeah. Gus, where’s Mommy?” Zach asked.
Gus’s eyes teared up again as he tried to think of what to say to the boy.
“Uh, mommy’s not feeling too well right now, Zach. But Uncle Rick and Aunt Mel are trying to make her all better. So you’re going to stay with Cassie for a little bit longer, but Daddy’s going to come pick you up and you’re going to spend the night with him, okay?”
“Okay, Gus,” Zach responded.
“Alright, good boy. Go ahead and have fun okay? Put Cassie back on.”
“Hey,” Cassie said.
“Phillip is going to come pick him up in like an hour. And Ed’s going to pick up Jude. Thank you so much for watching them, Cassie.”
“Gus, it was no problem. Go back to Harley. And give her a kiss from me, okay?”
“I will. Thanks,” he said as he hung up and went down to the cafeteria.
He grabbed a big cup of coffee and a candy bar and headed back up to Harley’s room.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:46:06 GMT -5
“Any change?” Gus asked Buzz as he reentered Harley’s room and stood at the foot of her bed.
Buzz shook his head, “No. She’s so pale,” he said sadly.
“You hear that, baby? Your dad says you’re too pale. So I’ll tell you what. You wake up and I’ll take you on a long vacation to the beach so you can get a nice tan, okay?” he said, playing with her toes through the covers. He remembered what he told Alexandra Spaulding the first day he met her when she asked if he loved Harley.
I love her. I love everything about her. I love her hair, her toes, her eyes…
He did love her toes. He loved how they were always perfectly polished, even though he never saw her polishing them. They just were. He asked her one day why she always had her toenails painted, but she just rolled her eyes at him. Blake was the one who answered his question, “So they look beautiful in all those killer shoes she has.”
Gus smiled at the memory and barely realized that Buzz was talking to him.
“When is she due?” Buzz asked.
“The end of January,” he replied.
“You’ve known for awhile…”
“Yeah, well we wanted to wait awhile before we told anybody just in case something went wrong. Well, Cassie and Blake know, but that’s it,” Gus responded.
“They knew before we did?”
“Don’t feel bad. They knew before I did too. You should have seen her face, Buzz, when Dr. Sedgwick told us she was pregnant. You know how they say pregnant women have that glow? She definitely does. She just lit up.”
“She loves her babies. I’m going to go check on Susan,” Buzz said as he got up, pat Gus on the back and left the room.
“Honey, I just talked to Zach. He was telling me how Cassie took them to the beach and they built a big sandcastle. He was so proud of himself,” Gus told her, “He asked where you were. I didn’t know what to tell him, you know. I told him that you weren’t feeling too well, but Uncle Rick and Aunt Mel were taking care of you and he would see you soon. So you have to wake up and see your babies, cause you know Phillip will freak if he finds out I lied to Zach,” he added with a slight laugh.
He sighed and leaned over to place a soft kiss on her lips, “I love you, Harley.”
He took her hand in his and dropped his head into his chest, closing his eyes.
He stayed in that position for a few minutes and didn’t move until he felt Harley’s fingers squeeze his. He quickly looked up at her and saw her eyes struggling to open.
“Hey!” he said quietly as her eyes finally opened.
“Gus…” she whispered.
“Hey beautiful,” he said as he kissed her hand, “God, it is so good to see those beautiful eyes. I’m gonna go get Rick, okay?”
He got up and rushed into the waiting area, “Rick! She’s awake,” he said causing Buzz, Frank, Susan and Marina to all jump up and head towards the room.
“Wait a second,” Rick stopped them, “Let me check her out,” he said as he followed Gus back into the room.
“Hey Sleeping Beauty. Did you have a nice nap? How are you feeling?” he asked her.
“Thirsty...”
Rick looked at Gus and nodded that he could get her some water. Gus poured some from the pitcher a nurse had brought in for him, put a straw in the cup and helped Harley take a few sips.
Rick checked her pupils and looked at the back of her head where she had a big gash covered in stitches.
“Owww!” she said as he lowered her head back to her pillow.
“Does your head hurt?” he asked, “It should. You have a nice big bump back there. I’ll get you something for the pain. Does anything else hurt? Your back, your neck?”
“No,” Harley answered, “What about the baby?” she asked, suddenly panicked.
Gus smoothed her hair, “The baby’s fine, honey. He’s doing good. Look,” he said pointing to the baby’s heartbeat.
Harley smiled and winced at the pain that small movement caused.
“Harley, I know you’re tired, and you probably want to go back to sleep, but there’s a waiting room full of people out there who want to see you. Can I send them in?” Rick asked.
Harley nodded, then looked towards Gus as Rick left the room, “Are the boys here?” she asked him.
“No, Cassie still has them,” he answered as Harley’s family filled the room.
“Hey kiddo!” Buzz said happily and he leaned down and kissed Harley’s good cheek.
Gus moved away from the bed and made room for Frank next to her.
“Gus, where are you going?” she asked as he headed towards the door.
“I’m just gonna go call Cassie. I’ll be right back,” he assured her.
Rick followed him out of the room, “Gus,” he said, “Listen, I just wanted to tell you that everything looks good. She’s awake, she’s coherent. She’s like normal, but a little scratched up. But I’d like to keep her here for a few days to be sure.”
“Yeah, absolutely,” Gus replied. “I’m just so glad she’s okay,” he sighed.
“Me too. You better hurry up, those crazy people in there will be driving her nuts in a matter of minutes falling all over with worry,” he teased causing Gus to laugh.
“Thanks Rick, for everything.”
“Anytime,” he replied, “and when I say anytime, I mean I am never doing this again, okay?” he finished as he walked away.
“You promise?” Gus asked, getting only a wave from Rick as he went back into Harley’s room.
Gus called Cassie and told her the good news and made sure the boys were okay, then slipped quietly back into Harley’s room and stood by the door. She was sitting up in her bed, surrounded by her dad, brother, daughter and niece. Gus looked up, speaking to whoever brought her back safe to him.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Harley looked at Rick in desperation, his cue to kick them out.
“Okay, guys. Why don’t we let Harley get her rest,” Rick said as he shooed them out of the room.
“Alright, sis, we’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” Frank said as they left.
“Do you want me to stay?” Susan asked.
“No, sweetie, go home and get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Harley replied.
“Okay,” Susan said as he kissed her mother, then left the room.
Gus smiled at Harley and sat down next to her bed.
“You’re not going anywhere, are you?” she asked him.
“Not a chance,” he said, “but I have to do something. I’ll be right back,” he finished as he rushed out of the room.
“Ben!” he said, catching them before they got out the door.
“I just wanted to thank you. If you hadn’t been there when you were…”
“You’re welcome, Gus. I’m just glad she’s okay,” Ben replied.
Gus reached out his hand and Ben shook it, “Thank you,” he said again, then went back into Harley’s room.
“So, do you feel okay? I mean really? Don’t act all tough.”
“Just my head,” she answered.
“Do you remember what happened?” Gus asked her.
“Yeah. He came up behind me with a gun and wanted me to get all my money out of the machine. And stupid me had to put up a fight. I don’t remember much after that. We struggled a lot and I ended up on the ground. Then he knocked me out I guess.”
“He had a gun?” Gus asked, not remembering Ben or the cops who arrived on the scene saying anything about a gun.
“Yeah, I think it got knocked out of his hand, somehow.”
“Okay. Well, someone saw him knock you out. Ben had to go to the bank too, and he saw you. And he punched the guy out and called 911,” Gus explained.
Harley closed her eyes and starting crying, “I’m so stupid, why did I have to fight with him? I just made him madder.”
“Shhh...” Gus comforted, “stop it. You’re fine now, okay. That’s all that matters.”
He gently kissed the tears away from Harley’s face. Harley reached up and stroked his stubbly cheeks.
“You look like hell,” she said.
He laughed, “Yeah, well, so do you,” he teased.
“When was the last time you slept?” she asked.
“The last time I laid in bed with you.”
“How about you get in here now?” she said, scooting down on the bed.
“Okay,” he said as he crawled into the small bed with her.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.
“Aitoro,” she said, “you stink!”
“Tough,” he replied and kissed her deeply.
She winced in pain and he apologized and kissed her face with many soft kisses.
“Hey, you two. No hanky panky on my watch,” Rick teased when he entered the room. “I just wanted to see if you needed anything. I know you probably just want to sleep.”
“I have everything I need,” she said as she snuggled into Gus’s chest, “thanks Rick.”
Gus kissed the top of her head and held her close as she fell asleep, safe and sound in his arms.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:49:36 GMT -5
Gus woke up early the next morning, with Harley’s head laying on his chest. He had a cramp in his neck and tried to move to relieve the pain without disturbing Harley. He shifted, causing her to stir, but she soon relaxed again into his chest. He was so tired the night before that he fell asleep as soon as Harley did. He didn’t even have a chance to enjoy holding her in his arms again. She was only unconscious for a day, but to him it seemed like a lifetime. He couldn’t bear to imagine what his life would be like without her. He sighed and kissed the top of her head, then settled back into the bed, relieved that he didn’t have to face another day without her.
About an hour later Harley woke up just as Gus was falling back asleep. She kissed the bare skin on his chest where his shirt was unbuttoned at the top.
“Good morning,” he said quietly.
“Hi,” she replied and tried to push herself off of him.
“Owww,” she whined as she fell back into his chest.
“What’s wrong?” he asked worriedly.
“Nothing, I’m just sore,” she answered.
“Are you sure? Do you want me to go get a doctor?”
“No. Gus, I’m fine,” she assured him as she tried again to sit up in the bed.
He helped her sit up and looked at her concerned.
“Really, I’m fine. It’s just sore muscles. I did get beat up, you know,” she teased him, not getting a smile in response like she normally does.
“I just… I don’t want to take any chances, okay?”
“I know. But I’m fine really. Can you get me a mirror? Did I get my purse back?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Gus said as he went over and got it from an extra chair.
Harley pulled out her compact and looked at herself in the small mirror.
“Ugh, I look horrible!” she said touching the swollen, black and blue area around her eye.
“No you don’t. You’re awake, you could look like Frankenstein and it would still be the most beautiful sight I have ever seen,” Gus said, finally smiling as he leaned down to kiss her. “What are the cuts from?” he asked.
“Umm, the brick wall. He slammed me up against there pretty hard. God, I need to wash my hair,” she continued.
“That would be a no-no. At least not today, Rick said,” he replied, “but how about I brush it? Or will that hurt?”
“I think that would be great,” Harley replied as she pulled a brush out of her purse and handed it to Gus.
He crawled into the bed behind her and she sat between his legs.
“Tell me if it hurts, okay?” he said as he starting brushing her hair.
The big gash in her head was on the right side, so he tried to stay away from that part and concentrated on the left half of her head. He ran the brush through her hair, starting at the top all the way to the ends.
When he had made a few passes with the brush, she reached up, grabbed his hand, brought it in front of her and kissed it. He wrapped his arms around her and buried his head into her neck. He sighed as she held onto his arms tightly.
“Do I have any bruises on my back?” she asked as she unwrapped his arms and sat back up.
“Let me look,” he replied as he untied the strings that were holding her hospital gown shut in the back. “You know, this isn’t as much fun undressing you in the middle of a hospital.”
Harley laughed and shook her head.
Gus ran his fingers down the creamy white skin of her back, which was flawless except for a few black and blue marks around her spine on her lower back. His eyes welled up with hot tears, but he wasn’t sure if they were tears of sadness or anger. So help him God, if he ever saw that man out in public, a few bruises on his back would be the least of his troubles.
“Are there any?” Harley asked.
“Yeah, there are a few around here,” he said, gently running his fingers over them.
He moved his hands up and gave her upper back and shoulders a mini massage.
“Mmm…that feels good,” she said in response to his touches.
He swept her hair away and placed a soft kiss on the nape of her neck that sent shivers all the way down to her toes as a knock came at the door and it opened a bit, “Everyone decent?” Rick asked.
“Come on in,” Harley said as he stepped in the room.
“Good morning,” he said cheerfully and kissed her cheek as Gus was retying the strings of her gown.
“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked.
“Sore,” she answered.
Rick nodded, “Any pain anywhere besides the sore muscles and your head?”
“Nope,” she replied.
“She has some bruises on her back, did you know that?” Gus added.
“Yeah, we checked them out. They’re just bruises, they’ll be gone in a few days,” he said. “Buzz and Frank are here. Do you want me to send them in or do you want a few more minutes?”
“They’re here already?” she asked. “Send them in.”
“Okay,” Rick said as he left the room and held the door open as Buzz and Frank rushed in.
“Hey sis, how are you feeling?” Frank asked as they both kissed Harley.
“I’m a little sore, but I feel good other than that,” she replied as they both pulled up chairs to the bed.
“Will you be okay here with these two so I can run home and get a shower?” Gus asked.
“Yeah, go ahead. I’m not going anywhere,” she said.
“Okay,” he said as he crawled out of the bed then turned to Frank and Buzz, “Where is Susan?”
“She wanted to sleep in her own bed last night so we took her home,” Buzz answered.
“Okay, I’ll see what she’s up to. I’ll be back soon,” he said as he kissed Harley goodbye.
“Can you bring me some clothes so I can get out of this thing?” she asked.
“Yeah, what you do want?”
“Something comfortable,” she replied as he headed to the door.
“You bet,” he said as he blew her a kiss over Frank and Buzz’s heads and left the room.
Gus rushed home and found Susan already awake, sitting on the couch.
“Hey,” he said when he entered the house.
“How is she?” Susan asked.
“She’s good. I’m going to get a shower and then get the boys to surprise her, do you want to go back with me?” he asked.
She nodded.
“Alright. I need to call Phillip and Ed and jump in the shower and then we can go,” he said as he headed upstairs.
An hour and a half later, he, Susan, Zach and Jude walked back in the hospital.
“Stay here with them,” he said as he put Jude in one of the chairs, “I’ll go tell her you all are here.”
Gus took the bag that he had packed for her and headed back into her room. In Frank and Buzz’s place she found Blake and Cassie.
“Ladies,” he said as he went over and kissed his wife.
“I brought you a few things. Clothes, a toothbrush, a few kids…” he said.
“The boys are here?” she asked excitedly.
“Yep, waiting to see their mommy.”
“Good. Thank you. I want to change before they come in though,” she said, giving Cassie and Blake the eye to leave.
“Okay, well, we’ll go now,” Blake said, “Have fun with your boys, we’ll see you later.”
“Thanks guys,” Harley replied as they left the room.
Blake and Cassie walked out of the room and were met by Susan.
“Can we go in?” she asked.
Blake and Cassie looked at each other.
“Not just yet,” Cassie said, “Gus will be right out.”
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“No, no sweetie, she just wants to look her best for her kids,” Blake said.
“Okay,” Susan replied as she went back over to the boys.
Harley slowly got out of the bed and stood in front of Gus, “Will you help me?” she asked quietly.
He nodded and laid her pajamas out on the bed. He brought her a pair of cropped pajama pants and a tank top, with a thin robe to go over top. He reached behind her and undid the gown again and let it fall to the ground. He leaned forward and covered her chest and shoulders in gentle kisses. He helped her step into a pair of underwear and then bent down as she steadied herself on his shoulders while he slid the pajama pants up her legs. He was still on his knees when she let out a little laugh.
He looked up at her wondering what was so funny.
“It’s a good thing these have a drawstring,” she said as she touched her growing stomach. “Guess we can’t hide it anymore.”
Gus smiled as he tied the drawstring and placed a kiss right below her belly button, “Well, everyone knows except Phillip and the boys,” he said, then rose to his feet and helped her put the shirt on. She ran her hands down his arms and grabbed the sides of his black t-shirt and pulled him closer to her. She kissed him long and deeply, like she hadn’t kissed him in days. She realized she actually hadn’t and relished the feeling even more.
“I love you so much, Gus,” she said when they broke the kiss.
“I love you too, baby,” he replied as he kissed her forehead. “But so do your kids and they really want to see you. Let me go get them.”
“Okay,” she said as she put the robe on and got back into the bed. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ “Hey guys, come here,” Gus said as he sat the boys in a chair and knelt in front of them. “Mommy still doesn’t feel too good, okay? And she hurts a little bit, so you have to be really careful. Don’t be too rough, but I know she can’t wait for some kisses from her boys. You want to go see Mommy?”
“Yeah!” Zach exclaimed and Jude nodded along with his brother and reached for Gus to pick him up.
Susan took Zach by the hand and went into Harley’s room followed by Gus and Jude. Zach immediately ran to Harley and jumped into the bed with her and she covered him in kisses. Gus set down Jude when they got in the door and went and sat in the chair by Harley’s bed. Jude stayed at the foot of the bed while Harley was kissing Zach and slowly made his way into Gus’s lap.
“Go give Mommy a kiss,” Gus whispered in his ear and he crawled from Gus’s lap into the bed with his mother and brother.
Harley held her youngest son in her lap and kissed him on the head.
“What happened to your eye?” the ever-inquisitive Zach asked.
“It’s just a boo-boo,” Harley answered, “It’ll be all better soon.”
Zach was satisfied with that answer and started rolling his toy truck up and down the rail of the bed while Jude stayed quietly in Harley’s arms.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:50:03 GMT -5
Gus knocked lightly on the door to Harley’s hospital room so he wouldn’t wake her if she was sleeping and poked his head in. She was sitting up reading a magazine and looked up when the door opened.
“Hey you,” she said, smiling at Gus.
“Whatcha doin?” he asked as he came in the room.
“Blake brought me this magazine, I’m bored,” she said as she closed the latest issue of Cosmo and threw it to the end of the bed.
“Tired of laying in bed, huh?”
“Yeah, especially since you’re not in here with me,” she teased, “so what are you hiding behind your back?” she asked.
“Oh this?” he asked producing a paper bag. “I thought maybe you would be hungry for some real food, so I stopped by Company on my way back and picked you up some good stuff.”
“Oh yummy! I’m so sick of soup and bland scrambled eggs,” she said as she reached for the bag.
Gus pulled out a Styrofoam carton and placed it on Harley’s tray, “I got you some spaghetti. And I was going to get you milk, but I know you hate it, but you have to drink it for the baby, so I got you a milkshake instead,” he said as he set a Styrofoam cup on the tray too.
“You are so good to me,” she smiled as she reached up, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him down for a big kiss then dug into the food he had brought her.
“I am so ready to bust out of here,” she said.
“And I am so ready to take you home,” Gus replied.
As they were talking and Harley was enjoying her spaghetti, Ricky came into the room.
“Rick, when can I get out of here?” Harley asked.
“Well, that’s what I came down here for. How would you like to go home tomorrow?” he asked.
“I would love that! Can I?”
“Well, we need to do another CT scan and I’d like Dr. Sedgwick to take another look at you, but if she gives the okay, then consider yourself a free woman,” he answered.
“Dr Sedgwick? Why does she need to examine you?” they heard Phillip’s voice as he stepped in through the open door.
Gus and Harley looked at each other and Rick excused himself.
“I have some other patients to check on. I’ll be back later,” he said as he snuck past Phillip, who stood at the door, hands on his hips as if the entire world owed him an explanation.
Gus moved from the foot of Harley’s bed to the chair that was beside it.
“Dr. Sedgwick needs to see me because I am pregnant. She just wants to make sure the baby is okay,” Harley explained.
Phillip stood there, his eyes big with surprise, “You’re pregnant?” he choked out.
“Yes,” Harley said as she reached for Gus’s hand, “And we’re very happy about it. And the boys don’t know yet, so if you could not tell anyone, we’d like to tell them first.”
Phillip smirked, “When are you due?”
“January,” Gus answered.
“Well. Congratulations, I guess,” he said as Gus looked at Harley and rolled his eyes.
“Thank you,” Harley said politely.
“Um, I came to see when you thought you would be home. I have to go out of town early tomorrow morning on business and I was hoping you could take Zach tonight,” he said.
“Well, I won’t be out of here until tomorrow.”
“That’s okay, he can stay with the nanny until I get home or until you can get him.”
“No,” Gus replied, “I’ll get him tonight. I’ll just stay home, if that’s okay,” he said looking at Harley, “and Susan can stay with him until we get you home tomorrow.”
“That’s fine,” Harley said and Phillip hesitantly agreed. He still wasn’t thrilled with the idea of Gus being a part of Zach’s life, even after all this time.
“So you’ll pick him up tonight?” Phillip asked.
“Yes. I will pick him up and take him home,” Gus said impatiently.
“Fine,” Phillip said as he turned around and walked out of the room.
“What was that about?” Gus asked Harley.
“Who cares?” she replied. “Thank you for picking him up so he doesn’t have to wake up to the nanny again.”
“It’s not a problem at all. I might as well get Jude too. Give Ed a break and that way all three of your kids can be there to welcome you home!”
“That sounds wonderful,” she said as she leaned over to kiss him. “I’m going to go take a shower,” she added as she crawled out of the bed.
“You okay?” Gus asked.
“Yep, as long as I don’t drop anything and have to bend over to get it, I’ll be fine,” she smiled as she went into the bathroom that was connected to her private room.
Gus picked up the Cosmo from the end of the bed and started flipping through it. About five minutes and three articles later, he heard Harley yell for him.
“Gus!”
He quickly got up from his chair and rushed into the bathroom.
“What’s wrong?”
“I dropped the shampoo.”
Gus shook his head and looked behind the curtain. Harley pointed to the shampoo bottle laying on the floor of the shower. He looked and tried to figure out a way to get it without getting soaking wet. He stuck his left arm in, but still managed to get half of his shirt wet.
“Why don’t you just get rid of the clothes and get in here with me?” Harley asked, grabbing his shirt and pulling him into the shower.
He stopped her, “Harley! What would Dr. Bauer say?” he laughed.
“When have you ever cared what Rick thought?”
He smirked at her and went back into the room. He made sure the door was shut tight and went back into the bathroom.
He pulled his shirt over his head and slid off his jeans.
“You asked for it,” he said as he climbed into the shower behind her. “They’re going to kick me out. Put up a big sign in reception, ‘Do not let this man into the hospital. He seduces women and then takes showers with them.’ With my picture under it!” he teased, causing Harley to laugh.
She turned to face him and wrapped her arms around him, “It has been far too long since we have done this,” she said kissing his chest.
“Did we have to do it in a hospital?” he asked as he lifted her head up and kissed her lips.
While Gus and Harley were enjoying their shower, Rick returned to see how things went with Phillip. He opened the door and saw no one in the room. He noticed the shower was running and heard Harley laughing. He smiled and shook his head, “I guess she’s feeling better,” he said as he turned around and walked back out of the room, shutting the door.
Fifteen minutes later, Gus and Harley emerged from the bathroom, blissfully unaware that anyone knew what they had been up to.
Gus pulled the recliner-chair over closer to the bed and sat down, thinking Harley would get back into the bed. Instead, she climbed into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"So, I talked to the Chief," Gus began, "He's gonna get you a desk job once you feel good enough to go back to work."
"A desk job? No way!" Harley protested.
"Yes way, Harley," Gus replied, "You don't need to get hurt again."
"So then I just won't go into dangerous situations. Gus, I can still be a detective."
"I just don't want anything to happen to you."
"I know. But can we just see what Rick says and how I feel?"
"Okay, I'm sorry," Gus apologized.
"I know you're just trying to keep me safe," Harley replied as she kissed him, "but I just don't think I'm ready to stop working yet."
Gus nodded and they heard a knock at the door. Rick opened the door a little and peeked in. When he saw Gus and Harley sitting in the chair, he came all the way into the room.
"Are you both clean now?" he teased, causing Harley to turn red and Gus to laugh.
"I told you we would get caught!" Gus said.
"Sorry Rick," Harley said, smiling.
Rick shrugged, "I just came down to let you know Dr. Sedgwick was on her way. And here she is," he said as she walked into the room.
"Hello Harley, Gus. How are you feeling today?" she asked.
"I feel great," Harley answered.
"Good, I'm glad to hear it," she replied, "How about we check you out to make sure the baby is feeling okay too?"
Gus kissed Harley's cheek and got up out of the chair, "I'll be outside," he said as he and Rick left the room.
A few minutes later, Dr. Sedgwick came outside and walked over to Gus and Rick.
"She looks great. They both get a clean bill of health from me," she said smiling.
"So she can go home?" Gus asked.
"She sure can. Tomorrow morning," Rick answered.
Gus smiled, "Thanks guys," he said as he went back into Harley's room.
"Did you hear that? You get to come home tomorrow."
"It's about time," she said. "I think we should tell the boys about the baby. I mean, they're going to notice."
"Do you want to do that tomorrow though? Are you going to be up for that?" Gus asked.
"I'm not running a marathon, Gus. We're just telling the boys that they are going to have a little brother or sister."
"Okay, if that's what you want," he said. "That sounds nice doesn't it? A little brother or sister?"
"It sure does," Harley smiled as she pulled him down onto the bed with her and kissed him.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:50:26 GMT -5
Gus woke up early the next morning to get the house ready for Harley’s homecoming. He picked up all of the boys’ toys, put them in their basket and put it away in the closet. Then he got out the vacuum and started running it through the living room. He even got the little attachment out and cleaned in between the cushions. All of a sudden, the vacuum cleaner started making a whistling sound. Gus pulled the hose out of the couch and found attached to the end of it a pair of black briefs.
“What are these doing in there?” he asked himself, finally remembering the last time the boys spent the weekend with their fathers and Susan went to dance camp. I’m surprised that couch has any springs left, he thought. He threw the pair of briefs on the step so he could take them upstairs to the laundry with him. He took the vacuum with him and cleaned the floor in front of the steps outside of Susan’s bedroom. Pretty soon, Susan’s door flew open.
“Gus. Gus. Gus!” she yelled trying to get his attention. “What are you doing?”
“Your mom’s coming home today, I thought it would be nice if the house was clean,” he explained.
“Gus, it’s my last week of summer vacation. Must you vacuum right outside my door at 7 am?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think,” he apologized. “Can you stay here with the boys until we get home?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“I don’t know what time we’ll be back though…”
“That’s okay, I’m not going anywhere until tonight anyway. But can I go back to bed?” she asked.
“Yes. Go back to bed. But here, take this since you’ll be down here,” he said tossing the baby monitor at her.
“Alright. See you later,” she said and headed back to her room.
Gus looked at his watch and quickly put the vacuum cleaner back in the closet. He took one last look around and ran upstairs to check on the boys before he left. He couldn’t wait to bring Harley home. He knew she was sick of that hospital and so was he.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Hey sleeping beauty, wake up!” Gus said in a sing-songy voice standing over Harley’s hospital bed.
She rolled over and opened her eyes.
“Now that is a wonderful thing to wake up to. Good morning,” she said as he leaned down and kissed her.
“Good morning,” he replied.
“You’re here early,” she said.
“Well, I want to get you home as soon as possible. Did Rick say when he thought you could get out of here?”
“He starts at 10, so soon after that I hope,” she answered.
Gus looked at his watch, “Not until 10?”
“Yeah, so we have a lot of time. Come here,” she said, motioning for him to join her in the bed, “I want to sleep some more.”
He crawled into bed with her and they both got another few hours of sleep until Rick came in and released Harley.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Gus unlocked the front door and opened it for Harley. She walked into the house with Gus behind her, carrying a bunch of balloons.
“Welcome home!” Susan and Zach yelled when they got into the house.
Harley smiled and kissed Susan then bent down to give Zach and Jude big hugs.
“It is so good to be home!” she said then turned to Gus, “Did you clean?”
“A little bit,” he smiled.
“Wow. I guess I should be in the hospital more often,” she teased.
“No- I really don’t think you should,” Gus said as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Later that night, after they had a nice family dinner, cooked by Gus, and Susan went out for the evening, Gus and Harley sat the boys down in the living room and told them about the new baby.
“Hey guys, come here,” Harley said as she motioned for them to sit on the couch, “Gus and I need to talk to you.”
“Okay mommy,” Zach said and happily climbed up on the couch. Jude followed his brother.
“Zach, do you remember when I was pregnant with Jude? When he was growing inside my tummy?” Harley asked him.
Zach nodded.
“Well, now there’s a new baby growing in my tummy. And you two are going to have a new little brother or sister. How does that sound?”
“Okay,” Zach said and climbed off the couch and went back to his toys.
Harley and Gus looked at each other.
“That’s it?” Gus asked.
“I guess so,” Harley shrugged. “That was easier than I thought it would be.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“The end,” Gus said as he closed the book he was reading to Zach before tucking him in.
Zach covered his mouth and let out a little giggle.
Gus smiled and asked, “What are you laughing at, mister?”
“You sound funny doing the voices,” Zach replied as he let out another giggle.
Gus shot him a look, “Are you making fun of me? Huh? You know what happens when you make fun of me? The tickle monster comes to get you!” Gus attacked Zach tickling him making him squirm and shriek in his bed.
“AH! I’m the tickle monster!” Zach fought back causing Gus to erupt with exaggerated laughter. Zach pulled Gus down so that he was laying in the bed beside him. He wrapped his arms around Gus’s neck and gave him a big squeeze, “I love you Gus,” he said sweetly as he snuggled into Gus’s chest.
Gus looked down at him and kissed the top of his head, “I love you too, Zach,” he replied, then enjoyed the quiet moment with him, “But it is time for you to go bed. If Mommy finds out you’re still awake, we’ll both be in trouble!” he joked as he sat up and tucked the blankets under Zach’s arms like he liked.
“Okay, you had your story, your glass of water and your nightly tickle. Do you need anything else?”
Zach shook his head wildly.
“Okay. Then close your eyes and go to sleep,” he said as he got up and walked towards the door.
“Gus?” Zach called out, causing Gus to turn around as Harley reached the door of the boys’ room with Jude asleep in her arms. She stayed in the doorway while Gus responded to Zach.
“What, Zach?”
“Is my daddy gonna be the new baby’s daddy too?”
A look of shock came over Gus’s face and he let the question sink in before answering. He walked back to Zach’s bed and sat on the edge.
“No, Zach. Your daddy isn’t the new baby’s daddy. I’m the new baby’s daddy.”
“Oh,” Zach replied. “Why?”
“Well,” Gus explained, “when Mommy and Daddy were married they made you. And now your Mommy and I are married, and we made the new baby.”
“Oh,” he replied as though the explanation had satisfied his curiosities, then went on, “how did you and Mommy make the baby?”
Gus got a pained look on his face as Zach asked the question he had been dreading, but knew was on its way.
“Uh….” He stalled while Zach waited patiently and Harley fought to hold back her laughter, “You see, Zach, when two people get married, well, I guess they don’t have to be married, but when…”he sputtered as Zach’s looks got more and more confused, “you know what? I think you should ask Mommy later, okay?”
Zach looked at the doorway where Harley was still standing, “Mommy, how did you make the baby?” he asked loudly.
Gus turned and smiled at Harley as she out her finger up to her mouth signaling them to be quiet while she laid Jude in his crib.
Gus looked at Zach accusingly, “Why didn’t you tell me she was standing there?”
Zach smiled and shrugged in response as Harley came and joined them on the bed.
“When two people get married and love each other as much as Gus and I do, they have so much love that they want to share it by having a little baby. So when the time is right, a baby grows inside the mommy’s tummy. And you know what, this baby,” she continued as she touched her stomach, “is so lucky because it is going to have a mommy and a daddy and a big sister and two big brothers to love it.”
Zach was quiet while he thought about the love part, “Is that why you kiss all the time?” he asked.
Gus smiled and looked at Harley lovingly, “Something like that.”
“I’m never kissing a girl- they’re yucky,” Zach replied with a disgusted look on his face.
“You won’t think they’re yucky when you get older, trust me,” Gus assured him.
Zach question and answer session continued, “Why can’t I see the baby?”
“Well, the baby’s still really tiny, so it needs to stay in Mommy’s tummy until it gets big enough, and then we’ll be able to see and hold the baby,” Gus answered.
“When will it be big enough?”
“Oh, not until after Christmas,” Harley answered him.
“Christmas?!? But that’s not until FOREVER!”
“It will be here before you know it. Now, do you have any more questions?” Gus wondered.
“Nope,” Zach said, pleased with their answers, at least for the time being.
“Good. Now it is way past your bedtime, so go to sleep. I love you,” Harley said as she leaned over and kissed him.
“Love you too,” he replied, ‘Good night Mommy, good night Gus, good night baby.”
“Good night, Zach,” Gus said quietly as he turned off the light and shut the door partway.
“He is an inquisitive little boy, isn’t he?” Gus teased as they headed back downstairs to enjoy some alone time until Susan came home.
Harley crashed on the couch, Gus sat down beside her and laid her head in his lap.
“You feeling okay?” he worried, “Do you need anything?”
“No I’m fine, I’m just tired.”
“Do you wanna go to bed?” Gus asked as he smoothed her hair with one hand and rested the other on her stomach.
“No, no. I just want to stay here and enjoy the peace and quiet with you,” she said as she scooted up so that she was now sitting in his lap and he wrapped his arms around her.
“It’s been a long day, hasn’t it?” he asked kissing the top of her head.
“Yeah, but a good one,” she replied.
“I can’t wait to see this baby. You know I love Susan and Zach and Jude like my own, but this baby is my own, you know?”
“I know,” she smiled at him. “You are going to be such a great dad,” she said as she kissed him.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:50:50 GMT -5
The next day after he took Harley and the boys over to Blake’s house, Gus walked into Valesburg Correction Facility.
At the door, there were guards checking IDs and searching people. Gus removed his gun, showed the guards his badge, and walked through the metal detectors.
He walked up to a desk were visitors were supposed to check in.
“I’m here to see Eden August,” he said.
“Sign in here. Put this visitor’s tag on and a guard will be right out,” a middle-aged bald man told him without even looking up.
“Thanks,” Gus said as he signed his name, put on the bright orange tag and walked over to wall to wait for a guard. Five minutes later a guard called for him.
“August,” a gruff voice announced.
“Yeah, that’s me,” Gus said as he followed the man down a long hall.
They went through four different doors and finally entered a small room with little cubicles were visitors could talk to the prisoners. The guard sat him down in one of the cubicles and told him Eden would be out soon.
The waiting time gave Gus an opportunity to second-guess his choice to visit Eden. She called him everytime she got a call, and usually they didn’t answer if they saw the number on the Caller ID. But it had been three months, and she was still his sister. And he wanted to tell her about the baby, no matter what her reaction would be.
After waiting there for a few minutes, Gus heard a buzzing sound and looked up. A guard had Eden by the arm and led her into the room and into the cubicle across from Gus. She was in handcuffs and was wearing an orange jumpsuit. The guard removed the cuffs and she sat across from Gus and picked up the telephone so she could talk to him.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hi,” he replied, not really sure what to say to her.
“I was surprised when they told me you were coming. I thought you forgot about me.”
“Eden, I didn’t forget about you. I just couldn’t deal with this until now,” he said.
She nodded in response.
“How are you doing?” he asked, concerned.
“I’m okay, Nicky.”
“Eden, I need to tell you something,” Gus began.
“What is it?”
“Harley is pregnant. We’re going to have a baby,” he answered.
Eden’s eyes got big with surprise, “Oh. When?”
“January,” he replied, “Do you wanna see the sonogram?” he asked as he pulled a small picture out of the pocket of his suit jacket.
“Sure.”
Gus pulled out the picture and looked at it. A huge smile appeared on his face and he put it up against the window for Eden to see. She reached out and touched the window where the sonogram was.
“It’s so small,” she said quietly.
“Yeah,” Gus said smiling as he pulled it away from the window and looked at it again.
Eden looked at her brother as he smiled down at the sonogram.
“Congratulations, Nicky. You look very happy,” she said.
“We are.”
“Nicky, I know I can never make up for everything I’ve done, but I want you to know that I’m sorry. And I’m really happy for you.”
“Thank you.”
“So are you going to start taking my calls, now?”
Gus nodded, “Sorry ‘bout that.”
“Times up,” a guard came behind Eden saying.
“Okay. Thanks for coming Nicky. I love you,” she said into the phone.
“I love you too, Eden.”
“Tell Harley I said congratulations.”
“I will,” he replied as she hung up the phone and got up. The guard put the cuffs back on her and led her out of the room.
Gus hung up the phone, got up and left the room, carrying the sonogram. He went back to the door and got his gun back. He walked out to his car and was glad he went to see his sister. And he was very glad she was happy about the baby, or at least happy for him. He got in his car and drove over to Blake’s house to pick up Harley and the boys.
When he got there, he found the house empty so he wandered out into the backyard where Zach, Clarissa, RJ, Will and Jude were running through a sprinkler chasing each other.
Blake, Cassie, and Harley were sitting by the house with their backs to Gus. Cassie was sitting on the ground, Blake was in a longue chair, and Harley was sitting on the porch swing. Blake and Cassie were both in bathing suits trying to get some sun.
“Whew! Is it hot out here or is that just my gorgeous wife?” he asked as he entered the backyard rolling up his shirtsleeves.
“I wish it was just me,” Harley laughed, fanning herself. “Hi,” she smiled up at him.
“Hi,” he replied as he sat beside her on the swing and kissed her. “Hello, ladies.”
“Gus. Do you want something cold to drink?” Blake offered and Gus nodded.
“How was your visit with Eden?” Harley asked.
“It was…good. Yeah, it was good,” he answered.
“Did you tell her?”
“Yes. She is very happy for us, actually.”
Harley smiled, “Good.”
“Gus!” Zach yelled as he ran over and jumped in Gus’s lap, soaking wet.
“Zach, you’re getting Gus all wet,” Harley said.
“That’s okay, it feels good,” Gus replied, “are you guys having fun?” he asked Zach.
“Yeah! Come play with us,” he urged, climbing off of his lap and trying to pull him off the swing.
“Zach, I can’t play in the water like this,” he said.
“I’m sure Ross has some swim trunks around here somewhere if you want,” Blake suggested.
Zach nodded, “Yeah! Come on!”
“Okay,” Gus said as he followed Blake into the house and Zach went back to the other kids.
A few minutes later, Gus came out of the house wearing a pair of blue swim trunks that were a little too big. He tightened the drawstring as much as he could, but they still were low on his hips.
“Hope these don’t fall off,” he teased as he stood by Harley, Cassie, and Blake before going to play with the kids.
“Gus! Come on!” Zach called him.
“This kid has me wrapped around his little finger,” he said.
“And he knows it,” Harley added as Gus ran over to the kids.
He scooped up Jude and threw him over his shoulder, causing him to giggle uncontrollably.
“I am just waiting for one of the kids to get a hold of those trunks. They are going to fall right off!” Cassie laughed.
“I know,” Harley agreed, shaking her head.
“So…Eden. Is happy for you?” Blake asked like her normal, nosey self.
“That’s what she says.”
“Does it bother you, Gus visiting her, I mean?” Cassie asked.
“No. I mean, she’s his sister. I know she’s done horrible things, believe me, but she’s his little sister, you know? No matter what she’s done, he still wants to protect and love her. And I love him for that,” she told her best friends as she watched Gus chase the kids around the yard with a big smile on his face.
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Post by Jen on Apr 3, 2004 12:51:10 GMT -5
“Good afternoon you two,” Dr. Sedgwick greeted as she entered the exam room. “How are you feeling, Harley?”
“I feel great,” she replied.
“Yeah? Is your husband taking good care of you?” she asked.
“He’s wonderful,” Harley replied as she smiled at Gus who was sitting on a stool beside her.
Gus smiled back at her and said, “She’s stubborn though, she doesn’t want anyone to do anything for her.”
“Well, that doesn’t surprise me. Let’s see what we have here,” she said as she started Harley’s sonogram.
Both Gus and Harley’s face lit up as they saw their baby on the screen in front of them.
“We can probably determine the sex of the baby today. If you want to know, that is,” she said as she moved the camera over Harley’s stomach.
“No, we don’t. We want to be surprised,” Gus replied.
“Okay, no problem. Everything looks great here,” she said pointing to the screen, “two hands, one, two, three-“
“Is that…” Gus asked squinting at the screen.
“No. That’s a leg.”
“What are those?” he asked.
“Those are legs too,” Dr. Sedgwick answered smiling.
“It has three legs?” Gus asked, looking strangely at Harley.
“No, just two, but…” she said as she moved the camera to get a different view, “ah- there it is. Congratulations, it looks like you’re having twins.”
Gus fell into the stool and looked at Harley who looked back at him in shock.
“Tw…twins?” he sputtered, “as in two babies. At the same time?”
Dr. Sedgwick laughed and nodded.
“Wow,” Harley said, still practically speechless. “I…I don’t even know what to say. Is everything okay? With both of them?” she asked.
“Yes, everything looks great. They’re both moving and have strong heartbeats,” Dr. Sedgwick answered.
“Boy, when we do something, we really do it, huh?” Gus joked and Harley smiled up at him.
“Well, like I said, everything looks good. That’s it. I’ll see you guys later, and congratulations,” she said as she left the room.
“Thanks,” Harley replied and she reached up and turned Gus’s face back to her.
“We’re having twins,” she said quietly.
“Yeah, I guess we are,” he replied as he leaned over and kissed her deeply.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Mommy!” Zach and Jude exclaimed as Harley and Gus entered Company.
“Hey guys,” Harley said as Gus scooped up both boys and the four of them sat down at a table.
Susan came over and joined them at the table.
“Hey, how was your doctor’s appointment?” she asked.
Harley smiled at Gus and answered Susan, “It was good. Where are Dad and Frank? We want to tell you all something.”
“Is something wrong with the baby?” Susan asked concerned.
“No, no sweetie. Can you go find them, please?”
Susan went back into the kitchen to find Buzz and Frank and soon returned with them and Marina trailing behind her.
“What’s going on sis?” Frank asked as they approached their table.
“Well,” Harley began as Gus got out a sonogram photo and placed it in the middle of the table, “when we went to the doctor’s today, she did another sonogram and we got a little surpise. We’re having twins,” she finished as she reached across the table for Gus’s hand and smiled.
“You’re having twins?” Susan asked excitedly, “That’s great!”
“Really? You’re happy?” Gus asked her.
“Yes!” she replied as she hugged Harley and then Gus.
“Dad, Frank?”
“Sorry, I think we’re just in shock. I think it’s great,” Buzz said as he kissed Harley and shook Gus’s hand, “Not just one, but two more grandkids to spoil? I couldn’t be happier.”
“Congratulations, you guys. Do you know if they are boys or girls or one of each?” Frank added.
“No, we want it to be a surprise,” Gus answered.
“It’s just one surprise after another, isn’t it?” Buzz said as he sat down next to his daughter and the family had dinner together, celebrating the news.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Later that night, after they had put the boys to bed, Gus and Harley laid in their bed, enjoying the peace and quiet they so rarely got.
“Gus,” Harley said as she grabbed his hand and placed it over her stomach, “can you feel them kicking?”
Gus eyes got wide as he felt the babies moving around inside Harley’s stomach. He looked up at her and smiled, “that’s so amazing,” he said as he kissed the spot where he felt the kicks.
“You know my dad was a twin,” he revealed to Harley.
“You never told me that.”
“Yeah, he had a twin sister, but she died when she was really young. Like seventeen I think. In a car accident.”
“How about that,” Harley mused.
Gus took her hand in his and threaded his fingers through hers. He brought her hand up to his face and lightly kissed it. Harley let out a contented sigh then a little chuckle.
“What’s so funny?” Gus asked.
“I was just thinking now we have to buy two of everything. And it all has to be yellow,” she teased.
“Ha! Whose bright idea was it to wait?” Gus laughed.
“Both of ours! Yellow’s a nice color,” Harley said as she laughed quietly.
“Yeah,” Gus said as he kissed Harley long and lovingly.
He couldn’t believe not only was he going to be a father, but he was going to be a father of twins. As Harley fell asleep in his arms, he silently thanked God for blessing him with Harley and everything she had brought to his life.
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