Jamie stood in front of the mirror, feeling like he couldn't move as his heart pounded in his chest- the two words wrote in red lipstick was seared in his brain. He knew he should probably be scared and afraid- just the way Jimmie wanted him to be, but instead he was angry.

He was livid that Jimmie broke into his apartment and tried to intimidate him, and he hated that he was trying to claim Noelle as his own. She would never belong to Jimmie, he would make sure of that.

Hearing a gasp from the doorway, he jerked his head to the side and saw Noelle standing there with wide eyes when they landed on the mirror. He quickly stepped in her line of sight to block the view and led her back out into the hall. Seeing that she was frozen in shock, he laid his hands on either side of her face, forcing her to look at him.

"Hey, hey, look at me. Baby, look at me," he said, desperate to get her attention. When she finally cut her eyes at him, he nodded his head. "That's good, that's good, just look at me, okay? And don't think about it, don't let it get to you...that's what he wants. He wants to frighten you, he wants to terrorize you-"

"He was here," she cut him off with a whisper as tears filled her eyes. "He was here, Jamie. That means he knows about you...about-about us-"

"Shh, it's okay." He brushed a few tears from her cheek, then held her face in his hands. "He can't touch us, okay? I'm not going anywhere, Nol. He's not going to scare me away." He kissed her forehead, keeping his lips pressed against her skin. "I'm right here, baby."

She nodded her head at his words. She wanted to believe them, but she couldn't stop worrying about what Jimmie was going to do next. What if the next time he broke in he did something worse? What if he caught Jamie off-guard and hurt him?

As those fears hit her, she felt a chill down her spine and buried her face in his shirt. She laid her hands on his side and gripped his shirt as he folded her arms around her and held her tight. She wasn't sure how long they stood like that until she felt him kiss the top of her head, then pull back to slip his cell phone out of his pants pocket.

"What are you doing?" she questioned.

"Calling Danny." He unlocked the phone and began to scroll through his contacts for his brother's number.

"Jamie-"

"We have to call this in, Nol," he cut her off. "I know why you are hesitant, I really do, and I understand all of your fears, but we can't put it off any longer, we have to tell him. Danny needs to know."

"Okay," she softly said after a few moments of silence. Deep down she knew he was right- it's not like she was trying to be stubborn, she just had that little bit of fear of being turned away or looked at like she was crazy the way it was before.

Noelle went to take a step back as he clicked on his brother's name and placed the phone against his ear, but he pulled her back to him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and kept her pressed against him as he quietly spoke to Danny. He asked him to come by with another officer but asked him to keep it off of the radio. His brother wanted to know what the hell was going on, but Jamie told him he would explain more when he got there.

Ending the call, Jamie pocketed the phone and kept an arm around her as he led her into the living room to get her far away from the bathroom and the message on the mirror. He walked her over to the couch where she sank down onto it in a daze. He sat beside her and kept an arm around her shoulders to hold her close while they waited for Danny to arrive.

He didn't have to ask what she was thinking, he knew how freaked out she was. It seemed pretty clear that Jimmie was out and he was in their city terrorizing her. In his opinion this was a huge mistake on many levels, but mostly because she wasn't alone this time.

In Florida, he could get to her because she had no one watching her, but here- she was surrounded by people who cared and would protect her. He had no doubt he would be caught, it was just a matter of when.

Hearing a knock at the door a few minutes later, he gave her forehead a tender kiss then stood up from the couch and walked over to the door to let Danny, Jackie and another officer in. He greeted them, then nodded toward Noelle asking Jackie to talk to her, while he showed Danny and the other man where to go.

As they went into the bathroom, he stood out in the hall to wait. He knew exactly when his brother saw the message when he heard a swear word slip out of his mouth.

While the bathroom was being fingerprinted and pictures being taken by the other officer, Danny stepped out into the hall and looked at his brother for a moment, then turned his head to see his partner sitting beside a badly shaken up Noelle on the couch. He turned back to look at Jamie- who looked anything but rattled by this- he only looked angry.

"I take it this is what you two wanted to talk to me about earlier?" Danny questioned.

"Yeah," Jamie mumbled with a nod of his head.

"So start talking."

Jamie turned his head to look at Noelle, the anger slipping away for a moment and was replaced with concern for her.

"You need to talk to Nol."

"Later, but right now, I'm talking to you," Danny said, the tone of his voice grabbing Jamie's attention.

"It's not my story to tell...it's hers," Jamie explained. As much as he wanted Danny to know everything, he wouldn't betray her like that. It was up to her to share what parts she wanted to with whoever.

"What are you talking about her story- your story?" Danny questioned. "Someone broke into your apartment and left you a nice little message; I say that brings you into the story...now tell me the story."

Jamie blew out a breath, knowing he had to tell him something. He decided to go with the bare facts. "There's this guy obsessed with Nol."

"So you know who did this?" Danny asked surprised. If they knew who it was, why haven't they said anything sooner so the person could be arrested? He was starting to have a bad feeling there was a lot more to the story and at the end of it, he was not going to be happy.

"We think so, but we don't know for sure because he's supposed to be locked up and we don't even know if he is really here or not- even though it's really starting to look like he is..." Jamie began to say until his voice trailed off. "It's complicated." He sighed.

"Well let's talk to the storyteller and uncomplicate it." Danny nodded his head toward Noelle.

Jamie nodded his head, then began to walk over to her with Danny following along behind him while removing a pair of dark-colored gloves from his hands.

Seeing them approach, Jackie stood up from the couch to stand beside her partner. She had tried to comfort Noelle while the brothers were gone, which basically consists of her trying to distract her with talking about random things; she even told a few funny Danny stories which got a small chuckle from Noelle.

Jamie sat beside Noelle on the couch, while Danny looked down at the couple and blew out a breath. He reminded himself not to make this personal. He couldn't think about this as someone messing with his brother and the girl he viewed as a little sister, he had to view them as any other person he dealt with on a case.

"Jamie says you two have an idea on who did this," he spoke up, getting her attention. "But that's basically all he said...well, that and I should get the full story from you."

Noelle gave him a short nod, then turned her head to look at Jamie for a moment. He gave her a soft smile, then grabbed her hand to let her know he was there. She squeezed his hand to thank him, then blew out a breath before turning to look at Danny.

"His name is Jimmie Jenkins," she softly said.

"Okay, and who is this Jimmie Jenkins?" Danny asked while Jackie took out a small notebook and wrote the name down. "I'm going to guess this isn't the first time he's done something like this?"

"No, it's not the first time." She nervously bit her bottom lip for a moment. "It started in Florida."

Danny glanced over at his brother for a moment, remembering earlier when he said that the man was obsessed with her, he was starting to think that was an understatement.

Turning his attention back to her, he questioned, "This guy followed you from Florida?"

She nodded her head. "If it is him- which I'm pretty sure it is. He's supposed to be in a mental institution though."

"What's wrong with him?" Jackie asked when Danny froze up. He was starting to get more of an idea of what was going on and he didn't like what he was hearing.

"He has erotomania and several other disorders," Noelle answered. "He was convinced we were in a relationship and we're going to be together forever."

Danny turned his head away from them and blew out a breath to calm himself down. He had heard of erotomania before; years ago he had a case dealing with it and he knew how badly it could get. He needed to get his hands on this man before things escalated.

Feeling a little more in control, he turned back to look at the couple. "You said he was locked up; so what did he do? How far did he take it back in Florida?"

This was the part Noelle was dreading- the part where she would have to tell her story. She lowered her head and felt her heart pounding in her chest. She reminded herself that she was safe, that she was with people who cared and she wasn't in that house anymore, but nothing worked as she felt her body shake in fear and her breathing quicken.

Seeing her fall apart in front of them, Jackie glanced at her partner for a moment, then looked back at the couple. She closed the notebook and slipped it back in her pocket. "Noelle, why don't we take a walk outside? Get a little fresh air."

"No, it's okay. I uh, I need to do this." She flashed her a small smile of thanks, then pulled in a breath and slowly blew it out. "I just need a minute."

"I'll go check on things back there." Jackie jutted her thumb toward the bathroom, thinking maybe Noelle would feel more comfortable talking to Danny and Jamie.

Danny stepped closer to the couch and sat down on the edge of the coffee table in front of her. He forgot his earlier thoughts about not taking this personal when a pained look appeared on her face before she bowed her head.

He softly said her name, then waited for her to raise her head. "Whatever happened, it's over...it's in the past. He can't hurt you anymore."

"But he can." She pointed to the side of her head with tears in her eyes. "He's always in here. I can't escape him."

"Hey..." Jamie turned toward her, then lightly grabbed her chin and turned her to face him. "But you did escape him, Nol. You already survived him once, and I promise you, I'm not going to let him near you again, and I know Danny won't either."

Even though he didn't know the whole story yet, Danny still nodded his head, agreeing with his statement. Whatever was going on, he would protect her just like he would any of his siblings. She wasn't a Reagan by blood, but he always viewed her as family.

"Noelle..." Danny said, matching his brother's tone and grabbing her attention. "How bad did it get?"

"Very," she whispered as her vision blurred with tears. "He-He started harassing me...well terrorizing me. He would send me things, call me all hours of the night and even broke into my apartment several times. And then he uh, he..."

She turned her head to the side to look at Jamie as her voice went out. Her eyes pleaded with him to finish it for her, she wasn't strong enough to do it herself. He knew this was hard for her, but he also knew she was strong enough. Which was why he turned her down even though it pained him to do it. He knew, in the end, it was the best for her.

Pulling her toward him, he placed his lips against her ear and whispered, "You can do this, Nol. I'm right here."

"Little Bit..." Danny said, referring to the childhood nickname he gave her, hoping it would bring her comfort. "You can tell me what happened...Jamie's right, we won't let him anywhere near you. This is a safe place, you understand what I'm saying?"

When she gave him a nod, he addressed both of them, "You remember when you two were, six or seven, and came home upset because that older kid down the block stole your skateboard?"

"You mean the boy who Nol ended up jerking the skateboard away from, then hitting him in the face with it- breaking his nose after you told us we needed to stand up to the bully?" Jamie questioned his brother with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah, that one." He pointed to Noelle. "And to be fair, I never told you to hit him, I just said you can't live in fear or let people push you around. I never said hit the boy with a skateboard, you did that all on your own...but, that lesson applies here too."

"You want her to hit Jimmie with a skateboard?" Jamie questioned, hoping his joke would help break the tension. He couldn't stop a smile from appearing on his face when he heard a soft chuckle escape her lips.

Danny shot his brother a bored look. "No, that's not what I meant. I just mean, whatever happened, you can't let it define your life, you can't live in fear and let it take over or...you're not really living."

"It's a little more complicated than that-"

"No, he's right. I can't keep living in fear," Noelle said, interrupting Jamie. She gave his hand a squeeze to thank him, knowing he was trying to support her any way possible, then turned to look at him. "And you're right too. I did escape him and I can't keep living my life like he still has me chained up."

"Whoa, wait a minute, chained up? Chained up? He had you chained up?" Danny questioned in shock. "What exactly happened to you in Florida?"

Noelle turned her head back to look at him, then nervously cleared her throat. She pulled her legs up and wrapped her arms around them before telling him what happened. She didn't go in as much detail as she did with Jamie, she stayed with the basics; he abducted her, kept her captive for over a week and how hard she tried to escape- which resulted in her being stabbed.

"He stabbed you? You were stabbed and you never thought to call any of us?" Danny asked with a hint of anger, causing Jamie to nod his head- he had the same thoughts when he first heard what happened. He couldn't deny that he was still disappointed that she didn't call or tell him sooner, but he understood her reasons.

"You all were still recovering after losing Joe, I didn't want to add more to it," she explained. "Plus as dumb as it sounds...I dunno, I guess I thought if I didn't talk about it or think about it, I could pretend it never happened. That obviously didn't work."

"You're talking about it now and that's all that matters." Jamie pulled her toward him and felt her melt into his side. "And we're going to find him and send him back where he belongs. He's not getting that close to you again."

Danny nodded his head in agreement. He knew this was hard for her, but he needed more information. "You said earlier that he used to break into your apartment...did he do this? Leave messages and such?"

"He didn't leave messages with words, but he made sure I knew he was there," she explained. "He would organize cans in the kitchen, he'll organize thing in the bathroom too; toiletries and towels in order by color-"

"Wait a minute." Jamie sat up so quick it caused her to fall back against the couch. He shot her an apology, then asked, "You said he would organize towels by color? That was a thing he did, not you?"

"Yeah, I don't do that. If anything, I try to keep it as unorganized as possible because of that now," she answered. Seeing the distraught look on his face, she began to worry. "Why? Have you noticed that here at your apartment?"

"No, at yours," he answered.

"What? When?" Danny asked when she went silent and her eyes slightly widen in fear. She had a feeling he had started breaking into her apartment, but there was the small hope that she was just being paranoid- she couldn't deny it now.

Even though his brother had asked the question, Jamie turned his attention to Noelle. "The night that we... The night I came by after Sydney called things off and I crashed at your place..."

He cleared his throat, realizing he almost slipped about the night they kissed. It's not that he regretted it or wanted to keep it secret, but he didn't know if she wanted him broadcasting to everyone what happened between them when they haven't really talked about what they were yet.

Jamie shook his head, from the look Danny was giving him, he had a feeling he was already putting two and two together. Not wanting him to get the wrong idea, he pointed out, "I slept on the couch."

"Hey, I didn't ask." Danny held up his hands.

Getting back to the story, he continued, "The next morning when I got up, I went to the bathroom and I noticed the towels were organized by color." He looked over at Noelle. "I just assumed you did that, so I messed it up to tease you, but I forgot to even mention it until now."

"I was hoping it was just my imagination...I really wanted to believe it wasn't true," Noelle quietly said as if in a daze, getting their attention.

"You were hoping what wasn't true?" Danny asked her.

Her eyes focused on the older Reagan in front of her, seeing Jamie staring at her from the corner of her eye. "There was one night, I had this nightmare and when I woke up, it felt like I wasn't alone and I could have sworn I heard a door click shut.

"I searched everywhere, but didn't see anyone; the only thing out of place was a snow globe." She looked at Jamie. "The one you sent to me for my birthday...it was moved from the table by the couch to the one by the door."

"He's escalating fast," Jamie said, the thought worrying him more than he wanted to let on. He didn't want her to see how that frightened him- he wanted to be strong for her, he needed to be her rock. "Breaking into your apartment and now mine...plus the roses."

"Roses?" Danny questioned, getting excited. If he was leaving things, there was their proof. The excitement didn't last long though when she reached into her bag and pulled out two different evidence bags with a red and orange rose inside.

She held the bags out to him. "I already ran tests on them, there are no prints." Glancing over at Jamie, she added, "I wouldn't be surprised if there are no prints in your bathroom either."

As much as he hated it, he nodded his head in agreement. That seemed to be Jimmie's MO, sneak in to cause havoc, then slip away without being seen.

Noelle blew out a breath, feeling dejected. "I know what all of this means; there isn't much that can be done without proof."

"Not legally, no." Danny stood up from the coffee table. "But I'm going to do everything I can on my end. I'll have eyes and ears out there looking for this creep and if he makes another move, I'll haul his ass in so fast he'll regret the day he ever laid eyes on you."

While pointing to Noelle, he spoke to his brother, "In the meantime, I don't want her alone- you need to become her shadow."

"That was already my plan." Jamie stood up from the couch. "That's why we came here, I was getting some clothes, then was going to crash at her place until I found the message."

Danny nodded his head, glad to hear they were going to stick together. "And next time something happens...big or small, you two call me asap." He was a bit worried about how quickly everything was going, he had seen cases escalate like this before and they did not turn out well.

"We will," Jamie promised while Noelle nodded her head in agreement.

Before anyone could say anything else, Jackie and the other officer were finished with the bathroom. None of them were hopeful that Jimmie left his prints behind, but Danny promised he would put a rush on the test and let them know as soon as he did.

Jamie thanked everyone, then told Noelle he would be back as he walked everyone out. He stopped his brother before he could walk out the door, both of them glanced over at Noelle as she sat on the couch in a daze because of the night events.

Looking back at his brother, he quietly said, "We got to find this guy, Danny. The sooner, the better."

"Trust me, we will," Danny promised him. "First things first, we need to find out if he is out or not." That little tidbit will go a long way to prove he was in their city harassing her again.

Jamie nodded his head in agreement. "She's been trying to get in touch with a detective friend of hers-"

"Detective Hayes?"

"Wait, you know him?" Jamie asked surprised. After his brother nodded his head, he scoffed. "Am I the only one who didn't know about this guy and Nol?"

Danny raised his eyebrows at his brother, an amused look on his face as he heard a hint of jealousy in his tone. He shook his head at him. "Calm down, kid. They're friends and I only talked to him once. Little Bit got me in touch with him to help out with a case."

Jamie nodded his head at his words, then pushed all of the negative thoughts aside. "Well anyway, he hasn't called her back or anything...she seems pretty worried about it."

"I'm sure it's nothing, but I'll reach out to him. See what he can tell me."

Turning to look at her again, Jamie blew out a breath. "I can't stop thinking about how close I came to losing her-"

"But you didn't." Danny laid a hand on his shoulder, getting his attention. "Don't forget that girl is a firecracker and she's strong as hell."

"Yeah, I know, but that's just it...this whole Jimmie thing has changed her," Jamie explained. "Which is understandable after what she went through, but I'm worried what it's going to do to her emotionally with him being back.

"You remember how she was growing up. She would never show fear, but this guy is like every one of her bad dreams and fears all wrapped up in one." With his eyes on her, he softly said, "Every time I see her eyes widen or see her jump at something, I want to take that fear away, but I don't know how."

"What did you do before?" When his brother looked at him in confusion, he added, "Growing up, what did you do when you knew she was scared?"

"I was there for her, I'll hold her hand."

"Then that's what you do now." Danny raised his eyebrows and joked, "And whatever else you two do in private that keeps her relaxed and distracted."

"It's not like that." Jamie chuckled. "You know how important she is to me."

"Hey, I'm not judging." Danny raised his hands. "Whatever you two are, I say it's about time. You two have been dancing around the issue and been half in love with each other for years." He slipped a pair of warm gloves on. "My only complaint is, I wish you two would have made a move a few years ago, then I would have won the bet."

Jamie laughed at his comment, then realized what he said. "Wait, you all were betting on us getting together?"

Danny nodded his head. "Pretty much ever since you walked into the house with this tiny mess of a girl who was all bangs and sass, and you announced to us all that this was your new best friend." He chuckled at the memory. "We all knew it then, kid."

Jamie smiled at his comment. He knew exactly what moment he was talking about. Her father and his father had worked in the same precinct and when a house went up for sale in their neighborhood, Frank told Byron about it and the other man put in an offer right away.

The day the Kelley family moved in, he was first introduced to Noelle and the two hit it off right away. Their parents couldn't help but laugh as they watched the two run around the yard chasing each other. It was only a day or so later that he led her into his house and informed his family that she was his new best friend for life and they were going to see a lot of her.

He couldn't help but laugh at how true that statement was. From that day forward the two were inseparable and she was over at his house several times a week. She had always loved the Reagan house. She said it made her feel safe and loved and was always so full of laughter and happiness.

It's not that her home life was bad; her parents were loving and doted on her, but then she also got overlooked at times because of all the problems with her older brother. She never knew from one day to the next if things would be okay or if she would walk into a huge argument. There were times she felt like she had to walk on eggshells but it was never like that at the Reagans- there she could be herself with no fears of making things worse in an already tense situation.

When everyone left, Jamie shut the door and walked over to Noelle on the couch. He knew she had a lot on her mind and was terrified after everything she had been through, but he was going to do what he always did when she was scared...he was going to be right by her side.

Sitting down beside her, he held out his hand with his palm up, then turned his head to look at her. She gave him a soft smile, then laid the palm of her hand against his. She felt him intertwine their fingers as she laid her head on his shoulder and he pressed his lips against the side of her head.

He made a silent promise to himself that he would protect her no matter what he had to do because he was not going to lose her. Just like years ago when he made a vow that she was his best friend for life and everyone was going to be seeing a lot more of her, he was going to keep this promise no matter what.

•••

Next day, Noelle and Jamie laid in bed for as long as they could until they had to get up to go to their old neighborhood. She was going to her parent's house first to talk to her father about Jimmie before he heard about it from some old cop buddies, then she was meeting up with Jamie at the Reagan house. He had offered to go with her, but she told him this was something she needed to do herself.

Walking into his childhood home, he gave everyone a wave when they called out a greeting to him. Usually, he would walk into the living room and jump into whatever conversation was going on, but today he had too much on his mind and he was exhausted from the lack of sleep the night before.

He mostly spent the night listening for anything unusual and holding her as she tried to sleep, but her sleep was restless and she had nightmares back to back.

Needing a pick-me-up, he shuffled into the kitchen for coffee and saw his sister peek in on the meat in the oven. Hearing someone enter the room, she turned her head and shut the oven door, then called out a friendly greeting to her younger brother.

"Hey," Jamie said back. "What are you making?"

"Osso buco," Erin answered.

"Smells good." He poured some coffee grounds in the coffee pot to start brewing. "No one is going to know what that is, but it still smells good."

His sister laughed at his joke, sadly he was probably right. She glanced around for a moment, then looked back at him. "Where's Noelle? I thought she was coming?"

"She is. She's visiting with her folks first and will come here afterward."

"Oh."

The two were quiet for a moment until the coffee was finished and she watched him make a cup then take a sip. Seeing how exhausted he was, she tilted her head to the side. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I just didn't get much sleep last night." He took another sip.

"Is everything okay with you and Noelle?" she questioned, trying to get to the bottom of what was bothering him.

"Yeah, yeah, everything's great," he said with a genuine smile. He couldn't tell her what was going on yet, but he could at least get her help with another problem. He nervously cleared his throat. "But, actually, there is one thing I was hoping to get your advice on."

"Okay, what's going on?"

"Well, as you know, tomorrow is Valentine's Day and I asked Nol out-"

"Aw," Erin cooed, cutting him off. As he lowered his head and let out a chuckle, she placed her hands over her mouth for a moment before lowering them. "I'm sorry. I'm just really happy for you two, but please, continue."

"Basically the problem is...now I don't know what to do for tomorrow," he admitted.

"Well, how do you feel about her?" When he shot her a look, she let out a laugh. "Right, I already know the answer to that question."

"Yeah, Danny says you all knew something was there between us from the beginning."

"Mm-hm." She nodded. "We've all been betting for years and I had a feeling it would happen soon after she moved back. I was only off by a few weeks."

Jamie laughed at her joke, although he had a feeling it wasn't a joke. Blowing out a breath, he sat the cup down and leaned back against the counter. "So what should I do?"

"I think the better question is...what do you want to do?"

"I want to show her how much she means to me," he admitted. "I mean, we use to spend a lot of Valentine's Days together. We would eat candy and watch movies, but that was just as friends. I want to do more than that this time since we're...whatever we are."

"And what are you two exactly?" She rested her hand on her chin, trying to appear nonchalant. She was curious about what was going on between them. She knew they went out on a date recently and they've been hanging out a lot, but she didn't know if that meant they were together or still just friends.

"Very subtle, sis." He chuckled, then blew out a breath. "But the truth is, I don't know what we are. We haven't talked about it yet."

"Maybe tomorrow can be your chance to show her what you want."

"So you think I should go all out?"

"I do. Show her what she means to you and really go big if that's what you're feeling." She smiled. "Let me tell you something about us girls...we love when men tell us exactly what they're feeling and despite what you might think, we are not mind readers. So if you want to commit to her, tell her and then tell her again. Never leave her guessing or doubting your feelings for her. Just remember; actions are good, but words are better."

"Okay. Okay, good, thanks." He nodded. "Then it's settled. That's what I'll do."

"What's settled? What are you gonna do?" Danny questioned as he walked into the kitchen, catching the end of his brother's comment.

Erin glanced over at her other brother, a smile on her lips. "Jamie's planning a romantic date for Noelle tomorrow."

Danny nodded his head at the idea, then asked, "So does that mean you two are officially together?"

"Well, not exactly," Jamie answered.

"They haven't had the talk yet," Erin added for him.

"Right, we haven't had the talk," he repeated.

"So he's going to do something romantic and tell her how he feels," she continued.

Danny made a face and pulled in a sharp breath. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yeah," Jamie said while Erin nodded her head in agreement. He looked at his sister, seeing how sure she was about this, then looked back at Danny to see that he didn't agree, which left him confused all over again.

He shook his head and lowered his eyebrows in thought. "Or no? I don't know."

"Now look what you did." Erin looked at Danny. "You've confused him."

"I'm not trying to!" Danny threw out his arms. "I'm just trying to help the kid out."

"Well you're not helping because now I don't know what to do again," Jamie pointed out.

"Go casual," Danny suggested.

"No, don't listen to him," Erin argued. "Be romantic, Jamie."

"Trust me, casual is the way to go," Danny said, disagreeing with his sister. "Look, all I know is, years ago I took a girl out once and I thought we were on the same page, but then I realized I jumped the gun and we never recovered from it. It's the Valentine's Day curse."

Erin scoffed and folded her arms across her chest. "There is no such thing as a Valentine's Day curse."

"Didn't Jack propose to you on Valentine's Day?" Danny asked, even though he already knew the answer. When his sister didn't answer, he turned to look at his younger brother with raised eyebrows. "And there's your answer."

"So I should just go low-key and have the talk later?" Jamie questioned.

"Yes," Danny said, at the same time his sister said, "No."

"You two are not helping!" Jamie threw up his hands in frustration.

As his siblings began to talk over each other, he heard the other members of his family calling out a greeting to Noelle as she arrived at the house. After telling everyone hey and being pointed toward the kitchen to find Jamie, he quickly shushed his siblings so she wouldn't overhear their conversation.

"Hey!" Noelle entered the room, hearing several hellos from the Reagan siblings. She went around the room to give them all hugs, holding on to Jamie a little longer, which was something she needed after the visit at her parent's house.

"So what did I miss?" Noelle leaned back against the counter beside Jamie and looked at each sibling. "What were you talking about?"

The three began to talk at once, each throwing out a different topic to try to cover up what they were talking about. Noelle looked at each one again, her eyebrows lowered in confusion as she tried to follow three different conversations.

When Jamie saw her open her mouth to question what was going on, he quickly cut her off by asking his sister if dinner was ready. Erin spun around to the oven and peeked inside, then announced it was time to eat.

"Great, dinner's ready!" Danny called out to the whole household. He began to usher Noelle and Jamie toward the dining room where the rest of the family was beginning to walk into to sit down at the table.

"Wait, I need to take my coat off." Noelle came to a stop and shrugged it off.

"Come on, I'll go with you." Jamie laid a hand on the small of her back and began to lead her past his family members into the living room, where everyone's coats were tossed onto the couch.

After sitting the pan of meat on the table, Erin grabbed Danny's arm and pulled him aside. "What's going on? Why are you talking him out of dating Noelle?"

"I'm not." Danny glanced over at his wife for a moment, then looked back at his sister. "I got a bet going on with Linda. If they wait until after Valentine's Day, I'll win."

Erin shook her head, a chuckle escaping her lips. She turned to go back into the kitchen to grab another plate of food for the table. Leave it to Danny to try to bend the rules to win.

"So what was that in there?" Noelle questioned Jamie now that they were alone.

"What? In there? Nothing," Jamie said nervously. He took the coat from her hand and tossed it onto the couch with the others, then changed the subject, "How are you? How was it at your parents?"

She blew out a breath and wrapped her arms around herself. "It was as hard as I thought it was going to be. Just seeing the look on my dad's face as I told him what Jimmie did, it killed me." Shaking her head, a pained look on her face. "I never wanted him to know about this...I never wanted to see that look on his face."

"I'm sorry." He wrapped an arm around her waist and brought her closer to him. As her arms went around his middle, he laid his other hand on the back of her head and rested his chin on top of her head.

With her face pressed against his chest, she closed her eyes and listened to his heartbeat, the sound relaxing her- something she desperately needed after talking to her father. She didn't give him all the gory details, but it was still an emotional talk. The two agreed to not tell her mother about it, they thought that would be for the best.

After a few silent minutes, she let out a small chuckle, then pulled back to look at him. "I almost didn't get to leave from there. He basically wanted to lock me in my room until this was all over."

"I can understand that feeling." He nodded. "Trust me, I've been tempted to do it myself, but I know how stubborn you are and I know you'll fight me on it."

She nodded her head. "And you know I'll kick your ass."

He let out a chuckle, then shook his head. "I know you'll try, but you can't really reach it."

She let out a gasp, her mouth dropping open in mock surprise. "A short joke? Really, Jams?" She laid her hands on his chest and playfully pushed him back as she called him a jerk.

He laughed at her antics, pleased that his plan to cheer her up worked. He lightly grabbed her arm and told her to come here as he pulled her toward him. He forgot where he was for a moment and pressed his lips against hers for a tender kiss.

Getting lost in the moment, he laid his hands on either side of her face and gave her bottom lip a small nibble, then moved his lips against hers again. He had no intentions of stopping until the two heard someone clear their throat. They quickly pull away and turn to the dining room doorway, seeing his family standing there watching them- minus his grandfather who had already sat down and didn't wanna get back up.

Frank cleared his throat and slipped his hands in his front pants pocket. "If you two are finished...we would like to sit down and eat as a family now."

"Oh, god," Noelle mumbled, her cheeks turning red as she buried her face in Jamie's shirt.

Jamie self-consciously wiped at his bottom lip and lowered his head for a moment. He gave her back a small rub to comfort her, then looked back over at his family. "Let's eat then."

Erin looked over at Danny, a chuckle on her lips as she quietly said, "Looks like you're losing that bet."

"It's not over until it's over, sis," he said back with his trademark grin.

•••

Minutes later, the family was seated around the table quietly eating. Noelle took a bite of food, then glanced around nervously, wondering when the questions were going to start but she shouldn't have been all that surprised that no one said anything yet. Most of the Reagan family members were good in the art of interrogation, they would stay silent until you cracked and told on yourself.

As more minutes ticked by, Noelle couldn't stand it anymore and suddenly blurted out, "We were just kissing!"

She was aware of Jamie watching her from the corner of her eyes, as well as the rest of the family. She knew she should shut up, but she couldn't stop herself. "Well, we're more than kissing...I mean, not that- but you know, dating. We're-We're dating, but I don't know..."

Seeing Jamie shaking his head, the look on his face pleading with her to stop talking, her voice trailed off. She turned to look at him and let out an uncomfortable chuckle, then turned back to the others. "And I don't know why I'm telling you all this. Sorry."

"Well..." Frank took a sip of his drink, then set it down. "Whatever is going on between you two, I think I speak for everyone when I say, it's been a long time coming."

Henry held up his glass and called out, "Hear! Hear!"

"We would say welcome to the family, but..." Danny chewed his food, then took a sip of his drink and swallowed. "You've been here for years...we can't get rid of you."

"Ha-ha." Noelle stuck her tongue out at him while everyone at the table laughed at their antics.

"So does this mean you two are officially together?" Linda questioned as she side-eyed her husband, thinking of their bet.

"Well, uh, we're-"

"We're-We're taking it slow?" Jamie guessed when she stuttered for an answer.

"Right, slow," Noelle said, hoping her disappointment didn't show. Maybe it was smart to take it slow, but the truth was, she didn't want to. She felt like they had been taking it slow for years, but she couldn't force the issue; so if slow is what he wanted, then slow is what she would do.

Turning to look at him, she gave him a small smile and nod. "We're going slow."

"Okay, let's change the subject," Erin suggested, wanting to get the spotlight off of the uncomfortable couple- plus as happy as she was for them, talks of relationships were a sensitive subject for her because of her situation.

"Why?" her daughter questioned, bringing up the one subject she didn't want to discuss, "I'm not upset about Dad's girlfriend. Are you?"

"No," Erin stated, hoping she sounded believable.

"He's taking her to Anguilla for Valentine's Day," Nicky announced to the whole table, then smiled at her mom. "But Mom and I have a date, right, Mom?"

"That's right." Erin returned the smile. "Nicky wanted to have Peking Duck in the city, so, Peking Duck she will have."

"Uncle Jamie, where are you taking Noelle?" Nicky looked over at her uncle, curious what romantic plans the couple had.

"Uh..."

"Let me guess..." Noelle said as his voice trailed off. "All ideas and no plans?"

"Something like that." He laughed. "But I'm working on something good."

He saw Danny raise his eyebrows at him as he took a drink- as if to remind him not to go too big while his sister Erin just smiled at the couple. Their conflicting advice still had him a bit confused. He hoped by the next day he had it figured out on which way to go.

"Valentine's Day. Ug!" Henry exclaimed, getting everyone's attention.

"Why?" Nicky questioned him.

"Because it's one of those holidays that is dreamed up by the greeting card companies," he explained, causing his son Frank to chuckle after taking a sip of his drink.

"What's a greeting card?" Jack, Danny's oldest son, asked.

"Mm," Linda muttered before swallowing her food, then explained to her son, "It's something people used to send before e-cards, honey."

"I'm making Mom a nice card in school, but it's a surprise," Sean announced to the table, causing everyone to laugh as his mother jokingly put a finger to her lips- as if to say his secret was safe.

"Is that another Reagan trait, Grandpa?" Nicky asked as she looked at Frank. "Do you think it's hooey?"

"Well, I thought it was great, but your Grandma Mary didn't like making a big deal out of it," he answered. "She always hated the idea of being required to express her love on a certain day."

"Well, that's Mom to a tee," Erin spoke up.

"Reagan women don't like to be told what to do." Frank smiled at his daughter.

"No, we don't," Erin said in agreement.

"Kelley women are the same way," Jamie joked as he turned his head to look at Noelle.

With a laugh, Noelle pointed her fork at him, a small piece of meat on the end of it. "And don't you forget it, Jams."

He playfully narrowed his eyes at her, then leaned forward to steal the meat off of her fork. Her mouth dropped open in surprise before she slapped his shoulder. While he grabbed his glass to take a drink, she reached over to his plate and stabbed her fork into a piece of meat he had cut up for himself. She shoving it into her mouth and shot him a smug smile.

As everyone around the table laughed at their antics, she took a sip and swallowed the food.

"I've always loved Valentine's Day," Noelle said, getting back to the subject.

"That's 'cause you're a closeted romantic," Jamie announced, causing her to slap a hand over his mouth as she shushed him.

"That was a secret," she joked, then removed her hand.

A chuckle escaped her lips, when he said, "My bad."

She shook her head, then explained, "No, I think it's mostly because my dad would always go all out on that day for my mom. So, I just have all of these great memories attached to that day."

"Still, it's one of those days. You know, you're supposed to be hooked up, and it's a reminder if you're not," Jamie began to say, speaking from another point of view. He never felt lonely on that day, mostly thanks to the girl sitting next to him, but he knew some people felt that way. "You know, it's like a pressure point, like New Year's Eve."

"What do you mean by that...pressure point?" Danny questioned, his mind beginning to wander.

"I don't know. It's just one of those days when you're supposed to be happy, or you measure your happiness. Some people propose, other people are disappointed by their mates, or if they're alone, it exacerbates their loneliness."

"You know, you may be a genius, kid." Danny set his fork down and thought about his case. He was pretty confident that he just solved it.

"Jamie, you know you shouldn't use big college words on your brother," Noelle joked, causing Danny to flash her a sarcastic smile at the comment.

"Exacerbate. Worsen," Jamie explained to him.

"No, no. The whole Valentine's Day, pressure point thing." Danny wiped his mouth off with a napkin then tossed it down on the table before standing up. "I'm gonna get back to work. Okay, Dad?"

"We just started eating here," Henry pointed out.

"I got to get back to work." Danny wanted to go back to the parents of the kidnapped girl and see if his theory was correct. He was starting to think the girl faked her own kidnapping because she was upset with her divorced parents' situation.

"Pork chops were great," he added, causing a round of laughter around the table.

"Pork chops," Erin repeated with a scoff. Leave it to her brother Danny to not know the difference between pork and lamb.

As everyone shouted out parting words to Danny, Jamie glanced over at Noelle and saw a smile on her face as she watched his family. He reached out to lay a hand on her knee, giving it a squeeze and grabbing her attention.

When she turned her head to look at him, he leaned over to give her cheek a quick peck, then resumed eating his food, keeping his hand on her knee during the whole meal.

•••

A/N; This chapter got away from me, but I love when she gets to interact with all the Reagans.

Thank you to everyone reading!

Happy reading!
xx