SETTING: December 1977. Jill is now 13 weeks pregnant. Terry and Debra are busy planning their August 1978 wedding. Mike, Jill and Willie are standing in the wedding party as co-best persons. Debra, Terry’s fiancée, is in her final year of law school. She will graduate in June 1978 and will take the California State Bar Exam in July 1978.

RATED: R (for sexual content)

AUTHORS NOTE: Double The Joy is the follow-up story to The Announcement. I decided cover Jill’s pregnancy in several short stories rather than in just one longer story.

DISCLAIMER: ‘The Rookies’ is owned by Spelling/Goldberg Productions and Viacom Entertainment. No copy write infringement is intended or implied. The writer retains ownership of the storyline and any new characters introduced.

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CHAPTER 1: A Surprise For Mike and Jill

It was the first week in December and Jill was sitting in the exam room waiting for Dr. Christianson. Jill is now 13 weeks pregnant and came in for her monthly checkup. A short while later there was a knock on the door.

"Come in." Jill said.

"Hi, Jill. How are you doing?" Dr. Christianson asked as he shook Jill’s hand.

"The nausea’s finally subsided," she admitted, although she still looked a little pale. "I’m already starting to get a round abdomen. Isn’t it a little too soon for that?"

"Not under the circumstances. Remember when I told you that your due-date was just an estimate because of your irregular periods? It could be that I just miscalculated your dates. Let’s take some measurements and then I’ll listen for some heart tones."

Dr. Christianson started measuring Jill’s abdomen with a tape measure. "So, how’s Mike doing?"

"He’s fine," she grinned. "He’s really getting excited over this baby. There’s just one problem."

"What’s that?" Dr. Christianson asked as he started writing some notes on Jill’s chart.

"He won’t let me do anything," Jill sighed in frustration. "He vacuums, does the laundry and he’s even started cooking. Mike doesn’t want me to lift a finger."

"Just enjoy it while it lasts, Jill," Dr. Christianson advised.

"I’ll try."

"Let’s listen for the baby’s heartbeat." Dr. Christianson took his stethoscope and placed it on Jill’s abdomen. After a few seconds a smile came to his face. "Would you like to hear the heartbeat?"

She nodded eagerly

After cleaning off the earpieces he handed the stethoscope to Jill. Tears came to her eyes as she listened to the baby’s heartbeat.

"I think it’s time to schedule an ultrasound, if that’s all right with you." Dr. Christianson suggested.

"You don’t think anything’s wrong, do you?" Jill asked in alarm, gripping the edge of the table tightly.

"No, I don’t. I just want to see if we can get a more accurate due date. How about tomorrow afternoon, around 2:00pm? Bring Mike with you. I’m sure he would like to see the baby for the first time."

"We’re both off for the next two days. I’m sure he’d love to come."

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About one hour later Jill unlocked the door to the apartment. Mike was sitting at the kitchen table looking over the classified section of the newspaper. He got up from his chair and met Jill at the door.

"Hi, babe." Mike said as he gave Jill a passionate kiss on the lips. "How’d things go with the doctor?"

"Good. Dr. Christianson wants to do an ultrasound tomorrow."

"Everything looks good though, right?" Mike asked in a concerned voice.

"Everything’s fine," she answered as she rested her head against his chest. "Dr. Christianson thinks my due date might be off a little. The ultrasound’s one way to get a more accurate due date. Can you come with me tomorrow? The appointment is in the afternoon."

"I’ll be there." Mike promised as he kissed her again. "I put a roast and a couple of potatoes in the oven. Dinner should be ready in 30 minutes. I hope you’re hungry."

"I’m starved," Jill admitted. "I think I’ll go change into something more comfortable."

A few minutes later Jill came out of the bedroom wearing one of Mike’s Air Force t-shirts and a pair of shorts. Mike returned to the dining room table looking at the classified section. Jill walked up to Mike and pulled the newspaper out of his hands.

"Hey, I was reading that." Mike protested.

"Not anymore." Jill corrected in a silky voice as she straddled Mike’s lap and sat down. "What was so interesting in the paper, anyway?"

"I was looking at some of the houses that are on the market. This apartment’s going to be too small for us pretty soon. Unless, of course, you want our child sleeping in our bedroom ten years from now," Mike answered as he put his arms around Jill’s waist and pulled her closer to him.

"That would put a lid on any future children. Did you find any houses that we can look at?" Jill asked curiously as she put her arms around Mike and rested her head on his shoulder.

"There’s a couple of houses in Hollywood Hills that look interesting but they may need a little repair work before we can move in." Mike explained as he felt every curve of Jill’s upper body against his chest. Feeling the effects of Jill’s body in such close proximity to his own body, Mike pulled Jill away from his embrace and studied her for a few seconds. "Are you okay?  You look a little tired. Maybe we should cancel the dinner party for tomorrow night."

"I am a little tired. As far as the dinner party goes, we need to tell Lt. Ryker about the baby before he finds out from someone else. He’ll wonder why we didn’t tell him ourselves. Now, tell me more about the houses you want to look at." Jill pressed as she moved closer to Mike and started kissing him behind his ear and neck.

"The houses are cheap, which makes me think that they need some work." Mike continued as he started to massage Jill’s back before lightly touching the inside of her thighs. Jill moved in even closer to Mike while she kissed him passionately on the lips and exploring the inside of his mouth with her tongue.

Mike could feel his body responding to Jill’s seduction. "Dinner’s going to be ready in a few minutes."

"Forget dinner, Mike." Jill whispered throatily as she attempted to remove Mike’s shirt.

"We can make love after dinner." Mike informed her as he gently pulled her away.

Jill stared at him with tear filled eyes for a few seconds. "You’re not attracted to me any more!" Jill whispered in a devastated voice. She got up and ran toward their bedroom.

"Jill! Wait a minute!" Mike called after her as he walked toward the bedroom.

Jill was sitting on her side of the bed with her back toward the door, shoulders shaking.

"I’m sorry, babe." Mike said as he sat next to Jill on the bed.

"Leave me alone Mike." Jill sniffed, pulling away from him.

"Jill, I love you," he explained patiently, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Nothing will ever change that. I am and always will be attracted to you. From the first moment I met you at the diner I wanted to make love to you."

"You didn’t even know me then," Jill pointed out softly as she turned toward Mike.

"True, but my attraction to you was the reason why I had to get to know you better."

"Why didn’t you tell me this before?" She asked curiously.

"If I would have told you the real reason, you wouldn’t have given me the time of day. Look, Jill, I don’t want to hurt you or the baby. I would love to make love to you but not if it puts you or the baby in danger. This is our first child. I want to do the right thing." Mike concluded as he wiped a tear from Jill’s face.

"Mike, the baby is in an amniotic fluid filled sac that protects it. It’s perfectly safe for us to make love. If it makes you feel any better we can ask Dr. Christianson tomorrow when we go in for the ultrasound."

"Am I forgiven?" Mike asked as he took Jill’s hands in his and lightly kissed the fingertips.

"You’re forgiven but you owe me big, Danko," she grinned, sitting up slightly and kissing him full on the lips.

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The next morning Mike and Jill were looking at one of the houses for sale that he’d picked out in the classified ads. The house was in poor shape…it needed a new roof, painting inside and out and new carpeting.

The second house they saw was a 20year- old four- bedroom ranch style that needed some minor repairs on the inside and a paint job on the outside. The house was on 2 acres of land with a pool in the backyard and near an elementary school and high school. Mike and Jill were talking about the house while the realtor waited outside.

"What do you think about the house?" Mike ventured.

"Well, it’s in better shape than the first house we looked at." Jill admitted.

"We could get it in shape in no time if the guys and I work at it."

"Yes, but will we be in here by the time the baby is born?" She asked apprehensively.

"I think so." Mike said.

"What are we going to do with four bedrooms?" Jill wondered.

"Have three kids?" Mike suggested with a twinkle in his eye.

She laughed and took his hand in hers. "I really like this house. It has the fireplace in the living room and the master bedroom. I like the private bath in the master bedroom. The pool is nice. I say let’s put a bid down."

"Since we already got the okay from the bank for a loan, we can go ahead and put a bid on the house and see what the owners think."

Mike and Jill put a bid on the house. The realtor was going to talk with the owners and discuss the bid and get back to Mike and Jill later on in the day.

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At 2:00pm Mike and Jill were ushered into an exam room at Dr. Christianson’s office for the ultrasound. A few minutes later Dr. Christianson entered the room.

"How are you doing today, Jill?" Dr. Christianson asked as he shook her hand. "And Mike, it’s good to see you."

"I’m fine." Jill answered. "We’re excited about seeing the baby for the first time."

"Speaking of which." Dr. Christianson opened the door and pulled the ultrasound machine into the room. "Let’s see what this baby looks like. Before we get started, do you want to know what the sex of the baby is if we can see it that is?"

Mike and Jill looked at each other. "What ever you want," Mike finally answered.

"I’d rather be surprised," she finally decided.

"Okay. This is going to be a little coldl." Dr. Christianson said as he started to apply the gel on Jill’s slightly rounded abdomen. After he was finished he plugged the ultrasound machine in and turned it on. Dr. Christianson put the transducer on Jill’s abdomen and started watching the screen. A broad smile came to his face.

"What is it?" Jill queried in an anxious voice as she studied the doctor’s reaction.

"See for yourself, Jill." Dr. Christianson suggested as he turned the ultrasound machine screen towards Mike and Jill so they could see.

She studied the screen for a few seconds. "Oh, my god! Am I seeing what I think I am seeing?" Jill questioned in excitement as she grabbed onto Mike’s hand tightly.

"What’s going on?" Mike asked, studying the screen closely.

"Why don’t you tell him?" Dr. Christianson chuckled.

"We’re having twins!" Jill exclaimed as tears flowed down her face.

"Twins? Are you sure?" Mike asked in shock.

"Let me point them out to you. Here’s twin ‘A’ and here’s twin ‘B’." Dr. Christianson explained as he pointed to each twin.

"Does each twin have their own amniotic sac or do they share one?" Mike asked.

"It looks like each twin has their own sac. Here’s the ultrasound picture of the twins." Dr. Christianson answered as he handed the picture to Jill. "I’ll be back in a few minutes so we can talk about a few things." Dr. Christianson left the room.

"I don’t believe it. Twins!" Jill babbled happily as she hugged Mike.

"It’s a good thing we put a bid on that house this morning." Mike commented, still in a state of shock.

"Mike, are you okay with this?" Jill asked in a subdued voice, picking up on his reaction.

"I’m fine. It’s just a little overwhelming to hear you’re going to have two babies instead of just one."

A few minutes later Dr. Christianson came back into the room. "There are a few things I would like to go over with you before you leave. Being pregnant with twins changes the game plan a little. First of all, I want you to eat an extra 600 calories day. That includes increasing your protein, calcium and carbohydrates."

"Why so many calories?" Jill asked.

"We recommend 300 calories extra for a single baby so we have to double the calories with twins. The extra calories increases the odds of having normal babies with a healthy weight. You will also need to take a multivitamin with folic acid and iron. The folic acid is a B vitamin and helps produce red blood cells.Studies also show that you should drink plenty of water because there is an increased risk of premature contractions when the mother is dehydrated. With your pre-pregnancy weight and height, you should gain between 35 to 45 pounds during this pregnancy or about 6 pounds every 4 weeks."

"What about activities or even making love?" Mike questioned quietly.

"Dancing, swimming and walking are fine throughout the pregnancy. Some literature suggests that you can have sex right up until delivery. My suggestion would be to use your own judgment. If having sex becomes uncomfortable or hurts that’s when it’s time to stop. I’m sure you’re wondering about when it’s time to deliver. We usually try delivering vaginally whenever possible. Studies show about 36% of deliveries involving twins and triplets are delivered by c-section. I would like to wait and see how large the babies get before we decide on which method we’ll use. Any other questions?"

"I don’t think so." Jill commented thoughtfully.

"I want to continue to see you on a monthly basis until we reach the seventh month, then I want to change that to a weekly basis. In the meantime don’t hesitate to call my office or service if you have any questions or concerns. Don’t worry, we will get you through this. I’ll see you in one month, Jill. Nice to see you, Mike." Dr. Christianson concluded as he shook Mike and Jill’s hands.

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Mike and Jill drove home in a daze. Having twins was the last thing either one of them expected to see on the ultrasound. Jill was very excited about the news while Mike was thoughtful. When Mike and Jill got home Jill headed for the kitchen and started preparing the food for their dinner party. After Mike set the table he sat down on the couch in the living room.

After a few minutes Jill walked over to him, sat beside him and took his hand. "What’s on your mind, Mike? You’ve been quiet since we got home from the ultrasound."

"I was just thinking how nice it would be if my parents would get past whatever problems they have so we could have a normal relationship."

"Maybe if you reached out again they would see things differently," she suggested reluctantly.

"I don’t want to take that chance."

"Maybe their feelings will change when they hear that they have two grandchildren on the way."

"Let me think about it. Right now we have a party to get ready for."

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At 6:30pm Terry and Debra along with Willie and Sarah arrived at the Danko’s apartment. Debra and Sarah were busy helping Jill in the kitchen while Willie and Terry were in the living room talking to Mike.

"Gee, Mike, you look a little overwhelmed this evening. Isn’t that right, William?" Terry prodded.

"Hey, Terry, you should have been a shrink instead of a cop." Willie observed.

"Seriously, Mike, you said Jill had an ultrasound this afternoon, is everything all right?" Terry asked in a concerned voice.

"Everything’s fine." Mike answered shortly, wishing his two best friends would drop the subject. The doorbell rang, saving Mike from further interrogation. Mike opened the door and let Lt. Ryker step in.

"Lt. Ryker, it’s good to see you." Jill greeted happily as she walked out of the kitchen and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Why don’t you guys sit down in the living room? Dinner will be ready in a few minutes."

After eating dinner they all sat around the living room drinking coffee and listening to Mike, Terry, Willie and Lt. Ryker telling stories about their days as rookie cops.

Terry has always been very perceptive when it comes to his friends and decided to break the ice.

"So, Mike and Jill, what’s the real reason why you invited us over?" Terry asked.

"We wanted to get together before everyone leaves for the holidays." Jill began hesitantly.

"And…." Willie prompted.

Mike stood up and helped Jill to her feet.

"We have an announcement to make." Mike stated as he put his arm around his wife’s waist. "Willie and Terry already know this part but we wanted to tell you in person, Lt. Ryker. Jill and I are having a baby."

"Actually we’re having twins," Jill corrected shyly.

Lt. Ryker jumped to his feet, hugged Jill and shook Mike’s hand. "Congratulations to both of you." Soon everyone was hugging Jill again.

The telephone started ringing and Willie got up to answer. "Hey, Mike? It’s your realtor on the phone."

Mike took the call and found out that the owners of the house accepted his bid. Mike put the phone back on the receiver. Jill looked at Mike who shook his head ‘yes’.

"Okay,Mike. What other news do you have for us?" Willie asked, seeing that Mike looked the cat that swallowed the canary.

"We put a bid in on a four bedroom house in the Hollywood Hills this morning. The owners accepted the bid." Mike announced.

Everybody congratulated Mike and Jill.

"Hey, man, that’s cool. Do you have pictures of this house?" Terry queried.

Mike pulled out a picture that was given to him by the realtor.

"Looks like the house needs some work on the outside." Terry commented.

"You could put new shutters on the windows and a couple coats of paint on the outside," Lt. Ryker suggested.

"What about the inside?" Willie asked doubtfully.

"The inside needs some minor repairs like new doors and painting. And, of course, whatever decorating Jill wants to do. So what do you say, guys? Are you up to helping me get this house in shape?" Mike asked.

"I’m in." Terry agreed readily.

"Me, too." Willie chimed in.

"I’ll help, too." Lt. Ryker added.

Debra and Sarah walked up to Jill. "Sarah and I were talking and we’d love to help you decorate the nursery." Debra offered.

"Thanks." Jill said, hugging them both.

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The party started breaking up at midnight with everyone congratulating Mike and Jill again on their run of good luck. Mike took his usual tour around the apartment making sure the doors and windows were locked while Jill changed into her nightgown.

Jill was already in bed by the time Mike got into the bedroom to change into his usual t-shirt and sweatpants. After brushing his teeth, Mike slipped into bed next to Jill. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her next to him. She rolled over and put her arms around his neck while he passionately kissed her on the lips.

"So, do you feel better about making love now that you talked with Dr. Christianson?" Jill sighed as she trailed kisses down Mike’s chest.

"Yeah. I do." Mike answered, pulling Jill in closer while nuzzling her neck.

"Mike, that tickles." Jill protested.

Mike kissed Jill on the lips before trailing kisses behind her ear and down her neck to her shoulder. Jill put her hands through Mike’s hair as she pulled Mike’s head toward her face for another kiss. Mike helped Jill remove her nightgown before lightly trailing his fingertips across her bare skin. Jill placed Mike’s hands on her breasts. Jill moaned with pleasure as Mike massaged both breasts. Jill helped Mike remove his t-shirt and started caressing Mike’s back and chest with her fingers. Mike trailed kisses down to Jill’s panty line where he stopped to remove her panties. Mike heard Jill’s breath intake as he lightly touched Jill’s center with his hand before moving up to kiss Jill again. Mike continued to kiss and caress back down Jill’s chest and to her abdomen this time continuing on down to her middle. Mike used his tongue and fingers to lightly probe Jill’s middle in a way that drove Jill wild with desire. Jill continued to plant soft kisses down Mike’s chest. Jill helped Mike take off his sweatpants. Jill lightly stroked Mike’s increasingly hard shaft while taking her tongue and lightly sucking the tip.

Mike was rapidly approaching the point of no return as he rolled Jill on to her back. He hesitated a moment.

"It’s okay, Mike, you can lay on top of me," Jill informed him with a small grin. She shifted her legs into position. Mike covered Jill’s body with his own as Jill helped him enter her. Jill felt fullness as Mike started thrusting deep within her. Soon Mike increased the rhythm sending Jill near the edge.

"Mike, I need you to go deeper." Jill pleaded, trying to lift her pelvis up toward Mike. Mike put a pillow under Jill tilting her pelvis in an upward position. Mike continued thrusting. Jill could feel Mike’s member going deeper into her pelvis. Soon Jill’s muscles contracted around Mike. Mike thrust a few more times before he came to an explosive release. Mike shifted his body so he could avoid laying on her abdomen but still be on top of her. Mike and Jill shared kisses and caresses before Mike finally rolled to the side.

Jill laid her head on Mike’s shoulder while her arm was around his waist. Mike’s arm was around Jill’s shoulder.

"I think this Saturday I’m going to visit my parents in Los Angeles and tell them about the babies." Mike finally decided.

"Do you want me to go with you? Denise would probably cover for me if I asked her to." Seeing his parents was the last thing she wanted to do, but the least she could do was be there for moral support.

"Why don’t you stay here?" Mike suggested gently.

"You don’t think they are going to take the news well, do you?" She questioned in a serious voice.

"No. I don’t. I don’t want you to have to listen to that garbage if you don’t have to. It’s bad enough that I have to."

"Today was such an incredible day, Mike. We found out we are having twins and we bought a house."

"Yeah, it was a good day. To bad our run of good luck will end this weekend."

"Maybe your parents will soften up when they hear about the babies."

"Jill, one of the things I love about you is your willingness to forgive and forget but I really think in this case it’s a lost cause. Let’s go to sleep. I love you."

"I love you too, Mike."

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TO BE CONTINUED

EPILOGUE: I would like to thank the following website for their current information on twins: www.babycenter.com

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