Jill was sitting propped up on the hospital bed, her day-old daughter cradled in her arms. Mary Kate had just finished nursing and was contentedly squirming around. Jill beamed down at her affectionately, playing with the tiny fingers.
There was a soft knock at the door and someone entered.
Jill glanced up, thinking it was Mike. Her eyebrows rose in surprise when she realized who it was. "Lieutenant? What are you doing here?"
"Hello, Mrs. Danko," Lt. Ryker greeted briskly, box tucked under his arm. "I just wanted to see how you’re doing."
"I’m wonderful," she smiled, eyes shining. She gently moved the baby blanket out of the way and turned her daughter slightly so that Ryker could see her face. "Lt. Ryker, meet Mary Katherine Danko. Mary Katherine, Lt. Ryker." She leaned closer to her daughter’s ear and added, "He’s your daddy’s boss."
"Mary – " Ryker broke off in amazement.
"I hope you don’t mind," Jill continued hesitantly, unsure of his reaction. "It’s such a beautiful name."
"Not at all," he reassured her hastily. He went over to Jill’s side and took Mary Katherine’s hand in his, pleasantly surprised when she latched onto his finger. "It’s a pleasure to meet you, young lady."
"She likes you," Jill beamed.
"Are you sure you’re all right, Mrs. Danko?" He asked anxiously, taking in her pale, drawn appearance.
"Lieutenant, I’m fine," she reassured him quickly, touching his elbow. "Actually I’m glad you came by."
"Oh?" He asked curiously, straightening up. "And why is that?"
"Shhhh," Jill soothed as Mary Katherine started fussing. Mary Katherine grabbed a lock of Jill’s long hair and started tugging on it happily. Jill smiled contentedly and glanced up at Ryker again. "Well, Mike and I were talking – "
"Hi, babe," Mike interrupted, coming into the room and freezing mid-stride when he saw Lt. Ryker standing there. "Oh, hi, Lieutenant."
"I was wondering where you were, Danko," Ryker said sternly.
"I went downstairs for some coffee while the doctor was examining Jill," he explained, sitting on the edge of her bed and slipped one arm around her while he kissed her. "Good morning."
"Hmmm," she sighed. "Good morning."
"What’d the doctor say?" He asked, watching Mary Katherine’s playing with Jill’s hair in amusement.
"Mother and daughter are fine," she answered. "We’re just tired. Hey, you’d better get out of here before my husband comes back," she teased.
"He the jealous type?" Mike asked with a twinkle in his eye, leaning down and kissing her again.
"Oh, yeah," she grinned.
"Excuse me," Ryker interrupted, clearing his throat loudly. "I hate to remind you of this, but you DID have a baby a few hours ago."
"I wondered where she came from," Jill deadpanned.
"You ask him yet?" Mike asked, pecking her on the lips.
"Ask me what?" Ryker prompted impatiently, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
"We’d like you to be Mary Katherine’s godfather," Jill answered.
"You what?" Ryker blurted, taken aback. "I thought you’d probably pick either Webster or Owens."
"They’re going to be honorary uncles," Mike answered, trying not to smile at Ryker’s discomfiture.
"It would mean a lot to us," Jill continued quickly, taking his hand and squeezing it gently. "Please?"
Ryker looked down at his shoes for a few seconds, touched. "I don’t know what to say."
"Say yes," Mike prompted. It wasn’t often he got to see his boss not in total control of a situation.
"I’d be honored," Ryker answered honestly, looking up at both of them.
Jill beamed up at him, eyes shining.
"What’s in the box?" Mike asked.
"Open it and find out," Ryker suggested noncommittally, handing it over.
Mike shrugged his shoulders, opened it and froze when he saw the contents.
"What is it?" Jill asked curiously, trying to get a glimpse of what was inside.
Mike took it out of the box and held it up for her to see. It was a miniature LAPD uniform, complete with tiny sergeant stripes.
"Where did you find it?" Jill laughed, fingering the material.
"She outranks me," Mike protested good naturedly, still a little stunned. Ryker having a sense of humor was something that caught him off guard.
"That’s right, Danko, she does," Ryker said. "If she’s going to be in charge she should at least look the part."
"It’s adorable," Jill stated, eyes starting to close.
"I think we should let you get some sleep," Mike suggested tenderly. She’d had a pretty hard few hours. He gently removed their daughter from her arms. "I’ll see you later, babe, okay?"
"I’d better get going too, Mrs. Danko," Ryker added quickly. "You both have a beautiful little girl."
"Lieutenant?" Jill whispered, crooking her finger towards her.
Ryker moved to her side obligingly.
She reached up and kissed his cheek softly. "Thank you for everything."
"It’s my pleasure," he said gruffly, not used to displays of affection.
Jill fell sound asleep.
"And if you say one word of this, Danko, you’ll be working the midnight to eight shift for the next six months," Ryker threatened, seeing the amusement in Mike’s face.
"Who, me? I didn’t see anything," Mike protested innocently. He looked at his daughter and then back at Ryker again. "Mary Katherine didn’t either, did you?"
"I’ll see you in a few days,
wise guy," Ryker snapped, stalking out of the hospital room.