The two weeks passed quickly and on the eve of their wedding, Jake and Heather were doing what they did best; working.
They didn't seem phased by the nuptials taking place the next day, taking these last twenty four hours to relax after the last two weeks.
Dress. Suit. Cake. Decorations. Single bridesmaid dress. Flower girl dress. Shoes. Hair. Makeup. Guests. Setup. Heather's head was spinning.
Jake, of course, helped with everything. Listening very clearly to Heather's directions and doing exactly what she asked; he would not be responsible for messing up a detail of their wedding.
"Can I hitch a ride to yours after work? I walked," Kaitlin said, walking into Heather's office, smiling brightly at the bride to be.
Kaitlin was her single bridesmaid, John was Jake's single groomsman. This wedding was as low-key as possible; even with a hoard of CNN anchors from Washington attending.
"Yeah sure, you realise that means you'll be with Juliet longer than you're supposed to be right?" Heather mused, her eyes not leaving her computer screen as she kept working.
She didn't want to walk back into work on Monday after her wedding weekend only to find her work piled up.
"Yes! I love her. I see no issue," Kaitlin said, laughing at the look on Heather's face. Juliet and Kaitlin loved each other and Heather was fairly certain her own daughter would dump her for Kaitlin.
The two looked to her door as Jake entered, he was on the way to his studio for the show and Heather would be heading to hers in about thirty minutes.
"Hey you, hey Kaitlin," Jake smiled, looking up from his phone. He kissed his fiancée, leaning one hand on the desk, one on the back of Heather's chair, "Your mom called, wants to know what time I'm leaving tonight,"
Heather groaned, turning back to her work. She thought she had gotten away with her fiancé leaving the house for the night.
"Do you have to? It's not like there's any bad luck we could have," Heather said, making vague reference to the five years they spent longing for each other and doing nothing about it.
Jake caught on to what she was saying but didn't say anything on the matter. Instead, he flicked his eyes to the pictures on Heather's desk. All of them now family photos of the three of them.
"She insists. Wants to keep some sort of tradition," Jake chuckled, standing up and leaning on the cabinets in front of her window.
"Fine. Then as late as possible," Heather groaned, turning her chair slightly to look up at him again. She didn't want to sleep without him that night.
"You two are so adorable," Kaitlin said, almost dreamily while looking over at her friends, chin in the palm of her hand.
Heather turned around, giving her a sharp look while Jake just smiled brightly.
***
The Tapper household had been thrown into disarray by the time Jake, Heather and Kaitlin made it there.
Lauren had been running wild setting up for pictures in the morning, Helen had come over to make sure Jake's suit, shoes and whatever else he needed were all ready.
"Mommy look!" Juliet smiled, bouncing out with a flower crown on her head. The very one that matched her mother's that she'd be wearing tomorrow.
Juliet was already on a sugar high by the time dinner was over, Jake was desperately trying to calm down his daughter before he left. Heather would be busy enough without this on her hands.
He hadn't been successful but he had corralled her to the couch and put on a Disney movie for her to get distracted by.
"You don't have to go," Heather said, slightly breathless while Jake handed her back the flower crown before their daughter had a chance to crumple it.
Jake chuckled, he wished he didn't have to be without her either. It would be a long night.
"I do, come on now, I'll see you at the top of the aisle tomorrow," Jake mumbled, bringing her into his arms.
He wrapped her in a tight hug, pecking her lips once, twice.... seven times before Heather got fed up of the short kisses and captured him in a long kiss.
"I'll be the one in the white dress," she mumbled against his lips, smiling, her eyes still closed. She was savouring this moment of them standing in their home before they became a married couple.
"Let me remember what you look like again, just incase there's more white," Jake teased, pulling back and holding her face in his hands while she just laughed.
"Dana's not going, there won't be any white," Kaitlin said, passing the couple and heading to the living room to sit with Juliet and Lauren.
Heather let out a laugh. The office had been tense since the wedding invites went out. Dana wasn't the only one not invited but she took it to heart and did go after Heather.
John, however, had been the one to diffuse the situation. In which, he pointed out that Dana had been particularly tough on Heather just because she had a show on the network. His gentle jabs about her journalism didn't go unnoticed.
"I love you," Heather said, running her fingers through his hair, smiling brightly at him.
"I love you too, see you tomorrow,"
***
Heather had been pleasantly surprised that Juliet had gone to sleep on time and Kaitlin and Lauren fell asleep fast enough too. She had a fear they'd be up all night.
Leaving Juliet's room, Heather paused in the hallway when she heard the front door unlock and someone stepped inside. For a second, her heart started racing.
She stood at the top of the stairs, smiling when Jake came into view and smiled up at her.
"What are you doing back here?" She asked in a hushed tone, watching Jake creep up the stairs. God, she was glad they had carpet.
"I wanted to be with you, one last time before we got married. I didn't think I'd be able to, John had me under lock and key until he and Phil fell asleep," Jake replied, his tone quiet as he pressed a kiss to his fiancées lips.
Quietly, they made their way back to the bedroom. Closing and locking the door, Heather was on her fiancé before he could even blink.
"They'll kill us if they know you're here," Heather said, kissing him again, he put her down on the bed, hovering over her as they kissed.
"I know," Jake chuckled, removing his tee shirt and his fiancees pyjamas, settling between her legs as she pulled him closer.
Heather laughed softly when Jake began pressing feather light kisses to her skin, tickling her lightly.
Jake was excited for the following day. It may be a small change, considering they had already had a baby and had their hardships, but he was extremely happy to be her husband in less than twenty- four hours.
***
As the clock ticked close to four am, Jake was still lying in bed, staring at his fiancée as she slept peacefully in his arms. He hadn't slept yet, but he'd catch an hour or two when he made it back to the hotel.
He had been surprised how easy it was to spend the night with Heather. He was almost certain one of his group or Kaitlin would've noticed something was up during the night. But they remained undisturbed.
"Don't go," Heather mumbled, moving closer to him. Her head on his shoulder, eyes still closed almost as if she was sensing that he would be up and out of their bedroom soon.
Jake smiled at her, kissing her forehead. Rubbing her back as she almost cemented him to the bed beside her.
"I have to baby," Jake mumbled, tilting her head so he could kiss her lips, "I'll see you in a few hours,"
