Chapter Text
There were, it should be noted, no rumors that the baby Sam was carrying was Malcolm Tucker's. Not even the barest hint of gossip to that effect had ever been uttered by anyone.
That is not to say that nobody thought the baby was Malcolm's. Everyone thought the baby was Malcolm's. But nobody was brave enough to say it aloud. Most people were too afraid to even think it too hard, for fear that Malcolm would somehow smell it on them. Or, perhaps worse yet, that Jamie MacDonald would catch wind of it, resulting in the kind of horrors that would put even the writers of Saw to shame.
Jamie had been protective of Sam ever since his reappearance at Number 10 some three days after Malcolm's own triumphant home-coming. No one was quite sure of the circumstances surrounding Jamie's return, just as no one knew the exact details of his exit several months before. Everyone was curious, certainly. But everyone also realized that this was one of those situations where curiosity would kill the cat only after it has been skinned alive, rubbed in salt, and possibly lit on fire.
Despite Jamie's new papa-bear streak, no one even considered the possibility the the baby might be his. The very idea of it was just too terrifying to be entertained. Jamie MacDonald was a force of nature. A horrible, scary, foul-mouthed, rage-filled force of nature. To contemplate him as a sexual being was simply too much to bear. In fact, Jamie's protectiveness was considered by most to be further proof that Malcolm was indeed the baby's father.
Even Jamie being seen reading a parenting book had not been enough to raise comment. Although, that was probably because Olly Reader was the only one to witness the event and when he had opened his mouth to offer a (not very) witty remark, the subsequent glare he had gotten from Jamie was enough to make him not only shut his mouth and back very quickly out of the room, but also to ask Nicola if it wouldn't be too much of a problem for him to knock off work early that day (for, he claimed not wrongly, health reasons).
Jamie and Malcolm were, of course, well aware of everyone's thoughts on the matter, unvoiced though they may be. But they also knew that in situations like this, denials were pretty much worthless, and often raised more suspicion than saying nothing at all. So, as long as nobody actually said anything out loud, they were content to leave things be. Well, Malcolm was content to leave things be. Jamie often wished someone would say something, just so he could rip out their intestines with a spoon and force-feed them their own bowels.
Sam, however, remained blissfully above it all. She gracefully accepted the baby gifts that appeared on her desk with alarming frequency from the various Scots, not really caring if they were mostly given to try to curry favor with her boss. She responded to various questions about her health, the baby's due date, etc (only asked if Malcolm and Jamie were out of ear-shot) with good grace and a calm smile.
Sam knew what everyone around her thought and how they judged her for it, but she just couldn't bring herself to give a damn. Because she also knew the important things: her baby was healthy, it was a girl, and it would be very well loved by two very overly-protective men.
One thing she didn't know was which of those overprotective men was the father.
But she didn't really give a damn about that either.