Title: Life Roads


Rating: T, but if you think that I should change it to M, tell me please.

Disclaimer: I don't own Crossing Jordan, but if I would, they wouldn't be playing bad superheroes. Or at least, they would have made up their minds.


Summary: "Jordan and Woody are building their life together, but there is a new challenge they'll have to deal with as a difficult case hits too close to them."

Acknowledgment: This time I have to thank Kat for her work on my writing. I truly appreciate it.

Please review!


Life Roads.

Chapter 1: Hot, hot, hot!

A commotion of pots and dishes hitting the floor, followed by a guttural groan drew Jordan's attention from the book she was reading.

"Damn it!" Woody's anger was growing by the second, as next thing she heard was some kitchen instruments, maybe spoons, making a metallic crashing sound against the kitchen counter. She was expecting to hear more crashing from what was happening in her kitchen, but a few minutes passed and no more noises were heard. The vaporizer that was working in her room had already filled all the air with the scent of eucalyptus. Her lungs and throat were feeling a lot better than they did that morning. There were condensation covering her glass wall and she was finding it really difficult to read as the vapor was clouding her vision. She took off her blankets and was preparing to get out of the bed, putting her slippers on, when Woody appeared at the door.

"What are you doing!" he exclaimed as if she was going to get ready for a bunji jump.

"I was going to turn off the vaporizer; I can't read with all that vapor and…" she couldn't finish her explaining because Woody was all over her, tucking her into bed again.

"No, no, no, no, no, no. You're sick; you're not allowed to get up. The vaporizer is just fine. Leave it alone." Jordan's flushed cheeks worried him and he immediately took the thermometer from the bedroom table and prepared it to measure her temperature ."Do you feel hot? Fevered or something?"

"No Woody! In fact, I feel a lot better now. I'm just getting frustrated. If you dare put that thing on me I'll show you how well I'm feeling and how that thing is properly used… ON YOU!" She pinned her index finger menacingly to his chest, her voice came out louder than she intended. She didn't really mean to snap at Woody but her frustration was getting the better of her.

He returned the said instrument to the table and responded quite calmed, "Ok, I'll take it as a no." Then, he left the room but came back immediately, carrying a tray with a bowl of something that smoked and smelled just like chicken soup.

"Did you cook this?" Jordan's stomach reminded her that she hadn't had a meal since yesterday morning. Her appetite was telling her that she was, in fact, feeling good.

"O yeah, and I promise, it's a lot lot better than the one they serve at Mass General." He fixed a bed table over her and put a spoon in the bowl, "you better take it hot", he didn't have to ask her twice, she was devouring it hungrily already. Woody was observing her in the meantime, thinking about how his life had turned out to be so fantastic after all the tragedy that hanged over his head every day. He thought about how, after those major traumatic events they had experienced, they were at this point in their life together, they were happy and taking care of each other. His loving look was not acknowledged by Jordan as her whole being was focused on that chicken bowl.

"Did you take your medicine?" Woody asked while he was removing the empty bowl from the table.

"Woooody, I'm a doctor, I can take care of that!" Her anger was now at breaking point. Her strength was recovered and his over protectiveness was affecting her self control.

"Yes, yes, but a very negligent one when it comes to your own self"

If Jordan's face was reddish before, now it had turned the color of flames. "Oh! Please leave me alone. Don't you have work to do or something?"

"No, my night off… sorry, you're stuck with me."

Woody's confidence infuriated her even more. "Ok, I'm just gonna turn off the vaporizer, I'm beginning to feel suffocated." And she put the blankets away, firmly trying to get up again.

Woody kept her from doing so, taking her by her shoulders, lovely but tight. "No. Look, it's a cool mist humidifier; Garret told me it's good for your lungs. If you feel hot, is not the humidifier." She glared at him trying to get free from his hold. He reacted tightening his grip. "You've survived a brain surgery and a plane crash in the period of one year; I don't want you to die on me from stupid pneumonia you collected because of your stubbornness. Was it really too hard to let Seely do his work? Any of the guys could have dragged that girl from the frozen water, it didn't have to be especially you, you know?"

They were struggling with each other in attempt to get one up on the other. Neither was allowing the other to do so.

"I was doing just fine yesterday by myself, you know. If you are so angry with my attitude at work you can fill in the complaint form Garret has made especially for me" and then she performed the "thinking" gesture, putting a finger on her temple and rolling her eyes "Oh, yeah, I remember, we ran out of that form ages ago. You'll have to wait your turn!"

"Jordan, take it easy." He warned. "The only thing I'm saying is that you could have waited for someone who was better equipped for that action. It was freezing! Fourteen degrees or less that day!"

"I wasn't going to wait for Matt to get off his very expensive-designer pair of shoes he was wearing for work and let that poor little girl die of cold in the lake! Time was running out! And everybody was moving in such slow motion. I…" He smiled and silenced her with a kiss full of passion, mixing his desire with admiration. That was exactly why he loved her so much. A moment passed by between more them, their kisses releasing any anxiety they felt.

He had been so worried ever since they told him Jordan was visiting the hospital again. His fears of the meningioma wouldn't leave him alone. When he learned she was getting checked out for a much less, let alone fearing pneumonia, he couldn't get the concern out of his mind that easily. Not until now.

Two entire weeks had passed since the incident and he hadn't been able to stay with her because he was involved in surveillance work in New Jersey. Of all the collaborating police acts he could have been doing he had to be far away from her. Jordan reassured him that she wasn't that bad, that they treated her properly at the hospital and that she was taken care. Garret had done it for her, as always, and she had been released to go home. That kept him from throwing all his work right away… but he wanted to so that he could be there to take care of Jordan.

"You're gonna get infected." She mumbled hoarsely.

"Didn't you say that you were feeling better a minute ago?" He managed to articulate between breathing efforts...

And she showed to him indeed how good she was feeling now. The high amount of vapor surrounding them gave the impression of being in a hot, wet dream. So hot that their clothes were being dismissed two at a time. In the rush of the moment, she almost ripped off his belt as it didn't come un-done easily. He helped her with the belt, and with many things more…

************** ***********

"Shit! The condom broke." Woody said alarmed when he was taking out the said article.

"Don't worry, I'm on the pill," Jordan whispered, her full body relaxed, her brain almost disconnected from this world, a restful sleep embracing her. Woody tucked himself into the sheets with her, kissed her forehead and let the sleep embrace him too.


With a happy-go-lucky attitude, Woody entered the residential condo where dispatch had requested him. His life couldn't get any better, it was "perfect". The long forgotten farm-boy was returning.

"What do we have, Kate?" He asked the ME - she was crouched over a chaise longue in the living room. Although he was excited, he felt something was wrong with some of the people in the apartment. He didn't recognize a couple of the men that were standing beside the corps. "This is a crime scene Sir. You'll have to leave please," he requested before Kate could answer him. She just threw him a "look" that made him feel uneasy. "What?" He asked to her, and she motioned to look at the ID's that both men were showing to him already.

"We're from the Mayor's office, detective. This young lady over here was in our council staff. Her name is Susan Byrne. We need to know what happened." One of them said.

Woody watched the two men, then he looked at the young woman that rested peacefully on the couch, and finally he met Kate's eyes.

"There's no visible sign of COD, she's no more than twenty five." She uttered.

"Well, I think we'll have to wait for the forensic results to answer your questions. We'll be in touch with your office as soon as we know anything. Meanwhile, I have to insist to you that this is a crime scene and that you have to leave… please." He beckoned them to move toward the exit, and both men walked defeated as they were requested.

"What a pain in the ass," Kate muttered while she was crouching again over the young woman.

"What? Our dear Kate can't manage a couple of defenseless men from the Mayor's office by herself? Hey! Hell must be freezing!" He spoke almost singing. His grin - dimples included, came back to him.

As Kate was about to answer in her usual intimidating way, Nigel peeked his head from the next-room-door. "I bet someone got lucky," he gleamed, expecting juicy details explaining Woody's behavior.

Kate stared at him, "You are both so out of line," she admonished them, "pay a little more respect for this girl and for the baby."

Woody looked completely stunned and asked, "What baby?"

"Her missing baby" Nigel's stance changed rapidly, ashamed. He motioned Woody to come to the room he was in. "Look," he showed to him an empty crib, "she was a single-mom, and her baby, a girl I presume, is missing."