XxX

"Nigel Townsend." Jordan chuckled, tracing circles upon his chest before she rested her head upon it, "Who would have thought ya had it in ya?"

He held her close, kissing the top of her head, "I could make love to you all night, beautiful."

Her eyes wandered to the clock, and she smirked when she saw the bright red 3:00, "Looks like you have." Playfully, her hand snuck beneath the sheets, her fingers making their way lower and lower, "Not that I mind…" She leaned up to steal a kiss, but a ringing stole away their moment.

Nigel dropped his head back with a groan as he reached for the cell and Jordan tucked herself back under the blanket, trying not to give into her disappointment. She was a medical examiner too, after all, she knew the costs of their profession.

"Townsend." He answered, his voice hinting at annoyance.

A devilish smirk appeared on her face, and she slowly began running her foot up the length of his leg, savoring his slight jump when she found her prize.

He narrowed his eyes at her, an empty warning since she could tell he was far from bothered, "Yes, Dr. Macy." He emphasized the title. She fell back, feigning a pout.

They had decided a while back to keep what they had going just between them for the time being. It wasn't that either of them was worried things wouldn't work out, but they had both agreed that the added pressure and attention was the last thing they wanted to deal with at the moment. There was too much going on between their caseloads and how close they had been hitting home recently, not to mention the recent passing of their perky colleague. No, the last thing Jordan or Nigel wanted was commentary from their peers about their relationship, the only real sanctuary they had left in their chaotic lives.

"Alright, yeah, I can be there in thirty minutes." He snapped the phone shut and sat up, "Going to have to take a raincheck, luv."

"Do you have to go?" She lay just so to tempt him to return to bed, her eyes dark and coy. It almost worked.

"It's an apartment fire." He pulled his shirt on and began looking for his other boot, "The body count is already up to five. Macy is calling all hands-on deck."

She wrinkled her nose, "Why haven't I been called in then?"

"You're not on call—"

A ring sound from Jordan's side and cut him off. She smirked, flipping it open, "Cavanaugh. Yeah, I can be there in thirty minutes." Snapping the phone shut, she stood and sauntered towards her companion, "Want some company?"

He winked, "Might want to get dressed first, luv."

XxX

Garret Macy hadn't been kidding about all hands-on deck. He had called in every available staffer as the body count continued to rise.

He only offered a slightly raised brow as the familiar pair rounded the corner together. More and more where one was, he knew the other was sure to be nearby. Either they showed up at a crime scene together or were glued to the other's side at the morgue, more often than not he'd see them heading out together for Max's bar at the end of the night.

Garret always knew they were good friends, but now he was wondering if there was something more going on. Friends didn't just show up to a crime scene together at 3:30 in the morning.

"Nigel, I want you to go help Bug in recovery. Jordan, I need you to head up transport and get to work on identifications." Macy dictated, handing to the van to get them ready. Once they were properly dressed, Nigel grabbed his bag to head out, but not before he met Jordan's eye and nodded to her silent request, be safe.

The gesture didn't go unnoticed by their boss, but he had more than enough to be worried about than concerning himself with any hanky-panky going on in his team.

XxX

The shift lasted a solid forty-eight hours until everything was cleared up and each family consoled. It had been an accident, a terrible accident, that had taken the lives of fifteen people, and they were both exhausted, both emotionally and physically.

Finally, they were heading to Jordan's apartment in her old Camaro. Nigel grabbed her bag before she could and the pair headed up to collapse on the couch, too tired to speak.

"Coffee?" He offered, standing up when she nodded. Nigel had all but moved into Jordan's apartment and it felt more like home than anything else stateside did.

Jordan let her head laze to the side, a small smile tugging at her as she watched him easily move around the small kitchen. He kept all his mugs on the very top shelf, along with a small tin of cookies, or biscuits as he called them, which only he could reach. The pot brewed as he set to making her coffee before his.

He returned soon after with the steaming mugs in hand and she savored the taste, he always made hers to perfection.

As he settled back in, the gold ring he always wore on a chain around his neck caught her eye. She had seen it often enough, but never ventured to ask about it.

Tonight, she felt bold enough to, "Hey, Nige, who did the ring belong to?"

"This?" He picked it up, smiling, "My Mum. Dad gave it to me after he remarried, said I should have it in case…" He let the thought trail off, not wanting to scare her.

Jordan nodded, knowing what he meant, and reached over to fiddle with it. Playfully, she slid it onto her ring finger and grinned, "The perfect fit." She held it up to show him before slipping her finger out and reaching for her coffee.

"Yeah." Nigel smiled as she snuggled into his side. He kissed the top of her head, "The perfect fit."

XxX