Disclaimer:
Not mine…I merely remove them from a drawer belonging to Tim Kring and play with em' for a while…I…imagine much like "borrowing" GI Joes from my brother as a kid…well…in any case, I'll put em back when I'm through…promise….
MADAM BETH 28 Days"You know, maybe it would be better for me if I DIDN'T stay at your place until I was better?" Woody suggested as I joyously packed a few duffle bags full of clothes for him as he sat gingerly on the couch in his apartment. I turned to look at him, a handful of black and gray boxer-briefs in my hand.
"Why not?" I asked, pretending like the comment had hurt me. Woody ooched around on the couch trying to find a position that didn't irritate his side. He sighed heavily as he wiggled into the corner of the couch, holding the waistband of his jeans down in order to not let the rough denim rub against his bandages.
"Well…it's just… I don't think you can keep your hands off of me for 28 days…there I've said it!" He teased slapping a hand down on the arm of the couch for emphasis.
I just stared at him and rolled my
eyes. "Boy, have you got my number detective." I said as I stuffed
the underwear into a bag and zipped it shut with some force. "Can't get
nothin' past you." I said as I picked up the bags and threw the lightest
one on the couch next to Woody for him to take. He stood slowly from the couch,
trying his best to hurry after me as I stalked out of the apartment, checking
the lock as I went.
"Ooo..oo..oo…helpsies." Woody said as he hobbled to the door and I turned on my heels.
"Helpsies?" I asked with a cringe as Woody took a hold of my shoulder
and balanced himself going down the hallway to the elevator. "Oh yeah, I
just want you to take me right here against the elevator doors after
'helpsies'." I said as the doors opened and I threw two of the bags into
the elevator car. I shuffled Woody into the elevator and he leaned against the
railing inside as I dragged the light bag he was supposed to be carrying, into the
elevator and pushed the close doors button with a scoff.
When we arrived at my apartment, I immediately went to my room and grabbed the bag of things I had picked out for Woody since he had no idea how to care for himself in the condition he was in.
"Here." I said throwing the bag down next to him on the couch, where in the 3 entire minutes since we had entered my place, Woody had settled comfortably into and set up temporary residence on. He lifted the bag to his lap and rifled through it.
"What are these?" He asked holding up a set of four cotton sleep pants. One pair was light blue, the other dark, one maroon and the other yellow, like the shirt he had worn the day we set up that SickBoy23 character at my dad's bar.
"These," I said taking a still packaged pair from his hands, "are what you're going to be wearing day and night for the next several weeks. Loose fitting, elastic waist, sleep pants. They are kinda like scrub pants, but for little boys who get shot right where the edges of their Spiderman underwear digs into their bellies!" I said smirking as Woody smirked back.
"Ha, ha…very funny." He said opening one of the packages and removing the pants. I started to go through his bags as he stood and dropped his jeans right there in front of me. I lifted an eyebrow and watched as he tried to be sexy while fumbling and nearly falling as he tried to get on the pants. He had to sit back down and kick off his shoes in order to get the pants on. I chuckled and pretended to cough.
"Shut up." He said, holding his side as he sat back down and pulled off his socks. He waved them in my face and I laughed before throwing them, along with his jeans, into my laundry basket.
"Our stuff looks right together." He said matter of factly as I pushed the basket towards the door with my foot. I just smiled, a little uncomfortably and nodded before heading into my room.
"I'm gonna grab you a pillow and blanket if you plan to spend most of your time in front of the television." I said and I heard Woody sigh, realizing he had made a mistake and pushed a little too fast.
Woody…Oh good, now I did it. Why can't I ever just let the random little thoughts that pop into my head stay there? I couldn't believe I had just let that slip. I was finally developing some sort of romantic relationship with Jordan and I had to go and practically invite myself to move in by saying that our stuff looked 'right' together in the laundry.
Jordan returned a minute later and helped me to get a pillow behind my back. I thanked her as she spread a blanket over me before heading to the kitchen.
"Tomato soup okay for lunch?" She asked from where she stood on a step stool trying to reach a can. I looked her over as her shirt rode up, exposing her fit midsection.
"Awesome." Was my only reply as I leaned further back in my seat to get a look at Jordan. And caused a stabbing pain to shoot up my side. Jordan heard my cry of pain and hopped down off the stepstool and hurried to me.
"Now what'd you go and do that for?" She said helping to straighten
me out and lie me back against the couch. I shook my head.
"I'd do it again." I said with a strained voice and Jordan ran a hand
through my hair softly. I nuzzled into her touch and wrapped my arms loosely
around her waist. "Come sit with me for a little…I'm not hungry yet."
I whispered, using the huskiness of my voice fully to my advantage.
Jordan sighed and I felt her smile against the top of my head. She released me and walked around the couch to stand in front of me. I took her by the belt loops of her jeans and pulled her towards me. Jordan snorted and took my ears with either hand. She carefully straddled my lap and ran her hands over my chest. I leaned forward a little and she kissed me. I held her lips still before deepening the kiss as Jordan turned so that she was sitting beside me with both legs across my lap. I was nudging her backwards with my shoulders when Jordan laid a hand on my chest and pulled away.
"Hey there, let's not fall off the wagon on the first day Robert Downy Horny." She said and I laughed heartily making my side ache. I grabbed it with a hiss, I must have looked like I had when it first happened because Jordan paled. I just gave her a half apologetic smile and leaned back into the couch. Jordan left her legs over me and snuggled closer to me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders gently and lying her head against mine. I wrapped my right arm around her and pulled her against my good side. Jordan lifted the blanket from the floor as I pulled my shirt over my head and threw it on the floor.
"Do you have a sleeping bag?" I asked suddenly and Jordan looked at me like I was nuts.
Jordan….
"Wha?" I asked caught off guard by the random nature of his question. I turned my head to look at him and he pulled the warm, fleece blanket up around us and pulled his legs carefully up onto the couch. We were pretty cramped. I laid my hand against his shoulder and he was shivering. But he wasn't cold. His skin was very hot to the touch. I sighed and maneuvered him so that his head was in my lap.
"You have a fever." I said before he could answer me. He nodded against my leg and I could feel the heat coming off his face.
"I don't wanna go back to the hospital." He said quietly from under the blanket which he had pulled up around his head. I smiled and patted his back.
"I'm not gonna make you go back to the hospital." I said and only
half meant it. If his fever wasn't gone by the next morning, I was going to
take him to the ER. I decided to change the subject.
"So what's this about a sleeping bag?" I asked and Woody snuggled close to me. I laid my arm over him and rubbed soft circles on his back.
"Well, see there was this episode on the X-Files…" He started and I rolled my eyes and smiled. "And…and Mulder and Scully were stranded in the woods overnight, and Mulder was hurt…and….and he told Scully that he once heard that the best way to regenerate body heat is to crawl naked into a sleeping bag with someone who's already naked." He said and I nodded in understanding.
"So what did Scully say…I mean after she kicked him in the groin?" I asked with a smile and Woody laughed.
"She told him that maybe if it rained sleeping bags he'd get lucky." Woody said with a yawn. I nodded.
"Well, let's just say that's about probably what I would have said." I said bending forward to kiss Woody's forehead, another subtle way of checking his fever. He yawned again and stared glassy-eyed at the television. I let my hand slip under the blanket and gently dragged my nails across his back.
"Hey, you still owe me a neck rub from…well…from before." He said sleepily and I pulled the blanket back up around him.
"Why don't we go in the other room then." I whispered close to his ear. I felt heat rise from his body but I was pretty sure it didn't have anything to do with his fever. I helped him to his feet and he dropped the blanket to the crook of his arm before shuffling towards my bedroom. He looked like Linus from the Peanuts gang.
I looked away from him in a panic when a sudden flash of what a child of ours might look like doing the same thing flashed through my mind. He carefully crawled up the bed and lay on his stomach, stretching his pajama-clad legs out and hanging his feet over the edge of the bed. He bunched the blanket up next to him and wrapped an arm around it. I just smiled and slid onto the bed, straddling the back of his thighs.
"You alright?" I asked to make sure I wasn't hurting him. He just grunted and squirmed. I took that as a yes. I leaned forward, careful not to lean on his torso and began to knead his shoulders. They relaxed and Woody stretched his arms out to his sides as I worked at the kinks a few days in a hospital bed had given him. I would have thought he was asleep except that every few minutes he would moan, squeak or sigh with relief. I tried not to think about the noises as I focused on playing visual connect the dots with his freckles. I ran my hands down his arms to his fingers, traced along the bumps in his spine, and threaded my fingers through his soft hair. After a few minutes I couldn't help but lean forward and take one of his peach fuzz looking ears with my lips and kiss along the back of his neck.
"oohhhhhhhh…four weeks is such a very long time." Came his muffled voice from the where he had his face buried in the mattress. I smiled and kissed between his shoulder blades.
"How bout…" I said kissing across the span of his shoulders. "We come up with a sort of rewards system for good behavior…" I said softly into his ear and Woody's head snapped up.
"Well I like the sound of that…what ever did you have in mind?" He asked, suddenly wide-awake. I sat up and began rubbing his shoulders again.
"Well, at the end of each week…you get to choose something...to do…that falls under the restrictions of your injury, but is reasonable for whatever the status of your injury is at that time." I said and Woody nodded.
"Could this something involve lots of touching!?" he asked hopefully and I nodded. "Yes!" he said laying his head back down and pulling a pillow under his head.
"So….about this sleeping bag idea…" I asked, hoping Woody would finish the story. He cleared his throat.
"Oh…well….it never happened…but Scully DID sing to him." Woody said and I got the distinct impression that I was going to soon be serenading my maimed companion.
"Yeah? What did she sing?" I asked curiously. Woody thought for a moment then yawned out,
"Three Dog Night…"Joy to the World". I smiled I didn't think I could handle that one in the melancholy state I had found myself in since Woody was shot. I tried to think of something more appropriate.
"Can you…(yawn)…stay with me Jordan?" He asked and I moved to sit cross-legged beside him on the bed. He lifted his head a little and tucked the pillow more tightly under his head. I assumed he was planning on sleeping in the bed with me.I suddenly felt the need to protect him. It had been the other way around for so long. In all the time we had known each other, it had always been Woody pulling my ass out of the fire. Always Woody trying to protect me and keep me safe. As I sat there looking at him, dozing on MY bed, in my care, I felt the responsibility that I was sure Woody had been feeling for my safety for so long. I felt fiercely protective of him. I ran a hand through his hair and he smiled and took my hand.
"Of course I will." I said and lay down next to him. I draped my
right arm over his back possessively and kissed his shoulder.
"Sing something…sing something so that I know you're still here." Woody said yawning again and snuggling closely to my side. I sighed heavily and then smiled as I began to softly sing.
There's a saying old, says that love is blind,
still we're often told, seek and ye shall find.
So I'm going to seek a certain lad I've had, in mind.
Looking everywhere, haven't found him yet,
He's the big affair, I cannot forget.
Only man I ever think of with regret.
I'd like to add his initial to my monogram,
Tell me, where is the shepherd for this lost lamb?
There's a somebody I'm longing to see,
I hope that he, turns out to be,
Someone who'll watch over me.
I'm a little lamb who's lost in the wood,
I know I could, always be good,
To one who'll watch over me.
Although he may not be the man some girls think of
As handsome, to my heart he carries the key,
Won't you tell him please to put on some speed,
Follow my lead, oh how I need,
Someone to watch over me.
Won't you tell him please to put on some speed,
Follow my lead, oh how I need,
Someone to watch over me,
Someone to watch, over me. "
I finished the song and Woody was sleeping soundly. I brushed his bangs out of his eyes and planted a soft kiss on his full, pink lips. I held my hand to his stubbled cheek and made a mental note to shave him the next day. He would most likely sleep through the afternoon and night. I started to rise from the bed. But then I remembered that I had promised to stay with him. I had broken enough promises I made to Woody so I decided I would break that trend by starting anew. I layback down and pulled the comforter up around us before snuggling into Woody's side.
Around 2 am, I was awakened by a shuffling next to me. I rubbed my eyes, trying to adjust to the darkness of my room. Woody was moaning and mumbling something as he tossed and turned beside me. I was amazed that the pain he must have been feeling in his side didn't wake him up. Whatever he was dreaming must have been 10 times more painful. I sat up and pushed the blankets away from my body. Woody was whimpering and his cries became more frantic. And then I caught it. He was saying my name.
"Woody!? Woody I'm here, please! Wake up, I'm here, Jordan's right here." I said gently as I held his arms still trying to prevent him from accidentally ripping open his stitches. He struggled a little more before suddenly jolting awake and pulling me to his bare, sweaty chest.
I wrapped my arms tightly around his chest and he buried his head in my shoulder. I felt a lump in my throat when I realized he was quietly crying. I rocked him back and forth, whispering reassuringly that I was with him and we were okay. I sighed when I heard him sniffle. I hadn't realized how much the shooting had affected him.
After a few minutes, his body cooled, his breathing slowed and I could no longer feel his heart pounding against my stomach where he lay wrapped around me. I reached to turn on the light and he pulled my hand back. He was ashamed.
"Woody, it's alright. I just want to look at your side." I said sighing as I smoothed back his damp hair. He pulled slowly away from me and lay on his side with his back to me. I turned on the dim light and pulled my now damp t-shirt over my head and grabbed another, pulling it on quickly as I walked slowly around the bed to the side Woody was facing. I dropped to my knees and he wiped his eyes with the back of one hand.
His glassy eyes bounced between my own and the wall. I rolled him onto his back and he looked down, remembering for the first time since he woke, that he had a wound there. He hissed when he saw the redness around the stitches. I touched the edges gently and his skin was hot around it.
"Well…it's a little infected…you were laying on it all this time and it's festering a little." I said cringing as I stood and held out my hand to him. He looked at it curiously and then back at my face, his eyes asking a question his voice was too shaky to speak aloud.
"I'm gonna clean it out nice and good so you don't have to go back to the hospital." I said and his hand was quickly in mine. I helped him to rise from the bed and we moved slowly towards the bathroom. I waited till I had him sitting on the edge of the sink as I dabbed his stitches with peroxide to ask about the dream. Just as I was about to inquire into it, he interrupted my thought.
"Is he dead?" he asked in a whisper and I sighed, remembering how the paramedics had checked the hopped up shooter amidst the chaos. I nodded sullenly and Woody shook his head.
"He…he…he was gonna kill you, Jordan. If I had listened to you and not gone for the gun, he would have shot you and…and you'd be dead." He stopped briefly to look up into my eyes so close to his. He looked at my lips, my chin, and my nose. He looked down unabashedly at my breasts, my hips, ran a hand up my arm and held it steadily on my shoulder.
"You'd be dead…and…and I'd be lost without you." He said sadly and I watched him swallow a lump in his throat as he gently shook his head.
I set my hand against his side, thinking briefly about the scar that would surely be there when it healed. It was wrong what he had done. As if he had read my mind, Woody lifted my hand away from the gnarled bit of skin and laid it against his heart.
"Would you be…be lost without me?" He asked looking sideways at the shower stall, his damp bangs falling back in his face.
I took a deep breath and thought back to standing outside of that trauma room, covered in blood. I thought back to lighting candles in the chapel. I thought of the pleads I had made to a God I had promised to reconcile with if he'd allow me to keep the man I loved. I thought of dancing at the Pogue, the tender kiss under the stars, the chipper young detective with horrible taste in ties.
I swallowed a lump in my own throat and lay my forehead to his. "More than you'll ever know." I said and my voice cracked. Woody bent his chin and took my lips in his. He ignored the pain in his side and pulled me into his arms, hungry to feel me alive. I wrapped my arms around his back and kissed him hungrily. I needed to feel that he was alive as well. He kissed my lips, my cheeks, my neck. He pulled the clean shirt I had just put on up under my arms and his hands traveled swiftly over my skin. My warm skin. I touched his face and his neck. I pressed my lips to his neck, nearly euphoric at the feel of blood pumping under them. I let my hands travel across his back and down his thighs from where he sat on the sink. Then I pulled quickly away and pulled my shirt back down. Woody's eyes searched mine for an answer. He didn't understand what was wrong.
"Jordan what's the matter?" He asked, his breathing really labored more than it should have been for what little we had just done. I shook my head.
"There isn't….we…there are other ways to feel alive Woody." I said laying a hand on his knee. "I don't wanna do this now…you know? Like in the heat of the moment?" I asked and he nodded. His head quickly snapped towards me.
"But…but you'll stay with me right?" he asked and I smiled and leaned forward to kiss him. I took his hand and lead him out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom. I sat down on the bed and he stood in front of me with his hands on his hips.
"Under one condition…and I know this is going to sound REALLY hypocritical." I said with a hint of a smile.
"What?" Woody asked looking a little afraid. I stopped smiling and took his hand and brought it to my lips.
"Talk to me? Confide in me?" I said and Woody sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Jordan…let's just…" He trailed off then unfolded his arms with resolve and looked at me pointedly.
"What happened in the nightmare?" I asked and he sighed.
"I didn't go for the gun." He said and I realized that would be the last we made mention of his nightmare. He didn't say anything more and he didn't really need to. I could tell by his calling out of my name, and the anguish he so earnestly felt as he cried in my arms that things had ended badly for me. I just nodded sadly and reached for him. He welcomed my arms and we stayed there, me kneeling, him standing at the edge of the bed, for a while.
When he finally tired, I turned out the light and guided him into bed. We embraced carefully and I ran my nose softly up and down his cheek. He kissed my lips gently then pulled back and brought our entwined hands up between us. He laid my hand against his chest and then laid his own hand against mine.
"You're right," he whispered and laid his forehead against mine. "There ARE other ways to know we're alive." He said and I smiled against his cheek and snuggled closer to him, if that was at all possible. We fell into a deep sleep and Woody had no more nightmares.
Woody…
When I woke up, I kissed the tip of Jordan's nose before carefully extracting myself from her to go to the bathroom. I slowly crept into the bathroom and left the door open. I was in the middle of taking care of business when I heard Jordan call sleepily from the bedroom.
"Well, I hear the race horse has awakened." She said and I smile as I handled the obligatory shake before flushing. When I shuffled back into the room, Jordan was standing in front of her mirror pulling on a tight fitting pair of jeans. I leaned against the door jam. She turned to face me and righted the tank top she had on. Jordan smiled and sauntered over to me, producing a razor from behind her back. I looked it over and took it from her hand.
"You need a shave." She said and I grabbed her by the wrists and pulled her towards me, rubbing the rough stubble on my cheeks against her soft skin. She screeched and pulled away, hurrying to the bathroom. I followed her and took a seat back on the sink counter. Jordan filled the sink with hot, steamy water and plopped a wash cloth into the sink before grabbing some "girly" shaving cream. I protested it's use on my face.
"Oh come on! Don't be such a baby! You'll smell like peaches!" Jordan said as she lathered up the foam in her hands. I scooted backwards toward the mirror.
"I
don't wanna smell like peaches! I'm a guy!" I teased as Jordan came at me
with her pink foamy hands laughing. She smeared it all over my face and I
laughed. She took my head and turned it towards the mirror.
"I look like a gay Santa Clause." I said chuckling at my pink beard. Jordan laughed and turned my head back towards her. She told me to stay still and brought the razor to my face.
"With the grain! With the grain!!" I said urgently and Jordan changed the way she was holding the razor. She cleaned me up then smacked my cheeks gently.
"Like a baby's butt." She teased and ran her fingers across my cheeks. I kissed her fingertips.
"So…you must be starving!" she said as I carefully slid off of the sink. I put a hand to my stomach and rubbed it.
"Yeah, I am actually what you got?" I asked and Jordan went to the pantry and began to rifle.
"ummmmm…how bout I order a pie?" She asked and I smiled.
"Can we get one of them…ah….ah….Hawaiian pizzas?" I asked and Jordan nodded as she munched on some wheat thins while dialing the phone. "If the parlor will deliver at…" She turned to look at the clock. "11 am." She said and I went to the couch and lay down.
When Jordan had finished ordering the pizza, she came to sit with me on the couch. She slumped down next to me and took the remote from my hand.
"So any ground rules for being in your home all day without supervision while you're at work?" I asked with a smile and Jordan sighed.
"No…not really…just don't order porn on my tv." She said smiling and I laughed. I laid a had on her thigh and ran it up to her hip.
"What do I need porn for, woman, I got you…" I said and Jordan smiled and pushed my hand away.
"You seem pretty confident about your…abilities…aren't you nervous?" She asked smirking like she was the one in control of the conversation. I smirked back and leaned towards her, whispering right into her ear.
"No…because I'm an absolute animal in bed." I said proudly and laid back against the couch, leaving Jordan speechless. She turned to look at me, trying to tell if I was joking. I just kept on with my Mona Lisa smile and stared at the television.
"We might have to leave an extra week for rehabilitation then if you think you're going to need ALL your strength." She said and I turned to look at her.
"No no…4 weeks will be sufficient." I said taking the remote back. I sighed and flipped through the channels, not really paying attention to what was going on, my curiosity getting the best of me.
"So…ahh…"
I trailed off wondering if I might earn a smack for what I was about to say.
"…how bout you?" I asked and Jordan looked at me puzzled.
"How bout me WHAT?" she asked in shock. I smiled coyly and bumped her
with my elbow.
"You know…in bed…how are YOU?" I asked wagging my eyebrows. Jordan scoffed and folded her arms across her chest.
"I guess you'll just have to wait and see…"She said happily and stood to go find money for the pizza. She started to walk past me but then stopped and bent down to my ear.
"I'm gonna rock your world…" She said and I swallowed hard. "You might not be able to walk for a week." She said and I began to cough as she sauntered into her room to find her purse.
Jordan…
Around three a.m. we sat together on the couch watching old MacGyver reruns.
"That MacGyver…he's so crafty." Woody said yawning as he flopped his legs across my lap. I let slip a sympathy yawn and grabbed the tips of Woody's toes. They were chilly and I rubbed them between my hands to get them warm. I pulled on his big toe and he yanked it away.
"Hey! I might need that later!" He said chuckling, his voice husky with sleep. "What you gonna tell me you have a foot fetish now?" He asked and I decided to play along.
"Actually…one of my roommates in college was into reflexology and she told me some…interesting things about pressure points in the feet." I said and raised my eyebrows at him. Woody's eyes widened and then he scoffed, wiggling his toes.
"Like what?" He teased and I started to rub the bottom of his foot softly.
"Well…she said there were certain pressure points in the foot…that uhh…that could enhance foreplay." I said wagging my eyebrows. Woody narrowed his eyes at me.
"You're lying!" He said folding his arms and relaxing further back into the arm of the couch. I just shook my head and continued to rub his foot. "Okay, so where exactly ARE these points?" He asked, seeming a little interested now.
"Beats me. My roommate was the reflexologist." I said standing and dropping his foot to the couch. Woody chuckled as I headed towards the bedroom and looked out through the glass doors as I changed for bed.
"You coming?" I asked and Woody smiled, preparing himself to get up off the couch. He slowly made his way to the bedroom and I hopped onto the bed. Woody went into the bathroom and came out a minute later in just the maroon sleep pants. They were my favorite. Woody crawled onto the bed next to me and routinely laid down and flicked on the light so that I could take a look at his stitches. They looked better than they had the day before and I kissed the top of his head before turning out the light and cuddling up next to him.
"Hey Jordan?" He whispered and I suddenly got the impression that he was a pain in the ass to his brother when they were kids and trying to sleep at night.
"Hmmm?" I groaned and Woody rubbed my cheek with his nose, stopping at my ear.
"it's after midnight…26 more days." He whispered and I smiled against his cheek as we drifted off to sleep.
Woody…
The next day was Monday and I would be spending my first full 9-5 alone in Jordan's place. I crept out of bed early, before she had to wake up, and crept into the other room to find sticky notes. I made coffee, took a few looks at how my healing was coming along, thought about a shower but then remembered that I wasn't allowed to take a shower without telling Jordan first in case something happened. And it could only be a quick rinse off anyway, due to the fact that I couldn't reach anywhere without hurting myself.
"So….do I get to be bored all day alone here?" I asked as Jordan pulled her coat on and grabbed her keys. She smiled and flipped her hair out of her collar.
"Well…not exactly…I made a call." She said and I looked at her puzzled. Just as I was about to ask who she had called, there was a nock at the door. Jordan smiled and pulled open the door…to reveal my brother leaning against the door jam with an armload of stuff.
"Who's your Daddy?!" He said happily and I shook my head.
"I wanna go back to the hospital." I said trying to stand up from the couch. Cal sauntered into the apartment, taking Jordan's face and planting a big kiss on her cheek.
"Good to see ya, Jordy…now come on big brother, I'm not that bad!" He said smacking my shoulder and throwing me off balance.
"whoa! Easy there Humpty Dumpty!" Cal said grabbing my shoulders and holding me upright. Jordan chuckled.
"Have a nice day boys…and Cal…try not to get him killed? I'm thinking of keeping him around for a while." She said winking and Cal threw her a half assed salute.
"But…but but, I hate him!" I said sadly and Jordan hurried back over to me, gave me a quick kiss and said 'you'll be fine.' As she hurried out the door she rummaged through her purse for something and plucked the sticky note I had put in there curiously out and read it. '26' was all it said. As the door swung shut she glanced up and smiled sweetly at me. I smiled back and sighed when the door closed with a click.
'Earth to Woodrow!" Cal's annoying childish taunting pulled me out of my pleasant daydream. "Christ! What kinda drugs are they givin' you!?" He said then whispered, "and do ya have any extras?" he asked and I just stared at him.
"It's a felony to accept prescription drugs from an undercover cop." I said, turning to go into the bathroom and take a shower.
"You're not undercover." Cal said flopping down on the couch and flipping through the channels.
"Like I'd ever tell the cops that as they're hauling your ass outta here." I said and grabbed a towel from the bedroom.
"I'm gonna take a shower, should you hear a loud thump it's probably just me crashing to the floor and bleeding out…so don't worry about it." I said casually as I passed him to go into the bathroom. He just nodded and grunted, returning his focus to the T.V.
When I came out about 15 minutes later, Cal was making popcorn and pouring us each a soda.
"Hey, I didn't know if you were allowed any beer so I brought you some ginger ale." He said smiling as he set the glasses down on the coffee table.
"Just like mom gave us when we were sick." I said softly and lifted the glass to my mouth. Cal just nodded and smiled patting me gently on the back. It was a warm moment, and then Cal killed it.
"So what do you wanna watch first Girls Gone Wild or Greatest Moments in Football?" He asked and I shook my head.
"Nice selection Calvin." I said taking the boxes from him. He raised his eyebrows as I looked the cover for Girls Gone Wild over. I looked back over to Cal and he was nodding.
"Yeah? Yeah? Yeah?" he said over and over before I cleared my throat and threw the box in his lap. "Come on Woodrow! It's a…tastefully shot little piece of documentary film making." He said and I glanced sideways at him.
"Well…as long as it's educational…what the Hell." I said rolling my eyes as Cal jumped up and put the tape in the VCR.
Three hours
later we were putting on our own mock rock concert to David Bowie's "Major
Tom" when Jordan called.
"Staying out of trouble?" She asked and glanced over to Cal, standing
on the coffee table with one of Jordan's wooden spoons to his mouth singing. I
threw a pillow at him and he hopped off the table and ran over to take the
phone from me.
"Hey Jordy!…uh huh…oh yeah, he's fine, I changed his diaper and gave him a bottle about an hour ago…"He said winking at me and I tried in vain to get the phone back. "Now ….can he have any snacks before dinner or will that spoil his appetite, cause he did have a little temper tantrum when I wouldn't give him a cookie at lunch…uh huh…yeah, almost shook himself RIGHT outta the high chair." Cal said and I pointed menacingly at him and mouthed 'I will KILL you', to which he told Jordan he was going to give the phone back to me.
"A little boy here wants to say hi." He said slapping the phone into my hand. I shook my head at him and put the phone to my ear.
"Your brother's a trip Woody." She said chuckling. I very sarcastically laughed and pointed at him once again before Jordan spoke again.
"Alright well I should be home in a little while, you want anything while I'm out?" She asked and I nodded at Cal.
"Yeah swing by my apartment and pick up my gun if you could…grab an extra clip too if you think of it, he's a quick little bastard." I said and Jordan laughed. Cal stuck his tongue out at me before turning and rifling through the refrigerator.
"I'll see you in a little bit." She said and I 'uh huhed' before hanging up the phone.
When Jordan finally got home, Cal and I were sitting at the kitchen table playing poker.
"I will see your 5 Ritz peanut butter crackers…and raise you….3 raisins." Cal said pushing forward three little raisins. Jordan shook her head and threw her keys down on the table.
"Hey boys, so how was the rest of your day?" She asked threading the fingers of one hand through my hair. She looked down at my hand. "Ouch…I would fold." She said and I grunted throwing down the cards.
"Thanks a lot." I said chuckling as she bent to capture my lips. I kissed her tenderly, relaxing into her touch as she held my face.
"He's staring at us I can feel his eyes." I said irately and Jordan chuckled. We both turned our heads to see Cal grinning like a ghost and leaning on both hands watching us.
"Can I help you?" I asked smirking and Cal shook his head.
"No but I think Jordan could." He said winking at her and I stood from the table, my body blocking Jordan a little.
"Good night Calvin." I said and he raised his eyebrows mouthing an 'O'.
"Well…"Cal said standing from the table. "I guess my work here is done." He said and Jordan walked him to the door. I followed slowly behind.
"Same time tomorrow?" She asked and Cal turned as he opened the door.
"Well…I have a lot of homework to finish Ms. C…but if I bring it with me I might be able to get some done after I put him down for a nap." Cal said pretending to stroke imaginary braids and pop imaginary gum. Jordan laughed and smacked his arm as he skipped out the door.
"Night bro." He called as he headed toward the elevator. I grunted in response and Jordan shut the door turning back to me. She glanced down at my stomach and I lifted the edge of my undershirt for her to get a look at it. She nodded and then stood on her tiptoes to kiss my lips. I wrapped an arm around her and sighed.
"I'm so glad you're home." I said with a chuckle and Jordan laughed.
"Oh come on…you love him." She said laughing and ran her hands gently up and down my back. She kissed my shoulder and then announced that she was going to change and I should think about what I wanted for dinner. I set the table and when she came back in, she asked what I had decided.
"Hot dogs and Mac and Cheese." I said proudly and Jordan smiled.
"Deal." She said and began to pull out pots and pans.
Later we sat together by the large glass windows of the apartment watching as more snow fell on Boston. "So, what kind of fun do we have in store for tonight?" Jordan asked and I sighed and pulled her closer to me, snuggling into the warmth of the large comforter we had pulled off the bed to take to the window with us. I looked around the silent, dark apartment.
"This is just fine with me." I said wrapping my arms around her and looking up at the snow filled sky.
Jordan…
I smiled and rubbed my cheek against his chest, breathing in the smell of Tide and Woody that lingered on it. I looked up at the snow falling and sighed.
"Feeling a little homesick Farm Boy?" I asked and Woody was silent for a few minutes.
"Yeah…actually…winter is the only time I really get homesick here." He said honestly. "Winter was always my favorite time of year back home. We rarely ever had a Christmas without snow…Cal and I would go out from breakfast to dinner sledding and picking snowball fights with kids in the neighborhood. Come in at night and go straight to the kitchen where we knew our mom would be waiting with ginger snaps and hot chocolate." He said and I silently wished I had those sort of memories with my mom.
"It sounds wonderful. I can understand why you'd miss that." I said almost sadly and Woody rubbed my arms under the blanket gently. He nodded and looked down at me.
"Come on Cavanaugh spill it…you must have SOME great memories of your mom." He said and I looked past the snow at the street lights, an almost eerie glow encircling them. I thought hard back to before my mom had died.
"This ah…this one year when I was about six, there was this sudden early snow storm in November." I began, continuing to look down at the street. "I was sitting at our front window looking out at the street when all of a sudden, Dad's car pulled up. I didn't know what time it was but I knew he was early because in those days I was usually in bed when he came home. I …uh…I ran to the door and jumped into his arms when he came in the door. I could smell the snow soaked into his coat and it felt cool against my rosy cheeks. He held me up and kissed me then put me down on the floor and covered my mouth with his hand and we snuck into the living room. My mom was….was sitting on the couch reading and we yelled 'surprise' so loud I thought she might throw the book at us from across the room. She put her hand to her heart and laughed. She didn't…laugh too often so I just remember grinning from ear to ear. Dad went to where she was by the couch and pulled her into his arms, spinning around.
He kissed her and put her down when she laughed and asked what he was doing home so early. He said on a count of the snow, they let all the guys with families head out early. And…he whispered something to her. She looked over at me and smiled and then nodded to Dad. She asked me if maybe I wanted to stay up a little late tonight and I was…I was so happy that I bounced up and down on my feet just nodding away. She came and took me by the hand and took me to the coat closet. I looked for Dad and he was hurrying up the stairs to their room, calling down that he'd be ready in a few minutes. Mom got me all bundled up in my snow pants and snow suit, wrapped a scarf around me and put on my favorite blue show hat with the little poofy ball on top. Dad came down a few minutes later and he was wearing jeans and a sweater and had the scarf I got him for his birthday on.
He grabbed the coat he used to shovel snow and then helped my mom to get her big coat on and she put on her gloves and a scarf and snow hat. Then he uhh…he grabbed my little wooden sled and took it to the door and hurried out into the snow. The sidewalks hadn't been shoveled yet so he ran and set it down in the snow and called for me to hop on as he picked up the rope to pull it with. I hurried down the stairs and hopped on, calling for my mom to watch me.she kept saying, "I am baby, I am" and laughing as she ran after us. Dad walked real fast down the street, swerving back and forth. We stopped at this little hill down the street and they took turns pulling me down it on the sled. I remember looking at the streetlights through the snow. There was this eerie…almost magical glow around them you know, like you might have thought things were like at the North Pole when you were a kid. " I stopped and looked out the window again. "It was wonderful." I said and Woody kissed me at my temple.
"Sounds like it." He said and smiled against my cheek. "So then what happened?" He asked and I smiled, laying my head on his shoulder.
"Well…we stayed out for only a little over an hour but to me it felt like we'd spent the whole night there. I was sitting on my sled eating snow off of my glove when Dad said it was time to go. I must have been tired because I didn't protest when he picked me up and threw me over his shoulder. I wrapped my arms around his neck and my mom grabbed the rope of the sled and pulled it along side of her. She fixed my hat so that it covered my ears then took Dad's free hand with hers. We just walked back in silence, admiring the view and listening to the wind sweep over the snow. I fell asleep somewhere between the hill and my house. When I woke up, I was in my bed and I crept down to the living room and there were my parents, asleep all wrapped up together sitting on the window seat." I looked down at how Woody and I were sitting and smiled. "Kinda like this." I said and he chuckled.
"See…when you try real hard, there are always some good memories that you can think of." Woody said yawning and we listened quietly to the tick of the clock on the kitchen wall.
"So what's your best memory, Woody?" I asked yawning and he kissed the top of my head and looked around the dark apartment again then back out at the snow still softly falling.
"I think I might be making it right now." He said and I turned my head and held his cheek as I kissed him softly.
Woody…
I woke up around 4, my body aching from sitting on the window for so long. I nudged Jordan and she didn't wake up, but wrapped her arms around my neck and scooched onto my lap. I sighed and rolled my eyes. I didn't want to wake her but I was worried I might bust open the stitches. I looked into her sleeping face and decided that popping a stitch was worth it. I braced myself and lifted her with my legs. Luckily, Jordan is very light. I started to lift her but sat back down. I really didn't want to go back to the hospital.
"Jordan." I whispered and hissed when the stitches tightened. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, taking in the sight of me holding my side.
"Woody!? What'd you do?" She asked helping me to sit up. I cringed as I pulled the comforter under my arm and started to move into the bedroom. Jordan held me up and helped me to climb into bed.
"I was gonna pick you up…" I said and rolled onto my back stiffening my entire body and looking much like I imagine a corpse. Jordan looked me over pathetically. "It was supposed to be romantic." I said sadly and she chuckled leaning forward to kiss my head as she lifted up my shirt to check out the stitches.
"Oh yeah…and then we could take a fluorescent light lit walk through the emergency room doors afterward?" She said and I huffed.
"So Doc…will I live?" I asked and Jordan ran her fingers softly across the wound and down to the little spot below my navel.
"Yep." She said before turning off the light and sliding into bed next to me. She threw the comforter over me and kissed my cheek before rolling to her side away from me. I missed her touch but I knew she didn't want to hurt me. I scooted over next to her so that our arms were just touching and she took my hand silently in her own. I squeezed it gently once, saying 'I love you' in the easiest way one can. I waited for a response and it came back in the form of a soft, feminine squeeze. I smiled and took a deep breath before dozing off to sleep.
Jordan…
When I woke in the morning, the sun was just slipping over the building next door and peeking into my living room windows. I glanced through the amber light into the kitchen, off handedly wondering if I had set the coffeepot last night. As I sat up, I realized my hand was still loosely grasped between both of Woody's as he lay on his right side keeping the wounded side elevated. I smiled and held his large hands to my lips before gently extracting my equally smaller one from the middle. I slipped out of bed and into the shower quietly, allowing him as much rest as his healing body needed.
I watched him sleep as I dressed at the end of the bed. Before I left for work, I snuck back into the room and taped a note to my pillow.
Woody…
When I woke in the morning, the living room was already fully illuminated with late morning sun. I turned my head towards the window at the busy sound of trash trucks and the unending symphony of construction work that cities are famous for composing. I grumbled a few choice suggestions for what the guy running the jackhammer could do with the tool when he was finished and rose to a sitting position in bed. I ran my fingers brusquely over the stitches in what had become a morning routine and then looked beside me to where Jordan had slept as I scratched my head tiredly. As I was about to turn my head away, I noticed something on Jordan's pillow that's bright yellow color contrasted with the white of her pillow. I gingerly plucked it from the pillow and held it close to my face to read.
'25'
I smiled and leaned over and put it in my pants pocket. Then I heard a knock at the door. I rolled my eyes and went to open it. Cal was standing there with a McDonald's breakfast bag.
"Truce?"
He said pathetically and held out the bag. I eyed him cautiously.
"You didn't put a razor in it or anything did you?" I asked taking
the bag and patting his back as he walked past me into the room. Cal just
smiled and commented that I was already starting to walk better.
Around 4:30 Cal had me propped up against the window, while he hung out it dropping water balloons on people. We kept pretty much to nailing teenagers and guys in business suits. It was a hoot, they all thought it was some punk assed adolescents. Cal had brought a water balloon slingshot with him for me to use since he didn't think Jordan would appreciate him accidentally bumping me and having me drop like a brick to the sidewalk below.
Just as we were reeling from the string of words that just came out of the guy wearing an Armani suit's mouth, the door to the apartment opened and in walked a wet, fuming Jordan. Cal laughed and then coughed to cover it.
"It raining out there Jordan?" He asked holding to balloons behind his back. She just looked from me to Cal and back at me.
"You two suck." She said walking past Cal to stand in front of me. I smiled.
"It was all him, I could fall out the window if I leaned that far!" I protested. Jordan just smirked.
"Or if I head butted you in the chest!" She said and Cal laughed.
"Hey, in my own defense you look different from this high up…" Cal said taking Jordan by the cheeks and bending her forward so that he was looking at the top of her head. "Oh yeah, there it is! That's who I dropped the balloon on." Cal said and I smiled behind my hand. Jordan pulled away from him and stormed into her room to change.
"Good night Calvin!" She called as she slammed the bathroom door shut. Cal looked around the apartment and at the little puddle on the floor where Jordan had stood.
"Well…I guess my work here is done." He said proudly.
"Don't forget my keys!" I called as he headed to the door. "And if you bring any women to my apartment I'll have to take out my gun and shoot you!" I called as he hurried out the door. I just shook my head, secretly appreciating that some things never change.
Later Jordan and I had a quiet meal of spaghetti. I made the sauce while Jordan cooked the pasta.
"You know one night we should have this with alfredo sauce…that's my favorite." Jordan said and I nodded, making it a point to watch the Food Network sometime in the next few weeks to perfect the art of making alfredo sauce. I dipped the wooden spoon into the spaghetti sauce and carried a little bit over to Jordan. She turned from the stove and smiled, remembering the last time this happened, I'm sure. She bent forward and took a taste of it, wiping the corners of her mouth when she was through. I watched her then leaned down to her when she looked up and kissed her lips. When I pulled back she was smiling.
"What was that for?" She asked and my face suddenly grew serious.
"For not getting to do it that night." I said simply, referring to the almost kiss that was interrupted by her computer. She smiled and kissed me again.
"Then this," She said kissing me deeply. "Is for pretending those kisses in California didn't mean anything." She said and I smiled widely. We finished cooking and then ate our spaghetti in comfortable silence.
Jordan…
The next morning I woke to find Woody already up. He was sitting on the couch watching sports center, eating a bagel with cream cheese on it. As I entered the living room he smiled at me and pointed to the counter where an egg bagel with cream cheese sat waiting for me. I smiled and picked it up so that I could sit on the couch with Woody. We took turns complaining about the Bruins before I announced that I was going to ask Cal to eat dinner with us tonight. Woody shrugged his shoulders and said 'Why not.' Before returning his attention to the hockey highlights.
"Why don't you go get a shower now while I'm here and call me if you need any help." I said and Woody stood from the couch and headed towards the bathroom. He stopped before he got to the glass bedroom doors and turned to me with a smile.
"Help!" he said playfully and I rolled my eyes at him, shooing him off with my free hand. When I finished my bagel I crept to the door which was part way opened and peeked in. Woody was standing under the gentle current of water behind the frosted glass. I looked him over, biting my lip. He was right; 28 days was definitely a long time.
I coughed to let him no I was there, and he modestly turned so that his side was to me and opened the glass door. He stuck his head out and smiled, shampoo dripping around his face.
"Hey…care to join?" He asked over the rush of water and I smiled.
"Nah…" I said trying to peek around the glass door. "I think this is more of a spectator's sport…that and I can't be held responsible for what I might do in there." I said and Woody chuckled deeply and closed the door.
"Suit yourself." He said turning his back to me and sticking his head under the water. I sighed dejectedly and then looked at the mirror and smiled.
Woody…
When I got out of the shower, I carefully dried myself off and went to the mirror to…well…to check myself out. When I got there though, a smile spread across my face. '24' was written in the steam across the bottom of the glass. I traced my fingers over it, imagining Jordan sneakily doing the same before using my towel to erase it.
When I came out of the bathroom, Cal was already over. He was really early.
"What are you doing here?" I asked him and threw Jordan a shy smile letting her know I had gotten her message.
"You need some fresh air, brother! You've been stuck up in this place like a hermit so I am gonna take you to the park, let you stretch your legs." Cal said and I smiled.
"Sounds good." I said as Jordan passed me to go take a shower.
"Have fun boys." She said throwing me a pair of jeans and socks to put on. I smiled and told her to have a good day at work. Cal watched me trying to get my shoes on before finally dropping to his knees in front of the couch.
"Here let me do it." He said taking the laces from my hands and tying my shoes tightly. He smiled and I knew what he was thinking.
"I used to do this for YOU ya know." I said and Cal nodded. His face grew serious and he held onto my shoulder to stand up.
"You were a great brother Woody. I don't think I told you that enough growing up, but…ah…I don't know if it makes any difference now." He said and shrugged his shoulders helping me to my feet. I patted his shoulder and then mussed his shaggy hair.
"It makes a difference. And you were a great little brother, Cal." I said and he smiled proudly. I was his idol growing up and I had forgotten that until I watched his chest puff up proudly when I said this.
He helped me get my coat on and we headed out the door to go to the park.
We spent most of the day walking in the park and I damn near had a heart attack when Cal bought me lunch in town. When we got back to Jordan's building, I saw that here SUV was already parked outside and I sped up walking.
"Easy there Fido, she ain't going anywhere." Cal said holding onto my arms as we walked I just smiled and hopped up the steps to the lobby.
We entered the apartment and Cal helped me get my coat off before flinging off his own. I threw my gloves and scarf onto the couch and slipped my sneakers off by the door. Cal and I rounded the corner of the kitchen and Jordan stood at the counter pouring two cups of hot chocolate. I looked past her to the plate beside them. It was piled with ginger snaps. Cal gasped and held onto my shoulder.
"Woody! You gotta keep this chick! She's PSYCHIC!" He said innocently and I laughed.
"You numbskull! I told her the hot chocolate and ginger snaps stories!" I said rolling my eyes at my brother's naivety. Jordan chuckled and told us to come and get em'.
Cal rushed to the counter and grabbed a fistful of cookies, kissed Jordan on the cheek and then picked up his mug before taking it to the end of the counter. I stood by the wall still, looking at the nostalgic treat Jordan had prepared for us. She looked over at me smiling.
"Dig in Woodrow!" Cal said through a mouthful of cookies. I nodded silently and strolled over to Jordan.
"You're the greatest." I whispered pulling her into my arms.
"I know." She said and I chuckled before kissing he lips gently, wrapping my arms around her waist.
"Jeez, I'm glad you never thanked Mom that way, Wood." Cal said sipping his cocoa. I turned my eyes to him and laughed.
"So you staying for dinner or what?" I asked and Cal smiled.
"Can
I?" He asked excitedly and Jordan nodded.
"Only if you stop shoving cookies down your throat." She said and Cal
placed half a cookie back on his plate and smiled. I reached past Jordan and
plucked a cookie from the plate before taking my own cocoa and moving to the
other side of the table. We talked for a few minutes while Jordan prepared
dinner and then I announced that I was going to wash up and ordered Cal to set
the table.
Jordan…
Woody excused himself to the bathroom before volunteering Cal to set the table. Cal just shook his head and watched Woody walk off before inquiring into where the plates and stuff were. I showed him and the proceeded to ask about what they had done that day. In the middle of Cal's tale, I was trying to reach a pot from a high shelf.
"Here let me get that for you." Cal said suddenly from right behind me. He pinned me playfully between his body and the counter as he reached high above me and grabbed the pot I was reaching for. He brought it down slowly, still holding me against the counter and I laughed.
"Now I know why you drive Woody nuts sometimes," I said and Cal leaned his hands on the counter around me.
"And
why's that?" He asked playfully and I poked him in the chest.
"I could have been doing 5 other things in the time it took you to hold me
against the counter and reach that pot." I said and Cal and I laughed. I
caught movement out of the corner of my eye and spotted Woody standing in the
bedroom doorway, his eyes unreadable. I pushed Cal away casually and he turned
to see what was up.
"Hey! How ya doing boy? Look I was good and set the table!" Cal said and Woody smiled half heartedly as he shuffled toward the table. He didn't say a word. Cal and I looked at one another uncomfortably, realizing how what just happened might have looked.
"And shorty over here needed some help getting a bowl down." Cal said teasing and I smiled. Woody just coughed and looked down at his plate as he sat down.
Woody…
When I came out of the bathroom I hadn't expected to see my brother pressed up against the woman I love in the kitchen. It caught me completely off guard and I just froze in the bedroom doorway. They were laughing and Cal was cornering Jordan in with a hand on the counter on either side of her. Jordan caught sight of me first and pushed Cal away. He turned towards me and made some joke about setting the table and Jordan being short. I just nodded as my head swam.
We spent dinner uncomfortably talking about our days travels, and Jordan told me that everyone at the morgue missed me.
When Cal was leaving, he asked me to walk him out to the elevator.
"Woody, man…nothing was going on with me and Jordan there. It was completely innocent, I was just messing with her!" Cal said quietly as we waited for the elevator to rise. I nodded, that fake half smile plastered across my lips again. Cal watched me curiously for a moment. He could read me better than anyone and I know he could see how hurt I was.
"Wow…" Cal said as if a revelation had just hit him. I turned my eyes up to his matching wide blue eyes.
"What?" I asked shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot.
"You're in love with her." He said folding his arms and staring at me in amazement. I didn't answer just looked down at me feet. "I mean…wow…I just…I thought you were still getting over all your issues with Annie…but now I can see it…you're head over heels for Jordan aren't you?" he asked and I looked up into his eyes.
"So…" I said and sighed looking back at the door and dropping my voice a little. "So much that I almost can't breathe sometimes." I said and Cal shook his head.
"Jesus…I mean…Jesus. I just thought before…when…when you were home that you were just trying to get in this chick's pants…" He said and I cut him off.
"I haven't even had sex with her yet." I said and if it was at all possible, Cal's eyes grew wider.
"Are
you kidding me?! Woody Hoyt head over heels, head long, passionately in love
with a woman he's never even slept with!?" Cal said and I smacked him on
the side of his head.
"Will you keep it down?!" I whispered and he shook his head.
"This is too big…this is just too big…I mean …like…do you…" He said and looked at the door. "Do you like wanna marry her?" he asked and I just raised my eyes to his.
"Holy shit man!" Cal said turning and pacing in the hallway. "You're a wreck." He said looking me over.
"Yeah I know…this is what being in love does to you Cal…I'm a mess! I can't think straight half the time, I get all…all sick feeling and stuff around her…it's like someone took out half my brain and filled the space with everything Jordan!" I said and ran a hand through my hair. Cal stopped pacing and looked me over.
"Come here." He said smiling and wrapped his arms around my shoulders. I smiled and patted the back of his head.
"Thanks man." I said holding him as tightly as my condition would allow. Cal pulled back and took my face in his hands.
"My big brother…in love." He said shaking his head and then patted my cheeks. "Well…ah…I'm gonna get outta here. I'll see ya later okay?" He said and I nodded as he stepped onto the elevator. We smiled at each other one last time and Cal looked back at the door.
"Man…if you weren't my brother." He said playfully and I rolled my eyes at him as the doors shut.
I turned back around and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw Jordan leaning against the door smiling. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears.
"You coming in?" She asked and I stared at her for a long moment. She was trying to pretend like she hadn't just heard all that. I sighed and smiled as I walked back towards her. I stopped in the doorway and kissed her. She held my lips to hers and kissed me deeply. When I pulled back Jordan ran her hands softly down my face and I smiled, taking one of them and heading back into the apartment.
----------------------------------------
For the next seven days, Jordan allowed me to test the waters of life outside of her apartment. I was starting to go stir crazy and Cal stayed away for the whole week for fear of having his head ripped off. During that week I knew what it was like to be one of those tigers at the zoo pacing back and forth in their cage. I would stay inside most of the day then Jordan would get off work an hour early and take me out somewhere. It didn't matter where we went just as long as it was outdoors and I didn't have to walk fast. We spent the nights of that week cuddled together on the couch watching movies or television. By the end of the week I was back to my charming self and had plans in mind for Jordan. I felt like I had been a burden to her and I wanted to make time, if only for that one night, to treat Jordan and give her a break from babysitting me.
We were lying on the couch together around 7, both of us still fully awake.
"So are you going to let me in on this little secret plan you have yet? Because as much as I enjoy finding bouquets of flowers…and candies and a bottle of wine hidden strategically around my house…my curiosity is beginning to get the best of me." Jordan said quietly and clicked off the T.V.
I just smiled and nudged her with my elbow as I sat up on the couch. I looked over at the clock and ran a hand through my hair.
" So what exactly do you have in mind?" she asked and I just smiled and stood slowly from the couch and went to the kitchen, walking better than I had since I left the hospital.
"Why don't you go take a nice relaxing bath, and then you'll see. "She was hesitant of what I was up to but followed my instructions anyway.
"Tonight's about you." I said and she smiled, taking a towel from the dresser and heading into the bathroom.
When she came out of the bathroom, I was pleased to see that she was just in a towel. She sauntered through the living room and tried to get a look at where all the good smells were coming from. I had put on the yellow sleep pants and was lighting candles around the apartment when she came in.
"Get in there and put some clothes on! It's a surprise!" I said trying to block her view of the kitchen. She just smiled and hurried into the bedroom to change.
I had laid out a white cotton sheet on top of the covers and had laid some massage oils I found under the bathroom sink out.
One bottle I had snuck out to the store during the day to get. I kept that bottle in the pocket of my pajama pants.
When she had changed into a pair of sleep boxers and a tank top, she came back out into the living room. I was setting plates of spaghetti with alfredo sauce on the counter. She smiled widely and hurried to sit down.
"Well" I said pulling the stool out for her and stepping back when the cool metal touched my bare stomach, "Now that we're all properly attired." I said chuckling and Jordan hopped onto the stool. I sat down on the one nearest her and grabbed the bottle of wine. I had made the flowers I bought the centerpiece.
"This looks wonderful, Woody. Thank you." She said wringing her hands together and picking up her fork. I raised my fork to her and she laughed clinking her fork against mine. I nodded and took her free left hand in my right and ate with my left. I poured Jordan several glasses of wine throughout the course of dinner. I was on pain meds and still couldn't drink anything. We laughed and talked and I was beginning to enjoy drunk!Jordan.
"You're insane." I laughed as Jordan lay with her head on the counter, laughing so hard that no noise could come out.
"Yeah," She said gasping for air as she wiped her eyes. "Well, enjoy this Jordan while she's hear…horny!Jordan is next and serious!Jordan will follow her." She said and I turned my head to her with a snap.
"Tell me more about horny!Jordan?" I asked intrigued by this little bit of information. She rolled her eyes.
"Well…I get drunk in several stages…right now is silly!Jordan next up is…ah…horny!Jordan." She said nodding. I raised an eyebrow at her.
"And what exactly goes along with the horny!Jordan stage?" I asked and Jordan raised her eyebrows playfully. She stood from her stool and held onto the counter as she tried to look sexy walking over to me.
"Well….she does things like this…" Jordan said stepping up onto the little bar that ran across the bottom of the stool and wrapping her arms around my neck. I smiled and shrugged my shoulders.
"That doesn't really turn me…oh…oh my…" I was about to tease Jordan that she had no affect on me. Then she straddled my thigh roughly and slowly slid from my knee to my hip. She smiled self satisfactorily and began to kiss my neck. I wrapped my arms loosely around her and lay kisses up her arm. She moaned in my ear and my hips danced toward hers still tightly straddling my thigh. The pain killers were doing their job and I was thankful.
"Why don't we go in the bedroom?" I asked slyly, hoping that maybe horny!Jordan would forget about the 28 day rule. She slid off my leg and I helped her walk to the bedroom.
"Hey! I know what you're doing!" She slurred. "None of this…" She said waving a hand over her body " till a few more weeks…" She said and I could feel serious!Jordan trying to sneak in early. I guided her to the bed and she sat down and noticed the bottles of oil lying next to the bed. I handed her the towel she had used for her bath and she slowly made her way to the bathroom. When she came out, the towel was wrapped loosely around her and she smiled at me. She let go of the top of the towel and let it fall to the ground.
"Oops." She said covering her mouth and trying not to chuckle. My eyes widened and I swallowed hard.
She eyed me for a beat before climbing onto the bed and laying flat on her stomach. I tried to move, but in a moment of juvenile weakness…the only thing I could think of was 'I just saw Jordan naked'. She grabbed the towel from the floor and pulled it up and laid it over her backside. I turned on the radio to the jazz station and turned off the light.
"I can't see." Jordan said quietly and I leaned down to her ear when my eyes adjusted to the dimness of the room. I looked around at the few candles lit and whispered into her ear.
"You don't need to." I said smiling and I could hear her breathing increase momentarily. I carefully climbed onto the bed and straddled her slender backside. I fixed the towel a little and made sure to casually rub against her. She chuckled and I smiled. I took the bottle I had bought out of my pocket and popped open the top.
"What's that?" Jordan asked catching the unfamiliar scent of cherry. I leant down again and whispered in her ear.
"Well…" I said and poured a small amount of the warm liquid into my palm and let it pool there. "If I read the directions correctly…" I said and let it drip into a little puddle between her shoulder blades. "You take this in little drops and put it on the skin…and then you ah…" I said and bent forward, my lips hovering just over the sweet smelling gel. "you do this…" I said and formed my lips around it in an 'O'. I hesitated a moment before jutting my tongue out and pulling some of the candy into my mouth. I waited for Jordan to react. Her body suddenly tensed and I smiled. "Oh yeah, and it heats the skin wherever you…lick it off." I said and Jordan moaned.
I used my pointer finger to lift some of the remaining candy and drizzle it down her spine and stopped at the small of her back. Jordan squirmed at the new sensation and I scooted back to straddle her thighs. I was still leaning with my hands beside her head and I pulled them slowly across the mattress to be closer to me, letting them brush against the curves of Jordan's body as they went. She squirmed against my fingers and I could see her back rising a little faster in the candlelight.
I braced my hands on the mattress; Jordan's rear sandwiched between them and then carefully bent my head back down to her body. I gently pressed my lips to the small of her back, jutting my tongue out in the same manner as before and slowly sucking the cherry gel into my mouth. Once again, Jordan's body tensed at the warmth that followed. I lifted my lips and moved them further up, near her ribs and dropped several light kisses there. Returning to the spine, I used the tip of my tongue to draw a line up the middle of her back, making an uneven trail through the cherry gel. Jordan's body responded with a chill-like ripple that coursed from one end of her body to the other. I turned my head sideways at the base of her neck and proceeded to kiss the remaining gel away from the top of her spine to the bottom. Jordan was letting me be in complete control.
Jordan put her arms straight out at her sides and I righted myself, scooting back to straddling her butt. I opened the lid of the gel again and squeezed out three drops up her middle finger, onto her wrist, and the bend in her arm. I started at the finger, kissed my way to her wrist and turned it gently over with my hand to kiss the inner part of her wrist. I gently laid her hand back down and continued to kiss up to the next dot at the bend of her arm. I kissed away the gel and Jordan suddenly rolled over impatiently. I smiled down at her as she righted the towel across her front. She smiled back and reached slowly for my face. I bent to her and she guided my head to her bare chest.
Jordan…
I couldn't resist anymore, I rolled over so that I was facing Woody. He just smiled down at me through his bangs and I reached out for him. I guided his head to my chest and he rested it there, bringing his large hands up to rest on my hips. I sighed and nudged his head to get him to come up to me and he kissed along my collarbone, finally reaching my lips where I was able to taste the cherry flavor of the gel on his lips. I kissed all over his face before reaching over to take the gel. I pressed it back into his hand and I felt him smile against my lips.
"More?" he asked and I nodded as the warmth of his body pressed to mine slowly left. I watched his eyes as they searched for a place to put the new drops and he held the tube over my chest and drizzled a small amount into the cleft between my collarbones. I guided his head back to my chest and he once again brought his lips to my skin and his soft tongue snuck past them, hungrily consuming the gel in a way that had nothing to do with an empty stomach. Woody lifted his head and brought the little bottle back up to my chest, drizzling some more in the gap between my breasts. I held his head to me as he slowly ran his tongue up the crevice and I arched my back towards his lips. He smiled and dragged his teeth lower, stopping just above my navel before dragging them back up. I could see his arms beginning to shake weakly next to my head and I silently helped him to roll over onto his side. I lifted my body onto my elbow and threw my arm across his chest, bending forward and kissing along his tight pectoral muscles. He wrapped his right arm around my bare middle and pulled me up beside him better, kissing up my shoulder and neck. We finished our exploration as he rubbed his knee tenderly but urgently between my legs and softly bit the warm skin of my neck, using his teeth to leave his mark in me, because no other part of him was allowed. He chanced rolling over onto me and I held him up a little with a hand on his chest. He settled himself between my bare legs and I could feel his body shaking against me. He grunted impatiently and I reached down between us, slipping my hand into his sleep pants and grasping him. In my drunkenness I had forgot about a side affect of muscle relaxants. They don't just relax the muscles where the injury is. They relax all the muscles of your body. Woody lifted his hips away from my hand immediately and he lifted his eyes shamefully to mine.
"Jordan…I don't know why…I'm not…it has nothing to do with you." He said lowering his eyes and sliding off of me but still with an arm on either side of me. "That's never happened to me be…" I cut him off, breathing heavily and cradled his cheek in my hand.
"Oh Hunny, no…" I said suddenly sobered. "It's not you it's the muscle relaxants…they…well….they relaxed alllllll your muscles." I said and Woody sighed. He flopped onto his back and punched the mattress with the back of his clenched right fist.
"I hate this Jordan, I really do." He said angrily. "I want to be with you so badly…I just can't…" I hushed him.
"A little more time…a couple more weeks." I said and he rolled back to face me, setting a hand on my knee.
His breathing slowed and he trailed his hand up my thigh. I reached for his hand and brought it up to rest on my stomach as he pulled me closer to his side and pulled the cotton sheet out from under us, balling it up beside us on the bed. He lifted his body from the bed and pulled the comforter down. I lifted my body away from the bed and he pulled my side down as well. Woody grunted in pain and I sat up, throwing my towel on the floor and pulling the sheets all up around us. Woody pulled me to his side and wrapped an arm around my waist. I laid my arm across his chest and kissed his shoulder.
"Thank you." I whispered and Woody kissed my head.
"A couple more weeks." I said again as I snuggled into him.
The next morning I woke in Woody's arms as usual. I was a little hung over and then when I realized I was naked I panicked a little. I lifted the covers and sighed when I realized Woody was at least still dressed in those yellow sleep pants. As I was looking down at them, the night before came flooding back. I rolled my eyes and sighed. I imagined trying to explain to the doctor that we were basically horny teenagers and couldn't keep it together for even a month.
I sat up and climbed out of bed, trying to remember where I had left my clothes. As I crept to the bathroom, I saw something out of place on my mirror. I smiled and looked back at the bed where Woody lay. He must have written it while I was passed out drunk. I looked once again at the '16' written in red lipstick before heading in to take a shower.
When I came out of the bathroom to dress, the number was cleaned off and Woody was no longer in the bed. I dressed quickly and then went to the kitchen where Woody was sitting in the navy blue sleep pants. He looked up at me and smiled half-heartedly over the coffee mug at his lips.
"Hey." He said and I noticed he was a little pale.
"You feeling alright?" I asked and went to check his forehead.
"Me yeah…I'm fine…my mojo's still feeling a little like it was bitch slapped though." He said with that same sad smile and I kissed his lips, the warm taste of hazelnut enticing me to pour a cup of my own to go. I kissed his forehead one last time as I tightened the plastic top to my mug and pulled on my coat.
When I had my back turned I could see Woody gently holding his side in the glass windows. I turned around and his hand was on his knee. I narrowed my eyes at him and then checked the wound over once again before kissing him good-bye and heading out the door.
"I love you." I heard him say quietly behind me as I stepped out the door. I froze in my tracks and looked down at my watch. I was ten minutes later already, what was another ten gonna get me, an extra thirty lashings?
I turned slowly and Woody was staring at me expectantly. I stood there slack jawed before Woody's eyes dropped to the ground.
"I'm…I'm sorry…that wasn't….I shouldn't have…" I just nodded and he looked up at me one last time before I slowly pulled the door shut and leaned against it.
I did love him. But the night before, had his cocktail of meds not done him wrong, we probably would have had sex. I didn't know how to mix sex and love. Hell, that fact alone might have eventually made me come to my senses and stop Woody the night before. I looked to the ceiling wondering what I was going to do. I decided to let the whole thing drop and pretend like it never happened. But it had. I sighed and hurried to the elevator.
Woody…
Well, there went that. Jordan would have Cal packing me up within the hour. I sighed and looked down at the coffee grains in the mug. I set it down on the table with a thud and some of the remaining drops hopped out and onto the counter. I stared at them for a long moment before picking up the mug and hurling it against the brick wall. I grabbed my side in pain and opened my fist to look down at the pill I was supposed to have taken an hour ago. I held my sore side and hopped down off the stool, looking irately at the shattered mug before making my way pointedly to the bathroom. I stood looking down into the toilet before dropping the little capsule into the bowl. I flushed it and watched it circle it's way down the drain. I knew the rest of the day was going to be spent in pain. But my body had angered me the night before and I was going to be damned if I didn't spitefully anger it that next day.
Cal called around noon and asked me if I wanted him to come over. I was lying on the couch, feverish and holding a small bag of ice on my side to bring down the swelling.
"No, I'm fine." I said trying to breathe evenly. Cal was quiet for a moment.
"You don't sound fine man, are you alright?" He asked and I threw the washcloth that was on my head down on the floor.
"No Cal! I'm NOT fine!! I got shot!!" I yelled into the phone and then hissed holding my side as my body broke out into a sweat. Cal was shocked.
"I…I know Woody…I was just…I'll let you go then." He said and I heard the receiver being dropped into the cradle on the other end. I sighed and crawled off of the couch and across the room. I looked up at the bed and my head was spinning from the pain. I pulled myself up onto the bed and pulled all of the covers up around me. I lay there staring at the ceiling for about ten minutes, listening to the blood pounding in my ears.
Then I heard the door being opened and keys jingling.
"Woody?" I heard Jordan's voice and she sounded like the angel of mercy. I pulled the covers further up and continued to jaggedly breathe.
"Oh my God." I heard her gasp. "Cal! Come in here!" She yelled and I shook under the covers. Suddenly they were pulled off of me and I looked up at my brother and Jordan standing over me, eyes wide with alarm.
"Get him up and keep the blanket around him….we have to get him to the hospital. " Jordan said and Cal lifted me effortlessly to my feet. He held me up under my arms and carried me to the door. I shook my head no the whole way down, even I'm told, as Cal pulled me into the back seat of Jordan's SUV unconscious.