Chapter Five

He knew he would kiss her good-night. There was no question about it. She had held his hand all the way home. When they got back to her apartment, he had taken the key out of her hand and unlocked her door, helped her inside, and turned to shut it. She was waiting for him. Woody reached for her and pulled her to him, claiming her lips with his.

He kissed her gently at first, sensing that her earlier fear was gone, brushing her lower lip with his tongue. Willingly, she opened her mouth for him and rubbed her tongue against his, beginning a spiral of passion that was soon nearly spinning out of control. He kissed her until she couldn't breathe, then dropped kisses to her forehead, cheeks, and chin before finding her lips one more time. Her hands found their way to twine her fingers in his hair, pulling him closer to her. He softly trailed his fingers down her neck, the sides of her breast, before resettling at her waist. Finally, drawing a deep breath, he reluctantly broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers. She untangled one of her hands from his hair and ran it down the side of his face to stroke his cheek. For a long moment, they just stood there, steadying their breathing. It was Woody who finally spoke first, raising his head and looking at her lips, still swollen from his kisses, and her eyes that were still glowing a dark, chocolate brown now.

"Jordan…I think I could kiss you all night."

She chuckled. "The feeling is mutual, detective." She took his hand and began to tug him towards her bedroom.

"No, Jordan….not yet."

"Not yet? When?" she asked, looking both confused and a little hurt at the same time.

"Sweetheart…it's not that I don't want to…I do. But I think we still need time…I want to be sure you're completely comfortable. When I do make love to you, I want it to be when we're both really ready." He pulled her back in his arms. "And when it happens…I want it to be some place where we can be completely alone…with no interruptions….and when we don't have to get up the next morning and worry about going into work."

Jordan sighed and snuggled up closer to him. "You're the first person that's thought about those little details with me, Woody. Do you know how much that means?"

He smiled into her hair. "I just want this to be right…I don't want you to get scared…or feel awkward…the main thing is, Jordan, I don't want to lose you. We've come so far…and when we take that final step, I want to know that the next morning, you're not going to run because you're scared of that level of intimacy with me. And the walls will have to stay down. This time….this time….I want you and your heart for keeps. Understand, sweetheart?"

She nodded. She understood. And while she wasn't afraid, she was a little apprehensive. She had never had a man so concerned about her feelings as Woody was. She also had never had anyone place making love to her on such a high level of importance. To the others, it had been just….sex. For Woody, it would mean so much more. She swallowed hard. Woody was playing for keeps this time. This time, if they're relationship didn't work, it was truly over between them. She bit her lip. Woody caught the motion.

"What's wrong, Jordan?"

"I…I…just hope I can do this…I've never had anyone tell me that before."

He lifted her chin so they're eyes met. "Don't worry. I promise, it will be easier than you think."

Jordan had never had a man "court" her, but Woody did. Whether it was due to his mid-west values, or if it was because he didn't want her to even think about running, he was going out of his way to make sure she was comfortable with each step of their relationship before he pushed it up to the next level.

And to her own amazement, she was responding…positively. Instead of that old fear enveloping her heart in its cold grip, she found her heart, her emotions slowly opening up to the warmth of his affections. He knew he had finally broken through to her, when one day he came into the morgue after being on a two-day stake out – during which he had no contact with her. Walking towards her office, he saw her in the hallway in deep discussion with Nigel and Dr. Macy. She turned towards him as soon as she heard his footsteps. Automatically, and not thinking, he opened his arms. She willingly went in them, just as automatically and unthinking, leaving Nigel and Dr Macy standing there with slightly amused expressions on their faces. Woody was equally amazed when she held her head up for a kiss.

"Missed you," she said, after an all-too-brief caress.

"Missed you, too." He glanced around at Nigel and Dr. Macy. After greeting them, he turned back to Jordan. "Can I see you in your office?" His tone startled her. Was something wrong? She wondered, her heart skipping beats as they walked into her office and he shut the door.

"Is anything wrong?" she asked, turning to face him.

Strolling slowly over to her, arms crossed, he stopped mere inches away, towering over her smaller frame. Taking a deep breath, he softly asked, "What are you doing weekend after next?"

"Nothing….why?"

He grinned and held up two airline tickets. "How does a quiet weekend at Martha's Vineyard sound?"

Two weeks. She counted off the days. Two weeks, fourteen days, three hundred thirty-six hours until they would be completely alone…just the two of them, with no interruptions.

And Woody made it his goal to slowly drive her crazy during this time. The sly smiles he would give her would bring a blush to her cheeks and cause her lose her train of thought. The notes he would leave on her desk were just as distracting, to say the least.

But his kisses and gentle caresses were what were really driving her slowly mad. Each held sweet promises of things to come…things her heart longed for…and a release her body had been craving for three or more years with him. And she had a feeling, after noticing a gleam in his eye, he knew exactly what he was doing.

And Jordan being Jordan, she decided that the best plan of action was retaliation. So, when Woody dropped by unannounced to take her to lunch three days before they left, she told him she couldn't go with him to grab a bite to eat…she had other plans.

"Work?" he questioned, gently running a finger down her neck and then her arm.

"Nope, detective, something much more important. I've got to do a little shopping for our upcoming trip."

"Really? Need a new bathing suit?"

"No…I have a bikini. I need evening attire."

"New dress?"

"No. Lingerie."

He swallowed hard and Jordan noticed a slight blush on his cheeks. "I don't know, Jo…you've always seemed like a boxers and t-shirt girl to me."

She gave him her most seductive smile. "Well. You're not such a good detective after all…I'm on my way to Victoria's Secret." Grabbing her purse, she sauntered past him to go to the elevators, sending every drop of blood in his body south.