Chapter Eleven
For Auntkia…had to finish it before you left the country!
He watched her small puddle-jumper plane take off from Marathon with a mixture of regret and longing….they had made no future promises, or even talked very much about anything after Jordan's phone call from Garret. They had returned to the house and Jordan went upstairs and checked her e-mail to get her travel arrangements from Nigel. He had heard her moving around, getting her things together and putting them in her bags, to get ready to go back to Boston. It wasn't until much later that evening he saw her again.
She came through their shared bathroom, quietly opening the door when she had heard him come in his bedroom, wearing an outfit he had never seen before….a simple, white, lacy button up sleeveless blouse and matching skirt. It wasn't often he saw Jordan in a dress….much less one as feminine as this one. But in that outfit, with her hair loose and curling around her shoulders, she was the epitome of womanhood. "Hi," she said, shutting the door behind her, and walking over to where he was at. "You had your say this afternoon. Now it's my turn."
He swallowed hard. He knew she sympathized with his position…but he had left her for over a year…a lot of things could happen in a year. A lot of things could change.
"I wish you would have told me everything a long time ago, Woody. There was no need to keep it all bottled up inside. I would have listened…and understood. I understand now. I know what it's like to loose nearly everything you hold dear. My mom is gone. And my dad…while my dad is back in Boston right now, I never really know when he may take off again. I know he loves me….and wants the best for me, but he's not always around when I really need him.
"But you have always been there for me….through so much I can't even begin to describe. You've done so much…and while you told me I stole your heart a long time ago," she reached out and took his hand and placed it on her the center of her chest, "mine has been yours nearly from the minute you said 'hello'. When you left, it really startled me…scared me…I didn't know what I was going to do without you.
"And I was mad…because I didn't understand…One of the few people I trusted with my life…and heart…had left and didn't tell me why and didn't want me looking for them. I felt so lost…like everyone I had faith in had deserted me. I begin to think that I couldn't trust anyone again. I guess I got kind of hard…cynical.
"But I understand now, Woody. I do. Love ….love doesn't happen over night. Not real love. It's a process. It has to grow…and sometimes you have to give it time out. That's what you needed…and I'm glad you took it.
"I guess what I'm trying to say is, I still love you, Woody. And I understand why you needed this time. And when you've cleared your head….please, come back to Boston…I'll ….I'll be there…." And with that she curved one hand around his neck and drew him down for a kiss.
And his head spun. It was still spinning….
She had kissed him deeply, tangling their tongues. His arms had slid around her waist, but she didn't allow him to pull her closer. Instead, she reached up and unbuttoned her blouse and slid it from her shoulders. Then kissed him again and went to work on his shirt, taking it off and letting it join hers on the floor. This time, when he reached for her, she sighed with contentment and let him pull her close, kissing her face, her neck, and then his way across her collar bone before finding her lips again.
Two years. It had been two years since they had last been together like this….the night before she had been arrested for the Brady case. Part of Woody had wanted to rush to the point of satisfaction he knew both of them were craving…and another part of him wanted to draw it out for as long as he could.
The last part won out. He slowly removed her skirt before he carried her to bed, holding her against him and kissing her until she softly asked him to take everything else off of her. And he had obliged, taking his own sweet time until she had arched against him. Seeing her in his bed again…her hair loose and spread out on his pillow, her lips soft from his kisses….slowly was forgotten very quickly.
The next morning, she had woken him up with a kiss…she had already gotten up and showered, to get ready to meet her plane. She had gently shaken him until she saw the blue glint of his eyes and then softly kissed him the rest of the way awake. I could get used to this, he had thought, pulling her to him. But she resisted.
"I've got to go, Woody. I'm meeting the prop plane at ten, then flying to Orlando. From Orlando, it's a straight shot home."
He had dressed quickly and took her to the small, municipal airport and waited for her to board. Before she had left, she pulled him in for a quick kiss. "I love you Woodrow Wilson Hoyt. I always will. Don't forget it. Clear your head, then come back home to me. I'll be waiting for you," she said, holding his face between her hands. "And listen to this part real carefully. I'm not going anywhere. You don't have to worry about that. I'm not going to vanish like smoke…I'm not going to run…Do what you have to do, then come back to Boston."
He looked deep into those brown-eyes. "Are you sure? Do you trust me again, Jordan?" They were calling her to board the plane.
Reluctantly, she had loosened her grip and turned to go, calling over her shoulder. "Yes…from the corners of my heart…..just please…come home soon."
That had been two months ago. Since then, the suspected Slash and Dash killer had been brought in. Jordan had amassed a desk full of evidence against him. Rene had told her that when the trial began, not only would Jordan have to testify, but also Woody would be subpoenaed.
All she knew was that she would see him then….but it could be months down the road. She sighed and turned back to her computer…getting caught up on her paperwork after being gone for a while was a real bitch.
And missing Woody so much wasn't making it easier. She found herself staring into space several times during the day, wondering where he was at and what he was doing.
The nights were even harder. She didn't regret they had made love before she left. She had planned it that way. She hadn't anticipated that by doing that, it would make the ache for him even that much stronger.
She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't hear her office door quietly open a bit further, nor hear someone come up behind her. "Honey, I'm home," said a voice from behind her.
She swung around. Propped against her doorframe was Woody…looking like he did in the old days, in his suit and tie. But a visitor's pass hung around his neck now, instead of a police badge. She slowly rose from her chair, not quite believing her eyes. "I wasn't expecting you…maybe until the trial…."
"I can always leave and come back…"
'No. No," she said reaching for him and hugging him close. "Not a chance. You're home? For real?"
"And forever. And you waited."
"I told you I would."
He smiled down at her. "My head's clear now, Jo."
"And what does that mean to you?"
He held her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "My past is in the past. I can learn from it, deal with it, but I can't make it affect my future too much. I love you. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you…and I have to trust, in the corners of my heart, that you won't leave…like nearly everyone else has. Trust and love go hand in hand."
She nodded. "But what about your job? Are you going back to the police department?"
"Hm. No."
"No?"
"Not yet, anyway. I was just talking to Rene' Walcott…"
"She won't let you back in….that bit…."
He put his hand over her mouth. "No. She understood my hesitation about rejoining the police department, although they do want me back. She suggested that I become a special investigator for the DA for a while and then after a few months, see if I want to get back into police department. Either way, I'm helping to catch the bad guy, which is what I want. So what do you think?" he asked, looking down at her through his lashes.
"You're home. That's the main thing."
"Can we start over, Jo? Can we take the love we have and rebuild the trust and faith in each other we used to have?"
"Funny thing about love, trust, and faith…they kind of multiply off each other."
Woody nodded. "So you're willing….to try."
Jordan wrapped her arms around his neck. "Woody….I love you. Completely."
He lightly tapped her chest with his forefinger. "From the corners of your heart and everywhere else?"
She smiled up at him. "Cross my heart…from the corners and everything in between."
