Awwww, you guys and your reviews make me blush! Thank you for the wonderful words of encouragement. So here we go into the home stretch… it's a little one, but a goody (I hope)…
The first thing Jordan was aware of when she slowly woke up was the sound of Woody talking on the phone to somebody. She blinked her eyes open tiredly and stretched out her kinked back before sitting up to see where he was. She could hear him just on the other side of the partition walking back and forth. On one pass, he glanced into her room and saw that she was awake. He held up one finger and mouthed, 'one second.' Jordan sat back a little and tucked her feet up in Indian style, waiting for him to be finished. She noted that the sun was nearly down outside, and looked at the clock to find that it was after eight.
"Yeah," Woody was saying. "No, that makes sense…Okay…No, she's here with me right now…Uh huh…All right, I'll let her know."
He shut the phone off and walked towards the bed, an unreadable look on his face.
"Am I fired yet?" she asked right off the bat.
"No," Woody told her, the most unusual grin spreading across his face. "Actually, something very interesting has happened. Do you happen to remember how many people were watching when you punched Slocum?"
Jordan looked at him as if to say, 'Are you kidding me?'
"Ten, Jordan. Ten people were there," he answered for her. "Not exactly a crowd. And unfortunately for him, they were ten people who really did not like him as replacement for Garret. They rallied together and told him if he tries to get you into trouble, they're going to report that he has been emotionally abusive to the staff and that what he said to you provoked you to hit him. Given what Lily told me he said, it doesn't surprise me that he's afraid of being called in for a hearing. That was some incriminating stuff."
Jordan listened in a stunned silence, not believing her good fortune. She had taken what Slocum said so personally that she had completely overlooked the fact that it was a serious mistake for him to make those comments at work. Feeling extremely grateful towards those ten people, she smiled and placed a hand to her stomach in relief.
Woody hesitated, then asked, "Did he really say all those things? About your parents and all?"
"He did," Jordan nodded.
"Bastard," Woody grumbled, understanding what it was like to lose control because of a personal jab.
Jordan's eyes glazed over a bit, and she looked like she was reliving it. "It was horrible. And then to come back here and find those files."
Woody was about to open that subject up, but she didn't notice him start to speak and talked right over him. She had suddenly thought of something, and her look of relief turned to one of unease.
"What about the surveillance cameras?" she asked quickly. "Someone's bound to see it, even if he doesn't say anything."
"Nigel checked it out," Woody reassured her. "They were being fixed at the time. It didn't catch a thing."
Her jaw nearly dropping in shock, Jordan couldn't think of a single thing to say to this. For once in her life, she felt like luck was running totally on her side. Looking up at Woody, she made a snap decision to see if that luck would follow her for another few minutes. There were a lot of things that she needed to sort out now that her memory had returned to her, but the most important thing was standing right in front of her. Everything else could wait. Her face took on a more serious expression as she held out her hand towards him.
"C'mere," she said quietly. For a second, Woody seemed puzzled and taken by surprise at her sudden change in demeanor. That moment was fleeting, though, and he quickly took her hand and allowed her to pull him down onto the bed beside her, one leg tucked onto the bed while the other still touched the floor. Jordan noticed for the first time that he was walking unaided.
"You don't have your cane anymore," she stated, smiling proudly
"Nope," he affirmed, just as proud. "The doctors think that the infection was hindering my walking. With it gone…well, it's just easier."
Jordan just stared into his eyes for a moment, relishing in the boyish look that she had longed to see return. Now that her memory was back, she could fully appreciate what he had gone through for her over the last week. It might have taken him being shot for her to admit her feelings, but it obviously had to be something greater that would eventually bring them together, on the same page for once. Things would never go back to the way they were before. In fact, she was going to make sure they wouldn't.
"Jordan, I have to explain those files to you," Woody said uncomfortably, as though he knew what she was thinking. He wanted to get all their cards on the table. "I wasn't trying to betray you or hide anything from you…"
"I know, Woody," she stopped him. "When I found those files, I was scared because I didn't know what they meant. But now…I just see them for what they are…accounts of my past. I know why you did what you did." She smiled at his expression. Obviously, he wasn't prepared for her to be this understanding. "I learned something in the last week, Woody. I learned that I need to let certain things go so that I can move on with my life."
As she said this, Jordan shifted to sit on her knees, moving closer to him. Woody caught on right away to where she was going with this. She noticed his body tense expectantly, never taking his eyes from hers. She rested a hand on the side of his face, stroking his cheek with her thumb. His arm automatically went around her waist, and her skin warmed to his touch even through her shirt.
"I meant what I said at the hospital," she told him warmly. Then she looked coyly away from him and smirked as she said, "And if memory serves me correctly, I do believe that I said I can say what you want me to say. It wasn't a bribe. I never promised that I would if you got better. I had always felt that way…I just hadn't been brave enough to say it yet."
When she looked back at him, she couldn't help but laugh. He looked like he had just been given a million bucks. Woody swallowed hard and said, "I know I already told you this, but I just want you to really know that I was acting like a huge, self-pitying jerk then. And I will never, ever leave you if I can help it. That is, if you still want t-"
Jordan cut him off by putting her fingers over his mouth. Looking into his beautiful blue eyes, she let her fingers brush across his lips tenderly, nearly hypnotizing him. She lowered her gaze to his mouth, just as she had done several times before. She was surprised when he spoke.
"Hang on one second," he gave her a meaningful look, then proceeded to get up and shut off his cell phone, her cell phone, and unplug the land line. Eagerly, he joined her on the bed again and stared at her. "And if that doorbell rings… you do not answer it."
"Yes, sir," she said in mock seriousness.
One second later, though, and she was completely serious. She had found herself in this situation with Woody on more than one occasion, but she had only seen him look at her as he was now once before: their first kiss in California. Beyond lust and want, she saw an honest desire for her – all of her, good and bad. Her heart raced. How many times had he looked at her like that, and she hadn't seen it?
Tightening her hold on him, she pulled him closer and felt herself melt away into nothingness as his lips pressed against hers. The kiss surpassed sweetness and subtle curiosity. Four years of suppressed emotions were released as Jordan encouraged Woody to deepen the kiss, practically dying as his hands roamed over her body. She surprised him when she leaned back and tugged him down on top of her. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he gladly obliged her wishes. As he began to explore her neck with his mouth, he murmured, "I love you, Jordan. I always have."
"I love you too, Woody," she gasped a little as his mouth found a sensitive spot. "And I'm going to love you even more tomorrow," she grinned, reaching out blindly to yank the chain on the bedside lamp, catching his equally mischievous grin before casting them into darkness.