A/N: Please review, it pumps up my deflated ego (this is on of my favorite parts!

XIII

Once Bug and Nigel had left the crime lab, Jordan approached Woody with her hand outstretched as if to shake his, and greeted warmly, "Hi Woody, I'm Jordan, nice to meet you."

Woody faced her, "Jordan, what are you doing?"

"You have avoided all of my cases in the past four months, ever since you nearly took the life of that cop killer. We haven't had a decent conversation in that long, I'm merely trying to get reacquainted with you," she told him.

Woody sneered, the vein in his temple beginning to bulge, and keeping a level of professionalism she asked, "Do you ever think that maybe there's a reason we stopped talking Jordan?" She could think of a valid one but decided not to voice it. He continued, "I thought you understood the way I work, and feel and then you turned your back on me—"

"You were—"she cried desperately.

"What? Going about it all wrong, Jordan, you, of all people should know, not everything is by the book. I needed release, Jordan; you will never know the way I felt. The way I still feel!"

She had wanted to keep their conversation civil, but it seemed that Woody was not in a gracious frame of mind. Jordan seemed determined not to let tears form in her eyes. With gritted teeth she said, "I don't understand? Do you remember my mother? killed by—"

"Fuck your mother Jordan!" He exclaimed heatedly, "This happened to me! I almost died, and then I thought I was paralyzed. If that wasn't bad enough you lied to me while the pain in my side festered, your words were like poison!" He was so close to her face, he was spitting on her, "And now," his eyes were wild, his lips trembled, "I will never heal."

Jordan's tough shield shattered with his words. Her heart opened up and physically began to ache causing a thin line of tears to form in her eyes and to quietly stream down her cheeks, her voice trembled but was quiet as she stated, "I meant what I said, whether you believe me or not, I meant every damn word of it." They became aware of a small crowd gathering. Macy too stunned to separate them, Nigel and Bug returning from a short lunch. She whispered her last words in a malicious tone so that they could not hear, "Do you know what hurts most of all? She's living with you. You knew what would happen but you did it anyway, you irrational son of a bitch."

Woody was stiff in his response, as silent as she was, "For one, that is none of your concern. Secondly, as long as she is in my jurisdiction, she is under my protection." Those being his last words, he stormed angrily passed Nigel toward Lily's office.

His words were like icicles in Jordan's hot ears.