No job is finished until the paperwork is done… Jordan thought to herself as she hustled through the morning traffic of downtown Boston.

The pregnancy was going well. Work was going well. Her waistline was going well. There was only a slight bulge and only noticeable to her when all of her clothes were off and she was standing naked in front of her full length mirror.

And best of all…no stretch marks. Yet.

But she now had a bust line that would make any Victoria's Secret model envious. Some pregnancy hormones weren't all that bad. So what if she had to put up with occasional hot flashes and moodiness? The boob fairy had come…and left presents.

Lily and Bug were still on their second honeymoon and were due to be back at the end of the week.

All was well with the world. At least until this morning. Jordan was due in autopsy at nine with Garret. She was already running her normal late routine when she heard the phone ring and her answering machine pick up while she was in the shower. Checking her messages after drying off, she discovered it was Lily's and Bug's attorney, Mr. Littleton. He needed Jordan to come by his office first thing this morning.

Something that didn't really surprise her. Even though she, Bug, and Lily had carefully planned this surrogacy thing, even though she was entirely cooperative and knew what she was doing, Jordan had still been surprised at the amount of paperwork this baby was generating.

She evidently had more forms to sign.

So she was hurrying through the early morning rush hour to get to Mr. Littleton's office by eight, sign the papers, and get back to work by eight-thirty. Nine at the latest.

Sighing in relief that she was lucky enough to find a parking place in front of the lawyer's office, Jordan threw the El Camino in park and walked into his office.

--------------

"Have you seen Jordan?" Garret asked Nigel, as the chief ME popped his head into trace.

"No. But she did call a few minutes ago and told me she was way laid at some lawyer's office a few blocks away."

"Did she say when she'd be here?"

Nigel looked up from his microscope. "Not exactly…but she did say it would be soon."

"Lawyer's office." Garret rubbed his chin. "She's not in any trouble. At least none that I know of. At least none professionally. Is she seeing this lawyer? I mean socially?" he asked Nigel.

"If she is, she isn't saying. But I don't think that's it, Dr. M. She sounded upset. Really upset."

Garret didn't want to think the unthinkable, but it came out anyway. "Max? Could he have…"

Nigel shook his head. "I don't know. She didn't say. She just sounded upset."

"How upset?"

"Very upset…like…" Nigel didn't get to complete the statement. The elevator dinged and the doors slid open and Jordan stumbled out.

"What the hell?" Garret asked, reaching out and steadying her in his arms. "What happened?"

"It's Bug and Lily…there was an accident as they were coming back from New York…Lily…Lily didn't make it."

---------------------------

The next few days passed in a blur. Woody called the New York State Trooper that was in charge of the car wreck and was able to get the details a little at the time. It had been late. The Vejays were driving back towards Massachusetts. Drunk driver, going far too fast -- at least 20 miles per hour over the 65 limit – jumped the median. Bug swerved to avoid the guy, but they were still hit. The greatest impact of the crash occurred on Lily's side.

Her neck snapped. She died at the scene. In Bug's arms, while he desperately tried to help his wife.

The days bled into a week. There was the funeral….what Jordan remembered of it. And then there was Bug, who was nearly beside himself with grief and guilt – guilt that he hadn't been able to do more. Guilt that he hadn't been able to help his wife.

The guilt he carried like a weight on his shoulders that it was somehow his fault.

Jordan recognized the grief. She had carried those same feelings around with her after JD died. She knew Bug would need time.

She just hoped five months would be enough. The baby was due date was then. She was finally beginning to show a little. Not enough to raise eyebrows, but enough that she had to buy a size bigger jeans and begin to wear looser tops instead of her form fitting ones.

So Jordan gave him a couple of weeks. Hoping Bug would at least pull out of his grief enough to begin working a plan to parent the baby. She would be glad to help him, but this was his child. But so far, Jordan had been able to get very little out of him other than the fact he missed Lily so much that he physically ached.

"I know…" she had tried to soothe him. "I know how I felt after JD was killed. The guilt…the loss. But Bug, you've got to pull yourself together long enough to think about the future and this baby. I'll be glad to help you out anyway I can, but you're its father."

"And technically, you're its mother. It was your egg…."

"But I've signed all the papers. You and Lily were to be it parents. I am allowed a place in the child's life, but you two are its parents."

"You've forgotten one very important detail. I don't have a wife any longer. The baby no longer has a mother. Sure you of all people can sympathize with that." Bug ran his hand through his hair, the grief of losing Lily washing over him again. He swallowed hard and steadied himself before he turned back around to face Jordan.

"I know. And I do." Fear of where this conversation was going began to settle in the base of her spine and wiggle its way up to an uncomfortable throbbing at the base of her neck. She could feel a tension headache coming on. "But Bug, I while I don't mind being a surrogate, I'm not sure I'm ready to be a mom. I mean, I have trouble with houseplants…" Her voice trailed off as she gave him weak smile.

Bug nodded and sighed. "Give me…" he started, then stopped and swallowed hard again. "Give me a few more days."

Jordan bit back a groan of impatience. She had hoped to get a straight and final answer out of him. "Until Thursday then…the day we're supposed to have the ultrasound?"

"Yeah. Thursday. That'll be good."

---------------------------------

Jordan showed up at Dr. Roberts' office on time. She filled out the obligatory paperwork, peed in a cup, and waited on Bug.

She was called back into the exam room, but left word with the receptionist to be on the watch for Mr.Veejay and send him back as soon as he came in. Dr. Roberts completed her exam and begin to get ready to perform the sonogram.

"Bug…he should be here by now," Jordan protested, as the cold goop was spread over her abdomen, getting her ready for the procedure

"I can wait a few more minutes, but I do have other patients, Dr. Cavanaugh." Dr, Roberts asked one of his nurses to check the waiting room one more time for Dr. Veejay.

"I know…but since his wife passed away, Bug hasn't been…exactly all here," Jordan said, trying to explain his tardiness.

Dr. Roberts nodded sympathetically. "I would assume so. After I heard about Lily, I was a little surprised that he wanted to continue with the surrogacy."

Jordan shook her head. "He doesn't have a lot of choices right now. I'll soon be at the six month mark."

"I know. I also know I can't wait on him any longer. I'll print lots of pictures and we'll do another one of these around your eighth month mark."

Nodding, Jordan reluctantly agreed. She watched in fascination as the baby came into view on the screen. Mentally she counted the fingers and toes and took a close look at the head. According to the centimeters across, she was right in the beginning of the six month. The spinal cord looked good.

It all looked good. The only area she avoided looking at was the spot that would tell her if she was having a girl or a boy. Dr. Roberts noticed.

"Don't you want to know?" he gently teased.

"No," Jordan sighed. "Not without Bug here. It just doesn't seem right….for me to know before he does. If he even wants to know."

The doctor nodded. "I understand." He printed out a handful of pictures, avoiding the specified area, and helped clean the jelly off Jordan's abdomen. "Take these to Dr. Veejay. And call me if you experience any problems. But right now, the baby is in excellent health and you're right on time."

Jordan thanked the Dr. Roberts and put her clothes back on. After the nurses had cleared out and the room was empty, she flipped open her cell phone and dialed the morgue. Nigel answered.

"Is Bug there, Nige?"

"Good morning, Love. Dr. M said you had a doctor's appointment. Is everything okay?"

"Um. Yeah. Some female….issues. But nothing serious. I do need to speak to Bug, though."

"Bug? He's not here. Can I help you with anything, Jordan?"

Bug's not there…Bug's not here. Where's Bug? "Um… No. I need to talk to Bug…about a case. Is he out in the field?" Surely he wouldn't forget his child's sonogram…

"No. Bug hasn't come in or called…" Nigel paused, suddenly concerned. "And that's not like him."

Fear shot through her like a lightning bolt. "I'm going to stop by his place on the way in…check things out."

"Do you want me to come with you? Meet you there?"

"No. I'm good. If I need you, I'll call you." If Bug's home, you don't need to hear the conversation. If he's gone, you don't need to see me go into melt down.

-------------------------------------------

Loud, angry knocking. "Bug. Bug, answer the damn door. Bug…."

Jordan pounded again. His car was in the driveway, but she could get no response from the inside. "BUG!"

She was just getting ready to call Woody. See if he would swing by and knock the door in. If a cop did it, it wasn't breaking and entering. Instead the door finally popped open and a disheveled Bug stood in the doorway. "Jordan…."

"Where were you?" she responded, not trying to keep the accusatory tone out of her voice. "Where were you? Your child's sonogram was this morning…and you missed it."

"I'm sorry….I just had a lot on my mind…"

"What? What could be more important than your baby? Do you need to talk about this Bug?" Jordan tried to push past him and get into the apartment. But he wouldn't let her.

"This is not a good time, Jordan," he warned.

"Well, when would be? You keep dodging the issue. We need to talk and you promised me today." She managed to finally push past him and into the apartment.

And lost her breath. The apartment was empty. Bug's suitcases were packed and by the door. "You're leaving?" Jordan began to feel her world drop out from under her.

"Just for a while. Just to get my head back together…" Bug responded, following her back into the apartment. "I was going to call and tell you."

"When?" She turned her attention away from the suitcases and swung back around to face him. "When you were through running?"

"I'm not running…."

"Look around you…" She swung round the apartment and then back to him. "Everything is gone. You're running away, not going away to get your head together….There is a difference!"

"Look, Jordan, I can't raise a child by myself…." His voice took on a desperate tone.

"I said I'd help…"

"But I can't do it …I can't do it without Lily….I can't. She was the one that really wanted this baby."

"And you didn't? Now is a fine time to realize that you didn't want a baby, you only did this for her…"

"Jordan…."

"Look…I've signed the papers. Sure, the baby came from my egg…but it was your sperm…It's your baby."

"No…it's not." His voice stopped her cold. "It wasn't my sperm…It's not my baby."