Jo comes down sick and Henry can't relax until he checks on her to make sure she's alright.

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"It's just a cold Henry, I don't need a medical examination."

"Well I'd just like to be assured that it isn't developing into anything more serious. If you want that tonic, you'll humor me," he said with a slight grin knowing he was going to get his way.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. I'm merely borrowing them for my own amusement.

"Hello Detective, what can I do for you?" Henry said cheerfully as he answered the phone.

Jo couldn't help but shake her head and smile. For the life of her she couldn't figure out how he always knew it was her when she knew he didn't have caller ID on his home phone. "Hey Henry," she said wincing at how congested and hoarse her voice sounded and then she broke off into a small fit of coughing.

"Are you alright Jo? You sound dreadful." Henry actually wasn't all that surprised. The previous day he had noticed her voice taking on a nasal quality to it and she had been drinking more than usual as if her throat was bothering her. He had wanted to tell her to go home early and rest, but knew he would be met with nothing but stubborn denials as to the state of her health, so he had held his tongue.

"I've been better. I was just calling to let you know I'm taking a sick day today," she answered.

"Isn't this a call you should be making to Lieutenant Reece?" Henry asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah I did, this is just a courtesy call to prepare you in case you get stuck working with Hanson today," Jo explained.

Henry chuckled. "Thanks for the warning. I'm glad you've decided to do the sensible thing and take the day off though."

"Oh this wasn't my choice. Reece sent me home early late afternoon yesterday and told me not to come back until I'm better," Jo said with a laugh that turned into another coughing fit. "She's gotten real strict about people not coming in sick after half the precinct was out sick with the stomach flu last month."

Henry shook his head, he should have known that given the choice Jo would have tried to work through her illness. He couldn't blame her though as he tended to be the same way. "Well I hope you feel better soon Jo. Would you like me to bring you a tonic to boost your immune system before I go to work?"

"It's just a cold Henry, I'll be fine."

"Well if you're sure..." he answered doubtfully.

"Yes I'm sure. I know how to take care of a cold. Lots of fluids and rest. I'm sure I'll be good as new in a few days. Thanks for the offer though."

"Alright Detective, get well soon."

After Henry got home from work he couldn't shake the nagging feeling that he should go check in on Jo. Actually the thought had been floating around his mind all day, but it had been easier to ignore when he'd had his work to focus on. He tried to relax but found himself restless and he would keep getting up and pacing around the house.

"Oh would you just go and check on her already?" Abe said with an exasperated tone. "You're making me nervous with all of that pacing."

Henry sighed. "I'm not entirely sure Jo would welcome a visit from me."

"Well then you'll have to make sure you don't go over there empty handed."

"What are you talking about?" Henry asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Bring her some soup. What do you think I've been cooking all this time?" Abe said rolling his eyes.

"I thought that was to be our dinner."

"It is, but I deliberately made enough for you to take some to Detective Martinez."

Henry chuckled. "Very well. I'll bring her the soup after dinner." And some of that tonic as well, he thought to himself.

Henry frowned at the sight of Jo as she opened the door to her apartment. She was dressed in an open terrycloth robe over flannel pajamas. She wore no makeup and her hair was unkempt. Her eyes were bloodshot and glassy and her nose was a bright shade of pink. Her face was extremely flushed and he suspected that she had a fever. She frowned back at him and then held up a finger signaling that he should wait a moment. She then sneezed forcefully into a tissue that she had been holding in her left hand. "Bless you."

"Thanks," she said and blew her nose. "What are you doing here Henry?"

"I just wanted to see how you were feeling and I brought you some soup," he said holding up a large thermos.

"While I appreciate the thought, you really shouldn't be here. You'll end up sick too."

Henry shrugged. "It may already be inevitable. I was certainly exposed when we were working together yesterday when your symptoms first started," he pointed out. "I took some of that tonic I offered you though, so hopefully that will ward it off."

"Fine come on in." She coughed a few times into her arm as Henry followed her into the apartment. "I'm starting to wish I took you up on your offer though. I feel even worse than I did this morning."

"Well as luck would have it, I brought some with me," Henry said holding up the medical bag he'd been carrying in his other hand.

Jo couldn't help smirking. "I guess I should be grateful that you're so persistent. Did you really need to bring your medical bag with you just for the tonic, or were you hoping to examine me as well?"

"Um well yes, I was hoping to at least give you a quick once over," Henry admitted feeling slightly embarrassed.

Jo shook her head. "It's just a cold Henry, I don't need a medical examination."

"Well I'd just like to be assured that it isn't developing into anything more serious. If you want that tonic, you'll humor me," he said with a slight grin knowing he was going to get his way.

Jo rolled her eyes and smirked. "You drive a hard bargain Henry Morgan. Fine, if you want to play doctor so badly, you can look me over once I've had my soup," she said and led Henry into the kitchen.

"Agreed, but I'd at least like to get a temperature reading first. It won't be accurate if I take it after you've had hot soup."

"I already took my temperature. I have a low fever of 100.2 degrees," said Jo and then sneezed twice wetly into her tissue and blew her nose.

"Bless you. How long ago was that?"

"I'm not sure, a few hours ago maybe," she guessed.

"Well you're awfully flushed so I'd like to take it again," Henry insisted gently.

Jo sighed. "Fine, I'll go get the thermometer," she said and left the room leaving Henry alone in the kitchen.

While he waited, Henry took the opportunity to start heating up the soup on the stove. He winced in sympathy when he heard a series of painful sounding coughs coming from the other side of the apartment. He would definitely be sure to listen to her lungs after her meal. He found his thoughts drifting to all the times he'd had to care for Abe when he was sick as a child.

"What are you doing?" Jo asked when she'd returned to the kitchen.

Henry jumped slightly. He tended to startle easily when he was lost in thought. "I was just reheating the soup."

Jo raised an eyebrow. "Why didn't you just use the microwave? It's faster."

"I am not about to ruin Abe's good soup by eradiating it," Henry answered with a scornful look. "Besides it won't take long, the soup was still lukewarm."

"Ok fine, but you're responsible for washing the pot," she said and sat down at the kitchen table and stuck the thermometer in her mouth.

"Of course. I wouldn't dream of making you do the washing up in your condition." While Henry waited for the soup and the thermometer he fetched a glass from one of the kitchen cabinets and retrieved several vials from his medical bag and started mixing up the tonic for Jo.

Jo rolled her eyes. The way he talked it was as if he thought she was an invalid. The thermometer beeped and she read the display. "It's gone up to 101.4 degrees. Happy now?"

"I'm happy that you agreed to take your temperature again, but not that it's gone up." In truth he was somewhat relieved. He had expected her temperature to be higher than that given how red her face was. As an afterthought he pulled one last vial from his medical bag and mixed the contents into the tonic. "Here drink this," he said handing her the glass.

Jo eyed the glass nervously. "What's in it?"

"Just a mixture of vitamins and minerals to boost your immune system along with some willow bark extract," Henry replied. "It's rather bitter though, so you can mix some juice into it if you'd like."

"I'm a big girl, I can handle it straight." She practically gagged on the bitterness of the tonic as she downed it in one gulp and wished she had listened to his suggestion. "What's the willow bark for anyway?"

"It's an ancient remedy that's been used for thousands of years to treat fevers and it's a great anti-inflammatory agent as well," he explained. "I'm a big believer in using natural medicine when possible." The soup looked about done so he poured it into a bowl and set it down along with a spoon in front of Jo.

"Thanks. Aren't you going to have some?"

Henry shook his head. "No I've already had my dinner. Fair warning, it's a bit spicy."

Jo's eyes shot open in surprise when she tasted the soup. "More than a bit spicy. What's in this?"

Henry chuckled. "I haven't the faintest idea. Abe uses some sort of special blend of spices that's wonderful for clearing congestion, but he refuses to share his culinary secrets with me."

"Well make sure to thank him for me. I can feel it starting to work already," she said and muffled a small fit of sneezes into the back of her arm. Henry blessed her then disappeared into the living room and returned with the box of tissues that had been sitting on the coffee table and placed them on the kitchen table next to her. She pulled a couple from the box and blew her nose. "Thanks. You know you don't have to bless me every time I sneeze. It's going to get old quickly."

"Sorry, I suppose it's just one of those habits of common courtesy that was drilled into me growing up," Henry explained. "I'll try to remember not to say it though if it makes you uncomfortable."

Jo shrugged and sipped another spoonful of soup. "I wouldn't say it makes me uncomfortable exactly, just I'll soon get tired of hearing it even if you don't get tired of saying it."

Henry nodded and sat down at the table across from her. "Fair enough. Here's one final bless you to cover you until the end of your illness." Jo just shook her head and smiled at him and went back to eating her soup. "While you eat, perhaps we could go over your symptoms."

Jo rolled her eyes knowing he wasn't going to give up on examining her. "Oh you know, just the usual cold stuff, congestion, sneezing, sore throat, coughing, headache, fever, and that achy all over feeling."

Henry frowned noticing that her hands were nearly as red as her face was. "It seems you have a rash as well. I thought your face was just flushed from the fever, but it would be strange for that to affect your hands."

"Yeah it's not just my face and hands," she pushed a sleeve of her pajama top up to show Henry that the redness extended all the way up her arm. "It's all over really."

Henry's frown deepened. "Does it itch?"

"A little, but not nearly as much as the inside of my nose," she replied and released three harsh sneezes into a tissue and blew her nose wetly.

Henry bit back the urge to bless her again. "Have you taken any medication that you might be having a reaction to?"

Jo shook her head. "Nothing I haven't had before. I'm sure it's just a heat rash from the fever."

Henry raised an eyebrow. "Are heat rashes typical for you when you have a fever?"

"It doesn't happen every time, but yes it's happened before, though usually it takes a higher temperature than what I've got to bring it on," she answered and muffled a series of coughs into her arm.

"Hmmm..." Henry murmured. There was something about that rash that wasn't sitting well with him, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He shrugged figuring it was probably nothing.

Jo finished her soup and put her bowl in the sink then sat back down at the table. "Ok Dr. Morgan, I'm ready for you to have your way with me," she said mischievously.

Henry raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "You should be more careful about making such comments Detective, but I'll put your impaired judgment down to your illness." He went to the sink and washed the pot and dishes and put them away and then washed his hands.

Jo shrugged and laughed. "Oh I know you'd never be anything less than professional."

"Indeed. Would you please pull your chair out and turn it ninety degrees so I have more room to work?" Jo complied and he pulled a pair of latex gloves from his medical bag and slipped them on. He then retrieved a stethoscope, otoscope, and tongue depressor from his medical bag and lay them on the kitchen table on top of a piece of cloth. The first thing he did was palpate Jo's neck to check her glands. "Your glands are quite swollen."

"I'm sick, what did you expect?" Jo said rolling her eyes, then turned away to cough a few times.

"Now now, there's no need for that. You should be grateful you have a partner who's a doctor and cares enough about your wellbeing to give you a free examination."

"You're right I'm sorry. I just feel like crap."

"I know, it's alright," Henry assured her and continued his examination. He checked her throat and examined her sinuses with the otoscope, and then finally listened to her heartbeat and breathing. "Well both your throat and sinuses are inflamed as one would expect, but there's no sign of a bacterial infection which is good. I did hear some congestion in your lungs, but not enough that I'd be worried about bronchitis or pneumonia."

Jo nodded. "Great, thanks." She had felt somewhat uneasy when Henry was examining her. She wasn't sure if it was just weirdness she felt because they worked together, but it was more than just that. With her regular doctor there was always a sense of detachment when she was being examined, but with Henry his touch was tender and caring. She wondered if he was like that with all of his patients back before he became an ME, or if it was different with her because they were friends. "Do you feel better now that you've seen it's just a cold and nothing more?"

Henry chuckled. "Yes quite. Thank you for humoring me. I just enjoy working with you, and I'd like to see you get well as soon as possible."

"I enjoy working with you too Henry. It's always educational. Even here tonight you taught me about willow bark," Jo said with a warm smile. "If you ever get tired of being an ME, maybe you could go into teaching."

Henry shook his head. "I'm not sure I've the patience for that. It's frustrating enough just trying to teach Lucas my methods let alone an entire class." Henry removed his gloves and disposed of them in the kitchen garbage can and packed up the rest of his things in his medical bag. "Well I should go. You need to get into bed and rest. Doctor's orders," he said firmly when he saw her about to protest.

"Good thing I have a TV in my bedroom," Jo said grumbling.

"Before I go, do you need me to pick anything up for you like tissues or cold medicine or anything else? I could make a quick run to the pharmacy for you," Henry offered.

"No but thanks for the offer. I went down there this morning and got everything I need so I'm all set."

Henry nodded still feeling hesitant to leave. There was still something about that rash of hers that was nagging at him. "Jo please don't take this the wrong way, but I'd like to request a spare key to your apartment."

"What? Why?" Jo asked, her eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

"I just... I don't know what it is. I can't put my finger on it, but I just have this nagging feeling that something isn't right. I'm sure I'm worried about nothing, but I would feel better knowing I can get into your apartment should you become too ill to get out of bed," Henry explained feeling a bit foolish for even asking. "I promise I'll return your key once you're well again."

Jo narrowed her eyes at Henry. This was really crossing a line and she had a good mind to refuse his request, and yet most of the time his hunches were correct. She really hoped he wasn't right, but if he was and she was in for a much more serious illness than she had anticipated, she knew she'd feel better knowing he could get to her. "Alright, just a sec," she said and went to retrieve the spare keys from her bedroom. She felt hesitant to hand over the spare keys as they were the set that her husband had carried, but she knew Henry would take good care of them. She went back to the kitchen and handed the keys to Henry and walked him to the door.

"Thank you Jo for your indulgence. I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, and you'll recover from your cold without incident," said Henry with a friendly smile. "This is just in case."

"I know, it's ok. Your protectiveness is almost endearing," she said then turned to the side muffling a sneezing fit into the back of her wrist. "Though as awful as this sounds, I almost hope that Abe comes down with something so you'll go fuss over him instead."

Henry forced a slight laugh knowing that she only meant the comment jokingly, but he really hoped that Abe didn't get sick. It was always so heartbreaking to see his son ill, especially at his current age where relatively minor illnesses could more easily result in complications. "Feel better soon Jo, and please don't hesitate to call if you need anything, even if you just want someone to talk to."

"Thanks, I will. Goodnight Henry." After he left Jo took some more cold medicine, brushed her teeth, and got into bed pulling her comforter up around her. She turned on the TV and closed her eyes just listening to it until she fell into a restless sleep.