Previous part of part of The Day Before You.

***

Chapter 19: Fathers and Sons

"Hello, baby." Kneeling before Mandy as he stood in her living room, Henry greeted his child for the first time. "It's your daddy. I'm so happy to meet you. I promise to never be out of your life again."

Tears filled the expectant mother's eyes. "Here." She lifted her sweater and tugged down the waistband of her jeans. "Now he can hear you better."

"He?" Henry tensed, "Did I miss the ultrasound?"

"No, that's just me guessing. I'm only 7 weeks pregnant. The ultrasound doesn't happen until week 20. Do you want to find out the sex?"

"Do you?" The more they discussed the baby, Henry's excitement grew. "Or would you rather be surprised?"

"I already got a nice surprise just finding out I was pregnant."

"Tell me about it."

Mandy was relieved to see him laughing about the drama now. "I think I'd like to find out. Then we can plan the nursery and pick a name...all that fun stuff. My sisters all got 4-D color ultrasounds - that's when they take 3-D images and create a live action video of the baby. You can actually see it moving around. It'll be like getting to know our baby while it's still in the womb."

"Yeah, let's do it. Let's find out." Love in his eyes, Henry puckered his lips and planted a single kiss below Mandy's belly button. "I want to know Baby Andrews as soon as I can."

"Baby Webster-Andrews."

Henry glanced up smiling, "You want to hyphenate?"

"I hope that's not a problem."

"No, not at all." Rising to his feet, he wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans and then took the hand of the teary mother-to-be. "What about you? Do you think you'd like to hyphenate your name some day?"

"We can't get married just because I'm pregnant."

"I know." Henry rapidly nodded. "My parents got married because my mom got pregnant and they ended up hating each other. We need to be a couple first and make sure we're compatible before we can even consider the idea. I was just asking because I was curious if you'll be hyphenating when we get married."

"Mandy Webster-Andrews."

It took all of Henry's willpower not to shriek like a girl when he heard his last name attached to the name of the woman of his dreams. "It has..." he had to wait for his future wife to stop smothering him with kisses before he could finish his thought, "...a really nice ring."

---

Standing in the kitchen waiting for coffee to brew, Greg mindlessly twirled the new band on his finger. Still buzzing from the party, he felt wired even though he was nursing a hangover and only had five hours of sleep.

The rumble of his stomach interrupting his daydream, he reluctantly put his thoughts of a perfect honeymoon with Nick on hold and opened the freezer. Although they were having their family members over for brunch before the Dallas guests went home, Greg decided to have an appetizer of leftover Carvel ice cream cake.

Just as he was cutting a generous slice, the doorbell rang. "It's Grandma Jan, Chico!" She was coming to cook before everyone else got there. "I don't know why she had to ring the bell when I gave her a key." He hoped she didn't wake Nick. "Maybe she's getting senile, Chico." He laughed on the way to answer the ring. "Maybe she'll forget she enjoys giving me a hard time. Go outside, boy!" he commanded. "Go play!"

Once the dog was racing away, Greg opened the front door. His smile immediately flipped into a frown.

"Hello, Mr. Sanders." Bill Stokes gave a polite nod to his son's boyfriend. "I hope you don't mind me showin' up on your doorstep unannounced."

"That depends on why you're here. If you're here to mentally abuse Nick a little more then the answer is yes, I do mind and you can go to hell, but if you're here because you sincerely want to clear the air, then my answer is no, I don't mind at all, come on in."

"The only absolute guarantee I'm able to make at the moment is that I won't be disrespectful to you or my son and I will try to keep an open mind."

"That would certainly be a nice change of pace," Greg snipped, not ready to forgive the man who had ripped apart his partner's heart.

Removing his favorite Stetson, Bill placed it over his heart and said, "I sincerely apologize for my behavior the last time I was in town. I was horribly rude while under your roof and grossly insensitive, especially since there were ladies in the room. I fully intend to offer an apology up to your mother as well." Standing tall, he added, "I'm not the kind of man who makes excuses, Mr. Sanders, but I hope you'll take into consideration that I was still in a state of shock at the time. Findin' out that your son of 35 years is gay when you've had no suspicions, is quite jarring."

"I'll give you that." Greg stood his ground, "But then how do you explain your behavior for the past month?"

"You're absolutely right." The contrite father confessed, "I've not handled things well since that day either. Ignorance, fear, stubbornness and an already rocky relationship with my son continued to fuel my anger over the situation, and I won't lie...my religious beliefs and political views are not gay-friendly and I had no intention of changing my opinion on the subjects of homosexuality and gay marriage, but then my wife of almost 50 years walked out of our home yesterday and I'm honestly not sure she's gonna come back. She'll return to Dallas alright, but I'm not certain she'll return to me and our marriage."

"So, you're here to save your marriage, not because you want to have a relationship with Nick?"

"Does it really matter how I got here, Mr. Sanders? The facts are I came to your door, I apologized, and I'm going to try my best to work through this situation."

Believing his birthday wish was on the verge of coming true, Greg decided to welcome in Judge Stokes, but before he could get the words out, Nick answered from behind him.

"Let him in, G." The doorbell had woken him and he had been eavesdropping the whole time. "For my mother's sake, I'm willin' to talk to him." He decided to test his father's tolerance level by hugging Greg. "I appreciate you watchin' my back. I'll take it from here, okay?"

"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me."

"Thanks." Nick challenged his father again, by caressing Greg's cheek.

Bill watched the two men act like a loving couple and tried to believe their lifestyle wasn't an abomination. They looked so gentle with one another that it was hard to imagine them doing the vile things he knew they did in the bedroom. He didn't want to believe a son of his would crave such depravity, but this trip wasn't about wallowing in denial, it was about accepting the situation and moving on.

"Right this way." Nick estimated his pulse rate was nearing 100. "We can talk in the family room." That way he could see Greg in the kitchen and signal for help if he needed it.

"Hey, Cletus," Greg whispered as they walked, "you should probably talk out back, because Jan's going to be here any minute to cook." The last thing Greg wanted was for his mother to blast Judge Stokes and ruin the possible reconciliation. "Maybe out by the pool?"

"Yeah, good plan." Nick felt a twinge of encouragement when he saw his father didn't look nauseous from the public displays of affection. "It's such a nice day, Dad...let's sit by the pool and enjoy the fresh air."

"I just made a pot of Kona," Greg announced, trying to be as upbeat as possible. "I'll bring you out some. How do you take your coffee, Sir?"

"Just a little milk or cream, thank you, and how about we end the formality and you just call me Bill?"

"Sounds good, Bill." Greg's hand trembled as he reached for the coffee pot.

Glancing around at the tastefully decorated home, the anxious father said, "This is a real nice place you got here."

Thankfully they had paid extra money to have a maid service clean up after the party.

The only hints that a gay couple was living in it were the family photos on the wall. "Is it your home, Greg? Did you invite Nicky to..."

"It's our home," Nick proudly stated. "We split the down-payment 50-50 and both of our names are on the mortgage. Greg's dad bought my townhouse as an investment property, that's where I got my cash."

"Well...you certainly work hard enough to deserve a nice home, son. You too, Greg. Good for you both."

"Thank you." The fact that his father was still referring to him as son notched Nick's hopes a little higher. "We're really happy here."

"Yeah! It's a great neighborhood," Greg's nervous habit of overtalking reared its ugly head. "I love being in a gated community, and the amenities are top notch. It has a ton of parks and a well-lit jogging trail and good schools, which will be important in the future when we expand the family with a bambino or two. My mom has taken it upon herself to find a surrogate willing to go two rounds, that way our kids will be blood related." When he saw Nick give him the secret 'stop talking' gesture they had created to help him with his problem, Greg took the hint.

Unable to deal with the prospect of a child being raised by two daddies, Bill reached for another positive thing to say. "Property in a good neighborhood is always a sound investment."

Forgetting he wasn't supposed to talk, Greg said, "We have a little nest egg building too. It's not much, but my dad is really good at investing, so he's handling it for us, trying to make something out of it. We also have a 401k at work, so we should be comfortable in our golden years." He cut himself off when he realized he was rambling again.

"Sounds like you two have really thought things through."

Nick nodded at his father. "You and Mom always told us kids that we better not enter into marriage without a plan for the future."

"Wanna see our rings?" Greg enthused, forgetting his audience for a moment. "They're on our right hands as engagement rings and we'll move them to the left at the ceremony." When he saw both Nick and Judge Stokes pursing their lips, he knew he had to chill.

"Sure," Bill replied after an awkward hesitation. "Let's have a look."

When Nick didn't move, Greg walked over and showed off his. "Here."

"It's a Celtic knot," Bill stated, surprised that his son had picked something similar to his grandfather. "Nicky's grandpa had somethin' very close to this." He found it disturbing and comforting at the same time.

"That's why he picked it."

Nick didn't let himself get too encouraged, because he knew his father was trying to save his marriage and probably faking his tolerance.

On the way back around the kitchen island, Greg resumed overtalking, "We're writing our own vows for the ceremony. It's going to be at sunset on the beach. My mom rented this great house. It has floor to ceiling windows in the back, so you can see the ocean everywhere you look. It has this amazing garden patio."

When Chico came bounding into the room, Nick was grateful for the distraction. "This is Chico. We adopted him. He's a great dog."

Thankful for the change in subject, Bill crouched down to greet the pooch. "Howdy, Chico."

"Jan's here!" Greg panicked when he heard keys in the door.

"Let's head outside, Dad."

Not in the mood for the crazy woman, Bill hurried as fast as his old legs would carry him.

---

"Slow down," Gil huffed, trying to keep up with his wife and dog. Since the weather was perfect, they decided to take Bruno for a hike in the mountains before heading to bed around noon.

"He's tracking a scent!" Sara yelled over her shoulder.

The relaxing hike turning into a sprint, the Entomologist was disappointed. "I can't look for bugs when we're going this fast!"

"Bruno! Slow down!" Sara tried snapping the leash, but it did nothing to deter the pooch from running. "Let's just let him find whatever it is and then he'll calm down."

"I hope it's not a DB, because we're on our honeymoon, Sara."

"We got a 419!" she shouted when Bruno stopped. "Adult male just off the trail!"

"Are you sure he's dead?" Gil imagined a passed-out hiker.

"He's covered in flies!" When she saw her husband race forward, she teased, "Look who's running now. Geek."

"Tie Bruno to that tree over there. We can't risk him compromising evidence." Pulling a glove out of his pocket, Gil crouched down. "Caucasian, about 6'2", athletic build...expensive hiking boots."

Sara smiled when she saw her husband had brought a pair of latex gloves along for their relaxing stroll. "He could have overheated. It's easy to do in the afternoon in May. Today is unseasonably cool, but two days ago it wasn't." She wasn't in the mood for another Vegas murder, so she was mentally pulling for natural causes.

Gently moving branches off the man's head, Gil said, "Dried blood on the skull."

"Tripped and hit his head on rock?"

"Bullet hole."

"Dammit! Why doesn't anyone ever drop dead anymore?" Shaking her head, she reached for her cell. "I'll call it in and grab my kit."

"Start the crime tape at the entrance to the parking area."

"Okay."

"Wait! I found a wallet." Gil pulled out a driver's license, but realized he didn't have his reading glasses.

Without being asked, Sara leaned in to read it for her husband, "Mike Rodgers. Age 46. Summerlin." She stared at the body. "He's a cop."

"I don't recognize the name."

"He just transferred from Dallas. He was working the tape the other night. He was born here, but moved to Dallas after college. I heard the guys saying he moved back because his wife died in a boating accident and he wanted to get away from the memories."

"Maybe he was suicidal."

"He did seem a little melancholy the other night." Sara flipped open her cell phone. "He asked me out for coffee, but I politely declined citing that I already had a wonderful man in my life."

"Would you have said yes, if we weren't together?"

Staring sadly at the corpse, she nodded, "I think I might have. He seemed like a really nice guy." Meeting her husband's eyes, she said, "And if we weren't together by now, I would have been desperate to get lucky."

"Good thing I got my act together," Gil winked. "Could you fill Bruno's portable water dish before you make the call? I don't want him to get thirsty over there."

"You're such a good father to our little boy."

---

"Dad!" Greg exclaimed when he saw his father, not his mother in the doorway. "I thought Mom was coming to cook?"

"She's moving a little slow this morning." Dave handed over two of the four grocery bags he was holding.

When Greg saw his mother clutching her head, he knew she was hungover.

"I'm waaaaay too old for margaritas," Jan moaned.

"I'm going to help your mother get started and then I'll pick up the girls from Evelyn's." When he saw panic in his son's eyes, Dave got worried. "Is something wrong? You look tense? Are you and Nick having a fight?"

Walking into the house, Jan rolled her bloodshot eyes. "Nick's probably splayed on the kitchen table covered in whipped cream."

"Nick isn't covered in whipped cream and we're not in the middle of a fight." Greg shut the front door and explained, "His dad show up ten minutes ago. He said he came to talk things out. They're out by the pool and I've been in here pacing."

Jan raced to the window to spy. "I'll rest on the couch and give a play-by-play while the two of you cook."

"Good thing you have this open floor plan, son." Dave set his bags on the island. "The spy can just yell into the kitchen."

"Nick thought it would be great for sports viewing. He set up the furniture so he can see the TV in the corner of the family room even if he's at the fridge getting a beer or making a sandwich."

Dave laughed at the thought of his non-athletic son shacking up with a die-hard football fan. "I can't wait to see you suffer through your first season as a football widow."

"I'll be fine." Greg took out a bowl to whip eggs. "While he's in here enjoying the game, I'll be in the office working on my new project."

"What's the new paper about?"

"No, it's not a paper, I'm going to write a book on old Las Vegas."

Remembering how obsessed his son was after meeting Lois O'Neil and reading her book, he said, "I knew you were intrigued about the subject, but I didn't think you'd take it that far. Why not another forensics paper?"

"Nick encouraged me to do the book instead."

"Ah." The overachieving father wasn't sure how a book on Vegas was going to further his son's career. "I guess I'm just a little surprised that you'd listen to him after you were so jazzed about your first paper getting published. In Long Beach you told me you couldn't wait to dive into the next one."

"I did start it, but when Nick saw how stressed it was making me, he told me his therapist said that guys in our line of work need hobbies that have nothing to do with the job. After working cases all night, I'd come home and think about the cases in the paper. Nick didn't think it was healthy to jump right back into the stress of trying to get published, especially when this is personally a really fun and special time for us. We bought a new house, we're getting married in two months...I just want to immerse myself in happiness. After the year I had, I think it's a good choice." Sensing his career-focused father was disappointed, Greg assured him, "I promise to do another paper, Dad, but not until after I have a little decompression time."

"I'm sorry." Dave held up his hands. "I shouldn't be encouraging you to be a workaholic like I was at your age. You and your mother both deserved more of my time."

"He couldn't admit that until the age of 58, Greg!" Jan yelled from the family room. "I'm glad Nicky convinced you to stop and smell the roses while you're young."

"How's it looking out there, Mom?"

"Seems like Nick is doing most of the talking."

"The guy's a judge," Dave reminded his wife, "he's used to listening carefully to the details and only interrupting when necessary."

---

"Excuse me, son," Bill held up a hand, signaling a time out. "Do you really feel I never loved you as much as your siblings?"

"I don't think, I know." Nick remained calm and continued to unburden himself. "After five girls, you were happy to get another son, but I wasn't like Chuck. I was a disappointment and you didn't let a day go by without remindin' me of that fact."

"It didn't help that you came along at a very stressful time in my life." Sticking to honesty, Bill shared, "I was at a critical juncture in my career and I'm sure I didn't have the same patience with you because of the job stress and the fact that I had already been a father six times. That sounds horrible, but my point is, a lot of it was timing, not you. But you're right in that I was often disappointed in your behavior and your abilities. Many times I believed you were doin' things on purpose just to piss me off."

"My therapist had me tested for adult ADD. All those focus issues I had as a kid...ADD. Turns out, it's good for me now, it keeps me hyper-focused at work." Averting his eyes, Nick confessed, "At times it's worked against me though...most notably the night I was too focused on the case to notice I was about to be kidnapped."

Judge Stokes took a deep breath and made another apology, "I regret how I handled things that night at the hospital. I never should have blamed you for puttin' your mother through that stress. Your kidnapper and the cop who should have been protectin' you were the only ones at fault that night. In hindsight, the thought of me screamin' at you after that ordeal, makes me feel like a monster."

"Sometimes, Dad..." Nick bit back his tears, "you really were a monster to me as a kid. I was scared, strugglin' and really tryin' my hardest to be what you wanted me to be. It's really okay if you can't say that you're happy about my lifestyle, I really won't mind, because 73 years of programming is hard to undo. The one thing I do need from you...is for you to admit you were mentally abusive to me about things that were beyond my control as a child. That's what I need if some serious healin' is gonna occur here. And I don't want you to admit it because you're tryin' to get back in Mama's good graces, I want you to admit it, because it's the God's honest truth."

"After hearin' some of the examples you gave me and thinkin' back..." The stoic man gave a small nod, "I admit that I expected too much and hurt you terribly. I don't believe I did it to be malicious, my intentions were to prepare you for this difficult world we live in, but my approach was wrong and often...cruel. If I had known about the molestation I absolutely believe I would have cut you all the slack in the world."

"Fair enough, but if you had figured out I was strugglin' with my sexuality, I shudder to think about what you would have done to fix me."

"Those were different times, Nicky. I woulda thought I was doin' right by you. Hell, I thought that until yesterday, who am I kiddin'?"

"And now?"

"Now I believe you are gay, not by choice, but by creation. I still wish you were straight, because life would be less complicated for everyone, especially you."

Nick could barely believe his ears.

"But as complicated as things are, it could be much worse - you're not jumpin' from bed to bed and meetin' up with men in bathrooms and bath houses nightly, you don't have AIDS, and you're not doin' things for shock value to embarrass your family. I'm tryin' to accept that you're livin' a good life, you're just livin' it with a man instead of a woman, because...that's what comes naturally to you."

"That's it exactly, Dad." Nick swallowed the lump in his throat. "I didn't wake up one day and say I think I'll piss off my dad by bein' gay. I denied the urge to be with a man since puberty. Some women felt wrong, some felt okay, one or two were real nice, but Greg feels perfect in my arms. As unnatural as two men lovin' each other seems to you...as vile as the things we do with each other might sound...it all feels wonderfully normal to me and in my heart, I know God doesn't hate me for lovin' a man anymore than he'd hate a right-handed person for not bein' able to write with their left hand. That's why I refused your offers of help. Not out of disrespect or because I wanted to cause problems for the family, but because there's nothin' to fix. Even though you came here because of mom..."

"It wasn't your mother who made me see things differently, she's just the reason I flew here so fast." Reaching into his jacket pocket, he pulled out Cassie's letter. "I know you still remember your scripture, Nicholas." He quoted the Bible, "Then the little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these'." Sliding the letter across the patio table, he smiled, "A little girl, who I absolutely believe is a child of God spared from death to do somethin' great in this world, came to me yesterday via the post office."

Nick immediately recognized Cassie's handwriting which was done in her favorite purple glitter pen. He had given one to her in the hospital and she had been using them ever since. "Cassie wrote you a letter?"

"A thesis actually."

As much as he hated to cry in front of his father, Nick couldn't hold back his tears as he read Cassie's desperate words.

---

Jan excitedly reported, "The crusty neo-con just handed Nick some papers and he's choking up reading them."

Greg raced to the window, wondering if he should run out to the pool and make sure his partner was okay.

"I bet I know what it is," Dave said with a smile. "Cassie wrote the bastard a letter."

"What?" Greg and Jan chimed.

"She asked me to send it priority mail."

"Why didn't you tell me, Dad?"

"I didn't want to get your hopes up. I told Cassie not to get excited either." The proud adoptive-father-to-be beamed a smile, "She's going to be on cloud 9 if this works out."

"I can't watch him wiping his tears and not go out there." Greg's head was going to explode from the tension.

"Go make quiche like a good gay boy," Jan laughed, "because what's going on is between Nick and his father and it's going well. Do not interrupt them."

"Okay, okay." Greg returned to the kitchen and picked up the whisk. "Dad, could you grab the cream out of the fridge?"

"Sure." Dave grabbed the carton from the shelf and opened it as he walked to the island. "How much do you need?" When forcing open the carton, cream shot out and splattered on Greg's shirt. "Sorry, son. This is why your mother doesn't usually let me help her."

"It's no biggie." Greg unbuttoned the shirt, taking it off to rinse it before tossing it in the laundry room.

"What's that?" Dave studied the bruises on his son's chest.

Shit! Greg raced over to grab his A&M sweatshirt from the hook by the back door and tugged it on quickly.

"How did that one happen?" Dave huffed. "Let me guess...he grabbed you in the heat of passion."

"Exactly."

"You're lying." The perceptive father saw it immediately. "You've had the same tells since you were four and lying about swiping cookies from the jar. He shoved you, didn't he? Hard, from what I saw."

"David..." Jan interrupted, "Just leave him alone."

"I know Nick loves you, Greg, but how healthy is the relationship if he's controlling what you do and..."

"What is he controlling?" Greg snapped.

"He picked this house."

"I love this house!"

"Do you? Or do you love that he loves it? Because in pre-Nick life, this was not the kind of house you said you wanted, not even close." Dave pointed to the plasma. "He set up the room so it's optimal for him watching sports. Where are you in this room? This room looks nothing like somewhere you'd live."

"The family room is his place to decompress and mine's the office. He decorated out here, I decorated in there, and we both had input on the bedroom."

"And what about telling you to put the paper on hold? Hmm?"

"I already explained why I put the paper on hold. That wasn't him controlling me, that was him looking out for me when he saw me getting stressed!"

"How do you know he doesn't want you to do the paper because he's jealous of your success?"

"What?"

"You're both working toward the same goals at LVPD, aren't you?"

Jan remained quiet, deciding to let them hash it out on their own for once.

"You honestly think the man I'm marrying is trying to subvert me at work?"

"I just feel like you're always covering something up, Gregory."

"You're right, I am."

Jan's attention returned to her own family, instead of Nick and Judge Stokes.

"Nick didn't think I was stressed because I was having trouble sleeping, Dad. He got concerned when he caught me popping pills on the sly."

"Pills?" Dave's concern skyrocketed. "What kind of pills?"

Surprised to hear pills instead of the truth about Nick shoving him, Jan stormed into the kitchen. "Answer your father, Gregory! What kind of pills?"

"Painkillers. I've been using them on and off since the beating. They chill me out when I'm stressed. I don't have to worry about failing a drug test at work, because it's in my file that I experience chronic pain from the beating and I'm allowed to take something while off the clock." His animosity for his father growing, Greg's voice grew rougher. "Nick came up with a stress reduction plan for me and he's been helping me lift weights to feel better and we're running together so I can alleviate stress naturally. He makes sure I eat healthy too. So, I guess you are right, he is controlling, but not in bad way. Why the hell can't you see that already? Look at the party he just threw me last night. Why are you saying this shit, Dad?"

"Because I've already seen him give you 5 bruises, Greg!"

"I bruise easy. Tell him, Mom. I've always bruised easy."

"Remember when he was little, David...we used to worry that people would think we beat him because he'd have so many."

"No, I don't remember that."

"Of course not," Greg snapped, "because you were working and never home."

"That's already been established and apologized for, Greg." Dave crossed his arms over his chest. "So, why don't you admit you're redirecting, hoping I'll forget about the bruise?"

"Ugh!" Greg gripped his hair. "Why can't you take the hint that it's personal, Dad?"

"Why can't you take the hint that I love you and I'm worried that you're so desperate to be loved that you're letting things happen that shouldn't?"

"Okay, fine, I'll tell you how it happened! Since it was my birthday, Nick suggested I fuck him for a change. It was his first time and it hurt. Instinctually he pushed me away when I was on top of him." A sarcastic smile filled Greg's face. "You gotta love that answer, because having a son who only takes it in the ass has been bugging the hell out of you."

"Going for shock value now, are we?" Dave shook his head, "Not biting. It's just another attempt at redirection, Greg."

"Why my preference for submission has any correlation to your ego is beyond me, but you can rest easy now, because I gave it to him good. I pounded him so hard, it's a freakin' miracle he could walk last night. Me, your geeky non-athletic son topped the jock like a pro and it won't be the last time! I would have gone for round two after the party, but I'm a nice guy and I knew he was sore!" Shaking with anger, he asked, "Wanna light cigars and pound our chests together to celebrate?"

"That's enough, Gregory!" Jan stepped in between them. "Enough," she said in her husband's direction.

"You knew what happened, didn't you, Jan?"

"Yes." She covered for Nick, pretending the bruise didn't occur during a shove. "That's exactly why I told you to leave him alone. It was a special moment between the two of them and he didn't want to discuss with you."

"But he discussed it with you." Maintaining his composure, Dave looked Greg in the eyes and said, "It's never been about me being ashamed of you. My concern has always been about the relationship not being balanced. When you were a teenager and wanted to be reckless, I told you I didn't care how pissed off you got at me, it was my job to keep you safe and if that meant you hating me in the process, so be it. The same applies now, Greg. I've been doing my best to make sure you are in a safe and healthy situation. If you could be honest with me like you are with your mother, then I wouldn't have to push to get the answers I need to feel better and to know you're safe. But I guess I shouldn't expect you to be as close to me, when she did 95 percent of the parenting while I worked."

Feeling guilty for yelling and knowing he was lying about the bruise, Greg lowered his eyes to the floor. "I'm sorry."

"No, I'm glad you got that off your chest."

Playing the peacemaker, Jan said, "Greg, we can look back and say we wish he hadn't worked as hard as he did, but we can't deny that we're enjoying the fruits of his labor. We can't have it both ways. We can't have a great time in Maui and on The Freyja, but bitch him out for working for those very things. It's a mixed message, don't you think?"

Still looking at the floor, Greg nodded.

"I know you're 33, but even still, it has to be hard to watch your dad parent Jenni the way he didn't parent you. I think it's hitting you harder than all of us thought. I know it's hitting him harder than he thought."

"She absolutely right, son."

"I know, Dad. I know."

Jan grabbed her son's hand. "If your father had been home more, we probably wouldn't be as close as we are. You probably wish that was true, but I don't. I'm thrilled about what we had and still have, and now that you're an adult, I'm having a blast being your friend and confidante as well as your mother."

"Me too," Greg cried as he reached out to hug her. "You're an incredible pain in the ass sometimes, but I love you, Mom."

"I love you too, honey, even though you're an incredible pain in the ass most of the time."

Glancing over his mother's shoulder as they clung to each other, Greg saw his father wiping his eyes. "I love you too, Dad."

Jan stepped back, so father and son could embrace.

"I love you, Greg...so much." Dave clung to his adult son, wishing he could make up for all the lost time, while knowing he never could. "And because I do, I want the best for you. No matter how it feels or what it looks like sometimes...that's all it is."

"What's goin' on?" Nick asked when he entered the house to refill his father's coffee mug. "What happened? Why is everyone cryin'?"

Jan answered while drying her eyes with a dishtowel, "Our little boy's another year older and he's starting a family of his own. It's time to let go and it's a little harder than we thought."

"Much harder." Dave gave Greg a gentle push in Nick's direction. "But thankfully we can rest easy knowing he's in good hands."

---

When Hodges awoke, he noticed two things...his head was throbbing and a woman's arm was draped over him. "What the..." Seeing Wendy peacefully snoozing next to him, he gasped and covered his mouth. It wasn't a dream! Lifting the covers he checked to see if she was wearing clothes. She's naked as the day she was born! His headache disappeared as his excitement grew. Dad would so proud of me.

"Mmm." Stirring from slumber, Wendy stretched and yawned with her eyes closed. "I can't believe I had a raunchy dream about Hodges. God, he was good in bed." Laughing, she opened her eyes.

"How do you like your eggs, Simms?" he asked with rock star bravado.

"Scr..." She bolted up in bed, clinging to the vintage Dukes of Hazard comforter shielding her naked body.

"Ready for round three?" Grinning, he held up a condom. "Wanna be on top again? Or are you in the mood for something a little more unconventional?" He dangled a pair of cuffs.

Wendy's shrieks rattled the framed Fantasy Island cast photos on the bedroom wall.

"Okay, okay, you're not into bondage." He tossed the cuffs and ripped the condom open with his teeth. "We'll stick with conventional. Do you want me to suck your toes again?" He wiggled his eyebrows and smacked his lips. "I hope there's still something left in that tube of Liquid Love you pulled from your purse last night." He pointed to the bedside table. "Can you grab it? It's right there next to your black lacy bra. By the way, if I stretched it out last night when you made me wear it, I'll buy you a new one."

Wendy threw back the covers and raced for the bathroom.

"Good idea." Hodges followed. "We should pee first." When he heard her violently wretching, he asked, "Can I get you a Ginger Ale, Snookums?"

Grabbing the porcelain bowl for dear life, Wendy screamed, "OH MY GOD!" and then purged once more. "I can't believe..." She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, "I slept with YOU!"

"What?" His heart broke when he realized she regretted their union. "I...I don't understand. Last night you were..."

"Drunk beyond all reason!"

"Oh."

"No woman in her right mind would sleep with you...Davy!"

"I..." He wondered why she was calling him by his first name, especially if she was pissed.

"Daaaaavy."

When Hodges opened his eyes, he was shocked to see Wendy looking fresh as a flower instead of perched over a toilet puking. "Wh..."

"You were sleeping so fitfully I thought you were going to roll off my couch and smack your head on the coffee table."

"Your couch?" He realized he wasn't in his apartment. "I fell asleep at your place?"

"Right after downing seven shots of tequila and cried because no one likes you."

"But did I do anything embarrassing?"

"Uh..." If he didn't remember, she wasn't going to tell him. "Other than asking to watch a Fantasy Island rerun? No."

"Did we sleep together?"

"In your dreams probably." She padded to the kitchen laughing. "I'm making some eggs. Want some? How do you like them?"

Wendy Simms wants to make me eggs. "Yeah, I'd love some," he replied through a hopeful smile. "Sunny side up."

***

Chapter 20: Fathers and Sons - Part 2

"What about your brother's campaign?" Bill Stokes asked his son while lifting his coffee mug. "Are you willing to keep things quiet, so he doesn't have to deal with the gay brother issue every time he faces reporters?"

"After the way he's treated Greg and me, I don't owe him any favors." At peace with his reply, Nick relaxed in his chair. "In spite of my resentment toward Chuck, my decision to go public has nothing to do with him or his campaign, and everything to do with me no longer bein' ashamed of who I am. I'm not going to be the ugly family secret for Chuck's sake or anyone's."

Bill didn't mask his disappointment.

"Don't be a hypocrite, Dad...how many times have you said 'you reap what you sow'?" Nick confidently said, "Whatever grief Chuck gets over havin' a gay brother is wholeheartedly deserved in my opinion. He got away with violently assaulting a gay schoolmate, because that kid was too terrified to speak up and point fingers."

"I've discussed that with him and I think he should make peace with..."

"Reggie Healy's dead." Morphing into his work persona, Nick coolly explained, "I did some research recently and discovered that the Healy family left Dallas a month after the beating. They relocated to New Mexico, hopin' a change of location would snap their son out of his funk. It didn't. He shot himself and left a note sayin' he was better off dead." He stared into his father's unblinking eyes. "I know where he got that idea. Chuck has spewed hateful words for decades and we will never know the extent of their damage, but do we really need to know more than Reggie Healy's story?" Leaning in, he quietly said, "Chuck hates gays. I'm not perfect, Dad, I hate people too...criminals, especially ones who abuse kids and commit hate crimes. Chuck's penance is long overdue as far as I'm concerned and if fieldin' uncomfortable questions in the public eye is the biggest punishment he ever gets, then I say he's damn lucky, because we both know that punishment doesn't come close to fittin' his crime, does it, Judge Stokes?"

"Nick..."

"Don't forget to be impartial, Your Honor," the son reminded in a steely voice.

After losing the staring contest, Bill said, "I've never had the opportunity to watch you do your job, Nicholas...until now."

Not realizing he had switched gears quite so harshly, Nick cracked a stress-induced smile. "I kinda go to a different place when I'm interrogatin' someone. It helps me not get emotional in front of the suspects. Even after all these years, it doesn't always work. I lose it every now and then...child abusers and killers are the ones most likely to still provoke me. Throwin' Cassie's kidnapper up against the wall a few times got me the information I needed, so I can't say it's always the wrong approach."

"That could have cost you your job."

Nick's smile spread, "I woulda been okay with that considerin' the outcome. If Cassie had been dead when I found her, from havin' her throat slit and bein' tossed into the water by that monster...I don't want to think about what I woulda done to her killer. God is able to forgive everyone, but I haven't found that ability quite yet."

"You know what your grandpa always said...humans are a work in progress until the day they die."

---

"Looks like you've done a great job planning this book," Dave Sanders announced, upon reviewing his son's project outline and work thus far. He had suggested they talk privately in the office while Jan made breakfast. "I'm very impressed." He was determined to work through their issues and do a little bonding.

"The research and writing is so much fun, it doesn't even feel like work." Grabbing a binder, he cracked it open. "Check this out. Lily let me copy all her old photographs from back in the day."

"Wow."

"I know!" Greg's excitement grew every time he viewed them. "The first time I saw those pictures, I was overwhelmed with deja vu. I really think I was there in a previous life. It would totally explain why I felt drawn to work in Vegas, right? I wanted to come back home."

"Your Grandma Olaf would agree with you, but you know me," the skeptical father chuckled, "I never believed any of that..." He caught himself before saying 'crap'. "She swore you'd get a stripper pregnant if you moved here, remember? How do you explain her not figuring out you were gay?"

"Whoa." Greg glanced up from the photos. "Tawny's a stripper and mom asked her to be a surrogate. If she says yes, then Nana Olaf's prediction would be right! I think my next book will be on psychics."

"I forgot about that." Dave was hoping to find an ally in his son's boyfriend. "Does Nick believe in all the supernatural stuff like you and your mother do? He seems way too grounded in reality for it."

"He had a run in with a psychic while we were workin' to find Cassie and between that and my detailed Grandma Olaf stories, I think he's starting to believe."

"When do you find time to tell him detailed stories?" Dave teased. "On the way to and from the shower?"

"Very funny. Believe it or not, we don't fill all of our free time with sex." Greg pointed to the sofa in the home office. "After my jock fiancé is done with ESPN and watching whatever he DVR'd for the day, he comes in here and dives onto the couch to hang out with me. Depending on our moods, we talk, fool around, plan our future, we've even argued about baby names. He wants to go totally traditional, but I want my kid to have something with a little flair."

The vision of domestic bliss brought a needed smile to the worried father's face.

"Since a baby isn't even in the works yet, we have plenty of time to work out a compromise." Returning the photo album to its special spot, Greg said, "Sometimes Nick can tell I'm lost in my research, so he just gives me a quick kiss and grabs a book or magazine to read on the couch. After being alone for so long it's just really nice having someone sharing my space. I finally feel safe in my own home again. I hated not having someone around when I heard an odd noise or panicked that I had left the back door open. Nick checks all the locks before we go to bed."

Dave gave his son's shoulder a supportive squeeze. "I think my problem isn't Nick. I think it's me having a hard time with you wanting to have a husband, rather than be one."

"Being nervous about unlocked doors has nothing to do with me being a girly man. I'm still freaked from getting jumped and beaten within an inch of my life, Dad."

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I need to accept you choosing to be the more submissive one in the relationship."

Plopping into his office chair, Greg tried to relax. "I'm not pushover either. I let Nick have all the control he needs, because I know he needs it way more than me. Victims of childhood sexual abuse and violent kidnappings want to feel in control of their universe. I get that, and I'm happy making life as easy for him as possible, because I think he deserves it after the shit he's been through."

"Is that why you agreed to buy this traditional house instead of the one you dreamed of owning one day?"

"Nana Olaf used to say that love isn't a selfless act - it requires sacrifice, patience, and a little insanity. This house, the retriever, the football stuff on the walls - that's me sacrificing some of my desires so Nick can have his fulfilled, but it's not like he hasn't done stuff for me."

"Your Nana might have been wrong about the amount of insanity," Dave laughed, "I'd say it takes more than a little to spend decades with the same person, but it's absolutely worth it if you can endure it." He took a seat on the edge of the desk. "I wish I could say the right thing to make you see that I'm completely supportive of you and Nick, even if I'm uncomfortable about certain aspects of your life together."

"And I'm trying really hard to see things through your perspective and cut you some slack."

"As a parent it's hard to watch your child get hurt, physically or mentally." A vision of Greg's battered face popping into his head, Dave shivered, "I've seen you hurt too many times and I'm overly sensitive because of it. You'll know what I'm feeling one day when you have a child of your own."

"If you thought it was hard when you had one son, now you have two beautiful daughters to worry about." Greg flashed a warm smile. "You better invest in a jumbo bottle of Maalox when they start dating and bawling their eyes out over boys."

"No shit." The thought of parenting teenage daughters terrified him. "I'll have to come up with an intimidating speech to give their dates."

"Or borrow one of Nick's shotguns."

"How many guns does he have around here?"

"Would you please stop worrying?" Greg redirected back to the original topic, "I'll admit that Nick and I have had some pretty heated disagreements because we're both dysfunctional hotheads, but so far we've been great about keeping the yelling to a minimum and rationally talking things though after the initial explosion. Believe me when I say that even during our most passionate arguments, I don't feel abused or threatened in any way, I swear on Nana Olaf's grave."

Upon seeing none of the usual signs that his son was lying, Dave nodded, "I believe you."

"That said, I'm pretty sure Nick would kill me if he found me in bed with someone else, but thankfully I'm into monogamy and we won't have to find out if I'm right." Happy with the progress they were making, Greg took a cleansing breath and approached the next delicate topic. "Dad...I really need you to believe me when I say the relationship isn't abusive in any way."

"It's just really hard for me to do that when I'm looking at bruises."

"We've been through this already, Dad. Men are aggressive by nature, so sex between guys is going to be less delicate. I swear Nick and I both understand that no means no. We completely respect each other's boundaries, probably more than most people would, because we've both suffered from some serious personal space violations."

"That does make sense."

Tugging down his shirt collar, Greg said, "This won't be the last mark you see on me, because Ireally do bruise easily and..."

"And?"

"And sometimes I specifically ask Nick to make things a little...energetic." When he saw his father's tense reaction, Greg rushed to clarify, "Nothing crazy, not by a long shot. Seriously, we're so vanilla we'd be laughed out of Lady Heather's. But I enjoy what I enjoy and I don't want my lover to be so paranoid that he refuses to clamp his hands around my wrists or grab me when I want him to. I know how Nick's mind works - he's so messed up from seeking validation from his own father, that he's hell bent on not disappointing you either. If you keep hassling him about being too rough with me, he won't be able to touch me unless I'm bubbled wrapped on a feather bed."

"People probably pay for that sort of thing at Lady Heather's." Surprised he was able to chuckle as they tiptoed through the awkward subject, Dave calmly said, "I won't lie, seeing evidence of your energetic sex with Nick makes me uncomfortable."

"I know it does. Then I get pissed at you for getting uncomfortable and we keep having the same stupid argument about Nick being abusive when we both know that's not really the problem. What you're really bothered by me is me voluntarily bottoming and loving it. The gay thing would be a lot easier for you if I was a hardcore top."

"Son..." Instead of lying, Dave apologetically said, "I'm sorry, I really don't want to seem like Bill Stokes, but try as I might to be open to the idea, it still turns my stomach when I think about what actually occurs between you and Nick. That doesn't mean I don't love you, it just means that I can't be enthusiastic about your love life like your mother can. I fully realize it's a double standard, because I could talk to you in great detail if you were banging babes instead of a boy. But that's the truth and I think it's more important to be honest with you than to be politically correct. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I don't want to be one of those in-your-face queers who make people feel bad for not being enthusiastic over gay sex. In your mind it's completely unnatural for two guys to be sexual, so I totally get why you don't want to think about it, especially about your son. Who wants to think about something grossly unappealing? I don't."

"Maybe I'm traumatized because I've had to hear too many details. There's always an anxious newbie at the PFLAG meetings asking sex questions. I think I know enough about the inner workings of a man's ass to open a Proctology practice."

"Why do they discuss the dirty details?"

"Taking the mystery out of gay life is supposed to help the concerned parents calm down. A lot of them come to the meetings very misinformed and scared. Your mother is a small group volunteer now and I sit there in support of her...and you technically, even though you're not there. They ask HIV questions first and then they start bringing up the safety and cleanliness of the various sexual activities you boys like to do. They're always worried about germ transfer and the long-term effects of having sex 'back there'. One poor grandmother was bawling her eyes out on your mother's shoulder because she was told her grandson would end up wearing diapers or needing a colostomy by the time he was 22 if he kept letting guys put it..."

"Back there?" Greg laughed, happy that they were maintaining some levity while treading cautiously.

"Jan gets them to say 'tush' by the end of the meeting. My favorite moment with your mother was when this arrogant father who had been forced to the meeting by his wife said he threw away his 17 year old son's stash of condoms and lube so he couldn't have sex anymore. Your mother jumped up and gave an Oscar worthy speech titled 'How stupid are you? Your kid will continue having sex behind your back, but now he doesn't have the things necessary to preserve his life and his asshole, Asshole!' It was showstopper, let me tell you."

Simultaneously proud and embarrassed by his mother, Greg said, "Jan, Jan, Jan. I always knew she'd be a PFLAG overachiever."

"All kidding aside, she's actually very good at helping people who are struggling. The Vegas chapter already wants her leading up some presentations." Grinning, Dave shared, "They like how she uses humor to put the scared family members at ease. Honestly, no one tells a better poop chute joke than your mom."

"And she wants me to attend a meeting with her? I don't think so. I'm sure I'd be the butt of every one of her jokes." Greg mocked her voice, "'Gregory loved having his little tushie powdered as a baby, so I just knew he would grow up gay' or 'Greg was such a Kiss-Ass as a child, it's hardly a surprise that he loves kissing real asses today'."

"She would be writing those down if she were here." Dave committed them to memory so he could tell his wife. "I think she wants you to dress nice and run through your pre-sex hygiene habits to debunk the myth that all gay men are filthy perverts."

"Sorry, even Nick isn't even privy to that information. I lock him out of the bathroom while I'm freshening up."

"Even now that he's wearing your ring?" Dave laughed, "You'll get less inhibited as time goes on, believe me. Married life gets very comfortable, maybe too comfortable. I stopped going to the bathroom to fart shortly after the honeymoon and it's been one big toenail clipping, gas producing downhill slide from there. But hey, at least you won't be asked to run out to the store for Maxi Pads in the middle of the night."

"That's definitely a perk. There may be a midnight run for hemorrhoid cream in our future though."

"Hey, I've done that myself, so no shame there."

"I've already made Gas-X pit stops on the way home from work for Cletus, but I knew he had wind issues from working side by side with him all these years. In our line of work, we're trained to ignore bad smells, so it's not a problem really. We've already declared everywhere but the kitchen a fart zone."

"You'd never get a woman to agree to that one."

"Another perk of gay marriage." Laughing with his father, Greg happily shared, "Even though we've only been together a short time, Nick's already used to my quirks and tells. He knows by the look on my face when I step out of the bathroom if he's not getting in my backdoor because...uh..."

"The planets aren't aligned?"

"Yeah, we'll go with that." Laughing with his father, Greg said, "Nick's the best, because he respects all of my germphobic OCD sex rules and doesn't make me feel like a freak for having them. I love that he knows my mouth doesn't travel south of the border when he comes home from work unless he's showered, no exceptions...and it better be a very hot and thorough shower if he expects me to include a visit 'back there'."

It took a second for Dave to figure out what his son meant and when he did, he cringed and dug for something positive to say. "It's um...it's good to know you're that you're practicing healthy habits, even though we never had a 'man to man' chat about sex, at least not beyond 'you better wear a condom every time or I'll kill you'. And it's good that Nick is respectful of your wishes."

"Yeah. He knows I've been laughed at in bed enough to last a lifetime, so he doesn't hassle me." To keep the bonding vibe going, Greg allowed himself to get a little more personal, "I've been totally honest with him and shared all my bedroom horror stories, like how the first and only time I was with a woman during a certain period of the month I flipped out because I glanced down and thought the girl was hemorrhaging because I was too rough."

"Aww, I guess that would be pretty freaky if you didn't know she had it and never had been with a woman who did." Feeling bad for not educating his son a little better, Dave said, "These are things I could have warned you about if I had ever taken the time to sit you down and talk. What did the girl do? It must have been awkward for her too."

"Not quite. While I was in the shower scrubbing my flesh raw, Mary was outside the curtain laughing at me. She made it sound like I was the only guy who ever had a problem with the scenario. Like I was some kind of freak for not wanting a threesome with her and Aunt Flo. She told me it always made her cramps feel better and couldn't believe I was being so uptight about it." He shivered at the memory. "I told her to use Motrin for her cramps next time, not my manhood, and that I don't like sex to remind me of the crime scenes I work. The date really went downhill from there."

"I'm guessing she told you to go to hell."

"Something slightly less polite actually." While his father laughed at him, Greg said, "I thought that was bad, but then this other chick I met at a club took me home to this really nice apartment and just when I thought things were going well in bed she giggled in my ear 'time to tinkle'."

"She wanted to the bathroom before having sex? What's so weird about that? Lots of..."

"Noooooooo. She wasn't leaving the bed, that was the start of the sex. She was into pee-pee foreplay, which really made me wonder what she liked to do for the main act. The rubber sheets on her bed should have been a clue, but I assumed her old dog had a bladder control problem or something."

"Eww!"

"Exactly what I said as I ran for the door!"

"No wonder you like men if those women were typical of the ones you dated after Lacey."

"It's ancient history." Greg smiled and said, "The point I was making is - everyone has things they don't want to think about people doing behind closed doors. I respect your limitations, Dad, because I know I don't want to be forced to think about Bloody Mary or Tinkle-Bell's habits on a regular basis."

"Then why do you keep making me feel bad when I cringe?"

"Because sometimes I'm an immature brat with Daddy issues." Being completely truthful, Greg said, "I have residual anger and I still like to find ways to piss you off and get some payback. When Mom brings up sex and I see you cringe, I know I can easily play on your guilty conscience and make you feel like a closed-minded jerk. Truthfully, I don't want or need you to be excited about my sex life. I just need you to stop being passive-aggressive and attacking Nick because you can't say what's really on your mind."

"And you'll promise not to make me feel bad anymore?"

"Deal. I know I'm lucky to have a father who loves me and is supportive of my relationship. You don't have to buy me sex toys for my honeymoon to prove you cool with 'the gay thing'."

"That would be redundant, because your mother already has."

"You're not even kidding, are you?"

"Unfortunately, no. She has these honeymoon bags for you and Nick that she plans on leaving in your bedroom one day when the girls aren't with her."

"She really is a freak."

"Yes, but a loveable freak." After a mutual laugh, Dave said, "I think the trick is for me to think about you and your relationship without my frame of reference."

"Which is?"

"If another man overpowered me, I'd feel humiliated, not turned on."

"I've loved getting overpowered by a hot jock since the first time we did wrestling in PE class." Through a grin, Greg recalled the exhilarating memory. "Shawn Westmore...the second his crotch landed in my face I knew I was Bi."

"See, I dreaded wrestling...rolling around with a sweaty guy barely wearing clothes, bumping parts for what seemed like an eternity, and then getting forcefully pinned down with him grunting on top of me."

"Sounds a lot like Nick and I when we get home after a long shift." Watching his father cringe, Greg stood laughing, "It's either there or it isn't, Dad...it's definitely not there for you."

"I suspected as much." Dave hugged his boy tight, happy they had made significant progress. "I'm glad we had this talk and I'm happy that Nick finally let you win one of the wrestling matches and let you pin him for a change."

"Finally win?" Greg sighed, "And here I thought we were making progress. You're still thinking in terms of the bottom being the loser's spot." Returning the embrace, he teased, "Poor Mom, by your definition, she's been a loser in love for decades, never enjoying sex. Sounds a lot like Hodges."

---

"This is so much better than my dream," Hodges sighed as he sat at the kitchen table across from Wendy and sopped up egg yolk with a perfectly toasted piece of wheat bread.

The cook laughed as she picked up her juice, "You had a dream I made you bad eggs?"

"Something like that."

"Ugh, did we have sex in your dream?" She pushed away her plate. "Suddenly I've lost my appetite."

"You act like the thought of having sex with me is a turn off."

"I don't want to make you feel bad when you're hungover and feeling sorry for yourself, so I'll just say - no comment."

"So, you've thought about sex with me."

"No!"

"Well then how can you know it would be a turn off if you've not considered the possibility? You've thought about us having sex, admit it."

"I'm making coffee," she stated while leaving her chair.

That's a yes. "Coffee would be great, honey."

"Here's the cream." Wendy promptly spilled it over her co-worker's head.

While thick white liquid streamed down his face, Hodges asked, "Is this the prelude to some kinky sex game of yours?"

"Ugh." Stuffing her hands on her hips, she spat, "No, it's a hint that I'm not interested. Why can't you be satisfied that I took care of your ass when you were trashed?"

"Sorry." He switched to a sincere tone, "I'm just trying to be funny, but I should follow Jan Sanders's advice and not bother, because I'm not a funny guy." Wiping his face with his shirt, he said, "Do you mind if I use your shower before I go?"

---

"Look who's here, Cletus!" Greg yanked Cassie into the backyard with him. "And Cassie, guess who knocked on our door this morning?" He pointed to Judge Stokes sitting by the pool. "Nice job, Sis," he whispered while the girl stood there in shock. "Your letter worked. They've been talking for almost an hour." He backed away to let them have a semi-private reunion.

As soon as Nick saw the girl who would forever own a part of his heart, he jumped out of his patio chair.

"Are you mad at me?" Cassie yelled when she saw him hurrying over.

"Am I mad at you?" Nick laughed at the ridiculous question. "No, honey, I'm not mad." Kneeling down, he pulled her into his arms. "I'm incredibly touched by what you said in the letter and the essay."

"Am I debt-free?" she asked, tears filling her eyes.

"He brushed her hair from her eyes, so she could see his gratitude. "You've always been debt-free, Sweetie, because savin' you helped me in a way I can't explain even to myself. I was kinda lost until I started lookin' for you and when I found you I got a part of me back. It's complicated I know." Her tears starting his, he choked up. "I consider the letter a selfless act of incredible kindness that has made me feel blessed beyond words. Anything you felt you owed me, is paid current and then some."

"Okay," Cassie answered as she wiped her savior's tears.

"Heck, I feel so grateful to you after readin' that letter, I'll be shoppin' for an extra special birthday gift for you."

Greg made an immediate suggestion, "Ask for that horse you've always dreamed of! I know that look on his face, he'll say yes to anything when he looks like that."

Once the reunion's crescendo was over, Judge Stokes walked over to see the girl who was wise beyond her years. "Howdy, Miss McBride. I wanted to tell you personally that I was very moved by your letter. You are very eloquent for your age and an incredible researcher."

"She wants to be a CSI one day," Nick proudly stated. "With her brain, her adoptive parents support, and two big brothers in the business, I don't foresee it bein' a problem."

Greg nodded. "She can take over the place when we retire to Maui."

---

Strolling out of Wendy's bathroom wearing her terrycloth robe, Hodges asked, "How does Hawaii sound for a honeymoon destination?"

"Perfect," she cooed before narrowing her eyes, "I'll send you a postcard when I'm there with my husband."

"Good one, Simms." He tumbled further in love. "You're very cute when you're sarcastic."

Before she could retort, her doorbell rang. "Ugh, these Jehovah Witnesses show up every weekend like clockwork since I politely took one of their pamphlets."

Grabbing the collar of the fluffy pink robe, Hodges said, "Would you like the man of the house to take care of this?"

"Go change!" She marched to the door. "And I don't just mean your clothes. Change your personality too!" When she opened the door and saw Mandy holding hands with Henry and glowing, she screamed, "NOOOOO!"

"I thought you would be happy to see us back together?" Mandy said in confusion. "I don't get..."

"Gooooooood Morning!" Hodges greeted his co-workers in a sunny tone. "Are you as happy as I am this morning?"

Since their jaws were on the ground, Mandy and Henry couldn't answer.

Smiling at Wendy, Hodges asked, "Should we invite them in for coffee, honey?" The death glare he received in return left him rattled. "I'll go get dressed."

"This is sooooooo not what it looks like," Wendy assured her friends. "He was drunk and depressed last night leaving the party. I was afraid to let him be alone. He spilled cream on his clothes, so...this is totally sounding like some crazy sitcom cliché speech to cover up us sleeping together, isn't it?"

"Yes," the happy couple robotically replied.

"I'll have to resort to DNA proof then. Swab any part of me! I'm Hodges free!"

"We believe you. Really."

"I can tell you don't." When they started to back away, she pleaded, "I swear I didn't sleep with him!"

"We just wanted to say thanks." Mandy waved as she darted away with her boyfriend. "Carry on!"

"There's nothing to carry on!" They were already in their car, so it was pointless. "Dammit!" After slamming the door, she made a beeline down the hall. "You're a dead man, Davy!" She threw open the bathroom door. "Get your ass..."

Bent over naked, Hodges asked, "What about my ass?"

---

"It's so sweet," Jan gushed while watching Cassie wipe Nick's tears. "And look...Jenni's sniffling in Greg's arms too." Observing the emotional scene through the family room window, she blurted, "Cassie is Cindy Lou Who!"

"What?

"Cindy Lou Who! She made the crusty old heartless Grinch realize that Christmas would go on no matter what he took away from the people of Whoville, because the spirit of Christmas lived inside the Whos, not in the trees, ornaments and gifts. Don't you see...Cassie got the Grinch to realize that Nick would be gay no matter what happened, because his homosexuality was a part of him, not something that could be taken away. She got through to the meanie and now his heart is growing. Just watch, he'll be carving Roast Beast at our holiday table and fitting in just fine."

"Aww, that's very cute," Dave laughed, "but I have a more realistic version about what just happened."

"Which is?"

"The asshole realized he'd be microwaving frozen entrees and sleeping alone for the rest of his life, so he flew out here and said whatever he needed to say to get his wife back in his kitchen and his bed."

"Oh, stop."

"You think I'm wrong?" Dave laughed harder. "Look at all the crap I put up with just to keep getting your professional quality blow jobs all these years, Hot Lips. Men are simple creatures and easily controlled."

Knowing her husband only teased her when he wasn't stressed, Jan was certain he had truly worked through things with Greg.

"Aww, you didn't think it was your Tuna Casserole keeping me around, did you?" He winked. "Not that it isn't fantastic."

"Okay, smart ass." She rolled her eyes. "I suppose it's not a stretch to believe you think of your stomach and wiener 24/7."

"I'm a man, sweetheart, that's how we're programmed."

"Thankfully Gregory takes after me and is a deep, sentimental thinker...Nicky too. I just love my overly sensitive gay boys."

"If you believe those two aren't obsessed with their wieners, then I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you real cheap."

"Only because they're in the engagement and pre-wedding phase. Once they've been together a while, they'll chill out and value long sentimental discussions too."

"MmmHmm."

Jan winked, "As someone who used to be obsessed with bagging her stud, I can assure you that the thrill passes...quickly."

"Oh please, you've never gotten over the thrill of bagging me."

"Who said I was talking about you?"

"That's it." Dave yanked his feisty wife into his arms and planted a kiss on her lips that he was certain would remind her why she loved him.

"Mmm." Smacking her lips, Jan gazed into her husband's eyes. "You've still got it, baby."

"Thank you, sweetheart." He returned for another smooch. "All kidding aside, I really hope that Greg has inherited your oral talents, because then we'll never have to worry about Nick leaving him for greener pastures and breaking his heart."

"I can't believe you're that comfortable talking about your son pleasuring another man."

"Yeah, well..." Dave pointed out the window. "Every time I'm around that intolerant jerk, I overcompensate and end up a little more comfortable with my gay son's sex life."

"Well, at least we know the crusty coot is good for something."

Glancing over his shoulder to make sure they were still alone, Dave said, "Hearing about Nick letting our son have a turn in the driver's seat helped a lot too."

The surprised mother asked, "Did Greg give you details when you two were holed up in the office?"

"Just that he was exaggerating for shock value and really wasn't an animal with Nick. He said it was actually all very sweet."

Jan couldn't resist teasing her man, "It may have started out that way, but if you believe that it was all sweet, then I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you real cheap. The things I heard traveling through the air vent had me blushing...but not for the reason you think."

"Huh?"

She whispered, "Greg was saying some of the exact same lines you say to me in the heat of passion."

"I knew we should have moved his bedroom downstairs a lot sooner than we did. Good thing the new house has a split floor plan."

"To be honest, I get a little more unnerved every time I think about it." The concerned mother said, "It's a little too Hamlet for my liking."

Dave burst out laughing, "You think he's saying my lines because he subconsciously wants to give it you?"

"I'm sure that would be Freud's take," she replied with concern.

"Well, Freud never had the privilege of meeting our sweet, geeky son, honey. Greg copied my lines, because he's inexperienced in the driver's seat, and when he's nervous he subconsciously draws upon the words of a master."

---

"Your love stud is leaving!" Hodges shouted from the open front door. "Aren't you going to say goodbye, Simms?"

From the kitchen Wendy cheerily replied, "Sorry, I'm too busy opening the bottle of champagne I'll be drinking in celebration of your long overdue departure!"

"You really can't stop flirting with me, can you?" He ducked just in time to miss the spatula flying towards his head. "See you at work!"

"Not if I see you first!" she yelled just as her front door shut. "Thank god." Glancing around her apartment she confirmed she was alone again. "Much better." Taking a seat on her couch, she grabbed the remote from between the cushions. "He never stops talking," she muttered while flipping through channels. "He's so irritating." She settled back to watch a movie she had already seen five times. "Beyond irritating." Tossing the remote on the empty space next to her, she realized something terrifying. "I miss him." Her hand raced to her mouth as she considered the unfathomable possibility. "Am I that lonely?" After five solid minutes of contemplation, she jumped to her feet, ready to fix the problem. "I wonder what time the dog pound opens?"

---

"I guess old dogs can learn new tricks after all," Jillian Stokes remarked to her daughters when she saw her husband in the backyard with her son. "Now they're tossin' a football with Cassie, Roy and Greg while Skye and Jenni watch."

"I still can't believe Daddy came here." Nancy had been in dazed since they walked in and found him in the living room.

"I know." Gwen had never seen her father yield so quickly and completely. "He didn't wanna lose you, Mama. Your plan worked."

"I hope he's here at least partly because he wants Nicky in his life too." Jillian knew it was wishful thikning. "I'd hate to think he was fakin' it all for me."

"Brunch is served!" Jan cheerily yelled as she rushed through the back door to retrieve the basket of condiments she had prepared to take out on the patio. "Get it while it's hot, ladies."

Since everyone was hungry, they hurried out to the patio without exchanging a word.

"Here you go, Mama." Nick pulled out a chair for her at the long table they had made by pushing several tables together. "Looks just like Sunday brunch back at the ranch, doesn't it?"

"Exactly what I was thinkin', honey." She kissed her son's cheek.

"I love family traditions." Thrilled that things were going so well for his partner, Greg began overtalking, "My grandparents brought all their Norwegian customs with them from Norway. Well, duh, where else would Norwegian customs come from, right? We're going to combine family holiday customs. Nick's told me everything you guys do and I've told him the things my family does. I can't wait for Christmas," he excitedly said while ripping apart a biscuit. "Christmas is hands down my favorite holiday...making cookies, exchanging gifts, the music, the decorations, the classic cartoons." After singing a few lines of I'm Mister Heatmiser, he said, "Yeah, I love everything about Christmas."

"What about Christ?" Judge Stokes announced while staring at his son's hyper boyfriend, "I didn't hear you mention him. He's kind of a big part of it for us. I bring Him up, because it's customary in our family to offer up a prayer of thanks before eatin' anything."

"Sorry," Greg replied while swallowing a hunk of biscuit. "Nana and Papa Olaf didn't bring any prayer back from Norway...uh...and that was so not a funny joke." He anxiously glanced around. "Who's up for leading a prayer of thanks?"

"You're our host, Greg," Bill smiled as he reached out for his neighbor's hands. "You should do the honors."

"Uh..."

Dave and Jan panicked, knowing their son had never led a prayer in his life.

"I'll do it!" Nick, Jenni, Cassie, Gwen, Nancy, and Roy all offered when they saw fear building in Greg's eyes.

Coming to the rescue of his unchurched partner, Nick winked, "I'd love to lead it if you don't mind, honey."

"Not at all." Following the Stokes lead, Greg held hands with his neighbors; Jenni and his mother.

Lowering his head, Nick solemnly began, "Heavenly Father, thank you for this beautiful day and for bringing together the Stokes and Sanders family members gathered around this table. We humbly ask you to bless us and this wonderful meal we are lucky enough to have before us when there are people around the world fighting for a crumb to share. As we break bread together, please help us to choose kind words that will help us respect each other and grow together as one family under God, striving for peace and harmony with each other while living in a world that's sadly full of hate and intolerance. Please bless us and this food which will nourish us, so that we may live another day to serve You and love one another. In Jesus Christ's name, we pray...Amen."

"Amen," everyone replied, except Greg, who was sitting at the table certain he would burn in hell, because he had been totally turned on by Nick praying. What's wrong with me? The deep, soulful cadence of his lover's voice, the thoughtful words of wisdom, and the taboo nature of lusting after a holy man had his Levis bursting at the seams. He even looks twice as hot. Suddenly he had a lot of empathy for Meggie Cleary's plight in The Thorn Birds.

"That was lovely, Nicky,." Jillian praised her son.

"Thanks, Mama."

"Greg," Jan patted her son's hand and whispered, "could you run in and grab the hot sauce? I forgot to bring it out and I know the Texans love that stuff on their eggs."

"Uh."

"I gave birth to you, Dear," she whispered through gritted teeth, "so you can go get me hot sauce."

"Uh."

"Go! Before their eggs get cold."

"Be right back." After untucking his shirt, Greg scurried into the house like the rat he felt he was.

"Sorry," Jan announced when her cell phone rang and startled everyone. Jumping up, she grabbed it from her pocket. "I'm a PFLAG hotline volunteer this weekend. If you'll excuse me for a moment." Holding the phone to her ear she walked to the pool area to chat in private. "Jan Sanders, proud PFLAG Mom, how can I help you?"

Judge Stokes forced his eyes not to roll.

"What was wrong with Greg?" Dave blurted in Nick's direction. "He looked upset."

"I bet his shoulder is killin' him," Nick huffed.

"I think you're right." Cassie nodded as she scooped fruit onto her plate. "I saw him grabbing it when we were playing."

"I'm gonna strangle him senseless one of these days." When Nick saw Dave glance over, he anxiously laughed, "That was just a joke, Sir...because he won't listen to me about his..."

"I know it was. You're fine."

Tossing his napkin on the table, the worried fiancé stood. "I warned him not to play ball with us while he's still in physical therapy, but does he listen...nooooooo. I'll be right back." He's probably in there poppin' three Vicodin. "I'll make him an ice pack."

Shortly after Nick left the table, the door bell rang.

"I wonder who that is?" Dave remarked.

"I'll get it!" Roy scrambled out of his seat. "Y'all enjoy your food while it's hot."

Gwen laughed as the numbers dwindled. "If another one of you leaves, I'm gonna think I smell bad."

"I think you smell pretty," Cassie confirmed since she was sitting next to the woman. Leaning in she whispered, "Between you and me...I think Nick and Greg ran off to kiss. They're really in love and they're not allowed to kiss in front of your mom."

---

"We can't! Not here!" Bobby Dawson protested in a whisper when Roy lunged for him in the entryway. "Nick will kill me if he sees me with you." They had met at the party the previous night, had spent hours talking, playfully kissing and tantalizing each other's bodies just short of having sex. "The plan was I come to get my jacket and Nick invites me to stay for brunch."

"Slight change of plans." Roy led the way to the office, his shiny blond hair bouncing as his eyes danced. "In here."

"Are you trying to get me killed?" Doubting that Nick would approve of him dating his nephew who was only 20 and therefore 16 years his junior, Bobby fretted, "We can't..."

"Just a kiss."

"No."

"Just one." Roy used his professional flirtation skills to get what he wanted. "I missed you."

"Nick will kill me if he comes in here and finds me with you."

"He won't come in, he was running upstairs after Greg."

---

"What are you up to, G?" Nick yelled as he rushed into the master bathroom. "Are you sneakin'..."

"Ever heard of knocking?" Caught with his pants down in the small toilet room, Greg turned his back and snapped, "I'm peeing. Give me a little privacy."

"Uh, no..." Nick stopped him from shutting the door. "You're jerkin' off."

"No, I'm peeing."

"You think I don't know the difference between peein' and jerkin' off? I've been doing one for 35 years and the other for 23."

"Okay, fine, I'm jerking off." Greg lowered his head. "Just give me two minutes."

Nick stuffed his hands on his hips. "Care to tell me why you're leavin' the table in the middle of brunch with my family to jerk off?"

"I left the table because my mother asked me to get hot sauce, the jerking off is a side trip." Greg groveled, "Can we discuss my motivations later, please? If we're both gone my dad is going to think we snuck away to fool around and get pissed."

Still baffled, Nick said, "Why did gettin' hot sauce turn you on?"

"It didn't!" Greg whirled around. "If you must know, I got turned on listening to you pray and then my mother asked me to get hot sauce, so I ran into the house, trying to kill two birds with one stone - getting rid of my boner and grabbing the hot sauce on the way out. I'd already be back at the table if you hadn't come in here and..."

"You got turned on listenin' to me pray?" Nick gaped at his lover.

"I'm going to hell, aren't I?" Greg whimpered, "Not that I actually believe in hell, but on the off chance it does exist, getting turned on while you pray earns me a one way ticket, right? What does the rule book say?"

Nick broke into an uncontainable smile, "You're really cute when you're sportin' wood and worryin' about eternal damnation."

"Yeah?" Enchanted by Nick's roguish smile, Greg's worries melted away. "You really think I look cute?" "

"Yeah," Nick confirmed as he moved to stand behind his partner. "I do." Sliding his hands forward, he purred, "Mmm...I can't wait to say I do with you, baby."

"But I'm a terrible sinning person. Why would you want to marry me?"

"Honey, you got turned on because I was prayin' to keep you safe." In between gentle strokes, Nick murmured, "You always get turned on when I get protective. You love when I take care of you."

"Oh, yeah. That makes me feel much better...mmm... so does that," Greg whimpered, "but you really shouldn't be...don't stop." Closing his eyes, he leaned back and pulled oxygen through his nose. "That's so good. I mean wrong...this is so wrong."

"Why?" Nick let his hot breath linger on his lover's neck while he feverishly worked to finish what had been started without him. "Because we have family downstairs?"

"We really need to address this sex addiction problem we have...but not right now." His knees growing weak, Greg reached out and braced himself for the finale. "So good."

"It's good for me too, baby," Nick lingered wet kisses over his partner's neck and enjoyed the erratic breathing and random noises echoing of the walls. "Especially with my father right downstairs...you know the guy who's sayin' he's here for me, but really just wants to keep his wife, so he's bullshittin' and puttin' on a good show while callin' Chuck on the sly and double-talkin'."

"You're doing this because you hate your daddy?"

"Yeah." After dropping to his knees, Nick glanced up and innocently asked the panting man before him, "Does that make me bad?"

"Definitely." Threading his fingers through his lover's hair, Greg knew their behavior was wrong for at least a dozen reasons, but it only made things hotter. "Hurry up, before your daddy comes looking for you and finds you on your knees in front of your fag boyfriend."

Nick worked open his jeans with his free hand and hoped Greg would keep talking.

---

"Sorry, she had a lot to say." Returning to her seat, Jan lamented, "That poor PFLAG mom, she's so brainwashed to think that all gay boys have one track minds that she can't even believe her son when he says he's innocently going out. She called crying because she checked up on him and he caught her spying. He really was alone at the library doing research like he said he would be. The breech of trust couldn't have come at a worse time."

"Is there any hot sauce?" Jenni asked, always loving it on her eggs.

"I told Greg to get it. He's not back yet?"

"He hurt his shoulder," Cassie said, covering for her brothers. "Nick went to make him an ice pack."

Just as Jan was about to march into the house and bust her son for fooling around, she saw Nick open the back door for Greg who was walking out of the house with an ice pack on his shoulder and a bottle of hot sauce in his hand.

"Sorry it took so long, Mom. Nick insisted on taking care of me." Smiling at Judge Stokes, Greg said, "I'm so lucky to have your son around to help me out."

Loving his future spouse just a little more, Nick returned to his seat smirking. "Thanks, G."

Greg gingerly sat down, pretending to nurse a sore shoulder. "Was someone at the door? I thought I heard the doorbell when we were heading upstairs to find the ice pack wrap for my shoulder."

"Roy went to answer it," Gwen glanced down at her watch to see how long it had been, "It's been at least five minutes, maybe we should...wait, here he comes now." She pointed to the door. "Isn't that one of your co-workers from the party, Nicky?"

"Bobby D!" Still buzzing from the shared ecstasy, Nick stood and waved at his buddy. "What brings you by?"

"I'm so sorry about interrupting your brunch," Bobby stepped onto the patio as Roy returned to the table. "I left my jacket here last night." He held it up. "I found it." Because it was right where we hid it last night, so I'd have an excuse to come by today. They knew southern hospitality would dictate an invitation be extended.

"Join us for brunch, man." Nick hurried to grab an extra chair from the lawn. "There's plenty."

"Oh, I don't think I should intrude on..."

"Would you just say yes and get over here!" Jan yelled as she lifted an empty plate. "I made the food and I insist you eat some."

"If you insist, ma'am."

Nick told his Texas family, "He's an Oakie, but I don't hold it against him, because he's been good a co-worker and friend."

Sweat beading on his forehead, Bobby took a seat next to Roy, who had taken the extra chair from Nick and placed it next to him. "Thank you. It's Roy, right?"

"Right." Watching Nick smile at him, Bobby imagined a slow, painful death.

---

"He probably didn't know what hit him," Doc reported as he stood at the autopsy table staring at the latest victim's body with his coworkers. "One kill shot to the head."

"Okay." Staring at the bullet hole, Sara asked, "So the question is...who wanted Mike Rodgers dead?"

***

Chapter 21: The Politics of Dating and Marriage - Part 1

"Good morning, Mrs. Grissom." Placing a snack tray on the bed over his wife's legs, Gil smiled and leaned in for a kiss. "Toast and juice just the way you like them. It's day four and the honeymoon may be technically over, but personally I'm still feeling the vibe."

"The vibe, Gilbert?" Sara snatched a piece of toast. "Is that what you're calling the bulge these days?"

Feigning offense, he copped his most professorial tone and replied, "Vibe, as in 'an emotional aura instinctively sensed or experienced'."

"I stand corrected." She rapidly chomped toast in between sentences. "So this isn't a booty call then."

"A booty call, Sara?"

Mocking her husband's snooty intellectual tone, she said, "Booty call, as in 'a seemingly innocent visit made by a sly horny person who is really only looking to get laid, but doesn't want to directly ask for sex, because he's too cool to ask for it'."

Gil smoothly retorted, "I can safely say that I've never been referred to or thought of as 'too cool' in my life, therefore my behavior doesn't match your booty call definition."

"So you don't want to have sex before heading into work for 14 hours?"

"I never said that," he laughed. "Hell yes, I want to make love with my wife before going to work. I consider it one of the top five perks of marriage. So finish that second piece of toast, gulp your OJ, and get naked, sweetheart." With a wink he added, "That vibe I mentioned earlier is growing stronger by the minute."

Upon seeing her naked husband fling his navy blue bathrobe, Sara snickered into her juice glass, "Looks like someone ate their Wheaties this morning."

Slipping under the covers, Gil purred, "Good morning, Mrs. Grissom."

"You love calling me that, don't you?"

"Yes," he replied, believing his one word answer spoke volumes.

Enjoying the anticipation in her lover's eyes, Sara moved the breakfast tray to the floor and tossed the Williams t-shirt that she had swiped from Gil to use as a nightshirt. "Good morning," she belatedly replied while cozying up to the warm body sharing her bed and her life. "Are you worried about your meeting with Ecklie?"

"Yes and no." Sweeping a lock of hair off his wife's face, he tried to remain optimistic. "Things are going really well for the team and he won't want to rock the boat. I think he'll support us in finding a way around the department policies or changing them." Bringing his lips to hers, Gil whispered, "Let's put worrying on the backburner for the next hour."

"Hour?" She teased, "Wow, either you consumed more than Wheaties or you really are in an optimistic mood."

---

"I can't. No. Please don't make me." Greg pulled the bedding over his head. "I think I just fell asleep ten minutes ago."

"If you stay under there, you'll miss out on the treat I have for you." Nick taunted, "I made a pot of Blue Hawaiian from the bag Doc bought you for your birthday."

When Greg smelled the distinct aroma of his favorite gourmet coffee, he peered out from under the comforter with bleary eyes.

"Mornin', Sunshine." Nick dangled the mug above his partner. "Night actually. It's ten pm and you need to get your cute little ass out of bed before I leave, because if you don't, I know you'll sleep through the alarm and miss work."

"Seriously, I'm beat. Tell Grissom I'm sick."

"If you don't sit up, I'm dumpin' this liquid gold down the drain."

"You wouldn't dare." The java aficionado shot daggers at his partner.

"Try me."

"The things I do for love...of my coffee." Greg reluctantly pushed himself upright and sat against the headboard. "Happy?"

Handing over the mug, Nick scolded, "You should have come to bed when I asked you instead of workin' on the book all day."

"I only planned on putting in an hour, but it turned into eight."

"By now you should know that you can't stop after an hour." Nick took a seat on the edge of the bed. "Admit it, you have a problem."

"My name is Greg Sanders and I'm addicted to three things: my book, great coffee..." He carefully sipped the steaming liquid before finishing his statement. "...and the cowboy who loves me."

"From the amount of time you spent drinkin' coffee and workin' on your book during the last 24 hours of your birthday weekend, I think that list was said in order of importance."

"No, I was saving the best for last." Greg leaned in for a kiss, but when he didn't get one he said, "I swished, so I don't have morning breath."

"That's not it."

"Cletus, come on...you're not really jealous of my book and love of java, are you? I'm wearing your ring, not theirs."

"I just need to get to work."

"Your meeting's not for an hour, that's plenty of time, unless you want to do something complicated like use that trapeze my mother bought me for my birthday." Tossing back the covers, Greg padded to the bathroom. "I bet it takes a while to put that contraption together. Maybe you could start building it while I freshen up."

"Is that what's in that big box Roy told me she dropped off while I was sleepin'? He told me you said you wanted to wait and open it with me." Nick cringed at the thought of his future mother-in-law shopping for a sex trapeze and telling the sales clerk it was for her son and his lover. "She needs to stop jokin' around with this stuff, G. I don't want Cassie findin' somethin' like that, the kid already told me she's worried about growin' up, I don't want her to see the picture on the trapeze box and worry that'll she'll have to..."

"Gotcha!" Greg yelled from the bathroom. "Jan saw how excited I was over making Christmas cookies with you, so she ran out and bought us a professional-grade Kitchen-Aid mixer. I'm psyched! I can't wait for you to taste Nana Olaf's Scandinavian Almond bars."

"You really had me going."

"Have you ever used a trapeze with the laaaadies?"

"Can't say that I did, no."

"Me either, but no surprise there." Grinning, Greg slid onto the bed. "I've heard that zero-gravity loving can be exhilarating, if you don't throw your back out in the process. Maybe we should ask Santa to buy us a trapeze...or Catherine. I still can't believe she got me a 'Boy Love Party Basket' for my birthday." Lifting his mug, he sipped Blue Hawaiian and mused, "I was even more shocked that Warrick signed the card."

"'Rick told me he signed the card thinkin' they got you a Rat Pack CD Box set. When he saw that basket he wanted to rip up the card, but Cath hid it from him."

"Obviously she didn't stuff it down her blouse or pants, because he would have found it there. She probably put it in her purse because you know he wouldn't be caught dead holding a handbag."

"Very true. You shoulda heard him - 'Stokes, when we're changin' in the locker room, I don't want to see evidence of your little love buddy usin' those 'Color Me Sexy Crayons' on your body'."

"Ha! I'm so going to write 'I heart this' on your lower back with an arrow pointing south." Lunging for the basket, which he had on the floor next to the bed, Greg imagined the scene.

"G..." Watching his suddenly hyper partner dump the contents of the gift basket on the bed, Nick's tension suddenly returned. "I'm goin' in early to meet with Grissom and Ecklie, remember?" Although he had extra time, he planned on using it to catch up on paperwork. "We don't have time to fool around."

Opening the pack of body crayons, Greg said, "Don't make me start worrying about what Ecklie will say tonight. I don't want to get tense again." He had been fretting about the department policy on married co-workers since Brass casually mentioned it to him and Sara at the party. "You never answered me though - what are we going to do if Ecklie says we can't work together in the lab? Or at least not the same job or shift."

"You heard what my lawyer sister said - the way the policy is written, it doesn't apply to couples who aren't legally married. It's probably the only time not bein' able to do things on paper will work in our favor."

"True."

"C'mere." Nick reached forward to slip his hand around the back of his partner's neck. "One kiss, then I'm headin' out." When he saw Greg put his coffee mug on the nightstand, he shook his head. "Why did you put that down for one kiss? I'm serious, G, one kiss, that's it."

"Exactly." Greg lurched forward, tackling him onto the rumpled bedding. "If I'm only getting one kiss, I'm using both arms and really throwin' myself into it."

"Watch the shirt, man! I'll have to change if it gets wrinkled."

Perched on his whiny lover's hips, Greg sighed, "Aren't you a little young to be a grumpy old man?"

"Cut me some slack, I'm tense about goin' public tonight. You're not the one walkin' into Ecklie's office and..."

"Hey! You're only talking to him because we agreed that Ecklie likes you better than me and has a lot of respect for you since you survived the coffin drama."

"Sorry." Nick vigorously rubbed his hands over his face and shook off his irritation. "I didn't mean to make it sound like you refused. It's just now that the moment of truth is right around the corner..."

"Are you regretting the decision to wear the rings in public and come out to people other than our friends?"

"No, that's not it at all." Taking his partner's right hand, Nick brushed a kiss over the ring. "Our friends are cool with us bein' a couple, but I know it's not gonna be like that with everyone else. That's what has me tense."

"If ten percent of the population is gay, then ten percent of LVPD is gay, so we know at least ten percent of our co-workers shouldn't hassle us."

"I just don't want everything to change overnight for us after workin' so hard all these years. I don't want us to be 'the gay CSIs' and have people suddenly acting differently. We know we're outing ourselves because it's exhausting to cover our tracks, watch what we say, and lie to people's faces all time, but people might think we're doin' it because we want to start a gay pride movement at LVPD. I don't want it to be a big deal like it's been within my family."

"I understand what you're saying, but I don't think it's realistic. The water cooler crowd is about to hit the jackpot. We're not talking about something that happens all the time, like Catherine getting a new boyfriend. People have always wondered about my sexuality, but you're the red-blooded Texan with a reputation for falling into bed with pretty girls. Greg Sanders being gay is a blurb in the back of the Entertainment section, but Nick Stokes being gay is front page news. Gossip this huge only comes along once in a decade."

Dreading every second of attention, Nick grumbled, "All I want is the same thing that everyone else already has. I want to be able to hang pictures of my family in my locker and feel comfortable answering truthfully about them when asked. I want to quietly be the real me, that's it."

"And maybe that will be possible after the initial shock dies down, but as Jan Sanders, Proud PFLAG Mom would say, when you're a pioneer you should expect a little suffering, because it's the price for branching out into new territory and making a place for yourself."

"Logically I know y'all are right, I just want you to be wrong."

Sliding onto his side, so they were face to face, Greg said, "At least the cops respect you. Me, I'm the pansy who got his ass kicked. That 'Deliverance' moment with Vartann still has me freaked too. Not only do I have to worry about being harassed for being gayI have to worry there are closeted cops with guns who suddenly believe my ass is ripe for the taking."

Trying to ease his partner's fears, Nick said, "If you were comin' out alone, yeah, but everyone is gonna know that we're together and most of the cops are gonna understand it will be a huge mistake to give you any shit with me as your partner. Look what happened when I talked to Vartann, right? He's gone out of his way to be nice to you since I had that little chat with him. We just need to stay calm."

"Uh, Mr. Calm, are you referring to the chat where you threatened to slice off Vartann's balls if he even looked at me funny?"

"Okay, yeah, bad example."

"Careful," Greg warned as they embraced. "I wouldn't want your perfectly pressed shirt to get wrinkled."

"I can change it." After a tender kiss, Nick stroked his fiancé's cheek with his thumb and whispered, "Sorry for bein' so crabby."

"You were only crabby because I chose my book over you after you went out of your way to make my birthday special." Feeling guilty, Greg whispered, "I was having an Only Child Personal Space Crisis after so many people were in and out of the house. That was a lot of togetherness and even though I'm nuts about you, sometimes if I don't get a breather, I start feeling a little nutty."

Their bodies pressed together, the tension about the night ahead started melting away.

"Next time just tell me you're having' an OCPSC moment instead of using the book as an excuse to avoid me."

"Okay, now promise me something. No matter how brutal things get at work, we won't let the tension drive us apart. I can handle anything they throw at me, as long as I don't lose you."

"Honey, as far as I'm concerned, the ceremony in July is just a formality. For better or worse, you're stuck with me." After a slow, sensual kiss that ignited his body, Nick laughed at himself. "You got more than one kiss out of me."

Greg's thousand-watt smile lit the room. "Yeah." Bumping their noses together, he warned, "You should go."

"One more for the road."

"Just one?"

"Yeah." Nick sincerely tried to say goodbye in between the passionate kisses he kept initiating. "I love you...mmm...I'll see ya at work...maybe call when you're on your way...I'll call you if I have Ecklie news...or if I have no news, I'll..."

"If you're going, go!" Greg willed himself to stop returning his lover's kiss.

"Okay." When his partner pushed him away with two hands, Nick stood and wiped his wet lips. "Is my shirt wrinkled?"

"Yeah, you should take it off."

Before his shirt hit the ground, Nick was on the bed removing Greg's moose boxers. "Before we go to work and complicate our lives tonight, I thought it would be nice to remind each other of why they're worth complicatin' in the first place."

"You read my mind." Crashing back onto the pile of supplies he had dumped from the gift basket, Greg burst out laughing, "How convenient, a bottle of lube just popped open underneath me, we're good to go."

"No way." Upon inspection, Nick reported, "Actually, it's a tube of liquid candy gel."

"So if some macho cop calls me a Candy Ass today, he'll actually be right. Who am I kidding, he'd be right even without me having a sugar coated butt."

"Cherry flavor."

Glancing over his shoulder, Greg asked with a hopeful lilt, "And you discovered that by..."

"Readin' the label."

"How truly disappointing."

"Sorry, honey." Nick shook his head. "You know I don't eat...sugary candy."

Still peering over his shoulder, Greg joked, "You're all set to kiss Ecklie's ass tonight, but you still won't kiss mine."

"Oh!" Nick crashed against the covers and cringe-laughed. "Don't even joke about Ecklie that way."

"You should bring the Boy Party basket with you. You know - just in case you need to do something drastic to keep our jobs."

"Stop."

"Good thing you got a little bottoming practice in before the meeting."

"You had to plant that visual in my head." Nick wondered if it was possible to blind his mind's eye. "As if I wasn't scared enough about tonight."

---

"Have no fear, little lady!" When Hodges saw the woman of his sweetest dreams and wildest fantasies parking her car he waited for her in the middle of the LVPD lot. "I'll be happy to escort you into the building tonight and keep you safe."

"How?" Wendy grumbled "You're the person I feared bumping into the most."

"You're not still mad at me for greeting Henry and Mandy in your bathrobe, are you?" When he saw her glaring at him, he knew the answer was yes and he changed the subject. "I brought Krispy Kremes." He held up a shopping bag.

"What's the occasion?"

"Nick and Greg are coming out tonight." Hurrying to keep up with her, Hodges said, "I thought sharing a sweet treat with a few friends would counteract any bitterness they were getting from outsiders."

Wendy stopped in her tracks.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. That sounded really thoughtful and I was surprised to hear it coming from your mouth."

"Oh." Hodges stood a little taller. "It's part of my new personality."

"Did you get that idea from watching a Brady Bunch repeat, Mister TV Land?" She resumed walking. "Suddenly I want porkchops and applesauce for dinner." In Bogart's voice she added, "Isn't that swell?"

"Episode 55! The Personality Kid, first aired October 22nd 1971. Peter thinks his personality is dull so he tries a few others on for size."

"That's um..."

"Impressive?"

"Scary," Wendy laughed, "but in a harmless way."

"Not any scarier than a jock rattling off batting averages from 1984."

"That scares me too."

"For a woman who used to be in horror flicks, you scare very easily, Simms." When his co-worker laughed, Hodges couldn't believe his ears. "I made you laugh, but not at me. You laughed at one of my jokes. That's a first."

"I guess we have two reasons to celebrate tonight."

---

"I got the job!" Roy informed Greg when he saw him coming downstairs. "The HR person at the lab left a message on my cell saying I passed my drug test and should report for new employee training on Wednesday. First I have to go through three days of general orientation and then I'll start job-specific stuff on Monday."

"Mailroom or runner?"

"Runner."

"Cool." Refilling his coffee mug, Greg said, "I know I would rather be running stuff all over the building and over to PD than being trapped in the mailroom all day."

"Exactly what I was thinking."

"And don't worry about starting out at the bottom, everyone has to start somewhere."

"Yeah." Sitting on the edge of the kitchen counter drinking a beer, Roy laughed, "I've never had a problem being on the bottom before, so I'm sure I'll handle it just fine."

"Ha! Good one." Sitting on the opposite side of the counter, Greg decided to spend a few minutes bonding with the new housemate/family member. "Did Nick say you could drink beer here even though you're underage?"

"No, but he didn't say I couldn't either. I'll be 21 soon anyway."

"When?"

"11 months."

Greg laughed, "You so remind me of me at your age. Just don't have more than three beers, make that two, and promise me you won't drive. Do I have to take your keys to be sure or can I trust you? Wait...how do I know I can I trust you to answer that truthfully?"

"I don't have a car, remember?"

"Right! So I guess I don't have to take away your keys, young man." Greg shivered. "I'll stop doing my Dave Sanders impression now."

"It's okay."

"No, really," Greg laughed, "I'm scaring the shit out of myself by sounding just like my dad and I need to stop."

"Honestly, it's kinda nice havin' someone care about me after being on my own for so long. I have a couple of buddies in San Francisco, but it's nothin' like family. They did box up and ship my stuff today though. Nick wired the cash to cover the expenses."

"Cool." Desperate to sound like a buddy instead of judgmental father, Greg asked, "So, um...what's the hot club in San Francisco right now?"

"Well, I've been gone four days, so I really can't say, but five nights ago it was Diablo." Teasing his cousin's boyfriend, Roy asked, "What was the hot spot when you used to live there in the olden days?"

"I'm sure the place has been two dozen different clubs by now, but I always went to Zodiac." The mention of the club's name brought a smile to Greg's face. "After my fiancée Lacey cheated on me and I decided to swing back to guys, I spent about a year and all of my expendable cash there. All my money went to booze and tipping bar boys for sticking their tighty whities in my face. Since I didn't have any moves on the dance floor, I hung out in the back room where I was appreciated." He laughed, "I had issues...woman issues, trust issues, mommy issues, daddy issues. All it took to be popular in the back room was a mouth like a Hoover. It was a nice escape, until it got old."

"Did you stick to dance clubs or did you check out private parties and other places?"

"No, I was way too much of a geek to get that adventurous. I found my comfort zone in the back room of Zodiac and stayed there until I worked out enough angst. Then I moved to New York for a year, but it didn't feel right, so when the Vegas job opportunity came up, I jumped at the chance."

"And then you jumped my cousin."

"Yeah, eight freaking years later."

Lowering his beer bottle, Roy grinned, "You guys have some serious patience to keep your hands off each other that long."

"We're making up for it, believe me."

"I've never been able to do that. If I see a guy I like, I go for it, no hesitation."

"Have you met anyone in Vegas yet?" Greg joked, "Of course you have - you've been here four days and you're young, hot and gay."

"As a matter of fact I have met someone." Bursting at the seams to tell someone, Roy asked, "You have to promise not to tell Nick, because he wouldn't approve."

"Why wouldn't Nick approve? Does the guy have a record? Is the guy a dealer?"

"No." Roy set his empty beer bottle in the sink. "He's got a spotless record and he's a great guy...sweet and honest, but with enough of a wild streak in the bedroom to make things interesting."

"So what's the problem? Why would Nick..."

"It's Bobby D."

"Doh!"

---

After rapping on his boss's door, Grissom asked, "Ready, Conrad?"

"Definitely." With a curious grin on his face, the Assistant Lab Director rocked in his deluxe office chair and watched his most elusive employee take a seat.

"Thanks for agreeing to meet at night instead of in the morning after graveyard."

"You hate meetings, Gil. You've found a way to avoid 99 percent of the meetings I've called since becoming your boss, so when my secretary said you requested a meeting, I knew it was going to be good."

"I hope you don't mind." Grissom waved in Nick, who was pacing in the hallway. "I've asked CSI Stokes to join us since he has a vested interest in the topic at hand."

"Not at all." Ecklie jumped to his feet and puffed out his chest. "Good to see you Nick." As impossible as it seemed, he looked even buffer and better than last week when he looked perfect. "Nice shirt choice."

"Uh, thank you." Considering Greg had literally thrown it at him as he rushed out the door to make it to the lab on time, Nick snickered on the inside. "And thanks for lettin' me sit in on the meeting."

"Like I've said before, any time you want to talk, my door is open." Returning to his chair, Ecklie asked, "So what are we here to discuss, gentleman?"

Nick anxiously looked to Grissom. "Do you want to tell him or..."

"Marriage," Gil blurted, ready to put the cards on the table.

"Marriage?" Ecklie parroted, surprised by the answer. "In reference to a case?"

"No," Gil clarified, "marriage between employees and the current departmental policy."

When the Assistant Lab Director saw Nick's gaze nervously move to the floor his breathing quickened. "The two of you are here because you're concerned about the employee marriage policy?"

"Sir." Nick roughly cleared his throat. "I know that inter-office dating is generally frowned upon, but you have to understand that we work long shifts and tons of overtime. A lot of us don't have time for life beyond this job and the people we work with every night." Once again he looked to Grissom for help. "Right? That's why it happened?"

"That and because we felt an undeniable attraction," Gil laughed, not wanting to appear tense. "Don't make it sound like we got married because we were desperate and didn't know anyone else. That doesn't sound very romantic, Nicky."

"Sorry." Blushing from the stress, Nick made momentary eye contact with Ecklie and said, "But it does make sense since we obviously have a lot in common with the people we work with, right? It's hard to find someone on the outside who can handle what we do for a living and it's honestly nice to have someone at home who can empathize. Isn't it, Griss?"

"Yes, but let's stick to the professional concern and not get into the personal details."

"Sure. Yeah." Sweat forming on his brow, Nick straightened up in his chair. "Sorry."

Ecklie couldn't believe that Stokes, the straight man of his gay dreams was actually gay and that he had lost him to Grissom before he even knew the Texan's ass had been up for grabs. "Wh...I'm sorry, this is a bit shocking for me because...what does Sara think, Gil?" He wanted to know if she had been a beard all along or was she just as surprised by the news.

"She wants the department policy changed and accommodations made so the team isn't split up."

"I know that's important to Greg too," Nick stated, finally feeling comfortable enough to speak up. "At risk of sounding conceited, I'm gonna confess that Day Shift has a high turnover rate and they're so disgruntled they can't possible mentor someone with Greg's intelligence and enthusiasm like Sara and I can. He needs us around and frankly, Sir, the last time we were split up, things really went to hell."

Still struggling with the idea that Grissom and Nick were married, Ecklie scratched his head and asked, "Let's back up a second...when did you tie knot?"

"Over the weekend."

"We're engaged to be married on July 12th actually."

Ecklie laughed as his confusion mounted. "Do you need a minute to get your stories straight?"

"What?" Grissom and Nick simultaneously replied.

"Nick says you're only engaged to be married on July 12th, but Gil, you seem to think you married him over the weekend. Which is it?" Watching his employees exchange puzzled glances, the boss impatiently waited for an explanation.

Leaning over, Nick whispered, "Does he think you and I are a couple?"

"I believe so," Grissom nodded. "Yes."

Nick's laughter rattled the pictures on the wall before he choked out, "Grissom and I aren't a couple! He married Sara this weekend, not me."

"Oh!" Ecklie joined in the laughter.

Shaking his head Grissom was reminded of why Conrad Ecklie had been a terrible CSI. "It didn't dawn on you to check our ring fingers and see if we were wearing matching bands?"

"Come on, Gil." Ecklie knew the genius was thinking he was a dolt. "The two of you come in here together for a mystery meeting that turns out to be about inter-office romance and marriage. Trust me, it sounded like you were a couple."

Feeling intellectually superior to his rival, Grissom smirked, "I'm sure it did to someone of your limited..."

"Griss!" Nick shot his boss a warning glare. "We're here to ask the Assistant Lab Director for help, remember?"

"What Stokes is trying to tell you, Gil, is maybe you shouldn't insult the man who is in control of your team's destiny." Smiling at the straight man of his dreams, Ecklie said, "I'm sure your politically active parents taught you the value of good politics."

"Yes, Sir."

"So, Nick, now that we've established you're not gay and thankfully not married to Gil, who are you marrying on July 12th? Willows?" Ecklie laughed, "No, you couldn't bring her to the ranch to meet your parents. It's Mandy Webster, isn't it? Yeah, she's got that girl next door thing going on."

Gil found the comment amusing since sweet little Mandy had gotten drunken enough to have sex with Henry and get knocked up. "Nothing gets by you, Conrad."

The moment of truth in front of him, Nick took a deep breath and answered, "You were half right before actually. I...I am gay."

The news couldn't have been better, "Really, Stokes?"

"Yes." Even though he was being gaped at, Nick maintained his composure. "To answer your question, I'm marrying Greg Sanders on July 12th. We're havin' a religious ceremony and will be married spiritually, but not legally. We have also applied for a legal domestic partnership in the state of California, but it won't be recognized in Nevada. As you can see, it's a little complicated, that's why I'm here with Grissom to discuss how the departmental marriage policy applies to gay couples working together."

"I...well." Overwhelmed by the good and bad news, Ecklie looked from man to man and said, "I think I need a little time to digest the information both of you have shared and to research precedent among other things. I'm pretty sure we have a lesbian couple who got married in Massachusetts, but I'm not sure how Human Resources handled the situation. I'll call a follow up meeting once I have something definitive. Nick, since neither you nor Sanders are in supervisory positions, I don't have a problem with the two of you continuing to work together unless the relationship interferes with your job performance."

"I guarantee it won't, Sir."

"You're a very respected and responsible guy around here, Nick." In case there was a chance the boys were into threesomes, Ecklie kept sucking up. "I know I can trust you both to be exceedingly professional."

"Thank you." Nick breathed easier. "I really appreciate you givin' us the benefit of the doubt. We won't disappoint you."

"I appreciate it too," Grissom chimed in as he stood to leave.

"Not so fast, Gil." Ecklie took great pride in scowling at the biggest rule-bender in the department. "Unlike Stokes and Sanders, you and Sidle have actually violated department policy, more than one actually. Supervisors aren't allowed to date the employees they review and they aren't allowed to marry them either. How long have you been doing Sidle?"

"Excuse me?" Grissom's voice turned icy.

Oh shit. Nick's stomach acid resumed bubbling.

"Sidle's performance reviews," Ecklie restated with a smirk. "How long have you been doing them?"

"Seven years."

"And how long have you been...actively dating?"

Grissom snipped, "Since the night we rescued Nick."

"Ah." The Assistant Lab Director settled back against his chair. "Two people brought together by tragedy. How sweet...and cliché."

Gil tapped his watch. "Graveyard shift begins in fifteen minutes and I need to get my assignments done, so if you'll excuse me."

"As of this minute, Sidle reports directly to me."

Nick covered his mouth. Sara's not gonna like that.

"I was going to have her report to Catherine," Gil countered, touching off a battle of wills.

"No, because Catherine reports to you and that's conflict of interest."

"Catherine can be trusted not to be swayed."

"Really?" Ecklie tossed his head back and chuckled, "Willows has a spotty record when it comes to conflicts of interest and loyalties. I'm sure CSI Stokes would agree. Willows thinks of Willows first and foremost. If her review is in your hands, Gil, she'll do whatever you want."

"Why don't you just admit that you're just using this opportunity to get a little revenge?"

"No, Gil, I'm not." Enjoying the morsel of power he finally had over his rival, Ecklie grinned, "You may believe you're above the law around here, not attending required meetings and ignoring your boss's pages and calls, but I actually follow the department rules and guidelines. I respect my superiors."

"Is that what they're calling kissing the Sheriff's ass these days?"

After a dramatic pause, Ecklie said, "On second thought, why should I burden myself with an extra employee responsibility. I'm going to move Sidle to Days."

"No!" Nick blurted. "Please don't. Grave needs Sara Sidle. It wouldn't be the same around here without her. Please, don't break up the team. If Griss and Sara have been a couple for almost two years without any of us knowing, then they've already proven they know how to handle things discreetly and professionally."

"Okay, Nick." Ecklie stood and grabbed his car keys and briefcase. "Make sure you tell Sara it was you, not her husband that saved her job. She should know that Gil chose to put his ego before her happiness. Take it from a divorced man, if you want your marriage to last, you have to be willing to sacrifice a little something every now and then." Walking to his office door he cheerily said, "Have a good shift, gentlemen."

Once they were alone, Gil glanced over. "You're not really going to tell Sara what he said, are you?"

"No, but as much as it pains me to say it, he was freakin' right." Nick stood and stuffed his hands on his hips. "I'm glad I didn't marry you! I don't want my husband only thinkin' of his own ass."

"Is this a bad time?" Judy asked while trying to pretend she didn't just hear what she overheard. "How about I just leave these slips for you, Grissom and then you and Nick can get back to...I'll be at my desk."

"Judy, wait! Wait!" Nick decided to use his usual flirtation skills to keep her attention. "Hi." Leaning against the doorframe in his sexiest pose, the Texan cracked his trademark smile. "About what you just heard...Grissom never asked me to marry him. He actually married Sara Sidle this weekend. I was jokin' around, givin' him a hard time."

"Grissom and Sara tied the knot this weekend?" Judy couldn't wait to get to the water cooler. "Wow!"

"Pretty cool, huh?" He moved a little closer. "Yeah, I'm real happy for 'em."

Getting high on her favorite cowboy's scent, Judy giggled, "As impossible as it seemed, I really thought you were gay."

"He really is gay," Grissom stated while dropping a hand on Nick's shoulder. "He and Greg Sanders have been a couple for a while now. They got engaged this weekend and decided it was time to come out at the lab. I'm really happy for them."

Judy gaped at the ladies man seductively leaning in front of her. "That's another joke, right?"

"No." Nick stopped flirting and straightened up. "I really am gay and engaged to Greg." He held up his right hand. "We even have matching bands."

Knowing she just hit the water cooler jackpot, Judy covered her mouth and raced down the hall.

"Thanks, Griss." Nick sneered at his boss.

"I thought showing my support of your relationship was the politically correct thing to do as a responsible supervisor." Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Gil strolled out the door knowing his marriage to Sara was already old news.

***

Chapter 22: The Politics of Dating and Marriage - Part 2

"Nick is gay?" Bettina Flores from Fraud was certain the statement was false. "Nick the CSI? Five foot ten, gorgeous smile, big time reputation for being a ladies man? Do you think I was born yesterday?" Laughing, she glanced over at her co-workers standing around the cooler clutching pointy paper cups. "What do you guys think?"

Staci Jensen from Evidence said, "Judy, nothing we've seen and heard Nick do points to him being gay. Unless you can show me proof, I'm not buying it."

"Yeah." Ronnie Litra from Questionable Documents said, "After everything I've witnessed over the years, I'm not going to question Nick's sexuality. On paper he looks like one of the straightest guys around here."

"No kidding!" Clara, the lead Records Clerk, said, "Nick has dated more women than anyone in LVPD history." Shaking her head, she snipped, "I'm filing this one away as a vicious rumor. I can't believe you'd pick on Nick after everything he's been through. He's such a nice guy."

"Yeah, what other big news do you have, Judy?" the Fraud investigator laughed, "Let me guess...the Pope isn't Catholic? If you're going to lie about something, at least pick something that's remotely plausible."

"I'm not lying!" the secretary with a reputation for gossip accuracy adamantly defended her grapevine contribution. "I heard it directly from Nick's mouth." She appealed to her friend from Evidence, "Staci, when you see Stokes tonight, check his right hand, his A&M ring is gone and he's wearing a wedding band!"

"So now they're married?" Ronnie chuckled. "Bring me their marriage certificate and maybe I'll believe you."

"Oh!" Clara discreetly pointed and whispered, "Stokes is walking this way."

"Act natural!" Judy pleaded, not wanting Nick to think she was gossiping about him.

"Hey, Nick." Ronnie nodded and looked for overt signs of gayness as the CSI approached.

"Hey." Feeling five sets of eyes drilling into him, Nick decided to face the things head on. "Yes, I'm gay and in a committed relationship with Greg Sanders. I'm happy to answer any questions you may have, because I'd rather you hear things from me than through the grapevine secondhand."

Facing her skeptical co-workers, Judy silently screamed 'I told you so' with her eyes.

"Good for you," Ronnie replied, wanting to sound un-homophobic. "I don't have a problem with gay guys." He smiled wide...until he realized Nick might misinterpret his happiness for an admission of mutual gayness and a desire to party. "What I mean is - even though I'm straight, very straight," he clarified while nodding at Bettina. "I'm a straight guy who has no problem with gay men...or women," he said upon moving his gaze to Clara.

"I'm not gay!" Clara huffed, tired of people making that assumption. "Just because I have short hair and wear comfortable shoes doesn't mean I'm a lesbian!" Hoping she hadn't offended Nick, she groveled, "Not that there's anything wrong with lesbians or being gay. I'm just...I don't want people thinking that I am because then guys don't ask me out and if I don't get..." she stopped herself before saying 'laid'. "Judy mentioned you had a new ring. Can I see it?" She joked past the awkward moment, "You know us evidence clerks - we always need physical proof."

"Sure." Nick held out his shaky right hand. "That double shot of espresso is hittin' me hard," he joked, trying to explain away the trembling.

"I like the Celtic Knot," Clara stated. "Congratulations."

"Yeah," Bettina politely smiled and nodded. "I hope you and Greg are very happy together."

"Thanks." Ready for a break from the spotlight, Nick said, "Hey, did you hear Grissom and Sara got married? Yeah, they dashed off to Chapel of Little Flowers four days ago and tied the knot."

"I bet she's pregnant," Bettina blurted, "I noticed a slight pooch in her belly the other day."

"Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but duty calls." Nick tapped his watch. "I'll catch you later." He hurried down the hall, hoping that Judy hadn't made it past the water cooler.

"Howdy, cowboy!" Dina Simcox, the graveyard shift Administrative Assistant for Autopsy, came bounding over smiling. "Have a good weekend?" The Fort Worth native and fellow Aggie had been hoping to hook up with the Texan since the day she met him three months ago. She kept telling herself to hold out for football season and their mutual love of Aggie ball would bring them together.

"Howdy, Dina!" He grinned at the perky blonde 25 year old who loved to trade A&M stories whenever he was hanging around waiting for Doc. "I had a great weekend, thanks for askin'. What about you, sweetheart?"

"I went to...OH MY GOD!"

"What?" Nick startled from the woman's shriek. "What's wrong?" He did a 360 turn looking for what had spooked the normally calm girl.

"You're Aggie ring is gone!" The Texan clutched her chest. "You must be devastated. What happened? Did you lose it or was it stolen?" She saw he had a different ring on and figured he needed it to fill the void.

"Oh. No, I um..." He anxiously cleared his throat. "It's at home safe and sound. I took it off."

"You took it off?" The statement made no sense to the diehard Aggie graduate. "Why?" she asked, unable to think of a valid reason.

"My fiancé gave me this band and I can't wear it on my left hand until our weddin' in July."

"Fiancée?" Her dream of standing with Nick in an Aggie-themed nursery shattered, she sadly said, "You're getting married in July?" Her hands instinctively covered her womb as she mourned for the baby they'd never have. "Who is she? What year did she graduate from A&M?"

"My fiancé went to Stanford actually."

After gasping in horror, Dina said, "You're marryin' outside your school? Have you been through a football season together yet?"

"No." Nick chuckled, "My fiancé isn't much of a sports fan though."

Seeing a glimmer of hope that a divorce was in her future husband's future, Dina took a breath and smiled. "What's the lucky girl's name?" she asked, so she could silently curse the bitch.

"Greg Sanders."

Dina's hysterical laughter echoed in the hall. "Good one."

"Actually I'm not..."

"Stokes!" Officer Chloe Davina came stomping down the hall, her red hair flowing wild. "How long have you been getting it on with Greg Sanders? Did you tell him we screwed like rabbits in the back of my squad car in January?"

"You were telling the truth about..." Dina gaped at her dream man. "But we were supposed to get married and make beautiful Aggie babies together."

"We were?" Nick replied in a shaky voice, "Wh...when..." But the shock of Chloe's slap across the face cut off his words. "What the hell?" He brought his hand to his stinging cheek. "Are you crazy? You just assaulted me while in uniform."

"Yeah, and you fucked me without telling me you like to fuck boys!" Shaking from a combination of anger, fear and embarrassment, the cop blasted, "I can't believe I fell for your bullshit!"

In all the discussions with Greg about coming out, Nick had forgotten to analyze the possible reactions of former female lovers. Too stunned to speak, he remained frozen in the middle of the hallway.

"You said you would call me the next day, but you never did. We spent hours together being intimate. We shared things, personal things, I opened up to you and trusted you with things I don't tell other people. I told you, because I thought we had a connection. The next time I saw you I confronted you about not calling me when you promised you would. You fed me some sob story about having baggage and trust issues after being kidnapped." Her voice cracked, "I believed you, you son of a bitch! That's why I've been nice to you all this time, but now I know the real reason you didn't call - I was nothing but a substitute hole for you when there wasn't a boy around to bang in Boulder City that night when we were stuck for hours waiting for a Coroner."

With his hand over his heart, Nick quietly said, "Chloe, I swear that's not..."

"Save it, Stokes!" Biting back her tears, the spurned woman said, "Why would I believe anything you have to say when you already lied to my face?"

Even though Nick was a fellow Aggie, Dina couldn't jump to his defense after hearing what the woman had to say about him.

"Excuse me..." When Grissom heard yelling in the hallway, he hurried to end his phone call with the ADA rushed to see what was happening. "Is there a problem here, Officer?" The devastated look on Nick's face jarring him, he said, "What's going on, Nick?"

Tears pooling in her eyes, Chloe pointed at Stokes. "The problem is he's a lying sack of shit. He told me he loved redheads, but forgot to mention he liked boys. He probably figured I wouldn't let him in my mouth if I knew he liked to put it in Greg Sanders's ass! And he would have been right!" She shoved a trembling finger in the duplicitous man's face. "I'm sending you the bill for my HIV test and God help you if you gave me something."

"Get back to work, people!" Grissom shouted at the onlookers. "Now!" Stepping in front of the shaken officer, he directed her towards his office. "I think it would be best to move this discussion behind closed doors."

Humiliated for losing it and airing her dirty laundry in front of co-workers, Chloe jumped at the offer for immediately shelter.

"Nicky." Grissom waved him to follow. "You too."

Once the supervisor's office door shut, everyone returned to the hallway to gape at each other and mouth 'wow'.

Glancing across the hall at Archie, Hodges said, "For the first time in my entire life, I'm glad I'm not Nick."

The romantically challenged AV Tech nodded, "Me too. Can you imagine how many more women like her are out there? How many LVPD babes do you think he's slept with?"

"46," Hodges answered, "Plus or minus 10 percent."

---

"The risk of contracting HIV from oral sex is extremely low," Grissom counseled the terrified woman who was sitting in a guest chair sipping from the water bottle he had given her from his small office refrigerator. "Unless you had an open wound in your mouth at the time, or had flossed your teeth within..."

"There's no chance she contracted HIV from me!" Nick blurted for the second time as he paced the room. "I know that, because I'm not HIV positive."

"Yes, you've said that," Grissom nodded, "and now I'm giving her another reason not to worry since we don't have results in front of us, okay?"

"Sorry."

"When were you tested?" Chloe asked, her eyes focused on a patch of floor.

As much as Nick hated discussing something so personal, he could see Chloe was terrified and wanted to do whatever it took to make her feel better. "I've been tested every year with my annual physical, which is always in February, so that woulda been about a month after we were together. Then Greg and I were both tested at the end of March for HIV and everything else imaginable, because we're in a monogamous relationship and wanted to...really, all you need to know is I have the results at home and I'll be more than happy to get them and show them to you tonight on my break. I...this is really hard to talk about, but..."

"How do you think I feel?" Chloe said, wiping her tears. "Do you think I wanted to come to work today and find out a guy I slept with five months ago was sleeping with Greg Sanders and who knows how many other guys? I was just walking down the hall when I heard people talking about Nick Stokes being gay. My uncle is gay and I know enough about the scene to know I have a legitimate right to be concerned!"

"As difficult as it is, Chloe," Grissom took a seat in the guest chair next to her, "it'll be better if you can stay calm and get the information and facts you need to feel better. Right?" When she nodded, he said, "So we've established that you had protected sex, engaged in other low-risk sexual activities, and Nick has offered to show you his test results. It's a slow night so far and I don't have a problem letting him clock out right now to go home and get them if that's agreeable to him."

"I'll go right now." With his truck keys in hand, Nick said, "I didn't lie about anything that night, Chloe. I know you probably aren't gonna believe me, but it's true. This is the part that's hard for me to say and I know you don't owe me any favors, but I'm hopin' you won't race to the water cooler with the information - I wasn't just lyin' to you about bein' straight, I was lyin' to myself until March of this year. I really was only a ladies man when I was with you and that stuff I said about havin' issues, that part was true too. Hell, you can come to therapy with me if you don't believe me. You'll believe I have issues, trust me." He laughed from the build up of nervous tension. "I'm not proud of a lot of things I've done and yeah, I've told way too many women I'd call them when I knew I wouldn't. I'm not excusin' that behavior, it was shitty, but at the time it wasn't something I could understand or control. I'm sorry if you feel used and I'm sorry about the way you heard about me and that it stressed you out. I can't take anything back, so apologies are all I have to offer."

Chloe acknowledged the speech with a nod.

"I'll call you when I'm back in the building," Nick said on his way to the door. "It'll be about thirty minutes roundtrip at this time of night."

"I know first hand he's telling the truth about the timing." Gil handed over the box of tissues he kept on his desk. "In our line of work we're told you never really know a person, and it's true. Sometimes...we don't even know ourselves."

Upon drying her eyes, Chloe saw what appeared to be a wedding band on Grissom's finger. "Did you get married?" She pointed to the ring.

"Yes," he answered, smiling at the band and the memory. "Four days ago."

"Oh my God!" Chloe grabbed three more tissues. "How can a freak like you get married, but I can't find anyone? What's wrong with me?"

Trying to find something encouraging to say, Gil replied, "Hodges is available." As the woman's tears turned into sobs, he reached for his pager and pretended it was vibrating. "I'm sorry, but I have business to attend to. Feel free to stay as long as you need."

---

"Where are you off to, Cletus?" Greg yelled across the parking lot when he saw his partner rushing for his truck. "And why aren't you taking a Denali?" He joked, "Remember what happened the last time you took your personal vehicle to a crime scene?"

"I'm on my way home to grab my HIV test results, so I can show them to Chloe Davina who's hysterical in Grissom's office. She heard I was gay and is scared I infected her when we were foolin' around in the back of her squad car in Boulder City while waitin' on SuperDave."

"Are you serious?"

"Why the hell would I make somethin' like that up?"

"Sorry." Greg could feel the tension flowing from Nick's body. "So we're out."

"Way out."

"But we're good, right? You and me."

Seeing a flash of panic in his partner's eyes made Nick shift gears. "We're great. The world around us may fall apart tonight, but we'll be standin' together on the tiny piece that's left." He sighed, "I'd kiss ya but we're at work and probably bein' watched on seven security cameras."

"That reminds me..." Falling back on humor to get them through a rough patch, Greg joked, "How did Ecklie's ass taste when you were kissing it profusely? Any regrets that you lost your ass kissing cherry on his tush instead of mine?"

"Yeah." Nick nodded as he laughed, "It was brutal."

While his partner slid behind the wheel, Greg tossed up his hands. "Coulda, shoulda, woulda!"

"I'll call you later." After starting the engine, Nick lowered the window and leaned out. "Hey, G..."

Still smiling, Greg walked to the window. "Yeah?"

"I know what you're doin', and you can stop."

"Huh?"

"The ass kissin' jokes." Even though they were alone in the parking lot, Nick whispered, "You're tryin' to change my 'no' to a 'yes' by jokin' around."

"Sorry," Greg shyly apologized, "It's not that I don't respect 'no means no', I swear. It's just something I wanted to try once and I've wondered if your reluctance is based on something we could work through. I'm too big of a dork to ask you, so keep joking around hoping you'll say something, which you just did, so I guess my strategy worked, now we can talk about it."

"There's nothin' to talk about," Nick curtly informed his adorably bashful lover who clearly believed he was about to be screamed at. "I've decided to go ahead and fulfill your taboo desire, because I love you and I read up on how to do it safely."

After realizing he wasn't in trouble, Greg smiled, "You're too good to me, Cletus."

"Nah, I'm just payin' it forward before football season." Happy to have the conversation behind them, Nick said, "I forgot, I'm in a hurry."

"Uh." Greg glanced around and kept a straight face as he joked, "I don't want to sound ungrateful, but I was kind of hoping for a more romantic setting than the lab parking lot. But hey, I'll take what I can get." He reached for his zipper. "Do you want me to just put my candy ass through the window for a drive-thru kind of vibe, or do we have enough time for me to get in the back and pretend I just picked you up on Industrial?"

Nick laughed at his jokester partner's deadpan delivery. "Chill out, Sweet Cheeks. I'm savin' it for our wedding night. I thought it would be nice to have somethin' new to experience together."

"How very traditional," Greg's smile stretched to his ears.

"I'm sure my father wouldn't see it that way." The black sheep smirked, "That really makes the idea even more special, doesn't it?"

"I knew you were going to say that." Grinning wildly, Greg stuffed his hands in his pockets so he wouldn't be tempted to reach up and kiss his partner like he was shipping out overseas instead of driving across town. "I'll be sure to add Saran Wrap to our honeymoon packing list in case you want to use it."

"And just like that, I'm re-squicked." Nick shook his lowered head. "I can't believe we just had that conversation in the parking lot of the lab, but it fits with the surreal night I'm havin'. I can't believe I'm goin' home to fetch my HIV test results for Chloe." Reconnecting with Greg's eyes, he half-joked, "Do you think I should hang my test results in the breakroom? I'm tryin' to avoid goin' through this 50 times."

"50 huh? That's roughly 6 per year. I guess that's not so...wait...is that including the DA's office or is that just LVPD?"

"Shit." Nick lightly banged his head on the steering wheel...twice. "I was such a man-ho."

"You're lucky I love you in spite of your man-ho past, Cletus." Greg forced himself to step away from the truck. "I'll see you when you get back."

"No, you won't. Grissom already taped an assignment slip to your locker." Nick winked as he put the truck in reverse, "You can thank me later for givin' you somethin' sweet to fantasize about when you get there. It's a decomp pick up."

"No! Seriously?"

"I left a bag of lemons in your locker, lover. I'll have another batch waiting for you in the shower at home." When he saw Greg pouting, Nick laughed, "Just be happy you're not Sara."

"Why? What does she have to do that's worse than handling decomp?"

"She has to report to Ecklie from now on."

"Doh!"

"See. At least decomp stench is only temporary. Be happy you're not Grissom either," Nick laughed as he slowly backed out of the space.

"Why?"

"Because it's his fault Sara's reportin' to Ecklie and when she finds out, he's not gonna be seein' action for a while!"

---

"I'm reporting to Ecklie?" Sara was sure her ears were deceiving her.

"I'm sorry, honey," Gil replied, hoping that she wouldn't give his half of the bed to Bruno, "but it was either that or move you to Days."

"And you chose for me?" Glancing down at her ring, she shook her head, "Is that like a husband thing? Do you think you own me now?"

"What?" The confused husband sat in his chair dumbfounded.

"We're married 4 days and you think you have the right to speak for me and decide my future? How could you just hand me over to Ecklie and tell me after the fact? Did you think my opinion stopped mattering when you slipped the ring on my finger?"

"Uh..."

"It really never occurred to you to say 'let me give Sara the options and have her get back to you'?"

"Um..."

"What did you say to him when he gave you the choices?" When he said nothing, she grew suspicious. "What really happened at that meeting?" Reading his tells, she planted her hands on her hips. "You got pissy with him, didn't you? You got pissy and then he got you back by making me report to him. Then you got pissier and he said he was going to move me to Days."

"Nick sold me out."

"What?"

"He told you what happened."

"I haven't seen or spoken to Nick since Greg's party." Growing increasingly aggravated, she snapped, "What did you mean when you said Nick sold you out?"

Shit.

"You told Nick not to tell me what happened?"

"No, I asked him if he would tell you and he said wouldn't."

"Man to man you just agreed to keep the handling of your little woman hush hush. Nice." At her limit, she walked out of the office.

"Sara..." he called out when she was already walking by the glass wall glaring at him. Shit. He dropped back against his chair and sighed, "The honeymoon is definitely over."

---

"Where will you be honeymooning?" Judy queried, looking to infuse the grapevine with new details.

Happy to finally have a boyfriend and a relationship to discuss with other people, Greg excitedly answered, "Maui." Walking side by side into the locker room, he explained, "My parents have a small house there on some gorgeous beachfront property."

"So your parents are supportive of you and your relationship with Nick?"

"Supportive is an understatement. My mom is a PFLAG warrior and every week my dad gets a little more comfortable with having a gay son. I'm a lucky guy."

"That's great."

"Yeah." Greg grabbed the assignment slip taped to his locker and then opened the door. "Ha!" Looks like you left me more than a bag of lemons, Cletus.

Judy immediately noticed the photos on the inside of the door. "I never saw those pictures before." Studying people's photos and personal items was one of her favorite pastimes and she couldn't imagine how she had missed them until now.

"They're new." Beaming from the sweet surprise, he pointed to the first one. "That's us with our dog Chico. The lady at the rescue center took that picture with my camera. We adopted Chico right after we moved into our new house. Nick had him trained in like an hour. I love him."

"Nick or Chico?"

"Yeah," Greg dreamily replied while staring at the two Catalina photos. "This was our first vacation together. We're on my dad's boat. We had a phenomenal time."

From the dreamy look on her co-worker's face, she could tell he was head over heels. "What did you do there?"

"Sorry, Judy," Greg snickered, "I don't kiss and tell."

"Just one thing," the single secretary, who had a secret crush on Nick for years, whispered, "is he as good as the girls say he is?"

"Chicks love to exaggerate." After shutting his locker door, Greg turned around shaking his head. "Honestly, he's not as good as they said."

The news lessened the lonely woman's pain.

"He's better, much better."

Judy's eyes popped open.

"There is one issue." Leaning in, he whispered, "With hands that strong, a mouth that hot, and a piece that big, it's much harder for me to get out of bed and come to work every night. Who wants to leave heaven to work in hell?" Patting the gossipmonger on the shoulder, Greg smiled, "Make sure you quote me accurately." For added effect, he walked like he had been riding a horse for a week. "See you later."

"Yeah." Judy waved and mourned her loss. "Bye."

---

"Hey," Nick muttered in his cousin's direction as he breezed into the home office.

Sitting at Greg's desk, Roy scrambled to hide his beer. "What are you doing home so soon?"

When Nick saw his cousin get flustered, he checked the computer screen. "You're watchin' porn. I don't want downloads of that shit on Greg's hard drive."

"Chill out, Cuz. Greg gave me his Men at Play website password and told me to have fun."

Nick's eyes widened as he watched one of actors groaning while another man performed the taboo act his partner was dying to experience. "Greg likes this site?"

Roy rocked lightly in the comfy desk chair. "Don't worry, your lover said he didn't need porn now that he had you, but his subscription was paid through the year and he didn't want it to go to waste."

"Oh." Nick forced his gaze away from the screen. "I um...I just came home to grab a file real quick." But his eyes had a mind of their own and they darted back to the action.

When Roy saw his cousin gaping at the screen a third time he laughed, "You're actin' like you've never seen porn."

"I haven't actually." Nick glanced away embarrassed, "Not like this. Not gay porn."

"No way!" The young man took a turn gaping. "Seriously?"

"Look, I'm a busy guy. I don't have time to sit around and watch this stuff." Realizing he could use some new moves, Nick memorized the website password he saw on the desk on a Post-it note. "And you have to remember that I was avoidin' all things gay until three months ago."

"Right, right, I keep forgettin'." It felt funny to be mentoring his mentor. "Just so you know - not all gay porn is like this. Your partner has champagne taste. This site is described as a suit and tie fetish place where luxury and sophistication meet grit and lust. At the beginning, the guys are clean and their suits perfectly pressed, but by the end of the movie, they're both a mess and their suits need to go to the Dry Cleaners. On the info page it says the suit represents masculinity, dominance and power, so it's a turn on to see a guy submit who looks like he's normally the big boss. After watchin' two movies, I definitely agree. This shit is hot. No wonder Greg signed up for a year's supply." Roy's Bobby-obsessed mind started wandering. "Lab guys don't ever wear suits, do they? The HR folks I saw durin' my interview did, but you're wearin' jeans tonight and I'm guessin' no."

"Upper Management and cops ranked as Detectives and above wear suits all the time, but CSIs only wear 'em when they go to the courthouse to testify." While watching the screen and wondering when Greg was due in court next, Nick folded his HIV results paper and stuffed it in his jacket. "Our jobs are too demandin' and dirty to wear suits...and I don't mean in the porno sense."

"I bet testifyin' in court is real scary." Still uncertain if Bobby would ever wear a suit, Roy asked, "Are CSIs the only ones who have to do it or do the DNA, AV, and Ballistics guys have to do it too?"

Knowing his cousin was thinking of a future career in Forensics, Nick said, "Don't let the testifyin' part of the job scare ya off. It's a really important part, but it's a small part, and you get used to it after a few times. To answer your question, who goes to court depends on the case. If it's a real high profile deal then I bring Archie or Bobby D with me to give direct expert testimony, but if it's small time, I can usually handle it myself."

With a 'Bobby in a Suit' fantasy forming in his head, Roy smiled, "Good to know."

"I'll see ya later." Nick walked to the door smirking. "Don't forget about that beer you stowed on the floor under the desk, 'cause I'd hate for Greg to come home and knock it over."

"Nothin' gets by CSI Stokes."

"That's right." Nick pointed at his cousin. "No more than three and don't leave the house if you've been drinkin'."

"Hey, Nick!" Roy called out to stop him from leaving.

"Yeah?"

"I really hate to ask for one more favor, but I'll pay you back with my first paycheck, I swear."

"I told ya...whatever you need to get back on your feet." Nick reached for his wallet as he returned to the desk. "How much?" He used the opportunity to watch more of the power play on screen.

"I don't know. How much does a crack and sack wax cost here? I'll also need the phone number of your place to make an appointment."

Nick cocked his head. "What the hell is a crack and sack wax?"

Figuring they used different terminology in Vegas, Roy queried, "What do you call getting the hair on your balls removed and your ass waxed inside and out?"

"Torture. Insanity. All of the above."

The confused look on his cousin's face made Roy laugh. "You wax your chest and back, so I assumed you waxed your parts too. You don't?"

Nick instinctively covered his groin. "No! You do?"

"Yeah. I guess as long as Greg doesn't mind dining in the jungle it's not an issue since you're monogamous."

"Are you talkin' about..." Nick pointed to the taboo on screen action, "that."

"You're 35, Nick, you're allowed to say naughty words." Seeing his cousin cringe, Roy stopped laughing. "Oh no...are you guys frot freaks?"

"Speak straight, I'm still a newbie."

"Frot freaks - guys who don't believe in penetration or other forms of backdoor fun. They're into frottage and not much else. I got the 'an ass is not a vagina' lecture one night at a club from a militant frot man and..."

"No, we're not...like that, but you have to remember, I'm still gettin' used to some things and don't know all the lingo." Nick quietly explained, "Greg doesn't wax his parts, so it never dawned on me that guys do. We did have a bodybuilder on the slab once who didn't have a hair on his body, that was weird."

"I never thought I'd be teachin' you stuff, Cuz."

"Me either." His curiosity piqued, Nick asked, "Doesn't waxin' your ball hair hurt like hell?"

"I think it's worth it. Not just for sexual reasons either. I love workin' out without the extra fur. In the Vegas heat, I think you'd feel much better. Think about it...what's grosser, sweaty skin or sweaty hairy skin?"

Nick silently pondered the waxing idea.

Enjoying the reversal of status, Roy tweaked his cousin, "Maybe if Greg got a crack wax, you wouldn't be so scared to dive in."

"Shut up!" Nick snapped, "I didn't make fun of you when you got the shakes before takin' the field for the first time as a quarterback and came to me in tears, did I? No! I was supportive. I boosted your confidence and helped you. It's really hard to go from bein' an expert with women to bein' inexperienced with guys. Seriously, I feel stupid enough without havin' the punk I used to babysit makin' fun of me."

"Sorry, humor is my coping mechanism. From now on, I promise to help you without bein' a punk." His vulnerability peeking through, Roy said, "I know I keep doin' things to piss you off, but...please don't kick me out."

"Come here." Nick hugged his scared, homeless cousin. "Even if I get annoyed with you or we get into an argument, this is your home until you can afford one of your own, so please relax and stop worryin' I'm not gonna kick you out over a joke or an empty soda can on the couch. When I love someone, I have a high tolerance level. Trust me, Greg woulda been out on his ear long ago if I didn't. Do you trust me?"

"Yeah."

"Good." After a solid pat on the back, Nick took a seat on the edge of the desk. "In all honesty, I could use some sex advice. Although Greg's been great helpin' me through everything and even though he's a good teacher, sometimes I'd like to consult an outside source because...I don't know exactly, it's just..."

"You hate bein' clueless in front of the guy whose world you're tryin' to rock, because it takes away from the mystique and makes you seem less studly."

"Yeah. That." Nick shared a laugh with his cousin. "For instance, Greg was my head coach, so every time I'm doin' it, I feel like he's grading me. I'd like to be able to teach him somethin' new."

"I doubt you can." Remembering his earlier conversation with his cousin's partner, Roy said, "He told me he spent the better part of a year on his knees in the back room of a club in San Francisco. It's hard to show a guy a new trick when he's done somethin' a thousand times with as many guys."

"A thousand," Nick laughed at the thought, but when his cousin didn't join in, he stopped and said, "You don't seriously think he's blown a thousand guys...do you?"

"365 days in a year and 3 guys a night is hardly shocking when you're talking about the hardcore party scene. With the drugs Greg said he was doing, he would have been up for doin' 10 guys a night." When he saw Nick's stunned reaction, Roy panicked, "I um...I assumed he told you about his binge year. He was upset from his fiancée cheating on him...."

"Yeah, he did, just not in that kind of detail."

"Oops."

"Did he say he had sex with guys at clubs?" Nick gulped down the lump in his throat.

"No. Definitely not. He never ventured beyond that club or that activity. He was too scared."

Breathing again, Nick smiled, "He's a geeky nervous pervert with some serious phobias, so that makes sense, yeah. No wonder he was so forgiving about me sleepin' with 50 LVPD women."

"I think Greg is happy to have an outsider to run stuff by too. He really loves you and wants to make you happy." Roy smiled. "And believe me, every guy is nervous when he starts exploring uncharted sexual territory, not just you. It's cliché to say it, but there really are no stupid questions."

"Okay then." Nick pointed to the computer screen. "That looks so nasty to me. Does it really feel good?"

"I take it back, there is such a thing as a stupid question." Laughing along with his cousin, Roy said, "Think of it this way - what feels better gliding over your lips, Greg's finger or his tongue? Which one feels better invading your mouth?"

"Okay, yeah, when you put it like that." Nick blushed to a deep red. "We used to discuss Spiderman comics and now...unbelievable."

"I still love Spiderman comics."

"I haven't even seen the latest movie." The older cousin fell silent as he thought of the test results in his pocket and momentarily longed for the innocence of childhood and freedom from the stress of dating and sex.

"Hey, Nick...after all the help you and Greg are both givin' me, it feels good to be helpin' you guys out a little." Roy continued sweetly counseling the newbie, "Think of a Brazilian wax like sex - it hurts like hell the first time because you're really tense from not knowin' what to expect, so you can't relax when you're supposed to. When it's over though, you'll feel great, and the more you do it, the easier it gets."

---

"I'll never get used to this," Sofia yelled at Greg while desperately sucking in fresh air twenty five yards from the putrefied body. "I don't care how many years I'm on the job, that smell will bring me to my knees."

"Really?" Through his mask, Greg proudly shouted, "I think I'm dealing a little better every time!"

"You're just in one of those really good moods that make everything seem better than it is." Sofia muttered under her breath, "If I was waking up in Nick's arms every day I'd be in a great mood too. Lucky bastard."

Smiling as he sealed a suitcase full of liquefying body parts, Greg resumed fantasizing about his honeymoon night. "It helps to go to your happy place and stay there!"

---

'What kind of a place do you think this is, Mister?' were the first words Nick heard when he stepped outside his home. "Uh." He searched the night for the source of the screechy voice. "Ma'am?"

"This is a family neighborhood full of good, God-fearin' people, not some sleazy party zone!"Mrs. LeAnn Quinn, a 38 year old happily married woman and stay-at-home mother of four, stepped out from behind her front hedges to confront her neighbor of three weeks. "Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, Party Boy!" A Texas native, she spoke with a drawl that only got thicker when she was hysterical, "I can't believe the McMahons sold that house to someone like you. I told them their beautiful home would become a flop house, but did they care about the people they were leavin' behind? No! To think they sat next to us in church. So much for 'love they neighbor'! Thanks to them, we've got drugs, sex and rap music in the middle of our cul-de-sac now!"

Nick flashed his friendliest smile. "Ma'am, I'm afraid you've got it all wrong."

"No, that wild party you threw on Saturday was the last straw! Lewd laughter, drunken singers, people gettin' nasty in your hot tub."

"How could you see what was goin' on in my hot tub? You have a 1-story house, you couldn't possibly see into my pool area without a ladder and a pair of binoculars."

"Never you mind how I know, I just do!" With her arms firmly planted across her chest, LeAnn huffed, "When I was at Bunco last night, we decided that someone should tell you how we all feel." Cinching her fuzzy yellow bathrobe tighter, she stood tall. "Everyone else was scared, but I gladly volunteered, because I don't want my kids witnessin' gay orgies. First it was two of you livin' there and now it's three!"

"Wow." Nick postured in front of the judgmental bitch, but decided to take a breath and the high road. "Maybe if my partner and I had taken the time to introduce ourselves this wouldn't have happened, but we've been real busy with..."

"Of course we haven't had time to meet because you gay party boys go out at night and crawl home like vampires in the morning when decent people are going to work."

"Ma'am, my partner and I both work for the Las Vegas Police Department as Crime Scene Investigators." Although he wanted to strangle the woman, Nick handed over his work ID with a smile. "We work the graveyard shift Monday through Friday, midnight to eight am. That's why you see us leavin' at night and comin' home in the morning lookin' dog tired sometimes. We're not only law-abiding citizens, ma'am, we actually spend our nights nailin' people who break the law. My partner and I are in a serious, monogamous relationship with a ceremony scheduled for July, and that third so called party boy is my cousin Roy who just relocated here to attend UNLV and intern at the Crime Lab."

"Oh."

"Hey, but at least you can still bitch about us bein' gay," Nick snarked before turning to walk to his truck. "Thanks for that little slice of southern hospitality, it was just like bein' back home with my hypocritical and judgmental sisters!" Once he was behind the wheel, he screamed, "Bitch!" He slammed his fist on the steering wheel. "I'm startin' to think I shouldn't have gotten out of bed today." Then he remembered he still had to show Chloe his test results when he returned to the lab. "I can tell it's gonna be one of those shitty nights that just keeps gettin' worse."

---

"I'm having a great night!" Greg boasted to Sara. She was on her way out of the lab as he was on her way in. "How about you?"

"Ecklie's my new boss because my husband is making my decisions for me now and I didn't have a say."

"It was actually Nick who begged Ecklie to be your boss so you could stay on Grave with us. Yeah, first Grissom wanted you to report to Catherine, but Ecklie wouldn't allow that and then Grissom got pissy and Ecklie said you had to move to Days. That's when Nick groveled to keep you."

"Grissom thought I would want to report to Catherine after she almost got me fired for bitching her out in the hallway?"

"Are you still ticked about that?" Greg laughed...until he sensed Sara was contemplating his death. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I need to get to autopsy and I fear if I don't leave soon, Doc will be examining my dead body. Bye!" He rushed for the lab entrance.

Sara stomped towards her Denali muttering, "This is going to be one of those shitty nights that just keeps getting worse."

***

Chapter 23: The Politics of Dating and Marriage - Part 3

Standing in front of the Breakroom coffee station, Greg excitedly fielded questions from the six curious lab rats gathered around him. "For our first real date we rented a golf cart, toured Catalina Island, and had a casual dinner at a seafood restaurant on the water." Feeling like the newly discovered lover of a hot celebrity, he couldn't stop smiling. "Then we returned to the boat and had a few cocktails under the stars. You'll have to use your imaginations from there, because I don't kiss and tell."

"Wow." Penny Silpada, a desperately single 32 year old who had once submitted Nick's name to the producers of the TV show The Bachelor, sighed into her coffee mug, "That sounds so romantic, but I'd expect nothing less from the Texan with a heart of gold."

"Hey!" Greg feigned offense, "I planned that date for your information. My parents took me to Catalina every year when I was a kid and I loved it. I wanted to share the experience with Nick so when we have a kid some day..."

"You're planning for kids?" Hodges blurted from across the room where he was snacking on beef jerky. "Adoption or Turkey Baster?"

"Ooh!" Judy was dying to know the answer.

"Turkey baster to start, and if that doesn't work, we'll adopt." Greg blushed as he laughed, "Since I'm a DNA expert and Nick's a jock, I'm going to handle the samples and he's going to do the..."

"Jerking off?" Hodges held up his half-eaten Slim Jim. "Sorry, I blame my snack wrapper for giving me the idea." He pointed to the word 'JERKY'.

Jacqui left the group and strolled over to Hodges smirking, "You eating JERKy is a lot like cannibalism."

"Ignore him, Sanders!" Penny wanted to vicariously live her dream life with Nick. "Keep sharing juicy details with your old lab pals!"

Sitting on the couch with Henry, Mandy hoped to score some points with a musical reference. "This scene totally reminds me of the 'Summer Nights' scene in Grease. You know, the part when the Pink Ladies are gathered around Sandy as she dishes about her romantic times with Danny Zuko.

"Yes," Henry chuckled, "Greg even has Sandy's coloring and Nick has Danny's." He started humming the tune.

Head over heels for her man, Mandy stood up and burst into song to impress him with her lyrics knowledge, "Tell me more, tell me more, like did Nick have a car?"

The group of geeks broke into laughter as their colleague entertained them with horrifically bad singing. .

"Tell me more, tell me more!" Mandy added a little shimmy walk, "Did he get very far?"

---

Nick wasn't three steps from his truck when he heard his name being shouted. "What now?" He turned to see who was calling him from across the lab parking lot.

"Howdy, Bro!"

"No friggin' way." Nick couldn't believe his eyes when he saw his brother hustling over. "It's a crime to harass LVPD personnel in uniform and there are security cameras all over the place. Consider yourself warned."

"Relax, I'm not gonna touch ya." Chuck Stokes stood tall and used his five extra inches of height to remind his little brother of his size. "I'm out here on business and I figured if I called you wouldn't answer or call me back, so I decided to surprise you and wait for you to show up for your shift." He tapped his watch. "You're late."

"I came in early actually. I'm already returnin' from the field." Still in shock, Nick said, "What do you want from me?"

"You know damn well what I want." The politician decided to cut to the chase, "I want you and Greg to stay away from Dallas and not go public until after the election."

"Oh, is that all?" Nick barked, "It's May, asshole! My wedding is in July and your election is in November. I'm not livin' a lie another day, so seven months is out of the question."

"Look, I don't expect you to do shit for me, but think of your nieces and nephew. How can you intentionally fuck up their lives?" Knowing how much his brother loved kids, Chuck stayed the course, "What kind of example are you settin' by bein' a vindictive self-centered..."

"What? How is me lyin' to their faces teachin' them anything good?" After a gulp of air and two steps away from his nemesis, Nick said, "I'm gonna set a good example by not bein' ashamed of who I am and bein' honest even when it's not the easy thing to do. I have 16 nieces and nephews, and if one of them happens to be gay, then I want them to look at me and know that it's okay, that they're not alone...and they're not better off dead like you would have them believe."

"Be sure to explain that to my daughter when she's gettin' teased at school for havin' a fudge packin' uncle."

"We're done." Nick started walking.

"I'm gonna have her get on the phone and ask you to explain why her friends are callin' you a pillow biter!"

"Go ahead! I'll work in a lesson on diversity and tolerance, because I know she doesn't hear about that stuff at home!"

"For shit's sake, Nicky! You know I'm right!" Chuck shouted at his back. "You go public and turn my campaign into a circus, it'll be open season on every kid in the family! Her friends' conservative parents will start cancellin' play dates and makin' polite excuses to sit next to someone else at lunch!" When his brother stopped walking, he knew the tide was turning. "C'mon...you waited this long, why can't you wait 'til December?"

"December?" Turning to face his brother, Nick said, "So as long as the kids are harassed after you win the election, you're cool with it."

Shit! Chuck couldn't believe he blew it right as his compassionate brother was about to agree for the childrens' sake.

"You sold past the close, Bro. You're as bad at sales as you are at politics." Nick enjoyed laughing at the jerk. "No deal."

"Is there anything I can do to get you to reconsider?"

As Nick was about to yell 'no', suddenly an idea popped into his head. "I want Roy to get his car back. Our dear aunt and uncle swindled him out of it. I want the car or the cash for him. If you get them to do that for him, I'll think about holdin' off for you."

"How much is the car worth?"

"Four grand."

"I just cashed out at the casino earlier." Pulling out his bulging billfold, Chuck counted out the hundred dollar bills his had. "You shoulda seen this lucky streak I had at the craps table. I've got $3400."

"That'll do." Nick held out his hand and when his fingers were wrapped tightly around the bills, he said, "As promised, I'll think about holdin' off."

"Good."

After stowing the cash in his pocket, Nick turned and walked four steps. "Hey, Chuck..."

"Yeah?"

"I thought about it...my answer is still no." As Chuck cursed up a storm, Nick coolly warned, "In Vegas, when somethin' seems too good to be true, it is."

---

"I know it seems too good to be true," Bobby excitedly told Greg, "but Roy and I hit it off from the moment we saw each other. We have amazing chemistry."

"Does the age difference concern you?" Greg asked with Roy's words echoing in his head 'if I see a guy I like, I go for it, no hesitation'. He worried that Bobby was falling hard for someone who would be moving on in a matter of weeks if not days.

"Sara and Grissom are 14 years apart."

"Dude! Sara's in her 30s, Roy can't even buy a beer for another 11 months. I'm not trying to burst your bubble, but the guy's just starting college. Do you even remember freshman year? He's going to meet a ton of people and..." Feeling bad for being a killjoy, Greg softened his voice and said, "Sorry, but you're my friend and I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Thank you, I appreciate your concern, I do, but I'm grown man and I'll be okay." Bobby flashed a reassuring smile in his friend's direction, "I know I have a better shot at winning the lottery than living happily ever after with Roy. The break up countdown clock started ticking the second we hooked up. I know he's gonna find someone younger and better than me one day. Hell, he could be findin' him tonight, but I've been in a rut for a long time and Roy's a nice change of pace. Even if things end tomorrow, I won't be losin', because bein' with him has given me my confidence back."

"So the sex is hot and you're getting plenty of quality time in the top spot."

"You have no idea!" Bobby's Okalahoma boy laughter rattled the glass walls. "I'm honestly surprised that I had the energy to dress myself and drive to work." Thrilled to finally have someone at work he could talk to about his unconventional love life, he shared, "It's like Justin Taylor walked out of my TV screen and into my bed!"

"He does resemble him, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, but I'm no Brian, I'm not gonna take my Justin for granted."

"I can totally relate." Enjoying the camaraderie, Greg shared, "I'm marrying the star quarterback, remember? Me, the president of the Chess Club. It's so Beauty and the Geek."

"Exactly!" Getting hot just thinking about it, the ecstatic man boasted, "It really is incredible. All Roy and I have done for the last 48 hours is screw, shower and eat, and we only stopped to eat so we would have energy to screw some more." He snickered, "And we really didn't stop, we just moved the action into the kitchen. Chocolate frosting never tasted sweeter."

"My jock won't let me incorporate empty carbs and sugar into our sex life." Shaking his head, Greg said, "Get this - one night right after I made him see stars, I stood up and handed him the tube of flavored gel I had used on him. The carb counting manic paused to read the label, and when he saw it was crap, he started giving me the empty calorie lecture."

"What did you do?" Bobby asked with a chuckle.

"I grabbed the tube of sinful sugar from his hand, used it to make a 3-pointer into the trash, and then pushed him to his knees saying, '150 mg of pure protein coming right up!' Before he knew what hit him, I shoved it in and growled, 'Lecture over'." While enjoying the stunned look on his co-worker's face, Greg inwardly laughed at the real memory of him agreeing to never buy the stuff again and whimpering for Nick to stop talking and finish him off.

"Wow." It was really hard to picture Greg Sanders being so dominant. "That sounds hot." It was equally hard to picture Nick being that submissive. Wow." While having a hard time visualizing the two men in opposite roles, Bobby suddenly realized he was hard from trying to visualize it. Luckily the counters in the lab were tall enough to hide wood.

"Doh!" For effect, Greg slapped himself upside the head. "I'm not supposed to kiss and tell, so can you keep the overshare between us?" That way Nick wouldn't find out he had been compelled to brag about something that never happened.

"I think that's the least I can do since you didn't tell Nick about me and Roy."

"Only because you promised to tell him yourself and that you'd both act like I didn't know if he finds out accidentally."

"I promise, I'll tell him. Just as soon as I..."

"Have enough sex to make it through the next drought?"

"No," the horny man huffed even though the assumption was partially true.

"Just kidding." Greg gave him a pat on the back. "You really shouldn't sell yourself short with Roy, because you're a great catch." Madly in love and never happier, he wanted everyone to find what he had. "You're a mature, responsible guy with a job and a house, and he's a poor kid that was kicked out of his home by his father." He teased, "Maybe it'll last longer than you think, Daddy-O."

---

"Hey, Stokes!" When he got close, Warrick quietly teased his buddy, "Are you spying on the little woman?"

"What?" Realizing he had been doing just that, Nick replied, "No, um...for a second I thought Bobby was givin' Greg shit, but I realized I was wrong."

While watching the two men laughing only a foot apart from each other in the huge Ballistics lab, Warrick said, "Good thing Bobby's straight, 'cause he's in your wife's personal space. Now I know why you were tense when I walked over here."

"You think I'm jealous?"

"Are you?"

"No," Nick huffed, "I have complete faith in my partner."

"Must be nice." The relationship-weary man nodded and started walking down the empty hallway, but stopped and turned after only three steps. "Hey...just because my wife and every woman I was involved with before her were lying bitches who ended up slicing me deep, doesn't mean Greg will do the same to you. That was my baggage talkin'. Sorry."

"No problem." Nick closed the gap between them. "At least things are goin' well with Cath now." When he saw his friend wince, he asked, "Did something happen?"

Thinking it might help to talk to someone, Warrick waved his friend into the Layout Room across from Ballistics. "I kinda messed things up on Saturday night."

"Really?" Forgetting his own problems for a moment, Nick asked, "Whatdya do?"

"Nah, it's what I didn't do that ticked her off." Ever since helping his friends move into their new house, Warrick hadn't feel comfortable spending time alone trading personal information with Nick because he got the feeling it tweaked Greg. It felt great to have his best friend back, even though he technically never really went away. "She wanted me to say something definitive about our future together and I couldn't. She got pissed and I ended up saying that I never should have started dating her, but I meant it in a good way."

"Huh?" It was hard to imagine the statement being positive. "How the hell can 'I never should have dated you' ever be good?"

"Yeah, that was Cath's reaction too; only she used more colorful language." After tightly folding his arms across his chest, the depressed CSI explained, "I was trying to say that she was too special to be the woman I hooked up with on the rebound. That I wish I had waited to date her, because I'm not ready to make any promises or declarations and I probably won't be for a while. My inability to do that has nothin' to do with her and everything to do with me being shit on by the bitches before her. I'm still bleeding from Tina and I was tired of licking my own wounds, man."

"And you thought Cath lickin' other parts of you would make that pain go away?"

"Stupid, I know." Warrick shook his head, "I shoulda done what most depressed people do - drown my sorrows in a bottle or take pills. I had no business jumpin' into a relationship that soon, even with a great friend, especially with a great friend. I messed up our friendship and we have to work together for who knows how many years."

"Why are you talkin' like it's forever?" Nick pushed out an optimistic smile. "You had a fight, big deal; you'll make up and get back on track."

"I don't think that's gonna happen."

"Why?"

"Mainly because she kicked me out of her bed and told me never to call her, touch her, or look at her again unless it was job related."

"Oh." Nick scratched his head as he desperately thought of an explanation that would leave room for hope. "Hey, is she on the rag by any chance? Or PMS'ing? Because my sisters used to say some pretty nasty shit to me and each other during certain times of the month, but as soon as the hormonal surge ended, they'd apologize and feel terrible for bein' so brutal."

"Nah, that's not it. She told me she rarely gets it anymore."

"Right! She's 44. She's probably in pre-Menopause." Nick gave an all-knowing nod. "Maybe she was feelin' crabby and..."

"Maybe it was just me being an asshole."

"C'mon, man...you have issues. If you sit down and talk it out..."

"Hey, I really appreciate what you're doing, but it's over. You gotta let it go. I have."

"Just like that?"

"Yeah." Warrick shrugged. "Just like that. Tell Greg for me and ask him not to bring it up, okay?"

"Okay, but..." Not buying the flippancy, Nick continued to press the matter, "I don't think you were on the rebound. I think you went for what you've wanted for a long, long time, and you got it, but that scared the crap out of you. As much as you wanted Catherine, I think you didn't want to risk your heart again. I think you purposely pissed her off so she'd dump you now and save you any potential pain later."

"It was more like me chewin' off my own foot to get free from a trap." The cynic released a heavy sigh, "After the divorce, I just don't have it in me to start from scratch again with someone and invest that much of myself. I'm done with relationships."

"But you two are like Greg and me - you've known each other for almost a decade. You didn't have to start from scratch, findin' out her favorite color and all that shit. You already know that stuff."

"I don't know her favorite color." Warrick tested his Mr. Romance, "What's Greg's favorite color?"

"Amber."

"Amber?"

"Yeah." Nick smiled, "You didn't really expect somethin' normal, did you? His grandma was a psychic and she wore an amber pendant because she believed amber attracted positive energy. She told Greg that it had healing properties and one of the things it could do was help a person balance their aggressive traits. He really believes all that stuff. After my outburst here at the lab, he bought me a piece of amber in a little gem shop on Catalina Island and told me to carry it in my pocket when I'm working."

"Isn't that sweet."

"I thought so."

"Do you have it in your pocket?" Warrick asked to see if the hopeless romantic was following through.

Nick reached in and produced the stone. "When I get home, I take it out and put it on top of my ID badge. Then when it's time to go to work, I never forget it." Softening his voice, he stepped closer and tried once more, "I think I know just how Cath felt. Even though the two of you had just started dating, she already felt really close, that's why she wanted to hear something definitive from you. She wasn't pushin' for a commitment; she just had feelings and figured they were mutual. It's hard when one person is more open and eager than the other. It didn't take long for me to say the L word to Greg, because I'd been fallin' for him for years. Luckily he felt the same way." He gave his buddy a gentle shove. "Go talk to Cath, tell her you're sorry. If you wear your heart out on your sleeve..."

"God, you really are a hopeless romantic, you know that."

"Always."

"The problem is I'm not you and you're not me. You haven't been burned like I have...and you're a dreamer, not a realist."

"How am I not realistic?"

"You need an example?"

"Yeah," Nick replied, getting ruffled.

"I'm saying this as your friend, alright?" Warrick risked being honest, "You went from straight guy to Greg's Guy without any gay experiences in between, and you think you're gonna monogamously live happily ever after. I think you're dreaming. No one else has the balls to say that to your face, but believe me, I'm not the only one thinkin' it."

The words stung and to hear them coming from a good friend's mouth made the pain worse. "Is there a pool?"

"You know there's a pool about everything that goes on in this place."

"What are you down for?" Nick planted his hands on his hips. "6 months? A year?"

"Two weeks."

"Two weeks of marriage?" The lack of faith was shocking. "You think I'm gonna leave Greg two weeks after I marry him?"

"No, two weeks before," Warrick somberly clarified. "I think you're gonna realize that it's too much too soon. I think you're gonna wake up one day before the wedding and say 'I'm about to marry the only guy I ever kissed and permanently give up the opportunity to know what other men are like' and that's gonna freak you out."

"Wow." Nick shook his head faster as his ire grew. "I've been with a lot of women, because none of 'em felt right. If I had been born straight, I know I'd be married with three kids by now. My mom was a virgin when she married my dad and they're about to celebrate their 50th anniversary. Commitment is in my DNA. I don't need to screw strangers to know I'm marryin' the right guy. I feel it in my heart. Just because you don't wanna give up the privilege to sleep around, doesn't mean I feel the same way. Sex isn't more important to me than love."

"So you're admitting that your love life might be less than ideal, but you've chosen to settle for what you have instead of testing the waters?"

"That's not what I said," Nick protested. "Wait...you made it crystal clear that you wouldn't be able to discuss my love life like we used to before you knew I was gay. What happened?"

"I'm makin' progress because I want to be a good friend."

"Or misery loves company and the opportunity to bring me down is appealing enough to outweigh your disgust."

"That's probably true too, but it doesn't make what I'm saying any less valid. You said a lot of shit about Tina under the guise of being my friend."

"I was right."

"It's too soon to say that I'm wrong." Feeling his intentions were misunderstood, Warrick said, "I'm a concerned friend who knows you spent most of your life living a lie because of your family and the pressure to keep their approval. I think anyone in that position, regardless of values, would feel like they were cheated out of part of their life. I think it's natural to want that part back and you're not gonna get that chance if you marry Greg four months after kissing him. I think once you're more comfortable with being out, that you might not need Greg as much as you did when you were coming out. He's safe. Safe may not always be appealing. That's honestly how I see things, not me tryin' to bring you down with me. I don't want either of you to get hurt."

"Fair enough, but to quote you...I'm not you and you're not me." Nick tried to shake off some of his defensiveness. "We've always been great friends, but really different people. I'm 35 and I want a family with at least one kid. The last thing I want or need to do is to spend a couple more years havin' meaningless one-night stands. I'm not delusional, I know I could find someone hotter to screw on Saturday night, but I also know that I'm not gonna find someone better to share my life with than Greg, so there's no need to test the waters. I'm marryin' my best friend. Who better to marry?"

Speaking from experience, the divorced man said, "When Tina and I started having problems in the sack, it was all downhill from there. I guess I'm thinkin' of that when I hear you say you could find someone better in bed. If the sex is bad now..."

"No, you misunderstood." In spite of his stress, Nick cracked a glorious smile. "When I said find someone hotter, I was only referring to body type, not that I could find someone more skilled. Contrary to what you may think, I am a realist. I know Greg isn't the buffest gay man in town."

"Oh."

Afraid that he had sold his lover short, Nick pushed past his discomfort to explain, "I'm not lyin'. Greg and I have a very active, imaginative, and balanced love life."

"Balanced?" Warrick hoped it meant something other than taking turns in the driver's seat, because the idea of his best friend letting Greg Sanders give it to him was unfathomable.

"Balanced." Since avoiding or denying the truth would mean slighting his man, Nick took a deep breath and answered, "It means exactly what you're hopin' it doesn't mean."

Nervous laughter echoed in the small room. "I guess I've made less progress than I thought." Warrick tried to block the image and failed miserably. "I think it wouldn't be so hard for me to handle if you weren't granting access to Greg." He attempted a joke, "Don't get me wrong, it would be a lot worse if it were Grissom or Hodges."

"For me especially." They laughed loud enough to rattle the glass walls and then Nick said, "I'm thrilled with my love life. I wouldn't lie to you."

Still struggling with what he just learned, Warrick tried not to seem too uncomfortable, "I'm gonna dig deep, be mature, and tell myself it's a normal expression of love between two consenting adult men and nothin' about you has changed. You're still the same guy." He deadpanned, "Except for walkin' a little funny every other day."

"Every other day, huh? You think we're on a schedule?" Nick laughed, thrilled to have the friendship back on track after a minor derailment.

"I don't know how you guys work it out." The straight man anxiously laughed. "The gambler in me thinks you figure it out by flipping a coin."

"It works just like it does in male/female relationships. The position and tone of the love makin' depends on the mood of both people involved."

"Okay, yeah...I officially can't think about that activity anymore. To quote Greggo - I'm squicked."

"How can you be squicked out by a sex act that you've done to women plenty of times?" Nick gave an all-knowing nod. "Remember that trip to Cancun in 2000? The walls were very thin in that condo we rented. I heard you enjoyin' it first hand."

"C'mon, Nicky, it's different when it's a man givin' it to a woman. Way different."

"Why?" The reply came in the form of a Jan Sanders quote. "Because it's an inferior act and women are inferior to men?"

After an awkward pause, Warrick replied, "You're makin' me sound like a jerk."

"Hey, all I did was ask a question."

"It's not the act I have a problem with, it's that two guys are doin' it."

"So if a chick wears a strap-on, you're cool with being on the receivin' end?"

"No, but if another guy wants a girl to do that to him, then..." Warrick burst out laughing. "Okay, yeah, you got me, I'd think that guy was a closet queer."

Before Nick could reply, Greg opened the Layout Room door.

"Hey." Surprised to see his lover and Warrick holed up in a corner of the room, Greg stood behind Nick and said, "Am I interrupting?"

Considering the conversation, the sight of Greg standing behind Nick made Warrick glance away and head for the door. "Nope. We just finished." At the door he turned and joked with his friend, "Thanks for setting me straight, Stokes."

"Any time," Nick laughed with his buddy.

"What's that supposed to mean?" the anxious boyfriend queried as soon as Warrick shut the door. "Why did he bolt when I came in? Why were you laughing? Were you guys laughing at me?"

"Chill out, baby." But it was too late, Greg was already spiraling into insecurity. "If anyone should be jealous here it's me over you and Bobby bein' cozied up in Ballistics just now."

"You were spying on me?" Greg replied with a twinge of discomfort.

"No, the walls are glass and I saw you when I was walkin' by. "Nick stepped closer and leaned on the layout table in front of his agitated mate. "Bobby's a gun guy and the straightest man in the lab, so I'm hardly worried that he'll try to steal you from me." A sweet chuckle tumbled off his lips as he thought of Hetero Bobby making moves on Greg. "Even if he was gay, I doubt you'd be his type."

"Why wouldn't I be his type?" the insecure geek asked with an edge in his voice. "Hmm? Why?"

Looking for an escape, Nick pulled his HIV results out of his pocket. "Sorry, honey, I don't have time to talk hypotheticals, because I have a real confrontation to get to."

When his lover was almost at the door, Greg muttered, "Funny how you weren't in a rush when Warrick was talking to you."

"Here we go." Knowing exactly what was ahead, Nick released his grip on the doorknob and turned to face his tweaked fiancé. "What now?"

"The two of you just did it again."

"Did what again?"

"Made me feel like the outsider who's not cool enough to be in on the joke. I was so invisible, he practically walked through me."

"That's your overactive and overly paranoid imagination talking again."

"What?" His old sensitivities flaring, Greg couldn't stop himself from getting pissy. "The second I came in here, he couldn't wait to leave. Then he acts like I'm not here and says 'thanks for setting me straight, Stokes' and laughs. It was obviously an inside joke."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because you both laughed and wouldn't tell me why."

"G, no matter what I say, you're gonna..."

"Bobby D's gay."

Nick froze while forming a word, so his mouth remained open.

"He got divorced because his wife found out what he was hiding. That's why she got full custody of their kid and why he moved out here from Oklahoma."

"Seriously?"

"Yep." Still smarting from the earlier comments, Greg bristled, "I may not be cool enough to be in your inner circle with Warrick, but Bobby doesn't mind talkin' to me."

"Would you stop with the exclusionary bullshit. I'm allowed to have a friendship with Warrick that's on a different level than your friendship with him. You're closer with Sara than I am, do you see me mopin' around actin' like I feel left out?"

"Why would you want to be a part of the geek squad when you're BMOC?"

Just as Nick was about to yell, Judy opened the door.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything personal." She handed a note to Greg. "Grissom said forget what he told you to do and do this instead." After handing over the note, she smiled at her favorite cowboy. "I heard all about your romantic first date on Catalina Island...the golf cart tour, dinner under the stars, and drinks on the deck of The Love Boat. Your wedding plans sound fantastic too. I've never been to Malibu, so I hope I get an invite. And I'm dying to stow away in your suitcase when you go to Maui on your honeymoon." And when we get there, I'll tie up Greg and make you remember why you like girls.

"When did you hear all that, Judy?" Nick asked, trying to mask his irritation.

"I wasn't snooping," she stated, wanting to clear her reputation. "I swear! Your lover was volunteering the information in the Breakroom. Right, Greg?"

The reply was stated in an anxious squeak. "Yeah."

"Don't worry, Nick, he didn't kiss and tell. But thankfully he gave us just enough information to fill in the sexy blanks!" She giggled on her way to the door. "I've already volunteered to coordinate your Breakroom baby shower when you make a Turkey Baster baby!" I'd gladly volunteer to collect your seed too. I'd even have the baby for you if you agreed to conceive the old fashioned way.

"That's really sweet, but we won't be tryin' for a while. Thanks." When the door shut, Nick snapped at his loose-lipped lover, "I can't believe you told those gossip junkies every detail of our relationship!"

"I didn't," Greg tried to gulp down the lump in his throat, "I answered a few questions, gave an overview and a timeline to satisfy their curiosity, and...and did a little bragging."

"What the hell were you thinkin'?"

"I don't get why you're surprised. You're the one who said he wanted to hang pictures in his locker and discuss his family at work. Isn't that one of the main reasons we came out tonight? So we could act normal."

"My idea of discussing family isn't gathering a crowd and tellin' 'em how we made out under the stars! It sounds like you stopped just short of tellin' them I took your gayginity!" When he saw his lover glance down, Nick's shock tripled. "You told them I took your ass cherry in Catalina?"

"No!" Staring at the floor, Greg quietly replied, "But from the way I was waxing nostalgic and gushing, I think they guessed you were my first time."

Mortified that his co-workers knew about one of the most intimate experiences of his life, Nick gripped his hair with both hands. "I can't believe you! Close friends and family are one thing, but not the masses!"

"It's not like I painted you in a bad light!"

"That's not the point, G!"

"I'm sorry! I'm really sorry! But Mandy was singing Summer Nights and Hodges kept accusing me of making stuff up because a guy as hot and as cool as you wouldn't be that into me." Glancing up, Greg sweetly admitted, "I finally had something spectacular to share and I got carried away."

"Fine. But don't ever do it again, because I have a reputation to maintain around here and I can't do that if you're geekin' out in the Breakroom every shift."

"Seriously?" Greg stuffed his arms across his chest. "That's so Breakfast Club. You'll be my boyfriend on Saturday night, but you don't want any of the popular kids to know about us on Monday morning."

"Are you insane? I'm marrying you!" Nick pointed to his right hand. "I'm wearin' your damn band. How the hell can you think I'm hidin' our relationship when I just went public? And if anyone is trapped in a high school, Mr. Breakfast Club...you're the one who couldn't wait to run here and brag about his jock boyfriend."

Greg silently wondered how that could be a bad thing.

"You're always accusin' me of shit, so now it's my turn - how do I know you're not with me just because it ups your credibility to date a hot jock?"

"Ego much?"

Nick tossed up his hands. "I'm not the one who gathered a crowd to brag about his boyfriend."

"Of course not, because you think your boyfriend's pathetic." Deep down the insecure geek knew he was being ridiculous, but after years of feeling inferior, he couldn't stop his paranoia. "Silly me, I thought you didn't want to kiss my ass because you were worried about germs, but it's really about my ass being unworthy."

"You're bringin' that up again? We just settled it in the damn parking lot."

"I bet you'd have no problem kissing Warrick's perfect ass."

"Hey!"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up!"

Greg shrieked, "Did you just tell me to shut up?"

"Yeah, because you're making a friggin' fool out of yourself." While taking a deep breath, Nick reached into his pocket to squeeze the small amber rock. "You're so far off base about what I was sayin' to 'Rick, I guarantee you'll feel like an asshole when you hear the truth."

On the off chance his partner was right, Greg remained silent.

"First off we came in here because 'Rick and Cath broke up on Saturday night and he needed someone to talk to about it in private. Unlike you, he doesn't like the details of his inter-office relationship to be shared in the Breakroom."

"They broke up?" The news came as a shock.

"Yeah." Nick leaned against the table and finished, "And while we were talkin' about relationships, he told me he thinks it's a big mistake for me to jump into marriage without having any other gay experiences. I told him he was wrong and I shared why I was confident about my decision. I even told him that we started to switch things up in the bedroom."

Greg snapped his neck to look up and into his partner's eyes. "You told Warrick you let me..."

"Yeah, I told him I was thrilled with our active, imaginative and balanced love life, and that I didn't need to date other guys, because life doesn't get any better than marryin' the guy who can rock my world in bed and be my best friend. That's what he meant by 'thanks for settin' me straight'. See, you were right, it was an inside joke, but in your defense, not at your expense." Seeing remorse fanning across his lover's face, Nick said, "I don't know why 'Rick bolted when you walked in, but I'd guess he didn't want you to ask about Catherine and have to get into the whole thing again. Or maybe he was a little uncomfortable seein' us together after talkin' about what we do in the bedroom. What I do know is, it wasn't because of this dumbass non-existent good 'ol boys club exclusionary rule that exists only in your paranoid mind."

Greg cringed from head to toe.

"Feelin' like an asshole yet?"

The guilty boyfriend nodded his lowered head.

"Good." Nick glared at his lover. "Now to answer your stupid question - I wouldn't kiss Warrick's ass even if it was guaranteed germ-free. I wouldn't bottom for him or drop to my knees for him either...or anyone else for that matter. The only reason I feel comfortable doin' intensely intimate things with you is because I love you more than I thought it was possible to love another human being. Does that make you feel better, asshole?"

"I'm sorry," Greg whispered, feeling worse by the minute.

"You better be." Nick waved his HIV results. "I need to run this paper over to Chloe and get back to work." Walking to the door, he remembered how he ended up talking to Warrick in the first place. "Because I trust you, I'm not gonna ask why you were sharin' two square feet of space with Gay Bobby or why the two of you were havin' a grand 'ol time in that two square feet." But when he reached the door his curiosity got the best of him. "I will ask this...did the two of you ever fool around before we got together?"

"No." Greg vehemently shook his head. "I told you I wasn't very active."

"MmmHmm." Nick couldn't stop the words he didn't want to say. "But Roy let it slip that you went from guy to guy in the back room of some dance club every night for the better part of a year, so I'm not sure I know your past very well."

"I guess we know who not to trust with a secret." Embarrassment fit snugly on top of a layer of guilt. "Not that it was really a secret, just an incredibly embarrassing period of my life that I didn't want to share with you in great detail because it would only make me feel more pathetic around you. I alluded to it with you, but I shared the details with Roy because I knew he'd understand the scene and how I got caught up in it when I was hurting from being dumped. Thanks for throwing it back in my face when I already feel bad."

"I was making a valid point."

"Did you ask him if I talked about having sex with guys back then?" From the look on his partner's face, Greg knew the answer was yes. "Unbelievable."

"After hearing about the club guys, I thought for just a second...."

"A second too long." His emotions bubbling up inside, Greg's voice cracked. "You thought I was faking that day on The Freyja?"

"I'm serious; it was a split second of paranoia, G. I didn't have time to think anything through. It was obvious you weren't faking." Exhausted from arguing, Nick sighed, "I went home and found Roy watching porn, which turned out to be your porn that I didn't know you subscribed to, and then a few minutes later I found out you were blowin' 3 guys a night and doin' some drugs and the guys in the movie were doin' what I wouldn't do to you and suddenly I wondered what else I didn't know about you. I'm sorry."

"It was 5 guys a night and a lot of drugs." Emotionally drained and embarrassed, Greg's eyes welled. "You know that annoying overtalking habit I have? After Lacey cheated on me, I tried dating, but I was ten times as nervous as I was before being cheated on, and every time I went out with someone, I drove them away in the first half hour."

Seeing tears building in his partner's eyes, Nick felt terrible for being harsh.

"I got up the nerve to go to Club Zodiac one night. It was this huge club, totally overwhelming." Greg could see the dance floor and hear the music in his mind. "I met this guy and after a half hour of me rambling and looking like an idiot on the dance floor, he pulled me into the back room, shoved me to my knees and said 'I think you'll be much more appealing with your mouth too full to talk'." Turning his back on Nick and the glass walls of the Layout Room, he wiped his tears as they fell. "When I was done, he patted me on the head and laughed saying, 'Good Boy. That was the only time I enjoyed your company tonight. If I were you, and thank God I'm not, I'd stay off the dance floor and on my knees. You're positively charming with a mouthful of spunk'. As a tip, he gave me a popper. The next thing I knew, a year had passed."

"G..." Nick reached out, but remembered he was at work and dropped his hand.

"So, yeah, as stupid, self-indulgent, and unprofessional as it was, I stood in the Breakroom tonight and bragged about how perfect our first date was and I shared way too many details of our love life. You don't even know this part...since Bobby's gay, I knew I could get graphic and not squick him out, so I told him all these graphic anecdotes about us...about me rocking your world and you being my grateful submissive. Tonight was the first time I've had someone in my life to brag about to the masses since Lacey. It felt awesome." Greg flicked away the next round of tears. "And then as ridiculous as it sounds, I got jealous of Warrick again, because even though you're wearing my ring and marrying me, there's a little part of me that refuses to believe you're for real."

"How can you think that?" Nick whispered, moving closer.

"Because you do stuff that reminds me that I'm still that loser on his knees in the back room."

"Like what?"

"Like how you wouldn't dance with me last night after Roy left his music on and went out. I couldn't get anyone at Zodiac to dance with me unless I agreed to blow him after ten minutes. "

Forgetting about the glass walls, Nick stepped forward and placed his hands on his partner's shoulders and squeezed. "Honey, I'm..."

The sound of the Layout Room door flying open startled both men.

"Greg!" Grissom barked, "You were supposed to be on the road ten minutes ago and when you get back, you have a bag of decomp to process."

"Sorry, Griss."

"Is there a problem here, gentlemen?" The boss shifted his eyes from man to man. "You both assured me that your relationship wouldn't interfere with work, but here you are together while work isn't getting done."

Grateful for the reprieve, Greg kept his head down and held up his assignment slip. "I'm on my way."

Kicking himself for being a hardass even when he was right, Nick turned and watched his partner rush down the hall. "Sorry," he exhaled.

"Apology accepted," Grissom barked, "now get to work."

"I wasn't apologizin' to you, that was for Greg." Nick snarked, "Like you should talk about office romances getting in the way of work. Pfft." Walking out of the room, he grumbled, "You and Sara had blow out an hour ago."

---

"It's about time you showed up," Vartann greeted Sara with a smile as she stepped out of her truck.

"Traffic." She slammed the door shut.

"Who peed in your Cheerios?"

"Grissom."

"Uh oh." Vartann led the way. "What's the problem?"

"I married him." Sara stood behind the detective as he rapped on the door.

"You guys got hitched?" He couldn't imagine it lasting. "Detective Vartann LVPD! I need to speak to Linda Keller."

When the door opened and Sara saw a petite 30-something red-haired woman, she relaxed and removed her hand off her weapon.

"I'm Detetive Vartann and this is Sara Sid...Grissom of..."

"Sidle."

"Sorry." Vartann restarted, "This is Sara Sidle of the Las Vegas Crime Lab and we're here to question you regarding the murder of Mike Rodgers, do you know the..."

"I killed him," the woman announced as she stepped out of her home and shut the door. "I'm ready to go to the station."

Surprised by the turn of events, Vartann stammered, "Um, are you...okay...well, that was easy enough." He glanced over at Sara. "Let's go, Mrs. Keller."

"Why did you kill him?" Sara queried on the way to squad car waiting at the curb.

"Because he physically and mentally abused my sister, his wife, for years and then he made her murder look like an accident and he got away with it."

The reply hit too close to home for Sara on a day when marital problems and controlling husbands were already weighing heavily on her mind.

"Sounds like a really good reason to me," Vartann sighed as he opened the squad car door. "But unfortunately not a legal reason and on the record I have to advise people not to take the law into their own hands." He instructed the cop, "She's voluntarily coming in for questioning."

After watching the squad car drive away, Sara said, "You're married, Vartann."

"Yeah."

"Happily?"

"Sure," he lied. Checking his watch, he counted the minutes until he rendezvoused with a 23 year old card dealer named Trent that he had met the other night. "I'm a real family guy."

---

"Are you married?" Tawny giggled into the well-dressed party guest's ear. She and four of her co-workers had been hired to give lap dances at a large private party for some local politician and she was trying to make at least two grand by the end of the night.

"Do you see a ring on my finger?" the 40 year old married father of three asked the buxom blonde on his lap. "Now how about you stop askin' questions, Sugar, and start grindin'."

"Are you a good tipper?" she cooed in his ear.

"Unfortunately I gave all of my large bills to my pain in the ass little brother, but I could make a stop at the ATM downstairs on the way to my limo...and there's more back in my hotel room." Locking eyes on the babe, he growled, "Do you do anything for a living besides dance?"

"Are you propositioning me, cowboy?"

"Maybe."

"Are you a cop?"

"No, ma'am," Chuck Stokes laughed, "that's my little brother's line of work. He's the good brother...I'm the bad boy of the family."

"I like bad boys," Tawny purred as she slinked over the Armani suit before her. "Some bad boys."

"Which ones?"

"The ones who have cash and aren't afraid to part with it."

"Let's go, Miss Kansas." She had told him she was a former Kansas beauty queen. "I'm gonna show you a real good time."

---

"I want to show him the time of his life," Nick told Catherine as they shifted through glass fragments on the side of the road. They had been sent to process a 5-car pile up just outside of Boulder City. "Do you think your mother would be able to help?"

"Are you kidding?" Catherine nodded, "My mother adores Greg."

"What's not to adore?"

"I could list ten things easy."

"Okay, yeah, so could I, but the good things outweigh the bad by far." With every minute that passed, he felt a little worse about his words to Greg earlier that night and he couldn't wait to see him at home later and cheer him up.

Still hurting from breaking up with Warrick, she struggled to stay upbeat. "My mother wakes up at six every morning. I'll call her at six thirty after she's had a cup of coffee."

"Thanks, I really appreciate it." Not only did he want Lily's help to get a party room and a VIP suite at the casino, he wanted her to advise him on 1960s Vegas, so he could create the most authentic retro atmosphere imaginable.

"So this date extravaganza you're planning...is it because you're in the dog house trying to get out, or are you paying it forward?"

"I'm tryin' to prove once and for all that I'm not ashamed he's my boyfriend and that I have no problem dancing with him."

"You still haven't danced with him?" she blasted. "Jesus Christ, Nicky, I told you to dance with the poor guy over a month ago."

"I know and I shoulda listened."

"Men...pfft."

Since Catherine hadn't told him about the break up, Nick felt like he couldn't say anything.

"I'll be at the party."

"No, no you can't."

"You're inviting 50 strangers, but I can't be there?"

"It'll be weird to have you there." He laughed, "50 gay guys and you. That's weird."

She muttered, "It'll be relaxing to be at a party full of gay men. I won't be under date pressure." When her friend glanced over, she shifted her gaze, "He told you, huh?"

"Yeah." Feeling sorry for her, Nick sweetly said, "I told him he's makin' a huge mistake."

"Thanks, Nicky." She flicked away an unwelcomed tear. "I think he is too."

***

Chapter 24: Life in and out of the Dog House

Taking a break for the first time in six hours, Catherine peeled off her latex gloves and leaned against the Denali, "Rough night, huh, Nicky?"

"Brutal." The five car pile up had left three people dead, including a child, and seven people critically injured. "At least we were able to piece together what happened after all that effort." It was always easier to deal with the exhaustion if he had found answers in the process rather than going home spent and still clueless.

"I'll make that call to my mother that we discussed if you'll go find me some coffee...good coffee."

"You got a deal." Smiling, Nick stowed his camera in the back of the truck. "I remember seein' a café in that strip mall down the road." He fished for his cell phone from his jacket. "I could use the fresh air, so I'll walk."

"Checking in with the wife?"

"No comment," he laughed. Upon opening his phone, Nick saw a text message had come in while he had been occupied on the scene. It was from Greg, and the words had a smile on his face in a flash 'Sorry for being such an oversharing dweeb. Still love me?' It was remarkably close to the message he had texted to Greg hours earlier 'Sorry for being such an uptight jerk. Still wearing my ring?'

While walking to the café, Nick texted his answer.

---

'Of course I still love you.' Sitting in the locker room smelling like lemons instead of decomp, Greg snapped a photo of the commitment band on his finger and sent it to Nick.

"Did you just take a picture of your hand?" Warrick asked, popping open his locker.

"Yeah." Feeling awkward because he knew his coworker had told Nick he was making a mistake jumping into a monogamous relationship, Greg remained silent.

"What are those pictures from?"

"Huh?"

"On your locker." Warrick pointed. "Those are new, right?"

"Yeah." Reminding himself not to geek out, Greg nodded. "Nick hung them up there before I came in. We couldn't have pictures up when we weren't out."

"You guys look happy."

"We are." Greg couldn't suppress the urge to set the record straight. "And in spite of what some people may think, we're gonna stay that way...for the long haul...it's the real deal."

"Good." Warrick grabbed his jacket and shut his locker. "I'm happy for you."

The words didn't heed Greg's plea to stay put on his tongue. "No you're not."

"What?"

Immediately intimidated by his burly co-worker, Greg clammed up.

"You obviously have something on your mind, so let me hear it."

"That's okay. It wasn't important."

"Spit it out, Sanders."

"Okay, if you insist." Greg anxiously glanced up at the man looming over him. "I think that you probably kinda think that maybe I'm not..." He opted against 'worthy'. "...the right guy for your best friend. I think you're dealing okay with Nick being out, but you have a hard time with it being me he wants to spend the rest of his life with and I want to believe it's not personal, but I kinda feel like it is, and I've been reluctant to ask why...because I'm afraid the answer will hurt."

"You think it's a white thing?" Warrick joked.

"No." Greg laughed until he realized his African American co-worker wasn't. "Is it?"

"I was yankin' your chain."

"I knew that."

"No, you didn't." Warrick took a seat next to jittery friend. "Look...this whole thing has been a lot for me to deal with really fast. Nicky and I went on vacations together, scammed girls together, it was hard to hear all that was a lie."

"It wasn't a lie at the time."

"That doesn't make it any easier on the ex-best friend."

"Ex?"

"You're his best friend now. He said it himself."

"Is that the problem?" Greg said, "You think I took your best friend away?"

"No." Warrick laughed again. "I left high school a long time ago. I'm not jealous. And you didn't take over best friend duty until I got married and gave up the position. It was my own damn fault for lettin' that bitch boss me around."

"So Nick and I have Yoko to thank for our happiness?"

"Kinda ironic since she made my life miserable."

"Don't worry, even if she's responsible for our union, we won't send her a wedding invite."

"Thanks, 'cause it's not every day that a brother gets invited to party in Malibu with the Scandinavian country club crowd."

"That's a joke, right?"

"Is it? Warrick laughed. "How many brothers belong to your father's country club?"

"Just so you know, I hated that place. I never fit in. I was way too geeky and intolerant of diversity."

"Less than five, huh?"

"Three."

"Look..." Warrick returned to topic, "even though I'm squeamish about the details of your relationship with Nick sometimes, I really don't have a problem with the two of you being together. It's the thought of you two being apart that has me bugged."

The answer only confused Greg more.

"I thought long and hard tonight and what comes down to is I keep losin' the people I care about. The one constant in my life is this job and the team. If you and Nick break up, that's gonna mess things up and I think I'm worried that he's a sensitive enough guy that if things went really bad, he'd leave. He'd wanna start over. Or go back home to his family. It's selfish, but I don't want to lose the one guy I know I can count on more than anyone. He's like a brother to me."

"I like that answer."

"You do?"

"It's way better than the reasons I was imagining."

"Then I'm glad we talked." Warrick stood and checked his watch. "I'm gonna hit The Strip and play a little Blackjack. You wanna join me for a few hands before goin' home to your old man?"

Greg wondered why a recovering gambling addict would be hitting The Strip to play Blackjack, but opted not to ask. "Thanks for the offer, but I already have plans."

"Maybe tomorrow."

Tommorow? It's a regular thing? "Sure." Remembering his friend's recent breakup, Greg somberly said, "Nick told me about you and Cath. He said you don't want me to talk about it, so I won't."

"You just did."

"Only to tell you I wouldn't...unless you change your mind and want me to talk about it, then I would. I'm a good listener. Ask Sara."

---

"I think we should talk, Sara," Gil told his wife's voicemail for a third time. "I think you're being very unreasonable." By now she had probably told Greg everything. He always resented that. "I know I'm in the dog house, but I think I deserve a chance to explain my point of view, don't you?" He sighed, "Call me. Please, call me back."

When he hung up, the frustrated husband glanced down at his left hand and wondered why the band of gold on his ring finger didn't magically make things better.

---

Still thinking about the photo of Greg's ring, Nick strolled back to the scene of the horrific car crash wearing a huge grin.

"You look much happier than when you left," Catherine remarked while wrapping her fingers around the coffee cup Nick was handing her. "In the old days I would have thought you got a phone number off some cute red head at the coffee shop."

"Yeah." It seemed like someone else's life when he reflected on the past. "I thought I was in the dog house, but I had a text from Greg assurin' me I'm not."

"Does that mean you don't need the big date anymore?" She took a seat on the back of the open truck.

"Are you kiddin'? I need to pay it forward before the next blow up," he chuckled into his cup.

"You fight a lot?"

"I wouldn't call it fighting." Sitting next to his friend, he shared, "Dr. Henry says it's normal to have bumps in the road when guys are workin' through issues and definin' their relationship. It doesn't help that I'm stubborn and Greg's a pain in the ass. But I trust my therapist and he says it's healthy to be vocal, that the real problems begin when communication stops."

"Tell me about it," she sighed.

"Sorry, relationship stuff is probably the last thing you want to talk about right now." After spending hours listening to Catherine, he was royally pissed at Warrick's treatment of her.

"Honestly, I'm just happy to have someone talking to me, and me being miserable doesn't make me want you to be unhappy. I'm glad someone is getting along." She patted his shoulder. "How about we finish this coffee and get the evidence back to the lab, so you can clock out, rush home, and have the make-up sex you were thinking about on the walk back from the coffee shop."

"I wasn't..."

"Oh please," she rolled her eyes.

"Busted." Even though they were alone, he whispered, "It doesn't freak you out to think of Greg and me being..."

"Naked?"

"I was gonna say intimate, but yeah."

She cracked up. "No, I've been picturing you guys naked for years. The only difference now is I picture you naked together sometimes."

"For the record I've pictured you naked too. It never did anything for me," he chuckled. "That was a biiiiig gay clue right there, huh?"

"Huge." She sat a little taller and pushed out her chest. "If these babies don't produce wood, you're gay."

"So the thought of two guys in bed doesn't turn your stomach?"

"Are you kidding?" Grinning behind her coffee cup, Catherine admitted, "Watching gay porn has always been one of my favorite guilty pleasures."

"No. Really?"

"What's so hard to believe? Watching two incredibly hot naked guys flexing their muscles and getting it on without a big busted blonde chick on screen making me feel guilty for not choosing fat-free dressing for my salad at lunch? It's the perfect diversion after a crappy day at the office. Gay adult entertainment and my Rabbit have gotten me through some very lonely times." She made a mental note to pick up a jumbo pack of batteries and renew her subscription to Men at Play. "A gay man fantasizes that he's in the place of one of the guys on screen, but a straight woman imagines herself in between the hotties for the ultimate stud sandwich fantasy. I can easily block the fact that they're doing stuff to each other and make it all about me."

"Okay, yeah, it makes sense now." The newly out man laughed, "I can't believe you've watched more gay porn than me."

"I have?"

"I only had my first glimpse last night as unbelievable as that may seem."

"Wow, you really were in denial."

"Yeah."

"So where did you learn your moves if you never...noooo." A smile spread across her face. "Sanders taught you everything you know. Wow. That's like hearing Gilligan secretly tutored the America's Cup Champions."

"Hey now...it's not like I had to start from scratch." Surprised that he could have the discussion and laugh during it, he said, "Most of my moves with the ladies were directly transferable...minus some boob action. Nipples are still in play, but there's nothin' to grab." He froze. I can't believe I just said that.

"Hey, a mouth's a mouth, right?"

"Yeah."

"And an ass is an ass," she chortled.

"Bonding time over." He anxiously cleared his throat before gulping coffee.

"Come on!" She elbowed him laughing and continued in spite of the order to cease and desist, "I caught Lindsay and her friends practicing BJs on ice pops one day last summer."

"They must have wanted to die."

"They didn't know." She cackled, "Like any good mom, I was spying."

"Ah."

"Honestly, as weird as this is going to sound, it was kinda sweet. I did the same thing when I was her age. It's kind of a universal coming of age ritual along with kissing your pillow and letting your fingers do the walking."

Believing the conversation was a perfect combination of funny and awkward, Nick settled back against the wall of his truck and enjoyed the lighthearted diversion.

"All that pillow kissing and ice pop sucking paid off. If you don't believe me you can call Johnny Ramos. He was the first benefactor."

"As tempting as that is, I think I'll pass, thanks."

Clutching her coffee cup, Catherine's smirk expanded. "The image of you at 35 giving a Bomb Pop a thrill in some belated right of passage is sweetly hilarious."

"You're killin' me," he whimpered while trying to hide behind a small coffee cup. "Shoulda got the Venti cup, it woulda covered my whole face."

"C'mon, I really need some levity and what better way to relax after a shitty shift than chatting with a girlfriend about boys?"

"Are you officially applyin' to be my Fag Hag?"

"Look who's learning the lingo." She flicked her hair and met his eyes. "I'll be happy to be your Fag Hag, Nicky. It's honestly the best offer I've had from a guy in a long, long time."

Seeing the sadness in his friend's eyes, Nick chose to leap out of his comfort zone and keep talking, "Greg will be flattered when he hears you thought I would need a big 'ol Bomb Pop to mirror his anatomy."

"Ha!" Laughing together, she said, "You know, the problem with ice pop practice was it didn't prepare us girls for the big ending. That part came as a surprise. I mean in theory I knew the finale would be explosive, but it was very overwhelming the first time because all my ice pops ever did was melt very slowly."

"I could see how a girl would get a false sense of security."

"Tell me...after all those years of being on the receiving end, what did you think the first time you found yourself on your knees? Did you think back to high school and college and feel bad for the girls you didn't give a second chance because they weren't good?"

Nick covered his face as he laughed, "I can't believe you just asked me that!"

"Come on! It's rare insight for a guy to have gone as long as you did before switching teams. Indulge me." Since he was gay, she pleaded with her eyes, not her chest. "Please."

"Okay, okay." He always melted when a girl had sad eyes. "This is just between you and me, got it? I'm serious now. If you mention this to anyone other than Greg, the Keppler bullshit will seem like nothin'. Betrayed won't begin to describe the way I'll feel."

"Cross my heart and hope to die." She made the Girl Scout pledge sign.

"Like you were ever a Girl Scout," he laughed before quieting to a whisper, "Greg and I still laugh about this, so I know it by heart. My exact words were 'Damn. I feel really bad about givin' girls shit about not wantin' to finish."

"I knew it!" she cheered. "That's a very satisfying answer. I wish all straight guys would have to do it once just to see it takes a little practice."

"I think you're gonna have a hard time sellin' that idea to straight guys."

"Yeah."

"And in all fairness, it's not that easy takin' care of girl the first time either. I was scared shitless and I was terrible."

"Aww, I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

"If you don't believe me, you can ask Kim Warner. She told me flat out - that was terrible. She didn't even bother fakin' the big O."

"I believe you, but give me her phone number anyway, because I'm writing a wedding toast for you and I bet she has some good ammo."

"Okay, I'll look it up when I get home...not." He polished off his coffee.

"Yeah, if you need any tips, I'll be happy to give you advice."

He winked, "Bein' a frequent practitioner and a fast learner, I'm an expert now, thanks."

"Lucky Greg."

---

"Lucky me," Roy declared when Bobby answered the door wearing a suit and tie. "Did you have to go to court today?"

"No, Greg told me to be wearin' a suit when I see you." The Ballistics Tech undressed his boy toy with his eyes while loosening his tie. "I still don't know why."

"Does why really matter?" the Texan laughed as he tugged on his boyfriend's leather belt. "Let's not waste time talking. I'm only on a 45 minute break from training class."

---

"I can't believe my car broke down only a week after having it back from the shop. I don't have time for this." Vartann checked his watch as he rode in the passenger seat of Sara's Denali. "Thanks for dropping me home on the way back to the lab." He pointed. "Take a left up here."

"This is a nice neighborhood."

"My wife's father left us the house when he passed away last year. It's older, but you can't beat the location and the schools aren't overcrowded like the newer neighborhoods."

"You really are a family guy."

"Yeah." He checked his watch again and hoped his secret lover would wait for him. "Take a right into that cul-de-sac. It's the blue one." He grabbed his cell phone to check for messages.

Sara did as instructed. "Um...you said the blue one, right?"

"Yeah," he answered while texting his date.

Staring at the piles of clothes on the lawn and the large sign that said 'Find a new place to live you cheating bastard!' Sara nervously said, "I um...I think there might be a problem. I'm sure it's a misunderstanding, but um..."

When Vartann read the sign, his heart skipped a beat. "Oh shit."

Just as Sara parked the car, Connie Vartann, a plain, petite 37 year old, flew out of the house wielding a baseball bat. Her brunette ponytail swinging as she marched down the walk, she screamed, "Don't even think of coming inside you lying rat bastard!"

"Connie!" Vartann jumped out of the truck. "Have you lost your mind?"

Sara remained behind the wheel, debating whether or not she should interfere.

Gripping his head Vartann watched the neighboring wives, all stay-at-home moms, and Mrs. Lennox, a 74 year old widow who treated Connie like a daughter, rush outside. "What are you doing, Con?"

"What am I doing?" Connie shrieked before breaking into a maniacal laugh. "I think you're the one who needs to explain what they've been doing! Or should I say who you've been doing?"

"Con..." The Detective made a T with his hands. "Time out, baby. I don't know what has you thinking I've been cheating on you, but whatever it is, you've misunderstood." When his wife held up a photo of him getting serviced by someone he knew he'd have a lot of talking to do. From the angle of the photo, and because he was gripping the guy's mop of dark hair, he couldn't figure out who it was or when it was taken. But upon closer inspection he recognized a favorite playmate's birthmark. That's Evan.

"Who is she?" Connnie spat.

She? Vartann's panic reduced by half. She thinks it's a woman! Thank Christ! And thank Evan for not cutting his hair!

"Who is she, Tony?" Although she swore she wouldn't cry, tears started to form in the spurned wife's eyes. "Answer me!"

"She's nobody," Vartann calmly answered in his stoic cop voice. "She was a stupid lapse in judgment...a hooker who wanted to get out of being taken to the station."

"A hooker!" The news made the germphobic wife sick to her stomach. "You let some filthy prostitute put her mouth on you and then you came home and stuck it in me?"

"No, no..." He thought on the fly. "I made her use a dental dam."

"Oh, okay then."

When his wife broke into a serene smile and started speaking in a sweet voice, he knew she was going to lose it. "Con..."

"You son of a bitch!"

When Sara saw the disgruntled wife lunge forward with the bat, she instinctively rushed out of the car. "Ma'am! Ma'am! Please put the bat down!"

Tony ducked the blow and dashed away instead of subduing his wife. "Honey, come on! Don't make a scene! Let's talk this out inside!"

"Hooker my ass!" Connie yelled when she saw the LVPD woman coming at her. "All that waiting around you people do...waiting for the Coroner in those remote locations."

"Ma'am." Sara stepped forward. "How about we..."

"Connie! No!" Vartann raced back to his wife's side, but didn't get there in time to stop her from slamming Sara with the baseball bat.

The neighbors screamed when the female officer hit the ground.

"Call 911, Margie!" Mrs. Lennox ordered while hurrying next door as fast as her walker would allow. "Check the woman on the ground, Lisa!" It appeared she was unconscious. "Don't hurt her, Tony!" she yelled she saw him wrestling Connie to the ground to get the bat away from her. She desperately tried to reason with her pseudo daughter, "Honey, let go! Right now! Let go!"

---

"He wouldn't let go," Tawny cried as she told her story to the female officer. "I told him I wanted to leave, but he wouldn't let go."

"Is that when you threw the vase at the wall?" Officer Penny Batista queried while taking copious notes. She and her partner had been routed to The Tempest by hotel security, who reported that a guest had assaulted a girl who they believed to be a prostitute.

Holding a bag of ice to her swelling face, Tawny sniffled, "He said I owed him, but I didn't owe him a damn anything as I saw it."

"Did you exchange sexual favors for money, Ms. Cooper?"

"I don't want to talk about it. I have the right not to say anything, right?"

---

"Truth." Slouching in the bar booth, Nick slurred, "There's no way I'm doin' another one of your crazy dares." To prepare for what he imagined would be a horribly invasive question, he downed his third shot of tequila and slammed the shot glass on the table. "Let me hear it." After logging in the evidence they collected from the scene, he felt sorry for his heartbroken friend and suggested they go for a quick drink. Somehow one beer had turned into two hours of boozing and silliness.

"Top, bottom or versatile?"

"I knew you were gonna ask that!"

Catherine motioned for the cocktail waitress to bring another round.

"Top," he replied without inflection, but after a few seconds he grinned behind his beer bottle and added, "until recently."

"Ha!" She slapped her thigh. "I knew there was a reason for Greg's newfound confidence."

"I really must be faced to tell you that."

"You are," she burst into a drunken giggle. "I haven't seen you this plastered in years."

"The only thing I had in my stomach was coffee." He reached for the last chicken fingers and devoured it in one bite. "I was starving." After smacking his lips, he said, "Truth or dare, baby? Truth...or...dare."

"Dare." She waited with baited breath.

Since they were in a totally secluded corner of the bar, he felt comfortable asking something outrageous. "Pretend that beer bottle is a popsicle and show me your technique."

"Why didn't I think to ask you that?" she chided herself.

"Too late." He sat back. "C'mon, give me a show, Hot Lips. I wanna see what Johnny Ramos got that still has him whimperin' your name in his dreams today."

"I can't believe I'm doing this." She lifted the bottle to her grin. "A firm grip around the base is key."

"I couldn't agree more. It prevents floppage and subsequent teeth-related injuries."

"Exactly. It's always nice to begin with a slight tease to the tip."

He was stunned that she could keep a straight face and speak in a professorial voice. "I gotta take a picture of this with my cell phone."

"Let me reapply my lipstick first." She fumbled for her purse. "Because the photo will probably appear on your MySpace account before 5th period tomorrow and I want to look good or those cheerleader bitches will be talking about me in the halls."

Nick loved the oh-so-true high school tidbit. "With the stupid shit I did in college, I can't imagine having MySpace around back in the day. I woulda had to forget bein' a cop."

"You and me both."

"Why are these people callin' me when I'm off the damn clock?" Seeing the calls from the police station, he drunkenly scolded, "Leave me alone, people!"

---

"Your brother isn't answering his home or cell phone, Mr. Stokes." Officer Pinkston delivered the news, "I've fulfilled my professional courtesy obligation by leaving him multiple messages, but I can't wait any more, I have to take you to booking."

"God dammit!" Chuck huffed, "Can't ya send a patrol car over to Nick's house and..."

"No can do." Pinkston pointed down the hall. "If you're not happy with the way things are going, maybe you'll think twice before paying for sex and assaulting the girl when she won't toss you an extra freebie."

"That's not what happened!"

---

"What happened?" Gil barked at Vartann when he saw him in the ER. "Where's Sara? All they told me was she was taken by ambulance to Desert Palms and you rode with her."

"I'm really sorry, Grissom."

The words sliced through the panicked husband. "She's..." The words momentarily caught in his throat, "gone?"

"No!" Vartann felt horrible for misleading him. "No! Oh my God. No! I said I was sorry because it was my wife who assaulted her with a baseball bat. Luckily Connie isn't very strong, she didn't wind up or swing hard. Sara's conscious and having a CT scan and some X-rays of her shoulder. The bat hit her in the head and landed on her shoulder. The doctor says they can't say anything about a head injury until they do a scan, but from Sara's behavior, he doesn't think there's any serious damage. She needs stitches though. I don't know how many."

"Stitches," Gil parroted when he finally started breathing again. His shell-shocked brain processed that stitches were much better than death. "I..." His entire body was trembling. "I...I don't understand how..."

"Connie thought I was screwing Sara behind her back."

"Why would she think that?" Gil asked, gaining strength and snapping into CSI mode.

"It's a long story, but Sara has hair similar to someone I was photographed with and when Connie saw her bringing me home, my car died at the scene, she jumped to a very wrong conclusion and lost her mind." Feeling terrible about the ordeal, he repeated his apology with twice the remorse in his voice, "I'm really sorry."

---

"You're not sorry." Catherine grabbed her friend by the shirt sleeve. "You're dying to leave me and go home to your man."

"I'm really beat." Nick returned to his seat. "Thirty minutes. Then I gotta go home and get some sleep...and maybe a little somethin' before I fall asleep."

"Whose turn is it on top?"

He choked on the sip of ice water he had just taken. "Why do people assume we have it worked out on a freakin' calendar?"

"It was a joke." She settled back in the booth. "Speaking of turns, it's your turn to ask."

"Truth or dare?" To battle his cotton mouth, he took another drink of water while waiting for the answer.

"Truth."

"Did you ever fool around with Ecklie?"

"No!" She was appalled he could even entertain the notion. "What on Earth would make you think that?"

"It did seem like you were suckin' up to him for a while there."

"I know where my bread is buttered, but when kissing ass, I draw the line at literally kissing the boss's ass."

"Don't go there," he laughed, thinking of the ongoing debate with Greg. "I think the whole concept is freaky, but havin' it be Ecklie's ass gettin' kissed raises the squick factor by a mile."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute," she slurred, "You've never..."

"No, ma'am." When their eyes met, he whispered, "Have you ever..."

"No," she snickered, "but I've been on the receiving end."

"Really." He slid closer. "Why did you..."

"After seeing it in the movies, I was curious."

"Who was the guy?"

She wiggled her brows. "Who said it was guy?"

"Nooooo." Nick's eyes widened to saucers. "You're Bi?"

"No, but I was adventurous enough to let Eddie take me to the Bunny Ranch one time as a couple."

---

"I'm not a working girl!" Tawny told the officer. "Did you get a hold of Greg Sanders like I asked you? He'll vouch for me. I'm a waitress and an exotic dancer. I met that guy working a private party!"

"Sorry, Greg's not answering his cell." Officer Batista checked her watch. "He works nights, he's probably sleeping."

"Ooh! I have his mom's number. She can vouch for me. Will that work? Will that count?"

---

"How long will my wife be gone getting her X-rays, nurse?" Gil wanted an estimate before he began pacing a hole in the floor.

"What's her name?"

"Sara."

The busy nurse checked her update list. "I just got a call that she's on her way back."

"That was fast."

"They couldn't do 'em."

"Why not?"

"Because she's pregnant." From the husband's reaction, the nurse gathered he wasn't aware his wife was expecting. "Uh...if you'll excuse me, I need to take these..." She mumbled something that she hoped sounded like complex medical jargon, "to Dr. Ortiz stat." She zipped around the counter and down the hall. "I'll be back shortly." Oh shit!

"Pregnant." The genius with a Ph.D. in Biology could only think of one question. "How did she get pregnant?"

---

"Mrs. Sanders!" Tawny rapidly spoke into the police station telephone. "It's me, Tawny, the future mother of your grandchildren!"

"Oh! Oh my God!" Jan shrieked, "David pick up the extension! It's Tawny! I think she's agreeing to be a surrogate!"

---

"I'd be your stork any day, Nicky." Snuggled up to her friend in the back seat of a taxi, Catherine rambled, "Maybe I have a few good eggs left in me. Do you want me to go see my gyno and check?"

"You'd really do that for us?" He was touched by the offer.

"Remember that time we were in Pahrump processing the case with the head and kidneys in a bowling bag?"

"Like it was yesterday."

"You said..." Trying to focus her eyes on one of the three Nick's she was seeing. "You said you would give me a kidney if I ever needed one. So if you would give me an organ, I think the least I could do is have your baby."

"That's really sweet, Cath."

"Yo!" The cab driver, a transplant from New York, yelled over his shoulder. "Hold off on makin' that baby until you're out of my cab, people. I don't want you messing up my clean seats."

"You got nothin' to worry about," Nick assured the uptight man, "I don't have a turkey baster on me."

---

"Pregnant?" Sara stared blankly at her pale husband. "Who told you I was pregnant?"

"The nurse." Gil randomly pointed down the hall. "S...she told me."

"She never told me," Sara winced from the pain and the shock of the news. "Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"I don't believe this." The unsuspecting mother-to-be brought a trembling hand to her stomach. "A baby."

"A baby." Gil reached out and brushed his fingertips over Sara's cheek. "I'm so sorry that I didn't let you choose between Days or Ecklie."

"It's okay." The whole argument seems ridiculous after the day I've had. A baby." She was glad the X-ray area had been backed up, because she would have answered 'no' if asked about being pregnant.

"A baby." He reached out and placed his hand on her womb. "I can't believe you're having a baby."

"She's not," Doctor Manny Ortiz, a handsome athletic resident, announced from the gap in the curtain.

"What?" Gil whirled around to see the source of news. "She lost the baby? Was it because of the blow? I don't understand. What happened?"

"I'm sorry to put you through all this, Sir, but she was never pregnant."

Sara started worrying that the blow to her head was worse than originally thought. "I...I'm not tracking."

"We have two patients named Sara." Manny apologetically informed the couple, "When you asked for your wife's status, Mr. Grissom, you only referred to her as Sara and the nurse unfortunately glanced down and saw the other Sara's information, not Sara Sidle's. Again, I'm terrible sorry for any duress the information caused you. The mistake has been documented in the nurse's file and she..." When he received an emergency page, he grabbed his beeper, "A patient is coding, I'm sorry."

With the doctor gone, Sara watched her husband for a moment and then said, "Look at you. You're disappointed."

"No, I'm not, I'm just...I don't know my ass from my elbow at the moment, Sara. I thought you were injured, and then I got here and Vartann spoke as though you were dead, and then the damn nurse tells me you're pregnant and now I find out you're not and never were. It's all very stressful and..." After staring into his wife's eyes for two full minutes, the 51 year old man shared his conclusion, "I'm disappointed."

---

"I know a call from jail is the last thing you wanted today, Dad." Chuck Stokes gripped phone's handle as hard as his sweaty palm would allow. "I'm sorry for disappointin' you, but Nicky won't return the officer's phone calls, so would you please, for the sake of your grandchildren, bail me out."

Judge Stokes replied in his iciest voice, "You should have thought of my grandchildren before you yanked down your zipper for a whore."

"Please, Dad, I can't stay in jail."

"You made your bed, Charles. Lie in it. If you're lonely, find another bimbo to pay. Don't call me."

"No! Please! Shit!" The sound of a dial tone made him see red. "This is a friggin' nightmare!"

---

"Am I dreaming?" Greg asked with his eyes still clamped shut. "Or is that really you, Cletus?" Burrowed under the bed covers, he rolled onto his back to see.

"Honey, I'm hoooome!" Nick caressed his lover's lips with his. "Mmm, I missed you. You taste like toothpaste and smell like lemons, Decomp Boy. I don't think you've ever smelled squeaky cleaner."

"It was horrible. I had to scrub myself raw twice." Noting the pupils gazing at him were dilated, Greg said, "Why do you taste like beer and smell like a bar? Your message said you were going to breakfast, not boozing."

"Cath opted for The Watering Hole instead of Frank's. I didn't mean to get faced, but I drank on an empty stomach and she didn't want to go home to an empty house, so I wanted to cheer her up. I tried to leave twice, I swear, but she kept pleading for me to stay a little longer."

"You're allowed to have friends and hang out with them. You don't have to justify it." Propping up on his elbow to mirror his partner, Greg said, "I totally don't want to be the possessive husband type. I don't care if you go out after work without me as long as you let me know you're okay and when to expect you. Not because I don't trust you, because I'm still traumatized from you being disappearing and being tossed in a coffin."

"Hell, you and me both." After stealing another kiss, Nick said, "Baby, I know I was a real shit earlier, but I don't want to sleep in the dog house." He whimpered like a drunken Cocker Spaniel. "Can I sleep with you?"

Greg responded by lifting the covers. "Get in here, Rover."

"Yes!" In record time Nick shucked everything but his briefs and snuggled up face-to-face. "Mmm you're nice and warm." While Eskimo kissing, he whispered, "I'm really sorry about how I acted. I may be a good friend to people, but sometimes I'm shitty boyfriend to you. Even though you were wrong about what I was discussin' with 'Rick, I never shoulda called you an A-hole. And I shoulda been thrilled that you were excited to tell people I'm your guy and that our life together has been fun enough to brag about to your Lab Rat pals. Tonight when I was snappin' pics of DBs, I thought about my life and would I have any regrets if I had been the one to die in the car crash. One jumped right out at me."

"Really? What?"

Nick delivered the news through a smile, "Not dancin' with you when I had the chance." Watching his partner's lips curve into a brilliant smile, he knew the big date he was planning would go over well. "G, would you do me the honor of puttin' on your best dancin' shoes this Saturday night? 'Cause I wanna take you out on the town and show you off."

"Seriously?" The sleepy man was suddenly wide awake. "You're gonna take me clubbing?"

"Somethin' like that." It was hard not to blurt the surprise.

"I'm intrigued." The gumshoe fan remarked in his best PI voice.

"I'm gonna leave here at eight pm on Saturday. At ten pm, you'll receive a delivery and some more information. Until then, that's all you get to know."

"It's a mystery date?" Greg snapped to sitting, "I've always wanted one of those!"

"I think you just morphed into a 5 year old boy on Christmas morning." When he got pounced on and frantically kissed, Nick laughed, "Now you're imitatin' the puppy that a 5 year old gets on Christmas morning."

"I love your laugh when you're wasted, Cletus."

"Mmm, and I love you." Nick pinned his suddenly hyper lover to the sheets. "Wanna wrestle for the top spot?" He teased, "I'm definitely trashed enough for you to overpower me."

Enjoying the feel of his hands being trapped against the mattress, Greg shook his head. "I'm all yours, Jocko." He loved being sandwiched between a deluxe body and deluxe bedding.

"What are you in the mood for, baby?" The question was punctuated with a sloppy kisses and a grind. "Hmm?"

His body igniting, Greg moaned, "Keeping in theme with our upcoming date...surprise me."

Glancing down at his unresponsive crotch, Nick laughed, "I hope you didn't have your heart set on bottoming, because I'm not up for the challenge."

"Did you do shots?"

"Five I think."

"Cletus..." Greg droned, "I thought we said no more tequila."

"Sorry."

"Sex is out, because I'm not in the mood to top."

"Who has to have sex to have fun?" With a naughty smirk, Nick flipped his partner over. "Hey, you said you scrubbed yourself raw twice, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"You're hittin' the jackpot tonight, baby! I'm drunk enough to stumble right out of my comfort zone." Yanking down his lover's briefs, he laughed, "Only problem is, I'll have to find somethin' else to do for the first time on our honeymoon."

"No way!"

"Oh yeah, I'm wasted enough to go for it." Nick smacked his skeptical lover's ass.

Greg braced for the thrill of his life. "Wait...you're not just gonna dive in, right? I need some build up. I mean, it's kind of..."

"Woulda ya shut up and let me focus," the anxious drunk ordered while laughing. "You know I get tense and self-conscious when I'm tryin' somethin' new." To work up the nerve, he decided to kiss his way down from his partner's shoulder blades. "Don't worry though, I saw two guys doin' it on that movie site and I got the gist."

"Oh. Okay. Good. Not that I was worried. I mean it's not like much could go wrong." Greg tried to relax. "I'll shut up now." Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Nick on a direct course for his crack. "Uh..." When his lover's tongue swirled over his lower back, he panicked and bolted to the edge of the bed. "Sorry."

"What the hell?" Kneeling in the middle of the mattress, Nick stared at his mate with confusion. "What'd I do wrong?"

"No, it's what you were about to do. Sorry, um..." Feeling ridiculous, Greg rambled, "All of a sudden I really thought about the concept and...well...to be honest, it um, seems a little...squicky. I think it might be hard for me to kiss you after your mouth goes...there, and I really like kissing you, so...thanks, but no thanks."

"What? After beggin' and whinin' for me to do this how many freakin' times? Not to mention makin' feel retarded for bein' reluctant." The stunned lover tossed his hands in the air. "Here I am all liquored up, ready to lick, and you balk when I'm T minus an inch from your crack? Unfrickin'believable!"

His brows knitting, Greg whimpered, "When you put it like that it sounds..."

"Hilarious!" Nick's hysterical laughter shook the bed as he collapsed onto the comforter.

"Are you laughing me?"

"Hell yeah I'm laughin' at you, ya goof!" Nick paused to breathe and then resumed laughing like a hyena. "It's too squicky. Damn right it's squicky! That's exactly what I've been tellin' you all along." He glanced over shaking his head. "Yes, I'm laughin' at you, because you drive me insane, but you're so god damn adorable when you pull this shit it only makes me love you more."

"So you're not mad."

"No, I'm relieved. Just because we're gay doesn't mean we have to munch each other, plenty of straight and gay people pee on each other in this town and it'll be a cold day in hell before I do that with ya and I'd crawl back in the coffin with the ants before puttin' on a diaper and lettin' you feed me a bottle and wipe me."

"Good to know and...eww." Sitting on the bed with his arms wrapped around his knees, the balker said, "It honestly looked intriguing in the movies, but in reality...not so much."

"You're a very cute neurotic, G."

"And I'm all yours!" Laughter replaced embarrassment. "How's that for good news, huh? What's next? Finding an expired million dollar lottery ticket?"

"Get over here."

Crawling across the king-size bed, Greg said, "For what's it's worth, the build up and banter about it was really fun."

"Uh huh." Nick pulled him into his arms. "Forgive me if I just nod politely and smile, okay?"

"Ha!"

Once they were back on their sides facing each other, Nick wiggled his brows, "Brace yourself, 'cause I'm gonna propose we do somethin' really radical."

"Uh oh."

"Sleep."

"That I can do. I'll even go as far as to say I can do it well."

"Up for some spooning?"

"Since we're both too tired to fork, yeah." Greg grabbed his briefs from the bottom of the bed and tugged them on before slipping into Nick's waiting arms. "Thanks for keeping your promise."

"Even if you didn't let me do it."

"No, not that one." Mindlessly stroking his partner's arm with his fingertips, Greg reminded him, "You promised that no matter how bad things got at work, you wouldn't let the tension drive us apart."

"A promise is a promise." Enjoying the rhythmic stroking of his arm, Nick closed his eyes. "That feels nice."

"So other than the confrontation with Chloe and working the accident scene, how was your night?"

"You don't know the half of it. Literally. When I came home to get my results, our neighbor on the right accused me of runnin' a gay flop house."

"What?"

"Yeah and then when I got back to the lab, my brother showed up in the parking lot sayin' he was out here on business. He wanted me to hold off goin' public until after the election. I told both of 'em to go to hell."

"Wow, no wonder you had such a short fuse when we talked in the Layout Room."

"We don't need to keep talkin' about it." Yawning, the exhausted man, said, "I just want to relax."

"Nicky! Gregory!" Jan Sanders's voice carried right through the bedroom door as she frantically knocked. "Are you in there?"

"Tell me your mom isn't really here."

"I can't believe she barged in here again!" Greg threw back the covers and marched to the door. "Mother, I told you not to use the key when we're home. We were in the middle of something and you..."

"Chuck Stokes is being booked at your police station!" she shrieked. "Neither of you are answering your phones and..."

"What?" Nick jumped out of bed and yanked his jeans over his briefs. "Why is he bein' booked?"

"For starters, last night he paid the future mother of your babies to blow him!"

"Tawny?" they both yelled.

"Yes." The visual of the young woman's bruised face haunting her, Jan snarled, "And when she wouldn't give him a freebie the morning after, he smacked her around. The poor thing has a black eye and busted lip."

"That's it." Nick grabbed his shirt and rushed for the door. "I'm gonna save Vegas taxpayers some money and kill the self-righteous lyin' prick with my bare hands!"

Greg and Jan exchanged frantic glances before racing to stop him.

***

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