TITLE: Life Changes
BY: jayceepat
RATING: NC-17 eventually
PAIRINGS: Nick/Greg
WARNINGS: Adult content and language
SUMMARY: A casual remark can change a life.
SPOILERS: None
DISCLAIMER: If you don't recognize it, it's mine. Otherwise, everything belongs to Bruckheimer, CBS and Zuicker.
A/N: These first 6 chapters were published some time ago under another title and author name. Sorry about that but Life really does change
Someone once said that the world will end, not with a bang, but a whimper. If that means that something huge can occur with almost no warning at all, then that is exactly what happened to Nick Stokes. His world changed at the breakfast table one morning when he wasn't even thinking about life-changing subjects.
Nick had the 'holy grail'; two nights off in a row so Wednesday night he invited Warrick, Greg, most of the lab rats and some of the detectives over to watch basketball on his big screen TV. Nick was not really domestic, so to speak, but he did make a mean guacamole dip and anyone could make killer nachos. That, with beer and soda's for the folks who had to go in to work, made for a great informal party. As it turned out, Warrick was off also (that almost never happened anymore) and Greg was on-call so after everyone else left, 'Rick and Greg helped Nick clean up and Nick and Warrick decided to finish the beer. Greg stuck to soda just in case he got called in.
The conversation meandered over many different topics as it does when you have people who have known each other for years and have endured hardships together. Eventually, it came down to relationships or 'hookups' as Greg called them. It was funny that they got to this subject because Warrick's marriage was not going so good and neither Nick nor Greg had seen any action (other than a very rare pick-up) in a long time.
Out of nowhere, Greg said "You know, you two are really limiting yourselves by refusing to even consider looking at guys".
Well, after Nick got 'Rick a paper towel to wipe the beer off his face that he had snorted all over him AND got some more for himself so he could wipe the table where 'Ricks drink had spilled, he sat down and said "HUH".
Greg repeated what he had just said and followed up with "Neither of you are happy right now and you can't seem to find anyone you really could be happy with and yet, you are not even considering roughly half of the world's population. I'm not suggesting that you should suddenly start wearing rainbow shirts to work or walk down the halls singing 'I'm a Queer and I love rears', just think about it".
'Rick glared at his often annoying friend and said "You do remember, I'm a married man, right?"
Greg looked at him thoughtfully and replied, "'Rick, I've been sitting here for almost 2 hours listening to you talk about the problems you're having with Tina and how you don't know if you even have something to work on saving. Now I'm not complaining; that's what friends are for. All I'm saying is, if this marriage doesn't work and in the future, you just happen to find a perfect package, are you going to turn it down because of its plumbing? That's just dumb!"
The conversation continued for another hour or so with Greg defending his position that a lifetime commitment is the most important decision anyone will ever make and that all options should be considered and Nick, who by now was almost speechless, between the beer and the subject matter and 'Rick arguing that the word commitment implied male/female which needless to say made Greg laugh out loud. Finally, the beer was gone, the dishwasher loaded and everyone left and Nick fell into bed hoping that the odd ending to what was a great evening wouldn't keep him awake. Of course, he fell asleep before he could finish the thought in his head.
When he woke up, after nine hours of solid sleep, he couldn't figure out if his back teeth were floating in beer, urine or some strange mixture of both. He headed for the john and the shower in that order. The weird conversation from last night wasn't even a memory on the edge of his brain until...he saw the headline on the family section of the paper. 'MORE GAY COUPLES ADOPTING THAN EVER BEFORE'. Suddenly, last night's (or early this morning's) conversation came back in almost painful detail. Nick sat there for almost an hour going over every single word. Finally, he shook himself and remembered that he had a long list of things he wanted to accomplish on his second day off AND he was thinking about maybe going clubbin' tonight. Either the beer or the conversation had awakened a little itch. He thought about the redhead with the great butt he had hooked up with the last time he'd gone out and the itch grew stronger, then he thought about her shrill, whiny voice and how it had grated on his nerves until...oh yeah, that's why he'd just suddenly leaned over and kissed her. It was either that or strangle her and he didn't like to think violent thoughts. Oh well, there were bound to be more out there and maybe they wouldn't sound like fingernails scratching on a blackboard.
Nick got up and started on his 'to do' list. He had so many things he wanted to get done he would be busy all day. Unfortunately, Nick's body was so well trained in the art of grocery shopping, oil changing, tire rotation and car washing that his brain was free to roam and it kept roaming back to 'THE TALK'. By now, it had assumed bold caps in Nick's mind every time he thought about 'IT'. He found late that afternoon that he had completed his chores and didn't remember doing any of them but there was a sparkling clean truck in his driveway and a trip to his kitchen showed a well stocked fridge and all sorts of things on his pantry shelves. It was only 7.00 pm, way to early to go to any club, he wasn't tired enough to take a nap so he decided that while he had done a decent job on his living room for the party yesterday, the rest of the house could use a good scrubbing and then he would be ready for a shower, some party threads and hopefully, a little 'hookup'?
Why did he always wind up back in the kitchen? It was around 11.00 pm which was early in his day. He had cleaned the rest of his apartment; cleaned it hell, you could do brain surgery in his toilet for God's sakes. He should be ready for a shower, hot threads and a night out, club hopping and looking for a hook-up, instead he was back in the kitchen. Thank God he had gotten more beer when he had done his shopping that afternoon; just goes to show that even on auto pilot, he still had his priorities straight.
While he was cleaning, he had zoned out again only this time it was not "THE TALK", it was all the people he had known (most of them in the biblical sense). It took a while to get going because he started with the redhead with the great butt and then immediately got into a hot and heavy argument with himself about whether a pick up, whose name you couldn't even remember, counted as a relationship…sorry, 'hook-up'. He finally decided that if he didn't include his pick-ups, he wouldn't have enough people to make up a good reference list. Now that was really sad!
So, back to the redhead. What had he liked? Well that was pretty obvious; that butt was right up there at the head of the list followed by the sexy, long, red hair. So why hadn't he ever called her back. He had her number, Hell he had every number she had; work, home, cell, On-Star and pager. He had taken her to a decent mid price hotel, (he didn't like strangers in his home) and had made sure that she was very happy when it was all over. After all, he was a Southern Gentleman. And a true Southern Gentleman made sure his lady was taken care of. So why no follow up? There was that screechy voice, of course. No guy wants to wake up to that every morning.
Nick sat at his table, drinking his beer and recalled all his experiences. He really was surprised at the number of them, after he had decided to include his pick-ups. He was a trained investigator so he should do what he did on a case; make detailed notes to keep the evidence fresh in his mind. He took his beer and went into his 2nd bedroom which he had turned into an office/library. He had a really nice futon in there so Greg or Warrick could crash after one of their sport/video/man get-togethers. He realized that it had been a long time since Warrick had stayed over. Just once since his marriage, when he and Tina had been fighting and he was so angry Nick really thought for one brief moment that 'Rick would hit her if he had to put up with her for one more minute. Greg however, was another story. Nick thought sometimes that Greg stayed at his place more than his own. He wasn't complaining; Greg was great company. They always had fun together and Nick got a laugh out of Greg's freaky ideas although this last one was right on the edge of insanity.
He fired up his computer and entered all the info he had remembered in his head during the afternoon and evening. When he got through, he printed out the list. Since it was pretty clear he wasn't going out, he headed for the shower to wash off all the dirt that transferred from his home to him during his cleaning fit. When he got out, he slipped on a pair of old, loose sweats, went to the kitchen and made himself a snack, got another beer and went to get his printouts. He sat down and started reading his list. He read carefully, going back several times to re-read a sentence here and there. When he got through, he gently laid the sheets on the table, leaned back in his chair and realized that he had deliberately screwed up every single relationship he had ever been in from the age of 14 on. The only person he had not pushed away had been Kristi and that was because she got murdered hours after he slept with her. Someone else had done the screwup for him.
They were too clingy, they didn't need him enough. They were too much out there on the party scene, they were too quiet. They were too much into their own careers, they were too boring to be around. They didn't understand him or his devotion to the work he did, they understood him so well, they scared him. He had managed to find something wrong with every single person he had ever spent more than 4 nights with.
He went back to the computer. This time, his list was everyone in his life he had ever truly admired and why AND most importantly, how long had they been in his life. Two things stood out in glaring detail; it was surprising how many guys were on his list and the only long standing relationships he had maintained were with his team members
DAMN! He had found fault with every single woman in his life with the exception of his mom, his sisters, Wendy, Mandy, Catherine, Sofia and Sara. The people who influenced him and made him want to stay around them were the females he just mentioned and guys. God, it was almost 8.00 am and he needed to go to bed. His whole world had just tilted on its axis, he needed sleep and he needed to get himself back into 'work' mode.
Why did he always wind up back in the kitchen? It was around 11.00 pm which was early in his day. He had cleaned the rest of his apartment; cleaned it hell, you could do brain surgery in his toilet for God's sakes. He should be ready for a shower, hot threads and a night out, club hopping and looking for a hook-up, instead he was back in the kitchen. Thank God he had gotten more beer when he had done his shopping that afternoon; just goes to show that even on auto pilot, he still had his priorities straight.
While he was cleaning, he had zoned out again only this time it was not "THE TALK", it was all the people he had known (most of them in the biblical sense). It took a while to get going because he started with the redhead with the great butt and then immediately got into a hot and heavy argument with himself about whether a pick up, whose name you couldn't even remember, counted as a relationship…sorry, 'hook-up'. He finally decided that if he didn't include his pick-ups, he wouldn't have enough people to make up a good reference list. Now that was really sad!
So, back to the redhead. What had he liked? Well that was pretty obvious; that butt was right up there at the head of the list followed by the sexy, long, red hair. So why hadn't he ever called her back. He had her number, Hell he had every number she had; work, home, cell, On-Star and pager. He had taken her to a decent mid price hotel, (he didn't like strangers in his home) and had made sure that she was very happy when it was all over. After all, he was a Southern Gentleman. And a true Southern Gentleman made sure his lady was taken care of. So why no follow up? There was that screechy voice, of course. No guy wants to wake up to that every morning.
Nick sat at his table, drinking his beer and recalled all his experiences. He really was surprised at the number of them, after he had decided to include his pick-ups. He was a trained investigator so he should do what he did on a case; make detailed notes to keep the evidence fresh in his mind. He took his beer and went into his 2nd bedroom which he had turned into an office/library. He had a really nice futon in there so Greg or Warrick could crash after one of their sport/video/man get-togethers. He realized that it had been a long time since Warrick had stayed over. Just once since his marriage, when he and Tina had been fighting and he was so angry Nick really thought for one brief moment that 'Rick would hit her if he had to put up with her for one more minute. Greg however, was another story. Nick thought sometimes that Greg stayed at his place more than his own. He wasn't complaining; Greg was great company. They always had fun together and Nick got a laugh out of Greg's freaky ideas although this last one was right on the edge of insanity.
He fired up his computer and entered all the info he had remembered in his head during the afternoon and evening. When he got through, he printed out the list. Since it was pretty clear he wasn't going out, he headed for the shower to wash off all the dirt that transferred from his home to him during his cleaning fit. When he got out, he slipped on a pair of old, loose sweats, went to the kitchen and made himself a snack, got another beer and went to get his printouts. He sat down and started reading his list. He read carefully, going back several times to re-read a sentence here and there. When he got through, he gently laid the sheets on the table, leaned back in his chair and realized that he had deliberately screwed up every single relationship he had ever been in from the age of 14 on. The only person he had not pushed away had been Kristi and that was because she got murdered hours after he slept with her. Someone else had done the screwup for him.
They were too clingy, they didn't need him enough. They were too much out there on the party scene, they were too quiet. They were too much into their own careers, they were too boring to be around. They didn't understand him or his devotion to the work he did, they understood him so well, they scared him. He had managed to find something wrong with every single person he had ever spent more than 4 nights with.
He went back to the computer. This time, his list was everyone in his life he had ever truly admired and why AND most importantly, how long had they been in his life. Two things stood out in glaring detail; it was surprising how many guys were on his list and the only long standing relationships he had maintained were with his team members
DAMN! He had found fault with every single woman in his life with the exception of his mom, his sisters, Wendy, Mandy, Catherine, Sofia and Sara. The people who influenced him and made him want to stay around them were the females he just mentioned and guys. God, it was almost 8.00 am and he needed to go to bed. His whole world had just tilted on its axis, he needed sleep and he needed to get himself back into 'work' mode.
While he was cleaning, he had zoned out again only this time it was not "THE TALK", it was all the people he had known (most of them in the biblical sense). It took a while to get going because he started with the redhead with the great butt and then immediately got into a hot and heavy argument with himself about whether a pick up, whose name you couldn't even remember, counted as a relationship…sorry, 'hook-up'. He finally decided that if he didn't include his pick-ups, he wouldn't have enough people to make up a good reference list. Now that was really sad!
So, back to the redhead. What had he liked? Well that was pretty obvious; that butt was right up there at the head of the list followed by the sexy, long, red hair. So why hadn't he ever called her back. He had her number, Hell he had every number she had; work, home, cell, On-Star and pager. He had taken her to a decent mid price hotel, (he didn't like strangers in his home) and had made sure that she was very happy when it was all over. After all, he was a Southern Gentleman. And a true Southern Gentleman made sure his lady was taken care of. So why no follow up? There was that screechy voice, of course. No guy wants to wake up to that every morning.
Nick sat at his table, drinking his beer and recalled all his experiences. He really was surprised at the number of them, after he had decided to include his pick-ups. He was a trained investigator so he should do what he did on a case; make detailed notes to keep the evidence fresh in his mind. He took his beer and went into his 2nd bedroom which he had turned into an office/library. He had a really nice futon in there so Greg or Warrick could crash after one of their sport/video/man get-togethers. He realized that it had been a long time since Warrick had stayed over. Just once since his marriage, when he and Tina had been fighting and he was so angry Nick really thought for one brief moment that 'Rick would hit her if he had to put up with her for one more minute. Greg however, was another story. Nick thought sometimes that Greg stayed at his place more than his own. He wasn't complaining; Greg was great company. They always had fun together and Nick got a laugh out of Greg's freaky ideas although this last one was right on the edge of insanity.
He fired up his computer and entered all the info he had remembered in his head during the afternoon and evening. When he got through, he printed out the list. Since it was pretty clear he wasn't going out, he headed for the shower to wash off all the dirt that transferred from his home to him during his cleaning fit. When he got out, he slipped on a pair of old, loose sweats, went to the kitchen and made himself a snack, got another beer and went to get his printouts. He sat down and started reading his list. He read carefully, going back several times to re-read a sentence here and there. When he got through, he gently laid the sheets on the table, leaned back in his chair and realized that he had deliberately screwed up every single relationship he had ever been in from the age of 14 on. The only person he had not pushed away had been Kristi and that was because she got murdered hours after he slept with her. Someone else had done the screwup for him.
They were too clingy, they didn't need him enough. They were too much out there on the party scene, they were too quiet. They were too much into their own careers, they were too boring to be around. They didn't understand him or his devotion to the work he did, they understood him so well, they scared him. He had managed to find something wrong with every single person he had ever spent more than 4 nights with.
He went back to the computer. This time, his list was everyone in his life he had ever truly admired and why AND most importantly, how long had they been in his life. Two things stood out in glaring detail; it was surprising how many guys were on his list and the only long standing relationships he had maintained were with his team members
DAMN! He had found fault with every single woman in his life with the exception of his mom, his sisters, Wendy, Mandy, Catherine, Sofia and Sara. The people who influenced him and made him want to stay around them were the females he just mentioned and guys. God, it was almost 8.00 am and he needed to go to bed. His whole world had just tilted on its axis, he needed sleep and he needed to get himself back into 'work' mode.
Why did he always wind up back in the kitchen? It was around 11.00 pm which was early in his day. He had cleaned the rest of his apartment; cleaned it hell, you could do brain surgery in his toilet for God's sakes. He should be ready for a shower, hot threads and a night out, club hopping and looking for a hook-up, instead he was back in the kitchen. Thank God he had gotten more beer when he had done his shopping that afternoon; just goes to show that even on auto pilot, he still had his priorities straight.
While he was cleaning, he had zoned out again only this time it was not "THE TALK", it was all the people he had known (most of them in the biblical sense). It took a while to get going because he started with the redhead with the great butt and then immediately got into a hot and heavy argument with himself about whether a pick up, whose name you couldn't even remember, counted as a relationship…sorry, 'hook-up'. He finally decided that if he didn't include his pick-ups, he wouldn't have enough people to make up a good reference list. Now that was really sad!
So, back to the redhead. What had he liked? Well that was pretty obvious; that butt was right up there at the head of the list followed by the sexy, long, red hair. So why hadn't he ever called her back. He had her number, Hell he had every number she had; work, home, cell, On-Star and pager. He had taken her to a decent mid price hotel, (he didn't like strangers in his home) and had made sure that she was very happy when it was all over. After all, he was a Southern Gentleman. And a true Southern Gentleman made sure his lady was taken care of. So why no follow up? There was that screechy voice, of course. No guy wants to wake up to that every morning.
Nick sat at his table, drinking his beer and recalled all his experiences. He really was surprised at the number of them, after he had decided to include his pick-ups. He was a trained investigator so he should do what he did on a case; make detailed notes to keep the evidence fresh in his mind. He took his beer and went into his 2nd bedroom which he had turned into an office/library. He had a really nice futon in there so Greg or Warrick could crash after one of their sport/video/man get-togethers. He realized that it had been a long time since Warrick had stayed over. Just once since his marriage, when he and Tina had been fighting and he was so angry Nick really thought for one brief moment that 'Rick would hit her if he had to put up with her for one more minute. Greg however, was another story. Nick thought sometimes that Greg stayed at his place more than his own. He wasn't complaining; Greg was great company. They always had fun together and Nick got a laugh out of Greg's freaky ideas although this last one was right on the edge of insanity.
He fired up his computer and entered all the info he had remembered in his head during the afternoon and evening. When he got through, he printed out the list. Since it was pretty clear he wasn't going out, he headed for the shower to wash off all the dirt that transferred from his home to him during his cleaning fit. When he got out, he slipped on a pair of old, loose sweats, went to the kitchen and made himself a snack, got another beer and went to get his printouts. He sat down and started reading his list. He read carefully, going back several times to re-read a sentence here and there. When he got through, he gently laid the sheets on the table, leaned back in his chair and realized that he had deliberately screwed up every single relationship he had ever been in from the age of 14 on. The only person he had not pushed away had been Kristi and that was because she got murdered hours after he slept with her. Someone else had done the screwup for him.
They were too clingy, they didn't need him enough. They were too much out there on the party scene, they were too quiet. They were too much into their own careers, they were too boring to be around. They didn't understand him or his devotion to the work he did, they understood him so well, they scared him. He had managed to find something wrong with every single person he had ever spent more than 4 nights with.
He went back to the computer. This time, his list was everyone in his life he had ever truly admired and why AND most importantly, how long had they been in his life. Two things stood out in glaring detail; it was surprising how many guys were on his list and the only long standing relationships he had maintained were with his team members
DAMN! He had found fault with every single woman in his life with the exception of his mom, his sisters, Wendy, Mandy, Catherine, Sofia and Sara. The people who influenced him and made him want to stay around them were the females he just mentioned and guys. God, it was almost 8.00 am and he needed to go to bed. His whole world had just tilted on its axis, he needed sleep and he needed to get himself back into 'work' mode.
That night, Nick Stokes CSI Level 3 entered the Las Vegas Crime Lab. He was back in the groove and ready to maintain the façade he had carefully built over the years he had worked in Sin City. He played his role so well, greeting Judy with a big smile, saying hello to Archie and Bobby as he passed them in the hall on the way to the conference room to join his team and get his assignments for the night. He stuck his head in the DNA lab and playfully sang 'OH Mandy' to their tech. She responded with the special smile she only gave to him. Suddenly, an arm draped itself over his shoulders followed by the exotic smell of what ever hair products Greg had used that evening.
"Are you still mad at me about the other night?" Greg was part serious and part smiling and Nick realized that Greg was worried that he had gone too far, but he also loved to pull his chain if he could.
"Nah, I just consider the source and try really hard to ignore the insanity that comes from the source". Nick lifted his arm over Greg's and ruffled his hair which he knew drove Greg crazy.
Warrick came up behind them, split them apart and draped an arm around both of them and told Nick to stop riling up the CSI 1. If they had to work with him that night, they didn't want him to be worrying about whether his hair was just right. Greg was just a little huffy when he told them, he would not be stressing about his hair at a crime scene, which, of course, is when Grissom entered the room with their jobs for the evening. Nick was with Catherine on a nasty home invasion. Warrick and Sara were on a hit and run at a hotel down town. Nick realized that the hotel was the same one he had taken the red head to and was thrilled that he didn't get that assignment. Greg, much to his pleasure, was with Grissom on a body dump at one of the local parks.
Nick was pleased to be with Catherine. It had taken time and work to get past the hard feelings from the 'reverse forensics' fiasco but they had finally gotten back to the easy, comfortable link they had been forging as a working team ever since she had stopped working so much with Grissom. Catherine had the perfect match of formal training and street instincts. He always felt that working with her or Warrick automatically gave them an edge on the bad guys. And it didn't hurt that they were both so easy on the eyes that it gave him a safe place to look when the scene was too far over the edge. WHOA…where did that come from? Catherine was for sure easy on the eyes but when did he put Warrick in that equation?
"Are you still mad at me about the other night?" Greg was part serious and part smiling and Nick realized that Greg was worried that he had gone too far, but he also loved to pull his chain if he could.
"Nah, I just consider the source and try really hard to ignore the insanity that comes from the source". Nick lifted his arm over Greg's and ruffled his hair which he knew drove Greg crazy.
Warrick came up behind them, split them apart and draped an arm around both of them and told Nick to stop riling up the CSI 1. If they had to work with him that night, they didn't want him to be worrying about whether his hair was just right. Greg was just a little huffy when he told them, he would not be stressing about his hair at a crime scene, which, of course, is when Grissom entered the room with their jobs for the evening. Nick was with Catherine on a nasty home invasion. Warrick and Sara were on a hit and run at a hotel down town. Nick realized that the hotel was the same one he had taken the red head to and was thrilled that he didn't get that assignment. Greg, much to his pleasure, was with Grissom on a body dump at one of the local parks.
Nick was pleased to be with Catherine. It had taken time and work to get past the hard feelings from the 'reverse forensics' fiasco but they had finally gotten back to the easy, comfortable link they had been forging as a working team ever since she had stopped working so much with Grissom. Catherine had the perfect match of formal training and street instincts. He always felt that working with her or Warrick automatically gave them an edge on the bad guys. And it didn't hurt that they were both so easy on the eyes that it gave him a safe place to look when the scene was too far over the edge. WHOA…where did that come from? Catherine was for sure easy on the eyes but when did he put Warrick in that equation?
========================================
It really was a nasty case. The home owners had come home unexpectedly from a night out at the casino's and the guys cleaning them out had been so angry, they had tied the husband to a chair and forced him to watch while they all had a go at his wife. If he tried to look away, they pistol whipped him and forced him to watch.
It was obvious the burglars had inside info. They knew the couple would be out, how long they were going to be out and they knew exactly how much time they had at the house without interference. The only thing the thugs didn't know, was that the couple were celebrating the wife's pregnancy. She had just passed the first trimester, everything was going well and they were going to see the show at the Bellagio. She had become nauseated from the rich meal and they had to leave early.
A neighbor had gone outside to get something she left on her patio, heard some noise from their house and saw lights. She knew they were expecting to be out until quite late and called the police. When the responding officers entered the house, they found the husband still tied to the chair; his face had been so severely beaten it was hard to tell what he looked like. His wife was lying on the floor in a pool of blood moaning and incoherent. The blood was not from the rough sex, it was from the miscarriage she had suffered.
Nick and Cath were in the kitchen when the young cop came in to fill them in on the news from the neighbor and the hospital. They had completed their sketches and photos and were about to start the room by room collection process. When the officer said the wife had lost her child, both of them stiffened. It took a moment to realize the cop was asking if they wanted him to stay in the house or remain outside guarding the entrance. They sent him out and then instinctively moved closer together. No hugs, they were professionals but they put their hands on each other's forearms and just held on for a moment while they mourned for the little life that would never be. Then they split up with Nick taking the kitchen and Cath starting in the library where the safe was standing open.
In the end, they found very few actual clues; no fingerprints at all but a couple of footprints that looked promising and a smear of blood in the downstairs bathroom sink so faint they could hardly see it without the ALS lamp. The guys had been real pro's. They returned to the lab, tired, angry and aching in every joint. They had processed the house practically on their hands and knees trying to find something to lead them to the vermin who had ruined two lives and terminated an innocent third.
Catherine had instigated the habit of all of them meeting at the end of the shift and exchanging info on their cases. They never spent more than 30 minutes at the most but it was going a long way to rebuilding the team feeling that had almost disappeared at one point. They had no or almost no evidence, the two victims were unable to talk and might never be able to help and they were trying to cope with the idea that this one might go in the 'unsolved file' when a comment from Greg pointed them in the right direction. He asked how they thought the robbers knew where the couple would be and how long they had for the heist.
Nick looked up at Catherine and saw the same flush of enthusiasm he was feeling. He told her he would head to the hospital to get their clothes; he knew Catherine would want to get home to Lindsey.
Cath said, "Oh no you don't Stokes. Lindsey is going on a field trip today with her class so she spent the night with her best friend Leann. WE are going to the hospital and I'm driving". They went out the door with new vigor and a determination to get justice for a small life that would never even start its journey on this earth.
The clothes had yielded nothing BUT the wife had stuck the ticket stubs in her purse. Nick wasn't sure why but Cath knew immediately. She wanted to keep them as a remembrance of this special time; maybe put them in a scrapbook to remember their night of celebration. The ticket stubs were from a local firm that specialized in getting tickets to the impossible shows, in the shortest possible time, for the most amount of money.
They went to the firm and both reacted to the waves of fear coming off the young receptionist who took their names and called the office manager. The office manager was completely innocent and was willing to open his office to anything they wanted if they thought it would help. They asked if they could speak to the receptionist but surprise, surprise, she was out to lunch. They got her job application and got Archie started on a complete examination of every part of her life. They found some interesting deposits to her checking account that were pretty impossible on a receptionist salary. They also found that her first cousin had been released from the Nevada State Prison three months earlier after serving five years of an eight year sentence for Armed Robbery. From that point on it was embarrassingly easy to find the cousin, his three buddies and pick up the items that had not yet been fenced, that were stored in the garage. The final nail in the bad guys coffins were the pants from the laundry room that had smears of the wife's vaginal fluids and the husband's blood. They picked up the terrified receptionist at the local bus depot but by that time they had so much physical evidence, talking with her was a mere formality. They were both praying that the DA would be able to ask for the death penalty since the babies death occurred during the commission of a violent crime. Nevada law was not always clear on whether a fetus could be considered a murder victim.
Cath and Nick were almost drunk with pleasure and smiling with complete satisfaction at the recap meeting that morning.
Nick finished the account of their case by adding, "You gotta love the stupidity of the bad guys."
Everyone smiled but Greg said "I don't think it was stupidity."
Everyone started arguing with him at the same time until 'Papa' Grissom raised his voice slightly and said "Why not Greg, What do you think it was?"
"I think it was ego. Think about it; the whole scheme was damn clever. Would you look at your cousin working a low-paying, entry level job and figure she was the key to an almost fool-proof crime? She produced a spreadsheet every morning for her boss with all the sold tickets, which included names, addresses, credit card numbers, times of shows, whether the clients wanted them to arrange a reservation for dinner; even if the clients wanted to be picked up by limo or would be using their own transportation. When she finished the sheet, she e-mailed a copy to her cousin, printed off a copy for her boss and went on about her business. They got so used to everything working perfectly that they expected it would always be that way. They probably never expected anyone to connect them to the high-scale robberies. Why should they cover their tracks at home? They never expected anyone to find their home"
After working the case as hard as they had, both Catherine and Nick had to agree with Greg. The four robbers had left them nothing. The footprints they were so excited about turned out to be the kid who mowed the lawn who had come into the kitchen to get a glass of water and his money. The trace of blood they had found on the sink was the husbands. All of them wore latex gloves, the heavier kind and one of them had rinsed the blood off his gloves in the sink. Since it wasn't his blood, he had just wiped the sink out with a paper towel and missed the little bit of blood under the rim. They even took the paper towels and the gloves with them.
Nick and Cath had slept maybe five hours between the time they dropped the suspects off and the time they had come back to work that night. Both had been flying on endorphins but that had run out awhile back.
Cath leaned over and said quietly in Nick's ear, "My God I hope we both get home OK. All I can think of is a warm, soft bed with clean sheets."
Nick nodded. He had been praying for the last 2 hours that they would last until the end of their shift when they could get off and fall in bed. Nick almost dropped his coffee cup when he realized that he had added the word 'together'; they could get off and fall in bed together. My God, was he going to be at the mercy of his libido forever? When was he going to get his control back? All he could do was give thanks that he had been thinking inside his own head at the time and hadn't said anything out loud..
Two nights later, Nick realized that he was not going to get control until he got his life straight. He went into Grissom's office and asked for a month of vacation time. After Grissom got his voice back he asked if Nick needed to talk; to him, the department shrink; anyone. Nick noticed with amusement that Grissom, who was usually unflappable, sort of squeaked on the 'anyone'. He said No, he just realized that he hadn't really had a true vacation in years. He had the time coming, he had always wanted to do a little traveling and you couldn't do that when you took a week at a time and your folks just took it for granted that you would be in Texas for most of the week. Grissom asked if he could have a little time to switch people around. Nick said of course; he wasn't going on an organized tour or anything like that; he was just going to get in his truck and ramble. Two weeks later, Nick Stokes locked his front door, stopped by his bank, dropped by the post office and arranged for his mail to be held until further notice and left Las Vegas.
They went to the firm and both reacted to the waves of fear coming off the young receptionist who took their names and called the office manager. The office manager was completely innocent and was willing to open his office to anything they wanted if they thought it would help. They asked if they could speak to the receptionist but surprise, surprise, she was out to lunch. They got her job application and got Archie started on a complete examination of every part of her life. They found some interesting deposits to her checking account that were pretty impossible on a receptionist salary. They also found that her first cousin had been released from the Nevada State Prison three months earlier after serving five years of an eight year sentence for Armed Robbery. From that point on it was embarrassingly easy to find the cousin, his three buddies and pick up the items that had not yet been fenced, that were stored in the garage. The final nail in the bad guys coffins were the pants from the laundry room that had smears of the wife's vaginal fluids and the husband's blood. They picked up the terrified receptionist at the local bus depot but by that time they had so much physical evidence, talking with her was a mere formality. They were both praying that the DA would be able to ask for the death penalty since the babies death occurred during the commission of a violent crime. Nevada law was not always clear on whether a fetus could be considered a murder victim.
Cath and Nick were almost drunk with pleasure and smiling with complete satisfaction at the recap meeting that morning.
Nick finished the account of their case by adding, "You gotta love the stupidity of the bad guys."
Everyone smiled but Greg said "I don't think it was stupidity."
Everyone started arguing with him at the same time until 'Papa' Grissom raised his voice slightly and said "Why not Greg, What do you think it was?"
"I think it was ego. Think about it; the whole scheme was damn clever. Would you look at your cousin working a low-paying, entry level job and figure she was the key to an almost fool-proof crime? She produced a spreadsheet every morning for her boss with all the sold tickets, which included names, addresses, credit card numbers, times of shows, whether the clients wanted them to arrange a reservation for dinner; even if the clients wanted to be picked up by limo or would be using their own transportation. When she finished the sheet, she e-mailed a copy to her cousin, printed off a copy for her boss and went on about her business. They got so used to everything working perfectly that they expected it would always be that way. They probably never expected anyone to connect them to the high-scale robberies. Why should they cover their tracks at home? They never expected anyone to find their home"
After working the case as hard as they had, both Catherine and Nick had to agree with Greg. The four robbers had left them nothing. The footprints they were so excited about turned out to be the kid who mowed the lawn who had come into the kitchen to get a glass of water and his money. The trace of blood they had found on the sink was the husbands. All of them wore latex gloves, the heavier kind and one of them had rinsed the blood off his gloves in the sink. Since it wasn't his blood, he had just wiped the sink out with a paper towel and missed the little bit of blood under the rim. They even took the paper towels and the gloves with them.
Nick and Cath had slept maybe five hours between the time they dropped the suspects off and the time they had come back to work that night. Both had been flying on endorphins but that had run out awhile back.
Cath leaned over and said quietly in Nick's ear, "My God I hope we both get home OK. All I can think of is a warm, soft bed with clean sheets."
Nick nodded. He had been praying for the last 2 hours that they would last until the end of their shift when they could get off and fall in bed. Nick almost dropped his coffee cup when he realized that he had added the word 'together'; they could get off and fall in bed together. My God, was he going to be at the mercy of his libido forever? When was he going to get his control back? All he could do was give thanks that he had been thinking inside his own head at the time and hadn't said anything out loud..
Two nights later, Nick realized that he was not going to get control until he got his life straight. He went into Grissom's office and asked for a month of vacation time. After Grissom got his voice back he asked if Nick needed to talk; to him, the department shrink; anyone. Nick noticed with amusement that Grissom, who was usually unflappable, sort of squeaked on the 'anyone'. He said No, he just realized that he hadn't really had a true vacation in years. He had the time coming, he had always wanted to do a little traveling and you couldn't do that when you took a week at a time and your folks just took it for granted that you would be in Texas for most of the week. Grissom asked if he could have a little time to switch people around. Nick said of course; he wasn't going on an organized tour or anything like that; he was just going to get in his truck and ramble. Two weeks later, Nick Stokes locked his front door, stopped by his bank, dropped by the post office and arranged for his mail to be held until further notice and left Las Vegas.
Nick had been home for 2 days now and he was amazed at how easy it was to fall back into the routine of being home; Texas home that is. He thought that it wasn't really a routine but more of a ….. mindset. Yeah, that was it. He just loved being home with his family. Nick's childhood, with one exception, was the story dreams are made of. He had been loved, spoiled, pampered, picked on, bullied; everything that should happen to the baby in a family of 7 children. He was a complete surprise, coming as he did eight years after the last of the 5 girls was born. And to be a boy, well that was just frosting on the cake. His older brother William Andrew Stokes was overjoyed to have a baby brother even if the baby was almost 20 years younger than he was and he treated Nick more like a surrogate son that a brother. He watched over him even after his marriage. Fortunately, Bill had married a young woman who also came from a big family and was completely comfortable with the huge brood she had acquired when she married Bill Stokes, Jr. She was more than comfortable with Nick. Like Bill, she treated him like he was hers and Nick spent almost as much time with them growing up as he did with his biological parents.
Between siblings, horses, dogs, cats, the ranch hands and thousands of acres of land to roam, Nick lived in a fairytale; until he was nine years old. No one in the family knew about the night Nick's innocence had been taken away by a last minute choice of babysitter. She was a friend of a friend and was highly recommended. She was cute and friendly and she was an evil that snuck in Nick's bedroom late at night and made his world change forever. It was only once, but once was all it took. After that, there was a sadness in the beautiful brown eyes and the once hyper nine year old, became quiet and withdrawn almost over night. Every one wondered what happened but Nick never told and learned at a very early age to 'put on a happy face'. That's when the alter-ego Nick Stokes was born; the good old boy that nothing could keep down for long. In later years, the 'other' Nick Stokes came in real handy. When Amy Hendler put a gun in Nick's face, so close he could see her finger tighten on the trigger, the 'other' Nick took over within minutes. By the time Grissom had come back into the house, the 'other' Nick was clear-eyed and processing the scene while the real Nick hid behind his front and cried.
The 'other' Nick took over after Nigel Crane threw the body they shared out a second story window, and still later, when Crane dropped through his ceiling along with the body of an innocent stranger who only wanted to warn Nick of danger. Nick had always been able to work his way through everything and take over his life from the 'other' Nick until the day that a man named Walter Gordon had decided that someone, anyone, had to pay for his sorrow. It was Nick who payed. He payed with his sanity, his health and his soul. He never got control back from the 'other' Nick and sometimes when he was playing a game with Greg or having a 'one on one' with 'Rick on a basketball court, the real Nick wanted so badly to tell them that he was hurting and he needed help. The 'other' Nick didn't let that happen. The 'other' Nick kept his secrets and allowed him to continue to function as a Las Vegas, Nevada CSI 3 at the 2nd best crime lab in the US. What he didn't allow was any feelings; emotions were dangerous and could bite you in the butt so easily.
The 'other' Nick went to all the mandated meetings with the shrinks and said all the right things and fooled everyone. Nick went back to work after every trauma and everyone praised him for his ability to bounce back. He told Greg one day that he was like a Timex watch, 'He took a licking and kept on ticking'. He turned away before Greg could see the real Nick screaming for help, for comfort, for human contact.
Oddly enough, one of the few places where Nick could still push the 'other' Nick down enough to take back control, was at home where it had all started. He never knew why but it was the main reason why he loved to come back to the family home in Texas AND the main reason why, this was where he wanted to start his search. He had established his goal during the two weeks he was waiting for Grissom to switch people around so he could have his month off. He was going to get rid of the other Nick. He was going to find out what he wanted out of life and he was going to find out if Greg was right and he might be able to have the life he wanted with someone who had the same plumbing he did.
When Nick came home on vacation, all his sisters and Bill tried to arrange things so that they could have at least one day with him. This time, 2 of his sisters were living back home. Savannah, who was the closet in age to Nick, was getting a divorce and she and her 3 kids were living at home while she got herself re-established again as a single working mother. Leah was home because her husband was in Iraq for a year's tour of duty and she was going through menopause and not having an easy time of it. She tried hard to control herself, especially when her 2 kids were around but between her out-of-control hormones and her fear for her husband, she was a walking basket case. Nick heard her crying his first night home and went into her room to see if she was OK. He wound up, laying on top of the bed holding her close in his arms and telling her stories about what a wonderful time she was going to have when Steven was back home for good. They both finally dropped off around 3.00am and Nick was really very comfortable when his mom came in at 7.00 to get the kids off to school and found them curled up together. She kissed both of her babies and went to get her baby's babies ready for their day.
Nick had been home for almost 4 days when he finally got the privacy to talk to Savannah. He wanted to know what happened. He had always thought S'annah (his baby name for his sister which had stuck) and Larry were the perfect couple. Everything about them just fit. She was a pediatrician and he was a Neo-natal specialist. Their coloring, their heights, their family backgrounds were just in such perfect harmony that it was obvious they were meant for each other.
When he told S'annah this, he saw a frown cross her face. He added quickly, that he was not finding fault with her; not at all. He was trying to figure out his own future.
"S'annah, I just turned 40 and I'm still alone. I've never been able to make a go with anyone and I've had some pretty darn good opportunities. I don't even know what I want out of life. I don't know if I want to marry. I don't know if I want kids. I just don't know. It really scares me when I look at someone like you who had the perfect life and now at 48, you're alone. I just want to try to understand what went wrong."
His sister glared at Nick for several long silent minutes and then let out a deep sigh and relaxed, leaning back into the swing. She scooted closer, picked up Nick's arm, draped it around her shoulders and laid her head on his shoulder. Finally, she started talking.
"I think your description of us as the 'perfect couple' was what went wrong. I mean, Good God, his folks, our folks, our friends, even strangers would comment on what a cute couple we were. It was almost as though we were ordained to get together and make everyone happy. I didn't realize until I was looking at him over the bed in the honeymoon suite that I didn't really know him at all. I was married to a stranger who never lost his temper, never got excited about anything; was always a perfect gentleman. When we came back from our honeymoon, we moved into an apartment and started our internships. Once a week without fail, he would tell me to insert my diaphragm and when we went to bed, he would kiss me, squeeze my breasts a few times and then have sex with me. He always came, I never came and afterwards, he never failed to kiss me and tell me how much he enjoyed it and then he rolled over and went to sleep. He was a devoted dad, helping with the baths and feedings; even changing diapers without complaint. I went to all the school meetings unless it was parent's night and then he would be there; saying and doing all the right things. I got old fast and one day I just snapped. I realized I had spent my youth doing what was expected of me. I'm not young anymore and my looks went a long time ago but my passion is still here buried deep inside. I know that it's too late to have the 'sweep you off your feet' kind of romance I dreamed of as a young girl but at least I can feel something now and if it's pain and loneliness…well, it's my pain and loneliness. I'm not an appendage to someone else."
Nick's heart broke as he listened to his sister talk. He thought of all the holidays they had spent together when he had just looked at the surface and never saw the despair hiding just below. He held her tight and told her she was beautiful and he loved her and any man would be glad to sweep her off her feet. She cried and then laughed and told him he was biased. He told her he was not, he was completely objective. She finally sat up and borrowed his handkerchief to dry her eyes and blow her nose. She said she was going inside to wash her face because her kids would be home soon and they were going to look at 2 houses tonight. He asked her if she wanted him to come along and she said yes she did.
As she reached the front door, she turned around and looked at Nick and said, "You know baby brother, I have learned one valuable lesson. There is a world of difference in loving someone and being in love. I still love Larry because basically he's a good man; shallow but good."
Nick said, "S'annah, what's the difference; how do you know?"
She laughed and said "Oh Nicky, it's the difference between Dad's 5 alarm chili and oatmeal. When you feel like you can't stay in your own skin and your mouth goes dry when you see them and you just want to touch them anywhere, anytime then….then you are in love."
She started to go in the house and Nicky suddenly realized what she had said and said, "S'annah, if you never had that with Larry, how do you know?"
She turned back and looked at Nick for a moment then said, "You remember Charley?"
"Charley, Charley, I don't think…Oh wait, wasn't he the guy with long hair that rode the Harley?"
"That was Charley. No one approved of Charley. Dad almost turned the dogs loose on him and Mom tried to be polite but she shivered and washed every thing he touched as soon as he left the house. I was wild about him Nicky. He made my blood boil and then freeze just by running his hand up my arm. Do you know where he is today?"
"No."
"He's in LA. He writes for several of the top ten shows on TV. He makes lots of money, he has 2 children and he's been married to the same woman for 20 years now. That woman could have been me if I'd had some guts and not met the 'perfect' man according to everyone but me."
Nick was still sitting on the porch swing when the school bus stopped and dropped off his 2 nephews and his niece.
Between siblings, horses, dogs, cats, the ranch hands and thousands of acres of land to roam, Nick lived in a fairytale; until he was nine years old. No one in the family knew about the night Nick's innocence had been taken away by a last minute choice of babysitter. She was a friend of a friend and was highly recommended. She was cute and friendly and she was an evil that snuck in Nick's bedroom late at night and made his world change forever. It was only once, but once was all it took. After that, there was a sadness in the beautiful brown eyes and the once hyper nine year old, became quiet and withdrawn almost over night. Every one wondered what happened but Nick never told and learned at a very early age to 'put on a happy face'. That's when the alter-ego Nick Stokes was born; the good old boy that nothing could keep down for long. In later years, the 'other' Nick Stokes came in real handy. When Amy Hendler put a gun in Nick's face, so close he could see her finger tighten on the trigger, the 'other' Nick took over within minutes. By the time Grissom had come back into the house, the 'other' Nick was clear-eyed and processing the scene while the real Nick hid behind his front and cried.
The 'other' Nick took over after Nigel Crane threw the body they shared out a second story window, and still later, when Crane dropped through his ceiling along with the body of an innocent stranger who only wanted to warn Nick of danger. Nick had always been able to work his way through everything and take over his life from the 'other' Nick until the day that a man named Walter Gordon had decided that someone, anyone, had to pay for his sorrow. It was Nick who payed. He payed with his sanity, his health and his soul. He never got control back from the 'other' Nick and sometimes when he was playing a game with Greg or having a 'one on one' with 'Rick on a basketball court, the real Nick wanted so badly to tell them that he was hurting and he needed help. The 'other' Nick didn't let that happen. The 'other' Nick kept his secrets and allowed him to continue to function as a Las Vegas, Nevada CSI 3 at the 2nd best crime lab in the US. What he didn't allow was any feelings; emotions were dangerous and could bite you in the butt so easily.
The 'other' Nick went to all the mandated meetings with the shrinks and said all the right things and fooled everyone. Nick went back to work after every trauma and everyone praised him for his ability to bounce back. He told Greg one day that he was like a Timex watch, 'He took a licking and kept on ticking'. He turned away before Greg could see the real Nick screaming for help, for comfort, for human contact.
Oddly enough, one of the few places where Nick could still push the 'other' Nick down enough to take back control, was at home where it had all started. He never knew why but it was the main reason why he loved to come back to the family home in Texas AND the main reason why, this was where he wanted to start his search. He had established his goal during the two weeks he was waiting for Grissom to switch people around so he could have his month off. He was going to get rid of the other Nick. He was going to find out what he wanted out of life and he was going to find out if Greg was right and he might be able to have the life he wanted with someone who had the same plumbing he did.
When Nick came home on vacation, all his sisters and Bill tried to arrange things so that they could have at least one day with him. This time, 2 of his sisters were living back home. Savannah, who was the closet in age to Nick, was getting a divorce and she and her 3 kids were living at home while she got herself re-established again as a single working mother. Leah was home because her husband was in Iraq for a year's tour of duty and she was going through menopause and not having an easy time of it. She tried hard to control herself, especially when her 2 kids were around but between her out-of-control hormones and her fear for her husband, she was a walking basket case. Nick heard her crying his first night home and went into her room to see if she was OK. He wound up, laying on top of the bed holding her close in his arms and telling her stories about what a wonderful time she was going to have when Steven was back home for good. They both finally dropped off around 3.00am and Nick was really very comfortable when his mom came in at 7.00 to get the kids off to school and found them curled up together. She kissed both of her babies and went to get her baby's babies ready for their day.
Nick had been home for almost 4 days when he finally got the privacy to talk to Savannah. He wanted to know what happened. He had always thought S'annah (his baby name for his sister which had stuck) and Larry were the perfect couple. Everything about them just fit. She was a pediatrician and he was a Neo-natal specialist. Their coloring, their heights, their family backgrounds were just in such perfect harmony that it was obvious they were meant for each other.
When he told S'annah this, he saw a frown cross her face. He added quickly, that he was not finding fault with her; not at all. He was trying to figure out his own future.
"S'annah, I just turned 40 and I'm still alone. I've never been able to make a go with anyone and I've had some pretty darn good opportunities. I don't even know what I want out of life. I don't know if I want to marry. I don't know if I want kids. I just don't know. It really scares me when I look at someone like you who had the perfect life and now at 48, you're alone. I just want to try to understand what went wrong."
His sister glared at Nick for several long silent minutes and then let out a deep sigh and relaxed, leaning back into the swing. She scooted closer, picked up Nick's arm, draped it around her shoulders and laid her head on his shoulder. Finally, she started talking.
"I think your description of us as the 'perfect couple' was what went wrong. I mean, Good God, his folks, our folks, our friends, even strangers would comment on what a cute couple we were. It was almost as though we were ordained to get together and make everyone happy. I didn't realize until I was looking at him over the bed in the honeymoon suite that I didn't really know him at all. I was married to a stranger who never lost his temper, never got excited about anything; was always a perfect gentleman. When we came back from our honeymoon, we moved into an apartment and started our internships. Once a week without fail, he would tell me to insert my diaphragm and when we went to bed, he would kiss me, squeeze my breasts a few times and then have sex with me. He always came, I never came and afterwards, he never failed to kiss me and tell me how much he enjoyed it and then he rolled over and went to sleep. He was a devoted dad, helping with the baths and feedings; even changing diapers without complaint. I went to all the school meetings unless it was parent's night and then he would be there; saying and doing all the right things. I got old fast and one day I just snapped. I realized I had spent my youth doing what was expected of me. I'm not young anymore and my looks went a long time ago but my passion is still here buried deep inside. I know that it's too late to have the 'sweep you off your feet' kind of romance I dreamed of as a young girl but at least I can feel something now and if it's pain and loneliness…well, it's my pain and loneliness. I'm not an appendage to someone else."
Nick's heart broke as he listened to his sister talk. He thought of all the holidays they had spent together when he had just looked at the surface and never saw the despair hiding just below. He held her tight and told her she was beautiful and he loved her and any man would be glad to sweep her off her feet. She cried and then laughed and told him he was biased. He told her he was not, he was completely objective. She finally sat up and borrowed his handkerchief to dry her eyes and blow her nose. She said she was going inside to wash her face because her kids would be home soon and they were going to look at 2 houses tonight. He asked her if she wanted him to come along and she said yes she did.
As she reached the front door, she turned around and looked at Nick and said, "You know baby brother, I have learned one valuable lesson. There is a world of difference in loving someone and being in love. I still love Larry because basically he's a good man; shallow but good."
Nick said, "S'annah, what's the difference; how do you know?"
She laughed and said "Oh Nicky, it's the difference between Dad's 5 alarm chili and oatmeal. When you feel like you can't stay in your own skin and your mouth goes dry when you see them and you just want to touch them anywhere, anytime then….then you are in love."
She started to go in the house and Nicky suddenly realized what she had said and said, "S'annah, if you never had that with Larry, how do you know?"
She turned back and looked at Nick for a moment then said, "You remember Charley?"
"Charley, Charley, I don't think…Oh wait, wasn't he the guy with long hair that rode the Harley?"
"That was Charley. No one approved of Charley. Dad almost turned the dogs loose on him and Mom tried to be polite but she shivered and washed every thing he touched as soon as he left the house. I was wild about him Nicky. He made my blood boil and then freeze just by running his hand up my arm. Do you know where he is today?"
"No."
"He's in LA. He writes for several of the top ten shows on TV. He makes lots of money, he has 2 children and he's been married to the same woman for 20 years now. That woman could have been me if I'd had some guts and not met the 'perfect' man according to everyone but me."
Nick was still sitting on the porch swing when the school bus stopped and dropped off his 2 nephews and his niece.
========================================
After dinner, Nick took S'annah, her kids and Leah and her kids house hunting. He was never sure why Leah went along, she had her own home in a beautiful suburb just outside of Denver but it was none of his business, S'annah didn't mind and the kids kept each other company so the grown-ups could explore and investigate.
After 4 hours of extensive looking, the kids were dead, Leah was almost hysterical, S'annah kept muttering to Nick that 6 kids would have been a much better number for their parents, and Nick was just praying he could keep things together until they got back home and got the kids bathed and in bed. When they did get home, Leah took her kids upstairs to get their baths. Nick's mom looked at S'annah and asked her if she would be going up with hers or did she want her too. S'annah looked at her mother and said, 'You know, my kids are 13, 9 and 7. They have known how to take a bath by themselves for a long, long time now. They will do just fine."
Their mom just looked at S'annah and then said, "Don't you get smart with me young lady. I can still take a belt to your behind if I need too and don't use my remark to slam your sister. She's having a rough time right now and staying close to her kids makes her feel safer."
"Mom, if that's the case then she's been having a rough time for the last 16 years because she has always hovered over those poor kids until they don't have a moment's peace or any time to themselves. Someday they are going to rebel and it's not going to be a pretty sight."
Mrs. Stokes walked over and leaned down and kissed both Nick and his sister and then said she knew and that's why she was doing everything she could to make the children understand that they always had a safe refuge with their grandparents.
"Are either of you interested in some sopapilla's? Rosa felt the urge and made some after you left. I can fix you a couple with some wild honey".
Nick and his sister looked at each other and both said together, "Oh yeah"
Mrs. Stokes laughed as she headed for kitchen. When she was out of the room, Nick turned to S'annah and said, "I know you're right and so does she. Isn't there anything anyone can do to make Leah see what she's doing?"
S'annah shook her head and sounded close to tears when she answered his question. 'No, and that's the real reason why I left Larry and started divorce proceedings. When you have children you feel such love for them that it hurts. But you are not supposed to live your life through your kids. We each get one chance to live our lives on this earth and if we waste our life, we don't have the right to use our children as surrogates. That's what Leah is doing and that's what I would have done if I'd stayed in my comfortable little nest which was rapidly turning into a coffin."
Nick automatically winced when she said 'coffin'. His sister noticed and immediately started apologizing.
He couldn't tell her that it wasn't because of the word but because he could feel the 'other' Nick trying to get out and take control. His body guard had turned into his jailor for sure and Nick was more determined than ever to get his life back. He had reveled in his stay at his childhood home. Being able to comfort Leah and connect again with Savannah the way they had when he was little and just being able to observe life as it was lived among 'normal' people. He thought back to 2 nights before when he saw something he wasn't supposed to.
========================================
He had been in the living room sitting on the floor in front of the DVD case trying to straighten out the cases and put stuff back before it got all scratched. He heard his dad come down the stairs and go in the kitchen where his mom was. He heard him ask her where everyone was. She gave him a run down and his dad said, "You mean we actually are alone for a moment?"
His mom responded in a voice Nick wasn't sure he had ever heard her use, "Yes we are. What are you going to do about it?"
Nick almost had a heart attack when he heard his dad growl (GROWL) and say, "Anything you want me to."
Nick looked up and realized that they could not see him but because the mirrored French doors were angled just right, he could see straight into the kitchen and had a ringside seat and the show had just started. His dad put his arms around his mom and pulled her back against his body and began to drop little kisses against the side of her face. She obviously liked it and got even happier when he started nibbling and licking the side of her neck. Nick's mouth dropped open when he realized his mother had her hand behind her and it was pretty obvious her hand was on the front of his dad's pants.
He was getting ready to clear his throat or cough or do something when his mom turned around, kissed his father (and it wasn't anything like the little family kisses they gave each other when the kids were around) and suggested in a very breathless voice that they should go upstairs and take advantage of this god-given opportunity. Giggling like teen-agers, they headed for the stairs a lot faster than they usually did and within seconds Nick heard their door close and he was sure he heard a sound like a bolt clicking into place.
Well, well, well. Who would have thought it?
His mom responded in a voice Nick wasn't sure he had ever heard her use, "Yes we are. What are you going to do about it?"
Nick almost had a heart attack when he heard his dad growl (GROWL) and say, "Anything you want me to."
Nick looked up and realized that they could not see him but because the mirrored French doors were angled just right, he could see straight into the kitchen and had a ringside seat and the show had just started. His dad put his arms around his mom and pulled her back against his body and began to drop little kisses against the side of her face. She obviously liked it and got even happier when he started nibbling and licking the side of her neck. Nick's mouth dropped open when he realized his mother had her hand behind her and it was pretty obvious her hand was on the front of his dad's pants.
He was getting ready to clear his throat or cough or do something when his mom turned around, kissed his father (and it wasn't anything like the little family kisses they gave each other when the kids were around) and suggested in a very breathless voice that they should go upstairs and take advantage of this god-given opportunity. Giggling like teen-agers, they headed for the stairs a lot faster than they usually did and within seconds Nick heard their door close and he was sure he heard a sound like a bolt clicking into place.
Well, well, well. Who would have thought it?
Nick stretched until his back popped. His new bed was great and he was almost comfortable while he waited for the Aleve he had taken to kick in and let him go to sleep. It was his last night at home in Texas and he hurt in places he didn't know he had. He had stayed 4 days longer than he planned and the last 5 days had been work from 'can to can't'. My Lord, he hadn't thought about that in years. His Grandma Stokes used to say that. Men worked from the time they can see their shadow until the time they can't. Of course, now with electricity, he had worked a lot longer than can't.
Savannah had found a house. Of course it wasn't one of the ones they had looked at. She had gone to the hospital where she was going to start work in two weeks to fill out some paper work and see if she could get her orientation out of the way. While talking to one of the doctors she would be working with, she had mentioned her problems trying to find a house. The doctor, Martin Wheeler, had lost his wife to cancer 2 years before and he had walked out of their house and never gone back. He gave her the keys and told her to go look at the house. If she liked it, they would work something out. She was worried that he might be uncomfortable with her living in his home but he told her he would take comfort from knowing that children would be living in the house. He and his wife had always wanted kids, but her cancer had taken away every chance they might have had.
She called Nick immediately. He had driven down to the hospital to pick her up and take her over to the house. It was a nice house in a good neighborhood; great schools and close to the hospital BUT, it had been closed and locked for 2 years. The food had been left in the fridge and needless to say, it had spoiled in the last 2 years. Mice had gotten into the house, the hot water heater had sprung a leak and most of the carpets were ruined. S'annah was torn. There were a lot of good points but the inside was a disaster. Nick suggested they go get their Mom and have her come look.
She took one look and said very seriously, "Oh my, what a mess…..but it has good bones. We can do a lot with this." Within 2 hours, Mama Stokes had assembled the Stokes clan and 2 hours after that, a work plan was in order.
That had been 5 days ago and in the last 5 days, the Stokes men (when work was needed all the son-in-laws were considered Stokes men) and women had scrubbed the house from top to bottom, torn out every inch of carpet, laid pre-finished wood floors in every room except the baths which were tiled or slated. The bathrooms had new vanities, toilets and tubs. The kitchen had been completely stripped down to the studs and they had installed new sheetrock, cabinets and appliances. Then they had painted any and everything that didn't move. Nick told his brother Bill that they would have been better off to tear the old house down and just build a new one.
Every one of the Stokes clan, men and women, knew how to paint, paper, tile, clean, you name it. They were raised to be self-sufficient and it was a point of pride that they never had to go outside the family for simple home repairs. Nick was really quite good at cabinet making and loved to make furniture so he had done almost all the kitchen work, bookcases and bed frames for the kids. After the first night, he realized that his boyhood bed was not going to cut it. So when they went shopping for S'annah and the kids, he bought himself a queen bed for his room at home.
Now he was blessing that bed while he tried to relax enough to get to sleep. He had intended to think through his plans for the next few days and go through the pages he had printed off the internet for the next stage of his trip but as he began to get drowsy, he decided he could do it on the plane or when he got back home to Vegas.
Savannah had found a house. Of course it wasn't one of the ones they had looked at. She had gone to the hospital where she was going to start work in two weeks to fill out some paper work and see if she could get her orientation out of the way. While talking to one of the doctors she would be working with, she had mentioned her problems trying to find a house. The doctor, Martin Wheeler, had lost his wife to cancer 2 years before and he had walked out of their house and never gone back. He gave her the keys and told her to go look at the house. If she liked it, they would work something out. She was worried that he might be uncomfortable with her living in his home but he told her he would take comfort from knowing that children would be living in the house. He and his wife had always wanted kids, but her cancer had taken away every chance they might have had.
She called Nick immediately. He had driven down to the hospital to pick her up and take her over to the house. It was a nice house in a good neighborhood; great schools and close to the hospital BUT, it had been closed and locked for 2 years. The food had been left in the fridge and needless to say, it had spoiled in the last 2 years. Mice had gotten into the house, the hot water heater had sprung a leak and most of the carpets were ruined. S'annah was torn. There were a lot of good points but the inside was a disaster. Nick suggested they go get their Mom and have her come look.
She took one look and said very seriously, "Oh my, what a mess…..but it has good bones. We can do a lot with this." Within 2 hours, Mama Stokes had assembled the Stokes clan and 2 hours after that, a work plan was in order.
That had been 5 days ago and in the last 5 days, the Stokes men (when work was needed all the son-in-laws were considered Stokes men) and women had scrubbed the house from top to bottom, torn out every inch of carpet, laid pre-finished wood floors in every room except the baths which were tiled or slated. The bathrooms had new vanities, toilets and tubs. The kitchen had been completely stripped down to the studs and they had installed new sheetrock, cabinets and appliances. Then they had painted any and everything that didn't move. Nick told his brother Bill that they would have been better off to tear the old house down and just build a new one.
Every one of the Stokes clan, men and women, knew how to paint, paper, tile, clean, you name it. They were raised to be self-sufficient and it was a point of pride that they never had to go outside the family for simple home repairs. Nick was really quite good at cabinet making and loved to make furniture so he had done almost all the kitchen work, bookcases and bed frames for the kids. After the first night, he realized that his boyhood bed was not going to cut it. So when they went shopping for S'annah and the kids, he bought himself a queen bed for his room at home.
Now he was blessing that bed while he tried to relax enough to get to sleep. He had intended to think through his plans for the next few days and go through the pages he had printed off the internet for the next stage of his trip but as he began to get drowsy, he decided he could do it on the plane or when he got back home to Vegas.
========================================
Well, he was home finally and damn if he wasn't back in the kitchen. The house had been dusty and stale when he got back so he had spent a few hours airing the place out, running a Swiffer duster over everything and just generally spiffing up the place. Now he was showered, fixing a snack and settling down to decide a few important things before he got on with his plans.
What had he learned from his stay at home? The most important thing and at the top of his list was that he wanted some one to grow old with. He had thought for a long time that maybe he wasn't meant to be married and faithful to one special person but he knew now that was exactly what he wanted. How had S'annah put it? Oh yeah, the difference between 5 alarm chili and oatmeal. Lord knows he did love his chili and he wasn't that high on oatmeal no matter how good it was for your cholesterol. He wanted that feeling. He wanted to feel like he couldn't stay in his own skin, he wanted his mouth to go dry and he wanted someone he was so crazy about that he wanted to touch them anywhere, everywhere, anytime, all the time. He wanted his blood to boil and then freeze at a touch. And most of all, he wanted that to last forever. He wanted someone he loved so much that after 20 or 25 years he still had the urge to grope their ass every chance he got. He damn sure wanted someone who loved him back enough to return the grope. He also realized that he wanted kids. He knew that was going to be the deal breaker on anyone he considered.
He made a tentative list of people he thought he might be interested in. It was really tentative and would be refined after the next stage of his search. He concentrated on people he worked with. He knew that most people felt you shouldn't get involved with co-workers but with the hours he worked, who else did he get to see often enough to even consider. He added a few other people like the attendant on the plane coming home from Texas. She had been very attentive and the whole trip had gone by so fast mainly because of her pleasant company. When the pilot told them they were about to descend, he had gotten his seat ready for landing and just before she went to buckle herself in she had stopped by his seat and gave him a piece of paper with her name, address, cell, pager and home numbers. He had told her he would be out of town for several weeks but would call her when he got back. He knew he really would; it wasn't just talk. She was pretty, great voice, great body and altogether 'fuckable'.
He got the stack of papers he had gotten from his searches on the internet and laid out his plans for the next week. He had discovered that according to the 2000 Census, the top ten cities for gay male couples were San Francisco; Miami/Fort Lauderdale; Santa Fe; Atlanta; San Diego; Orlando; Los Angeles; Seattle; Austin; and Portland, Maine. San Francisco was a cliché, Miami/Fort Lauderdale would be too much like going back to college, Santa Fe was just like being in Texas so it looked as though Atlanta was his first choice.
He had done extensive research, it was amazing the things you could find on the internet. The biggest concentration of gay males was in a place called Buckhead. Buckhead was an older part of Atlanta that had been attracting young, professional gays & lesbians since the middle 80's. It was now a very interesting, artistic, area loaded with shops, clubs, art galleries, restaurants and gay men; just what he wanted. He did not want to explore this part of his character on his own home turf. In the first place, it was too dangerous and in the 2nd place, what if he was completely repulsed by the whole process.
He had also done some research on that while on line. He had looked at the sex toys, the sites that catered to gay men and had read an awful lot of slash fiction. He knew the mechanics but that was like saying he could do brain surgery because he had read a medical book. Good God, could he even kiss a man much less let a man touch him, put his hands on him, maybe his mouth and most of all, could he possibly let a man put his dick up his ass. He had read all the stuff about the prostate and how great it was when it was stimulated but the last physical he'd endured (which included a rectal exam, after all he was now 40) had not made him hard and excited, it had just plain hurt. For that matter, could he put his dick up some guy's ass? He knew that you were supposed to stretch your partner using your fingers but Jesus, the thought of sticking his finger in some guy's butt almost made him gag. He was almost sure that this was not going to be an option for him but he had been looking at a lot of guys at work just before he took off and he had to admit, he did like to touch Greg and Warrick and Bobby and Archie and there were several detectives that he played basketball with and he did kind of like it when they put their hands on his ass when they were guarding him. It was all done as part of the game and he had never taken it any further, but he had noticed that they all sort of sneaked peeks at each other when they showered at the gym after a workout or a game. Maybe he really could do it. It all depended on who he met and how they acted.
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Nick pulled into the front space at the Crowne Plaza in Buckhead. It had been a toss up between the Grand Hyatt, the Crowne Plaza and the Ritz Carlton. They were all expensive but Nick was not worrying about money right now. He had decided that if he was going to do this, he was going all the way. He was going to treat himself and be completely selfish for once in his life. He had decided on the Crowne Plaza because it was only 1 mile from the heart of Buckhead and it had shuttle service that would take him anywhere within a mile of the hotel.
He got out of his truck and walked around to go inside and register and almost fell over a good looking young man who had rushed out of the hotel to meet him. The 'greeter', Nick had no idea what to call him, asked Nick if he could take care of his luggage for him while he registered. Nick said sure and asked if he could leave his truck there or should he move it. The 'cutie' said he would take care of that also and bring Nick's keys up to his room. Nick decided to shoot the works and asked if they had some sort of detail service or at least somewhere he could get the truck washed after his trip. They would take care of that for him and it would be charged to his room. Nick headed into the hotel with the youngster following behind him with his bags. The young man said he would stay with Nick until he had his luggage up in his room and then he would take care of his vehicle.
Nick was smiling as he walked up to the desk. The young attendant touched a bell on the desk and Nick heard someone say, "I'll be right there." Almost before the guy finished the sentence he was walking through a door behind the desk and heading for Nick. He gave him a big smile and asked how he could help him.
Nick stared at him for a moment and then looked around the lobby and saw other young men bringing drinks to people seated in the lounge area, going out to the curb to greet other guests and generally picking up the place. They were all great looking. There wasn't a bad apple in the bunch. Nick thought to himself, "My god, do they breed these guys somewhere on a farm outside of town. They are all gorgeous."
Nick turned back to the desk and saw the clerk looking at him with a smile on his face. He gave him his name and his confirmation number. The young man looked everything up, asked for a credit card and then he said, "Mr. Stokes, my name is Steven Anderson and I'm the day manager. Please call me Steve or Steven if you prefer. I see you're a criminalist from Las Vegas. Is this your first time in Atlanta?"
Nick said it was and if he was going to call him Steve, then Steve was to call him Nick. Mr. Stokes was his father and he was there for pleasure and did not want to feel as old as his dad.
Steve smiled at him and asked him what kind of pleasure he was looking for. Nick suddenly realized that Steve might be the day manager but he was just barely 25 if even that and he was flirting with him outrageously. Nick almost couldn't answer him he was so surprised but he finally managed to get his brain working and told Steve, he wanted to see the Coke plant and CNN and the Braves play at Turner Field and he had read something about a place called Covington Gardens. He also had read about the night life in Buckhead and he definitely wanted to experience that.
Steve asked him if he had any specific clubs in mind. Nick said he'd heard about several that sounded interesting; Johnny's Hideaway, Sambuca, Club Kreme. Steve asked him if he had any preference. Nick told him he wanted something a little upscale; no dives, something that catered to a slightly more sophisticated crowd say 28 to 45 in age. Steve smiled again and said, "I know just what you want. Will you trust me? I know you've just met me but I swear I can make your vacation something you will remember forever if you just give me a chance."
Nick thought for a moment that Steve was propositioning him but thank god, he didn't blurt that out. He looked at Steve and said, "I have no reason not to trust you Steve but you realize that in my line of work, I have to be very careful."
Steve said, "I know that and I won't get you into anything you can't handle. Now, the place I'm thinking of doesn't have a dress code per se but it is expected that their clientele will meet certain standards. A nice pair of slacks and good jacket is the norm for this place. Will that be a problem?"
Nick thought about his wardrobe and decided that he did have things that would do but he probably would never do anything like this again so why not shoot the works. He said, "Yes I do but I think I would like to experience everything that Buckhead has to offer. Do you have someplace in mind that could take care of me?"
Steve laughed out loud. "Oh do I ever. It will take a little while to get things set up."
Nick said, "That's fine with me. I'm tired, I want to take a shower, get something to eat and take a short nap."
"That's perfect. You go on up to your room. We have room service and a great restaurant here in the hotel. Just order what you want, take a shower and a nap and I'll give you a call in a couple of hours."
And that's exactly what Nick did.
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Authors Note: All of these places are real and so are the facts about the 10 largest concentrations of gay's in the US.
Nick was sitting on a bench in the heart of Buckhead drinking an iced tea, a really good one too. He probably should be drinking a Coke. After all, one of the tourist sights in Atlanta was the Coke headquarters building. He was trying to evaluate the last 6 hours and he was having a hard time.
He woke up around 10.30 that morning when his room phone rang. Steven told him he had slept for almost 2 hours according to his room charge bill and now it was time to get going. He had an appointment at 'Belle Hombre'. That was when he seemed to have entered another universe. Since that time, he had been stripped down to his skivvies, stroked, felt, handled, interrogated as to which way he 'dressed', told to put on whatever was brought to the dressing room. All this had cost him $2,280.00 including; boots at $450.00, 3 shirts at $250.00 each, 2 pairs of slacks at $300.00, a jacket at $400.00 and last but surely not least…briefs at $80.00. Well, at least they were pure silk. He had never spent that much on clothes in his life but that was just the beginning.
Then Larry, the owner of 'Belle Hombre' and as it turned out, the lover of young Steven Anderson had sent him to a spa; a spa that specialized in male customers. He had been soaked, oiled, rubbed, wrapped, waxed, shorn, manicured and pedicured. He looked at least 5 years younger. His laugh lines were noticeably reduced, his hands, which had been so rough they almost snagged the 'sueded silk' shirts Larry had put him into, were now so smooth he couldn't stop rubbing himself just to feel them. His haircut (whoops, hair styling) was…Nick couldn't even begin to describe it. His hair, which was one of his best features, looked as though each individual hair had been trimmed and arranged just so, and it stayed that way. Nick had no idea what he thought about all this. He was just going from moment to moment.
Right now, he was shopping for gifts for his teammates; at least that seemed half-way normal. He had found a gorgeous chunk of turquoise on a silver chain for Catherine. He found a shop that blended perfumes to order. He bought perfume for his sisters, his mom and Wendy. It really was lots of fun. The 'blender', asked him questions about each of the ladies and added various scents, attars and fixatives depending on the answers. When he completed the mixture, he decanted the liquid into delicate, fragile glass containers, put personalized labels on each and took down the information to mail them off to their new owners. Nick took Wendy's with him. He found a shop that had unbelievable chocolates from all over the world. That would be perfect for Mandy who had a sweet tooth. The owner told him to come back just before he was ready to leave and he would put together something special for his friend and it would all be fresh and ready to go. Oddly enough, Grissom, who he thought would be the hardest to buy for, just fell into his lap. He was walking by a shop called "For the Boss who has everything" and decided to go in. He found a small refrigerator that looked like some sort of space artifact. You could plug it into a car lighter or you could use a conventional 120 plug in an office. It was a little expensive but he figured getting Grissom's experiments out of the break room fridge was well worth the price.
Archie, Warrick, Sara, Bobby and Greg were all taken care of at the same place. He got Sara a book on the history of boxers which would have been a little weird except for the fact that they were talking during a slow period at the lab and she told him she had always wanted a dog and she loved boxers. The book had beautiful photos and paintings of AKC champion boxers and a large section on selecting, caring for and training a boxer puppy. Bobby also got a book; an illustrated collection of hand made dueling pistols. He found the perfect gift for Archie, the ultimate 'trekkie'. It was an alarm clock and it looked like the starship Enterprise. When the alarm went off, instead of a radio or buzzer, you heard the voice of a guy who was a vocal twin for William Shatner saying, "Archie, it's 8.00pm and you are about to go where no man has gone before…the bathroom to get ready for work." They programmed the clock while he was there. He gave them Archie's name and several alternate destinations. He chose work, a date and a Star Trek convention.
He was especially thrilled with Warrick and Greg's gifts. He found a book about jazz pianist's of the 20's and 30's that came with a CD of original records of the artists and modern versions of the same songs done by current musicians. It was made to order for Warrick.
He got Greg a t-shirt with a great silk screen print of a Finnish group called 'Lordis'. The group was known for dressing like mummies and vampires and the t-shirt showed every detail. It came with a CD of their first release, "Hard Rock Hallelujah". The CD was signed by all the band members and Nick knew Greg would love it.
Now it was time to call the shuttle, go back to the hotel and get some rest before his big night.
He woke up around 10.30 that morning when his room phone rang. Steven told him he had slept for almost 2 hours according to his room charge bill and now it was time to get going. He had an appointment at 'Belle Hombre'. That was when he seemed to have entered another universe. Since that time, he had been stripped down to his skivvies, stroked, felt, handled, interrogated as to which way he 'dressed', told to put on whatever was brought to the dressing room. All this had cost him $2,280.00 including; boots at $450.00, 3 shirts at $250.00 each, 2 pairs of slacks at $300.00, a jacket at $400.00 and last but surely not least…briefs at $80.00. Well, at least they were pure silk. He had never spent that much on clothes in his life but that was just the beginning.
Then Larry, the owner of 'Belle Hombre' and as it turned out, the lover of young Steven Anderson had sent him to a spa; a spa that specialized in male customers. He had been soaked, oiled, rubbed, wrapped, waxed, shorn, manicured and pedicured. He looked at least 5 years younger. His laugh lines were noticeably reduced, his hands, which had been so rough they almost snagged the 'sueded silk' shirts Larry had put him into, were now so smooth he couldn't stop rubbing himself just to feel them. His haircut (whoops, hair styling) was…Nick couldn't even begin to describe it. His hair, which was one of his best features, looked as though each individual hair had been trimmed and arranged just so, and it stayed that way. Nick had no idea what he thought about all this. He was just going from moment to moment.
Right now, he was shopping for gifts for his teammates; at least that seemed half-way normal. He had found a gorgeous chunk of turquoise on a silver chain for Catherine. He found a shop that blended perfumes to order. He bought perfume for his sisters, his mom and Wendy. It really was lots of fun. The 'blender', asked him questions about each of the ladies and added various scents, attars and fixatives depending on the answers. When he completed the mixture, he decanted the liquid into delicate, fragile glass containers, put personalized labels on each and took down the information to mail them off to their new owners. Nick took Wendy's with him. He found a shop that had unbelievable chocolates from all over the world. That would be perfect for Mandy who had a sweet tooth. The owner told him to come back just before he was ready to leave and he would put together something special for his friend and it would all be fresh and ready to go. Oddly enough, Grissom, who he thought would be the hardest to buy for, just fell into his lap. He was walking by a shop called "For the Boss who has everything" and decided to go in. He found a small refrigerator that looked like some sort of space artifact. You could plug it into a car lighter or you could use a conventional 120 plug in an office. It was a little expensive but he figured getting Grissom's experiments out of the break room fridge was well worth the price.
Archie, Warrick, Sara, Bobby and Greg were all taken care of at the same place. He got Sara a book on the history of boxers which would have been a little weird except for the fact that they were talking during a slow period at the lab and she told him she had always wanted a dog and she loved boxers. The book had beautiful photos and paintings of AKC champion boxers and a large section on selecting, caring for and training a boxer puppy. Bobby also got a book; an illustrated collection of hand made dueling pistols. He found the perfect gift for Archie, the ultimate 'trekkie'. It was an alarm clock and it looked like the starship Enterprise. When the alarm went off, instead of a radio or buzzer, you heard the voice of a guy who was a vocal twin for William Shatner saying, "Archie, it's 8.00pm and you are about to go where no man has gone before…the bathroom to get ready for work." They programmed the clock while he was there. He gave them Archie's name and several alternate destinations. He chose work, a date and a Star Trek convention.
He was especially thrilled with Warrick and Greg's gifts. He found a book about jazz pianist's of the 20's and 30's that came with a CD of original records of the artists and modern versions of the same songs done by current musicians. It was made to order for Warrick.
He got Greg a t-shirt with a great silk screen print of a Finnish group called 'Lordis'. The group was known for dressing like mummies and vampires and the t-shirt showed every detail. It came with a CD of their first release, "Hard Rock Hallelujah". The CD was signed by all the band members and Nick knew Greg would love it.
Now it was time to call the shuttle, go back to the hotel and get some rest before his big night.
******************************
Nick was about as nervous as one human could get. His new clothes had been delivered to the hotel while he was out shopping and now he was standing in front of the full length mirror in his hotel room looking at himself. Evidently, the old saying about 'clothes making the man' was true. He did not recognize the man staring back at him. He was wearing a pair of perfectly tailored black slacks, a dark crimson 'sueded silk' shirt which fit his upper body like a second skin. His jacket was a black silk and linen blend and like the other pieces, it was so fitted he almost couldn't feel it. His shoes, or rather half boots, were Italian leather, ankle high and so soft it was like wearing slippers. But the most amazing thing was the pure silk briefs he was wearing under his slacks.
****************************************
***
When Larry brought them into the fitting room and told him to take off his Haines specials, he thought the guy was crazy. He did it but almost ran for his life when Larry told him to put his hands down the back of the briefs, lift up his ass cheeks and spread them slightly. When he let go, he felt the back seam slip between his cheeks. It kept them up and separate. Then Larry told him to position his cock to the left and put on the slacks. He felt a slight friction against the head of his dick. It wasn't painful at all. The silk was so soft it was like fur sliding across his skin. There was a seam, which curved down the left side of the briefs, and hit his dick perfectly. He looked up at Larry and he was almost speechless. Larry laughed and said, "Now you know why I asked which way you dressed. If you went to the right, I would have given you a pair with the seam on the right side."
The briefs kept his package defined, not a real hard on, that would have been too uncomfortable. This was just a suggestion of shape that made the simple black slacks look like a walking wet dream.
**************************************
Mike, the shuttle driver, pulled up at a very ordinary looking building with a small sign saying "Body Heat". He started to give Nick his card then grinned at him and told him he didn't think he could get a business card in those pants. They fitted a little too close for that. Just tell the bartender when he was ready to leave and they would call him. Then Mike said with a sly smile, "That's of course, if you don't already have a ride back to the hotel….or some where else."
Nick entered the club and told the young man at the door that he was a guest at the Crowne Plaza and Steven Anderson had arranged for his visit. He was immediately taken down a hall to the back of the club. There were two main entrances off the hall; one to the main club which looked really nice and one to the dining room which also looked pretty good. Larry had told him the club had a 4 star chef and the meals were unbelievable. Nick was pretty sure he was too nervous to eat anything. His escort knocked on a door at the end of the hall, opened the door and stepped back so Nick could enter first. He announced Nick by name to the man sitting behind the desk and then smiled and closed the door. Nick walked over to the desk and sat down at the manager's invitation.
The man smiled at Nick and said, "My name is Gerald Walters and I am one of the owners of 'Body Heat'. I understand this is your first visit to Atlanta."
Nick told him yes it was and so far he was having a great time and from what he could see of his club, he was pretty sure that his great time was going to get even better.
Gerald laughed at him and told him he could see why Steven and Larry had been so taken with him. He also told him that he would not need credit cards or cash. He would be fitted with a bracelet which had the name of his hotel, his room number and Steven's name as his sponsor. Any charges would show on his hotel bill as room service and no one would ever know he had been at the club.
Nick frowned a little and told Gerald he wasn't planning on cheating his employer, he would be paying all his bills himself. Gerald told him it not a ploy for unprincipled employees to pad their expense accounts but rather a matter of privacy for their club members and guests. He explained that 'Body Heat' catered to a very special class of clientele with unconventional tastes. Because of their positions, they were open to blackmail or harassment by certain groups and the club was structured so as to protect anyone who walked through their door.
Nick thought about it for a moment, then held his hand out. Gerald pulled a very nice looking sterling silver bracelet out of his desk drawer, put it in a small machine on his desk and typed some information into the machine's keyboard. He hit a red button and in about 15 seconds, there was a little 'ping' and the bracelet slid out of the machine. Gerald fastened the bracelet around Nick's wrist and told him anytime he ordered food or drinks, he was to put his bracelet up against a small screen his waiter would provide and everything would be taken care of.
Gerald stood up and walked around the desk to Nick who stood up to meet him. He shook Nick's hand and said with a smile, "Get out there Las Vegas and have a good time."
************************************
Thirty minutes later, Nick was sitting on the most comfortable bar stool he'd ever felt, drinking a peach bellini and feeling very happy. The 'other' Nick seemed to be on vacation and Nick was doing just fine without him. His bartender came over to him and asked him if he was ever going to get out on the dance floor and give the regulars a break.
Nick looked at him and said, "What are you talking about?"
The bartender grinned back at him and said, "Sugar, in case you haven't noticed, this is a room full of tomcats and you are walking catnip. Every guy in this place is dying to see that gorgeous butt of yours out on the floor. What are you waiting for?"
Nick said, "Well it's all your fault. This drink is so damn good, I don't want to leave it and it's too cold to drink fast and by the way, what's your name?"
"I'm David and thanks for the compliment. Just give me that drink, I'll put it in the fridge back here and it will be waiting for you when you want it."
Nick got up and headed out to the dance floor. They had a live band and Nick had noticed that their drummer was amazing. He kept a solid back beat that never faltered and after a few minutes, it began to sound like a heart beat. Nick let himself go and just felt the music. He was not the best dancer in the world but he also wasn't the worst. His complete joy in the music and the way his body was moving combined with the confidence he felt from the changes in his appearance made him noticed when better, more professional dancers were overlooked. As he danced, more and more men began to move in and out of his space. He danced with all of them but stayed with none. After about 30 minutes, he left the floor, went over to David and asked him if there was somewhere he could put his jacket. He was getting hot.
David said, "Give it to me, I'll take care of it and Honey, you aren't getting hot. You were hot when you walked in."
Nick said, "David, are you flirting with me?"
David said, "You bet your beautiful booty I'm flirting with you. Is it doing any good?"
Nick laughed and said, "It's doing wonders for my ego."
Nick had been dancing for almost an hour when he began to notice the different men around him and one in particular caught his eye. When he looked directly at the guy, he realized that he was staring back at him. Nick smiled at him and the man came over to him and started dancing face to face with him. When the band finished the current number, they started playing a slower song and the man asked Nick if he would dance with him. There were a few awkward moments of shifting because Nick had never danced close to another man. He was used to dancing with women and he, of course, would lead. But he found that the man was enough taller than him that their arms, shoulders and heads fit together just right.
The man smiled down at Nick and said, "My name is Chris and I'm really enjoying this."
Nick said, "I'm Nick and so am I."
Chris said, "Well if you are, would you relax a little and let me hold you closer?"
Nick took a deep breath, let it out and moved closer to Chris. When he did, he found that Chris' jaw fit against his upper cheek perfectly. He did relax into Chris who must have been pretty happy with the whole situation because he pulled Nick's right hand into his chest, laid it over his heart with his hand on top and began to hum softly. He had a nice voice and Nick recognized the song he was humming along with the band. Dream a Little Dream of Me. At once Nick thought about one of their cases and a 'pleasure provider' named Dreama.
He didn't realize he had chuckled out loud until Chris said, "I didn't think my humming was bad enough to make you laugh. Just wait until I try singing; you'll be hysterical."
Nick immediately assured Chris that he wasn't laughing at his humming. He looked up at him and said, "I like your humming. I like dancing with you."
Chris looked in Nicks eyes and replied, "I like dancing with you too. Do you think we could do this some more?"
Nick thought he was pretty sure he had found what he was looking for. He didn't smile when he answered Chris. "I think it's foolish to keep looking for something when you may have just found it."
Chris tightened his hold on Nick and pressed his body against his.
They danced a few more dances and then left the floor. They went to the bar where Nick got his bellini from David and Chris ordered one also. They took them to a small booth back away from the dance floor. The booth was built for two and the way it was curved made the occupants sit close to each other. Nick and Chris drank and talked. But their hands brushed against each other when they picked up or sat down their drinks and their knees touched when they shifted in their seats. Chris finally picked up Nicks hand and began to rub his fingers back and forth over his palm.
Nick looked at Chris; at his eyes, his mouth. At one time he wondered if he could kiss a man. Now he just leaned into Chris and licked his bottom lip with the tip of his tongue. Chris shuddered and let out a very small moan. Nick did it again and this time, traced the outline of Chris upper lip before he pressed his lips against that sweet, sulky mouth. Chris let Nick set the pace and didn't try to go tonsil diving. Their kisses became more intense and deeper. When Nick put his hand around Chris' throat and told him he could feel his pulse beating in his neck, Chris took Nick's hand in his and asked him if he would like to go someplace a little more private.
Nick's pants had been feeling a size too small for the last 15 minutes and he was so ready to go someplace a little more private.
They headed to the bar to get their jackets. Chris had shed his when he first came in. As they were leaving, the 'greeter' touched Nick on the shoulder and said, "Sir, the bracelet please."
Nick started to take it off but Chris reached out and undid the clasp and handed over the bracelet. He stood there for a moment rubbing the inside of Nick's wrist.
Nick smiled at him and said, "What are you doing?"
Chris replied, "Now I'm feeling your pulse and it's beating as fast as mine is. Do you want to go to your hotel?"
Nick said, "Yes and let's take the shortcut. OK?"
It took a while to get to Chris' car because they kept stopping in the shadows to kiss. With each kiss, they became more and more wrapped up in each other although in one of his sane moments, Nick did appreciate the fact that Chris was not openly feeling him up in public. Although, if they didn't get somewhere private soon, Nick wasn't sure but what he wouldn't be quite as restrained.
Finally, they got to the car, got out of the parking lot and headed for Nick's hotel. Chris' car was a stick-shift, low-slung sporty roadster and when his hand wasn't on the gear shift, it was on Nick's leg. He kept rubbing circles on the inside of Nick's thigh and Nick was rapidly forgetting every thing he had ever known about caution and protection and safety.
He decided that he needed to come clean with Chris because he could see where his first time might be a little more than he could handle if he didn't. He finally managed to swallow the lump in his throat and said, "Uh Chris, I think you need to know that this is the first time I've done this."
Chris looked over at him and said, "The first time you've done what…picked a guy up at a club…the first time you've taken someone back to your hotel? What?"
Nick said softly, "All of the above. And…"
Chris said, "And what?"
Nick said, "This will be the first time I've ever been with a man."
Chris, who had, up till then, been an outstanding driver, cut across 2 lanes of traffic, sped down the block and suddenly made an abrupt right turn into a small dark street. He pulled up to the curb, slammed on the brakes and turned off the key.
"Let me get this straight. You come to the hottest gay club in town. You look like walking sex on a stick. You rub up against me, you lick my mouth with your tongue, you kiss me until I was ready to throw you down on the table and fuck you right there in the club and you're telling me you have never had butt sex with a man?" Chris' voice had risen with each remark until he was almost a soprano at the end.
Nick said, "Yeah, that about covers it."
Chris turned on the ignition, pulled the tightest u-turn Nick had ever seen and started back to the main road. At the corner he stopped and looked at Nick. When he pulled back out on the road, he was headed back toward the club.
Nick said, "Look, I know you're upset but you could at least drop me off at my hotel. We're almost there now."
Chris pulled back over to the curb again. Again the brakes and again, off went the ignition. Nick was beginning to get a little worried. He said, "Chris, I'm sorry if I've.."
"It's Collin."
"What's Collin?"
Chris turned and looked Nick straight in the eyes and said, "Chris is a guy who picks up gorgeous men in a club, takes them back to their place and fucks them until they are wrung dry. Collin is a guy who picks up gorgeous men in a club, takes them home with him to his place and makes love to them until they are both limp and then wakes up the next morning and hopefully does it all over again." Then he added, "And then there's a third option; a friendly native who gives an out of town stranger a lift to his hotel. Which option do you want to choose?"
Nick looked at him for a moment, then he picked up Collin's hand and brought it to his lips. He tickled the palm of his hand with his tongue and felt a deep pang of happiness when he felt Chris/Collin jerk at the touch of his tongue. He placed a kiss in Collin's palm, put his hand back on the gear shift and said, "Hello Collin."
Nick was really glad that Collin's sporty, little roadster had the top down because the tension in the car was thick enough to taste and breathe and he was pretty sure they would have smothered if the car had been enclosed. Before Nick's confession and Collin's equally-surprising admission, 'Chris' had been pretty smooth with the gear shifting and the leg rubbing. Collin, on the other hand, was just a tad jerky on the gears and his hand moved from Nick's leg to his shoulder where he could rub the back of his fingers across Nick's cheek.
Nick finally said, "Uh Collin?"
Collin risked a quick look at him and said, "You want to know why the alias?"
Nick nodded and caught his breath when Collin's hand went up his leg far enough to just brush across his crotch.
Collin said, "We've got just enough time to explain before we get to my place - I have other plans for my mouth once we get there. Right after I came to Atlanta, I went bar-hopping one night. It was a decent place called 'The Gold Club'. I picked up a guy who was well-dressed, well-spoken and I told him my name and took him back to my place. Once he got inside my apartment, Dr. Jekyll turned into Mr. Hyde. He threw me down on the bed, put his knees in my back and ripped my trousers off. He raped me; no lube and no mercy. I thought he was going to kill me because I couldn't breathe and I was fighting to get my arms under me so I could get some space between my chest and the mattress."
Nick said, "Positional asphyxia. You instinctively did the right thing and you probably saved your life."
"Yeah, well I wasn't sure it was the right thing for quite a while after that. I called some friends and they got me to the ER. I was in the hospital for 6 days, had a temporary colostomy to let my rectum heal and let me tell you, taking a shit was an adventure in pain for a long time. But the worst was; the guy had my address, my wallet, my driver's license and all my personal information. He called me when I got home from the hospital and told me how much he enjoyed our 'date' and how he was looking forward to another session with me."
"Jesus H. Christ." Nick was stunned, more at the matter-of-fact tone of voice Collin was using than the actual events. After all, Nick had seen even worse in his job. "What finally happened? Did they catch him?"
Collin said, "The police didn't but some of my friends who worked construction with me told me to invite him over. Make him think that being raped and almost killed was a secret fantasy of mine. He showed up with wine and flowers. I let him in and he grabbed me and shoved me face-first into my own front door and that's when my friends got him."
Nick said, "Collin, wait a minute. I'm in law enforcement. You can't confess a crime to me. I would have to report it."
For the third time that night, Collin pulled over to the curb. He turned off the ignition and then turned to Nick. He took his face in his hands and kissed him and there was no passion, no attempt to inflame or arouse, just an almost aching gentleness. He said, "Nicky, I have no idea what happened to the guy. I never saw him again but my wallet with all my ID, cards and money turned up a few days later in a plain manila envelope propped up against my door ."
Nick asked, "Why are you telling me this?"
Collin answered, "Because you asked and because you're the first guy I've told my real name and the first guy I've wanted to take home with me since that happened. I'm not asking for anything from you and I'm not promising anything to you. But, for the first time since that night, I feel something besides the need to get laid. Now, do you still want to go home with me?"
Nick looked at his potential lover. He looked at the handsome, almost beautiful face, the cool grey eyes, the full lips that made his mouth water every time he thought about them moving over his body. He leaned forward and kissed those sweet lips and nibbled on the bottom one, sucking and pulling it into his mouth where he could lick and taste it. He pulled back, smiled at Collin and said, "If you stop this damn car one more time before we get to your place, I'm going to have to shoot you on general principles."
Collin laughed out loud, started the car and took off down one of the forty thousand Peachtree Blvd, Street, Avenue, Circle…. whatever….. that greater Atlanta was famous for.
Nick finally said, "Uh Collin?"
Collin risked a quick look at him and said, "You want to know why the alias?"
Nick nodded and caught his breath when Collin's hand went up his leg far enough to just brush across his crotch.
Collin said, "We've got just enough time to explain before we get to my place - I have other plans for my mouth once we get there. Right after I came to Atlanta, I went bar-hopping one night. It was a decent place called 'The Gold Club'. I picked up a guy who was well-dressed, well-spoken and I told him my name and took him back to my place. Once he got inside my apartment, Dr. Jekyll turned into Mr. Hyde. He threw me down on the bed, put his knees in my back and ripped my trousers off. He raped me; no lube and no mercy. I thought he was going to kill me because I couldn't breathe and I was fighting to get my arms under me so I could get some space between my chest and the mattress."
Nick said, "Positional asphyxia. You instinctively did the right thing and you probably saved your life."
"Yeah, well I wasn't sure it was the right thing for quite a while after that. I called some friends and they got me to the ER. I was in the hospital for 6 days, had a temporary colostomy to let my rectum heal and let me tell you, taking a shit was an adventure in pain for a long time. But the worst was; the guy had my address, my wallet, my driver's license and all my personal information. He called me when I got home from the hospital and told me how much he enjoyed our 'date' and how he was looking forward to another session with me."
"Jesus H. Christ." Nick was stunned, more at the matter-of-fact tone of voice Collin was using than the actual events. After all, Nick had seen even worse in his job. "What finally happened? Did they catch him?"
Collin said, "The police didn't but some of my friends who worked construction with me told me to invite him over. Make him think that being raped and almost killed was a secret fantasy of mine. He showed up with wine and flowers. I let him in and he grabbed me and shoved me face-first into my own front door and that's when my friends got him."
Nick said, "Collin, wait a minute. I'm in law enforcement. You can't confess a crime to me. I would have to report it."
For the third time that night, Collin pulled over to the curb. He turned off the ignition and then turned to Nick. He took his face in his hands and kissed him and there was no passion, no attempt to inflame or arouse, just an almost aching gentleness. He said, "Nicky, I have no idea what happened to the guy. I never saw him again but my wallet with all my ID, cards and money turned up a few days later in a plain manila envelope propped up against my door ."
Nick asked, "Why are you telling me this?"
Collin answered, "Because you asked and because you're the first guy I've told my real name and the first guy I've wanted to take home with me since that happened. I'm not asking for anything from you and I'm not promising anything to you. But, for the first time since that night, I feel something besides the need to get laid. Now, do you still want to go home with me?"
Nick looked at his potential lover. He looked at the handsome, almost beautiful face, the cool grey eyes, the full lips that made his mouth water every time he thought about them moving over his body. He leaned forward and kissed those sweet lips and nibbled on the bottom one, sucking and pulling it into his mouth where he could lick and taste it. He pulled back, smiled at Collin and said, "If you stop this damn car one more time before we get to your place, I'm going to have to shoot you on general principles."
Collin laughed out loud, started the car and took off down one of the forty thousand Peachtree Blvd, Street, Avenue, Circle…. whatever….. that greater Atlanta was famous for.
****************************************
The next time the little car stopped was in an underground parking area under a large apartment building. There was a sign on the wall of the spot Collin pulled into that said, 'C. Travis'. Collin took Nick's hand and they walked over to an elevator where Collin entered a code into the key pad beside the door. The doors opened silently and the two men entered.
Nick fully expected Collin to kiss him as soon as they got inside. He had pulled Nick's hand into his lap and held it against his very impressive erection as soon as they got back on the road after their last stop. Nick still felt the heat from Collin's body; it was wrapped around him like an invisible blanket and he was almost aching to feel all of him. He thought that if just putting his hand on Collin's dick could cause such arousal, he might not survive a full body press. When Collin just leaned back against the elevator wall and smiled at Nick, he couldn't wait. He turned to him, wrapped his arms around him and kissed him.
Collin let out a little gasp and for one brief second, Nick thought that he was going to pull away from him but then his arms came around Nick's body and he returned the kiss enthusiastically. Nick was lost in the feel of Collin's hard body pressed against him from knees to mouth. It was so different from kissing a woman; not better or worse but different. Hard, firm substance where a woman was all soft curves. Nick found that being able to hold and grasp and not worry about hurting someone was exhilarating. He was considering just kissing Collin for the next three or four days when he heard someone clear their throat. He knew it wasn't him and he was pretty sure it wasn't Collin but he let go of him at once.
Collin had a sort of embarrassed grin on his face and was looking up at the corner of the elevator. He raised his arm and waved at the corner and said, "Uh Hi Mr. Jenson."
Nick turned around slowly, looked up at the corner and knew immediately that the little red light in the corner was a surveillance camera that had just recorded his physical assault. An obviously amused voice came out of the ceiling somewhere and said, "Good evening Collin or should I say good morning? I assume you had an enjoyable evening?"
Collin answered the invisible voice. "Oh yes I certainly did. Mr. Jensen, this is Nick Stokes. He's from Las Vegas and he's here on vacation."
He looked over at Nick who was still staring at the red light with an expression of complete horror on his face. "Nick, say hello to Mr. Jensen. He's the building caretaker and a general guardian angel for all of us who live here."
Nick swallowed and on his third attempt, managed a weak wave at the camera and a subdued, "Good Evening Mr. Jensen."
The voice, which Nick was beginning to think of as god with a small 'g', answered him (still obviously trying not to laugh), "Welcome to Atlanta Mr. Stokes, or as most of my charges call it, Hotlanta. I would wish you a happy vacation but it does seem that you are having a, shall we say, memorable experience so far. By the way Collin, Naomi took Rally out about midnight and asked me to tell you that she is going to be home tomorrow and for you to just leave him with her and pick him up Saturday or even Sunday if you wish. And now gentlemen, since you are the last ones in tonight, I am going to wish you both a pleasant good evening. "
The red light blinked off and Nick let out the breath he'd been holding ever since the voice interrupted him. He looked over at Collin. He could tell he was trying very hard to keep a straight face. Nick's look changed into a ferocious glare and he said, "So help me God, Collin if you laugh, you're sleeping on the couch."
Collin, between chuckles, said, "But Nick, it's my apartment and my bed. Why do I have to sleep on the couch?"
Nick said, "Because it's my dick and my ass you're lusting after and why in the HELL didn't you tell me you had live surveillance in your elevator?"
Collin gave up the battle and laughed out loud. Between chuckles and trying to get his breath, Nick could hardly understand him say, "Because you had your tongue down my throat and your hands on my butt before I could say anything and then I was liking it too much to care who was watching."
By this time, they were at Collin's apartment door and had entered his home. He locked the door and slipped Nick's jacket off his shoulders. He hung Nick's coat and his in a closet beside the door. He turned to Nick and said, "Are you really thinking about making me sleep away from you? Would you be that cruel to both of us? From the first moment I looked across that dance floor at Body Heat and saw you, I've been wondering how you will feel and taste; how your voice will sound when I lick the cum from your dick for the first time. I want to know if you will scream or moan when I deep-throat you. Don't you want to find out if you're a screamer or a moaner when my cock slides inside you?"
Nick was speechless. His body was on fire, his hands were shaking. He was trying to swallow but his mouth kept filling with saliva and he was afraid he was going to drool. He just barely realized that he was completely out of control and somewhere in his mind he also realized that he didn't care. Like a newborn baby, blind and hungry, he just wanted to grab onto Collin somewhere. He wanted to fasten his mouth and hands on him and hang on. Again he couldn't understand why Collin wasn't kissing him. He knew that he had to want to as much as Nick did.
Collin took his hand and led him down the hall and into his bedroom. Nick didn't know where he was going nor did he care. He kept trying to wrap himself around Collin who kept holding him off. He couldn't form coherent words but Collin must have understood his sounds because he started unbuttoning Nick's shirt. He said, "Nicky, baby. The next time I kiss you, I want to feel my nipples rubbing against your bare skin. I want our dicks to be sliding together, hot and hard and wet with cum. Can you wait until I get us undressed and into bed? Can you do that for me?"
Nick had no idea what he answered or if he even did answer but he felt Collin slip his shirt off. He undid Nick's slacks and gently walked him over to the bed. He pulled the covers down and pushed Nick down on the bed. He knelt in front of him and slid his shoes and socks off. He told Nick to lie back on his elbows and raise his hips so he could take his pants off. Nick did everything he was told. Collin turned away and went to put Nick's clothes on a chair. He took his own off and put them on the chair also and then turned back to Nick. He walked over to the bed and for the first time, Nick looked at a naked, male body up close and personal; a male body that sported a cock that was hard and leaking creamy-looking drops from its head. Nick raised his eyes and looked at Collin. He felt his breath stop in his lungs and he thought that as hot and exciting as Collin's dick was, the expression on his face was more so. It was so hungry it was frightening. Collin knelt on the bed and then slowly slid down until he was lying beside Nick.
He took Nick in his arms and Nick felt their nipples hard and erect rubbing against each other. He felt his dick rub against Collin's and he kept trying to remember that he was a man and men don't cry. Collin kissed him and Nick thought that he couldn't breathe and that he didn't care and that he wanted so much he didn't know where to start. Collin kept kissing him and rubbing against him. He felt his hands rub down his back and his fingers slipped between Nick's cheeks and brushed over his puckered hole. Nick was pretty sure his prostate was somewhere inside his body and he couldn't figure out why he felt electric shocks every time Collin's finger stroked over that tiny, tight hole.
Collin kissed Nick's forehead and let his lips drift down to Nick's eyelids. Nick felt his tongue licking across his closed eyes and then his lips brushing little kisses across his cheeks and his mouth and down under his jaw and then back up to his ears. Nick was paralyzed with sensations he had never felt before. He had no will and no desire to stop Collin from doing anything he wanted. It took a moment for him to realize that Collin was saying his name over and over again. He couldn't answer him but he did open his eyes and looked at him.
Collin was shaking so hard Nick could feel the tremors all through his body. He said, "Nick, can you understand me?"
Nick nodded his head yes.
Collin's voice was shaking too but his lips were strong and firm on Nick's. He kissed him for a long time then he said, "I'm too far gone to fuck you. I don't have the control to keep from hurting you. I want to make us come this way and I promise you, the next time, I'll be so far inside you, you'll taste me when I come. Is that OK?"
Nick was amazed to hear himself say, "What way?" He didn't think he was able to say anything.
Collin reached for Nick's hand. He took their hands and pulled them between their bodies and wrapped them around their cocks. They were both wet and slick with pre-cum and their hands slid up and down between them. Nick had a wild thought that it was like Boy Scouts using friction to start a fire and then the sparks burst into flame and all he could feel was Collin's hard dick rubbing up and down against his. Because of their positions, the underside of Nick's head was pressed into the underside of Collin's so that the most sensitive parts were rubbing together. Nick felt Collin move his hand and he almost cried at the loss until he felt the hand cupping his balls and holding them against another set of balls. He felt both pairs start to draw up and knew he was about to have his first orgasm with a man and that was the last rational thought he had before he felt his brain shut down as the hot, thick jets of sperm spurted out his dick.
Nick woke up slowly. He knew before he opened his eyes that he had slept deeply and peacefully; no nightmares, no tossing and turning, just deep, relaxing, blessed sleep. He stretched so hard he heard pops in his back and knees. He was also aware of some deep muscle aches in his hips, thighs, calves; pretty much all the way from the waist down. He had his usual morning erection and he was also painfully aware of the fact that he really needed to pee, like 30 minutes ago. He started to throw the sheet back but realized that he had no idea where he was so he didn't know which side of the bed the bathroom was on. He heard a quiet chuckle and a 'Very Nice' and opened his eyes to see a man leaning against a door jam that was obviously the bathroom. The man was smiling at him AND he was nekkid. Now in Nicky's mind, you had nude, naked and nekkid; and when the man in question was wearing just a smile and an erection; that was nekkid.
Last night, or rather early this morning, came flooding back into Nick's mind and he knew how he got the muscle aches and why the handsome man was smiling at him. He couldn't help but notice that his erection was definitely twitching at the man, no, twitching at Collin.
Collin, who had danced with him, kissed him, picked him up at 'Body Heat' and brought him home with him. As all of his memories became available, Nick smiled back at Collin and said, "So, how's your control this morning?"
Collin laughed at Nick and moved over to the bed, laid down beside Nick, rolled partly on top of him and said, "You bastard. You would remember that." He started to kiss Nick but Nick turned his face away. Collin said, "What's the matter?"
Nick said, still faced away from Collin, "I know my 'morning breath' has crossed over the line into 'dragon breath' because I really got to go pee."
Collin grabbed Nick's jaw, turned his head toward him and kissed him soundly. (He didn't use any tongue however, he was just horny not crazy.) 'Ok, 'dragon breath', go pee and there's a new toothbrush on the counter for you."
He got up so Nick could get up, slapped Nick on one bare butt cheek as he walked by and took a minute to smooth the sheets before he flopped back down on the bed to wait for his partner.
Nick hurried to the bathroom, closed the door behind him and as his poor, overfull bladder gave up its load, he realized that Collin smelled great, was wet, had no morning stubble and his breath smelled like mint. Well, he was a trained observer after all, although even Ecklie could have figured out that Collin had showered, shaved, brushed his teeth and swished some mouthwash before he came back to Nick. Nick reached over, turned on the shower and noticed there was a razor with extra heads already in the shower caddy. He grabbed the toothbrush and paste and jumped in the shower.
In the other room, Collin heard the shower turn on and thought with a groan, 'Oh God, he's going to shower." Now while, he was glad that Nick wanted to be squeaky clean for him, I believe we have already established that he was horny and he figured it would be at least 20 or 30 more minutes before anything could be done about the enthusiastic erection he was sporting. You can imagine how surprised he was when just barely 12 minutes later a damp Nick landed in the bed beside him, rolled over on top of HIM and proceeded to kiss him breathless.
When he finally was able to breath, mostly because Nick had transferred his oral attention to his throat, he ran his fingers across Nick's smoothly shaven jaw and said, "Jesus Christ, what did you do..pee in the tub while you were showering, shaving" then he realized that Nick's breath was fresh and clean and added "and evidently brushing your teeth. Okay, you could shave with one hand, brush with the other and I guess just let the pee go down the drain but that's taking multi-tasking to a new high."
Nick chuckled against his throat, which tickled in a good way and said, "I'm used to working sixteen hours and getting called back out after 2 or 3 hours of sleep. There are lots of times when I don't really wake up till I'm drinking coffee in the truck on the way to a crime scene. Now shut up and pay attention here. I'm trying to test your control. I remember everything you said this morning and I'm not going to let you forget any of it." He went back to sucking gently on Collin's neck and trailing wet kisses, with just a little bite to them, down to his shoulder.
Collin pulled his leg up, braced his foot against the bed and used it as leverage to roll Nick over so he was on top. He fastened both hands in Nick's thick, dark hair and pulled just enough to get his attention. "Nick, listen to me. Normally by now, I'd have you on your back with your legs draped over my shoulders and I'd be balls deep in your ass. This is your first time and I want it to be so good for you that you will want me as much as I want you."
Nick started to answer but Collin fastened his mouth over Nick's and swallowed his words. "No, let me talk. It can hurt, I won't lie to you about that but I can make that go away. I get tested every 3 months. I've got 2 years worth of medical reports over there in my desk. If you want, I will get them and let you look at them before we start."
Nick was completely puzzled by now and said so. Collin said, "I have friends in law enforcement. I know they get tested every 4 to 6 months so I'm assuming you do to."
Nick nodded, yes he did. "I don't want to use a condom. I want to feel all of you and I want you to feel me. It's your decision."
Nick was speechless. This was the last thing he expected. He was scared to death and his first impulse was to say, "Hell no" and "Where's my clothes?" But Collin had not moved, except to draw away just enough so that Nick could get up and leave if he wanted. He looked into the clear, grey eyes looking down at him; he thought about every thing that had happened since he looked up and saw those eyes watching him across the dance floor at 'Body Heat'. He said suddenly, "Who's Rally?"
Collin did a goldfish imitation for a second and then said, "What?"
"Who's Rally? Mr. Jensen said Naomi said to tell you she had Rally and you could get him today or Sunday. Who's Rally?'
Collin looked like a guy who had just walked into a scene of the twilight zone. "Uh, Rally's my 9 month old Irish Setter. He thinks this bed is his and he lets me have part of it, so I was pretty sure he didn't need to be around when we got back here."
Nick smiled at him, pulled him down into another warm, wet kiss and said, "OK, no rubbers, but you better have a gallon of lube in that drawer because you're as big as I am and I know for a fact I'm larger than average."
Collin was trying to figure out what just happened but Nick wasn't giving him a chance. He was kissing his mouth and neck and nibbling on his ear lobe and Collin realized he had better get control of this situation fast or things could get messy. He used his lower body to hold Nick down and it was just a bonus that their dicks were rubbing against each other while he was doing it. He knew he had to be careful about that because that's what made him go over the edge the first time. He pulled Nick's hands up and put them on the carved bars of his headboard. He asked him if he thought he could keep his hands up there or did he want Collin to tie his wrists. Nick looked a little startled and said no, he did not want to be restrained.
Collin began a slow mapping of Nick's body, starting at his neck. He figured from the way Nick had been chewing on his, he had to like it himself and he was right. He had him squirming in no time at all. He used his mouth, his tongue, teeth, lips and hands to map every inch of Nick's body and by the time he got down to his cock, Nick was no longer saying words but just making sounds; very nice, happy sounds. Collin could tell from the way Nick kept trying to push his cock against him that he really wanted some hands-on-attention but he wasn't ready for that yet. He found that this beautiful, strong, body under him was just too appetizing. He thought that it was like a great meal; you didn't bolt it down, you took your time and savored every bite, every flavor. He spread Nick's legs apart and ran his hands down over his strong thighs letting the tips of his fingers slide down the crease where his leg met his body. He moved down in the bed so he was between Nick's legs and began to nibble and bite the inside of his thighs. He was surprised at how soft the skin was there. He thought that Nick must wear tight jeans a lot because they would rub against the skin and abrade the hair follicles enough to keep the skin smooth and hairless. He pulled Nick's legs back together so that his cheek was rubbing against one smooth thigh while he was kissing and licking the other one. Finally, he began to lick up to Nick's balls and cock. He took the big heavy sack in his mouth. He couldn't get both of them in his mouth at the same time so he sucked on one and then pulled the other in and sucked on it.
Nick was by now, almost in tears from the waves of new sensations that were sweeping through his body. He had had women give him blow jobs and some of them were mind blowing, BUT he had never had anyone suck and lick at his balls and the smooth skin behind them the way Collin did. He thought he was going to scream, faint, something. He would have laughed if he'd had the breath when the words, 'Shit or go blind' crossed his mind. Now he really understood that little saying.
He had long ago forgotten that he was gripping the headboard hard enough to break the bars and was ready to tell Collin he had to quit when Collin reached over to the nightstand, opened the door and took out a bottle. A few seconds later he heard Collin say, "Baby, take a deep breath." He tried hard but he could only make a little gasp.
Collin said again, "Take your time and breathe in slowly and as deeply as you can." He tried again and after 2 or 3 more gasps was able to get a good breath.
Collin said, "That's perfect. Now take a breath and hold it." Nick did. "Now, let your breath out all at once." He did and felt a slick, warm finger slide into his asshole. He jumped just a little and Collin asked if he had hurt him. Nick said, "No, I just wasn't expecting it to be warm and feel like that."
The finger kept moving in and out and circling around inside Nick's body. Then Collin asked if he was ready for another. Nick said yes and took another deep breath and let it out and suddenly, he felt full. Not bad, not uncomfortable even, just full.
Collin began to move his fingers in and out of Nick's body going deeper each time and all at once, Nick almost jumped off the bed. He was pretty excited when he said, "My God is that…?"
Collin laughed at him and said, "Yeah baby, that's your prostate and I plan on getting up close and personal with it as often as you let me for the next week." All, Nick could do was hang on to the headboard and moan, "Oh Lord, please do that again."
Collin was happy to oblige and Nick was sure he was going to cry, scream, pass out; do something when Collin reached up and pried his hands off the bars and told him to turn over on his stomach. Nick just looked at him and asked why. "Because it's easier for your first time."
Nick started to complain but was silenced with a deep kiss and several more vigorous strokes over that little amusement park deep inside his body. He turned over and groaned when the fingers pulled out of his ass but they were replaced with something blunt and hard and bigger than two fingers. He tried the breathing in and out and was surprised when he realized that Collin had slipped the head of his cock in his ass. He gasped out loud and begged him to stop.
Collin stopped moving at once but did not pull out. He just shifted his weight a little over to one side and leaned on his arm. He used his other hand to rub Nick's back and ass, reaching down to handle the heavy ball sack and rub over the smooth skin behind his balls and rub one finger around Nick's ass where his hard dick was straining to gain entrance.
Nick kept on taking deep breaths and finally told him to move, but do it slow. He did and slowly inch by inch stretched Nick's rectum until he was up against his smooth ass. Nick was moaning and trying to breathe. Collin asked him if he was OK and he said he was afraid he was going to shit the bed. Collin laughed and told him that was not the most romantic thing he could have said but he understood.
Finally Nick relaxed and moved just a little. Collin took his weight off his arm, got up on his knees and began to move in very small circles, trying to stretch the tight hole a little and still make it good for Nick. He was hanging on to his control with everything he had because the combination of the tight, hot, ass; Nicky's soft moans, which weren't so much pain any more and the feel of skin against skin was the most arousing thing he had ever felt. He pushed in just a little as he was making a circle and Nick's reaction told him he had just made contact with Mr. Prostate again. He kept his motions small and controlled until Nick laid his head down on his forearms and said, "For God's sake, please make me come."
Collin reached around Nick's body, wrapped his lube slicked hand around Nick's hard, leaking cock and began to move. He made sure he hit Nick's happy spot every time he pushed into his body. He was not surprised at all when Nick shot all over his hand and bed just a few strokes later. He was surprised when he did the same. As his balls drew up hard and he felt himself spurting inside Nick's warm welcoming body, he thought, "So much for control!"
Last night, or rather early this morning, came flooding back into Nick's mind and he knew how he got the muscle aches and why the handsome man was smiling at him. He couldn't help but notice that his erection was definitely twitching at the man, no, twitching at Collin.
Collin, who had danced with him, kissed him, picked him up at 'Body Heat' and brought him home with him. As all of his memories became available, Nick smiled back at Collin and said, "So, how's your control this morning?"
Collin laughed at Nick and moved over to the bed, laid down beside Nick, rolled partly on top of him and said, "You bastard. You would remember that." He started to kiss Nick but Nick turned his face away. Collin said, "What's the matter?"
Nick said, still faced away from Collin, "I know my 'morning breath' has crossed over the line into 'dragon breath' because I really got to go pee."
Collin grabbed Nick's jaw, turned his head toward him and kissed him soundly. (He didn't use any tongue however, he was just horny not crazy.) 'Ok, 'dragon breath', go pee and there's a new toothbrush on the counter for you."
He got up so Nick could get up, slapped Nick on one bare butt cheek as he walked by and took a minute to smooth the sheets before he flopped back down on the bed to wait for his partner.
Nick hurried to the bathroom, closed the door behind him and as his poor, overfull bladder gave up its load, he realized that Collin smelled great, was wet, had no morning stubble and his breath smelled like mint. Well, he was a trained observer after all, although even Ecklie could have figured out that Collin had showered, shaved, brushed his teeth and swished some mouthwash before he came back to Nick. Nick reached over, turned on the shower and noticed there was a razor with extra heads already in the shower caddy. He grabbed the toothbrush and paste and jumped in the shower.
In the other room, Collin heard the shower turn on and thought with a groan, 'Oh God, he's going to shower." Now while, he was glad that Nick wanted to be squeaky clean for him, I believe we have already established that he was horny and he figured it would be at least 20 or 30 more minutes before anything could be done about the enthusiastic erection he was sporting. You can imagine how surprised he was when just barely 12 minutes later a damp Nick landed in the bed beside him, rolled over on top of HIM and proceeded to kiss him breathless.
When he finally was able to breath, mostly because Nick had transferred his oral attention to his throat, he ran his fingers across Nick's smoothly shaven jaw and said, "Jesus Christ, what did you do..pee in the tub while you were showering, shaving" then he realized that Nick's breath was fresh and clean and added "and evidently brushing your teeth. Okay, you could shave with one hand, brush with the other and I guess just let the pee go down the drain but that's taking multi-tasking to a new high."
Nick chuckled against his throat, which tickled in a good way and said, "I'm used to working sixteen hours and getting called back out after 2 or 3 hours of sleep. There are lots of times when I don't really wake up till I'm drinking coffee in the truck on the way to a crime scene. Now shut up and pay attention here. I'm trying to test your control. I remember everything you said this morning and I'm not going to let you forget any of it." He went back to sucking gently on Collin's neck and trailing wet kisses, with just a little bite to them, down to his shoulder.
Collin pulled his leg up, braced his foot against the bed and used it as leverage to roll Nick over so he was on top. He fastened both hands in Nick's thick, dark hair and pulled just enough to get his attention. "Nick, listen to me. Normally by now, I'd have you on your back with your legs draped over my shoulders and I'd be balls deep in your ass. This is your first time and I want it to be so good for you that you will want me as much as I want you."
Nick started to answer but Collin fastened his mouth over Nick's and swallowed his words. "No, let me talk. It can hurt, I won't lie to you about that but I can make that go away. I get tested every 3 months. I've got 2 years worth of medical reports over there in my desk. If you want, I will get them and let you look at them before we start."
Nick was completely puzzled by now and said so. Collin said, "I have friends in law enforcement. I know they get tested every 4 to 6 months so I'm assuming you do to."
Nick nodded, yes he did. "I don't want to use a condom. I want to feel all of you and I want you to feel me. It's your decision."
Nick was speechless. This was the last thing he expected. He was scared to death and his first impulse was to say, "Hell no" and "Where's my clothes?" But Collin had not moved, except to draw away just enough so that Nick could get up and leave if he wanted. He looked into the clear, grey eyes looking down at him; he thought about every thing that had happened since he looked up and saw those eyes watching him across the dance floor at 'Body Heat'. He said suddenly, "Who's Rally?"
Collin did a goldfish imitation for a second and then said, "What?"
"Who's Rally? Mr. Jensen said Naomi said to tell you she had Rally and you could get him today or Sunday. Who's Rally?'
Collin looked like a guy who had just walked into a scene of the twilight zone. "Uh, Rally's my 9 month old Irish Setter. He thinks this bed is his and he lets me have part of it, so I was pretty sure he didn't need to be around when we got back here."
Nick smiled at him, pulled him down into another warm, wet kiss and said, "OK, no rubbers, but you better have a gallon of lube in that drawer because you're as big as I am and I know for a fact I'm larger than average."
Collin was trying to figure out what just happened but Nick wasn't giving him a chance. He was kissing his mouth and neck and nibbling on his ear lobe and Collin realized he had better get control of this situation fast or things could get messy. He used his lower body to hold Nick down and it was just a bonus that their dicks were rubbing against each other while he was doing it. He knew he had to be careful about that because that's what made him go over the edge the first time. He pulled Nick's hands up and put them on the carved bars of his headboard. He asked him if he thought he could keep his hands up there or did he want Collin to tie his wrists. Nick looked a little startled and said no, he did not want to be restrained.
Collin began a slow mapping of Nick's body, starting at his neck. He figured from the way Nick had been chewing on his, he had to like it himself and he was right. He had him squirming in no time at all. He used his mouth, his tongue, teeth, lips and hands to map every inch of Nick's body and by the time he got down to his cock, Nick was no longer saying words but just making sounds; very nice, happy sounds. Collin could tell from the way Nick kept trying to push his cock against him that he really wanted some hands-on-attention but he wasn't ready for that yet. He found that this beautiful, strong, body under him was just too appetizing. He thought that it was like a great meal; you didn't bolt it down, you took your time and savored every bite, every flavor. He spread Nick's legs apart and ran his hands down over his strong thighs letting the tips of his fingers slide down the crease where his leg met his body. He moved down in the bed so he was between Nick's legs and began to nibble and bite the inside of his thighs. He was surprised at how soft the skin was there. He thought that Nick must wear tight jeans a lot because they would rub against the skin and abrade the hair follicles enough to keep the skin smooth and hairless. He pulled Nick's legs back together so that his cheek was rubbing against one smooth thigh while he was kissing and licking the other one. Finally, he began to lick up to Nick's balls and cock. He took the big heavy sack in his mouth. He couldn't get both of them in his mouth at the same time so he sucked on one and then pulled the other in and sucked on it.
Nick was by now, almost in tears from the waves of new sensations that were sweeping through his body. He had had women give him blow jobs and some of them were mind blowing, BUT he had never had anyone suck and lick at his balls and the smooth skin behind them the way Collin did. He thought he was going to scream, faint, something. He would have laughed if he'd had the breath when the words, 'Shit or go blind' crossed his mind. Now he really understood that little saying.
He had long ago forgotten that he was gripping the headboard hard enough to break the bars and was ready to tell Collin he had to quit when Collin reached over to the nightstand, opened the door and took out a bottle. A few seconds later he heard Collin say, "Baby, take a deep breath." He tried hard but he could only make a little gasp.
Collin said again, "Take your time and breathe in slowly and as deeply as you can." He tried again and after 2 or 3 more gasps was able to get a good breath.
Collin said, "That's perfect. Now take a breath and hold it." Nick did. "Now, let your breath out all at once." He did and felt a slick, warm finger slide into his asshole. He jumped just a little and Collin asked if he had hurt him. Nick said, "No, I just wasn't expecting it to be warm and feel like that."
The finger kept moving in and out and circling around inside Nick's body. Then Collin asked if he was ready for another. Nick said yes and took another deep breath and let it out and suddenly, he felt full. Not bad, not uncomfortable even, just full.
Collin began to move his fingers in and out of Nick's body going deeper each time and all at once, Nick almost jumped off the bed. He was pretty excited when he said, "My God is that…?"
Collin laughed at him and said, "Yeah baby, that's your prostate and I plan on getting up close and personal with it as often as you let me for the next week." All, Nick could do was hang on to the headboard and moan, "Oh Lord, please do that again."
Collin was happy to oblige and Nick was sure he was going to cry, scream, pass out; do something when Collin reached up and pried his hands off the bars and told him to turn over on his stomach. Nick just looked at him and asked why. "Because it's easier for your first time."
Nick started to complain but was silenced with a deep kiss and several more vigorous strokes over that little amusement park deep inside his body. He turned over and groaned when the fingers pulled out of his ass but they were replaced with something blunt and hard and bigger than two fingers. He tried the breathing in and out and was surprised when he realized that Collin had slipped the head of his cock in his ass. He gasped out loud and begged him to stop.
Collin stopped moving at once but did not pull out. He just shifted his weight a little over to one side and leaned on his arm. He used his other hand to rub Nick's back and ass, reaching down to handle the heavy ball sack and rub over the smooth skin behind his balls and rub one finger around Nick's ass where his hard dick was straining to gain entrance.
Nick kept on taking deep breaths and finally told him to move, but do it slow. He did and slowly inch by inch stretched Nick's rectum until he was up against his smooth ass. Nick was moaning and trying to breathe. Collin asked him if he was OK and he said he was afraid he was going to shit the bed. Collin laughed and told him that was not the most romantic thing he could have said but he understood.
Finally Nick relaxed and moved just a little. Collin took his weight off his arm, got up on his knees and began to move in very small circles, trying to stretch the tight hole a little and still make it good for Nick. He was hanging on to his control with everything he had because the combination of the tight, hot, ass; Nicky's soft moans, which weren't so much pain any more and the feel of skin against skin was the most arousing thing he had ever felt. He pushed in just a little as he was making a circle and Nick's reaction told him he had just made contact with Mr. Prostate again. He kept his motions small and controlled until Nick laid his head down on his forearms and said, "For God's sake, please make me come."
Collin reached around Nick's body, wrapped his lube slicked hand around Nick's hard, leaking cock and began to move. He made sure he hit Nick's happy spot every time he pushed into his body. He was not surprised at all when Nick shot all over his hand and bed just a few strokes later. He was surprised when he did the same. As his balls drew up hard and he felt himself spurting inside Nick's warm welcoming body, he thought, "So much for control!"
The next time Nick opened his eyes, he knew exactly where he was and who he was with. He was somewhat surprised to find himself looking at Collin's right ear and not into his eyes. He finally managed to focus enough to realize that while he was laying flat on his stomach in the very comfortable bed, Collin was kneeling on the floor beside the bed.
Nick smiled and reached out to touch Collin's mouth with the tips of his fingers. "What are you doing out there" he asked?
Collin took Nick's fingers in his mouth and nibbled on them for a second and then he replied, "I was watching you sleep…well actually I was trying to decide if you were asleep or had passed out."
Nick tried to turn over on his back but stopped and let out a deep groan. "Oh Lord, I think I must have passed out and then slipped into sleep. My God, what did you do; invite the whole building in and let them gang bang me?"
Collin laughed and told Nick that's why he was thinking about waking him up. Nick needed a good soak in the Jacuzzi, a pain pill, some food and he needed to look at Nick's butt and make sure he was not torn.
Nick did raise his head at that one and asked, "TORN"?
Collin said, a little embarrassed, "Yeah, I got a little enthusiastic towards the end there but it was all your fault. You just kept pushing back against me and enticing me into going deeper and deeper."
Nick dropped his head back on the bed and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah; blame it all on the virgin. Like I really knew what I was doing."
Collin leaned in and kissed Nick thoroughly. They were both breathing hard when he pulled back and said, "Believe me, you may have been a virgin to begin with but you sure are a quick learner. Now, I'm going to fill the tub. You try to get yourself up but if it really hurts that much, just wait for me and I will help you. Not only is your ass sore but I'm sure your muscles are tight and aching."
****************************************************
An hour and a half later, Nick was feeling much better. He had really enjoyed the soak in the Jacuzzi, his muscles were relaxed and Collin had given him 2 Extra Strength Tylenol and rubbed some wonderful smelling cream into his aching butt and whatever was in the stuff, his burning ache was almost immediately relieved. Collin had settled Nick into an almost sinfully comfortable sofa and served him a great breakfast. Nick was ready to start on the rest of his vacation.
At least he was until Collin said, "Just as soon as you can move, I need to get you back to your hotel."
Nick tried hard to keep a non-committal expression on his face but inside he was hurting worse than he did from the great sex he'd had that morning. He couldn't believe he had misread the situation as badly as he did. He thought for sure that Collin was as infatuated with him as Nick was with Collin. He managed to keep his voice steady as he put his plate on the coffee table and said, "Sure, I'm ready any time you are."
He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand without groaning. He started to walk into the bedroom to get his clothes on but Collin reached out and grabbed his wrist. He turned Nick towards him and tried to pull him into his body but Nick held himself steady and refused to budge.
Collin decided that since Nick wouldn't come to him, he would go to Nick so he walked forward until he was pressed against Nick from his knees all the way up. He put his arms around him and leaned forward so he could put his cheek against Nick's. It was like holding a concrete pillar in his arms. Collin chuckled and said, "Oh Nicky, do you always jump to conclusions like this when you're working?"
Nick pulled back and glared at Collin. "What do you mean, jump to conclusions? It's a little hard to put any other meaning to 'I need to get you back to your hotel'."
Collin grinned and said, "I need to get you back to your hotel because Gerald called me while you were in the tub and said Steven is so worried about where you are he's ready to call the police. I need to get you over there so he can see I haven't kidnapped you or something worse."
Nick let out a big sigh and relaxed into Collins arms and slipped his own around him. He said, "Thank God, I thought you wanted to get rid of me."
Collin cleared his throat and said, "Can we sit back down for a minute? I want to talk to you about something." He got them both settled on the couch without letting go of Nick for a second. He spent a few minutes just enjoying the feel of their bodies pressed together, the texture of Nick's skin, the silky feel of his thick black hair and of course, the addicting kisses he was stealing from Nick. Finally he said, "Nick, I'm an architect. I have a small firm, just me and my partner. I handle the designs and clients and he's the master builder and works with the crews. In fact, my first job was the restoration of this building. This apartment was my fee for the design and believe me it's the only way I could afford to live here. Right now, we have 4 jobs going. I'm telling you all this because I'm in a good spot to take some time off. I want to spend it with you. I want you to check out of your hotel, stay with me and let me introduce you to my town. I promise I will let you out of bed for a couple of hours every day so we can go sight seeing. When are you going back to Las Vegas; next Saturday or Sunday?"
Nick was still lost in Collin's kisses and caresses and the whole speech Collin just made was slowly filtering through to Nick's rational brain. Considering the fact that Nick had been thinking with his little head ever since he put his arms around Collin and had to re-route the blood back up to his big head, it was no surprise that he didn't even realize that he had engaged his mouth before the rational brain was actually behind the wheel so to speak. Without a thought he said, "I have two more weeks; I'm not leaving until a week from this coming Saturday."
He noticed almost immediately that he was no longer being held close to a warm, hard, sexy body. He looked up into puzzled grey eyes. Collin said, "I could have sworn you told me at Body Heat that you were only going to be here for one week."
Nick said, "Well, my original plan was to stay here for a week and then drive on up to New York City."
"WHY?"
"Do we really have to go into all that right now?"
Collin's grey eyes were beginning to get a little stormy as he folded his arms and said, somewhat forcefully, "Yes, we really have to go into all that right now!"
It took Nick almost an hour to explain to Collin about his search for a plan for the rest of his life and how he realized that he needed to find out if he was interested in men as well as women. He gave him all his reasons for not doing his research in his own home town. He finished by saying, "That's why I was planning to go to New York. I figured that one week here and one week there should pretty well tell me if I'm bi or just confused."
Collin looked at him in complete amazement. He had listened to Nick very carefully, occasionally stopping him to ask a question or elaborate further on something that wasn't clear to him. He had raised his eyebrows when Nick said he knew that he wanted to have a family no matter who he picked to settle down with. Nick told him he loved kids and really wanted some of his own and he realized that would probably be a sticky point in any relationship but he knew he wanted to be a father and he was going to keep trying until he had exhausted all his chances. Finally, Nick stopped talking and waited for Collin to say something.
Collin finally opened his mouth and said, very seriously, "Are you whacked? What the hell do you think you are going to find in New York that you haven't already found right here. Weren't you the guy who told me last night 'Why keep looking for something when you've already found it'? My God Nick, after the last two orgasms we've had together how can you think you are confused? Because I'll tell you right now, you aren't confused…you're either gay or enthusiastically bi-sexual. You responded to me like no guy I've ever been with before. I thought I was going to go up in flames just from your kisses and I have never lost control with anyone to the point where I was afraid I was going to hurt them if I stuck my dick in them."
In a small voice Nick said, "Does this mean you want me to stay here for two weeks instead of just one?"
Collin did the same goldfish impression he had done the night before when Nick asked him about Rally. Finally he managed to say, "I swear, I think I'm going to go look for my gun or at least my bondage cuffs and fasten you to the bed until I get it through that thick skull of yours that I want to spend as much time as possible with you; in and out of bed. I want to be a tourist with you; I want to see all the places that Atlanta is famous for that I've never seen because I was too busy trying to get established. I want to fuck you in every room in this apartment and on every surface. I want to teach you how to fuck me. I want to teach you about sex toys. I want to go back to Body Heat and dance with you until we're both so hot we don't make it out of the parking lot. I wan……"
Nick grabbed Collin's face and stopped the rest of his words by fastening his mouth over his and kissing him until they both were red-faced and panting. "You win baby. Whatever you want, whenever you want it. I don't know how I got so lucky but I want to spend every single minute I can with you. I know you said you wouldn't ask me for anything and you wouldn't promise me anything but I swear to you…I want these two weeks to be something we can both remember for the rest of our lives."
Collin swallowed a few times before he was able to say, "Let's go get your stuff and get you back here because I'm not going to let you out of this apartment…apartment hell, I'm not going to let you out of bed until Monday morning."
Nick smiled, showing his dimples, leaned in and kissed Collin one last time and said, "Sounds like a plan to me."
The next time Nick opened his eyes, he knew exactly where he was and who he was with. He was somewhat surprised to find himself looking at Collin's right ear and not into his eyes. He finally managed to focus enough to realize that while he was laying flat on his stomach in the very comfortable bed, Collin was kneeling on the floor beside the bed.
Nick smiled and reached out to touch Collin's mouth with the tips of his fingers. "What are you doing out there" he asked?
Collin took Nick's fingers in his mouth and nibbled on them for a second and then he replied, "I was watching you sleep…well actually I was trying to decide if you were asleep or had passed out."
Nick tried to turn over on his back but stopped and let out a deep groan. "Oh Lord, I think I must have passed out and then slipped into sleep. My God, what did you do; invite the whole building in and let them gang bang me?"
Collin laughed and told Nick that's why he was thinking about waking him up. Nick needed a good soak in the Jacuzzi, a pain pill, some food and he needed to look at Nick's butt and make sure he was not torn.
Nick did raise his head at that one and asked, "TORN"?
Collin said, a little embarrassed, "Yeah, I got a little enthusiastic towards the end there but it was all your fault. You just kept pushing back against me and enticing me into going deeper and deeper."
Nick dropped his head back on the bed and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah; blame it all on the virgin. Like I really knew what I was doing."
Collin leaned in and kissed Nick thoroughly. They were both breathing hard when he pulled back and said, "Believe me, you may have been a virgin to begin with but you sure are a quick learner. Now, I'm going to fill the tub. You try to get yourself up but if it really hurts that much, just wait for me and I will help you. Not only is your ass sore but I'm sure your muscles are tight and aching."
Nick smiled and reached out to touch Collin's mouth with the tips of his fingers. "What are you doing out there" he asked?
Collin took Nick's fingers in his mouth and nibbled on them for a second and then he replied, "I was watching you sleep…well actually I was trying to decide if you were asleep or had passed out."
Nick tried to turn over on his back but stopped and let out a deep groan. "Oh Lord, I think I must have passed out and then slipped into sleep. My God, what did you do; invite the whole building in and let them gang bang me?"
Collin laughed and told Nick that's why he was thinking about waking him up. Nick needed a good soak in the Jacuzzi, a pain pill, some food and he needed to look at Nick's butt and make sure he was not torn.
Nick did raise his head at that one and asked, "TORN"?
Collin said, a little embarrassed, "Yeah, I got a little enthusiastic towards the end there but it was all your fault. You just kept pushing back against me and enticing me into going deeper and deeper."
Nick dropped his head back on the bed and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah; blame it all on the virgin. Like I really knew what I was doing."
Collin leaned in and kissed Nick thoroughly. They were both breathing hard when he pulled back and said, "Believe me, you may have been a virgin to begin with but you sure are a quick learner. Now, I'm going to fill the tub. You try to get yourself up but if it really hurts that much, just wait for me and I will help you. Not only is your ass sore but I'm sure your muscles are tight and aching."
****************************************
An hour and a half later, Nick was feeling much better. He had really enjoyed the soak in the Jacuzzi, his muscles were relaxed and Collin had given him 2 Extra Strength Tylenol and rubbed some wonderful smelling cream into his aching butt and whatever was in the stuff, his burning ache was almost immediately relieved. Collin had settled Nick into an almost sinfully comfortable sofa and served him a great breakfast. Nick was ready to start on the rest of his vacation.
At least he was until Collin said, "Just as soon as you can move, I need to get you back to your hotel."
Nick tried hard to keep a non-committal expression on his face but inside he was hurting worse than he did from the great sex he'd had that morning. He couldn't believe he had misread the situation as badly as he did. He thought for sure that Collin was as infatuated with him as Nick was with Collin. He managed to keep his voice steady as he put his plate on the coffee table and said, "Sure, I'm ready any time you are."
He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand without groaning. He started to walk into the bedroom to get his clothes on but Collin reached out and grabbed his wrist. He turned Nick towards him and tried to pull him into his body but Nick held himself steady and refused to budge.
Collin decided that since Nick wouldn't come to him, he would go to Nick so he walked forward until he was pressed against Nick from his knees all the way up. He put his arms around him and leaned forward so he could put his cheek against Nick's. It was like holding a concrete pillar in his arms. Collin chuckled and said, "Oh Nicky, do you always jump to conclusions like this when you're working?"
Nick pulled back and glared at Collin. "What do you mean, jump to conclusions? It's a little hard to put any other meaning to 'I need to get you back to your hotel'."
Collin grinned and said, "I need to get you back to your hotel because Gerald called me while you were in the tub and said Steven is so worried about where you are he's ready to call the police. I need to get you over there so he can see I haven't kidnapped you or something worse."
Nick let out a big sigh and relaxed into Collins arms and slipped his own around him. He said, "Thank God, I thought you wanted to get rid of me."
Collin cleared his throat and said, "Can we sit back down for a minute? I want to talk to you about something." He got them both settled on the couch without letting go of Nick for a second. He spent a few minutes just enjoying the feel of their bodies pressed together, the texture of Nick's skin, the silky feel of his thick black hair and of course, the addicting kisses he was stealing from Nick. Finally he said, "Nick, I'm an architect. I have a small firm, just me and my partner. I handle the designs and clients and he's the master builder and works with the crews. In fact, my first job was the restoration of this building. This apartment was my fee for the design and believe me it's the only way I could afford to live here. Right now, we have 4 jobs going. I'm telling you all this because I'm in a good spot to take some time off. I want to spend it with you. I want you to check out of your hotel, stay with me and let me introduce you to my town. I promise I will let you out of bed for a couple of hours every day so we can go sight seeing. When are you going back to Las Vegas; next Saturday or Sunday?"
Nick was still lost in Collin's kisses and caresses and the whole speech Collin just made was slowly filtering through to Nick's rational brain. Considering the fact that Nick had been thinking with his little head ever since he put his arms around Collin and had to re-route the blood back up to his big head, it was no surprise that he didn't even realize that he had engaged his mouth before the rational brain was actually behind the wheel so to speak. Without a thought he said, "I have two more weeks; I'm not leaving until a week from this coming Saturday."
He noticed almost immediately that he was no longer being held close to a warm, hard, sexy body. He looked up into puzzled grey eyes. Collin said, "I could have sworn you told me at Body Heat that you were only going to be here for one week."
Nick said, "Well, my original plan was to stay here for a week and then drive on up to New York City."
"WHY?"
"Do we really have to go into all that right now?"
Collin's grey eyes were beginning to get a little stormy as he folded his arms and said, somewhat forcefully, "Yes, we really have to go into all that right now!"
It took Nick almost an hour to explain to Collin about his search for a plan for the rest of his life and how he realized that he needed to find out if he was interested in men as well as women. He gave him all his reasons for not doing his research in his own home town. He finished by saying, "That's why I was planning to go to New York. I figured that one week here and one week there should pretty well tell me if I'm bi or just confused."
Collin looked at him in complete amazement. He had listened to Nick very carefully, occasionally stopping him to ask a question or elaborate further on something that wasn't clear to him. He had raised his eyebrows when Nick said he knew that he wanted to have a family no matter who he picked to settle down with. Nick told him he loved kids and really wanted some of his own and he realized that would probably be a sticky point in any relationship but he knew he wanted to be a father and he was going to keep trying until he had exhausted all his chances. Finally, Nick stopped talking and waited for Collin to say something.
Collin finally opened his mouth and said, very seriously, "Are you whacked? What the hell do you think you are going to find in New York that you haven't already found right here. Weren't you the guy who told me last night 'Why keep looking for something when you've already found it'? My God Nick, after the last two orgasms we've had together how can you think you are confused? Because I'll tell you right now, you aren't confused…you're either gay or enthusiastically bi-sexual. You responded to me like no guy I've ever been with before. I thought I was going to go up in flames just from your kisses and I have never lost control with anyone to the point where I was afraid I was going to hurt them if I stuck my dick in them."
In a small voice Nick said, "Does this mean you want me to stay here for two weeks instead of just one?"
Collin did the same goldfish impression he had done the night before when Nick asked him about Rally. Finally he managed to say, "I swear, I think I'm going to go look for my gun or at least my bondage cuffs and fasten you to the bed until I get it through that thick skull of yours that I want to spend as much time as possible with you; in and out of bed. I want to be a tourist with you; I want to see all the places that Atlanta is famous for that I've never seen because I was too busy trying to get established. I want to fuck you in every room in this apartment and on every surface. I want to teach you how to fuck me. I want to teach you about sex toys. I want to go back to Body Heat and dance with you until we're both so hot we don't make it out of the parking lot. I wan……"
Nick grabbed Collin's face and stopped the rest of his words by fastening his mouth over his and kissing him until they both were red-faced and panting. "You win baby. Whatever you want, whenever you want it. I don't know how I got so lucky but I want to spend every single minute I can with you. I know you said you wouldn't ask me for anything and you wouldn't promise me anything but I swear to you…I want these two weeks to be something we can both remember for the rest of our lives."
Collin swallowed a few times before he was able to say, "Let's go get your stuff and get you back here because I'm not going to let you out of this apartment…apartment hell, I'm not going to let you out of bed until Monday morning."
Nick smiled, showing his dimples, leaned in and kissed Collin one last time and said, "Sounds like a plan to me."
The next time Nick opened his eyes, he knew exactly where he was and who he was with. He was somewhat surprised to find himself looking at Collin's right ear and not into his eyes. He finally managed to focus enough to realize that while he was laying flat on his stomach in the very comfortable bed, Collin was kneeling on the floor beside the bed.
Nick smiled and reached out to touch Collin's mouth with the tips of his fingers. "What are you doing out there" he asked?
Collin took Nick's fingers in his mouth and nibbled on them for a second and then he replied, "I was watching you sleep…well actually I was trying to decide if you were asleep or had passed out."
Nick tried to turn over on his back but stopped and let out a deep groan. "Oh Lord, I think I must have passed out and then slipped into sleep. My God, what did you do; invite the whole building in and let them gang bang me?"
Collin laughed and told Nick that's why he was thinking about waking him up. Nick needed a good soak in the Jacuzzi, a pain pill, some food and he needed to look at Nick's butt and make sure he was not torn.
Nick did raise his head at that one and asked, "TORN"?
Collin said, a little embarrassed, "Yeah, I got a little enthusiastic towards the end there but it was all your fault. You just kept pushing back against me and enticing me into going deeper and deeper."
Nick dropped his head back on the bed and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah; blame it all on the virgin. Like I really knew what I was doing."
Collin leaned in and kissed Nick thoroughly. They were both breathing hard when he pulled back and said, "Believe me, you may have been a virgin to begin with but you sure are a quick learner. Now, I'm going to fill the tub. You try to get yourself up but if it really hurts that much, just wait for me and I will help you. Not only is your ass sore but I'm sure your muscles are tight and aching."
****************************************
An hour and a half later, Nick was feeling much better. He had really enjoyed the soak in the Jacuzzi, his muscles were relaxed and Collin had given him 2 Extra Strength Tylenol and rubbed some wonderful smelling cream into his aching butt and whatever was in the stuff, his burning ache was almost immediately relieved. Collin had settled Nick into an almost sinfully comfortable sofa and served him a great breakfast. Nick was ready to start on the rest of his vacation.
At least he was until Collin said, "Just as soon as you can move, I need to get you back to your hotel."
Nick tried hard to keep a non-committal expression on his face but inside he was hurting worse than he did from the great sex he'd had that morning. He couldn't believe he had misread the situation as badly as he did. He thought for sure that Collin was as infatuated with him as Nick was with Collin. He managed to keep his voice steady as he put his plate on the coffee table and said, "Sure, I'm ready any time you are."
He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand without groaning. He started to walk into the bedroom to get his clothes on but Collin reached out and grabbed his wrist. He turned Nick towards him and tried to pull him into his body but Nick held himself steady and refused to budge.
Collin decided that since Nick wouldn't come to him, he would go to Nick so he walked forward until he was pressed against Nick from his knees all the way up. He put his arms around him and leaned forward so he could put his cheek against Nick's. It was like holding a concrete pillar in his arms. Collin chuckled and said, "Oh Nicky, do you always jump to conclusions like this when you're working?"
Nick pulled back and glared at Collin. "What do you mean, jump to conclusions? It's a little hard to put any other meaning to 'I need to get you back to your hotel'."
Collin grinned and said, "I need to get you back to your hotel because Gerald called me while you were in the tub and said Steven is so worried about where you are he's ready to call the police. I need to get you over there so he can see I haven't kidnapped you or something worse."
Nick let out a big sigh and relaxed into Collins arms and slipped his own around him. He said, "Thank God, I thought you wanted to get rid of me."
Collin cleared his throat and said, "Can we sit back down for a minute? I want to talk to you about something." He got them both settled on the couch without letting go of Nick for a second. He spent a few minutes just enjoying the feel of their bodies pressed together, the texture of Nick's skin, the silky feel of his thick black hair and of course, the addicting kisses he was stealing from Nick. Finally he said, "Nick, I'm an architect. I have a small firm, just me and my partner. I handle the designs and clients and he's the master builder and works with the crews. In fact, my first job was the restoration of this building. This apartment was my fee for the design and believe me it's the only way I could afford to live here. Right now, we have 4 jobs going. I'm telling you all this because I'm in a good spot to take some time off. I want to spend it with you. I want you to check out of your hotel, stay with me and let me introduce you to my town. I promise I will let you out of bed for a couple of hours every day so we can go sight seeing. When are you going back to Las Vegas; next Saturday or Sunday?"
Nick was still lost in Collin's kisses and caresses and the whole speech Collin just made was slowly filtering through to Nick's rational brain. Considering the fact that Nick had been thinking with his little head ever since he put his arms around Collin and had to re-route the blood back up to his big head, it was no surprise that he didn't even realize that he had engaged his mouth before the rational brain was actually behind the wheel so to speak. Without a thought he said, "I have two more weeks; I'm not leaving until a week from this coming Saturday."
He noticed almost immediately that he was no longer being held close to a warm, hard, sexy body. He looked up into puzzled grey eyes. Collin said, "I could have sworn you told me at Body Heat that you were only going to be here for one week."
Nick said, "Well, my original plan was to stay here for a week and then drive on up to New York City."
"WHY?"
"Do we really have to go into all that right now?"
Collin's grey eyes were beginning to get a little stormy as he folded his arms and said, somewhat forcefully, "Yes, we really have to go into all that right now!"
It took Nick almost an hour to explain to Collin about his search for a plan for the rest of his life and how he realized that he needed to find out if he was interested in men as well as women. He gave him all his reasons for not doing his research in his own home town. He finished by saying, "That's why I was planning to go to New York. I figured that one week here and one week there should pretty well tell me if I'm bi or just confused."
Collin looked at him in complete amazement. He had listened to Nick very carefully, occasionally stopping him to ask a question or elaborate further on something that wasn't clear to him. He had raised his eyebrows when Nick said he knew that he wanted to have a family no matter who he picked to settle down with. Nick told him he loved kids and really wanted some of his own and he realized that would probably be a sticky point in any relationship but he knew he wanted to be a father and he was going to keep trying until he had exhausted all his chances. Finally, Nick stopped talking and waited for Collin to say something.
Collin finally opened his mouth and said, very seriously, "Are you whacked? What the hell do you think you are going to find in New York that you haven't already found right here. Weren't you the guy who told me last night 'Why keep looking for something when you've already found it'? My God Nick, after the last two orgasms we've had together how can you think you are confused? Because I'll tell you right now, you aren't confused…you're either gay or enthusiastically bi-sexual. You responded to me like no guy I've ever been with before. I thought I was going to go up in flames just from your kisses and I have never lost control with anyone to the point where I was afraid I was going to hurt them if I stuck my dick in them."
In a small voice Nick said, "Does this mean you want me to stay here for two weeks instead of just one?"
Collin did the same goldfish impression he had done the night before when Nick asked him about Rally. Finally he managed to say, "I swear, I think I'm going to go look for my gun or at least my bondage cuffs and fasten you to the bed until I get it through that thick skull of yours that I want to spend as much time as possible with you; in and out of bed. I want to be a tourist with you; I want to see all the places that Atlanta is famous for that I've never seen because I was too busy trying to get established. I want to fuck you in every room in this apartment and on every surface. I want to teach you how to fuck me. I want to teach you about sex toys. I want to go back to Body Heat and dance with you until we're both so hot we don't make it out of the parking lot. I wan……"
Nick grabbed Collin's face and stopped the rest of his words by fastening his mouth over his and kissing him until they both were red-faced and panting. "You win baby. Whatever you want, whenever you want it. I don't know how I got so lucky but I want to spend every single minute I can with you. I know you said you wouldn't ask me for anything and you wouldn't promise me anything but I swear to you…I want these two weeks to be something we can both remember for the rest of our lives."
Collin swallowed a few times before he was able to say, "Let's go get your stuff and get you back here because I'm not going to let you out of this apartment…apartment hell, I'm not going to let you out of bed until Monday morning."
Nick smiled, showing his dimples, leaned in and kissed Collin one last time and said, "Sounds like a plan to me."
Collin unlocked his apartment door and stepped aside to let Nick enter first. Nick was carrying a garment bag with the rest of his new clothes from 'Belle Hombre'. Collin was carrying everything else. Nick was doing better but he was still sore and Collin did not want him exerting himself; well at least not exerting himself outside of his bedroom.
Nick went straight down the hall to the bedroom as though it belonged to him too. When Collin got there, Nick was already hanging his garment bag in the closet. Collin sat Nick's bag down by his dresser and took his smaller bag into the bathroom. He came back, opened one of the big dresser drawers and pulled everything out so Nick could put his things in there. He gathered all of his things together and took them to the spare bedroom. When he got back, Nick had put his bag on the bed and was just opening it. He looked up at Collin and in a very serious voice said, "You know, you didn't have to do that…I could just use the spare bedroom."
Collin stopped dead in his tracks, looked at Nick and said, "Are you crazy?"
Nick walked up to Collin and said, "Yeah, I'm really crazy about you!" He couldn't keep it up anymore, he started to laugh and between attempts to get his breath, he pointed at Collin and said, "Lord, I wish you could see the expression on your face."
Collin grabbed Nick and threw him on the bed. Nick groaned when his butt hit the bed and again when Collin jumped on him. Collin began to kiss him; deep, hot, wet kisses that had Nick groaning again but for a much different reason. He wondered if he would still react like this at the end of their two weeks together. Would he get enough of Collin's smell and taste and feel to be able to think rationally around him? Suddenly, he was on the bed by himself and Collin was standing up, grinning down at him. Nick tried to grab him and pull him back down but he just stepped back away from him.
Nick dropped back on the bed and put his arm over his eyes. "What happened to not letting me out of bed until Monday? Did I lose a day somewhere?"
His new partner said, "Oh no, it's still Saturday but I've got to go get my kid and if I don't do it now, I'm not going to be in any condition to do it later."
Nick sat straight up on the bed, grabbed Collin's wrist and said, "What did you just say?"
Collin laughed and said, "Rally, I've got to go get Rally. I know Naomi said she'd keep him but I miss him. I want him to get used to you and I think you will like him. Do you want to come with me or stay here and rest?"
Nick said he'd go and asked if he needed to change his clothes. He was wearing a dark red T-shirt of Collin's and a pair of his grey sweats. He had put them on after his bath that morning because the only clothes he had were the items he'd worn to Body Heat. Collin said he was just right. They left the apartment and went down one flight. Collin knocked on the door of an apartment that was on the other side of the building from his. A lovely woman in her mid to late forties opened the door and invited them in. Collin introduced Nick to his friend Naomi Watkins. They walked into an apartment that was somewhat similar in layout to Collin's. Nick heard a high-pitched whine and turned around just in time to see Collin hurry into the living room and stagger under the weight of a gorgeous, red Irish Setter who jumped up on him and tried to lick his face off.
Nick felt Naomi's hand on his arm and turned towards her. She was smiling and shaking her head. "Mr. Stokes, can I offer you some wine, tea or coffee. They go through this every time Rally spends the night with me. It will take a few minutes for Rally to re-establish his status as alpha dog."
Nick grinned at her. "I would love some wine but only if you call me Nick and not Mr. Stokes 'cause I really want to call you Naomi. That's sure a pretty name."
Naomi looked at him for a second and then surprised the hell out of Nick when she laughed at him and said, "Oh please Nick; tell me you're bi and not straight gay. If you're bi I just may give Collin a run for his money and flirt outrageously with you."
If Nick had been surprised at what she said, what he did next had him even more surprised. He took her hand, which was still resting on his arm, brought it up to his mouth and kissed it very gently. "I'm pretty sure I'm bi but flirting with you is something I would like to do under any circumstances."
They both turned at the indignant 'Hey' that came out of the living room. "I'm not sure which one of you I should sic Rally on right now. You could at least not hit on each other where I can see and hear you." Rally reacted to Collin's tone of voice with a deep growl.
Nick dropped down to his knees and called Rally to him. Collin turned white and tried to grab Rally's collar but the big dog was too fast and still too much puppy to pay attention to him. He lunged towards Nick and jumped on him knocking him flat on his back. Both Collin and Naomi tried to make a quick grab but Nick and the big Setter were rolling over and over on the floor. Nick got an arm free and waved them both back and then they realized that Rally's growls had turned into whines and barks of happiness. He wasn't attacking Nick; he was trying to lick him into submission like he did Collin.
Suddenly, Nick rolled the big dog over on his back, grabbed the loose skin at the side of his neck and said, "Rally…Stop." Rally tried to raise his head and lick Nick again but Nick growled at him and put his face down against Rally's neck; almost as though he was biting him. Rally froze. Nick raised his head and again, in a stern, calm voice said, "Rally…Stop." Rally relaxed completely. Nick slowly lifted himself up off the quiet animal. Rally started to raise his head and for the third time Nick said, "Rally…Stop." Rally became completely motionless. Nick started to get up, very slowly. Rally stayed where he was. Nick stood up and put his foot on Rally's chest. The setter just looked up at him. Nick took his foot off and said, "Rally come here boy." He rolled over and staying low to the ground with his head down, came to Nick. Nick leaned over and took the dog's head in his hands and started rubbing his long silky ears while he crooned to him in a soft voice telling him what a good, beautiful boy he was. Rally was in doggy heaven. He leaned into Nick's hands, closed his eyes and with his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth, he almost smiled.
Naomi turned to Collin who had not said a word the whole time and said, "Looks like there's a new alpha dog in town."
Nick went straight down the hall to the bedroom as though it belonged to him too. When Collin got there, Nick was already hanging his garment bag in the closet. Collin sat Nick's bag down by his dresser and took his smaller bag into the bathroom. He came back, opened one of the big dresser drawers and pulled everything out so Nick could put his things in there. He gathered all of his things together and took them to the spare bedroom. When he got back, Nick had put his bag on the bed and was just opening it. He looked up at Collin and in a very serious voice said, "You know, you didn't have to do that…I could just use the spare bedroom."
Collin stopped dead in his tracks, looked at Nick and said, "Are you crazy?"
Nick walked up to Collin and said, "Yeah, I'm really crazy about you!" He couldn't keep it up anymore, he started to laugh and between attempts to get his breath, he pointed at Collin and said, "Lord, I wish you could see the expression on your face."
Collin grabbed Nick and threw him on the bed. Nick groaned when his butt hit the bed and again when Collin jumped on him. Collin began to kiss him; deep, hot, wet kisses that had Nick groaning again but for a much different reason. He wondered if he would still react like this at the end of their two weeks together. Would he get enough of Collin's smell and taste and feel to be able to think rationally around him? Suddenly, he was on the bed by himself and Collin was standing up, grinning down at him. Nick tried to grab him and pull him back down but he just stepped back away from him.
Nick dropped back on the bed and put his arm over his eyes. "What happened to not letting me out of bed until Monday? Did I lose a day somewhere?"
His new partner said, "Oh no, it's still Saturday but I've got to go get my kid and if I don't do it now, I'm not going to be in any condition to do it later."
Nick sat straight up on the bed, grabbed Collin's wrist and said, "What did you just say?"
Collin laughed and said, "Rally, I've got to go get Rally. I know Naomi said she'd keep him but I miss him. I want him to get used to you and I think you will like him. Do you want to come with me or stay here and rest?"
Nick said he'd go and asked if he needed to change his clothes. He was wearing a dark red T-shirt of Collin's and a pair of his grey sweats. He had put them on after his bath that morning because the only clothes he had were the items he'd worn to Body Heat. Collin said he was just right. They left the apartment and went down one flight. Collin knocked on the door of an apartment that was on the other side of the building from his. A lovely woman in her mid to late forties opened the door and invited them in. Collin introduced Nick to his friend Naomi Watkins. They walked into an apartment that was somewhat similar in layout to Collin's. Nick heard a high-pitched whine and turned around just in time to see Collin hurry into the living room and stagger under the weight of a gorgeous, red Irish Setter who jumped up on him and tried to lick his face off.
Nick felt Naomi's hand on his arm and turned towards her. She was smiling and shaking her head. "Mr. Stokes, can I offer you some wine, tea or coffee. They go through this every time Rally spends the night with me. It will take a few minutes for Rally to re-establish his status as alpha dog."
Nick grinned at her. "I would love some wine but only if you call me Nick and not Mr. Stokes 'cause I really want to call you Naomi. That's sure a pretty name."
Naomi looked at him for a second and then surprised the hell out of Nick when she laughed at him and said, "Oh please Nick; tell me you're bi and not straight gay. If you're bi I just may give Collin a run for his money and flirt outrageously with you."
If Nick had been surprised at what she said, what he did next had him even more surprised. He took her hand, which was still resting on his arm, brought it up to his mouth and kissed it very gently. "I'm pretty sure I'm bi but flirting with you is something I would like to do under any circumstances."
They both turned at the indignant 'Hey' that came out of the living room. "I'm not sure which one of you I should sic Rally on right now. You could at least not hit on each other where I can see and hear you." Rally reacted to Collin's tone of voice with a deep growl.
Nick dropped down to his knees and called Rally to him. Collin turned white and tried to grab Rally's collar but the big dog was too fast and still too much puppy to pay attention to him. He lunged towards Nick and jumped on him knocking him flat on his back. Both Collin and Naomi tried to make a quick grab but Nick and the big Setter were rolling over and over on the floor. Nick got an arm free and waved them both back and then they realized that Rally's growls had turned into whines and barks of happiness. He wasn't attacking Nick; he was trying to lick him into submission like he did Collin.
Suddenly, Nick rolled the big dog over on his back, grabbed the loose skin at the side of his neck and said, "Rally…Stop." Rally tried to raise his head and lick Nick again but Nick growled at him and put his face down against Rally's neck; almost as though he was biting him. Rally froze. Nick raised his head and again, in a stern, calm voice said, "Rally…Stop." Rally relaxed completely. Nick slowly lifted himself up off the quiet animal. Rally started to raise his head and for the third time Nick said, "Rally…Stop." Rally became completely motionless. Nick started to get up, very slowly. Rally stayed where he was. Nick stood up and put his foot on Rally's chest. The setter just looked up at him. Nick took his foot off and said, "Rally come here boy." He rolled over and staying low to the ground with his head down, came to Nick. Nick leaned over and took the dog's head in his hands and started rubbing his long silky ears while he crooned to him in a soft voice telling him what a good, beautiful boy he was. Rally was in doggy heaven. He leaned into Nick's hands, closed his eyes and with his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth, he almost smiled.
Naomi turned to Collin who had not said a word the whole time and said, "Looks like there's a new alpha dog in town."
========================================
After Nick's display of 'dog whispering' and total domination of Rally; he and Collin stayed for wine and sandwiches with Naomi. Nick explained to them that he grew up on a ranch surrounded by dogs, cats, horses, cows, chicken's and assorted other critter's. He said he learned from the Mexican vaquero's who worked for his grandfather that you had to master the animals or they would master you. Now that might not be so bad if you're talking about a 10 pound barn cat but a nine hundred pound wild horse could hurt you bad if you didn't establish up front who was boss. He told them that between his training and the fact that he had a natural empathy with almost all animals, he had been able to train the herd dogs by the time he was 7 and he had broken his first wild horse when he was 10. The whole time they were there, Rally laid either at Nick's feet or Collin's. Sometimes he would get up and after checking with Nick, would walk over and put his head in Naomi's lap. It was obvious that she and the beautiful animal had a deep affection for each other.
They said goodnight to Naomi after promising they would see each other again during the two weeks Nick was there and then took Rally outside for a good romp and his last potty break.
At first, they were both pretty physical; playing with the big dog, wrestling him and each other and running so he would chase them. As they kept grabbing each other and chasing around the lovely garden attached to the apartment building they began to get quieter. Where, at first, they had tagged each other or grabbed Rally's ball away so they could throw it for him, now their hands lingered and a touch on the shoulder turned into a caress that went from the shoulder down to the waist and eventually their bodies were pressed together. Rally came over to them and reared up so he could put a paw on each shoulder. They opened their arms and enclosed the big red dog in their loving embrace. They kissed and when their lips parted, they turned toward the building without saying a word. Rally walked quietly between them, their hands clasped together on his collar.
========================================
They decided when they got back to the apartment that Rally could sleep on the bed in the spare bedroom. After making sure he had fresh water and some dry food, Collin spread an old blanket over the 'spread and then called him up on the bed. Nick went and got the socks he'd been wearing the night before and one of Collin's dirty T-shirts and put them on the blanket. He rubbed Rally's ears and they both said goodnight and went to their own room.
Both men were hot and sweaty from playing with the dog in the warm, humid Atlanta night so they decided to hit the shower before they went to bed. It took about 2.5 seconds to shed their clothes and get under the warm water and then time slowed way down. Collin said washcloths or sponges just wouldn't do and used his hands to wash Nick. Of course, Nick thought that was a great idea and returned the favor. Collin had spent a lot of time that morning licking and kissing Nick's body but he had done it to get Nick to the point where he could handle his first experience with anal sex. Now, he used his hands to learn the feel of Nick's skin, his body and his muscles. He thought he could spend the rest of his life just touching Nick and watching the water flow over his tanned skin.
Nick was on an exploring safari of his own. This was, after all, his first sexual relationship with another man. Unlike Collin, he had never seen nor explored another male body other than his own. His enthusiasm for touching, feeling and tasting was building with every second they stood together under the warm water. Finally, Collin reached over and turned the faucet off. He pulled Nick out of the shower and threw a towel over his head to catch the water running off his hair. He grabbed another one and quickly toweled his own hair until the water wasn't running down his neck. Then he took a big fluffy bath towel and throwing it around Nick's shoulders, he began to rub his hands over the towel. Nick kissed him and told him he had never realized that getting dry after a shower could be such an erotic experience.
They moved together towards the big bed. Their movements weren't rushed; it was almost like slow dancing to their own music. They didn't fall on the bed; Collin went around to his side and got in while Nick did the same. Collin reached over to turn off the light but Nick stopped him. He wanted to see Collin. He wanted to look at him and watch his erection grow. He wanted to see the pre-cum ooze out the head of his dick. He wanted to watch his grey eyes get dark as his passion and desire grew until he couldn't stand it anymore and reached for Nick. Nick didn't realize that he had said all this out loud until Collin actually reached out and pulled Nick down on him and kissed him breathless. He told Nick he would try to stay still and let him look and explore as long as he could but he wanted him so much he didn't know how long he could hold out.
Nick threw the sheets back and began to run his hands over Collin's body. Everywhere his hands went his lips, tongue and teeth followed. He made it all the way down to Collin's nipples and was having a wonderful time bringing them to full, parade-dress attention when Collin broke. He grabbed Nick and pulled him up where he could kiss him; nibbling and sucking on his lips and tongue. Nick started to get the lube out of the drawer but Collin wouldn't let him. He said Nick needed a little more time before he got reamed again. Nick asked if he could top Collin. Collin caught his breath and asked him if he really thought he was ready to do that. Nick told him that someone was going to get fucked that night and if it wasn't him…well...there was only one other person in the bed.
Collin reached over and got the lube. He rolled over on his back and spread his legs and pulled his knees up. He told Nick to put some lube on his fingers and prep him just the way he had done Nick that morning. Nick said he might need a little prompting because he wasn't taking notes the first time he'd felt a man stick his finger up his ass. And as for getting a dick pushed up there, he was pretty sure he was just feeling and not evaluating.
Nick started very slowly. He thought briefly about sitting at his breakfast table back in Las Vegas and wondering if he would ever be able to put his finger up some guy's ass. He still didn't know if he could stick it up some guy's ass but Oh My Lord, he wanted to put his finger up Collin's ass so bad he was shaking with want. He slipped his middle finger in that small, tight place and was amazed that it went in so easy. It was wonderful to feel Collin's body open to let him in and then close around his finger. He moved his finger around and felt soft warmth and little fluttery quivers which he thought must be the nerves lining the walls of Collin's rectum. He pulled out and put some more lube on his fingers and this time he slipped his middle and ring finger in. He vaguely remembered Collin moving his fingers apart and then back together and he did the same thing. He looked up into his lover's (HE HAD A LOVER) eyes. "Am I doing it right" he asked?
Collin swallowed and then ran his tongue over his lips before he was able to say, "Oh yeah, you're doing it right. You're really, really, really doing it right. If you were doing it any righter, I'd be hanging off the ceiling."
Nick asked, "Well, if I'm doing it right why can't I feel your prostate? "
Collin told him to push his fingers in just a little further and sort of crook his fingers forward. Nick did and felt the little bump at the same time that Collin almost jumped off the bed. "Oh there it is." Nick was like a kid with a new toy. He pushed and stroked and didn't realize that Collin was about to self-destruct.
Finally, Collin was able to grab Nick's wrist and get his attention. Nick stopped playing and looked up at his panting boy-friend who was glaring daggers at him. He literally growled at Nick and told him if he wasn't putting something in him bigger than his fingers in less than 15 seconds, he would not live to see Las Vegas again. Nick pulled his hand out, grabbed the lube and rubbed some on his aching erection. He would have added a little more but Collin grabbed his dick and rubbed it against his burning, throbbing hole and said, "NOW, RIGHT NOW."
Nick couldn't believe he was really doing this; not even when he pushed carefully and felt the tight ring of muscles give way and let him slide his head inside the wonderful soft warmth. Nick stopped thinking completely; he was lost in a new world of sensation and heat. He didn't realize he had shoved into Collin until he heard his strangled cry and felt his balls slap hard against Collins body. He knew he had gone to fast and too hard and probably hurt his partner. He groaned and tried to pull out but Collin wound his legs around his hips and held him tight against him and threatened him with bodily harm if he moved in any direction.
"Just hold still. Don't move at all." Nick was balanced on his forearms so he was able to freeze in place. He was close enough to drop small kisses on Collin's lips, jaw and neck along with soft murmured apologies and words of praise and appreciation.
He told Collin how wonderful he felt and how soft and warm he was; how sweet his skin tasted and felt. He told him he could stay that way as long as he wanted as long as he could keep kissing his lips and exploring the heat of his mouth. He told him that he loved to fuck his mouth with his tongue just like he was fucking his ass with his dick. Nick had no idea where the flood of words came from. Normally, he was not a talker during sex at least not a dirty talker but evidently, when he was topping, his aggressive streak came out and he just couldn't stop.
Finally, Collin managed to get his hand over Nick's mouth and told him to keep talking because it was so hot but to start moving his butt and remember where his prostate was while he was doing it. Nick pulled out and then pushed in again. Each time, he changed his angle just a little bit until the response he got told him he was hitting the target. He knew he was getting close because he wasn't saying anything that made sense any more; he was saying Collin's name over and over and telling him it was good, so good. He lifted himself up and pulled Collin's butt up. He moved forward just a little so that when he let Collin back down his ass was raised in the air and resting on Nick's knees. That changed everything. Instead of stroking over that magic place, he was hitting it every time; just ramming his hard, thick dick into the sensitive bundle of nerves over and over. Collin let out a sound that was part scream, moan, gasp and probably Nick's name and came hard. The first touch of the hot, thick liquid was like pushing the plunger on a dynamite charge and Nick went off with a bang. He barely remembered straightening his legs out and sinking down onto the wonderful body below him. He never knew when Collin shifted just enough to roll them both over on their sides before he joined Nick in blessed sleep, with Nick still buried inside him.
It was late Friday night and Nick would be leaving soon. They were lying in the big bed that had played such an important role in their two weeks together. It still amazed both of them that they had formed habits in such a short time. They had two positions for sleep; either with Collin on his back and Nick sprawled across him, his head on his chest and an arm and a leg draped across his body or on their sides with whoever had topped curled tight around the other. They both instinctively reached over the warm body in front of them to hold onto a deflated cock.
The first time it happened, Nick had mumbled to Collin that it wasn't going to do him any good. His dick was dead…at least for a couple of hours. Collin told him he wasn't trying to start anything, he just wanted to hold him. Nick laughed and put his hand over Collin's and told him the poor thing was so deflated, he was amazed he could find anything to hold on to.
Tonight, they were lying on their sides but they were face to face. They had made love slowly, for a long time. No one had said anything out loud but they both realized they were making love and not fucking. Now they were so close they seemed to be sharing the same breath. They had talked about how they would spend this last day many times over the past two weeks. Neither of them wanted an emotional, overwrought parting. They had come to the same conclusion almost at the same time. They had something very special; it might even be love BUT Nick had a life in Las Vegas and Collin belonged to Hotlanta. The biggest stopper was children. Nick knew more than ever that he wanted them and Collin was determined that he was not parent material and he was sure he would never be able to share Nick with anyone who needed as much attention as a child would.
The only time they had sort of went over the edge was when they agreed that if Nick could not find a partner that would be willing to raise a family with him, male or female, he would call Collin and see how his life was going.
*******************************************
At the start of their time together, they both thought they would spend their last day alone in bed; they hadn't. Nick had slipped into Collin's life so easily it seemed as though he had been there forever. They had dinner and movies with Naomi, Steve and Larry, other neighbor's in the building and various combinations of Collin's partner Mitch and his employee's. They had gone to Body Heat with Larry and Steve and danced and flirted among the four of them. They spent one unbelievable night at the Fox theatre in Atlanta seeing "Jersey Boys" with the original Broadway cast. Nick was so enthralled with everything, he almost dislocated his neck trying to look at the stage, listen to the songs and look at the theatre itself. The other four took turns telling him the history of the Fabulous Fox Theater; how the building was originally built to be the Masonic Temple but over time had fallen into disrepair and at one time was scheduled to be demolished. A concentrated effort on the part of Atlanta residents determined to preserve this unique land mark had saved the building from the wrecker's ball. More determination and millions of dollars had been poured into restoring the building to its former greatness. The persistence had paid off. Now the Fabulous Fox was one of the jewels in Hotlanta's crown.
They had seats in the first row of the gallery and Nick was sure they had the best seats in the house. He had wondered at first why they didn't get tickets down on the main floor but when he was settled, he realized that he could see every single inch of the stage with no obstructions; he could hear every word perfectly AND had a perfect view of the unbelievable ceiling. Nick could not keep his eyes off the ceiling when the lights were on. It was painted to look like the night sky over a scene right out of the Arabian Nights complete with balcony's built at the top edge of the walls. But the most amazing thing was the clouds which appeared to move across the ceiling along with lights which mimicked the movement of the sun as it swept across the sky from one horizon to another.
Usually, when a current Broadway show was staged at the Fox, it was a road show cast and small parts were filled in by local talent. This was a rare showing because it was the original 4 actors. Some work was being done on the theatre in New York and they had been offered a fabulous vacation in Atlanta (along with some substantial financial incentives) to do four shows; Thursday, Friday and two on Saturday. The five friends had gone to the Saturday night performance and then had gone on to close the night out at some of Atlanta's hottest clubs. Naomi was a phenomenal dancer and had managed to wear all four men out by the time they ended their night.
Collin had kept his promise completely. He and Nick had alternated hours of sight seeing while pretending to be two out-of-town tourists there to see the sights with hours of sex so fantastic, it often left Nick mindless and boneless. They spent hours with Rally, playing with him in the small garden attached to the apartment building and taking him to Piedmont Park where there was plenty of room to work on his training. They went to Collin's projects where Nick was amazed to discover that not only did his entire crew know about his sexual orientation but they were completely comfortable with it.
Purely by accident, Nick became almost as popular with the crew as Collin and Mitch were. It happened on his first visit to the site of Mitch & Collin's biggest project; a unique office building that would be the home office for a large insurance company relocating to Marietta, Georgia. Nick followed Collin around the site, asking questions and looking at everything with great interest. He was trying to work out the logistics involved in the construction of a spectacular, cantilevered wall when he realized that the crew were speaking in Spanish; Spanish with a lot of slang and sexual innuendo's. Now Nick had grown up with the Mexican vaquero's on his Grandpa's ranch and he spoke Spanish as well as he spoke English. He concentrated on the wall pretending to ignore the conversation which was sprinkled with laughing comments about his ass and how well it was holding up after a week-end with the boss. Evidently, they all knew Collin was an enthusiastic sex partner. Nick wondered if any of them had been the friends who had taken Collin to the ER when he had been so brutally raped. He wondered even more, if any of them were in on what had happened to Collin's rapist.
He made friends for life when he turned around, walked over and in perfect street Spanish, told them that his ass was the happiest it had been in a long time and he was pretty sure that Collin's was too since he had been topped that morning. He finished by asking them if they hadn't noticed that Collin was walking a little bow-legged. He was smiling his happy smile with dimples the whole time he was talking to them.
There was complete silence for a moment and then...every single one of them dropped their tools and came over and started shaking Nick's hand, slapping him on the back and just in general making it apparent that he was completely accepted. Collin and Mitch walked over when they heard the noise the tools made just in time to see their crew swarming all over Nick like he was long-lost family. They just looked at each other in complete amazement. Finally, Collin hollered at his guys to un-hand his man and get back to work. They made some outrageous suggestions but laughingly went back to work. Collin threw his arm around Nick's shoulders and asked him if he was going to come on to every single person he introduced him to. Nick said he couldn't help it if he made friends easily.
They were supposed to go to lunch after the site visit but Collin took Nick to his office where he locked the door, pulled Nick down on the remarkably comfortable rug and proceeded to remind him that he was his and his only. When they finally left the office to go to lunch, they were both walking bow-legged.
************************************************
The first time it happened, Nick had mumbled to Collin that it wasn't going to do him any good. His dick was dead…at least for a couple of hours. Collin told him he wasn't trying to start anything, he just wanted to hold him. Nick laughed and put his hand over Collin's and told him the poor thing was so deflated, he was amazed he could find anything to hold on to.
Tonight, they were lying on their sides but they were face to face. They had made love slowly, for a long time. No one had said anything out loud but they both realized they were making love and not fucking. Now they were so close they seemed to be sharing the same breath. They had talked about how they would spend this last day many times over the past two weeks. Neither of them wanted an emotional, overwrought parting. They had come to the same conclusion almost at the same time. They had something very special; it might even be love BUT Nick had a life in Las Vegas and Collin belonged to Hotlanta. The biggest stopper was children. Nick knew more than ever that he wanted them and Collin was determined that he was not parent material and he was sure he would never be able to share Nick with anyone who needed as much attention as a child would.
The only time they had sort of went over the edge was when they agreed that if Nick could not find a partner that would be willing to raise a family with him, male or female, he would call Collin and see how his life was going.
****************************************
At the start of their time together, they both thought they would spend their last day alone in bed; they hadn't. Nick had slipped into Collin's life so easily it seemed as though he had been there forever. They had dinner and movies with Naomi, Steve and Larry, other neighbor's in the building and various combinations of Collin's partner Mitch and his employee's. They had gone to Body Heat with Larry and Steve and danced and flirted among the four of them. They spent one unbelievable night at the Fox theatre in Atlanta seeing "Jersey Boys" with the original Broadway cast. Nick was so enthralled with everything, he almost dislocated his neck trying to look at the stage, listen to the songs and look at the theatre itself. The other four took turns telling him the history of the Fabulous Fox Theater; how the building was originally built to be the Masonic Temple but over time had fallen into disrepair and at one time was scheduled to be demolished. A concentrated effort on the part of Atlanta residents determined to preserve this unique land mark had saved the building from the wrecker's ball. More determination and millions of dollars had been poured into restoring the building to its former greatness. The persistence had paid off. Now the Fabulous Fox was one of the jewels in Hotlanta's crown.
They had seats in the first row of the gallery and Nick was sure they had the best seats in the house. He had wondered at first why they didn't get tickets down on the main floor but when he was settled, he realized that he could see every single inch of the stage with no obstructions; he could hear every word perfectly AND had a perfect view of the unbelievable ceiling. Nick could not keep his eyes off the ceiling when the lights were on. It was painted to look like the night sky over a scene right out of the Arabian Nights complete with balcony's built at the top edge of the walls. But the most amazing thing was the clouds which appeared to move across the ceiling along with lights which mimicked the movement of the sun as it swept across the sky from one horizon to another.
Usually, when a current Broadway show was staged at the Fox, it was a road show cast and small parts were filled in by local talent. This was a rare showing because it was the original 4 actors. Some work was being done on the theatre in New York and they had been offered a fabulous vacation in Atlanta (along with some substantial financial incentives) to do four shows; Thursday, Friday and two on Saturday. The five friends had gone to the Saturday night performance and then had gone on to close the night out at some of Atlanta's hottest clubs. Naomi was a phenomenal dancer and had managed to wear all four men out by the time they ended their night.
Collin had kept his promise completely. He and Nick had alternated hours of sight seeing while pretending to be two out-of-town tourists there to see the sights with hours of sex so fantastic, it often left Nick mindless and boneless. They spent hours with Rally, playing with him in the small garden attached to the apartment building and taking him to Piedmont Park where there was plenty of room to work on his training. They went to Collin's projects where Nick was amazed to discover that not only did his entire crew know about his sexual orientation but they were completely comfortable with it.
Purely by accident, Nick became almost as popular with the crew as Collin and Mitch were. It happened on his first visit to the site of Mitch & Collin's biggest project; a unique office building that would be the home office for a large insurance company relocating to Marietta, Georgia. Nick followed Collin around the site, asking questions and looking at everything with great interest. He was trying to work out the logistics involved in the construction of a spectacular, cantilevered wall when he realized that the crew were speaking in Spanish; Spanish with a lot of slang and sexual innuendo's. Now Nick had grown up with the Mexican vaquero's on his Grandpa's ranch and he spoke Spanish as well as he spoke English. He concentrated on the wall pretending to ignore the conversation which was sprinkled with laughing comments about his ass and how well it was holding up after a week-end with the boss. Evidently, they all knew Collin was an enthusiastic sex partner. Nick wondered if any of them had been the friends who had taken Collin to the ER when he had been so brutally raped. He wondered even more, if any of them were in on what had happened to Collin's rapist.
He made friends for life when he turned around, walked over and in perfect street Spanish, told them that his ass was the happiest it had been in a long time and he was pretty sure that Collin's was too since he had been topped that morning. He finished by asking them if they hadn't noticed that Collin was walking a little bow-legged. He was smiling his happy smile with dimples the whole time he was talking to them.
There was complete silence for a moment and then...every single one of them dropped their tools and came over and started shaking Nick's hand, slapping him on the back and just in general making it apparent that he was completely accepted. Collin and Mitch walked over when they heard the noise the tools made just in time to see their crew swarming all over Nick like he was long-lost family. They just looked at each other in complete amazement. Finally, Collin hollered at his guys to un-hand his man and get back to work. They made some outrageous suggestions but laughingly went back to work. Collin threw his arm around Nick's shoulders and asked him if he was going to come on to every single person he introduced him to. Nick said he couldn't help it if he made friends easily.
They were supposed to go to lunch after the site visit but Collin took Nick to his office where he locked the door, pulled Nick down on the remarkably comfortable rug and proceeded to remind him that he was his and his only. When they finally left the office to go to lunch, they were both walking bow-legged.
****************************************
There had been an informal good-bye party for Nick earlier that day. It started in the afternoon when practically all of Collin's neighbors started dropping in with food and drinks. No one stayed long; they knew it was a bittersweet time. Collin was not the only one who had come to love Nick during his stay. Even if he had never said it to Nick, it showed in every word and gesture that passed between them. Larry and Steven had come over around 5.00pm followed by Mitch and almost every single man who worked for them. Even Gerald and David from Body Heat had showed up and stayed for an hour. Nick was beginning to think he might have to rent a U-haul to hold all the gifts he had received during the evening.
For Nick, the most amazing thing about the whole evening was the fact that everyone, gay, straight or bi had embraced him, Collin and each other with no reservations at all. He wondered if such complete acceptance was a Hotlanta thing or if it was just this unique group of people. He also wondered if he would ever experience this acceptance when he was back on his home turf in Las Vegas.
Around 8.00pm only Larry, Steve and Naomi were there. Almost as one, they stood and started gathering up Nick's bags and gifts. They all took them down to his truck and carefully stowed everything away. First Larry and then Steven hugged Nick and kissed him good-bye. Nick realized how much he had changed when he not only accepted their kisses but returned them with deep affection. They then said good-bye to Collin and Naomi, exchanging hugs and kisses and telling them to call them if they needed anything including just someone to be around and make some noise. Nick, Collin and Naomi headed toward the elevator while Larry and Steve got in their car and drove out of the garage. Naomi asked them if they wanted her to take Rally. They both said no at the same time. Collin thanked her and told her they wanted one final walk with him. Naomi looked at Nick and he could read her mind as surely as if she had said it out loud. Collin wanted Rally with him when Nick left. They walked Naomi to her door. Nick held her and kissed her for a long time. When he let her go, he was so close to tears he couldn't talk but she whispered in his ear and told him she would take care of both Collin and Rally for him. They walked back to the elevator, holding hands and neither said a word. They went upstairs, got Rally and took him outside. When they took him back upstairs, it was almost a repeat of their first night together. Their hands together on his collar, they took him into the spare bedroom and put him to bed. Then they went to their room.
****************************************
Now it was close to midnight. Nick had chosen this time deliberately so he could start getting his body back on graveyard time by driving all night. He would sleep most of Saturday during the day and then drive on into Las Vegas Saturday night and early Sunday morning. Nick started to move away from Collin. Collin rolled over to get up with him but Nick stopped him. He asked him to stay in bed. He said he had everything ready to go. All he had to do was pee, wash his face, pick up his shaving bag and get on the road. Collin looked at him, his eyes a little brighter than usual. Nick told him he wanted his last picture of him to be lying in their bed, the sheets all rumpled and messy from their love making. Nick went to the bathroom, took care of his business and Collin waited for him to come back to the bedroom one last time. He didn't. He went down the hall and when he came back, he had Rally with him. He told the big, red dog to get up on the bed with 'daddy'. He sat down beside Collin, leaned over and kissed him. He tried so hard to put everything he felt, every single second of the last two weeks into his kiss.
When their lips parted, Collin opened his eyes and looked at Nick. He said, "One time, I need to say it. I love you Nick with all my heart. I will remember these two weeks for the rest of my life and I will always measure every other relationship against this one."
Nick swallowed his heart and his tears. He looked deeply into Collin's eyes and said, "I need to say it too. I love you and I will always remember you. I will never settle for anything less than what we've had together and if I don't find it, I won't be sad because for two perfect weeks I had the very best this world has to offer."
He kissed Collin one last time, ruffled Rally's ears and told him to take care of 'daddy' and left. As he got into the elevator, he looked up at the corner and smiled when he saw the red light come on. Mr. Jenson, god with a small 'g', would not miss this chance to say good bye to the man who had in such a short time become one of his charges.
"Nick, I hope you know you are going to be sorely missed. I don't suppose you might be willing to change your mind and stay here."
"Don't make it harder for me, Mr. Jensen. I'm just barely holding it together as it is. Collin knows why I have to go back to my life and leave him to his. You know I'm leaving part of me here, don't you?" Nick was hanging on to his composure with everything he had.
"Yes I do and I hope you know that you are taking a part of everyone here, back with you. You have made yourself part of our lives and we will be praying for your safety and happiness for a long time to come. Have a safe trip and remember, if you don't find what you want in Las Vegas; it's all waiting here for you in Atlanta. Good bye Nick; God bless you and keep you." The red light winked out just as the elevator reached the garage level.
Nick got out, went over to his truck, got in and drove out of the garage, out of Atlanta and back to what ever was waiting for him in Las Vegas. He didn't even try to tell himself that real men don't cry. He couldn't get the words past the lump in his throat.
"The more things change, the more they are the same." That's a quote from a guy named Alphonse Karr. He was a French writer and critic in the 19th century. He could have been writing about the Las Vegas Crime Lab.
It was almost nine months since Nick had left for his one month vacation and everything was still the same. Nick had been and still was the chief topic of conversation or gossip depending on how you looked at it.
While he was gone, most of the discussion was of the 'Is He Coming Back' variety. It had gone as far as a betting pool with entries such as: 1) Won't Come Back at All - will tell them to clean out his locker and send to him. 2) Will Come Back and give 2 week notice 3) Will Call in Resignation and give them notice…well, you get the idea.
When Warrick Brown heard about the betting pool, he lost it big time. The normally unflappable Mr. Cool exploded in a rage that was forever after known as "Brown's Big Blow-up". It was so bad that Grissom and Brass had to interfere and literally pull Warrick and one of the detectives apart after the detective had laughed in Warrick's face when he told him to shut his mouth about Nick. After that the betting pool went underground and quietly went away when Nick came back to work.
It was almost nine months since Nick had left for his one month vacation and everything was still the same. Nick had been and still was the chief topic of conversation or gossip depending on how you looked at it.
While he was gone, most of the discussion was of the 'Is He Coming Back' variety. It had gone as far as a betting pool with entries such as: 1) Won't Come Back at All - will tell them to clean out his locker and send to him. 2) Will Come Back and give 2 week notice 3) Will Call in Resignation and give them notice…well, you get the idea.
When Warrick Brown heard about the betting pool, he lost it big time. The normally unflappable Mr. Cool exploded in a rage that was forever after known as "Brown's Big Blow-up". It was so bad that Grissom and Brass had to interfere and literally pull Warrick and one of the detectives apart after the detective had laughed in Warrick's face when he told him to shut his mouth about Nick. After that the betting pool went underground and quietly went away when Nick came back to work.
****************************************
After Nick came back, the gossip mill went into overdrive. He came back a changed man. It wasn't just the looks, which were hot, hot, hot, it was the attitude. Nick had always been a friendly person but when you tried to get past that Texas charm and the dimples, he was really very aloof. No one got that close to him. He always had a friendly smile, a slap on the back, a word of encouragement but it was delivered at arms length.
Now, Nick was………accessible.
***************************
Nick got back in town early Sunday morning and called Greg and Warrick. Greg answered his cell phone with an excited, "YOU'RE BACK!"
Nick laughed at him and asked him what made him think he was home; he could be somewhere in the middle of the Sahara desert and just decided to give him a ring. He could tell from the tone of Greg's voice that he was doing his little 'bounce of excitement'. Greg was always in motion but when he was excited, especially when he was talking and excited, he sort of bounced in place. Not like a Tigger doll but just a little rock as though his nerves just wouldn't let him be still.
"You are NOT in a desert somewhere unless you're outside of town and calling me. You are back!"
"Yeah I'm back and I wondered if you felt like having breakfast with me before you crash for the night."
"Where do you want to meet?"
"Come to my place. I'll fix bacon, eggs and toast AND…I've got a present for you."
Greg was very excited now. He loved presents and food and being waited on. What a great end to a shitty shift. "I'll be there and if I get strawberry jam with my toast, I will bring the coffee."
Nick asked him seriously, "Now when have I ever not had strawberry jam for you AND are you bringing the good stuff?"
Greg's shudder was almost audible over the phone. "Good God, Nick, as if I'd ever bring anything else to a friend's home. I'll see you in about 45 minutes"
****************************************
Greg was so happy to see Nick he threw his arms around him before he remembered that Nick really didn't like to be touched. Every since his ordeal with Walter Gordon, he had not been the touchy-feely guy that Greg had first met seven long years ago. Greg almost fell over when not only did Nick NOT pull away from him but he put his arms around Greg and hugged back. He thought for one brief second he had felt a brush of lips against his temple but then realized that he was fantasizing again. He had to stop that immediately, so he pulled away from Nick and got his first good look at him.
"Oh My God" was his spontaneous remark. The Nick who left was a great looking guy, but he'd begun to look his 40 years. He'd had crow's feet and lines from his nose to his lip. THIS Nick however, looked fantastic; the lines were still there but they were so faint you had to look to find them. His skin glowed, his hair was even thicker and softer than Greg remembered and believe me, Greg had dreamed about every single centimeter of Nick for many years now. "You've sold your soul to the Devil for eternal youth!"
"G, I swear you get crazier as you get older. I just had 30 solid days away from here. No blood, no dismembered bodies, no raped, murdered kids AND solid uninterrupted sleep in a comfortable bed every night. I've been to movies, parties, plays, played tourist, ate great food, danced in hot clubs; Greg, I've had a vacation."
Greg shook his head slowly and said, "There has to be more to it than that. You left here tired and confused and now you're different. Yeah the rest may have taken care of the tired part, but you, you're different somehow. I'm going to find out you know. I am a great investigator. After all, you taught me."
Nick said, "Yeah, me and Grissom and Catherine and Warrick and Sara. Greg, everyone one of us had a hand in your training but we couldn't do anything if we didn't have some good material to begin with. Now, stop with the questions and come eat this great breakfast I've fixed for you and open your present."
Greg followed Nick into the kitchen still shaking his head. Even Nick's ass looked tighter and firmer and of all the 'Nick' part's Greg had dreamed about, that ass was top of the list; followed closely by the smile, lips, dimples and hair. He looked at the table Nick had set for them and again was surprised. Usually, when he and Nick had a bite together, it was paper plates if they were formal and paper towels if they were going casual. This table had dishes, silverware and 'Good Grief' flowers. As nice as the table looked, the hot food Nick was dishing up for him looked and smelled even better. They sat down together and gave the great breakfast the attention it deserved. Finally, after Greg had eaten everything in sight and was working on his fourth piece of toast with strawberry jam, Nick left the table and returned with a beautifully wrapped package. He sat it down next to Greg and told him to finish his toast and then open his gift.
Greg swallowed his toast in two bites and grabbed the package. He tore the beautiful paper off, pieces going everywhere. Nick laughed at him and said, "Well, so much for presentation. I should have just handed you a grocery bag."
Greg too excited to answer, just kept ripping. The t-shirt fell out first and he held it up and looked at the screen print and got a look on his face like a lotto winner being handed the big check.
"Oh…' Lordi', how, what" he couldn't even get a complete sentence out. Then the CD fell onto the table and Greg could see all the signatures on the cover. "My God, they're all here…Lordi, Amen, Ox, Kita, Awa…Nick how in the world, how did you know, I didn't even know you could say Lordi let alone know…." Greg fell silent; he was so surprised he was at a loss for words.
Nick smiled, happy at Greg's reaction. "I take it you like it?" Greg still wasn't talking, just reading the cover and looking at the t-shirt." Nick said, "I have a follow up; the guy I got these from is looking for their second CD, The Monsterican Dream. He's going to send it to me as soon as he gets his hands on a copy."
Greg finally managed to pull his attention away from his gift and look at Nick. He could not imagine that Nick; straight-laced, Travis Tritt, Garth Brooks loving Nick had not only spent his money on something like this but had taken the time during his vacation to find it for him, something so uniquely Greg specific. "Nick I could kiss you right now."
Nick flashed his dimples and said, "I don't know, Greggo. As vulnerable as you are right now, it might not end with a kiss."
Greg had been speechless before but that little remark almost sent him to his knees. He was considering the possibility that Nick had been replaced by a pod Nick and was trying to figure out if he should really care as long as this Nick kept on making remarks like that. Fate stepped in right then in the guise of Nick's cell phone. Warrick was finally through with his scene and was returning Nick's call. They talked for a few minutes and then Greg heard him telling Warrick that Greg was there and had already opened his gift but Warrick was welcome to come over. Nick could fix another breakfast and they could catch up; just the 3 of them.
Greg swallowed the urge to yell at Warrick to stay away from his man and leave them alone and smiled and said sure, he would love to get together the way they used to. He wondered if he would ever get a chance like that again.
****************************************
Hours later, Greg and 'Rick got ready to head for home and some well deserved sleep time. Warrick had been as knocked out by his gift as Greg was. They had taken turns playing tunes from their respective CD's and Greg had told them all about Lordi and how they had taken first place in the Eurovision Song Contest, the first time in 45 years that Finland had won and how they were going to be making the first feature length Finnish horror movie called 'Dark Floors'.
Warrick had talked about some of the great jazz musicians on his CD. Names like Louis Armstrong and Jelly Roll Morton that both Nick and Greg recognized but also less famous names like Kippie Moeketsi, Jonas Gwangwa and Masekela. They had made the first South African recording by black musicians. The three of them were so different; Greg with his love of heavy metal and euro-music, Nick growing up on Ernest Tubbs and Roy Clark and Warrick with his heavy blues/jazz background. Yet it was obvious, with no words needed, that these three would go to the wall for each other and that the feelings between them were love in it's purest form.
****************************************
Monday morning, Nick had arranged to go over to Catherine's to give her and Lindsey their gifts. He was due in that night and he would take the rest of the gifts in with him. He had so many, he had to ask Greg and Warrick to meet him a few minutes early to help him get them all out of the car and into the building but Catherine, Greg and Warrick were special. He had wanted their gifts to be a private matter.
He saw Catherine's SUV in the driveway when he pulled up so he knew his timing was good. She met him at the door with a big smile and a hug that almost took his breath away. She was fresh from a shower and had on casual clothes and her hair was still damp and curling around her face. She looked more like 28 than 48. She was thrilled to see Nick and like Greg, asked him if he'd sold his soul to the devil. Nick accused her of plotting with Greg.
He was still holding Catherine in a close embrace when a gorgeous, 16 year old whirlwind blew down the stairs and launched itself at Nick. He managed to let go of Catherine in time to catch a very excited, happy Lindsay Willows in his arms. He whirled her around in a circle the way he had ever since she was a baby and finished with a big kiss on the forehead and a tight hug.
"I don't have to ask how my favorite girl is doing. You're every bit as beautiful as your mother. Looks like you're going to carry on the family tradition of breaking hearts every where you go." Nick wasn't kidding. Lindsay had been a darling baby, a lovely toddler but now, as she looked back at him with sparkling eyes so much like her mother's, Nick realized that his favorite 'godchild' was well on her way to being a breath-taking young woman. "I'm going to have to stop doing that 'whirl-around' with you; you're getting so grown up."
Lindsay smiled affectionately back at the man who had been a part of her life as long as she could remember. She knew her dad had loved her but Nick, Warrick, Grissom, Jim Brass and Greg were the men who had always been in her life. The ones she could always depend on to be there for her school functions and the holidays when a little girl really need a real or substitute 'daddy' to rely on. "Well, I realize that as you get older, you'll be too feeble to really twirl me around but I will always still need hugs and kisses."
Nick groaned and looked over at Catherine and said, "Oh God, she really is like you. No one but a 'Willow' woman could come up with a reverse compliment like that. I'll have you know Missy, it's going to be a long time down the road before I get too weak and feeble to handle you."
Lindsay gave him a final hug and kiss before pulling out of his arms and asking him what he was doing there; she thought he was on vacation. He told her he was but vacation was over, he was back in the lab that night and he wanted to bring her and her mother something he had gotten for them on his vacation.
They went into the kitchen where the coffee pot was steaming away. Catherine had him sit down while she poured coffee for all three of them and served the pastries she had picked up from their favorite down-town bakery. Nick was thrilled, especially when he saw the bear claws and cream cheese rolls with apricot topping. He helped himself to one of each and took a bite of the warm bear claw. He was moaning with pleasure when he looked up and saw the two almost identical faces looking at him with affectionate smiles.
"Uh..sorry, I guess I was hungrier than I thought."
"Nick, you do that every time I go to that bakery. It doesn't matter if you just finished a Big Mac Breakfast Burrito, you still stuff the first one in so fast you almost choke." Catherine was laughing at her friend even while she was handing him a napkin to catch the frosting crumbs spilling down the front of his dark blue t-shirt. So for the second day in a row, Nick had breakfast to the sound of laughter and excited conversation.
****************************************
Lindsay was gone. She had reluctantly left to ride in with her friends after trying every trick she could think of to make her mother let her ditch first period so she could stay home with Nick. The personalized perfume had been a smashing success. Lindsay couldn't figure out what she liked more, the delicate glass flagon with a carved butterfly stopper or the unique scent that was hers alone; made just for her based on Nick's feelings and descriptions. The perfume was not meant for a little girl. It lingered on her skin and in the memory of anyone around her but it wasn't heavy and cloying the way so many so called 'sensual' scents were. Even Catherine gave it her sniff of approval. They finally convinced Lindsay to take her crystal bottle upstairs and head out to school. She was still so excited it never occurred to her that she had not seen Nick's gift to her mother.
When they heard the car drive off, Nick turned to Catherine and asked her if she was ready for her present. Catherine gave Nick that smile he loved so; the one where she closed her eyes and then looked up at him through her long eyelashes. She said, "Nick, I'm a female. Three guesses and the first 2 don't count."
Nick laughed, fished in his jacket pocket and brought out the beautifully wrapped package and put it in her hand. Catherine hefted the package a couple of times as though trying to guess its weight or contents just from the feel. "Hummm. They say good things come in small packages don't they."
Nick didn't fall and just told her she would have to open the package to find out. She did and all the joking stopped when she picked the beautiful turquoise nugget out of the box and held it up to the light. The silver chain sparkled like diamonds, as did the silver wires wrapped around the pendent to keep it secure and safe. Catherine let out the breath she had been holding and finally said, "Oh Nicky, this is just too much. It's breathtaking. This must have cost you a fortune. I can't take this from you."
Nick put his hand over Catherine's hand still lying on the table. "Catherine, the minute I saw this, I knew it was yours. What you and I have, what we've built together over the last 8 years can't be defined by dollars and cents. I want you to wear this and remember me every time you do."
Cath looked up at Nicky, tears making her blue eyes sparkle like the beautiful pendent she held in her hand. "Would you put it on for me?"
Nick smiled and took the silver chain from her. He walked around behind her and gently laid the jewel so it fell just about the start of her cleavage. He fastened the clasp as he said, "I'd be honored." He bent down and kissed the top of her head and felt the silky hair tickle his nose. Catherine stood up, turned around and put her arms around Nick. She held him close and whispered in his ear, "Welcome home Nicky. I've missed you so much."
****************************************
That night, the new Nick came back to work at the Las Vegas Crime Lab. This Nick Stokes was just like the old Nick Stokes; handsome, confident and on the surface, the epitome of the good-ole-boy. But there were subtle differences. This Nick made a point of touching a shoulder or putting a hand on an arm as he gave out his gifts. He laughed and said he knew now why Santa Claus kept doing this every year. It was just so much fun to give people things. He teased both Mandy and Wendy and refused to give them their gifts until he got a hug from each. He told Judy that since he had spent not only his hard-earned money but also his vacation time, he thought he at least deserved a kiss on the cheek. Judy turned a shade of red that no one could put a name to but she eagerly kissed Nick for her present and then kissed him again after she opened the package and found the lovely silver frame Nick had gotten her for her desk.
All of the lab tech's, even Hodges, were amazed at the quality of their gifts. They were used to getting t-shirts or coffee mugs but these gifts reflected not so much money as thought and care that had gone into each of them. Even those who got the same items noticed the differences. Mandy had a sweet tooth and Nick had gotten her an assortment of pricy Belgian chocolates in a carved wooden box. Hodges also had a sweet tooth so he got candy also but his was an assortment of sinfully delicious fudge. Bobby was so thrilled with his book about dueling pistol's, Grissom had to threaten to take it away from him until after work to make him put it down. Among the lab personnel, Archie took the prize. He was so excited about his 'starship' he literally jumped out of his chair, threw his arms around Nick and hugged him so hard Nick was turning red.
That's when everyone got the first clue that things had changed. They weren't sure of the reason at the time but later, most of them identified this moment as the beginning of 'Pod Person Nick'. Instead of firmly pushing Archie away from him, Nick had put his arms around his excited friend and hugged him back. He had even ruffled Archie's hair when he finally let him go and said, "Does this mean you don't want to return it?"
"Return it" Archie asked. "I will do bodily harm to anyone who dares to lay a finger on this."
By the end of the shift after Archie had set the clock to go off every single hour and the whole lab had listened to the William Shatner voice double invite Archie out on a date, to a Star Trek convention and to the bathroom to get ready for work over and over, they were all ready to kill. They just weren't sure whether it should be him or Nick. When Grissom left, he stuck his head in the A/V lab and told Archie very sternly to leave his toy at home when he reported to work that night.
But the highlight of the night was after everyone else had opened their gifts when they all assembled in the break room. The crowd was spilling out the door into the hall but everyone had been told there was going to be a presentation and to be there if they could.
Nick, Warrick and Greg solemnly brought a large box into the room and put it on the table in front of Grissom. No one knew what was in the box. Nick had resisted all attempts to pry the secret from him. He told Grissom the box was his gift and to open it up. Grissom looked at the assembled crowd and asked seriously if anyone was working that night. Nick told him the longer he took to open his gift the longer everyone would be away from their stations. Grissom carefully unwrapped the gift, opened the box and looked up at Nick in puzzlement. "How do I get it out" he asked?
Nick and Warrick picked the box up and carefully turned it over until the contents began to slide out onto the table where Greg grabbed the packing and pulled it the rest of the way out. Then they all stepped back so Grissom could unwrap the rest. When the gleaming, silver, mini-fridge was finally exposed there was a sigh in the room followed by a round of applause that got louder as it went on. People started laughing out loud and a chorus of "Grissom's got a fridge" started up. When there was a moment of relative quiet, Nick said to Grissom, "Now get your damned stale, rancid, blood experiments out of our break room fridge and into your own." There was another round of applause and this time the chorus was "Nick's the Man!"
All of the lab tech's, even Hodges, were amazed at the quality of their gifts. They were used to getting t-shirts or coffee mugs but these gifts reflected not so much money as thought and care that had gone into each of them. Even those who got the same items noticed the differences. Mandy had a sweet tooth and Nick had gotten her an assortment of pricy Belgian chocolates in a carved wooden box. Hodges also had a sweet tooth so he got candy also but his was an assortment of sinfully delicious fudge. Bobby was so thrilled with his book about dueling pistol's, Grissom had to threaten to take it away from him until after work to make him put it down. Among the lab personnel, Archie took the prize. He was so excited about his 'starship' he literally jumped out of his chair, threw his arms around Nick and hugged him so hard Nick was turning red.
That's when everyone got the first clue that things had changed. They weren't sure of the reason at the time but later, most of them identified this moment as the beginning of 'Pod Person Nick'. Instead of firmly pushing Archie away from him, Nick had put his arms around his excited friend and hugged him back. He had even ruffled Archie's hair when he finally let him go and said, "Does this mean you don't want to return it?"
"Return it" Archie asked. "I will do bodily harm to anyone who dares to lay a finger on this."
By the end of the shift after Archie had set the clock to go off every single hour and the whole lab had listened to the William Shatner voice double invite Archie out on a date, to a Star Trek convention and to the bathroom to get ready for work over and over, they were all ready to kill. They just weren't sure whether it should be him or Nick. When Grissom left, he stuck his head in the A/V lab and told Archie very sternly to leave his toy at home when he reported to work that night.
But the highlight of the night was after everyone else had opened their gifts when they all assembled in the break room. The crowd was spilling out the door into the hall but everyone had been told there was going to be a presentation and to be there if they could.
Nick, Warrick and Greg solemnly brought a large box into the room and put it on the table in front of Grissom. No one knew what was in the box. Nick had resisted all attempts to pry the secret from him. He told Grissom the box was his gift and to open it up. Grissom looked at the assembled crowd and asked seriously if anyone was working that night. Nick told him the longer he took to open his gift the longer everyone would be away from their stations. Grissom carefully unwrapped the gift, opened the box and looked up at Nick in puzzlement. "How do I get it out" he asked?
Nick and Warrick picked the box up and carefully turned it over until the contents began to slide out onto the table where Greg grabbed the packing and pulled it the rest of the way out. Then they all stepped back so Grissom could unwrap the rest. When the gleaming, silver, mini-fridge was finally exposed there was a sigh in the room followed by a round of applause that got louder as it went on. People started laughing out loud and a chorus of "Grissom's got a fridge" started up. When there was a moment of relative quiet, Nick said to Grissom, "Now get your damned stale, rancid, blood experiments out of our break room fridge and into your own." There was another round of applause and this time the chorus was "Nick's the Man!"
"Love and Marriage, Love and Marriage
Go together like a horse and carriage
This I tell you brother
You can't have one without the other"
In 1955, Frank Sinatra went to number 5 on Billboards Hits with that little number. Hey, I'm telling you a story about Las Vegas here; you don't think we can feature Vegas without at least a mention of Ole Blue Eyes do you? That's not even American! Anyway, things sure have changed Frankie; you wouldn't recognize 'The Dating Game' any more.
Go together like a horse and carriage
This I tell you brother
You can't have one without the other"
In 1955, Frank Sinatra went to number 5 on Billboards Hits with that little number. Hey, I'm telling you a story about Las Vegas here; you don't think we can feature Vegas without at least a mention of Ole Blue Eyes do you? That's not even American! Anyway, things sure have changed Frankie; you wouldn't recognize 'The Dating Game' any more.
*********************
Greg Sanders was pissed. He was so angry he was dead still. Now, if you knew Greg Sanders, you would know he was never still. He was a bundle of nervous energy and if his head wasn't bopping to some silent (or loudly audible) tune then his fingers were moving or his feet; some part of Greg was always in motion. But now, except for the slow, careful moves he was making as he worked his evidence, he was still. His mind however, was going a mile a minute. And what might you ask was Greggo thinking about? What else? Nicholas Aron Stokes.
Greg had pretty much thought about nothing but Nick Stokes for the last 7 years. He had gone through every single known emotion and probably a few that haven't been documented as yet. But he had never been so mad at Nick that he just wanted to kill him and worry about hiding the body later.
Ever since Nick had returned from his sudden month-long vacation 10 months ago, he had been driving Greg completely stark, raving insane. It started with the warm hug at the front door. Greg was so glad to see Nick back in Vegas, he'd forgotten that Nick was not too keen on being touched and had thrown his arms around his friend. He realized almost immediately what he had done and was about to let go when he realized that Nick had his arms around him and was hugging him back. Greg was so surprised he even thought he had felt the brief brush of lips against his temple.
Then there was his gift. He was so blown away that Nick had taken the time, not to mention the money to get him the autographed CD of Lordi that he had told him he could kiss him. Nick's reply had left Greg reeling. Nick had said that as vulnerable as Greg was then, it might not end with a kiss. And then, DAMNIT, Warrick had called and the moment had gone.
Since that time, Nick had tried to fuck the entire staff of the CSI crime lab AND the LVPD AND probably greater Las Vegas. Brass was calling him 'Love 'em and leave 'em Stokes' and had been heard to say that he was going to have to start importing new detectives from out of state pretty soon to give Nick some fresh meat. To make matters worse, Nick was no longer gender specific in his interests. He had started with Sofia Curtis and then gone on to Jake Mikelson, a detective on the night shift, then to Wendy and then some airline stewardess and then Curt Knowles, another detective and it just went on and on from there. Greg knew for a fact that Nick had even had a very intense affair with Catherine and it had appeared to be pretty serious for a while. He also had a fling with Warrick and Greg wasn't sure whether that was over or they were still getting together off and on. The only people he had skipped seemed to be Grissom, Sara, Jim Brass and one Greg Sanders. And now you know why Greg was so pissed.
It wasn't as thought Nick ignored him. God Forbid, it would have been easier if he had. No, he had to put his hand on Greg or his arm around his shoulder while he put one hand on Greg's chest right over his heart and Greg knew he could feel it trying to pound its way out of his chest. He would come up behind Greg and lean over him, resting his chin on his shoulder to watch what he was doing. He had even made good on his promise to get Greg the 2nd CD the Lordi group had cut. In short, Nick Stokes was driving Greg completely stark, raving insane. And he wasn't going to take it any more.
Greg carefully locked up the evidence he was working on, went to the locker room, gathered his things together and prepared to beard the over-sexed lion in his den.
****************************************
In Nick Stokes house, he's back in his kitchen. And, he's looking at a list of names. A list that has been scratched up, added to and revised so many times he's not sure what version he's on right now. Nick had never heard Frank Sinatra's song. He wasn't even a twinkle in his dad's eye when Sinatra recorded it but he would have laughed out loud at the corny lyrics if he knew about it. Or he might have just banged his head on his kitchen table a few times at the irony of the whole thing.
Prior to 'THE NIGHT', Nick's relationships had been few and far between. And he was the first to admit that was his fault solely. He didn't want any entanglements. He was strictly out for fun and satisfaction but nothing long term. And wouldn't you know it, almost every female he saw more than 4 or 5 times started getting possessive (at least as far as he was concerned). Now, oh boy was it all different. Now he was actively looking for a life time commitment. He wanted to settle down. He wanted to possess and be possessed and so far, every single person he'd pursued (and there were a lot) turned out to be either not interested in kids or not interested in a long term relationship. The biggest irony? Well, they weren't interested in anything permanent but oh boy were they interested in Nick. He could have had sex every single night of the week and several times on the weekend if he had the interest or the stamina AND with males or females; after all, he was an equal opportunity sort of guy now.
As Nick reviewed his list, he thought about the very few who had really touched his heart. Sofia was his first and the first to make him think about permanence but she was not ready to settle down and wasn't even sure she wanted kids when she did settle. They had an intense affair for almost a month and then she had accepted a position in Denver with a lot of chances for advancement. Nick couldn't blame her. Brass had no intention of retiring and even when he did, there were at least 5 detectives who had the talent and experience to be promoted into his position and they all had seniority on Sofia.
Catherine was the next to make him see stars. He knew he had loved her and she loved him. Heck, he still was a little in love with her but Catherine had been the one to call things off. She had thought long and hard and decided that at almost 50, she did not want to start over with a baby. They both had cried when they parted and Nick knew he would always leave a part of him with her and Lindsay.
Lastly, there was Warrick. God, if Grissom was so crazy about roller coasters, he ought to try having a relationship with Warrick Brown. Talk about your ups and downs. When Warrick divorced Tina, he moved in with Nick for a week while they sorted out belongings and both moved to new apartments. One night when Warrick was down in the dumps, Nick had moved over beside him on the couch and started to rub his back while he tried to get Warrick to admit that you can't really fail at something that was so wrong from the beginning. The back rub turned into an all out make-out session and it just got hotter from there. The sex was great and Nick had no trouble thinking of his best friend has his lover but Warrick was so conflicted over his sexuality that they finally called it quits. So far, they had called it quits 8 times now. And speak of the devil, the pounding on his door sounded like number 9 might be coming up.
Nick opened the door to a Greg Sanders who was almost breathing fire he was so tense. Nick started to invite him in but Greg brushed by him and stalked into his living room. Nick stood there for a second and then said, "Why Greg, how nice to see you. Hi Nick, I was just in the neighborhood and decided to drop in. That's great. Why don't you come on in and visit for a while."
Greg did not appreciate the sarcastic humor and his disgusted snort warned Nick that he might as well just let him vent his anger. He offered Greg a drink; which was refused and then asked Greg what had his panties in a wad.
Greg had rehearsed what he was going to say to Nick all the way over to his house but the sight of Nick in a pair of navy blue shorts, bare feet and an old t-shirt with no sleeves that was torn off about 4 inches above Nicks waist was enough to make him forget all his carefully planned words and he just winged it.
"Ever since you came back from that damned vacation, you have fucked your way through practically every single male and female between the ages of consent and senility in the city of Las Vegas. I've watched you go from one to another and the thing that pisses me off the most is that when you're through with them; there's no hard feelings. Every body still loves the wonderful Nick Stokes. So I have just one question for you Nicky…why everyone but me?"
Nick was stunned to put it mildly. He just looked at Greg for a moment and then finally got his voice back enough to say, "This is obviously going to take a while. I'm going to get something to drink. I just made some tea. Do you want some?"
Greg agreed, mostly to keep his mouth occupied and not make a bigger fool of himself than he already had.
Nick got them both glasses of sweetened, iced tea and then got Greg to sit down by walking into the living room and sitting both glasses on the glass coffee table. Greg finally walked in and sat on the couch with Nick but at the far opposite end and immediately grabbed a cushion which he held in his lap for more distance between them. They both just sat there, neither saying a word until finally Greg said, "Well, it's been a long drive for a glass of iced tea but since that's all I'm going to get out of you, I guess I'll be going."
Nick said, "Greg, just wait a minute. I'm trying to figure out what to say to you, how to tell you what's been going on with me."
"Why do you have to rehearse your speech? I'm not interested in you….isn't that what you want to say? It seems pretty easy to me."
Nick put his tea down and glared at Greg. "Stop putting words in my mouth. I'm not rehearsing a speech and what makes you think I'm not interested in you. Hell, you're what started this whole mess!"
Greg almost choked on an ice cube and came up spluttering, "What do you mean I started this mess? I'm not the one who came back after a month away looking and acting like the King Tut of tomcats. Hell, every time you walked into a room at work, people started coming out of the woodwork and it was like getting a herd of cats in one room and then throwing in a big pile of cat nip. You've been completely different for the last 10 months."
Nick decided that the easiest way was just to start at the beginning and see it through to the end. "Do you remember a month or two after my 40th birthday, I threw a Super Bowl part here? You and Warrick stayed around to help me clean up and you made a cute remark about Warrick and me trying guys because we were excluding half the world's population."
Greg thought for a minute and then his eyes got wide and his jaw dropped and he said, "No way. No way that could have started all this."
Nick said, "Oh yes it did. It made me do some in depth soul searching and I didn't like what I found. I was my own worst enemy. I caused all my feeble attempts at relationships to fail. I also realized that deep down, I did, maybe, have an interest in guys. The best relationships I'd ever had were with you, Brass, Warrick and some of the cops I played basketball and baseball with. The only women I'd ever kept around me for long periods were my relatives and the women I worked with here. So I worked out a plan for the rest of my life. I knew I had to decide what I really wanted first and it turned out to be a permanent, long-range partnership and there had to be kids. Then I had to decide if the feelings I'd been having were real or just my wanting to have someone in my life." Nick went on to tell Greg everything. He started with his visit to his home in Texas, went on and talked about Collin and what he had learned from him and was somewhat amused to see Greg break out in a sweat when he told about his first night with Collin. He went through all the people he'd dated since his return. He even broke down and told Greg about the 'other Nick' and why he'd been so remote and emotionless and why he wasn't that way any longer.
When he was through, there was silence in the room. Greg hadn't moved or spoken for almost an hour and he looked as though he was in a trance now. Finally Nick said, "Please say something, anything."
Greg drank the last few drops of his tea which had turned to water a long time ago and said exactly the same thing he'd said at the beginning of their conversation, "So I have just one question for you Nicky…why everyone but me?"
"God, I don't know Greg. I never intended to get involved with you or Warrick or Catherine. You three are my closest friends and I was afraid that if I tried to start something with any of you and it didn't work, I would lose someone who means so much to me."
Greg had started to shake his head almost as soon as Nick started talking. "That won't cut it. I know you had a hot relationship with both of them and I'm pretty sure you and Warrick still get together now and again."
Nick hung his head a little and replied, "Both Catherine and Warrick were accidents. Not that I'm sorry or ashamed of them. I still love Catherine a little and I feel something strong for Warrick but Catherine ended our affair because she didn't want any more children at her age and Warrick is too ashamed of wanting me to ever be able to sustain a loving environment to raise kids."
Greg swallowed his last mouthful of liquid and his heart and his tears and his dreams and said, "So that's it. After two accidents, I'm pretty sure you won't make the same mistake again. At least I know where I stand. Thanks for that."
Nick scooted over and put his hand on Greg's arm and said, "Greg, after all I've told you are you sure you would want to become involved with me?"
Greg just looked at Nick's hand on his arm until Nick removed it and then said, "Are you asking me or telling me?"
Nick said quietly, "I'm asking you if you would be willing to take a chance with me."
Greg thought for so long, Nick was afraid he was just trying to find a way to let him down easy. Finally Greg said, "Yeah, I'll take a chance with you. But I'm telling you right now, I'm still pissed and it's not going to be easy. I expect to be wooed and courted and I want romance and lots of it."
Nick let out the breath he didn't realize he'd been holding and let loose one of his blinding smiles. "Oh Greg, I can do romance and wooing and courting. Can I start by taking you out to dinner tonight?"
Greg shook his head slowly and said, "No. I haven't had a decent nights sleep in months and I've got to work tonight."
Nick said, "OK. Your birthday is next Saturday but I know you have Friday night off. How about I trade with someone and you let me take you out for a special birthday dinner on Friday?"
Greg stood up to go and as he opened the door, he said over his shoulder, "Let me know if you get the night off." He walked out and closed the door.
Nick stood, smiled at nothing and said out loud, "Oh don't worry. I'll get the night off if it costs me a month's salary and then I promise you a courting like you've never seen."
Greg was sure he had never been this nervous in his entire life. Not waiting for the acceptance from college. Not his first interview with Grissom and Brass. Not even his first night as DNA tech for the Las Vegas Crime Lab. All important events no doubt, but this; this was just possibly the rest of his life important. Tonight was his first date with Nick Stokes.
Nick had told him to be ready at 8:15 and to wear something dressy; not a suit but not jeans. Greg had spent a lot of the last 2 days shopping for clothes. He thought when he bought his outfit that it was perfect but now, he wasn't sure. He was wearing dark brown slacks with a pale green cotton shirt that had cost almost $100.00. He had never spent so much money for one shirt before in his life but it really looked great on him. It made his skin look clear and smooth and his eyes a deep, rich, dark, chocolate brown. He had a new jacket; a light tan dress blazer. The thing he was most scared about was his hair. He had stopped in to see his favorite stylist and told her he had to look great and what should he do. She had cut his hair short, very short with thick even bangs just coming down on his forehead. He looked like a young George Clooney or a young Julius Caesar. He was just getting ready to take everything off and pretend to be very sick when his doorbell rang. Looking in his mirror one last time, he decided it was more Caesar than Clooney and said to his reflection, "We who are about to die salute you!"
Greg opened the door and time stopped. He just looked at Nick and couldn't even say come in. Nick was wearing black slacks that he could swear showed off his privates, but very subtle…nothing crude, an emerald green silk shirt that went with his shirt as though they had planned it and a fitted black blazer that looked like someone had made the damn thing on Nick's body. His black hair was shiny in the hall light, his eyes were sparkling and he was wearing his million megawatt smile. Then Greg realized the smile was for him.
While Greg was drooling over Nick, Nick was doing some evaluating of his own and he really liked what he saw. The tan, green and chocolate were perfect for Greg and the new haircut was sensational. He had never realized before what a beautifully, shaped head Greg had. His hand would fit the back of Greg's head perfectly and he could see himself reaching out, and pulling that beautiful head to him so he could kiss that sweet mouth…Oh God, he had to stop this right now because he could feel his slacks getting a little snug and he had to play this just right.
"Are you ready to be wooed, courted, romanced and fed" he asked Greg with a grin?
Greg's response was just a little shaky. "I think so. Lead on McDuff and let the wooing commence."
As the evening continued, Greg kept thinking that something was going to happen. Nothing could be this perfect without something spoiling it. Nick took him down stairs and opened the door to his immaculately detailed truck, waited until he was situated in the seat and then closed the door and went around to the driver's side. They went to Tao, a 4 or maybe it was a 5 star restaurant at the Venetian Hotel. Nick asked Greg if he would allow him to order for him and when Greg nodded, he also asked him if he was allergic to any food products. When Greg said no, Nick ordered Pork and Cashews in lettuce leaves with plum sauce, lobster won-tons, chicken pad thai for Greg and Kobe beef for him. He told the waiter they would start with Saki.
Nick thought the Saki hit Greg a little hard but it was actually being there with Nick that made him light-headed. Nick's whole attention was focused on Greg. He passed him condiments before Greg even thought to ask for them. He poured his drinks and fixed his lettuce wraps.
Greg's response was to exhibit some world class flirting. Now Greg would flirt with a light post if no one else was around but that night he had the most important subject of his life and he rose to the occasion. When their entrée's were served, he leaned across the table, look up at Nick through his thick long eyelashes and said, 'Bite?" The first time he did it, Nick dropped the piece of beef he was about to eat in the middle of his plate. He managed to get himself together and speared the bite and leaned forward and put it in Greg's mouth, thinking all the while that the beef might have the reputation of being the most succulent meat in the world but it couldn't hold a candle to Greg's soft lips as they fastened around the bite and pulled it off Nick's fork.
Nick was lost in a dream of those lips fastening around various portions of his anatomy and felt his slacks get tighter. He pulled his eyes away from Greg's mouth and concentrated on his plate and started counting the leaves on the sprigs of mint that decorated his plate. When that didn't work, he tried counting the veins in the leaves. He was almost back to normal when Greg asked him if something was wrong with his dinner; why wasn't he eating.
Nick hoped his voice sounded normal when he answered with, "No I was just waiting to see how you liked the beef."
Greg smiled. He thought Nick was a little aroused and he was sure of it when Nick carefully patted his forehead with his napkin. "Is it too warm in here for you?" he asked in such an innocent voice.
Nick said no, the room temperature was just fine. Maybe he'd gotten a little too much sauce on his bite of beef. Greg didn't point out that Nick had fed the bite to him. Nick asked Greg if he would rather have the beef but he said no, he loved his pad thai and this was probably the best he'd ever tasted. He just liked a bite of the beef to 'spice' up his meal. Greg put a little extra emphasis on the word 'spice'. He asked Nick if he would like to try a bite of his chicken and when Nick said yes, he very carefully cut a piece and leaned forward to feed it to him. Nick did a little flirting of his own, taking the food in his mouth from Greg's chopsticks and holding them between his lips as he looked up directly into Greg's eyes.
By the time the meal was over, both men were astonished to find they had not dragged the other over the table and taken them right in the middle of the dishes and silverware. Nick looked at his watch and told Greg they were right on time and signaled for the check. Greg asked Nick right on time for what. Nick smiled and said, "The second part of your birthday celebration. Come on."
He hustled Greg out the door, into the truck and refused to tell Greg where they were going. As he turned a corner, he asked Greg if he would close his eyes and not open them until he told him to. Greg decided to go along with the game and when he was told to open his eyes, they were sitting in the valet parking section of the Cirque d' Soliel theater. The valet opened Greg's door and Nick handed over his keys, grabbed Greg by the hand and pulled him towards the door. He handed tickets to an usher who led them to some really great seats where they could see everything on, under and above the stage. Greg was trying to get his breath and not gawk like a 'daft' (dumb-assed, fucking tourist). But when Nick leaned over as the lights went dark and whispered in his ear, "Happy Birthday, Greg" he found himself almost close to tears and had to blink furiously to get his eyes clear enough to watch the spectacular performance.
Nick had told him to be ready at 8:15 and to wear something dressy; not a suit but not jeans. Greg had spent a lot of the last 2 days shopping for clothes. He thought when he bought his outfit that it was perfect but now, he wasn't sure. He was wearing dark brown slacks with a pale green cotton shirt that had cost almost $100.00. He had never spent so much money for one shirt before in his life but it really looked great on him. It made his skin look clear and smooth and his eyes a deep, rich, dark, chocolate brown. He had a new jacket; a light tan dress blazer. The thing he was most scared about was his hair. He had stopped in to see his favorite stylist and told her he had to look great and what should he do. She had cut his hair short, very short with thick even bangs just coming down on his forehead. He looked like a young George Clooney or a young Julius Caesar. He was just getting ready to take everything off and pretend to be very sick when his doorbell rang. Looking in his mirror one last time, he decided it was more Caesar than Clooney and said to his reflection, "We who are about to die salute you!"
Greg opened the door and time stopped. He just looked at Nick and couldn't even say come in. Nick was wearing black slacks that he could swear showed off his privates, but very subtle…nothing crude, an emerald green silk shirt that went with his shirt as though they had planned it and a fitted black blazer that looked like someone had made the damn thing on Nick's body. His black hair was shiny in the hall light, his eyes were sparkling and he was wearing his million megawatt smile. Then Greg realized the smile was for him.
While Greg was drooling over Nick, Nick was doing some evaluating of his own and he really liked what he saw. The tan, green and chocolate were perfect for Greg and the new haircut was sensational. He had never realized before what a beautifully, shaped head Greg had. His hand would fit the back of Greg's head perfectly and he could see himself reaching out, and pulling that beautiful head to him so he could kiss that sweet mouth…Oh God, he had to stop this right now because he could feel his slacks getting a little snug and he had to play this just right.
"Are you ready to be wooed, courted, romanced and fed" he asked Greg with a grin?
Greg's response was just a little shaky. "I think so. Lead on McDuff and let the wooing commence."
As the evening continued, Greg kept thinking that something was going to happen. Nothing could be this perfect without something spoiling it. Nick took him down stairs and opened the door to his immaculately detailed truck, waited until he was situated in the seat and then closed the door and went around to the driver's side. They went to Tao, a 4 or maybe it was a 5 star restaurant at the Venetian Hotel. Nick asked Greg if he would allow him to order for him and when Greg nodded, he also asked him if he was allergic to any food products. When Greg said no, Nick ordered Pork and Cashews in lettuce leaves with plum sauce, lobster won-tons, chicken pad thai for Greg and Kobe beef for him. He told the waiter they would start with Saki.
Nick thought the Saki hit Greg a little hard but it was actually being there with Nick that made him light-headed. Nick's whole attention was focused on Greg. He passed him condiments before Greg even thought to ask for them. He poured his drinks and fixed his lettuce wraps.
Greg's response was to exhibit some world class flirting. Now Greg would flirt with a light post if no one else was around but that night he had the most important subject of his life and he rose to the occasion. When their entrée's were served, he leaned across the table, look up at Nick through his thick long eyelashes and said, 'Bite?" The first time he did it, Nick dropped the piece of beef he was about to eat in the middle of his plate. He managed to get himself together and speared the bite and leaned forward and put it in Greg's mouth, thinking all the while that the beef might have the reputation of being the most succulent meat in the world but it couldn't hold a candle to Greg's soft lips as they fastened around the bite and pulled it off Nick's fork.
Nick was lost in a dream of those lips fastening around various portions of his anatomy and felt his slacks get tighter. He pulled his eyes away from Greg's mouth and concentrated on his plate and started counting the leaves on the sprigs of mint that decorated his plate. When that didn't work, he tried counting the veins in the leaves. He was almost back to normal when Greg asked him if something was wrong with his dinner; why wasn't he eating.
Nick hoped his voice sounded normal when he answered with, "No I was just waiting to see how you liked the beef."
Greg smiled. He thought Nick was a little aroused and he was sure of it when Nick carefully patted his forehead with his napkin. "Is it too warm in here for you?" he asked in such an innocent voice.
Nick said no, the room temperature was just fine. Maybe he'd gotten a little too much sauce on his bite of beef. Greg didn't point out that Nick had fed the bite to him. Nick asked Greg if he would rather have the beef but he said no, he loved his pad thai and this was probably the best he'd ever tasted. He just liked a bite of the beef to 'spice' up his meal. Greg put a little extra emphasis on the word 'spice'. He asked Nick if he would like to try a bite of his chicken and when Nick said yes, he very carefully cut a piece and leaned forward to feed it to him. Nick did a little flirting of his own, taking the food in his mouth from Greg's chopsticks and holding them between his lips as he looked up directly into Greg's eyes.
By the time the meal was over, both men were astonished to find they had not dragged the other over the table and taken them right in the middle of the dishes and silverware. Nick looked at his watch and told Greg they were right on time and signaled for the check. Greg asked Nick right on time for what. Nick smiled and said, "The second part of your birthday celebration. Come on."
He hustled Greg out the door, into the truck and refused to tell Greg where they were going. As he turned a corner, he asked Greg if he would close his eyes and not open them until he told him to. Greg decided to go along with the game and when he was told to open his eyes, they were sitting in the valet parking section of the Cirque d' Soliel theater. The valet opened Greg's door and Nick handed over his keys, grabbed Greg by the hand and pulled him towards the door. He handed tickets to an usher who led them to some really great seats where they could see everything on, under and above the stage. Greg was trying to get his breath and not gawk like a 'daft' (dumb-assed, fucking tourist). But when Nick leaned over as the lights went dark and whispered in his ear, "Happy Birthday, Greg" he found himself almost close to tears and had to blink furiously to get his eyes clear enough to watch the spectacular performance.
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Greg was on another planet he was so high. The dinner, the show, being with a man so handsome people would literally turn around and look at them as they passed them was putting him on such an emotional overload, he was afraid he was going to explode. He didn't want the date to end and yet he was afraid that if it went on much longer, he was going to grab Nick, rip his clothes off and fuck him right then and there and that would certainly be the end of the wooing/romance thingy. He had no idea what to do when Nick took him home and was completely surprised when Nick asked him if he felt like dessert. He asked him what he had in mind and Nick said, "What about a banana split for two at the Ice House?"
Greg tried to hold back the snort, which turned into a little chuckle which turned into giggles and finally a full blown belly laugh that had him sitting down on a stone edging around a flower bed and just roaring out loud. Nick stood there patiently, waiting for him to explain which of course just made him laugh harder. Finally, he wiped his eyes and through a few last minute giggles managed to tell Nick that the idea of banana splits after dinner at Tao followed by tickets to the 'Cirque' had to be the funniest thing he'd heard in a long time.
Nick said, 'Yeah but do you want to?"
Greg said of course and off they went.
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When Nick brought Greg home, it wasn't too far away from their normal getting off work time. He walked around, opened Greg's door and walked him to his apartment. He took Greg's keys and opened his door for him. He turned to Greg and Greg felt his heart trying to beat it's way out of his chest. He took Greg's hand in his, looked him right in the eyes, (Greg felt like he was looking right down into his soul) and told him he'd had probably the best time of his life and hoped Greg had enjoyed his present. Greg said there weren't enough words to tell him how much he'd enjoyed himself that night. Nick smiled; the one that showed his dimples. He asked Greg if that meant he would like to go on another date. Greg was almost afraid to answer so he just nodded enthusiastically. Nick brought his hand to his mouth and gently kissed the tips of Greg's fingers and told him to be sure and lock the door behind him and he would see him at work that night. He dropped Greg's hand and turned to walk away but halfway down the hall, when he realized that he had not heard the door, he turned back and saw that Greg was still just standing there watching him. He walked back, gently turned Greg and putting a hand at the back of his waist, he pushed him through his own front door. Just as he reached for the door to close it, he leaned over and whispered in Greg's ear, "Be sure and set the dead bolt. The only one I want you to be in danger from is me."
Just as Greg started to turn around in shock, Nick firmly shut the door. Greg could hear him whistling a tune he thought he recognized as he walked down the hall.
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Two nights later, after a remarkably slow night at the crime lab, Nick asked Greg if he wanted to go see a movie since they had both had an easy night and were actually getting off on time. Greg said sure and asked what Nicky had in mind. Nick said he wanted to see the 'Bourne Ultimatum'. Greg was very pleased; he hadn't seen the movie yet and was interested. They decided that Greg would drive his car back to his place with Nick following, just in case one or the other of them got called in and needed their transportation. Then they took off to a little Tex-Mex place Nick liked for breakfast and finally to the show.
Their second date could not have been more different than their first. It was jeans and t-shirts, sneakers for Greg and boots for Nick and no wine or Saki; just cold beer, chips and hot sauce, guacamole and hot enchiladas. The only thing the two events had in common was the tension and flirting. They decided that even though they were stuffed, it just wasn't right to go to a movie and not have popcorn so they got a small bag to share between them. It was really amazing how often they both reached at the same time and their hands touched. The seats were large and comfortable but for some reason they each sort of sat over towards the side of their seats and their shoulders and knees kept rubbing and touching. By the time the movie was over, the sexual tension was thick enough to cut with a knife.
Again Nick took Greg home, walked him to his door, ran his hand up his bare arm to his shoulder and then said good night and left. Oddly enough both men took cold showers before they went to sleep.
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********************
They continued to see each other at work and at least 2 or 3 times a week outside of work. They went to movies, dinner, breakfast; Nick took Greg to the Las Vegas Aquarium and they spent a magical afternoon wandering through the exhibits watching the fish and then went out to the amphitheater and watched the dolphins, orca's and seals put on a great show. Afterwards, they went down to the side of the tank and the handler let Greg feed fishes to the performers. One of the seals gave Greg a big fishy kiss on the cheek and everyone laughed at his 'ewww' face.
Greg returned the favor 2 weeks later by taking Nick to see a documentary on 'Eagles in the Wild' at their IMAX theatre. He thought he might be bored but not only was the documentary amazing but the expressions on Nicks face would have kept him entertained if the narrator had been reading the telephone book.
And of course, there was movie night at Nicks where Greg got the surprise of his life. Movie night started because of the gift Nick had brought back for Brass from his infamous 'vacation'. He'd gotten him a documentary called 'America's Greatest Sleuths' made for a TV station called Sleuth that Greg had never heard of. It counted down the 20 greatest fictional crime-solvers of all time. Along with the documentary, Nick had gotten 5 DVD's; The Hound of the Baskervilles with the original Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, This Gun for Hire with Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake and Greg who only knew Alan Ladd from Shane was stunned to see his cowboy hero in a white dinner jacket, Robert Montgomery as Phillip Marlowe and again Greg got blown away when Brass and Nick both started talking about Robert Montgomery being the father of Samantha on Bewitched, Double Indemnity with Fred Mac Murray and Barbara Stanwyck and of course, the great Humphrey Bogart in The Maltese Falcon.
Brass was so touched by the gift he stammered his thanks and finally told Nicky he was going to have to buy a big screen TV like his to do them justice. Nick told him to bring them over any time he wanted; he would love to see them himself. Vartann and Vega came into the office about that time, saw the DVD's and began to talk about how they didn't make good private dick movies like those anymore so they were invited also and the whole thing just grew.
They had the showings late enough so the day crew could drop over after work and early enough so grave shift could come before work. Shift personnel came when they had the night off. The first time, Nick provided the food but after that, everyone brought something and it became a party every two weeks. Even Grissom came for Double Indemnity and The Maltese Falcon and believe it or not, he actually brought a case of beer, napkins and paper plates and cups. Nick was so surprised it took him 2 hours to remember to thank him.
When the last DVD was over, everyone was crushed to think their get-togethers would be over until Catherine said, "Has anyone ever seen Laura?" Only a few people knew what she was talking about so Cath said, "Two weeks from tonight, I will bring Laura and I expect the rest of you to provide something in the genre every two weeks after that."
Now, what was Greg's surprise? Well other than all the great movie trivia he picked up, it happened the night of the 2nd movie. They had a good turnout for the first one but there were twice as many people for the 2nd and seating was at a premium. Nick brought in the futon from the office, all the dining room chairs and finally just raided his linen closet for blankets and pillows to throw on the floor. Greg had been fixing drinks in the kitchen so when he came out, it looked like a crowd scene from one of DeMille's spectaculars. Nick was sitting on the couch, almost squashed into the arm with Lindsay plastered up against him. Greg was looking for somewhere to go when Nick told him to come over there. Nick pulled a big throw pillow out from the end of the couch where he'd been hiding it, threw it on the floor, right between his legs and told Greg to come sit down with him. Greg looked at the room full of their friends and co-workers, lots of them cops who could give them grief over the slightest hint of a personal relationship and hesitated. He looked back at Nick who was still holding out his hand to him with a calm, watchful expression on his face. Greg took a deep breath, walked over and folded himself down on the pillow. Nick pulled him back against him and kept his hand on his arm during the whole movie. No one said a word; not one word, not one funny look, not one snicker. After the movie, Nick turned to Lindsay, kissed her on the cheek and asked her if she liked it. She threw her arms around him and said the movie wasn't all that great but being with everyone was. Then Nick, turned to Greg, leaned down and kissed him on the cheek and asked him how he liked the movie. Greg laid his head back on Nick's leg, smiled and said, "What she said."
This isn't a perfect world so of course there was fall out the next day. Nick and Greg both got some nasty looks and there were a few muttered derogatory names but on the whole, not nearly as many as Greg expected and after that, it was an open secret that Nick and he were seeing each other. They found out later that Brass, Vartann and Vega had a meeting with all three shifts and told the cops; foot soldiers, uniforms and detectives that they didn't have to like the relationship BUT if any one made a statement in public or in any way shirked their responsibilities toward the safety of the CSI's, ANY CSI'S, they would answer to IAB on charges of sexual harassment and the 3 top officers would be the ones pressing the charges.
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Greg was pretty sure he would have given in, ripped Nick's clothes off and raped him in his own hallway if Las Vegas had not shown her true colors and started committing crimes at a furious pace. To add insult to injury, the city was experiencing a freak cold wave. Everyone was working doubles and Greg hadn't had more than a few minutes with Nick for almost a week. Part of him was glad because of the lessening of the painful physical desire he was feeling but most of him missed him so much it was like a toothache.
Halfway through the second week, things were slowing down for everyone except Greg, Warrick and Catherine who had a nasty triple murder they were working. Greg worked his first triple and when he finally went to his car, he was so tired he was leaning on car hoods to get there. He had stopped and was resting on someone's car, when he heard someone pull up along side him. He raised his head and saw Nick getting out of his department SUV, come over and then he felt Nicks arms around him almost carrying him toward the car. He was too tired to even protest. He just let Nick put him in the car, buckle him up and he fell asleep.
Greg woke up when he felt the car stop. He was thinking that he had only slept for 10 or 15 minutes but when he looked around, he had no idea where he was. Nick was coming around to his side of the car holding what looked like a big blanket. Nick opened his door and asked him if he thought he could walk maybe a block. He said he thought he probably could. Nick got him out, put his arm around his waist and led him down a tree lined trail. They turned a corner and Greg realized they were at Lake Mead in a sort of cul-de-sac overlooking a small beach. Nick laid the blanket down doubled, told Greg to sit down or lay down if he wanted and he would be right back. Greg did lay down and went right back to sleep again. Some time later he woke up to find Nick smiling down at him and telling him to sit up, he had to eat. Greg protested he was too tired to eat but Nick was persistent. He sat Greg up and moved him over into a sort of a beach chair with no legs that was oddly very comfortable. He then proceeded to fit a tray across the arms of the chair and set out sandwiches, chips, fruits and Greg's brand of cold beer. Greg took one bite of the sandwich and moaned out loud. It was egg salad, his favorite sandwich in the whole world and it was home made by Nick. He knew because he had confessed his secret love of egg salad one day and Nick had promptly gone into the kitchen, took out a bowl of hard boiled eggs he always kept on hand and whipped up the best egg salad Greg had ever tasted.
Greg may have been tired but Nick was right, he was hungry. He ate every single thing Nick put on his tray and when he was sure he was going to bust if he ate another bite, Nick asked him if he was ready to sleep now. Greg looked around and asked Nick if he had a bed in the picnic basket. Nick said he had the next best thing. He pulled out a long cushion that must have been for a deck lounge, laid it back against a big boulder, sat down and leaned up against the boulder bracing his leg against a large log next to the boulder. He told Greg to come over and sit down. Greg sat between Nick's legs much as he had at the movie night, but this was so much better. When Nick pulled him back, he was completely laying against Nick's chest. Nick's leg was pressed against him on one side and Nick grabbed another soft fleece blanket and pulled it over both of them. He wrapped his arms around Greg and told him to sleep. Greg wasn't sure he could sleep out in the open like that and he was a little worried about his surroundings. Nick held him close and told him they were the only two people in the whole world and the lake and the trees were just for them. He said he would keep him warm and safe and as Greg drifted off, this time he knew he felt Nick's lips against his cheek. He slept, held tightly in the arms of the man he now knew he loved more than anything else on this earth.
Greg was sure he had never been this nervous in his entire life. Not waiting for the acceptance from college. Not his first interview with Grissom and Brass. Not even his first night as DNA tech for the Las Vegas Crime Lab. All important events no doubt, but this; this was just possibly the rest of his life important. Tonight was his first date with Nick Stokes.
Nick had told him to be ready at 8:15 and to wear something dressy; not a suit but not jeans. Greg had spent a lot of the last 2 days shopping for clothes. He thought when he bought his outfit that it was perfect but now, he wasn't sure. He was wearing dark brown slacks with a pale green cotton shirt that had cost almost $100.00. He had never spent so much money for one shirt before in his life but it really looked great on him. It made his skin look clear and smooth and his eyes a deep, rich, dark, chocolate brown. He had a new jacket; a light tan dress blazer. The thing he was most scared about was his hair. He had stopped in to see his favorite stylist and told her he had to look great and what should he do. She had cut his hair short, very short with thick even bangs just coming down on his forehead. He looked like a young George Clooney or a young Julius Caesar. He was just getting ready to take everything off and pretend to be very sick when his doorbell rang. Looking in his mirror one last time, he decided it was more Caesar than Clooney and said to his reflection, "We who are about to die salute you!"
Greg opened the door and time stopped. He just looked at Nick and couldn't even say come in. Nick was wearing black slacks that he could swear showed off his privates, but very subtle…nothing crude, an emerald green silk shirt that went with his shirt as though they had planned it and a fitted black blazer that looked like someone had made the damn thing on Nick's body. His black hair was shiny in the hall light, his eyes were sparkling and he was wearing his million megawatt smile. Then Greg realized the smile was for him.
While Greg was drooling over Nick, Nick was doing some evaluating of his own and he really liked what he saw. The tan, green and chocolate were perfect for Greg and the new haircut was sensational. He had never realized before what a beautifully, shaped head Greg had. His hand would fit the back of Greg's head perfectly and he could see himself reaching out, and pulling that beautiful head to him so he could kiss that sweet mouth…Oh God, he had to stop this right now because he could feel his slacks getting a little snug and he had to play this just right.
"Are you ready to be wooed, courted, romanced and fed" he asked Greg with a grin?
Greg's response was just a little shaky. "I think so. Lead on McDuff and let the wooing commence."
As the evening continued, Greg kept thinking that something was going to happen. Nothing could be this perfect without something spoiling it. Nick took him down stairs and opened the door to his immaculately detailed truck, waited until he was situated in the seat and then closed the door and went around to the driver's side. They went to Tao, a 4 or maybe it was a 5 star restaurant at the Venetian Hotel. Nick asked Greg if he would allow him to order for him and when Greg nodded, he also asked him if he was allergic to any food products. When Greg said no, Nick ordered Pork and Cashews in lettuce leaves with plum sauce, lobster won-tons, chicken pad thai for Greg and Kobe beef for him. He told the waiter they would start with Saki.
Nick thought the Saki hit Greg a little hard but it was actually being there with Nick that made him light-headed. Nick's whole attention was focused on Greg. He passed him condiments before Greg even thought to ask for them. He poured his drinks and fixed his lettuce wraps.
Greg's response was to exhibit some world class flirting. Now Greg would flirt with a light post if no one else was around but that night he had the most important subject of his life and he rose to the occasion. When their entrée's were served, he leaned across the table, look up at Nick through his thick long eyelashes and said, 'Bite?" The first time he did it, Nick dropped the piece of beef he was about to eat in the middle of his plate. He managed to get himself together and speared the bite and leaned forward and put it in Greg's mouth, thinking all the while that the beef might have the reputation of being the most succulent meat in the world but it couldn't hold a candle to Greg's soft lips as they fastened around the bite and pulled it off Nick's fork.
Nick was lost in a dream of those lips fastening around various portions of his anatomy and felt his slacks get tighter. He pulled his eyes away from Greg's mouth and concentrated on his plate and started counting the leaves on the sprigs of mint that decorated his plate. When that didn't work, he tried counting the veins in the leaves. He was almost back to normal when Greg asked him if something was wrong with his dinner; why wasn't he eating.
Nick hoped his voice sounded normal when he answered with, "No I was just waiting to see how you liked the beef."
Greg smiled. He thought Nick was a little aroused and he was sure of it when Nick carefully patted his forehead with his napkin. "Is it too warm in here for you?" he asked in such an innocent voice.
Nick said no, the room temperature was just fine. Maybe he'd gotten a little too much sauce on his bite of beef. Greg didn't point out that Nick had fed the bite to him. Nick asked Greg if he would rather have the beef but he said no, he loved his pad thai and this was probably the best he'd ever tasted. He just liked a bite of the beef to 'spice' up his meal. Greg put a little extra emphasis on the word 'spice'. He asked Nick if he would like to try a bite of his chicken and when Nick said yes, he very carefully cut a piece and leaned forward to feed it to him. Nick did a little flirting of his own, taking the food in his mouth from Greg's chopsticks and holding them between his lips as he looked up directly into Greg's eyes.
By the time the meal was over, both men were astonished to find they had not dragged the other over the table and taken them right in the middle of the dishes and silverware. Nick looked at his watch and told Greg they were right on time and signaled for the check. Greg asked Nick right on time for what. Nick smiled and said, "The second part of your birthday celebration. Come on."
He hustled Greg out the door, into the truck and refused to tell Greg where they were going. As he turned a corner, he asked Greg if he would close his eyes and not open them until he told him to. Greg decided to go along with the game and when he was told to open his eyes, they were sitting in the valet parking section of the Cirque d' Soliel theater. The valet opened Greg's door and Nick handed over his keys, grabbed Greg by the hand and pulled him towards the door. He handed tickets to an usher who led them to some really great seats where they could see everything on, under and above the stage. Greg was trying to get his breath and not gawk like a 'daft' (dumb-assed, fucking tourist). But when Nick leaned over as the lights went dark and whispered in his ear, "Happy Birthday, Greg" he found himself almost close to tears and had to blink furiously to get his eyes clear enough to watch the spectacular performance.
****************************************
Greg was on another planet he was so high. The dinner, the show, being with a man so handsome people would literally turn around and look at them as they passed them was putting him on such an emotional overload, he was afraid he was going to explode. He didn't want the date to end and yet he was afraid that if it went on much longer, he was going to grab Nick, rip his clothes off and fuck him right then and there and that would certainly be the end of the wooing/romance thingy. He had no idea what to do when Nick took him home and was completely surprised when Nick asked him if he felt like dessert. He asked him what he had in mind and Nick said, "What about a banana split for two at the Ice House?"
Greg tried to hold back the snort, which turned into a little chuckle which turned into giggles and finally a full blown belly laugh that had him sitting down on a stone edging around a flower bed and just roaring out loud. Nick stood there patiently, waiting for him to explain which of course just made him laugh harder. Finally, he wiped his eyes and through a few last minute giggles managed to tell Nick that the idea of banana splits after dinner at Tao followed by tickets to the 'Cirque' had to be the funniest thing he'd heard in a long time.
Nick said, 'Yeah but do you want to?"
Greg said of course and off they went.
****************************************
When Nick brought Greg home, it wasn't too far away from their normal getting off work time. He walked around, opened Greg's door and walked him to his apartment. He took Greg's keys and opened his door for him. He turned to Greg and Greg felt his heart trying to beat it's way out of his chest. He took Greg's hand in his, looked him right in the eyes, (Greg felt like he was looking right down into his soul) and told him he'd had probably the best time of his life and hoped Greg had enjoyed his present. Greg said there weren't enough words to tell him how much he'd enjoyed himself that night. Nick smiled; the one that showed his dimples. He asked Greg if that meant he would like to go on another date. Greg was almost afraid to answer so he just nodded enthusiastically. Nick brought his hand to his mouth and gently kissed the tips of Greg's fingers and told him to be sure and lock the door behind him and he would see him at work that night. He dropped Greg's hand and turned to walk away but halfway down the hall, when he realized that he had not heard the door, he turned back and saw that Greg was still just standing there watching him. He walked back, gently turned Greg and putting a hand at the back of his waist, he pushed him through his own front door. Just as he reached for the door to close it, he leaned over and whispered in Greg's ear, "Be sure and set the dead bolt. The only one I want you to be in danger from is me."
Just as Greg started to turn around in shock, Nick firmly shut the door. Greg could hear him whistling a tune he thought he recognized as he walked down the hall.
****************************************
Two nights later, after a remarkably slow night at the crime lab, Nick asked Greg if he wanted to go see a movie since they had both had an easy night and were actually getting off on time. Greg said sure and asked what Nicky had in mind. Nick said he wanted to see the 'Bourne Ultimatum'. Greg was very pleased; he hadn't seen the movie yet and was interested. They decided that Greg would drive his car back to his place with Nick following, just in case one or the other of them got called in and needed their transportation. Then they took off to a little Tex-Mex place Nick liked for breakfast and finally to the show.
Their second date could not have been more different than their first. It was jeans and t-shirts, sneakers for Greg and boots for Nick and no wine or Saki; just cold beer, chips and hot sauce, guacamole and hot enchiladas. The only thing the two events had in common was the tension and flirting. They decided that even though they were stuffed, it just wasn't right to go to a movie and not have popcorn so they got a small bag to share between them. It was really amazing how often they both reached at the same time and their hands touched. The seats were large and comfortable but for some reason they each sort of sat over towards the side of their seats and their shoulders and knees kept rubbing and touching. By the time the movie was over, the sexual tension was thick enough to cut with a knife.
Again Nick took Greg home, walked him to his door, ran his hand up his bare arm to his shoulder and then said good night and left. Oddly enough both men took cold showers before they went to sleep.
****************************************
They continued to see each other at work and at least 2 or 3 times a week outside of work. They went to movies, dinner, breakfast; Nick took Greg to the Las Vegas Aquarium and they spent a magical afternoon wandering through the exhibits watching the fish and then went out to the amphitheater and watched the dolphins, orca's and seals put on a great show. Afterwards, they went down to the side of the tank and the handler let Greg feed fishes to the performers. One of the seals gave Greg a big fishy kiss on the cheek and everyone laughed at his 'ewww' face.
Greg returned the favor 2 weeks later by taking Nick to see a documentary on 'Eagles in the Wild' at their IMAX theatre. He thought he might be bored but not only was the documentary amazing but the expressions on Nicks face would have kept him entertained if the narrator had been reading the telephone book.
And of course, there was movie night at Nicks where Greg got the surprise of his life. Movie night started because of the gift Nick had brought back for Brass from his infamous 'vacation'. He'd gotten him a documentary called 'America's Greatest Sleuths' made for a TV station called Sleuth that Greg had never heard of. It counted down the 20 greatest fictional crime-solvers of all time. Along with the documentary, Nick had gotten 5 DVD's; The Hound of the Baskervilles with the original Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, This Gun for Hire with Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake and Greg who only knew Alan Ladd from Shane was stunned to see his cowboy hero in a white dinner jacket, Robert Montgomery as Phillip Marlowe and again Greg got blown away when Brass and Nick both started talking about Robert Montgomery being the father of Samantha on Bewitched, Double Indemnity with Fred Mac Murray and Barbara Stanwyck and of course, the great Humphrey Bogart in The Maltese Falcon.
Brass was so touched by the gift he stammered his thanks and finally told Nicky he was going to have to buy a big screen TV like his to do them justice. Nick told him to bring them over any time he wanted; he would love to see them himself. Vartann and Vega came into the office about that time, saw the DVD's and began to talk about how they didn't make good private dick movies like those anymore so they were invited also and the whole thing just grew.
They had the showings late enough so the day crew could drop over after work and early enough so grave shift could come before work. Shift personnel came when they had the night off. The first time, Nick provided the food but after that, everyone brought something and it became a party every two weeks. Even Grissom came for Double Indemnity and The Maltese Falcon and believe it or not, he actually brought a case of beer, napkins and paper plates and cups. Nick was so surprised it took him 2 hours to remember to thank him.
When the last DVD was over, everyone was crushed to think their get-togethers would be over until Catherine said, "Has anyone ever seen Laura?" Only a few people knew what she was talking about so Cath said, "Two weeks from tonight, I will bring Laura and I expect the rest of you to provide something in the genre every two weeks after that."
Now, what was Greg's surprise? Well other than all the great movie trivia he picked up, it happened the night of the 2nd movie. They had a good turnout for the first one but there were twice as many people for the 2nd and seating was at a premium. Nick brought in the futon from the office, all the dining room chairs and finally just raided his linen closet for blankets and pillows to throw on the floor. Greg had been fixing drinks in the kitchen so when he came out, it looked like a crowd scene from one of DeMille's spectaculars. Nick was sitting on the couch, almost squashed into the arm with Lindsay plastered up against him. Greg was looking for somewhere to go when Nick told him to come over there. Nick pulled a big throw pillow out from the end of the couch where he'd been hiding it, threw it on the floor, right between his legs and told Greg to come sit down with him. Greg looked at the room full of their friends and co-workers, lots of them cops who could give them grief over the slightest hint of a personal relationship and hesitated. He looked back at Nick who was still holding out his hand to him with a calm, watchful expression on his face. Greg took a deep breath, walked over and folded himself down on the pillow. Nick pulled him back against him and kept his hand on his arm during the whole movie. No one said a word; not one word, not one funny look, not one snicker. After the movie, Nick turned to Lindsay, kissed her on the cheek and asked her if she liked it. She threw her arms around him and said the movie wasn't all that great but being with everyone was. Then Nick, turned to Greg, leaned down and kissed him on the cheek and asked him how he liked the movie. Greg laid his head back on Nick's leg, smiled and said, "What she said."
This isn't a perfect world so of course there was fall out the next day. Nick and Greg both got some nasty looks and there were a few muttered derogatory names but on the whole, not nearly as many as Greg expected and after that, it was an open secret that Nick and he were seeing each other. They found out later that Brass, Vartann and Vega had a meeting with all three shifts and told the cops; foot soldiers, uniforms and detectives that they didn't have to like the relationship BUT if any one made a statement in public or in any way shirked their responsibilities toward the safety of the CSI's, ANY CSI'S, they would answer to IAB on charges of sexual harassment and the 3 top officers would be the ones pressing the charges.
****************************************
Greg was pretty sure he would have given in, ripped Nick's clothes off and raped him in his own hallway if Las Vegas had not shown her true colors and started committing crimes at a furious pace. To add insult to injury, the city was experiencing a freak cold wave. Everyone was working doubles and Greg hadn't had more than a few minutes with Nick for almost a week. Part of him was glad because of the lessening of the painful physical desire he was feeling but most of him missed him so much it was like a toothache.
Halfway through the second week, things were slowing down for everyone except Greg, Warrick and Catherine who had a nasty triple murder they were working. Greg worked his first triple and when he finally went to his car, he was so tired he was leaning on car hoods to get there. He had stopped and was resting on someone's car, when he heard someone pull up along side him. He raised his head and saw Nick getting out of his department SUV, come over and then he felt Nicks arms around him almost carrying him toward the car. He was too tired to even protest. He just let Nick put him in the car, buckle him up and he fell asleep.
Greg woke up when he felt the car stop. He was thinking that he had only slept for 10 or 15 minutes but when he looked around, he had no idea where he was. Nick was coming around to his side of the car holding what looked like a big blanket. Nick opened his door and asked him if he thought he could walk maybe a block. He said he thought he probably could. Nick got him out, put his arm around his waist and led him down a tree lined trail. They turned a corner and Greg realized they were at Lake Mead in a sort of cul-de-sac overlooking a small beach. Nick laid the blanket down doubled, told Greg to sit down or lay down if he wanted and he would be right back. Greg did lay down and went right back to sleep again. Some time later he woke up to find Nick smiling down at him and telling him to sit up, he had to eat. Greg protested he was too tired to eat but Nick was persistent. He sat Greg up and moved him over into a sort of a beach chair with no legs that was oddly very comfortable. He then proceeded to fit a tray across the arms of the chair and set out sandwiches, chips, fruits and Greg's brand of cold beer. Greg took one bite of the sandwich and moaned out loud. It was egg salad, his favorite sandwich in the whole world and it was home made by Nick. He knew because he had confessed his secret love of egg salad one day and Nick had promptly gone into the kitchen, took out a bowl of hard boiled eggs he always kept on hand and whipped up the best egg salad Greg had ever tasted.
Greg may have been tired but Nick was right, he was hungry. He ate every single thing Nick put on his tray and when he was sure he was going to bust if he ate another bite, Nick asked him if he was ready to sleep now. Greg looked around and asked Nick if he had a bed in the picnic basket. Nick said he had the next best thing. He pulled out a long cushion that must have been for a deck lounge, laid it back against a big boulder, sat down and leaned up against the boulder bracing his leg against a large log next to the boulder. He told Greg to come over and sit down. Greg sat between Nick's legs much as he had at the movie night, but this was so much better. When Nick pulled him back, he was completely laying against Nick's chest. Nick's leg was pressed against him on one side and Nick grabbed another soft fleece blanket and pulled it over both of them. He wrapped his arms around Greg and told him to sleep. Greg wasn't sure he could sleep out in the open like that and he was a little worried about his surroundings. Nick held him close and told him they were the only two people in the whole world and the lake and the trees were just for them. He said he would keep him warm and safe and as Greg drifted off, this time he knew he felt Nick's lips against his cheek. He slept, held tightly in the arms of the man he now knew he loved more than anything else on this earth.
After 2 months of being wooed, courted and romanced by Nick Stokes, Greg was pretty sure that nothing, but absolutely nothing could surprise him now. Oh he was so wrong.
His epiphany occurred at work in the locker room after the strangest shift Greg had every put in at the LV Crime Lab and believe me, there had been some pretty strange ones. This one came about because of the triple murder he had been working with Catherine and Warrick. The same triple murder that caused him to work a triple which in turn had caused Nick to take him out to Lake Mead.
******* **** FLASH BACK ***************
His epiphany occurred at work in the locker room after the strangest shift Greg had every put in at the LV Crime Lab and believe me, there had been some pretty strange ones. This one came about because of the triple murder he had been working with Catherine and Warrick. The same triple murder that caused him to work a triple which in turn had caused Nick to take him out to Lake Mead.
******* **** FLASH BACK ***************
When Greg woke, it was dark; stars were shining and a full moon was out in all its splendor. He could tell it was really cold because Nick's breath was visible in the crisp night air. He was buried so far under the blanket and into Nick's chest that he was warm and cozy. He decided that he would just stay there forever. He would never move out of Nicks arms; his bladder however had a different outlook on life.
He started trying to untangle himself without waking Nick but the minute he stirred, Nick tightened his hold on him and wouldn't let him move. Greg finally had to wake up Nick to get him to turn him loose before he peed all over both of them.
He headed for the nearest tree and just barely got his zipper down and his dick clear of his pants before he started to unload. He heard some noises behind him and looked over his shoulder to see Nick standing in front of his own private tree. Evidently he wasn't the only one who needed to drain the tank.
He finished and went back to their impromptu bed and started to crawl back in when Nick walked up and said he hated to break the mood, but he had to go into work so they needed to get everything back to the truck and he needed to get into the lab. Greg had the night off because of his triple.
It took 2 trips even with both of them making like Sherpa bearers. Nick drove them back to Greg's apartment and even though he was technically on the clock, he still walked Greg to his door, took his key and opened the door for him and that's when things changed. Greg started to walk through the door but Nick reached out and took his hand and pulled him back against him. He wrapped his arms around Greg and held him against his chest for a moment and then slowly turned him around. He leaned forward as though he had all the time in the world and finally, finally kissed Greg. It was everything Greg had ever thought a kiss from Nick Stokes would be; slow, deep, gentle and yet so passionate at the same time. Nick let his lips brush across Greg's so lightly, Greg wasn't even sure they touched until he felt Nick's tongue lick delicately at his upper lip and then across his lower and then he felt Nick's lips close over his own and he just let go and breathed into his mouth. He opened his mouth to let Nick's tongue in and it felt like it belonged there. He couldn't get close enough to Nick. He kept trying to get inside his shirt and then he felt like he wanted to get inside his skin. He wanted the kiss to go on forever. He wanted more of Nick's body. What he didn't want was for it to end and he moaned out loud when he felt Nick start to pull back. Nick cupped his face in his hands and said, "I would give anything…hell I'd give everything if I didn't have to leave now but…. "
Greg prayed that his voice would work. When he was sure he could get something out, he smiled at Nick and said, "Yeah but duty calls."
Nick sort of groaned and said, "Duty Hell; Grissom calls. Go to bed, sleep some more and dream about me. I'll see you after my shift."
************ END OF FLASH BACK ***************
When Greg got back to work, the triple murder had moved into high gear and Greg was the reason. The original case had been 3 separate murders, in 3 different unrelated locations. It wasn't until Hodges had started analyzing some odd smears on the bodies that they discovered that all 3 of their victims were connected. The smears turned out to be powdered honey. The victims had been sexually tortured and eventually died from loss of blood or sepsis from the horrendous violence done to their bodies. They even had bee stings in places where no bee would every willingly go. You would think that with that many elements of the crime in common, someone would have realized that the 3 separate murders were the work of one person but the lab was overworked; all 3 shifts operating short handed because the weird cold spell had brought with it a wave of nasty stomach flu.
Greg was working one of the crimes with Warrick, the day shift had another victim and swing had the 3rd. When they realized that they were connected, Catherine had them assigned to their shift and joined Greg and Warrick on the case. They had gone back and went over all 3 of the crime scenes with a fine tooth comb and during the course of their investigation, Greg had gotten the brilliant idea to look up professional bee keepers because he felt the only way the victims could have been stung in their privates so extensively was by someone with access to a lot of bees.
Catherine and Warrick thought he was delusional but they let him run with his idea. He spent 14 hours interviewing every single bee-keeper in Greater Las Vegas and one guy in particular, made the hairs on his neck stand up. He couldn't say why. The guy gave all the right answers. He opened his home and shop to Greg and let him look at everything he wanted but still, there was just something that wasn't right. Greg was almost back to the lab when he realized what was wrong. The guy, Phillip Lawson, had not once asked why Greg was there. Most people started asking questions the minute he pulled out his badge but this guy just smiled and invited him in. Greg knew he had to go back but he wasn't about to go back by himself. He told Catherine and Warrick what he wanted to do and they almost came to blows over it. Both of them said he was wasting his time. After all, the guy had let him look at everything and there was not one single thing Greg could point to as suspicious. Finally, Catherine told him to see if Mr. Lawson would let him look again but he had to take a uniform with him AND if Lawson said no, Greg had to drop it. Catherine knew they didn't have enough for a warrant. Greg was sure Lawson would let him look because he realized Lawson thought he had him snowed. To Greg, that meant there was something there to find.
He called Mr. Lawson and asked him if he could come back with a uniform. He told him, he didn't realize he should have had an officer with him because Lawson's business was technically just outside the city limits. Just as Greg thought, Lawson chuckled and told him to come on back any time he wanted. Greg asked if he could do it now so he could file his paperwork and go home. Lawson agreed and Greg called Brass for a uniform. He was really surprised to see Vartann waiting for him when he dropped by the police station to pick up his escort.
They went back to Lawson's place. Lawson was so contemptuous of Greg he didn't even stay in the house while they looked. He told them to help themselves; he had to go pick up some new starter hives and would be back in an hour or so. Greg and Vartann tore the place apart which wasn't easy because they didn't dare leave anything out of order so everything they looked at had to be put back exactly the way it was. Finally, even Vartann was ready to give up. He told Greg there just wasn't anything there and yes, he agreed that Lawson was downright slimy but being a slime ball was not a criminal offense in Las Vegas; at least not yet.
Greg looked around the bedroom one last time and let his eyes drift across the ceiling. He saw an air conditioner vent just over the bed and walked over to look at it from a different angle. He asked Vartann if he thought there was something blocking the vent. Vartann walked over, looked up at the ceiling and asked Greg where he was looking. Greg took hold of the large poster at the foot of the bed and leaned forward to point out the shadow and the finial on top of the poster made a rattling sound. Both men heard it. They looked at each other and Greg shook the poster gently. It rattled again. Vartann started to reach for the finial when Greg stopped him.
He told him he wanted to get his camcorder to document everything they did from that point on. When he was ready, Vartann pulled on a pair of latex gloves and carefully unscrewed the finial and pulled out a set of keys. Greg took pictures from every angle and spoke the date, time and their names into his camcorder. They made sure everything was back in place and left; taking the keys with them. They both agreed that they needed surveillance because the minute Lawson got back they knew he would check his bedroom and when he found the keys gone, he would be running.
Greg dropped Vartann back at PD; he was going to try to track down the door that went with the keys. Greg went back to the lab, fired up his computer and proceeded to tear Mr. Lawson's life apart. He checked every single thing he could think of including public documents. He found nothing but a checking and savings account for Lawson with reasonable balances. He found no hidden accounts, no other properties, no rap sheets; Christ the guy had never even had a traffic ticket. He was a solid citizen in every sense of the word. Greg was so tired he was almost numb and when he tried to put his coffee cup down, he splashed some coffee on some of the documents he had printed off the internet. He was trying to wipe the coffee off Lawson's birth certificate when he noticed the names of Lawson's parent's. His father's name was Maize. He thought that was unusual and his tired brain took a moment to remember; Maize was Indian corn. Suddenly, something knocked on the front of his brain. He began to dig through the records he had stacked up all over the room and after a frantic search, he found it. A deed to a parcel of land made out to Maize Lawson. He started to call Vartann but his cell phone rang just as he picked it up. It was Brass. Lawson had run and they were bringing him into the station but they had absolutely nothing to hold him on. Greg told him about the land and gave Brass the legal description. Brass told him to go home and get some sleep. It would take them at least 12 hours, maybe more to get legal documents to investigate the property and make sure all the 'I's were dotted and the 'T's crossed.
***************************************
Greg was called back in to work about 5 hours after Nicky. All hell had broken loose. It took almost 20 hours to get all the paperwork in order and get a judge to sign off on their probable cause to hold Lawson while they checked out the property. Catherine and Warrick were a little pissed when Greg showed up. They had wanted to do the initial search of the property, but Brass AND Vartann had insisted that Greg had developed the lead and he should be there.
After he saw what was in the little cabin on Maize Lawson's land, Greg half way wished Brass had not been so generous. The cabin was neat as a pin with the exception of the pictures that covered every inch of the walls. Pictures of people, not just the 3 victims they had found but lots of people being tortured, being raped with baseball bats, crowbars, pokers, a two by four; it was almost a shock to see pictures of a couple of men actually being raped by a penis. Men, women and even young children and those were the ones that sent Greg outside to lose his coffee and bagel. There were ledger books with extensive and detailed records of every single victim; name, age, where they were taken, their occupation, how long they had lasted and oh god..exactly what had been done to them. It was obvious from the records that the first victims had been taken by Maize. Phillip had joined the family hobby when he was 13 and demonstrated an unusual talent for torture and perversion. There was no record of Phillips mother nor was there any mention of what had happened to Maize.
They found the 'playpen', Phillips words not Greg's when they investigated what appeared to be a storm shelter out behind the cabin. Brass, Vartann and one of the uniforms went down the stairs first. Their flashlights moved around the rather large room making strange horrible flash cards that would have Greg waking up screaming for months after. Finally, Greg heard the click of a switch and bright overhead lights came on and they all got to see the true horror of what had happened on Maize Lawson's property.
Because the ledger's proved conclusively that some of the victims had been taken in other states and brought back to the old homestead to play with, the FBI had to be involved.
****************************************
He was working on logging and tagging all the evidence of the 'PlayPen' murders (Lord Greg hated the media and their need for something sensational to suck in the public) when his work room was invaded by Brass, Ecklie, Atwater and several 'suits' he didn't know but recognized immediately as FBI. Grissom was bringing up the rear arguing vehemently with the Feeb's and Atwater.
Greg was so overwhelmed with them all that it took him a minute to realize they were followed by several photographers and that's when everything hit him at once. The shock of the murders, the hours searching Lawson's home knowing all the while that Lawson was laughing at him behind his polite face combined with the interlude with Nick at the Lake followed by that one (and only one) magical kiss followed by being dragged out of bed and back to the hell on earth that was Maize Lawson's cabin was too much for Greg.
He shouted at all of them in a voice that even he didn't recognize. "Get the hell out of my work space right now you dumb shits. I've got evidence spread all over the place and if one of you fuckers dares to even breathe on something, I'll take you back out to the 'Playpen' and give you a personal introduction to some of the 'toys'. "
There was dead silence in the room. Greg suddenly saw the end of his career and wondered if he would even be able to get a job teaching science to 6th graders when they all got through with him. He almost collapsed when one of the Feeb's turned to the photographers and said, "Mr. Sanders may be a little forceful with his language but he's completely correct about our actions. Everyone; back out of here right now. Mr. Sanders, would you please secure your evidence and join us in Sheriff Atwater's office as soon as possible."
As quickly as they all appeared, they disappeared down the hall heading for Atwater's office. Greg just dropped back on his stool and sat there shaking. He looked up to see Nick and Grissom standing in the doorway. They walked in and Nick said, "Greg, tell us what you need us to do and let's get this secured."
Greg decided later that having CSI 3 Stokes and Gil Grissom taking orders from him had to be the weirdest thing of all in a very weird day. When he got to Atwater's office, followed by Nick and Grissom, he found that Catherine and Warrick were there also. He was congratulated, photographed with everyone in the room at least once and told that he would be receiving an award in a public ceremony just as soon as they could get it all set up. It seems that Mr. Lawson had been on the FBI's Most Wanted List as a John Doe for 27 years and Greg Sanders, CSI Level 1 had captured him. And that brings us up to Greg's epiphany in the locker room at the end of that shift.
Among other things, Greg had been given the night off and it just happened that Nick also had the night off because he'd already put in 2 doubles and a triple and was beat. You would think that nothing could phase Greg after what he'd just been through but when Nick Stokes; conservative, good-ole-boy Nick Stokes leaned over and told him to go home and get a lot of sleep because he; conservative, good-ole-boy Nick Stokes was taking Greg out to 'Inferno' that evening, Greg knew he had passed over into another dimension…another time and place. He was now in the twilight zone for sure. Inferno was the hottest club in town; at least it was if you were gay and into what was often called 'an alternative life-style'. Greg would have bet real money that Nick didn't even know where Inferno was much less be willing to set foot in it.
He looked up at Nick with a bewildered look on his face and said, "Nicky, would you do something for me? Would you pinch me because I know I've got to be dreaming."
Nick laughed out loud, leaned down and gently scratched his fingernails across Greg's left nipple. Greg almost jumped off the bench. Nick said, "Nope, you seem pretty awake to me. Now go home and sleep. I'll pick you up around 9.30 tonight. I expect you to be outrageously gorgeous." He let his fingernails wander over to Greg's right nipple and gently scratched over it too. Greg let out a very unmanly whimper which Nick stifled with his mouth. Between having his nipples stimulated in the locker room by a guy who'd only kissed him one time and had kept him in a state of sexual tension for weeks now and having said guy tell him to get gorgeous because he was taking him out to a hot gay bar, Greg was pretty sure he was actually confined somewhere in a room with padding on the walls and he was just hallucinating all of this.
There was only one thing left to do. Go home, go to bed and if he woke up and was not in a straight jacket, he would get outrageously gorgeous.
The alarm going off woke Greg out of such a deep sleep; he had to fight his way up. It reminded him of his surfing days in California when he got swept off his board by a big wave and rolled and tumbled under the walls of water. He often didn't know where up was and he would fight to get somewhere until he broke through the surface of the water to grab huge gasps of air into his screaming lungs. He looked around wildly for a moment until he realized he was in his bedroom, in his apartment in Las Vegas and his alarm was still going off.
Greg slammed his hand down on the dumb thing trying to remember why in the hell he had set the alarm when his body was desperate for 24 solid hours in the sack. He lay back on his bed and tried to get his brain to function and give him some concrete answers. Slowly the last 24 hours began to filter through. There was the 3 bodies that turned out to be one case. His mind flew forward to him and Vartann searching Phillip Lawson's very neat house. He remembered the sound of the keys rattling around in the finial on Lawson's bed. The keys that fit the locks on the cabin and the 'playpen' on Maize Lawson's piece of property, otherwise known as the west side of HELL. He began to process memories faster now; Catherine and Warrick all but telling him to his face that he was just a stupid 'newbie' and his ideas were dumb, the spilled coffee on the birth certificate that gave him the name of Lawson's father. Oh God, his first sight of the cabin and the storm shelter that turned out to be the crime scene and finally, the piles of evidence that all had to be tagged, referenced and logged in. He felt a slight embarrassment when he remembered yelling at all of them and calling them dumb shits and fuckers and then Nick and Grissom taking orders from him as he told them what needed to be tagged at once and what could be put under lock and key to wait until he could get back to it.
He remembered the moments in Atwater's office; the looks on Catherine and Warrick's faces. He so wanted to stick his tongue out at them and do the childhood, "Nanh, Nanh, Nanh, Nanh, Nanh……you were wrong and I was right!"
Instead, he had answered all the questions quietly, not volunteering any extra information and keeping his answers short and professional. He watched the photographers and reporters scribbling down every word he spoke as though it was gospel and thought about how much he would like to take every single one of them out to the 'playpen' and hang them in the chains on the wall and ceiling and leave them there for a while.
The only thing he refused to answer was what Lawson had done to make him suspicious. He said he would not answer that. Atwater tried to intimidate him by saying. "Surely he wanted everyone to know what had tipped him off?"
Greg said no he didn't because bad guys read newspapers and watch TV news and he wasn't about to give them any help. He wondered if Grissom realized he had nodded when Greg said that.
The FBI guy, who had been the one to tell everyone to back out of Greg's work space, said the Las Vegas Crime Lab was to be commended on the quality and professionalism of its personnel.
Greg had the great satisfaction of watching Catherine and Warrick both flush with shame when he said that if he was good at his job, it was because he had the best CSI's in the business as teachers. They were always willing to listen to the ideas of the newest member of the team. He looked right at both of them when he said it and he knew his words hit home better than any complaints ever could.
Suddenly, Greg jumped out of bed. He ran over to his closet, threw open the door and looked at his naked body in the full length mirror hanging on the back of the door. NOPE, no straight jacket. That meant he had to get himself together and get outrageously gorgeous for Nick; Nick, who kissed him and rubbed his nipples and held him in his arms while he slept; Nick who was bound and determined to reduce him to a quivering pile of drool. Well not this time Mr. Stokes. This time, Greg Sanders was going to be in charge.
Greg slammed his hand down on the dumb thing trying to remember why in the hell he had set the alarm when his body was desperate for 24 solid hours in the sack. He lay back on his bed and tried to get his brain to function and give him some concrete answers. Slowly the last 24 hours began to filter through. There was the 3 bodies that turned out to be one case. His mind flew forward to him and Vartann searching Phillip Lawson's very neat house. He remembered the sound of the keys rattling around in the finial on Lawson's bed. The keys that fit the locks on the cabin and the 'playpen' on Maize Lawson's piece of property, otherwise known as the west side of HELL. He began to process memories faster now; Catherine and Warrick all but telling him to his face that he was just a stupid 'newbie' and his ideas were dumb, the spilled coffee on the birth certificate that gave him the name of Lawson's father. Oh God, his first sight of the cabin and the storm shelter that turned out to be the crime scene and finally, the piles of evidence that all had to be tagged, referenced and logged in. He felt a slight embarrassment when he remembered yelling at all of them and calling them dumb shits and fuckers and then Nick and Grissom taking orders from him as he told them what needed to be tagged at once and what could be put under lock and key to wait until he could get back to it.
He remembered the moments in Atwater's office; the looks on Catherine and Warrick's faces. He so wanted to stick his tongue out at them and do the childhood, "Nanh, Nanh, Nanh, Nanh, Nanh……you were wrong and I was right!"
Instead, he had answered all the questions quietly, not volunteering any extra information and keeping his answers short and professional. He watched the photographers and reporters scribbling down every word he spoke as though it was gospel and thought about how much he would like to take every single one of them out to the 'playpen' and hang them in the chains on the wall and ceiling and leave them there for a while.
The only thing he refused to answer was what Lawson had done to make him suspicious. He said he would not answer that. Atwater tried to intimidate him by saying. "Surely he wanted everyone to know what had tipped him off?"
Greg said no he didn't because bad guys read newspapers and watch TV news and he wasn't about to give them any help. He wondered if Grissom realized he had nodded when Greg said that.
The FBI guy, who had been the one to tell everyone to back out of Greg's work space, said the Las Vegas Crime Lab was to be commended on the quality and professionalism of its personnel.
Greg had the great satisfaction of watching Catherine and Warrick both flush with shame when he said that if he was good at his job, it was because he had the best CSI's in the business as teachers. They were always willing to listen to the ideas of the newest member of the team. He looked right at both of them when he said it and he knew his words hit home better than any complaints ever could.
Suddenly, Greg jumped out of bed. He ran over to his closet, threw open the door and looked at his naked body in the full length mirror hanging on the back of the door. NOPE, no straight jacket. That meant he had to get himself together and get outrageously gorgeous for Nick; Nick, who kissed him and rubbed his nipples and held him in his arms while he slept; Nick who was bound and determined to reduce him to a quivering pile of drool. Well not this time Mr. Stokes. This time, Greg Sanders was going to be in charge.
****************************************
Nick wasn't nearly as confident as he acted. He was pulling up in front of Greg's apartment. It was 9.25 pm and he was somewhat nervous; somewhat hell, he was shaking, his palms were wet and he wondered again for the hundredth time whatever possessed him to tell Greg he would take him to 'Inferno'. It wasn't the idea of taking Greg to a gay bar. OH NO! It was the fact that he bet he knew half of the guys they would run into in that bar and he wasn't sure how Greg would take that. He was also pretty sure that after this night, they would either wake up in bed together tomorrow OR they would be thru. From the way his stomach was trying to commit suicide by jumping up in his throat every time he opened his mouth, he wasn't too sure which way he wanted things to go. On one hand, he was sure Greg was everything he wanted…BUT…they had never had the all-important talk about kids. They had been dating for 2 months now and not once had the subject come up. He knew Greg liked kids but it's one thing to like someone else's kids; kids you can give back when they need changing or start to cry and it's something else entirely to be the one who loves those kids through all the trouble they can get themselves into on the journey from childhood to adult members of society.
Well, this wasn't getting him anywhere. He had to go get his date for the evening. Nick walked up to Greg's door with all the enthusiasm of a man who's just been told he has to get circumcised but the hospital has run out of anesthetic.
****************************************
Greg was ready. He was so ready for Nicky baby. He had even thought to down a glass of milk and eat a couple of slices of bread to prepare his stomach. Other than to use the mirror to style his hair and put on eye-liner and mascara while he was still nude after his shower, he had made sure he didn't look at himself. He thought he knew how he looked but he wanted to see himself through Nick's eyes. The doorbell rang.
Greg opened the door and looked at Nick. They just stared at each other for a moment. Greg heard the lyrics of an old song go through his head; "I took one look at you, that's all I had to do and then my heart stood still."
Nick was dressed very simply in a dark crimson red t-shirt that Greg thought at first was liquid latex because it fit so close that he could see Nick's nipples and the muscles of his stomach. The shirt went perfectly with a pair of black jeans that Greg was sure he'd never seen Nick wear to work because they also fit so tightly that his 'package' was on display. The pants were so low-cut; Greg thought if Nick got a full erection, he'd have to push his dick down his leg because it would stick out over the top of his waistband. His eyes finally made it up to Nick's face and if he thought the body was hot, the expression on Nick's face literally made Greg's nipples harden to the point where they poked through the mesh front of his shirt.
Greg looked in Nick's eyes, trying to see himself the way Nick was seeing him but it was too much and he closed his eyes. He tried to breathe normally; yeah right…good luck with that.
Nick was doing some looking of his own. Greg was wearing a pair of dark green leather pants that he knew had been sewed on Greg's body. They looked as soft as Greg's skin. He was wearing a lighter green sleeveless muscle shirt and the front was open mesh. He was painfully aware of the mesh front because Greg's nipples were peeking through the holes in the mesh. The pants were cut as low as Nick's and Greg's beautiful, toned belly button was front and center. Nick slowly brought his eyes up to Greg's face. Holy Shit, Greg was wearing eye makeup. He had to remind himself to keep taking deep breaths and that lot's of guys who were gay wore eye makeup. He had never thought about being with a guy who did and he sure as hell never thought about himself responding to it the way he was. He could feel his dick growing hard.
Greg's eyes were dark anyway with long lush eyelashes. The makeup made them the focal point of his face. They were dark and smoky and mysterious. A man could lose himself in eyes like that and never even care. He forced himself to look at the rest of Greg's face, the soft pale skin, the dusting of moles on his cheek, the eyelashes that looked false they were so long and curly and now with the mascara, they looked even more amazing.
Nick's body went on auto-pilot. He knew he didn't have enough brain power left to step through the door so something else had to be in charge. He closed the door behind him and finally managed to whisper to Greg, "Boy when I tell you to get outrageously gorgeous, you really take me at my word."
Greg didn't even answer him. He just stepped forward right into Nick's body, fastened his hands in Nick's shirt and pulled him against his body. Nick didn't know what was hotter, the feel of his body against his from knee's up or the super heated breath coming from Greg's mouth as it closed over Nick's.
He was lost in the feel, the smell and oh God the taste, the taste of Greg; his tongue and lips. Nick felt Greg suck his tongue into his mouth and he knew he was probably drooling and thought for a moment, "That's where the expression, swapping spit, came from," because Greg's mouth was just as wet as his was and neither of them seemed to mind at all. A little voice of warning went off in Nick's head and he put his hands on Greg's shoulders and managed to push him back just enough to say, "Greg, Greggo if we don't stop this, we won't make it to the club."
Greg pushed back against Nick's hands trying to reclaim his mouth and said, "Fuck the club."
Nick tried again this time saying, "G, I can't do this and keep up the romance."
Again, Greg's response was, "Fuck the romance."
Nick tried one last time to do the honorable thing, "Greg, what about the slow and careful?"
Greg slammed Nick back against the door in the most aggressive move Nick had ever seen him make. He held Nick against the door, looked him right in the eyes and said, "Nick, fuck the club, fuck the romance, fuck the slow and careful. Nick…FUCK THE GREG. RIGHT NOW."
Nick didn't hesitate. He pulled Greg against him and proceeded to kiss him until they both almost passed out. It was hot and slow and fast and brutal and gentle and above all; it was passionate. All the months of holding back, taking it slow made that kiss, the most sensual, sexual kiss either of them had ever had. Nick took Greg's face between his hands and he deliberately fucked his mouth with his tongue, swirling it around the inside of Greg's mouth, tasting and rubbing against the roof of his mouth and over his teeth. Greg was so caught up in the sexuality of the kiss, he didn't even realize he was humping Nick in perfect rhythm with Nick's tongue in his mouth.
When Nick pulled his mouth away, Greg almost fell. Nick had been doing some humping of his own and his leg between Greg's with his thigh pressed firmly against Greg's aching erection was the only thing that kept him up against the door. Nick shook Greg slightly and said his name. It seemed to take a long time to get through the haze of lust clouding his brain but finally Greg realized Nick was telling him to open his eyes and look at him. Greg's eyes were dazed, his pupils dilated almost as though he had been taking drugs. If anyone had asked him, he would have told them, Nick was the most potent drug he'd ever run across. Nick said his name again and this time Greg was able to at least say yes.
Nick was still holding Greg's face between his hands and he used them to steady Greg and force him to look at him. "Greg, do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yes I do but how come you can come up with a complete sentence right now? I must be holding back."
"Believe me, you're not holding anything back. I need you to know, to understand."
"Understand what?"
"I will never, ever fuck you. I will make love to you now and probably forever. There will be times and I think this is gonna be one of them when it's hot and furious and other times when it's slow and takes all night but it's always gonna be making love. Do you understand me?"
Greg felt his eyes fill with tears and he wasn't even ashamed of them. He leaned forward and put his lips against Nick's and answered him with their lips touching. "I understand completely and I wouldn't want it any other way."
Their lips sealed the agreement with a sweet, sweet kiss that lasted just until their bodies took over again and heated things back up. Nick was kissing and sucking on Greg's neck and Greg was pulling at the impossibly tight t-shirt trying to get his hands under it to get to Nick's nipples. Finally, Greg grabbed Nick's jeans and got them unbuttoned so he could get the bottom of the shirt and pull it up that way, except then his hands slid around Nick's waist and he realized he had Nick's ass, the eighth wonder of the world, right there in his hands and he couldn't resist rubbing and feeling that marvelous butt.
At that point, Nick managed to pant out against Greg's throat, "I really don't want our first time to be up against the door in your hall. Can we at least try for the couch if we can't make it to the bedroom?"
Greg sort of moaned, groaned and panted back, "Hell no, we're going to the bedroom because that's where the lube is."
Nick tried to get his feet moving in the general direction but it was a little hard because he had Greg firmly fastened to him in so many different places; it was like wearing a Greg skin.
Greg didn't know he had it in him but he managed to get turned around and pulled Nick towards his bedroom. It would have been so much easier, not to mention faster, it they had just let go of each other and walked or ran to the bedroom. Neither one was willing to give up one precious centimeter of skin they had already claimed so the trip was perilous. It was a miracle that no one broke anything and the next day they both had some odd bruises that they finally figured out they must have gotten from banging into furniture and door jambs on their blind journey down the hall.
Whoever said the road to true love never runs smooth, obviously had tried to get an over eager lover out of a pair of skin tight leather pants. They survived the trip to the bedroom, the fall onto the bed, they even managed to get shirts, socks, shoes and Nick's pants off but they were stopped dead by Greg's leather pants. The pants were so tight to begin with and the fact that Greg was hot and sweaty from their lovemaking up to that point, combined with his truly impressive hard on made them impossible to remove. They tried peeling, pulling and working first one side down and then the other. Nick was ready to go get a pair of scissors but Greg's out-raged, "Nick. These damn pants cost me $450.00" put a stop to that idea.
Nick finally lay back on the bed with a groan and said, "Greggo, this was not the way I imagined our first time."
Greg glared at him and said, "You think I did!"
Nick rolled over and looked at his frustrated, horny boy-friend and asked, "How did you get into them in the first place?"
Greg said, "I used lots and lots of powder."
Nick slid off the bed, almost running to the bathroom. He grabbed the talcum powder from the cabinet where it still stood and rushed back to the bed. He grabbed Greg by the wrist and pulled him upright and off the bed. He said, "You suck in your stomach and pull the waistband out as far as you can while I shake the powder in your pants."
They managed to get the button open and started working the zipper down very slowly. It would have been easier if Greg had bothered to wear briefs but he went commando so that no lines would spoil the curve of his luscious butt. The expression on Nick's face when Greg told him that, in those exact words, was priceless. At long last, Nick was able to slip his hands just inside the waist and started working his fingers down Greg's butt cheeks. As he worked his fingers down, he also sort of pulled Greg's flesh up and suddenly, the pants slipped down under the 'luscious curve'. Greg stopped Nick then, lay back down on the bed on his back, raised his hips up and between Nick pulling and Greg pushing, they finally managed to peel the tight leather chastity pants down and off. Nick threw them over his shoulder and pounced on Greg.
Greg let out an 'OOF' and asked Nick if he didn't want to take a minute to get his breath back. Nick looked up at him and said, "Are you crazy?" Before Greg could respond, Nick had taken Greg's cock in his mouth and slid his head down until Greg could feel the back of his throat. He let out what would have been a healthy yell, if he'd been able to get any air in his lungs and almost bucked Nick off the bed.
Nick used his weight to hold Greg down while he tried to swallow his cock whole. Greg went from wanting a breather to all-out, complete sexual frenzy in much less than 60 seconds. Nick was alternating between deep-throating him and pulling back to lick him like a pop-sicle. Then he would throw in a swirling tongue that went around the head of Greg's cock and dip into his slit to lick up the drops of cum that Greg was secreting.
Greg was almost incoherent. He was lost in sensations that were so much more than his wildest fantasies had ever conjured up. He knew he was going to have the orgasm of his life and he just hoped he lived thorough it because he really wanted to get his mouth on Nick's equipment before he died. He felt Nick lift his body up off him and lean across him. He couldn't get his thoughts together enough to ask what Nick was doing but just a few seconds later, he felt Nick's hand's lift his legs up on his shoulders. Nick spread his ass cheeks apart and then he felt Nick's breath blowing gently across his anal pucker. He couldn't believe what was happening. He still didn't believe it even when he felt Nick's wet tongue lick across his opening several times and then he felt his lips close over him and Nick, Nick was sucking on Greg's hole. He thought it went on forever and he thought it was over way too soon. He felt Nick slide a finger in the same hole he was sucking on and his body was so happy to have him there. That finger was joined by another and just as Nick was getting ready to slide a third in, Greg grabbed him by the hair and pulled his head up.
Nick looked up at his almost lover and asked him what was wrong. Greg told him nothing was wrong that wouldn't be fixed by a hard dick in him at once. Nick said he didn't want to hurt Greg. Greg looked at him severely and said, "Nick, get your dick in me now. I want to be fu..made love to furiously and right this minute."
Nick grinned and reached for a condom saying, "Any sacrifice for you Greg. Any time."
Greg stopped his hand and said, "No rubbers. Not now or ever between us."
Nick thought nothing could stop him but that did. He said, "Greg. I don't want anything to happen to you. I know we get tested every 3 months but don't you think we should……"
Greg looked at him and blushed a little. Thank heavens, he was in such a high state of arousal, it didn't show. He confessed to Nick that he had been checking himself every week since they started seeing each other and he was clean.
Nick was amazed. He couldn't believe that Greg had been so into him that he had been testing his own blood every week. He kissed him; trying with his lips to tell him how much that meant to him. He said, "But Greg, you don't know about me. I get tested too but don't you want to be sure of me also?"
Greg looked lovingly at Nick and said, "I am sure of you. I know you haven't been with anyone since we started seeing each other. I trust you with my life everyday Nick. What makes you think I would doubt you about this?"
Nick put the condom down, took his erection in his hand and brought it to Greg's opening. He slipped inside slowly, letting Greg adjust to his size and girth. He kissed Greg over and over. When he got completely inside Greg and Greg told him to start moving, he laid down on Greg's body, carefully slipping his arms around him so that he was holding him in his arms and moving slowing in and out of his ass. Aggressive, topping Nicky came out and he started talking. He told Greg how amazing he was and how good his ass felt. How he loved the way his muscles closed around him almost as though his butt was welcoming him inside. He thanked Greg for the gift he had given him; his trust. His strokes were deep and slow and he stroked across Greg's bundle of nerves on every stroke.
Greg was stimulated on a level he'd never achieved before and he didn't know if he was going to pass out before or after he came. Nick seemed settled in and ready to fuck, no, not fuck, make love, all night long. Greg knew he couldn't handle that. He also knew he was going to come and neither he nor Nick had a hand any where near his dick so he was coming just from the friction of Nick's body against his and the fantastic sensations coming from his stretched ass.
Then Nick sat up, pulled Greg's ass up so it was lying across his thighs. He pulled Greg's legs up against his body and then leaned forward so that Greg was almost bent in half. Greg swore Nick got at least 2 more inches of cock in his ass in this position. Not that he was complaining mind you. Nick began a deep assault on Greg's hole, plunging in deeper and deeper. He would stop when he got so far inside Greg thought he was going to taste him when he came and move his hips in a circle. That little movement made his cock come in contact with every single nerve in Greg's ass and it didn't hurt that the head of his cock stayed firmly against Greg's prostate the whole time he was doing it. Greg never even noticed that he no longer had any friction at all against his own cock. He was well on his way to heaven. When his orgasm hit, he did scream. It probably would have set off every siren within a 10 block radius if Nick hadn't bent forward and fastened his mouth over Greg's and swallowed the scream along with his own moans. Greg was shaking with the force of his orgasm when Nick took his mouth away from his, fastened it on Greg's throat and bit down hard as his cock gave up it's load and took him over.
Many hours later, after naps and showers and several more demonstrations of how much they wanted each other, they were both exhausted and ready to sleep; really sleep. Greg was almost there, lying across Nick with an arm and leg thrown across his body when he heard Nick say, "Greg, what do you think about kids?"
Greg could not believe that Nick wanted to have a semi-intelligent conversation at that moment so he ignored him. Nick however was persistent. He shook Greg a little and said, "Do you ever even think about them?"
Nick lay there holding his breath. Greg didn't answer for so long, Nick was sure he'd fallen asleep and just as he was giving up and deciding he would have to ask again when Greg was alive, he heard a very sleepy, "No more than three. It's getting harder and harder to educate kids these days and I don't think we could afford college for more than three; not even with both our paychecks."
Nick would not have been surprised if the ceiling had parted and a choir of heavenly angels had started singing the Hallelujah Chorus. Greg, the most intense sexual partner he'd ever had. Greg, the most exasperating, intriguing, loving, infuriating man he'd ever been involved with didn't want more that three kids because they had to think about educating them.
Greg was so close to sleep, he couldn't figure out what happened. One minute he was laying on his wonderful Nick about to go to sleep for hours and the next, he was laying flat on his back being kissed within an inch of his life. He felt Nick lifting his leg and he was just about to say, "Stop, I'm too sore to even think about letting that monster of yours anywhere near me" when his treacherous body opened up and let Nick in. It was not a completely pain-free entrance. He had after all been used and used hard. But the minute Nick's hard erection (and how the hell did Nick manage to get another erection after all they'd done that night) slid in him and touched his prostate he decided that one more time wouldn't kill him.
Nick heard the painful moan Greg gave when he slid inside him and it took him a moment to realize that just because he had suddenly had all his prayers answered, that didn't mean that Greg was ready to be plundered again. He stopped moving and told Greg he was sorry, he should have asked him if he could stand him one more time. Greg pulled Nick down into his arms and kissed him deeply and lovingly. He told Nick he was going to have to do all the work. If he could just lay there and make happy noises he could certainly stand him again. Nick kissed Greg with all his heart and as he started to move, he felt Greg's body open up again and welcome him home.
If this was a fairy tale, the last chapter would have ended, "And they lived happily ever after."
This isn't a fairy tale and Greg and Nick are very real, very passionate, stubborn, intelligent, irritating men. They had horrendous fights followed by fantastic make-up sex. They kept trying to get themselves evened out but every time one or the other got mad, the race was on. Every make up session left something broken and both of them bruised. They tried putting the bed in every possible position in the room but no matter where it started, the force of their love-making usually put it into a wall some where. Greg thought he had solved the problem when he moved the bed kitty-cornered into one corner of the bedroom.
As they were leaving Lowe's again, this time with a whole sheet of sheetrock and more sheetrock nails, Nick told Greg not to feel bad. He had completely agreed with him that the corner thingy would solve their problem. Who would have thought they would be able to put the headboard through both walls necessitating repairs to two opposing walls?
Their final and biggest fight happened in the parking lot of the crime lab. Now that was truly ironic. They had both been adamant from the beginning that their relationship would never be manifested at their workplace. That had been amended the first week to exclude supply closets. Several weeks later, back seats in SUV's with heavily tinted windows were added to the exclusions. Finally, a basement storage room was also included in their original agreement.
But neither of them had thought to bring up the parking lot. It happened because Nick and Greg were both working the same case. That was unusual. Catherine knew about their relationship and because of it, tried to make sure they never worked the same case. Technically, Nick was still Greg's superior and one of his instructors and like Caesar's wife, the honor and virtue of the lab was kept pristine and untouched; especially, after the fallout from Grissom's clandestine affair with Sara.
Nick had known about it for some time and it was the main reason for his growing contempt for his one time idol and mentor. Nick could never get over the cold, callous treatment he had gotten after the Walter Gordon case and after his passionate affair with Catherine during which she had told him about Grissom's treatment of her when she had a drink with Adam Novak after work one night, he had completely lost all respect for the man. It didn't keep him from working until he dropped to find Sara when she was kidnapped and put in harms way by their MCS killer, Natalie. But he wasn't sorry in the slightest when Sara was transferred to the swing shift and Grissom was offered the choice between supervisor of days and being broke back to a CSI 3 on the graveyard shift. He had taken the reduction in position and was now on the same level as Nick. Catherine had assumed the position of supervisor.
They had all been called out on this one; a tragic copy cat of the Columbine shooting. The body count seemed to rise with every one of these school yard shootings. This time 21 people; 19 students and 2 teachers gave their lives because of one sociopath teen-ager.
They had divided the room into 6 separate sections and each of them was working a section. Greg was just to Nick's right with Kelly, the new CSI who took Sara's place on his left. Greg had just bent over one of the bodies when the kid suddenly came to life, slammed a heavy textbook into Greg's head and rolled over grabbing at his book bag and trying to drag it towards him. He reached into the bag and pulled out a gun, leveled it at Greg and pulled the trigger. Fortunately for everyone, the gun jammed. Nick did a tackle like he hadn't tried since his days playing college football and took Greg down and out. He managed to kick out at the same time and kicked the gun out of the kid's hand. He checked Greg really fast and then turned to the boy on the floor. The kid was coughing up blood and foam. Nick looked around and pulled a jacket out of the book bag and rolled it up and put it under the kids head and turned his head to the side so the blood would run out and not choke him. He tried to talk to him to calm him down but it was pretty obvious that he was not going to make it. When the paramedics got there just seconds later, the kid told them he thought Greg was the shooter and he was trying to protect his class mates. Then he died.
Greg was shaking and Nick thought it was reaction to the book in the head and the near miss from the gun shot. It wasn't until they were walking out to their car that he realized Greg was shaking with rage at him. Greg wouldn't talk to him and instead of leaving it alone until they were home, Nick grabbed Greg's arm and demanded to know what was wrong. Greg just exploded and screamed at Nick that he didn't need him to protect him while he was doing his job. He, Nick, should have checked the kid first and maybe he wouldn't have died. Nick yelled back that the kid was dead when the shooter put a bullet in his stomach and caused his spleen to rupture and he was only doing his job. Greg yelled back that he bet Nick wouldn't have been so quick to act if it had been anyone else and he thought they agreed that while they were at work, their private lives were left at home. Nick grabbed Greg's arm again and Greg shoved him against the car so hard you could hear Nick's head hit the top of the door several feet away.
They were both so caught up in their own drama they didn't realize they had acquired an audience until Catherine shouted their names in a voice that caught everyone's attention. She read them both the riot act, told Greg that no one had brought up their private life except him and that Nick had done exactly what he was supposed to. She reminded Greg that he was still a CSI 1 no matter how many awards he got and Nick was a 3 and his superior in every way. It was Nick's responsibility to care for the Las Vegas personnel under his immediate command and that was just what he had done. She then ordered them to go home and not show their faces back on her shift until they could act like responsible adults and suggested that Greg spend some of his time reading the manual again and acquainting himself with the duties for each level a CSI reached.
They got in the car and drove home with neither of them saying a word. When they got in the house, Greg turned to Nick and said, "Look, I'll understand if you want me to leave. I know being in a full time relationship with me isn't easy. I don't expect you to damage your job over it."
Nick looked at Greg like he had grown another head. He said, "Oh no you don't, you son of a bitch. You aren't getting rid of me. I'm in this for the long haul. We may fight like hell but I'm not leaving you. You're stuck with me for the rest of your life so you just get used to it, grow up and accept that I'm part of your life from now on."
Greg looked at Nick, his face crumpled and then his body. He just slid down into a boneless heap right in the middle of their kitchen floor. When Nick got to him, he was already crying so hard he was sobbing. Nick sat down on the floor beside his love, pulled him into his arms and started rocking him back and forth like a child in need of comfort. He was kissing his messy hair and telling him he had him and wasn't going to let him go but other than that, he just rocked him until the sobs started to dwindle off. Finally Greg sat up and asked Nick for a handkerchief. Nick grabbed the dishtowel and handed it to Greg telling him that with the amount of snot he'd cried into Nick's shoulder, the towel would work better. Greg snapped the towel at Nick before he started wiping his face off and blowing even more snot into the towel. He started to hand the towel back to Nick who just opened the cabinet under the sink, pulled out the waste basket and told him he was not about to touch that towel and his shirt was probably going in the trash also.
Later, after a shower and some food, they went to bed and talked. Greg told Nick he had felt from the moment they got together that Nick would leave him like he'd left all the others and he knew he would never get over it when he did. Every time Nick had to rescue him or cover for him or make it pretty obvious that Greg would never measure up to him, he felt like the time when Nick got tired of him was coming closer.
Nick sat straight up in bed, reached over and turned on the table lamp and turned Greg over so he was looking directly at him. "The first thing tomorrow, we are going to look up one of those marriage counselors and make an appointment. We have got to learn to communicate better than we are right now. First of all, I have never rescued you. Catherine told you the exact truth and if you had been a CSI when Holly Gribbs was killed you would know that we all made a pact right then and there that our team mate would always be our first concern. I would have done the exact same thing if it had been Grissom the kid hit with the book. Second, I have never covered for you for anything other than telling Catherine that you would be a few minutes late for assignments because your lock stuck when you actually were combing your hair one last time. Third, who was the guy who realized there was something wrong with Phillip Lawson and fought for his reasons to the point where he almost got into trouble over it. Do you realize how many lives you've saved because you wouldn't give up until you found a way to take that monster down. And finally, I just realized I've never said it to you and I should have from the very beginning. I'm head over heals in love with you Greg Sanders. If I could, I would buy you a ring and ask for your hand in marriage right this minute. But I can't and I don't know if we will ever live in a state, let alone a country, where I can. But I don't need a ceremony to make me stay with you. I will be by your side, in your bed and a part of your life until we both draw our last breath. I will love you forever and that's a promise."
This isn't a fairy tale and Greg and Nick are very real, very passionate, stubborn, intelligent, irritating men. They had horrendous fights followed by fantastic make-up sex. They kept trying to get themselves evened out but every time one or the other got mad, the race was on. Every make up session left something broken and both of them bruised. They tried putting the bed in every possible position in the room but no matter where it started, the force of their love-making usually put it into a wall some where. Greg thought he had solved the problem when he moved the bed kitty-cornered into one corner of the bedroom.
As they were leaving Lowe's again, this time with a whole sheet of sheetrock and more sheetrock nails, Nick told Greg not to feel bad. He had completely agreed with him that the corner thingy would solve their problem. Who would have thought they would be able to put the headboard through both walls necessitating repairs to two opposing walls?
Their final and biggest fight happened in the parking lot of the crime lab. Now that was truly ironic. They had both been adamant from the beginning that their relationship would never be manifested at their workplace. That had been amended the first week to exclude supply closets. Several weeks later, back seats in SUV's with heavily tinted windows were added to the exclusions. Finally, a basement storage room was also included in their original agreement.
But neither of them had thought to bring up the parking lot. It happened because Nick and Greg were both working the same case. That was unusual. Catherine knew about their relationship and because of it, tried to make sure they never worked the same case. Technically, Nick was still Greg's superior and one of his instructors and like Caesar's wife, the honor and virtue of the lab was kept pristine and untouched; especially, after the fallout from Grissom's clandestine affair with Sara.
Nick had known about it for some time and it was the main reason for his growing contempt for his one time idol and mentor. Nick could never get over the cold, callous treatment he had gotten after the Walter Gordon case and after his passionate affair with Catherine during which she had told him about Grissom's treatment of her when she had a drink with Adam Novak after work one night, he had completely lost all respect for the man. It didn't keep him from working until he dropped to find Sara when she was kidnapped and put in harms way by their MCS killer, Natalie. But he wasn't sorry in the slightest when Sara was transferred to the swing shift and Grissom was offered the choice between supervisor of days and being broke back to a CSI 3 on the graveyard shift. He had taken the reduction in position and was now on the same level as Nick. Catherine had assumed the position of supervisor.
They had all been called out on this one; a tragic copy cat of the Columbine shooting. The body count seemed to rise with every one of these school yard shootings. This time 21 people; 19 students and 2 teachers gave their lives because of one sociopath teen-ager.
They had divided the room into 6 separate sections and each of them was working a section. Greg was just to Nick's right with Kelly, the new CSI who took Sara's place on his left. Greg had just bent over one of the bodies when the kid suddenly came to life, slammed a heavy textbook into Greg's head and rolled over grabbing at his book bag and trying to drag it towards him. He reached into the bag and pulled out a gun, leveled it at Greg and pulled the trigger. Fortunately for everyone, the gun jammed. Nick did a tackle like he hadn't tried since his days playing college football and took Greg down and out. He managed to kick out at the same time and kicked the gun out of the kid's hand. He checked Greg really fast and then turned to the boy on the floor. The kid was coughing up blood and foam. Nick looked around and pulled a jacket out of the book bag and rolled it up and put it under the kids head and turned his head to the side so the blood would run out and not choke him. He tried to talk to him to calm him down but it was pretty obvious that he was not going to make it. When the paramedics got there just seconds later, the kid told them he thought Greg was the shooter and he was trying to protect his class mates. Then he died.
Greg was shaking and Nick thought it was reaction to the book in the head and the near miss from the gun shot. It wasn't until they were walking out to their car that he realized Greg was shaking with rage at him. Greg wouldn't talk to him and instead of leaving it alone until they were home, Nick grabbed Greg's arm and demanded to know what was wrong. Greg just exploded and screamed at Nick that he didn't need him to protect him while he was doing his job. He, Nick, should have checked the kid first and maybe he wouldn't have died. Nick yelled back that the kid was dead when the shooter put a bullet in his stomach and caused his spleen to rupture and he was only doing his job. Greg yelled back that he bet Nick wouldn't have been so quick to act if it had been anyone else and he thought they agreed that while they were at work, their private lives were left at home. Nick grabbed Greg's arm again and Greg shoved him against the car so hard you could hear Nick's head hit the top of the door several feet away.
They were both so caught up in their own drama they didn't realize they had acquired an audience until Catherine shouted their names in a voice that caught everyone's attention. She read them both the riot act, told Greg that no one had brought up their private life except him and that Nick had done exactly what he was supposed to. She reminded Greg that he was still a CSI 1 no matter how many awards he got and Nick was a 3 and his superior in every way. It was Nick's responsibility to care for the Las Vegas personnel under his immediate command and that was just what he had done. She then ordered them to go home and not show their faces back on her shift until they could act like responsible adults and suggested that Greg spend some of his time reading the manual again and acquainting himself with the duties for each level a CSI reached.
They got in the car and drove home with neither of them saying a word. When they got in the house, Greg turned to Nick and said, "Look, I'll understand if you want me to leave. I know being in a full time relationship with me isn't easy. I don't expect you to damage your job over it."
Nick looked at Greg like he had grown another head. He said, "Oh no you don't, you son of a bitch. You aren't getting rid of me. I'm in this for the long haul. We may fight like hell but I'm not leaving you. You're stuck with me for the rest of your life so you just get used to it, grow up and accept that I'm part of your life from now on."
Greg looked at Nick, his face crumpled and then his body. He just slid down into a boneless heap right in the middle of their kitchen floor. When Nick got to him, he was already crying so hard he was sobbing. Nick sat down on the floor beside his love, pulled him into his arms and started rocking him back and forth like a child in need of comfort. He was kissing his messy hair and telling him he had him and wasn't going to let him go but other than that, he just rocked him until the sobs started to dwindle off. Finally Greg sat up and asked Nick for a handkerchief. Nick grabbed the dishtowel and handed it to Greg telling him that with the amount of snot he'd cried into Nick's shoulder, the towel would work better. Greg snapped the towel at Nick before he started wiping his face off and blowing even more snot into the towel. He started to hand the towel back to Nick who just opened the cabinet under the sink, pulled out the waste basket and told him he was not about to touch that towel and his shirt was probably going in the trash also.
Later, after a shower and some food, they went to bed and talked. Greg told Nick he had felt from the moment they got together that Nick would leave him like he'd left all the others and he knew he would never get over it when he did. Every time Nick had to rescue him or cover for him or make it pretty obvious that Greg would never measure up to him, he felt like the time when Nick got tired of him was coming closer.
Nick sat straight up in bed, reached over and turned on the table lamp and turned Greg over so he was looking directly at him. "The first thing tomorrow, we are going to look up one of those marriage counselors and make an appointment. We have got to learn to communicate better than we are right now. First of all, I have never rescued you. Catherine told you the exact truth and if you had been a CSI when Holly Gribbs was killed you would know that we all made a pact right then and there that our team mate would always be our first concern. I would have done the exact same thing if it had been Grissom the kid hit with the book. Second, I have never covered for you for anything other than telling Catherine that you would be a few minutes late for assignments because your lock stuck when you actually were combing your hair one last time. Third, who was the guy who realized there was something wrong with Phillip Lawson and fought for his reasons to the point where he almost got into trouble over it. Do you realize how many lives you've saved because you wouldn't give up until you found a way to take that monster down. And finally, I just realized I've never said it to you and I should have from the very beginning. I'm head over heals in love with you Greg Sanders. If I could, I would buy you a ring and ask for your hand in marriage right this minute. But I can't and I don't know if we will ever live in a state, let alone a country, where I can. But I don't need a ceremony to make me stay with you. I will be by your side, in your bed and a part of your life until we both draw our last breath. I will love you forever and that's a promise."
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In the years that followed, a lot happened to Nick and Greg. Greg made CSI 3 very fast and he and Nick were finally allowed to work together. Maybe it was the special connection between them but they became a formidable team. Their solve rate was over 90% and the awards and honors they received filled several drawers in their home.
They bought a house together 6 months after the high school shooting. It took them another 3 months of almost constant work on the house and the grounds but when it was done (of course no one who owns a house is ever done but it worked for the moment) they planned to have their commitment ceremony in their back yard. That fell through when they realized that the number of people they wanted to invite and those who hinted that they would really like to come when they found out about it would never fit in their back yard, not even if they included the whole downstairs. After a talk with Bobby Dawson and his partner Steve, they went to see Bobby's minister. He was young and felt that God loved everyone no matter what their life style might be. They both felt so comfortable with him they asked him to perform their ceremony and eventually they both became members of his growing congregation.
The ceremony was beautiful and both mother's cried buckets of tears as did Catherine and Wendy and Mandy and Judy and quite a few female detectives who had to face the fact that Nick Stokes was now permanently off limits. Nick was especially touched that Collin, Larry, Steven, Mitch, Gerald, David, Naomi and a couple of Collin's crew showed up. Greg was very nervous meeting them for the first time. Nick had told him about his time in Atlanta and had held nothing back about his passionate two weeks with Collin or his flirting and more with Larry and Steven at 'Body Heat'. Greg felt his heart sink when he saw Collin for the first time. He was one handsome man and he could easily see how Nick had been so attracted to him.
As it turned out, Greg had nothing to worry about. Collin had been drawn into the long time relationship between Larry and Steven and the three of them were very happy together. He told Greg he would always have a special spot in his heart for Nick but he knew when he saw them together, they were right. He and his partners invited them to come to Atlanta any time and stay with them but not to be surprised if they got hit on by their hosts. Greg surprised all of them by throwing his arms around Collin and giving him a passionate and sexy good by kiss. Collin's partners grabbed him and told them they would be leaving before the sexy little slut convinced him to stay in Las Vegas.
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Time passed and in the days before Nick's 49th birthday, Greg saw him slowly slip into a deepening depression. They had always had big parties on their birthdays and when Nick told Greg he didn't want a party this year and that if Greg tried to pull a surprise, he would walk out, Greg realized Nick was serious and they spent his birthday alone together.
Greg woke knowing instantly that he was alone in their big king sized bed. He got up and went looking for his partner. He found Nick out on the deck, drinking a beer and watching the fish in their koi pond doing whatever it is that fish do.
Greg sat down beside him and took his hand. Nick looked over at him and didn't even comment on the fact that Greg was stark naked on their deck at 2.00pm in the afternoon. Greg waited and finally Nick started to talk. He told Greg that he realized that their desire for children was not going to happen. They had so many strikes against them and his age was just the last nail in the coffin. He knew a gay couple, doing the hazardous work they did, with one of them almost 50 would set off every alarm bell there was at any reputable adoption agency. They had both agreed early on that they would never get desperate enough to consider anything shady because of their work.
Nick told Greg he was the one at fault, He wanted Greg to leave him, find himself a younger guy or a woman he liked and have the kids he knew he wanted before it was too late. Greg asked Nick if he had been happy the last 8 years. Nick turned and just stared at Greg.
"Happy? You're kidding right? I've lived more and had more in the last 8 years than I've had in all the other years of my life."
"Then why in the hell would your dumb Texas ass think we should break up just because we didn't get everything we ever wanted. You idiot! Sure I want kids. I've never denied or hid the fact that I want to be a dad but more than anything else in this world I want you. I need you the way I need air to breathe." Greg was getting angrier with every word he spoke.
He grabbed Nick by the arm, jerked him off the swing and shoved him through the French doors and into their kitchen. He pushed Nick over to their kitchen table and shoved him face down on the table. Nick was stunned. Greg had not been aggressive like this for years; not since their final battle in the parking lot. He was holding Nick down on the table with a hand on his back, muttering to himself while he rummaged thru one of their cabinets. Nick couldn't hear every word but he caught enough to know he was in real trouble. Words like, 'dumb-fuck Texas ass-hole' and 'thought he'd learned his lesson' and 'he's gonna learn just who he belongs to once and for all' and last but not least, 'gonna fuck him through the table just as soon as I find something'. Greg let out a loud 'AHA' and pulled a bottle of cooking oil out of the cabinet.
Nick raised his head and looked at Greg with sheer amazement on his face. "Greg, you gotta be kidding. You're gonna fuck me with cooking oil?"
Greg glared back at him while he was trying to get the cap off with one hand while using the other to hold him down on the table. "Well, it's not like the first years when we had lube in every drawer in the house you know. I'm going to have to improvise."
Nick almost laughed and said, "You know, we have a perfectly good bed in the bedroom and I know we have lube in the drawer. Wouldn't you like to move this lesson into the usual classroom?"
Greg finally got the cap off, poured some of the oil on Nick's butt and rubbed his hand over the puddle to get it coated and then rubbed his own very large erection. Nick thought to himself, " I wonder how I managed to miss that?" Greg spread the oil down over Nicks puckered hole and pushed one finger in.
Nick yelped in surprise. Greg was definitely not being gentle. Nick knew it should make him mad but instead found that an angry Greg was making him very interested. Nick never even realized that the depression he had been fighting for several weeks was nowhere to be seen. All he could think of was the hard dick poking at his back side and then sliding deep into his body.
Greg had often said that the reason he and Nick got along so well, among others, was the fact that they were perfectly suited to each other on a physical level. He, Greg, was an enthusiastic bottom. He loved the fact that all he had to do was brush his butt up against Nick's groin and Nick turned into a drooling sex fiend. On the other hand, Nick was the most passionate, inventative top Greg had ever known or read about or heard about from other male friends who were also bottoms. 95% of the time, their love making followed those lines. Occasionally Greg topped; after all, variety was the spice of life. And there were times when, as Nick put it, "A guy just wants to get rode hard and put away wet."
This was different. This was Greg staking his claim, marking his property and finally teaching Nick that he was his for life. Nick was amazed to discover the kitchen table was still in one piece when Greg got through. Greg felt the necessity to teach Nick a few more times before he was done; once in the living room, on the couch with Nick on his hands and knees. Nick was amazed to discover that HE was still in one piece when Greg got through. There was a third lesson in their bed with Nick on his back hanging onto the headboard for dear life as Greg tried to crawl inside his ass. After that, Nick didn't care whether he was in one piece or not.
When Nick woke up several hours later to find his lover, his partner trying to swallow his very soft dick, he just let out a mixed chuckle/groan and said, "It ain't gonna work babe, I don't have a wiggle left in me anywhere. You've made your point again and again and again. I got it; we are joined at the hip forever. Now come up here and let me hold you while we sleep."
He looked down at his dark eyed soul-mate and found those wicked dark eyes staring up at him. Greg let go of Nick's cock and said, "You really think you're wrung dry?"
Nick laid his head back down and replied, "It's probably gonna be next month before I get feeling back in junior." He didn't see the wicked smile on Greg's face as he slipped something big and hard and slick into Nick's ass.
Nick almost convulsed, raised his head and tried to figure out what was going on because it was obvious from Greg's position that it wasn't Greg's cock in his ass and then he felt the pulsating vibrations deep inside him flowing from his filled up back side through his suddenly awake prostate and right up to his brain.
"What the hell. I thought you threw that vibrator away a long time ago." Of course, the words weren't quite that legible. Greg smiled at his suddenly awake bed mate, wiggled his eyebrows at him and said, "New batteries." Then he sucked Nick's erect cock back into his mouth and finished what he had started.
For the first time in 9 years, Nick Stokes called in sick. Technically he wasn't sick. He just didn't think that 'Fucked and sucked until he couldn't walk' would look good on his personnel sheet.
Three weeks after Nick's 49th birthday, life changed again for a lot of people. As I mentioned earlier, a lot had happened to Greg and Nick in the 8 years they'd been together.
Two months after Sara transferred to Swing, she turned in her resignation, took 2 weeks of sick leave and left Las Vegas. Catherine who had begun to agree more and more with Nick about Grissom found her old instincts kick in; she felt she had to take care of him. She went to him and asked if he was OK. She was surprised when he not only did not say he 'was fine', he actually asked her to have breakfast with him like they used to. They met at their favorite diner from the old days.
When they walked in together, Mabelle, their favorite waitress looked up and said, "My God, I thought you two had died."
Mabelle was now the owner but she showed them back to their usual booth, handed them menus and said she would be their waitress. They ate; getting comfortable with each other. Finally, Grissom leaned back and said, "I know you think I'm pining away, but I'm really not. I think I'm relieved."
Catherine asked him if he had really loved Sara. His response was no, he thought he was scared of turning 50 and being alone.
"Sara was always there telling me we belonged together; no one could understand me like she could and it was easy to just go along with her. I tried to convince myself she was the love of my live, but I think I always knew she was just 'familiar'." Grissom let out a little embarrassed chuckle and said, "I sure managed to mess up my life didn't I?"
Catherine agreed that he certainly had. She also told him that it was possible he could get his supervisor status back now that Sara was gone but Grissom told her he was a lot happier as a CSI 3 working the cases.
"After all, Cath; it's always been the work, the science, the evidence that I got off on. It was never the leadership. I only held on as long as I did because when I took over all of you were so young and new. I wanted the opportunity to train you all to be not just good CSI's but great ones and I think I've done it."
Catherine and Grissom tried to regain their old friendship but it was never the same. Nick did not change his mind. He worked with Grissom and treated him with the same respect and courtesy he treated all his co-workers but he never again called him Gil or even Gris; it was always Grissom.
Three years later, Ecklie was named Director of the Las Vegas Crime Lab. His first action was to name Catherine the new Assistant Director. Catherine's first action was to name Nick Stokes the new supervisor of the Graveyard Shift. No one was more surprised than she was when Nick didn't jump at the promotion. In fact, he went to her office to tell her he did NOT want to be supervisor. All she could do was look at him and say, "Why?"
He sat down, leaned forward in the chair and told her why.
"Cath, it's Grissom and Sara all over again. Greg and I are in a permanent relationship. You were at our commitment ceremony for God's sakes. The only way it would work would be if Greg went to another shift and I will not allow that. We don't see each other enough as it is with the case loads we carry and I'm not about to give up a single second with him. The promotion isn't worth it to me."
Catherine thought for a moment. She knew she had to have Nick as Graveyard supervisor to make her plans for the lab come true. Finally she said, "Nick, there is no comparison between your situation and Grissom's. In the first place, you and Greg have been completely open and aboveboard about your relationship. You came to me when you two started seeing each other and made sure that I knew about it so I could keep Greg under my supervision while he was being trained. You did not work together on cases until he was a level 2. With the awards and commendations the two of you have acquired, no one could possibly say you were showing favoritism. I will personally do Greg's evaluations and assessments."
Nick thought a moment and said, "I would have to have it in writing signed by both you and Ecklie. Greg and I will always work the same shifts for as long as we work here at this lab."
Catherine said, "I think I can assure you of that. Give me one week before you officially turn me down, OK?"
Nick said he would.
Ecklie had no problem, had the document drawn up and both he and Catherine signed it with pleasure. She thought everything was taken care of until Grissom stuck his head in her office and asked to speak with her. She was totally unprepared when he handed her his resignation. She sat silent for a few moments and finally said exactly what she had said to Nick; "WHY? Is it because Nick is the new supervisor? Do you think you should be?"
"Absolutely not. I told you I didn't want to be in charge. Nick will be so much better than I was, in fact, he will be better than you were. No, I think it's time for a change. I'm 60 now and I can't get down on my knees like I used to. I've been offered a professorship at the University of Las Vegas. I would like to work out a deal with you and Ecklie to work as a special consultant to the Lab when you have a case that needs my expertise. This is a perfect fit. I can teach the new ones the basic's better than anyone else and steer the best of the bunch to you where you and your guys can finish them off. We could have the best CSI assembly line in the US."
They talked some more and Grissom told Catherine some personal things that surprised her even more than his resignation.
Grissom once said there would be no cake in the break room when he left. He was so wrong. There was a week long party that involved every person who had ever worked with him. Even Fromansky showed up and shook his hand. When he left, he was stunned at the depth of affection he had been shown. He'd never realized people felt that way about him.
Later, Nick and Cath were talking about his new life. Nick asked Catherine to tell him the truth; did Grissom really leave for the reasons he gave or did he just not want to work for him. Catherine smiled and said, "Well, Nicky; he actually is jealous of you."
Nick got up and walked rapidly around the room, shaking his head. "I knew it, I just knew it. He couldn't face the idea that I would be the one giving assignments and evaluating him."
Catherine laughed and said, "Oh no Nicky; that's not what he's jealous of. It's your relationship with Greg. He said every time he looked at the two of you, the love between you was so obvious it almost shed a light around you. It made him realize what an idiot he'd been for getting involved with Sara and made him ache for what he would never have."
Nick was amazed. He sat down and just shook his head.
Catherine told him Grissom wasn't the only one. "Every time I think that maybe the guy I'm seeing at the time might be OK, I look at you and I see what real love can be. I may be alone for the rest of my life, but I'm not going to be like Grissom. I'm not going to settle."
Nick smiled at the woman he still loved and said, "Have you ever thought that maybe, you don't have to be looking all over town for Mr. Right? He might be right under your nose."
Cath laughed again and said, "Oh yeah, I can just see Greg agreeing to a threesome and being willing to share you."
Nick said, "I'm not talking about me. For a smart woman, sometimes you can't see evidence that's right in front of you."
"What are you talking about?"
Nick got up, walked over to Catherine, turned her around and walked her over to the door of her office. "What do you see across the hall?"
"Warrick working on some evidence in the layout room." At that moment, Warrick felt the eyes on him, looked up and smiled his warm, sweet smile when he saw his two friends standing there watching him.
He walked over to them. "What's up with you two? Now that you're both bosses, you don't do any work anymore?"
Nick said, "No I was just breaking the bad news to Catherine that Greg and I aren't going to be able to take her out to dinner tonight. Lindsay stood her up and Lily is off on a trip with her senior group and Cath's alone tonight. Do you think you could step in?"
Warrick said, "Let me see…taking the most gorgeous woman in Las Vegas out for dinner or settling for a TV dinner and watching a 3rd rate football team. How can I possibly make a choice between those two?"
Nick smiled inside but with a straight face he told the two confused, starry eyed adults he had to get back to work and he'd leave them to settle the details.
Eleven months later, he and Greg stood up with Warrick and watched Jim Brass escort a glowing Catherine Willows down the aisle. Everyone said it was the best wedding they'd been to since Nick and Greg's commitment.
One of the other changes was Nick's health. He'd gotten a bad cold at a crime scene that turned into bronchitis and finally pneumonia. It had taken months to completely get over it and he was left with sinus that acted up every time he got tired or run down. He was coming down with a case of sinusitis, his doctor had called in a new prescription but Nick had to attend a budget meeting with Cath and the other 2 supervisors at 8.00 right after his shift. Greg told him not to worry; he'd pick up the drugs, stop by the store and get juice and more water and be waiting for him at home when he got there.
Two months after Sara transferred to Swing, she turned in her resignation, took 2 weeks of sick leave and left Las Vegas. Catherine who had begun to agree more and more with Nick about Grissom found her old instincts kick in; she felt she had to take care of him. She went to him and asked if he was OK. She was surprised when he not only did not say he 'was fine', he actually asked her to have breakfast with him like they used to. They met at their favorite diner from the old days.
When they walked in together, Mabelle, their favorite waitress looked up and said, "My God, I thought you two had died."
Mabelle was now the owner but she showed them back to their usual booth, handed them menus and said she would be their waitress. They ate; getting comfortable with each other. Finally, Grissom leaned back and said, "I know you think I'm pining away, but I'm really not. I think I'm relieved."
Catherine asked him if he had really loved Sara. His response was no, he thought he was scared of turning 50 and being alone.
"Sara was always there telling me we belonged together; no one could understand me like she could and it was easy to just go along with her. I tried to convince myself she was the love of my live, but I think I always knew she was just 'familiar'." Grissom let out a little embarrassed chuckle and said, "I sure managed to mess up my life didn't I?"
Catherine agreed that he certainly had. She also told him that it was possible he could get his supervisor status back now that Sara was gone but Grissom told her he was a lot happier as a CSI 3 working the cases.
"After all, Cath; it's always been the work, the science, the evidence that I got off on. It was never the leadership. I only held on as long as I did because when I took over all of you were so young and new. I wanted the opportunity to train you all to be not just good CSI's but great ones and I think I've done it."
Catherine and Grissom tried to regain their old friendship but it was never the same. Nick did not change his mind. He worked with Grissom and treated him with the same respect and courtesy he treated all his co-workers but he never again called him Gil or even Gris; it was always Grissom.
Three years later, Ecklie was named Director of the Las Vegas Crime Lab. His first action was to name Catherine the new Assistant Director. Catherine's first action was to name Nick Stokes the new supervisor of the Graveyard Shift. No one was more surprised than she was when Nick didn't jump at the promotion. In fact, he went to her office to tell her he did NOT want to be supervisor. All she could do was look at him and say, "Why?"
He sat down, leaned forward in the chair and told her why.
"Cath, it's Grissom and Sara all over again. Greg and I are in a permanent relationship. You were at our commitment ceremony for God's sakes. The only way it would work would be if Greg went to another shift and I will not allow that. We don't see each other enough as it is with the case loads we carry and I'm not about to give up a single second with him. The promotion isn't worth it to me."
Catherine thought for a moment. She knew she had to have Nick as Graveyard supervisor to make her plans for the lab come true. Finally she said, "Nick, there is no comparison between your situation and Grissom's. In the first place, you and Greg have been completely open and aboveboard about your relationship. You came to me when you two started seeing each other and made sure that I knew about it so I could keep Greg under my supervision while he was being trained. You did not work together on cases until he was a level 2. With the awards and commendations the two of you have acquired, no one could possibly say you were showing favoritism. I will personally do Greg's evaluations and assessments."
Nick thought a moment and said, "I would have to have it in writing signed by both you and Ecklie. Greg and I will always work the same shifts for as long as we work here at this lab."
Catherine said, "I think I can assure you of that. Give me one week before you officially turn me down, OK?"
Nick said he would.
Ecklie had no problem, had the document drawn up and both he and Catherine signed it with pleasure. She thought everything was taken care of until Grissom stuck his head in her office and asked to speak with her. She was totally unprepared when he handed her his resignation. She sat silent for a few moments and finally said exactly what she had said to Nick; "WHY? Is it because Nick is the new supervisor? Do you think you should be?"
"Absolutely not. I told you I didn't want to be in charge. Nick will be so much better than I was, in fact, he will be better than you were. No, I think it's time for a change. I'm 60 now and I can't get down on my knees like I used to. I've been offered a professorship at the University of Las Vegas. I would like to work out a deal with you and Ecklie to work as a special consultant to the Lab when you have a case that needs my expertise. This is a perfect fit. I can teach the new ones the basic's better than anyone else and steer the best of the bunch to you where you and your guys can finish them off. We could have the best CSI assembly line in the US."
They talked some more and Grissom told Catherine some personal things that surprised her even more than his resignation.
Grissom once said there would be no cake in the break room when he left. He was so wrong. There was a week long party that involved every person who had ever worked with him. Even Fromansky showed up and shook his hand. When he left, he was stunned at the depth of affection he had been shown. He'd never realized people felt that way about him.
Later, Nick and Cath were talking about his new life. Nick asked Catherine to tell him the truth; did Grissom really leave for the reasons he gave or did he just not want to work for him. Catherine smiled and said, "Well, Nicky; he actually is jealous of you."
Nick got up and walked rapidly around the room, shaking his head. "I knew it, I just knew it. He couldn't face the idea that I would be the one giving assignments and evaluating him."
Catherine laughed and said, "Oh no Nicky; that's not what he's jealous of. It's your relationship with Greg. He said every time he looked at the two of you, the love between you was so obvious it almost shed a light around you. It made him realize what an idiot he'd been for getting involved with Sara and made him ache for what he would never have."
Nick was amazed. He sat down and just shook his head.
Catherine told him Grissom wasn't the only one. "Every time I think that maybe the guy I'm seeing at the time might be OK, I look at you and I see what real love can be. I may be alone for the rest of my life, but I'm not going to be like Grissom. I'm not going to settle."
Nick smiled at the woman he still loved and said, "Have you ever thought that maybe, you don't have to be looking all over town for Mr. Right? He might be right under your nose."
Cath laughed again and said, "Oh yeah, I can just see Greg agreeing to a threesome and being willing to share you."
Nick said, "I'm not talking about me. For a smart woman, sometimes you can't see evidence that's right in front of you."
"What are you talking about?"
Nick got up, walked over to Catherine, turned her around and walked her over to the door of her office. "What do you see across the hall?"
"Warrick working on some evidence in the layout room." At that moment, Warrick felt the eyes on him, looked up and smiled his warm, sweet smile when he saw his two friends standing there watching him.
He walked over to them. "What's up with you two? Now that you're both bosses, you don't do any work anymore?"
Nick said, "No I was just breaking the bad news to Catherine that Greg and I aren't going to be able to take her out to dinner tonight. Lindsay stood her up and Lily is off on a trip with her senior group and Cath's alone tonight. Do you think you could step in?"
Warrick said, "Let me see…taking the most gorgeous woman in Las Vegas out for dinner or settling for a TV dinner and watching a 3rd rate football team. How can I possibly make a choice between those two?"
Nick smiled inside but with a straight face he told the two confused, starry eyed adults he had to get back to work and he'd leave them to settle the details.
Eleven months later, he and Greg stood up with Warrick and watched Jim Brass escort a glowing Catherine Willows down the aisle. Everyone said it was the best wedding they'd been to since Nick and Greg's commitment.
One of the other changes was Nick's health. He'd gotten a bad cold at a crime scene that turned into bronchitis and finally pneumonia. It had taken months to completely get over it and he was left with sinus that acted up every time he got tired or run down. He was coming down with a case of sinusitis, his doctor had called in a new prescription but Nick had to attend a budget meeting with Cath and the other 2 supervisors at 8.00 right after his shift. Greg told him not to worry; he'd pick up the drugs, stop by the store and get juice and more water and be waiting for him at home when he got there.
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Greg did not know when he'd seen the drugstore so crowded at 8:30am. That's what comes from living in a city that runs 24/7 he guessed. Thank heaven's, the prescription had been called in. At least he didn't have to wait in line to turn it in and then wait for it to be filled.
He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Officer Campbell; no, make that Detective Jacob Campbell standing behind him.
All those years ago when he and Nick had first come out, there had been some nasty comments until Brass, Vega and Vartann had a 'come to Jesus' meeting and told the rank and file they could grouse all they wanted on their time but when it came to work, they were expected to protect every single CSI at the risk of their own lives and if they didn't want to do that, the path to the front door was clear.
Officer Campbell had come up to both of them when they walked out of the lab at the end of that day. He told them he was a Christian and the bible said their actions were wrong. Nick was fuming and was ready to take him down when he added, "I may not like your life style and I may think you're both sinners but I've never known either of you to do a dishonest or dishonorable thing. I will protect you both and I will make sure that every officer I work with protects you. I give you my word of honor."
Nick looked at the earnest young man in front of him and asked him if he would shake his hand. Officer Campbell shook hands with both Nick and Greg and they had built a strange and unusual friendship from that day forward.
Greg and Jacob stood there talking about Nick and Jake's wife and little girl and were passing the time when suddenly there was screaming and shouting and people started running back to the pharmacy. They looked up and saw 3 guys; one on each side and one in the middle of the store. They had masks on and what looked like Uzi's in their hands. Greg turned slightly, ducked behind Jacob, pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and speed-dialed 911. He managed to get his name and designation out but that was all; the guys were coming back towards them faster than he realized. He slipped the open phone up on the counter behind a gum display, turned around and put his hands up.
Two of the guys were herding everyone together and the third was going behind the counter with a duffle bag. They were obviously after the drugs and money. Greg turned to the two who were guarding them and said in a loud voice, "Boy you guys have really got balls. Just three of you robbing Carlisle Drugs, the biggest drug store in Las Vegas at 9.00am. That takes guts."
The bigger guy came over to Greg and shoved the gun in his ribs hard enough to leave a bruise and said, "What are you, a wise guy?"
Greg shook his head and tried to pretend like he was really impressed by the guns and the tough guys. "No, No…I'm serious. I love all those crime shows on A&E and the Discovery Channel. They're always showing these serious crimes but I don't think I've ever seen anything like this. Just the three of you and there must be 40 people in here and you've got complete control."
Greg tried his best to put an expression of admiration on his face. It must have worked because 'Big Crook' took the gun out of his ribs, backed away and told him to keep quiet and stay still with his hands up. Greg hoped to God, he'd been loud enough for the 911 operator to hear the details of the crime scene; 3 guys at Carlisle Drugs with 40 hostages being held at gun point. It was the best he could do under the circumstances.
Everything would have been OK if the other one; the one Greg thought of as "Little Crook" hadn't decided to get a few tips and started taking peoples wallets, rings and watches. When he took Jacob's wallet he took one look at his police ID and started cackling like a demented hag.
"Hey guys, guess what? We got us a real LV Po-leece man. I bet this is just killing you ain't it Pig? There's nothing you can do except stand here and watch us clean this place out. How does that make you feel MR. Po-leece man. "
Jacob kept his mouth shut and didn't say a word. The guy kept on taunting him and poking him with his gun. Greg knew the minute it turned bad. The guy reversed his gun and slammed the butt into Jacob's gut. Jacob went down, groaning and holding his stomach. The guy stood over him, reversed the gun and aimed it at Jake. Greg didn't even stop to think. He launched himself at the gun, grabbed it and jerked it away from Jacob. The gun went off and Greg felt pain that made his burns from the lab explosion seem like a flea bite. He was unconscious when he hit the floor. He never heard the blast from the 3rd guy's gun that took Jacob Campbell's life.
The SWAT team was already outside when the sounds of the two guns rang out. Their leader shouted, "GO GO GO" and they burst into the store both front and back. All three gunmen went down and miraculously only 3 hostages were wounded in the exchange of gun fire.
Jim Brass was working his last week for the LVPD. He was retiring to live with his Annie. She had come out from LA 2 years earlier for a 2 week vacation which turned into a lifetime together. When he got to the crime scene, he checked back with the 911 supervisor. He asked her if they had a make on the cell phone that was transmitting the events from inside the drug store. When she told him the cell was registered to CSI Greg Sanders, Jim knew his heart stopped beating for a few beats. He grabbed the leader of the SWAT team who had shown up at the same time he and his guys did. He told him he knew that at least one of their own was inside the store and had managed to turn on his cell phone. He was the good Samaritan who had placed the initial call and given them all the info they had.
The SWAT commander was really good. Within minutes he had his team deployed; some in the back, a few ready to break through the glass doors in the front. He'd even deployed 4 guys to the roof to see if they could get entrance up there. The men on the roof had actually gotten inside an air vent and were almost in place when the shoots were heard.
After that, so many things happened at the same time that no one was exactly sure how things went down. Jim thought that one moment he was talking to the commander, the next he heard shots, then he was waiting outside the store while SWAT went in and took down the bad guys.
He really came back to the present when he bent down between Greg and a body without a face. There was so much blood, he was soaked through within seconds of kneeling. "Ah God kid, what the hell have you gotten yourself in this time?" he thought. From the bottom of his rib cage to the top of his head, Greg looked fine. The left side of his body was gone and Jim was looking at his guts spilling out of the huge gaping wound where his hip used to be. He couldn't do anything to stop the blood, all he could do was hold Greg's hand and tell him over and over again that he would be OK, the medics were on their way, he would be OK.
The paramedics had to pry Greg's hand out of his to get him away from him. No one had ever seen Jim Brass cry and no one felt like saying anything about the tears running down his face as he followed the gurney out to the ambulance. No one had the guts to try to stop him from climbing into the ambulance with Greg.
Time passed as it always does but Nick Stokes wasn't aware of time passing. For him, time had stopped when Judy burst into the conference room with tears streaming down her face, There were so many things that Nick didn't and never would remember about that terrible day. He never fully remembered what she said. He heard robbery and hostages and 4 dead at the scene, another died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital but she had said, "robbery at Carlisle Drugs' and a great bell began to toll in Nicks mind. Instead of peals the bell said Greg, Greg, Greg. He didn't know he had stood up so abruptly, the chair he was sitting in flew backwards and landed on the floor. He was out the door and running for his life; running to Greg because Greg was his life. How Catherine at almost 659 years old and in 3 inch heels managed to catch him was a mystery no one ever explained. She was hanging on to him and screaming for Warrick. Suddenly, both Cath and Warrick were holding him so tight they almost had him on the floor.
Nick could not understand why they were trying to keep him when he wanted to go so badly. He knew they were his dearest friends and he couldn't hit them but he wanted to; oh God how he wanted to take his fists and pound them both until they were raw meat and couldn't hold him back.
He was aware Cath was calling his name and talking to him. He could hear her say, "Nick, we aren't keeping you away but you can't drive like this. You will kill yourself too and we need you. Let us drive you."
He managed to nod his head, knowing the way Cath drove they would be there in half the time it normally took. Cath was yelling for her purse and keys; she was telling Warrick his shift had to handle the scene it was their case but he could not work it. Warrick was too stunned to even answer her but Marcie was there, with Cath's purse and keys and she was telling Cath she would take Warrick's team and her own. She reminded Cath she would need someone to relieve her because Nick wasn't going to be taking his shift. Cath said she would send someone and to keep 2 CSI's clear to go to the hospital to get evidence just as soon as she knew what had happened.
The next thing Nick was aware of was being in the back of Cath's SUV. Warrick was fastening him into the seat belt and had both arms around him holding him tight. He must have needed the comfort because he realized he had Warrick in a death grip and couldn't seem to let him go. He heard Cath yelling into her car phone for a police escort to Desert Palms ASAP. He heard the sirens before they even got out of the parking lot.
He was trying to function but all he could think about was before; before this, before time stopped, before his heart broke.
Nick could not understand why they were trying to keep him when he wanted to go so badly. He knew they were his dearest friends and he couldn't hit them but he wanted to; oh God how he wanted to take his fists and pound them both until they were raw meat and couldn't hold him back.
He was aware Cath was calling his name and talking to him. He could hear her say, "Nick, we aren't keeping you away but you can't drive like this. You will kill yourself too and we need you. Let us drive you."
He managed to nod his head, knowing the way Cath drove they would be there in half the time it normally took. Cath was yelling for her purse and keys; she was telling Warrick his shift had to handle the scene it was their case but he could not work it. Warrick was too stunned to even answer her but Marcie was there, with Cath's purse and keys and she was telling Cath she would take Warrick's team and her own. She reminded Cath she would need someone to relieve her because Nick wasn't going to be taking his shift. Cath said she would send someone and to keep 2 CSI's clear to go to the hospital to get evidence just as soon as she knew what had happened.
The next thing Nick was aware of was being in the back of Cath's SUV. Warrick was fastening him into the seat belt and had both arms around him holding him tight. He must have needed the comfort because he realized he had Warrick in a death grip and couldn't seem to let him go. He heard Cath yelling into her car phone for a police escort to Desert Palms ASAP. He heard the sirens before they even got out of the parking lot.
He was trying to function but all he could think about was before; before this, before time stopped, before his heart broke.
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Cath had been Asst Director for 2 weeks and Nick had been Graveyard supervisor for one when he got the e-mail announcing a supervisors meeting to be held every 2 weeks at a rotating time slot so no one would be inconvenienced too often. The 4 of them would be discussing staffing, lab problems, cases and anything else they wanted to talk about. Marcie Jepson was day supervisor. She was a transfer from Ann Arbor, Michigan and had been with the crime lab for almost 4 years. She was intelligent, well trained, cool and calm in an emergency and a real asset to the place. David Light however, was a horse of a different color. He had been with the lab before Catherine and even before Grissom. He was rigid in his insistence to detail and running everything exactly by the book. He was the thorn in Catherine's paw for sure.
Catherine started the meeting by asking for David's input first making sure to give him his marks for his long years of service. He, of course, replied that there wasn't anything that needed changing; change just to be changing was not good. Catherine tried very hard not to roll her eyes, smiled and asked for Marcie's input.
Marcie shook things up considerably by bringing up the state of the garage facilities. The lab was over 20 years old and so much had changed since it was built. If they had 3 or more cars in the garage at one time, it was a nightmare to try to process them; especially if the process required a tear down.
"And add to that, the window and doors and I understand someone even brought in a tree once" she said with a pointed grin in Nick's direction.
'Ah yes, Nick wanted to know if a body had been soaked in gasoline and then burned under the tree; so he cut it down and brought it to work with him." Catherine and Nick shared a smile at the good memories that case brought up.
Catherine had been making notes the whole time Marcie was talking and finally laid her pen down and said, "I know you're right. I'm just not too sure what we can do about it."
"Well, you know the little do-nut stand next door? I know the owner. Her husband is not well and I bet if the city were to make a decent offer she would be willing to sell. The shop is little but there is a huge driveway and parking lot back behind. We could put up a new facility there and have room for an outdoor holding area and this close to the PD, it would be easy to provide round-the-clock guards on all evidence." Marcie stopped talking to let Cath catch up with her.
Cath was very pleased. This was just what she was hoping for. She told Marcie she would get on it as soon as the meeting was over and she thanked her for her ideas. Marcie just nodded but it was so clear by the happy smile on her face that she appreciated the acknowledgement of her input.
Cath turned to Nick and said, "OK big boy; you're going to have to come up with something earthshaking to top that one."
Nick leaned back and said, "Well it's not earthshaking but I've been thinking about this for a long time. The one thing that kills us all, especially the graveyard shift is burnout. Too many doubles and triples and when we do get some time off, we're so damn tired all we can do is sleep and come right back and start in all over again. It's hard to have a normal life; hell it's hard to have a life period with this load."
Cath had started nodding around his second sentence as had Marcie but she was quick to point out to Nick that there wasn't any money in the pot for more CSI's; at least right now.
Nick said thoughtfully, "Yeah I know that but maybe we could use what we've got a little better. Right now we work 8 hrs a day, 5 days a week. Our shifts run midnight to 8.00am; 8.00am to 4.00pm and 4.00pm to midnight. What if we worked 10 hours a day, 4 days a week. That would give us 3 days off. I know there will still be doubles BUT if we changed the shift hours so that Grave was 10.00pm to 8.00am; days would be 6.00am to 4.00pm and swing 2.00pm to midnight. There would be a 2 hour overlap at the beginning and end of every shift. We could keep track of new cases and spot similarities a lot faster. If we catch something on grave that requires speaking to someone during the day, instead of waiting until 8.00am and working a double…."
Marcie eagerly interrupted Nick, "Days could take the interviews. We'd have all the notes your shift took, you could pinpoint certain questions you wanted answers to and we would have twice as many people working on each case which means twice as much skill and education devoted to each case. Nick, it's a great idea. I know my people will be all for it."
Catherine suggested a 2 week lead time for the change so they could get more feed back. She knew she would have to run the idea by Conrad and there would always be a small percentage who simply couldn't change hours because of classes or child care but the majority would jump at the chance. She noticed that David was not joining in the general discussion and politely asked him for his thoughts on the subject.
His response was that his shift didn't need any help on their cases and they were already carrying too much to take on anything else. He didn't want to work 10 hours a day and none of his people would either. They had always worked 5 days a week and there was no reason to change now just because some CSI's wanted a little more time with their 'boy-friends'. He looked right at Nick when he said that.
Nick was counting to 100, doing his multiplication tables and trying to think of all the animals he could that began with the letter 'A'. Anything to keep from smashing the homo-phobic bigot right in his store bought teeth.
Catherine and Marcie both said the same thing at exactly the same time. "You're damn right I want more time with my boy-friend.'
Marcie added, "I want a chance at a normal life and this is the best idea anyone has come up with yet to let me do the work I love and spend time with a man I may be in love with."
Catherine added that she would always listen to any ideas for improvements AND reasons why they might not work. What she would not listen to and she looked David right in the eyes when she said, "I will not listen to any reason that starts, "We've always done it this way and we can't do it any other."
Nicks suggestion was implemented 2 weeks later and the cooperation between days and graveyard were almost immediately noticeable. Swing was a different matter. When Catherine had enough of David Light's sniping and back stabbing and complete refusal to cooperate with his fellow supervisors, she called him in her office and told him he could get with the program or get out. His shift had the lowest solve rate of all 3 shifts; just barely 53% and she was beginning to think it was his attitude not the skill set of his team. When David complained to Conrad and was told that Catherine and her ideas were the future of the Las Vegas Crime lab, he took early retirement 4 months later. Cath moved Marcie to swing and put Warrick in as day supervisor. That was after she had gone to Conrad and told him he was going to have to draw up another relationship agreement. She was spoiling for a fight and was amazed and a little disappointed when Conrad said, "No problem" and agreed to be responsible for Warrick's evaluations and promotions.
Nick had enjoyed the supervisor meetings after that. They were a time for planning, evaluating personnel, discussing cases and coming up with new training and emergency plans. He never thought he would be the reason for the first real test of their emergency plan.
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He was aware the truck had come to an abrupt stop. Catherine had the back door open and was trying to help Warrick get Nick's seat belt undone. Nick almost fell out of the car in his haste to get inside to his husband; to Greg. He didn't notice the ambulance parked just beyond their truck, its back doors open and covered with bloody handprints or the trail of bloody footprints from the ambulance to the door of the ER.
The three of them burst through the doors and stepped directly into the reception hall of Hell. Blood, screaming, people running around…in the midst of the mess, they found Jim Brass. Catherine took one look, grabbed her cell phone and speed dialed Annie Brass.
"Annie," she cut off Annie's cheerful greeting, "get a clean change of clothing for Jim and get to Desert Palms right away. Jim is fine, he's not been hurt but he needs you and clean clothes." Catherine didn't even say good-bye, just snapped the little phone shut and stuffed it back in her pocket.
Jim was the main cause of all the screaming. He was currently being held down and not too successfully I might add by 3 security guards and 2 large male nurses. He was so covered with blood it was clotting on his pants and dripping down on his shoes. His hands were caked with blood; in fact the only clean place on his whole body was the tear marks on his face. He was crying; Jim Brass was crying; at first with rage. When he saw Nick, he stopped fighting and started crying with such a hopeless sorrow that Catherine felt her own eyes tearing up.
He held his blood caked hands out to Nick and said, "Ah Nick, I tried so hard to stop it but the hole was so big and blood was just gushing out of it. I grabbed the arteries and held on to stop the blood but they were slippery and the EMT's kept trying to get me away from Greg. You know he died in the ambulance Nicky, He died twice and they got him back but when we got here and they took him out of the ambulance and brought him inside, they wouldn't let me keep my hands on him and Nicky, he died here in the hall."
Warrick and Catherine both reached and caught Nick before he hit the ground. 'Rick managed to get a chair over and they slowly lowered him into the chair. He was sobbing now. Big shuddering sobs that caused his whole body to convulse but Oh God, there was no sound. He cried hard enough to shake the chair but made no sound at all.
Vartann came through the door at a dead run with 3 uniforms right behind him and almost skidded to a stop when he saw the group in the middle of the room. He had been picked to replace Brass as Chief of Detectives and probably could have gone the rest of his life without this scene. He managed to say in a somewhat normal voice, "Hey Jimbo, what kind of a ruckus are you stirring up here?"
Jim looked up at the sound of the familiar voice. He had moved over to Nick and was kneeling beside his chair still crying his silent and sorrowful tears. Nick had a strangle hold on his suit jacket and Jim didn't seem to mind.
Vartann walked over to them and knelt down beside Jim and asked him if he would let him take him somewhere and get him cleaned up. Jim started shaking his head immediately and said, "No, No…you have to arrest these people. If they had let me hold onto Greg's wound, he would still be alive. I had stopped the blood. They could have fixed him."
Annie Brass came through the ER doors just before a very large, loud, blood covered man in scrubs came through the treatment room doors. He was pissed. He was demanding to know what the hell was happening to his ER and who was causing all the commotion. He stopped momentarily at the sights, sound and smells that confronted him. The room was full of sick people, blood covered people, hospital security guards, hospital personnel (all too scared to do much. They were brave people and used to emergencies but there was a room full of people who all had guns and these folks were not stupid).
More and more uniforms had been arriving while all this was going on. The head pharmacist at Carlisle's was an excellent witness; calm and able to tell the story accurately. They knew the faceless body was Detective 3rd Grade Jacob Campbell and they knew that Greg Sanders had probably given his life trying to stop Jacob from being shot. That the 3rd robber had shot and killed Campbell anyway did not change any one's mind. One of their own was dead and another one of their own had died trying to save him. They were all coming to the hospital to pay their respects and mourn their dead.
Catherine was one step away from taking out her gun and shooting the loud mouthed idiot who was screaming at them. Annie was talking quietly to Jim. Warrick had managed to pry Nick's hand off Jim's jacket and was holding both his hands in his while he just held his friend and tried to wrap his mind around everything. Annie was telling Jim he needed to get a shower and get cleaned up; they had to go see LeAnn Campbell, Jacob's wife, no, Jacob's widow.
A quiet but forceful voice behind Catherine said, "Annie, you're going to have to wait a few minutes. Jim is a walking pile of evidence. We need to process him and take his clothes."
Catherine knew the voice but couldn't believe she was hearing it here. She turned to see Grissom standing just behind her. She just looked at him and said the most obvious thing in the world, "What are you doing here?"
He told her he had heard the first reports on the TV in his office at the University and knew they would need all the help they could get. He offered to process Jim first and then Catherine could tell him what else she needed him to do.
The loud mouthed idiot let out a bellow that got everyone's attention. He looked around and told them he was Dr. Aram Parsighian and he was the head of ER at Desert Palms and right now, he wanted order in his waiting room. He told the hospital security guards and the male orderlies to get the regular patients into another area at once and get them triaged. He told Brass, Grissom and Annie to stay right where they were and then he asked which one was Nick Stokes. Nick was not able to answer. Nick was not even in the room anymore. Catherine had a horrible thought dash across the front of her mind that without Greg, he might never be there with them again. Warrick spoke up and said that Nick was right here.
Dr. Parshighian walked over, knelt down in front of Nick and took his hands out of Warricks and into his own. He called his name over and over and finally reached up and slapped Nick in the face; not too hard, just enough to get his attention.
Nick slowly raised his head and looked at the figure in front of him. He knew he was talking to him but he couldn't hear or understand what he was saying. He shook his head hard and words began to come through.
"Are you Nicholas Stokes?" He nodded his head yes. "Mr. Stokes; you're listed as Mr. Sanders next of kin, is that correct?" Again Nick nodded trying not to go away again as those words 'next of kin' echoed in the huge vacancy in his body where his heart once was. "Mr. Stokes; your husband is not dead. Do you understand me? He's not dead."
Jim let out sound that was so full of pain it hurt everyone's ears. "No you're wrong. He died on that damn thing coming in the hospital. I heard them say they'd lost him again and he wasn't responding."
Dr. Parshighian nodded his head. "Yes sir you are correct but when we got him back in the treatment room, we were able to get his heart started again."
Nick grabbed the doctor by the front of his scrubs. "Where is he? I've got to see him. Where is he?"
The doctor put his hands over Nicks, not trying to get him to let go of him but rather just holding his hands in his. "You can't see him right now. The minute we got a heartbeat, we sent him upstairs to surgery. He's got a lot of very good doctors with him right now and we are fighting for him with everything we know. How long have you two been together?"
Nick tried to answer but words just weren't coming so Warrick answered. "They had their commitment ceremony 8 years ago but they were together a year before that."
Aram nodded his head and turned back to Nick again. "You have to realize Mr. Stokes that every minute we keep him alive is a small miracle and a victory against the angel of death. If you are a religious man, you must pray for him. If you love him, you must fight for him with everything you've got and you also have to realize that if God grants you the greatest miracle of all; Mr. Sanders life, your troubles are just beginning. He will never walk again. His hip joint is completely gone. It may be possible to create a new titanium ball joint but the chances of him being able to put much weight on it will be small. He will wear a colostomy bag; probably for the rest of his life. He may have to have a port inserted in his stomach to pump liquid formula in. It depends on how much damage there was to his internal organs. I saw massive damage to the upper intestine which I'm sure will have to be removed. Are you prepared for all this. Knowing this, will you pray and fight for his life?"
Nick looked Aram Parshigian right in the eyes and said simply, "I will fight for him."
Dr. Parshigian earned Catherine Willows eternal devotion and gratitude when he smiled at Nick, patted him on the cheek and said, "Good. Then we need to get you and your friends moved out of my waiting room to a more comfortable and secluded area. I need to get this place cleaned up and back in business."
In the next hour, miracles did happen. Brass got processed and slowly Gil and Annie managed to get him back into his old 'Brass Balls' persona and then into a shower and some clean clothes. Annie Brass was hell on wheels when she needed to be and Gil realized that she was the perfect mate for Jim. She was on the phone the whole time Jim was in the shower. Between her and the good doctor, they got things organized. There was a ward on the 4th floor being remodeled. They got the workmen out, chairs, couches and tables in and Annie mobilized her Wives of Police Officer's club, (often referred to by cops with a death wish as the "WOPO"s .) They brought books, magazines, a huge 40 cup coffee maker, several large electric tea kettles, coffee, sugar, cream, tea, honey, coolers full of iced drinks and sandwiches and snacks.
As the news got out that Greg was not dead; more and more officers showed up at the hospital. Dr. Parshigian had arranged for updates on the progress of the surgery to be delivered to the waiting room at regular intervals. About 7 hours into the surgery, he came to tell them that using a laser, they had managed to control the bleeding enough to clear the field and see what other damage had been done. He said they had completed the hook-up of the colostomy bag which had helped control the constant possibility of infection and they would be 'running the intestines'.
As he turned to leave, one of the officers asked him if there was anything at all they could do besides just wait and pray. Aram turned around and looked at the room full of men in blue uniforms and the detectives in their wrinkled suits and said yes there was. He told them that Greg had lost more than half his bodies volume of blood before they even got him on the table. It was especially difficult because Greg was A-negative; not the rarest blood type but still somewhat uncommon. They needed as much blood as they could get and A-negative would be golden. He was amazed when 12 people raised their hands and said they knew they had A-negative and where did he want them. The odds were astonishing. To have that many people in one room with a blood type that only 10 to 12% of the world's population shared was astonishing. He called a nurse and had her take them down to the lab at once. The others were told to wait until the first 12 came back and then they would take them down in groups so they could give their donations.
Time drug on and on and after 27 continuous hours of surgery; they put a plastic covering over the horrendous wound in Greg's side and moved him to ICU. They had him completely enclosed in a plastic bubble to keep down the chances of infection but they allowed Nick to come in and look at him through the bubble. He watched Greg's chest and barely, just barely saw a shallow breath followed by another and then another. Greg was alive and as long as he was, Nick would fight for him until he was able to fight himself.
Greg wasn't alone in the bubble. Nick was right in there with him. His body may have been outside but his heart, mind and will were in that bubble breathing for Greg; making Greg's heart beat, making him swallow and do all the things that a functioning body would do for itself.
Their friends, team members and all the uniforms and detectives from the newbie's on up to Captain Vartann came and spent time with Greg and Nick. When two weeks had gone by and Nick had not left Greg's side for a second unless the medical team just flat threw him out, Catherine and Warrick began to get worried, really worried, about Nick.
Catherine decided to call in the heavy guns and placed a call to Atlanta and filled Collin, Steven and Larry in on what had happened. Needless to say they were stunned. They had been calling and e-mailing but just thought Nick and Greg had gone away for some down time. They told Catherine not to worry; one or all of them would be there on the next plane. She told them they probably just pick just one because they might need all of them later on. The unspoken thought was there. If Greg died, Nick would need every friend he had and even then she still wasn't sure he could go on without his partner; his 'mate' as he had called Greg one time just for fun. When Greg had almost melted in Nick's arms, the phrase had stuck. They were smart enough to just use it in private though. Thirty minutes later, Catherine got a text message. "I'm on my way, love Collin."
Their friends, team members and all the uniforms and detectives from the newbie's on up to Captain Vartann came and spent time with Greg and Nick. When two weeks had gone by and Nick had not left Greg's side for a second unless the medical team just flat threw him out, Catherine and Warrick began to get worried, really worried, about Nick.
Catherine decided to call in the heavy guns and placed a call to Atlanta and filled Collin, Steven and Larry in on what had happened. Needless to say they were stunned. They had been calling and e-mailing but just thought Nick and Greg had gone away for some down time. They told Catherine not to worry; one or all of them would be there on the next plane. She told them they probably just pick just one because they might need all of them later on. The unspoken thought was there. If Greg died, Nick would need every friend he had and even then she still wasn't sure he could go on without his partner; his 'mate' as he had called Greg one time just for fun. When Greg had almost melted in Nick's arms, the phrase had stuck. They were smart enough to just use it in private though. Thirty minutes later, Catherine got a text message. "I'm on my way, love Collin."
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Nick was in his own private world, just him, Greg and all the tubes and containers and machines that kept Greg alive. He vaguely realized that Catherine and Warrick had come and as usual had brought him something to eat. He tried, he really did. He knew he was worrying his friends but his throat just closed up. Maybe it was the lump of unshed tears that stayed there all the time now.
He heard the door open again and someone walked over to him, grabbed the arms of the chair he was sitting in and swung him around. He looked up at a very angry Collin Travis.
Collin dropped to his knees in front of Nick and looked him over for a few seconds and then said, "Well you look like something Rally would dig up at the park except it would smell better than you do."
"Coll? What are you doing here?" Nick's voice was raspy with disuse. Talking took his attention away from Greg so he didn't do it very often.
"Trying to figure out what happened to a friend of mine named Nick Stokes. I heard about Greg but not from him. Now it's pretty obvious that Greg is being well cared for so what the hell is your excuse for looking and smelling like something out of the sewers."
Collin was appalled. Nick's teeth were green and his breath smelled like rotten meat. His breath was only marginally better than his body odor which was pretty rank. His beard was thick and his hair was shaggy and hanging around his ears and down on his neck.
Nick couldn't understand what was wrong with Collin. Couldn't he see that he had to be there to breath and fight for Greg? Greg wasn't able to do it himself, he had to do it. What difference did it make what he looked like or smelled like? Greg was the only thing that mattered. He tried to tell Collin that but Collin just shook his head and glared at him.
"Nick, Catherine filled me in on what happened on the way in from the airport. I know this is a living hell for you because I know how much you love Greg but do you really think you are doing him any good by acting this way? Jesus Christ, when the poor guy does wake up, he's going to take one look at you and think he's died and gone to HELL!"
Nick blinked a few times and tried to process Collin's tirade. "Do you really think I would scare him?"
"My good God, Nick; I'm in perfect health and you're scaring me. The only thing going for Greg is the air is filtered in his containment chamber and he can't smell you. I don't know how in the hell, Catherine and Warrick have been able to stay in this room and I can't believe the hospital personnel have let you stay in here in this condition."
Nick looked at him and said slowly, "What do you want me to do?"
Collin said, "Well the first thing we're going to do is go to your place and get you cleaned up and fed."
Nick was shaking his head halfway through, saying no, no, no. He couldn't leave Greg.
Collin grabbed Nicks face between his hands and said very firmly, "Nick, Greg is not going to die if you leave his side. Catherine and Warrick are here to watch over him. He's wired into half the machines in the hospital and they are all wired into the ICU control panel. If Greg hiccups, it's going to show up on a monitor and they will be here in an instant. Greg has made it through the "going to die at any minute" phase. Now you're just playing a waiting game for him to overcome the drugs and pain and trauma and come back to us. When he does, do you really want him to see you like this?"
Nick looked into Collins eyes and even in his condition, saw the love and fear there. He looked over at Catherine and Warrick and saw the same expression in their eyes. He said, "Am I really that bad?"
Catherine, God bless her wicked little tongue, said, "Nicky, the only way Warrick and I have been able to stand it in here is to put Vick's up our nose before we come in."
'Rick chimed in and said, "Yeah bro, I swear I've smelled decomp's that were sweeter than you are."
Nick looked at his two long suffering friends and thought how much he loved them. "Do you promise you will stay here with Greg until either I come back or someone else comes to stay?"
'Rick looked at him and almost growled, "Do you really think we would leave him alone? Get the hell out of here. Maybe when you get the stink off, your brain will start working again."
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Nick and Collin drove to his place. Collin had the windows down all the way and asked Nick if he had any car deodorizer at his place. Nick snarled back at him that he had made his point; he didn't have to keep beating a dead horse. Collin asked him what made him think he was trying to persuade Nick, he was dead serious. He was sure he was going to puke if he didn't get Nick cleaned up and fast.
When they got to Nick's place, Collin pulled into the garage. He made Nick strip naked in the garage and told him to get his ass straight into the bathroom and he expected him to run the hot water heat down to cold before he got out. Nick said, that would take some doing. He and Greg had installed tank less hot water heaters throughout the house when they moved in. Collin just told him to see what he could do then to stress the system. He wanted him clean and smelling like a baby when he got through.
"And don't forget to brush your skanky teeth. Use mouthwash and wash your hair a couple of times."
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While Nick was getting cleaned up, Collin found his kit and got some latex gloves out. He grabbed a trash bag, went out to the garage and carefully picked up Nicks clothes and dropped them in to the bag. He even threw in his shoes. He took the bag out to the back and stuffed it in the collection bin. He threw in the gloves and then went back to the house. He looked in the fridge but after no one being there for 2 weeks, there wasn't anything edible or at least not anything he considered edible. He went over to the phone and looked in the drawer just under it and found the stack of take out menus. He decided that Nick could handle Chinese better than any thing else so called and ordered for both of them. Then he put on water for hot tea. He knew Nick had tea bags of all sorts and sure enough, he had some jasmine tea. Perfect for Chinese.
While Nick was getting week's worth of filth off him, Collin called 'Rick and Cath to see how things were going. When they said no changes at all, Greg was peaceful and quiet, he asked them if they could arrange to have someone with Greg for the rest of the day and hopefully the night. He was going to try to convince Nick to get a decent night's sleep in his own bed and he wanted to take him to a barber and get his hair cut. They said they'd take care of Greg; he needed to take care of Nick.
Nick was hard to persuade but Collin was a force to be reckoned with when he wanted to be and he knew if things didn't change and change quick, there was a chance they might lose Nick as well as Greg.
They finally compromised. Nick would do what Collin wanted if he could call the hospital every hour and see how Greg was. After a lot of heated negotiation, they agreed on every 2 hours up till 10.00pm. They ate, did laundry, dusted, swept and vacuumed and headed out to get some groceries and a hair cut for Nick.
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Collin had almost forced Nick to go to his day spa for not only a styling but also a few hours of pampering. When they got through, even Nick had to admit he felt a lot better and more hopeful about the future.
Collin just grinned and told him, "It's amazing what being clean can do for your spirits."
Nick couldn't even argue and the fact that Jim and Annie had taken over from Cath and 'Rick and were watching over his love made him feel that maybe things really would get better. Annie said Jim was reading to Greg. Ever since Nick had brought Jim the detective DVD collection all those years ago, Jim had been reading up on fictional detectives and was thinking about writing a book. He was going to compare the crime fighters of fiction to the real thing and try to show how each author had made their creation unique. Right now, he was working his way through the Mike Hammer series by Mickey Spillane and reading them out loud to Greg made him feel like he was connecting with the man he still called "the kid".
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Collin stayed for 3 days and he and Nick set up a schedule. He convinced Nick that he owed it to Greg to keep himself in the same physical condition he had always maintained. He never said 'IF' but always "WHEN"; WHEN Greg woke up he needed to see his lover the way he remembered him. WHEN Greg came home, Nick had to be in tip top shape because Greg was going to require lots of physical assistance and then there would be rehab to try to get Greg back in shape. He gave Nick hope and more importantly, he gave him a plan for the future.
Nick never knew how much Collin paid for the support he gave him; paid in emotional pain. Collin had never stopped loving Nick; not even when he joined the existing relationship between Larry and Steven. He had been honest with his new partners. It hadn't been as difficult as he had thought it would be. He had come to love them both but Nick was always there in the back of his mind. He thought he'd put Nick in the category of 'once upon a time' but seeing him in the hospital, seeing the misery and pain on his face had made him realize that he wasn't over Nick and probably would never be. Watching Nick come alive only because of what he needed to do for Greg was both rewarding and heart breaking at the same time. It didn't help that Nick asked Collin to sleep with him every night he was there. Sleeping in the same bed beside a body that he knew as well as his own meant that for Collin, there was very little sleep.
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After Collin left, Nick stuck to his plan. He did make one change. He worked out and ate good healthy meals. He kept himself and their home clean and neat but he slept in the chair beside Greg every night. He was only able to sleep in their bed when Collin was in the bed with him. The first night he tried it alone, he woke up sobbing with nightmares and got up and went to be with Greg. Greg had always kept the nightmares away and he still did it even inside his plastic bubble.
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It must have been almost 3 weeks later, when time started again for Nick. He was going over some case files. The lab was slowly getting back to normal or as normal as it could be in the aftermath of the robbery. 'Rick was back at work taking care of days. Marcie had swing ticking like a Swiss clock. Graveyard was struggling. With both Nick and Greg gone, they had taken the hardest hit in personnel and all of the team members including their lab support were still coping with the emotional fallout. They were trying to get back in the groove for themselves and for their missing friends. Grissom had talked with the regents at the University and they had given him their complete support for anything he needed. He was now acting graveyard supervisor and he had brought 3 of his best students with him after working out a deal with the said regents to give his students full credit for the work they did with the lab. They could not work anything by themselves of course but they were a big help with the grunt work both out in the field and back in the lab.
As part of his plan, Grissom had continued to teach as many of his classes as he could and got the Crime Lab personnel to fill in for him when he was either too tired or too busy to do them himself. The substitutes were a huge success. Bobby Dawson was such a hit they had to move the classes to a bigger auditorium when he lectured and oddly enough so was Hodges. Catherine and Warrick packed the place and the president of the university was heard to say, they were going to have to commandeer Celine's theater if any more students tried to audit their sessions.
Grissom had also started reviewing the cases with Nick. At first it was just Grissom talking and Nick focusing on Greg but after Collin came and worked his mojo, Nick began to pay attention and slowly over the 3 weeks had started really listening, asking questions and making suggestions. Gil had left copies of one case file with Nick and he was going over it in detail when he heard a strange, unfamiliar noise.
He dropped the file on his chair and went over and checked Greg's monitors. He knew the process as well as the nursing staff by now. The monitors were clicking, humming and beeping perfectly. Nick then checked the various tubes running out of the containment bubble. Greg had a colostomy tube that would be attached to a bag if…WHEN he woke up. He had a urine catheter, a port in his stomach they used to feed him and several drain's that allowed possible infectious liquids to drain from his wound. Another port had been installed in the large vein just below his neck so they could inject various medications without disturbing him. Everything was working exactly as it should. Nick leaned over to check the sterilizer that cleaned every particle of air that went into Greg's bubble and found himself looking directly into Greg's brown eyes.
Greg was puzzled and his eyes were clotted with discharge and he had not spoken in months so between the breathing apparatus and his swollen, sore throat, his voice was unrecognizable but Nick could see he was trying to say his name. He just stood there and looked at Greg with his mouth open. Greg was awake. Greg was looking at him. Dear God above, Greg was saying his name. Then Greg's face twisted and he cried out, "Hurts, Hurts, Hurts!"
Nick ran for the door, threw it open and yelled for help. Nurses came running and went immediately to the bubble and the always quiet room exploded with activity. Syringes of pain medication and more antibiotics were injected in the IV port. One nurse was on the phone trying to reach Dr. Jannings, the wound specialist who had been caring for Greg ever since he came out of surgery alive.
Nick just leaned back against the wall and stayed out of their way. The door flew open and Dr. Jannings rushed in. He checked everything that Nick and then the nurses had checked and examined the chart interrogating the nurses; demanding to know every single move they had made from the moment they entered the room. Nick did not like Dr. Jannings. He didn't exactly know why. The man might have been brilliant in his field but he was a poor excuse for a human being. But he kept Greg alive and for that, Nick could forgive him anything.
Jannings finally looked over at Nick and told him this was a breakthrough but not to expect miracles. Just because Greg had spoke once did not mean he would become Chatty Cathy over night. Nick gritted his teeth and ground his nails into his palms to keep from smacking the sarcastic son-of-a-bitch in his teeth. He told the 'good' doctor he didn't expect him to but just the fact that he had woke up and obviously knew who Nick was had to be good news. Jannings told him they had given Greg a large dose of morphine and he would be sleeping for the next 8 hours at least. He wanted a nurse with him round the clock for the next 24 hours; which meant, he wanted Nick out of there. Nick had already decided he would leave for a while; he had to call a lot of people who deserved to hear some good news for a change. But he had no intention of letting Robodoc chase him out so he told him he would be leaving for the next few hours but he would be back to spend the night with Greg.
Jannings tried to forbid him, telling him he would just be in the way. Nick gave him his 'take no prisoners' look and told him that was tough shit. He would be in the chair beside his husbands side for the night just as he had for the last 9 years. Jannings said, "Fine" and stomped out of the room. Nick had already turned back to watch Greg and missed the look of disgust on Robodoc's face.
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Nick's good news energized his friends, the lab and even the PD officers and detectives. Everyone wanted to come and see for themselves. Everyone prayed that Greg would open his eyes just for a moment while they were there. The next few weeks were full of little miracles as Greg began to stay awake for longer and longer. He was able to talk with Nick and the first time he saw Catherine, Warrick, Annie and Jim the tears flowed on both sides of the bubble. He also cried when LeAnn Campbell came to see him as she had every single day since the shooting. He kept trying to tell her he was sorry. It was still hard to understand him but LeAnn knew and told him he had nothing to be sorry for. She was grateful to him. It was an honor to know that a man Jacob had admired as much as he had admired Greg had been with him and trying to protect him when he died. She said she would always consider him and Nick part of her family and he was never to use the word 'sorry' in her presence again.
Things were going so well, that at the end of the fourth week a conference was called with all of Greg's doctors present. Nick was also invited to sit in and the chief topic of discussion was the removal of the 'bubble'. Nick was so excited he could hardly contain himself. He had not touched Greg for months now and the thought of being able to feel his hair or his cheek or even hold his hand was more than he had hoped for. His hopes were soon dashed when they started explaining that IF they removed the bubble, access to Greg would be severely restricted compared to what he and their friends had now.
Greg was abnormally prone to infection. No one would be allowed near him without full sterile gear. No one could stay in the room with him for more than 5 minutes every hour and Nick could no longer stay with him at night. When Nick started to protest, Dr. Richter, the surgeon who was the head of Greg's team of doctor's told him, he knew it would be painful for him but that was the only way they would even consider removing the containment chamber and the longer Greg stayed in it, the longer it would take to acclimate him to the real world again. Nick very reluctantly agreed to the terms. Again he missed the smirk of satisfaction on Jannings face. Nick was too busy trying to figure how he was going to get any sleep without nightmares if he wasn't with Greg.
The bubble was removed and life started on a new path. Starting at 8.00am, Greg could have someone in his room (other than his medical personnel) for 5 minutes every hour. Since it took 15 minutes to decontaminate and get into the sterile outfit and another 10 minutes after to get out of the sterile outfit and back into real clothes; that meant that 30 minutes of every hour was used up. Nick drew up a list of people who could see Greg and resigned himself to giving up his precious 5 minutes for the sake of their loyal friends. Nick always claimed the first and the last 5 minutes of the day for himself.
This regimen went on for another 3 weeks and one day, while Nick was going through his morning routine, Nancy, one of Greg's main nurses who had been with him from the beginning told him, he could stay for 10 minutes from now on.
Everything was going so well, Nick had started going into the lab during the day just to pass the time until he could be with Greg again. He had decided that instead of praying for a miraculous recovery, he would just thank God for every precious victory they achieved. He was really blindsided when he got to the hospital at the end of a long day and found Greg's room the center of an ant hill of activity. He caught Nancy in the hall and asked her what was going on. She looked at Nick and then he noticed the tears in her eyes. She didn't even try to be professional. She just put her hand on his arm and said, "Nick, his wound is infected. He's running a high fever. Jannings is going to take him back into surgery and try to excise the diseased material."
Nick took a moment to try to understand what she was saying and then said, "But Jannings isn't a surgeon; why is he going to do the work on Greg?"
Nancy said it was true he wasn't a surgeon but as a wound specialist, he was the one who knew what to remove from the site and he was liscensed for this type of surgery.
Nick was back in Hell again and the man he loved was at the mercy of the devil.
They were bringing Greg back to his bubble after his 3rd excision. Nick looked at the grey, shrunken form of his partner and knew that Greg would not survive another trip to hell with Jannings.
He had to face the fact that the man he'd loved for 10 long years was going to die and there was nothing he could do about it. He was sitting beside the bubble too numb to even cry when he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and heard someone drag a chair up beside him. He looked over into Grissom's intense blue eyes.
His relationship with Grissom had improved since Greg's ordeal had begun. Gris had never been emotional during the months and months they had fought for Greg's life but he had always been there. He did whatever was needed whether it was taking Nick's shift at the lab or doing his shopping. He had even done the laundry and cleaned their house when Nick was at the hospital with Greg.
A couple of days ago Nick had come back from a rare trip to the cafeteria to find Gris taking pictures of Greg's wound. He was about to find out why.
Gris didn't waste time on platitudes. He put his hand on top of Nicks and said, "He's not going to make it through another one of these."
Nick couldn't answer; just nodded his head.
"I have an idea. I don't know how you're going to feel about this but I believe with all the years of my study and training that it will work."
Nick looked up at him and said, "Gris, it doesn't matter how I feel. If you have an idea that you think will work I'm more than ready to listen."
Gris thought for a second and when he spoke, it was obvious he was going into his 'lecture' mode. "You know that there are many medical treatments that haven't been used for centuries but now, are being investigated again. The early Native American's were treating wounds like Greg's when your ancestors and probably mine were just beginning to learn to use tools. They used maggots. Maggots are wonderful creatures; they seem to have been designed with only one purpose in mind; to eat rotting flesh. They eat until every single speck of infection is consumed and then they drop off. They never touch clean, healthy tissue. It just doesn't appeal to them and most researchers agree that the patients treated with maggots do not experience any pain from their attentions; other than the pain that already exists from their injuries of course."
Nick had listened to every word and weighed each and every one of them carefully. "So you are suggesting that we use maggots on Greg's wound? Where would we get them and how would we get them into the bubble and how are we going to know if they are working?"
Gris held his hand up and said, "Slow down; one question at a time. I have been in touch with a colleague who has been working with maggots for the last 8 years. I've sent him pictures of Greg's wounds from the moment the infection first showed. He is convinced that the surgery is excessive and is draining Greg's strength and putting undue stress on his already limited resources. He breeds maggots in sterile conditions for medical research only. He has agreed to provide us with as many as we need AND he can have them here in less than 5 hours from the time I call him. They will be packed in sterile containers. We put the containers under the UV lights they use on the instruments they sterilize to work on Greg in the bubble. All we have to do is sterilize the outside of the containers. The inside and the maggots are already completely clean. Once the outside is safe, we can introduce the container into the bubble, open it up and let nature's cleanup crew do their work."
Nick looked up as the door opened and Jannings, the man he'd come to hate more than anyone else on this earth came in the room. Jannings ignored Nick, which was nothing new but this time, Nick was fueled with hope for the first time in weeks. He got up, grabbed Gil by his elbow and almost dragged him from his chair over to Jannings. He said, "I want to talk with you."
Jannings didn't even look at him, just replied, "I don't have time for you now."
Nick actually reached out, grabbed the man by his arm and pulled him away from Greg's prison and swung him around to look at him. "You will make time and you'll do it right now. All you're doing is butchering my husband. You're not helping him and Dr. Grissom has an alternative treatment in mind that we want to try."
Jannings almost sneered at them. "Oh so DR. GRISSOM thinks he knows more about Mr. Sander's condition than I do. Of course he does. After all, I've been his doctor for 5 months now and DR. GRISSOM has done what? Oh that's right. He's taken your place as night supervisor of a bunch of civilians who crawl around on the floor picking up hairs with tweezers. That's a sterling recommendation. Now, let go of my arm and let me examine my patient."
Jannings sarcasm every time he said "DR. GRISSOM" was so evident it could be felt in the room.
Nick dug his fingers into Jannings elbow looking for the nexus of nerves that he knew would cause him extreme pain and numb his whole arm in seconds. When Jannings let out a hiss of pain, he knew he'd found the place and pressed his thumb in. "Now you listen to me you homo-phobic bag of shit. Greg is no longer your patient. If you get out of here right now and never come near this room again, I'll let things go and get another doctor to take care of him. If you give me any trouble at all, I'll bring charges against you for malpractice, sexual harassment and unnecessary surgery. We've documented Greg's injuries and the hacking you've done and we have reputable people in the medical community who will testify that you are a butcher and have no business ever treating any patient again as long as you live."
Grissom was amazed at the change in Nick's attitude. He'd gone from a resigned, miserable barely able to speak grieving spouse to an aggressive, protective alpha male. Grissom prayed that Jannings would realize how close he was to losing the use of his arm forever and back off because there was a world of difference between his friend saying that he felt the pictures showed excessive surgery and the same friend testifying in open court that Jannings was a….what had Nick called him…oh yeah…'a homo-phobic bag of shit.
Jannings was in so much pain he could hardly speak. Grissom finally managed to get Nick's attention enough to get him to turn loose of Jannings arm. The bag of shit was white and shaking. His arm was not working too well and he cradled it against his body. He almost spat at Nick. He told him he wouldn't touch his faggot slut again if he was dying. He started out of the room and turned at the doorway and said, "The disgusting freak is going to die anyway. He's too weak to recover from this surgery and I made sure I took enough flesh to leave him nothing to fall back on."
Nick looked at him in horror and said, "You're admitting you've deliberately violated your Hippocratic Oath and caused Greg's condition to deteriorate? What kind of a monster are you?"
Jannings face took on a pious expression. He said, "I'm not the monster. I'm a good Christian. You and that disgusting, stinking thing you have unnatural relations with are the monsters. You're an abomination in the eyes of God and all normal people. You and your kind are a disease in our society and should be eradicated." He opened the door and started out and then turned back and said, "And don't try to damage my reputation. It's just your word against mine and no decent person will believe you or your Dr. Grissom. He's probably another one of you."
The door slammed shut behind him. Nick turned and looked at Grissom. There was so much pain in his eyes that Gil had to look away for a second before he said, "Come on Nick. We need to make a telephone call and get some worms in the air."
Nick swallowed and said, "Yeah and we need to get security in here to make sure that filthy piece of shit doesn't come near Greg again and we need to see the hospital administrator right away."
Gil asked Nick if he was going to press charges against Jannings. He shook his head slowly and said no; Jannings was right. They had no proof. But he did need to get another doctor assigned to Greg immediately to evaluate the medications Jannings had been giving him. He was afraid Jannings had been doing more than just excessive surgery.
Gil smiled at Nick. He told him to get on the room phone and call Bobby Dawson and his partner Steve. They were both off and he was sure they would be more than happy to guard Greg. He was going to get on his cell and get his friend moving and then they would go to the administrator together.
They waited beside Greg until Bobby and Steve walked through the door. Nick had filled them in on what had happened and they were both ready to kill anyone who looked cross ways at their friend. Nick thought about patting them down to see if Bobby had snuck any of his beloved guns into the hospital but decided he didn't have the time. He told them not to let anyone but Nancy and Sharise, another one of the RN's who'd been with him from the beginning, near Greg or touch any of his IV's, tubes or tend to him in any way. He told them to ask the nurses what they were going to do to Greg and they could tell both women what had happened. He was pretty sure that anyone who came near Greg would need to change their shorts when Bobby and his partner got through with them. He and Gil headed for the administrator's office.
Mr. Haskell, the hospital administrator was busy according to his red-faced, embarrassed secretary. Nick and Gil looked at each other and nodded. Nick leaned over and said gently, "Is he talking with a doctor?"
She nodded too upset to even answer him.
Nick smiled and said, "Ok, you've done exactly what you were told to do. What happens now is not your fault and we will make sure you don't get any grief for my friend and I just barging into his office."
With that, Nick and Gil walked over, jerked the door open and sure enough. Jannings the jerk was sitting across from Haskell waving his arms around and looking indignant. When he saw Nick and Gil, he started blustering and telling them they had no right to just bust into the administrator's office. They were having a serious discussion regarding hospital protocol.
Nick looked at the one man he wanted to beat the life out of and said he just bet they were. He turned to Haskell and told him he had fired Jannings as Greg's physician and he wanted a new doctor assigned to his case immediately. Furthermore, he wanted every single order for medication Jannings had ever prescribed for Greg re-evaluated and he wanted it done now because they were going to be starting a new treatment on his partner the minute it arrived at the hospital.
Jannings got this patient long-suffering expression on his face and nodded wisely at Haskell. "See, I told you; completely irrational. Absolutely no idea of the potential damage he could be causing the patient. I believe Mr. Stokes need's some psychological attention and of course DR. GRISSOM should be forbidden to set foot into the patients room again."
Nick started to answer the bag of shit but Gil, put his hand on his arm, looked calmly at Jannings and asked, "Why do you think I should not be allowed to see Greg?"
Jannings was so pompous by now, if you stuck a pin in him he would have sailed around the room like a punctured balloon. "Well, it's obvious you just regard him as some sort of guinea pig; fodder for your 'friends' experiments." The nasty slant he put on the word 'friend' made it very evident that he really wanted to say 'fuck buddy'.
Gil smiled at Jannings, reached in his pocket and took out a small device he used to record his thoughts at crime scenes when he didn't want to take time to write down notes. He sat it on Haskell's desk, turned it on and said, "I'm not the one who was been violating my sworn oath to 'first do no harm'." He pressed play and the words were remarkably clear. They started with Jannings "I don't have time for you" and went through to the moment the door slammed as he left Greg's room.
Haskell's face had started changing the moment the recorder started and by the time it went silent, he was almost purple with rage. He stood up and leaned across the desk right into Jannings face. "You filthy, lying bastard. You homo-phobic…." Haskell was so angry he couldn't think of what he wanted to say.
"Piece of shit" Nicky suggested.
"Thank you Mr. Stokes. You homo-phobic piece of shit. You've put our profession in danger, this hospital in danger and I might could forgive you that but you put your patient in danger and I will never forgive you for that."
He pushed the intercom button so hard, he broke his fingernail. "Mrs. Parker, get security up here right now."
Jannings started spluttering and yelling that Grissom had invaded his privacy by recording a private conversation. He was going to sue him, Nick, the freak Nick was screwing and the hospital for tolerating that type of disgusting behavior on their property.
Haskell started grinning before Jannings had come to the end of his rant. "Oh please, do sue us. I can hardly wait for you to make a complete fool of yourself and admit in a court of law that you deliberately subjected a man the entire state of Nevada considers a true hero, to radical and unnecessary surgery. When we're through with you, you won't be safe anywhere and there won't be anyone willing to lift a finger to help you if you get attacked by a concerned citizen trying to bring you to justice."
His door opened and 2 of the biggest guys Nick had ever seen walked in the office and reported to Mr. Haskell. He smiled and said, "Gentlemen, Dr. Jannings is leaving the hospital; for good. Let him take his clothes out of his locker and then escort him to his car. Remove his badge, scrape his parking stickers off his car and let everyone in security know that if they see him on the sidewalk outside the hospital, he's fair game."
He looked at Jannings one last time and said, "I'm showing you more mercy that you showed Greg but I promise you, if I hear one word against Mr. Stokes or Mr. Sanders or any one of their friends, we will press charges against you for assault and we will use the tape to elevate the charge to turn it into a hate crime. Do you understand?"
Jannings glared at him and didn't say anything.
Haskell roared at him, "DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?"
Jannings jumped a foot and said yes he understood. The security guards each grabbed an arm and Nick was so happy to see him visibly wince when his left arm was grabbed. He was dragged out of the office. They could hear him complaining about the rough treatment all the way down the hall.
Haskell dropped back in his chair. He just put his head in his hands and looked down at his desk. Finally he looked up at Nick and Gil. He told them he was genuinely sorry but he realized there just weren't any words to let them know how badly he felt about the whole thing so just tell him exactly what they wanted and he would see that it happened.
Nick told him he wanted a new doctor, he wanted every facet of Jannings treatment of Greg examined to see if it was really warranted. He also wanted security on Greg's room until they were sure Jannings was out of the hospital and would not be able to come back. Gil took over and told him about the medical maggots currently winging their way to Desert Palms. Haskell interrupted him to ask where they were coming from. Gil told him Dr. Robert Jarvis was a friend who had been doing research in using maggots to control suppurating wounds for some time now. Haskell raised his hand and said, "That's enough. Dr. Jarvis reputation as a researcher is well known in our profession. I will have security waiting downstairs when the messenger arrives with your package and Mr. Stokes, when my two favorite hard-asses get through giving Jannings the bum's rush, I will have them assigned as Greg's personal body guards until you feel he's safe."
He had to face the fact that the man he'd loved for 10 long years was going to die and there was nothing he could do about it. He was sitting beside the bubble too numb to even cry when he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and heard someone drag a chair up beside him. He looked over into Grissom's intense blue eyes.
His relationship with Grissom had improved since Greg's ordeal had begun. Gris had never been emotional during the months and months they had fought for Greg's life but he had always been there. He did whatever was needed whether it was taking Nick's shift at the lab or doing his shopping. He had even done the laundry and cleaned their house when Nick was at the hospital with Greg.
A couple of days ago Nick had come back from a rare trip to the cafeteria to find Gris taking pictures of Greg's wound. He was about to find out why.
Gris didn't waste time on platitudes. He put his hand on top of Nicks and said, "He's not going to make it through another one of these."
Nick couldn't answer; just nodded his head.
"I have an idea. I don't know how you're going to feel about this but I believe with all the years of my study and training that it will work."
Nick looked up at him and said, "Gris, it doesn't matter how I feel. If you have an idea that you think will work I'm more than ready to listen."
Gris thought for a second and when he spoke, it was obvious he was going into his 'lecture' mode. "You know that there are many medical treatments that haven't been used for centuries but now, are being investigated again. The early Native American's were treating wounds like Greg's when your ancestors and probably mine were just beginning to learn to use tools. They used maggots. Maggots are wonderful creatures; they seem to have been designed with only one purpose in mind; to eat rotting flesh. They eat until every single speck of infection is consumed and then they drop off. They never touch clean, healthy tissue. It just doesn't appeal to them and most researchers agree that the patients treated with maggots do not experience any pain from their attentions; other than the pain that already exists from their injuries of course."
Nick had listened to every word and weighed each and every one of them carefully. "So you are suggesting that we use maggots on Greg's wound? Where would we get them and how would we get them into the bubble and how are we going to know if they are working?"
Gris held his hand up and said, "Slow down; one question at a time. I have been in touch with a colleague who has been working with maggots for the last 8 years. I've sent him pictures of Greg's wounds from the moment the infection first showed. He is convinced that the surgery is excessive and is draining Greg's strength and putting undue stress on his already limited resources. He breeds maggots in sterile conditions for medical research only. He has agreed to provide us with as many as we need AND he can have them here in less than 5 hours from the time I call him. They will be packed in sterile containers. We put the containers under the UV lights they use on the instruments they sterilize to work on Greg in the bubble. All we have to do is sterilize the outside of the containers. The inside and the maggots are already completely clean. Once the outside is safe, we can introduce the container into the bubble, open it up and let nature's cleanup crew do their work."
Nick looked up as the door opened and Jannings, the man he'd come to hate more than anyone else on this earth came in the room. Jannings ignored Nick, which was nothing new but this time, Nick was fueled with hope for the first time in weeks. He got up, grabbed Gil by his elbow and almost dragged him from his chair over to Jannings. He said, "I want to talk with you."
Jannings didn't even look at him, just replied, "I don't have time for you now."
Nick actually reached out, grabbed the man by his arm and pulled him away from Greg's prison and swung him around to look at him. "You will make time and you'll do it right now. All you're doing is butchering my husband. You're not helping him and Dr. Grissom has an alternative treatment in mind that we want to try."
Jannings almost sneered at them. "Oh so DR. GRISSOM thinks he knows more about Mr. Sander's condition than I do. Of course he does. After all, I've been his doctor for 5 months now and DR. GRISSOM has done what? Oh that's right. He's taken your place as night supervisor of a bunch of civilians who crawl around on the floor picking up hairs with tweezers. That's a sterling recommendation. Now, let go of my arm and let me examine my patient."
Jannings sarcasm every time he said "DR. GRISSOM" was so evident it could be felt in the room.
Nick dug his fingers into Jannings elbow looking for the nexus of nerves that he knew would cause him extreme pain and numb his whole arm in seconds. When Jannings let out a hiss of pain, he knew he'd found the place and pressed his thumb in. "Now you listen to me you homo-phobic bag of shit. Greg is no longer your patient. If you get out of here right now and never come near this room again, I'll let things go and get another doctor to take care of him. If you give me any trouble at all, I'll bring charges against you for malpractice, sexual harassment and unnecessary surgery. We've documented Greg's injuries and the hacking you've done and we have reputable people in the medical community who will testify that you are a butcher and have no business ever treating any patient again as long as you live."
Grissom was amazed at the change in Nick's attitude. He'd gone from a resigned, miserable barely able to speak grieving spouse to an aggressive, protective alpha male. Grissom prayed that Jannings would realize how close he was to losing the use of his arm forever and back off because there was a world of difference between his friend saying that he felt the pictures showed excessive surgery and the same friend testifying in open court that Jannings was a….what had Nick called him…oh yeah…'a homo-phobic bag of shit.
Jannings was in so much pain he could hardly speak. Grissom finally managed to get Nick's attention enough to get him to turn loose of Jannings arm. The bag of shit was white and shaking. His arm was not working too well and he cradled it against his body. He almost spat at Nick. He told him he wouldn't touch his faggot slut again if he was dying. He started out of the room and turned at the doorway and said, "The disgusting freak is going to die anyway. He's too weak to recover from this surgery and I made sure I took enough flesh to leave him nothing to fall back on."
Nick looked at him in horror and said, "You're admitting you've deliberately violated your Hippocratic Oath and caused Greg's condition to deteriorate? What kind of a monster are you?"
Jannings face took on a pious expression. He said, "I'm not the monster. I'm a good Christian. You and that disgusting, stinking thing you have unnatural relations with are the monsters. You're an abomination in the eyes of God and all normal people. You and your kind are a disease in our society and should be eradicated." He opened the door and started out and then turned back and said, "And don't try to damage my reputation. It's just your word against mine and no decent person will believe you or your Dr. Grissom. He's probably another one of you."
The door slammed shut behind him. Nick turned and looked at Grissom. There was so much pain in his eyes that Gil had to look away for a second before he said, "Come on Nick. We need to make a telephone call and get some worms in the air."
Nick swallowed and said, "Yeah and we need to get security in here to make sure that filthy piece of shit doesn't come near Greg again and we need to see the hospital administrator right away."
Gil asked Nick if he was going to press charges against Jannings. He shook his head slowly and said no; Jannings was right. They had no proof. But he did need to get another doctor assigned to Greg immediately to evaluate the medications Jannings had been giving him. He was afraid Jannings had been doing more than just excessive surgery.
Gil smiled at Nick. He told him to get on the room phone and call Bobby Dawson and his partner Steve. They were both off and he was sure they would be more than happy to guard Greg. He was going to get on his cell and get his friend moving and then they would go to the administrator together.
They waited beside Greg until Bobby and Steve walked through the door. Nick had filled them in on what had happened and they were both ready to kill anyone who looked cross ways at their friend. Nick thought about patting them down to see if Bobby had snuck any of his beloved guns into the hospital but decided he didn't have the time. He told them not to let anyone but Nancy and Sharise, another one of the RN's who'd been with him from the beginning, near Greg or touch any of his IV's, tubes or tend to him in any way. He told them to ask the nurses what they were going to do to Greg and they could tell both women what had happened. He was pretty sure that anyone who came near Greg would need to change their shorts when Bobby and his partner got through with them. He and Gil headed for the administrator's office.
Mr. Haskell, the hospital administrator was busy according to his red-faced, embarrassed secretary. Nick and Gil looked at each other and nodded. Nick leaned over and said gently, "Is he talking with a doctor?"
She nodded too upset to even answer him.
Nick smiled and said, "Ok, you've done exactly what you were told to do. What happens now is not your fault and we will make sure you don't get any grief for my friend and I just barging into his office."
With that, Nick and Gil walked over, jerked the door open and sure enough. Jannings the jerk was sitting across from Haskell waving his arms around and looking indignant. When he saw Nick and Gil, he started blustering and telling them they had no right to just bust into the administrator's office. They were having a serious discussion regarding hospital protocol.
Nick looked at the one man he wanted to beat the life out of and said he just bet they were. He turned to Haskell and told him he had fired Jannings as Greg's physician and he wanted a new doctor assigned to his case immediately. Furthermore, he wanted every single order for medication Jannings had ever prescribed for Greg re-evaluated and he wanted it done now because they were going to be starting a new treatment on his partner the minute it arrived at the hospital.
Jannings got this patient long-suffering expression on his face and nodded wisely at Haskell. "See, I told you; completely irrational. Absolutely no idea of the potential damage he could be causing the patient. I believe Mr. Stokes need's some psychological attention and of course DR. GRISSOM should be forbidden to set foot into the patients room again."
Nick started to answer the bag of shit but Gil, put his hand on his arm, looked calmly at Jannings and asked, "Why do you think I should not be allowed to see Greg?"
Jannings was so pompous by now, if you stuck a pin in him he would have sailed around the room like a punctured balloon. "Well, it's obvious you just regard him as some sort of guinea pig; fodder for your 'friends' experiments." The nasty slant he put on the word 'friend' made it very evident that he really wanted to say 'fuck buddy'.
Gil smiled at Jannings, reached in his pocket and took out a small device he used to record his thoughts at crime scenes when he didn't want to take time to write down notes. He sat it on Haskell's desk, turned it on and said, "I'm not the one who was been violating my sworn oath to 'first do no harm'." He pressed play and the words were remarkably clear. They started with Jannings "I don't have time for you" and went through to the moment the door slammed as he left Greg's room.
Haskell's face had started changing the moment the recorder started and by the time it went silent, he was almost purple with rage. He stood up and leaned across the desk right into Jannings face. "You filthy, lying bastard. You homo-phobic…." Haskell was so angry he couldn't think of what he wanted to say.
"Piece of shit" Nicky suggested.
"Thank you Mr. Stokes. You homo-phobic piece of shit. You've put our profession in danger, this hospital in danger and I might could forgive you that but you put your patient in danger and I will never forgive you for that."
He pushed the intercom button so hard, he broke his fingernail. "Mrs. Parker, get security up here right now."
Jannings started spluttering and yelling that Grissom had invaded his privacy by recording a private conversation. He was going to sue him, Nick, the freak Nick was screwing and the hospital for tolerating that type of disgusting behavior on their property.
Haskell started grinning before Jannings had come to the end of his rant. "Oh please, do sue us. I can hardly wait for you to make a complete fool of yourself and admit in a court of law that you deliberately subjected a man the entire state of Nevada considers a true hero, to radical and unnecessary surgery. When we're through with you, you won't be safe anywhere and there won't be anyone willing to lift a finger to help you if you get attacked by a concerned citizen trying to bring you to justice."
His door opened and 2 of the biggest guys Nick had ever seen walked in the office and reported to Mr. Haskell. He smiled and said, "Gentlemen, Dr. Jannings is leaving the hospital; for good. Let him take his clothes out of his locker and then escort him to his car. Remove his badge, scrape his parking stickers off his car and let everyone in security know that if they see him on the sidewalk outside the hospital, he's fair game."
He looked at Jannings one last time and said, "I'm showing you more mercy that you showed Greg but I promise you, if I hear one word against Mr. Stokes or Mr. Sanders or any one of their friends, we will press charges against you for assault and we will use the tape to elevate the charge to turn it into a hate crime. Do you understand?"
Jannings glared at him and didn't say anything.
Haskell roared at him, "DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?"
Jannings jumped a foot and said yes he understood. The security guards each grabbed an arm and Nick was so happy to see him visibly wince when his left arm was grabbed. He was dragged out of the office. They could hear him complaining about the rough treatment all the way down the hall.
Haskell dropped back in his chair. He just put his head in his hands and looked down at his desk. Finally he looked up at Nick and Gil. He told them he was genuinely sorry but he realized there just weren't any words to let them know how badly he felt about the whole thing so just tell him exactly what they wanted and he would see that it happened.
Nick told him he wanted a new doctor, he wanted every facet of Jannings treatment of Greg examined to see if it was really warranted. He also wanted security on Greg's room until they were sure Jannings was out of the hospital and would not be able to come back. Gil took over and told him about the medical maggots currently winging their way to Desert Palms. Haskell interrupted him to ask where they were coming from. Gil told him Dr. Robert Jarvis was a friend who had been doing research in using maggots to control suppurating wounds for some time now. Haskell raised his hand and said, "That's enough. Dr. Jarvis reputation as a researcher is well known in our profession. I will have security waiting downstairs when the messenger arrives with your package and Mr. Stokes, when my two favorite hard-asses get through giving Jannings the bum's rush, I will have them assigned as Greg's personal body guards until you feel he's safe."
****************************************
Nick and Gil were back where they started, sitting beside the bubble just waiting for something to happen. After all the drama and emotion, Nick was drained. He was still sick with fear for Greg. The fact that Greg's fever was rising and he was now babbling nonsense that couldn't even be called words was not helping. Gil tried to help keep Nick calm but his own fears for the young man he had watched develop from a brilliant off-the-wall DNA tech to an equally brilliant CSI were over whelming and he was becoming more and more afraid that everything they had accomplished that afternoon was too little and too late.
It was a measure of how over-wrought they both were that when the door opened, they jumped like they'd been shot. A thick shock of bright red curls showed around the door jamb followed by an earnest young man. Nick who was always the soul of courtesy was too upset to even try to be polite. He just growled at the kid that this was a restricted room and he had no business being there to get out. The kid came on into the room and said, "I guess you must be Mr. Stokes. I'm Dr. Lambach. I'm going to be taking over your partner's case."
Nick's jaw dropped open, he looked at this kid who looked like he'd wandered away from the grownups and without even realizing how it sounded, said, "My God; how old are you?"
Dr. Lambach smiled, which made him look even more like a curly-haired little cherub and said, "I'm younger than most of my colleagues but Mr. Stokes, you ought to be used to that. I've been studying your partner's medical records for the last hour and I see where he was way ahead of his contemporaries and look how good he turned out. I figure you of all people ought to realize that age has nothing to do with competency."
Nick had the grace to look embarrassed; especially when he heard Gil let out a strangled snort/gasp that could have been aborted laughter. The cherub turned towards Gil and walked over and stuck his hand out and said, "You must be Dr. Grissom. It's really an honor sir to finally meet you. I've been to two of your symposiums and I don't know anyone else in the world that could lecture on the 'Timeline Appearance of Death Watch Beetles' and hold the attention of everyone in the room."
Grissom took the young man's hand and told him he was glad to meet him also. Then he gave him a stern look and said, "Under normal circumstances, we would be more than willing to give you the benefit of the doubt but I don't know how much Mr. Haskell has told you about why you are taking Mr. Sanders case. For that matter, we don't know why you are taking Mr. Sanders case."
Dr. Lambach nodded his head, dragged over a chair and said that was fair. They had every right to know if he was informed enough to care for someone who had been injured as badly as their friend had been. He told them briefly about his background, his credentials, (which were pretty impressive) and that he had a personal recommendation from Dr. Jarvis. He'd been working long distance with Dr. Jarvis for the last 2 years assisting him with his research. Mr. Haskell had held nothing back about the reason for his taking over Greg's care. He ended with saying, he had carefully gone over every order on Greg's file and there were some items he was concerned about. He wanted to do a physical examination of Greg before the maggots arrived and he wanted to talk with his 2 chief nurses and get their thoughts on Greg's condition and the quality of care he had received up to now. He looked expectantly at Nick and then fell silent; waiting for Nick's decision. Nick looked at Grissom and at his slight nod, he told Cupid (Lord the kid looked exactly like one of those chubby little angels with the arrows of love on Valentine cards) to take care of his husband.
Dr. Lambach almost leaped out of his chair and eagerly approached the bubble. The smile left his face as he got his first look at his patient and as he checked the instruments and gauges and examined the fluids draining out of Greg's body; his face began to look older and sadder. He'd just finished taking Greg's temp when Nancy and Sharise entered the room. He took them both over in the corner and they talked quietly for several minutes. Then they all approached the bubble and he began giving orders. He wanted the temperature in the bubble lowered by 5 degrees, he wanted alcohol baths started at once, he wanted his IV solution to be increased to 15% saline instead of 5. He also asked when Greg had last been fed. Nancy and Sharise looked at each other and then said, he hadn't been fed in almost 30 hours. It was the first time Nick and Gil saw the young doctor get mad but it wouldn't be the last. He told them to get a concentrated feeding and administer it before they did anything else. He also wanted his patient's bedding to be changed as soon as the feeding was done.
He walked over to Nick and Gil and took a few deep breaths and apologized for his behavior. He said any doctor worthy of the name knew that the patient's physical needs had to be met in order to give him the strength to fight his illness. He also told them that it wasn't quite as bad as it could have been because both nurses had been sneaking Greg feeding solution every chance they got and trying to keep him clean and comfortable. He said, they knew what an SOB Jannings was and they had tried to sabotage his miss-treatment of Greg every chance they got.
The next shock came when they changed Greg's bedding. When they rolled Greg gently up on his right hip to pull the fresh sheet under him, Sharise let out a loud 'OH NO'. All of them ran over to the bubble and everyone saw what had shocked her. Greg had a bad bed sore on his left buttock. It was as infected as his original wound and because of the weight he'd lost, it was almost down to the bone. Nick clenched his hands and tried to stop the tears he could feel rolling down his cheeks but when Grissom, show-no-emotion Grissom, put his arms around him and led him away from the containment sphere, he just laid his head on Grissom's shoulder and sobbed out loud.
Lambach was cursing softly as he and the nurses worked to make Greg as clean and comfortable as they could under the circumstances. After they got him changed, fed, the temperature lowered and the new solution going; the young doctor and the two nurses put their heads together and tried to figure out how they could get Greg's weight up off the bed sore. It was a dilemma. He had the colostomy bag in his right side. His left side was just one big open pussy wound. He had a catheter in his penis draining away the dark greenish yellow urine. He couldn't be turned any way at all. And they had to leave him flat so the maggots when they got there had complete access to all the surface area of his wound.
Nancy said somewhat hesitantly that David had talked about making Greg some pads out of some sort of gel filled material.
Nick had stopped crying and was mopping up his face and eyes but her remarks caught his attention. "Which David" he asked.
Nancy said softly, "David Hodges. He works at your lab. You know him."
Nick said, "Yeah I know him but I'm not sure how you know him."
Nancy told Nick that David was there almost every day but he usually came when Nick was gone. She said she'd asked him once if he was afraid of Nick and he said no, he just wanted Nick to have as much time as possible with Greg. But he was there a lot at night and she was usually Greg's night nurse. Nick shook his head in wonder. Jannings was a slime ball and Hodges who Nick thought didn't care about anyone had been sitting with Greg at night for months and never told anyone he did it. God, talk about balancing the scales. He picked up the room phone and dialed the LV lab. He told Judy he needed Hodges right away. When David picked up the phone, Nick said, "David, I hear you've been working on some support for Greg?"
If Hodges was surprised it didn't show in his voice. He just drawled in his snarky fashion, "So".
"So, we need whatever you've come up with as fast as you can get it here."
It's a tribute to the man that he didn't ask a single question just said, "I'll be there."
*************************************
Hodges, his pads, the maggots, 2 uniformed officers, Goliath One and Goliath Two and a couple of security escorts all arrived at the hospital room at the same time. Hodges and one of the security escorts were having what appeared to be a game of 'tug of war' over a huge package. Hodges wanted it and the guard didn't want him to bring it in the room. If fact, both security guards and the two Goliath's really didn't want to let David anywhere near Greg. It took Grissom, Nick and the good doctor to convince them that Hodges was not a possible assassin; he was friend, good friend, good friend bearing gifts. While Hodges, the 2 security guards and both Goliath's were arguing in the doorway, the uniformed cops were trying to get Grissom's attention. Finally, one of them put his fingers in his mouth and let out a shrill whistle. Everyone stopped and his partner took advantage of the silence to announce the arrival of the worms. They had come in on a private jet. Grissom had called Jim to tell him what was happening, Jim had called Vartann and Vartann had assigned a police escort to wait at the airport for the jet to arrive. The cops grabbed the container, ran for their car and went full out for the hospital, lights flashing and sirens blazing.
The young doctor grabbed the container, told Nick and Nancy to bring Hodges up to speed on the need for the pads and he and Grissom got the container ready for it's UV sterile light bath. While Grissom was making sure every single centimeter of the surface of the container was completely bathed in the rays, Dr. Lambach was using piles of gauze pads to blot and soak up the pus and fluid leaking from Greg's injury site. Finally the container was deemed sterile, Grissom pressed the button that pulled all the air out of the pressure chamber and when it was at zero, the inner door opened. Lambach dropped the contaminated pads and the gloves he'd pulled on over the automatic arms that extended into the chamber into the disposal chute. He pulled new sterile gloves over the robot hands and carefully opened the container. He took a pair of sterile tweezers and every so gently, began to pick the white, wiggly angels of mercy up and place them on the wound. Every so often, he had to stop, blot more pus, get rid of the pads and the gloves, re-glove and continue placing the maggots. At last every one of them had their own place at the table so to speak. Nick, Hodges and Nancy looked at each other and just shook their heads. Hodges said, "Good lord, they look like proud parents whose baby just figured out how to get something out of the tit."
It had been two or was it three weeks since the sadistic, homo-phobic, lying sack of shit Jannings had been ousted AND young Dr. Lambach had taken over Greg's case. It was the second most tumultuous period Nick had been through, surpassed only by those first few minutes in the ER waiting room right after he got to the hospital for the first time. Greg's room seemed to be the center of a tropical storm with red curls that Nick could not stop thinking of as 'Cupid'.
Whereas Jannings had only come in to see Greg once a day and then spent as little as possible, Lambach was there almost more than Nick. He was constantly checking on Greg, taking his temperature, making sure his sheets were clean and completely wrinkle free. He and Hodges spent hours working over Greg with first the pads and lately with Hodges newest idea for improving Greg's comfort.
But first, let's talk about the pads. After the maggots had been lovingly placed by Lambach under the close supervision of Grissom, Lambach had finally turned away from Greg's bubble and come over to the small group consisting of Hodges, Nancy and Nick. He asked Hodges about the pads.
Hodges told him he had devised tubes of washable, faux, brushed suede. He had experimented with several fabrics and that seemed to be the most comfortable against sensitive skin. He had filled the tubes with a gel normally used in gel packs used to keep food warm or cool in picnic baskets. He said the original gel was too thin to provide real support but after he had added a few ingredients, he had gotten the filler to the consistency where it could keep up to 200 lbs elevated 3 inches above a solid surface.
Nick noticed that Lambach had almost jumped in the air when Hodges said 'warm or cool'. He grabbed Hodges and tried to get the pads also but they were too big and heavy for him to hang on to both. He went to the door and asked Goliath 2 to please come in and grab the pads and follow him and Hodges. He told Goliath 1 to continue to guard the door and not let anyone in except him or Hodges unless Nick gave them permission. With that, he set off down the hall so fast; Hodges had to trot to keep up with him.
They came back an hour later. Goliath 2 was looking a little stressed. He was carrying 2 big, almost frozen pads. He was not a happy giant. Then they had to get the pads sterilized while hoping the pads would not thaw completely before they got them sterile. Then they had to get them in the bubble. That wasn't easy. They finally used the same technique they used to get Greg in the bubble when they brought him back from surgery. Then, they had to get the pads under Greg. Now that was fun and I don't mean fun ha-ha. I'm talking pure sarcasm here.
Fortunately, the bubble was equipped with 10 sets of robot hands; four on each side, one at the head and one at the foot. Lambach got Goliath 1 and 2, Nick, Gil, Hodges and himself on the sides. He put Nancy at Greg's head and called Sharise in to handle Greg's feet. Between all of them they were able to lift Greg without disturbing the little chow-hounds but no one could move the pads. Finally he called down to security and asked for the 2 biggest, strongest guards they had to come up to Greg's room at once.
When they got there, he put Goliath 1 and 2 in the first set of hands on each side up by Greg's shoulders. The rest of them were able to lift Greg straight up, keeping his body completely straight. The two Goliath's were strong enough to maneuver the top pad under Greg's shoulders and then it was a matter of everyone moving just a little until the pad was completely under Greg's upper body.
Everyone took a short rest and then repeated the process, this time with the Goliath's in the last set of hands on each side working the second pad under Greg's lower body until they had him laying completely on the semi frozen pads with his bed sore completely raised from the surface of the bed.
They were all shaking with exhaustion when they got through but everyone agreed it was worth every ache and twinge when they saw the pain lines ease on Greg's face and the cherry on top was when Lambach checked all the monitors and tubes again and said, "His fever has fallen 2 tenths of a degree. The chilled pads are working and I'm sure part of his pain has been from the bed sore so now that it's not being stressed, he's bound to feel a little better."
Whereas Jannings had only come in to see Greg once a day and then spent as little as possible, Lambach was there almost more than Nick. He was constantly checking on Greg, taking his temperature, making sure his sheets were clean and completely wrinkle free. He and Hodges spent hours working over Greg with first the pads and lately with Hodges newest idea for improving Greg's comfort.
But first, let's talk about the pads. After the maggots had been lovingly placed by Lambach under the close supervision of Grissom, Lambach had finally turned away from Greg's bubble and come over to the small group consisting of Hodges, Nancy and Nick. He asked Hodges about the pads.
Hodges told him he had devised tubes of washable, faux, brushed suede. He had experimented with several fabrics and that seemed to be the most comfortable against sensitive skin. He had filled the tubes with a gel normally used in gel packs used to keep food warm or cool in picnic baskets. He said the original gel was too thin to provide real support but after he had added a few ingredients, he had gotten the filler to the consistency where it could keep up to 200 lbs elevated 3 inches above a solid surface.
Nick noticed that Lambach had almost jumped in the air when Hodges said 'warm or cool'. He grabbed Hodges and tried to get the pads also but they were too big and heavy for him to hang on to both. He went to the door and asked Goliath 2 to please come in and grab the pads and follow him and Hodges. He told Goliath 1 to continue to guard the door and not let anyone in except him or Hodges unless Nick gave them permission. With that, he set off down the hall so fast; Hodges had to trot to keep up with him.
They came back an hour later. Goliath 2 was looking a little stressed. He was carrying 2 big, almost frozen pads. He was not a happy giant. Then they had to get the pads sterilized while hoping the pads would not thaw completely before they got them sterile. Then they had to get them in the bubble. That wasn't easy. They finally used the same technique they used to get Greg in the bubble when they brought him back from surgery. Then, they had to get the pads under Greg. Now that was fun and I don't mean fun ha-ha. I'm talking pure sarcasm here.
Fortunately, the bubble was equipped with 10 sets of robot hands; four on each side, one at the head and one at the foot. Lambach got Goliath 1 and 2, Nick, Gil, Hodges and himself on the sides. He put Nancy at Greg's head and called Sharise in to handle Greg's feet. Between all of them they were able to lift Greg without disturbing the little chow-hounds but no one could move the pads. Finally he called down to security and asked for the 2 biggest, strongest guards they had to come up to Greg's room at once.
When they got there, he put Goliath 1 and 2 in the first set of hands on each side up by Greg's shoulders. The rest of them were able to lift Greg straight up, keeping his body completely straight. The two Goliath's were strong enough to maneuver the top pad under Greg's shoulders and then it was a matter of everyone moving just a little until the pad was completely under Greg's upper body.
Everyone took a short rest and then repeated the process, this time with the Goliath's in the last set of hands on each side working the second pad under Greg's lower body until they had him laying completely on the semi frozen pads with his bed sore completely raised from the surface of the bed.
They were all shaking with exhaustion when they got through but everyone agreed it was worth every ache and twinge when they saw the pain lines ease on Greg's face and the cherry on top was when Lambach checked all the monitors and tubes again and said, "His fever has fallen 2 tenths of a degree. The chilled pads are working and I'm sure part of his pain has been from the bed sore so now that it's not being stressed, he's bound to feel a little better."
**************************
Nick's whole world had done a 180 degree turn. He went from knowing he was going to lose Greg to watching his love come back to life. At first, it was so slow that 1 tenth of a degree drop in temperature was a cause for rejoicing. Lately, everything was speeding up. One day Nick had noticed several of the maggots lying on the sheet beside Greg. He called Lambach who was there almost before Nick hung up the phone.
The young doctor was a whirling dervish when he got excited. He reminded Nick so much of Greg as he was during his first hectic years in the lab. Sometimes he had to turn away and get his emotions under control. This time, Lambach started issuing orders so fast Nick could hardly understand everything he was saying. Suddenly he rushed out of the room, leaving Nick to jump to one side before Nancy, who was on duty today, came through the door almost on a dead run. She wasted no time on her sterilization routine and was gloved and working inside the bubble in record time.
Lambach came back in the room preceeded by a stench that almost gagged Nick. He took a good luck at the plate in the doctor's hand and saw it had several chunks of rotting meat. Well that explained the stink but what the hell was going on. He went over and watched Lambach go through the same process Nancy had just completed and then he put the plate with the meat on his work table and Nick watched amazed as he removed the maggots that had fallen down onto the sheets and carefully placed them on the meat in the dish. When he got all of them he examined Greg's wound carefully, removed a few more and rearranged the rest. Even Nick could see the small spots of healthy pink tissue showing in the depth of the ugly hole in his lover's side.
Lambach looked over at Nick with a huge grin on his face and said, "Mr. Stokes, it's working or actually THEY are working. Can you see the change?"
Nick answered him with a grin of his own. He put his hand on the kid's shoulder and said, "You bet your ass I can see the change and if you don't start calling me Nick and him Greg, I'm going to feed you to your pets. While we're on the subject, what the heck is your name?"
Dr. Lambach turned redder than his curls, ducked his head and said so softly Nick could hardly hear him, "Rutherford."
Nick's mouth fell open. He said, "Please tell me you're kidding. Surely no one would do that to a helpless child."
'Rutherford' explained that it was a family name and by giving it to him, his folks got an inheritance big enough to pay for his education. He usually signed his name R. Charles Lambach.
Nick nodded slowly and said, "OK, from now on, I'm Nick, he's Greg or Greggo and you're Charlie." To himself, Nick thought, and please God don't let me slip and call him Cupid because I swear he's beginning to look more like a little cherub every day.
Nick's plan went to hell in a hand basket when Greg finally came to enough to notice his surroundings and the new face outside his bubble. He croaked at Nick, asking him who the new guy was. Nick replied he was his new doctor; Dr. Lambach.
Greg looked at him in amazement, then looked at the young kid grinning down at him and said, "Now I know I'm dead. I've got Lamb Chop for a doctor."
Lambach was 'Lamb Chop' from that moment on.
***********************************
Two months later, Greg's wound was clean, he was out of the bubble, his bed sore was healed and Hodges new invention combined with a special rotating bed used for spinal column injuries was giving him more mobility that he'd had since he was first shot. Hodges had come up with a variation of his pad which had a solid frame. It was tailored to Greg's body and had openings for his catheter, colostomy bag, wound, IV port and feeding port. They laid the thing on top of Greg using just enough pressure to keep it positioned correctly, then they rotated the bed and when they were through, Greg was lying on his stomach and he was so comfortable he still fell asleep almost as soon as they got him flipped.
No one could come up with a name for the pad until Bobby and Steve's daughter, who came with them every chance she got, asked them what they were doing to her Uncle Greg. They were trying to explain the concept of changing Greg's position for his health and his comfort. Teen-ager's are so direct; they just don't suffer bull shit easily. She looked at her dads seriously and said, "You mean you need to flip him like a flapjack, right."
Bobby laughed and said, 'Yeah that's right, sugar."
She looked thoughtful a minute and then her face cleared and she said, "Oh then, that's Greg's Griddle." Greg's Griddle it was from that moment on.
**********************************
Nick still thought sometimes he was dreaming; especially when he could walk in and touch Greg or kiss him. He spent long minutes when they were alone, sitting on the side of Greg's bed, leaning over him with their cheeks together. He just smelled his skin and kissed his sweet mouth. Greg was so weak he couldn't lift his arms to embrace Nick but Nick could pick his hand up in his and hold it against his cheek and Greg would smile the most amazing smile when Nick did that. So when Greg asked him to call Collin and see if he could come see him for a day or two, Nick didn't say a word; he just left the room, got on his cell and called Atlanta. Collin was on the next plane.
***********************************
Nick was putting in hours at the lab again. He knew he would have to take more time off when Greg was released from the hospital and every time he thought about that, he smiled. The idea of Greg being released and back in their home was the latest in a long line of miracles that Nick gave thanks for on a regular basis.
He went to the airport, picked up Collin and took him back to his house so he could drop his bags off before they went to the hospital. Collin had a large box he was taking with him; Nick tried to wheedle out of him what the box contained but Collin said it was for Greg and he got to see it first.
Greg's face lit up when Collin and Nick entered the room. He said, "Hey good looking, you made good time."
Collin walked over to the bed. He was trying hard to keep the overwhelming emotion he felt under control and not let the tears start. But the sight of a smiling Greg was more than he thought he would ever see again. He sat down in the chair next to the bed. Nick had already told him about the debilitating weakness Greg was dealing with so he just reached down and picked Greg's hand up just like Nick did. He held his hand against his cheek and then pressed a kiss in the palm.
Greg looked at him with a shadow of his old self and said, "God is that the best you can do?"
Collin said, "Well yeah until we get rid of your ball and chain over there. I'm afraid he'll get violent if I do any more."
Greg looked at Nick and said seriously, "Don't you need to get back to work?"
Nick said, "Are you trying to get rid of me G?"
Greg said, "Hell yes. Here I've finally got some strange stuff and you're standing there inhibiting him."
Nick laughed at him and told him he'd been hitting the morphine drip too much and he was going back to work for a few hours just as soon as he saw what Collin had brought him. They opened the box and Greg was so touched he cried. That was another thing Nick had warned Collin about. After all he'd been through; Greg did not have the best control over his emotions. He cried very easily and everyone had learned the best way to handle it was just to wait until the storm passed and then a hug or affectionate pat would reassure Greg that he was OK and they understood.
Collin had brought Greg a computer. It was voice operated with a very sophisticated voice recognition program that could learn as you worked with the CPU. Collin knew Greg was too weak to operate a keyboard but he thought it would be a great way for Greg to amuse himself when he was sick of TV. It was designed for hospital use and fastened to the sidebars of Greg's bed. It could be adjusted, also with voice commands so if Greg wanted to sit up, he could tell the thing to rise, tilt, lower, turn left or right. He could position it exactly the way he wanted it for maximum viewing. Everyone laughed when Greg tried to operate the thing the first time and was so excited he couldn't say recognizable words.
When Nick left, Greg barely took a second to respond to his kiss and then he was back to his toy. Nick did not mind in the slightest. He was thrilled to see Greg so excited about something again. It eased a nagging worry that had been lurking in the back of Nick's mind for a long time. He couldn't help but wonder if Greg's brilliant intellect had suffered any damage from the physical trauma he'd undergone over these long, long months. From the conversation he and Collin were having, Nick wasn't going to worry about Greg's mental health anymore.
***************************************
Nick had been gone a little over an hour and the computer was working perfectly and Greg and Collin were sitting quietly just enjoying each other. Greg looked at Collin with his old seductive style and asked him if he was ready to give him a more personal greeting now that Nick was gone. Collin laughed at him and told him he was pleased to see he was still a flirty slut.
Greg said, "Well what kind of greeting does a flirty slut get from you?"
Collin moved his chair much closer to the bed, leaned over and breathed against Greg's lips, "the best kind." He kissed Greg gently at first and then when he felt the tip of Greg's tongue against his bottom lip, he opened his mouth and sucked that tongue inside. They kissed intimately for a long time. When they finally broke for air, Collin lifted Greg's hand to his lips and said, "You just don't know how afraid I've been that I would never get to do that."
Greg smiled and told Collin, "You just don't know how afraid I've been that you would never want to do that."
Collin said, "You know this is really fucked up, don't you. I know you and Nick love each other so much. You two really are soul mates and God knows I love my partners more than I can say."
Greg said, "Yeah but you still love Nick and I know damn well, you will always have a piece of his heart no matter how much he loves me. I also know there were sparks between us when you all came here for our commitment ceremony. That's why I asked Nicky to call you. I need you to do me a favor."
Collin nodded and said, "Anything you want, Wild Child. Just ask."
Greg thought for a second then looked Collin right in the eyes and said, "I want you to take Nick home tonight and fuck his brains out. I want him to be walking funny for the next few days and being real careful when he sits down."
The next half hour was a little chaotic. In fact, at one point, Collin walked out of the room. When he came back, he was no longer yelling or insisting that he call Greg's doctor because he was sure Greg was having some sort of breakdown. He just sat down, leaned back and said, "Why?"
Greg said, "Because. My bad times are coming. I've got months of physical rehab to go through and I can't even pick my own hand up. I've got to have some thing to work for. Something to hold onto when the pain is more than I can bear and I'm afraid I'm going to be a mutilated freak for the rest of my life."
Collin said, "But you've got Nick, You've got every thing to live and get well for."
Greg was shaking his head before Collin finished his sentence. "No I don't. Collin, when Nick and I first got together we were so wild, we put the bed through the wall a couple of times a month. We spent so much time at Lowe's they got to the point where they just pulled out a piece of sheet rock every time they saw us come in. We've been together for 10 years now and we're not quite as bad as we were, but we still get really physical to the point where we have bruises, bites and suck marks on us; or at least we did until this happened. Now, when Nick touches me, he's so gentle it's like he's kissing a child. There's love, there is always love but the hot passion we used to have is not there any more. If I have to live my life without that passion ever again, I don't want to live. I don't want to be Nick's charity case, his cross to bear. I want to be his lover. Right now, it's been almost eleven months since Nick got his rocks off unless he's been jacking off in the shower and I doubt that. He's holding himself on such a tight leash I'm afraid if he doesn't let go, he may never be able to look at me as anything other than a helpless cripple to take care of."
"Please Collin, I want him to let go, give up control and get as rough as he wants to, no…as rough as he NEEDS to. He can do that with you. You're strong enough to take anything he dishes out and give it back in spades. I used to be like that. You've got to get rough with him to make him let go. When he gives up control completely, he will let go of all the grief and pain and worry he's been carrying for the last eleven months. Maybe then he can look at me like he used to and believe that we can get some of that back. I need him to believe that to help me believe it in the months to come."
Collin moved his chair right up against the side of the bed. He leaned forward and gathered Greg up into his arms. He kissed him again and it wasn't a gentle kiss. He kissed Greg nipping and biting on his lips, running his tongue over the roof of his mouth and sucking hard on his tongue. He fucked Greg's mouth with his until they both were breathless and then he said the same thing he'd said at the start of their talk. "Anything you want, Wild Child."
He was still holding Greg in his arms when Nick came back. Nick looked at the two men thinking to himself how good they looked together and trying not to think about the fact that he had fucked both of them and would give 10 years of his life to know he was going to be able to fuck them both again, then he smiled and said, "Hey, do I have anything to worry about here?"
****************************************
Nick was pretty late the next morning. Greg had been bathed, fed, all his tubes were checked, his machines cleaned and he was playing with his computer when Nick finally walked in. Well, maybe walked wasn't quite the right word; limped would be more like it. Greg watched his love make his way slowly over to his side. He looked up at him with a huge Greg special smile and said, "What is it you always say cowboy? Oh yeah; rode hard and put away wet."
Nick glared at his smug looking better…no make that 'worse' half. It would have been a lot more effective if he hadn't let out a hiss of pain when he tried to sit on the side of the bed.
"What's the problem baby" asked Greg with a syrupy smile. "You got a 'boo-boo' you need me to kiss and make well?"
"Hell no! Kissing was what got me in this shape to begin with. Your kissing not mine. What the hell did you do to Collin? He was like a wild man last night and all he would say while I was trying to fight him off was 'I'm doing this for Greg. It's what he wants'. I was raped in my own kitchen by my so-called friend who was doing you a favor. So give. What was that all about?"
Greg was trying hard not to laugh out loud at Nick's indignant tone which didn't quite go with his 'I've been well and truly fucked' expression. He was so relaxed when he wasn't trying to figure out how to sit on his sore ass, he was almost purring. Greg got his chuckles under control and said, "Aren't you even going to kiss me hello first?"
Nick looked at him and started to say no but Greg looked so pleased with himself and so happy he couldn't deny him; which was pretty much the way life had gone for the last 10 years anyway. Nick was still trying to find a comfortable position so he just rose up, leaned over and started to kiss Greg. He didn't even realize he had his tongue halfway down Greg's throat until Greg's happy hums and moans caught his attention. When he realized what he was doing, he almost stopped. Then he knew he had missed kissing his love like this. As though they were the only two people in the whole world and that kiss was the most important thing he had to think about. He kissed Greg until he was lightheaded and finally pulled away to get some air in his lungs.
"How come you can kiss that long and not be out of breath" he asked as he took another deep gulp of air.
Greg grinned and said, "Nose canula. I've learned to breathe through my nose and I get a steady flow of oxygen. And that kiss, Mr. Stokes was why I asked Coll to take you home last night and fuck your brains out. Because I couldn't do it and boy did you need someone to do it. By the way, just how big is Collin anyway? I thought you said you and he were about the same size."
Nick was still trying to analyze Greg's last spout of words and couldn't quite switch gears fast enough to keep up with the change in subject. Besides which, his ass was killing him, he had bite marks all over his body, his dick was sore and he was almost sure he'd torn a muscle in his shoulder.
"Why are you so interested in how big Collin is? Are you planning on switching partners in the middle of the dance?"
"Not likely Stokes. You're stuck with me until we're both old, grey and have to hire someone to hold our dicks to keep them from dragging on the ground. I told him I wanted you walking funny but you act like you're in real pain. What happened?"
Nick looked at Greg with a very puzzled expression on his face. "Let me get this straight. You seduce our friend into fucking me into a comatose state while you are confined to a hospital bed and can barely lift your hands. Now, you want details of said fucking?"
"You bet your sweet, sore ass, I want details and don't leave out a thing."
Nick said, "Now I know how Alice felt when she fell down the rabbit hole."
Nick had tried to ignore Greg's questions but the man was like a pit bull going after a bone when he wanted to know something and he wanted to know everything.
When Nick tried to sit down in the chair and let out more than a hiss, in fact almost a groan of pain, Greg said, "OK that's it. I'm calling Collin. He'll tell me if you won't."
Nick said quickly, "Alright, I have an anal tear and it's burning and itching like crazy."
Greg was actually speechless. He just stared at Nick for a few seconds and then began to curse softly but fluently. He was getting a little louder and Nick began to pick up some words, most of them involved killing Collin in truly inhumane ways.
Nick said, "Whoa baby, it was not Collin's fault."
"Was it his prick in your ass?"
"Yes."
"Then tell me how it wasn't his fault."
"OK, I'll tell you the whole story but you just relax and lay back. You're sitting up too far and you're tiring yourself." Nick carefully lowered Greg back down until the pain lines in his forehead smoothed out a little, managed to find a spot on the end of the bed where he could put his weight on one hip and thought for a second about how to start.
Greg shook his head at Nick and said, "Oh no you don't. I can see you trying to figure out how to tell me without making it sound too bad. You just open your mouth and start talking and you better do it fast. I can dial a number by voice on my computer and I have everyone programmed in here, including Larry, Steven and Collin."
Nick nodded. "OK, here it is. You remember when I got here last night, Collin excused himself for a second. He went out to call his partners and tell them what you wanted and asked them how they felt about it. Evidently they needed some time to think about it and they called him back while we were heading out for something to eat. They gave him their blessing. We had a steak and went back to the house and….Oh Shit!!"
Greg said, "What, What's the matter. What are you 'Oh Shitting for'?"
Nick groaned out loud, "I just realized how much it's going to hurt when I get rid of that steak and baked potato."
Greg glared at Nick and said, "So help me God if you don't get on with it, I'm going to call the two Goliath's in here and have them work you over."
"OK, where was I….Oh yeah, dinner. We started back to the house and Coll asked if I had the fixings for margarita's. I didn't so we stopped and picked up everything and he bought some really high end tequila. I made the drinks and I was so relaxed I guess I downed the first 2 a little too fast."
Greg said, "Good God, Nick. If you fixed them like you usually do, two of them should have had you well on your way to being bombed."
"I did and I was. The next thing I knew Coll was sitting next to me on the couch, he had his arm around me and was licking my ear. I was so blotto, I returned the favor and then he had his hand on my fly and was rubbing me and that's when I realized what I was doing and tried to stop. He kept saying he was only doing what you wanted him to do and it was for my own good. He asked me how long it had been since I'd cum and I couldn't answer him. I knew it was before you were hurt but I couldn't remember just when it was. He started kissing me and between the drinks and the fact that he was familiar, his lips were familiar and the fact that it has been close to a year since I've had any, I guess I started kissing him back. I had him and you all mixed up in my mind and he kept saying you wanted me to let go and I had to do it to make you happy. I was so close to popping my cork but I felt like I was betraying my vows to you and I was trying to fight him off."
"I got up and started to leave but he grabbed me and kept kissing me and I was going back and forth between kissing him back and trying to stop and then my shirt was gone and so was his and he'd gotten my pants open and we started fighting. He got me into the kitchen and face down across the kitchen table. He had those padded, leather handcuffs we bought when we were in Atlanta last time and he fastened one of my hands to one leg of the table and my other hand to the other leg. I was face down and I felt him pull my pants off and then he started kissing my back and biting my shoulders and all the way down to my ass and Greg, I'm so sorry but it felt so good I just wanted him to keep doing it but then I'd see your face and your ring on my hand and I'd try to stop."
"When I felt the lube drip down my crack followed by his fingers, I really started fighting. I was jerking on the cuffs and trying to kick back at him. I felt him pull my ass cheeks apart and then I felt the head of his prick right against my hole and I just went crazy. I kept pulling and fighting the cuffs. I knew they had a safety stop on them and I should have been able to get them off but I couldn't remember how to do it and then I felt him start to push in me and then…….."
Greg waited and waited and said, "AND THEN WHAT?"
Nick said, "And then the god damned table leg broke just as he was pushing into me, the table went down with me spread eagled on top of it and Coll literally fell in my butt hole. I think I felt his balls go in. Somehow, he never missed a stroke, grabbed my hips and kept me and the table from falling the rest of the way down and we both had one hell of an ending. I think I spurted cum that I'd produced 6 months before."
Nick was so caught up in his story it took him a minute to realize that Greg was red-faced and was making some really strange noises. The noises turned into giggles and then hysterical laughter. Greg was roaring out loud and trying hard to say something between fits of laughter.
The door opened and Nancy came running in thinking that Greg was having some sort of relapse. When she saw that he was having hysterics but from laughter she stopped short and said, "What's going on here?"
It was sort of a silly thing to say because Greg was in no condition to answer and Nick was just sitting there trying to look innocent; not that he was succeeding.
It took some time for order to be restored. Greg eventually started coughing and they had to get his breathing mask and then it was time to feed him and check his tubes and machines and give him his medications. Altogether it was a couple of hours before Nick and Greg were alone again.
Greg said, "Are you going to be alright?"
Nick smiled and took Greg's hand and began to play with his fingers. "Yeah baby, I'm going to be just fine. Col made me soak in the Jacuzi and then he packed me with antiseptic ointment. I got to return the favor before the night was over so he's walking a little funny right now too. I think I know why you did it but I don't ever want you to do it again. OK?"
Greg said, "Are you going to treat me like a piece of glass or like your partner?"
Nick said, "I swear I will never, ever again forget the passion and heat we've always had between us. Its part of the life we've made together and I will do every thing I possibly can to get you healthy again and get us back to the way we were."
"Nicky, we both need to face the fact that I'm probably never going to get back to the way I was. I don't know if I will ever be able to sit up again without a hip joint and I may have this damn bag for the rest of my life and OH MY GOD!"
"What, What is it Greg? Are you in pain? Do you need Lamb Chop? What's Wrong?"
Greg looked at Nick with absolute horror on his face and said, "Nick, my ass hasn't had anything going in or out of it for months. Do you think its grown shut?"
Well needless to say, the OH MY GOD brought Nancy back in on a dead run. She skidded to a stop at the foot of the bed and said, "Now what's wrong. You're not laughing so it's….Why is Nick laughing now?"
Nick was trying hard not to rock back and forth on his sore butt hole but the idea of Greg's ass growing shut just hit his funny bone and he could not contain nor control himself. He finally had to get off the bed and just leaned against the wall laughing until the tears rolled.
Greg was not amused.
He was trying to ask Nancy if disuse of his rectum would make it grow together like pierced ears did when you didn't wear your earrings for a long time. Nick was almost howling by now so Nancy wasn't really getting everything Greg was saying. And it didn't help when Sharise came in to take over from Nancy followed closely by Lamb Chop.
Greg lit up when he saw Lamb Chop and told him to come over to his bed; he needed to ask him something. Nick managed to choke down his howls of laughter because he really wanted to hear what Lamb Chop had to say.
Greg was very serious when he posed his question to Dr. Lambach. Unfortunately, Lamb Chop was so embarrassed by the question, all he could do was stammer and turn redder than his curls. Sharise saved the day. She told Greg if he was really worried about his ass growing together, she would go get him a butt plug. At that, Nick gave up and slid slowly down the wall, Nancy said her shift was over and she had to get home and Lamb Chop, well Lamb Chop didn't say a word. He just fled.
**************************************************************
Greg had been home for 7 weeks now and Nick's world had changed again. Now his life consisted of caring for Greg, rehab, caring for Greg, handling the hordes of people who wanted to spend time with him, caring for Greg, washing loads of sheets and towels and caring for Greg.
He was happy. He felt ashamed of himself for being so happy. He was pretty sure he could spend the rest of his life doing exactly what he was doing right then. He had one more week and then he would be going back to work. Catherine and Annie Brass had worked out a schedule so that Greg would have company on a regular basis. They had spent almost two weeks on the routine mainly because so many people had volunteered to take a shift it was hard to work them all in. Greg's rehab was the only dark cloud in his blue skies. It was slow going and it was so painful. He'd had to leave the house a couple of times when Greg could not hold in the screams of pain. His muscles were non-existent. His limbs were almost frozen and just the simple stretching to get them limber again was like putting him on the rack. His physical therapist came to their home every morning to put Greg through his exercises. He was more than willing to teach all of them how to do the routines because he said if Greg could stand it, doing them twice a day would get him in shape much sooner. Oddly enough, with the exception of Grissom and Hodges, none of the guys were able to stand the strain of putting Greg through the torture. But the women, almost every single one of their female friends including both mothers had no problems at all. They might be stretching his legs with tears rolling down their cheeks but they didn't miss a single second of his training.
All the attention and torture was working. Greg was able to move his arms and legs; he could flex his feet up and down and almost cried with joy the day he was able to lift his hand up far enough to scratch his nose. Sitting up was really hard for him. Trying to balance with no hip joint on one side was not easy. They had to pad him with pillows to keep him even and balanced and he got tired so fast. It was frustrating to spend 30 or 40 minutes getting him situated in his chair and then after 10 or 15 minutes he was gray with pain and fatigue and had to be put back to bed.
One big triumph came when the penile catheter was removed. Greg went through hell for almost 4 full days but he insisted it was all worth it. Nick couldn't figure out how peeing blood and gritting his teeth with pain every time he pissed was worth it but that's what Greg said. Later, when he and Nick were alone, he told Nick that maybe now he could get a hard on again and he could hardly wait. Nick told Greg he was re-writing the books on wound control and pain management and he was including whole chapters on sex as therapy.
A few days before Nick was scheduled to return to work, they had a visitor. LeAnn Campbell dropped by. Jacob Campbell's wife had become one of their closest friends and they considered her and her little girl Leah part of their family. She had been pursuing a career as a registered nurse before Jacob was killed and had resumed her studies when she realized she needed to provide a normal environment for Leah. She would never worry about money again. Jacob had excellent insurance through the state of Nevada plus she got social security for Leah. But she needed to do something with her time and her life. Sitting at home grieving was not good for her or her daughter so she went back to nursing determined to keep things going the way she knew Jacob would have wanted.
She had come to another important, life changing decision. She needed to talk with Greg and Nick now that she was sure of what she wanted, no not wanted, what she needed to do.
When Nick tried to sit down in the chair and let out more than a hiss, in fact almost a groan of pain, Greg said, "OK that's it. I'm calling Collin. He'll tell me if you won't."
Nick said quickly, "Alright, I have an anal tear and it's burning and itching like crazy."
Greg was actually speechless. He just stared at Nick for a few seconds and then began to curse softly but fluently. He was getting a little louder and Nick began to pick up some words, most of them involved killing Collin in truly inhumane ways.
Nick said, "Whoa baby, it was not Collin's fault."
"Was it his prick in your ass?"
"Yes."
"Then tell me how it wasn't his fault."
"OK, I'll tell you the whole story but you just relax and lay back. You're sitting up too far and you're tiring yourself." Nick carefully lowered Greg back down until the pain lines in his forehead smoothed out a little, managed to find a spot on the end of the bed where he could put his weight on one hip and thought for a second about how to start.
Greg shook his head at Nick and said, "Oh no you don't. I can see you trying to figure out how to tell me without making it sound too bad. You just open your mouth and start talking and you better do it fast. I can dial a number by voice on my computer and I have everyone programmed in here, including Larry, Steven and Collin."
Nick nodded. "OK, here it is. You remember when I got here last night, Collin excused himself for a second. He went out to call his partners and tell them what you wanted and asked them how they felt about it. Evidently they needed some time to think about it and they called him back while we were heading out for something to eat. They gave him their blessing. We had a steak and went back to the house and….Oh Shit!!"
Greg said, "What, What's the matter. What are you 'Oh Shitting for'?"
Nick groaned out loud, "I just realized how much it's going to hurt when I get rid of that steak and baked potato."
Greg glared at Nick and said, "So help me God if you don't get on with it, I'm going to call the two Goliath's in here and have them work you over."
"OK, where was I….Oh yeah, dinner. We started back to the house and Coll asked if I had the fixings for margarita's. I didn't so we stopped and picked up everything and he bought some really high end tequila. I made the drinks and I was so relaxed I guess I downed the first 2 a little too fast."
Greg said, "Good God, Nick. If you fixed them like you usually do, two of them should have had you well on your way to being bombed."
"I did and I was. The next thing I knew Coll was sitting next to me on the couch, he had his arm around me and was licking my ear. I was so blotto, I returned the favor and then he had his hand on my fly and was rubbing me and that's when I realized what I was doing and tried to stop. He kept saying he was only doing what you wanted him to do and it was for my own good. He asked me how long it had been since I'd cum and I couldn't answer him. I knew it was before you were hurt but I couldn't remember just when it was. He started kissing me and between the drinks and the fact that he was familiar, his lips were familiar and the fact that it has been close to a year since I've had any, I guess I started kissing him back. I had him and you all mixed up in my mind and he kept saying you wanted me to let go and I had to do it to make you happy. I was so close to popping my cork but I felt like I was betraying my vows to you and I was trying to fight him off."
"I got up and started to leave but he grabbed me and kept kissing me and I was going back and forth between kissing him back and trying to stop and then my shirt was gone and so was his and he'd gotten my pants open and we started fighting. He got me into the kitchen and face down across the kitchen table. He had those padded, leather handcuffs we bought when we were in Atlanta last time and he fastened one of my hands to one leg of the table and my other hand to the other leg. I was face down and I felt him pull my pants off and then he started kissing my back and biting my shoulders and all the way down to my ass and Greg, I'm so sorry but it felt so good I just wanted him to keep doing it but then I'd see your face and your ring on my hand and I'd try to stop."
"When I felt the lube drip down my crack followed by his fingers, I really started fighting. I was jerking on the cuffs and trying to kick back at him. I felt him pull my ass cheeks apart and then I felt the head of his prick right against my hole and I just went crazy. I kept pulling and fighting the cuffs. I knew they had a safety stop on them and I should have been able to get them off but I couldn't remember how to do it and then I felt him start to push in me and then…….."
Greg waited and waited and said, "AND THEN WHAT?"
Nick said, "And then the god damned table leg broke just as he was pushing into me, the table went down with me spread eagled on top of it and Coll literally fell in my butt hole. I think I felt his balls go in. Somehow, he never missed a stroke, grabbed my hips and kept me and the table from falling the rest of the way down and we both had one hell of an ending. I think I spurted cum that I'd produced 6 months before."
Nick was so caught up in his story it took him a minute to realize that Greg was red-faced and was making some really strange noises. The noises turned into giggles and then hysterical laughter. Greg was roaring out loud and trying hard to say something between fits of laughter.
The door opened and Nancy came running in thinking that Greg was having some sort of relapse. When she saw that he was having hysterics but from laughter she stopped short and said, "What's going on here?"
It was sort of a silly thing to say because Greg was in no condition to answer and Nick was just sitting there trying to look innocent; not that he was succeeding.
It took some time for order to be restored. Greg eventually started coughing and they had to get his breathing mask and then it was time to feed him and check his tubes and machines and give him his medications. Altogether it was a couple of hours before Nick and Greg were alone again.
Greg said, "Are you going to be alright?"
Nick smiled and took Greg's hand and began to play with his fingers. "Yeah baby, I'm going to be just fine. Col made me soak in the Jacuzi and then he packed me with antiseptic ointment. I got to return the favor before the night was over so he's walking a little funny right now too. I think I know why you did it but I don't ever want you to do it again. OK?"
Greg said, "Are you going to treat me like a piece of glass or like your partner?"
Nick said, "I swear I will never, ever again forget the passion and heat we've always had between us. Its part of the life we've made together and I will do every thing I possibly can to get you healthy again and get us back to the way we were."
"Nicky, we both need to face the fact that I'm probably never going to get back to the way I was. I don't know if I will ever be able to sit up again without a hip joint and I may have this damn bag for the rest of my life and OH MY GOD!"
"What, What is it Greg? Are you in pain? Do you need Lamb Chop? What's Wrong?"
Greg looked at Nick with absolute horror on his face and said, "Nick, my ass hasn't had anything going in or out of it for months. Do you think its grown shut?"
Well needless to say, the OH MY GOD brought Nancy back in on a dead run. She skidded to a stop at the foot of the bed and said, "Now what's wrong. You're not laughing so it's….Why is Nick laughing now?"
Nick was trying hard not to rock back and forth on his sore butt hole but the idea of Greg's ass growing shut just hit his funny bone and he could not contain nor control himself. He finally had to get off the bed and just leaned against the wall laughing until the tears rolled.
Greg was not amused.
He was trying to ask Nancy if disuse of his rectum would make it grow together like pierced ears did when you didn't wear your earrings for a long time. Nick was almost howling by now so Nancy wasn't really getting everything Greg was saying. And it didn't help when Sharise came in to take over from Nancy followed closely by Lamb Chop.
Greg lit up when he saw Lamb Chop and told him to come over to his bed; he needed to ask him something. Nick managed to choke down his howls of laughter because he really wanted to hear what Lamb Chop had to say.
Greg was very serious when he posed his question to Dr. Lambach. Unfortunately, Lamb Chop was so embarrassed by the question, all he could do was stammer and turn redder than his curls. Sharise saved the day. She told Greg if he was really worried about his ass growing together, she would go get him a butt plug. At that, Nick gave up and slid slowly down the wall, Nancy said her shift was over and she had to get home and Lamb Chop, well Lamb Chop didn't say a word. He just fled.
****************************************
Greg had been home for 7 weeks now and Nick's world had changed again. Now his life consisted of caring for Greg, rehab, caring for Greg, handling the hordes of people who wanted to spend time with him, caring for Greg, washing loads of sheets and towels and caring for Greg.
He was happy. He felt ashamed of himself for being so happy. He was pretty sure he could spend the rest of his life doing exactly what he was doing right then. He had one more week and then he would be going back to work. Catherine and Annie Brass had worked out a schedule so that Greg would have company on a regular basis. They had spent almost two weeks on the routine mainly because so many people had volunteered to take a shift it was hard to work them all in. Greg's rehab was the only dark cloud in his blue skies. It was slow going and it was so painful. He'd had to leave the house a couple of times when Greg could not hold in the screams of pain. His muscles were non-existent. His limbs were almost frozen and just the simple stretching to get them limber again was like putting him on the rack. His physical therapist came to their home every morning to put Greg through his exercises. He was more than willing to teach all of them how to do the routines because he said if Greg could stand it, doing them twice a day would get him in shape much sooner. Oddly enough, with the exception of Grissom and Hodges, none of the guys were able to stand the strain of putting Greg through the torture. But the women, almost every single one of their female friends including both mothers had no problems at all. They might be stretching his legs with tears rolling down their cheeks but they didn't miss a single second of his training.
All the attention and torture was working. Greg was able to move his arms and legs; he could flex his feet up and down and almost cried with joy the day he was able to lift his hand up far enough to scratch his nose. Sitting up was really hard for him. Trying to balance with no hip joint on one side was not easy. They had to pad him with pillows to keep him even and balanced and he got tired so fast. It was frustrating to spend 30 or 40 minutes getting him situated in his chair and then after 10 or 15 minutes he was gray with pain and fatigue and had to be put back to bed.
One big triumph came when the penile catheter was removed. Greg went through hell for almost 4 full days but he insisted it was all worth it. Nick couldn't figure out how peeing blood and gritting his teeth with pain every time he pissed was worth it but that's what Greg said. Later, when he and Nick were alone, he told Nick that maybe now he could get a hard on again and he could hardly wait. Nick told Greg he was re-writing the books on wound control and pain management and he was including whole chapters on sex as therapy.
A few days before Nick was scheduled to return to work, they had a visitor. LeAnn Campbell dropped by. Jacob Campbell's wife had become one of their closest friends and they considered her and her little girl Leah part of their family. She had been pursuing a career as a registered nurse before Jacob was killed and had resumed her studies when she realized she needed to provide a normal environment for Leah. She would never worry about money again. Jacob had excellent insurance through the state of Nevada plus she got social security for Leah. But she needed to do something with her time and her life. Sitting at home grieving was not good for her or her daughter so she went back to nursing determined to keep things going the way she knew Jacob would have wanted.
She had come to another important, life changing decision. She needed to talk with Greg and Nick now that she was sure of what she wanted, no not wanted, what she needed to do.
LeAnn had been gone for 15 minutes or so and there had not been a word spoken in the Stokes-Sanders House. Nick had gone through the nightly routine of checking doors & windows and setting the alarm system. Greg was already bathed, medicated and ready for bed when LeAnn dropped by so there was nothing to do for him. Nick changed into his loose sleep pants and a soft, old shirt and sat down in the comfy recliner beside Greg's bed.
Greg finally looked at Nick and said, "OK. We have to talk."
Nick just nodded. LeAnn had laid a bombshell in their laps. She had started by telling them she was redoing her will now that all the financial details were completed regarding Jacob's death. Leah's god-parents, her sister and brother-in-law, were currently listed as Leah's guardians in case anything happened to LeAnn BUT they had been transferred to North Carolina and it looked as though they were going to be there for good. Leah who was 7 going on 40 had made it very clear that if she lost her mother she sure didn't want to be moved clear across the United States to live in a strange place with strange people. She wanted Greg and Nick to be her parents if LeAnn wasn't around. LeAnn had come to ask Greg and Nick what they thought about the idea.
They were both thrilled; not that they wanted anything to happen to Lee but they had come to love Leah like the daughter they knew they would never have and the idea that she returned their feelings made them both so happy, it was hard not to tear up a little.
That was great but what came next was what left them speechless. Lee said she and Leah had been trying for months to think of something they could do for the two men to let them know how much they loved them and how grateful they were for what Greg had tried to do for Jacob. They had come up with the perfect way to thank them and perpetuate Jacob's memory. LeAnn was going to give them a baby of their own.
She told them she had spoken at length with Dr. Fredricks, the head of the fertility department at Desert Palms. He had referred her to Dr. Charles Hendersen. Dr. Hendersen was a psychiatrist who worked with the fertility clinic. He specialized in emotional problems resulting from fertility problems. He was also very good at evaluating women who were willing to be surrogates. LeAnn had 6 interviews with Dr. Hendersen and he had pronounced her the most stabile young woman he'd ever had the pleasure of interviewing. Every thing was a go.
She went on to tell them they had two choices. The usual; which was one of them providing the sperm which would be used to perform artificial insemination. The second, a little more unusual but the one Lee personally thought would be perfect for Greg and Nick was for one of them to provide the sperm and the other to provide an egg from a close female relative. After invitro-fertilization was performed in the lab, the fertilized ovum would be transplanted into Lee's womb and the resulting child would be a combination of both of them.
Neither Nick nor Greg had been able to say a word and LeAnn had smiled, finished her tea, gently closed Greg's mouth and kissed him good bye and then did the same to Nick, telling him to walk her to the door so he could lock it and set the alarm system when she left.
Now it was time to make a decision.
****************************************
Nick said, "Yeah. So what do you think?"
Greg said, "I think you have to be the one to say yes or no."
"Why me? This concerns both of us."
"Nick, get real. A baby needs to be held and fed and diapered and bathed and burped and cuddled. It's a red letter day for me when I can get my hand up to scratch my nose. You will be stuck doing all of that for a baby while you are trying to take care of me and work a job. I can't be the one to put you through all that."
Nick glared at Greg and said, "Bull Shit Greg. Look me in the eye and tell me you aren't doing cart wheels in your head over the idea of us having not just a baby but a baby from both of us; our own baby. Say you don't want this. I dare you!"
Greg's eyes filled with tears. "God Nick, the idea of a little Nicky; just like you. He'd have your dark eyes and black hair and please God your dimples. Of course he'd have to have my fashion sense and good taste in music."
Nick got up, walked over and carefully crawled in bed with Greg. He slipped his arm under his head and pushed a pillow behind Greg's hips so he could roll up on his right side enough so they were looking each into each other's eyes. "What makes you think it's going to be a boy?"
"Because that's what I want and that's what I'm going to get; a little boy."
"So you do want to do this."
"Yes, yes, yes…I want to do this more than anything in this world. Nick, you would have something of both of us if anything ever happens tmpmpmp."
Nick stopped Greg's words with a passionate, hungry kiss. "Don't you dare even think like that. We haven't come this far for you to be thinking about something happening. It's already happened and we've lived through it. I love you and as far as a baby being a lot of work, well anything worth while is a lot of work. It's going to be a couple of months before we can get everything ready and then assuming Lee gets pregnant the first time we still have 9 months. In 9 months, you will be able to use your arms and I'll bet your upper body strength will be better than it ever was before. You're going to be the most awesome father this town has ever seen."
Greg swallowed, suddenly leaned forward and kissed Nick until they both were breathless. When he pulled away, he looked deeply into Nick's eyes and said, "We really are going to do this then?"
Nick grinned his biggest, sweetest, grin; the one that made his dimples flash and said, "You bet your sweet, sexy, maybe-grown-together ass we're going to do this."
**********************************
After that, things went into overdrive. Greg called his cousin Greta. Her mother was 10 months younger than Greg's mother and people had always mistaken them for twins. It was a family joke that you could mix Greta's baby pictures with Greg's and no one could tell them apart without looking at the backs. They had a bad couple of hours when Greta told them she would do it in a heartbeat EXCEPT shortly after Greg was shot, Greta had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She'd had a mastectomy but the cancer had spread to her ovaries. They had been removed and chemo plus radiation seemed to have the cancer under control but no eggs. Greg was sick that he hadn't been there for her but Greta told him he was with her every step. She said when she was afraid and lost heart, she would call Nick and ask how he was and he would tell her that Greg was still fighting to stay with them. She said it gave her courage to fight also.
Unlike Nick and his large family, Greg was an only child and Greta was the only female relative he had who he felt would be willing to make such a huge sacrifice. Nick told him they would use Greg's sperm then but Greg refused. He reminded Nick that he'd been on morphine, Percodan, Darvocet and a lot more stuff that they probably didn't even know about. He'd not had an erection let alone an orgasm in more than a year. He wouldn't even consider using his sperm. It had to be Nick's or the whole thing was off. They were about to have a big fight when the phone rang again. It was Heidi, Greta's daughter.
"Hey Greg, I just came in and found Mom in a pool of tears. What's going on?"
Greg briefly explained the situation and Heidi said, "Well what am I; chopped liver?"
Greg said, "What are you talking about girl?"
"Greg, I'm nineteen, healthy as a horse and I'll bet my eggs would put Mom's to shame. If my raging hormones are any indication, I've got eggs to spare and they are all yours."
After that, their lives became something out of a Keystone Kops movie. Everything was speeded up. Annie and Catherine practically moved in with them because of the phone calls and the appointments and the schedules. They had to get Heidi to Las Vegas at the optimum moment to harvest her eggs, they had to get Nick's sperm to the lab, they had to make sure the fertilized ova would be implanted at the perfect time to ensure it would take root in LeAnn's uterus. Everyone was a nervous wreck and one night Nick, just collapsed on Greg's shoulder and cried in frustration.
"God Greg, I feel like a prize bull. I'm supposed to perform on cue. What if I can't get it up? What if I can't get produce enough sperm? What if….."
Greg hugged Nick tight and said, "What if I called Collin to come out and help you?"
Nick pulled back and fixed his loving spouse with a death glare. "Don't even say that as a joke. Do you hear me?"
Greg grinned, "Yes I hear you and my suggestion was just as dumb as all your worries. You are going to be fine and your sperm is going to be the most gorgeous swimmers that lab has ever seen. Now kiss me and stop worrying."
****************************
Things really did seem to be perfect until they got the call from Greta. Heidi had fallen down a flight of stairs at school and broken her leg. She was not going to be able to come to Las Vegas. What were they going to do?
The dialing Diva's got to work. Two hours later everything was arranged. Heidi had to stay in the hospital for a week; it turned out to be a compound fracture. Dr. Fredrick's called some colleagues in Palo Alto and arranged for them to harvest the eggs. The eggs would be delivered to him in Las Vegas. Nick would deliver his donation when the eggs arrived at the clinic and everything would continue as planned. Everyone was rejoicing until Greg yelled for quiet and asked how the eggs would be delivered. Everyone had an idea and the sound level was just slightly below the noise heard at the Tower of Babel when Grissom called for attention and said, "Well it's obvious. I'll drive down to Palo Alto, pick up the eggs and drive them back here."
Everyone agreed that was a great idea but Warrick trumped that idea when he spoke up and said, "Yeah Gris that really is a good idea except for one thing. You drive like the original little old lady from Pasadena so Cath and I will be the FED-EGGS delivery service."
He turned to Cath and said, "What do you say baby, you want to go down the night before and spend the night at the 'Top of the Mark' in San Francisco. We haven't had a night to ourselves in a while." Cath was all for it. Gris was still grumbling that he wasn't that slow when Annie and Jim decided they would go also. They could use a night of pampering too.
Annie and Cath had bonded in about 5 minutes flat and were now the closest of friends. Jim had changed a lot since Annie and he married and the four had become closer than family. It was all settled. Now all they had to do was wait.
Greg filled the time by working twice as hard at his rehab. He was determined to be in the delivery room with Lee and Nick when their child was born and he was going to be helping not just sitting there in his chair making them wait on him. Lamb Chop finally told him he had to slow down; three sets a day was enough, four was too much. Greg was also making plans for his future. No one had said anything but it was obvious that Greg would never again be able to go in the field and do what he loved more than anything. He decided that he could weep and moan about it or give thanks for every miracle he'd been given and find something else to do. Brass came to his rescue when he asked Greg to help him write the book he'd been talking about for the last 2 years. They began work on Fiction vs Fact; A Real Life Cop's Views on Crime in Literature. No one was as surprised as they were when their book was published and within 3 months hit the New York Times Best Seller List. All of a sudden, they were published authors and both were receiving dozens of requests for guest appearances. Greg told Brass he had to do it and Brass told Greg he was the 'pretty boy' and he ought to do it. They were still arguing about it months later.
*************************************
It was the day. Heidi's eggs were being harvested that morning. Greg and Nick had asked everyone to give them some space and they were blessedly alone. Nick was so nervous he couldn't sit still. Greg had him help him up into his chair. He had made great improvements in the last 4 weeks. He could stay up for more that 30 minutes now and it was the perfect opportunity for Nick to change his bed linens. He got the bed remade and Greg's bedside work area straightened up. He took the urinal into the bath to empty and clean and when he came back he started to sit in his recliner next to Greg but Greg stopped him and said, "Come here."
Nick walked over to his partner and leaned over to give him a kiss. He was surprised when the casual kiss turned into something with a lot more heat and then he felt Greg's hands unbutton his jeans. He stood up and looked down at the beautiful flushed face of his love. He said, "Greggo, what are you doing?"
Greg just smiled and slowly unzipped Nick's pants. He pushed them down his thighs and then slipped his hands up Nick's thighs and over his briefs. He hooked his fingers in the waist band and began to slowly pull them down Nick's body. When Nick's cock sprang free, he leaned forward and slowly licked a wet strip up to the head. He looked up at Nick, his beautiful eyes shining through the thick veil of lashes that Nick loved so much, "If you don't know baby, it's really been too long; for both of us."
He gently pushed Nick back so he was sitting on the bed he'd just made. He pulled on Nick's knees and Nick lifted his legs and put his feet on the arms of Greg's chair. He took Nick's shoes and socks off and let them drop on the floor. He slowly pulled Nick's pants off first one leg and then the other. He did it very slowly, looking into Nick's eyes the whole time. He put all the love and devotion he felt for his husband, his partner into that look.
Nick caught his breath and thought if he died right then, that would be the last thing he would ever want to see. Greg's beautiful eyes, looking at him with so much love it made him close his eyes for a second. Then he felt Greg's hands slowly running up the inside of his thighs. Greg slipped his arms over Nick's legs and used them to pull his chair right up to the edge of the bed. His head was right in Nick's groin and he was able to use his mouth to kiss and nip and lick his way up one of those smooth thighs to the crease where the leg joined the body. He ran his tongue down the crease and over to Nick's balls. He licked the heavy sack and then sucked gently until one of the egg shaped organs inside that velvety sack slipped inside his mouth. He sucked the ball while his hands ran up Nicks thighs and over his hips and his fingers gripped Nick's butt. He let go of the one testicle and sucked the other one into his mouth. Nick was lying back on the bed propped up on his elbows so he could watch Greg. He was breathing hard and every so often a soft sigh would come out along with Greg's name and 'so good' and 'Oh my god, you're mouth is magic' and 'I love you so'. Greg intended to do a lot more but the touch and the taste of this man he loved so much was stealing his will away. He took Nick's beautiful, silky smooth cock in his hand and felt it with his fingers. He slipped his hand around the shaft and rubbed the length of it in his hand. He felt the slick drops of pre-cum that were dripping out of the slit in the head and reached up with both hands and tugged on Nick's hips.
"Slide down a little towards me baby." Nick wasn't even sure he could move enough to do what Greg wanted but the loving hands on his body were in charge and he knew he would do anything those hands urged him to do. He slid down which put his prick right under Greg's mouth and left his ass just barely off the edge of the bed. Oddly enough, he was very comfortable because he had both feet braced on the arms of Greg's chair so he was sure he wouldn't slip off and when Greg's hot, wet mouth closed around his cock, he stopped thinking about everything except how good it felt and how he never thought he would ever feel that wicked tongue swirling around the edge of his head and dipping into his slit to coax the salty drops of cum out. He felt Greg's hands leave his body for a moment and he missed them. He was greedy for his partner and he wanted every part of him he could get on his skin. He looked down when Greg put something in his hand. It was a condom. Greg looked up at him again with that sexy, flirty look and then he giggled. The feel of Greg laughing while he had his mouth around his cock did wonderful things to Nick.
He finally managed to remember how to put words together and said, "You know sweetheart, laughing when you have your lover's dick in your mouth for the first time in over a year is not really nice."
Greg refused to let go of his prize but he did back off enough so Nick could understand him. "Come on Nick, you have to laugh at the irony of this whole thing. Remember the first time we made love?"
Nick smiled and rubbed his fingers through Greg's hair. "I will remember that to my dying day."
Greg said, "Well, I said no rubbers. There would never be rubbers between us and for the last 10 years there haven't. Now we want to make a baby and look at us. We're using rubbers. Be sure to roll it on before you come. We don't want to waste a precious drop."
With that, he went back to making oral love to Nick's very happy cock.
Nick wasn't sure he would be able to get the damn rubber on. It had been years since he'd had to use the things and he was lost in the wonder of Greg's lips and tongue and teeth and the wet suction that seemed to be pulling all rational thought right out of his brain and down to his groin. He fumbled the package open and got the rubber ready. Part of him wanted to come so bad and he wanted to come in his love's mouth. He wanted to feel that wicked, wicked mouth suck him dry and the rest of him realized that Greg and he were doing this together. They were making their baby right now; just the two of them. He felt himself growing bigger and harder in Greg's mouth. He managed to gasp out, "Please baby, just once, take it all the way down your throat. Please"
Greg pulled back, took a deep breath through his nose and slid his head down slowly until his nose was buried in the dark, curly hair surrounding Nick's cock. He swallowed around the thick cock in his throat and Nick pushed on his head and said, "NOW."
Greg pulled off and Nick quickly rolled the rubber down on his cock. Greg immediately took him back in his mouth and began sucking on him. Nick felt himself pumping his cum into the rubber. He thought it would never stop and he kept on as long as Greg was sucking on him. Finally, Greg let him go and laid his head down on Nick's thigh. He pressed a kiss against Nick's smooth skin and said, "That ought to be enough to do the trick."
Nick didn't say anything for a long while. Then he tried to sit up but he was still shaky so Greg carefully removed the condom from his now flaccid penis, tied a knot in the top and gently put the filled condom in the specimen cup he'd laid out on the bed. Nick lifted a shaky hand and began to pet Greg's soft curls and thread his fingers through them. He loved Greg's hair and the fact that the pain and trauma his love had gone through had caused the beautiful curls to turn silver just made him handsomer in his eyes. "Ok, now all I have to do is convince my legs that they will hold me up and get our boys down to the lab."
Greg grinned and said, "Put me to bed first. I'm pooped. Damn this making babies is hard work."
Greg finally looked at Nick and said, "OK. We have to talk."
Nick just nodded. LeAnn had laid a bombshell in their laps. She had started by telling them she was redoing her will now that all the financial details were completed regarding Jacob's death. Leah's god-parents, her sister and brother-in-law, were currently listed as Leah's guardians in case anything happened to LeAnn BUT they had been transferred to North Carolina and it looked as though they were going to be there for good. Leah who was 7 going on 40 had made it very clear that if she lost her mother she sure didn't want to be moved clear across the United States to live in a strange place with strange people. She wanted Greg and Nick to be her parents if LeAnn wasn't around. LeAnn had come to ask Greg and Nick what they thought about the idea.
They were both thrilled; not that they wanted anything to happen to Lee but they had come to love Leah like the daughter they knew they would never have and the idea that she returned their feelings made them both so happy, it was hard not to tear up a little.
That was great but what came next was what left them speechless. Lee said she and Leah had been trying for months to think of something they could do for the two men to let them know how much they loved them and how grateful they were for what Greg had tried to do for Jacob. They had come up with the perfect way to thank them and perpetuate Jacob's memory. LeAnn was going to give them a baby of their own.
She told them she had spoken at length with Dr. Fredricks, the head of the fertility department at Desert Palms. He had referred her to Dr. Charles Hendersen. Dr. Hendersen was a psychiatrist who worked with the fertility clinic. He specialized in emotional problems resulting from fertility problems. He was also very good at evaluating women who were willing to be surrogates. LeAnn had 6 interviews with Dr. Hendersen and he had pronounced her the most stabile young woman he'd ever had the pleasure of interviewing. Every thing was a go.
She went on to tell them they had two choices. The usual; which was one of them providing the sperm which would be used to perform artificial insemination. The second, a little more unusual but the one Lee personally thought would be perfect for Greg and Nick was for one of them to provide the sperm and the other to provide an egg from a close female relative. After invitro-fertilization was performed in the lab, the fertilized ovum would be transplanted into Lee's womb and the resulting child would be a combination of both of them.
Neither Nick nor Greg had been able to say a word and LeAnn had smiled, finished her tea, gently closed Greg's mouth and kissed him good bye and then did the same to Nick, telling him to walk her to the door so he could lock it and set the alarm system when she left.
Now it was time to make a decision.
****************************************
Nick said, "Yeah. So what do you think?"
Greg said, "I think you have to be the one to say yes or no."
"Why me? This concerns both of us."
"Nick, get real. A baby needs to be held and fed and diapered and bathed and burped and cuddled. It's a red letter day for me when I can get my hand up to scratch my nose. You will be stuck doing all of that for a baby while you are trying to take care of me and work a job. I can't be the one to put you through all that."
Nick glared at Greg and said, "Bull Shit Greg. Look me in the eye and tell me you aren't doing cart wheels in your head over the idea of us having not just a baby but a baby from both of us; our own baby. Say you don't want this. I dare you!"
Greg's eyes filled with tears. "God Nick, the idea of a little Nicky; just like you. He'd have your dark eyes and black hair and please God your dimples. Of course he'd have to have my fashion sense and good taste in music."
Nick got up, walked over and carefully crawled in bed with Greg. He slipped his arm under his head and pushed a pillow behind Greg's hips so he could roll up on his right side enough so they were looking each into each other's eyes. "What makes you think it's going to be a boy?"
"Because that's what I want and that's what I'm going to get; a little boy."
"So you do want to do this."
"Yes, yes, yes…I want to do this more than anything in this world. Nick, you would have something of both of us if anything ever happens tmpmpmp."
Nick stopped Greg's words with a passionate, hungry kiss. "Don't you dare even think like that. We haven't come this far for you to be thinking about something happening. It's already happened and we've lived through it. I love you and as far as a baby being a lot of work, well anything worth while is a lot of work. It's going to be a couple of months before we can get everything ready and then assuming Lee gets pregnant the first time we still have 9 months. In 9 months, you will be able to use your arms and I'll bet your upper body strength will be better than it ever was before. You're going to be the most awesome father this town has ever seen."
Greg swallowed, suddenly leaned forward and kissed Nick until they both were breathless. When he pulled away, he looked deeply into Nick's eyes and said, "We really are going to do this then?"
Nick grinned his biggest, sweetest, grin; the one that made his dimples flash and said, "You bet your sweet, sexy, maybe-grown-together ass we're going to do this."
**********************************
After that, things went into overdrive. Greg called his cousin Greta. Her mother was 10 months younger than Greg's mother and people had always mistaken them for twins. It was a family joke that you could mix Greta's baby pictures with Greg's and no one could tell them apart without looking at the backs. They had a bad couple of hours when Greta told them she would do it in a heartbeat EXCEPT shortly after Greg was shot, Greta had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She'd had a mastectomy but the cancer had spread to her ovaries. They had been removed and chemo plus radiation seemed to have the cancer under control but no eggs. Greg was sick that he hadn't been there for her but Greta told him he was with her every step. She said when she was afraid and lost heart, she would call Nick and ask how he was and he would tell her that Greg was still fighting to stay with them. She said it gave her courage to fight also.
Unlike Nick and his large family, Greg was an only child and Greta was the only female relative he had who he felt would be willing to make such a huge sacrifice. Nick told him they would use Greg's sperm then but Greg refused. He reminded Nick that he'd been on morphine, Percodan, Darvocet and a lot more stuff that they probably didn't even know about. He'd not had an erection let alone an orgasm in more than a year. He wouldn't even consider using his sperm. It had to be Nick's or the whole thing was off. They were about to have a big fight when the phone rang again. It was Heidi, Greta's daughter.
"Hey Greg, I just came in and found Mom in a pool of tears. What's going on?"
Greg briefly explained the situation and Heidi said, "Well what am I; chopped liver?"
Greg said, "What are you talking about girl?"
"Greg, I'm nineteen, healthy as a horse and I'll bet my eggs would put Mom's to shame. If my raging hormones are any indication, I've got eggs to spare and they are all yours."
After that, their lives became something out of a Keystone Kops movie. Everything was speeded up. Annie and Catherine practically moved in with them because of the phone calls and the appointments and the schedules. They had to get Heidi to Las Vegas at the optimum moment to harvest her eggs, they had to get Nick's sperm to the lab, they had to make sure the fertilized ova would be implanted at the perfect time to ensure it would take root in LeAnn's uterus. Everyone was a nervous wreck and one night Nick, just collapsed on Greg's shoulder and cried in frustration.
"God Greg, I feel like a prize bull. I'm supposed to perform on cue. What if I can't get it up? What if I can't get produce enough sperm? What if….."
Greg hugged Nick tight and said, "What if I called Collin to come out and help you?"
Nick pulled back and fixed his loving spouse with a death glare. "Don't even say that as a joke. Do you hear me?"
Greg grinned, "Yes I hear you and my suggestion was just as dumb as all your worries. You are going to be fine and your sperm is going to be the most gorgeous swimmers that lab has ever seen. Now kiss me and stop worrying."
****************************
Things really did seem to be perfect until they got the call from Greta. Heidi had fallen down a flight of stairs at school and broken her leg. She was not going to be able to come to Las Vegas. What were they going to do?
The dialing Diva's got to work. Two hours later everything was arranged. Heidi had to stay in the hospital for a week; it turned out to be a compound fracture. Dr. Fredrick's called some colleagues in Palo Alto and arranged for them to harvest the eggs. The eggs would be delivered to him in Las Vegas. Nick would deliver his donation when the eggs arrived at the clinic and everything would continue as planned. Everyone was rejoicing until Greg yelled for quiet and asked how the eggs would be delivered. Everyone had an idea and the sound level was just slightly below the noise heard at the Tower of Babel when Grissom called for attention and said, "Well it's obvious. I'll drive down to Palo Alto, pick up the eggs and drive them back here."
Everyone agreed that was a great idea but Warrick trumped that idea when he spoke up and said, "Yeah Gris that really is a good idea except for one thing. You drive like the original little old lady from Pasadena so Cath and I will be the FED-EGGS delivery service."
He turned to Cath and said, "What do you say baby, you want to go down the night before and spend the night at the 'Top of the Mark' in San Francisco. We haven't had a night to ourselves in a while." Cath was all for it. Gris was still grumbling that he wasn't that slow when Annie and Jim decided they would go also. They could use a night of pampering too.
Annie and Cath had bonded in about 5 minutes flat and were now the closest of friends. Jim had changed a lot since Annie and he married and the four had become closer than family. It was all settled. Now all they had to do was wait.
Greg filled the time by working twice as hard at his rehab. He was determined to be in the delivery room with Lee and Nick when their child was born and he was going to be helping not just sitting there in his chair making them wait on him. Lamb Chop finally told him he had to slow down; three sets a day was enough, four was too much. Greg was also making plans for his future. No one had said anything but it was obvious that Greg would never again be able to go in the field and do what he loved more than anything. He decided that he could weep and moan about it or give thanks for every miracle he'd been given and find something else to do. Brass came to his rescue when he asked Greg to help him write the book he'd been talking about for the last 2 years. They began work on Fiction vs Fact; A Real Life Cop's Views on Crime in Literature. No one was as surprised as they were when their book was published and within 3 months hit the New York Times Best Seller List. All of a sudden, they were published authors and both were receiving dozens of requests for guest appearances. Greg told Brass he had to do it and Brass told Greg he was the 'pretty boy' and he ought to do it. They were still arguing about it months later.
*************************************
It was the day. Heidi's eggs were being harvested that morning. Greg and Nick had asked everyone to give them some space and they were blessedly alone. Nick was so nervous he couldn't sit still. Greg had him help him up into his chair. He had made great improvements in the last 4 weeks. He could stay up for more that 30 minutes now and it was the perfect opportunity for Nick to change his bed linens. He got the bed remade and Greg's bedside work area straightened up. He took the urinal into the bath to empty and clean and when he came back he started to sit in his recliner next to Greg but Greg stopped him and said, "Come here."
Nick walked over to his partner and leaned over to give him a kiss. He was surprised when the casual kiss turned into something with a lot more heat and then he felt Greg's hands unbutton his jeans. He stood up and looked down at the beautiful flushed face of his love. He said, "Greggo, what are you doing?"
Greg just smiled and slowly unzipped Nick's pants. He pushed them down his thighs and then slipped his hands up Nick's thighs and over his briefs. He hooked his fingers in the waist band and began to slowly pull them down Nick's body. When Nick's cock sprang free, he leaned forward and slowly licked a wet strip up to the head. He looked up at Nick, his beautiful eyes shining through the thick veil of lashes that Nick loved so much, "If you don't know baby, it's really been too long; for both of us."
He gently pushed Nick back so he was sitting on the bed he'd just made. He pulled on Nick's knees and Nick lifted his legs and put his feet on the arms of Greg's chair. He took Nick's shoes and socks off and let them drop on the floor. He slowly pulled Nick's pants off first one leg and then the other. He did it very slowly, looking into Nick's eyes the whole time. He put all the love and devotion he felt for his husband, his partner into that look.
Nick caught his breath and thought if he died right then, that would be the last thing he would ever want to see. Greg's beautiful eyes, looking at him with so much love it made him close his eyes for a second. Then he felt Greg's hands slowly running up the inside of his thighs. Greg slipped his arms over Nick's legs and used them to pull his chair right up to the edge of the bed. His head was right in Nick's groin and he was able to use his mouth to kiss and nip and lick his way up one of those smooth thighs to the crease where the leg joined the body. He ran his tongue down the crease and over to Nick's balls. He licked the heavy sack and then sucked gently until one of the egg shaped organs inside that velvety sack slipped inside his mouth. He sucked the ball while his hands ran up Nicks thighs and over his hips and his fingers gripped Nick's butt. He let go of the one testicle and sucked the other one into his mouth. Nick was lying back on the bed propped up on his elbows so he could watch Greg. He was breathing hard and every so often a soft sigh would come out along with Greg's name and 'so good' and 'Oh my god, you're mouth is magic' and 'I love you so'. Greg intended to do a lot more but the touch and the taste of this man he loved so much was stealing his will away. He took Nick's beautiful, silky smooth cock in his hand and felt it with his fingers. He slipped his hand around the shaft and rubbed the length of it in his hand. He felt the slick drops of pre-cum that were dripping out of the slit in the head and reached up with both hands and tugged on Nick's hips.
"Slide down a little towards me baby." Nick wasn't even sure he could move enough to do what Greg wanted but the loving hands on his body were in charge and he knew he would do anything those hands urged him to do. He slid down which put his prick right under Greg's mouth and left his ass just barely off the edge of the bed. Oddly enough, he was very comfortable because he had both feet braced on the arms of Greg's chair so he was sure he wouldn't slip off and when Greg's hot, wet mouth closed around his cock, he stopped thinking about everything except how good it felt and how he never thought he would ever feel that wicked tongue swirling around the edge of his head and dipping into his slit to coax the salty drops of cum out. He felt Greg's hands leave his body for a moment and he missed them. He was greedy for his partner and he wanted every part of him he could get on his skin. He looked down when Greg put something in his hand. It was a condom. Greg looked up at him again with that sexy, flirty look and then he giggled. The feel of Greg laughing while he had his mouth around his cock did wonderful things to Nick.
He finally managed to remember how to put words together and said, "You know sweetheart, laughing when you have your lover's dick in your mouth for the first time in over a year is not really nice."
Greg refused to let go of his prize but he did back off enough so Nick could understand him. "Come on Nick, you have to laugh at the irony of this whole thing. Remember the first time we made love?"
Nick smiled and rubbed his fingers through Greg's hair. "I will remember that to my dying day."
Greg said, "Well, I said no rubbers. There would never be rubbers between us and for the last 10 years there haven't. Now we want to make a baby and look at us. We're using rubbers. Be sure to roll it on before you come. We don't want to waste a precious drop."
With that, he went back to making oral love to Nick's very happy cock.
Nick wasn't sure he would be able to get the damn rubber on. It had been years since he'd had to use the things and he was lost in the wonder of Greg's lips and tongue and teeth and the wet suction that seemed to be pulling all rational thought right out of his brain and down to his groin. He fumbled the package open and got the rubber ready. Part of him wanted to come so bad and he wanted to come in his love's mouth. He wanted to feel that wicked, wicked mouth suck him dry and the rest of him realized that Greg and he were doing this together. They were making their baby right now; just the two of them. He felt himself growing bigger and harder in Greg's mouth. He managed to gasp out, "Please baby, just once, take it all the way down your throat. Please"
Greg pulled back, took a deep breath through his nose and slid his head down slowly until his nose was buried in the dark, curly hair surrounding Nick's cock. He swallowed around the thick cock in his throat and Nick pushed on his head and said, "NOW."
Greg pulled off and Nick quickly rolled the rubber down on his cock. Greg immediately took him back in his mouth and began sucking on him. Nick felt himself pumping his cum into the rubber. He thought it would never stop and he kept on as long as Greg was sucking on him. Finally, Greg let him go and laid his head down on Nick's thigh. He pressed a kiss against Nick's smooth skin and said, "That ought to be enough to do the trick."
Nick didn't say anything for a long while. Then he tried to sit up but he was still shaky so Greg carefully removed the condom from his now flaccid penis, tied a knot in the top and gently put the filled condom in the specimen cup he'd laid out on the bed. Nick lifted a shaky hand and began to pet Greg's soft curls and thread his fingers through them. He loved Greg's hair and the fact that the pain and trauma his love had gone through had caused the beautiful curls to turn silver just made him handsomer in his eyes. "Ok, now all I have to do is convince my legs that they will hold me up and get our boys down to the lab."
Greg grinned and said, "Put me to bed first. I'm pooped. Damn this making babies is hard work."
As Nick was driving to the lab, he popped an old Garth Brooks CD in the player and the song that played was called "Unanswered Prayers'. Nick left that CD in his player for a long time with his selector set to repeat. He began to think of this time as the time of 'Answered Prayers'.
The Browns and the Brass's were waiting at the lab when he pulled into the parking lot. There was a lot of good natured, slightly lewd joking about why they beat him there when they were coming from another state, but Nick just grinned and told them he knew it would take some prep time to get the eggs ready. His little swimmers, on the other hand, were raring to go.
He must have been right because their next trip to the lab was to take LeAnn in for the implanting of the fertilized egg. Six days later, LeAnn called Nick and Greg so excited she could hardly talk. The gist of the conversation: she threw up, twice. They didn't say anything to anyone except those closest to them which meant by that evening most of Las Vegas knew that Nick and Greg had a bona-fide bun in the oven.
The Browns and the Brass's were waiting at the lab when he pulled into the parking lot. There was a lot of good natured, slightly lewd joking about why they beat him there when they were coming from another state, but Nick just grinned and told them he knew it would take some prep time to get the eggs ready. His little swimmers, on the other hand, were raring to go.
He must have been right because their next trip to the lab was to take LeAnn in for the implanting of the fertilized egg. Six days later, LeAnn called Nick and Greg so excited she could hardly talk. The gist of the conversation: she threw up, twice. They didn't say anything to anyone except those closest to them which meant by that evening most of Las Vegas knew that Nick and Greg had a bona-fide bun in the oven.
**********************************
They threw a big party at the end of the first trimester. They had a lot to celebrate. LeAnn was glowing and the morning sickness had only lasted a few weeks and was replaced by a feeling of well-being that threatened to split her cheeks from the wide grins she wore almost all the time. Greg and Jim had finished their book and had just shipped it off to an editor who had sent them a letter expressing interest. Greg's rehab was getting better and easier every day and Nick was so right; Greg's shoulders and upper body was beginning to take on a form and definition that was noticeable to everyone. It was a good time to be alive.
***********************************
They decided to throw another party at the end of the second trimester. When they got 100% 'I'll be there' responses to their RSVP's, Nick made the comment to Greg that their friends would come to the opening of a phone bill if issued an invitation. The only friends not present were the group from Atlanta but they had sent their love and told them they were saving their time to come when the 'bundle from heaven' made it's appearance. Greg immediately corrected Larry.
"Hey, it's not it. It's when HE makes HIS appearance."
Larry looked puzzled and said, "But, I thought you both had decided you didn't want to know the sex ahead of time. You wanted to be surprised."
Nick chimed in and said yeah that was their intention but Greg had been saying from the beginning that he wanted a 'little Nicky' and the last sonogram showed in vivid detail that 'Little Nicky' HAD a little nicky.
Greg hollered at the speaker, "Yeah and believe me, the little guy is hung just like his Daddy. Actually, he's hung just like BOTH his daddies!" There were three distinct hoots of laughter at the other end of the phone and Steven said that on that note, they were going to hang up and for them to keep them informed.
***************************************
Every time the guys had a party, Catherine, Annie, LeAnn, Nancy, Sharise and every other female friend and/or relative within 50 miles showed up to help. It was a distinct shock when Catherine still had not made an appearance by the time the food, house, table and hosts were ready. They had called their phones casually at first but the last hour; they were calling every 10 to 15 minutes. Everyone was there and the party was in full swing when Cath and Warrick finally showed up, looking very distracted. They both asked that everyone hold off on the questions. Everything would be explained shortly. The party continued with everyone outside since it was such a gorgeous day.
About 30 minutes later, the eating and drinking were in full swing. The conversation level was reaching the upper levels so no-one noticed the back gate swing open until Greg happened to look up and see Lindsay peeking around the edge of the gate. He banged a spoon against a bowl and hollered for silence so he could tell Linds to come on in. She did, but someone was right behind her. As she walked through the gate, the bright red curls of Dr. Lamb Chop came through the gate after her. Everyone could tell something had happened. They were both tense and Lamb Chop was so nervous, he was sweating. Nick started to get up and go over to them but Lindsay motioned him to stay in his seat. They walked up to the table and after Lindsay had poked him in the ribs a few times, Lamb Chop finally began to talk. He was stuttering a little but as he continued, he got some courage.
"I know you all are wondering why Lindsay's folks were late and it's my fault. I got the courage to do something I've been wanting to do for a long time and I knew if I didn't do it right then, it would take me another year to work up to it. So………."
After a long pause, Greg said, "So…So what?"
In a rush, Lamb Chop said, "SoIwentovertoLindsayshouseandtoldhermom
It took some time for everyone to break that down into a recognizable sentence. No one said a thing while they were processing the input. Catherine got impatient and said, "Oh for heavens sake. Lindsay and Lamb Chop…I mean Charlie are getting married!"
If the conversation was loud before, it reached the stratosphere now. There were whoops and hollers and laughs and congratulations and a lot of tears. Lindsay had been the lab baby for so many years that everyone felt they had a vested interest in her life and happiness. From the look on her face and the way, Lamb Chop-Charlie looked at her, it was pretty obvious the love between them was deep, sincere and mutual. The second trimester party ended in laughter, tears and excited wedding plans.
****************************************
*
As the time grew near for the birth of their miracle baby, Greg and Nick went into high gear. They made some long delayed decisions about their house. It was a two story and when they bought it, they planned that the upper story would be for the master suite and the kid's bedrooms. As time passed and it became more apparent that they would not be having children, they had changed the extra bedrooms into two offices; one for each of them. There was a guest suite on the lower floor. That had been modified severely when Greg came home. Because there was no way, he would be able to climb stairs, they had reversed their plans. The lower floor became their bedroom/office and the original suite upstairs became their guest quarters. After Greg did come home, they had so much company, they turned the two upper bedrooms back into additional guest rooms. Now things were going to change again,
One of the things they had loved about the house the first time they saw it was the big wide staircase. Greg said it reminded him of Tara from Gone With the Wind. Now Nick wondered if there had been a greater Mind than theirs guiding them in their selection. Because the staircase was so wide, there was a large area behind it which they had been using for a storage closet. Nick hired a contractor (after Collin had interviewed the guy by phone and put the fear of the Lord in him) and they converted the space to an in-house elevator. It opened on the upper landing right outside their bedroom. After they had installed a back up generator so it would continue to work even with a total loss of power, Greg had complete access to anyplace in his home he wanted to go. That meant, they could take back their original suite and convert the smaller bedroom right next to theirs to a nursery. Everyone had a hand in decorating the nursery and the love put into that room showed. It was an enchanting room of cream and gold and green with splashes of teal green and raspberry red. Nick learned early on that if he couldn't find Greg when he came home, just head up to the nursery and he would be there. Sometimes he was painting some of the furniture they had gotten from both parents and sometimes he was just sitting in the middle of the room holding a tiny onesie up to his cheek. If he had the time, Nick would pull up the beautiful, old walnut rocking chair Papa Olaf had willed to Greg and sit beside his love. They would hold hands and quietly dream of the future.
The first night they actually got to sleep in their completely restored bedroom, with all the contractors gone and the house to themselves, they scored another 'personal' first. Nick didn't mean it to happen. Greg still needed the hospital bed but it was becoming more and more clear that he would be out of it soon. Nick, Warrick, Brass and Gil had managed to break it apart and get it upstairs and into their room next to the king-sized bed they had bought right after they bought the house. That night, after Nick got Greg ready for bed, he leaned over to give him one more good night kiss and inhaled deeply as he nestled his face in the curve of his neck and shoulder. He raised his head and looked at Greg. Greg looked back at him with that look of love he had in his eyes for no one but Nick. Nick looked at the bed and then reached in and gently put his arms under Greg's body and pulled him over to the right side of the bed. He grabbed a couple of pillows from their regular bed and carried them around to the other side. He climbed into the bed with Greg and carefully rolled Greg over on his right side, making sure he didn't crimp the colostomy tube. Then he moved right up tight against Greg's back. He pulled the pillows behind him so they braced him then he gently pulled Greg backwards so he was laying on Nick's body. They both let out a long deep sigh and when Nick slipped his right arm under Greg's neck and laid his left arm across Greg's chest, Greg let out a soft "Perfect."
Nick just meant to lay there with his husband in his arms for a while but Greg put his left hand back on Nick's hip and then began to slowly slide his hand under the waistband of Nick's sleeping pants. He was stroking Nick's hip and his hand was sliding lower and closer and when Nick felt his finger tips slowly stroke down his growing erection, he let out a low moan and said, "Oh God Greg, your hand feels so good on me. I love the way you touch me."
Greg chuckled a little. "That's good because I love touching you. I like to feel your cock when it's just starting to get excited. I can feel the blood rush into it and it grows under my fingers or my tongue (Nick let out another moan at that one). I know it recognizes my touch and is getting ready for me."
Nick was so under the spell of Greg's voice and petting, he didn't even realize he had also slipped his hand down and inside Greg's pants. He was holding Greg's cock and rubbing it and reached down to fondle the heavy sac under it when the sounds Greg was making got through to him. He stopped and started to take his hand away but Greg grabbed his wrist and said, "Stokes, you move that hand or stop what you're doing and you may draw back a bloody stump!"
Nick immediately started the gentle rubbing, stroking and squeezing he had been doing. He also cuddled Greg even closer and licked his neck then followed with little nibbles all the way up his ear lobe. Greg was breathing pretty heavy and he speeded up a little when Nick breathed right into his ear and said, "Baby are you sure this is OK. I'm not hurting you am I. Is there any thing else you want me to do?"
Greg wet his lips and managed to say, "Yeah there is. I want you to get out of the bed." Nick was yelling in his head WHAT!!!!! "I want you to get rid of those clothes and mine, I want you to get the lube that I'm sure is still over there in our nightstand. That stuff doesn't spoil does it? Oh hell, who cares as long it still slicks things up and then I want to find out if my ass still works. I'm sure you can think of some sort of scientific experiment to perform….can't you?"
Nick was out of the bed so fast it was a wonder he remembered to stuff a pillow under Greg's back so he wouldn't fall down on his left side and jar it. He had his clothes off and gone, (he found his sleep pants the next morning on top of the closet door) and then carefully pulled back the covers and took Greg's off. Greg ran the head of the bed up and told Nick he wanted his t-shirt off too. He got it off and while Greg was adjusting the bed back the way he wanted it, Nick was digging in their nightstand looking for the lube that hadn't been used since that one memorable night when his determined partner had used Collin to teach him a lesson. He found the stuff, there was plenty left and went back to crawl in bed with Greg.
They got situated again after Nick had put the bottle of lube in Greg's hands because he was shaking with anticipation. When they were comfortable Nick leaned down, took Greg's ear lobe in his teeth and bit gently and then began sucking. Greg let out a little gasp and said, "God I love a man who remembers where he left off."
It took a long time and Nick had to stop several times because he was so excited he was afraid he was going to come before he got where he wanted to be. There were lots of kisses and gentle love bites and Nick had to stop Greg over and over again because he wanted to rub and handle Nick's cock and Nick was really on a hair trigger right then. Finally, Nick worked one finger gently in Greg's ass. It was covered in lube, more than he really needed but he was taking no chances. He wanted to make this wonderful for Greg in every way. He almost stopped when he felt wetness on the arm under Greg's neck. He raised up and looked at Greg. His eyes were closed and tears were running out and down his cheeks. He kissed away the tears that he could reach and said, "Am I hurting you sweetheart?"
Greg began shaking his head at once. "No, No you're not hurting me. It just feels so damn good. I had forgotten how exciting it was when someone you love pushes inside your body for the first time. I really feel like this is the first time you know."
Nick laughed against his love's neck and answered back, "Yeah I know, I feel the same way. This is the first time for both of us. Our life is starting all over again and I'm honored that you are allowing me to pop your ass cherry. I will do everything I can to make the earth move for you. I want bells and whistles and….."
"And..'sky rockets in flight, After midnight delights'." Greg sang softly to Nick, parodying the song they both loved so much; Afternoon Delight. Greg turned his head and caught Nick's mouth with his. They kissed deeply as Nick pulled his finger out and pushed two back in, He began to work his fingers looking for that special, spot that would make everything happen for Greg and without even trying, he stroked over the bundle of nerves and Greg yelled out loud.
Nick smiled and began to stroke in and out, making sure he rubbed across Greg's happy place with every stroke. He inserted three fingers and began to fuck Greg's ass with his fingers. Greg's moans and sighs were almost more than he could bear and he leaned in and whispered in his ear, "Are you ready G, can I get in you now? Can I feel that sweet, hot, asshole of yours again. The way you close around me when I slip inside you is the most sensual, exciting feeling in the world and I haven't felt it in so long."
Greg couldn't even answer Nick but he was nodding his head very emphatically and pulling Nick against him with his left hand as hard as he could. Nick pulled his fingers out and very gently spread Greg's cheeks apart. He positioned his cock right against his lube-slick opening and began to push in as gently as he possibly could. It wasn't easy. Lord he wanted to just ram himself inside Greg's beloved body and bury himself in there for the rest of the night. He couldn't believe how easily he slid in. It was almost as though Greg's ass was welcoming him home and as he began to move in and out he reached for Greg's cock and felt it harden under his eager touch. At least that much was still working and when some time later, Nick felt the warm pulse of liquid slip across his fingers, he let himself come in his husbands body for the first time in more than a year. He was pretty sure that both of them were shedding tears of joy and release.
After that night, Nick made sure that Greg knew as often as possible that his ass truly was working and open for business again.
****************************************
It was a strange quirk of fate that Nick and Greg were at the hospital long before LeAnn got there to give birth to their son. Greg had made such tremendous progress a decision was made to attempt to give him a new hip joint. The possibility had been discussed from the very beginning but there were so many problems to overcome. Charlie had talked to almost every orthopedic surgeon in the United States but most of them felt there was just too much damage to try to implant an artificial hip joint. The joints were available and were widely used but always as a replacement not a substitute and there was a lot of difference. In Greg's case all the joints, tendon's, muscles and connecting bones had been destroyed either by the original wound or the invasive surgeries that Jannings had performed or the horrific infections he had endured. Charlie was determined that Greg was going to stand at his side as one of his best men when he married Lindsay and he kept trying until he found a young guy from Texas who actually told him to send him Greg's medical records. Then he wanted to come to Las Vegas to examine Greg himself. After 4 days of the most intensive testing Greg had gone through in a long time, he said he could do it. He was going to replace Greg's knee with a titanium knee joint. Then he would implant titanium rods in his femur and use them as braces for the new titanium hip joint.
The surgery was performed early one Monday morning and their support group was alive and well and almost all of them were in and out of the hospital all day. The same 12 officers had already donated their precious A-negative blood and it was ready at the start of the surgery. After all they had been through, this surgery was almost anti-climactic. Greg came through with flying colors. The young doctor from Texas, Dr. Turner, was walking on air when he came out to talk to the large group of people. He went through everything he had done and gave them his prognosis for Greg's recovery and turned to walk away. Suddenly he turned back and said, "Oh Nick, I gave you both a little present. "
Nick was beaming through his tears and told Dr. Turner that there wasn't anything else he could do for them that he hadn't already done. Turner just grinned and said, "I guess then the fact that I reversed his colostomy isn't important to either of you." Nick's mouth dropped open and stayed there until Cath reached over and gently closed his mouth and kissed him.
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Greg was recovering nicely and he and Nick were getting ready for bed when Nancy rushed into his room and said, "Forget the jammy's boys, get into these instead." She handed them each a set of scrubs. Nick looked at the bundle she'd forced into his hands and watched as she started getting Greg up so she could change him. At that moment, Sharise came in to help and looked at Nick and said, "OK big boy, you want me to help you put those on."
Nick said, "What are you two up to now?"
The two women looked at each and grinned, then Nancy turned back to Greg and said over her shoulder, "Oh nothing; if you two don't want to be there when your son is delivered that's OK with us."
Nick and Greg both started talking at the same time but Sharise just said, "Jim and Annie and Cath and Warrick just brought Lee in and she's in hard labor. That little man is anxious to get here and meet his daddies."
Nick didn't even leave the room or turn his back. He had his clothes off and the scrubs on so fast Nancy claimed later she could smell scorched cotton. He waited impatiently while they got Greg in his scrubs and then he picked him up and set him in his chair and told them to lead the way.
They rushed into the labor/delivery room and saw LeAnn being prepped. She looked up when they came in and held her hands out to them and said, "This one is just like both of you. He has no patience at all."
For the next two and a half hours, Nick and Greg held her hand's, rubbed her back and offered what ever encouragement they could but they knew in the end, she had to do the hard part. She did it magnificently. When the doctor said, "Just one more big push and he's going to be here" she pushed a big one. There was the sound of liquid splashing on the floor and then a lusty cry. Their obstetrician, Dr. Walker held up a squirming, yelling baby boy with a shock of thick, black hair. She laid him on his mother's stomach and his mother and his two fathers put their hands on him and felt the strong life in his little body. They leaned across his body, Greg in his chair and Nick standing on the other side of the bed and kissed each other. Then they both leaned down and kissed LeAnn and thanked her through their happy tears. When the nurse came over and asked if they wanted to cut the baby's cord, they both said, "Oh Yes!" at the same time.
They let Nick and Greg give him his first bath to get all the 'cheese' off him after they suctioned his nose and put drops in his eyes. When he was all clean, they diapered him and wrapped him in a blanket and brought him back to LeAnn. The three of them admired the fruits of their labor. Dr. Walker said, "Have you picked out his name yet?"
Nick looked at Greg and said, "I don't know. Have we?"
Greg cleared his throat and said, "I would like all of you to meet Daniel Collin Stokes."
Nick thought that he would never feel the same about Desert Palms again. For so many years the Medical Facility had been associated with the worst moments of his life. The explosion in the lab that injured Greg, Nigel Crane throwing Nick out of a 2nd story window, the long recovery after Walter Gordon used Nick to ease his own pain and finally, the long ordeal with Greg's injury had left Nick with a feel of dread whenever he got within a block of the place. But now, he was feeling almost fond of the whole hospital.
LeAnn had been brought back to her birthing suite but the hoped for hours of sleep were sort of postponed. Between everyone in the hospital wanting to come see her and the new one and everyone in the Crime Lab AND the police department wanting to come see Greg, Nick and the new one, the place was like Grand Central Station. Finally, Gil, Cath and the formidable Brass's went to the hospital administrator and asked if Greg's bed could be moved into LeAnn's room.
Poor Mr. Haskell had started shaking his head before they even finished their first sentence. He put his head in his hands and said, "You know you are all going to be the death of me. I know I've lost at least 5 years off my life since Greg became a patient here."
Cath leaned over his desk and smiled at him, making sure he was looking down her blouse at her impressive cleavage and said, "Yeah but you know you love us anyway. Just look at the press you've gotten from all this. Charlie is the darling of the medical world because of his revolutionary treatment of Greg and this last operation, rebuilding Greg a new hip joint from scratch; I know I've seen reporters here from all over the world. So come on. All we're asking is that you let a family be together to enjoy their new baby. Is that so bad?"
Jim chimed in with, "Besides, if you put them all in the birthing suite just think how much easier it's going to be to control the traffic in and out of the place."
Haskell looked up at them and sighed. "Oh what the hell. I've already broken every rule in the book for you people. I guess one more isn't going to hurt now."
****************************************
When they came to get Greg he was fussy and pissed. After all, he hadn't seen his son for almost 2 whole hours and he was beginning to suffer from separation anxiety. Catherine and Annie looked at each and just burst out laughing.
Greg shrugged and said, "Well what the heck, it sounded good when I rehearsed it in my head. Now, someone get me in a chair and take me up to Lee's room."
Jim leaned over, hugged the man he had been thinking of as a son ever since the moment he had put his hands into the horrible wound in his side and held his life in his hands and said, "We're going to go you one better. Just lay back and take it easy."
Greg looked at Cath and Annie who had brought in a gurney from the hall and were loading up all his possessions. Considering the fact that he had been there for close to 2 weeks, there was a lot to load up. He looked at Jim and said, "What the heck is the 'demolition duo' up to now?"
Jim just grinned at him and told him to practice being patient. It would build character.
It wasn't long until two aides came in and began getting Greg's bed ready and the next thing he knew, he and his bed were heading out the door and into the freight elevator followed by Jim, Cath and Annie pushing the gurney that was so loaded they had to pull up the sides to keep everything on it. When the door opened on the birthing floor, Greg was speechless. He was pushed into Lee's room where her bed had been pushed over to make room for his beside her. There was enough room for a comfortable chair for Nick between the two beds and of course the reason why everyone loved the birthing suite's at Desert Palm, the crib with a beautiful, baby boy. The babies stayed in the room with their parents on the birthing floor. The only exceptions were the little one's who had medical problems and needed to stay in incubators until they were strong enough to join their families.
The other nice thing about the birthing suite was the size, the couches and the fact that everyone was welcome unless the nursing staff felt they were stressing the new mom and infant.
It was a wonderful time for Mom, both Dad's and their families and friends and they all enjoyed just being together. Jim said later that the whole thing was worth it to see the dapper Chief of Detectives, Alex Vartann with a bubble gum cigar in his mouth and an smile so big he almost lost the cigar. The cherry on top was when Gil showed up to congratulate everyone. He was talking with Nick, Jim, Greg and Annie when he felt a chair pushed up behind him. Catherine told him to take a load off and he sank gratefully down into the remarkably comfortable chair. He only got to enjoy it for a second because the next thing he knew, Catherine had placed a small bundle in his arms and was telling him to be sure and support Danny's head. Nick had his camera ready and took a succession of photo's that were so candid they made everyone stop talking when they saw them. The first one showed Gil in full panic looking up at Catherine with his mouth open in shock. In the second, he was holding Danny out trying to get Catherine to take him back. In the third, it was obvious she had refused and he was holding the baby somewhat awkwardly against him but the fourth photo was wonderful. Danny had worked his little hand out of the blanket and had grabbed hold of Grissom's finger and was holding on for all he was worth. Gil was frozen with such a look of wonder on his face that it made your heart hurt to see it. It was only topped by the last photo. Catherine had asked him softly what he thought of him. Gil had looked up at her and the smile on his face and the sparkle in his eyes said without words that he thought he was pretty special.
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If Nick and Greg thought life was hectic before Danny joined them, there were no words for what it was after. Greg with Gil's support had decided he was going to apply for a teaching position at the university. He needed to audit some courses to bring him self up to speed. He was back in full rehab mode again learning to use his new knee and hip but he felt that it would be more efficient to stick to his motorized chair at school. The campus never knew what hit it. One moment everything was pretty normal and the next Hurricane Greg was on site. The student body began to report his sightings and look forward to them. It wasn't often you got to see a living legend, zipping around the campus in a metallic, cherry-apple red, motorized chair complete with a neon green snuggle sack holding the cutest little black haired baby boy. Greg had matured into a striking man. The pain and trauma he had endured showed on his face and was most apparent in his striking silver white hair. He had gone back to wearing it in the Julius Caesar cut he'd gotten when he and Nick first started dating but the neck was longer and sported silver curls. Greg had always been almost pretty. The injury had added character and strength to his face and Nick thought he looked the way he imagined the Angel Michael would look. Of course he never told anyone that; not even Greg.
Nick had also made a big change. Ecklie had acted on his political ambitions and was now mayor of Las Vegas. Catherine had been promoted to Director of the Las Vegas Crime Lab. Warrick had made it very plain that he would leave home if they tried to make him assistant director so Catherine had drafted Nick. Nick now worked days for the first time in more than 15 years. It was a shock to his nervous system and he was still trying to get used to it but it meant that for the first time he and Greg had a so-called normal schedule.
When Danny was three months old, Greg and Nick stood up for Charlie when he married Lindsay Willows. It was an emotional time for everyone and for a week, their whole extended family was either laughing hysterically or bursting into tears.
They had the rehearsal dinner at the Bellagio Hotel. The whole dining room was closed just for them. It was quite a night.
When Nick and Greg bought their house, the neighborhood they chose was an older, slightly run down residential area. It was one of those places that had been nothing but desert and bare ground 40 years before. The houses were pretty well built and were cheap so lot's of young couples snapped them up. Now, forty years later, the original families were moving or dying out and the houses were going on the market. The up side was the fact that there were trees and grass and flowers already established. The streets were wide with big trees that arched over the street and there were sidewalks were people could walk and kids could ride bicycles. The only problem was, when Nick and Greg bought, there were no kids and most of the remaining occupants weren't able to do much walking. But as more and more of the housed went on the market, the cycle began again. Couples bought the old houses and began renovating and cleaning and the neighborhood began to come back to life.
Cath and Warrick had taken the wrong turn one day when they left the guys house and drove down a street they hadn't seen before. There was a house, with a For Sale by Owner sign. Warrick had never said anything but Catherine was well aware that he wasn't that happy or comfortable living in her house bought with Sam Braun's money. They stopped, looked and 2 days later were Nick and Greg's new neighbors.
One night when the whole mob was over at Jim and Annie's for their 'movie night' which had grown into a once a month movie, card game, dinner whatever night, it became pretty obvious that the Brass residence was pretty crowded and not really geared to big gatherings. Two weeks later, they had bought one of the houses. Then Nancy and David Hodges announced their wedding plans and guess what; they bought one of the smaller houses, followed by Alex Vartann and Marcie Jepson; Yeah, that Marcie Jepson. It seems when Marcie and Catherine had told David so long ago that they wanted time with their boyfriends, Marcie had been talking about Alex. It took him a while to admit he was well and truly taken, but when he did, he wasted no time in marrying his girl and the next thing everyone knew, he was a full-fledged, settled-down, married man with a house and wife. Hell they even got a dog for him a cat for Marcie.
When Alex and Marcie bought their house everyone began referring to the neighborhood as the LVPD/CSI annex.
That night at the rehearsal dinner, Warrick stood and knocked his knife against his glass to get everyone's attention. He made a very nice speech as befitted the father of the bride and then he took an envelope from Catherine and walked over to Lindsay and Charlie.
He looked at them both for a minute and the love he felt for the beautiful young woman who was the spitting image of her mom was obvious to everyone. He cleared his throat and then said, "Linds, Charlie; you know everyone in this room. Most of these people feel like they had a hand in raising you Linds and Charlie, I know we all feel that if it hadn't been for you, we wouldn't all be together right now. I know you probably expect to get a room full of presents from all these people but it's not going to happen. The only thing you're going to get from us is this." He handed the envelope to them and they both reached for it at the same time.
Lindsay told Charlie to open it and when he just looked at what was in the envelope she got impatient and demanded to know what it was. He looked at her and said, "It's mortage papers on the house we've been looking at."
Linds gasped and said, "You mean the big, old, two-story the block over from Nick and Greg?" Charlie just nodded.
Lindsay looked at her dad and said, "What have you all done?"
Warrick said, "We all of us, everyone in this room pooled our resources and came up with a down payment big enough so you two can handle the payments and insurance on your own. We aren't giving you a house. We're giving you a chance to build your own home the way you want it. We are being selfish because we're keeping you in the same neighborhood as we are."
Lindsay was crying out loud when she got up and threw her arms around Warrick. She hugged him tight and told him how much she loved him and when Charlie got up and opened his arms to include Catherine in their four-way hug….well there wasn't a dry eye in the house.
LeAnn had been brought back to her birthing suite but the hoped for hours of sleep were sort of postponed. Between everyone in the hospital wanting to come see her and the new one and everyone in the Crime Lab AND the police department wanting to come see Greg, Nick and the new one, the place was like Grand Central Station. Finally, Gil, Cath and the formidable Brass's went to the hospital administrator and asked if Greg's bed could be moved into LeAnn's room.
Poor Mr. Haskell had started shaking his head before they even finished their first sentence. He put his head in his hands and said, "You know you are all going to be the death of me. I know I've lost at least 5 years off my life since Greg became a patient here."
Cath leaned over his desk and smiled at him, making sure he was looking down her blouse at her impressive cleavage and said, "Yeah but you know you love us anyway. Just look at the press you've gotten from all this. Charlie is the darling of the medical world because of his revolutionary treatment of Greg and this last operation, rebuilding Greg a new hip joint from scratch; I know I've seen reporters here from all over the world. So come on. All we're asking is that you let a family be together to enjoy their new baby. Is that so bad?"
Jim chimed in with, "Besides, if you put them all in the birthing suite just think how much easier it's going to be to control the traffic in and out of the place."
Haskell looked up at them and sighed. "Oh what the hell. I've already broken every rule in the book for you people. I guess one more isn't going to hurt now."
****************************************
When they came to get Greg he was fussy and pissed. After all, he hadn't seen his son for almost 2 whole hours and he was beginning to suffer from separation anxiety. Catherine and Annie looked at each and just burst out laughing.
Greg shrugged and said, "Well what the heck, it sounded good when I rehearsed it in my head. Now, someone get me in a chair and take me up to Lee's room."
Jim leaned over, hugged the man he had been thinking of as a son ever since the moment he had put his hands into the horrible wound in his side and held his life in his hands and said, "We're going to go you one better. Just lay back and take it easy."
Greg looked at Cath and Annie who had brought in a gurney from the hall and were loading up all his possessions. Considering the fact that he had been there for close to 2 weeks, there was a lot to load up. He looked at Jim and said, "What the heck is the 'demolition duo' up to now?"
Jim just grinned at him and told him to practice being patient. It would build character.
It wasn't long until two aides came in and began getting Greg's bed ready and the next thing he knew, he and his bed were heading out the door and into the freight elevator followed by Jim, Cath and Annie pushing the gurney that was so loaded they had to pull up the sides to keep everything on it. When the door opened on the birthing floor, Greg was speechless. He was pushed into Lee's room where her bed had been pushed over to make room for his beside her. There was enough room for a comfortable chair for Nick between the two beds and of course the reason why everyone loved the birthing suite's at Desert Palm, the crib with a beautiful, baby boy. The babies stayed in the room with their parents on the birthing floor. The only exceptions were the little one's who had medical problems and needed to stay in incubators until they were strong enough to join their families.
The other nice thing about the birthing suite was the size, the couches and the fact that everyone was welcome unless the nursing staff felt they were stressing the new mom and infant.
It was a wonderful time for Mom, both Dad's and their families and friends and they all enjoyed just being together. Jim said later that the whole thing was worth it to see the dapper Chief of Detectives, Alex Vartann with a bubble gum cigar in his mouth and an smile so big he almost lost the cigar. The cherry on top was when Gil showed up to congratulate everyone. He was talking with Nick, Jim, Greg and Annie when he felt a chair pushed up behind him. Catherine told him to take a load off and he sank gratefully down into the remarkably comfortable chair. He only got to enjoy it for a second because the next thing he knew, Catherine had placed a small bundle in his arms and was telling him to be sure and support Danny's head. Nick had his camera ready and took a succession of photo's that were so candid they made everyone stop talking when they saw them. The first one showed Gil in full panic looking up at Catherine with his mouth open in shock. In the second, he was holding Danny out trying to get Catherine to take him back. In the third, it was obvious she had refused and he was holding the baby somewhat awkwardly against him but the fourth photo was wonderful. Danny had worked his little hand out of the blanket and had grabbed hold of Grissom's finger and was holding on for all he was worth. Gil was frozen with such a look of wonder on his face that it made your heart hurt to see it. It was only topped by the last photo. Catherine had asked him softly what he thought of him. Gil had looked up at her and the smile on his face and the sparkle in his eyes said without words that he thought he was pretty special.
****************************************
If Nick and Greg thought life was hectic before Danny joined them, there were no words for what it was after. Greg with Gil's support had decided he was going to apply for a teaching position at the university. He needed to audit some courses to bring him self up to speed. He was back in full rehab mode again learning to use his new knee and hip but he felt that it would be more efficient to stick to his motorized chair at school. The campus never knew what hit it. One moment everything was pretty normal and the next Hurricane Greg was on site. The student body began to report his sightings and look forward to them. It wasn't often you got to see a living legend, zipping around the campus in a metallic, cherry-apple red, motorized chair complete with a neon green snuggle sack holding the cutest little black haired baby boy. Greg had matured into a striking man. The pain and trauma he had endured showed on his face and was most apparent in his striking silver white hair. He had gone back to wearing it in the Julius Caesar cut he'd gotten when he and Nick first started dating but the neck was longer and sported silver curls. Greg had always been almost pretty. The injury had added character and strength to his face and Nick thought he looked the way he imagined the Angel Michael would look. Of course he never told anyone that; not even Greg.
Nick had also made a big change. Ecklie had acted on his political ambitions and was now mayor of Las Vegas. Catherine had been promoted to Director of the Las Vegas Crime Lab. Warrick had made it very plain that he would leave home if they tried to make him assistant director so Catherine had drafted Nick. Nick now worked days for the first time in more than 15 years. It was a shock to his nervous system and he was still trying to get used to it but it meant that for the first time he and Greg had a so-called normal schedule.
When Danny was three months old, Greg and Nick stood up for Charlie when he married Lindsay Willows. It was an emotional time for everyone and for a week, their whole extended family was either laughing hysterically or bursting into tears.
They had the rehearsal dinner at the Bellagio Hotel. The whole dining room was closed just for them. It was quite a night.
When Nick and Greg bought their house, the neighborhood they chose was an older, slightly run down residential area. It was one of those places that had been nothing but desert and bare ground 40 years before. The houses were pretty well built and were cheap so lot's of young couples snapped them up. Now, forty years later, the original families were moving or dying out and the houses were going on the market. The up side was the fact that there were trees and grass and flowers already established. The streets were wide with big trees that arched over the street and there were sidewalks were people could walk and kids could ride bicycles. The only problem was, when Nick and Greg bought, there were no kids and most of the remaining occupants weren't able to do much walking. But as more and more of the housed went on the market, the cycle began again. Couples bought the old houses and began renovating and cleaning and the neighborhood began to come back to life.
Cath and Warrick had taken the wrong turn one day when they left the guys house and drove down a street they hadn't seen before. There was a house, with a For Sale by Owner sign. Warrick had never said anything but Catherine was well aware that he wasn't that happy or comfortable living in her house bought with Sam Braun's money. They stopped, looked and 2 days later were Nick and Greg's new neighbors.
One night when the whole mob was over at Jim and Annie's for their 'movie night' which had grown into a once a month movie, card game, dinner whatever night, it became pretty obvious that the Brass residence was pretty crowded and not really geared to big gatherings. Two weeks later, they had bought one of the houses. Then Nancy and David Hodges announced their wedding plans and guess what; they bought one of the smaller houses, followed by Alex Vartann and Marcie Jepson; Yeah, that Marcie Jepson. It seems when Marcie and Catherine had told David so long ago that they wanted time with their boyfriends, Marcie had been talking about Alex. It took him a while to admit he was well and truly taken, but when he did, he wasted no time in marrying his girl and the next thing everyone knew, he was a full-fledged, settled-down, married man with a house and wife. Hell they even got a dog for him a cat for Marcie.
When Alex and Marcie bought their house everyone began referring to the neighborhood as the LVPD/CSI annex.
That night at the rehearsal dinner, Warrick stood and knocked his knife against his glass to get everyone's attention. He made a very nice speech as befitted the father of the bride and then he took an envelope from Catherine and walked over to Lindsay and Charlie.
He looked at them both for a minute and the love he felt for the beautiful young woman who was the spitting image of her mom was obvious to everyone. He cleared his throat and then said, "Linds, Charlie; you know everyone in this room. Most of these people feel like they had a hand in raising you Linds and Charlie, I know we all feel that if it hadn't been for you, we wouldn't all be together right now. I know you probably expect to get a room full of presents from all these people but it's not going to happen. The only thing you're going to get from us is this." He handed the envelope to them and they both reached for it at the same time.
Lindsay told Charlie to open it and when he just looked at what was in the envelope she got impatient and demanded to know what it was. He looked at her and said, "It's mortage papers on the house we've been looking at."
Linds gasped and said, "You mean the big, old, two-story the block over from Nick and Greg?" Charlie just nodded.
Lindsay looked at her dad and said, "What have you all done?"
Warrick said, "We all of us, everyone in this room pooled our resources and came up with a down payment big enough so you two can handle the payments and insurance on your own. We aren't giving you a house. We're giving you a chance to build your own home the way you want it. We are being selfish because we're keeping you in the same neighborhood as we are."
Lindsay was crying out loud when she got up and threw her arms around Warrick. She hugged him tight and told him how much she loved him and when Charlie got up and opened his arms to include Catherine in their four-way hug….well there wasn't a dry eye in the house.
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If everyone thought the rehearsal was emotional, the wedding was over the top. The moments started when Catherine was escorted down the aisle on the arm of one of Charlie's doctor friends. She was almost 62 years old but she had never looked more beautiful. Her strawberry blonde hair was now naturally highlighted with silver strands but pulled up on top of her head with long curls falling softly around her glowing face it was a crown that would have made any woman proud.
Then LeAnn and Leah followed her with LeAnn carrying Danny who was dressed in a very spiffy pair of grey pants. But when Charlie walked out followed by his two best men, there was a distinct sigh. Nick and Greg were dressed in matching pearl grey tuxedo's just like their baby boy's trousers. Greg was moving slowly and leaning on a handsome black ebony cane. The cane was a gift from Charlie and Lindsay and was a work of art. It was inlaid with mother-of-pearl and had a sterling silver handle. He and Nick made a striking couple. Nick's thick black hair was marked at the temples with silver stripes now and it just made him handsomer if that was possible. The pride on his face when he looked at his long time partner was so evident, no one could miss it. Charlie was so nervous he was shaking but when the wedding march started and Lindsay appeared in the doorway on Warrick's arm he was so dumb-struck he just stood there. Nick leaned over and whispered in his ear, "Look at that gorgeous woman Charlie. See the love in her eyes. That's all for you."
When the minister asked, "Who gives this woman?" Warrick answered in a strong, firm voice, "Her mother and I do." He put her hand in Charlie's and started to turn to sit with Catherine but Lindsay grabbed his arm with her other hand and pulled him down for a warm kiss and an audible "I love you daddy."
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The wedding was lovely, the reception was a time of joy and happiness and so many friends having a good time together. The Atlanta group was there with bells on and their gift to the newly weds was a complete renovation with plans by Collin and the promise that when they were ready to start, they would bring their whole crew to Las Vegas and do the work themselves.
Nick and Greg both gave loving toasts with none of the somewhat off color jokes that usually marked the 'best-mans speech'. But the high spot of the night was when the band leader asked for everyone's attention. He said he had received a special request and it was his pleasure to play a song for two very special people. Everyone was looking at Charlie and Lindsay until Nick got up and walked over to Greg. He put his hand out and asked him to dance with him. Greg started to shake his head no because he was walking with a cane but he was far from the old graceful Greg. But when the first notes started to play and the words, "You're just too good to be true. Can't take my eyes off of you" were heard, he got up and walked into Nick's embrace. He said in Nick's ear, "I don't know if I can do this babe."
Nick held him close and said, "Just lean on me sweetheart. I'll always be here to support you." They were a little clumsy and Greg's left side was still stiff and didn't move like it used to but their friends thought it was the most beautiful dance they'd ever seen.
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Life went back to normal or what passed for normal in the lives of the men and women who made up their extended family. Greg became a full professor at UNLV and taught 3 classes a week. Between him and Grissom, their courses were packed and students were turned away even after they were moved from a regular class room to the auditorium. Collin, Larry and Steve came out and spent a week with them when Lindsay and Charlie started their renovations. Larry and Steven went back to Atlanta but Collin stayed with Nick and Greg for almost 5 months until it was all done. It was a good thing too because Lindsay must have gotten pregnant on her wedding night. She and Charlie had their first child nine months to the day after their wedding. Catherine and Warrick, Jim and Annie were walking on air and Nick and Greg were going to be joining them very soon.
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When Danny was fourteen months old, Leann and Leah came over to have dinner at their place. They had also bought a home in the LVPD/CSI annex and they were all in and out of each other's homes all the time. Leah was wired and reminded Nick of Greg back in his hyper days. After dinner was over, the dishes were sloshing away in the dish washer and they were all in the living room with coffee and tea for Leah, they finally found out what Leah was so excited about.
"Mom, please can I tell them now?" She was almost bouncing in place. LeAnn laughed at her eager daughter and told her to go ahead.
"Mom and I have decided that Danny shouldn't be an only child so we're going to have another baby and give him a brother or sister."
Somewhere in the back of his mind, Nick thought of all the many times LeAnn and her remarkable daughter had rendered him and his partner speechless; looks like this was another one.
"Well, what do you think?" Leah wasn't about to wait for them to recover. She was ready to get the show on the road.
Nick looked over at Greg and said softly, "Oh yeah and since you got your 'little Nicky', this time I get my 'little Greg'."
So many of Nick's nieces wanted to be a part of this new miracle that Mama Stokes had to made the final decision in order to keep peace in the family. She picked S'annah's daughter because she looked so much like Nick, it was spooky. The whole family came to Las Vegas when it was time to harvest the eggs and Nick and Greg were a little worried about their donation. Greg was already a nervous wreck and the thought of trying to perform with a house full of relatives wasn't doing his nerves any good at all. Thank God, LeAnn privately told them they could have their donation there the night before and it would be perfectly fresh and potent. Then she, Cath, Warrick, Jim and Annie took all the relatives out to the Cirque d' Soleil for the evening. Of course, Nick and Greg were both called to work at the last moment and couldn't go with them.
Alone in their home, they relaxed in their Jacuzzi. Nick had staged the room before he led Greg into the bathroom. No lights; but candle's everywhere. Music was playing softly in the background, two crystal wine glasses were sitting next to a frosty bucket filled with ice and a bottle of their favorite wine. Nick undressed Greg almost reverently and then made Greg laugh out loud when he stripped his own clothes off so fast, Greg almost missed the unveiling of his favorite body parts (which was all of Nick). They stepped into the warm, swirling water scented with Greg's favorite vanilla & jasmine bath salts. Nick poured the wine and toasted his handsome husband. Greg returned the toast by taking a sip of the wine and then leaning forward and passing the wine into Nick's mouth when he kissed his lips. Nick swallowed the wine along with Greg's happy sighs and soft words of love. They kissed and caressed each other slowly, stopping to feed each other sips of wine out of their mouths. The wine was good to begin with but flavored with the taste of love it was exceptional.
Nick asked Greg if he was ready to get out or did he want to stay in a while longer and turn into a prune. Greg said he was ready for phase 2. Nick grabbed the towels off their latest toy, an electric towel warmer. He wrapped Greg in the towel and began to rub his hands over his body. Greg wanted to return the favor and it wasn't too long before the towels were on the floor and they were wrapped around each other and the heat of their bodies was doing a great job of getting rid of any excess moisture.
They made their way into their bedroom and onto their big bed. Nick was not quite sure how they did it because he was sure he hadn't taken his mouth off Greg's for a second but there they were. He pulled away from Greg and looked, really looked at his love. His body had changed. There were scars from the IV port just above his left nipple. There was another scar on his left side just above the large patch of puckered skin that marked the place where his hip had been shot away. That was where the feeding port had been. The scar from the colostomy bag was actually sort of cute. It had left a round scar that had healed into a little dimple. Nick thought Greg had never been as alluring and sexy as he was right at that moment. Greg seemed to realize that Nick just wanted to feast on him with his eyes and he was no longer self-conscious about his body. It had taken Nicky a long time but he had finally managed to convince Greg that he cherished every single one of his scars. They proved what a strong, determined man he had chosen for his own. Nick never failed to kiss Greg's scars every chance he got. He called them Greg's badges of courage and said everyone of them proved to him that he still had his love by his side where he could touch him and kiss him and enjoy his body when ever he wanted.
Greg reached up and pulled Nick down to him. He kissed him deeply and then said against his lips, "I love it when you look at me like you could devour me with a spoon but I love it even more when you actually do it."
The kisses became more heated and their bodies moved against each other in the age old dance of love and passion. They knew the movements of the dance so well and no one performed the movements better than they did. Nick was kissing his way down Greg's body, paying special attention to all his 'badges' along the way when Greg pulled his head up.
"What's the matter; aren't you ready for me?"
Greg was panting slightly when he pulled Nick's mouth against his. "Oh yeah, I'm more than ready for you but I want to taste you at the same time. What's my favorite number, cowboy?"
Nick laughed out loud and nipped at Greg's neck and sucked a hickey where it would be very noticeably. "Let me think, I'm sure I remember hearing you tell me once or twice. I'm just not sure I remember….OUCH."
Greg had returned the favor only he'd used some teeth. "Ok, Ok, I know what your favorite number is. Do you have the baby making stuff ready."
Greg said, "Yeah, the rubber and the specimen cup is right here. I'm just waiting for my ass-hole husband to assume the position."
Nick wasted no time in turning around in the bed and positioning himself over Greg's delicious, hard cock. As he began to lick around the rim of the leaking head, he felt Greg's warm, wet mouth take his equally hard, leaking dick in his mouth. He felt Greg's teeth just gently nibbling down the length of his shaft and then his cock was sucked into Greg's mouth and he felt himself go down his husband's throat. He yelped in surprise and realized he'd better concentrate on what he was doing and get on with the baby making or he would be shooting his load in that extremely talented mouth and then he would be too dazed to attend to his task. He began to work on Greg's cock. He licked and sucked while he rolled the heavy sac between his fingers. He reached over and snagged some lube out of the open night stand drawer, got some on his fingers and slipped them into Greg's tight, hot hole. He knew he had hit the spot when Greg hissed around his cock and took him deep into his throat again. He concentrated on the feel of Greg's cock. When he paid close attention, he could swear he could feel the juice start to build up from deep in his balls. He could feel it rushing down the big vein on the underside and he knew when it was about to spurt out into his eager mouth. He had the rubber ready and was already putting it on Greg when he hollered NOW. He continued to pump his fingers in and out of Greg's hole, rubbing and stroking over his prostate while he was doing it and it was a surprise when he felt Greg take him all the way down to the root and swallow around his cock. He shot his load so quickly he had to focus hard to finish Greg off and get the rubber safely off without losing one precious drop. He managed to get the top knotted and into the cup. He had just enough strength left to slip the cup into the little fridge they had installed in their bedroom so they didn't have to go all the way down to the kitchen when they wanted tea, water, wine or a soft drink. He grabbed one of the towels, wiped them both off and slipped back into the warmth of the body he loved so much.
As he turned off the light and settled them down to sleep, he heard Greg say, "I'll bet we made a gorgeous baby."
Someone asked Greg one day how LeAnn's pregnancy was going and he replied, "Second verse, same as the first."
Her second pregnancy was remarkably like the first. The biggest difference was Greg. He was no longer confined to a wheel chair and he was not only walking, he was jogging very carefully and only with Nick or one of their friends who had been trained by Greg's rehab therapist. She was afraid that Greg in his zeal to recover all his mobility would try to over-do and injure his artificial joints.
LeAnn was afraid she was going to get as fat as a balloon and want to be pregnant forever. She was treated like a queen. Both men jumped through hoops to make sure she was happy, comfortable and didn't want for anything. Greg had not been able to enjoy the first pregnancy as much as he wanted because of his physical condition. This time he was going to make up for lost time.
Nick found that because he was not constantly worrying about Greg, he was also able to concentrate on Lee and their new one. When the new baby started moving, Greg was so excited he threw up and was kidded for months about that one. Lee was completely unselfish and not at all bothered by the fact that two men, well actually two and ¼ men, Danny wanted to feel too; were absolutely fixated on her tummy. If the baby moved and they were around, they all wanted to feel the flutters for themselves. And just like before, this baby also was going to be a marathon runner. After the first little tremors, the movements turned into full fledged kicks and punches. By the middle of the sixth month, Lee was counting the days until she could get the little demon out of her.
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The delivery was fast and easy and this time, Nick and Greg were there from the first little 'OH'. It was on a Thursday. Lee and Leah had moved in with the guys for the last 3 weeks just to make it easier on everyone. Greg was fixing lunch and Nick was giving Lee a foot-rub when she suddenly jerked her foot out of his hands and let out a loud 'OH'.
Nick jumped and asked if he'd hurt her. Lee said he didn't but his demon seed had just kicked the living daylights out of her bladder. When it happened the second time, the contraction of her stomach was visible. Everything stopped and they waited. Greg said later he was sure he held his breath the whole time. The third time, they all saw the pain on Lee's face and the 'Baby Squad' went into action. Leah ran into the guest quarters and got her and her mom's bags. Greg called Dr. Walker and gave her the facts and told her they were on their way. Nick ran out and got the car started and pulled it into the garage so Lee wouldn't have to walk so far. Greg also called Annie and told her they were going to drop Danny off on their way. They had made plans way in advance and so many of their female friends had wanted to keep Danny, they finally had to draw numbers out of a bowl. Annie Brass won and she was still gloating.
This time, they got to experience the whole thing; the drive to the hospital, the checking in, pacing in the waiting room while they got Lee prepped. It was amazing how fast their friends began to arrive. Greg told Nick he bet Jim's land-line was smokin'. He was sure Annie had called every one they knew. They found out later, it wasn't Annie; it was JIM! He was so excited about the new one, he'd notified everyone and even went to the college to pick up Gil so he could be there from the beginning this time.
It all went according to plan except for one small thing. It was a little girl. Greg let out an exuberant 'YESSS". Nick leaned over Lee and said, "One of each. You did good for us honey." Everyone in the delivery room gave their happy congratulations. The two new dad's cut the cord and then gave their baby girl her first bath. Nick was carefully drying her head full of pale, light-brown, silky curls while Greg counted fingers and toes and kissed each tiny digit. They wrapped her up and took her over to Lee and put her in her arms. As before, Dr. Walker asked if they had a name ready. Nick nodded to Greg and asked him what he had picked. Greg folded back the blanket and introduced the room to CeLeigh Leah Sanders.
When he heard Nick's loud gasp, he asked, "What's wrong Nick? Don't you like it?"
Nick just shook his head and reached down and took the baby out of Lee's arms and held her up to his face. He turned to Greg and in a very shaky voice said, "Greg, look at her cheek."
Greg looked closer at CeLeigh's soft, creamy little cheek and then he saw what had Nick almost speechless. Their baby girl had his moles; on the same cheek, the same number and in the same pattern.
No one in the world except Greg knew about Nick's fixation, almost fetish with his moles. Greg was remarkably candid and open about their sex life. He had no problems in praising Nick's size or prowess or talking about how good he was in bed, but he had never, ever said a word about the moles. Nick would rub his cheek against them and then gently trace a line with the tip of his tongue from one to another. He made a pattern out of them and he always touched them in the same order. He would drop a kiss on each mole and then would kiss Greg's mouth until he was limp. Greg tried very hard not to let anyone see the tears in his eyes as he watched his love gently touch his tongue to their baby daughter's cheek and trace her moles in the same pattern, finishing up with a gentle kiss to each tiny little beauty mark.
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Greg often referred to the years that followed as their 'Golden Years'. He wasn't talking about age. They were rich with happiness and success and the sheer pleasure of realizing that life had hit them with its best shot and they were still standing. Their kids were healthy. They both loved their jobs. Nick was amazed to discover that he was one hell of an administrator and when Cath announced that she wanted to retire and enjoy her grand-babies he stepped into the position of director as though it was what he had been doing all his life.
Greg and Gil were easily the most popular professors on campus and their classes were full. Even with the extra courses Greg had taken on as his health improved; the university still had more applicant's than there were places. Only a small percentage of the students they trained were suited for law enforcement and neither Gil nor Greg was above doing everything they could to influence those gifted students to consider the choice. Those that did, were carefully groomed with extra assignments and suggestions for additional reading and some of them became interns at the crime lab.
Nick worked with the two men to create training plans to expand the intern's knowledge and add practical experience to theoretical book learning. In time, he refined these training sessions to the point where any CSI or police officer for that matter who could say they had been trained by Grissom, Sanders and Stokes didn't even have to interview. They were courted and regarded as the cream of the crop. Because of the stringent training they went through, there were no failures. There were some who for personal or health or family reasons decided to move into other fields but not a single one of them ever flunked out on the job.
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It was also during this period that Nick and Greg finally acted on something that had been in the works for years. They decided to take a vacation…..in Atlanta. Baby Sitters were no problem. LeAnn and Leah just moved into their place and there was no upset in the children's lives nor the lives of the menagerie they had acquired over the last few years. Nick said every boy had to have a dog. Greg's response was, "Yeah and Danny might like to play with it too…..when he's old enough."
Nick spent weeks choosing just the right puppy; a beautiful lab he named Maverick. Mav's papers showed an impeccable lineage and breeding so it was with an almost unholy glee that Greg noticed that Maverick was the klutziest dog in the world. Maverick could run across the floor and trip over his own paws. He never ate his food or drank his water. He collapsed into the dishes and then Nick had to get a washcloth and wash his little face. He was a clown by nature and inclination. Nick loved him in spite of it and Greg loved him because of it. When it became obvious to everyone that Maverick also had a maternal streak five miles wide, it was just the frosting on the cake. They became foster parents to two kittens he brought home from somewhere. They never found out where he got them but he cried so piteously when they tried to take them away from him, both men just gave up and went to Pet Smart and got litter pan's and literature on raising orphaned kittens. Then he showed up with a bunny. It wasn't a wild bunny. It was white with long floppy ears and black spots. Again, they never found anyone anywhere in the entire neighborhood for blocks in any direction that was missing a bunny. Back to Pet Smart. They were amazed to learn that rabbits were quite smart and could be housebroken so they bought another litter pan. They added another young female lab named Dax that was abandoned at one of Nick's crime scenes and later a gorgeous, long haired female cat named Mimeaux. She was left on their door step with a note saying her owner was no longer able to care for her and she had heard nothing but good things about them. There were 3 pages of instructions for Mimeaux's care and a box that contained a velvet bed with several changes of bedding, collars, bowls and a 2 weeks supply of cat food. Mimeaux walked into their house, looked around and then looked up at Greg.
"Does it satisfy your needs my lady?" She mewed a little "Meow" at Greg which he took to mean, "Well, it's not what I'm used to but I can make do as long as the servants are well trained."
Nick told Greg later, he better realize that he was the submissive in the relationship. Greg just replied that he had been playing sub to Nick's 'dom' for years now; one more wouldn't matter.
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Like most major airports in the days after 9/11, security at Hartsfield was strict so they didn't expect to see their friends when they got off the plane. They figured they'd meet up at baggage claim but to their surprise, when they got off the tram and took the escalator up to the terminal level, there were their friends waiting for them at the top of the stairs. They were all excited and happy to be seeing each other for 7 whole days with nothing to do but enjoy each other. After they got out of the traffic pattern, there were hugs and greetings all around. They headed out through the terminal to pick up their baggage. They were so engrossed in each other that no one noticed the attention they were attracting as they moved through the crowded airport.
None of them were in their first flush of youth but they were all five of them above average in looks and maybe because they were mature men who all loved what they did, they had an aura of power that enveloped all of them. They were striking men by themselves but the five of them together, laughing, talking, occasionally throwing an arm around a pair of shoulders for an affectionate hug were something to turn heads and they were doing just that.
They retrieved their bags and headed outside. Greg started to step out into the pedestrian crossing but Larry grabbed his arm and stopped him. He said, "Just stay right here, young'un." Greg told him he could walk over to the car. Larry grinned at him, "Well maybe you can, but I don't feel like it."
Just then, a luxurious black limo pulled up and a distinguished looking driver got out, went around and opened the trunk and walked over to the group and picked up Nick's bag since it was the closest.
Nick looked at the driver closely and then broke out in a big grin. He grabbed the man's arm, swung him around and said, "Mike, is it really you?"
Mike gave him back an equally big grin, "I wondered if you would remember me. You're still looking better than good man, How you doing? Is this your young man?"
Nick threw his arm around the man's shoulders and gave him a big hug. "How could I forget the guy who drove me to the gates of heaven?"
Greg was standing there watching the whole thing and let out a rather surprised "AHEM."
Nick turned towards him and said, "Greg, this is Mike. He was the shuttle driver for the Crowne Plaza when I came to Atlanta the very first time. He spent the day driving me around Buckhead and then that night he delivered me to Body Heat where I met Collin."
Greg walked over and held his hand out to Mike. "I feel like I ought to be writing you a check for the 'young man' remark."
Mike just grinned back and said, "Hell boy, I'm 76. You all are young men to me."
He put Greg's bags in with Nick's and then opened the back door for his passengers. They all piled into the beautiful car and settled themselves in the soft Cordovan Leather seats. Mike said over his shoulder as he was pulling out into traffic, "There's a big pitcher of peach bellini's in the fridge courtesy of David. Let's get this party started gentlemen. I'm going to close the window so I can concentrate on this nasty traffic. You just enjoy yourselves."
Larry was closest so he pulled out the pitcher and filled five crystal flutes with the delicious mixture. He passed them each a glass and then said, "As the senior member of this group, I propose a toast. Here's to 'long awaited dreams'." There was a moment of silence as they all thought about the years of longing and waiting behind those words and then they raised their glasses and they all said together, "to long awaited dreams."
They all had another round of drinks; thank god for downtown traffic. Nick asked why Mike was still working at 76. Larry, Collin and Steve looked at each other and then started to laugh. Steve said it was because of him and Greg. Mike owned the limo they were riding in and several others. He had one of the most successful limo services in the greater Atlanta area and hadn't had to work other than fill out bank deposits for some time now. But when Larry had called and asked for a limo to the airport to pick up some out of town guests, Mike had taken over the phone and asked him who was coming in. When Larry told him that Nick and Greg were finally coming to town for a week's vacation, Mike said he would be driving them himself and the limo was at their disposal for the entire time the guys would be there. Nick knew that Larry and Steven now owned Body Heat as well as Belle Hombre and they were two of the most successful and long running business in Buckhead. They were so well managed they almost ran themselves so Steven had started dabbling in the stock market. Steven's level of intelligence was on a par with Greg's and his idea of dabbling was to read, take courses and learn everything he possibly could. In just a few years, he had become a certified financial planner and had a large clientele. Nick, Greg and quite a few of their friends in Las Vegas had Steven managing their finance's and it was a measure of how good he was that they all were not living from pay day to pay day like so many of their acquaintances. Nick knew that the start up funds for Mike's Limo Service had come from Steven, Larry and Collin. He didn't even have to ask; he just knew.
Mike dropped them at the high-rise and told them he would be seeing them later and they could get caught up then. As they entered the elevator, Nick couldn't help but look up in the corner. He was looking for the little red light. Mr. Jenson had passed away several years before and Collin and the other owners decided to automate the surveillance. They all agreed that there would never be another Mr. Jenson and it wouldn't be fair to even try to replace him. They did keep his apartment available to any senior that needed a comfortable home for as long as necessary. Everyone agreed that would be a fitting memorial for the kind, old man who had been their guardian angel for so many years.
Nick and Greg had stayed with their friends several times in the past and had always loved their apartment but they were floored when Collin pushed the button for the top floor. He opened the door and stood aside to let them enter. They had sold their large, two bedroom unit on the 4th floor and had bought half of the entire top floor. Collin of course did the renovation and the new apartment was not only luxurious but the view took your breath away.
Larry took their bags into the bedroom, while Collin and Steven got them settled out on the terrace. When he came back, Steven said, "We thought that since we all worked today, we wouldn't plan anything. We fixed some stuff earlier and we're just going to take it easy, snack a little, drink a lot and relax. Nick and Greg both raised their glasses to Steven and told him he was a prince among men. They had cold anti-pasto followed by delicious cold peel-and-eat boiled shrimp, hot freshly baked foccacio bread and cheesecake for desert. They had all taken their shoes off and changed into loose fitting shorts and shirts and as the evening progressed, they became more and more comfortable with each other.
There was a buzz in the air that they all could feel. This wasn't just a vacation. This was going to be the week they took their friendship to the next level. With the exception of Collin and Nick, all five of the men had remained faithful to the commitments they had made to each other at the start of the two relationships. Collin had only seduced Nick after talking to both his partners and telling them what Greg had told him. That had been the only time any one of the five had strayed outside their limits. But the sparks, the interest had been there from the moment the Atlanta three had come to Las Vegas to attend Nick and Greg's commitment ceremony. It had flared into life when Greg had kissed Collin good bye at the end of that week-end. During the last eleven years, there had been kisses exchanged; passionate kisses but no one had ever tried to go any further. When Greg called Collin and told him that he and Nick wanted to come spend a week with them in Atlanta, Collin had taken the bull by the horns and asked if it was going to be more than just a week away from the jobs and the kids.
There had been a long silence on the other end of the line and Coll was beginning to think he'd stepped over the line when Greg said softly, "Oh lord I hope so. The five of us have been dancing around this fire long enough. I think it's time to find out if there is really something between us all or if we just have an itch that needs to be scratched."
Collin had asked if Nick was in on Greg's plans or if he was going to spring it on him after they got there. Greg laughed and said Collin knew him too well. He said No, he'd promised Nick after he sicced Coll on him the last time that he would never do something like that again without talking to him first. They had talked at length. It was obvious that both Nick and Collin still had deep feelings for each other and Greg quickly reassured Collin that it didn't bother him at all. "Nick is probably the most loving man in the whole world and I know he can love you and still love me completely. Besides, it's no secret that I've had the hots for you for years now."
Collin quickly told Greg that not only was the feeling mutual with him but he knew that both Larry and Steven were more than casually interested in him. They agreed that this would be the time they indulged themselves and if it turned out to be a one time thing; well, they would all have one hell of a week. Collin told Greg, he would bet him real money that if they once shared themselves completely with each other, it would be a new 5 way relationship that would last for the rest of their lives.
The sun set, the moon rose and the five friends became quieter and quieter. They had all moved closer together. Greg was sitting between Larry and Steven and Collin and Nick were sitting across from them. They were so close they were all sharing a big ottoman and their feet were intertwined. Collin was rubbing his foot up Greg's calf. Nick had his arm on the back of the loveseat he was sharing with Collin. His hand was resting on Collin's neck and he was rubbing one finger along his hairline. Larry was stroking his fingers through Greg's silver curls. Steven turned and put his glass on the side table and when he turned back, he turned to Greg and kissed him on the cheek. He slid his mouth slowly forward and Greg turned his head and caught his mouth with his. They both sighed as they shared the first kiss of the night. It was not going to be the last. The kiss deepened and it was obvious that there was some tongue action going on. When they finally parted, Steven grinned at Greg and said, "You know, if we wait for our old fogey partners to start something we'll waste half the week."
Greg grinned back at him, grabbed him for one more open, mouthed kiss and answered him back, "Well then, I'd say it's up to us youngsters to get this orgy in high gear." He stood up, grabbed Steven's hand and pulled him up with him. He pulled Steven's body against his and rubbed their groins together, "You want to lead the way. Maybe they'll get the idea and follow."
They disappeared through the double French doors into the house. The three men left on the balcony could hear them laughing and then a pair of shorts came flying through the door to land on the veranda floor. Larry looked over at Collin and Nick. "I can't figure out if we just got propositioned or insulted."
Collin got up and offered one hand to Nick and the other to Larry. He pulled them both to their feet. He kissed Larry with love and affection and then Nick. Laughing, he said, "I think it's probably both and I also think we better get in there. I'm pretty sure they're starting without us but we can use our wisdom and skills to catch up. Can't we?"
Nick laughed back at his friend, once-lover and hopefully soon-to-be-again lover. He moved past him and put his arms around Larry. He looked at the handsome older man he'd come to love over the years. He took his face in his hands and said, "I've waited a long time to do this." He kissed Larry. He used his body, his lips and his mouth to express his admiration, his longing and his desire for the man who'd been responsible for his transformation so many years before. Larry returned the kiss and added his own long held desire for Nick to the mixture. Collin watched the two men he loved so much expressing their feelings for each other and felt his erection growing. He leaned forward, put his arms around both of them and kissed first one and then the other on the cheek and said, "You really don't want me to come in my pants out here in the open in front of everyone do you. Let's get inside and get naked."
Nick pulled back and gave Collin a deep kiss and said thoughtfully, "I really need to explain to you the difference between nude, naked and nekkid. Nude is nice, naked is better but for what we've got planned tonight, we need to get nekkid!"
Larry grabbed them both and started moving them towards the bedroom. "Thank God, I have no inhibitions what-so-ever."
It turned out to be a night to remember in every sense of the word. Steven and Greg had started without them. Greg was naked (nekkid) in the middle of the big, custom made bed. Steven was intent on tasting all of him if the wet, gleaming trails of saliva on Greg's body were any indication. Greg's lips were swollen and wet, his nipples were hard, standing up from his chest and Steven was fucking his belly button with his tongue. Every few seconds he would fasten his mouth around the sweet depression and start sucking on it as though he thought he might get something out of it. Greg was holding on to the carved openings in the headboard and moaning softly. He never even noticed when the other three men entered the bedroom.
Collin started to unbutton Larry's shirt but Larry grabbed the bottom and pulled it over his head. Then he turned to Nick and got his off just as quickly. He turned to Collin, rubbed his hand over the noticeable bulge in the front of his shorts and said, "Baby, there is a time for finesse and then there's a time for getting into the action as quickly as possible. Now which do you think this is?"
Nick grabbed Larry's pants by the waistband and pulled them and his underwear down to his ankles almost before he'd finished his sentence. He looked up at an open-mouthed Larry, grinned and said, "Hey, I just cast my vote." He pulled Collin's pants off and then his own and jumped on the bed behind Steven and reached between his legs and ran his finger down his hard erection.
Steven jumped, let out a yelp and said, "Good god, I'm glad I didn't have his cock in my mouth, I would have bit him."
Nick said, "Now that's a good idea." He gently pushed Steven over on his side, lifted Greg's leg and laid it across Steven's body and then he laid down between Greg's legs but further down, where he could reach Steve's twitching cock with his mouth. He took the hard, erect flesh in his mouth and tasted him for the first time.
Greg lifted his head, looked down and said, "Hey no fair. If he gets a blow job then I want one too."
Steven immediately took Greg's cock in his mouth and began licking and sucking on the head and dipping his tongue into the leaking slit in the head. Larry moved so he could get to Nick and Collin laid down next to Greg and claimed his lips in a deep kiss.
You would think with five grown men in one bed, it would be awkward and legs and arms would get in the way but these were 5 men who had been making love to men for years. They were familiar with the anatomy. If an arm or a leg was in the way, they either lifted it, got under it or just wrapped it around part of their body and got their hands or mouths on or around what ever they wanted. Nick was so lost in the sensations of strange hands and mouths that he was never quite sure whether it was Larry or Steven's dick that first slipped in his willing ass. He just knew it felt good and he was sure it wasn't Collin or Greg because he could see Collin working his long fingers in Greg's ass getting him ready.
They made love and slept tangled together in a pile. Nick also never knew who it was when he was awakened later by an eager mouth working on his swelling penis. He was pretty sure the mouth did not belong to the hands he felt spreading his ass cheeks apart and sliding into his willing hole. He was fucked and sucked back into a deep sleep and decided just before he slipped over the edge of sleep and orgasm that it didn't really matter. He was pretty happy with all of the people in the bed at that moment.
The week went by in a daze of sightseeing, sex, parties, sex, the Fox theater, sex and oh yes, did I mention SEX. On their last night together, they had spent hours loving each other. Nick was pretty sure, it would be days before he could walk normally and he didn't know if he would ever be able to sit without cringing just a little. He was laying on his side holding Greg in his arms. Steven was behind him with his arms wrapped around him, occasionally pressing a lazy kiss on his neck or ear. On the other side of Greg was Larry, almost asleep, but still dropping little butterfly kisses on Greg's forehead every so often and behind Larry, he could see Collin; his arm laid over Larry and his hand cupping his partners limp penis, almost out of it for good. Nick suddenly realized that was the first time the whole week that he had been next to Greg when they dropped off to sleep. Without even thinking about it, he slid his semi-erect dick down the cleft of Greg's ass. He loved to nestle himself between the warm cheeks of his butt as he went to sleep. Tonight however, there had been so much activity, he slipped inside Greg's ass before he even realized he'd done it. Once there, it felt so good he just nestled a little closer and got ready to go to sleep.
Greg raised his head a little and looked around. "Nick, did you just put your cock in my ass?"
"Yeah, did I hurt you baby? It just slipped right in."
Greg let out a wail. "Oh God, It's happened. I just knew it would."
Nick was frantic. "What? What has happened? Are you alright? What's the matter?"
By now, everyone in the bed was wide awake and Collin was reaching for the bed side lamp when Greg said, "I started out this week as a tight end and now………Now…….I'm a wide receiver."
Nick learned something new then. You cannot maintain an erection when you are laughing your ass off.
Her second pregnancy was remarkably like the first. The biggest difference was Greg. He was no longer confined to a wheel chair and he was not only walking, he was jogging very carefully and only with Nick or one of their friends who had been trained by Greg's rehab therapist. She was afraid that Greg in his zeal to recover all his mobility would try to over-do and injure his artificial joints.
LeAnn was afraid she was going to get as fat as a balloon and want to be pregnant forever. She was treated like a queen. Both men jumped through hoops to make sure she was happy, comfortable and didn't want for anything. Greg had not been able to enjoy the first pregnancy as much as he wanted because of his physical condition. This time he was going to make up for lost time.
Nick found that because he was not constantly worrying about Greg, he was also able to concentrate on Lee and their new one. When the new baby started moving, Greg was so excited he threw up and was kidded for months about that one. Lee was completely unselfish and not at all bothered by the fact that two men, well actually two and ¼ men, Danny wanted to feel too; were absolutely fixated on her tummy. If the baby moved and they were around, they all wanted to feel the flutters for themselves. And just like before, this baby also was going to be a marathon runner. After the first little tremors, the movements turned into full fledged kicks and punches. By the middle of the sixth month, Lee was counting the days until she could get the little demon out of her.
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The delivery was fast and easy and this time, Nick and Greg were there from the first little 'OH'. It was on a Thursday. Lee and Leah had moved in with the guys for the last 3 weeks just to make it easier on everyone. Greg was fixing lunch and Nick was giving Lee a foot-rub when she suddenly jerked her foot out of his hands and let out a loud 'OH'.
Nick jumped and asked if he'd hurt her. Lee said he didn't but his demon seed had just kicked the living daylights out of her bladder. When it happened the second time, the contraction of her stomach was visible. Everything stopped and they waited. Greg said later he was sure he held his breath the whole time. The third time, they all saw the pain on Lee's face and the 'Baby Squad' went into action. Leah ran into the guest quarters and got her and her mom's bags. Greg called Dr. Walker and gave her the facts and told her they were on their way. Nick ran out and got the car started and pulled it into the garage so Lee wouldn't have to walk so far. Greg also called Annie and told her they were going to drop Danny off on their way. They had made plans way in advance and so many of their female friends had wanted to keep Danny, they finally had to draw numbers out of a bowl. Annie Brass won and she was still gloating.
This time, they got to experience the whole thing; the drive to the hospital, the checking in, pacing in the waiting room while they got Lee prepped. It was amazing how fast their friends began to arrive. Greg told Nick he bet Jim's land-line was smokin'. He was sure Annie had called every one they knew. They found out later, it wasn't Annie; it was JIM! He was so excited about the new one, he'd notified everyone and even went to the college to pick up Gil so he could be there from the beginning this time.
It all went according to plan except for one small thing. It was a little girl. Greg let out an exuberant 'YESSS". Nick leaned over Lee and said, "One of each. You did good for us honey." Everyone in the delivery room gave their happy congratulations. The two new dad's cut the cord and then gave their baby girl her first bath. Nick was carefully drying her head full of pale, light-brown, silky curls while Greg counted fingers and toes and kissed each tiny digit. They wrapped her up and took her over to Lee and put her in her arms. As before, Dr. Walker asked if they had a name ready. Nick nodded to Greg and asked him what he had picked. Greg folded back the blanket and introduced the room to CeLeigh Leah Sanders.
When he heard Nick's loud gasp, he asked, "What's wrong Nick? Don't you like it?"
Nick just shook his head and reached down and took the baby out of Lee's arms and held her up to his face. He turned to Greg and in a very shaky voice said, "Greg, look at her cheek."
Greg looked closer at CeLeigh's soft, creamy little cheek and then he saw what had Nick almost speechless. Their baby girl had his moles; on the same cheek, the same number and in the same pattern.
No one in the world except Greg knew about Nick's fixation, almost fetish with his moles. Greg was remarkably candid and open about their sex life. He had no problems in praising Nick's size or prowess or talking about how good he was in bed, but he had never, ever said a word about the moles. Nick would rub his cheek against them and then gently trace a line with the tip of his tongue from one to another. He made a pattern out of them and he always touched them in the same order. He would drop a kiss on each mole and then would kiss Greg's mouth until he was limp. Greg tried very hard not to let anyone see the tears in his eyes as he watched his love gently touch his tongue to their baby daughter's cheek and trace her moles in the same pattern, finishing up with a gentle kiss to each tiny little beauty mark.
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Greg often referred to the years that followed as their 'Golden Years'. He wasn't talking about age. They were rich with happiness and success and the sheer pleasure of realizing that life had hit them with its best shot and they were still standing. Their kids were healthy. They both loved their jobs. Nick was amazed to discover that he was one hell of an administrator and when Cath announced that she wanted to retire and enjoy her grand-babies he stepped into the position of director as though it was what he had been doing all his life.
Greg and Gil were easily the most popular professors on campus and their classes were full. Even with the extra courses Greg had taken on as his health improved; the university still had more applicant's than there were places. Only a small percentage of the students they trained were suited for law enforcement and neither Gil nor Greg was above doing everything they could to influence those gifted students to consider the choice. Those that did, were carefully groomed with extra assignments and suggestions for additional reading and some of them became interns at the crime lab.
Nick worked with the two men to create training plans to expand the intern's knowledge and add practical experience to theoretical book learning. In time, he refined these training sessions to the point where any CSI or police officer for that matter who could say they had been trained by Grissom, Sanders and Stokes didn't even have to interview. They were courted and regarded as the cream of the crop. Because of the stringent training they went through, there were no failures. There were some who for personal or health or family reasons decided to move into other fields but not a single one of them ever flunked out on the job.
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It was also during this period that Nick and Greg finally acted on something that had been in the works for years. They decided to take a vacation…..in Atlanta. Baby Sitters were no problem. LeAnn and Leah just moved into their place and there was no upset in the children's lives nor the lives of the menagerie they had acquired over the last few years. Nick said every boy had to have a dog. Greg's response was, "Yeah and Danny might like to play with it too…..when he's old enough."
Nick spent weeks choosing just the right puppy; a beautiful lab he named Maverick. Mav's papers showed an impeccable lineage and breeding so it was with an almost unholy glee that Greg noticed that Maverick was the klutziest dog in the world. Maverick could run across the floor and trip over his own paws. He never ate his food or drank his water. He collapsed into the dishes and then Nick had to get a washcloth and wash his little face. He was a clown by nature and inclination. Nick loved him in spite of it and Greg loved him because of it. When it became obvious to everyone that Maverick also had a maternal streak five miles wide, it was just the frosting on the cake. They became foster parents to two kittens he brought home from somewhere. They never found out where he got them but he cried so piteously when they tried to take them away from him, both men just gave up and went to Pet Smart and got litter pan's and literature on raising orphaned kittens. Then he showed up with a bunny. It wasn't a wild bunny. It was white with long floppy ears and black spots. Again, they never found anyone anywhere in the entire neighborhood for blocks in any direction that was missing a bunny. Back to Pet Smart. They were amazed to learn that rabbits were quite smart and could be housebroken so they bought another litter pan. They added another young female lab named Dax that was abandoned at one of Nick's crime scenes and later a gorgeous, long haired female cat named Mimeaux. She was left on their door step with a note saying her owner was no longer able to care for her and she had heard nothing but good things about them. There were 3 pages of instructions for Mimeaux's care and a box that contained a velvet bed with several changes of bedding, collars, bowls and a 2 weeks supply of cat food. Mimeaux walked into their house, looked around and then looked up at Greg.
"Does it satisfy your needs my lady?" She mewed a little "Meow" at Greg which he took to mean, "Well, it's not what I'm used to but I can make do as long as the servants are well trained."
Nick told Greg later, he better realize that he was the submissive in the relationship. Greg just replied that he had been playing sub to Nick's 'dom' for years now; one more wouldn't matter.
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Like most major airports in the days after 9/11, security at Hartsfield was strict so they didn't expect to see their friends when they got off the plane. They figured they'd meet up at baggage claim but to their surprise, when they got off the tram and took the escalator up to the terminal level, there were their friends waiting for them at the top of the stairs. They were all excited and happy to be seeing each other for 7 whole days with nothing to do but enjoy each other. After they got out of the traffic pattern, there were hugs and greetings all around. They headed out through the terminal to pick up their baggage. They were so engrossed in each other that no one noticed the attention they were attracting as they moved through the crowded airport.
None of them were in their first flush of youth but they were all five of them above average in looks and maybe because they were mature men who all loved what they did, they had an aura of power that enveloped all of them. They were striking men by themselves but the five of them together, laughing, talking, occasionally throwing an arm around a pair of shoulders for an affectionate hug were something to turn heads and they were doing just that.
They retrieved their bags and headed outside. Greg started to step out into the pedestrian crossing but Larry grabbed his arm and stopped him. He said, "Just stay right here, young'un." Greg told him he could walk over to the car. Larry grinned at him, "Well maybe you can, but I don't feel like it."
Just then, a luxurious black limo pulled up and a distinguished looking driver got out, went around and opened the trunk and walked over to the group and picked up Nick's bag since it was the closest.
Nick looked at the driver closely and then broke out in a big grin. He grabbed the man's arm, swung him around and said, "Mike, is it really you?"
Mike gave him back an equally big grin, "I wondered if you would remember me. You're still looking better than good man, How you doing? Is this your young man?"
Nick threw his arm around the man's shoulders and gave him a big hug. "How could I forget the guy who drove me to the gates of heaven?"
Greg was standing there watching the whole thing and let out a rather surprised "AHEM."
Nick turned towards him and said, "Greg, this is Mike. He was the shuttle driver for the Crowne Plaza when I came to Atlanta the very first time. He spent the day driving me around Buckhead and then that night he delivered me to Body Heat where I met Collin."
Greg walked over and held his hand out to Mike. "I feel like I ought to be writing you a check for the 'young man' remark."
Mike just grinned back and said, "Hell boy, I'm 76. You all are young men to me."
He put Greg's bags in with Nick's and then opened the back door for his passengers. They all piled into the beautiful car and settled themselves in the soft Cordovan Leather seats. Mike said over his shoulder as he was pulling out into traffic, "There's a big pitcher of peach bellini's in the fridge courtesy of David. Let's get this party started gentlemen. I'm going to close the window so I can concentrate on this nasty traffic. You just enjoy yourselves."
Larry was closest so he pulled out the pitcher and filled five crystal flutes with the delicious mixture. He passed them each a glass and then said, "As the senior member of this group, I propose a toast. Here's to 'long awaited dreams'." There was a moment of silence as they all thought about the years of longing and waiting behind those words and then they raised their glasses and they all said together, "to long awaited dreams."
They all had another round of drinks; thank god for downtown traffic. Nick asked why Mike was still working at 76. Larry, Collin and Steve looked at each other and then started to laugh. Steve said it was because of him and Greg. Mike owned the limo they were riding in and several others. He had one of the most successful limo services in the greater Atlanta area and hadn't had to work other than fill out bank deposits for some time now. But when Larry had called and asked for a limo to the airport to pick up some out of town guests, Mike had taken over the phone and asked him who was coming in. When Larry told him that Nick and Greg were finally coming to town for a week's vacation, Mike said he would be driving them himself and the limo was at their disposal for the entire time the guys would be there. Nick knew that Larry and Steven now owned Body Heat as well as Belle Hombre and they were two of the most successful and long running business in Buckhead. They were so well managed they almost ran themselves so Steven had started dabbling in the stock market. Steven's level of intelligence was on a par with Greg's and his idea of dabbling was to read, take courses and learn everything he possibly could. In just a few years, he had become a certified financial planner and had a large clientele. Nick, Greg and quite a few of their friends in Las Vegas had Steven managing their finance's and it was a measure of how good he was that they all were not living from pay day to pay day like so many of their acquaintances. Nick knew that the start up funds for Mike's Limo Service had come from Steven, Larry and Collin. He didn't even have to ask; he just knew.
Mike dropped them at the high-rise and told them he would be seeing them later and they could get caught up then. As they entered the elevator, Nick couldn't help but look up in the corner. He was looking for the little red light. Mr. Jenson had passed away several years before and Collin and the other owners decided to automate the surveillance. They all agreed that there would never be another Mr. Jenson and it wouldn't be fair to even try to replace him. They did keep his apartment available to any senior that needed a comfortable home for as long as necessary. Everyone agreed that would be a fitting memorial for the kind, old man who had been their guardian angel for so many years.
Nick and Greg had stayed with their friends several times in the past and had always loved their apartment but they were floored when Collin pushed the button for the top floor. He opened the door and stood aside to let them enter. They had sold their large, two bedroom unit on the 4th floor and had bought half of the entire top floor. Collin of course did the renovation and the new apartment was not only luxurious but the view took your breath away.
Larry took their bags into the bedroom, while Collin and Steven got them settled out on the terrace. When he came back, Steven said, "We thought that since we all worked today, we wouldn't plan anything. We fixed some stuff earlier and we're just going to take it easy, snack a little, drink a lot and relax. Nick and Greg both raised their glasses to Steven and told him he was a prince among men. They had cold anti-pasto followed by delicious cold peel-and-eat boiled shrimp, hot freshly baked foccacio bread and cheesecake for desert. They had all taken their shoes off and changed into loose fitting shorts and shirts and as the evening progressed, they became more and more comfortable with each other.
There was a buzz in the air that they all could feel. This wasn't just a vacation. This was going to be the week they took their friendship to the next level. With the exception of Collin and Nick, all five of the men had remained faithful to the commitments they had made to each other at the start of the two relationships. Collin had only seduced Nick after talking to both his partners and telling them what Greg had told him. That had been the only time any one of the five had strayed outside their limits. But the sparks, the interest had been there from the moment the Atlanta three had come to Las Vegas to attend Nick and Greg's commitment ceremony. It had flared into life when Greg had kissed Collin good bye at the end of that week-end. During the last eleven years, there had been kisses exchanged; passionate kisses but no one had ever tried to go any further. When Greg called Collin and told him that he and Nick wanted to come spend a week with them in Atlanta, Collin had taken the bull by the horns and asked if it was going to be more than just a week away from the jobs and the kids.
There had been a long silence on the other end of the line and Coll was beginning to think he'd stepped over the line when Greg said softly, "Oh lord I hope so. The five of us have been dancing around this fire long enough. I think it's time to find out if there is really something between us all or if we just have an itch that needs to be scratched."
Collin had asked if Nick was in on Greg's plans or if he was going to spring it on him after they got there. Greg laughed and said Collin knew him too well. He said No, he'd promised Nick after he sicced Coll on him the last time that he would never do something like that again without talking to him first. They had talked at length. It was obvious that both Nick and Collin still had deep feelings for each other and Greg quickly reassured Collin that it didn't bother him at all. "Nick is probably the most loving man in the whole world and I know he can love you and still love me completely. Besides, it's no secret that I've had the hots for you for years now."
Collin quickly told Greg that not only was the feeling mutual with him but he knew that both Larry and Steven were more than casually interested in him. They agreed that this would be the time they indulged themselves and if it turned out to be a one time thing; well, they would all have one hell of a week. Collin told Greg, he would bet him real money that if they once shared themselves completely with each other, it would be a new 5 way relationship that would last for the rest of their lives.
The sun set, the moon rose and the five friends became quieter and quieter. They had all moved closer together. Greg was sitting between Larry and Steven and Collin and Nick were sitting across from them. They were so close they were all sharing a big ottoman and their feet were intertwined. Collin was rubbing his foot up Greg's calf. Nick had his arm on the back of the loveseat he was sharing with Collin. His hand was resting on Collin's neck and he was rubbing one finger along his hairline. Larry was stroking his fingers through Greg's silver curls. Steven turned and put his glass on the side table and when he turned back, he turned to Greg and kissed him on the cheek. He slid his mouth slowly forward and Greg turned his head and caught his mouth with his. They both sighed as they shared the first kiss of the night. It was not going to be the last. The kiss deepened and it was obvious that there was some tongue action going on. When they finally parted, Steven grinned at Greg and said, "You know, if we wait for our old fogey partners to start something we'll waste half the week."
Greg grinned back at him, grabbed him for one more open, mouthed kiss and answered him back, "Well then, I'd say it's up to us youngsters to get this orgy in high gear." He stood up, grabbed Steven's hand and pulled him up with him. He pulled Steven's body against his and rubbed their groins together, "You want to lead the way. Maybe they'll get the idea and follow."
They disappeared through the double French doors into the house. The three men left on the balcony could hear them laughing and then a pair of shorts came flying through the door to land on the veranda floor. Larry looked over at Collin and Nick. "I can't figure out if we just got propositioned or insulted."
Collin got up and offered one hand to Nick and the other to Larry. He pulled them both to their feet. He kissed Larry with love and affection and then Nick. Laughing, he said, "I think it's probably both and I also think we better get in there. I'm pretty sure they're starting without us but we can use our wisdom and skills to catch up. Can't we?"
Nick laughed back at his friend, once-lover and hopefully soon-to-be-again lover. He moved past him and put his arms around Larry. He looked at the handsome older man he'd come to love over the years. He took his face in his hands and said, "I've waited a long time to do this." He kissed Larry. He used his body, his lips and his mouth to express his admiration, his longing and his desire for the man who'd been responsible for his transformation so many years before. Larry returned the kiss and added his own long held desire for Nick to the mixture. Collin watched the two men he loved so much expressing their feelings for each other and felt his erection growing. He leaned forward, put his arms around both of them and kissed first one and then the other on the cheek and said, "You really don't want me to come in my pants out here in the open in front of everyone do you. Let's get inside and get naked."
Nick pulled back and gave Collin a deep kiss and said thoughtfully, "I really need to explain to you the difference between nude, naked and nekkid. Nude is nice, naked is better but for what we've got planned tonight, we need to get nekkid!"
Larry grabbed them both and started moving them towards the bedroom. "Thank God, I have no inhibitions what-so-ever."
It turned out to be a night to remember in every sense of the word. Steven and Greg had started without them. Greg was naked (nekkid) in the middle of the big, custom made bed. Steven was intent on tasting all of him if the wet, gleaming trails of saliva on Greg's body were any indication. Greg's lips were swollen and wet, his nipples were hard, standing up from his chest and Steven was fucking his belly button with his tongue. Every few seconds he would fasten his mouth around the sweet depression and start sucking on it as though he thought he might get something out of it. Greg was holding on to the carved openings in the headboard and moaning softly. He never even noticed when the other three men entered the bedroom.
Collin started to unbutton Larry's shirt but Larry grabbed the bottom and pulled it over his head. Then he turned to Nick and got his off just as quickly. He turned to Collin, rubbed his hand over the noticeable bulge in the front of his shorts and said, "Baby, there is a time for finesse and then there's a time for getting into the action as quickly as possible. Now which do you think this is?"
Nick grabbed Larry's pants by the waistband and pulled them and his underwear down to his ankles almost before he'd finished his sentence. He looked up at an open-mouthed Larry, grinned and said, "Hey, I just cast my vote." He pulled Collin's pants off and then his own and jumped on the bed behind Steven and reached between his legs and ran his finger down his hard erection.
Steven jumped, let out a yelp and said, "Good god, I'm glad I didn't have his cock in my mouth, I would have bit him."
Nick said, "Now that's a good idea." He gently pushed Steven over on his side, lifted Greg's leg and laid it across Steven's body and then he laid down between Greg's legs but further down, where he could reach Steve's twitching cock with his mouth. He took the hard, erect flesh in his mouth and tasted him for the first time.
Greg lifted his head, looked down and said, "Hey no fair. If he gets a blow job then I want one too."
Steven immediately took Greg's cock in his mouth and began licking and sucking on the head and dipping his tongue into the leaking slit in the head. Larry moved so he could get to Nick and Collin laid down next to Greg and claimed his lips in a deep kiss.
You would think with five grown men in one bed, it would be awkward and legs and arms would get in the way but these were 5 men who had been making love to men for years. They were familiar with the anatomy. If an arm or a leg was in the way, they either lifted it, got under it or just wrapped it around part of their body and got their hands or mouths on or around what ever they wanted. Nick was so lost in the sensations of strange hands and mouths that he was never quite sure whether it was Larry or Steven's dick that first slipped in his willing ass. He just knew it felt good and he was sure it wasn't Collin or Greg because he could see Collin working his long fingers in Greg's ass getting him ready.
They made love and slept tangled together in a pile. Nick also never knew who it was when he was awakened later by an eager mouth working on his swelling penis. He was pretty sure the mouth did not belong to the hands he felt spreading his ass cheeks apart and sliding into his willing hole. He was fucked and sucked back into a deep sleep and decided just before he slipped over the edge of sleep and orgasm that it didn't really matter. He was pretty happy with all of the people in the bed at that moment.
The week went by in a daze of sightseeing, sex, parties, sex, the Fox theater, sex and oh yes, did I mention SEX. On their last night together, they had spent hours loving each other. Nick was pretty sure, it would be days before he could walk normally and he didn't know if he would ever be able to sit without cringing just a little. He was laying on his side holding Greg in his arms. Steven was behind him with his arms wrapped around him, occasionally pressing a lazy kiss on his neck or ear. On the other side of Greg was Larry, almost asleep, but still dropping little butterfly kisses on Greg's forehead every so often and behind Larry, he could see Collin; his arm laid over Larry and his hand cupping his partners limp penis, almost out of it for good. Nick suddenly realized that was the first time the whole week that he had been next to Greg when they dropped off to sleep. Without even thinking about it, he slid his semi-erect dick down the cleft of Greg's ass. He loved to nestle himself between the warm cheeks of his butt as he went to sleep. Tonight however, there had been so much activity, he slipped inside Greg's ass before he even realized he'd done it. Once there, it felt so good he just nestled a little closer and got ready to go to sleep.
Greg raised his head a little and looked around. "Nick, did you just put your cock in my ass?"
"Yeah, did I hurt you baby? It just slipped right in."
Greg let out a wail. "Oh God, It's happened. I just knew it would."
Nick was frantic. "What? What has happened? Are you alright? What's the matter?"
By now, everyone in the bed was wide awake and Collin was reaching for the bed side lamp when Greg said, "I started out this week as a tight end and now………Now…….I'm a wide receiver."
Nick learned something new then. You cannot maintain an erection when you are laughing your ass off.
I only know what I know
The passing years will show
You've kept my love so young, so new
Time after Time. Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
They closed the door after their last guest. As they had done for so many years, they checked the downstairs windows and doors and set the alarm. Greg started into their living room but Nick reached for his arm to stop him and said, "You need to go to bed now."
Greg looked at his spouse and asked why he had to go to bed. Nick replied, "Because I'm tired."
Greg cocked his head to one side and stared at him for a moment. "Ok, explain and defend your position."
Nick shook his head and said, "It's so simple. I'm really tired and I need to sleep. I can't sleep without you beside me in the bed therefore….you have to go to bed."
Greg laughed out loud. "Damn it Stokes that actually makes sense in a strange sort of Stokesian fashion. Come on old man. I'll help you get to sleep."
Nick started back toward their elevator. He had not used the stairs since his heart attack eleven years ago. Greg oddly enough, still could go up and down stairs. Nick said he could to if he had artificial joints and a new heart. He fussed at Greg over his shoulder. "You know Sanders, those eight years you are so proud of really stopped meaning very much when we both passed 75."
Greg said, "It's more than eight chronological years baby. I'm still hip and happening. You on the other hand are turning into an old fogy."
They stepped into the elevator and Nick wrapped his arms around his long time love and kissed him. Greg responded as he had for the last 52 years; with all his heart. When Nick let him go, he said, "OK, maybe not a complete old fogy."
The two men changed into their sleep pants, brushed teeth and did all the nightly rituals they had done for so long. They settled down together in their big, comfortable bed. Nick let out a big sigh when he finally rested his tired head on his partner's chest. Greg rubbed his back gently. "You're really tired aren't you baby."
"Hell yes I'm tired. Our 50th anniversary went from a quiet dinner with family and friends to a 3 day affair with hundreds of people."
They had their quiet dinner but the next day they had an appointment with the dean of UNLV. They had both been retired for years but were still active as consultants to the university and this had been set up for several weeks. After the lunch, the dean asked them if they would go over to the auditorium with him and check out the arrangements for a series of lectures they were presenting.
They strolled across the lovely campus and went in the back doors of the huge building. It was pitch black and the dean told them to stay right there in the open door way while he got the stage lights on. It only took a moment and then they walked out on the stage with him. Greg who had never in all of his 84 years learned to keep his mouth shut said, "You know dean, this is pretty stark. I don't see a damn thing on this stage except for a couple of arm chairs."
The dean looked around and said, "You know Dr. Sanders you're right. Let's try this." Suddenly music started playing and they heard a group of singers they recognized at once as the university choral singers. They were singing 'I took one look at you, that's all I had to do and then my heart stood still.' The lights came up all over the auditorium and as Nick told Greg later, "I swear every single kid we ever taught was there." The audience all stood while the group finished their song and the dean led the two stunned men over to the arm chairs.
In the first row were their children with their spouses and all the grandchildren. They saw Warrick and Archie who were their only living contemporaries. Behind them were rows of friends, neighbors, adopted kids and it looked as though every officer, plainclothesman and crime technician in the state of Nevada. For the next two hours, they listened to funny, sad, thoughtful, happy and mostly loving stories about how they had affected the people in that audience. They were wrung out by the time it was over. That night there was a huge party at the university. Sunday, there was another party in their neighborhood. Alex Vartann had been dead for 20 years but his successor had been well trained. He knew these two men were special and they had earned their respect the hard way. By doing right and being good men. He had every off duty officer in town working the party. It was the largest block party Las Vegas had ever seen.
The passing years will show
You've kept my love so young, so new
Time after Time. Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
They closed the door after their last guest. As they had done for so many years, they checked the downstairs windows and doors and set the alarm. Greg started into their living room but Nick reached for his arm to stop him and said, "You need to go to bed now."
Greg looked at his spouse and asked why he had to go to bed. Nick replied, "Because I'm tired."
Greg cocked his head to one side and stared at him for a moment. "Ok, explain and defend your position."
Nick shook his head and said, "It's so simple. I'm really tired and I need to sleep. I can't sleep without you beside me in the bed therefore….you have to go to bed."
Greg laughed out loud. "Damn it Stokes that actually makes sense in a strange sort of Stokesian fashion. Come on old man. I'll help you get to sleep."
Nick started back toward their elevator. He had not used the stairs since his heart attack eleven years ago. Greg oddly enough, still could go up and down stairs. Nick said he could to if he had artificial joints and a new heart. He fussed at Greg over his shoulder. "You know Sanders, those eight years you are so proud of really stopped meaning very much when we both passed 75."
Greg said, "It's more than eight chronological years baby. I'm still hip and happening. You on the other hand are turning into an old fogy."
They stepped into the elevator and Nick wrapped his arms around his long time love and kissed him. Greg responded as he had for the last 52 years; with all his heart. When Nick let him go, he said, "OK, maybe not a complete old fogy."
The two men changed into their sleep pants, brushed teeth and did all the nightly rituals they had done for so long. They settled down together in their big, comfortable bed. Nick let out a big sigh when he finally rested his tired head on his partner's chest. Greg rubbed his back gently. "You're really tired aren't you baby."
"Hell yes I'm tired. Our 50th anniversary went from a quiet dinner with family and friends to a 3 day affair with hundreds of people."
They had their quiet dinner but the next day they had an appointment with the dean of UNLV. They had both been retired for years but were still active as consultants to the university and this had been set up for several weeks. After the lunch, the dean asked them if they would go over to the auditorium with him and check out the arrangements for a series of lectures they were presenting.
They strolled across the lovely campus and went in the back doors of the huge building. It was pitch black and the dean told them to stay right there in the open door way while he got the stage lights on. It only took a moment and then they walked out on the stage with him. Greg who had never in all of his 84 years learned to keep his mouth shut said, "You know dean, this is pretty stark. I don't see a damn thing on this stage except for a couple of arm chairs."
The dean looked around and said, "You know Dr. Sanders you're right. Let's try this." Suddenly music started playing and they heard a group of singers they recognized at once as the university choral singers. They were singing 'I took one look at you, that's all I had to do and then my heart stood still.' The lights came up all over the auditorium and as Nick told Greg later, "I swear every single kid we ever taught was there." The audience all stood while the group finished their song and the dean led the two stunned men over to the arm chairs.
In the first row were their children with their spouses and all the grandchildren. They saw Warrick and Archie who were their only living contemporaries. Behind them were rows of friends, neighbors, adopted kids and it looked as though every officer, plainclothesman and crime technician in the state of Nevada. For the next two hours, they listened to funny, sad, thoughtful, happy and mostly loving stories about how they had affected the people in that audience. They were wrung out by the time it was over. That night there was a huge party at the university. Sunday, there was another party in their neighborhood. Alex Vartann had been dead for 20 years but his successor had been well trained. He knew these two men were special and they had earned their respect the hard way. By doing right and being good men. He had every off duty officer in town working the party. It was the largest block party Las Vegas had ever seen.
************************************
Monday, had been relatively quiet. They had a steady stream of visitors; mostly those who had come from out of state and wanted to pay their respects personally before they left to go back to the good lives they lived because of Greg and Nick. Both men insisted everyone was giving them too much credit. They knew that all they had done was give them a solid education. They had taken that and built on it. All good things were a result of personal effort and integrity.
Everyone was gone by 6.00 pm and the men had a light supper with Archie and Warrick, their kids and a few close neighbors.
After dinner, everyone left and left the four long time friends alone to talk. They did talk but it was about all those beloved faces that weren't there with them any longer. Doc Robbins had died long before Greg was shot. Judge Stokes was next followed by Greg's father and one year later, his mother. Things were quiet until their baby CeLeigh was 5 years old. That's when Annie Brass fussed at her Jim about getting the planters ready for the autumn season. When he didn't answer back, Annie turned in time to see Jim look at her and then close his eyes and fall. He'd had a massive cerebral hemorrhage. Charlie told them he was dead before he ever hit the ground. They kept Annie very close to them for a long time after that. She and Greg grieved together. Greg had always respected and honored his father but there was no real love or affection between them. The senior Sanders never knew how to act with his genius, homo-sexual son. The day Jim had put his hands in the gaping, bloody hole in Greg's side and held his life in his hands and refused to allow that life to leave his body, he had taken Greg and put him in that empty place in his heart he had saved for Ellie for so long. All the love and affection he had wanted to lavish on his daughter went to Greg and Greg took it all and returned it in kind. They mourned Brass from that day on.
Two years later, Greg and Gil were playing their favorite game with their students. One of them would pick a student and tell them to name an element. Then the other picked another student and had them name another. Then Gil and Greg would play "Name that Compound" with the class. Greg had just had his turn and when Gil didn't respond he looked over. Gil was standing there with a puzzled look on his face. He looked at Greg and said, "I forget the name." Then he went down. Greg thought for one terrible moment that is was Jim all over but Gil was still alive. He'd had a stroke; a bad one. His left side was involved; he couldn't walk or talk well. His arm and hand were useless but he was alive and Greg fought for him with all the love he'd invested in Gil when he lost Jim.
Gil regained his speech within 6 weeks to the extent that if he spoke slowly and used simple verbs and nouns he could be understood. They were in his room at the rehab center he'd been sent to after a week in the hospital. They were trying to decide whether they wanted full time home help or specialized nursing care when Gil said very clearly, NO. They all looked at him in surprise.
He said slowly but distinctly, "No help, go to nursing home." Greg looked at him in horror.
"What do you mean nursing home?"
"Less bother. Take care of basic needs."
Greg walked over to Gil and got down in his face. "Now you listen to me you stubborn old coot. You are NOT going to a nursing home and you sure as hell are going to have more than your basic needs taken care of. You're going home with us. We have the room, we still have the hospital bed and all the equipment. Hell we even have the Red Rocket for you to get around. It will be kind of fun to see that one out of moth balls and zipping around again."
And that's exactly what happened. Nick and Greg took him home with them, put him in the downstairs suite and lavished love and affection on him. Cath, Annie, LeAnn, Leah, Nancy, Marcie and every single kid who could walk and wanted Paw-Paw Gil to read to them kept his days and evenings full. It was ironic that Gilbert Grissom lived the best two and one-half years of his life after he'd been given a death sentence. When he had his last hard stroke, they of course took him to the hospital and Charlie went over all his tests. He came back to Gils room and asked them to come out in the hall but Gil said his loud firm NO. "Not Dead Yet. Tell Me!"
Charlie walked over to him, sat down on the side of his bed and picked up his hand. He held it tight. This was hard for Charlie. He'd had a rough time after he married Lindsay. Because of the relationships between all of them, he was for sure an outsider who had married into a large family of protective males. Most of them carried guns and the ones who didn't could not only think of inventative ways to kill him, they could make sure they'd get away with it. He finally figured out that if he treated any male older than him like a father-in-law and any woman older than him like a mother-in-law; he just might get out of it alive. After a while, it wasn't hard anymore. There was so much love between these people that it was easy to just let it spill over on him. He'd come to love Gil as much as he did Warrick and he'd been heart-broken when he lost Jim.
"Gil, this last stroke has weakened every major artery to the point where there is simply nothing we can do now. You can't survive surgery and it would take so much medication to try to keep your blood flowing that you'd be an accident waiting to happen. We can give you medication to keep you comfortable and safe here for the weeks you have left."
Gil was shaking his head NO, NO, NO before Charlie finished. "Not here. Home, go home."
Greg who was having a really hard time facing the fact that he was losing Gil too almost sobbed out loud at that one. He looked at Nick. He knew he could take strength from him but Nick was a little stunned too. They both realized that Gil thought of their place as 'home' and it filled them with happiness even as they got ready to mourn his loss.
They took him home. He had 2 more good weeks. The dogs slept under his bed and only left him to eat and go out doors. The cats, all three of them slept on the foot of his bed. Even the damned rabbit came into the room and tried to get up on the bed. When Greg picked her up and set her on the bed, she went up to the top and settled between Gils chest and his left arm.
Nancy had quit nursing when she and Hodges married, at his request. He told her it was her decision but he would really like her to stay at home and let him take care of her. Nancy was a strong woman who didn't need taking care of but she was also a twin to Nick. She was one of the most loving people you would ever hope to meet and she realized that David had a deep need to know that he was meeting all her needs and she gave her job up with no regrets at all. Of course, with their circle of friends, someone was always having a baby or some body's kid had an accident and needed taking care of so it wasn't as though she stopped nursing.
She had become Gil's primary caretaker when it came to medical procedures. She was with him constantly those last weeks. And like all really good nurses, she had a 6th sense about when she was going to lose a beloved patient. On his last day, she performed his morning rituals and asked him if he would like some oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar. She went to the kitchen to fix his breakfast and called Cath and Annie and told them it was going to be that day or the next. She brought their meals in and got Gil ready to eat. He finished his oatmeal and looked up at her and said, "Today?" She was not able to answer him but simply nodded her head. He nodded back and said, "You called Cath, Annie….both." She nodded again. He said, "Company, fix me." She shaved him, trimmed his beard, helped him brush his teeth and changed him into his favorite blue t-shirt. It matched his blue eyes and made him look dashing.
Gil died leaning back against Greg and Nick with their strong arms around him. Cath had her head in his lap and Greg had put his useless left head on her head so he could feel her silky curls on his fingers. He opened his eyes at the end, looked around the room and said, "So much love. Was always there. Just had to reach out."
**********************************
Cath was next and it was a double blow because they thought for several weeks they were going to lose Warrick too. Lindsay was expecting her sixth and last child. She had reached the end of her first trimester when Warrick found the lump in Cath's breast one evening when they had the house to themselves and were fooling around on the couch. He had her in the doctor's office the next morning. It was malignant and it had spread to the lymph nodes and her pancreas. Cath was determined to see her last grandbaby and fought every step of the way. She refused chemo and radiation. She said she did not want to spend her last months puking her guts out and going bald. It was touch and go but she did live long enough to hold the little red-headed baby girl in her arms. They named her Catherine Willow Lambach. She was a beautiful monument to the woman they all loved so deeply.
Warrick was not the type of man to eat his gun or slit his wrists. He just stopped eating. Nick and Greg were almost frantic with grief and worry. Everyone tried everything they could think of but Warrick just looked at them with those sad, emerald eyes and told them not worry. He was fine. No one knew he always added in his head, 'Just as soon as I'm with my baby again, I'll be fine."
Lindsay Willows Lambach channeled Catherine's unique, fighting spirit and walked in one day, walked up to Warrick, got in his face and yelled at him. She told him he was not about to check out and leave her. It was bad enough that she had 6 kids to raise; 6 kids who'd just lost their beloved G-mom. Did he really want them to live without their G-Pop too? Was he so selfish that he would put his needs ahead of his family; his family he had sworn to love and protect for the rest of his life? She told him that the man she called Daddy, the man who had held her close the day he married her mother and told her he would be there for her forever would never do this to her and her babies. Warrick never stood a chance. He pulled himself together, said good-bye to his beloved red-head and devoted himself to not just Lindsay's kids but every kid in the neighborhood who needed a G-Pop.
**********************************
Greg and Nick thought they had lived through the worst of everything after Catherine but they had one more blow to bear and it brought them to their knees and almost finished them off.
Collin had been right. After the week they spent in Atlanta, it was obvious that the connection between the 5 friends was deep and solid. It was not lust but love that they felt for each other. They spent a long weekend together every two months and twice a year they all got away to spend a week together. As they all grew older, the passion grew more mellow and the frenzied love-making calmed down but the passion between the five stayed true and firm.
They were almost expecting it when Steven called and told them that Larry had just passed away. It was a heart attack; so sudden, he'd had no time to call them. They had gone to Switzerland 2 months before and they had all noticed that Larry was having a hard time breathing in the cold, thin mountain air.
Collin was in New Delhi, India. He had gone over to present plans for a multi-million dollar medical project. As health care in the United States worsened more and more Americans were opting for medical treatment overseas; especially for high dollar surgery. A hip replacement that could cost $40,000.00 to $60,000.00 in the US cost $15,000.00 in New Delhi. That included the air fare round-trip, recuperation in a luxurious guest-cottage and even a guided tour to the Taj Mahal. As more and more people were opting for the cheap high class care in foreign cities, the need for larger and better medical facilities was growing. The complex Collin had designed was the most involved, detailed project he'd ever worked on.
He would have been home with Steven when Larry died if he hadn't been such a damn good architect. The New Delhi Commission had taken one look at his plan's and his detailed scale model and made their decision at once. They had asked Collin to stay for a few more days and help them create material lists so they could get competitive bids.
When Steven called, Collin left on the first plane out; a plane that was selected by a small terrorist cell to teach the wealthy foreign pigs that they were not safe anywhere. Two of the cell members gave their life but they took out a jumbo jet and 317 souls. One of those souls was Collin Travis, beloved partner of Larry, Steven, Nick and Greg.
Steven had called them as soon as he got Collin's travel arrangements and the men were making their own travel arrangements to get to Coll and Steven as quickly as possible. Nick was on the phone with the travel agent while Greg was arranging for their classes to be taught by their substitutes.
Yes I said their classes. After Greg lost Gil he lost all interest in teaching. He said it wasn't that he couldn't teach by himself, he could and had on many occasions. He just didn't want to. Nick was beginning to tire of the constant political pressure he handled every day as director of the second best lab in the United States. He looked into what it would take to finish his masters and aced the classes in less than two years. When he did he went to talk to the dean who realized at once that he would not only be getting a brilliant professor that would inspire his students to bigger and better things, he would also be getting Greg back full time. Greg had returned when Nick started working on his Master's but his heart wasn't in it and he never was able to handle full time. When Nick began to teach with him, he found his love for the work returning. After all, Nick was his very first 'Name that Compound' partner.
Greg was on hold and was idly watching the news on TV when a special bulletin came on the air. The announcer was talking about a terrible air tragedy. Greg still didn't really pay too much attention until the announcer said the plane had taken off from the New Delhi airport that morning heading for JFK in New York. Greg dropped the phone, grabbed the remote and turned up the sound. Nick heard the words New Delhi and ran into the living room. That's how they found out they had lost Collin as well as Larry. They knew they had to get to Steven as quickly as possible. Nick called Naomi and she said she would stay with him. She gave him a sedative and put him to bed. Later that night she heard water running and went to the main bath door. She tapped on the door and Steven told her he was OK, he just thought maybe a soak in the Jacuzzi would help him relax. Naomi went back to bed. She never ever forgave herself. When she heard Nick and Greg let themselves in the apartment at 4.30am that morning, she got up to greet them. She told them Steven was still asleep. Greg went into the bedroom. Nick and Naomi heard him call Steven's name and they both turned and ran. They were with Greg when he opened the bathroom door and saw the bright red water in the Jacuzzi. The small, silver knife he'd bought for Larry to peal his apples with was laying on the floor beside the tub. There was a letter for Greg and Nick on the vanity. He told them he loved them as much as he loved Coll and Larry but his life had been in Atlanta with the two men. He'd loved Larry from the moment he met him when he was just fifteen. Larry had refused to even touch him until he was eighteen. On his eighteenth birthday he'd seduced Larry and they had not been apart for a day since then. Their love had taken in first Collin and then Nick and Greg and had become complete and perfect. He told Nick and Greg they had been the perfect pieces to complete their life and that the three of them would be waiting for them. He added that he hoped they made them wait a long time for them.
After that, they still lost friends and loved ones but nothing ever hurt them that bad again.
*********************
They had gone to sleep almost as soon as the lamp went out. Greg usually slept solidly through the night; especially when he held Nick in his arms or felt him curled around his back. He could not figure out what had woke him out of a sound sleep. He looked over at the digital clock. It was 4.33 am. He listened trying to catch the sound that disturbed him. Nothing seemed to be out of order. Nick had rolled away from him slightly in his sleep and he turned towards his love to see if he had heard anything and then he realized. It wasn't a noise that woke him; it was the absence of noise. The soft gentle snore he had listened to for 52 years was still. He knew without even touching Nick. He thought about all the calls he would have to make then he decided he would just call CeLeigh and she and Leah would take care of all the calls. Leah had been acting as their housekeeper ever since Nick's heart attack. She would be there later that morning to bring them their first coffee of the day.
He gently rolled Nick back against him. He worked his knee between Nick's legs and Nick's leg fell across his body just the way it had every night for all their long life together. He settled Nick's head on his chest and rested his cheek against the thick, silver white hair. He knew he should go take care of things but he wanted just a few more private moments. He and Nick had loved each other passionately for so many years. He always said he'd fell for Nick the minute they were introduced. That meant that the man he held in his arms had held his heart in his loving care for 60 long years. Surely that entitled him to some selfish time. He settled Nick closer and as he felt the first stabbing pains in his heart, he forced them down. He would just love Nick right now. The sorrow could come later.
Leah found them later that morning when she brought them coffee. She shut the door and went to call CeLeigh. There would be two more angels in heaven tonight. She wondered if heaven would ever be the same after those two got there.
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