Title: Taking Chances
By: Foxy Nighthawk
Pairing: Cath/Sara
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, they belong to Jerry Bruckheimer (I think.). I'm making no money on this.
Summary: Catherine takes a chance, but how will Sara respond?

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"Hey," Catherine walked into the lab Sara was working in. "Got anything interesting?" She asked walking closer.

"Nothing much, no," Sara shook her head. "I'm just going over the evidence for the Anderson trial next week."

"Right," Catherine leaned against the table and gave the brunette a once over. "Sara…" She paused looking down for a second, before looking back up meeting brown eyes.

"Yes," Sara didn't seem to notice the shyness suddenly falling over the blonde.

"When I was younger," Catherine started. She took a deep breath gaining more confidence. "When I was younger I really enjoyed playing this game…"

"What game?" Sara looked up from the evidence on the table, giving the blonde her full attention.

"This game… Us… You and me…" Catherine pointed back and forth between them.

"I uh… I don't really know what…" Sara looked away from the blonde.

"I still enjoy playing the game, Sara, but…" She paused. "I like this flirting we've got going on, but I just hate the frustrations of it not going any further. I hate going home doubting whether or not you're just being nice or if you want something to happen. I hate the feeling of us staying in this place between something or nothing."

"Ok… Uhm…" Sara started fiddling with the files on the table, seemingly determined not to meet the blonde's eyes.

"You see," the blonde mused. "Usually I just move on to the next available person I find attractive. The problem with this situation is…" She looked over at the brunette, but didn't get eye contact. "Sara? Look at me please." Sara turned her head and looked at her. "The problem here, with you, is that I don't want to move on. I want to see where this… I want to see what we could be."

"Cath…" Sara looked away from her.

"It's ok," Catherine nodded. "I understand – I think." She straightened up. "I'm gonna head home, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah," Sara whispered.

"Goodnight." Catherine squeezed her shoulder gently, before exiting the room.

The next night the night shift was waiting for Grissom and assignments in the break room. Catherine had been the last to arrive and she had just sat down at the table next to Warrick with a cup of coffee when Grissom walked in.

"Warrick, Nick, you have a DB in Henderson." He handed them a slip with the information on it.

"Catherine, Sara, DB downtown." He handed them a slip as well and they got up to leave.

Walking into the locker room Catherine was almost too aware of the woman following behind her. She walked to her locker and grabbed her jacket, while acting as if nothing had happened between the two of them.

"Cath…" Sara broke the silence between them. "About yesterday…"

"Yeah, let's just pretend that didn't happen, Sara." Catherine cut her off. "I made my feelings clear, and so did you. Let's just… Let's forget about it and try to have a civil work relationship." She walked out the door expecting the brunette to follow her.

The ride to the crime scene was spent in silence, both listening to the radio. Catherine glanced over at the brunette driving, she'd never imagined her to like 80s pop, but judging by the songs playing she did. The blonde had never really heard the songs they were listening to before, but she liked them very much. At least they very happy and upbeat not like the sad love songs she had been crying to this morning. She smiled when she heard Sara softly singing along with the music.

"I love you,

Or at least that's what I think I do

Cause I never did feel this way before

It's the first time around and you got my by surprise."

They arrived at their crime scene and were met by Sofia Curtis.

"Ladies," she greeted them with a smile, "looking good tonight."

"Not looking too bad yourself, Detective Curtis." Sara answered with a smile.

Catherine felt how her body froze, when she heard the flirting banter between the two younger women. She couldn't help feeling that she'd misjudged Sara's flirting with her all this time and that meant that she'd basically made an ass of herself talking to the brunette earlier.

"What've you got for us, Curtis?" She couldn't stop the slight sneer in her voice asking the question.

"Uhm," Catherine didn't miss the confused look on the detective's face, nor the apologetic shrug Sara provided. "The body's back there." Sofia pointed to the alley.

"Anyone touch anything?" She knew how bitchy she sounded, but she couldn't bring herself to care too much about hurt feelings.

"Nope," Sofia walked with them towards the scene. "Are you ok, Catherine?" She asked hesitantly.

"I'm fine." She said shortly, snapping on her gloves. "I'll get the body." She directed at Sara, who just nodded in accept.

"Someone is having a bad day today," she heard Sofia mutter to Sara when she walked towards the body. She didn't bother to listen to Sara's answer, but bent over the dead man and started working.

"I don't think we'll get more here." Sara said walking up to her.

"Yeah," she agreed and stood up. "We might as well head back to the lab." She took one last look around the alley. She wrinkled her nose at the smell of both of them, one of the bad sides of working a DB in an alley was all the dumpsters occupying it. She bent down and picked up her kit.

"Here, let me take that." Sara grabbed a hold of it at the same time.

Catherine looked up and into brown eyes when their hands touched, but quickly looked down again and moved her hand away, before standing up straight again.

"Sofia was right you know." Sara stood up as well, kit in hand.

"About what?" She snapped. "Am I suddenly not allowed to have a bad day?"

"Not about that," Sara started walking towards the Denali, but turned around to look at her after a couple of steps. "You look good tonight." She turned back and continued walking towards the car.

Catherine took a deep breath and let it out again slowly. She felt flattered and furious at the same time. Any woman is happy to hear that she looks good, but at the same time she felt that Sara was playing with her. It had barely been 12 hours since their conversation, at least she could have the decency to not play with her emotions. She sighed deeply and followed the brunette to the car.

Once again the music filled the silence in the car. Catherine was silently contemplating what to do about Sara's remark. She was mostly inclined to let it go and pretend that it hadn't affected her, but in the end she turned towards the woman driving.

"Sara," she paused thinking about her words. "I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't say things like that to me." She settled on.

"I…" Sara glanced over at her shortly before returning her eyes to the road.

"I realize that I pretty much made an ass of myself this morning, so could you please not make it worse than it already is?" Catherine looked out the window. She was not used to be in such a vulnerable position.

"Ok," Sara nodded. "It's just…" She pulled the car over to the side and put it in park. She turned towards the blonde. "It's just, this morning, you didn't really give me a chance to…"

"I gave you every chance, Sara." Catherine turned her head and looked at her. "I gave you every chance to say something – anything, but you just stood there…" She looked away from her again, biting her thumb.

"Honestly, Catherine," Sara shook her head. "I was..." She smiled. "I was just so surprised that you would feel like that about me."

"Right," Catherine let out a snort. "Because I flirt like that with just anybody." She shook her head.

"Yes," Sara nodded her head vigorously. "You do that, you flirt a lot with people. And I never thought that I was any different from the rest of them." She laughed. "I never in a million years..." She let the sentence fade into nothing and looked towards the blonde.

"I never flirt with just anybody like we have been flirting, Sara. I want to make that very clear." Catherine looked out the window. "I do use my sexuality to make things easier, but it is all innocent flirting that means nothing." She didn't turn to look at the brunette. "I..." She sighed. "I never just flirted with you."

"Okay," Sara put the car back in drive and started driving again. "But just for the record," she glanced at the blonde, who was still looking out the window. "I never just flirted with you either. And if you're free, I would like to take you out to breakfast after shift."

Catherine finally looked over at her, a smile forming on her lips.

"I'm free."

-The End-

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