In the same universe as my series POSITIVE/NEGATIVE.
The lyrics used in this piece of fan-fiction, are from Blame It On The Bossa Nova. I don't own anything; it belongs to Eydie Gormé.
Horatio gently leaned over the hand brake to take the plastic bag containing take-out dinner from the passenger seat, opening the car door and getting out, closing it behind him. He made his way through the door leading him from the garage to the laundry room, walking past the active washing machine, the laundry basket rattling loudly on top. It would be about time he was going to fix that. He sighed. He'd do it in the weekend, he told himself as he walked up the steps to another door bringing him to the kitchen.
The door closed behind him, as he carefully placed the plastic bag of take-out Thai on the kitchen counter and wondered where his wife was. It felt extremely empty to him here downstairs, so he assumed that she must be upstairs. As he walked up the spiraling stairs bringing him to the first floor, the sound of running water filled his ears, together with Calleigh's voice. She was singing along with the radio again. He couldn't precisely make out the words until he neared the bathroom. He smiled to himself. He loved these nights. It had been too long since their last one. The two of them truly worked too much.
"Sweetheart?" The red haired man called through the bathroom door, but just as anticipated, she couldn't hear him. He gently opened the bathroom door and found the radio next to the sink, so to hear on its loudest. He gently turned the volume down, so his wife maybe would hear him, getting an almost immediate reaction from her.
"Hey! Lieutenant Caine! You turn that up, again!"
Horatio chuckled. "I just wanted to inform you that I'm home with dinner." He turned around to leave the bathroom again, subtly 'forgetting' to turn the radio louder again, smiling as he went downstairs again, waiting for his wife's reaction. She didn't disappoint him. Soon enough, that reaction came and he simply couldn't help but smile wider.
"WHY DO YOU BUILD ME UP!" Calleigh had started singing along as loud as she possibly could. "BUTTERCUP, BABY!"
Horatio was still smiling as he entered the kitchen again, having left the sound of Calleigh singing upstairs. He wondered where she could have hidden the placemats. She'd been reorganizing their whole kitchen lately. He couldn't find anything anymore. He always seemed to turn back to everything's old spots. He sighed and decided to start with the kitchen island. He found a rather large placemat under the sink, suitable for two adults, and turned back to the counter, to one of the drawers where he did remember the cutlery lay. He took two forks and placed them on the placemat as well, then reached up to one of the higher cupboards to get two wine glasses. He had remembered their place well.
Only one thing was still missing. Horatio turned to the fridge and took out a bottle of white wine. It had been opened last night, but was still more than half full. The two of them had suddenly been... occupied with other things. He smiled briefly, placing the bottle on the placemat with the rest of what was to be taken upstairs. As he walked to the stairs, Pawsome, their little black cat, hopped in through the cat flap.
She immediately came running to him, stroking against his legs. "You're hungry, I suppose?" Horatio questioned, placing the placemat on the side table right next to the spiraling stairs. He wandered back to the kitchen and opened a well chosen cupboard, revealing Pawsome's kitten food. He easily removed the lid and offered her her dinner. She gratefully pushed her head against Horatio's hand as he gently put her food down. He stroked along her back and smiled, getting up.
He walked back to the stairs, picking up the placemat he had left there on the side table earlier before climbing it. When he got to the first floor, he immediately missed the sound of water running. He could, however, hear that Calleigh had found the maximum volume again. Thank goodness the two of them didn't have a terraced house, or there would have been complaints from the neighbors by this time already.
Horatio found his wife as he could have guessed still in the bathroom. He smiled and decided to get rid of the heavy placemat first, placing it on the dressers in the adjoining bedroom. He went back to stand looking at his gorgeous wife from the doorway. She was at the moment combing through her long, blond hair, still singing along to the radio, and dancing. She wasn't wearing anything but a shine through purplish nightgown.
Blame it on the Bossa Nova
With its magic spell
Blame it on the Bossa Nova
That he did so well
Calleigh suddenly found her husband's figure reflected into the mirror and turned around, wondering how long he must have been standing there before she'd noticed him. He smiled as she neared him and took his hands. "Oh, dance with me, Horatio..." she whispered in that begging tone he recognized so well.
Oh it all began with just one little dance
But soon it ended up a big romance
Blame it on the Bossa Nova
The dance of love
She laughed, as Horatio simply turned off the radio and picked her up to carry her into their bedroom bridal style. "Weren't you hungry?" He wondered, as she started giggling. He wondered if she'd maybe found anything else alcoholic while he'd been away. He didn't care, because he was just so happy to see her that way.
"Mmm..." she answered, "I might have something else in mind to eat than Thai..." She teasingly bit his earlobe, and Horatio knew he could have saved himself the trouble to order for two. Much real food wouldn't be involved...