I don't own anything from CSI. You know how it goes, you're not stupid.

A/N: Hey guys, this is my first CSI fic so please don't hate me if it sucks. I hope you like it though. Let me know what you think. Please review! It inflates my ego. Also, I'm gonna try to update every Friday. I'm trying to write ahead of myself so I already have the next chapter written but I won't post it yet. Thanks for reading!

As Nick's truck pulled up to the house, he was surrounded by flashing blue and red lights and yellow crime scene tape. It was another night, with another homicide he needed to solve. This job had really started to wear on him lately. He had never felt so alone before, but he had started to realize that he was quickly approaching middle age and still he had never before been in a serious relationship. When he went home, no one was there for him to talk to. He was getting tired of these simple girls he met in bars. There just wasn't enough substance to them. He knew that his time was soon up. He wasn't getting any younger, as his mirror reminded him every morning. He used to enjoy the bachelor lifestyle, but then he had had Warrick to go to the bars with. Now, Warrick was married and he just couldn't justify going out to a bar with Greg. He liked the young CSI, but he just wouldn't use him as a wingman. Here he was again, at another person's house, dusting for fingerprints, swabbing for DNA, chasing a murderer, and trying to not let it get to him.

Nick lifted up the crime scene tape and walked over toward Brass, who was standing there waiting for the three CSIs with his notepad open. Catherine and Warrick followed behind Nick.

"What've you got for us tonight, Jim?" Catherine called out from behind Nick.

"Male D.B. Age 55. Gunshot wounds all over his body. Somebody really did a number on him."

"Any witnesses or suspects?"

"Just the family. The wife was upstairs with their daughter who was here for dinner. Both claim they were upstairs when they heard the gunfire start. Daughter came running downstairs after the shots ceased, saw her father lying on his back, dead on the floor."

"Where's she at now?"

"Over there by the tree. Mom's over by the garage."

"Alright, thanks Jim." Catherine stood grimly on the spot. She hated these cases as much as the next person. The image of Lindsey having to watch her father die in that car crash returned to her head. She didn't know if she would be able to interview that poor girl.

"Warrick, you can take the perimeter, Nick, do you think you can interview the mom and daughter? I'll take the inside."

"Sure." Both Warrick and Nick walked off in their respective directions.

As Nick approached the mom, he felt a tug at his heart. These family cases always reminded him that he didn't have one. He had no idea how these people were feeling, but he would always try to empathize with them.

"Mrs. Hennessy? I'm Nick Stokes; I'm with the Las Vegas Crime Lab. I'm just gonna ask you a few questions. Is that alright?"

She had tears in her eyes and her words sounded choked as she agreed.

"Can you just take me through what happened tonight?"

"I was upstairs with Katie, my daughter; I was giving her some pictures of her we took at her college graduation. My husband was so proud of her. She needed the pictures for a photo album she was putting together for his birthday. I had just handed her a box of photos and that's when we heard the gun shots."

"Do you know how many gun shots you heard?"

"Oh, I don't know. There were so many. Maybe five or six?"

"Alright, thanks. What happened after you heard the shots fired?"

"Katie ran out of the room to go see what had happened. I heard her scream and so I ran out and saw him at the foot of the stairs. He was on his back and his blood—his blood—his blood was—everywhere." Mrs. Hennessy had started to full out cry now.

Nick knew he wasn't going to get anything more out of her at that point. She needed to calm down a bit. He thought perhaps he might have better luck with the daughter.

Nick slowly walked over to where the daughter was supposed to be. As he approached her, he couldn't help but notice that she didn't look a thing like her mother. Where her mother had brown eyes and black hair, the daughter had long blonde hair and light blue eyes. She was standing underneath the tree with her arms wrapped around herself. She looked cold. Her hair slowly moved with the light breeze that was out. She was wearing a tank top and white shorts. Short shorts, Nick noted in his mind. Nick noticed how long her legs looked. She was tiny. Short and skinny. He couldn't help but feel a little attracted to her looks. What guy wouldn't?

Now was not the time, Nick thought, to be thinking thoughts like that. Her father had just been killed for goodness sakes.

As Nick approached her, she turned her attention to him. His stomach somersaulted. She was defiantly very beautiful.

"Hi. I'm Nick Stokes; I'm with the Crime Lab. I need to ask you a few questions concerning your father."

"What do you need to know?" She began to rub her hands up and down her arms.

"Are you cold? I have a jacket in the back of my truck if you need it."

"I think it's just more shock and nerves. But thanks all the same Mr. Stokes."

"Please, call me Nick." He didn't know why he was asking her to do that. He supposed he just wanted to feel closer to her. Hearing her call him so formally made him feel awkward.

"Alright, Nick. What questions do you have for me?"

"Oh, right. What can you tell me about what happened here tonight?"

"Well, I came over to have dinner with my mom and dad. I needed to borrow some pictures from my college graduation; I was making a scrap book for my dad. My mom and I went upstairs to get the pictures and my dad went into the kitchen to clean some dishes. We were only upstairs for about five minutes when we heard the gun shots. I waited for them to stop and ran out into the hallway. When I got to the top of the stairs, I saw his body and his blood all over the place at the bottom. I screamed and my mom came running. That's when I called you guys."

"How many shots would you say you heard?"

"Four or five I think."

"Alright. I'm gonna need to take your fingerprints and you DNA and I'm also gonna need to test you for gun shot residue. It's just to eliminate you as a suspect."

"Anything that will help find out who did this."

Nick opened up his kit and removed his SEM. He removed the cap from it and held out his hand, indicating she should do the same. He began to press the disk all over her palm and then all over the back of her hand. He noted how small her hands were. They fit perfectly inside his. She had perfectly manicured nails and very soft skin. He almost felt sorry he was going to have to mess that up with ink soon.

"By the way, I didn't get your name." He had suddenly remembered that he would need to write who these samples were coming from.

"Kaitlin Hennessy. Everyone calls me Katie though. What is that thing you are pressing all over my hand?"

"It's an SEM; Scanning Electron Microscope. It tests for gunshot residue on your hands. If you have fired a gun recently, you will have the residue from the muzzle of the gun still on your hands. This is just a quick and simple way to test for it… Katie."

He lifted his head up and smiled at her. She smiled sweetly back. Wow, she's beautiful, Nick thought as he capped the end of the SEM.

Wait, what am I doing? She's beautiful and I'm smiling at her. She's a suspect in the murder I'm investigating. I've really got to snap outta this. It ain't good.

Nick quickly diverted his attention from her and reached into his kit again, this time for a printing set.

Yet again, he got to hold her soft and small hands as he printed her. When he was finished he reached back into his kit for an alcohol wipe.

"Here, this should remove most of the ink." He handed her two alcohol wipes and again smiled at her. This time she smiled a bit bigger and thanked him. His stomach did another somersault. He didn't like where this was going. He needed to finish this up fast and go back over to her mother or else he might do something more than smile at her.

Nick reached back into his kit for the last time and pulled out a small cardboard box. He opened it and removed the capped cotton swab inside.

"I just need you to open up you mouth for me so I can swab inside for you DNA."

She obligingly opened up her mouth and he rubbed the swab on the inside of her cheek. She had beautiful teeth, he thought. Very white and very straight. He supposed she must have had braces at some point.

"You've had braces?" He asked her before he could stop himself.

"Yeah, when I was a teenager. I guess they worked."

"They did, you've got a beautiful smile." He mentally smacked himself for flirting so openly with her.

Katie didn't mind, however, she actually quite liked it. She was used to getting hit on all day at work, but now that the handsome guy in front of her was doing it, she didn't mind. She looked him over once, noting that he was quite built and that he didn't appear to be much older than she was.

"Thanks," she responded before continuing, "Where are you from?"

"I'm from here." He didn't quite understand what she was asking

"No I mean originally. You have a southern accent. I was wondering where in the south you are from."

"Oh." He mentally kicked himself again for being so stupid.

"I'm from Texas."

"Wow, that's cool. I always wished I could be from somewhere cool like that. Instead I was just born and raised here in Vegas."

"Well Vegas ain't so bad. It gets interesting."

They stood and stared at each other for what seemed like hours, but, instead, were just a few short moments. Nick finally snapped out of his trance and looked over toward the garage where Katie's mother stood. She seemed to have calmed down a bit. He knew now was the time he would have to go over and take her DNA.

"I should go and collect you mother's prints and stuff now."

"Alright, thanks Nick."

He picked up his kit and felt his stomach somersault for the third time upon hearing her say his name. He liked the way she said it.

"Are you gonna be ok?"

He didn't know why he was asking her, it wasn't like he could stay there with her or anything. He had a long night ahead of him collecting evidence. It was a pointless question, but he found himself wanting her to want him to stay with her.

"Yeah, I think I'll be alright. Thanks."

Nick gave her a final smile and wave and walked back over toward the mother, wishing that he could stay back with Katie and her amazing smile.

Man, you've got a problem, he thought as he walked away.