Title: Secret Admirer

Author: Aeon Cole

Rating: T

Fandom: CSI

Warning: SLASH

Pairing: Gill Grissom/Nick Stokes

Disclaimer: I own none of it.

Summary: Nick has a secret admirer.

Author's Note: For the 20 First Kisses challenge on LiveJournal prompt "Secret Message/Love note"

Author's Note 2: The two poems quoted below are by Judith Pordon. The first is "How Will You Kiss" and the second is "No Boundaries." Both are translations from the original Spanish.

888

Nick sat on the bench in the locker room and sighed. It had been a long night and a tough case. And to top it all off, they were stretched so thin that he'd had to work the case by himself. All he wanted to do right now was go home and pass out. Even the bench was starting to look good as a bed at the moment.

Warrick Brown walked into the locker room, took one look at Nick and said, "Man, you look like hell."

Nick glared at him momentarily. "If you had the night I had, y'all would look like this too."

Warrick laughed. "So I guess goin' to grab breakfast with me is out the door?"

Nick smirked and said, "Not unless you want to do it back at my place."

"Not even going there," Warrick bantered back.

Nick laughed. He knew that Warrick was strait but liked to tease him anyway. Warrick knew that Nick was gay, so he let him. It was a little game they liked to play. He stood up and stretched, groaning at his aching muscles. When he opened his locker, an envelope fell out.

"Oh, shit man. Not again," he drawled and he threw the envelope back into his locker without opening it.

Warrick smiled. "Oh come on man, you're not even gonna look."

"Not in the mood," he replied.

"How many does that make?" Warrick asked.

Nick blew out a breath before he answered. "Four."

Warrick shook his head. "Someone's got it bad for you, man. Probably that new receptionist. She's kinda cute."

"Not interested," Nick said flatly.

Warrick grabbed the envelope from Nick's locker before Nick could stop him. He ripped it open, removed the note and started reading. "Oh shit," he said and handed the card to Nick.

Nick read, "Lilt me your lips, our lost breath intermingling. Synchronize our silence, as lazy hours ease by. Waft cocoa, hazelnut, cinnamon, scents around me. Tremble with me, in paralyzing pauses. I may no longer breathe, without breathing you."

Visions began running unbidden through his head and he had to close his eyes. Images of a man, his unrequited love, flashed in front of him. He could almost feel the man's lips on his. He shook his head to clear it and chided himself for thinking that Gil Grissom could ever feel for him in that way. He quickly regained control of his thoughts then he slammed his locker shut and stormed out of the room with the card still in his hand.

He made it out to his pickup truck and collapsed into the driver's seat. He let his head fall forward and rest on the steering wheel. He was tired, his muscles ached, and now he was horny. "Great, just great," he muttered.

There was a knock at the window that startled him. 'Now what,' he thought as he raised his head. He looked out the window and froze for a moment. Grissom stared back at him. He rolled the window down, grateful that he was wearing a long shirt that covered his crotch. The last thing he needed right now was for Grissom to see that he had a hard on.

"Hey, boss," he said trying to sound casual.

"Everything all right, Nick?" Grissom asked.

He nodded. "Just a long night."

"Yeah, I gathered," Grissom replied. "I read your report. Good work out there tonight, by the way."

Nick smiled. "Thanks."

There was a moment of silence before Grissom asked, "I, um, was wondering, could I catch a ride home with you? My car's in the shop."

Okay, God was punishing him, he just couldn't figure out for what. He couldn't say no. After all he was on his way out and was heading in the same direction as Grissom's place. He smiled at his boss and said, "Sure, hop in."

As Grissom walked around the back of the truck, Nick pulled his shirt down a little further over his lap. The passenger side door opened and Grissom hopped into the seat. "Thanks," he said as he got in.

The ride to Grissom's took place mostly in silence though Nick kept stealing furtive sideways glances at his boss. Grissom gave small directions here and there to make sure Nick knew where he was going. Actually, Nick knew the way to Grissom's townhouse by heart, but he wasn't going to let the other man know that.

As they rounded the last corner into the parking area, the centrifugal force of the turn caused the card that Nick had thrown up on the dashboard to slide off and land in Grissom's lap. He picked it up, turned it over and began to read as Nick pulled up and stopped the car in front of Grissom's townhouse. Nick's head whipped around in surprise as he heard the words from the poem aloud and he saw Grissom with the card.

He stuttered a bit, "That, um, is…"

"Judith Pordon," Grissom continued. "One of my favorite poets."

Nick just stared at him convinced that God was definitely punishing him for something.

Grissom began quoting, "We ran, breathless to the forests', full shadowed beauty. Reached trancelike lips toward lips, no trace of breath to break the magic. Pungent crackling leaves encircled, lingering little limbs discovered, heartbeats soaring towards each other.

There beneath tall timber, we melted, merged, meandered, with no particular destination
and treetops brushed our hair.

When I grew up, I wanted, to marry the trees, but I forgot how."

His eyes locked with those of his young companion. Nick's mind was racing as he tried to read his boss's face. Grissom just held his gaze and waited. Nick was trying to decide if it was all in his head or if he was hearing what he thought he was hearing.

He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. He cleared his throat and finally managed to say, "It was you."

Grissom's face broke into a smile and he ducked his head momentarily, then he nodded. Nick reached out a hand and brushed it gently over Grissom's bearded cheek. He leaned toward him and Grissom met him half way as their lips met for the first time. Nick's imagination hadn't come close to the actual feel of Grissom's lips on his and he never did make it home that night.

Fin