Christina 'Christi' Delko just stared out the Hummer window. She was lost in thought. The neighborhood she and Eric were in felt so strange to her. Like she's been there before. She doesn't realize that Eric is talking to her. She hadn't been herself the last couple of weeks. "Christi." Eric said placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Huh? Did you say something?"

"Yea, I asked if you were alright. You've seemed really quiet."

"Uh yea I'm fine. Just fine. It's just I feel like I've been here before. That's all."

"Okay." Eric said not buying her answer. She was his baby sister and he was worried about her. She had the look of a Delko to. The olive colored skin and the dark hair and chocolate brown eyes. When they got to the scene they both got out and headed up. "Eric you take the inside and I'll take the outside."

"Christi are you kidding me! This place is huge!" Eric said.

"Eric please. I just need some fresh air. I'll come in and help you when I'm done."

Eric sighed and said, "Okay."

He took his kit and went inside the house, leaving Christi outside. She put on her gloves and began walking the perimeter, though not really expecting to find anything. She shivered lightly as the breeze picked up a little. Something in the bushes abruptly caught her eye, and she bent down, looking intently.

And that's when she heard it.

There was no way on earth Christi could ever profess to be an expert on motorcycles. She generally preferred to stay as far away from the things as was possible. But even with her slight experience and nonexistent knowledge of them, she could tell just by the sound growing closer and closer, that this was no ordinary motorcycle.

It was the same kind he'd had.

"You busy?"

Christi glanced up at him with a cheerful smile. "Not especially," she replied, closing the report she'd been working on. "Why?"

Speed stepped the rest of the way into the room, letting the door close behind him. "Horatio thinks we've got a suspect."

"In the Morgan case?"

"That's the one. He wants us to head over there and ask a few questions; see if we can find out anything definitive before we take it any further."

Christi nodded. "Okay. Give me five minutes and I'll meet you outside."

"Okay." He snickered suddenly, an odd glint in his eye. "Let's take the Ducati," he added, heading toward the door. Christi froze, glad that his back was to her so he couldn't see her expression. "Wait…your bike?"

Speed paused, looking back at her. "No, my horse-drawn carriage. Of course my bike, Christi. That a problem?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow. Christi shook her head quickly. "I just - I really - is that a good idea?" she stammered. Speed couldn't help but grin at seeing usually cool and collected Christi flustered. "Would you rather take the Hummer?" Christi relaxed visibly. "Yes."

"Fine." He smirked. "If you can think of three good reasons why we shouldn't take my bike, then we'll take the Hummer. I'll be waiting outside," he finished, leaving before Christi had a chance to protest.

After stalling for as long as possible, she joined him outside of the crime lab. He glanced at her over the top of his sunglasses, noting her slightly worried expression. He grinned. "Well?" he said expectantly.

Christi smiled sweetly. "It might rain. I'd rather have a roof over my head if the sky decides to open up on us."

Speed looked up to the clear blue sky. "That's funny. Usually rain comes from these fluffy things called clouds." He glanced back to Christi. "Plus, I heard the news earlier. No rain in the forecast until the weekend. Strike one."

Christi's smile faded. "Okay," she said calmly, though inside she was on the verge of panicking. "I have long hair. I really don't want it blowing in the wind and getting all tangled and everything. And I'm sure you don't want to wait on me for the twenty minutes it'll take to untangle it."

"Tie it back," Speed replied simply. "Strike two."

"Do you really think it's professional?" she asked her voice higher than usual. "Your bike isn't a department vehicle. And there's no way for us to take our kits with us." Speed grinned triumphantly. "I've gone to a thousand scenes on the Ducati. And we're just asking a few questions; we don't need the kits. Strike three," he smirked. "You're out, and we're taking the bike." He handed her his extra helmet, then began heading toward the motorcycle, leaving Christi no choice but to follow. "Why can't you ride the bike, and I'll drive the Hummer?" Christi called after him.

"With gas prices the way they are? How is that even economical?" He got on the bike and put his own helmet on, before looking expectantly at Christi.

"How is that even safe?" Christi retorted, pointing at the bike.

Speed rolled his eyes. "I'm wearing a helmet. You're wearing a helmet. I've been riding for years; I know what I'm doing. It's plenty safe."

Christi exhaled shakily. She'd hoped to get out of this without admitting what the real problem was. Unfortunately, it didn't look like that was going to happen. "Okay. I -" she looked down, avoiding Speed's eyes. "I'm - I'm scared. Okay? I admit it. I'm scared." She finally looked back up to his face, feeling a surge of annoyance when she saw his smirk. "It's not funny, Tim."

Speed held up his hands, though his face was still amused. "I never said it was. I've just never seen the fearless Christi Delko afraid of anything before." He snickered as she crossed her arms, sticking her tongue out at him. "Yeah, that's real mature, Christi." He patted the seat behind him. "Just come on. You'll be fine. I promise."

Christi glared at him skeptically. "And if I'm not?"

Speed pursed his lips. "I don't know. You can, uh, hit me or something."

"I might hit you anyway." Realizing that Speed wasn't going to relent, she took a deep breath and put on the helmet, narrowing her eyes upon seeing Speed's triumphant grin. "I can't believe I'm doing this," she muttered, climbing onto the bike behind Speed. She placed her hands just lightly on his waist, producing another low snicker from Speed. "What?"

He shook his head amusedly. "You might want to hold on a little tighter," he suggested. "You know, so you don't fall off." He smirked as she tensed at his words. Taking her hands, he looped her arms around his waist. Christi gasped softly, unsure if the sudden pounding of her heart was from being so close to him, or from how honestly afraid she was.

Speed squeezed her hands gently before letting go. "Ready?"

Taking a few steadying breaths, Christi nodded tightly, closing her eyes. "Yeah. I'm ready," she said, trying to convince herself of that. "Let's go." He started the Ducati, smirking as Christi immediately tightened her grasp on him. "We're not moving yet, Christi," he yelled over the motor in amusement. Christi mumbled something that he didn't quite catch. He gave her another second, and then pulled the bike out of the parking lot and onto the road, chuckling to himself as Christi cried out, gripping him even tighter.

After a few blocks, she loosened her grasp slightly, finally feeling safe to open her eyes. It wasn't long after that when, surprisingly, Christi found herself actually enjoying the ride.

"You okay back there?" Speed called out, coming to rest at a red light.

Christi actually smiled, though Speed couldn't see it. "I'm good!" she called back.

"Wanna go a bit faster?"

Her eyes widened. "This thing goes faster?"

"Oh, it goes way faster," he replied just as the light turned green. He sped away, leaving behind the cars at the intersection. After about another mile, he turned off into a fairly ordinary neighborhood, before long pulling the bike into the driveway of a gorgeous house. As he brought the bike to a stop, cutting the engine, he had to smirk upon hearing Christi's slight giggle. "See, I knew you'd like it."

Christi rolled her eyes playfully. "Okay Speedle, so maybe you were right. But just this once," she teased, getting off the bike and removing her helmet.

He smirked, getting off after her. "I'm always right," he said smugly, taking a step toward her. "You'd think you'd have realized that by now." He reached up and removed his own helmet. "Come on," he said, moving toward the front door of the house, "let's get this finished." He snickered. "I wonder if we're even still on the clock anymore after all that time you wasted whining back at the lab."

Christi glared at him. "Shut up," she demanded, though playfully.

Speed rang the doorbell, glancing down at Christi as they waited. He couldn't help but notice her fidgeting. She kept shifting from foot to foot, as though she couldn't stand still. He didn't have long to linger on it, as the owner of the house opened the door. He cleared his throat, flashing his badge. "Tim Speedle, Christina Delko. We're with the crime lab. We need to ask you a few questions."

The lady invited them in and they sat down, though Christi had seemed reluctant to do so. Throughout much of the interrogation, Speed found his eyes drawn to Christi. Even sitting down, she seemed restless; constantly fidgeting with her hands or shifting positions. She seemed only too glad when they were finished. "Well, that was a waste of time," Speed muttered as they walked back outside.

"Not necessarily," Christi chirped, practically skipping her way back to the bike. "We know her alibi doesn't check out; so since she lied to us about that, she's probably lying about everything else," she added cheerfully.

Speed stared. "And that's a good thing?"

Christi smiled brightly. "It makes her look guilty; so then if she is guilty, then yeah. It's a good thing." She caught the slightly suspicious look Speed was giving her. "What?"

He shook his head. "You're giddy." He paused, thinking for a moment. "I mean, more so than usual."

Christi crossed her arms. "I am not," she defended, glaring as Speed raised an eyebrow. "I'm just glad we're finally getting somewhere with this case."

"Except for the part where we really aren't, right?"

"Oh come on, Tim, it's a better lead than any of the others we've found." She grinned suddenly. "We should get back to the lab and follow up on it," she said, barely masking her excitement.

Speed snickered. "I think you just want to ride my bike again."

"Maybe."

Speed looked at her smugly. "And less than two hours ago, you were ready to jump off a cliff just to avoid riding with me."

"Oh, I'm fine with the motorcycle now. But riding with you still scares the hell out of me," Christi replied cheekily, giving a fake shudder.

"Yeah. Funny."

"I try," she winked. She stepped closer to Speed, smiling sweetly. "Hey, Tim? I was just wondering…"

Speed raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Can I drive?"

Speed's eyes widened. "What? No way!"

"Aw, why not?" she whined.

Speed looked at her as though she were insane. "Would you like a list?" He paused for a moment, wondering if she actually was serious. "Just a little while ago, you were scared to death of this thing," he said, ignoring Christi's denial of that. "You really think I'm gonna let you drive after that? Besides, you don't even have a license. It's against the law." He smirked. "I'd have to arrest you."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Oh yeah, Christi. I've been dying to cuff you ever since the day I met you." He snickered as he handed her the other helmet, catching the look on her face. He looked at his watch before getting back on the bike. "Come on, we really do need to get back."

Christi put on the helmet, then got back on the motorcycle behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist as she'd done before. After making sure she was ready, Speed started the bike, quickly maneuvering them through the city traffic and bringing them back to the lab, this time much more quickly than either of them wanted. He parked the bike, cutting off the engine.

With a sigh, Christi climbed off the bike, removing her helmet. "Back to work again, I guess," she said. She smiled brightly at Speed before she turned to walk away. "You can get back to trace; I'll go find Horatio and tell him what we found out."

"Christi, wait," he called after her. He took his helmet off and followed her. Catching up with her, he instinctively reached out, smoothing her hair down with his hands. "Helmet hair," he clarified at her puzzled look. "Not even you can pull that look off," he teased.

Christi didn't reply; she was still caught up in the sensation that had overtaken her at his touch. His standing so close to her had been one thing, but now with his fingers in her hair, Christi found herself struggling to control her racing heart. It also didn't help that he smelled really good. It was confusing; Speed usually didn't evoke these kinds of feelings in her. It was suddenly too much, and before she even realized it, Christi placed her hand on his cheek and moved even closer to him, kissing him soundly on the lips.

Surprised though he was, that didn't stop Speed from kissing her back. He felt her hand slip to the back of his neck as his found their way to her hips, gently pulling her closer. He'd never really thought much about Christi as more than a co-worker, more than a friend. But now, with her in front of him, her lips against his own, he suddenly wanted more. He deepened the kiss, feeling as Christi willingly opened her mouth to him with a soft moan. Very abruptly, Christi let go of him, pushing him away from her. She stared at him, her eyes widening. "I am so sorry," she whispered breathlessly, her cheeks visibly reddening.

Speed stared at her, not quite sure what she was thinking. "Christi?" he tried cautiously.

"Oh my God," she murmured, staring at the ground. She chuckled nervously. "I can't believe I just did that." She looked up, her eyes meeting his for a brief second before flitting away again. "I'm sorry," she said again, pushing her hair behind her ears. "I don't know - I don't usually - that wasn't - I - I just -" she shook her head, having a difficult time stringing coherent thoughts together. She tried again, but with just as much success as before. "I don't know why - it's just - you were so close to me, and the adrenaline rush from the bike, and you just smell really, really good, and I don't know -"

Caught up in her rambling, she was completely taken by surprise when Speed interrupted her by gently cupping her face and kissing her, uncharacteristically soft, on the lips. He pulled back, letting his hand drop back to his side. "You were rambling," he explained quietly upon seeing the look of confusion on her face. He shrugged. "Couldn't think of any other way to shut you up," he added with a smirk.

Christi gave a small smile, looking at the ground. "Sorry," she apologized sheepishly. The last thing she wanted was for this to turn awkward, but the part of her mind that wasn't still having trouble coming up with simple thoughts was too busy trying to figure out why Speed was suddenly having this much of an effect on her. She giggled softly, the full weight of what she had just done finally hitting her. "I can't believe I did that." She looked back up, finally meeting his eyes without looking right back away. "I, uh, should probably get back to work, I guess."

Speed nodded. "Yeah. I've still got some trace to finish up if I'm gonna get out of here on time tonight," he replied.

"Right." She glanced around, fidgeting with her hands. "Yeah, um, I'm gonna go," she said, gesturing back toward the lab. She saw his nod, and with a tight smile, she turned and began to walk away.

He watched her take a few steps before he called out to her. "Hey, Christi! Wait a sec."

She turned back to him, looking at him expectantly.

Speed glanced from her to his bike, then back to her again. "Come find me the next time you get bored or something. If you want, I'll take you out riding again."

She nodded, smiling brightly. "I'd like that."

Eric came back out to find her slouched over hyperventilating. He dropped the bagged evidence he had in his hand and ran out to her. "Christi? Sweetie you okay?" he asks rubbing her back to help her breath. She shakes her head no in tears. "Does your chest hurt? Do you want to go to the hospital?" She shook head no calming down and leaning into her big brother as she begins to sob. She and Tim had just started dating secretly. The only people who knew were Horatio, Alexx and his family which consisted of his mom, dad, little brother and twin sister and that was it. Her family didn't even know about them. They wanted to wait to see where it went before they told -anybody. They both had, had a few bad break ups because of their jobs, so that's why they didn't want to tell anybody else until they knew for sure that they were going to last not only a few weeks like all of their other relationships had because of their jobs.

Then a few weeks ago he was killed in the line of duty and when she arrived at the crime scene her heart sank to the floor and she paled. Horatio and Alexx noticed and Alexx went over to her and told her to leave, go home and talk to the department psychologist about everything she agreed and did just that but she was still waking up with nightmares from that day. At his funeral is when his family found out about them dating. His mom had picked up on it right away. She said that she was guessing that they were together as he was even more cheerful than usual. So Janet, Speed's mom pulled her aside and asked her if they were dating and she nodded. Janet smiled and told her that whenever they spoke she couldn't shut him up about her, that's how much he loved her. She was surprised that he talked about her to his parents. Janet told her that she couldn't be happier that her son ended up with her and then she told her if she ever needed to get away from Miami that their door is always open for her to come and stay with them until she can start over in New York if she transfers up there or just needs a vacation.