I do not own CSI.

Rated K

In Your Eyes

The third story in a series of three.

You Found Me is the first. Followed by An Affair to Remember.

You don't have to read them ,to follow this but it would help to familiarize and know the details about characters that will be in this story.

In this opening chapter, Nick is at a crime scene which causes him to think back on his life with the woman who stole his heart.

It is a mild chapter to just refresh your memory or introduce you to the relationships in Nick Stokes' life.

Smut, Drama and Fluff will follow...as well as the birth of their twins.

I have been known to beg for reviews...I hope you will take the time to share your thoughts with me.

Reviews seriously help me write and are reallllly appreciated.

Nick Stokes hated when crime scenes made him think about his own family. He preferred to be only a CSI at work rather than a man with a family that meant more to him than life itself. But tonight, as he looked over the body of a young, blonde, woman he couldn't help but see the resemblance she had to his own wife.

Jules was the love of his life. He had never intended to fall in love, for many reasons but especially for the reason such as this. He never wanted to feel that sensitive emotion for fear it would interfere with his work. It was easier to have no one at home to worry about. Easier to look at the victims and feel bad, but in a way that made him want to seek justice NOT create worry and sadness only a husband and father could relate to. He didn't want to feel that - it hit too close to home now. But, from the day he and Jules got together, he had no choice but to love her. She possessed something that made him weak in the knees. She had him at the first sight of her.

It wasn't easy for them. It was not without trouble and heartache. Unfortunately it was trouble and heartache that seemed to follow them from the start, and had it not been for the hold she had on his heart, he would have walked away before it even began. Thankfully for him, she did have his heart…and his body and soul. She was different than anything he had even knew or had even came close to knowing. If was as if they met each other long ago in another lifetime, and found each other again. She was worth every tear, every heartbreak, every fear…life without her would have been empty and cold. He knew it. And he was thankful for it.

It was instant difficulty from the moment he realized that Jules was not just a girl from Vegas, but a Brown. Jules Brown. The same Brown as his best friend Warrick. True, he was African American and she was not. It seemed ridiculous that this little white chick could have any connection with him. The chances of this white girl being the sister of his best friend was ludicrous and yet…it was true. She had a story and behind those dancing, happy eyes, was a child that had been abandoned. The baby of a heartless junkie that left her to die alone in a crib. Her story was amazing. Being rescued by a little black boy who wouldn't give up until he found out why he heard a baby crying. Had it not been for Warrick Brown she would not be here today. She was rescued and taken in by Esther Brown. Warrick became her brother. They didn't need actual DNA to be family. He was her brother and her hero and to this day she idolized him. Nick found their bond hard to understand at first but he had no trouble understanding it now…and he actually admired it.

True, being Warrick's "Baby Girl", as he still calls her to this day, made it difficult for him to release her to Nick. Especially since Nick was a known player and both he and Warrick played women easily. In fact, they were partners in that crime. So for Warrick, Nick and his sister getting together made his stomach churn. But it ended up working out well in the long run though. They had started out co-workers, grew to be best friends, and ultimately ended up being brothers-in-law, too. It wasn't a bad thing once they hurdled his initial disapproval. In fact, he enjoyed having Warrick around and being a part of his family now too. Warrick's strong presence in their life was also well needed when Jimmy Cole came slithering out from under the rock and infiltrated their happy lives.

Jimmy Cole made Nick's blood literally boil. He could feel the fury rise up the back of his neck just at the mere thought of that scumbag. He had no idea how bad a threat Cole would become to him and Jules. He knew he was a hassle and caused heartache to the woman he adored, but never did he think he would nearly take her away from him permantly. He knew he couldn't seduce her away. That was never a concern for Nick. He felt secure in her never leaving his side once they allowed their souls to collide. What he hadn't imagined was that Jimmy could take her another way. He could kill her. And he nearly did.

Nick wondered if it was sheer will that brought her back to him or if it was the pure intensity of the love they had for each other that made her refuse to let go. Either way, he got her back and he would never be able to thank God enough for that. It was horrible it had to happen at all, but in the end he was grateful no matter what. He managed to overcome so much grief from it. Not only the grief from sitting by her bedside for a month praying she would pull through; not only from watching her flatline and wanting to die with her. Certainly not just from nearly losing his job that he loved. Shockingly, it was not the loss of the baby they had no idea they created that haunted him the most. But surprisingly, it was the unexpected feeling of guilt and self hatred that he carried around with him for a long time. He had to work that out for months before he could finally let it go. The guilt of not getting to her in time, and having to watch her get punched so hard that she flew off her feet and into the brick wall. If he allowed himself to think about it too long, even though several years had passed since then, he could still hear the hideous sound of her head cracking against the corner of those bricks. It was a sound that was forever seared into his brain and he hated it.

Nick didn't even realize he was clenching his fists as he thought about Jimmy Cole taking her and holding her against her will. Knowing Cole slapped her around and tried to rape her made Nick cringe. He sighed a sigh of relief because he knew the outcome. He and Warrick had found her. They rescued her together. Warrick was no longer her only Superman. Nick smiled inwardly, because she was no victim either. She was her own Superwoman. She kicked Jimmy's ass pretty good and she left a souvenir for him too…a bullet still lodged in his shoulder. He had always found her amazing. Her strength made him proud.

Nick wished that would have been the end of Jimmy Cole. Although he was glad Cole didn't die. Not because he wanted Cole to live, but because he didn't want Jules to have to deal with knowing she killed someone. He didn't think she could forgive herself for something life that. It wasn't who she was. And while Cole did get his in the end, a nice prison sentence, he still managed to hurt them just months ago. He managed to get to them even behind bars. He nearly ruined their marriage but once again he failed. Jules had proof right there in front of her. Pictures showing what appeared to be him getting it on with his old college friend Brooke Latham. Brooke actually outright told Jules that he slept with her that night at their friends' wedding. Jules had more damning evidence in front of her than anyone could need, and yet, in the end she wouldn't walk away from him. She came back for him. She stood up for him. And ultimately they were able to prove that those pictures were nothing more than Jimmy Cole's attempt to destroy them once again. But, he failed…again. And not only did they walk away from that ordeal stronger…they walked away with two babies inside her. Nick closed his eyes and thanked God for them. He couldn't wait to meet them. He wondered if he would have two more little girls to love. Would he have two sons? Would he have one of each? He could not wait to know and he was thrilled when Jules finally agreed to get an ultrasound to find out. Their appointment was only a week away and it seemed like it would never get here.

Nick hadn't realized he was still standing over that blonde woman's body, staring at her with intensity. He didn't realize it until he was startled by the sound of Warrick's voice behind him.

"She looks like my sister doesn't she," Warrick admitted.

Nick couldn't seem to get the words out to agree with such a true but horrific realization.

He simply nodded.

"I hate when shit like that happens. Thank God it doesn't happen often, right," Warrick said shaking his head. "You got a name on her?"

"No, haven't even looked yet. Waiting for Super Dave to check her over before rolling her."

"Well, you been staring at her for twenty minutes, Dude. Time for you to shake it off and start snapping pics of her," he reminded Nick. "If you want to go dust for prints, I can take this.

"Nah, whadya think? You're stronger than me? Please, I don't think so, Chief," Nick snatched up the camera bravely.

The two of them were so close, and they certainly behaved like brothers. It was sometimes comical to watch.

"Alright, fine…then do it," Warrick said and walked away to continue processing the scene.

Nick knelt down and photographed the woman that resembled his wife and he felt a lump in his throat that he swallowed back.

He was a CSI after all.

He had a job to do.

And while it was true that now he knew what true love was, and he could relate to this woman's family more than he could if he weren't a father and husband himself, he still wouldn't have it any other way. If he felt sadness because of it then so be it.

Nick knew one thing for sure. His family made him who he is today. And whether he knew it or not, it made him an even better CSI. Because now, not only would he find justice for this family, but he would not be lying when he told them, "I am so sorry; I could only imagine how you must feel."

Because he could.