this first chapter goes out to Laura for helpin me with it and takin the tym to reread it 4 me thanks so much :D

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Everything was going great for Danny and Lindsay after that night they had spent together but after the death of Danny's friends son Rubin it all spiralled down hill.

"Danny has been pushing me away ever since Rubin. I don't know what to do, Stella." said Lindsay to her good friend Stella.

"Look Linds, you have to give him time. I know he doesn't mean it but it's Danny we're talking about." It hurt Stella so much having to sit and watch as her young friend cried over another of her friends.

"I know but something just doesn't seem right with him. Like when I called him the other day he seemed very distant and distracted." She paused for a moment thinking back to the phone call. She had asked out to breakfast before their shift started but was turned down because Danny had to do something. Lindsay's face just dropped and tears fogged her eyes.

"Lindsay, what's the matter?" Stella was really concerned for her friend. She knew that look. She had had it on her face many times before.

"I just realized, the only reason for the way he was acting during that phone call was… because he had someone else there. I have to go talk to him."

By this time Lindsay was crying rivers. As Lindsay was about to get up Stella grabbed her arm. Lindsay pulled it away from her grip.

"What are you doing Stella?"

"Stopping you from making the biggest mistake of your life."

"What? I'm only going to talk to him."

Lindsay could feel Stella's eyes reading her. She knew that if she talked to Danny it would end up a huge fight in the middle of the lab and she didn't want that. Stella got up and walked to the door.

"You stay away from Danny until I talk to him."

Stella got up and walked down the hall towards Danny's office. She wanted to do anything in her power to make sure she diffused whatever potential bust up might happen if Lindsay was to go near Danny before Stella had talked to him.

While Lindsay sat in the break room all she could think about was Danny. She remembered the first time they met. It was at the zoo when a tiger had killed a man. He had told her to call Mac 'Sir' even though he knew he hated it. She also remembered when he started calling her Montana. Thinking of her nickname made her smile. At first she hated it but the more she heard it the more it grew on her. Her thoughts were intruded when Mac walked in.

"Hey Linds. What the matter?"

"Nothing Mac. Just thinking."

"About?"

"Nothing. Has anything come back on the case?" They were both working on a case were three young girls had been raped and murdered. It was a hard case for Lindsay and Mac knew it.

"No, nothing. The semen we found in the girls all match but no hits so far."

"This is just getting out of control. How many more girls have to die before we get this monster." Lindsay was losing control of her emotions. The realisation with Danny, the murder cases and the frustration she felt because she couldn't get this guy was making it hard for her to keep in control plus she had just pulled a double so she was tired. Mac knew all too well about being frustrated not being able to get a murderer.

"Lindsay" Mac sighed. "Go home, relax and get some rest. You need it, you haven't stopped since you got to the last crime scene."

"Mac, I just want to nail this guy before- "

"Don't make me say it twice" he smiled "Go on,"

"Fine, I'll see you tomorrow." she sighed as she walked to the elevator still with thought of Danny in her head. What was Stella saying to him? How was he reacting? Has he denied what she suspected ? She just wasn't sure. Her journey across the city was a blur, and as soon as she got home, she went straight to bed.

She felt relieved, but she couldn't sleep because the thoughts of Danny were still going through her mind.

Back at the lab Stella still hadn't found Danny.

"Mac!" she shouted after him. "Have you seen Danny? I need to talk to him."

"No I haven't. Why, what's matter? I thought you were going solo on your case."

"Yea I am but I just need to talk to him." she sighed.

"Ok if I see him I'll tell him your looking for him."

"Thanks Mac."

Mac paused before he turned away. "Stella," he said, trying to get her attention. "Do you know if there is anything wrong with Lindsay? She seemed to be very angry when I was talking to her earlier."

"Umm I don't know, I was planning on talking to her later. Where is she anyway?"

"I sent her home. She pulled a double, she needed to sleep."

Mac headed down to the DNA Lab while Stella searched for Danny. She looked everywhere, in the office he shared with Lindsay, the Audio Visual Lab but turned up nothing. Just before she was about to give up Danny came running up to her.

"Hey Stel. Mac said you wanted to talk to me."

"Oh yea but I would rather talk in private."

"Ok my office is free if you want to go there." Danny was getting worried now. What did she need to talk to him about? Silently, so they headed off to Danny's office.

Once there Stella didn't know how to start so they sat in an uncomfortable silence for the first five minutes. Finally, he broke the silence.

"So what is it you wanted to talk about?" Stella just sat looking at Danny. She didn't know how to start.

"Well it's about Lindsay."

"What? Is she ok? What has she been saying to you?" Danny was getting concerned now.

"No. She's fine. It is just she says that you have been pushing her away after what happened with Rubin and everything. She did say something but…"

"What did she say?" he was getting angry now and Stella knew it.

"She said that when she called you one time you seemed distracted

and she thinks that there was someone else there that morning in your apartment. Was there Danny?"

"No of course there wasn't." Stella knew Danny was lying through his teeth.

"Danny please I have known you for too long to be able to tell when you're downright lying, try again."

"That is the truth. I can't believe you don't believe me." he tried to play the injured pup routine.

"Danny, its my job to separate the truth from the lies and you know that I'm good at that." Of course Danny knew that she had outwitted him a lot in the past and he had seen her in the interrogation rooms with the criminals.

"Fine there was someone there but I didn't want Lindsay to know. And before you ask, it was Rikki that was there. But it was only a one night thing and I never wanted to hurt Lindsay. It was just that we were both hurting over Rubin's death and we needed comfort." he looked at the ground ashamed at what he has done and knew that Lindsay was feeling hurt because of him.

"So you slept with her and then in the morning blew Lindsay off for her. Yeah, you said you didn't want to hurt her but you still did this!" Stella was the one fast becoming angry now.

"Stella, I know what I did was wrong but I was hurting and I felt really alone and so did Rikki. We both knew it was a mistake and I know now that I love Lindsay but she wont even talk to me unless we are working on a case. You have got to help me patch things up with her." Stella saw the pleading look in his eyes but she wasn't falling for it, she had done it too many times before.

"Messer, you got yourself into this one now it's time to get yourself out of it. I wont tell Lindsay if that's what your thinking. I'll leave that job to you."

After that was said she got up and walked out.

Danny just sat not knowing what to do. He could feel tears in his eyes but he wouldn't let them fall. It just wasn't him to cry in front of everyone, or anyone for that matter.

"Do I go and tell her or do I not tell her but still say sorry to her?" he sat thinking of all the things he could say to her and the different ways they could work out but none of them worked out the best for him. He had made up his mind. He got up and walked out of the lab and headed over to Lindsay's apartment.

Once he was there, standing outside her door, he was scared. His heart was pounding so fast, he could hear it and he knew that it was going to be ugly. He was about to knock the door when opened.

"Oh Danny you scared me. What are you doing here?"

"Stella talked to me. So I knew I had to come and talk to you."

"Oh she did, did she? What did she tell you?" Lindsay was becoming scared. Not of Danny but of the truth she might hear. Would she be able to forgive him? But what if it never happened- she had just imagined it. How would he react to her distrust in him?

"She just told me that you felt I was pushing you away and that one time when you called me to do out for breakfast and I just blew you off."

"Well you had things to do." She knew that wasn't the real reason. She could tell by the look in his eyes, the way he was looking at her with a sorry look on his face.

"You and me both know that wasn't the reason."

"So I was right then?" Danny could see the tears forming in her eyes and flowing down her cheeks. As he went to wipe them away she pulled back. Danny didn't know what to do at this point.

"Well, then Danny you may come in… if you want to?"

"I was hoping you would ask." he said as he walked in. He still might have a chance with her. He could only hope.