"He said he liked you? Cool…" Sloane said, taking huge bites out of a Froot Loop cereal sandwich. She waddled around like a penguin, always poking around in the fridge for something to eat.
"Not cool. I hate it when things get complicated." Keats replied, scarfing down some chips and dip.
"Wake up, dearie. Life is complicated." Sloane mumbled hastily, making her way toward the chicken nuggets and honey mustard.
Sloane's current husband breezed through the kitchen, noticing that every single article of food was sitting in a pile on the kitchen table. He kissed Sloane and went into the living room to catch a baseball game on tv.
"I think he's ready for me to move out." Keats sighed. Sloane shook her head, tearing into a chocolate cupcake with pink frosting.
"Do you have any idea how badly you'll need a gym membership after little Fritzie is born?" Keats laughed.
"His name is Joseph…I will not having you calling my baby Fritzie." Sloane said in a mock angry voice. She began putting away all the food, pausing briefly to examine her rear end. She made a funny face.
"Well…yeah. But I figure I won't have to worry about that for another few weeks or so." Sloane declared.
"If it makes you feel any better, I've gained a little weight since I broke up with Ryan…I just feel so lost without him. Not only do I miss a wonderful companion and lover, but a great friend." Keats said, her eyes shining.
"Give that Cooper fella a try. He seems nice. At any rate, someone needs to make an honest woman out of you. You're the marrying kind of girl."
"Who said anything about getting married? It's just a simple date. Dates are very noncommittal." Keats blurted out in a panic. Even the thought of going out with someone else made her feel very apprehensive.
She may have botched things permanently with Ryan, but she was more than ready to pine for him.
"That look on your face just then…it was one of the creepiest things I've ever seen. Look, if you don't want to date anyone, then don't." Sloane told her. Keats stared off into oblivion, trying to suss things out for herself.
She's right. I shouldn't feel obligated to date Cooper just because he's a nice man.
Horatio Caine heard his cell phone ring as he was leaving the site of the latest crime scene. Alexx stood behind him, shedding her latex gloves.
"What's the matter, Horatio?" She asked. He turned to her a second later, closing his cell gently.
"I want the phone call traced." He muttered, making his way back to the Lab.
"H, the call was made outside of a hardware store; Hammers and Nails. It wasn't a payphone, the number is unlisted." Cooper said as Horatio leaned over his shoulder.
"Hammers and Nails…" He murmured.
Within five minutes, he was driving to the hardware store along with Keats. The anonymous phone call was a cry for help from the voice of a woman that had been declared missing for over five months.
They were suddenly in a race to catch a kidnapper.
"I'm telling you, we have a private phone in our offices next door. Private…meaning nobody unauthorized can use it." Keith Roberts mumbled. Horatio nodded slightly and looked at Keats.
"Regardless, I'm going to need to take prints from that phone." He replied. Keith was silent for a bit.
"Unless you have something to hide." Keats added. Keith cleared his throat and shrugged.
Horatio and Keats took out their kits and worked meticulously for a few hours, gathering any traces of evidence they could find.
"Keith Roberts looked a little guilty back there. Is there any reason to suspect him?" Keats asked Horatio.
Horatio gave her a small smile, glancing at her warmly.
"I doubt it. For some reason, people seem to get very nervous around cops." He answered. Keats laughed softly.
All the prints went back to Eric Delko. Delko put them all through trace and Keats stood behind him, waiting rather impatiently.
"You know, a watched pot never boils, or whatever it is you WASPs say."
"Ha ha. Nobody complains when Calleigh waits, why should I be any different?" Keats asked incredulously. Delko grinned.
"She has several years seniority over you. You've got plenty of time to gain clout around here." He said as he pulled up a match.
"The freshest prints belong to a Jennifer Salt. She was declared missing 23 weeks ago and the ongoing search for her was put on hold last Friday. She was a cold case up until today." Eric browsed through her online file.
"Unfortunately, we're at a dead end. The only other prints on that phone were much older than hers. And Keith Roberts said there were no witnesses." Keats said.
"Not necessarily. But I can't help you, remember? The first year is crucial. You have to make your own mistakes and learn your own style, Remington." Eric said with a smile. Keats nodded, very annoyed and very unsurprised.
From the corner of her eye, Keats noticed Ryan laughing and talking to someone. His back was toward her, and thus, she didn't know who was talking to him.
"Uh, I should have told you earlier…Ryan's dating Erica now." Eric mumbled, his eyes still glued to the screen.
Keats laughed out loud and when she noticed Delko wasn't laughing with her, she stopped short.
"You're kidding me, right? He hates Erica. He might very well hate me, but he'd never go with her again." Keats said, drawing from a gut feeling.
She turned back to look at Ryan. He was touching Erica's face.
A sudden jolt of shock burst through her. She felt her nostrils flare with jealousy.
Hold on, Rambo…you brought this on yourself. If she wants him, by God she can have the bastard!
Keats broke into a run in the opposite direction and came to rest on the doorjamb of the computer lab. She panted and tried to catch her breath.
Dan Cooper swiveled around in his chair and cocked his head to one side.
"You guys are really intense about your stuff, aren't you?" He murmured.
Keats made long, brisk strides over toward him and stood with her face creeping closer to his.
"Cooper, how would you like to catch a game with me? The Braves-Marlins game at Dolphin Stadium. My brother-in-law's uncle works for the Marlins."
The light in Cooper's eyes could not be described. If he ever had doubts before about Keats being "the one," he didn't have them anymore.
"I'd love to."
Ryan sidled next to Delko after excusing himself from Erica. Flirting with her had been harder than he had imagined. But seeing the look on Keats' face was worth it.
"Did she buy it?" He muttered over his shoulder. Eric typed in a few things on the computer as Ryan slipped into his lab coat.
"Not at first. But you turned in a good performance with Erica. I didn't have to convince her at all." He replied. Ryan gave a pert nod.
"She's going to confront you about her any second now…" Eric said, glancing at his watch with a chuckle.
Their eyes traveled over to the door as they heard footsteps approaching.
But instead of Keats, they were suddenly face to face with Cooper.
"Cooper, what's going on?" Ryan wondered. He was awfully wary of him. And for good reason.
"I was wondering if one of you could switch shifts with me tonight. I'll make up it up tomorrow."
Eric and Ryan exchanged confused glances.
"You got some hot little number you're not telling us about?" Delko teased. Cooper laughed nervously.
"I think so." Cooper said.
"Good for you." Ryan grinned, patting him on the shoulder.
"It's about time you dated someone, Coop."
"You know what? I'll take your shift for you. No problem." Ryan added.
"Are you sure you want to make up the early morning shift tomorrow? What if you get lucky?" Delko asked, half-serious.
"Thanks, Wolfe. I'll be here tomorrow for your shift." Cooper said gratefully. He began to walk out the door.
At the last second, he plucked up his courage.
"Besides…Keats isn't that kind of girl." He said before ducking out as quickly as possible.
Ryan's face clouded over.
