A/N Here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy 

XXX CSI: NY XXX CSI:NY XXX CSI:NY XXX CSI: NY XXX CSI:NY XXX CSI:NY

"Yeah, Detective Flack," Don answered his cell as he pulled off the highway.

"Hey, man. I'm coming off the worst shift and Linds has taken the kids to visit my parents. You up for some handball tonight?" Danny invited.

"Sorry, Danno, Not tonight. I got plans."

"Yeah? What's goin' down? You didn't get called in on that shooting up by Washington Heights, did ya?"

"Nope. I've got a date."

"A date? Nah, you kiddin' me? The chick from Sullivan's?" his best friend teased him.

"Yeah."

"So much for not pickin' the girl up."

"It's not like that. After you left, she came up to the bar where I was just hanging out and…Well, we started talking and ended up practically closing the place down."

"Well, I guess I'll let it slide then. Good luck, man."

Don chuckled. "Thanks, man. I'll talk to ya tomorrow."

Ten minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot by the water, running just a little late. He chastised himself as he saw Noelle standing by the door of the restaurant waiting for him. He hoped she had not been waiting long or fearing she had been stood up. He got out of his SUV, taking a deep breath, and wondering why he was nervous. Women were not supposed to make him nervous. However, Noelle was different. She was actually intelligent. And God, she was funny. And he was not even thinking about how to get her into bed at the end of the night, despite the fact the he was incredibly attracted to her.

"Hey, doll. Sorry I'm late," he apologized as he approached her.

"I haven't been here long. I hope traffic wasn't too bad for you coming all the way down here."

"It was worth it." He smiled, taking in her cranberry coloured cashmere cross-over sweater and dark-wash jeans, and white heeled sandals that looked like they could be used as a weapon if he did anything wrong. "You look amazing."

She blushed. "So do you." She had looked him over on his approach. Dressed in jeans and a white button-down, he surpassed amazing. Part of her still had not figured out how she had ended up on a date with someone like him.

They went inside, Don's hand finding the small of her back unconsciously. They chatted easily while they waited a few minutes for a table. Finally, they were led to a table by the window. As the waitress left them alone to peruse the menu, they both took in the view – it was a clear evening, and the setting sun dancing on the river was beautiful.

"I don't think I could ever move somewhere where there was no water nearby," Noelle said a little wistfully.

"So, let me guess, your favourite vacation destination involves water."

She shrugged with a smile. "Hmm. Well, I've got three favourites: Vancouver, New Orleans and Jerusalem. Two out of three fulfill the requirement. But Jerusalem has enough other stuff going for it."

"Man, Jerusalem. That must've been amazing. Being in a place with that much history."

"It was pretty overwhelming."

The waitress returned to take their order, then left them alone again.

"So, where are you off to next?" Don asked, sitting back in his chair. "Israel's going to be hard to top, I bet."

"Hmm. I don't know yet. Where's your favourite place?" she said.

He considered her question. "That's tough. Probably Pensacola, Florida."

"You're kidding, right?"

"No. Why?"

She laughed softly. "It's just…Well, on the same road trip that took me to New Orleans, I ended up in Pensacola. We were just going to drive in for lunch then head out, but I fell in love with the town and we decided to stay for a night. We splurged on this Gulf-view suite and just hung out by the pool and walked along the beach. And to this day, I've wanted to go back there."

Don smiled. "Yep. Pretty much my definition of heaven. But New Orleans is pretty damn cool. Jazz playing in the middle of the afternoon, Bourbon Street after dark…"

"Drinking in the streets," she laughed. "I had no idea you could do that there until our first night on Bourbon Street."

Once their dinner arrived, the conversation flowed from travel to the city to him regaling her with stories of some of his weirdest crime scenes. They split a dessert, then she invited him back to her place for coffee.

Don had come to know her well enough to know that her invitation up to her place was just for coffee. And that was fine with him. He was game for anything that kept the evening going, while she thought it would be better to tell him everything she had been holding back where they hahad some privacy.

"Uh, cappuccino, latté, coffee?" she asked as she ushered him inside.

He shrugged. "Whatever you're having is fine."

She walked into the kitchen and pulled a pitcher of water out of the fridge then started pulling cups out of the cupboard while he took a moment to glance around her place. He liked the tasteful décor, the dark wood of the furniture, the classic style and colours. He also noticed an electric piano along one wall. "You play?" he asked as he returned to join her in the kitchen.

"Uh, yeah, when I get the chance. Since I was about ten." She moved past him and opened up another cupboard to pull out the necessary elements to make the cappuccinos.

He just watched her as she started to make the drinks, the ease with which she moved through her own space, how cute she looked in bare feet, standing on her tip-toes to reach something in her upper cupboard.

Not paying attention to where he had come to stand, she turned and just about smashed into him. He reached out to steady her, holding her arms gently and making no effort to let her go.

"This, uh – This is becoming a habit of mine," she said with a blush to her cheeks.

"I'm definitely not complaining," Don replied with a smile. His hand moved to her face and seeing the permission he was seeking in her eyes, he leaned down and did what he had been biding his time all evening for – he kissed her gently.

She responded, and when he went to deepen the kiss, she opened her mouth to grant his tongue entrance. It had been longer than she cared to remember since she had been kissed and he certainly knew how. His arms moved around her and as he held her flush against him, a warmth swelled in her abdomen.

Don reacted to her. The feel of her against him, the taste of her mouth, the sighs escaping from her were all turning him on. Without thinking things through, he picked her up and carried her down the hall, his mouth maintaining contact with hers as he searched for the door to her bedroom. Finding it, he kicked the door open gently and took her inside, setting her down on the bed and moving down beside her.

Noelle was completely caught up in him, in the way it felt to be kissed by him, wanted by him. She was having a difficult time putting any coherent thoughts together.

His hands cupped her face as he kissed her deeply, languidly. At first, he made no moves to undress her or move things any further along, but slowly his hands moved down her sides and snaked under the hem of her sweater and tank top. She whimpered when his hand made contact with skin.

She allowed herself to be touched, revelling in the feel of his hands on her, until finally she realized she had to put on the brakes before she let things go too far. "Wait," she whispered between kisses. "We, uh – Oh, God … We need to stop."

Don obliged, not about to push her further than she wanted to go, and chastising himself for letting himself lose control. He pulled back, his hands brushing her hair off her face as he looked at her. "Sorry, I –"

"You have nothing to apologize for," she assured him with a smile. Her expression sobered a bit, her heart pounding from both lust and nervousness. "I just need us to slow down. There are a lot of things you don't know, things that might make you change your mind about me and I can't – I can't let this happen if you're just gonna walk away."

"Then talk to me. 'Cause I know we've known each other barely twenty-four hours, but – Look, I don't know about you, but I see this going somewhere. At least, I want it to."

She smiled. "Me, too." She took a deep breath, sitting up and running a hand through her hair. She looked at him, his blue eyes drawing her in. "I, uh – Don, I have a daughter."

He didn't say anything, clearly surprised at the revelation. He sat up beside her, trying to absorb the news.

She furrowed her brow, inwardly chastising herself. "I'm so sorry. I should've told you this last night."

"Uh, how old is she?" he finally asked.

"She just had her first birthday two weeks ago. Her name's Ekaterina."

"That's a beautiful name. A little –"

"Ethnic?"

"I'm guessing her father…"

She smiled a little in amusement. "And mother. They're both Ukrainian."

A look of realization crossed his face. "She's adopted."

"Yes, she's adopted. Almost three months ago."

"Wow. Uh, where is she?"

"With my parents for the weekend. They've been wanting her to come and stay, and my friends from work have been trying to get me out – I'm just finishing up my parental leave right now."

Don hesitated, still trying to take this in. He noticed for the first time then the picture on her night stand of her and her daughter, and a smile crossed his face. "She's beautiful," he said, picking up the picture.

"She's an amazing little girl. I couldn't love her any more if I'd actually given birth to her."

"There's got to be more to the story here."

She nodded. "And you have a right to know everything before you get involved in – whatever this is."

"So tell me."

"How 'bout that coffee first?" she suggested.

He nodded and followed her as she got up and headed back into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, they settled on her couch with coffees in hand. Don realized for the first time how unobservant he had been before, surprising considering his detective nature was usually on guard at all times. There were pictures all over of her daughter with her and various members of her family. There were also some toys laying around.

"Hmm, where to start."

"Not that this is an interrogation, but the beginning's always a good place," he suggested.

"Yeah. Well…I, uh – I had a hysterectomy two years ago. I'd been struggling for years with chronic pain, having surgery after surgery to try and buy time. I wanted kids more than anything, and I thought I could hang on until I found someone to settle down with. But it just didn't happen that way," she explained. "I, uh – I'd decided after my third laser surgery that regardless of whether I met anyone or not, adoption was probably going to be the way I became a mother. So, I started doing some research, started being a lot more fiscally responsible, and just set my mind to that goal. I figured that adopting a child was something I could do by myself, because even as a single mother, the life I would give that child would still be better than the life they would have otherwise."

She had not met his eyes the whole time she had been relating her story, almost afraid of his reaction, but as she took a breath, gathered her thoughts, she dared to look up at him.

Don offered an encouraging smile. He was blown away – both at what she had had to deal with over the past few years, and at the compassion she had. He could tell she was nervous about his reaction, and without even thinking, he reached over and took her hand, letting her know he was not about to bolt. A couple years ago, he probably would have. Back then Messer would have clapped him on his shoulder over beers after and said, "Good for you. Get out now." But whether it was maturity, or just a connection he felt with the woman before him, he had no desire to leave.

Her eyes widened slightly when he took her hand, but she soon visibly relaxed. "Once I got through the recovery two years ago, I just – I decided I didn't want to wait anymore. So, I started the process for an international adoption."

"And now you have Ekaterina."

She nodded with a smile.

"Wow. You had to go over there, right?"

"Yeah. I spent about six weeks in total just outside of Kiev. It was amazing. My grandmother was Ukrainian. Her parents were born there. So, it just seemed like a natural fit. In going there, I got to experience some of my own heritage, and it's something that she and I share. I had the option to change her name, but it was too beautiful. Although I do call her Katie most of the time. She's the greatest kid, Don. She's just so happy all the time."

"You said she's a year? So, she was about nine months when you got her."

"Yeah. Everything just kind of aligned. I mean, the process can be rather long and arduous, but I didn't find it that way. I mean, I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

"She's had no problems settling in here?"

"No. We bonded right away. And I gotta tell you, when we stepped off that plane here, my whole family was there waiting and they just took to her right away, and her to them. Everyone's been very supportive."

He took everything in, a little overwhelmed and awed. This certainly was not what he had bargained for when he had asked her out, but he knew as well as anyone that life threw curveballs. And this was not something that was going to make him walk away.

"I know this is a lot to process. Maybe I should've told you last night. I just – I didn't quite know how."

"It's okay. I mean, it's a little more than I was expecting, but – I still want to see where this goes."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

She bit her lip.

He moved closer. A hand against her cheek, he leaned over and kissed her gently at first, then more passionately.

When they broke apart, both a little breathless, she sighed. "There's, uh – There's something else."

He smiled, his expression betraying some amusement. He knew what was coming – it had been what he was expecting her to tell him earlier when he had just about ravished her. "It's okay. There's no rush, all right?"

"I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"I feel like I've led you on and –"

"You haven't." He kissed her forehead tenderly, then smiled at her. "I kinda figured, you know… You didn't really strike me as a casual sex kinda girl."

She laughed. "Yeah, well, you kind of make me wish I was."

He chuckled softly. "Look, for the record, I'm not that guy either. I didn't go to Sullivan's last night lookin' to pick anyone up. But you should know, I'm definitely no virgin."

"That doesn't bother me. I just need some time to trust this. My life's taken a lot of twists and turns lately and it's all a little overwhelming."

"I can wait as long as you need to. I have a lot of respect for the choices you've made." He leaned over and met her lips again.

"This is really ironic," she said as she curled up against him. "The one place I always thought I'd never meet someone?"

Don chuckled. "A bar?"

"Yeah."

He stroked her arm, her back. He loved touching her and being close to her. The fact was, he could easily see himself falling in love with her, something that previously freaked him out when he dated a girl, but not this time – despite everything that would come along with being involved with her.

"What?" she asked, a little disconcerted by his silence.

He just shook his head with a soft laugh. "Nothing. So, I'm on until four tomorrow. You busy after?"

"No, but I'll have Katie back."

"I'd love to meet her."

"In that case, what'd ya have in mind?"

"Hmm. Take-out after work?" he asked, his lips trailing kisses along her neck.

"You keep doing that and you'll still be here tomorrow," she rasped.

Don smiled against her skin. Danny had wished him luck – he should have wished him willpower.