~Ryan's POV~
It was just getting better and better by the day. Now Natalia had an excuse to stay with me, and neither one of us were objecting.
"Your place is better than mine."
"I doubt that."
"Well, I think it's perfect."
"It's good for one or two people. That's all I need."
"Ryan, do you believe Max's story? Because I think I do."
"Me too. But something's just not right."
"I know. I just can't figure it out though."
"They're definitely working for someone. Except no one's saying anything."
"There's no evidence pointing to anyone else, which means we've hit a dead end." I saw the look of defeat on her face.
"We have not hit a dead end, Nat. The team's looking over at your house for more leads. We both know how good they are."
"Why do they want me dead so badly?"
"I don't know. I can't imagine you doing something….bad enough to cause this," I struggled for the right words.
"I don't think I did! I'm so confused!"
"And you have a right to be. You're in good hands though," I comforted, tucking a piece of curly hair behind her ear.
"I'm scared…I know I keep saying that but there's no other way to describe it."
"Natalia…" I was at a loss for words.
"Ryan, I know you're trying. Even if this situation takes a turn for the worst, it means the world to me that you care."
"Of course I care. If I hadn't been with you that night, and something had happened to you, I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself."
"I can't go without you either." She fell back on the loveseat. We were both in our pajamas, and they way that her tank top revealed just a little sliver of stomach was driving me insane.
"We make a good pair," I granted.
"We have our moments."
The next morning Natalia was as grumpy as I had ever seen her. Apparently she had fallen asleep on her wrist, and it was throbbing almost unbearably. She calmed down, but only after I practically shoved the Motrin down her mouth. Until work.
Around 2:00 the elevator doors opened to four men dressed entirely in black, complete with ski masks.
"Everybody down! We need Natalia Boa Vista right now!" one of them shouted, pointing a military rifle at the officers. I shot a look at H, and he nodded. Eric, Calleigh, Horatio, and I slowly advanced.
"Put the gun down, and nobody will get hurt," H threatened.
"Give us Natalia!" Eric shot. Calleigh shot. I shot. H shot. All four men went down . And then I realized that Natalia was not among us.
"NATALIA!" the team shouted, running down hallways and corridors. I was almost positive she was inside the lab. There was no way the attackers could have pulled her out of the lab in the short amount of time. Unless they had taken her earlier.
~Natalia's POV~
I was scared. So scared. Ryan said that he would protect me, but I was really second-guessing him at the moment.
"Let go—," I started to scream, until one of the kidnappers kicked my broken wrist.
"Shut up! You're going to die and your little boyfriend can't save you this time." Boyfriend. Huh, had a nice ring to it.
"Yes he will!"
"Listen, we have four guys in the elevator distracting your pathetic excuse for a team. No one's even thinking about you. Sorry," he mocked an apology. It sounded like a plan. That was frightening all in itself.
"Now how do you want to die? Slow? Or fast? Because either one works just fine for me."
"I'm not going to die! There's no way you're going to get away with this!" I yelled, struggling against his strong arms.
"Shut the hell up!" He stuck a piece of duct tape over my mouth. I couldn't breathe. Oh god, I really was going to die. I kicked. I made noise. My hands were roped behind my mouth and my air was being cut off.
"Struggle all you want. It doesn't work when you know no one's listening." He smiled, but it was one of pure evil. I swore that once he was caught I was going to have Ryan or Eric beat the crap out of this guy. Or Ryan and Eric. I struggled and fought back some more. Criminals knew that more noise meant more attention, which meant jail. He was becoming desperate and annoyed with me. He wanted my mouth shut. Being a CSI, I knew that was the worst route to go. He kicked me, the heavy metal toe of his boot slamming into my already bruised shin. I winced, but I kept the noise level high. And then, with one final effort, he forced the boot on my head.
And then I blacked out.
~Ryan's POV~
Every soul in the building was running down hallways, opening closets, doors, cabinets; anywhere you could store the poor girl. She wasn't in the DNA lab. Or the ballistics lab. Or any other lab we could possibly think of. No blood could be found, but that didn't necessarily mean anything. There were too many other ways to die. Natalia didn't deserve that. No one deserved that.
"Ryan, I found her lab coat! She's been here!" Eric informed, talking fast and looking as we talked. We were sprinting past the break room, the kitchen, and the lockers. Lockers.
"CHECK THE LOCKERS!" Police officers and canine units rushed in, looking for any trace of my girl. My girl. But there was nothing.
"Keep searching!" We WILL find her!" Horatio yelled, in panic like the rest of us. Our break room was full of places to hide. Cabinets, book shelves, and storage rooms made perfect cover-ups for a….I didn't dare say it. Murder.
"Look through here!" I opened the door of the storage room, switching on lights and tearing through boxes and bins. If we didn't get her out soon she would suffocate. There was no air access, and the heat inside of the concrete walls was unbearable.
"We don't have any time! Go!" Calleigh ordered.
"I'm going to go check the kitchen! Keep looking!" The kitchen looked normal. Everything was in place. I realized as I scanned the room that there was almost no way to hide an adult in here. The dishes were unbroken, the walls pristine. The only way to get a room looking this nice was to clean it, which the attacker wouldn't have had time to do. I saw a black rag sticking out of the corner of the freezer, but it looked just like a cleaning rag. It didn't matter. Natalia was still missing. I ran faster than I thought possible back to the break room. A black rag. I sprinted back to the freezer in record time.
The door was struck, probably glued. I had no choice but to keep pulling. It yanked open to reveal the scariest and most distressing sight I would ever encounter in my life. Natalia….her eyes bloodshot and her hands were covered with half-frozen duct tape. Her hands were tied behind her back, and her fingertips were the brightest shade of purple. I couldn't see her breathing. Her eyes were looking straight ahead, not responding to me. She was frozen to the sides of the freezer. I felt terrible yanking her like the way I did, but that was the only way that I could get her out. Natalia fell on top of me, unable to support her bitter cold weight. Scrambling to support her neck, I felt for a pulse. Nothing.
"Nat, stay with me! STAY WITH ME!" The magical beating came from underneath my fingertips. Small, weak, but it was there. But if she didn't warm up it would slip away from me again. Not my Natalia.
"I NEED A PARAMEDIC IN HERE NOW!" I yelled, hoping that someone, anyone could hear me. As fast and as rushed as I could, I took off my sports jacket and wrapped it around her shivering arms. I ripped the duct tape off. That small gasp of air she took was like music to my ears. She was alive.
"Natalia, we're here. I've got you, you're going to live." I huddled her head to my chest, rubbing her back to generate some type of heat.
Alexx rushed in, shrugging off her lab coat and throwing it over Natalia.
"Warm up sweetheart, warm up." The rest of the team followed her lead. The crucial 10 minutes were over. Her teeth were still chattering and she was still uncontrollably shivering, but I knew she would make it.
"Ry-y-an-n.."
"Shh, don't talk. You're still too cold." Natalia wrapped her trembling arms around my torso. Tears were streaming down her pretty face. She couldn't help it.
Once Natalia was able to stand, the team left me alone with my favorite girl.
"Ryan, he said that no one would come. You promised you would and you did."
"I know, I kept my promise." She wiped her eyes. The tears didn't stop, but she pressed her lips against mine anyway. I could taste her salty tears as they fell, but I thought they were sweet like candy. It might have just been me, but it was probably because I was kissing the one that I needed to have. Needed to be with. Needed to love.
~More Ryan's POV~
I put an alarm system in my house while Natalia was at the hospital. Since "protecting" her was going to be harder than I thought; it was in my best interest to scare away the potential attackers. I practiced using the alarm by setting it before I left to pick up Nat from the ER. I saw her lying asleep on the bed, looking peaceful and breathing easy. Gently, I stroked her forehead and watched her eyes flutter open.
"Hey," she smiled, looking so happy despite the tragedies that she had just been in the middle of.
"How do you feel?" I crouched down and got to eye level with her.
"Okay. My leg and my wrist hurt like hell, but other than that I'm doing great."
"Did you break it?" I asked, anxiously awaiting the answer. The doctor hadn't said anything about a broken leg.
"No, it's just bruised." She kicked the sheet off to reveal a completely purple bump on her left leg.
"Oh wow. Hey, I meant to tell you earlier. I put an alarm system in my house."
"I was hoping you would do that. "
"It just makes me feel a little better."
"I know. Ryan?"
"Yeah?"
"Kiss me." I had no idea where that had come from, but I did it anyway.
"Feel better now?"
She laughed, the first one I had heard in days. "Yes, I think I do."
"Are you ready to go home?" I asked quietly.
"I'm afraid that if I go I'm just going to get hurt again. I can't take much more."
"I know. Natalia, I don't want to leave you. When you come back to my place, I'm going to have to go back to work while you rest. I'll spend the whole day worrying about you."
"Don't do that. Don't get yourself in trouble because of me."
"I'd get myself fired for you." She sat up, although I could see that it caused her pain. "No, just lay back," I tried to convince her.
"Wait." Slowly but surely, she swung her bruised legs over the side of the bed so she was completely facing me. Her sweet, soft lips just barely hung onto mine, giving me the perfect sensation of wanting her more and more. If it weren't for the fact that she was injured and nimble, I would have gone much further than I did.
Carefully, I slipped one hand underneath her back and the other right under her knees, only exhibiting enough force to lift her and set her lightly on the bed.
"Please rest."
"Ryan, I've been resting all of this time. Plus, you can't expect me to 'rest,' after that," she said, looking more alive and well than ever. I laughed.
"Do you want me to take you home then?"
"By home do you mean your place?"
"Yes, I do. It's not safe for you to be anywhere else."
"Well, than I think that sounds like a plan. Will you sign me out, please?"
"Of course I will."
"I'm going to get changed." Apparently Calleigh had brought her clothes from her house, so she changed into the jeans and the sweatshirt. Natalia walked slow and was a little shaky, but I didn't blame her after being shoved into a freezer.
Once we were in the car, she was a lot calmer and more free-flowing. Standing in my driveway, she pulled me in and laid a kiss on me. And then again once we were inside the front door. And then again in the kitchen. And so forth. I didn't know what had suddenly gotten into her, but I was certainly enjoying it. By the looks on her face, she was clearly having a pretty good time. And two is always better than one.
~Natalia's POV~
I couldn't wrap my mind around it. I didn't understand Ryan's sudden affection towards me. Then again, I wasn't exactly holding back either. Another thing that didn't make any sense at all was the people trying to kill me. They just never stopped. The fact that they would even capture me at work was proof that they would go to desperate measures to murder me. So far, Ryan had been doing a very adequate job of keeping me safe and sound, but you never know.
"You feel better yet?" Ryan asked, snapping me out of my spell. He reached over, and like he always did, tucked my annoying curly hair behind my ear.
"I think so. Better than before, anyway." I had so many layers on; Ryan was beginning to think I was insane. After being forced into a freezer that I barely fit into, I was extremely sensitive to cold. The only option was to bundle up with sweatshirts and blankets. In summer. In Miami.
"You've been through way too much."
"You think?" I snapped back with sarcasm.
"Whoa, sorry."
"No Ryan. Look, I'm just cranky right now. Don't take it personally," I apologized, making an effort to keep it simple with him.
"I won't. Do you need to sleep?"
"No, I just need to sit here and talk to someone." I looked at him.
"Okay, well I can do that."
"Any progress on the case?" I asked, changing the subject.
"Yes, actually. We got an address and evidence placing Max at the scene."
"So he was lying to us the entire time."
"Exactly."
"God, I was stupid to believe him."
"No you weren't. You were just going with your gut feeling. And sometimes that feeling's wrong. I bought his story, too."
"Yes, but—,"
"No 'buts',' Natalia. Don't blame yourself for things you can't control." He smiled.
"Is there anything you can't do?" Ryan had a confused look on his face.
"I mean every time I'm upset, every time I feel like crying, you're there. Making me feel better again."
"I try, I try," he joked.
I laughed, but then got to the point. "I'm serious, Ry. Really, why do you this?"
"How many times have I told you this?"
"I like hearing it."
"In that case, it's because I have a reason to. Do you think I would do this for Calleigh or Maxine? They're close friends of mine, but Calleigh has Eric! You're the one I live for, Nat. The reason that I come to work every day." I leaned in and kissed him.
"I'm glad you said that, because when I was the intern, I got myself up every morning and thought, 'Ryan hates me, but at least I get to see him'" He smirked.
"I think 'hate,' is a relatively strong word."
"That's what you say now. Time to hear it from the other side of the rainbow."
"Alright, whatever you say. I don't hate you now, no worries about that."
"Oh believe me; I'm not worrying at all." Even though I had the cast on my wrist, I still climbed on top of him and forced him to lie back on the couch.
"Natalia…" he started to say. I cut him off with my lips. He was lying flat on the couch, I was on top of him, playing with his tongue.
"Happy now?"
"I was happy before," he shrugged with a huge smile on his face. I giggled and kissed him again.
"Well, we should let that happy feeling last, shouldn't we?" I teased his lips one more time, and turned around.
"Natalia, you kill me. No pun intended."
"Just take it slow."
"Oh so that's how you want to play it?"
"Bring it, Wolfe."
~Ryan's POV~
"Natalia, you kill me. No pun intended."
"Just take it slow. You can have me in a little bit."
"Oh, so that's how you want to play it?"
"Bring it, Wolfe."
I had absolutely no issue "bringing it." She was sexy, her laugh was contagious—now that I was with her, I couldn't understand why I didn't kiss her before.
"As much as I really want to continue this love fest, we have to work tomorrow my seductive friend," she said, breaking off from the passionate kiss.
"Screw work."
"Ryan...," she scolded.
"Okay, okay. One more time," I begged. She giggled and planted a last kiss on my still-tingling lips.
"Upstairs, now." She pointed at the staircase.
"I think I'll just sleep on the couch tonight…," I teased.
"After that, I don't think so." With her un-casted arm, she pulled my hand and led me up to my bedroom. Shutting the door behind her, she said, "You are sleeping with me."
"And how exactly do you mean that?"
"Ryan!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. We really do need to go to bed, though."
"You're right." She hit the light and dragged me into bed with her. I found it funny how she seemed to control me even though we were in my house. I pulled Natalia down on top of me and let her snuggle her small body into mine.
"Good night, babe."
"Night."
We were sleepy and tired in the morning, but after only one kiss we were wide awake and ready to work. At work, Eric pulled me into a very satisfying conversation.
"What's up with you and Nat?" he asked, handing me my coffee.
"Nothing. She's just staying at my place while we investigate the attack." He raised his eyebrows.
"Nothing at all?"
"Fine, Eric. You got me. We're having a little fling, I guess."
"The whole lab already knows, dude."
"Then why did you ask?"
"I just wanted to hear you admit it." I smiled and gave him a friendly punch.
"Well, I guess you could say that we're together."
"You've got a good one this time. Not to offend you, but that Erica chick isn't a competition for Nat."
"I realize that now. Eric, are you getting jealous of my Natalia?" I joked.
"She's a really nice person, but I've got Calleigh. She's my girl."
"I can tell." I lowered my voice. "When you first started getting together with Cal, did you ever get this feeling? Like this feeling that nothing else is important anymore?"
"You really have it bad for her don't you?"
"Just answer the question."
"Sorry, sorry. Now that I think about it, I did. Almost like you don't want to leave. And then she breaks it off with you and makes you wait for her."
"Exactly! She teases me so much and it drives me insane." I was ecstatic that the feeling I was having for Natalia was something good.
"Calleigh used to do that. Actually, she still does. Ryan, listen to me. Natalia's a really good girl. It doesn't matter to me if you're in a relationship with her, but don't hurt her."
"I don't plan to."
"Calleigh told me a lot of the stories and issues she's been through. She has a hard time trusting us men since her nasty divorce. If you do something…Natalia's never going to trust us again."
"I know dude, I know. She wants to take it slow, so…I guess that's what we're going to do."
"That's what I would do."
"Yeah. Hey, I got a case to work on, but I'll catch up with you later."
"Me too. Ryan, you and Nat are going to work out. You two have waited for this moment for a long time."
"Thanks, Eric."
"No problem."
By the time we got home I was so happy and jumpy about what Eric said, and Natalia could sense it."
"What are you so excited about?"
"Nothing, nothing."
"Okay..I guess." She seemed a little upset that I wouldn't tell her, but I certainly wasn't going to be the one to crack on this one. I didn't think it would go over so well with Nat if I told her about the conversation Eric and I had.
Changing the subject, I said, "I think we've almost got this guy."
"We have plenty of evidence to place him at the scene. Or rather, my house."
"Hey..it's alright," I touched her arm gently. "Since we know that all three of them, Evan, Diego, and Max were there, we definitely have them for attempted murder."
"We have Evan and Diego for assault on a police officer."
"In addition to the attempted murder."
"Wait a minute."
"What?" I was confused.
"Why was Max there if he wasn't trying to hurt me?"
"Maybe he was, but he tried to get out before I could get you."
"Well he had plenty of time before you came."
"That's a good point, actually. We'll ask him tomorrow."
-Flash Forward to Interrogation-
"What exactly were you doing in Ms. Boa Vista's house this past Tuesday?"Eric asked, putting his hands on his hips.
"Nothing! I told you, I wasn't there!"
"Look, we have proof, we have DNA evidence that places you at the scene. Now you better tell us or you're going away for even longer!" he yelled.
"Fine. My boss told Evan and Diego to grab her and take her away. He hired me to watch it all and collect details. The girl was looking nice and pretty as she slept, so they didn't bother taking any 'precautions,' when they grabbed her. He didn't tell us she was a police officer, let alone that her little boyfriend was protecting her," Max spat out, pointing to me.
"Who is he? Who are you working for?" I demanded.
"I don't rat people out. You're talking to the wrong guy." Eric and I absolutely hated these kinds of criminals.
"You realize that if you tell us, you lose up to fifteen extra years of jail time, along with the blame."
"However, if you don't tell us, we get to tack on plenty more prison time," Eric continued. Max's expression changed.
"I don't know his name, but I have an address. He said that he goes there every day at around 2:00. That's all he told me. The pay was good, the thrill was there, so no need to ask any questions."
"We're asking the questions now. Right the address on the paper," I threw the pad and pen at him.
"Easy, Wolfe," Eric murmured.
Natalia was waiting for us outside of the glass walls.
"What's going on?"
"What time is it?"
"1:30. Why? Ryan, tell me!"
"He doesn't know who he's working for, but he knows where to find him. Apparently the 'boss,' goes to the Mediterranean Bar every day at 2. We have half an hour to get there."
"Let me come."
"Nat, you're not allowed in the field. I can't let you go."
"Just once!"
"I really wish that I could, but if something happens while we're there, you can't run to escape." She sighed.
"Just tell me when you come back."
"You got it."
Calleigh and I headed out. Inside the bar, Calleigh pointed her gun and said, "Miami-Dade PD, everyone put your hands up now." A guy at the bar bolted. We followed him. Down the road, through alleys, and around corners. Until he fell. I came down on top of him, pinning him to the ground. Calleigh handcuffed the sprinter and personally escorted him to the patrol car. It turned out that he wasn't the 'boss,' but a close affiliate with him. We were so close. Yet so far.
~Natalia's POV~
Ryan and I had been dating for about 11 months. Our relationship was steady and moving fast. My cast was off, and my wrist had finally regained its original strength. Evan, Diego, and Max were all arrested and sentenced to jail time, along with many other close affiliates. Everything was just as I had imagined it.
"Happy early birthday." Ryan said, giving me a good morning kiss.
"Hey, babe." It was five in the morning, and I was groggy and tired. I didn't understand how he could be so perky.
"What's wrong with you?"
"I'm sleep-deprived. And by the way, you're not supposed to celebrate the day before your birthday. You're supposed to celebrate on your birthday."
"Whatever you say. Coffee?"He asked, a sly smile forming on his face.
I laughed. "I'll get it." Although I didn't want to, I stood up and walked out to my kitchen. I could probably call it ours and get away with it; I was at his place so often that half of my stuff was here. I realized as I watched him make coffee, how lucky I was.
"What are you staring at?" Ryan asked, bringing me back to reality.
"Nothing, I was just thinking about you. Us."
"Is that a good thing?" He slid a mug of coffee in front of me.
"Yes, it most definitely is." He came over and kissed me. "My life is perfect."
"Mine's better than yours," I playfully challenged.
"Liar."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because, it can't get any better when you have a beautiful Puerto Rican to make out with anytime you want."
"It can't get better than a true American that you get to make out with whenever you want."
"Puerto Rico."
"American."
"Puerto Rico."
"American."
"Natalia! You win, fine."
"I win over you any day."
"You wish."
"There's no wishing involved. I WIN."
"Whatever you say," he said sarcastically, backing away with his hands up.
"You're on after work."
"Speaking of work, we have to go get dressed."
"Fine."
-Work-
"He really likes you, Nat." I was talking to Calleigh in the break room. I still had issues with the freezer, after being shoved into it. But I tried to get over it.
"I know. I think I like him too," I replied, obviously referring to Ryan.
"Looking at the two of you…"
"What?"
"It makes me think back to Eric and I. When we were still dating, before I got pregnant with Jayden."
"Do you remember that text you sent me?"
"The one about you looking like my fabulous husband and I?" she winked.
"Yes, that one. I remember showing it to Ryan, and he agreed to it. It has a weird value; like that's something we thrive on."
"I can understand. Speaking of the devil…" In walked Ryan and Eric.
"What's going on?" Eric asked, noticing how we stopped mid-conversation and turned to look at them.
"Nothing, just chatting," Calleigh said. They exchanged a loving glance. Eric came over and pulled Calleigh up for a kiss. Ryan came over and did the same to me. Both of us couples became embraced into each other, until a familiar voice broke the silence.
"What happened to my team?" Horatio asked, standing in the doorway. Everyone turned.
"I already have two married, and now I have two more right behind them!" We laughed.
"Don't worry, H. It won't affect our 'work ethic,'" Ryan said, quoting Stetler's famous words.
"I don't doubt you, Mr. Wolfe. Sorry to interrupt the occasion, but we've got a case to finish."
"You got it, boss."