Hey all,

I got some pretty good feedback on the first part (thanks!), so I just thought I'd post Part II before the next episode airs. Hope you guys enjoy it – please let know what you think! Thanks 

Here's the link to Part I:

http://groups. Feelings" – Part II

Title: "Mixed Feelings"

Author: ducainefan

Rating: T

Subject: H/C relationship, E/C friendship

Summary: What happened after Calleigh kissed Eric (on the cheek)? (Spoilers for Season 5's "Just Murdered" and "Burned" be here!)

Part II Summary: Some missing scenes from "Burned," and what was really with the "look" between Eric and Calleigh at the crime scene.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters on CSI:MIAMI, nor am I making any money off this - as a matter of fact I don't make much, so please don't sue!

Part II:

"So … you and Calleigh, huh?" Natalia Boa Vista said nonchalantly as she and Eric Delko stared at the computer screen, waiting for a suspect to pop up in their latest case, which involved a house fire that was obviously anything but unintentional.

"What?" Eric said, half-laughing. Inside, he was thinking about how, just last week, he thought there could've been something, just like Nat was suggesting now. But after the talk he had with Calleigh at Café San Marco, he realized any romantic plans he had been thinking up were going to be put on hold – at least for now. She hadn't exactly said they couldn't see each other – just that they couldn't see each other now.

"I saw her kiss you," Natalia continued, a hint of jealousy in her voice. But she soon started smiling, and Eric couldn't help but return her grin.

"It was just a kiss on the cheek," he said shyly. In reality, he had hoped it would be more, but for now he would respect whatever reasons Calleigh had for not wanting to start a relationship.

Soon a suspect came up on the screen, leading the discussion back to business. But that conversation would continue to play in the back of his mind as he met up with Calleigh later on.

Eric was just filling Calleigh in on some of the details of the case when Calleigh decided their best course of action would be to go back to the crime scene.

"You wanna ride together?" she asked Eric sweetly.

"Sure," he said with a grin on his face. 'I sure hope she gets things figured out soon,' he thought to himself, 'because I am really starting to fall for her…'

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Calleigh was trying to figure out a way to best break the news to Eric. At first, she thought the drive to the crime scene might be a good time, but they both ended up discussing the particulars of the case. She had to admit, something wasn't sitting right with her on this one, but she felt like they were bound to find something back at the house. The closest they came to any personal discussion was Eric cracking jokes about Detective Frank Tripp's car.

As usually happened, the case took precedence over any private conversation she had wanted to have. She had told Horatio that she needed to deal with this, but she just couldn't find the right moment – duty always seemed to call. Until, that is, she and Eric arrived back at the crime scene later that day. She was snapping photographs by the door, and picked up a piece of glass, accidentally cutting herself.

"Here, let me see," Eric said softly. He held her finger gently, removing the glass. She noticed that he was holding onto her a little longer than he needed to, and that look in his eyes – it reminded her of the one he gave her at Café San Marco, right before he told her he loved her. She was conflicted – she cared for Eric, but she had to tell him the truth. Tears started to well in her eyes, realizing that she might hurt him, but knowing she really had no choice. She couldn't let him keep feeling this way about her. It wasn't fair to either of them.

"Eric," she said softly. She was about to tell him everything when he noticed something on the glass – or rather, something that wasn't there. And back to the case they went.

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"Wow, twice in one day, that's more than I've seen you in months," Yelina said incredulously.

Horatio ducked his head, not sure what to say. He had been concerned about how Eric might take the news of his relationship with Calleigh, but he hadn't even thought about telling Yelina. She had come back into his life so unexpectedly during this case, and he was caught off-guard.

"I'm sorry about that," he said in a low voice. He didn't know how to tell her that the main reason he stayed away was his relationship with Calleigh.

"It's OK," she said. "We've both had a tough year."

That much was true, Horatio thought, but having to tell Yelina – someone he loved and once thought he could have a romantic relationship with – that he was seeing someone else … he had wanted to plan it all out, the words, the explanation. He still cared deeply for her, and for Ray, Jr., but there were other considerations now.

"I wanted to ask you a favor," he started, changing the subject back to the case at hand. However, he would later go on to regret ever asking for that favor…

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Calleigh hadn't seen Horatio all day, which wasn't really odd, as they had been trying to avoid working together to ensure that no one caught on to their relationship. But something seemed off, she thought. Something didn't feel right.

After she finished the final interrogation, she headed to Horatio's office to drop off her findings. Looking out his office window, she noticed that he was talking to a woman outside. Her heart jumped into her throat as she recognized the woman to be his sister-in-law.

Calleigh sighed, narrowing her eyes, trying to determine the tone of their conversation by their body language. She noticed Horatio turn and say something to Yelina, who then walked toward her car. Calleigh couldn't help the jealousy that sprung up within her, but she was determined to trust Horatio on this. If they didn't have trust, what did they have?

Shaking her head, Calleigh walked out of Horatio's office and toward the elevator door, just in time to hear IAB Sergeant Rick Stetler's words to Ryan Wolfe.

"You're fired," he said flatly to the young CSI.

Calleigh stopped dead in her tracks. 'What the hell is going on?' she thought.

"I need your gun and your badge," Stetler continued.

Calleigh's jaw dropped as she watched Ryan hand over his weapon and shield. She saw him whisper something, which just seemed to irritate Stetler more.

"You don't get it," he said mockingly. "All your cases have to be reviewed now. Criminals are gonna be walking the streets…"

Calleigh stood there, frozen, until the elevator doors closed on Ryan. She nearly sprinted over to Stetler, anger blazing in her eyes.

"What the hell just happened here?" she hissed.

"Why don't you ask Horatio," he said, walking away. Calleigh stared back at him in disbelief, then looked at the elevator doors. She was going to get to the bottom of this.

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Horatio stared out the window, watching Ryan Wolfe leave. He wasn't sure how to feel about the situation. Ryan had lied to him – that much was certain. But it was the why that continued to nag at him. He knew Ryan was a good CSI – but he was impulsive, and this wasn't the first time he'd made a bad decision.

He was surprised when Ryan turned toward the window, feeling his gaze. Horatio wanted desperately to reassure him that things would be OK, but the reality was that he was down a CSI – and a dedicated one at that. He smiled slightly, trying to show Ryan that he still cared. But Ryan didn't seem to understand, or chose not to – he could tell by how he turned away and looked straight ahead, walking toward the cab.

"Horatio," Calleigh called from the hall, coming up to his side. His eyebrows went up and he turned suddenly. "I just heard Stetler fire Ryan," she continued. "What the hell is going on?"

Horatio sighed, looking down. "I'm not sure…"

Calleigh looked out the window, watching Ryan get into a cab. She caught his eye briefly, just as the cab was about to pull away. His hardened look softened as he saw her, and she could see the tears in his eyes.

"Horatio…" she insisted. "What happened?"

"Mr. Wolfe," he started, "has gotten himself in quite a mess."

"How so?" she rasped.

"It seems he was paying off a bookie today on the clock. A bookie who happened to be a suspect in our arson case today."

"I should've …" Calleigh said, stopping herself and shaking her head. "He should've come to me…"

"You don't seem surprised," Horatio noted. "Do you know something about all this?"

"Back in October, Ryan had gotten involved in that whole 'death pool' gambling ring," she explained. "I covered for him, but tried to explain that he needed to be careful. I guess I didn't do a very good job."

"We can't blame ourselves on this one, sweetheart, although I wish I would've known this sooner…"

"I'm sorry," she started. "It's just that you were …" she stopped herself. "I thought I had handled it."

"I understand," he said, turning toward her.

"I don't understand any of this, Horatio – just like that, he's gone?"

"I gave him a chance," he said. "I gave him a chance to explain himself and he lied to my face, Calleigh. I couldn't help him."

She shook her head. "I understood when he lied about his eye, but why wouldn't he confide in us about this?"

"That," he said, putting his hands on his hips, "is a question only Mr. Wolfe can answer."

Calleigh turned to the side, running her hands through her hair nervously. "So," she said quietly, looking up at him. "What do you want us to do?"

Horatio sighed. "Our jobs," he said, grasping her hand and squeezing it before walking away. She looked back at him – surprised that he'd even shown that small sign of affection at work. She noticed where he was headed — the locker room.

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Horatio grabbed the bag and walked over to Ryan's locker. Stetler had sent a patrol officer to gather Ryan's belongings, but Horatio made it clear to the patrolman that he would take care of it.

He stared at the nameplate for a long time, remembering the last time he had to do this. But Ryan wasn't dead, he thought. There was still hope for him, even if he wasn't on the team anymore. Maybe this is what needed to jolt him out of whatever trouble he'd gotten into — maybe this could be the springboard he needed to get on the right track. However, everything in Horatio gut told him otherwise. 'Would this only serve to push Ryan over the edge?' he wondered.

"Hey," a familiar voice called. Horatio turned, seeing Calleigh standing next to him. "Did you want me to help you with Ryan's things?"

Horatio's jaw clenched as he turned his away, shaking his head. "I can't believe …" he started.

"Hey," she said, gripping his hand. "Let me help you this time around, handsome."

"OK," he rasped quietly, nodding. "OK." He placed the bag on the bench and opened the locker. Calleigh reached in to pull out one of the two pictures that were taped to the door. It was from the lab's Christmas party this past year. They were standing in a semi-circle — Alexx, Calleigh, Eric, Ryan and Horatio — and seemed to be caught off-guard by Natalia, who, being the newbie, was the designated photographer.

"One big, happy family," Calleigh said, her voice filled with regret and a tinge of bitterness.

"Calleigh?" Horatio said, concerned.

"I'm sorry," she replied. "I just – I feel like I let him down. We were pretty close, but after everything happened with Eric … I couldn't keep an eye on both of them at once, you know?"

"I guess we're pretty bad parents, huh?" Horatio said, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

Calleigh gave him a sad laugh, putting the picture in the bag. "Do you think he's gonna be alright?" she said quietly.

"I hope so," Horatio said, reaching into the locker to grab a shirt and slacks that were resting on the bottom of the locker. "If he's not careful, he may lose more than his job next time …"

"Let's just hope there won't be a next time," she said shakily, reaching in to take down the second picture— a shot of Ryan with his 6-year-old niece.

Horatio turned and glanced at the photograph. He'd never really gotten to know Ryan as well as he would've liked, he thought. "Who's that with him?" he asked curiously.

"That's his niece, Bella," Calleigh said. "She's a sweet girl. Likes 'Hello Kitty' apparently … Real sweet girl …" she said, trailing off.

"What have I done, Calleigh?" Horatio said sadly, sitting on the bench and putting his head in his hands. "What have I done?"

"Horatio," Calleigh started, sitting beside him, "there's nothing you could've done about this."

"I gave Stetler the tape," he said flatly.

"What tape? What are you talking about?"

Horatio sighed, folding his hands and bringing them to his lap. He leaned forward. "I had Yelina shadow our suspect, and that's how I found out about Ryan – through video that Yelina had taken…"

Calleigh sat quietly, looking at him, urging him to continue.

"I sat down with Ryan … explained the situation … tried to give him a way out … but once he lied to me, I had to turn it over to IAB … I didn't know what Ryan was involved in, but I couldn't let the lab suffer because of it. If it ever got out that this was covered up …"

"It's a hard spot to be in," she said carefully. Horatio could tell that Calleigh wasn't thrilled with his decision to give the tape to Stetler — of all people — but he also knew that she understood his reasons — at least he hoped she did. "It's not your fault," Calleigh continued, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I wish it felt that way," he said, shaking his head and looking down at his hands. Calleigh's hand came up to his face as she lifted his head. He turned toward her, meeting her gaze. "Calleigh," he rasped.

Calleigh leaned into him, kissing him gently on the lips.

"Hey, guys, I heard Wolfe —"

They both recognized the voice and pulled apart immediately, glancing toward the door. Eric stopped in his tracks as they both wondered if he had seen.

"Calleigh? H?"

"Eric…" Calleigh said carefully.

"Am I … what's goin' on?" Eric said, a hint of confusion in his voice.

"We're um … we were just cleaning out Ryan's locker," Calleigh explained.

Eric looked at Horatio, who was staring at the floor. "So it's true - Wolfe's out," he said matter-of-factly.

"Yea," Horatio said sadly.

"How'd it go down H?" Eric asked, his voice somewhat tense. Horatio wasn't sure if it was because of Ryan getting fired, or because Eric had just seen his boss — his brother-in-law — kissing Calleigh.

"It's a long story," Calleigh said, getting up and walking over to Eric. "I'll fill you in." She turned back to Horatio. "You gonna be OK?" she asked.

"Yea," he said. "I'll take care of this."

"OK," she said hesitantly. "I'll see you la — I'll see you," she replied. "C'mon Eric," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder.

Horatio watched them walk out, wondering if the day could get any more complicated.

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"So, Ryan's got some secrets of his own," Eric said, his arms folded. He and Calleigh were seated in the break room. "And, if I had to guess, I'd say he's not the only one…"

"What do you mean?" Calleigh replied guardedly.

"I saw you with H, Cal — I don't know what was goin' on, but it was pretty clear to me that you were sharing a very … intimate … moment."

"Eric," Calleigh started. "I – I don't know what to say…"

"So it's true? You two got somethin' goin' on?" Calleigh looked nervously, pursing her lips, trying to figure out what she should say. "Hey, it's cool," Eric said in a tone which made it clear that it was anything but that.

"I'm sorry," she replied. "I know this is awkward …"

"No," he replied, "No, the conversation at Café San Marco — that was awkward. This … this is just … unbelievable…"

"Eric, I never meant to hurt —"

"How long?" he said sharply.

"Eric, don't …"

"How long?" he insisted, his tone still terse.

"Eric, I'm going to tell you this, as a friend, but I want you to know – my personal business is my personal business."

"You bet this is personal," he hissed.

"He loved your sister, Eric…"

"They should've never gotten married …" he said sadly. "I don't know why Mari thought … I could feel it was all wrong."

"Eric, if you can remember that, then you can remember how happy your sister was with Horatio," she said, her voice strained. "I remember – I remember because I kept asking myself why, why would Horatio open himself up to a complete stranger? Why would he give his life to someone he hardly knew?"

"So, did he tell you?" Eric asked.

"I never asked," she said quietly. "Ultimately, it wasn't my place to question their relationship — and it wasn't yours either, Eric."

"She my sist—"

"Yes, she was your sister, Eric, but she deserved a right to choose her own path, just like anyone."

Eric sighed, tears forming. "It's just … I miss her …"

"I know," Calleigh said. "And I'm sorry."

Quickly wiping away a tear that had escaped, Eric gave Calleigh a bitter chuckle. "So, uh, how long before you entered the picture?" he asked, and she could tell he was still angry.

"Around December," she said matter-of-factly.

"Wow, a whole seven months, that's class…"

"Eric —"

"I was talkin' about H," he said angrily.

"I don't care who you were talking about," she said, anger rising in her own voice. "I try to let people live their lives without buttin' in too often. I respected Horatio's decision last year, even if I didn't particularly agree with it. You should try and do the same." She turned to walk away.

"Yea," he rasped, and Calleigh turned to face him. "Yea, I'll try. Just tell me one thing."

"What?" she responded, stealing back tears.

"Why him and not me?"

She sighed, moving toward him, taking his hand. "Eric, you're sweet … You're always trying to do the right thing. You're a lot like Horatio in that way," she said softly. "I just – I know you, Eric. I know you're not … a one girl kinda guy, and I've already been to that party more than once. I need some stability, and I would never want to hold you back …"

Eric was speechless. He didn't actually expect answer.

"Besides," she added, giving him a smile, "I'm kinda old for you, you know."

He chuckled at that comment, looking down. "Not by that much," he said playfully.

"See what I mean? You're always so sweet, and you're gonna make some woman a very lucky lady," she replied, squeezing his hand.

"Cal," he started, becoming serious. "You should know that … since … since the shooting, I've gotten a whole new outlook on life. I'm not the same guy anymore. I want a commitment – I wanna try … I would never dream of asking you to start a relationship with me if I didn't."

"Eric … I can't change things, I can just tell you that I care about you, and I want you to be happy," she said. "But we've got much bigger concerns now. Ryan's out, and while I know you two never got along very well, this is still going to have major repercussions for us."

"No, I – I know that," he said, a determined look on his face. "I know we gotta step it up, but we can do it — we've done it before."

"Now that's the Eric Delko I know," she said, smiling.

"Calleigh, I – I'm sorry, I was just kinda caught of guard here."

"I know – I just hope you can understand. Horatio was very worried about you, I can tell you that. He was so afraid that this … that our relationship … would jeopardize your friendship."

"I just wish he would've told me," Eric said, exasperated. "I may not like it, but at least I could respect that a little more than findin' out like this."

"That's partially my fault," Calleigh replied. "I told Horatio I'd tell you. It was just never the right moment …"

"Look, we're cool, and I mean that," Eric said.

"You should talk to Horatio," she said. "Air things out …"

"I don't know," Eric began. "I guess I'm just afraid I might lose it … say something I'm gonna regret … like I almost did with you."

"Then give it some time, but don't wait too long. You know how he gets when something's eating at him, and combined with what happened to Ryan … I just think he could use as many friends as he can get right now."

"Yea," Eric said quietly. "He's always had my back … I just don't understand why this was such a big secret."

"Do you remember what I told you at Café San Marco?" Calleigh asked.

Eric looked down, thinking about the conversation they'd had not that long ago. He started to put it together. "You mean, this might not be looked upon so well by the higher-ups," Eric said. "Yea, I could see that, especially with the beef Horatio's been having with that guy O'Shea."

"Then you can understand why we want to keep this as far under the radar as possible," Calleigh said, looking at him intently.

"Don't worry Cal, I would never say anything," Eric replied. "I promise."

"I know you won't," she said, "and I'm grateful for that. Truly, I am."

"Well," Eric said mildly, "Just don't let Stetler catch you guys in a lip-lock in the lockers, alright?"

Calleigh blushed, looking down. "I'm gonna try and do some rumor control with this whole situation with Ryan, " she said, her face forming a frown.

"Do you think he's gone for good?" Eric asked, and Calleigh was slightly surprised to hear the sadness in his voice. She could see he was concerned about the young CSI — or former CSI, now.

"I don't know," she said. "Getting fired … that's pretty hard to come back from."

"I almost got fired once," Eric said, looking away. "I was right on the edge — but H, he pulled me back. He would've done that for Wolfe in a heartbeat if the fool had just told him the truth. Stupid kid…"

Eric looked away, but she could see the pain in his eyes. He really was different, more mature than he had been before the shooting. It touched her to see his concern for Ryan – she always knew they were like brothers — fighting like dogs one minute, but fiercely loyal and protective of each other in the next.

"C'mon," Calleigh said, gesturing toward the door. "Let's go help Horatio."

He nodded, and they headed out of the break room together.