Puzzled
Chapter 10
Nick sat at the break room table, contentedly drinking his freshly brewed coffee and filling in the cross word puzzle as he awaited the beginning of his shift. Warrick, slightly disgruntled that Nick knew where Sanders hid the good coffee and he didn't, read the sports section.
Greg, mug in hand, sauntered in, nose testing the air approvingly and his eyes on Nick. A minute misstep as he realized they were not alone.
"Hey, Warrick. You have a good weekend?"
"Meh," Warrick grunted in reply, barely looking up.
"How 'bout you, Nicky?" he greeted as though they hadn't kissed good morning an hour ago. "Good weekend?"
Nick cocked an eyebrow and looked at Greg out of the corner of his eye, the tiniest smirk floating around the corner of his jaw as he tried to figure out Greg's angle. Looking back at his paper, he shrugged, let the paper drop and stretched his arms over his head, lacing his fingers together and cracking his knuckles as he cracked his neck. Looking purposely down the hall and away from Greg he responded, "I had an amazing weekend." He sucked on his teeth. "Thanks. For asking."
Greg froze as he watched those arms stretch. "Amazing, huh?" his coffee mug held in stasis just below his mouth.
"Yep," he responded, popping the p as he picked up his own mug again.
"Good to know," Greg smiled, full on, oblivious to the fact that Warrick was now watching them surreptitiously over the top of the spots section. Greg topped up his coffee and headed out of the break room trying his best to not let his grin crack his face or his strut be too pronounced as he made his way down the hall, unaware of the way Nick's eyes followed his ass out the door.
After a moment, Nick became aware of the quiet chuckles coming from behind the sports section.
"Dude, what the hell could possibly be so funny in the sports section?" he asked his friend, baffled.
Warrick dropped the paper in front of him and reached over to clap Nick on the back. "Finally, Nicky. Good for you. It's about damn time," he said as he stood to top up his own coffee.
Nick's eyes went wide as Warrick sat back down and pulled out his phone, sending off a text to who-knows-where with a wide grin on his face.
"What are you talking about?" Nick asked, a small and unwanted note of panic in his voice.
Warrick looked up at his long-time friend with a look of 'oh, please!' "Dude, you and Sanders. It's about time."
Nick looked at the other man, slack jawed and gob-smacked. "What? What do you mean it's about time? What? I mean just….What?"
Warrick rubbed a hand over his chin, unsuccessfully hiding his grin. "C'mon, Nicky. You two have been dancing around each other for years."
Nick looked down at the table, confused, processing. He looked up, slightly incredulous. "Then why the hell didn't you tell me?"
Warrick laughed. "Oh, yeah, that would have been a comfortable conversation. And what if I'd been wrong? Awkward!"
Nick looked down at the table again. "Okay, I guess that's not really a conversation I can imagine us having." He frowned. "So, it doesn't freak you out, or anything?" he asked, a little worried.
Warrick smiled a soft smile at his friend. "Naw, man. I just want you to be happy. And that dude is crazy about you."
Nick's face lit up. "Really?"
Before Warrick could answer, Catherine skidded into the room. "Seriously?" she asked Warrick without even acknowledging Nick. Warrick grinned. "You owe me and Sara both fifty, Catherine. Fair and square."
Catherine eyed up Nick as Nick goggled at Warrick. "You guys bet on us?"
"And I lost," Catherine interjected. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Okay, here's the deal. You hurt him, and you will have this whole lab raining down a world of hurt on you. You will not, I repeat, will not, be caught making googly eyes at each other at a crime scene or making out in the janitors closet. Technically, you are not allowed to date someone you work with, but as the LVPD does not officially recognize same sex partnerships, as long as you are relatively discreet we'll all keep it to ourselves."
Nick stared at her, trying to take in everything she said. "So what if he dumps me?" he asked, a bit defensively.
Catherine smiled somewhat patronizingly at him as she dropped a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, don't you worry, Nicky. He's gonna get this same lecture. In the meantime, you and laughing boy here are on a trash run in Henderson. Hop to it."
"What about my fifty?" Warrick smiled at her.
"You'll get it. Now get out."
He laughed at her as he rose, slipped his jacket on, and took the work sheet from Catherine's outstretched hand. "C'mon, Nicky."
"Hey, what exactly was the bet?" Catherine heard Nick ask as they rounded the corner. She smiled, her arms crossed and her foot tapping for a moment, her eyes roaming aimlessly. She shook herself and went to find the other half of that particular equation.