Note: Thanks for all of your lovely reviews and ongoing support! I'm glad you're enjoying. We're heading toward the end now, so some things will start to be wrapped up. Enjoy - and by all means, send those lovely reviews!!

Because Ginger was so big, she instantly terrified most people. Her master had no doubt, however, that Nick's mother, a formidable woman by all accounts, would not be intimidated by a dog, even if she was the size of a pony.

It was with rarely-used force in her tone that Elizabeth instructed Ginger to behave herself. This voice, as it usually did, served to put Ginger on her guard. She knew that if she annoyed Elizabeth any treats would be a long time coming, so when the doorbell rang at six o'clock she walked to the entryway and sat down to wait for Elizabeth, who had followed.

Dressed in a short-sleeved yellow charmeuse blouse and dark blue jeans, red low-heeled peep-toed shoes, and various red accessories, she waved a finger at the dog before she opened the door. "Sit," she commanded. Ginger sat. "Stay," she said, the same, unmistakable, don't-even-think-of-disobeying tone in her voice. Ginger stayed.

When Elizabeth opened the door Cassie greeted her boisterously, and the DA kissed her on the forehead before she allowed her to pass by so she could lavish attention upon Ginger. The Stokeses followed her in, first the mother, then the son.

"Welcome," said Elizabeth politely as she moved to close the door.

"Elizabeth, this is Jillian, my mother," said Nick with no small amount of pride. "Mom, this is Elizabeth Halles."

"Hello, Mrs. Stokes," said Elizabeth, extending her hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

Like her husband before her, Jillian approved of the younger woman's firm handshake and then said, "it's a pleasure to meet you as well, Miss Elizabeth."

Elizabeth invited them into the kitchen, where she offered them seats at the island and a glass of wine. As Jillian seated herself, Nick declined the wine but cheekily reached into Elizabeth's refrigerator for a beer. Jillian accepted the wine offer and wanted to smack her son.

"And what about for you, ma'am?" Elizabeth asked of Cassie, tapping her on the nose with an index finger playfully. "I have water . . . or juice . . . or perhaps a refreshing glass of milk would hit the spot."

"Water, please," she replied with a smile. Elizabeth retrieved it for her as she climbed up into the spot next to Nick, who was next to his mother.

Once a chilled glass of Riesling was in Jillian's hand, she began her interrogation. After general pleasantries about Elizabeth's home and dog, she asked, "Have you always lived in Nevada?"

"Except for school," replied Elizabeth, "I have. My parents were from River City, Michigan. They eloped to Las Vegas and wound up staying."

"What does eloped mean?" asked Cassie, who was splitting her attention between Elizabeth and her dog.

"It means they ran away and got married in secret," said Elizabeth, a conspiratorial tone to her voice.

"I like that idea," said Nick under his breath, so only his mother could hear.

"Don't you dare," she hissed back, pinching his thigh.

Elizabeth turned a suspicious eye toward them. Nick simply smiled sweetly at her, his expression all innocence. She was about to warn him that she had her eye on him when Jillian interrupted.

"And is there a story behind their elopement, other than spontaneity?"

Elizabeth sipped her wine, and unabashedly told the story of which she knew the apparently very proper Jillian wouldn't approve. "My mother and father were very young," she began. "Out of high school, but just barely. My mother's parents did not like my father at all, and when my mother discovered that she needed to get married, they found a nice soldier for her to marry instead. She had no money and no place to live without them, but my dad had a little money, so they took off."

Jillian smiled, but Elizabeth noted that it didn't reach her eyes. "That's very romantic."

The younger woman laughed. "You can say it, Mrs. Stokes – it was incredibly irresponsible and stupid."

She chuckled a little, and conceded, "It certainly wasn't the best choice to make." She sipped her wine and observed Elizabeth watching Cassie as she pet Ginger's head. "Where are your parents today?"

"Oh – they're no longer living," replied Elizabeth, a well-rehearsed line. She felt Nick's mother deserved a more detailed answer, however, so she added, "They died when I was five."

Jillian worried her brow. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she said.

"Thank you," Elizabeth replied, nodding slightly. "After that I was reunited very briefly with my maternal grandmother in Michigan, but she shipped me back here. Then it was St. Paul for three years at Hamline University for pre-law, and another three in Cambridge for law school."

"You went to Harvard?"

Elizabeth nodded, sipping her wine. "I did. If I had to do it over again I would've chosen a school with less focus on corporate law, but Harvard offered me a scholarship."

"As an underprivileged student?" asked Jillian, her eyebrows raised. Nick scowled at her; she scowled back.

"As a gifted student," replied Elizabeth, smiling. "I was a very young law student."

Jillian was impressed, but didn't let on. "And as I understand from Nicholas, you're now a fairly young district attorney."

Nick watched Elizabeth's cheeks actually blush. "Yes, I am," she said proudly. "I've been in office for a little more than two years – nothing to your distinguished career, but it's a start."

Jillian smiled, and so did her son next to her. Well-placed flattery usually went over well. "Well, when it comes time for re-election, you give me a call. We can chat."

"Thank you, Mrs. Stokes," said Elizabeth, smiling. "I appreciate the offer."

Bored with their conversation, Cassie changed the subject. "What's for dinner?"

"Chicken and biscuits," replied Elizabeth. "They have about two minutes left in the oven, so why don't you go wash up?"

Cassie jumped down from her stool and ran to the bathroom to wash her hands. Ginger made an attempt to follow, but was foiled by the stern look of her master. Jillian observed this next to her son, and made another silent approval.

Truthfully, she had very little in the way of expectations for any wife of Nick's. After so long, she really hadn't expected him to settle down at all, and this worried her for more than one reason. Part of what kept her own marriage together during difficult times was the fact that Bill was her companion, someone she knew she would always be able to count on for support and love. She worried about her son because of his profession, even before what Audra had always referred to as "the box incident," but as the years passed and there was no one particularly special in his life, she grew more and more concerned that if Nick had no companion he would grow lonely and turn to his work for comfort. Jillian knew her son was an empathetic, kind person, and feared that more focus on Las Vegas' seemly underbelly would turn him cold.

The fact that Nick was adopting a child went a long way to allaying those fears, although they didn't put them completely out of Jillian's head. Having someone to care for, someone to think about other than himself, would keep him grounded. Cassie would be a daily reminder that life was beautiful and was about more than work – particularly the kind of work that Nick did. However, she was a child, not a companion; she would grow up and although she wouldn't disappear completely from Nick's life, she would move on because all children did.

Mostly all she wanted for Nick was someone who really loved him. With Billy she had been forced to settle with someone who he loved, and despite common opinions of Missy, Billy really did adore her. As she watched Miss Elizabeth interact with Cassie and Nick during dinner she understood that at the very least, the woman was fond of both of them. She also liked the fact that Elizabeth engaged Cassie in their conversations and seemed to make it a point to keep her own comments at a level that the little girl could understand without being condescending. She was patient in making explanations when they discussed the upcoming presidential race, and both Elizabeth and Jillian told Cassie a bit of what it was like to run for office. The actual experience was far more stressful than Elizabeth let on, but Jillian suspected that Cassie would experience a political race from the inside soon enough, just as her own children had.

When they were done eating Elizabeth offered coffee in the living room. Jillian and Nick both accepted and Cassie offered her help in the kitchen with Elizabeth's bright coffee set.

As they giggled and joked in the kitchen, Jillian fixed her son with a smirk. "She's very special to you."

"Very," confirmed Nick with a nod, and then asked, as if it mattered, "What do you think?"

"She's a bit more liberal than I'd have her be," replied Jillian, mostly to annoy him. When he rolled his eyes, she patted his knee. "She's lovely, Nicky – and the girl can cook, I'll sure give her that."

Nick agreed with her on both counts. Knowing he didn't have much time until the coffee was ready, he asked cautiously, "So . . . is it safe to say she's someone you'd be proud to know?"

"I'm withholding judgment for the time being," replied Jillian, "but she's got a running start."

Pleased with this answer, Nick sat back on the couch and relaxed. He wouldn't have the exhaustion of a long day's work or the release of making love to Elizabeth to soothe him into slumber, but he knew he'd sleep well that night nonetheless.

Officially, Nick was on vacation for the first four weeks he had Cassie, although he was still obliged to go to court when he was called. Nick could have had Cassie switch schools – he lived in a different school district than Emily Patterson – but for the amount of the school year that was left, he decided that it wouldn't be worth the interruption to Cassie. He took her to school and picked her up each day, and in between Jillian helped Nick sort through the stacks of resumes of nannies and they began interviewing. She would stay in Las Vegas for as long as it took for Cassie to become comfortable with whoever Nick hired. It was a frustrating prospect – the ones he liked, he couldn't afford, and the ones he could afford, he didn't like.

"It's like shopping for shoes," Elizabeth had commented dryly one evening in an effort to make him smile. It didn't work, but it did remind him that he still owed her a pair of shoes.

The second week was Spring Break for Cassie, but unfortunately Nick was scheduled to testify two of the five days. Since the timing of trials was routinely unpredictable, two days stretched to three and then four. Early on Wednesday evening, when Nick returned home annoyed and tired, he and Jillian made dinner while Cassie read. "How'd it go today?" he asked, chopping an onion.

"Just fine," she reported cheerily. "She's just a little sweetheart. But listen, Nicky, we need to talk about something."

He looked up at her, his eyes twitching with fatigue and onion tears. "What?"

"She's got no clothes," said Jillian plaintively. "I don't think she realizes it, but she's got almost nothing to wear. What she does have that still fits her is in poor shape."

Nick smirked. "You just want to take her shopping."

"That's beside the point. She needs clothes."

He kissed his mother's cheek. "Well, I have to go back to court tomorrow morning, but we could go in the afternoon."

"Oh, I don't mind taking her at all. We could have some girl time."

"I can see where this is going," he began, holding up a hand and turning to her. "Listen, Mom, if you want to take her shopping that's okay, but let me pay for it."

Jillian took on a pleading look. "Nicky, please. Let me buy my granddaughter some clothes. Let me spoil her. I spoiled all of your nieces and nephews, most of them before they were born."

"Mother, you practically bought me this house."

"Do I need to put my foot down, Nicholas?" Her eyebrow was up, a clear indicator that she was immovable on the subject.

He glared at her. "You know I'm too tired to argue with you about this."

She smiled brilliantly. "There's really no need to argue with me at all, Nicky. We'll shop in the morning, and hopefully you can come home for lunch."

"Fine," he replied with a sigh. "I need to go lay down; do you mind?"

She shook her head, pleased with her victory.

He climbed the stairs to search for Cassie, and found her in her room. He leaned on the door frame and smiled. "Hey, princess."

She looked up at him from where she was reading on her bed. "Hi, Nicky," she said. "Is it supper time?"

"No, not yet. What are you up to?"

"Reading. I just started." She held up a hefty book.

He rubbed his eyes. "Harry Potter, huh? I never read those." It occurred to him then that the book was new, and looked at the shelf in her room, which was suspiciously full. "Jillian bought you the whole set, didn't she?"

"When we went to the book store she said to pick out something," she said quickly. "I just picked this one. I don't know how she got the rest of them."

Nick chuckled, walking into the room. He sat down on the bed next to her and patted her back. "It's all right. She's got a way of doing that."

She smiled back at him, noting that he was rubbing his eyes a lot. "Are you gonna go take a nap?"

"Yeah, I need to lay down for a little. I'm sorry about this week, Cassie. Court's a big part of my job and it's kind of unpredictable sometimes. I meant for this week to be just you and me."

She bit her lip. "Well . . . maybe, if you're going to lay down anyway . . . and you never read Harry Potter either . . . maybe I could read to you."

He smiled, already knowing she was well on her way to fixing it so he'd never be able to deny her anything. "Yeah, okay. Let's go downstairs so I can lay down on the couch."

"You got it, Nickelbee," she chirped. He ruffled her hair and followed her down the stairs, flopping down on the couch. As he made himself comfortable, she took up residence on the floor right beside him.

As she began to read he listened for a little while, but his mind soon wandered. He thought back on the day, just over a week ago, that he welcomed his colleagues into his new home to meet Cassie.

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

It was with some shyness that she greeted Grissom again, but without the giant tarantula and fetal pig she thought he was a little less creepy. Sara was friendly and spoke with her about why she was a vegetarian as Nick grilled a Portobello mushroom cap for her.

"I never saw a mushroom that big before," Cassie said. "I'm having a chicken leg."

"They're delicious," said Sara with a grin. "I trust all these chickens were slaughtered humanely," she'd added with a wry look at Nick.

"Absolutely," he replied. "You sure you don't want a leg?"

"Quite," she said. "But you should give that other mushroom to Cassie and let her try it."

Nick curled his lip – he hated mushrooms – but turned to Cassie and offered it to her. She accepted with the excitement of trying something new and grown-up, and when Sara shot Nick a triumphant smirk, he mumbled, "She'll still be eatin' a chicken leg – you just wait and see."

Cassie did, in fact, eat a chicken leg – and the mushroom cap – as she chatted happily with Lindsey Willows while her mother and Nick watched them.

"I never thought I'd see the day, Nicky," Catherine said, a teasing lilt to her voice. "You with a kid."

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

Remembering this, blinking slowly as Cassie read to him, Nick reached for her dark blonde head and smoothed the hair back gently, smiling when she turned toward him with a grin of her own, and then back to her reading.

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

Standing by the grill, tongs in hand, Nick simply shook his head at Catherine, and replied, "Me either, Cath – but now . . . I mean, I know it's only been a day, really, but I can't imagine not having her in my life."

She hugged him, told him how happy she was for him, and said, "That's how it's supposed to be."

To Nick's surprise and pleasure, Warrick had appeared with his wife in tow, and he remembered her sitting with Elizabeth just across the yard from where he and Warrick stood at the grill. Nick wanted to bring up the subject of kids with Warrick, but knew better – he and Tina were fighting more often than not and it occurred to him that he had not seen them address each other at all that day, and that Warrick had rather studiously avoided Catherine.

Once lunch was over both Grissom and Sara had headed home; Catherine and Lindsey were on their heels. Greg, with whom Cassie had developed an instant rapport because she remembered him from when she was in the hospital, offered to take Cassie down the street to the park while Nick and Elizabeth cleaned up. Warrick volunteered to join them, although Tina opted to go home. Cassie asked for Ginger, and Elizabeth agreed as long as Greg handled her. While they were all waiting on Nick's driveway for Elizabeth to retrieve the dog, a police cruiser came screaming down the street and stopped, lights flashing, in front of the house.

Captain Brass emerged and came marching up the driveway, as utterly serious as ever. "Cassie McBride?"

Nervous, Cassie backed up into Nick. He put his hands on her shoulders and winked down at her, so she looked curiously back at the suit-clad gentleman flashing a badge at her. "Yeah?"

"I'm Captain Brass, LVPD. I'd like to ask you a few questions."

She looked back up at Nick, taking comfort in his smirk. "What'd I do?" she asked of Brass with a suspicious smirk.

"We have several witnesses who say you stole this man's heart." He had pointed at Nick, who rolled his eyes at Brass' corniness, but Cassie giggled at him.

"That's not a crime!"

"So you admit it?"

She had laughed again and declared, "Yes!"

Brass smiled at her then, and put his badge away to extend his right hand. "Cassie, I'm Jim. I work with Nick. It's nice to meet you."

She shook his hand and begged to be allowed inside the squad car, which, of course, was Brass' design in bringing it. Elizabeth crossed the yard to watch this scene and passed the dog off to Greg, and he and Warrick headed to the end of the driveway and the flashing car to wait for Cassie.

"Stole your heart, huh?" said Elizabeth once they were out of earshot.

Nick nodded, watching her smile inside the car, sitting next to Brass. "Yeah, she did."

"I don't suppose she left any scraps for me?"

He turned to look at her with a slight smile. "Lizzy . . . there's so much more than scraps for you."

She smiled, pleased, but blushed and looked away. He took her hand and kissed it.

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

Cassie was reading to him about flying motorcycles and tabby cats with glasses as he recalled the look on her face when she had followed him into the house, and more particularly remembered wanting to tell her how he felt. They chatted companionably for a while as they tidied up, and for a moment, since it was just the two of them, he thought he would pull her aside, wrap her in his arms, and whisper the words into her ear. But Brass came into the house then to shake Nick's hand and chat with them a while. By the time he was ready to leave, Greg and Warrick were back with Ginger and Cassie in tow. They had not had an opportunity for a private moment since then, and Nick sorely missed her.

Soon enough Cassie's reading fell silent, and a moment or two later Jillian came into the living room to sit on the window seat and work a crossword puzzle.

"When's supper, Mama?" he asked tiredly.

"'Bout forty-five minutes," she replied absent-mindedly.

"Do y'all mind if I go next door to chat with Elizabeth for a few minutes?"

Jillian smirked and said she wouldn't mind at all, but noticed that Cassie hadn't replied. "Miss Cassie," she said, her Grandmother tone turned up.

Cassie looked up. "Huh?"

"The word 'y'all' is plural, Miss Cassie."

She blushed. "Oh. I'm sorry – what did you ask?"

"I'm goin' over to Elizabeth's for a few minutes," said Nick, who sat up and privately wished his mother would lay off the "miss" business.

"Is it OK if I stay here? I'm in the middle of this chapter."

"Sure, princess," said Nick with a smile. With a kiss on her head, he rose and headed outside.

Elizabeth opened her door with a smile that deepened when she saw that it was only Nick standing there. "Hi," she said, an involuntary sultry tone seeping into her voice. "You're alone."

"Yeah . . . Mom's making dinner and Cassie's reading. I miss you." He grinned back at her.

"Well, come in," she invited, sweeping him into the house with her arm. He kissed her soundly as soon as the door was closed. "I've missed that, too," he said, his own voice low, when they parted.

"Me too," she whispered, and then led him by the hand into the living room, where they sat on the couch and Nick folded her comfortably in his arms. "I'm glad you came by all by yourself," she said after a quiet moment. "There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."

Nick tilted his head and looked down at her. "Okay. What is it?"

She nervously cleared her throat, and twisted to face him. "You, uh . . . you're looking for this nanny," she began. "Not having much luck . . . I was thinking that maybe, I could be the nanny. She could just come on over in her pajamas . . . you can tuck her in at night and I can help her get ready for school in the morning. If you really don't want me to that's okay, but your mom can't stay forever, so maybe it's just temporary. But she's comfortable here, and I can even make up a room that looks just like the one Catherine did." She paused a moment to collect her thoughts, but found them swimming again in the dark chocolate pools that were Nick's eyes. "And besides . . . you know that I love Cassie; she's a great kid. I think it could work really well."

With a smile and without hesitation, Nick replied, "Let's give it a shot."

Her eyes lit. "Really?"

"Yeah, sure. It might work really well, and frankly it's better than my other prospects."

Relieved that her proposal had been received so well, Elizabeth chuckled. "Great," she said. "You and Cassie can come over sometime and we'll talk about the whole thing."

He nodded. "Okay," he said quietly. They were facing each other now, Nick resting his back against the arm of the couch and Elizabeth resting her side against the back. He reached out and touched her chin gently, making her meet his eyes. His fingertips slipped slowly along her jaw line toward her ear, and he wrapped his hand around the back of her neck. "There's something I wanted to talk to you about, too."

She tilted her head in curiosity. "What?"

Nick leaned in and pulled her closer. "I love you, Elizabeth." And he kissed her lips sweetly, pulling back only enough to see the expression in her eyes.

She put her hand on his cheek to pull him back toward her, and returned his kisses in kind. "Nicky," she breathed as their kisses became more passionate, and then Elizabeth was in his lap. She moved her lips from his down to his chin, and from there began to kiss a circle around his face. When she was back at his chin she took his face in both of her hands, and his slipped up her sides. "Nicky, I love you, too."

He let out a half-chuckle and smiled, slightly awed. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," she replied breathlessly. "I've been waiting to hear you say that."

"Why?" he asked, stroking her cheek gently with a fingertip.

"I didn't want to freak you out," she said, and he pulled her in for a long, slow kiss.

"I'm not freaked," he mumbled huskily once they parted. "Tell me again."

She whispered it low and right into his ear. "I love you."

With his two hands on her cheeks he pushed her back a little bit. "I love you, too," he replied. They kissed again, and spent the remainder of Nick's away time whispering, giggling, and kissing like a couple of teenagers, which was exactly how Nick felt.

The following day Nick returned home about half past noon. He was late, as he had arranged to have lunch with Cassie and his mother, but the fact that court had run long couldn't be helped. At least he was finally done for the week, and as he walked upstairs removing his jacket and tie he sighed. Cassie's week off of school meant a day and a half to spend exclusively with her – that was it.

Getting no response from either his mother or Cassie when he called their names, he walked back downstairs in his shirtsleeves to find Jillian watching Cassie and Elizabeth, who were outside on the patio. Elizabeth was sitting on the edge of the pool with her feet in the water, and Cassie was sitting on one of the white deck chairs, which was pushed back from the water.

"What's Elizabeth doing here?" he asked as he joined her at the big sliding glass doors that led to the back yard.

"She's been coming home to eat with Cassie every day," said Jillian quietly, her hand by her mouth. "She makes lunch and then makes it a point to bring it out to the back yard to sit by the pool."

"She knows Cassie's still afraid of water," replied Nick.

"Once they're done with their lunch, your perfect Miss Elizabeth takes off her shoes and sits on the edge of the pool with her feet in the water." She pointed out the window at Cassie, who had moved to stand directly behind Elizabeth with her hands behind her back. "That's the closest she's ever gotten to the water, but I reckon by the end of next week, her little toes will be in that pool, too."

"She goes back to school next week," said Nick.

"But I'm starting to suspect that Miss Elizabeth knows what she's doing," said Jillian. "She'll find another way to encourage her."

Nick smiled. "She will."

"You're a fool if you don't put a ring on her finger, Nicholas." Jillian turned to her son, her eyebrow raised.

Still watching Cassie and Elizabeth, as the older one looked up at the younger one and laughed, he replied, "I'm glad you like her."

Jillian turned to look out the window again. With a sigh, her hand thumped onto her chest, and she patted herself comfortingly. "It would give me so much peace to know that you're settled and loved."

He kissed her head. "I love you, Mama," he said, and turned to join Elizabeth and Cassie outside.

(c) 2008 J. H. Thompson