I hold no rights to anything CSI except to look upon them lovingly every Thursday night.
I have to give thanks to Peggy who keeps my writing on the up and up. She's my proofreader, my editor, and my friend.
A/N OK, this is my slightly twisted idea of how to get myself on the show. Yes, sadly, I'm an actor as well as a writer but a dreamer most of all. I would play Gwen. Please, R&R!
Family, Like It or NotChapter 36
"This is going to be one busy summer!" Jim said as he and Gwen returned to the group in the break room.
Most of the conversations stopped to hear the explanation Gwen was about to provide. "That was Jim's daughter, Ellie, on the phone. Most of you know her current situation, so I'll spare you all the background. Well, she's getting married!"
There were many different reactions from the crowd, but all were positive. "That's super, Jim. When is Ellie's big day? Sara asked.
"The fourth of July, can you believe it? My overly independent daughter is giving up her independence on Independence Day." Jim smiled as he filled his coffee.
"That's a mouthful." Greg clapped Jim on the back. "Congratulations, Captain."
"Thanks, Sanders." Jim crossed back to sit next to the stroller. "She's marrying one of the support staff guys from the treatment center," Jim announced to no one in particular.
Quirking an eyebrow, Gil asked, "What does that mean, exactly? Isn't she one of the support staff?"
Jim responded, "I'm not sure exactly. She is on the staff now as a counselor's assistant, and she helps some in the office. Answering phones and filing I guess."
Sitting next to Jim, Sara asked, "What exactly is a counselor's assistant?"
Gwen took this question. "After she finished her treatment and was released from her court mandate, the treatment center asked her to stay. She talks with patients about her treatment and helps the new patients adjust."
"That's great!" Catherine said now sitting across from Sara. "So did she tell you this guy's name, or what he does at the center?"
"Nope. But we'll find out all about him tomorrow when they get here." Jim stood from the table. "Now, unless all crime in the city has stopped, some of us should get to work." He kissed Gwen, ruffled Sammy's hair, patted Tommy lightly on the head, and left the break room.
"Wow!" Catherine exclaimed, "That was a slick exit." The rest of the table joined her in her laughter.
The next morning after his shift, Jim met Ellie and her fiancé at McCarran. He noticed Ellie right away. She was vibrant, almost glowing, but not quite. The airport was quite crowded with travelers arriving and trying to collect their luggage so it was hard to discern which gentleman was Ellie's gentleman. Suddenly it was obvious. The man who was kissing his daughter had pale blond hair, almost white, but not from age. Jim thought he was attractive, as men go, but not that he was trying to be. The man was built much like Nicky and has as free a smile. When Ellie saw Jim, she practically dragged her gentleman friend to meet him.
"Daddy!" Ellie called. This was a new thing for her, so Jim was a little shocked. "This is Matt!"
The young man presented his hand to Jim. "Matthew Wilson. It's a pleasure to meet you, Captain Brass."
"Yeah. Me, too, Matt." Jim was still a little shocked as Ellie had her father tightly wrapped in a hug. Jim chalked it up to supreme happiness.
Ellie finally released him. "Where's Gwen and the boys?"
"She thought it would be better if I came on my own. Not to mention, we'd be hard pressed to fit all six of us in one car," Jim answered as he picked up Ellie's bag.
"Well, I'm so excited to see the boys again! I bet they've changed so much!" Ellie seemed practically giddy to Jim. It unnerved him; he wasn't used to this Ellie. Although, it's better than the Ellie he had been used to.
Jim addressed his next questions to Matt. "So, Matt, what do you do at the center?"
"It's just a part time thing, really," he answered.
Ellie interrupted, "Matt's a professor at Montclair State. He comes to the center a few days a week to tutor the patients."
"I tutor the high school aged kids and teach a few classes for the older patients." Matt grabbed the door and held it for Jim and Ellie.
"Thanks." Jim had more questions, but he didn't want to seem suspicious. "What do you teach at the University?"
"Entomology!" Matt chimed.
Jim's head snapped around so fast Ellie was afraid it would fly off. "Really?"
"No, Daddy. Matt's kidding. I told him all about Uncle Gil." Ellie entwined her arm with Jim's
Jim thought to himself, "Uncle Gil? Did she just say Uncle Gil?"
"I teach English. It's not sexy, but it's necessary, really necessary in North Jersey these days." Matt explained.
"Hey! I speak English!" The three laughed as they reached Jim's car and loaded in the bags. The drive back to Jim and Gwen's was full of conversation, and Jim actually began to relax and get used to this new Ellie. He decided he liked her, and her fiancé.
Gil and Sara were preparing for a nice evening out. Their shift at lab this morning was pretty easy and left them with little to do. Sara was putting the finishing touches on her makeup when the door bell rang.
"Gil, can you answer that? It's probably Lindsey," Sara called to Gil who had taken Hogan downstairs a few minutes earlier.
Carrying Hogie to the door Gil laughed and called to Sara, "No, Honey, you need to come all the way downstairs and get the door so I don't have to get up." Gil smirked at his son as they answered the door.
"Hi, Uncle Gil!" Lindsey practically sang as she entered the house. "Hogie!" She called out as she took him from Gil.
"Win!" Hogie said back doing his best to say 'Lin!' as he'd heard his parents call this girl he loved.
"What shall we do tonight?" Lindsey took Hogie into the living room and sat with him in the 'baby cage' his parents had set up for him. More a play yard than a cage, it got the unpopular name from Jim. It took less than a day for him to get his own 'baby cage' for Tommy. A single set of six brightly colored play panels makes a small 2.5 ft. by 5 ft. rectangle, with two or three sets, you can make a big, safe play area. The Grissoms bought several sets. They covered the carpet with a foam alphabet puzzle floor mat. So, Hoagie's play area takes up most of the living room, but that's ok. It's portable and they can easily move all or part of it to the back yard.
After watching the display of strong affection Lindsey and Hogie had for each other, Gil said, "It's nice to know I have my place in the pecking order."
"What place is that, Gil?" Sara asked as she joined him at the bottom of the stairs.
Smiling he answered, "Somewhere down the line from you and Lindsey."
"Don't be crazy, Uncle Gil." Lindsey stepped over the wall of the 'baby cage' and joined them, now in the kitchen. "Hogie adores you. I'm just the girl who comes over on occasion and revolves around him. He knows when he sees me that it's going to be all about him. At least it's not like some of the other kids I baby sit for."
"Why? What happens with them?" Sara asked as she wrote down the restaurant information.
"Well, some of them cry the minute I step into the house." Lindsey, who long ago was told to make herself at home when at the Grissoms' house, got a glass from the cabinet. "They know that if I'm there it means Mommy and Daddy are leaving."
"Wouldn't that mean that the kid is going to miss Mommy and Daddy? That he just hates to see them leave?" Gil questioned.
Lindsey taking a sip from her now full glass of iced tea answered, "You would think so, but no. The kids that cry are the ones who don't get enough attention from Mommy and Daddy. Like 'Oh great, she's here? That means they are leaving me again.' But, Hogie? He couldn't be more certain that you love him. He knows when you go, you'll be back. To be honest, I prefer it this way. The other kids are usually a real handful. They do whatever they can to try to get me to call the folks. I guess they think getting attention for being bad is better than not enough attention." Lindsey left the Grissoms in the kitchen and joined Hogie in the 'baby cage'.
Gil watched Lindsey play with his son for a few minutes before saying, "She is one smart kid."
"She gets that from her mother," Sara responded.