IV. Ain't Nothin' Like the Real Thing

Catherine walked in the break room to find Sara vomiting into the sink. A nervous Nick was at her side holding her hair back and rubbing her back. Catherine could see the pooch in Sara's stomach. Sara threw up another noisy mouthful of vomit. Catherine grimaced at the sound of it.

"Ew, is she going to be okay?" Catherine asked. "What did she eat?"

"I don't know, but whatever it was, it's coming up nonstop," Nick said, worry etched in his face. "Cath, you were pregnant. Is there anything Sara wasn't supposed to eat?"

"Nicky, as far as I know, if the doctor didn't say anything about what she couldn't have, then she can eat whatever she wants. I think something didn't agree with her stomach and the baby wants it out pronto," Catherine said, preparing a cup of ice water for Sara when she was finished vomiting.

Just then Warrick sauntered in on the disgusting scene.

"What's up with Sara?" He asked immediately rushing to get a washcloth.

"I'll explain in a minute," Nick said. He was really afraid for his pregnant girlfriend.

She was kind of going through a rough pregnancy. She had bad morning sickness in the first couple of weeks, then had cramps at four weeks then she got a bit of a fever and she had to stay home for a few nights. They knew the team wondered what was wrong with her all of a sudden, but they never found out about their relationship.

After a few dry heaves, Sara straightened up and gratefully took the water and the washcloth. Just then, Grissom walked in on the worried atmosphere.

"Sara, are you alright? You've been ill a lot lately," he pointed out. "Have you seen a doctor?"

"Um, yeah," she answered looking over at Nick.

Nick took a deep breath and Catherine smiled at the information she already knew about.

"Sara and I have been together for almost three months now," he explained calmly. "And Sara is pregnant."

Warrick and Grissom exchanged surprised looks.

"And gauging from your reactions, this is not going to be a great night," Nick said nervously.

"Hey, that's great man, but why did you two wait so long to tell us?" Warrick asked.

"We just weren't ready," Sara explained. "Then when I found out I was pregnant, we kind of freaked. We told Catherine this afternoon and she was as shocked as you guys are."

Grissom didn't know what to do with his best CSI. He would be one person short for the next nine months. Sara would have a fit to be on desk duty and beg him, and Nick would have a fit if he let Sara so much as set foot into the lab. Grissom was happy for the couple. He really was. Sara had become a totally different person and she was much more relaxed than normal and she hadn't been maxing out on OT either.

"Nick, can I talk to you in my office first?" Grissom requested. "Sara, you need to sit and get some rest, and I'll talk to you later. Cath, warrick, you've got a homicide at Discovery Zone."

"Hm, Discovery Zone," Catherine said with interest. "Sounds like fun."

"Yeah if you're seven years old," Grissom quipped. "It's a kids' jungle gym."

Catherine headed to the locker room. She smiled. There were roses awaiting her once again near her locker. This time she had a pretty good idea who it was that sent the flowers.

"Vince," she said smiling.

Vincent Mortenson fell instantly in love with Catherine when he laid eyes on her. She was the most beautiful redhead he had seen in a long time, and she had blue eyes to boot. He was a regular at the country club and he knew that he had never seen Catherine around there before. HE also took a liking to her daughter Lindsay.

Catherine showed some signs of interest in him as well. She was surprisingly natural with him. It was like they were old friends. Sara, whose hormones were already screwed up, did not like him too much and her mood changed quickly. She and Nick left to do something else. Nick didn't get a word in edgewise because he knew better than to argue with her in her delicate (and potentially lethal ) condition if he didn't obey her every command.

Catherine and Vincent talked for hours and found they had a lot in common.

She was smiling fondly. Was it love at first sight?

***

AIn't nothin' like the real thing, baby

Ain't nothin' like the real thing…

The song by Marvin Gaye featuring Tammi Terrell rang throughout out the car as she and Warrick drove to the crime scene. Catherine loved those words. She was certainly smitten with Vince.

Warrick looked over at the infatuated woman and smirked. "What are you glowing about?"

"Nothing, I just met this really wonderful guy," she said dreamily. "He bought me roses."

Warrick felt bad for Greg. That boy is going to be hurt that she didn't know who they were from, he thought. He thought she would know from the first bouquet.

Catherine began to hum the song.

"This is music," Warrick said proudly. "Old school. My grandmother loved this song."

"It's a beautiful song," Catherine said. "And the words are so true."

"Yeah," Warrick said. "There's nothing like true love. It's the greatest feeling in the world."

"Nick and Sara are really in love," she said smiling. "I'm so happy for them. I was beginning to wonder if those two would take their flirting to new levels. They took it up to a couple 'cause now, their going to be proud parents."

Warrick chuckled. "Man, I don't know why it's so hard to believe," he said. "Sara is going to be a mom. A mom. Nick is going to be a dad. My All-American bachelor best friend is going to be a dad. It's weird. Sara's pregnancy has already made her change into a different person. She's not as intense as she used to be."

"Yeah, she is a lot sweeter. If having kids makes her act like a human being, then she needs to have a couple more," Catherine quipped.

"Damn, you are terrible Cathy," Warrick said smiling.

The friendly banter had crossed the line. NO ONE called her "Cathy". She hated that version of her name. She gave him a withering stare, then it lightened up.

"What?" He asked.

"You called me Cathy," she said.

"Oh, sorry," he said.

"No, you make it sound fitting," she said smiling a bit. There was that feeling in her heart again.

"In a good way I hope."

"Yeah, in a good way," she said.

It was all in the inflection of his voice, and the tone in which he said it that made it sound like her: blunt, short and to the point. Not long, drawn out, sophisticated and sweet. Warrick was doing a number on her heart. She didn't know what she was feeling. He was so oblivious to it as well. She also shared the same feelings with Vincent. What a predicament.