Nick could tell Sara was about ready to panic. He simply squeezed her
shoulder as Chloe and Ben turned and walked over to greet some other
arrivals. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "Let's get settled."
They made their way to Room 411 in silence. Sara's nerves were working overtime. How in the hell was she going to explain this one to Nick. Sharing a hotel room was not part of the deal. She thought she'd made it clear that she was bringing a friend, not a boyfriend. Leave it to Chloe though, this was just her style, and now that they'd begun the charade, it would be next to impossible to convince anyone that she and Nick weren't dating. At least she wouldn't be getting pity stares from Ben. She sensed that he bristled slightly when he had met Nick. That was Ben though, if he didn't get what he wanted, he didn't want anyone else to have it either.
As they entered the hotel room and the bellhop had closed the door behind them, Nick turned toward Sara. "Hey, you doing ok?"
She looked up and met his gaze. Dread was written all over her face. "Uh, nothing crawling under the carpet won't take care of." She gestured her hand toward nowhere in particular. "I'm sorry about this. I should have figured Chloe would pull something like this when I told her I was bringing a friend."
He smiled at her softly. "Sara, it's no big deal." He stepped toward her and put his hand on her shoulder. "You need a boyfriend for the weekend, you've got one."
She raised a suspicious eyebrow. "Do you do this often in your spare time?"
He chuckled. "Sar, seriously, I know what its like, only for me it's usually a member of my family who's getting married and they all wonder why I can't just settle down. Maybe you can return the favor sometime." There was a hint of teasing in his voice.
For the first time, Sara realized there was only one bed in the room. Panic flashed across her face again.
Nick grinned at her raising both of his eyebrows as he pointed at the couch. "I'll just sleep over there."
Sara glanced over to where he was pointing and nodded, finally letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
Nick kissed her forehead and chuckled. "You want to go for a walk on the beach?"
She shook her head as she looked directly at him. "Uh, I think I'm going to take a shower, we only have 45 minutes until we're supposed to eat and I'm feeling a little rumpled and sticky."
"Ok, I'm just gonna go wander around a little, I'll be back in a little while." He flashed her a grin worthy of the State of Texas before heading out into the hallway.
Sara made her way to the bathroom and took a shower. She felt a bit more relaxed as she got dressed for dinner, but still felt dread taking up residence in the pit of her stomach as she thought about the rest of the weekend and all the people who would be at the wedding.
Nick returned about 15 minutes before they needed to make their way outside for the rehearsal dinner. He sucked his breath in involuntarily as he looked at Sara. The number of times he'd seen her in a dress was few and far between, and this dress, well, it did things for her in all the right places.
She turned around to witness his bewildered expression and chuckled. "What? Shocked to see me in a dress?"
Nick shook his head, not quite finding his voice as he stuttered. "Uh, no, you, uh, look incredible." He went over to the closet where he'd hung up his clothes and took out a pair of black slacks and a deep blue long sleeved button down shirt. "I'm just going to go change."
Sara smiled as Nick disappeared into the bathroom. If her black dress had gotten a reaction like that out of Nick, she knew it was the right dress for the evening. She didn't need anyone feeling sorry for her because Ben was marrying Chloe, and in that dress, she didn't think pity was something anyone was going to be giving her.
Nick emerged a few minutes later and grinned at Sara as he pulled his shoes on. "Ready to knock them dead, Sidle?"
She raised an eyebrow mischievously. "That's the general idea. The last thing I want is for anyone to feel sorry for me because Ben and Chloe are getting married."
Nick looked at her from head to toe and then grinned at her. "Trust me, Sara; no one is going to be feeling sorry for you in that dress. You look amazing." He offered her his arm as they left the hotel room.
She smiled softly as she took his arm. "Thanks."
They made their way out to where tables had been set up on the beach. Sara felt panic rising once again as she began to recognize people. Nick took her hand, giving it a squeeze. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Just remember, I'm here for you." He kissed her cheek.
Sara hung onto Nick for dear life as she was overwhelmed with old college friends, some of which were surprised that she was there considering what had happened between her and Ben. All the while, Nick stood next to her, holding her hand and squeezing it occasionally. Sara was relieved when they finally got to sit down and eat. Unfortunately, the entree was filet mignon and she ended up at a table with one of her former dorm mates who wanted to grill her about her relationship with Nick.
Nick just put his arm on the chair behind Sara and grinned. "Why don't you tell Kelly the story, sweetheart? I love how you tell it."
Sara made a mental note to kill Nick later as she glanced at him with a grin. "Ok, baby."
Kelly smiled in anticipation. "Go on, Sara. All of us are just dying to know how you snagged someone as hunky as Nick here."
Sara wanted to laugh at the irony of the situation. Kelly was just the type that Nick had gone for as long as Sara had known him. It was obvious that if Kelly sensed any trouble in paradise, she'd move in for the kill. Sara glanced at Nick for a moment and flashed him a smile that said he was going to pay for making her tell 'their' story.
Sara turned back to Kelly and grinned. "Well, I met Nick while he was throwing dummies off of a hotel in Vegas."
Kelly looked confused. "Sorry?"
Nick chuckled. "Sara and I work together at the crime lab, I was doing an experiment."
Sara raised an eyebrow at Nick. "Sure you don't want to tell the story, baby?"
He grinned. "I'm sure."
Sara turned back to Kelly. "I think I started falling for Nick then, but I was a little distracted by someone else. I think it was just a case of bad timing for a while."
Kelly looked at Nick. "When did you start falling for Sara?"
He chuckled. "When I was throwing dummies off the roof."
"Oh, that's so sweet. Love a first sight." Kelly was gushing. "So why didn't you ask her out?"
Nick grinned. "She was interested in someone else, but I never gave up on her. I knew she was special."
Sara studied Nick as he talked. He was good. Kelly was really buying what he was saying. In fact he was so good, that if Sara didn't know better, she'd buy what he said too.
"So, Sara, when did things change between you two?" She was grinning like she was trying to win a spot in a toothpaste ad.
Sara glanced at Nick for a moment. She figured since Nick thought she was telling a story, there was no harm in telling the truth. "I think it was around the time Nick and I were working on a case where this husband had drowned his wife in the bathtub and had tried to make it look like an accident. We tried to reconstruct the scene and I caught him staring at me."
Nick smiled. The rest of the table assumed that he was enjoying the story, but he hadn't realized that she'd known he'd been staring at her.
Kelly turned toward Nick. "What about you Nick?"
He grinned at Sara. "Same case. I'd been wanting to ask her out for a while, but I caught her staring at my ass in that bathroom while we were trying to figure out if the husband's story was plausible."
Sara chuckled. She had no idea that he'd seen her staring at his ass. It had been a nice view and was hard to resist staring.
Nick continued. "I think it was the night she showed up on my doorstep though that pushed me over the edge." He looked right at Sara.
She picked up where he left off. "I was really upset about something and the only person I wanted to talk to was Nick. He let me in and just let me cry. When I didn't have any tears left, he made me laugh." She remembered that night like it was yesterday. Grissom had turned down her dinner invitation and suddenly things had become crystal clear. The only person she wanted to talk to was Nick, the only person she wanted at all was Nick.
"So how long have you been together?" Kelly pushed.
"Seven months, isn't that right, sugar?" Nick just grinned at Sara.
She nodded deciding to up the ante a little. "Yeah, baby. In fact our seven month anniversary is on Sunday." She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Oh, that's so sweet. You should do something special." Kelly was gushing.
One of the other guests interjected a question. "When are you going to ask her to marry you?"
Nick looked like he'd swallowed a horse. "Uh, we haven't really talked about that yet."
Sara chuckled softly. "Nick's a little commitment shy."
Thankfully, one of the groomsmen stopped by the table and asked Kelly if she wanted to grab a drink in the bar. She didn't have to be asked twice.
The rest of the guests went back to their own conversations and Nick and Sara finished their meal in relative peace.
After they'd finished, Nick looked up at Sara and smiled softly. "You want to go for a walk?"
She smiled. "Yeah."
They stood up and Nick offered her his arm as they walked out onto the beach toward the ocean. They didn't get too far in the sand before Sara stopped. She was laughing. "Uh, I think this is going to be a disaster if we don't take our shoes off."
Nick chuckled and after they'd both removed their shoes, he took Sara's hand and they wandered down the beach in the moonlight. Nick studied Sara out of the corner of his eye. She was remarkably beautiful, and he wondered if she knew he meant every word he'd said at the table. He wondered if she meant what she'd said.
They stopped about halfway down the beach and Sara turned to look at him. "Thanks for everything, Nick. I really appreciate it."
He grinned at her and pulled her into a hug. "Any time, Sar. I'm here for you." He would play the part of the boyfriend whatever it required. Maybe somehow this weekend, he'd have the courage to tell Sara how he really felt about her, that he really was in love with her. And maybe if he was really lucky, she might actually feel the same way.
They made their way to Room 411 in silence. Sara's nerves were working overtime. How in the hell was she going to explain this one to Nick. Sharing a hotel room was not part of the deal. She thought she'd made it clear that she was bringing a friend, not a boyfriend. Leave it to Chloe though, this was just her style, and now that they'd begun the charade, it would be next to impossible to convince anyone that she and Nick weren't dating. At least she wouldn't be getting pity stares from Ben. She sensed that he bristled slightly when he had met Nick. That was Ben though, if he didn't get what he wanted, he didn't want anyone else to have it either.
As they entered the hotel room and the bellhop had closed the door behind them, Nick turned toward Sara. "Hey, you doing ok?"
She looked up and met his gaze. Dread was written all over her face. "Uh, nothing crawling under the carpet won't take care of." She gestured her hand toward nowhere in particular. "I'm sorry about this. I should have figured Chloe would pull something like this when I told her I was bringing a friend."
He smiled at her softly. "Sara, it's no big deal." He stepped toward her and put his hand on her shoulder. "You need a boyfriend for the weekend, you've got one."
She raised a suspicious eyebrow. "Do you do this often in your spare time?"
He chuckled. "Sar, seriously, I know what its like, only for me it's usually a member of my family who's getting married and they all wonder why I can't just settle down. Maybe you can return the favor sometime." There was a hint of teasing in his voice.
For the first time, Sara realized there was only one bed in the room. Panic flashed across her face again.
Nick grinned at her raising both of his eyebrows as he pointed at the couch. "I'll just sleep over there."
Sara glanced over to where he was pointing and nodded, finally letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
Nick kissed her forehead and chuckled. "You want to go for a walk on the beach?"
She shook her head as she looked directly at him. "Uh, I think I'm going to take a shower, we only have 45 minutes until we're supposed to eat and I'm feeling a little rumpled and sticky."
"Ok, I'm just gonna go wander around a little, I'll be back in a little while." He flashed her a grin worthy of the State of Texas before heading out into the hallway.
Sara made her way to the bathroom and took a shower. She felt a bit more relaxed as she got dressed for dinner, but still felt dread taking up residence in the pit of her stomach as she thought about the rest of the weekend and all the people who would be at the wedding.
Nick returned about 15 minutes before they needed to make their way outside for the rehearsal dinner. He sucked his breath in involuntarily as he looked at Sara. The number of times he'd seen her in a dress was few and far between, and this dress, well, it did things for her in all the right places.
She turned around to witness his bewildered expression and chuckled. "What? Shocked to see me in a dress?"
Nick shook his head, not quite finding his voice as he stuttered. "Uh, no, you, uh, look incredible." He went over to the closet where he'd hung up his clothes and took out a pair of black slacks and a deep blue long sleeved button down shirt. "I'm just going to go change."
Sara smiled as Nick disappeared into the bathroom. If her black dress had gotten a reaction like that out of Nick, she knew it was the right dress for the evening. She didn't need anyone feeling sorry for her because Ben was marrying Chloe, and in that dress, she didn't think pity was something anyone was going to be giving her.
Nick emerged a few minutes later and grinned at Sara as he pulled his shoes on. "Ready to knock them dead, Sidle?"
She raised an eyebrow mischievously. "That's the general idea. The last thing I want is for anyone to feel sorry for me because Ben and Chloe are getting married."
Nick looked at her from head to toe and then grinned at her. "Trust me, Sara; no one is going to be feeling sorry for you in that dress. You look amazing." He offered her his arm as they left the hotel room.
She smiled softly as she took his arm. "Thanks."
They made their way out to where tables had been set up on the beach. Sara felt panic rising once again as she began to recognize people. Nick took her hand, giving it a squeeze. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Just remember, I'm here for you." He kissed her cheek.
Sara hung onto Nick for dear life as she was overwhelmed with old college friends, some of which were surprised that she was there considering what had happened between her and Ben. All the while, Nick stood next to her, holding her hand and squeezing it occasionally. Sara was relieved when they finally got to sit down and eat. Unfortunately, the entree was filet mignon and she ended up at a table with one of her former dorm mates who wanted to grill her about her relationship with Nick.
Nick just put his arm on the chair behind Sara and grinned. "Why don't you tell Kelly the story, sweetheart? I love how you tell it."
Sara made a mental note to kill Nick later as she glanced at him with a grin. "Ok, baby."
Kelly smiled in anticipation. "Go on, Sara. All of us are just dying to know how you snagged someone as hunky as Nick here."
Sara wanted to laugh at the irony of the situation. Kelly was just the type that Nick had gone for as long as Sara had known him. It was obvious that if Kelly sensed any trouble in paradise, she'd move in for the kill. Sara glanced at Nick for a moment and flashed him a smile that said he was going to pay for making her tell 'their' story.
Sara turned back to Kelly and grinned. "Well, I met Nick while he was throwing dummies off of a hotel in Vegas."
Kelly looked confused. "Sorry?"
Nick chuckled. "Sara and I work together at the crime lab, I was doing an experiment."
Sara raised an eyebrow at Nick. "Sure you don't want to tell the story, baby?"
He grinned. "I'm sure."
Sara turned back to Kelly. "I think I started falling for Nick then, but I was a little distracted by someone else. I think it was just a case of bad timing for a while."
Kelly looked at Nick. "When did you start falling for Sara?"
He chuckled. "When I was throwing dummies off the roof."
"Oh, that's so sweet. Love a first sight." Kelly was gushing. "So why didn't you ask her out?"
Nick grinned. "She was interested in someone else, but I never gave up on her. I knew she was special."
Sara studied Nick as he talked. He was good. Kelly was really buying what he was saying. In fact he was so good, that if Sara didn't know better, she'd buy what he said too.
"So, Sara, when did things change between you two?" She was grinning like she was trying to win a spot in a toothpaste ad.
Sara glanced at Nick for a moment. She figured since Nick thought she was telling a story, there was no harm in telling the truth. "I think it was around the time Nick and I were working on a case where this husband had drowned his wife in the bathtub and had tried to make it look like an accident. We tried to reconstruct the scene and I caught him staring at me."
Nick smiled. The rest of the table assumed that he was enjoying the story, but he hadn't realized that she'd known he'd been staring at her.
Kelly turned toward Nick. "What about you Nick?"
He grinned at Sara. "Same case. I'd been wanting to ask her out for a while, but I caught her staring at my ass in that bathroom while we were trying to figure out if the husband's story was plausible."
Sara chuckled. She had no idea that he'd seen her staring at his ass. It had been a nice view and was hard to resist staring.
Nick continued. "I think it was the night she showed up on my doorstep though that pushed me over the edge." He looked right at Sara.
She picked up where he left off. "I was really upset about something and the only person I wanted to talk to was Nick. He let me in and just let me cry. When I didn't have any tears left, he made me laugh." She remembered that night like it was yesterday. Grissom had turned down her dinner invitation and suddenly things had become crystal clear. The only person she wanted to talk to was Nick, the only person she wanted at all was Nick.
"So how long have you been together?" Kelly pushed.
"Seven months, isn't that right, sugar?" Nick just grinned at Sara.
She nodded deciding to up the ante a little. "Yeah, baby. In fact our seven month anniversary is on Sunday." She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Oh, that's so sweet. You should do something special." Kelly was gushing.
One of the other guests interjected a question. "When are you going to ask her to marry you?"
Nick looked like he'd swallowed a horse. "Uh, we haven't really talked about that yet."
Sara chuckled softly. "Nick's a little commitment shy."
Thankfully, one of the groomsmen stopped by the table and asked Kelly if she wanted to grab a drink in the bar. She didn't have to be asked twice.
The rest of the guests went back to their own conversations and Nick and Sara finished their meal in relative peace.
After they'd finished, Nick looked up at Sara and smiled softly. "You want to go for a walk?"
She smiled. "Yeah."
They stood up and Nick offered her his arm as they walked out onto the beach toward the ocean. They didn't get too far in the sand before Sara stopped. She was laughing. "Uh, I think this is going to be a disaster if we don't take our shoes off."
Nick chuckled and after they'd both removed their shoes, he took Sara's hand and they wandered down the beach in the moonlight. Nick studied Sara out of the corner of his eye. She was remarkably beautiful, and he wondered if she knew he meant every word he'd said at the table. He wondered if she meant what she'd said.
They stopped about halfway down the beach and Sara turned to look at him. "Thanks for everything, Nick. I really appreciate it."
He grinned at her and pulled her into a hug. "Any time, Sar. I'm here for you." He would play the part of the boyfriend whatever it required. Maybe somehow this weekend, he'd have the courage to tell Sara how he really felt about her, that he really was in love with her. And maybe if he was really lucky, she might actually feel the same way.