Disclaimer - I don't own any of the CSI characters, including Tim Speedle,
sigh, but hey, a girl can dream, can't she? I do, however, own Leanna and
Nicholas. They are part of my master plan to create a life for Timmy
outside the office.
Pairings - Tim and his lovely wife Leanna, Horatio & Calleigh, Eric & Valera
Rating – Back to PG-13 for now.
Summary – Two prominent physicians are murdered in their Coconut Grove home. All clues point back to the couple's daughter, who is hiding more than one devastating secret.
Nicholas is being quite the little stinker in this chapter, as you'll soon see. Special thanks to my seven beautiful, amazing, brilliant and talented nieces and nephews for being little monsters at various times, providing Aunt Nonnie with much, much inspiration!
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Calleigh paced the interrogation room nervously, cradling Mikayla on her hip. "What am I doing?" she thought to herself, glancing down at the tiny infant, who was chewing on her hair. She smiled gently at Mikayla and kissed her on the forehead. "I'm doing this for your Momma, kiddo," Calleigh explained, "and for you and me and Horatio."
The door opened and a uniformed officer led Michelle inside. She gasped loudly when she saw Mikayla and immediately began sobbing.
"You checked her for any kind of weapon?" Calleigh asked the officer.
"Yes, Ma'am," he nodded. "She's clean."
"Thanks," Calleigh said gratefully. "You can take the handcuffs off, but I want you to stay inside the room with us."
The officer nodded and crossed over to Michelle, taking the cuffs off. Calleigh then handed Mikayla to her. Mother and daughter stared at each other in wonder. "Hi, baby girl," Michelle cooed, caressing her daughter's blonde curls. "Hi, Kayla."
Mikayla smiled at her mother and kicked her legs happily. "I swear, you're even more beautiful than the last time I saw you," Michelle cried, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Can you really leave her for the rest of your life, just to save your sister a second life sentence?" Calleigh asked quietly, sitting down beside them.
"Detective Caine, we've been over this," Michelle said weakly. "I killed my mother."
"Call me Calleigh, please. And honestly, I think you're lying."
Michelle sighed and looked down at her daughter. "Everything I'm doing, I'm doing for her, don't you understand that?"
"No, I don't. You think it's best for her to grow up with her mother in prison?" Calleigh demanded. "Michelle, you're an accomplice, not the murderer. All the evidence points to the fact that Lauren killed both your parents, not you. If you'd just give her up, the D.A. could go so easy on you, don't you understand that?"
Michelle shook her head and sobbed. "I can't Calleigh, because that's not the truth. I wish you'd believe me. It would make things so much easier."
"Michelle..." Calleigh sighed. "Michelle...please."
Michelle lifted Mikayla onto her lap, holding her up by the sides so that the baby was standing. "Kayla," she said quietly, pressing a kiss to the baby's forehead, "Calleigh's going to be your new Mommy. She's going to take really good care of you. I can tell she's a good woman, because she wants so badly to believe that I'm innocent, and I wish to God I could tell her I am, but I'm not."
"You're going to have a wonderful life, Kayla," she continued, as Calleigh began weeping. "She's going to love you so much, just as much as I do. I'm doing what's best for you, Kayla. You deserve to have a real mother and a real father. I hope someday you'll understand that."
Michelle handed Mikayla to Calleigh and stood. "I'm ready to go now," she told the officer, who stared at Calleigh in shock. Calleigh nodded weakly and the officer crossed over to Michelle, who stuck her wrists out. "Thank you, Calleigh, for letting me see her again," Michelle said. "You'll never know how much it meant to me. Take care of our little girl."
Calleigh sat in the interrogation room, stunned and weeping. Mikayla grasped Calleigh's hair and stuck a slice of it into her mouth. Horatio leaned against the doorframe and waited. Mikayla gave him away again, shaking her fists and squealing in greeting. Calleigh stared up at him, wiping away the tears falling from her eyes.
"Well, I see there's no sneaking up on you, Kayla," Horatio teased, reaching down to take the infant away from Calleigh. Mikayla squealed again, then laughed, leaning back in his strong embrace.
"She learned that from Nicholas," Calleigh complained gently, pulling a tissue out of her pocket and dabbing her eyes. "I damned near dropped that boy the other day when he did that."
Horatio knelt beside his wife and smiled. "You heard the whole thing, didn't you?" she asked, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Who me?" Horatio said innocently. "I come home, find that you and Kayla aren't there, I get curious, come back here, and low and behold..."
"Here I am, disobeying both your orders and Social Services' orders," she cut him off.
Horatio smiled gently. "Yes, but, you did what you thought was best for Michelle. Calleigh, I don't want Michelle to go to prison any more than you do, but if she won't help us get Lauren, I can't help her."
"I know," Calleigh cried, wiping more tears from her face. "I just thought, maybe, if she saw Mikayla, she'd realize what she's doing isn't worth it."
"It was definitely worth a shot, Cal," Horatio praised her.
She smiled weakly and stroked his cheek. "Sometimes, I realize just how much I don't deserve you," she said softly.
"One of these days, woman," he shook his head, taking her hand and helping her stand from the chair, "you're going to realize that it is I who doesn't deserve you." He wrapped an arm around his wife's waist and led her into the hallway. "Now, I got a call earlier that Kayla's boyfriend has requested her company this evening. He was making spaghetti and everything."
Calleigh rolled her eyes and swatted his chest. "Trying to marry her off already, Horatio?"
"Absolutely not," he answered, kissing Mikayla on the forehead and then giving the baby his best "serious" face. "You're not getting married until you're 60, or I die, whichever happens first."
Mikayla gurgled a reply and bounced happily in Horatio's arms. "I'm not sure I want her hanging out with Nicholas," Calleigh frowned. "She's learning way too much from him."
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"Man, seeing the baby did nothing?" Tim asked, not believing the story that Calleigh and Horatio were unfolding.
"Not a thing," Calleigh responded, twirling her fork in the spaghetti. "She still says she killed her mother. I give up."
Nicholas and Mikayla sat beside each other, laughing, each in their own high chair. Both babies were covered from head to toe in spaghetti and sauce.
Horatio watched the children smear spaghetti sauce over themselves and their trays, shaking his head in dismay. "I hope you didn't buy that high chair just for us," Horatio said absent-mindedly.
Leanna's fork stopped halfway to her mouth and she stared at her husband. "Didn't you tell him?" she asked.
Tim grinned sheepishly. "I forgot. I did tell Calleigh, though."
"And I forgot to tell you too, honey," Calleigh explained, putting her hand on Horatio's arm. "Leanna's pregnant."
"Well," Horatio sighed, clearly upset by the revelation that he'd been out of the loop for almost an entire day. "Congratulations."
The kitchen door flew open and Eric and Valera stepped inside. "You started without us?" Eric asked, a frown set across his features.
"You snooze, you lose," Tim shot back.
"You said you weren't sure you were coming," Leanna explained, hopping up to get more plates.
Valera stepped over to the babies and leaned down to kiss Nicholas. "Yuck," she said instead, picking a noodle off his nose. "I can't believe you let him eat like that," she complained.
"Wait, wait," Leanna said excitedly, crossing back over to Nicholas. She pointed at Tim. "Nick, who's that?"
"DADDA!" he said brightly, picking up a handful of spaghetti and tossing it at Tim.
"Yeah," Tim sighed and rolled his eyes, picking the spaghetti noodles off his shirt. "Not necessary, Lea."
Eric laughed hysterically. "No man, it's on now. Nick, who's that?" he asked, pointing at Tim.
"DADDA!" Nicholas said again, hurling another fistful of spaghetti at his father.
"Oh, I'm in pain," Eric gasped for air as he continued to laugh, "Who taught him that?"
"Please stop encouraging my son to throw food, Delko," Tim warned, shooting a nasty glare at his best friend.
"Speed, I'm the uncle. This is what we do. Get over it," Eric explained.
"You just wait, Delko, your kid's first gift from me is going to be either an electric guitar or a drum set," Tim threatened. "Paybacks are hell."
Valera picked a stray noodle out of Tim's hair. "Just remember, Tim, whatever you do to Eric, you do to me, and I'm not the one laughing."
"I like her," Tim said to Leanna as she sat down on his lap. "Can we keep her and get rid of Eric?"
"We're a package deal, jackass. Can't get one without the other," Eric fired back. Eric twirled spaghetti around his fork and took a huge bite. "Damn, Leanna, I bow once again at your feet. This is awesome."
"Thank you," she smiled brightly. Tim softly kissed the back of Leanna's neck, allowing his lips to linger on his wife's soft skin. She sighed gently, leaning into his loving embrace and bringing his left hand up to rest on her stomach. He intertwined their fingers and unconsciously traced circles on the soft black fabric of her shirt.
They were completely wrapped up in their own world until Horatio cleared his throat. Leanna stood and leaned down to kiss Tim again. They smiled against the other's lips and Tim tugged playfully on her khaki capris. "Calleigh," she asked, "shall we hose the children off?"
Calleigh glanced over at Mikayla, whose blonde hair was now tinted with red spaghetti sauce. Stray noodles hung from her hair and ears and Mikayla beat her fists on the tray, sending sauce flying. "Inside or out?" Calleigh frowned.
"You run the bathwater, I'll wrap them up," Leanna said, reaching into a low cabinet for a large plastic tablecloth. Calleigh stood and headed down the hall to the bathroom. Leanna took the tray off Mikayla's high chair and wrapped the baby up in the tablecloth. She carried Mikayla down the hall and into the spare bathroom.
"Leanna, you are unbelievably brilliant!" Calleigh exclaimed, gently unwrapping Mikayla from the tablecloth.
"Keeps me clean and slimy fingerprints off the walls," Leanna explained as Calleigh pulled Kayla's diaper off and placed her in the water.
Leanna started off down the hallway, hearing Nicholas scream "Dadda" again as she rounded the corner into the kitchen.
"Damn it, Delko," Tim griped, picking noodles out of his hair again while Eric and Nicholas laughed. "I swear to God I'm gonna kick your ass."
Leanna wrapped her arms around Tim's neck. "Don't worry, honey, I'll give you a bath later, too."
"Ummm, you promise?" Tim asked seductively, tilting his head back to kiss his wife.
"Christ, I'm eating here," Eric complained.
"That's the price you pay, my man," Tim explained. "I could tell you all about last night. The flowers and dinner were a great idea, by the way. And the sex, damn, dude, it was..." Leanna clamped her hand over Tim's mouth, preventing him from giving any further details of their sex life to his best friend. Tim kissed the inside of Leanna's hand, pleased with the effect he'd had on Eric, as the color drained out of the younger man's face.
"Man, I'm gonna throw up," Eric said, pushing his plate away. "I could have lived the rest of my life without ever having to think about your naked ass, now you go and implant that image in my brain."
"Isn't there a ballgame on?" Horatio shook his head, changing the subject, while Leanna wrapped Nicholas into the tablecloth.
She rolled her eyes and stepped into the bathroom. She unwrapped her son from the tablecloth and stripped his diaper off, placing him in the lukewarm water. "So, what are you going to do about Mikayla?" she asked.
Calleigh shrugged. "Michelle's made it very clear that she wants us to adopt Mikayla, so I guess that's what we're going to do."
"Well, that's good. Are you okay with that?" Leanna asked.
Calleigh took a cup and poured water over Mikayla's shoulder, rinsing some of the spaghetti sauce off. "I'm great with it," she answered. "I can't imagine a more perfect baby, even if I had given birth to her."
"Well, I'm thrilled for you, and I know Tim is too," Leanna said, taking her hand off Nicholas for a moment to lather shampoo in her hands. She rubbed it gently into his curls, despite his fierce protests. Nicholas screamed and slammed his fists into the water, sending it spraying into Mikayla's eyes. She immediately began wailing and Calleigh wiped the water off her face.
"Well, don't get spaghetti sauce in your hair next time, son," Leanna said sarcastically, tilting Nicholas back to pour water over his head. He shook his head violently and frowned when she sat him back up. "Dadda!" he said forcefully, splashing the water with his fists again.
"Ooh, don't you even start that!" Leanna warned, laughing as she said it. "Just wait, Cal, just wait," she shook her head, "They get even more fun as they get older. I can't wait till he learns 'no'." She made quick work of Nicholas's bath and lifted him from the water.
Calleigh mirrored Leanna's movements, washing Mikayla's hair and cleaning her off. She lifted Kayla from the bathtub and wrapped her into a thick towel. She carried the baby into Nicholas's room, where Leanna had Nick on the changing table, putting a new diaper on him while Nicholas tried to eat a tube of Desitin. "I said no-no, Nick," Leanna commanded, taking the tube from him. Nicholas screamed again and kicked his legs. "Dadda!" he called out defiantly.
"Okay, fine," she sighed, putting him into pajamas and carrying him into the living room, where the guys and Valera were spread out across the furniture, watching the ballgame. She deposited him on Tim's lap. "He wants Dadda," she winked at her husband.
Tim frowned. "Olivia's gonna have to learn Momma first, this is getting ridiculous."
"You're the one who said you'd never get tired of hearing it," she reminded him.
"That was five o'clock," he called after her retreating form. "It's now three hours later, and it's not so cute anymore."
"Too bad, so sad," she answered, beckoning Valera with her finger. The younger woman jumped up and grinned. Leanna then turned to Calleigh. "Drop the baby off with your husband and come with me. We have chick stuff to do."
Calleigh laughed and handed Mikayla to Horatio, who gratefully accepted the tiny package, pressing a kiss to Kayla's temple while the little girl laughed brightly and snuggled deep into his embrace. Calleigh followed Leanna and Valera into the kitchen. Leanna took out a bottle of champagne and a bottle of sparkling cider; then took three champagne glasses from the china cabinet.
She filled the glasses, handing one to both Valera and Calleigh; then raised her own. "To Cal – the newest Mommy in our little group. May every laugh and every smile your daughter gives you make up for the times that she's going to be a horrid little monster!"
Valera nearly choked on her champagne. "And that started out so sweetly, Lea."
Leanna raised her glass again and directed her attention to Valera. "And to our darling Val – who has now lost two of her best friends to an eight o'clock bedtime!"
"Hear, hear," Calleigh laughed, taking a sip of her champagne.
"You guys suck," Valera laughed. "I'm the lone woman out now, you know that?"
Calleigh shrugged. "So, have one of your own."
Valera rolled her eyes. "I already do. He's twenty-nine years old and his name is Eric. He's the only child I can handle for now."
"I heard that!" Eric bellowed from the living room.
"Good!" she shouted back.
"You three are having entirely too much fun in there while we men are doing all the work in here," Tim hollered.
Horatio's cell phone rang and he answered it quickly. "Caine," he said. He listened for a moment; then snapped his phone shut. Tim and Eric looked at their boss expectantly. "Lauren Johansson will be here at 10 in the morning," he explained.
Tim nodded and glanced down at Nicholas, who was sitting between his father's legs, watching the game. Tim stroked Nicholas's curls and sighed. "I just can't imagine anybody wanting to hurt their kids like Michael Johansson did."
"Me neither," Eric said as the mood in the room changed dramatically. Valera stepped into the living room and sat down beside her husband, gently stroking his arm. He shook his head and continued, "We keep talking about having kids, but it's scary. How do you protect them these days?"
Leanna lifted Nicholas from Tim's lap and sat down. "You just have to be brave, Eric, that's all," she explained. "It's not easy now and Nick's not even a year old. I can't imagine what life's going to be like when he's fifteen or sixteen."
"I'm locking him in the basement," Tim muttered.
"We don't have a basement," Leanna said sarcastically.
"I'll build one," he shot back. "And Olivia's going to the convent."
"Give me the address," Horatio said, gently fingering Mikayla's curls. "We may send Kayla there too."
They all laughed weakly. "Well, it's getting late," Horatio finally said, "And this little girl has had a big day." As if on cue, Mikayla yawned and batted her long blonde eyelashes at him.
"Yeah, we better get going too," Eric said, rising from the couch and offering Valera his hand.
"I'll get Kayla's stuff," Calleigh said, stepping into the kitchen to retrieve the diaper bag.
Valera kissed both babies gently before hugging Leanna goodnight. She followed the group into the kitchen and closed the door behind them. Stepping back into the living room, Leanna admired the sight before her. Tim, stretched out in his recliner; Nicholas, leaning against his father's chest, watching the ballgame intensely.
"Well, we sure killed the mood," Leanna teased, sitting down on the couch.
"Lauren Johansson killed the mood," Tim countered, "We had nothing to do with it."
"I wonder what Lauren's going to have to say for herself tomorrow," Leanna wondered aloud.
"Oh, I'll fill you in, don't worry," he answered, his tone grumpy, anticipating tomorrow's long day.
TBC....
Pairings - Tim and his lovely wife Leanna, Horatio & Calleigh, Eric & Valera
Rating – Back to PG-13 for now.
Summary – Two prominent physicians are murdered in their Coconut Grove home. All clues point back to the couple's daughter, who is hiding more than one devastating secret.
Nicholas is being quite the little stinker in this chapter, as you'll soon see. Special thanks to my seven beautiful, amazing, brilliant and talented nieces and nephews for being little monsters at various times, providing Aunt Nonnie with much, much inspiration!
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Calleigh paced the interrogation room nervously, cradling Mikayla on her hip. "What am I doing?" she thought to herself, glancing down at the tiny infant, who was chewing on her hair. She smiled gently at Mikayla and kissed her on the forehead. "I'm doing this for your Momma, kiddo," Calleigh explained, "and for you and me and Horatio."
The door opened and a uniformed officer led Michelle inside. She gasped loudly when she saw Mikayla and immediately began sobbing.
"You checked her for any kind of weapon?" Calleigh asked the officer.
"Yes, Ma'am," he nodded. "She's clean."
"Thanks," Calleigh said gratefully. "You can take the handcuffs off, but I want you to stay inside the room with us."
The officer nodded and crossed over to Michelle, taking the cuffs off. Calleigh then handed Mikayla to her. Mother and daughter stared at each other in wonder. "Hi, baby girl," Michelle cooed, caressing her daughter's blonde curls. "Hi, Kayla."
Mikayla smiled at her mother and kicked her legs happily. "I swear, you're even more beautiful than the last time I saw you," Michelle cried, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Can you really leave her for the rest of your life, just to save your sister a second life sentence?" Calleigh asked quietly, sitting down beside them.
"Detective Caine, we've been over this," Michelle said weakly. "I killed my mother."
"Call me Calleigh, please. And honestly, I think you're lying."
Michelle sighed and looked down at her daughter. "Everything I'm doing, I'm doing for her, don't you understand that?"
"No, I don't. You think it's best for her to grow up with her mother in prison?" Calleigh demanded. "Michelle, you're an accomplice, not the murderer. All the evidence points to the fact that Lauren killed both your parents, not you. If you'd just give her up, the D.A. could go so easy on you, don't you understand that?"
Michelle shook her head and sobbed. "I can't Calleigh, because that's not the truth. I wish you'd believe me. It would make things so much easier."
"Michelle..." Calleigh sighed. "Michelle...please."
Michelle lifted Mikayla onto her lap, holding her up by the sides so that the baby was standing. "Kayla," she said quietly, pressing a kiss to the baby's forehead, "Calleigh's going to be your new Mommy. She's going to take really good care of you. I can tell she's a good woman, because she wants so badly to believe that I'm innocent, and I wish to God I could tell her I am, but I'm not."
"You're going to have a wonderful life, Kayla," she continued, as Calleigh began weeping. "She's going to love you so much, just as much as I do. I'm doing what's best for you, Kayla. You deserve to have a real mother and a real father. I hope someday you'll understand that."
Michelle handed Mikayla to Calleigh and stood. "I'm ready to go now," she told the officer, who stared at Calleigh in shock. Calleigh nodded weakly and the officer crossed over to Michelle, who stuck her wrists out. "Thank you, Calleigh, for letting me see her again," Michelle said. "You'll never know how much it meant to me. Take care of our little girl."
Calleigh sat in the interrogation room, stunned and weeping. Mikayla grasped Calleigh's hair and stuck a slice of it into her mouth. Horatio leaned against the doorframe and waited. Mikayla gave him away again, shaking her fists and squealing in greeting. Calleigh stared up at him, wiping away the tears falling from her eyes.
"Well, I see there's no sneaking up on you, Kayla," Horatio teased, reaching down to take the infant away from Calleigh. Mikayla squealed again, then laughed, leaning back in his strong embrace.
"She learned that from Nicholas," Calleigh complained gently, pulling a tissue out of her pocket and dabbing her eyes. "I damned near dropped that boy the other day when he did that."
Horatio knelt beside his wife and smiled. "You heard the whole thing, didn't you?" she asked, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Who me?" Horatio said innocently. "I come home, find that you and Kayla aren't there, I get curious, come back here, and low and behold..."
"Here I am, disobeying both your orders and Social Services' orders," she cut him off.
Horatio smiled gently. "Yes, but, you did what you thought was best for Michelle. Calleigh, I don't want Michelle to go to prison any more than you do, but if she won't help us get Lauren, I can't help her."
"I know," Calleigh cried, wiping more tears from her face. "I just thought, maybe, if she saw Mikayla, she'd realize what she's doing isn't worth it."
"It was definitely worth a shot, Cal," Horatio praised her.
She smiled weakly and stroked his cheek. "Sometimes, I realize just how much I don't deserve you," she said softly.
"One of these days, woman," he shook his head, taking her hand and helping her stand from the chair, "you're going to realize that it is I who doesn't deserve you." He wrapped an arm around his wife's waist and led her into the hallway. "Now, I got a call earlier that Kayla's boyfriend has requested her company this evening. He was making spaghetti and everything."
Calleigh rolled her eyes and swatted his chest. "Trying to marry her off already, Horatio?"
"Absolutely not," he answered, kissing Mikayla on the forehead and then giving the baby his best "serious" face. "You're not getting married until you're 60, or I die, whichever happens first."
Mikayla gurgled a reply and bounced happily in Horatio's arms. "I'm not sure I want her hanging out with Nicholas," Calleigh frowned. "She's learning way too much from him."
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"Man, seeing the baby did nothing?" Tim asked, not believing the story that Calleigh and Horatio were unfolding.
"Not a thing," Calleigh responded, twirling her fork in the spaghetti. "She still says she killed her mother. I give up."
Nicholas and Mikayla sat beside each other, laughing, each in their own high chair. Both babies were covered from head to toe in spaghetti and sauce.
Horatio watched the children smear spaghetti sauce over themselves and their trays, shaking his head in dismay. "I hope you didn't buy that high chair just for us," Horatio said absent-mindedly.
Leanna's fork stopped halfway to her mouth and she stared at her husband. "Didn't you tell him?" she asked.
Tim grinned sheepishly. "I forgot. I did tell Calleigh, though."
"And I forgot to tell you too, honey," Calleigh explained, putting her hand on Horatio's arm. "Leanna's pregnant."
"Well," Horatio sighed, clearly upset by the revelation that he'd been out of the loop for almost an entire day. "Congratulations."
The kitchen door flew open and Eric and Valera stepped inside. "You started without us?" Eric asked, a frown set across his features.
"You snooze, you lose," Tim shot back.
"You said you weren't sure you were coming," Leanna explained, hopping up to get more plates.
Valera stepped over to the babies and leaned down to kiss Nicholas. "Yuck," she said instead, picking a noodle off his nose. "I can't believe you let him eat like that," she complained.
"Wait, wait," Leanna said excitedly, crossing back over to Nicholas. She pointed at Tim. "Nick, who's that?"
"DADDA!" he said brightly, picking up a handful of spaghetti and tossing it at Tim.
"Yeah," Tim sighed and rolled his eyes, picking the spaghetti noodles off his shirt. "Not necessary, Lea."
Eric laughed hysterically. "No man, it's on now. Nick, who's that?" he asked, pointing at Tim.
"DADDA!" Nicholas said again, hurling another fistful of spaghetti at his father.
"Oh, I'm in pain," Eric gasped for air as he continued to laugh, "Who taught him that?"
"Please stop encouraging my son to throw food, Delko," Tim warned, shooting a nasty glare at his best friend.
"Speed, I'm the uncle. This is what we do. Get over it," Eric explained.
"You just wait, Delko, your kid's first gift from me is going to be either an electric guitar or a drum set," Tim threatened. "Paybacks are hell."
Valera picked a stray noodle out of Tim's hair. "Just remember, Tim, whatever you do to Eric, you do to me, and I'm not the one laughing."
"I like her," Tim said to Leanna as she sat down on his lap. "Can we keep her and get rid of Eric?"
"We're a package deal, jackass. Can't get one without the other," Eric fired back. Eric twirled spaghetti around his fork and took a huge bite. "Damn, Leanna, I bow once again at your feet. This is awesome."
"Thank you," she smiled brightly. Tim softly kissed the back of Leanna's neck, allowing his lips to linger on his wife's soft skin. She sighed gently, leaning into his loving embrace and bringing his left hand up to rest on her stomach. He intertwined their fingers and unconsciously traced circles on the soft black fabric of her shirt.
They were completely wrapped up in their own world until Horatio cleared his throat. Leanna stood and leaned down to kiss Tim again. They smiled against the other's lips and Tim tugged playfully on her khaki capris. "Calleigh," she asked, "shall we hose the children off?"
Calleigh glanced over at Mikayla, whose blonde hair was now tinted with red spaghetti sauce. Stray noodles hung from her hair and ears and Mikayla beat her fists on the tray, sending sauce flying. "Inside or out?" Calleigh frowned.
"You run the bathwater, I'll wrap them up," Leanna said, reaching into a low cabinet for a large plastic tablecloth. Calleigh stood and headed down the hall to the bathroom. Leanna took the tray off Mikayla's high chair and wrapped the baby up in the tablecloth. She carried Mikayla down the hall and into the spare bathroom.
"Leanna, you are unbelievably brilliant!" Calleigh exclaimed, gently unwrapping Mikayla from the tablecloth.
"Keeps me clean and slimy fingerprints off the walls," Leanna explained as Calleigh pulled Kayla's diaper off and placed her in the water.
Leanna started off down the hallway, hearing Nicholas scream "Dadda" again as she rounded the corner into the kitchen.
"Damn it, Delko," Tim griped, picking noodles out of his hair again while Eric and Nicholas laughed. "I swear to God I'm gonna kick your ass."
Leanna wrapped her arms around Tim's neck. "Don't worry, honey, I'll give you a bath later, too."
"Ummm, you promise?" Tim asked seductively, tilting his head back to kiss his wife.
"Christ, I'm eating here," Eric complained.
"That's the price you pay, my man," Tim explained. "I could tell you all about last night. The flowers and dinner were a great idea, by the way. And the sex, damn, dude, it was..." Leanna clamped her hand over Tim's mouth, preventing him from giving any further details of their sex life to his best friend. Tim kissed the inside of Leanna's hand, pleased with the effect he'd had on Eric, as the color drained out of the younger man's face.
"Man, I'm gonna throw up," Eric said, pushing his plate away. "I could have lived the rest of my life without ever having to think about your naked ass, now you go and implant that image in my brain."
"Isn't there a ballgame on?" Horatio shook his head, changing the subject, while Leanna wrapped Nicholas into the tablecloth.
She rolled her eyes and stepped into the bathroom. She unwrapped her son from the tablecloth and stripped his diaper off, placing him in the lukewarm water. "So, what are you going to do about Mikayla?" she asked.
Calleigh shrugged. "Michelle's made it very clear that she wants us to adopt Mikayla, so I guess that's what we're going to do."
"Well, that's good. Are you okay with that?" Leanna asked.
Calleigh took a cup and poured water over Mikayla's shoulder, rinsing some of the spaghetti sauce off. "I'm great with it," she answered. "I can't imagine a more perfect baby, even if I had given birth to her."
"Well, I'm thrilled for you, and I know Tim is too," Leanna said, taking her hand off Nicholas for a moment to lather shampoo in her hands. She rubbed it gently into his curls, despite his fierce protests. Nicholas screamed and slammed his fists into the water, sending it spraying into Mikayla's eyes. She immediately began wailing and Calleigh wiped the water off her face.
"Well, don't get spaghetti sauce in your hair next time, son," Leanna said sarcastically, tilting Nicholas back to pour water over his head. He shook his head violently and frowned when she sat him back up. "Dadda!" he said forcefully, splashing the water with his fists again.
"Ooh, don't you even start that!" Leanna warned, laughing as she said it. "Just wait, Cal, just wait," she shook her head, "They get even more fun as they get older. I can't wait till he learns 'no'." She made quick work of Nicholas's bath and lifted him from the water.
Calleigh mirrored Leanna's movements, washing Mikayla's hair and cleaning her off. She lifted Kayla from the bathtub and wrapped her into a thick towel. She carried the baby into Nicholas's room, where Leanna had Nick on the changing table, putting a new diaper on him while Nicholas tried to eat a tube of Desitin. "I said no-no, Nick," Leanna commanded, taking the tube from him. Nicholas screamed again and kicked his legs. "Dadda!" he called out defiantly.
"Okay, fine," she sighed, putting him into pajamas and carrying him into the living room, where the guys and Valera were spread out across the furniture, watching the ballgame. She deposited him on Tim's lap. "He wants Dadda," she winked at her husband.
Tim frowned. "Olivia's gonna have to learn Momma first, this is getting ridiculous."
"You're the one who said you'd never get tired of hearing it," she reminded him.
"That was five o'clock," he called after her retreating form. "It's now three hours later, and it's not so cute anymore."
"Too bad, so sad," she answered, beckoning Valera with her finger. The younger woman jumped up and grinned. Leanna then turned to Calleigh. "Drop the baby off with your husband and come with me. We have chick stuff to do."
Calleigh laughed and handed Mikayla to Horatio, who gratefully accepted the tiny package, pressing a kiss to Kayla's temple while the little girl laughed brightly and snuggled deep into his embrace. Calleigh followed Leanna and Valera into the kitchen. Leanna took out a bottle of champagne and a bottle of sparkling cider; then took three champagne glasses from the china cabinet.
She filled the glasses, handing one to both Valera and Calleigh; then raised her own. "To Cal – the newest Mommy in our little group. May every laugh and every smile your daughter gives you make up for the times that she's going to be a horrid little monster!"
Valera nearly choked on her champagne. "And that started out so sweetly, Lea."
Leanna raised her glass again and directed her attention to Valera. "And to our darling Val – who has now lost two of her best friends to an eight o'clock bedtime!"
"Hear, hear," Calleigh laughed, taking a sip of her champagne.
"You guys suck," Valera laughed. "I'm the lone woman out now, you know that?"
Calleigh shrugged. "So, have one of your own."
Valera rolled her eyes. "I already do. He's twenty-nine years old and his name is Eric. He's the only child I can handle for now."
"I heard that!" Eric bellowed from the living room.
"Good!" she shouted back.
"You three are having entirely too much fun in there while we men are doing all the work in here," Tim hollered.
Horatio's cell phone rang and he answered it quickly. "Caine," he said. He listened for a moment; then snapped his phone shut. Tim and Eric looked at their boss expectantly. "Lauren Johansson will be here at 10 in the morning," he explained.
Tim nodded and glanced down at Nicholas, who was sitting between his father's legs, watching the game. Tim stroked Nicholas's curls and sighed. "I just can't imagine anybody wanting to hurt their kids like Michael Johansson did."
"Me neither," Eric said as the mood in the room changed dramatically. Valera stepped into the living room and sat down beside her husband, gently stroking his arm. He shook his head and continued, "We keep talking about having kids, but it's scary. How do you protect them these days?"
Leanna lifted Nicholas from Tim's lap and sat down. "You just have to be brave, Eric, that's all," she explained. "It's not easy now and Nick's not even a year old. I can't imagine what life's going to be like when he's fifteen or sixteen."
"I'm locking him in the basement," Tim muttered.
"We don't have a basement," Leanna said sarcastically.
"I'll build one," he shot back. "And Olivia's going to the convent."
"Give me the address," Horatio said, gently fingering Mikayla's curls. "We may send Kayla there too."
They all laughed weakly. "Well, it's getting late," Horatio finally said, "And this little girl has had a big day." As if on cue, Mikayla yawned and batted her long blonde eyelashes at him.
"Yeah, we better get going too," Eric said, rising from the couch and offering Valera his hand.
"I'll get Kayla's stuff," Calleigh said, stepping into the kitchen to retrieve the diaper bag.
Valera kissed both babies gently before hugging Leanna goodnight. She followed the group into the kitchen and closed the door behind them. Stepping back into the living room, Leanna admired the sight before her. Tim, stretched out in his recliner; Nicholas, leaning against his father's chest, watching the ballgame intensely.
"Well, we sure killed the mood," Leanna teased, sitting down on the couch.
"Lauren Johansson killed the mood," Tim countered, "We had nothing to do with it."
"I wonder what Lauren's going to have to say for herself tomorrow," Leanna wondered aloud.
"Oh, I'll fill you in, don't worry," he answered, his tone grumpy, anticipating tomorrow's long day.
TBC....