Budding
Chapter Eleven
Sara took two Valium.
If she was going to anything else, sleep made her change her mind about it. The Valium had been working for her; it kept her from dreaming about anything at all. That was exactly what she wanted.
She put on a nightshirt and climbed into her bed and let the medicine take its affect on her body. Depression was something that she had never dealt with before, and she felt like she was an outcast. Usually, she could deal, but not this time. Her heart was broken, and she had given up on ever loving anyone else.
***
Catherine pounced Warrick and kissed him madly.
"Excited, aren't we?" He asked with a chuckle.
"Of course I am!" She said. "We have seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars each to do whatever we want with."
They smiled at each other.
"What are we going to do with that kind of money?" Warrick asked.
"I don't know," she said. "Do you want to put it together and save it for something later?"
"We could do that," Warrick said. "I was actually thinking that maybe we could buy a house with it."
Catherine kissed him softly. "That would be great," she whispered. "We'll have a place to call home. Lindsay's been wondering when you're going to move in."
"How is she taking all this?" He asked.
"Well, she's happy," Catherine said. "She loves you, and I think that she's ready to start over."
"I love you both," Warrick said.
Warrick kissed her again, then set her down.
"Do you think you'll ever want to do what we did again?" Warrick asked.
"I don't know," Catherine said as she entered the kitchen. "Maybe."
"Do you think that what we did was wrong?" Warrick asked.
"In the eyes of the law, yes," Catherine said, taking out a pint of ice cream. "But justice is blind, and we led her in the right direction."
Warrick nodded. His love for Catherine was further amplified because of her words.
"What are you thinking about?" She asked as she ate a spoonful of ice cream.
"You," he said. "And how every time I look at you, it seems like you get more beautiful."
Catherine smiled. "You know, the more you talk like that, the sexier you get."
Warrick chuckled and gently pulled her to him.
"We have to go back to New Orleans soon," he whispered.
"I know," Catherine said. "I'm afraid of what we'll find out."
He kissed her lips, cold and sticky from the ice cream.
"I think that-"
"You think way too much," Catherine whispered in a sultry voice. She ran her hands down his very well muscled chest and kissed him sensually.
The ice cream long forgotten, she led him to the bedroom.
***
Catherine kissed her wedding ring, which was not cheap, by the way, and then she strung it on her gold chain. She swore that she would always have it with her until they decided that they would tell everyone that they had eloped. She would be able to wear it on her finger all the time at work.
She put the chain around her neck and tucked it under her shirt.
When she was prepared to go meet up with the rest of her comrades, she closed her locker, and pushed a few stray strands of hair away from her face.
She walked to the break room, and saw Nick and Warrick already there, but no Sara.
"Where's Sara?" She asked.
"Grissom said that she called in," Nick said.
"Whoa," Catherine said. "Call the newspapers. Sara's actually taking the night off?"
"Grissom said that she didn't sound good, though," Warrick said, his eyes telling her something much different.
"Oh," she said, and she decided not to tease about Sara.
"Want some coffee?" Warrick asked.
"Please," she said as she sat down. "With the usual fake stuff."
Nick looked at his watch. "Where is Grissom?"
"He said he'll be here in about thirty minutes," Warrick explained. "He said he was going to go check up on Sara. Now I'm worried about the poor girl."
"She hasn't been herself over the last few weeks," Catherine pointed out.
Nick nodded his agreement.
They sat in silence for a few seconds before Nick brought up something else.
"Got money for some lunch?" He directed at Warrick.
"Why?" Warrick asked.
"It's so your turn to cough up the dough for lunch man," Nick said. "I paid up last time."
Warrick sighed and glared at his friend and took out his wallet.
"How much was it for us last time?" He asked.
"About fifty bucks," Nick said.
Warrick fanned through a large amount of cash in his wallet. "I should have enough."
"Enough?" Nick said incredulously. "Did we get a raise and nobody told me?"
"I had my bank add up the total interest from my account that I've been acquiring since I was seven," Warrick said. "You do the math."
Catherine smiled and played with her chain.
"Alright, I've had enough," Nick said in an annoyed tone. "I know you two are up to something, I can smell it. What are you hiding?"
"We're not hiding anything Nicky," Catherine lied. "What is your deal?"
"I'll tell you what my deal is," he said. "My deal is that you two have been sneaking around acting weird and taking time off at the same time. I'm not crazy. I know there's something going on. You two are my best friends, and it really hurts me when you lie to my face about the obvious."
Nick looked between them before walking out.
Catherine sank into her chair.
"When are we going to tell them?" She asked.
"I don't know," Warrick said. "Whenever you're ready."
Catherine put her head down on the table and groaned.