A few days passed in the crime lab before their secret was exposed again. Catherine called Beth out of the lab to discuss some test results with her. When Beth had cleared up the apparent misunderstanding, she turned to leave.
"Hold on a minute Beth. I have one more question for you."
"Okay, shoot."
"How long have you officially been going out with Greg?"
Beth found herself blushing as she responded to Cat's question. "Well, at this point, it's been almost two weeks."
"Why didn't you tell anyone?"
"You guys are investigators, right? Greg and I wanted to see how sharp your skills of observation were. And I'd have to say, I'm a little disappointed. Grissom figured it out three hours into our first shift of being a couple."
Catherine couldn't help but smile. Beth and Greg had gotten the best of her and the CSIs. That was one more point for the lab techs. "Has anyone else figured it out yet?"
"Not yet. It's just you and Grissom. But, could you please not tell anyone else? We want to see how long it takes the rest of the team."
"You have my word. Oh, and congratulations."
"Thanks." And with that, Beth returned to the lab.
*********************
Jim had his eye on the DNA lab, and he noticed when Catherine had taken Beth out of the lab. He seized the moment and headed over to the lab to do some interrogations of his own.
When Jim entered the lab, he closed the door behind him. The sound of the door closing caught Greg's attention and he looked up to see who had derailed his train of thought. He was surprised to see Brass standing with his back to the door. And he was even more surprised when he saw the smile that stretched across Brass' face.
"Is there something you need Brass?"
"Just some information, that's all."
"Well, I don't have any DNA or trace evidence for you yet, sorry. I'm a little backed up right now with my better half MIA."
"Greg, she's only been gone for five minutes."
"Yea, I know. But it's been a pretty long five minutes."
"Actually, the information I was looking for has to do with you and Beth…"
Greg could see where this conversation was headed. He knew that they had been found out yet again, and he confirmed Brass' thoughts. "Wait, don't tell me." He closed his eyes and started rubbing his temples in a methodical fashion. "You're here to seek information about…Wait, I see a beautiful young lady…Her name is a little fuzzy…Bess maybe? You want to know if she is dating a stunningly handsome young man…" At this point, Greg opened his eyes and looked at the detective, who was grinning. "Yes, I asked Beth out a few weeks ago, and it's official. We're a couple."
"You could have just said 'yes' Greg."
"Yea, but it wouldn't have been as exciting." Greg smiled. "Oh, and if you could keep this our little secret, that would be cool. We're trying to see how long it takes for the 'investigators' to uncover the truth."
"I get ya. You're secret's good with me." Satisfied with the information that he now held, Jim turned and left the lab.
*********************
A few more minutes passed before Beth rejoined Greg in the lab. "Guess what Greg."
"Someone else knows?"
"Cat knows."
"And Brass knows, too."
"So the only people that don't know are Sara, Nick, and Warrick. Do you think they'll ever find out?"
"Someone will tell them. I can guarantee it." Greg smiled as he thought about Grissom spreading the secret, so that the reputation of his CSIs wouldn't be tarnished further than it already was. It had been about two weeks now, and they still didn't know. Greg was beginning to feel that they would never figure it out on their own.
Greg's theory that Grissom would be the one to spread the news couldn't have been more wrong. Catherine was the one who spread it. Within ten minutes of Beth's encounter with the guilty party, the entire lab knew that the King and Queen of the DNA lab were officially an item.
Warrick was the first to come into the lab and harass the chemists. "So, what took you so long Greg? I was on the verge of asking her for you."
Greg laughed. "I doubt that."
"Oh, you underestimate me my man. You were the only one who didn't seem to realize that you two were just meant to be. And besides, Nick had made a bet with me that you wouldn't hook up with Beth before St. Patrick's Day, and I couldn't let him win, again. Where's the fun in that?"
"Oh, I see. And how often have I been the subject of your bets with Nick?"
Nick who had been listening to the conversation from outside the door stuck his head in and answered the question. "More times that you would believe."
Greg threw his hands up in the air in mock exasperation. "Beth, can you believe this? My own friends, betting against me. No, not even against me…on me."
Beth started to laugh at the interplay between the men.
"Now hold on a minute there Beth, what makes you think that we've never bet on you before?" A grin crept across Nick's face as he pointed this out.
Beth stopped laughing and all traces of humor vanished from her face. "You wouldn't. I know you wouldn't, because if you did, I would have to come over there and knock some sense into you." Beth rose from her chair and walked right up to Nick. She was only inches from his face, and he appeared genuinely scared for a moment. She raised a fist to hit him and he flinched as she started to throw a punch at him. But just before she made contact with his arm, she put her arm around his shoulder and whispered into his ear, "Gotcha." She then turned to Greg. "And you thought he wouldn't flinch. Now how much do you owe me?"
Greg knew that Beth was just playing with Nick's head, but he went along with it anyway. "I believe that's twenty bucks I owe you." Smiling, he reached into his lab coat and pulled out his wallet. He pulled out a twenty and handed it to Beth.
Nick, knowing that he'd been had, laughed. "Well, it looks like we've started a trend here, Warrick. Our work here is done." He turned to leave, but before he walked out the door, he congratulated Beth and Greg on finally hooking up. Warrick took the cue from Nick and also headed out the door, but not before congratulating the couple.
*********************
Beth and Greg lived relatively close to each other, so they would often drive to work together. This day was no different. It had been a few days since it had become apparent that everyone in the crime lab knew of Beth and Greg's dating status, and the couple arrived to work in Greg's silver Honda Civic. When they walked through the door of the Las Vegas Crime Lab, they knew something was going on. They heard muffled voices coming from the DNA lab. Greg led the way as they slowly approached the lab that was their domain. The lights were off, but there was movement in the lab. Beth smiled as she realized what was going on. She noticed that Greg was smiling, too.
When they reached their destination, Greg opened the DNA lab door for Beth and allowed her to enter first. As soon as she turned the light on, a shout arose from the poorly hidden crime lab employees.
"Surprise!"
The lab had been decorated with colorful streamers and posters, and there was even a pair of wedding bells hung in one of the far corners. One of the tables had been cleared and on it, there was a cake and various types of soda. Beth smiled as she looked at the people in the lab. There were people from both the day-shift and the night-shift. In fact, just about everyone was there.
"You know, you guys would all make awful criminals. Greg and I could hear you from the front door, and we saw you moving around. But hey, I guess it's a good thing that you would make awful criminals…because that would make our jobs a lot easier." She put her arm around Greg and pulled him into the lab.
Grissom was the first to approach the couple. "Hey, I just want you two to know that I had nothing to do with this. I was dragged in at the last moment."
From somewhere in the back, they heard Catherine's voice, "Don't believe a word he says. This whole thing was his idea."
"Oh, don't you try to pin this one on me Catherine. I do believe that you're the one who plans all of the parties around here."
Catherine made her way to the front. "Guilty as charged." She raised her hands to quiet the crowd. When the crowd had finally quieted, she turned to Beth and Greg. "On behalf of the Las Vegas Crime Lab, I would like to express our congratulations to you. All of us here have been waiting so long; we didn't think you would ever ask her Greg."
A wave of laughter rolled over the crowd. The people began to mill about and refreshments were shared. The party was brief since the night-shifters had to get to work and the day-shifters had to head home. But Beth and Greg appreciated every minute that it lasted.
*********************