Grissom had just emerged from his office when Catherine had burst out into the hallway and thrown up. Concern was etched on his face as he quickly approached her, tentatively putting a hand on her shoulder. "Cath?"
She glanced up with a look of frustration on her face. "Sorry about that." She knew that she was going to have to tell Grissom what she suspected, but she had hoped that she could delay it until she knew for sure.
Grissom motioned to Nick and Sara who were now out in the hallway. "Can one of you find someone to clean this up?"
Nick nodded. "I'm on it." He cast Catherine a compassionate glance as he made his way down the hallway in search of a mop.
"You ok, Cath?" Sara's voice was thick with concern. Other than the previous evening, she had never known the elder CSI to be sick.
Catherine just nodded, not quite trusting her voice.
"Cath, why don't you come lay down in my office for a while." Grissom wanted to suggest that she go home, but he knew that she was stubborn and if he was going to have to argue with her he didn't want to do it in the middle of the hallway.
Catherine nodded and followed Grissom towards his office.
After he'd closed the door behind them, he noticed Catherine's posture as she sat in the chair opposite his desk. He could tell that she wanted to talk, not to rest and suddenly he knew what it was she was going to tell him. He settled himself into his chair and looked at her over the rim of his glasses expectantly.
Catherine could tell by his expression that he already knew what she was going to say. That's how it had been with them; over the last fifteen or so years, they'd come to read each other pretty well. "I'm not sure yet, Gil."
Grissom furrowed his brow.
"I mean, I took a couple of tests and they both say the same thing, but you know that they're not completely accurate." Catherine continued, trying to convince herself as much as him. "I have an appointment for after shift, and then I should know something definitive."
Grissom finally spoke. "How far along?" He knew from watching her when she was pregnant with Lindsey that Catherine's suspicions about being pregnant were probably correct. And despite her inclination that both pregnancy tests might have given a false positive, they both knew that the morgue used the over the counter tests routinely to determine if a female victim was pregnant.
"Six maybe seven weeks is my best guess." Catherine looked only a little relieved that Grissom knew. This was an interruption in her life that she wasn't expecting. At another time or place in her life she might have considered abortion, but after having given birth to Lindsey and watching her grow up, there was no way that she was even going to allow herself to consider that thought as a viable option.
Grissom studied her for a long moment before he spoke again. "Cath, if you need anything." He faltered for a moment. "Time off." His expression softened. "My door is always open."
She felt the corners of her mouth twitch upwards. Grissom didn't show it often, but he truly cared about the people on his team. "I suppose I should go home until I know something for sure. I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything."
Grissom nodded. "Nothing goes past these walls." He pursed his lips together and then looked her in the eye. His next question was friend to friend. "Cath, is the father in the picture?"
Catherine felt emotion welling up in her throat as she shook her head, forcing a smile onto her face. "I haven't seen him in a month. He's not really the fatherly type."
Grissom couldn't help but feel a pang of concern for his friend. He had never been one to be judgmental about other people, but he often thought that Catherine sold herself short and could pick better men to be with, but then a person couldn't really control who they fell for; he of all people knew that firsthand. He knew how much he would have to give up to be with the woman he had fallen for, and he just didn't have it in himself to take that risk. Besides, he sensed that Sara was finally moving on, and he was glad for her, even if he felt sadness for himself.
"I'll let you know what I find out." Catherine had been talking, but Grissom had only heard the last sentence. She smiled at him, knowing that his thoughts had wandered. "If you want me to go home, I will, but I'd rather stay here and at least process evidence."
He paused only briefly before answering her. "It might raise a few less eyebrows if you go home, unless you want people to come to their own conclusions."
Catherine nodded. "I thought about that too." She moved to stand up.
"Cath?" Grissom looked concerned.
She turned back towards him. "Yeah?"
"No matter what happens, we're all here for you." He was completely sincere.
Catherine smiled. If there was one thing about Gil Grissom that never ceased to surprise her it was that he could be real with her like no one else. Perhaps because they'd been friends for so long, they had no pretenses with each other. She appreciated that, but still, his genuine display of caring surprised her. "I know. I'll see you tomorrow."
Grissom watched her as she went. He knew that she was scared, but she'd never admit it to him. He only hoped that she had someone in her life that she could let her guard down with, she was going to need it if her suspicions proved to be true.
He glanced up at the clock, realizing that shift was set to start in two minutes, and so he pulled himself out of his chair and made his way down to the break room to hand out assignments to the rest of the team. Fortunately, it appeared as if it was going to be a relatively slow night. He and Warrick would cover any new cases that came in while Nick and Sara continued to work the case they'd had the previous night.
Grissom barely noticed that the hall floor in front of the break room had been cleaned up, and as he walked in, the rest of the team glanced up, a mixture of curiosity and concern on their faces.
"How's Catherine?" Sara was surprisingly the first one to ask.
Grissom glanced at the rest of them. "She's going home sick and hopefully she'll join us tomorrow night."
Warrick nodded, and there was something in his expression that told Grissom he knew exactly what was going on . Their eyes met briefly and an unspoken understanding passed between them.
"What's on the plate tonight, boss." Greg Sanders had been getting more and more field time and he was anxious to get out in the field and help out.
Grissom gave him a pointed stare. "I want you to help Nick and Sara with their case. Warrick and I will cover anything else that comes in for the time being." With that, he handed Warrick an assignment slip. "419 at the Mediterranean. Possible overdose. Vartan is already there."
Warrick pulled his lanky frame out of his chair and sauntered out of the room.
Grissom looked over at Nick and Sara, his gaze lingering a little longer than necessary on Sara. "Keep me posted on your case." With that Grissom headed out of the break room and back down the hallway, his head down as he studied a file intently.
Nick glanced over at Sara who wore a clouded expression on her face, but before he could say anything, Greg interjected.
"So what are we working on?" Greg's grin was wide. He couldn't hide his excitement at helping put the pieces of a case together to solve the puzzle.
Nick glanced briefly at him, watching Sara out of the corner of his eye. He could tell she was starting to get pissed off. "Sanders, I put a boat load of samples in DNA for you to process. Let me know when you're done."
Greg nodded. It wasn't the answer he wanted to hear, but he knew that is was a key part of the whole process. "I'll page you."
After Greg left, Nick looked at bit more intently at Sara, reaching over and touching her shoulder gently. "Sara, don't let him get to you." He had seen how just a lingering glance from Grissom had caused her face to cloud.
Her tone was almost bitter when she responded. "I just wish he would stop doing that. I've moved on, but apparently he's still stuck in the same place."
"It's his loss, Sara." He smiled at her and his tone was so genuine that she couldn't help but smile.
"You're good for my ego." She pulled herself out of her chair and glanced back at him.
He flashed an electric grin at her and then elbowed her as they stepped out into the hall. "You're not so bad for mine either."