Despite the fact that Nick had only gotten four hours of sleep, he looked like a new man; he was tired, but he was certain that he was a complete goner over Sara and all he seemed to be able to do was smile. When he rounded the corner into the locker room, his somewhat more skeptical coworker glanced up.

"Must have been one hell of a date." Warrick quipped dryly, rolling his eyes at how perky Nick seemed to be.

"You're just jealous man." Nick sounded like a man who was very satisfied.

Warrick's 'big brother' radar immediately was working full tilt as he narrowed his gaze at Nick. "This had better not be like after you went out with Detective Scalla." Nick wasn't exactly known for his follow through with women, not even those he worked around and Warrick was more than prepared to give him an earful if Sara ended up being just another 'conquest' as Greg called Nick's foray into the dating world.

Nick just shook his head. "It's not like that man." A wide grin spread out across his face. "Sara is the most beautiful, amazing woman that I've ever known, and it wasn't just a date."

Warrick let out a knowing chuckle.

Nick shook his head again and then smirked at Warrick. "It's not what you think. Sara's special and I don't want to rush things."

Warrick looked at Nick like he had just grown a third ear. "You?"

Nick gathered his thoughts for a moment and then turned to face Warrick. "If you thought you had a chance with the most amazing woman you'd ever met, wouldn't you do whatever it took to make sure you didn't screw it up?"

Warrick was momentarily speechless.

Just then Catherine sauntered in, took note of Warrick's befuddled expression and the smug look on Nick's face and made a few conclusions. "I guess they'll be a second date then?"

Nick grinned at her. "Why, yes, Catherine, and I hope there's a third and fourth too."

Catherine let out a deep throaty chuckle as she opened her locker. "Love looks good on you, Nicky." She winked as she hung up her jacket and then grabbed her ID badge.

When Nick didn't deny what Catherine was saying, Warrick's eyes widened. "You're in love with Sara." He wasn't quite sure he was hearing things correctly; this was his friend Nick Stokes who had a phobia about commitment which was why he had dated so many women.

Nick just arched his brows quickly and smirked. "Do you have a problem with that?"

Warrick glanced at Catherine who was looking back at him with an amused expression. She wasn't going to offer him any help, they still hadn't talked about the encounter that they'd almost had and she wasn't going to make it easy on him either. Warrick glanced back at Nick and narrowed his eyes at him. "Only if you break her heart; she's had enough of that for a lifetime." The 'big brother' glare on his face made it clear that he'd rip Nick's lungs out through his nose if he hurt Sara.

Nick raised both hands and let out a soft chuckle. "I have no intention of breaking her heart." He softened his voice and couldn't help but smile. "Trust me, my intentions are very honorable."

"I'll see you guys in the conference room for the briefing." Catherine grinned at Nick as she headed towards the door and then as she glanced over at Warrick, she winked before she disappeared into the hallway.

Warrick crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Nick intently. "How serious are you about Sara?"

Nick's smile was wide as he answered Warrick and with his back to the door, he couldn't see that someone was walking in. "I think I'm in love with her."

When Warrick didn't answer right away and his eyes looked beyond him, panic surged through Nick until he heard a familiar voice edged with disbelief. "Hey, guys."

"Hey, Sara." Warrick knew that he'd better give the two of them a few moments alone and he quickly headed out of the locker room with Catherine's wink on his mind.

Nick turned around and looked at Sara with his heart in the pit of his stomach. It wasn't that he didn't want her to know, he just didn't think she was ready to hear it yet and this most certainly was not how he envisioned telling her. "Did you sleep ok?"

She just nodded as she stepped towards him. "Yeah." She swallowed, still trying to process what she'd overheard Nick say. "You?" Her heart seemed to be beating erratically and she fought the urge to run out of the room in case she hadn't heard him correctly and just in case she did hear him correctly. Her mouth felt dry and she unconsciously licked her lips.

Nick nodded, he felt a little unsteady on his legs and he felt his heart was perched on his sleeve for her to see. "Yeah, I did. I slept really good actually."

"That's good." Sara wasn't sure why she was so nervous, she wasn't even this nervous when she'd pretty much thrown herself at Nick; maybe she was this nervous when he said he didn't think they were ready to take that step and she'd almost thought he was having second thoughts about her altogether.

Nick wasn't sure what to say to break the tension, so he stepped forward and softly kissed her.

Sara didn't give him a chance to pull away, she slid her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss, and when she finally did pull away she was smiling. "Hi." Her voice was a bit husky.

Nick let out a soft chuckle as his hands rested on her waist. "Hi, yourself." He looked at her intently for a few long moments and then a slightly embarrassed grin spread across his face. "I didn't mean for you to overhear that." He lowered his voice and furrowed his brow into a more serious expression. "I mean it though. I think I'm in love with you."

Sara wasn't sure what to say, she cared about Nick a great deal and she was definitely attracted to him. She loved him as her friend and she was definitely open to falling in love with him, but she just wasn't there yet. Giving her heart to someone was the scariest thing that she could think of doing and it was just going to take some time. She looked at Nick and cleared her throat nervously. "It's not that I don't care about you, I do, it's just that I..." Her brow furrowed in frustration.

Nick pulled her into a hug and whispered in her ear. "Hey, you don't have to say anything. I'd be a fool if I expected you to fall in love with me after one date."

Sara pulled out of his embrace and looked as if she was going to say something, but Nick didn't give her a chance.

An impish smile spread across his face. "Now after the fourth date, all bets are off."

She couldn't help but laugh and with that she felt a little bit of her heart slip out of her control.