A/N

Okay, so this was supposed to be up 3 nights ago, well you all know what was going on. And on the 1st was at it again! So the last 3 days have not been my fault.

Thank you all so much for being patient with me. Now that I have gotten over my look of being Death Warmed Over. Hopefully we can continue this piece of fiction. I would have had this chapter out awhile ago but I had the flu and I don't have a laptop so I've been using the old writing tools, an ink pen and a few shelves of paper. And just a warning, this chapter is gonna be long! I figured I at least owe yall that much. Ya know for making yall wait as long as I did.

Also I am changing Malorie Lundsfords last name. At the time I was writing chapter 8 I just remember a name from the news, that's how I get most of my character names. I had not realized that I had indeed named one of my characters after a little girls in Florida, who was missing and now sadly, dead. I would love to honor little Jessica Lunsford's memory, but not in a story like this.

Krysalys73- Yeah I like that last line to, thought I should bring a little humor in the story. Yeah bronchitis is a bitch! And you are the reason why this chappy is sooooo long! You told me to get it all out so here it is!

mudhousejunkie- Yeah I figured that if Nick is the youngest of 7 children, then the man has nieces and nephews, so of course he has to be good with kids, just thought I would throw a little lightheartedness in with the blood and gore.

A writer of fics- The only reason I didn't post right away is because I was afraid that if I posted where I was at the time, I would loose readers. I was in the middle of describing Nick's old relationship. I will leave it at that so you can read. But imagine if I had indeed left there. I think I would have had people out head hunting me!


Chapter 9

Hot Date

At end of shift, Sara found Nick in the locker room. Upon seeing him, she noticed two things, the man was in a nice shirt and a tie and trying in vein to fix his hair in the small mirror that hung from his locker hook.

"Ooh hot date Nick?" She asked holding a folded piece of paper.

"Yup." He said, now alternating between messing with his hair and his tie.

"Who's the flavor of the month?" she asked

"Actually, it's been three months."

"Huh? You? Mr. Self Proclaimed Ladies Man? Has had a steady relationship? No way. How could we not know this?" She asked and sat on the bench opening her locker.

"Don't know." He said with his brow rose.

"Wow, the man can keep his mouth shut." Nick said in amazement more to himself then to Sara.

"Who?" she asked

"Huh? Oh, Greg, he actually fixed me up with Jules."

"Huh, never knew Greg was capable. So where are you taking her?" she asked rummaging thru her duffle bag.

"Sensi." He replied simply

"Sensi? As in Sensi at Bellagio, Sensi?" She asked

"Uh huh, why?" he asked

"No reason." She said biting her lip in attempt not to smile.

"What?" he asked when he seen the look on her face.

"Nothing." She said turning her face so he couldn't see her grinning like a monkey.

"Sara…" He pushed

"Well, she must not have asked you what kind of car you drive." She said no longer trying to hide the smirk on her face.

"Funny." He said with a puff of his chest, sitting down in the process.

Greg walked into the locker room.

"Hey Sara, you have plans after work?" He asked opening his own locker, pulling his jacket from the inside.

"Nope, I was just going to go home and crash, long day ya know." She said picking at an invisible piece of lint on her shirt.

"Yeah I know, but I was wondering if you would want to go to the shooting range. Then maybe get some breakfast afterwards. I mean, I need to practice, I'm still not that comfortable caring a gun around with me." He said shutting his locker. Heading out the door

"Yeah, sure, sounds like fun and I can get a little aggression out." She

"Alright! It's a date then!" He said with a big goofy grin.

"Greg, don't push your luck." She said grinning right back.

"Well… Can I call it a date?" He asked with speculation.

"You can in your sleep" She said with a giggle.

"Yeah, I figured as much. Okay then I will see ya later. Around say 7?"

"Sure, but breakfast is my treat."

"Okay, you're on!" He said walking backwards out of the break room pointing at Sara, the proceeding to bump into Ecklie.

"Sanders!" Ecklie yelled as Greg took off down the hall leaving Nick and Sara laughing.

"Oh, I forgot to give this to you earlier. While you were out playing Meals-on-Wheels, Malorie Gillford gave me this to give to you." She said sliding the folded piece of paper down the bench to Nick. Unfolding the paper, his breath caught in his lungs. It was written on a piece of simple notebook paper and in the center 'Thank You Mr. Stokes' was written. Nick looked at Sara.

"I got one too." Sara said simply.

"You know, it's little things like this that makes you forget about all the blood and gore and death we deal with day in and day out." He said refolding the paper and sliding it in to the breast pocket of his dinner jacket that was hanging in his locker.

"Yeah." Was all she said before Nick started to rummage through his duffle bag. Pulling out a bottle of 'Stetson' cologne, he spritzed himself a couple time before replacing the bottle back in his bag.

"Are you on call tonight?" Sara asked grabbing her purse from her locker.

"You know it. I'm off, but still on the horn." He said pulling his jacket from the hanger on which it had hung on in his locker, shutting and giving his combo a couple good turns. Sara doing the same. She walked out with him to his car.

"I'll call Grissom and tell him to call me before he calls you. Ya know to give you a little extra time" She said heading towards her car. Grinning the whole way.

"Thanks Sar." He said with a laugh climbing in to his Tahoe.


Meanwhile across the street in a nondiscript vehicle, he sat. Watching as the two colleagues conversed.

"It won't be long. We will meet. You don't know me, but you will." The man said gazing out his window, then turning to give Mitzi an affectionate pat on the head. The poor dogs fluorescent orange leash was fraying. It had definitely seen better days. It was to purchase a new one and toss the old tattered one away. Movement from the other side of the street caught his attention. Both CSI were in their respected cars and were turning in the same direction. When one turned one way down the stripe and the other down the other way, he pulled out and followed his intended target.

Back with Nick.

Nick turned from the strip towards Julie's house. He hadn't thought of it for a while, but he had not had a date since the night before Kristi's murder. Three months was big for him. The longest he had ever been in a relationship with a woman was five months and that had ended because Stacie joined the peace core. The relationship ended amicably. Both agreeing that there was no way in hell they could keep it together while she was on a six year hiatus in Guam. Before leaving they agreed to part, Stacie going to Guam and Nick leaving for his currant job, LVPD Crime Lab. Turning down Julie's street, all thoughts of Stacie vanished as he thought of Julie, His Julie. The thought brought a smile to his face. He pulled into the first driveway on his left, parking and cutting the engine, he checked his tie and hair one last time in the mirror, before grabbing the bouquet of daisies he had picked after leaving the lab. Making his way up the walk, he rang the door bell. A tall red haired woman answered the door. Never seeing this woman in his life Nicked asked.

"Is Julie McKay here?" Stepping back slightly, to see the address on the house.

"Yeah, I'm Jackeline Haynez, Julie's cousin. You must be Nick, come on in." Jackeline said holding the door open. To allow Nick to come in the house.


Julie came into the living room after her cousin had left to get Nick and herself a drink. Nick picked up the bouquet that lay next to him on the couch. Handing them to Julie she smiled.

"My favorite! Thanks Baby! Sorry I'm running late." She said kissing him.

"Jackie just pooped outta nowhere needing a place to stay for a while. We got to talking and I lost track of time." Nick took her by the hips, pulling her to straddle his lap.

"No worries. We have at least another hour before we have to leave. Ya know you could send your cousin to the store for a while. We could fool around." He said starting to nibble on her ear.

"I can't" Jules said tilting her head back to make her neck more accessible to Nicks roaming lips and tongue. A loud shattering crash came from the kitchen. Being brought out of their reverie, Julie leapt from Nick's lap and ran to the kitchen. Nick, following Julie's suit.

"Jackie?" Julie called.

"Ow! Dammit!" was all Nick heard before entering the kitchen. Seeing a what appeared to be a broken highball glass with liquor on the floor all around the shattered glass.

"Aw, jeez Jack! Nick, come here please." Julie said across the large kitchen. He looked up. All Nick could see from his vantage point was Julie holding Jackie's hand under the faucet. The closer he got to the two women he realized that Jackie had cut her hand and blood now flowed freely from the deep cut on her palm. A hiss escaped Nick.

"It's nothing, just a scratch." Jackie said trying to pull her hand back from Julie's grasp.

"Nick, honey will you look at it" Julie said with worry written all over her face.

"Jules, I'm not a doctor." He said looking at her and taking Jackie's hand. Upon examining the cut, he seen a piece of glass embedded in her palm. He looked at Julie.

"Baby, have you got any tweezers?" He asked flipping on the main light in the kitchen, then motioning for Jackie to sit at the table. He wrapped her hand in a towel, telling her to keep enough pressure to staunch the bleeding, but not enough to push the glass further into her hand. He turned to Julie. Who was just looking at him.

"Nick, I am a woman, Of course I have tweezers!" she said and when down the hall to her bedroom and master bath. Nick began pulling stuff from cupboards. A large bowl and extra towels. Then went in search of Julie, who was digging in one of many make-up bags.

"Ah Ha!" She said with triumph, she pulled the tweezers from the bag. He looked up with a smile, while he was rummaging through the linen closet in search of Hydrogen Peroxide, bandages and tape.

"Do you think she needs stiches?"

"Naw, just a good butterfly bandage, some antiseptic and some triple antibiotic ointment."

"Okay, then you finish up fixing her hand and I'll finish getting ready." She said kissing him before pushing him from the bathroom. Heading down the hallway with an armload of medical supplies. Placing them on the kitchen table, he took off his dinner jacket and folded it over the back of the stool that was around the island, a safe distance from the peroxide. Sitting down, rolling his sleeves up, placed a towel on the table between himself and Jackie, he then fashioned a butterfly bandage from the tape, sticking it to the table and placing the large bowl on the towel he motioned for her hand. Taking the towel from around her hand seeing that the blood and slowed considerably, but not completely, he replaced the towel.

"So where did you grow up?" He asked wanting to give the cut time to clot.

"I grew up in middle America! A little suburb, just out side of Dallas."

"Really? I grew up outside of Dallas."

"Yeah I grew up in Eagle Ford but, went to high school in Dallas." She said as he once again lifted the towel.

"What high school?" He asked. Seeing no blood flow, he picked up the tweezers.

"This may hurt a bit." He said and proceeded to pull the glass shard from her palm. A hiss escaping from her lips.

"Skyline" She blurted out.

"Huh?" he asked placing the glass on the table, away from them.

"Skyline, my high school." She said her teeth clenched.

"Wow, me too, what year did you graduate?" Trying to remember her from his old stopping grounds. Putting the bowl between them, he unscrewed the cap on the peroxide.

"1990" she said through clenched teeth. Letting Nick pull her hand over the bowl.

"This might sting a bit." He said proceeding to pour on the peroxide on the cut leaving Jackie cringing. After thoroughly cleaning the cut, he patted it dry, applying antibiotic ointment and the butterfly bandage he had fashioned earlier and wrapping her hand in gauze to help protect the cut as well as keep dirt and moisture away.

"All done. Don't get it wet and change the dressing daily and use this" He said handing her the ointment, Jackie looking at him with a strange look of infatuation.Julie had since joined them. He looked up at Julie with a smile.

"You ready?" he asked

"Always" She said walking up to the chair and grabbing his jacket, giving Jackie a bottle of acetaminophen with sleep aid.

"Get some. Don't wait up for me. Nick has tomorrow off." She said handing Nick his jacket then pulling him out the side door in the kitchen.

"Come on Tex" Nick smirked. Going out the door behind them, Julie watched as they got in Nicks Tahoe, and pulled away. Julie missing the venomous look that Jackie had giving her.


TBC

NEXT CHAPTER 10 THE RANGE COMING SOON TO A NEAR YOU!

A/N okay I don't know where exactly I should go with the next chappy. I know Greg and Sara are going to the shooting range and out for breakfast, but I don't know if I should continue with Nick and Julie's date or go on with the story. I don't know. You Lovely Wonderful people can help can't ya? Okay yes I am kissing some major ass here but I need to know where yall would like this to continue to.

Thanks again to my loyal R&R's! even you little ghost readers out there, don't be shy, Review!