A New Addition
Pairing: Nick and Sara
Nick and Sara have a night out while Cynthia babysits Abigail.
Disclaimer: I don't own Nick, Sara or any other CSI character. I do own Nick and Sara's families and any other non-CSI character.
Nick and Sara's Night on the Town
Sara was looking at the fountains at the Bellagio with awe. The last time she and Nick had a look at the spectacle, she was two months pregnant with Abigail. They both wanted to take their daughter just to watch the dancing water, but Cynthia insisted that she will watch the infant while they went out. Cynthia told them that it would be their first real night on the town in months and they deserved it. There were other times that they could take Abigail to see the fountains.
"They are as beautiful as before," Nick said. "I could spend the rest of the night staring at the beauty of that wonder."
"Nicky, I am so jealous," Sara whined.
"Sara, you are very beautiful, too," Nick happily winked at her. "I was just saying that fountains of the Bellagio are beautiful. They can't rival the beauty that I married nearly 20 months ago."
"Nick, don't you know that flattery won't get you anywhere?" she chuckled and she looked at her watch. "Besides, don't we have a 7:00 dinner reservation at our favorite restaurant?"
"Shit, it's only 6:50!" Nick hissed after he looked at his watch. "We have to go inside the Bellagio and get to the restaurant before they give our table to some other couple."
"I would be pissed if they give it to a couple who wanted to spend a night out without their baby girl and her grandmother is watching her," Sara sighed.
"Come on, we have to get going," Nick smirked.
As they entered the Bellagio, Nick's cell phone rang. He was hoping that it wasn't Grissom asking him to come to work tonight. He told his boss that he wanted to have a night off to have a good time with Sara while she was still on maternity leave.
"Stokes!" he said.
"Nicky, is that the way you answer the phone when your own mother calls?" a woman's voice asked on the other end.
"Mom, I am sorry," Nick said then he panicked. "It's a habit. Why are you calling? Is there something wrong with Abigail?"
"She's fine," Cynthia said. "I just wanted to check on you and Sara to see how you're both doing. Are you having a good time?"
"We're both great," Nick said. "Sara and I have dinner reservations for 7:00 that we have to rush off to. Either Sara or I will call you to check up on Abigail."
"I'll let you go," she said. "Have fun!"
"Thanks," he beamed. "I love you, mom."
"I love you, too, son," she said and they hung up.
Sara and Nick arrived at the restaurant with two minutes to spare. However they didn't run like crazy, so they weren't out of breath.
"May I help you?" the hostess asked.
"Yes, we have a reservation for two," Nick said. "The name's Stokes."
"Sir and ma'am, if you would follow me," she said as she took with her two menus.
After they were settle at their table, they were each given a glass of water as well as a basket of fresh baked bread and a dish of herbed butter. They were looking at the menu and their mouths were watering at the choices.
"Hi, my name is Christina and I'll be your waitress tonight," a young woman said. "Can I take your drink order?"
"I'll have a merlot," Nick said.
"I'd like a shiraz," Sara said. "Could we also have a liter of San Pellegrino with two glasses and lemon slices?"
"Sure, I get your drink order," Christina smiled. "Would you like to get started with an appetizer?"
Nick and Sara looked at each other and smiled at the promise they made months ago to try the pumpkin ravioli appetizer. That is, if it's still on the menu.
"Do you still have that pumpkin ravioli appetizer?" Sara asked. "Whenever we come here, the wait staff always recommends it to us."
"Yes, we still do," she said. "Do you want two orders or just one?"
"My wife and I will share one order," Nick smiled.
"I'll bring your drinks, put in the appetizer order and give you some time to decide on your main course," Christina said and she left.
Meanwhile at Nick and Sara's apartment
"I am leaving to go back to Dallas, Texas a week from today, Abigail," Cynthia said as she was sitting on the rocking chair and cradling her granddaughter. "I am going to miss you and your parents so much, but I have to get back to work. My son, your daddy, tells me that he is planning a trip to Dallas with your mommy. That will be your first trip to Dallas where your daddy was born and raised. When you get older, you will learn to ride a horse. Your daddy learned when he was just a little boy. He taught your mommy basic horseback riding skills when he first brought her to Dallas. I am going to miss everyone in Vegas, but I will visit again with your grandpa in the near future. So will your aunts, uncles and cousins."
Abigail started to fuss and cry a little indicating something was wrong. Cynthia immediately got up from the rocking chair and went over to the bassinette. She placed Abigail on top and proceeded with the diaper change. Once that was done and Abigail was once again a happy baby. Cynthia gingerly lifted her granddaughter off the bassinette and cradled her in her arms. She sat back down on the rocking chair and sang Abigail a lullaby. When the infant started to fall asleep, Cynthia got up from the chair and gently placed her in the crib.
"Sleep tight, Grandma's Little Angel," Cynthia whispered, blew her a kiss and she left the room
Back in the Restaurant
Christina had already brought Nick and Sara their drinks. They were both ready to order the mesclun salad and their entrées. Sara ordered a wild mushroom risotto with smoked fresh mozzarella and a side order of sautéed winter vegetables. Nick ordered shrimp scampi served over angel hair pasta and the same side dish as Sara.
"Your pumpkin ravioli appetizer will arrive shortly," Christina smiled and left.
"We are finally going to try that appetizer that they have been suggesting to us for some time," Nick said with the enthusiasm of a little boy being told that he was going to get a new toy or pet.
"Calm down, Cowboy," Sara said. "We aren't sure if it good or not."
"Gee Sara, you sure know how to ruin a moment," Nick whined.
"Nick, I am looking forward to trying this appetizer as much as you are," Sara explained. "I just keep the enthusiasm low key."
He wanted to say something to defend himself and counter Sara, but Christina arrived with the pumpkin ravioli and two smaller plates. She placed the plate holding the pasta in the middle so Nick and Sara could serve themselves. She told them to enjoy their appetizer. The pumpkin ravioli was six small raviolis made with tomato and spinach striped pasta filled with a lightly spiced pumpkin and ricotta cheese mixture it was topped with a light saffron cream sauce and garnished with shredded basil. Both Nick and Sara each took three.
"This is worth the wait," Sara said. "It's delicious!"
"I think we have a new favorite," Nick smiled as he was about to take a bite of a ravioli. "Now I know why the wait staff suggests this to us, it's delicious."
"Do you suppose we could bring your mom here for dinner the night before she returns to Dallas?" Sara asked.
"We never brought her here," Nick observed. "Sara, you have a great idea. She needs to come here and see why we like it. We'll take her the night before she leaves. One problem, who is going to look after Abigail? My cousin Janine is coming from Massachusetts that day, but she will be too exhausted to look after an infant. I'll let her rest at the hotel."
"Catherine is having the night off that day," Sara smiled. "I am sure she will be more than happy to come and look after Abigail. Nick, she can be trusted."
"I know she can," Nick smirked.
As soon as they were finished, Christina took the three plates away and left the couple alone. She returned a few minutes later with a big bowl of salad and two plates.
"Would like some fresh ground pepper?" Christina asked holding a medium sized wooden pepper mill.
"No, thanks," both Nick and Sara said.
"Enjoy your salad," she said.
They served themselves the salad and ate it in silence. There were a few occasions that they paused and smiled at each other. They both took small and slow sips of their wine, saving the rest to sip with their main course. When they finished with the salad, Christina returned to take the bowl and plates away.
"How did you like your meal so far?" she asked. "What about the pumpkin ravioli?"
"It is first time we ever tried it," Sara said. "It is delicious and the salad is awesome. My husband and I have come here for dinner several times and the food is wonderful."
"Well, I am glad you like it," Christina beamed. "Your entrées will be ready in a few moments."
After Christina disappeared, Sara grabbed her purse and was about to get up. Nick was concerned about what she was doing.
"Sara, where are you going?" he asked.
"I am going to call home to check on Abigail," Sara said. "I am going outside to avoid looking rude."
"Come back soon," he smiled.
"I will," she smiled back.
When she was about to exit the restaurant, she caught the attention of the hostess.
"Ma'am, is everything okay?" she asked.
"Yeah, everything is fine," Sara replied. "I just want to make a phone call. I will be right back in a few minutes."
"Sure, go right ahead ma'am," she said. "Does your husband know about this? Should I tell him that you're making a phone call?"
"No, thank you," Sara smiled. "He already knows."
Sara left the hotel and found a quiet spot to make the phone call. She took her phone out of her purse, turned it on, scrolled down the address book to the number she wanted and dialed it.
"Hello," a woman's voice on the other end said.
"Cynthia, this is Sara," she said.
"Sara, are you and Nick having a great time?" Cynthia asked.
"We are having a wonderful time," she replied. "I was calling to check up on Abigail. How is she doing?"
"She's fine," Cynthia reassured her daughter-in-law. "She is sleeping like a little angel. I just hope we didn't wake her."
"I hope not," Sara said. "Cynthia, I have to go. The main course could arrive at any given moment and I don't want Nick to call the Las Vegas Police Department to organize a search party for me. We'll try to be home in about two hours."
"I'll let you go," Cynthia chuckled. "I wouldn't want my son to call the police on his wife. I'll see you both later!"
"Later," Sara said and they hung up.
When she returned to the restaurant, the hostess knew that she was a seated patron and not someone who had just arrived waiting to be seated. Sara immediately went to her table where the main course and side dishes were already served. Nick looked at her and smiled.
"When did the food arrive?" Sara asked.
"About a minute ago," Nick replied. "How's our sweet and adorable little girl doing?"
"She is fine and sleeping like a little angel," Sara said. "That's what your mom told me when I called her."
"Come on and eat your risotto," Nick said. "I don't want you to eat it when it's really cold. I don't think cold risotto would be appealing. However, I do want a little bit to try. I'll let you try my dessert."
Sara gave him a small amount of the risotto. She made sure that it had some of the wild mushrooms and smoked fresh mozzarella in it. Nick ate that before continued eating his shrimp scampi and angel hair pasta. He smiled indicating that he liked it. Sara couldn't wait for the dessert he was going to order.
"I can't believe I will be back at work in less than three weeks," Sara said. "I wonder if I still have it in me."
"Sara, you have been watching Court TV and the Discovery Channel while you're on maternity leave," Nick commented. "You've also read those forensics journals. If there is a working woman who became a mom more than ready to get back to work, it's you."
"I don't know if Grissom wants me to work in the lab when I first get back," Sara wondered.
"Sara, let's just cross that bridge when we get there," Nick said. "Right now, let's just eat and not discuss it. We are here to have a good time without Abigail. I don't want to discuss work at this time."
"So, how did you like the risotto?" Sara asked taking Nick's cue to change the subject.
"It's excellent," Nick beamed. "I am thinking about having this the next time we come here."
"I am glad you love it, Cowboy," she smirked.
They spent the rest of that course eating, drinking, talking, joking and laughing. When they finished, Christina came by to collect the plates.
"Did you leave room for dessert?" she asked the couple.
"Of course we did," Nick smiled.
"I'll bring you the menus," she said. "Can I take your coffee/tea order?"
"I'll have some peppermint tea," Nick said.
"I'll have some lemon verbena tea," Sara said.
Christina left, but returned to give them each a smaller menu. She disappeared again to let Nick and Sara decide what they wanted for dessert. The menu changed slightly, so Nick had an advantage of selecting a dessert that he will give Sara a small amount of. While Nick was able to make a selection, Sara was debating over two choices she liked. She immediately made up her mind when Christina arrived with two of each of the following: teapots, cups, saucers and spoons. She also had with her a sachet of lemon verbena tea for Sara and one of peppermint for Nick, a small pitcher of milk and some sugar.
"Have you decided on what you wanted?" Christina asked. "I know that you had a difficult time in making up your minds."
"I know the feeling," Nick said. "Yes, we made a decision. I would like the chocolate trio."
"I'd like the Italian style cheesecake with hazelnut praline," Sara said.
"Those are excellent choices," Christina said and disappeared. "I'll be right back with your desserts."
"Nick, does this mean that I get to try a little bit of each dessert?" Sara asked.
"Yeah, but just a tiny bit of each," Nick said. "All three in the sampler are very small to begin with."
"That's fine with me," Sara smiled. "Just as long as I have a little bit of each, I'm happy."
Christina returned with their desserts. She watched as Sara took tiny bites of Nick's chocolate mousse, blackout cake and chocolate raspberry truffle cake. She went to tend to other patrons, but she caught a glimpse of the couple eating their desserts and sipping tea. She thought about how very cute and very happy they were. However, her thoughts stopped, she still had to take care of her other patrons.
Sara and Nick finished their dessert and tea with more conversations, jokes and laughter. Christina returned and Nick asked her for the check. She nodded her head and left to get the check. She returned with a sheet of paper on a small tray. She told them that there is no hurry and left once again. Nick immediately took the tray preventing Sara from taking it. He looked at the total, took out his wallet, pulled out a credit card and laid it signature side up on the tray. Christina returned to take the tray holding the card for processing. A few moments later, she returned with the tray that held Nick's credit card, but it also included a transaction slip. She left to go to the bar. Nick wrote the tip amount, totaled everything, signed the form and took the yellow copy. He put his card back in his wallet, placed the white copy blank side up, got up from the chair, found Christina and gave her the tray. She thanked him as he was about to leave the restaurant. He stood in the lobby waiting for Sara who went to the ladies' room. When she was done, she met Nick and they left the restaurant and the hotel.
They decided to look at the fountains for a few moments in silence. Nick pulled Sara into an embrace and they were kissing each other. They didn't care if there were people staring at them, it was the moment that matter. When it time for them to go home, they released each other and walked towards their Tahoe.
About an hour later, they returned home. Cynthia was sitting in the living room watching a documentary on horses. She smiled at them when Sara locked the front door. She received a kiss on the check from both her son and daughter-in-law.
"How's Abigail?" Nick asked.
"She's still sleeping," Cynthia said.
As if on cue, they could hear Abigail crying and both Nick and Sara darted towards their daughter's room. Nick turned on the light, went towards the crib and gingerly lifted the barely two and a half month old infant. He carried her to the bassinette to change her diaper.
"Your grandma told us that you were a very good girl tonight," Nick said softly. "You didn't give her much trouble at all."
After he finished with the diaper change and replaced her sleeper, he rubbed some antibacterial gel on his hands. He daintily lifted his daughter off the bassinette and cradled her in his arms. He gently kissed her on the forehead. She was still fussing about.
"I think she's hungry," Nick said.
"I'll take care of that," Sara said as she took Abigail off of Nick's arm and cradled her in hers.
Sara sat on the rocking chair nursing Abigail. Once the infant was satisfied, Sara burped her. She got up from the rocking chair, kiss Abigail on the forehand and gingerly put her back in the crib. Both she and Nick stood by the crib to watch their baby fall back asleep.
"Good night, Princess Abby," Nick and Sara said in unison. "Sweet dreams, little girl!"
Seeing that Abigail was fast asleep, Sara turned off the light. She and Nick left the room to go to theirs. Nick quietly closed the door so he wouldn't wake the infant. He followed Sara to their room. They were both very exhausted.
Half an hour later, they were in bed. Sleep didn't come to them yet so they were lying in bed.
"I love you, Nick," Sara cooed.
"I love you, too, Sara," Nick cooed back.
They were asleep in each others arms a few minutes later.
TBC