Louisiana Lovin'

CSI: Miami

Genre: Romance

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: None, I made them up

Pairing: Eh, guess: Calleigh/Speed, duh!

Summary: "Speed, I promise it's only for this one night…or so."

Disclaimer: I own no part of this story. CSI: Miami belongs to CBS and my main man Jerry B. Also, all these places are really in New Orleans and I quite obviously don't own them either.

AN: Ok, I have had his idea in my head for a really long time, like, I was gonna write it as an S Club fic and I haven't written one of those in forever, so I'm doing it as a CSI: Miami fic. It'll work better anyway. And, I've decided that this is going to be part of a series and I've got the whole thing planned out for like, 9 different fics, but it's going to take a long time. Ok. Please review! Thank you kindly.

Chapter 2- Day 2

Calleigh woke up around 7 the next morning and was a bit shocked at first to see Tim sleeping next to her. She smiled watching him sleep and remembered why he was there. The truth was, she's picked him to be her "husband" because there was nothing she wanted more then to wake up like this everyday. Resisting the urge to kiss him awake, she reached over and settled for running her fingers through his hair. His eyes fluttered open and he smiled warmly at her. "Morning, pseudo wife." He mumbled.

"Morning to you, too. I'm gonna shower and ten we can make an appearance at breakfast."

"What time is the DNA for dummies or whatever conference?"

"It goes from 3 to 5:30, so I thought we could walk around the French Market today, do the typical tourist stuff, ya know: shop in the flea market, look at the paintings in Jackson Square, you can get your first beignet, and we can have lunch at Planet Hollywood."

"Wow, you had this planned out, too?" Tim raised his eyebrows.

"Tim, I went to Tulane, you're not the first out-of-towner I've had to show the city to." Calleigh informed him.

"Gotcha, what about after the conference then?"

"Well, I figured we'd come back here and change out of our business clothes, then take the streetcar to Bourbon Street for dinner and the nightlife. The streetcar's very romantic at night…if you're not getting mugged." She grinned, nudging him playfully.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," he replied sarcastically.

"Well, I'll be getting into the shower now," said Calleigh as she pulled herself out of bed.

Once she was done she slipped past Tim, wearing only a towel, as went in to take his shower. After she dressed she knocked on the bathroom door. "Mind if I come in and do the whole hair and make-up thing?" she called.

"Not at all," he replied over the beating of the shower. He was tempted to invite her to join him, but thought the better of it.

As Calleigh proceeded to do her hair and make-up, she tried not to think about water pellets splashing over his naked body just feet just behind her.

When he was just about done with his shower, Tim poked his head out to see if she was done or not. She was wearing tight black low-riders and a red, black, and white striped sleeveless sweater top. Her golden locks were pulled into a half-pony again and she was just finished applying red lipstick to those luscious lips of hers. She noticed him looking and smiled. "Sorry, do you need to get out now?"

Tim nodded. "Only if you're done beautifying."

"Yep, I'll wait in the living room slash kitchenette." She grinned before winking and slipping out of the bathroom.

Tim sighed and turned off the water. 'Why does she have to be so damn perfect?' he thought as he dried off and changed into his jeans and a button down navy blue shirt with a white T-shirt underneath.

As Calleigh and Tim sat down to eat their breakfast in the hotel restaurant, Heidi appeared out of nowhere and plopped down with them. "So what are we doing today?" she asked, buttering her toast.

"Well, we are going to the French Market." Calleigh said, hoping her voice wasn't as cold as her feelings towards the other woman.

"Great, it'll bring back memories, huh, Cal?" Heidi commented, not catching on.

"Sure will, Heid." Calleigh replied more bitterly than she meant to.

"Aw, not still bitter about college days, are we?" Heidi turned to Tim. "Come Marti Gras every year, I would bag at least twice as many guys as she did." She smirked.

Calleigh put her head in her hands. "That's because I didn't flash every guy to look at me," she hissed so only Tim could hear. Lifting her head, she said, "Well that really doesn't matter anymore since I found the man I want to spend the rest of my life with, does it?"

Tim smiled and squeezed her hand. "I hope not." He winked as her. "Are we ready to go?" he asked. Both ladies nodded and stood up. Tim took Calleigh's hand again, giving it a small squeeze, which she reciprocated, and they headed out.

"Room for one more?" Alexx asked coming up behind them. Calleigh quickly made the introductions then asked where Horatio and Eric were. "Horatio is catching up with an old friend from…somewhere and Eric met someone." She didn't roll her eyes here, because that would be a very un-Alexx thing to do, but her tone implied that was she anyone else she would have.

Calleigh and Speed sent each other a nervous glance, but assured their friends it would be fine. After flagging down a cab, they headed to the far end of the French Market and the flea market, with Calleigh, Tim, and Heidi crammed into the back and Alexx riding shotgun. Tim draped his arm casually over Calleigh's shoulders, hoping Alexx wouldn't give them away.

Alexx Woods was a very perceptive woman. She's seen the look Calleigh and Tim had shared, seen them holding hands, and now saw his arm around her and it appeared that they had finally gotten together, and it would've been about time too, the way they'd been dancing around it for so long, but she somehow sensed that they hadn't. There was something not quite right about it; like the fact that yesterday neither of their left-hand ring fingers were accessorized, but today they were both clad with wedding bands. She made a mental note to ask them about it later.

Upon arriving at the flea market, the quartet decided to split up, agreeing to meet up at the other end of the market in an hour. Alexx headed left to find something for her kids, Heidi went right to look at some jewelry, and Calleigh and Tim decided to take the center to see if anything caught their eye. For awhile they wandered slowly down the center aisle before Calleigh stopped abruptly at one of the jewelry displays. "What is it?" Tim asked.

"Oh, nothing really, it's just…look." She pointed to a set of silver with diamond studs. "It's the set to match my ring."

"Your…wedding ring?" Tim hesitated.

Calleigh blushed. "Yeah, aren't they beautiful?" she asked.

"Beautiful." Tim breathed, staring at Calleigh as the sun seeping in through the sides of the market played across the golden ocean of her hair and her sky blue eyes twinkled.

She blushed again. "Well, let's keep moving."

Again they headed forward, but once the table was out of view, Tim halted. "What's wrong?" Calleigh asked, laying a hand on his arm.

"I think I left my sunglasses on the table with the jewelry stuff. I'll be right back."

"Do you want me to come with you?" she asked, now studying a purse as the woman selling it eyed her eagerly.

He grinned. "Nah, it'll only take a minute, be right back." When he got back to the display, he hailed the owner. "Hey, how much are you selling this for?"

"Did you find them?" Calleigh asked as Tim made his way back over.

"You know what, I didn't bring them with me today…oops."

Calleigh laughed and took his hand. The seller of the purses glared as they walked away. "I take it you didn't want that bag anymore?" Tim asked, seeing this.

"No, why?"

"That lady's sending you death glares."

"Oh, well she kept lowering the price so I would buy it, but there was a tear in the side."

"Oh."

"Tim?"

"Yeah?"

"I know this is weird for you, this whole situation, and I just wanted to say thank you…and that I promise you don't have to kiss me or anything."

Tim grinned. "It's fine," was all he said, leaving Calleigh to wonder what he meant. "Do you mean you don't mind doing this or you don't mind…kissing me?" Calleigh blushed again, hoping it wasn't noticeable.

"I don't mind doing this; people like Heidi piss me off. And, I guess if it comes to it…I wouldn't mind kissing you. I mean, you're not entirely repulsing." He grinned.

Calleigh laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment, thank you."

"There you are!" Tim and Calleigh turned around to see Heidi and Alexx walking toward them.

"Hey, d'you find anything for the kids?" Calleigh asked Alexx.

"Eh, some little things. Where are we off to now?" the ME asked.

"Jackson Square?"

Everyone nodded and continued walking straight down the boulevard, passing little shops along the way, until it ended at a big square with a grassy area, enclosed with a wrought iron fence. Along the sides of the fence merchants had set up their carts with their paintings displayed for everyone to see. On the back side were fortune tellers and musicians. "What is that?" Tim asked, after they had walked almost all the way around the square. He pointed to a woman in a soldiers outfit painted completely silver, skin and all. A drum was attached over her shoulders and she stood very still.

Calleigh smiled. "That's a living statue. If you put money in that little pot there she'll move around or something."

Tim looked very interested and handed her a dollar. "Go do that." She said.

"Are you sure you don't want to?"

"Yeah, go on."

Calleigh sighed and walked up to the statue, dropping the dollar in her pot.

BAM! BAM! BAMBAMBAMBAMBAM!

Calleigh shrieked and jumped back into Tim's arms as the statue came to life and started banging on the drum. When she finished she bowed gratefully to Calleigh and resumed her frozen position.

Tim laughed, not letting go of her. "Very nice. I like this place."

Calleigh glared at him. "Let's just go get lunch now." Tim laughed again and they headed farther down the street to the Hard Rock Café.

"So…now you've been to the Hard Rock Café New Orleans!" Calleigh said to Alexx and Tim as Tim as they walked out of the restaurant, slipping her hand into his. Holding hands with Tim was becoming like second nature and it scared her. He was doing this as a favor to her, if she went reading too far into it she was going to get hurt. Calleigh didn't get hurt. She was a strong, independent woman who didn't on depend on anyone and who, above all, did not let her guard and leave herself open pain and heartache.

But here she was, allowing herself to feelings for this man and indulging in him, however subtle it might have been.

"Do you wanna walk slowly over to Café du Monde and get your first beignets?" she asked.

"I don't eat beignets." Heidi said dryly. "They're obesity just waiting to happen."

"I think we'll be safe with one beignet, Heidi."

Seeing that Calleigh was about to lunge at her former roommate, Tim let go of her hand and slipped his arm around her waist. Luckily, Alexx stepped in with, "So what is that beignet thing I keep hearing about?"

This seemed to pull Calleigh out of her funk and she smiled at Alexx. "It's like a donut covered in powdered sugar, but not as sweet. It's actually a good thing Heidi doesn't want one, because they're sold in threes."

Heidi rolled her eyes and stalked behind them, glaring at their backs. Once they reached Café du Monde, she sat down at a table with Alexx while Calleigh and Tim bought the beignets. Calleigh handed one to Alexx and asked, "Do you mind if we don't eat here? We're gonna go look at the water."

Heidi was about to stand up and join and Alexx could see Calleigh had had quite enough of her for awhile so she cut in, "Be good, you crazy lovebirds! We'll catch a cab of our own and see you at the DNA conference at three."

Calleigh smiled gratefully and practically dragged Tim up the ramp to look at the water after they'd finished their beignets. They stood looking out at the Mississippi River. "I can feel her still staring at us." She seethed.

"So, why don't we give her something to look at?" Tim suggested.

Calleigh stared at him for a second. "What?"

He gently pulled her in front of him and turned her around to face the water, slipping his arms around her waist and holding her close. "She's really starting to piss me off too."

Calleigh snapped out of Heaven and remembered why Tim was holding her. "Yeah…why does she insist on following us?"

"She's an insecure woman, Calleigh. She wants to prove herself, show everyone she's still got it, that she's better than you…even though she's not."

Calleigh grinned. "It's good to know you're so in touch with the female psyche."

He laughed and tickled her side, emitting a shrill giggle from his counterpart. She leaned back against him and sighed. They stood there awhile, enjoying each other's company until Tim broke the silence. "What time is it?" he asked.

Calleigh looked at her watch. "A little after two, we should go now." She said, figuring it would take 20 minutes to get back to the hotel in Jazz Land, then they could freshen up and rest before heading down.

Tim took her hand when she offered it and followed her down to the street to hail a taxi. He hated the fact that he ruined all the intimate moments they had, but he couldn't let himself fall for her, at least not farther and harder than he already had. He sighed and wished for a moment he was a kid again; skinned knees were easier to fix than broken hearts.

A few hours later the meeting had ended and Tim breathed out and leaned back in his seat. Finally, free for the day.

"Calleigh!" someone called from the other side of the room.

Calleigh and Tim both turned around to look and he saw her eyes light up as she caught sight of the caller. He was a tall, dark-haired man with broad shoulders and Tim thought he looked older than himself, but younger than Horatio. He felt a pang of jealousy run through him as he watched her scurry over and hug him tightly. He was pulled from his thoughts and Alexx sat down next to him.

"Don Richards, it's so good to see you again!" Calleigh exclaimed, pulling out of the embrace and looking at her former…and boyfriend. He had been Lt. when she worked for New Orleans PD and they'd dated for a few months before she'd been transferred.

"Calleigh Duquesne, I've missed you." Don replied warmly. He had been in love this woman, once upon a time, and he wasn't entirely sure he was completely over her. Sure, he'd dated since she'd left, but he couldn't stay in a relationship. He compared every kiss, every action to hers, even compared how they were in bed…but Calleigh hadn't felt the same, it wasn't love for her and she'd been able to move on easily.

She blushed. "Actually, it's Calleigh Speedle now." She wiggled the fingers on her left hand.

Don nodded and smiled, very tight-lipped. Apparently she'd moved on more than he'd imagined. "Congratulations, I hope you're very happy."

Calleigh smiled. "Never been happier…come on, I want you to meet him." She said, pulling him over to where Tim and Alexx were talking, not realizing the last thing Don wanted was to meet the love of his life's husband.

"So you want to tell me what's going on?" Alexx asked.

"With what?" Tim grunted, his usual dry demeanor slipping back in.

"This marriage act you and Calleigh are putting on."

"It's to piss off Heidi." Tim shrugged. "She was a goody two shoes in college and showed up here engaged and Calleigh wanted to finally outdo her, I guess."

"So she asked you to play her husband?"

"Yep."

"And you're just going along with it?"

"Yep."

"Out of the goodness of your heart?"

"Why shouldn't I?"

"You're not trying to get anything out of it?"

"Like what?" Tim stiffened.

Alexx knew she'd hit a nerve. "Look, sugar, any idiot can see you're crazy about her…which I guess makes her an idiot because she can't see, but you're an idiot too because you can't see how crazy she is about you."

"It's just a charade, Alexx. At the end of the week things will go back to normal and we can all just get on with our lives." Tim said quietly, stealing a glance at Calleigh, only to find she was dragging the mystery man over. "Don this is Alexx Woods, the world's best ME and Alexx this is Don Richards, my old boss from when I worked here in New Orleans." The two quickly shook hands, before Alexx excused herself, saying she was very tired. "And Don this is my husband Tim, Tim this is Don." Tim stood up next to Calleigh and shook Don's hand shortly with his other hand on the small of her back.

Calleigh tried to keep her thoughts straight, very aware of his hand and how much she liked it there, and how much she loved introducing Tim as her husband. Inwardly, she sighed as the two men sized each other up. "Well, Don it was great to see you again, but we should go change and get ready to go out."

Don nodded. "All right, well, I'll be at your meeting tomorrow." Then he turned to Tim and said very solemnly, "You take care of her."

"Forever and always," Tim replied without blinking.

Calleigh smiled and suddenly kissed his cheek. "See you tomorrow, Don." She said. She and Tim walked out the door and to the elevator, his arm still around still around her waist. Once they were safely in the elevator and away from prying eyes, Tim let go of her and asked, "What did he when he said he'd see you at your meeting tomorrow?"

Calleigh looked shocked. "Didn't I tell you? Tomorrow's topic is ballistics. You, Eric, and Horatio, conveniently enough, are going to the 'Intro to Ballistics' version, if you will, because y'all know nothing about it. The there's the more advanced version; I'm running that one."

"Oh, well, you're the best…Hey, this is kind of OT, but you went out with that guy didn't you?" Tim blurted.

"For awhile. It was more serious for him than it was for me, then I got transferred to Miami…best thing that ever happened to me."

"Why's that?"

Calleigh blushed. "Because it's where I met you."

Tim grinned as they stepped out of the elevator and walked to their room. "So what's on the agenda for tonight?" he asked as she unlocked the door and they stepped in.

"Heidi isn't coming with us tonight, she got a friend or something, thank god, so we don't have to hit the club I was planning on going to tonight until tomorrow night when she will be with us. There's another bar we can go to tonight. It's dark and laid-back, very you." She grinned. "It's called the Blacksmith Shop Bar. It's basically this old, dark, crumbling blacksmith shop gone bar. It's quiet and romantic and this old man plays blues on the piano in the corner. You'll like it. Plus, it's still on Bourbon Street."

Tim nodded. "Sounds good."

"You know what? We can just wear these clothes; we'll be fine. Shall we?"

"We shall." And they headed out of the hotel to hail another taxi back to the heart of the city.

As they headed down Bourbon Street, Tim stopped in front of a different bar. "The Good Friends Bar." He read. "Sounds perfect for us, Cal."

Calleigh tried very hard not to smile, not succeeding. "You want to go here instead?" she asked, hoping her voice wouldn't crack from the stifled laughter.

"Well, you had the other place-"

"No, why don't you go see if there are any open tables?"

"Alright, be right back." Tim walked into the bar, only to rush out minutes later very red-faced and found Calleigh doubled-over with laughter. "Calleigh, that was not funny! You knew it was a gay bar!"

She put a hand on his chest and tried to stop laughing. "I'm sorry. No, I really am, Tim, it's just that it was too good to pass up."

Tim took her hand and laced his fingers with hers. "Well, at least now I know how appealing I am to other men." He grinned as this started up her laughter again. "Yeah, yeah. Just take me to this other place now, ok?"

Calleigh nodded. It didn't take very long to get there and by the time they did her laughter had subsided to a few hiccups and she was just enjoying his company. They sat in a booth in the back near the piano and ordered almost right away. Conversation flowed easily between them as they ate, both sneaking glances at the other. After a few glasses of wine, Calleigh felt a little bold. She slipped out of her seat and sat down on his side of the table. "I was just thinking," she started as he stared at her. "It's just that, tomorrow, at the club we're going to, well, we're going to have to kiss. There's no way to get away without kissing; it would make Heidi very suspicious. So, I was just thinking that maybe we should practice, so we don't look stupid tomorrow."

"You- you want to practice kissing?"

"Tim, it's obvious to any idiot if it's your first kiss or not."

"How?"

"You can tell it's not a first kiss because you can tell if they're comfortable with it or not, if they no what to do."

"So…" Tim didn't have time to finish before Calleigh had scooted closer to him and silenced him by putting a finger to his lips.

"Just kiss me." She whispered.

Tim obliged, dipping his head and pressing his lips against hers. After a few seconds he deepened the kiss by running his tongue over her lips until she parted them, quickly reciprocating the gesture. Just as it started to get heated, Calleigh pulled away. They both sat there panting, their lips too close for comfort, yet not close enough, neither willing to admit they wanted more.

They left the bar quietly and caught a taxi. The whole way back to the hotel they remained silent. It was a comfortable silence, the physical bond between their hands said all they couldn't- or wouldn't.

When they got to the hotel they quickly changed and slipped into bed. Before Tim could reach over and switch off the lamp, Calleigh rolled over toward him and snuggled up to his chest. He was a bit shocked, but wrapped his arms around her nonetheless, before his face broke out into a stupid grin. "Uh, Cal, just, I mean, just so you know, just FYI, I can, uh, I can see down your shirt." He stuttered, trying hard not to ogle at her left breast, which was exposed to his eager eyes.

Calleigh stiffened for a few seconds while she processed this, then relaxed. "Well, I guess you should enjoy it while it lasts then, shouldn't you?" She said, not moving to fix it.

Rim was speechless, but thanked god for small miracles. He watched Calleigh until he felt her regular breathing, indicating she was sleeping, and thought it would be another small miracle if god allowed him to fall asleep that night, given the current distraction.