Chapter 18

Warrick carried Jessica out of the office building and into the bright sunlight. Gemma was there, handing him his sunglasses as he squinted at the brightness. Focusing, he frowned, thinking he was imagining the sight before him. Nick leaned against Gemma's minivan. Lucy stood beside him. "Nicky? What are you doing here? You're supposed to be on your honeymoon."

"You think we wouldn't be here? Our niece was just under the doctor's butcher knife. We couldn't be anywhere but at your side." Nick gave him his big, dopey Texas smile.

It was then that Warrick noticed that the surrounding area was filled with CSI's, lab techs, a handful of detectives and a couple of coroner's. Warrick looked around at the gathering of people, speechless over the show of support.

"Why is everyone here?" Warrick questioned, his voice raspy with emotion.

"Cuz we were kicked out of the doctor's waiting room." Greg piped up. "Something about a maximum number of people being exceeded…"

"Well, lets all go to the house." Gemma announced after hugging everyone she could reach. "We promised Jess some ice cream."

"Where's Grissom?" Warrick looked around, shocked that the man wasn't there with everyone else.

"He's at the airport, picking up Sean and his girls." Catherine answered softly, seeing the flash of hurt in Warrick's eyes. "Gil would be here, but Sean's plane was delayed. He wanted to be here."

Warrick nodded, relieved that Cath was the only one that had seen his momentary childishness. Cath was good at keeping secrets.

"I'm guessing you don't have enough ice cream for everyone. I'll stop off and get some." Hodges hugged Gemma before heading off to his car.

"Hey! Wait up Hodges! I'll go with you. You've got terrible taste. You'll give us all food poisoning!" Greg called, chasing after David.

"He better have his cell phone." Nick looked after the two men. "Ten to one, Hodges will kick his butt out halfway there."

"Come on. Let's get my girl home for her ice cream." Warrick shifted his little girl gently. She was lethargic from the sedatives they'd pumped into her. He'd sat in the room with her, holding her tiny hand as the doctor had snipped her. He wondered if she felt the pain as sharply as he had. He didn't like this. His normally energetic and talkative little girl was just slumped against his chest looking around at all the familiar faces.

Nick moved out of the way, opening the van door so Warrick could put her in her seat. Jessica looked over Warrick's shoulder, a smile in her eyes as she looked Nick in the eye. Nick gave her a wink before Warrick's head got in the way.

Warrick sat on the front steps drinking a beer with Sean. Everyone had slowly tapered away after Jessica had gone to bed. Now it was just Sean, his girls and Nick's girls. "You sure you want to stay at a motel? We can make room. The girls are having fun together."

"No, we need to keep our own space. My girls are slobs; I wouldn't like Gemma having to clean up after them. This way is better, we can take a breather from one another if need be, this way." Sean insisted, finishing off his beer.

"I've got tomorrow off. What would you like to do or see?" Warrick questioned. Reaching into the ice chest, he offered to get Sean another beer.

"I was thinking we could spend the day… going over the letters my father left behind. Maybe we can figure some things out." Sean shook his head, not wanting to have to deal with a hangover the next day. "I really like your friends. They are all very friendly and outgoing. Your boss is also your father-in-law?"

"Yeah, Gil is Gemma's dad." Warrick nodded as he finished the last of his beer. "He introduced us……but that's a long story."

"I got time." Sean laughed. "But, we can save that for another time. Tell me about your friends. Nick is your best friend?"

"Yeah, he was the best man at my wedding, and I was his…. Just two days ago." Warrick added. "He's a great guy….like a brother to me."

"And….Sara?"

"I've been working with her for quite a while. We started out hating each other, but…..we've become friends over the years. She's part of my family too. Like the annoying, know-it-all sister that's always trying to out-do you? She's a great CSI."

"She married?" Sean questioned off-handedly.

"Sara?" Warrick smirked. "No. Sara's married to the job. For a while I thought she'd actually have a life, but she's too busy being dedicated to the job."

"That's sad." Sean thought about the pretty brunette with the cute gap in her teeth. He'd known a lot of people with gaps, but none seemed to pull it off as Miss Sara Sidle did. "And what about Catherine? You have a good relationship with her?"

Warrick winced as he thought it over. With a little sigh, he tried to explain. "It's hard to place my relationship with Cath. I admit, I once thought we might have something between us. I was attracted to her. I didn't do anything with it, because she was my boss. Sometimes she's like a sister, and others, she's kinda mother-like."

"Is she married?"

"No, she was married to Lindsey's father for a while. They divorced. A few years ago, he died, so it's kind of like Cath is a widow." Warrick frowned, not wanting to go into the whole story of Eddie Willows.

Sean read his expression, seeing that there was something more to that story, but didn't push. "A woman that beautiful, she's most likely involved with someone, right?"

"No….Cath hasn't been able to find the right guy. She seems to go for guys who turn out to be scum." Warrick growled, clearly irritated with the fact. "Nick and I have been trying to find someone for her. No one seems to fit the bill."

"What exactly is the bill?"

"Someone who can love Lindsey as their own is first. Cath is all about her daughter." Warrick answered, rattling off the list he and Nick had composed. "Someone who respects Cath. Someone who can listen without judging or holding her past against her. Someone strong enough to put up with her temper but weak enough to let her feel powerful. Cath isn't one to play the weak woman card. She's a strong woman, but a woman nonetheless. He's got to be intelligent; Cath is really smart and doesn't suffer the fools."

"That's a mighty long list." Sean chuckled. "No wonder you're having trouble finding her someone."

"Cath is special. She's had a lot of bad relationships, she deserves someone special." Warrick gave a sad little smile. "We're not giving up on the idea."

"Good luck finding someone who fits your bill."

"Oh, he's gotta be good looking too," Warrick added with another smirk. "Cath's picky about looks."

Sean grinned, shaking his head in disbelief. Changing the subject seemed to be a good idea. "You and Nick are the only ones married then?"

"Yeah, this job makes it hard to have a normal life. We see so much crap, and work such crappy hours. There are times; I go days without seeing my family. A big case can take over our lives. I'm looking into switching to days so I can at least see my family on a good day." Warrick explained. "I told Gil that I want to apply for a day position so that I can be with my family. He says I'm a good candidate for the supervisors' position. Cath has been trying for that for years. I won't apply for it. I won't step on Cath's toes, she deserves the position."

"That would be good for you, to work days." Sean agreed.

"Gemma and I have discussed it. If they don't okay the switch to days, I might look elsewhere for a day position. I love working with these guys, but my family is living life without me." Warrick admitted sadly. He truly didn't want to leave his friends but he has a family man now, he had to make choices based on what was best for his family.

"Da!" Lonnie came clumping out of the house. "Are we staying here tonight? Can I get my suitcase?"

Sean glanced at his watch, seeing that it was growing late. "No, we're going to the motel. We'll be back tomorrow." Standing he stretched. "Warrick needs to get some rest; he can give us a ring when he's ready for us tomorrow."

"Are you sure about not wanting to stay here?" Warrick questioned again.

"We'll be fine at the motel, Little Brother." Sean gave him a reassuring grin. "I don't think we're ready for the togetherness part of family. That can come later."