Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. I own Reggie, Betty Rogers, Fred the bear, Nathan, Oliver, O'Malley, Jacob Peterson, Betty Peterson, Jessica, Louis, James, Tim, Eric, Mark Evans, Tyler Stevens, Paul Waters, Allison Enders and Elizabeth Enders.
Welcome to the Family
Chapter 4
"So did you find anything promising?" Sara asked later, padding into the living room with a bucket of ice cream and two spoons, where Reggie was curled up on the couch beside the armrest.
The nightshift had been celebrating the capture of the girls' killer-a man who's lived across the street and made advances towards them and had been refused- and their chance to go home. Ecklie had put swing shift on and allowed night shift the rest of the night off because the case was "long and emotionally harrowing."
The nightshift had hung out in the break room and pigged out on the pizzas and cookies Reggie had brought. Reggie had found herself eagerly accepted into the group and she found herself liking them all immensely-Greg especially.
Now the two were back at Sara's, dressed in p.j's and just hanging out. Reggie had decided she was going to stay in Las Vegas for a week-to find a store and a house- and then return to Boston to bring back all the rest of her stuff that was in storage or her brother's basement.
"I found this nice place for the store on the Strip," Reggie replied as Sara sat beside her, accepting the proffered spoon, "But I'm not sure if I want to work on the Strip or not-it's so…"
"Dirty?" Sara suggested, grinning slightly at her sister's nod. She shrugged, "Honey, everywhere in Vegas is dirty."
Reggie laughed, "Then I guess I'll snap this one up then?"
"I think you should," Sara shrugged, "You said you liked it. And the Strip has everyone from hookers to millionaires passing along it everyday. It would be a good place for a business."
"Yeah…I'll make an offer tomorrow."
"What about a house?"
"I've got a meeting with a Real Estate agent tomorrow," Reggie answered through a mouthful of double chocolate fudge, "I just kind of drove around today and checked things out."
"Cool. Do you need the Denali again tomorrow then?" Sara asked, adding, "I'll be asleep all day so it's yours if you want it."
"And I'm sure Nick would give you a ride if you needed it," Reggie teased, her eyes dancing merrily.
"Shut up you!" Sara blushed, flinging a bit of ice cream at her sister, before replying, "Well you seemed pretty cozy with Greg for knowing him one day."
Reggie giggled, blushing slightly as she wiped off the ice cream, "He's actually taking me out tomorrow."
"Really?" Sara asked, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at her.
"Shut up you!" Reggie laughed, throwing a couch cushion at the older woman.
"Hey!" Sara protested, "You're making a mess in my living room!"
Reggie laughed, rolling her eyes at her sister and the two fell into easy conversation. Twenty minutes later, however, they were too tired to stay awake anymore.
"'Night Sar," Reggie yawned, already snuggled under her covers.
Sara laughed, shaking her head affectionately as she responded, "'Night Reggie."
"Love ya big sis," Reggie mumbled, already falling asleep/
Sara stopped in the doorway, mouth falling open as she turned back towards her sister, her eyes filling with tears. She wiped them away quickly as she heard the sound of her sister's even breathing as she slept.
Quietly, she whispered, "I love you too, little sister."
XoXoXoXo
The next day, while Reggie went house hunting with her RE agent, Sara slept. Until someone knocked on her door.
Sara moaned unhappily, rolling herself out of bed. Yawning, she brushed the hair out of her face, padding barefoot to the door dressed in red-plaid p.j pants and a white spaghetti strap.
"Whatyawant?" she demanded, swinging the door open without even checking the peephole only to be faced with a grinning Nick Stokes.
"You," Nick answered promptly, his grin widening at her rumpled appearance.
"Nick! What are you doing here?" Sara asked with a blush, trying to surreptitiously tidy her hair.
"Don't," Nick protested, grabbing hold of her wrists, the action bringing them closer together, "You look cute."
"You're just saying that," Sara teased, half-serious.
"Nah. You look gorgeous no matter what, babe," Nick assured her with a boyish grin.
Sara smiled softly at him, "I'd kiss you for that comment but I've got morning breath."
"It's the afternoon," Nick pointed out, before promptly pulling her closer to meet his lips with hers.
Sara moaned, arching her body into his. Nick answered with his own moan, letting go of her wrists to wrap his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against him. Sara's arms went around Nick's waist, her hands creeping up the back of his shirt while her nails scraped lightly against his back.
Nick moaned again, pulling his head back to breathlessly inform her, "We're standing in the middle of your apartment hallway."
Then come inside," Sara murmured huskily, "Then you can ravish me in private."
XoXoXoXo
Reggie stepped out of the Denali, staring wide-eyed at the house before her. Unused to the Vegas heat, she was again dressed in shorts and a tank top, this time jean cut-offs and a blood red spaghetti strap. Her hair was pulled up off her sweaty neck and face in a messy bun.
Her meeting with the Real Estate agent had been for 12, so she was up by 9. After getting dressed, she'd left a note for Sara and headed out. After a quick stop at a Tim Horten's, she'd then gone on to the owners of the store she wanted. They'd accepted her offer on the spot.
"It's gorgeous!" Reggie breathed, staring adoringly at the house.
It was a one-story bungalow house with a basement. It was white with a blue trim and blue cement porch with a matching awning and the old-style curvy black railings. There was a small garden already growing in front of the porch. A two-car garage was attached.
"Do you want to see the inside?" the realtor, Bonnie Rogers asked with a laughing grin.
"Oh yes!" Reggie exclaimed impatiently, dashing up the stairs and waiting impatiently for the other woman to unlock the door before dashing inside.
The front door opened into a hallway that led into four separate rooms. Immediately to the right was a medium-sized kitchen done in an attractive dark wood. The room directly across from the kitchen was slightly bigger. The two walls that were kitty-corner across from the doorway contained large windows. The other two rooms further down the hall were bedrooms, both with large closets and arched windows.
The basement had been split into three different rooms. One was a small bedroom with a small closet and a ground floor window. Another was a room double the length of a normal one with a large closet and built-in bathroom. The third was the connecting room that had been used as a rec room in the past. Also in the basement was a small cold storage.
The small hallway from the kitchen that led past the bedrooms ended in patio doors. There was a large, gorgeous patio deck connected to the house with a blue canopy that stretched across it. The backyard was a gorgeous green, with two large trees providing shade.
"Oh! It's beautiful!" Reggie breathed.
"I know it's bigger than you asked for-"
"I want it!" Reggie cut her off, "I love this place!"
The realtor grinned in delight, "Great! You'll just have to sign the papers, pay for it and viola! it's yours!"
"Score!" Reggie yelled in excitement as she hopped back into Sara's truck.
"I'll meet you back at the agency!" Bonnie waved as she got into her own, cream-coloured Miata and speeding off.
Reggie started the car, buckled her seatbelt and then couldn't contain herself anymore, "Yes! Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! Oh yeah! Who's your mama?" she yelled in delight, dancing around in her seat.
Then, with a large grin still plastered on her face, she pulled out of the driveway.
She was buying a house!
XoXoXoXo
Sara really had to pee. Really!
Carefully, she disentangled herself from Nick's slumbering arms, rolling quietly out of bed. Absently, she picked up Nick's shirt, pulling it over her head as she padded out into the hallway in her bare feet. A satisfied grin spread across her face as her nose was filled with the smell of Nick's subtle, spicy aftershave.
Coming out of the bathroom a few minutes later, she headed back towards the bedroom with thoughts of curling up with Nick. However, the ringing of her home phone had her changing her direction to the living room, pulling a disgruntled face.
"What?" she asked, dropping onto the couch with the receiver pressed to her ear.
"Er-hello Sara." Greg said tentatively, unsure how to face her anger when he wasn't even sure what he'd done-'though he didn't know how to face her anger when he did know what he'd done!
"Hi Greg. Can I help you with something?" Sara asked, trying to keep herself polite instead of telling him to piss off like she really wanted to.
"Er-is Reggie there?"
"No. She's out looking for a place." Sara said shortly, her gaze travelling down to the hall where she could hear Nick moving about.
"Oh." He paused, hearing some background noise and asking suggestively, "Am I interrupting something Sara?"
"Greg, I'm going to kill you. Slowly." Sara answered, going to hang up the phone, but Greg, sensing her intentions, yelled for her stop. "What Greg?" she snapped, "I've got better things to do."
"Sorry, sex fiend." He teased, the smile in his voice.
"Bye Greg."
"No, wait!" he yelled hastily, "I'm sorry. I wanted to ask you for a favour."
"Make it quick Sanders."
"Can you make sure Reggie's dressed appropriately for a carnival but not tell her that's where I'm taking her?" he asked all in one breath.
"Carnival, Greg?" Sara asked skeptically.
"Do you think she'll like it?" Greg asked anxiously, his uncertainty endearing even to Sara.
Sara laughed, shaking her head slightly as she answered, "Yea, Greg. Reg is just the kind of girl who's love a carnival for a first date."
"Thanks, Sar," he grinned, before pausing, becoming suddenly serious as he asked, "Hey Sar? Is it cool, me dating your sister?"
"Reggie's a big girl, Greg. And you make her happy," Sara said, pausing and then adding threateningly, "But if you hurt my baby sister, Sanders, you won't live to regret-and I'll hide you body."
"Yes ma'am" he answered obediently, before saucily adding, "I'll let you get back to your Texas cowboy now, sex kitten."
"Greg!" Sara half-laughed, half-yelled in protest, but Greg had already hung up the phone.
Sara shook her head, replacing the phone on the receiver as she stood up from the couch. Padding down the hallway, she frowned, hearing Nick's voice from the bedroom.
"Nicky?" she called curiously, "Who're you talking to?"
There was no answer, just the continued sounds of Nick's muffled voice. Sara picked up the pace, her brow furrowing in concern at the lack of answer. Opening the door, she frowned softly at the sight that greeted her.
Nick was flailing in the bed, the sheets tangling around his naked form. His eyes were tightly clenched shut, but tears were beginning to seep out from underneath the lids. He was still asleep.
"Nick. Nicky, wake up!" Sara called, stepping further into the room.
"No, no, please, let me out! I don't wanna die, please!" Nick begged under his breath, not hearing Sara's calling.
"Oh," Sara whispered, tears filling her eyes as she realized that Nick was reliving the time he'd spent buried alive. Moving swiftly, she grabbed onto Nick's muscular shoulder, shaking firmly as she begged, "Wake up, Nicky, please! Wake up, Nick, it's just a dream!"
Nick's eyes snapped open and he shot up. His breathing was heavy and his wide eyes darted anxiously about the room before settling on Sara. Immediately, she opened her arms to him and he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her into his lap.
"It's alright, Nick, it was only a dream," Sara murmured softly, stroking his hair lightly as he buried his head into her shoulder, "It's over now, baby, it's over."
Nick's arms wrapped around her waist, crushing his face against her neck as sobs wracked his body. One of Sara's arms wrapped around his shoulder, the other stroking his hair as she murmured nonsensically into his ear.
Finally, his breathing slowed, the tears stopping. Nick pulled away, his face red as he wiped the tears from his eyes. Embarrassed, he turned his face away from Sara, unable to pull away any further since Sara's weight in his lap prevented it.
"Hey now," Sara protested softly, one hand cupping the side of his face, "Don't turn away from me."
Nick's eyes were downcast and he didn't answer. Sara sighed, her hand running from the side of Nick's face to his chin, lifting his head slightly. When Nick's eyes reluctantly met hers. Sara pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.
"It's okay to have nightmares, Nicky, and it's okay to cry," Sara murmured softly.
Nick nodded softly, lifting a hand to brush her tangled hair behind her ear. "Thank you Sara."
Sara smiled softly, "Anytime. You want to talk about it?"
Nick sighed, lifting Sara gently from his lap, causing her to think for a second that maybe she'd gone too far. However, Nick just lay back down, pulling her with him so she was pressed to his side.
Sara sighed, laying her head down on his bare chest as she stretched the full length of the bed, entangling her slightly pale legs with his darkly tanned ones. Nick wrapped one arm around her shoulders, absently running his fingers through her hair while he rested his head on hers, his other arm resting across her abdomen with his hand on Sara's bare hip where the shirt had ridden up.
"I-I was in the c-coffin," he began hesitantly, "Th-The ants w-were all over m-me. Th-The coffin was cr-cracking a-and then the walls c-caved in." he took a deep. Steadying breath and Sara took the hand from her hip to entwine it with her own, "A-And then I w-was back in my a-apartment, w-with N-Nigel Crane g-gun in my f-face. B-but this time th-they di-didn't get to me I-in t-time."
"Oh Nicky," Sara murmured softly, leaning up on one elbow and extracting the hand from his to gently stroke his face, "I didn't know that you still had nightmares or that they were so bad."
Nick sighed, closing his eyes to better enjoy the feeling of her light touch on his face, "No one knows. And I don't have them all the time, only three or four times a week."
"Only?"
"It's better than the 3 or 4 times a day that I used to have," Nick returned grimly.
"Oh, Nicky," she sighed again, before softly suggesting, "Maybe you should see a therapist, Nick."
"No," Nick refused, frowning slightly as he opened his eyes, "I don't need a shrink."
Sara sighed, sitting up in a cross-legged position beside Nick's hip and picking his hand back up, "Nicky, maybe you should. Sometimes talking can make you feel better about it."
"Sara-"
"It doesn't mean you're crazy, Nick," Sara said softly, tracing circles on his palm with the nail of her index finger, "It just means that you're not perfect-that you need help, just like everyone else does after they go through something like that."
Nick's face remained uncertain, and, softly, Sara whispered, "Please, Nicky, you need help. If you don't sleep, something could happen one day-you could fall asleep at the wheel or your reactions could be slower near a perp. You don't have to go to a therapist, Nicky, but, please, talk to someone? Please?"
Nick sighed, running his free hand wearily over his face. Sara clutched Nick's hand with both of hers, her honey-brown eyes pleading with his baby blues. Nick sighed again, pulling on her hand to sprawl her across his chest.
"I'll do it. For you." Nick murmured, kissing her softly.
Sara smiled, whispering, "Thank you Nick."
"I'll do anything for you Sara," Nick said softly, nervously confiding, "I love you Sara Sidle."
Sara's eyes brimmed with tears and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing herself more fully against him as she hoarsely whispered in his ear, "I love you too, Nicholas Stokes, I love you too."
XoXoXoXo
A/N You better love me-I'm doing this even tho I'm sick so you must! Lolz anyway, g2g thanks everyone for the reviews and plz keep them coming! I'm going to post this and then go and sleep on my couch!
My love
Red