Catherine had asked Warrick if he could stay a little longer at the lab than she. She wanted to be earlier in her house so she could clean up the mess she made before she left for work. He said he would leave the lab half an hour after she did. She agreed with that.
But he didn't stick to their agreement. He was at her apartment in 20 minutes.
"Someone couldn't wait." Catherine says, when she opens the door.
"I just missed you. " He says.
She lets him in and shuts the door behind him.
"Do you wanna see my house?" She asks.
He looks around. "Nice." He teases.
She rolls her eyes and laughs. "I mean, shall I show you round?"
"Maybe some other time." He looks at her. "Come here." He says and pulls her to him.
When she stands close he strikes her cheek. It's just like that time in his car, when he drove her home. But this time she is awake and he is allowed to do it.
She leans in and kisses him mildly. They both longed for it and now it was there, their first, real kiss and it takes like what seems an eternity. She breaks the kiss gently, and looks up to see how he experienced it, and she sees his eyes full of desire. That pleases her and she smiles. She kisses him again, passionately. Then she suddenly steps back, with the intention that he would long for her, just to tease him. Like nothing happened, she walks to her kitchen.
"Can I get you something to drink?" She asks.
He's obviously confused, and she enjoys it.
"No thanks." He comes after her. When she's making tea for herself, he suddenly stands behind her. She feels him wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his head upon her shoulder.
There's a shiver going down her spine, and she straightens her back, not wanting him to stop.
"On second thought, tea would be nice." He says.
She frowns, "you drink tea?"
"Occasionally, yes."
"Well well well, learn something new about you everyday, don't I?" She says.
Still standing behind her, he pushes her hair aside and kisses her neck soft and gently. She shivers and closes her eyes. Then he stops and she turns around. Looks him right in the eye before she closes hers again, while kissing him.
With the tea left on the kitchen sink, completely forgotten, they head over to her bedroom, meanwhile busy kissing and taking each others clothes off. He lifts her and puts her gently on top of her bed. While pushing her hair out of her face, he realizes how lucky he is.
…
When Warrick wakes up, he doesn't immediately know where he is. Then he remembers he's at Catherine's house, but when he looks next to him, there's no Catherine. He looks at her alarm clock, it's kinda late. Where could she be in the middle of the night?
He stands up and goes look for her. He finds her in the living room. The whole room is dark. Catherine's sitting on the couch, staring out of the window. He walks over to her and sits next to her on the couch.
"Baby, what's the matter?"
She doesn't respond. He grabs her hand. "Cath?"
When she turns her head to look at him, he sees she is crying. He wipes away her tears with his thumb and then holds her head in both hands. "Baby, talk to me."
She breaks down in tears and buries her face in his chest. He holds her. She cries and cries like she never cried before. They just sit there, and when the minutes pass by, he feels more and more sorry for her.
After a while she stops crying little by little.
"You wanna tell me what's wrong?" He feels desperate and hurt, because the woman he loves is in so much pain on the inside. Eventually she starts talking.
"Remember the day after we went out with Nick, and I didn't come to work?" She sobs.
"Yeah…" He encourages her.
"Well, I heard that day that my mother was seriously ill. She called me just when I was about to leave and I was devastated. I wanted to be with her that day."
"I totally understand that. But I asked Grissom that day and I got the impression that he didn't know about it. Why didn't you tell the truth to him? I'm sure he would understand it too."
She shrugs, "I don't know. I guess I didn't want him to see me as a vulnerable person. I don't want to look weak."
"And what happened the other day with that evidence you lost and stuff, did that have something to do with it as well?"
She sighs and closes her eyes, but then she nods. "I think so."
"Sweety, I'm so sorry." He says, and he means it.
"I just couldn't sleep tonight. I kept thinking about her." She sighs again.
"I understand, I really do." He says.
They sit for a little longer, he is still holding her. After a while he asks: "Are you coming to bed?"
She nods.
He guides her to the bedroom and soon they're lying both warm under the sheets. She has her back to him so he moves over and lies close behind her, her back against his chest. He folds his arms around her, and then she slowly rests her head on his arm.
"I love you." He whispers in her ear.
…
When Catherine wakes up, the first she thinks about is Warrick. He was so sweet that night. She turns her head to see if he's still asleep. She finds him lying on one side, his head rests on his hand, elbow on his pillow. He is looking at her.
She clears her throat. "Hey."
"Good morning Sleeping Beauty."
"How long are you awake?" She asks.
"Dunno." He says.
"And for how long have you been staring at me?"
He answers that by leaning in and giving her a long and intense kiss.
She smiles. "Well, that's really something."
"How about breakfast?" He suggests.
"Yeah, I'm hungry." She says, hoping that he gets the hint.
"I'll make you some eggs. How'd you like 'em?"
"Fried with bacon, if it's not too much trouble." She says, looking hopefully.
"It's never too much trouble if you use those puppy dog eyes!" He says, kissing her. "What if you hit the shower, then I'll make you everything you want."
"In that case, how about orange jus?"
"Sure." He nods. "Do I need to start writing it down?" He teases.
She smiles.
"Anything else?" He asks.
"Yeah… Warrick?" She makes sure she has his full attention, and that he looks at her.
"I love you too!" She says then, giving him a quick kiss. Then she walks over to the bathroom.
…
TBC