A week passes by and everything between them is going great. They are going out a lot, have sleepovers and this all doesn't infect their work. Catherine is proud of herself that she's mature enough to have this kind of thing. Although she is proud, she thinks it's hard as well. They're still on the same team, but they don't really work together anymore. It feels like she has lost her best buddy in this lab.

On the other hand she has found a feeling that makes the other problem look so small, almost not worth mentioning. This new emotion is so intense, so inspiring, so the opposite of loneliness. It's like she has never felt it before. Not like this.

She had loved Eddie, her ex-husband. She has a child from him. But after all this time, it's like she realizes she always knew that it couldn't work out between them. She doesn't know why, but it had never felt perfect with him. But if she regrets having Lindsey? No. It's the best thing that ever happened to her. She wouldn't miss the experience of being a mother for the world. Plus, she loves her daughter more than anything.

The best thing that ever happened to her, that's for sure, bur this thing she's in with Warrick is a close second.

Yes, she has had a few men in her life. One was for a couple of weeks, they were dating. He was a lot younger than her and made her forget about her own age. But then she caught him with a younger girl. She has never felt so old as that night when she walked in on them.

Then there was this guy she met in a bar. There was something exciting about him. Something that made her feel wild. But boy, was that a mistake to make out with him at her car. When he turned up to be a suspect in her case, she was deeply in trouble. Grissom was pissed at her. She got that. But, actually, he had all the right to be. He was probably really disappointed in her. It's actually not like her, to just kiss a stranger she met the same night.

She remembers in the beginning, when she just came to the lab, she had a little crush on Grissom.

Yeah, Gil Grissom. He was there for her. She'd never understood the way he thought or what he felt, but all that mattered back then was that he cared for her. This crush disappeared very quickly when Warrick came into the picture. She realized she couldn't have Grissom and she wasn't all that upset about it. It seemed like Warrick had so much more to offer. But then these feelings didn't seem mutual, and when time passed, she had needs. She was looking for love. A man who could satisfy this feeling and she maybe could have a family with.

And there was Eddie. Except for Lindsey, it was one big mistake. He took her money and her pride and, though she'd never admit in, he wasn't that good of a father.
After all of those 'relationships' she's been in, the feelings for Warrick have returned and are stronger than ever before. She's for the first time in her life one-hundred percent convinced about this, and it might last…

…

Catherine and Warrick are lying in his bed. He's stroking her hair. She has her hand on his chest and draws little circles and harts.

"I could lie like this forever." She says.

He moans. "Me too."

"Then why wouldn't we?" She says mysterious.

"Don't you have to bring Lindsey to school?" He asks.

On a chair next to the bed are her pager, her gun and her cell-phone. They went straight to Warrick's house after shift that night. She managed to put the three important things on the chair before he pulled her on the bed and started to take her clothes off. She reaches for her cell and dials her home-number.

"What are you doing?" Warrick asks.

But Catherine places a finger on her lips. "Hello?" Catherine hears, when someone picks up.

"Hey Lindsey, honey. It's mom. Can I talk to Amber for a minute?"

Warrick moves over to Catherine and kisses her in her neck. Catherine tries to push him away, but she only has one hand available.

"Warrick, stop it!" She whispers in a serious tone. Warrick keeps going on with what he was doing.

"Hey Amber. How did last night go?" Catherine says in the phone. "Ahuh, yeah sure. Hey, listen; I need to cover for someone from days. You think you can bring Lindsey to school?"

On that moment, Warrick puts his tongue out of his mouth and licks a spot on her neck.

Catherine giggles. "What? No, sorry Amber, just read something funny. Okay then. Thanks, and I'll see you tonight." She hangs up and then looks at Warrick. She tries to look mad. "Jerk! What would she think?" She says.

"Why do you care what she thinks? It's your babysitter." He says.

"Don't you have any manners?" She says.

He kisses her in her neck on the same spot. "I did find your weak spot."

She can't help it and laughs. "I hate you." She says.

"No…" he kisses her in her neck again. "…you adore me…" he kisses her on her forehead. "…think I'm sweet…" now on her lips "…actually, you just love me."

She pulls him on top of her. "No, I really hate you."

They kiss. She has her hands on his back and runs them very slowly downwards. Just at that moment she hears her cell-phone ringing. She doesn't stop.

"Don't you have to answer that?" Warrick says.

She shakes her head no.

"Hey, maybe you really do need to cover for someone." He says.

She shrugs. Then she sees out of the corner of her eye that Warrick's hand is reaching for her cell-phone, which has fallen on the ground, but his lips remain on hers. He holds her cell-phone and acts like he's about to answer it. She pushes him off of her and tries to get the phone, but he doesn't let her. "Warrick!" She rolls over and climbs on him. She puts his hands above his head and holds them there.

"Oh, you're so strong." He teases.

"Give me that." She grabs her cell-phone. "Willows." She listens to what someone's saying. "What? You're sure?" She looks at Warrick, frightened. "I'll be right there." She hangs up and gets dressed.
The sudden rush worries Warrick. "What's wrong Cath?"

"It's my mother…"Is all she can say.

"You want me to go with you?" He asks.

"No. You're sweet, you know that?" She gives him a single kiss. "But it was my sister who called. My mother's still alive, but we need to say goodbye to her. I've got to pick up Lindsey."

"Will you call me?" He asks.

"I'll see… If not, I'll talk to you at work."

She leaves, leaving Warrick behind with a helpless feeling.

…

Warrick got a phone-call from Catherine that day. She told him that her mother died that afternoon. She didn't say much about it. Just that her sister with her husband, and Lindsey and she sat there, so her mother wouldn't die alone.

When Warrick's sitting in the AV lab that night he feels a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, how's your case doing?" Catherine says.

"What are you doing here?" Warrick asks.

"What do you mean? I work here" She says, not-understanding.

"You should be home, with Lindsey."

"I can work." She says, not really convincing.

He looks at her, concerned.

"Really, I'm okay." She says.

"Cath, your mother just died. I don't believe that you're okay, or that you just can go to work like nothing happened."

"I'm okay enough to do my job, I assure you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah! Do you know where I can find Nick?" She says, to change the subject and to get out of there.

"He took off to DNA. Mia had something interesting." He says.

She walks out of the AV lab. Warrick watches her leave, feeling uncertain whether she's really okay, or that she's just pretending to be.

…

Later that night, Warrick passes Grissom's office. Much to his surprise, the office isn't empty. He knocks and then opens the door.

"What are you doing here?" Warrick asks.

"I work here." Grissom responds.

Warrick sighs. It seems like that question exhorts this answer. "I mean, you work days. What are you doing here now?"

"Work never stops for me, Warrick." Grissom says wise.

"Right. Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure, sit down." Grissom says, with a gesture to the chair opposite his desk.

"Did you hear about Catherine's mother?" Warrick asks when he sits down.

"Yes, Catherine called to tell me about it."

"Well, I was wondering if you can cover her shift when the moment's there she can't take it anymore." Warrick says.

"You think that moment will come?"

"I think she needs to go home, to be with her daughter. But she's so stubborn, she doesn't admit she's better of at home."

"You want me to go talk to her?" Grissom suggests.

"You think that'll help?" Warrick says.

"I can always try."

"Thanks Gris." Warrick stands up.

"Sure thing. And Warrick?"

Warrick turns around, his eyebrows raised.

"Congratulations. I heard about it from Ecklie."

"You heard, huh? So, what do you think?"

"Just treat her well." And with that, Grissom closes the door behind Warrick.

…

Gil Grissom's on his way to Trace. David Hodges paged him five minutes ago. Maybe he has some information about the cotton fiber Grissom found on the sole of his victim's shoe.

Personally, Grissom wants to let Hodges wait for a few more minutes. He never really liked the guy. Always kissing asses of his superiors to be liked, and always wanting to impress someone so bad that it's more irritating than impressing.

But, he does his work properly and efficient and although he's not such a sociable person, Grissom can't blame him for that, because it's a lack Grissom has to deal with himself.

When he walks by a room on his left he sees Catherine processing evidence. Maybe this is a good moment to talk to her.

"Hey Cath."

She looks up. "Gil!"

"So, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine, thanks." She says.

"You're sure about that?" He says in disbelief.

She nods.

He sits down. "You know, I can cover your shift if you want. You look awful. You really should go home."

"Gil, I'm working."

"As I said, I can cover." He says.

"I'm okay..."

"You don't look like you're okay."

"…and I have no idea what to do at home."

"Catherine, you just need some rest. And time with your daughter. You two need a lot to process."

She says nothing.

"Don't you miss her, your mother?" Grissom asks.

Catherine turns her back to him, not wanting him to see her cry.

But he feels it. "Cath?"

She looks at him. "I miss her a lot." She says, wiping away her tears. "But, I was never really close to her. I only saw her when she babysat Lindsey sometimes. That's the only reason…" Grissom just lets her talk. "I wish I'd spend more time with her. But, when I was young, she was a working mother. As am I. Oh God, I hope I will not be the same mother for Lindsey as my mother was for me. I don't want to waste the time with my daughter…" Her voice cracks, the tears are falling again.

Grissom just sits there. He's not a very physical man. He comforts someone with words, and giving the opportunity to talk about it.

Catherine dries her cheeks. "I cry so much lately. It's so…" She thinks about it.

"Wet?" Grissom tries to cheer her up.

"…weak." She says eventually.

"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter." He says.

"Maybe I should go home."

"Do that. That would please Warrick as well."

"You talked to him about me?" She asks curious.

"He came to me, yes." He says.

"What did he say?"

"He told me you were too stubborn to admit that you really need to go home. He tried to talk you into it, but it didn't work, so I offered to give it a try." He explains.

"Worked like a charm, didn't it?" She says with a smirk.

"Of course." He stands up and gives her a compassionate look. "Go home."

…

TBC