A/N: Okay, so I changed two things: 1) Nick's mom's name is now Jillian. 2) She's a district attorney. Someone told me that this was what the producers have told us. I wasn't originally going to correct it, but for some reason, being wrong just got to me. Thanks to Pau for the tips. You've saved me from being a fool forever. Let's continue with the story, shall we?
Headliner
Chapter 7
Sara sat the phone down for the tenth time in a row. She was seriously contemplating whether or not to call Lexi. Nick had given her his parents' phone number, but she hesitated to use it. She was probably not very high on the Stokes Family Love List right about now. Still, she was dying to know how Lexi was doing.
She got up and resolved to not touch a phone for the next hour. She doubted she'd make it. Good thing I'm not a gambler. Greg was lounging in the break room with his feet on the table when Sara entered, typing feverishly on a lap top.
"Greg, get off that computer. What would Grissom say if he knew you were doing this?"
"Fine, if you want me to stop talking to your daughter because Grissom would care, I'll do it."
"You're talking to Lexi?"
"In the flesh—well, over the net."
"Ask her how she's doing."
"I already did."
"And?"
"She says everything's fine. There was a bit of excitement yesterday, but Nick took care of it."
"What happened?"
"Apparently every member of the Stokes family took the liberty of giving her clothing emblazoned with 'Stokes' on the back. Nick, who thought this was blatantly disrespecting you, went out and bought her a shirt and had it say 'Sidle' on the back. She says she's worn it all day and it's driving them all silently crazy." He laughed and glanced back at the screen. Suddenly he shut the laptop.
"Did she say anything else?"
"Nope. Well, she misses you," Greg said, sucking in his breath.
"Alright, well we've got to get to work."
"I'm right behind you." She walked out of the room and Greg opened the computer back up. The truth was, she had written something more, however, it was written for Greg's eyes only.
"Nick said that I'm a Sidle and they're just going to have to deal with it. I decided, but I didn't tell him, that there's only one way I'm going to change my last name to Stokes…if my parents get married."
Greg powered down the lap top. Sara would be curious if he took too long. He grabbed a cup of coffee and headed out with a devilish grin on his face.
Nick stretched his arms out wide. He stared at the clock. It was ten thirty. He smiled as he realized that this was the first full night's sleep he had gotten where he was in the same house as Lexi. He knew, of course, that it was because she didn't feel comfortable blasting her tunes in his parents' house. He slipped on a t-shirt and made his way down the stairs to the kitchen. He was greeted by the sight of his sisters and mother. "Hey there, little sisters."
"Nicky! It's so good to have you home. I hear you've brought a visitor."
"What are you talking about, Hailey? You live in South Dakota. And yes, I brought my daughter."
"I hear she's the spitting image of you."
"Nah, she looks more like her mother." He took a swig of orange juice his mother had poured.
"Are you going to marry her mama?"
"No, Justine, I'm not. I'm not going to get married just because sixteen years ago I got someone pregnant. Sara's done fine without me. And it's a good thing Lexi is out with Katie and Ace, because you probably would've given her a coronary just then."
"Relax, Nicky; she's sixteen. She'd be fine. If you want my opinion on the subject."
"I love you mother, but I really don't want your opinion on the subject. It's between me, Sara, and Lexi, not me, Sara, Lexi, and the entire Stokes family. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to call Ace and see how my daughter is doing. Keyword is 'my', by the way." He tipped his glass of orange juice towards them and exited.
"What do you want? I'm kind of busy."
"Hey, that's no way to talk to your Uncle Nick, Miss Ace."
"Oops. Sorry. I thought it was Mom. What's up?"
He cut right to the chase. "How's Lexi doing?"
"Pretty good. We're riding horses now. She was confused at first when I introduced myself as Ace. She couldn't remember an Ace in the book. Once I explained that I was Linley and Ace was a nickname, we got along fine."
"Is she good at riding?"
"She's okay. Katie's right next to her. Do you want me to go get her?"
"No, Ace, don't do that. Don't tell her I called either. Be here in time for lunch."
"You got it."
He hung up and smiled. He was glad Lexi had some kids her age to hang with. The only downside was that it meant he had more time to spend with his disapproving relatives. He didn't want to explain that he wasn't marrying Sara and that Lexi was Lexi Sidle anymore.
The girls returned just after noon. Lexi was wearing Levi jeans, a Las Vegas Crime Lab shirt, and cowboy boots that looked two sizes too small. He wrapped his arm around her neck. "You know what kiddo? After we go eat, I'm taking you shopping. We've got to get you boots that fit." She grinned at him. He was still convinced her smile could light up a room.
Sara clenched her jaw. She still hated the silence. The fact that her daughter was so far away without her made her crazy. It wasn't that she didn't trust Nick, he just wasn't her. She clicked on the computer. The screen lit up with a message: she had one new e-mail. It was from Nick. She opened the folder.
"Hey Sara, just some pictures of Lexi in Texas. I took her shopping too. Those Crime Lab shirts just weren't good riding clothes. See you in a week. –Nick"
Sara smiled when she saw her daughter glowing on the screen. She was in a variety of poses: on a horse, in a tree, against a wall. Sara saw one photo with Lexi in the middle of two brunette girls who she guessed were Nick's nieces. Lexi certainly looked like she was fitting in just fine. That scared Sara to death.
She placed the piece of clear tape against the locker. Catherine came up behind her. "It's nice to see you decorating. Isn't it so much easier to breathe now that you're not keeping this big secret?"
Sara sighed and put up another photo. "This huge wall has fallen down. It feels good. Of course there are other hurdles to get over, now." She sat on the bench. "It didn't used to be hard. When we lived in California everything was fine. Lexi didn't come to work with me because I didn't want to expose her to all of this, but they knew who she was. She drew pictures for them every now and then. We came to Vegas and that all changed. I was scared to my toes that someone would find out about her. Then I'd have to explain everything. I wasn't ready for that."
"From the look of those pictures," Catherine said pointing to a snapshot of Alexis in front of the courthouse, "she seems fine."
Lexi stood on the escalator as it rolled downward. Her eyes pierced the crowd as she searched for a familiar face. Over by baggage claim was a woman with brown hair. Lexi smiled. The escalator reached the floor and she raced through the groupings of people. She was in her mother's arms in a second.
Sara hugged her tighter than she thought possible. She kissed the top of her head. "I missed you. Did you have a good time?"
"Yeah. I think I got everyone's name down by the time we left. There are so many of them!"
"Where's Nick?"
Sara looked up and saw him a few feet away. She waved him over.
"I didn't want to intrude."
"Nonsense," Sara said, "Let's go, kiddo. Hey, Nick, you want to come over for a little while?"
Lexi grabbed her mother by the hand and started pulling her towards the exit. She needed to get home fast and get on the computer. She just had to talk to Greg.
A/N2: As always, there will be more. I've been slacking on my other story by writing this one, but I just can't help it; this one is just so dang good. Let me know what you thought.
