Disclaimer: I don't own these people.

Author's Note: The angst continues! This takes place a couple of weeks after the last installment. I'm a little worried about posting this one, what the reaction will bee. There is still a lot of story, so bear with me and please review - honesty is appreciated, even if it's negative, as long as you keep it constructive!

CHAPTER 4

Lindsay Monroe

I stifle a yawn as I get ready to head home. It's been a long day. After countless finger prints were gathered, scanned and logged, we have three possibles for a rape and attempted murder at a massage parlor after hours - all convicts released within the past year for previous sexual assaults. Now it was just a matter of finding them. Danny would be coming in soon - thank God we were on opposite shifts - and he will likely work on tracking them down.

Speak of the devil. Laughing and joking greets me as Danny and Don Flack come in. "Yeah, so this girl comes up to me, notices I've still got the limp, ya know? Asks where my cane is. I'm like, 'Hey baby, I'll show you my cane.'"

Danny laughs and shakes his head. I can't help but smile. Almost getting killed in that explosion hasn't dampened Flack's penchant for cheesy pickup lines. "Please tell me that didn't work, Flack?"

"Of course it worked!" I raise my eyebrows in disbelief. Flack looks hurt. "Would these eyes lie?"

I'm about to retort when I notice something as Danny turns toward his locker. Sticking out of the back of his jeans waistband is a filmy, hot pink thong. My face must have fallen with my heart, because Flack touched my arm. "Linds? You okay?" Then he turns and looks, groaning at the sight.

"Aw, Jesus, Messer, real classy."

Before I can hear his response, I push out of the locker room. I'm almost to the elevator when I hear his voice behind me. "Montana! Hey, Montana! Wait up!"

But I don't. I can't.

Sheldon Hawkes

I haven't moved for three hours. I'm still staring at the engagement announcement in my hands.

Mr. And Mrs. Albert Calvin Jackson proudly announce the engagement of their son, Robert Scott Jackson to Faith Marie Jones.

Faith met me for lunch at some chain restaurant near her office. Thinking she had made a decision, and foolishly thinking it was in my favor, I brought a bottle of champagne. My vision of us toasting each other in Central Park was foiled when I saw the large rock on her finger.

Despite the numerous conquests Robert had, he would give Faith one thing she had dreamed of: Money. She apologized, told me she would always love me, but Robert was the one, the man that could give her everything she had dreamed of.

"You're the knight in shining armor, but I need someone that can make me secure, someone that's a little less devoted to everyone else and more devoted to me. I'm selfish, Shel, you know that. I'm just sorry I had to hurt you."

I just handed her the bottle and left, kicking myself once again for my stupidity. I should have known the day I left a lucrative career in medicine for the ME's office that it would never work between us. Faith needed things, money, security. I guess she didn't feel she could get those from a former ME-turned CSI.

Despite the knowledge, it still hurt like a bitch.

I would like to say I would never take her back, you know, the next time Bobby spots some babe in a skirt he has to have, but I'd probably be lying to myself.

I continue to brood until there's a soft knock on my door. I'm tempted to let it go, but I hear Lindsay's voice. "Sheldon? Are you there?" Something about the tone makes me open the door - the knight's newest quest? My self-pity is put aside when I see the utter devastation on her face.

"Hey, what's the matter?"

Lindsay

I'm furious at the tears that spill over onto my cheeks. Wimp, I think, dashing them away. "Are you ready for this one? Just when I think he can't sink any lower …"

I relay my latest Danny horror, and Sheldon makes all the right noises, says all the right things. Even gives me a hug and tells me I deserve better. But through my misery, I notice something is wrong, his eyes …

"What happened?"

He averts his eyes. "What do you mean?" He starts walking around his tasteful apartment, swiping at non-existent dust. "You want a glass of wine or something?"

I murmur a response and he wanders into the kitchen. As he pops a cork, I notice what looks like an announcement of some sort on expensive card stock. I read it, and my heart plummets once again, although this time it's for Sheldon. He walks in, two glasses of red in his hands.

"I'm so sorry. Here I'm going on about Danny and you - I'm just -"

"Stop Lindsay. You're in pain, and your angry. You have every right to be. Don't mind me."

Despite his blasé approach, I know he's hurting - his brown eyes are full of it. I walk over, take the glasses of wine and set them on an end table. Quickly spotting the liquor cabinet, I begin to pour a couple of stiff drinks.

"Something tells me we both need something a little stronger."

Hawkes

I really wanted to be alone, but if someone must be here, well, Lindsay is the best company for my misery. Despite the abundance of alcohol in my cabinet, however, we only have a few drinks, spending most of the time talking about love's misadventures.

"You know what's sad?" I muse. "Even after everything she's done, I would probably take her back. It doesn't matter how bitchy, how selfish she is, I still see that young girl who used to sneak in my room and night and tell me I was her hero. Stupid, huh?"

"About as stupid as a woman hung up on a man who walks around with a thong hanging out of his pants." I think Lindsay intended the line to be humorous, but I see tears form once again. "I mean, he went from telling me he loved me, that I saved him, to screwing leopard girl and God knows who else. It demeans and trivializes everything we had. Still, I can't believe I still let him hurt me after all this time. "

My heart aches for her as well as myself. It actually feels good to feel sorry for someone besides myself. I walk over to where she stands, gazing out the window as tears streak down her cheeks. I wrap my arms around her. "Hey, I've got over two decades on you there, sister."

We're both quiet for awhile, both trying to draw on each other's warmth. I feel her move - not away from me, just shifting so her face rises up and her eyes meet mine. Her cheeks still wet with tears she murmurs, "Are we going to be okay?"

I rest my forehead on hers. "Yeah, we're going to be okay." I drop a kiss on her cheek, and when I meet her eyes again, something changes.

Lindsay

For a moment, it's almost like looking into a mirror. Sheldon and I could be no more different in appearance, but our eyes … they're similar, especially when they're filled with the sting of betrayal. It almost seems like we're stuck there, frozen in time, when I see something flicker in his eyes, something I'm sure is reflected in my own.

"This is a very bad idea …" he breathes, but his lips still come down on mine. I respond tentatively, feeling tension ease away as I feel the gentle pressure of his lips on mine, the kiss deepening. It's very slow, almostlanguid … there's none ofthe intensity that wasthe hallmark of my physical relationship with Danny.

His hands slip under the straps of my tank top, and one by one, articles of clothing fall to the floor.Sheldon - his sculpted body framedin the moonlight - picks me up and carries me to his bedroom. The soft touches continue, and rather than feeling like I've beenthrown into a raging inferno, it'slike riding the waves of a calm ocean, and thoughts of Danny fade with each current.

"Lindsay … you're beautiful …" His words are a balm to my heart. Our passion is a quiet one, filled with gentle whispers and the loving hands of two friends pushing away the pain of the other to a place of momentary peace.

When it's over, we simply hold each other … no words passing our lips. I close my eyes and thankfully - for the first time in weeks -drift into dreamless sleep.

TBC