Thanks for the lovely reviews, you guys are great!
Danny looked at his watch. Lindsay said she would be back in a minute, and that was over an hour ago. Danny glanced around him, still no sign of her. He tried her cell and pager again. Still no luck.
Fed up, Danny sighed and made his way to Mac's office.
"Mac, you seen Lindsay?" Danny asked as he barged in.
Mac looked up from his paperwork. "She left early. I assumed she'd tell you."
"Why did she leave early? Is she ok?"
"She requested a few days off," Mac answered.
"Why?"
"I think that's something you need to discuss with her. Do you need another body on your case now that it's just you?"
Danny shook his head. "Nah. I'll be able to wrap it up today. Is she ok?"
"She'll be fine Danny."
"Right, thanks Mac."
Danny left Mac's office and shut the door behind him. He pulled out his cell and dialed Lindsay's number. It went through to her voice mail.
"Montana, Mac told me you're taking a few days off. What's going on? I'm worried about you. Just call me if you need anything yeah? Talk to you soon."
Danny went back to work and willed for the afternoon to pass quickly so he could go and see Lindsay.
As soon as the clock hit five, Danny cleared up his things and bolted for the door. He stopped when he almost ran down Stella.
"Hey, slow down there road runner."
"Sorry Stella, I got somewhere to be."
"Wait," Stella said as she grabbed Danny's arm to stop him from taking off. "I wanted to talk to you."
Danny sighed. "Can't it wait til tomorrow?"
"It's about Lindsay."
Danny shot to full attention. "Lindsay? Has something happened?"
"Relax she's fine. Mac's been asking about the two of you. He's been hearing some rumours."
"What kind of rumours?"
"The supply-closet sex kind," Stella answered with a smirk.
Danny grunted. "This is not funny Stella, if Mac found out about Lindsay and I…" Danny looked around and lowered his voice. "We could lose our jobs."
"Look, don't worry. So far the only proof that Mac has is a rumour, and there are so many of those going around that he'll probably end up dismissing it. Heck, according to rumours, I've supposedly been with Flack, Mac, even Sid."
Danny smirked. "Was this at different times or did you have a CSI orgy on the weekend that I wasn't invited to?"
"Well, now people think I'm a slut. No orgy for you, no credibility for me, guess we're even," Stella joked.
Danny smiled. "I gotta go, but thanks for the heads up Stella."
Lindsay paced across her apartment. She was forgetting so many things. She stopped.
Toothbrush.
Lindsay went into the bathroom. She didn't know why she was making such a big deal about this. It was just a quick flight to Bozeman, drop off the papers, and come straight back, so why was she so nervous?
Lindsay looked in the bathroom mirror and an image of herself as a child flashed through her mind. She shook her head.
"No," Lindsay told herself. "I can't go back there. I can't face the humiliation."
Lindsay was snapped to attention by a knock at her door.
She stepped over the suitcases spread on the floor and made her way to the door.
She opened it and Danny walked straight in. "What's going on Montana?"
"Nothing, I'm just…unpacking," Lindsay replied.
Danny looked at the bags. "Unpacking or packing? Cos it looks like you were packing to go somewhere and you weren't even gonna say goodbye to me."
Lindsay closed the door and leaned on it.
"I guess I knew you'd come check on me after work."
Danny sighed and took a step towards her, knowing exactly where she was planning on going. "Lindsay…"
"It doesn't matter anyway," Lindsay said, escaping from the minimizing gap between her and Danny. "I'm not going anymore, I've changed my mind."
Danny followed Lindsay across the living room.
"Lindsay, whatever happened in your past… you have to face it."
Lindsay turned to face Danny and a tear rolled down her cheek.
"I can't Danny. I'm not strong enough to do this. It hurts to much to go back," Lindsay mumbled.
As more tears rolled down her cheeks, Danny realized he had never seen Lindsay so vulnerable, so broken, and all he wanted to do was to put her back together. She looked up at him with shaken eyes, almost begging him to take away her hurt.
Danny moved towards Lindsay and wrapped his arms around her tightly as she melted into his body.
"Lindsay Monroe… you are strong enough," Danny soothed. He struggled for the right words to say. He wanted so bad to take her pain straight away but knew that she needed more than a few words and a hug.
"I don't think I can do this Danny," Lindsay murmured into Danny's neck.
"I know you can Montana."
Lindsay stepped back and wiped her cheeks. She didn't want to go to Montana and leave Danny behind in New York. She needed him now more than ever.
"Danny…" She took a deep breath. "I, I can't do this without you."
"Then I'll come to Montana with you," Danny replied without hesitation.
Lindsay bit her lip as tears began to well in her eyes again. "Are you sure?"
Danny reached for a tissue on the counter and handed it to Lindsay. "Of course."
Lindsay wiped her face and smiled. "Sorry, I must look like a real mess."
Danny smirked. "You're beautiful Monroe."
Lindsay smiled sheepishly and tilted her head, brushing her lips softly against Danny's. Danny snaked his arm around Lindsay's neck and kissed her harder. Lindsay moaned into Danny as his tongue tickled her lips. As Lindsay began to open her mouth and give Danny access to her tongue her cell went off.
"Dammit," She cursed.
Danny smirked. "No rush right?"
Lindsay rolled her eyes and answered her phone. "Kaylee," She greeted as she looked at Danny, before retreating to her room.
Danny sat down on Lindsay's couch and picked up her tv guide that was sitting on the table. Just as he was about to see what was on tonight he thought it'd be a better idea to ring Mac and request some time off to go with Lindsay.
Mac answered straight away.
"Taylor."
"Mac, it's Danny. I need a few days off."
Mac sighed. "Lindsay's not coming to work so we are already short staffed, why do you need time off?"
Danny hesitated for a moment. This was it.
"Because Lindsay's going back to Montana to deal with some past issues and I'm going with her."
Mac was silent for a moment, not a good sign.
"Danny, what exactly is your reasoning behind this?"
Mac's voice was firm but Danny was convinced he could win him over.
"She's my friend Mac, and she needs me. She doesn't want to do this alone."
"Just friends?"
"Yes, just friends."
"Because I've heard some rumours in the lab, the kind of rumours that the lab is against."
"They're just rumours Mac, besides, how's the department gonna prove that two CSIs are having a relationship?" Danny asked.
"Well technically it's not against the rules to have a relationship, but it is against the rules for two colleagues to marry. However if something were going on between you and Lindsay and it affected your work-"
"If there were something going on between Lindsay and I, it wouldn't."
Danny heard Mac sigh. "Fine then, you can have the rest of the week off, that's 3 paid sick days. Look after my CSI."
Danny's eyes widened. "You're serious?"
"Contrary to what you people may think, I'm not completely heartless. I too have been in love."
Danny noticed the subtle hurt in Mac's voice. However subtle, it was there.
"I'm sorry Mac, I never meant to imply anything like that."
"It's fine Danny. I'll see you next week."
"Bye Mac, Thanks."
"Bye."
Danny hung up and watched as Lindsay moved around her apartment, packing her luggage.
"You should go pack. It'll be warm in Montana. My aunt and uncle will be fine with you staying with us, I booked our flight for tomorrow morning at 10:30," Lindsay rambled.
"Mac gave me the rest of the week off," Danny informed. "And you're rambling."
Lindsay sighed and collapsed on the couch. "I'm just nervous to go back there. It won't take that long… I just have to… I, I don't even know why I'm going there. I don't…"
Lindsay curled up next to Danny.
"We can take as long or as little as you want. Whatever it takes," Danny said supportingly.
Lindsay nodded. "You should go home and pack."
Danny kissed Lindsay lightly on the forehead. "I'll ring you later."
"Ok." Lindsay kissed Danny chastely on the lips before letting him leave.
After Danny closed the door behind him, Lindsay sighed and picked up her TV guide on the table. She turned to the middle page and retrieved the papers she was hiding there.
As soon as Danny got to Bozeman, he would find out everything that she had tried so hard to keep hidden. Lindsay couldn't shake the awful feeling in her gut that once Danny found out, he would leave her.
After all, if she found out that someone she was dating was keeping a secret like this from her, she wouldn't be sure whether she could trust them anymore.
But then again, Lindsay Monroe had serious trust issues.
I promise you will find out more about Lindsay's past in the next chapter.