Author's Note: Happy 2007! I think we need to start the New Year off with some hot D/L interaction so here it is! Enjoy! Thank you for all your reviews, I read and appreciate every one of them! When FF alerts are working again, I will be personally replying to each one again.

One last thing (you know I'm a wordy gal by now) I want to dedicate this chapter to my amazing beta, BrilliantMadness. Without her honesty, integerity and guidance, this chapter would not be what it is. She ahem encouraged a total rewrite of the M part and she was so right as it turned much better the second time around! Thank you, BrilliantMadness!

DISCLAIMERS: I do not own any of these characters. They belong to Jerry Bruckheimer and the wonderful writers for CSI: NY. Any resemblance to scenes from the episodes is included for clarity and continuity and I do not claim any of those as my own work. However everything else is mine.

In The Light of Day

Light is the ultimate revealer

Of truth, beauty and goodness

Therefore sweet and tender emotions

Expressed during the cover of night

Shall not be lost in the light of day

If one's love is true

- Sally Jetson

Lindsay awoke well before the alarm went off, marveling at the overwhelmingly peaceful, contented and downright giddy feelings that were coursing through her being. She felt like a schoolgirl. What a cliché but so apropos! She turned on her side to drink in the god-like creature responsible for all these feelings: handsome, sexy, passionate, sweet, tender, sometimes infuriating and always irresistible Daniel Messer. She might as well call 1-800-I-AM-LOST now because there was no finding her way back. Actually, forget that, she didn't want to find her way back. But she did have to get to work. No matter how she was feeling about him, she didn't want it to affect her work. She was adamant about that. Therefore, she placed a chaste kiss on his shoulder before she quietly slipped out of bed and into the shower.

Danny awoke almost as soon as he felt her leave the bed. Why is she always in such a hurry to get out of bed in the morning? Damn country girls, it must be ingrained in them to wake with the chickens! He groaned, as he reluctantly hauled himself out of bed. He was determined to catch her in the shower no ands, ifs or buts about it.

Once in the bathroom, he casually leaned against the wall and pulled the shower curtain aside slightly so he could watch her. If he thought she was beautiful last night, in the seductively dim light, she was absolutely real and stunning in the sunny morning light. Her back was turned to him. He watched the water ebb and flow along the same sensuous curves that he intimately followed with his hands and mouth the night before. His body responded to the intense sensuality of her body and to last night's memories flooding his senses. She turned toward him as she sluiced the water over her hair with both hands. He once again feasted his eyes on the sight that had greeted him last night, when she had dropped her dress and turned to him. It was all as he remembered and more, because there were no shadows hinting at and hiding things, here and there. The bright morning sunlight did not lie! This was Lindsay Monroe, his Montana: beautiful, vibrant, sexy, gentle, sweet, caring and wanton. God, how he loved the wanton! He never knew it was there until a few days ago, when he had brought her to his apartment after the hospital. He felt special that she showed that side to him, and him alone.

Lindsay gave a startled, "Danny," as she opened her eyes and saw him staring hungrily at her. Her arms went instinctively to shield herself from his eyes because his gaze was so piercing and she hadn't been with him long enough yet to lose her natural modesty.

"Don't," he protested softly as he reached out his hands to pull her hands away. "Do you know how beautiful you are?" he asked earnestly.

She ducked her head slightly and blushed.

He could see that she was embarrassed, but he couldn't understand why. He dropped one of her hands and placed his hand along her cheek and guided her face back towards him.

"You weren't that shy last night, Ms. Monroe, in fact quite the opposite," he teased and she blushed again.

But she held his eyes this time, as she said softly, "It is just that everything is revealed in the light of day."

Never taking his eyes off hers, he replied in equal softness, "Well you know what has been revealed to me?"

She struggled to make some response but her throat had blocked with emotion at the softness in his voice and the tenderness in his eyes, so instead she shook her head slightly in silent acknowledgment of his question.

"That you are perfect for me."

Her emotion pushed past the lump in her throat, as her arms wrapped around his neck and she buried her face in his neck. A tear trickled down her cheek. It was impossible for her to hold onto her emotions when he said things like that to her.

His arms didn't go around her at first. Instead he reached behind her with one hand and turned off the shower and then reached out with his other hand and pulled the towel off the rack and settled it gently around her body. But the warmth of the soft, fluffy towel was nothing compared to the heat of his arms as they encircled her body, when he picked her up and carried her back to the bed. After he laid her gently on the mattress, he quickly shed his t-shirt and boxers and settled himself beside her, molding his long, lithe body along hers. His finger traced a burning trail from her lips, down her neck, through the valley of her breasts, casually pushing aside the towel as he went, not a thought between them about how late they were going to arrive at work today. He delightfully watched the pleasure play across her face as his finger continued its cruel-sweet torture across her skin. She was so beautiful to play, like a finely tuned instrument that barely needed to be plucked or strummed to invoke the resonant tones, characteristic of such an exquisite instrument.

And if last night was about satiating an intense hunger fueled by many days of close proximity to each other and countless angst-ridden weeks of longing, then this morning was about fanning the sweet flames of desire that had continued to smolder throughout the night as they slept. Even though they had touched and caressed each other intimately in the seductive dark of the night, performing the same motions in the bright morning light, only brought a honesty and freshness to the act that could not be garnered in the dark, where they could not fully experience each other's pleasure as it played out in the expressions of their faces.

Lindsay watched Danny's hand as he continued the sizzling trail down across her taut abs and over to her inner thigh. As he let his fingers lazily drift and stroke her inner thigh in small circles, the swirling of the butterflies in the pit of her stomach tightened into a clenched little knot that sent a torturous piercing down to her already throbbing center. When her eyes closed in utter ecstasy of the sensation and a whisper of a moan escaped her lips, she heard Danny groan in the back of his throat. She shrugged the towel off one arm as she reached across and began her own tantalizing ascent with her fingertips, up his forearm, along his sinewy bicep, across his well-defined shoulder, along his collar bone, down over the hard swell of his pectorals and on to the sharply defined lattice of his abs. He felt himself respond to her feathery-light sweep across his upper body, as the rush of blood, from his head to his own throbbing center, whooshed in his ears. She discerned the hardening of his desire, by the darkening of his eyes and the slight nod of his head towards hers as his eyes closed in concentration on the sensations coursing through his body. Her lips parted slightly and that hard little sigh, that always sent him over the edge, pushed through her lips and the breath drifted across his cheek, beckoning him to completely lose himself in her.

As her hand dropped even lower and began to stroke and to caress him, he could no longer concentrate on any movement his hand was making on her body and it stilled completely. She shifted slightly to bring her other hand up to his lips as she softly outlined his lips with a fingertip. Then she angled her finger slightly and traced just inside his lips. His tongue flicked across her fingertip as it drew across his bottom lip. The next time around she pressed hard against his bottom teeth and scraped the bottom of her finger across his teeth as she pushed it into his mouth and he immediately closed his lips around her finger to completely suck it into his mouth. The suggestive maneuver awakened his hand at her inner thigh again and after a few lazy strokes, he brushed his fingers across her wetness and a shiver ran down her body. When he slipped a finger inside her, her whole body shuddered and it was her turn to become completely lost in the sensations sweeping across her body and converging into a tight coil all around his finger. He slipped in another finger and the tension became almost unbearable as she grabbed his wrist in some effort to guide his hand quickly into her release. He cupped his other hand at the back of her neck turning her head so that he could look into her eyes. He drank in the otherworldly look in her eyes as she began to lose visual consciousness and 'see' only sensations. Suddenly, her body arched and his need flared immediately in response. He withdrew his fingers and quickly leaned over her to run his hand between the mattresses.

"God… Danny…don't…stop…"she moaned as her head rolled back and forth in frustration.

He dropped a quick kiss between her breasts, as he found what he was seeking. "Just a minute, Baby," he reassured her, working his nimble fingers to tear open the package and roll the condom down on himself. Then he was above her, balanced on his hands, his eyes focusing on hers, as he slid inside her.

Her eyes closed at the feeling of immediate satisfaction and he raggedly exclaimed, "God… Lindsay, there is no feeling in the world like being inside you."

She smiled indulgently at that as she replied softly, "Good… that is exactly where I want you to be!" and wrapped her legs around him to urge him deeper into her as she interlaced her hands around the back of his neck and pulled his head in for a deep kiss. Together their tension mounted in earnest as they moved in unison. He dropped down onto his forearms so that their bodies could experience as much skin-to-skin contact as possible.

She was so close, he could feel it, every muscle starting to convulse around him and he didn't know how much longer he could hold on. So, tenderly, against her ear, he breathed raggedly, "Come on, Baby, I want you to come apart... all- around- me-!" That was the impetus that she needed as she began her spiral downwards.

"Danny, I want you to…" she pleaded softly.

The rest of the words were lost, as he buried his head in her neck. He knew what she wanted and damn if it didn't send him right over the edge with her, again!

With no more spoken words between them, they rode the wave of extreme sensations and intense emotions until they were mere whispers fading in the bright morning light. They collapsed together, his head buried into her neck, plying soft kisses along her collar bone and she, gently stroking the back of his head, just at his hair line.

He murmured into her neck, " Montana, do you know what you do to me?"

She moved her hand to his cheek and stroked it gently with her thumb as she let her fingers rest along his neck behind his ear.

"Yes," she agreed softly, "the same thing you do to me… and for me!"

They continued to lay there wrapped in each other's arms and basking in each other's presence… just content to be together.

When the alarm, that Lindsay had forgotten to turn off, blared jarringly, she reached over to turn it off. When she turned around, Danny was propped up on one elbow and she caught the hungry look in his eyes and the questioning quirk of one of his eyebrows.

"No way… Messer… I absolutely cannot be late my first real day back at work!" she declared categorically as she ducked out of bed when he made a grab for her.

"Aw Montana, I'm beginning to think you can't keep up with me," he teased with a smirk.

She sashayed off to her closet to find something to wear, ignoring his last remark.

"Cold shower… now, Cowboy!" she ordered playfully.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Twenty minutes later, when he emerged from the bedroom, she was already in the kitchen, dressed in that understated work attire. Good thing, he thought, because he was going to have a hard time concentrating on work as it was. He reached for the cup of coffee she held out to him and leaned back against the counter. She smiled and raised her eyebrows at him, as she took a sip.

"Somethin' funny, Montana?" he smirked at her.

As she dropped the cup from her lips, her smile widened and her eyes fairly danced. "I have to admit you look, great, wearing that suit," she said referring to the clothes he had worn the night before, sans the jacket and tie, "but aren't you a little overdressed for work?" And then she added mischievously, "People may talk."

"Hate to break it to ya, Montana," he said softly, as he set his coffee cup on the counter and reached out his hand to pull her into the intimate v of his legs. She felt the warmth of his legs through their clothes and a little fire ignited in her tummy. How was she supposed to get work accomplished today?

"People are already talking," as he fingered a curl next to her check.

"Yeah, I noticed that when I went into the lab, yesterday," she replied a little dryly.

He looked at her for a second, trying to read her expression. He couldn't, so he started fishing, "That bother you?"

She set her coffee cup down beside his on the counter, slid her hands up along his chest to rest comfortably on his rock-solid pecs. She looked up at him thoughtfully for a moment. How do you admit some of your own worst fears, to someone who seems to be so confident in the very area in which you feel vulnerable?

You just say it, Lindsay. This is never going to work if you can't talk honestly with the man!

He must have sensed her consternation because he reassured her, "You know, you can tell me anything." He moved his hand from the curl at her cheek, around, underneath her hair, to cup the back of her neck.

Still looking at him she took a deep breath. "No, it doesn't bother me… about us, I mean. It bothers me… about me"

He looked a little puzzled. "What about you?"

"Um… trying to fit in at the lab, coming in as a newcomer, being so different, you know a country girl, striving to be taken seriously." She bit her lip nervously again, as she revealed the next part. She didn't want to hurt his feelings or make him think she didn't want to be with him, but the only way to the other side, was straight through the middle, so she stated simply, "I don't want this relationship to hinder things at work, people taking me seriously," she said earnestly.

He looked up at the ceiling for a moment to collect his thoughts. When he looked back at her, she could not read his expression but his eyes were burning brightly.

"Ya know, Montana, I'll play this discreetly and professionally at work because I think that is how it outta to be handled, but I'll tell you up front, I'm not gonna lie about us if anyone asks."

"I'm not asking you to lie, Danny. This isn't really your issue. It's mine! I'm just trying to figure out how to reconcile these insecurities I have, that's all," she replied earnestly.

"I'm not sure where you're pickin' up these vibes, but everyone respects you, enjoys working with you and, hell, they care about you. You should have seen how everyone was rooting for you at the hospital," he implored her to believe him.

Then he wondered if any of her insecurities had stemmed from his teasing, when he called her ' Montana' and 'Country Girl'. His chest constricted at the thought that anything he had done would have a play in her angst.

"Mon-, I mean Lindsay…" he paused, as he licked his lips nervously. Apologies were not his forte, even if they were warranted.

He started again, "Lindsay, if me callin' you Montana or Country Girl or any of the hell I give you contributes to this… I'm really sorry."

She looked at him and a small, grateful smile started to play along her lips, as she reassured him, "No, at the beginning it bothered me a little, but it started to grow on me and then I began to look forward to it and…"

His worried brow softened as his face relaxed into a face-splitting grin at her gentle omission and he pulled her to him in a tight hug. She slid her arms under his arms as she wrapped them around the middle of his back and laid her cheek against his chest. She could feel the even rhythm of his heartbeat against her ear. It was a reassuring sound that she could lose herself in, each and every day.

Then she felt his chest begin to reverberate with sound of his voice as he confessed, "Besides, Mac, as much as told me, that day in his office, after our fight in the hallway, if he had to choose between us, he was going to choose the straight up, reliable, no nonsense country girl, over a street-wise-ass-punk, loose cannon, like me," he grinned against her hair.

She smiled against his chest and couldn't get over the fact that he always knew just what to say to ease her worries.

Then to put her mind further at ease, he said, "By the way, I have a spare change of clothes in my locker at work, so I don't have to wear the suit all day, so no one will suspect that we even went out last night."

She craned her head up to look at him warningly.

"Oh, I don't mind if they know we went out last night, but if anyone asks, don't you dare breathe a word about how hot it was last night."

"Aw c'mon, Montana, you're killin' me here, I'm not even allowed one little bit of locker room talk."

"You do," she warned, "and you can kiss any future hotness, with me, goodbye," as she playfully pinched and twisted the skin of his chest, through the fabric of his shirt.

"Ow, ow, ow, Montana," he winced in mock pain. "You don't have to get physical. I won't say anything… scout's honor," he grumbled as he held up two fingers in a mock scout salute.

"Uh, Uh, I'm not buying that 'cause I know you are no boy scout! I'll be watching your back," she countered.

"Well, I happen to know for a fact that you, Ms. Monroe, are no girl scout," as he bent his head to capture her lips. He knew he shouldn't, with work looming on the horizon, but he had to have one more taste of her, before he put it on ice for the day. She held nothing back as she met his lips with an intensity that surprised even herself. He was just about to gather her up and head back to the bedroom, when one of their phones rang.

They pulled away, already breathing heavy and eyes glazing over in naked desire for each other. Neither one broke the gaze until the phone rang again.

Finally Lindsay swallowed and whispered, "I guess we'd better get going."

"You first," he said softly.

She turned, walked to the door and he followed, watching her sway, seductively, the entire way.

"You're not going to be able to do that at work, Messer… that's not discreet or professional behavior," she pointedly said, as she flipped open her phone to take her call.

Damn, did the woman have eyes in the back of her head? This was going to be one long-ass day!