Author's note: Thank you for the reviews people! Hope you enjoy this next chapter! For once, I want Calleigh to be the one fighting for Ryan's attention… and not the other way around, like it always seems to be.

Please read and review!!!!!

Chapter 2: The Morning After

Calleigh frowned and put her arm over her eyes, trying to hide away from the harsh morning light. Her body screamed for sleep as she fought to keep herself from awakening completely. Seemed the Tylenols she had gulped down before going to bed hadn't really changed anything. Her head was pounding.

She could hear movement coming from the kitchen… sounds that she wasn't used to hearing in her always empty condo. Groaning, she opened her eyes groggily and gasped when the first thing she saw were legs, a few inches away from her face. She turned her head and looked up, greeted by the sight of a grinning Ryan Wolfe, who was staring down at her.

"Good morning, gorgeous."

Calleigh groaned and shut her eyes again, turning on her back. "Ryan, go to bed. It's too early." She mumbled.

Ryan snorted and sat down on the coffee table. "Calleigh, it's one in the afternoon."

The blond woman frowned and turned her face towards him. "Are you serious?"

Ryan nodded and offered her the steaming cup he was holding. "Coffee?"

She sighed and reached for the cup as she sat up. She took a sip and swallowed, enjoying the taste. "Shouldn't you be the one in this state?" She pouted and pointed at him. "You're all smiling and happy… it's not normal."

Ryan laughed. "Maybe it's because I got to sleep in a real bed." He grimaced. "I'm really sorry for last night. I don't know why I ended up in your bed… I just remember getting out of the cab. After that, it's all blurry."

Calleigh snorted and shook her head, taking another long sip from her cup. "Trust me; you don't want to know what happened next."

He winced and looked away, already embarrassed at what he could have done. "I'm such a lousy drunk… What did I do this time?"

The blond woman smiled and looked down, thinking. Should she tell him what really happened? That, in her drunken logic, she had wanted to undress him so that he would be comfortable for the night? That she had ended up caught under his body, being kissed by him? That if he hadn't passed out on top of her, they would've had sex?

Nah.

"You did nothing wrong. You just followed me to my bedroom and fell on the bed. Before I could do anything, you were already asleep. So I took off your shoes and wrapped the covers around you." She grinned up at him, waiting for his answer.

Ryan breathed out and rolled his eyes, still feeling bad for having stolen her bed. "I told you I was too tired to go out." He stood from the table and made his way towards the kitchen. "Are you hungry?"

Calleigh sighed and finished her coffee. She was still exhausted and just felt like sleeping some more. But at least, there wasn't anything awkward between Ryan and her.

XXXXX

Calleigh smiled at one of her coworkers as she made her way through the lab. She felt a thousand times better this morning than she had felt the previous day.

After she had awakened and drank her coffee, Ryan had prepared breakfast, which she had only picked at, not trusting her stomach to handle the eggs he had made for her. She had gone in the shower, washed away her headache and had gotten dressed in baggy jeans and a tank top.

Then, they had called a cab that brought them back to the restaurant, where they had spent the previous evening. Ryan and her had finally gotten in their own car, saying they would see each other the next day. She had gone straight home, where she had crashed on the couch and spent the rest of the day watching reruns on TV.

Calleigh turned a corner and gasped in surprise as she felt two strong arms grab her from behind. She turned her head sharply and rolled her eyes at Ryan, who seemed quite proud of himself. She slapped his arm and kept walking. "You scared me half to death."

Ryan laughed and walked beside her, following her to wherever she was going. " Do we have case today?"

"Probably not; Horatio would've texted us if something had come up. In the mean time, we've got plenty of paperwork to catch up on." She smiled as Ryan groaned and rolled his eyes, slowing his pace. She knew he absolutely despised paperwork. She took hold of his arm and pulled him closer to her. "Come on, it's not that bad. You get to spend time with me!"

Her companion grinned and picked up his pace. "You always find the positive side to everything!"

She batted her eyelashes at him and spoke in a breathy voice. "That's why you love me."

Ryan chuckled and wrapped his arm around her waist. "You know me so well."

They got their documents and finally found an empty lab where they could work. They sat at a table and opened their first folder, getting ready for a long, unexciting morning.

As they worked together, Calleigh couldn't keep herself from stealing glances at her friend. Ryan was definitely a very good-looking man. He had gorgeous hazel eyes, which were now focused on the document he was writing on. Calleigh had noticed how his eyes would slightly change color, depending on his moods. Right now, his eyes were a gorgeous shade of green. He had one of the most beautiful genuine smiles, one she knew not a lot of people had had the chance to see. Sure, he wasn't very tall or extremely muscular, but these types of men were never really her type. She liked not having to break her neck when kissing her man.

'What?!?' Calleigh opened her mouth in surprise and turned her head, staring at the wall. It was the first time she had actually thought such a thing. Ryan was her best friend. Sure they hugged and kissed each other sometimes, but only on the cheek. That was it. And it was fine. She didn't want anything else from him.

Calleigh sighed and glanced at him one last time before focusing her eyes on her paperwork. 'It's all because of that kiss we shared three nights ago…' she thought. If she hadn't brought him home, if she hadn't tried undressing him while he was drunk, none of this would have happened. They would've never shared that kiss and she wouldn't be having all these mixed feelings for her co-worker/best friend.

"Hey, Cal?"

The blond woman jumped slightly and looked up at her friend, eyes wide. "Yes?"

Ryan looked uncomfortable for a few seconds. He stared at his hand for a second and finally looked back up at her, looking embarrassed. "Are you sure nothing happened when I was at your place two nights ago?"

'Oh my… can he read minds?' Calleigh thought, feeling suddenly nervous. "Why would you think something happened?"

He shrugged and played with his pen. "I don't know… It's just that I've been having flashbacks from that night, and…"

She lifted her hand up and stopped him before he said too much. "Nothing happened. I told you, you came in, went to my bedroom and fell asleep on my bed. That's all."

If just thinking about something that might have happened was making Ryan feel this embarrassed, she wouldn't be the one telling him that they had been close to having sex. Their friendship, right now, was the one thing she didn't want to lose. If there was something she had learned over the years, it was that sex ALWAYS made things awkward.

Ryan stared at her for a few seconds, his hazel eyes searching hers. She couldn't quite read the thoughts going through his head right now, but she could see something in his eyes, something she had never seen shining there before. Something that was making the hair on her arms stand and her heart beat faster.

Finally, seeing no reaction from her, he sighed and slowly nodded his head. "Alright. I believe you." He smiled and nudged her hand with his pen. "Wouldn't it have been awkward if something had, though?"

Calleigh laughed nervously and nodded her head, unable to look at him. "Yeah, so awkward."

'crap.'

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