I hope you all had a Great Christmas and have a happy new year.
Enjoy!
Chapter Twenty: Changes
"Meet your Uncle Nicky." Sara whispered softly, carefully lifting her fragile little girl into Nick's open arms. She adjusted the wires and tubes to hang over the side of his arm, before gently wrapping the soft baby blanket around her baby. "She's nearly... fifty four days old, that's almost two months."
"She's tiny." Nick brushed his fingertip across her skinny little arm, smiling as the little girl gave out a wide yawn. "She's beautiful Sara, just like you."
"Just a couple more weeks, and we'll be able to take her home." Sara took a seat opposite him, smiling as her little girl gave out a happy gurgle, looking into her Uncle Nicky eyes. "You're really getting into this parenting thing, huh? I haven't seen you with Willa yet, but you look like a natural with Vivi."
"She's barely as big as my hand."
"You shoulda seen her before." Sara reached for her camera, snapping a quick picture of her daughter with her Uncle Nicky for the first time. "How is Willa doing now?"
"She's great." He nodded, tearing his eyes away from the gorgeous baby girl for a moment. "She's gonna be one in a couple of days. Samantha wants to plan her a birthday party or somethin'. She can sorta say 'Dada'. She holds her bottle on her own now too. She threw it across the room once she was done yesterday. Kids got an arm on her."
"Maybe she'll take up baseball, just like her Daddy." She grinned at him.
"She's crawlin' too. The doctor was a bit concerned about her leg muscles, since she hadn't started yet, but she just started the other day. She can crawl clear across a room, like she's been doin' it all her life." He continued to rave about his new daughter, making Sara smile wider at him, having never heard him this excited before. "The doc said that most babies take their first steps between nine and twelve months. The doctor recons she'll be walkin' in no time at all though." Nick smiled down at Vivian in his arms again, watching her tiny little legs stretching out across his arm. "She's amazin', Sara. Congratulations."
Sara gave him a smile, touching a kiss to his cheek. "You too, Nicky. Finally got all your family under one roof."
"Not everybody." He shook his head slightly.
Sara looked up at him, seeing the sadness in his eyes. "Have you heard from him lately?"
"He called about a week ago. I get a few texts now and then, but it's not the same as havin' him around all the time." He turned his attention back towards Vivian, watching her giving out another yawn. "I think somebody's tryin' to tell us somethin'."
"Yeah." Sara climbed to her feet, gently lifting Vivian from Nick's arms. She was amazed at how much she had grown in the past two months. She was almost as big as her brothers when they were first born now. "I can't believe Greg's really been gone for two months. I know I haven't been at the lab for a while, but I never noticed how..."
"Quiet." Nick finished her sentence.
"Yeah, how quiet it is without him." She placed her daughter back into the open incubator, slowly turning to face Nick behind her. "Do you miss him?"
"Every day." He nodded. "He was right though."
"I think he was." Sara agreed with him, gently ruffling her hand through his hair. "Doesn't make you miss him any less though, huh? I think Samantha's right; you should go ahead with your daughter's first birthday party. She's only gonna turn one once, and it'll do you some good to have your friends around you."
"Do you really see Warrick goin' to a one year olds birthday party?" Nick smirked.
"I'll get him there." Sara assured him. "Gil, Catherine and Brass too. We're gonna give this little girl the best birthday party that she deserves." She checked her watch, giving out a sigh as she realised she had to pick up the twins from day care in a few minutes.
"Somewhere you gotta be?" He noticed her frustration.
"Yeah, I hate to leave her though." She watched her little girl sucking her fingers into her mouth, while she looked up at the two people beside her crib. "I can't wait to take her home. I feel like I'm trying to divide my time between my three children, so the others don't feel as though they don't have a Mommy."
"Hard in't it?" Nick smiled at her. "I've been tryin' to get Willa settled, keep Tayla happy and help Bradley. Even though they're all under the same roof as me now, it's still hard to divide my time between them, along with tryin' to work, sleep..."
Sara giggled softly, gently wrapping her arms around Nick's shoulders. "Welcome to parenthood. We're both doomed for the next eighteen years of our lives." Nick chuckled with her, returning her embrace. "Look on the bright side though, they're gonna keep it interesting."
"That's what I'm most worried about."
"Me too."
"Mr Stokes, I'm Doctor Striker." The doctor shook his hand, ushering him into the room. He smiled at the little girl in his arms, before taking his seat on the chair behind his desk. "I've called you in today to run some tests on Willa. They shouldn't take too long, and they won't put her in any distress." He assured the man, reaching for her chart from his desk. "How old is she now?"
"She'll be one in five days." Nick remembered, removing the pink hat from her head, as she started to fuss with it. Once her hat was out of the way, Willa curiously looked around the room, gently sucking on the pacifier in her mouth. "What kinda tests?" Her father queried, listening to the doctor explaining the different tests.
Willa squirmed uncomfortably as the doctor checked over her arm and leg muscles. She started to whimper in frustration, drumming her little feet into his palms.
"You like this with all doctors, or just me?" The man smiled up at her.
"She has seen her fair share of doctors these past few months." Nick protectively wrapped his arm around her tiny chest, holding her steady as the doctor took her blood pressure. Doctor Striker wasn't her usual doctor so Willa was unfamiliar with him, but Nick never expected her to act this scared of him. He lifted her forwards on his lap so the doctor could listen to her heart, holding her steady with one of his hands on her chest.
"Alright." Doctor Striker grabbed the tape measure from his desk, wheeling his chair a little closer to where Nick was sat. "I'm just gonna measure her head, just to check that she's growing alright." He gave Willa a smile, before gently placing the tape around her head, recording her measurements. Willa tried to reach for it, wondering why this strange man was wrapping a cold object around her head. "Doctor Hobbs told me that she's crawling now. Does she use both her legs and her hands for support?"
"Yeah, she keeps tryin' to push herself up to stand too, but she hasn't quite got the hang of it yet. She can stand for a little while if I stand her up though."
"So, there's no problems with her muscles." Doctor Striker concluded, wheeling his chair away from Nick again. "I'd just like to weigh her. Can you undress her to her diaper?" He moved over to the scales on the other table, watching Nick carefully undressing his little girl from the pink pinafore dress she was wearing.
Nick held his diapered baby girl protectively against his chest, carrying her over to the doctor.
Doctor Striker slid his hands beneath the baby's little arms, carefully lying her down on the cold scales. As soon as she was on her back, Willa struggled to roll over, being secured by the doctor's hand on her chest. "Have you got her eating many solids?" He looked round at her father.
"She eats a few mashed vegetables. She's really fussy about the tinned baby food though. She likes bananas, sweet potatoes..."
"That's good." Doctor Striker interrupted him, recording down her weight, once the scales had settled. "Does she sleep through the night?"
"Most of the time." Nick nodded.
Doctor Striker nodded again, lifting the baby into his arms. He handed her towards her father, before he looked back at his chart. "Doctor Hobbs said that you've got her on formula now and she's adjusted to the change. She hasn't had any more health problems since the..."
"No." Nick shook his head, watching curiously as the man started to write some things down on her chart. He looked down at Willa as she started to squirm, moving his warm hand to her back to comfort her.
"Have you started baby proofing yet?" The man finally asked.
"Yeah, my friend Greg helped me out with that. I can't get into my fridge or kitchen cupboards, but at least I know that she can't either."
"And, how's the adoption going?"
"Eh... the case worker had her last visit a couple of days ago." Nick was surprised that Doctor Striker even knew about that, but he figured that Doctor Hobbs must have told him, when he referred him to Nick. "I guess if I pass, I'm gonna get a court date or somethin'."
"You're doing a great job with her Nick." Doctor Striker assured him, setting the chart onto his desk. "Doctor Hobbs referred me to you to be Willa's permanent paediatrician from now on. I'll be monitoring her growth and her development. I can answer any questions that you might have. She's out of the woods now, so she'll only need a regular doctor. No more hearing tests or neurological tests for a while." He watched the man sighing in relief. "You shouldn't worry about the court date too much, Nick. She's gonna start talking soon. It's gonna be too late to give her back to her auntie and uncle. The two of you would have bonded too much. You're her father now, whether you're ready or not."
Nick looked down at Willa in his arms, watching her quietly sucking her pacifier in her mouth, while she buried herself into the security of his chest. He realised that she already felt safe and secure with him, as though he were her real father.
When Nick returned home, he set his sleeping little girl in the travel cot, before he checked that Samantha had remembered to pick the kids up from school. He picked up some dirty clothes from Tayla's carpet, before he knelt down beside her on the floor, looking at the doll she was holding in her hands. "Is that nail polish?" He noticed the thick purple lines beneath the dolls eyes.
Tayla turned to face her father surprised, giving him a wide smile. "Yeah, it's Samantha's." She dropped the doll, wrapping her arms around her father's shoulders. "She let me borrow it."
"I bet she did. You didn't... put any on yourself, did you?" He lifted her hand to check her nails, looking at the purple smudges covering each of her nails, even her fingertips. "This is gonna have to come off before school tomorrow. See if Samantha has any nail polish remover."
"I like it." She protested, pulling back from her father. "I don't wonna take it off. Samantha said boys never understand girls."
"It works both ways." Nick smiled at her. "I can't let you go to school with nail polish on your fingers. We'll have to give em a good scrub in the bath tonight." He pressed a kiss to her head, before he gathered up her dirty clothes again, making his way towards the door. He dropped the clothes into the laundry hamper on his route to Bradley's bedroom, finding more clothes on his floor. "Can't you kids ever pick up anythin'?"
Bradley looked up from his bed, watching his father collecting up his clothes off his floor. "Then we wouldn't be kids." Bradley pointed out to him.
"When I was a kid, my clothes managed to make it to the laundry hamper, which is right outside." He pointed to it in the hall. "It's not even that far. And it's not like I'm askin' you to wash your clothes or anythin' like I had to do, I just want you to put them in the hamper." Nick remembered that when he was a kid, he hated it when it was his turn to do the laundry, but he always managed to do it without a fuss, otherwise his father would give him a beating.
"Okay." Bradley climbed off the bed, grabbing his clothes from his father's arms. He made his way out into the hall with them, dumping them into the hamper. "Happy now?"
"Yes, I'd like it if you did that every day. It wasn't that hard, was it?" Nick smiled in his direction. "How was school?" He perched himself on the edge of Bradley's bed. The boy answered with a shrug, taking a seat on his desk chair across the room. "You don't know or you didn't go?"
"I went." Bradley assured him, clasping his hands together in his lap. "I don't like it there though."
Nick climbed to his feet, kneeling down in front of Bradley as he saw a tear in his eye. He gently pulled the boy into his arms, holding him securely against his chest. "I wish there was somethin' I could do, Bradley." He spoke softly, holding his child's head against his shoulder. "I'll help you anyway I can."
"Why do I even have to go?"
"Everybody has to go to school, buddy." He smoothed his hand across his child's back. "If there's a problem, we can sort it out. You can't run from your problems, you'll be runnin' your whole life otherwise. Believe me, I know." He looked down into his son's tearful eyes, pressing his lips to the boy's hairline. "Why don't you like it there?" He whispered softly.
"I just don't." He snapped.
"Okay." Nick held him a little tighter, circling his arms around his son's fragile body. He held him for a few minute longer, before he gently wiped his fingertips beneath his son's eyes. "You wonna come talk to me while I make you guys dinner?"
"Do I hafta?" Bradley moaned. "You know I hate talkin'."
"I know." Nick playfully ruffled his hand through the boy's hair. "I'll see you in a minute then. I'll be in the kitchen if you change your mind." He climbed to his feet, checking on Bradley over his shoulder, before he made his way towards the kitchen. "Hey, Sam."
"Hi, you makin' dinner before you go into work, or is it my turn today?"
"Yeah, and it's mine." Nick reminded her, pointing to the schedule he had made on the fridge. "Did you give Tayla your nail polish?"
"Yeah, she saw me puttin' some on," She showed him her light pink nails. "And she wanted some."
"You are aware that she's seven, and nail polish isn't allowed in school." Nick watched her shaking her head, completely unaware of that little fact. "Don't give her anythin' like that again."
"Nick, I'm sorry. She was just beggin' and beggin' me to let her, so I gave it to her. I supervised her with it though. I'm not an idiot. I'm really sorry." She apologised again. "I didn't know about the school rule, and she never said anythin'."
"She wouldn't, she's seven." Nick smiled at her. "I'm sorry too; I didn't mean to snap at you." He leant against the counter. "It's just... been a long day."
"Is Willa okay?" She remembered that she had a doctor's appointment today.
"Yeah, she's perfectly fine." He looked towards her, lying on her side in the crib. "This new doc seems a little strange, but he's gonna be her paediatrician from now on. He reckons she'll be walkin' and talkin' in no time, the same as any normal one year old."
"Good." Samantha gently tapped him on the shoulder. "You deserve some good luck. I'll be back in about an hour or so. You don't have to be at work until nine, right?"
"Where are you goin'?"
"I'm havin' drinks with a friend." She pulled her jacket on, catching a look in Nick's eyes. "Not that kind of friend. A girl friend, someone I went to college with. She can get me a job. I'm gonna meet her for drinks now. You don't have to save me any dinner if I'm late, but I'll be back before you have to leave for work." She promised him, grabbing her car keys, before she hurried out the door. "Bye!"
"Bye." Nick watched her car backing out of the drive, before he turned towards his fridge, searching for something he could make for dinner. As he knelt down to look in the freezer, he felt something vibrate in his pocket. Realising it was his phone; Nick quickly reached for it, smiling at the sight of Greg's name. He opened the message, reading the three little words that made his heart skip a beat.
I love you.
Nick quickly texted him back, wishing he could say it to his face rather than texting it in a message, as it seemed so impersonal. He set his phone down on the side, getting what he needed from the fridge. Tayla wandered into the kitchen a few minutes later, wanting a glass of juice. Nick stopped to get her some, just as Willa woke from her nap, wanting a bottle.
He stopped what he was doing again to make her up a bottle, sitting her in her highchair with it. Willa wrapped her little fingers around her bottle, taking small gulps of milk, as she watched her father getting back to work on making their dinner.
"Dad, I don't wonna go to school tomorrow." Bradley joined him in the kitchen. "Can you let me stay home... for like... ever?"
"No." Nick shook his head in his direction. "Remember what I said about not runnin' away?"
"Why can't you ever be on my side!"
"Hey, hey..." Nick grabbed his son's arm, gently pulling him back into the kitchen. "I'm listenin', don't run off." He handed him one of the carrots from the side, followed by the peeler from his own hands. "C'mon talk to me, I'm all ears, but I still have to make dinner. And I am on your side. I always am."
Reluctantly, Bradley stepped up to the counter beside his father, helping him to make dinner, by peeling the carrots with him. "Dad, I don't wonna go to school anymore."
"You'll be on your summer break soon, so why does it matter?" Seeing the angry look on his son's face, Nick asked, "Why not?"
"Does there really have to be a reason? Can't you just let me be homeschooled or somethin'?"
"It's a lot of money, so I need a reason." His father pointed out to him, handing his son a second carrot, once he was done with the first.
"How?"
"Because I'd have to do it, which means I couldn't work. So we'd have no money comin' in, and I'd have to buy all your books and things, as well as tryin' to feed the three of you." Nick explained to him, watching Bradley rolling his eyes at him. "Give me the reason now."
"Everybody hates me, even the teachers."
"How could they possibly hate you?"
"You don't understand anythin'." Bradley pulled himself up onto the worktop, continuing to grate the carrot in his hands. "You said it would all get better at my new school, but it's not. It's just the same."
"If you're bein' bullied..."
"I don't wonna go." Bradley interrupted him. "And you can't make me. I'd rather kill myself then go back there."
"Don't you dare say that!" Nick tried to keep his cool, feeling his heart pounding against the surface of his chest. "I can talk to the teachers or somethin'. You don't always have to run from your problems, Bradley, and you should never... resort to that. You're worth so much more than that."
"Can't I just be homeschooled?" The boy whined, looking into his father's eyes. "You don't have to do it; they have private tutors and things for workin' parents."
"And how are we supposed to pay this private tutor, Bradley?"
"Can't you just be on my side?"
"I am on your side." Nick assured him. "But you can't hide away in the house for the rest of your life. I want you to live your life, Bradley, not hide away from it." He slid his arms beneath Bradley's, lifting him off the counter into his arms.
Bradley usually hated it when he held him like a baby, but this time he welcomed the comfort of his father's embrace, wrapping his arms tightly around Nick's shoulders.
"I love you, kiddo, more than anythin' in the world. I'd give my life for you, so don't you dare say you'll kill yourself again." He warned him, clutching him tighter. "It breaks my heart to hear you say that. I can't ever see you like that again."
"I'm sorry, Dad." Bradley closed his eyes against Nick's shoulder, taking comfort in the safety of his embrace. "I'm really sorry."
"Hey, guys." Samantha stepped into the house, catching the two of them in an embrace. "What's up?"
"Nothin'." Bradley quickly answered, pushing himself away from his father's chest. He slid out of his arms onto the floor, hoping his mother didn't notice, as he didn't want her to start babying him again.
"Okay, well I got some good news." She pecked a kiss to her son's forehead, before taking a seat at the counter. "I got a job."
"Really?" Nick looked round at her surprised. "That fast?"
"Uh huh... but, there's one thing." She looked between Nick and her son, before she whispered, "It's in Phoenix."
"Phoenix?" Bradley practically shrieked, not knowing exactly where it was, but from the look on his father's face, it must have been pretty far.
"Uh huh, Phoenix, Arizona. One of my friends can get me a job there. It's not as far as my first choice, but we will be movin' there." She assured her son, anxiously biting her lower lip as she looked towards Nick. "Say somethin' then. It's not really that far, so we can share custody of Bradley. Better then we could when you were here, and I was in Texas. You'll still be close by."
"When are you plannin' on goin'?" Nick asked her, finally stopping what he was doing.
"Job starts in two weeks. My friend is gonna let us stay at hers for a while, until we find a place of our own. I've already looked into schools and things... it'll be a new start for us, sweetie." She looked towards her son. "You can make new friends... and forget about everythin' that happened back in Texas."
"Dad!" Bradley whined in his direction, wanting him to stop her from doing this. "Please, I don't wonna go!"
"Bradley, it's not that far." Samantha assured him. "It's about a five hour drive. I checked online. You'll be much closer to your father than you were before."
"Yeah, five hours!"
"Well, it used to be nearly eighteen hours." She pointed out to him, wishing Nick would say something, instead of just standing there. "You said it yourself Bradley, you're not fittin' in at this new school here. Why don't we try out the schools in Phoenix?"
"Dad!"
"Hang on a minute." Nick silenced the two of them. "What's this job opportunity?" He looked towards Samantha.
"Social services, CPS actually. I did all that trainin' and stuff, but I never followed my dream career."
"And you have to go to Phoenix for that?" He asked her.
"Yeah, my friend from college is there. She lives there with her husband and three children. She hasn't seen Bradley since he was a baby, and she said it's a great place for children to grow up. She's already secured me a job there. We can finally work together, helpin' children like..." She stopped herself from saying her son's name, seeing he was still in the room. "I've never had a career before. Me and Bradley can start fresh."
"Why do I have to go?" Bradley moaned, looking towards his father for help. "Dad! I wonna stay here with you. You promised!"
"Better yet, why don't you come with us?" Samantha suggested, pulling her grumpy son into her arms to hug him. "I'm sure Phoenix has a crime lab, right? What better way to keep a family together..."
"You want me, and the girls to go with you?" Nick gave her confused look.
"Why not?" She asked. "You and the girls can't exactly stay in this town house for the rest of your lives. The girls are gonna need their own rooms, along with their own bathroom. You've only got one in this whole house, and girls fight." She warned him, giggling softly at the thought of Nick dealing with squabbling teenage girls. "You could get a house with a proper back yard, where you can teach Willa to ride a bike. We could all use a fresh start."
Nick considered it for a moment, realising the only thing keeping him here was Greg, but he was no longer here.
"Dad, you promised." Bradley reminded him, giving him that look that made him feel like a guilty father.
"There's no timeline here, so you can have as long as you need to think about it, but Bradley and I are movin' over in two weeks. He's off from school then anyway, so it'll be the perfect time to move." Samantha pecked a kiss to her son's forehead, releasing him from her embrace. "Think about it Nicky, you might actually like livin' in Phoenix. You could even get a better job, where your friends aren't beaten to death and you don't..."
"I'll think about it." He cut her off, before she blabbed about the coffin with his son present. He had never actually told either of his children what really happened to him, and he didn't plan on it either.
"What's there to think about?" She asked, looking around his old place. "Are you gonna continue livin' like a bachelor for the rest of your life . . . or grow up and become a real father to these kids?"
"I just said that I think this time apart will be good for the both of you." Warrick defended himself, buttoning a clean shirt across his chest. "Greg's got a lot to sort through, and so have you. If you ask me, you two lean on each other way too much. It's not normal or healthy."
"Warrick," Nick turned to look at him in the locker room. "Keep your opinions to yourself."
"Sorry." Closing his locker, Warrick looked towards Nick, seeing the saddened look in his eyes as he looked towards the pictures in his locker. "You miss him?" He guessed, taking a seat beside Nick on the bench. "Are those new pictures?" He looked at them surprised, seeing one of Nick and Greg in each other's arms.
"No, they're... they're from before. People didn't know before, so I couldn't display them." He pointed out to him, climbing to his feet to holster his loaded weapon. "Hey, have you ever been to Phoenix?" He curiously asked him.
"Nope." Warrick shook his head. "Never been outside of Vegas, why?"
"Eh... Samantha," Nick took a seat on the bench behind him again. "She's leavin' for Phoenix in two weeks. She's takin' my son with her." He looked down at his hands in his lap. "Sometimes I wish I could make people stop leavin' me."
"Hey, Nicky." Warrick gently placed his hand over Nick's. "If you ever need... someone to talk to, now that Greg's gone..." He anxiously bit his lower lip, wishing he had never opened his mouth in the first place. "I'm really sorry about some of the things I said when you first told me about... the two of you. I guess, I was just... kinda in shock or something."
"So you called me a paedophile?" Nick reminded him.
"Yeah... I guess I coulda taken it a little better." He admitted, quickly removing his hand from his friend's as he realised how long it had been on Nick's. "So um... Samantha and Bradley are leaving for Phoenix, what are you gonna do about it?" He awkwardly changed the subject.
"I guess... the right thing to do would be to go with them." He looked at his friend's surprised reaction. "Yeah, I know... but he's my son. This is the whole reason why Greg left in the first place. And to tell you the truth, the girls and I could really use a change. Arizona isn't that far away." He climbed to his feet, retrieving his jacket from his locker.
"Now look who's leaving." Warrick climbed to his feet after him. "Are you serious about this?" As Nick turned to face him, Warrick put his arm against the locker beside him, stopping the younger man from leaving. "Your whole life is here in Vegas, along with your friends and everyone who cares about you. What if Greg comes back?"
"It's not that far from here. He'll easily find me."
Looking Nick in the eye, he suddenly felt an urge coursing through his system, one that he couldn't control. He found himself seeking out the younger man's lips. He tasted his warm, moist lips between his own a moment, before gently nudging his tongue inside, wanting to see if Nick tasted how he always imagined.
For just a moment, Nick allowed him to do so, feeling his body warming. He closed his eyes, suddenly picturing Greg in his mind. "Hold it." Nick pushed him away, almost sending him toppling over the bench in the middle of the room. "What the hell are you doin'?" Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Nick looked at his friend surprised, wondering if he was in some kind of deep sleep and completely imagined this. "Why...?"
"I'm sorry." Warrick interrupted him, wiping his own mouth. "I eh..." He anxiously shifted his weight from one foot to the other, rolling his eyes at himself for doing this now. "Just... forget it ever happened, okay?" He hurried towards the door.
Nick wanted to stop him to ask him what was going on, but he couldn't move from the locker he had been pinned against. He looked at his open locker door beside him, looking at the pictures of him and Greg, feeling as though he had somehow betrayed his fiancé by allowing another man to kiss him.
After his shift at the lab, Catherine invited herself back to his place, wanting to talk to him. He had been acting quiet and distant the whole shift, so she wanted to check that he was okay. "Well, what with Greg being away, I thought you could use some company." Catherine stepped into his kitchen, easily pulling open the child lock on the fridge to grab them two beers. "So, here I am. Dining room or front room?"
Nick gave her a small smile, pointing her through to the empty family room.
"So, any idea when he gets back?" She dropped to the sofa, handing him one of the beers from her hands. "The lab isn't the same without him, and I'm sure you've been missing him."
"When would I have time to miss him?" Nick removed the rattle from beneath him, dropping it onto the table in front of him. "I've got three kids runnin' my life. Not that I'm complainin'."
"Of course." She gave him a smile, taking a swig of her beer. "But sometimes us parents need a little contact with the grownup world. I couldn't wait for Lindsey to arrive, but after a couple of months of devoting my whole life to her, I wanted things to be the way they used to be before she came along. I felt so guilty for thinking that afterwards, but after I spoke to my own mother, I found out that it's perfectly normal."
"It makes me feel kinda guilty for givin' my parents loads of crap." Nick smirked, leaning back against the pillows behind him.
"Me too." She agreed with him. "I put my mother through hell during my teen years. Then I feel bad for telling Lindsey off for something that I used to argue with my mother about." Nick smiled back at her, taking another swig of his beer. "So, when does Greg get back?"
"I don't know. He never tells me when he calls, but he's been gone two out of the six months he said he was goin' to be gone..."
"Worried he's found someone else?" Catherine turned to look at him, resting the cold beer against her knee. As Nick avoided answering the question, staring at his beer in front of him, she decided to ask, "What's going on between you two? First you announce to everyone that you're together, then I heard you broke up with Greg. You argued at the hospital when we were looking for Tayla, but as soon as we get back here, you both act as though nothing has happened."
"It's complicated."
"Complicated how?" She asked him, resting her arm on the back of the sofa. "C'mon Nicky, you can tell me anything."
"I broke his heart. He doesn't exactly trust me anymore." He explained to her, taking another swig of his beer. "He thinks I'm better off without him. He doesn't call very often..."
"The phone works both ways, Nicky."
"I know. I wouldn't know what to say though." He laughed. "Greg would probably say everythin' for me, but I don't even know if he wants to talk to me. He calls when he wants to talk. He doesn't tell me a whole lot about what he's doin' or where he is..."
"Do you miss him?" The question seemed innocent enough, but the look on Catherine's face looked as though she was accusing him of not being loyal.
"Like a heartbeat." He spoke softly. "Then I feel guilty about missin' him, while I'm tryin' to get the kids in order."
"Don't. It's okay to want something for yourself." She assured him. "And Greg is amazing, how could you not want him? You should call him."
Nick shook his head, stopping her from grabbing his phone. "I don't wonna call him. I want to give him the space he asked for, and see him when he comes back."
"That old saying of absence makes the heart grow fonder?" She smiled, looking into his eyes. "One look into those big Texas eyes of yours, and Greg will melt into your arms."
Nick chuckled softly, suddenly missing Greg even more. "I did somethin' really stupid today." He decided to tell someone he trusted. "Well, it wasn't actually me who initiated..."
"What?" Catherine hurried him along, eager to find out what it was.
"You can't say anythin'." He warned her, looking her in the eye. "You can't tell anyone, not even in passin'."
"I'm not gonna tell anyone." She promised him. "Now would you hurry up and tell me what's going on?"
"Warrick... kissed me." He blushed as soon as he told her, seeing the confusion on her face. "In the locker room, today. We were just talkin'... then he..."
"Shoved you up against the locker and devoured your lips, while he held you with his firm, rippling muscles?" Catherine voiced one of her own fantasies, blushing herself as Nick looked at her confused. "You mean to tell me that I've been fawning after the guy all this time, and he's gay too?"
"I-I... I'm not sure." He stammered, shaking his head. "He kissed me right after I told him that I was leavin', so maybe..."
"What? You're leaving."
"Shh, you'll wake up my kids." He hissed at her, checking down the hall to make sure that no one was up. "But yeah, it's a possibility that I might be leavin'. Samantha is movin' to Phoenix with my son in two weeks, and I might be goin' with them. The only thing that I really have that's keepin' me here is Greg, but he's not here anymore. If I do go, he'll be able to find me..."
"What about your job and your friends?" Catherine asked him, trying to keep her voice down through her shock. She had forgotten all about the kiss, worrying she was about to lose another friend from the lab. "You're basically just moving over there for this woman. Haven't you ever heard of shared custody?"
"I can't leave my son alone. This is exactly what Greg was talkin' about..."
"Screw Greg, he isn't even here!" Catherine snapped, climbing to her feet. "You can't just go. Even though I should be a little more hostile towards you, because you're taking away my one chance I had with sleeping with the lab hottie, I want you to stay."
Nick smiled up at her, realising why Greg never told Catherine that he was leaving. "I haven't officially decided yet." He defended himself. "Samantha only just told me before my shift started. And I made a promise to my son. If I do move, I can give the girls a proper home. There's nothin' that's really keepin' me here in Vegas."
"You're right." She sighed softly, placing her hand in his own. "Hey, maybe with you gone, some of the hot guys will start looking my way?"
Thanks for reading, please review!
~ Holly