Disclaimer: Moochie and Prairie do not own CSI.

Maria. I Just Met A Girl Named Maria….

Nick and Catherine stare at each other for a second and then the grins break out. Leaping out of their chairs they let out war whoops of victory and start hugging each other. Without even a second's thought, they exchange several excited kisses.

Nate Culver and Martin Decker still sit, grinning at each other. Each has the same thought, "Nick's single parent status might be in grave danger, if they keep that up."

Chapter 6

Nick's arms slid down to Catherine's lower back, her lips warm, soft, and pliant against his. His fingertips grazed the skin below the edge of her shirt and she moaned into his mouth. The sound brought him back to reality. He was in the lawyer's conference room trying to get custody of Maria and he and Catherine were making out like lovesick teenagers. He pulled back, Catherine grunting in disappointment when his lips left hers.

"We have to stop," he panted. "We can't do this here." His brain screamed at him that they shouldn't be doing this at all.

Catherine's arms dropped to her sides and she stepped back, her gaze surveying the room to find that they had been left alone. She raised a trembling hand to push her strawberry blonde locks behind her ears. She couldn't believe what had just happened. Nick had always been a good friend, but now she wasn't quite sure how to classify their relationship. Kissing him had felt so right; her lips still tingled from his touch. She felt more alive than she had in years.

Nick studied his coworker and good friend. Her hair was mussed, her eyes half-lidded, and her lips swollen from his kisses. She was absolutely beautiful. He swallowed hard, unsure of what to say. "Catherine….," he began, trailing off when the words refused to come.

"It's okay, Nicky," she soothed, still a bit breathless from his kisses. "We just got a little carried away after getting good news. That's all. It didn't mean anything." It was just a little lie she told herself. It would spare both of them difficult feelings and they would be able to work together with no problems. If that was the case, then why did saying those four little words make her feel so lousy? Maybe it was the broken-hearted expression that crossed Nick's face when he heard them. Nick always wore his emotions on his sleeve; she could tell what he was thinking, and she knew she had just hurt him with her words. "Nicky-" she began.

He cut her off. "It's okay, Cat. I understand. I've got to head home. I have a lot to do. Thanks for everything today. It wouldn't have turned out this well if you didn't get in touch with Ms. Durango."

The silence was uncomfortable on the ride home. Neither CSI knew what to say to the other, so they said nothing at all. "See you at work tonight," Catherine called as she hopped out of the car when they arrived back at her place.

He nodded and watched her go, his eyes appreciating the way her lithe body moved. Then he drove home and entered his lonely house, wandering around, rearranging things listlessly. He couldn't seem to settle down to any one thing. Finally, he decided he would begin working on Maria's room.

Nick soon had everything either moved out of the room or covered and he used a screwdriver to pry open the first can of paint. A soft, rosy pink color was revealed. He stirred it and carefully poured some into the paint tray. Soon he had the room covered in its first coat of paint.

There wasn't time to do anything else; he had to get ready for work. Nick grimaced into the bathroom mirror at the pink paint speckled over his dark hair. He scrubbed extra hard in the shower before emerging and dressing in nice jeans and a red shirt for work.

Walking into the lab a few hours later, he felt exhaustion tug at him. Stifling a yawn, he headed into the locker room to stow his things.

"Pink is your color, Nicky," Sara's laughing voice called out behind him.

He turned, confusion plastered on his face.

Sara reached up and fingered his hair. "You missed some," she announced, brushing at it with her fingernails. "I bet you were working on Maria's room."

He nodded and swatted her hand away.

"Hey, I'm just trying to keep you from looking like an Easter egg," she retorted, turning to her own locker.

Catherine appeared in the doorway, nearly skidding to a stop when she saw Sara and then heading in the opposite direction. Sara studied Nick closely and watched as her friend developed a sudden fascination with the inside of his locker. In an instant she knew something was up between her good friend and her boss. "Okay, Nick, spill it. What's with you and Catherine?"

"Nothing," he answered defensively.

"Uh-huh," she replied sarcastically, placing her belongings in her locker and heading out the door. "See you later."

Once she left, Nick sank down on the bench, his mind replaying the taste of Catherine's mouth and the feeling of her small, firm body in his arms. The sound of her voice in the doorway caught his attention and he looked up to find her conversing with Ray. She glanced in his direction and gave him a tentative smile before turning her full attention back to her conversation.

Nick swallowed hard and forced himself to focus his thoughts on Maria. He needed to be focused on his soon-to-be little girl and not on a nonexistent relationship with Catherine. Heaving a deep sigh, he pushed off the bench and headed to the ballistics lab to get some answers on his latest case.

Catherine caught a new case, so she was out of the lab for the rest of the shift. Nick was glad that he didn't have to expend extra energy avoiding her. He was too tired. Once the shift was finally over, he decided to swing by the hospital and visit Maria. To his surprise when he entered the NICU, a tall, slender strawberry blonde was already there cuddling his would-be daughter in her arms.

"Catherine," he murmured softly as he approached.

She looked up with tears shimmering in her big blue eyes. "What's wrong with people, Nicky?"

"My case last night – a little girl not much bigger than Maria was thrown out of a window by her mother so that the father couldn't have her." Catherine cradled Maria closer.

Nick felt sick in the pit of his stomach at his friend's words. He loved Maria so much; he couldn't imagine anyone doing something so horrible to their child. He watched as silent tears coursed down Catherine's cheeks. Unable to stop himself, he moved closer and knelt beside her, thumbing the salty drops away. "I don't understand why people do things like that, Catherine, and I don't think I ever will. When something like that happens, it makes me more determined than ever to do my job and get that little girl justice for what happened to her."

Catherine sniffled and nodded. "Thanks, Nick. I needed to hear that right now." She felt his strong, warm hand clasp her shoulder and looked up at him with a grateful, if wobbly, smile.

Unable to define what possessed him, Nick stood and bent over and placed a kiss on the crown of her head. She sniffled yet again and offered him the baby. "Here, it's your turn. She's going to be your daughter and she needs some loving from her daddy."

He took the baby carefully. "Hi, sweetheart. I hope you'll be able to go home with me soon," he crooned. Maria stared up at him, mesmerized by his kind voice and dark eyes. An ache filled his heart. "What if they don't let me have her, Catherine? What if they give her to someone else?"

"No one could love this little girl more than you do, Nick," she soothed, standing and rubbing his arm gently. "You will be an incredible father. If they can't see that then there's something wrong with them."

"Money talks," he admitted softly, not taking his eyes off Maria. "You know that."

"I also know that anyone can see how much you love this little girl." Catherine rested her head against Nick's strong shoulder and the three of them stood there silently, just like a little family.

TBC…

Please review.