A/N: Thank you all for your reviews. Here is the next part for you with the one or other surprise in store.

Chapter 8

His eyes were closed in delight, while his fingers were sliding over the ivories. He knew this piece by heart; every pause, every chord. They could wake him up in the middle of the night and he could tell them exactly where the difficulty was and where the easiness.

Next to the music stand was a glass of wine waiting for him; between his fingers a cigar was slowly burning down. If he hadn't been in his living room, sitting in front of a black, polished grand piano, he would have fitted right into some night club like this. But Horatio didn't care; he was enjoying himself too much at this very moment.

After their dinner, Stella had insisted on cleaning the kitchen and had shooed him out of the room. At first Horatio had thought about putting on some music, but when his eyes had fallen on his 'baby' he'd decided to make some music on his own. He didn't do that very often, mostly due to the lack of time, but tonight he'd all the time in the world and he hoped that Stella might appreciate it.

And so he was still playing, oblivious of the fact, that Stella had finished her task and was now leaning against the door frame and watching him in awe.

She'd always wondered if Horatio actually could play the piano when she'd seen the instrument on her first day, but never had dared to ask him. Why, she didn't know, but it didn't matter any longer. She wasn't well versed into classical music at all, but for her it sounded really good.

Horatio certainly was a man of many talents. The pasta had been overly delicious (something she'd told him more than once during their meal) and she'd thoroughly enjoyed every bite of it. And he was also playing the piano…this man was extraordinary for sure. And she really couldn't understand why women weren't all over him. He truly was one of a kind and she felt privileged to see this private side of him. She could only imagine that only few people were allowed to do that.

With a smile she slowly walked towards him and when she stopped next to the small piano stool she sipped from her wine and rested a hand on his shoulder.

Slowly, Horatio acknowledged her presence by opening his eyes. "Hey," he smiled at her and took a drag of his cigar. "Sit with me?" he asked.

"I'd love to," she nodded and slid down on the stool next to him. "So smoking and playing the piano the same time? Isn't there some rule against it?" she asked amused, which made Horatio laugh.

"It's probably a capital sin in society, but I'm at home," he smiled and took another drag, while he continued playing one handed. "And for me, a good glass of wine, a good cigar and playing some music just belongs together."

"Hmm, you definitely need to have some talent to play such a piece one handed, right?" she asked and Horatio just shrugged.

"I don't mind making a mistake when I'm playing for myself," he said easily and handed her the cigar, "but since I'm not alone tonight, I can't allow me any mistakes, now can I?"

"It's not as if I would realise them anyway," Stella giggled and eyed the cigar in her hand. "What are you playing?"

"Chopin, Nocturne op posthum," he said and still looked at her, "do you like classical music?" he asked intrigued.

"I can't say that I have much knowledge about this genre," she admitted.

"Ah," he nodded and then stopped playing. "Well maybe you know this one here," he said after a small drink and started playing again.

After listening to it for a few moments, Stella nodded. "Isn't it the Moonlight Sonata?" she asked and hoped that she hadn't embarrassed herself right now.

"Yes, it is," Horatio smiled encouragingly at her.

"Are you just playing sad pieces?" Stella asked after while.

"Sad pieces?" he asked astonished.

"Well…at least they sound…sad in a way…," she really was anything but a pro about this kind of music. She just listened to what she liked, no matter who'd written it in the first place.

"Hmm," Horatio mused and when the song ended, he stopped for a moment. "I'll play a happier song, if you can guess the name of this one here," he challenged her.

"Alright," she nodded and didn't have much hope to recognize a song at all, let alone knowing its name.

"I'm sure you know it," Horatio grinned and started to play. "So does that ring a bell?" he asked after a while, and looked at her expectantly.

"It's from a movie," Stella stated.

"Mhm, you're right, it is. A famous one nonetheless."

"Argh I can't believe it. It's on the tip of my tongue," she exclaimed and took a deep calming breath. "It's from…from..," she mumbled to herself. "It's from…Jurassic Park, yes it's the Jurassic Park theme!"

Laughing at her excitement, Horatio shook his head. "You're right it is. So I guess you deserve your happy song, huh?"

"Of course I do," she grinned widely at him.

"Okay, it's called Rondo Alla Turca, by Mozart," he said and stretched his hands before he started to play again.

Stella watched his quick fingers in amazement. She'd definitely have a knot in her own after seconds, so she was really fascinated by what Horatio was capable of. "Where did you learn to play?" she asked after a while and hoped she wouldn't interrupt him by doing so.

"At home, when I was a kid," came the slow reply.

"So your parents wanted you to have musical education?" she asked intrigued.

"My mother actually," he corrected her mildly. "She always wanted us, me and my brother, to play at least one instrument and since we had a piano at home, piano it was."

This was really interesting. "And when did you start playing?"

Horatio gave his best impression of a shrug. "I'm not sure, when I was four or five I guess. I just know that Ray hadn't been born yet."

"So your mother taught you how to play?"

"Yes, she did. She was really talented, in my humble opinion," he sighed and closed his eyes when he finished the last tones. Talking about his mom was never easy for him, so he tried to change the subject a bit. Taking the cigar from her, grinned at her. "Ever smoked one?"

"A cigar? No," she shook her head. "Cigarettes when I was younger."

"Oh you can hardly compare a fine cigar to an ordinary cigarette," he snorted for good measure. "Curious?" he asked, because he could see it in her eyes.

"And if I don't like it? Then the cigar is wasted."

"Stella," he chided her softly, "I think it's safe to say, that you can take a drag from mine." They had kissed each other and not only on the cheek, so it was too late to feel false shame. "Mhm?"

Stella just averted her eyes and took the cigar from him.

"Don't inhale, just whiff," he reminded her.

"Okay," she nodded and took a drag, but the moment the smoke entered her mouth, her face took a reddish colour and she started to cough.

"I told you not to inhale," Horatio couldn't stop laughing. "It's not a cigarette!"

"Ugh, how can you enjoy that?" Stella brought out and thrust the cigar into his hands. "Witches' brew."

"Aww," Horatio looked at his cigar, "don't listen to her, she didn't mean it."

"I did!" Stella shot back and drank something to stop the coughing.

"You just don't know what's good," Horatio replied easily and held his hand out for her. "Come on, let's get somewhere more comfortable, before you fall from the stool."

"Haha," Stella huffed but took his hand anyway.

"Believe it or not, but some women are quite…sexy when they smoke a cigar," Horatio said and pulled her towards the couch.

"Coughing your lungs out isn't worth looking sexy."

"I guess all plastic dolls over the world would disagree with that," Horatio grinned and sat down on the couch. Then he reached for the ashtray and put the cigar into it.

"Horatio?" Stella asked confused.

"It's fine, it will just run out and I can smoke the rest later," he smiled at her. "Do you want some more wine?"

"Are you trying to get me drunk?" she drawled amused and leaned back.

"Of course, that's my normal plan. First I let them smoke my cigars, then I'll give them wine to stop the coughing and after five or six glasses…" he trailed off.

"My, you're such a charmer," she rolled her eyes. "But another glass would be nice."

"Don't I know it?" he chuckled and got up again. "Be right back," he saluted and vanished into the kitchen.

"You know," Stella started when he came back again, "this was really a thoughtful gift from him," she nodded towards the photo album, which was lying on the couch table.

"Mhm, I'm still surprised myself to be honest," Horatio smiled gently and re-filled their glasses. "I didn't expect him to get me anything and then...this."

"Yes, it was obvious that you were...surprised," Stella teased him. "Should we have a look at it? Together?"

Horatio was torn between accepting and declining her offer. He already knew that it would be both wonderful and sad to see all those pictures: Maybe it was a good idea then to have someone with him.

As if sensing his thoughts, she squeezed his knee. "We don't have to do that now, Horatio, but maybe.."

"No, it's okay. I just don't know how I'll react to the pictures."

"That's fine; no matter how you react, if sad or happy, I'll be here and won't think any less of you. Okay?"

"Okay," he sighed and gave her a grateful smile, before he reached for the album.

"I know that newborns have blue eyes, but to be honest, those are not the typical baby eyes, those are yours," Stella commented when they came to a picture where Kyle's eyes were clearly visible.

"You think so?" Horatio asked and looked at her questioningly.

"Absolutely; it's the same stare in a way," she nodded.

"I'm starring at people?" he chuckled amused.

"Sometimes," she grinned and winked at him. "But what I mean is this determined look, he certainly inherited from you."

"Like the hands on the hips," Horatio joked.

"Ha, yes, I already noticed that," she laughed. "And seeing the reddish hair, there's no way that you can repudiate him. Not that you'd ever do that anyway," she quickly added in an afterthought.

"I really wish I'd known about him back then," Horatio sighed and smiled lightly when his eyes ran over a self painted picture. "It seems that he inherited my drawing skills as well," he snorted.

"So you draw like a five year old?" Stella teased. "Remind me that I never ask you for something self made for a present."

"I'm not that bad…I guess."

"We won't chance it," she made clear and winced inwardly when the next picture was showing Kyle and an elderly woman. "Do you know who that is?"

"I can only assume," he shrugged. "Judging from his age, maybe his grandmother, Julia's mother, but I'm not sure."

"Hmm," Stella commented. "Do you…do you know if she's still alive?" she asked carefully.

"I have absolutely no idea and to be honest, I don't care. If I can trust Julia on this, then it was her mother's doing that Kyle ended in foster care, so there are no happy feelings on my side for this woman."

"Now this was like opening a can of worms. Great, Stella." "I'm sorry, I didn't know..," she tried to apologize, but Horatio just shook his head.

"Not your fault. But that's how it is. I can't even blame the woman; I mean should she have looked out for her grandson? Yes. But knowing Julia and her way of…motherhood…I'm not surprised that Kyle ended up away from his family. Sometimes I wonder if this had been good, I mean…growing up in a shattered family isn't what one wishes for their children. But then again, he was handed around from one family to the other, which has damaged him as well. And when I think about that fact that my son was…always in my reach in some way…that I could have helped him…"

"But you didn't know Horatio and you're not to blame. Julia is Kyle's mother and she should have taken care of him like every good mother," Stella interrupted him immediately. "But she left him with someone else and you're not to blame for that. And do you know why? Because I know from the bottom of my heart that if you had known about him, you would have done anything in your power to help him…to be his father. Am I right?"

"Yeah," he whispered. "I would have and I actually did when I found him."

"See? But there was a different plan for the both of you. I can't tell you why fate decided to make it so hard for the two of you, but you're together at last," she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his shoulder. "And that's the most important thing, isn't it?" she asked softly.

"It is," he agreed, but his voice was still drained with melancholy. "But there's so much regret…so much time lost."

"You need to let go of that, Horatio. I know it's easier said than done, but before you can't let go of that...before you can't let go of looking into the past, you can't enjoy the here and now, let alone the future with your son. And may I say that spending time with your son is highly enjoyable."

"He...certainly is a great kid," Horatio said shyly, but definitely with proud.

"Yes he is and now you can help him growing into a fine man," Stella smiled at his behaviour and kissed his pink cheek. "And since his father is such a fine man, I'm positive that Kyle will follow in his father's footsteps."

"Flattery will get you anywhere, Stella," he turned his head to face her.

"I'll remember that," she said and squeezed him. "But it wasn't meant as such in particular, you know? I can see that the boy is looking up to you, otherwise he would have never invested so much time in finding pictures…not to forget that he also asked your best friends to help him. I don't know that much about the boy let alone his past, but from experience I know that not every boy with this particular past would be so...kind...and sensitive. And this is your work, Horatio."

"Thank you Stella, hearing this means a lot to me," he said gratefully and gave her a small smile.

"Well I only tell you the truth," she smiled and snapped the album shut. Then she put it on the table again and grinned at his confused look. "And I think," she started, "I think people need to tell you this more often," she said convinced and straddled him. "You're a good father, Horatio. Should, would, could…those are words of a fool. They only make you feel bad."

"Maybe," he mumbled and wrapped his arms around her.

"No, not maybe; they do," she corrected him. "In Boston you told me that I need to let go of Frankie, or I'll let him win." With infinite care she ran her fingertips over his face. "The same goes for you; don't let the past win. There's too much to lose in the future." She just knew that his mind was always playing around the 'what if' questions and she also knew that this could make him blind for what he actually had in front of him.

"It's hard," he mumbled and closed his eyes in relish. He wasn't the touchy type of guy, but with Stella it was different. She just knew how to sooth him, if by experience or reflex, he didn't care. She did and that was important.

"I know," she whispered and pressed light kisses on his eyelids. "It took me years to get over it; it actually took you and a night in Boston to let me come to terms with it. I don't expect you to do a one-eighty, I just want you to open your eyes and see what's in front of you."

And that he did. He opened his eyes and what he saw, what he really saw in this very moment took his breath away. He saw trust, patience, safety and proud. But he also saw other things, confidence, happiness, passion and maybe…something like love. Her eyes were telling him more than a thousand words could say and he accepted this gift. So when he captured her lips with his, there was no flourish, no squeals of delight like in the Hollywood movies; no, there was only calm surrender to what had built up between them since that night in Boston.

Stella couldn't help but smile into their kiss. He still tasted like a mixture of cigar, wine and a hint of tomato sauce. Moments before she would have pulled a face at this mixture, but combined with his unique flavour, she was quickly getting addicted to it.

Horatio must have felt the same, because when they broke the kiss, they were both out of breath. "This was…nice," he gave her a coy smile, which told her that it had been more than just nice. "Very nice," he continued and let his hands roam over her back and waist.

Biting her bottom lip provocatively, she reached for his hands and entwined them with hers. "Only very nice?" she purred into his ear and smiled to herself when she heard him gulp. She was a determined woman and what she wanted she got. And this time, this was Horatio. So when he freed his hands and started to massage her thighs, she took his face in her hands and looked into his eyes. "No stopping this time, Horatio. No thinking about what could be and what shouldn't. This is for you, me and us."

Holding her gaze, he knew that this was his chance to stop this. This was his chance to keep their status quo. This was his chance to allow himself something he had secretly longed for since Boston. He would never have this chance again, so he either took it or he didn't.

And he did.

"No, stopping this time," he told her with all the confidence he could muster in his slightly aroused state. "No stopping."

tbc