Sorry for the wait guys, here's the next chapter. Just a word of warning though, there are only two more chapters after this one...
Calleigh wheeled Horatio down a number of corridors until she found what she was looking for, "Aha! Here we go, Horatio" she said as she came to a set of double doors, she opened them and pushed the wheelchair out into the beautiful grounds of the hospital garden. Finding a large tree to stop under for shade she placed the brakes on the chair and looked at Horatio, he heart warmed at the image of him, it was the first time she had seen a genuine smile on his face for what seemed like a very long time. "What do you think, Horatio?"
He turned his head to look at her smiled serenely, "It's wonderful, Calleigh. Thank you" To Horatio it seemed as if he had been trapped in a hospital room for eternity, the artificial lighting and lack of windows had left him in a permanent state of confusion, never knowing if it was day or night. He closed his eyes as he felt the strong rays of the sun warm his skin, he hadn't realised how much he had missed the simple pleasures of a warm Miami day.
"That's not all, Handsome" she told him conspiratorially as she looked into the large purse she had been carrying, "I took the liberty of smuggling in some contraband too" She smiled cheekily as she took two Styrofoam cups out of a brown paper bag, "Fresh from your favourite coffee shop" she said as she handed him a cup.
"Black, two sugars?" he asked hopefully, with a small twinkle in his eyes.
"With an extra shot" she whispered to him.
"Calleigh, I think I love you" he told her as he took a long swig from the cup, closing his eyes as his body registered the pleasure.
She felt her heart pound at his last statement; her heart told her that he had just declared his love for her whilst her head told her he was just showing his gratitude for the coffee she had brought him. Putting her romantic thoughts about her boss to one side she delved back into the paper bag and brought out two chocolate muffins, "I also snuck this in for you too, handsome"
"How did you know?" he asked her, he had no idea that she knew his favourite flavour.
"The girls at the coffee shop miss you, they told me that these are your favourites" Calleigh took a bite of hers, "I can see why" she said as she licked some icing from the corner of her mouth.
Horatio swallowed nervously as he watched Calleigh eat her cake, never had he seen a muffin be devoured with such grace and beauty. Admonishing himself for being turned on by watching Calleigh eat he tried his best to think of cold showers and dead bodies in an effort to calm the stirring in his loins. He realised that if she licked her lips one more time that he would probably spontaneously combust right there and then. He was disturbed from his fantasy by Calleigh's sweet voice, "Are you going to eat that, Horatio?" she asked eyeing up his still uneaten muffin.
"Uh…..yes, thank you" he stuttered as he attempted to peel the paper case off with shaky hands. He squeezed his eyes together and growled under his breath as he found his body once again failing to respond to his commands.
Seeing him struggle, Calleigh leaned over and steadied his hands and together they removed the offending material, "There you go" she told him as she looked up, her face was mere inches from his, she could feel his breath on her face, she was tempted to lean in and close the distance further so that she could kiss him tenderly. Their gazes locked for what seemed like an eternity, the tender moment was broken when Horatio's stomach growled loudly. "Sorry" he mouthed, looking slightly embarrassed.
She leaned back onto the bench and took a moment to gather her emotions, "You need to eat up, Handsome" she smiled at him, "You're skin and bones, we need to fatten you up a little" She took a good look at him, it was true that he had lost a lot of weight since the ordeal had begun, he was a naturally slim man anyway but at the moment he looked positively gaunt.
He returned her smile, "I'm not sure my doctor would agree that this is the kind of food I should be eating" he teased as he took a bite from the muffin, he groaned in pleasure as the chocolate stimulated his taste buds. "Still, it's better than the slop they call 'food' in here"
"You should try to eat more, Horatio. You need to keep your strength up" The doctor had told them that his lack of appetite was normal in these kind of situations but he had also stressed the importance of Horatio eating to regain his strength as his current lack of energy was compounded by the fact that he was eating so little.
"To be honest, Calleigh" he said as he turned to look at her, "I haven't really felt that hungry and when I have it's just made me feel sick when I eat anything"
"Well, I'll just have to bring you coffee and cake every day then, won't I?" she told him playfully as he finished off the rest of the muffin and his coffee. They sat in comfortable silence for a while, she glanced at him and realised that he had probably fallen asleep. She placed her hand on his arm and shook him gently, "Horatio?" she called his name softly, and he groaned and opened his eyes to look at her.
"Huh? Calleigh, where are we?" he asked her confused, as he rubbed at his eyes.
She knew it was time to return Horatio to his room, his morning of therapy combined with his little trip to the hospital gardens had exhausted him. The doctor had warned that although he was improving daily and regaining some physical strength that his memory and moods were likely to suffer if he became overly tired. "Come on, Handsome" she told him, "Time to get you back to your room" She took the brake off the wheelchair and pushed him back towards the hospital entrance.
"How did I get out here?" he asked her impatiently, angry at himself for not knowing what was going on.
"I brought you out to enjoy the sunshine for a little while. You're tired; I'm going to take you back to your room so you can have a rest"
"I'm not a baby, Calleigh" he told her harshly as he folded his arms over his chest.
She flinched at his cold tone but let his petulance slide, she knew that she needed to make allowances for his mood swings, the doctor had told them that it would improve with time along with his physical abilities. "Definitely time to get you back" she muttered under her breath.
They travelled the rest of the way to his room in silence, she could hear him sucking in his breath and twice caught him wiping at his eyes. She pushed the chair into the private room and parked it by the bed, placing the brake on she crouched down to look at him face to face. "It's going to be ok, Horatio" she told him, taking both of his hands in hers and squeezing them, "You've just tired yourself out, let me help you get into bed" Her heart ached to see him look so despondent, she lifted a hand to catch a stray tear rolling down his cheek with her thumb.
"I'm pathetic" he told her bitterly, not wanting to look at her.
Shocked by his negativity she gently cupped his face and raised his head to look at her, he averted his gaze. "Look at me" she told him, he continued to look away, "Horatio" she said more firmly, he reluctantly looked into her eyes. "You are not pathetic. You've been through hell the last couple of weeks, you're ill and tired but you're not going to feel like this forever, I promise you"
"I don't know why you're bothering, Calleigh. I'm just a washed up, lonely old man" he responded, his tone low.
"I'm bothering because I love you!" she shot back, her voice rising.
Horatio's face registered his shock at her outburst and his eyes widened. "You don't love me Calleigh, you pity me"
"That's where you're wrong, Horatio. We all love you; we just want you to get better. We miss you at the lab; it's not the same without you"
His heart sank a little when she compared her love for him as being the same as that of the team. "Why would she love a stupid old fool like you?" he told himself bitterly. Wanting to be left on his own he felt his emotional barriers come down, "I'm tired, Calleigh. I think I just need to be left on my own"
"Ok, Horatio. Let me help you get back into bed" she replied as he helped him stand, she watched him struggle as he tried to swing his shaky legs back on to the bed, she moved to help him but froze when she saw the warning look on his face telling her to back off. She gave him one last glance before leaving his room and shutting the door quietly behind her, only then did she allow the tears to fall.