Note: I altered the storyline of Marisol/Horatio. From the her first episode, I found her character to be annoying. I don't shot her or kill her though.

The Definition of Family

The marriage between Horatio Caine and Marisol Delko had been brief, lasting a just few weeks off of a year. Eric had shown up at the ceremony at city hall even though he thought it was a bad, a very bad idea. The quick courtship of the his boss and sister gave Eric a bad feeling; he somehow felt Horatio was completely sincere but his sister not so. And Horatio wasn't only his boss but his best friend.

The reason Horatio and Marisol got divorced was over children. When they got together it was based on the fact that both presumably desperately wanted a baby. Even though she were in remission because of the chemotherapy and radiation Marisol had undergone, her getting pregnant was very difficult, most likely impossible. The two had talked about adoption or having a baby through a surrogate mother. After they married, Marisol realized just how much Horatio wanted children and that a baby was going to take much of his attention from her. She liked, no loved, being the center of his attention and didn't want that to change.

When Horatio filed for divorce after realizing he didn't want to live with someone who had emotionally duped him, he thought Eric would be angry with him. Eric wasn't angry with Horatio. In fact, he was relieved. He was angry with Marisol and felt sorry for Horatio, Eric's whole family did. Marisol hadn't asked the court for Horatio to pay her any alimony or for any of Horatio's assets. Everything that was his before was still his. She did so because her parents, two sisters and brother were on Horatio's side and she knew it. Eric apologized to him several times.

"You didn't deserve this, H. I'm sorry."

"Eric," Horatio told him, "none of this is your fault. It's all right. I'll make it."

Maybe this was why Horatio became so attached to Chloe. She was like the child he thought he came so close to having. He was like a second dad to her. The bond the two had was almost as close as the one Chloe had with Eric. If mommy or daddy weren't around and Chloe got frightened or upset uncle Horatio could sooth her just as easily. In the event that something happened to both Eric and Calleigh when their child was still young Chloe would be raised by Horatio. Eric's family didn't have a problem with this because they saw the intense bond the two had and knew that Horatio would never shut them out of Chloe's life.

Then there was Marisol. She had held Chloe once; when she was a week old, the then-newborn had spat up on her aunt. Marisol hadn't even touched Chloe since. It had bothered Marisol how the family had seemed to focus on Eric after he was shot. Then when Chloe was born how everyone fussed over her. Marisol seldom to never attended family gatherings now. Horatio was still considered family to the Delkos, was often there and received a very warm welcome.

In Chloe's mind when it came to extended family there was uncle Horatio (or uncle H), Auntie Alexx and her kids and husband, uncle Frank, Ryan ("'Yan") and Natalia ("'Alia") Aunt Paloma and Aunt Rachel who were her dad's sisters (with their kids and husbands), Nana and pop-pop, her dad's parents and Aunt Roberta, her mom's aunt. Chloe had thrown up on uncle Horatio the first time he held her, Horatio had laughed. He told Eric he took it as a sign she liked him. She didn't know Marisol or Calleigh hadn't allowed her parents to have a relationship with Chloe. The two were still drunks, off the wagon more than on. She and Eric didn't want Chloe exposed to that. Plus along with the already rocky relationship Calleigh and her mother already had, her mother flat-out refused to view or refer to Chloe as Calleigh's daughter, even in the presence of the little girl. This was the only way in which Calleigh's parents differed, her father even called Chloe his grandchild. Calleigh and Eric willing to let her father, Duke have a relationship with their daughter on the condition that he got and stayed sober. Duke couldn't do that so even though he thought of the girl as his grandchild the two didn't have a relationship.

Sometimes the definition of family had little to do with blood.