I do not own CSI.
Rated T - language and sexual innuendo.
I was out of town so sorry for the delay my faithful readers...
although the reviews have dwindled to nearly nothing. Sigh.
Need ya's to kick it up!
Here is a longer chapter for ya since I kept you waiting.
Jules as HUGE news to share with Nick. Nick has HUGE news to share with Jules.
And Brooke has a HUGE vendetta she can't let go of.
He wasn't even out of the Las Vegas Crime Lab when he called Jules. He couldn't wait to tell her the news so he wanted her to meet him at the hotel as soon as possible. He had to tell her something huge.
Nick would never tell her their findings over the phone especially since, while it was good news, it was also scary news. Scary because obviously Brooke Latham has mental problems and she apparently has set her sights on destroying his family. That did not sit well with Nick and it certainly wouldn't sit well with Jules either.
He knew he needed to sit her down and tell her what they found. He was not about to tell her the second half of the puzzle...he couldn't tell her about her mother. He AND Warrick needed to do that. It would have to be both her husband and her brother to break the news that Jolene Parker was still alive and breathing and they both knew it this whole time. He squished his face up and made a sound of disgust because he knew he and Warrick were also going to have to slap her with the Jimmy Cole tie in too. Ugh. It made Nick sick.
As Nick clicked his door opener and threw his bag in the backseat, he began to wonder if Jules would be irate for being lied to. He was hoping that maybe, just maybe she might surprise him and be ambivalent at the revelation. Nick decided it could very well be a 50/50 shot and he was not willing to take the bet alone. Nick shook his head as he started the ignition.
"Noooo way, uh uh, Warrick is gonna have to be sittin' right next to me when we drop that bomb on her! No way am I gonna do this alone," he said outloud as he turned left out of the parking lot.
But, for now, Nick would be the one to tell her that the photos of him and Brooke were not as they seemed. He was innocent. She will tell him she already knew that. She believed him when no one else could or even should have. She was his champion and he loved her more than life itself. He couldn't wait to hand her proof though. He couldn't wait to see her smile.
Nick reached over and grabbed his cell phone. He wanted to call Jules and tell her he was running late. He would tell her he had to go back to the lab after his shift and he would tell her why when she got to the hotel. He snapped open his phone and dialed his home number.
Jules grabbed the phone off the counter top and dialed Nick's cell phone. She would never tell him over the phone that she was pregnant, of course, but she just needed to hear his voice to feel close to him. She also wanted to make plans to meet him immediately. She needed to tell him something huge and she would meet him at the Bellagio as soon as she could. She figured he would probably be getting out of the shower by now. That was his usual drill; Nick would come in from work and immediately take a shower. She knew now would probably be the best time to call him since he hadn't called her on his drive home from work which actually surprised her a little. But in this case, it turned out to be for the best. She needed to call him now that she knew the truth. Now that she knew without a shadow of a doubt that they were going to be having another baby.
His phone barely rang when he picked it up.
"Nick?" she said as she heard numbers being dialed.
"Hey! I was just calling you!" he said excitedly to find her on the other end of the phone so quickly.
"Great minds, Cowboy," she smiled on the other end.
"Listen, I have some huge news!" he exclaimed.
"Well, funny thing about that is I have some huge news too…Are you at the hotel?"
"No, I am leaving the Crime Lab now. I needed to go back for something," he didn't tell her that that something was learning about Brooke, Jolene, and Cole taking part in this mess.
"Oh, are you heading there now?" she asked.
"Yeah, can you meet me there?" he asked.
"Absolutely, I will leave now," she told him happily, "and Emma is with Brett at the zoo so if you don't mind you won't get to see her right now," she said happy that she was going to have a chance to sit down with Nick one on one and deliver the news that they not only made it through this but they made a baby along the way.
"No, no, that's good. I'm happy she's having fun and you and I need to talk alone anyway," he nodded as he drove toward the hotel. He was so excited to tell her his news, it didn't dawn on him to wonder what her huge news was.
Nick made it back to the Bellagio quickly. He was hoping to get there before her so he could jump into the shower and change into sweats and a t-shirt first, as well as lay out the pictures for her to see that he was not coherent when he was supposedly with Brooke.
Nick slid his key card into the slot and once the light turned green he walked into his room happily. He kicked off his shoes and placed them neatly against the side of the wall. He placed the file on the small round table by the window and opened it before taking off his pants and draping them over the chair. Standing in his black boxer briefs, he looked down and stared over the CODIS printout as he unbuttoned his gray shirt. As soon as the last button was undone he heard the knock on the door. His shirt hung open as he walked to answer the door in his underwear. He was so excited to see Jules and couldn't wait to tell her what they found out today.
Just before she raised her fist to rap her knuckles against the door of Room 710, Brooke reached into her purse and grabbed her lipstick. After refreshing her lips she made sure she smeared some on her index finger and thumb just before knocking loudly on the door.
Her breath was nearly taken away when she saw Nick open the door smiling. True, he obviously thought it was his wife but she would take that smile however she could get it. He stood in front of her wearing only an open button down and his underwear. He was nothing short of delicious. Brooke was speechless at how gorgeous he still was.
"BROOKE?" he literally yelled in her face.
He was not happy to see her at all.
"Hey, Nicky, I um, I was hoping we could talk?" she swallowed hard and become unnerved at his chilly reaction.
"What are you doing…Oh, no, no, no, you are not doing this to me again…no way…no way…" he said and he pointed at her, "you nearly ruined my life. I got my wife back simply by her faith in me alone, no thanks to you...Oh, no, no...I don't want to even SEE your face never mind talk to you!" he yelled just as they both heard the 'ding' of the elevator.
Jules exited the elevator and thought she heard Nick's voice but she wasn't sure...she couldn't make out what he was saying. As she came walking down the hallway of the 7th floor she spotted the blonde standing outside Room 710 and she felt her blood begin to boil. She felt like she couldn't breathe.
"What is Brooke Latham doing in Las Vegas? How dare this bitch come back here!" she nearly screamed as she walked faster toward them. "Okay Jules, calm down…you know this is not Nick's doing…you know this psycho is up to know good. BUT WHY IS HE IN HIS UNDERWEAR? WHY IS HE ONLY PARTIALLY DRESSED? No, stop...think! You trust Nick… remember, Baby Girl…remember Nick is a good man,'" she could almost hear her Grams giving her the peace she needed. After all, she needed to stay calm now more than ever…she had his baby inside her.
Brooke saw Jules walking toward them out of the corner of her eye so she decided to go for the gold and put on the show.
She reached out and touched his collar dragging the material between her thumb and index finger. Nick jerked back away from her but he didn't know that her plan had already been accomplished. She smeared her lipstick on his collar. "Yeah, explain that to your wife, Baby!" she thought silently.
"NICKY!" Brooke yelled, "Stop it…don't worry, she won't see us...I'm glad I came even if it isn't for very long. But well, you already know my room number, Baby, I'm sure you will come meet me later...let me know when she leaves," she spoke loudly on purpose.
"Brooke, you need to leave. I mean it. You need help!" he hollered back.
Seeing Brooke and Nick even having a conversation, made Jules' stomach sick and her heart pound. "No way, no way will I allow this to happen again. Not after how hard it was for the two of us to get back together again!" she reminded to herself.
"Niiicckk?" Jules asked slowly as she approached the room.
"Jules, I swear to God…its not what it looks like," he said panicking.
Jules heart sunk when she saw him not only standing in front of her in his underwear but he had her lipstick on his collar. She felt that sickness in her stomach again. She refused to let herself vomit in the middle of the Bellagio hallway so she took several deep breaths. "Trust him….trust him…" she chanted silently.
"Oh...um...oh, Jules, I uh, we didn't...I didn't realize you would be here so soon," she winced like she was sorry, "I'm sorry to see you under these circumstances but…but he called me …he told me to meet him in his room…He told me he wanted me here quickly…well….I guess we took too long, huh, Nicky?" she said calmly as she looked from Jules to Nick.
" I didn't call you! Are you kidding me? Why are you doing this? You are such a LIAR!" Nick yelled.
"Nick, don't you think she should know the truth," she said sweetly as she reached out and touched his shoulder tenderly.
Nick moved away.
Jules cringed at the sight of her touching him.
"You're crazy! Ya know that? When did this happen to you Brooke? When?" he implored.
"Me? What did I do? You came on to me…you called meee! You told me to meet you here!" she screeches.
Jules walked closer to Brooke.
"Stop, just stop! Leave, Brooke! You are not welcome here," she growled trying hard to keep her composure for the baby's sake.
"Jules, Honey, sometimes men are dogs…it's just their nature. Sometimes, Honey, 'first loves' never leave your heart…right, Nicky?" she smiled softly at him. "I am really sorry you had to find out about us the way you did. I mean I cannot imagine who sent those pictures to you or why they would put them on FaceBook" she tilted her head and looked at her sadly, "That is so hurtful. I am really sorry but I want you to know I had nothing to do with it!" she defended herself.
Jules looked over at Nick. She could tell by his smirk that Brooke just made a mistake and dug her grave. She began to smile back because she knew Nick and she knew he had ammunition to prove his innocence because of something Brooke just said.
"Brooke, do you know what it is I do for living?" he asked her calmly as he leaned against the door frame.
"Sure, you're the best looking CSI in Las Vegas, of course!" she looked back at him and giggled.
"And what does CSI stand for?" he asked slowly as Jules squinted and pondered where he was going with his questions.
"Crime Scene Investigator," she laughed.
"And that last word…what was it?" he tilted his head and squinted at her.
"What? Investigator?" she answered.
"Riiiiight! That is what I do, Brooke. I investigate things that are suspicious. And those pictures you just said you had nothing to do with…they were suspicious. So, I did a little of that investigating we just talked about…and it seems that YOUR FINGERPRINTS ARE ALL OVER THOSE PHOTOS!" he frowned and crossed his arms across his chest.
"Oh, nice try, Nicky…you made that up for your wife! She surely isn't that stupid to believe that!" her southern drawl made Jules sick.
"Well, funny you should mention that. Because…do you happen to remember Warrick Brown?" he asked her calmly.
"Not really…..wait, that really tall black dude you're friends with?" she turned her lips up unsure of her answer.
"Yep, he's the one. Well, he is also a CSI and he was the one who found out a lot of information about you, Brooke. Seems a lot of things have changed about you since college, huh?" he smiled at Jules who smiled wide knowing exactly where he was going with this and even wider knowing he and her brother collaborated on this investigation together.
"Oh please! Jules, you aren't buying this nonsense, I hope, " she laughed annoyingly. "Of course his friend will lie for him! He doesn't care about you! Men protect each other!" she nodded emphatically.
"Who doesn't care about me?" Jules asked with a smirk.
Brooke raised her eyebrows, "Warrick Brown…his CSI friend! Aren't you listening?" she rolled her eyes dramatically.
"Ohhhh, you mean my brother?" Jules bit her lip to hold her smile in.
Brooke laughed hard at Jules but stopped when she saw Jules wasn't joking.
"No, the BLACK guy, Sweetheart," she shook her head at Jules like she was stupid.
"Really? No way! My brother is black? Huh, I never noticed his skin color before…That's un-freakin-believable!" Jules smiled, "Wow, no shit."
Nick smirked, shook his head back and forth as he looked down and chuckled.
Brooke didn't understand what Jules was talking about. She was obviously not very bright.
"Honey, I am sorry to say this…I don't want to hurt your feelings but you are a little...well, a little slow to understand this but...Honey, you have the wrong guy…we're not taking about your brother, Sweetheart…this guy Warrick is black and YOU are WHITE," she said slowly as if Jules was dense.
Brooke looks over at Nick.
"Nicky,seriously? And here I thought someone told me you married a top in the field chemist…I'm sorry but…" she leans in and whispers, " this girl is dumber than a stump!" she giggled.
Jules laughed softly.
"I don't know what you find so damn funny, sweetheart but that ain't a compliment…" she started to raise her voice.
Nick looked up quickly and raised his eyebrows thinking Brooke better lower her voice because Jules was no fair haired, spoiled, white girl…she and her African American brother both grew up in a tough neighborhood and Jules knew how to kick some ass. Nick suddenly remembered the punch in the jaw he received just a few weeks ago.
"Ok, Brooke, you need to just get out of here now before you say something to really piss me off," she said with annoyance.
Jules didn't like her tone nor her disrespect.
Brooke jerked her head back as if she was insulted.
"I think it is YOU who needs to go. Nicky asked me here. He asked me to fly to Vegas to meet him and I plan on spending a nice, romantic, afternoon with him whether you like it or not…," She paused, smiled and leaned in toward Jules, "And let's face it, we both know how he can fuck like a champ!" she raised her eyebrow at her.
Jules knew she didn't want to fight with Brooke simply because she had the baby to think about but she also knew Brooke wouldn't be able to lay a hand on her because Jules knew exactly how to handle her.
"Okay," she looked at Nick and sighed, "…then I guess now I need to go ghetto on her ass," she shrugged and smirked at Nick.
Nick shook his head and stepped forward hoping to diffuse what was about to take place but Jules was fast. She reached out, grabbed Brooke by her blonde hair and yanked her downward. Brooke screamed but Jules turned a deaf ear to it. A young college age kid poked his head out of his room to witness Brooke being dragged by her hair down the hall to the elevator.
"Niiiice, GIRL FIGHT!" he yelled and gulped his beer.
Nick ran his hands over his face and sighed loudly.
Brooke continued screaming all the way down the hall to the elevator. Jules hit the Down button with one hand while the other hand held a fist of Brooke Latham's hair. The elevator door opened quickly and Jules pulled her up straighter on her feet by her hair, faced her toward the elevator and kicked her in her ass making her fall face first into the elevator.
"And do NOT come near MY husband again or I really will have to hurt you!" she said calmly as the elevator doors closed.
Jules looked up and watched as the numbers descended back down to the lobby. Turning around she spotted the college kid smiling.
"Now that was awwwesommme!" he chuckled like a stoner.
"And so deserving," Jules grinned back at him.
The kid smiled before closing the door and Jules continued walking toward Nick who was shaking his head back and forth as he leaned against the door frame of his room.
"Ohhh Darlin', I just don't even know what to say about what I just witnessed," he said laughing lightly.
"I'm sorry you had to see that, Investigator Stokes, I really am, but…but the bitch deserved it," she smiled and grabbed his hand in hers, "Now, where were we?" she asked as they walked into his room together.
"I was just about to tell you that I have something incredible to show you," Nick grinned excited about showing her the folder.
"Me too, Cowboy, me too," Jules smiled slightly patting her purse knowing her positive pregnancy test was inside.