Gil looked up when Catherine walked into the break room, taking a break from his crossword puzzle. She gave him a silent smile, and headed over to the coffee maker, to pour a cup for herself. He took the opportunity to watch her, his eyes starting at her calves before trailing slowly up her body. He felt a long pull of desire when his eyes scraped over her hips and bust, before resting at her head.
When she turned around, she caught him staring. She didn’t flinch, which surprised him, because he did. Like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar before supper, he ducked his eyes and pretended to be working on his crossword puzzle.
He heard her move around the room, until she was behind him. He noticed the cup was set on the desk. He felt her hands on his shoulders, and her chin brushed his hair. His body was on fire.
“Emu.”
“What?”
She lifted one hand to point at 24 Down. “It says ‘Rare bird.’ That’s an emu.”
He knew his cheeks were bright red. “Oh. I was getting there.”
“I know,” she chuckled. “Man, you get annoyed when people help you with your puzzles.”
“Yeah.” He glanced down at his watch. Everyone else was late. He didn’t know if he should be thankful or cross with them. “Where is everyone else?”
She moved away from him and sat in a chair across from him. “Don’t like spending time with me,” she pouted, but her eyes were smiling.
“Cath...”
“I know, I know.”
“No, I—” He stopped talking when the others came into the room. Sara was first, her face clouded over. She looked furious. Nick and Warrick were joking about something, but it ended when they sat down at the table. “Nice of everyone to show up. I was beginning to worry.”
Sara looked at him. He saw a mixture of unreadable emotions, but it looked like she was in a bad mood. “Because you’re always on time.”
“Doesn’t mean you have to be late.” At that calm comment, Sara slapped her hands down on the arms of the chair, leapt up, and stormed out of the room. Gil, surprised, looked at Catherine, who only shrugged. Nick and Warrick looked completely shocked. “Did I say something wrong?”
Catherine shrugged again. “She’s probably just having a bad day or something. Can we have our cases now?”
He nodded, but made a mental note to track down the angry CSI to interrogate her. “Sure. Catherine, you have a robbery downtown. Nick and Warrick, you both have a hit and run.” He handed each party their sheets. “I’ll take Sara and do the murder at the Monaco.”
He saw Catherine’s scowl, but didn’t know what it was about. He didn’t think he could handle two angry women, so he vowed to sort the first problem out, and then see what was wrong with Catherine. She’d understand his choice; she always understood him.
Warrick and Nick left. Catherine finished her coffee, muttering something about seniority, before leaving. Gil picked up his case file, and headed to his office to page Sara.
~*~
The annoyed strawberry blonde had stopped into the crime lab to check some fibers she sent to the Trace Lab, before she went to O’Reilly to get a warrant and some manpower.
She couldn’t believe Gil’s nerve. Sara had been rude to her employer, but it hadn’t seemed to matter. She was always going to be his favorite, and Catherine was jealous, for some reason she couldn’t quite pinpoint. She had stormed out, causing a scene, and she still got to work with the boss!
Catherine shook her head, and continued to the lab. The outcome of the tests confirmed what she suspected. She called O’Reilly, and then thanked the lab technician for being timely with the results.
On her way out, to the police station, she decided she’d stop by Gil’s office to brag about being done her case. The door was open, so she walked in without thinking. And she halted, almost skidding as her jaw dropped.
Sara was wrapped up in Gil’s arms, and he was swaying back and forth. Her back was to Catherine; Gil, on the other hand, saw her enter. His eyes met hers, and she felt her system shutting down. She was so shocked, unaware that they were *that* close.
As she backed out of the room, she saw Sara lift her head. Gil’s eyes turned from the backing woman, to the one in his arms. Catherine saw him bring a hand up to brush it through her curly brown hair.
Not wanting to see any more of their display of affection, she turned and ran.
~*~
“Sara,” he spoke when they were looking at each other, after Catherine had left the room. “I’m glad you told me all of this.”
She nodded. “I.. it wasn’t fair of me to just storm out. I just... I’ve had a really rough couple of days. I’ve been fighting with Billy nonstop for the past couple of days. My fuse is short. I’m really sorry.”
“Has the fighting... gotten—”
Sara cut him off. “No, he hasn’t gotten violent. I’d kick his ass if he did.” Gil smiled. She pulled out of his arms. “Look, I shouldn’t be talking to you about my personal life. Can’t imagine girl talk is your thing.”
“You’re a friend, Sara,” he insisted. “If I can help, I’d like to.”
“Nah,” she waved a hand. “We should probably get back to the scene.”
He nodded. They did have a few more things to process. “Alright. I just have to call Cath. I’ll meet you at the Tahoe.”
“Great.”
He picked up his phone and dialed her cell phone number. She answered the phone on the third ring. “Yeah?”
“It’s me.”
“Hi. Did you want something?”
He shook his head, wondering why she sounded so hostile. “I just wanted to apologize for what you saw when you walked in on my conversation with Sara.”
“If that’s what you want to call it.”
“You’re being awfully hard on me.”
“Look,” she responded to his comment, her voice showing signs of weariness. “I’m on my way with O’Reilly to pick our jewel thief. What you do in your personal time is none of my business. I just didn’t expect to see your personal time consuming happening on the job. Keep the door shut from now on, okay?”
He sighed. She was angry. He knew she was jumping to conclusions, but he didn’t know how to sort things out with her without breaking confidences with Sara. “It wasn’t like that, Cath.”
“Gil, you don’t need to justify these things.”
“But, you expect me to.”
“I just thought that if something earth shattering was going to happen in your life, like you having a real, romantic relationship with someone, you’d tell me.”
“I would. It wasn’t—”
“We’re here, Gil. I’ve got to go. Bye.”
She hung up the phone, leaving him sputtering.
~*~
Catherine walked into her home, dropping her purse by the door before taking her shoes and coat off. The baby-sitter, a girl named Elise, came into the room. “Hey, Elise. How was tonight?”
“Great. She was a perfect angel.”
She grinned. “Thanks so much for staying tonight.”
“It was no problem. I got a lot of work done, managed to get a little sleep...” She smiled back at the older woman. “I don’t mind, really.”
“I’m grateful. I nearly panicked when my sister said she was going out of town for the week.” She paid the girl for her time, and waited until she left before she crumpled into a chair and sighed heavily.
She hated fighting with Gil. Even though their phone conversation wasn’t really a fight, by definition, it had felt like one. Seeing him with Sara stirred such powerful feelings, she hadn’t known what to think, how to react—she had felt completely lost.
“Jealousy,” she murmured, almost not believing her conclusion. She had been in love with Gil for as long as she remembered. It had never been possible for them, though; Gil had never shown any concrete demonstrations of romantic feelings for her, and she had never found the courage to admit how she felt to see how he felt. The idea was too frightening. Watching him spending time with Sara, in such an intimate position that he didn’t share with her, made her blood boil. She ached because he wasn’t choosing her.
She was torn between accepting what was happening and fighting for what she wanted. She had seen him make his choice, but she didn’t want to accept it. It had been different when he wasn’t romantically linked with anyone; at least if he didn’t choose her, he hadn’t chosen anyone else. That had been a small consolation. But, seeing how things were progressing between him and Sara made her realize that she might lose that consolation. She didn’t want to lose him, to Sara of all women.
After pouring herself a glass of wine, she retired to her bedroom. She sat on her bed, and opened a book. It was a book Gil had given her, for a birthday a couple years ago, a book she had read at least ten times. She read the message he had written on the inside of the cover: “Happy Birthday, Cath. I’m sorry your gift is late, but I wanted to find the perfect book. Love, Gil.”
She always smiled when she read that. It reminded her so much of Gil, ever the perfectionist. She loved that about him.
As she thumbed through the pages, looking at the pictures of paintings that Catherine had always longed to see, skimming over the critiques of each piece, she felt her resolve hardening.
She knew she was going to fight for Gil. Sara could try, but she knew she would try harder.
~*~
When Catherine walked to the break room doors, she saw Gil and Sara talking by the table, Warrick and Nick playing a video game. She thought about walking into the room, but she hadn’t gone to her locker yet, and she also needed to take a minute to sit down and think out her flirtatious plan.
As she headed to the locker room, she heard the door open, and her name on Gil’s lips. She stopped walking and turned around.
“Cath,” he called out again, softer, as he walked towards her. “Wait up.” When he was closer, he asked: “Can we talk about last night?”
She nodded. “Yeah. I want to, too. I just have to drop my coat and stuff off.”
“Okay,” he smiled awkwardly. “I’ll wait for you in my office.”
Once in the dark room, she took her coat off and hung it up in her cubicle. She tucked her purse on the top shelf, and then locked the door. One stop in front of the mirror allowed her to check her appearance over. She was wearing a very revealing blouse, and she left the top buttons unfastened for a more seductive look.
She applied a little extra lip gloss, and fluffed her loose curls, before heading to Gil’s office.
Upon entering, Gil looked up. His eyes widened before he could control his reaction to her appearance. She smiled, pleased that he noticed. “Gil, I’m really sorry for overreacting.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t explain things better,” he smiled back at her when she sat down in a chair. “Sara was upset about a fight she had had with her new boyfriend. She overreacted.”
Catherine’s eyebrow arched. “You think?”
“She’s only human. We talked about it after, and that’s what you saw. She had been crying. I was only trying to be there for her.”
“I understand.”
“Do you?”
She nodded. “It’s perfectly fine. I... I had just hoped that if you were going to have a romantic relationship, you’d share that with me. I always thought we were closer than that, you know?”
“I do. We are,” he smiled, although it still seemed uneasy. “You’d know anyway, if I was going to be involved with someone... you’d read the signs before I could.”
She laughed, feeling a slight twinge of gladness when he admitted that he thought she knew him better than anyone. However, if he was attracted to her in a romantic capacity, he was playing it pretty close to the chest. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“So, we’re okay, then?”
Catherine nodded. “Yeah.” She winked. “For now.”
He headed towards the door. She followed his lead, standing up and walking behind him. As he exited the doorway, he ran into someone. All that Catherine heard was two loud gasps, a crash, some scuffling, and a splash.
She peeked out around the door and saw Gil on the ground, Sara tangled up in him, hot coffee spilled everywhere. Sara was blushing, and she immediately tried to get herself out from under Gil’s legs. When she did, she slipped, and landed on top of him. Catherine looked at them, arms crossed, eyebrows raised. She wondered if Sara planned the crash, but couldn’t see any proof.
“Grissom, I’m so sorry.”
He winced while he accepted the hand the brunette offered. “It’s okay. I should be looking where I was going, anyway.”
“I’m sorry about your shirt... I didn’t mean to...”
He offered her a smile. “It’s okay. I have another one here, somewhere. There’s some paper towel in my office you can use to clean up.” He looked at Catherine, and asked: “Can you hand the assignments out?”
She sighed, realizing that she might’ve made some small gains, but she could lose everything she had worked on in the next fifteen minutes. “Sure. Whatever.”
“Whatever’s left, Sara and I will take.”
She rolled her eyes and walked past them. She knew she was going to have to try harder if Sara kept things going the way they were going.
~*~
“Hey, Warrick,” Catherine smiled when she entered the room, where the younger CSI was waiting. “Where’s Nick?”
“Out,” he grumbled. “Watching our bet.”
She raised her eyebrows. She didn’t understand what he meant. When she retrieved a cup of coffee, she returned to him. “What did you mean by ‘bet?’”
He coughed twice, and then looked around the room, checking the windows. Then, he leaned in. “Sara and I made a bet, and I made a bet on the side of that with Nick.”
“Gambling?”
He shrugged. “Not so much.”
“What’s this bet that you and Sara made?”
Warrick looked around again. “Well, I’m hoping you can help me with this. Nick likes Sara, but he knows about her crush on Gris.” Catherine nodded, knowing that her feelings for Gil had always been very obvious to everyone except Gil. “So, I made a bet with her, to help my boy out.”
“What was the bet, Warrick...”
He answered, his voice still soft. “I bet Sara that there weren’t any sparks between her and Gris.”
She nodded, as things started to make sense. “So, Nick’s bet with you was that something would happen between them. Although he’s probably secretly hoping that nothing happens.”
“Sort of.”
She found his answer cryptic, but said nothing. “Ahhh... things are starting to make sense. What do you and Sara have on the line?”
“Overtime. And a meal.”
She smirked. “And you and Nick?”
“A hundred bucks and one new Xbox game.”
She chuckled. “Pricey.” She sipped her coffee, and then looked back at him. “How do I fit into this?”
He smiled. “C’mon, now. Don’t tell me you and Gris don’t have something going on...”
“We don’t. We’re friends.”
Warrick rolled his eyes. “Puh-lease!”
“Warrick...” She didn’t exactly know what he was implying; however, she thought he might’ve been suggesting that her desires weren’t entirely one-sided. She looked at him, and saw something in his eyes. “Hey... there’s something you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”
He ducked his head, but she grabbed his arm and squeezed. He gave in. “Alright, alright, Cath. I’ll spill.” She released him. He shook his arm. “Damn! You’ve got some grip!” She narrowed her eyes, wanting to know how she fit into this scheme. “Alright. I bet with Nick that you’d get to him first.”
Catherine blushed. “Warrick... there’s really nothing going on between Gil and I.”
“And you wore that particular shirt to make me blush?” He grinned. She swatted his chest. “Alright. Fine. Deny that there’s nothing going on. I’ve got money on you though.”
She giggled. And, then, she realized that she left Gil and Sara alone in his office. “Damn. They’re alone!”
“What?”
“I left them. Sara spilled coffee on him... they went to get cleaned up.”
Warrick groaned. “Damn!”
“Can’t you go in there and do something?”
He shook his head. “Nick and I can’t interfere.”
“Well, that’s ridiculous!”
“Cath, you know what you gotta do.”
In a flash, she was gone.
~*~
“Here, Gil,” Sara said, reaching for the buttons on his shirt. “You should really let me take care of that. I’ll go soak it.” He jumped when she started with the top buttons. She smiled easily. He gulped. “It’ll stain if you don’t take care of that.”
Gil was very uncomfortable, as he began to question her intentions. “I can get it.”
“Sure. Whatever.” She turned her back and walked to the small closet he had, where he kept a couple changes of clothes. “Can I borrow a shirt?”
“Yeah, if there’s one that will—” He stopped talking when he saw her pull her dark t-shirt over her head. He gulped again. “—fit.”
She glanced over her shoulder at him and smiled. “Making you uncomfortable?”
“A little.”
She smirked. “Good.”
“What?”
She rolled her eyes. “Kidding, Grissom. Kidding. I’m all covered up. Besides,” she winked. “Nothing you haven’t seen before, right?”
“Ahh, yeah, right.” He grumbled under his breath, while finishing the rest of the buttons. His skin was still damp and sticky. He really wanted a shower. If she kept acting the way she was acting, he was going to need a cold shower. He couldn’t help it; he was a man, and she was a scantily-clad woman in his office. “Can you hand me a shirt?” He asked, walking tentatively towards her.
“Sure,” she replied, opening the door. “Which one do you want?”
“The grey one, Sara.”
“Can I have the blue one?”
He nodded. “Sure.” She grabbed the two shirts and turned to face him, still only wearing a black bra on top. He took a few seconds, to try to control his expression, and then extended his hand to take the shirt she offered him. She smiled again, and took the blue shirt off the coat hanger, and shrugged into it before she put the hanger back.
Gil was definitely uncomfortable. He stepped back and safely made it to his desk. From there, he used some paper towel to blot his chest and arms off.
“Here,” she said while moving towards him. “Let me help.”
“I’ve—” She snagged the paper out of his hand. He sighed, knowing he was losing the battle. He wondered if he was imagining things, or if she was really trying to hit on him. Either way, he was still uneasy. “I can do this. I’m not an invalid.”
She nodded. “I know, but you can’t do your back,” she said, after stepping around him. He felt her wipe up the wet remains of the coffee. Every once and a while, her fingers would brush his skin. It wasn’t electric, but she still provoked a reaction in him. “There,” she said, finally, moving away from him. He released the breath he didn’t know he had been holding onto. “All dry. Just a little sticky.”
He managed to give her a little half-smile. “Thanks.”
“No problem.”
“Maybe you should button that up?” He raised an eyebrow her way; then, he slipped into the grey shirt he was so glad he had left in his closet. He buttoned his shirt up and tucked it into his pants. “Sara?”
She took a step closer, not saying anything.
He tried again. “Sara?”
“Grissom?” She responded, her cheeks flushing a little, as she lifted herself onto her toes. He struggled to find strength in him to stop the madness; he respected Sara, he didn’t want anything to happen between them—especially since he had feelings for someone else.
She turned her head when the knocking on the other side of the door startled them both. He let out the second breath he hadn’t realized he was holding onto and called out: “Just a second!”
Sara hurriedly buttoned the shirt up, and tied the bottom in a knot above her waist, before flopping onto the sofa. Gil glanced at her once, making sure she was decent, and twice, to double check that she was decent. He shook his head, trying to clear the confusion that wrapped itself around his brain so tightly, and rushed to the door.
Upon opening it, he saw Catherine standing there. Panic was written all over her face. “Cath? Everything alright?”
“I was going to ask you the same thing,” she smiled, her expression relaxing. “You look a little tense.” She peeked inside. “Hey Sara.”
“Hey,” she muttered, crossing her arms.
“All dried off?” He nodded. “Good. I was going to go out, actually, and pick up some coffee,” she grinned. “And doughnuts. I just wondered if you two wanted anything?”
Gil was pushed aside as Sara stormed out of the room. He saw Catherine smirk, but didn’t know what caused it. “Anything I can do for you?”
“I—”
“I know you didn’t come in here for a coffee order. You can act better than that...” He smiled. “Sometimes. What’s up?”
She shrugged. “Oh, it’s nothing. I...” He sat down on the edge of his desk. “I just had a feeling you might need some help with your shirt or the stains or something.”
He shook his head. “Sara said something about soaking it, but we never got around to it.”
“Why’s that?” He saw her features darken again. “Did something happen in here?”
Gil nodded and smiled, watching the panicked look on her face returned. When he spoke, he watched the expression dissolve. “You came in.”
“Oh,” she grinned.
~*~
Catherine was in the Evidence Room, processing a sweater that the victim in her latest case was wearing. She had always thought tape lifting was boring, and now that Sara was on the prowl, hunting Gil, she wanted to be anywhere but the Evidence Room, doing anything but tape lifting.
She had used her investigator skills to deduct that nothing had happened between Sara and Gil before she interrupted them. She still wasn’t completely sure that nothing had happened, but there wasn’t much evidence to convince her that Sara had won the bet.
Warrick came into the room, a huge grin on his face. She couldn’t help but smile back. “What’s up, Warrick?”
“Sara didn’t win yet.”
She sighed, as her smile grew. “Excellent.”
“Have I won yet?”
Catherine sighed again, and shook her head. “No, not yet. I haven’t exactly... seen enough to lead me to believe that it’s a good idea.”
He rolled his eyes. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Actually,” she replied. “You’re right. I am kidding you. Gil and I had sex three times today. On this very table. Greg walked in on us the first time, and the second, Archie spotted us. Of course,” she added, pushing the joke further. “I invited him to join us, which made Gil cranky, so I had to make it up to him.”
He rolled his eyes again. “Cath... would you just go make us both happy, and kiss him, please?”
“Warrick, it’s only one-sided. I can’t just go in there, plant one on him, and—”
“And?”
She swallowed. Gil and Sara were standing in the doorway. “And, hello, Gil and Sara.”
Warrick jumped. “Hey, guys. How long have you been standing there?”
Sara smiled. “Not long. I just thought I’d stop in and see if Cath got anywhere with the sweater.”
She shrugged, knowing she looked like a cat that swallowed a canary. “No, I haven’t taken the samples to Trace yet.” She looked at Gil. “How long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough,” he replied cryptically. “Cath, when you’re done processing that shirt, can you come see me in my office?”
She gulped, and nodded. She looked at Sara, and asked: “Do you know what that’s about?”
Sara shook her head. “Nope, sorry, Cath. I haven’t seen him all shift, until we ran into each other in front of the door.”
She managed a smile; at least it didn’t sound like she was in a lot of trouble, or like Gil was going to tell her that he was in love with Sara. “Alright. I better get back to work.”
~*~
She straightened herself up before heading into Gil’s office. He looked up when he saw her, and gave her a small smile. “Hey, Cath. Did you get your shirt processed?”
“Yep,” she nodded, and decided to bypass the smalltalk and move straight to the reason why he called her into the office. “What did you want?”
He set the file he had been reading down. “I’ve heard some interesting things the past couple of days.”
“Oh?” She gulped, sinking into the chair she was in. “Like what?”
He shrugged. “How have you and Sara been getting along lately?”
Her eyes narrowed as she processed the question, not understanding the point of it. “What do you mean?”
“Greg, and a couple of the other technicians have been noticing that neither of you are getting along very well. ‘Hostile,’” He smiled. “I believe that’s the word they used.”
Catherine shook her head, deciding it was better not to mention the bets going on between the younger CSI’s. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Our relationship hasn’t changed, at all. We’ve never been close, Gil. But,” she added quickly. “She’s a co-worker, and one of your friends, so we get along because of that, I guess.”
He nodded, standing up to sit on the desk in front of her. “I have to admit, Cath, I’ve noticed things change.”
“When?”
“Tonight. When you came in, she stormed out, looking—”
She cut him off, before she even realized what she was saying. “The only reason she was so cranky when I interrupted you two was the fact that she was hoping to sedu—” She stopped talking. But, when he kept staring at her, she managed to finish the sentence, somewhat. “She just didn’t want me in there, so she could talk with you about work stuff, I guess.”
“Work stuff?” He raised an eyebrow. “What were you going to say?”
She felt her cheeks burning. “Nothing, Gil. Just drop it.” She stood up. “I should probably go see what came back off the shirt—” She jumped when he clamped his hand over hers. She wanted him to touch her, but she was so nervous, and she didn’t want him to know how insecure she was. She had a feeling he’d laugh at her, and she didn’t think she’d want to sit through that; on the other hand, if he told her that her jealousy was warranted, she didn’t think she’d want to sit through that, either. “Gil? You should really let go of me. Unless you want to follow me to Trace?”
He leaned in close. She could feel his breath on her cheek. Goose bumps covered her skin. She wondered if this was the moment, her chance to see if Gil felt the same way for her that she felt for him. “Cath?”
“Uh, yeah, Gil?”
“Are you jealous of Sara?”
Her eyes widened. She didn’t understand how he figured it out. It frightened her. Before he could trap her, she shifted her weight and tugged her arm out of his hand. As she rushed out of the office, she could’ve sworn she heard him chuckle, but she wasn’t turning around to find out.
~*~
Gil headed into the DNA Lab to see Greg. The younger man looked up and asked: “Was I right?”
“Actually,” he admitted, despite his disbelief. “I think you were.”
Greg’s face lit up, and he put the envelope of data down. “She admitted that she was jealous?”
He shook his head. “No, I don’t have anything quite so concrete yet. I asked her about the fights, she freaked out, and when I asked her if she was jealous, she bolted before giving me an answer.”
“Almost as good as one, though.”
“Doesn’t count, yet, Greggo.”
Greg nodded. “I know, I know. But, just think, you’re halfway there to owing me a chance to process a scene.”
“Supervised,” Gil added. He still couldn’t believe that he had made a bet with Greg Sanders, but there was something about the deal he couldn’t turn down. Besides, if Greg was wrong, and Catherine wasn’t jealous of the friendship Gil had with Sara, Greg owed Gil the privilege of processing all of his evidence before anyone else’s. “We still don’t know... Sara could’ve said something about her dancing or something. Who knows why they don’t get along. Women,” he shook his head. “Are the most complex creatures in this world.”
“Apart from yourself,” Greg smirked.
“Greg...”
“I know, I know.” Gil turned to move out of the Lab, but was stopped when Greg called back out to him. “You know, Grissom, sometimes, when you think women are really complicated puzzles, they turn out to the simplest ones to solve.”
Gil shook his head, wondering how the young DNA technician became so women-savvy.
~*~
The next day, Catherine was busy with paperwork for a trial. Her neck hurt, her hips were sore, and she was very restless. On top of that, she was still worried about Gil, Sara, and the gambling between the younger staff members. Without much analysis, she knew what would help; without another moment passing, she was on her feet, looking around the building for Gil.
She found him in the Break Room with Sara. They hadn’t spoken since she ran out of his office, and now the first time they were going to talk, Sara was going to be in the room.
“Gil?”
He lifted his eyes from Sara, pausing their conversation. “Hey, Cath.”
“Do you mind if I steal your office for a little while?”
He smirked. “If you tell me what for?”
“I want to unwind. I was thinking I’d do some yoga, to take my mind off of the huge pile of paperwork and pictures I have to memorize.” She shrugged. “If you’d rather, I can just do it in the conference room, so everyone can watch me stretch... and flex... and sweat...” She had spoken deliberately with a huskier voice. As she expected, Sara’s expression clouded. Gil’s eyes darkened. “Gil? You gonna answer sometime?”
“Oh. Uh, yeah, sure, take the office. It should be open.”
“Great,” she flashed him a smile. As she turned, she saw Greg pointing at Sara through the window. She grinned to herself; Greg always had great timing. “Sara? Greg wants you. Seems important. Shouldn’t keep him waiting.”
Sara got up and breezed past her. She looked over her shoulder at Gil, grinned despite the fact that there were butterflies in her stomach, and then left the room.
Catherine made a stop in the locker room. She knew she kept a pair of shorts in her cubicle, in case she felt the urge to go for a run between shifts. She reached beyond the shorts, and found a tank top. Then, she grabbed her walkman, before heading into Gil’s office.
She kicked her shoes off when she shut the door behind her. She clipped the walkman to the waistband of her shorts, and put the headphones on her head, so the little pieces of plastic rested in her ears. She did a couple stretches while she waited for the music to start playing, pounding a rhythm she knew too well into her head.
When the music started, her hips moved instinctively with it. There was no yoga, but dancing. Catherine knew that if she told Gil she wanted to dance, he’d badger her about it for a couple of days.
While she moved suggestively, she felt the stress of the past couple of days leave her system. The thoughts of Sara and Gil alone seemed so far away; the conversations about the bets Warrick told her about were slowing fading into distant memories. She concentrated on her body, and her body helped relieve her mind.
She dipped and swayed, using her arms for balance and artistry; it was more difficult to move this way than before, when she was younger, and had to move this way to support a living for herself. But, nevertheless, she felt the benefits. Her body began to loosen, and as the loud music pumped into her ears, she felt her mind drift, disconnecting from the real world.
Just as she finally felt free, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. The door was being opened. She quickly turned herself so she couldn’t see who was coming in, although she assumed it was Gil. She smiled to herself, and dipping lower, purposely pushing her body to its limits to make the show more interesting. She bent over and rotated her hips after standing up.
When she turned around, Gil was there, leaning against the closed door. Even though she expected him to be there, she still jumped. The look on his face made her shiver. “God, Gil!” She still felt the need to scold him, as she turned the walkman off and pulled the headphones from her ears. “You shouldn’t sneak up on me!”
He responded calmly. “It’s my office, Cath.” He tilted his head. “I thought you were going to do yoga?”
She shrugged, stretching her arms over her head. She couldn’t help but notice his eyes dip low before returning to her eyes. “As it turns out, I wasn’t really in the mood for yoga.” She bent down to touch her hands to the floor beyond her feet; she loved being flexible. From that position, she looked up at him. “Did you enjoy the show?”
“It wasn’t half-bad,” he joked. When she lifted her torso and shook her legs out, the look on her face was one of anger and disappointment. “Cath, don’t look at me that way.”
She crossed her arms. “Half-bad?!”
He took two steps towards her, but stopped. “You know you’re still an amazing dancer.” He shook his head. “God, Cath, you’re probably the sexiest woman I know. You make sleeping sensual.”
She grinned, but felt herself blushing at his comment. “That’s better.” She took a hesitant step towards him. “What did you come in here for, anyway?”
“I...” She kept looking at him, waiting for his answer. She knew that this was the best chance she had to make her move. If the way he was looking at her was any indication of his feelings for her, then she could be certain that this attraction wasn’t one-sided. “I... actually, Cath, I forget.”
Catherine took one more step. She wanted him to close the gap between them, but she wasn’t opposed to doing the work herself. “That’s an even better compliment. You’re really getting good at the art of praising people.” She took the last step, and found herself barely brushing her chest against his. She felt the electric charge, and wondered if he did, too. “Gil?”
He licked his lips. “Yeah?”
She slid her hand onto his shoulder. He didn’t flinch; she considered that a very good sign. “I really want to...” She leaned up on the balls of her bare feet, and leaned into him. “Is this wrong?”
“Does it feel wrong?”
She shook her head, her hair brushing against his face. “No. I just didn’t want to... make you uncomfortable.”
He chuckled. “You make me uncomfortable every day, Cath.” When her expression faltered, he quickly added: “Uncomfortable in a good way.”
“Good,” she smiled. “You still have the hang of the compliments.”
Gil’s hands connected with her back, and when she fell against his torso, she sighed, snaking her other hand up to the base of his neck. She felt him shudder. He dipped his head, his breath on her lips. She sighed, and started to give in.
Both of them were interrupted. Their pagers started going off. Gil cursed softly. “It’s Warrick. He has some news.”
Catherine went to the desk and picked hers up. The message on the display, on her pager, was not from Warrick. Instead, it was from Sara, telling her that someone had come into the room where her papers were and cleaned the place up. She groaned. She wondered if Sara had known what was going on; Catherine didn’t think Sara could be so petty.
“You should go,” she smiled, trying her best to hide the disappointment she was feeling. “I should get back to my paperwork.”
He nodded, but reached for her hand. “Breakfast, later?”
“I, uh...” she knew she sounded like a fool, but she was caught somewhat off-guard by his question. She swallowed, smiled, and nodded. “Sounds great. My place, or yours?”
~*~
Gil had his nose in a book as he neared the locker room at the end of shift. As he came within five feet of the door, he heard yelling.
“God damn it, Nick!” Sara’s voice could be heard clearly. Gil was impressed with his ears; they hadn’t always been reliable lately, but he could hear everything crystal clear. “Would you just let me go out and win Warrick’s—”
Nick cut her off. “Why do you still have that silly crush on Gris? You know he’s totally gone on Catherine! Why go there?”
“I don’t still have my silly crush on Grissom, Nick,” she countered, spitting each word out with furious precision. “I’m only doing this to win Warrick’s bet! I don’t want him to win! I really want the overtime!!”
At this, Gil took another step to the door. There was no more yelling. He heard what seemed like a faint chuckle, and then nothing. Curious, he continued into the room.
Nick had Sara pinned against a row of lockers; their argument had obviously gotten physically heating as well. They were just staring at each other. Even when he had entered the room, they didn’t flinch.
Gil groaned. “Would you two get out of here and go make puppy-dog eyes somewhere else?”
Nick jumped first. “Sorry, Gris.” He reached and grabbed his coat from the bench, and rushed out.
Sara stayed behind. “I’m guessing you heard all of it, then?”
“Most of it,” he smiled. “Bet?”
She blushed. “I’m really sorry. I mean, I used to have a crush on you, but, it was a father-figure kind of crush, I think... I just didn’t want to give Warrick the overtime.”
Gil smirked. “Although, now, you might enjoy having a little less time on the job... to be spending with another person who isn’t receiving any overtime.”
Uncomfortable, she nodded quickly. “Good idea, Gris. I’ll see you tomorrow!”
She darted out of the room, leaving Gil to shake his head and wonder about his employees. He tucked his book on the top shelf of his locker and started changing. He pulled his shirt off and put his favorite sweater on, the sweater he reserved for afterwork relaxation. When he changed, he put the book in his bag, and reached for his coat.
Shutting the metal door made a loud noise that seemed to echo in the tiny room. Beyond where the door had been, blocking his sight, was Catherine. She was leaning against the door. She was smiling.
“I just saw the most interesting thing,” she spoke when he saw her.
“Oh?” He set the bag and his coat down.
She nodded. “Yeah. Nick and Sara, making out in the Break Room.”
“That make you happy?” She shrugged and started walking towards him. He wanted to know if Greg was right or not; but, he didn’t think that Catherine was going to give him that knowledge unless he really pried for it. “Cath?”
She shook her head. “No more talking.” She winked. “Warrick still has to win a bet with Nicky.”
“I’m a bet?”
He felt her arms slide up so they were draped over his neck. “You’re way more than a bet.” He felt desire shooting through his system. Control was difficult to maintain. He wondered if she had any idea how much she affected him. Gently, he put his hands on her waist; when she shimmied, he lowered them to her hips. She pushed against him, and he bit his lip to keep himself from groaning. She shook her head. “If you don’t kiss me...”
“You’ll what?” He teased with a light voice despite the heavy air around them.
With some effort, Catherine managed to push him against a row of lockers. “I’ll do this.”
Before she could react, he flipped her around. She shrieked softly, but used the wall to her advantage. He felt her shift her hips upwards, creating incredible friction. She knew exactly how to drive him crazy; he loved it and despised it at the same time. He brought one hand off the locker to caress her face. She sighed, closed her eyes, and leaned into it.
When his phone rang, he didn’t hear it at first. Catherine’s eyes popped open, and she was frowning. “Phone, Gil.”
He left her briefly to pick it up off the bench, and turn it off. She looked up at him, eyes wide with surprise and wonder. He smiled. “We aren’t getting interrupted until I say so.”
She giggled and wrapped herself around him. He bent down tentatively at first, carefully meeting her lips with his. She pushed against him, deepening the kiss. He knew he could drown in her; it was such an intense sensation. Kissing Catherine. He couldn’t believe it.
He felt her hands kneading his shoulders. He tried to make his hands do something useful, but he didn’t think he was doing anything right.
She pulled back and looked at him. “We should really get out of here. Breakfast...” She nipped at his earlobe. “My place or yours?”
“I like my bed.”
“Presumptuous, much?”
He leaned down and sucked on her lower lip. She moaned and flexed against him. He pulled back and looked at her, his voice pretending to be stern. “I have a couple of good indications of where this is headed...”
“What if I want the sofa?” She asked, grinning. “Or the shower? Or the kitchen counter?”
He kissed her. “We’re just going to have to test out each of these places until you find one you like.” He saw her expression darken. Immediately he retreated. “Too much, too soon?”
She shook her head. “No... no, no... It’s just enough, and not a moment too late. I am happy. I don’t know how long I’ve... well, you know.” He nodded, knowing neither of them were ready to admit how deep their feelings were. It would happen, when they were less scared, less vulnerable, more aware of their relationship. “It’s just... I thought things might be awkward.”
“They aren’t.”
“I know,” she kept talking. “I was prepared for weirdness. And, there was none.”
He kissed her forehead. He loved how she sighed when he did that. “We should get out of here.”
“Yeah,” she nodded. “Sis’ has Lindsay, so I’m all yours today.”
He grinned and stepped back so she could get her coat and purse. Together they left the locker room and headed out into the hall. He saw Greg approach them, a huge smile on his face.
“So?” He asked Gil. “Did I win?”
“Win?”
Gil glanced at Catherine. Greg jumped in before he could formulate an answer. “Grissom and I made a bet.”
She groaned. “Another bet?” Gil chuckled, despite himself. “What was this one about?”
Greg answered, again before Gil could jump in with an answer. He was getting frustrated with this young man’s quick replies. “I bet that you and Sara didn’t get along because you were jealous of her relationship with him.”
She laughed. “Oh. That wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be.”
“Well?”
She looked at Gil, who decided to talk, finally. “I didn’t get a chance to ask her.”
“Well?” Greg persisted. “She’s right here. Cath, what’s the deal?”
She shrugged and walked past them. Gil looked at Greg and spoke: “You might be giving me those privileges, yet, Sanders.”
“No way,” he shook his head. “When she finally caves and tells you, you owe me and explanation.” He walked past Gil. “Oh, and don’t bother trying to lie. You’re lousy at that stuff.”
~*~
When they had eaten a light meal, the predatory gaze in Gil’s eyes returned. In a matter of seconds, he had managed to turn her insides into mush. She smiled at him. “Seems like everyone but me had a bet made this week.”
He smiled back at her. “It was a crazy week. Sara had me completely... shocked. And, you,” he added, pulling her closer. “Were just driving me crazy. Angry, sultry... happy, sultry...” He shrugged. “It was hard to keep up.”
“Yeah,” she nodded. “It was hard for me, too. I’m sorry about that.”
He leaned forward and kissed her. Immediately, she felt her pulse quicken. She was so glad they had made progress in their relationship, and even gladder that it had been a smooth transition so far.
His kiss lasted shorter than she had hoped it would. “Sofa?” She grinned, hoping to heat things up. “Or bed?”
“Not until you answer the question I didn’t get a chance to ask you.”
“You asked me before, Gil,” she sighed, somewhat frustrated with his insistence.
He nodded. “And, you never answered me. You just took off.”
She laughed softly. “I’m entitled to some secrets. Aren’t I?”
“I’ll get it out of you, yet, Cath,” he winked, as his hands started to work their magic. He pulled her into his lap, holding her firmly in place. She laughed again, and bent down to kiss him. She always liked being on top. She wriggled, causing him to groan, and knew why she enjoyed it so much: the power.
She tossed her head back when his lips made contact with the soft skin of her neck, granting him access. She moaned softly, and gripped his upper arms for stability. He chuckled against her; the vibrations only turned her on more.
“Pinch me...” She whispered to herself, as she wondered if this was really happening. When she felt him grip a small piece of her skin on her arm, she yelped. “What was that for?”
He raised an eyebrow. “You asked me to pinch you.”
“Oooh,” she narrowed her eyes. “You’re a funny guy today, are you?”
“Perhaps.” He adjusted her position and picked her up. After kissing her once more, he explained: “Bed.”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, fine. Next time, though, I pick the place.” She glanced out the window as they walked down the hall to his bedroom. “What about inside the Tahoe?”
She never heard his reply. He had playfully tossed her onto the bed, and was sliding up the length of her body to kiss her again. She felt as if she were drowning in a sea of pleasure. One hand was in her hair, the other was stroking invisible designs on her stomach.
“Clothes...” she whispered. “We need to get rid of the clothes.”
He grinned, and began a descent on her chest. He unfastened two of the buttons, and then lavished the skin he exposed. She sighed and wriggled against him. There was too much friction, and not enough at the same time. She felt mad. Completely mad. He went further, unfastening two more buttons, and then kissing and sucking the skin he exposed. When he put on hand on her hip to stabilize himself, she bucked against him. She heard him laugh before he finished the rest of her shirt.
“Sit up for a sec, Cath,” he said, slipping away from her. She struggling into an upright position. From there, he worked the shirt off her shoulders, kissing every part of her body he uncovered.
She had always known he was a thorough man, but this was killing her. Before he had a chance to tease her anymore, she used one hand to undo her bra, and another to start on the zipper of her pants.
He smirked. “Impatient?”
“A bit.”
She slipped out of the bra, sitting there watching him watch her. His cheeks flushed. Briefly, she thought he might get so uncomfortable and stop this madness. But, he didn’t, much to her delight. He kissed her lips, before muttering sweet words and continuing down her neck and chest, to pay attention to the new skin she uncovered: “You’re so beautiful.”
It was her turn to blush. She let him ease her back down onto the bed. From there, he pulled her pants off. She tried to tell him that he was wearing too many clothes, but he shrugged her comments off.
Once fully nude, she lay back and watched Gil. He was just sitting there, letting his eyes travel from hers, down her body, and back into her eyes again. He did this three times before she grew very impatient. “Gil. I’m not going anywhere, you can take pictures later if you want.” She tugged at his shirt. “Get naked. Now. I want you.”
He grinned. “Not yet.”
“Huh?”
“Soon, though,” he nodded, adjusting his position. One of his legs was draped over one of hers, pinning it to the bed. He used one hand to keep hers above her head. The other hand began to travel.
She watched the expression of intense concentration on his face. She had seen that look before, although not in a sexual context; nevertheless, she still knew what it meant. His tongue snaked out of his mouth a little, making contact with his upper lip. She groaned. He was in full research mode, and she was in trouble.
His hand started at her navel and worked its way down. She moaned and tried to move, but he wouldn’t let her.
“God, Gil!” She managed to utter. “I... I... can’t we do this together?”
She felt him slip one finger inside of her. Heat rushed her. She was on fire.
“Cath...” he kissed her forehead. “You never did answer the question.”
Her eyes popped open when the words sunk in. “You... you...”
He smirked, not ceasing his hand’s activities. “Name calling later, Cath.” He slowly pulled his finger out, and then back in. When he pulled it up this time, he curled his finger upwards and pushed gently. She groaned loudly, not ashamed of reacting the way she was. It wasn’t her fault he found her weak spot. “So?”
“So...” She uttered between thrusts of her hips. “What?”
“Were you jealous of Sara?”
She closed her eyes, and tried to move faster against him. Her attempt to create more friction was met with an even slower hand. “Gil, I swear, if you don’t knock this off...”
“Just answer the question,” he worked all the right nerve endings. She sighed and cried out and tried to derive the right amount of pleasure she needed to find a release; Gil was being difficult, and she knew he’d drive her crazy if he kept up this maddeningly slow pace.
When she felt him add another finger, there were colourful explosions behind her eyes. She bit on her lip to keep her mouth from betraying her weakening resolve.
“Cath... just answer the question...”
“Don’t... wann—” She felt him push against her. “—AAAaaa.”
“Please?”
She shook her head. Again, she felt him slowly move inside her. She tried to move her hands, but he was heavier than she was, and he had her pinned down in such a way that she couldn’t free herself.
Even if she could, she didn’t know if she’d want to.
When the pleasure was becoming too intense, she gasped and knew she was in trouble. Her mouth was open.
“Oh, okay, fine...” she arched against him. “I was jealous of Sara, happy?”
He increased the speed of his actions, sending Catherine loose into a fog, until she felt her muscles clench around his finger. She grunted. He had freed her hands, so she reached for him. He continued his torment until she was finished writhing around on his bed.
She felt like a fool. She had admitted the truth to Gil.
“Gil...”
He didn’t entertain her feelings immediately. “Your mouth does the sweetest thing when you... uh...”
“Orgasm, Gil,” she rolled her eyes, sitting up so she could help him undress. “It’s called an orgasm.”
“I know that. I just didn’t—” he stopped talking, while she pulled his sweater over his head. When she was finished with that and working on his pants, he asked: “You were really jealous of Sara?”
“Yes. Can we move on now?”
“I never felt anything for her, Cath,” he made her look at him with a gentle hand. “Granted, I was a little flattered during the past week, with all the attention I was getting, but...” He grinned. “The only attention I’m concerned about receiving is yours.” She blushed and looked away. He pulled her back. “Serious, Cath.”
She nodded and smiled, the realization of his words hitting her. “I believe you,” she said softly. “It’s just hard. I mean, she can be so scientific, and I’m a scientist, but not to the extent that you two are... I used to take my clothes off to support myself... I have a daughter! She’s young, and single, and cute...” She sighed. “I was really jealous.”
Gil kissed her. She felt her fears dissolving. She asked another question: “What does Greg win?”
“He gets to go out and process a scene... with supervision of course.”
“Of course,” she smiled. “What did you lose?”
“The right to have my evidence processed before anyone else’s.”
“Ooooh... that would’ve been nice.”
He nodded, giving her that half-smile he was famous for. “Yeah, I know.” He smiled into her eyes and continued talking: “However, I wouldn’t trade that for what I have here, in my home, on my bed... in my arms.” She hummed softly. “I suppose you can take Greg on a smash and grab sometime soon?”
She shook her head, nuzzling his throat. “No, no. You made the bet. You have to take him out.” He bowed his head, resigning himself to his responsibility. “Gil?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re still overdressed.” She kissed him passionately, quickly on the lips. “But, I think I can help you with that.”
The End!
