"Gil?," Catherine asked peeking her head around the frame of his office door.

"Hmm?" Looking up and seeing Catherine in his doorway, he removed his gaze from a journal article to give her his undivided attention. "I thought you were off tonight."

"I am. Just stopped by on my way home. You busy?"

"No. Bored stiff, actually--no pun intended." Suddenly a brilliant smile crept along his face. Chuckling a bit, Catherine stepped fully into his office.

"I wouldn't have even caught that. You've been hanging around Doc Robbins too long! Gil Grissom, making jokes.....can I have your position when you hit the road for your stand-up gig?"

"Shut up, Catherine!" ~There it was. That smile again. That is bound to be my undoing! And those eyes..... He's right--Shut up, Catherine! You came here to ask him something.....something for your daughter...get your mind back on track!~ "Catherine? You still with me?" He had now stood up from his position behind the desk and was waving his hand in front of her face.

Swatting his hand from it's swaying position, flustered that she was in fantasy land a moment too long, she answered ,"I'm here. Quit it! You know if you hold your hand in front of the wrong person's face, they're liable to just bite it off!" It was then that she noticed that their fingers were still entwined. She looked down, pulled her hand away gently, then looked up at him, as she pretended to straighten invisible wrinkles in her blouse.

"I've still got all five fingers intact." He wiggled them in front of her face. "I take it you're not the wrong person, then, huh?"

~What was with him tonight? Funny? Flirty?......nah, wouldn't call it flirty? Would I?~ "Don't push your luck. Anyway, back to why I'm here. Are you taking Thursday off?"

Rolling his eyes in deep thought and coming up empty, he asked, "Should I be? What's Thursday?"

"Halloween. I know that we're usually pretty slow around here on Halloween.....mostly pranks..... and last year there were only three CSI's on night shift. I was, actually, supposed to ask you if you wanted to---"

"UNCLE GRISSOM!!!" Suddenly a small blonde ball of energy sped into the room and pounced into Gil's arms.

"Hey baby." Gil engulfed her tightly in his arms and swung her around a bit. ~God, why didn’t I have kids? Because you'd probably have made a lousy father, that's why. But I love this little girl so much.....and her mommy, well.....~

"I thought I told you to stay in the break room, while Mommy came and talked to Uncle Grissom."

"I got bored. Plus, I wanted to see Uncle Grissom. Lindsey turned her head to look Gil square in the eye. So, you gonna come with us? I mean mommy has to come cause she's my mommy, but I really really want you to have the other ticket.....Uncle Grissom, we would have SOOOO much fun. There will be apples, and pumpkins, and bunches of candy and.....oh, my teacher was telling me about the games. I bet you would be really good at the games. You can win prizes and--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa.....breathe, Lindsey." The little girl smiled, her face red with excitement. Her arms, once wrapped tightly around his neck, were now swinging about in gesture. ~Just like her mom.~ Gil thought he'd better get a word in quickly, as she looked like she was going to start talking again. "Where is it that you want me to go?"

"Mommy? You didn't ask him?" The little girl squirmed out of Gil's arms, with a look of disappointment etched across her small features. "How come?"

"Baby, I was just about to," Catherine squatted down, touched by the bond her daughter shared with Gil. Standing back up, she laughed lightly at the sight of him. Leaning against his desk, arms crossed, he had what could only be described as an utter look of confusion upon his countenance. "Gil, Lindsey would like to know if you would be interested in attending her school's fall carnival with us."

Looking down into hopeful eyes, there was no way an excuse could escape his lips. Besides, he hadn't spent much time with Lindsey as of late, between his work and her starting back to school. And Catherine...well, that didn't minimize the enjoyment of the situation either. "What about E...your daddy, Lindsey?"

She looked to be in deep thought for a slight moment, then her head perked up and, as though she were a grown woman, stated "Well, he's really not into that sort of thing." The innocence quickly returned when she whispered the next words towards Grissom, in a tone she though was out of Catherine's range "Besides, mommy and daddy don't really like each other. And you and mommy REALLY like each other. I bet we would have lots of fun. Pleeeeeeaaaasseee, Uncle Grissom."

"O.K. Of course, I'll come with you.....and your mommy." Gil's blue eyes flashed towards Catherine's. He could feel his face flush and felt a surge of electricity shoot through his body. Lindsey's persistent tugging on Catherine's hand brought them both back to reality.

"YAY! I can't wait..... You said we could get some ice cream, remember, mommy? Can we go now?" Both adults chuckled at the quick change of conversation.

"How could I forget?" Before being dragged completely out the door, Catherine caught Gil's eyes again and mouthed 'thank you'. He smiled and nodded. ~This might be fun.~

"So, what do you wanna do first, Uncle Grissom?"

"Lead the way, princess." Grissom winked at her, and Lindsey giggled as she adjusted her tiara with the hand that wasn't clutched in Grissom's.

"Mommy, you're too slow! You need to walk faster like me and Uncle Grissom do. " Lindsey stopped abruptly and Catherine almost ran into her.

"Yeah Mommy," Gil mocked. Catherine squinted her eyes in a mock glare and stuck her tongue out at him. Before they knew it, they soon realized what had stopped Lindsey in her tracks. She had a plan. And before either adult could argue, the little girl had placed their hands together.

"There. Now Uncle Gil can pull you around and make sure you keep up. You're too big for me." The small blonde seemed satisfied and began to scurry off in the direction of a teacher.

"Mrs. Bradley--Hi!"

"Well, hello Lindsey. That's a very pretty costume.," the middle-aged woman replied. Seeing the two adults approach the little girl, she smiled and touched Lindsey's shoulder. "This is a fine little girl you've got here. Very bright." Catherine, smiling proudly, thanked her.

"Mrs. Bradley, this is my Uncle Grissom."

The lady looked down at Catherine, whom she knew to be Lindsey's mother, and the other man's hands intertwined and slightly questioned....."Uncle..... Grissom, is it?" Gil reluctantly loosened his right hand from Catherine's left and offered it for the lady standing before him to shake.

"Gil.....Grissom. Not exactly uncle.....friend, actually."

"I see." She gave a small wink in Catherine's direction, as she turned around to give her attention to another small student, this one a pumpkin.

"You know, I kinda like this look." ~More than you know.~ Catherine was gently fingering the wet tips of Gil's curls. After much persuading, and many pouting lips on Lindsey's part, he was finally convinced to bob for apples. He actually retrieved two from the large metal barrel before conceeding, and stepping aside, giving the next man his turn. Now, as they stood there watching Lindsey, "the social butterfly," talking to a group of her school friends, Catherine continued to tease Gil. "You know, you wouldn't have to share your apple if you would have just gotten me one too." She paused to take a bite. "One for Lindsey and one for yourself.....doesn't seem so fair. I should make you go back and get me one." She looked into his eyes and her own once again drifted to the tousled curls that lay upon his head.

"No way," Gil said, shaking his head, the curls bouncing slightly. "You're lucky I did it once." Grabbing the apple from her, he pulled off a bite for himself and handed it back to her. "Being a scientist, I KNOW how many germs are residing in that water. I could have E. coli bacteria dwelling in my body right now.....thanks to you." He smiled.

"Hey, now, you can't blame this one on me. My child insisted that you bob for apples, not me. I did, thoroughly enjoy witnessing it, though." A small laugh escaped her lips. Gil tried his best to look unamused, but he too began to laugh.

"You're not planning on telling anyone about this are you?"

"Oh yeah. This is too good not too! And I'll also be sure to add how good you are at those little carnival games...especially, pin the broom on the witch. Wasn't that one?"

"You wouldn't." ~God, she's beautiful.~

"I would." ~He's so sexy.~

"I will get you if you do. "

"I'll be looking forward to it." Surprised that she let that flirty comment slip her mouth, she nervously turned her head, found Lindsey, and began walking towards her. Gil followed closely behind her. When she stopped, he was so close that she could feel his still-damp shirt through her back. "Hey Linds, if you still wanted to trick-or-treat at a few houses near home, we'd better be going soon. You almost ready?"

"Hey Mommy, Katie's mommy said that she was going to take a bunch of us trick-or-treating near her house, if we could go. Katie said that they give away lots of the good candy over there. So, can I please go? And she said I can just spend the night too. I already have an outfit for tomorrow over there."

"Lindsey, it's a school night."

"No, it's not. Tomorrow is the day the teachers do all of their work, so we don't have to go to school."

"Teacher work day.....that's right.....I almost forgot."

"You did forget. So, can I go? Uncle Gil, will you tell her that I should get to go?"

Gil held both of his hands up and feigned innocence. "I can't convince your mommy of anything. She's got a mind of her own. She never listens to me."

Catherine playfully slapped him on the chest while asking,"Are you sure Katie's mommy said this was o.k.?"

"Yes, Ms. Willows, it's fine." Katie's mom walked up from behind Catherine, holding a small child in her arms. "I've got four of my own. A few more for the night won't hurt. I'll bring her home tomorrow afternoon, if that's o.k."

"Oh, you do have your hands full!" She smiled at the lady. "If you're sure you don't mind, that should be fine." She watched the woman nod her head, and Catherine turned to her daughter. "Have fun, baby." She bent down and kissed Lindsey on the forehead.

"And be careful..... and remember not to eat--"

"Any candy that is opened or fruit from people who I don't know," Lindsey finished. "I know, mommy.....you tell me every year." Then, she tugged on Gil's sleeve for him to pick her up, she sloppily kissed him square on the lips, jumped down, then ran towards her friends.

Witnessing the small display of affection between the two people she loves most, Catherine mumbled, "She loves you, you know?"

"I know. And I love her too."

"You hungry?," Gil momentarily removed his eyes from the road to look in Catherine's direction.

She had been looking out the window, absently smiling at the variety of costumes she could see blurred under the suburban street lights. "Famished. Where are we?"

"I'm taking a short cut. There's this nice little Italian place about 20 minutes from my townhouse. I thought maybe that we could stop there and pick up something and take it back to my place."

"Sure. Sounds good." ~Great, actually. Gil and I spend a lot of time outside of work together...we have for years. Almost like tradition..wouldn't know what to do without it..without each other. Although he sees it on a different level than I often do, I will never tire of him suggesting we go back to his place. Maybe that's because in the back of my head I lock away the fantasy that someday "wanna go back to my place?" will mean from him what it means coming from most guys. No. That's not right. Gil isn't most guys and that's exactly why you love him. Love?...such a strong word. I have tried so hard, for so long, to push that word out of my immediate thoughts concerning Gil. He's been there for me through some rough times. I wouldn’t want him to think that that's not enough for me. It is. Surely it is. I wouldn't risk his frienship for anything else in the world, but it doesn't hurt any less when I look into his eyes and wonder if his eyes get any brighter when he is in love...sharing his heart--and his bed--with a woman.~

Catherine laid her head against the cool glass of the window, her eyelids tugging themselves downward with a mind of their own. As she drifted off to sleep, her thoughts still with the man who encompassed her dreams most nights, she thought she saw raindrops making their way down the window. She fully drowned into a state of sleep before she could process if that's what they actually were.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but she was now currently coming out of her sleep, registering in surprise what had actually waken her up. Gil's entire body was out of his car seat and leaning towards hers, practically laying flat between the two seats. His head was hovering above her thighs and both of his hands were between her knees, ocassionally she could feel them grazing her ankles and calves. She would have been frightened if she couldn't have seen him steadily moving around, seeming as though he was looking for something. Now she was just curious. And as she still silently watched and felt him, she tried her best to convince herself that her curiosity superseded her arousal. Feeling his hands, and then her thoughts, begin to wander again, she thought it would be best to speak up. Before opening her mouth, she first noticed the heavy rain pounding against the SUV. ~Rain in the desert....guess it wasn't my imagination.~ "Um, Gil, what are you doing?"

He jerked his head up quickly, knocking it on the glove box and flinching in response. "Sorry. Didn't mean to wake you. Do you have your phone?"

"Huh?"

"Your cell phone. Do you have it on you? I was just looking for it.....didn't see it, though." He was still partially on her side of the car, his hand laying next to the emergency brake, propping himself up facing her. Their faces were very close. She could feel his heavy exhalations blowing against her hair. She shifted a bit nervously.

"Um, no, I didn't bring it. Isn't that yours on your seat?"

"Yeah, but I'm not getting service.....probably because of the storm. Storm.....in Vegas....can you believe it? This is a rare treat. It sure did pick a fine time to happen, though," he added sarcastically.

Sensing his tension, she nervously surveyed her surroundings, as much as she could see through the quickly fogging car windows. The car was stopped on what looked like an abandoned road--she hadn't noticed a car pass since she had been awakened from her slumber. She first realized that they must be fairly far from the city, when she couldn't see the bright city lights from their position. "Um, Gil, what's wrong?" She looked around once more before adding, "And where are we?"

~What do I tell her? Do I tell her that on the way to get something to eat, I looked over and saw her sleeping and wanted to touch her so badly...wanted to tease my fingers across the exposed skin on her neck? Wanted to whisper to her that I love her? And then I got so lost in my thoughts that I must have made a wrong turn somewhere, and now we're lost in the middle of nowhere? And now I'm out of gas. Yeah, Gil, that sounds smooth! She'll be really happy. Maybe if I leave out the part about touching her and loving her, she'll understand. Doubt it...~ "Um, I'm not quite sure where we are. Somewhere off of 515. I got lost." He adjusted himself back into his seat and lowered his head. "Sorry."

Catherine looked at him intently. ~Why was he so upset about getting lost? He looks like a little boy who just did something really bad and was waiting for his punishment.~ She opened the glove box and pulled out a map, smiling into his eyes. "It's o.k. We'll just take a look at this map and I'm sure it won't take us too long to figure out where you made a wrong turn. Don't get so upset about something so---"

"We're out of gas." He blurted it out quickly. ~Might as well get it all out there in the open. Let her get pissed all at once. Why postpone the inevitable?~ Shocked, he suddenly looked at her as though she were an extinct species of insect, suddenly incorporated back into the living world. She was laughing. ~Laughing...why is she laughing? Is this funny? It's not funny, is it? What's funny about being stranded in the middle of nowhere... in the rain, out of gas, at least 40 miles from the city? Well, I guess the situation could be construed as humorous...if it weren't US in the situation.~ "Cath, is there a particular reason you're laughing?," his tone was lightened a bit.

"This is like something you see in the movies," she was struggling to catch her breath after her fit of laughter. "Man....woman.....rain....car.....out of gas....middle of nowhere. This would be the point where you either kill me or make love to me." She didn't think before she said it. But she could now feel the heat rising to her face, and spreading throughout her body. ~'Make love to me'...even though not in the exact same context as in my dreams, that is the closest I have ever came to voicing what I've tried to hide for so long--how much I want him to want me. Thank God, it's dark. Maybe he can't fully read my reaction and nervousness to my own slip of the tongue. What if he can? What if he reads how much I want him? What if I have just caused the one man who has anchored me for so long to slip out of my life? What if...~

"Well, I could think of better places for both than out here.....," he chuckled lightly. He was blushing too now, but made no attempt to hide the flirting tone in his voice. ~She was flirting with me, wasn't she? I mean, she's not mad because we're trapped in the middle of nowhere. That means I can flirt back, right? Damn, I wish I knew the mechanics of this better...not good with women..never have been..feels so right with Catherine. If she doesn't like it, she'll let me know, right? Isn't that how it works?~ He continued,"If I were going to kill you tonight I would have made sure that I wasn't the last person that people saw you with--Lindsey's Halloween carnival messed up those plans. You should know that. I'd for sure be the number one suspect." He laughed again, deeper this time. His arm moved up to rest on the back of her seat, fingers lightly grazing her hair, and turned to face her, leaning forward. "And making love to you....." He paused, knowing that there was no turning back if he continued, ".....even I could think of someplace more romantic than this setting."

She giggled, not even sure if she meant to or if it was just a reflex from the emotions threatening to spill from her throat. ~He's not upset. He's...I don't know...acting flirty. There's that word again--the only one that fits. We've always been comfortable around each other...never this comfortable...never so careless in letting what we feel flow from our lips in the tone of our words. What we feel? We? Does he feel the same? Could it be possible? If I get my hopes up only to have my heart crushed, I don't know how I could live. Stay guarded, Catherine. Let him lead...you just follow.~ "It has possibilities."

"Wow, I must really be out of the loop. Car, huh? Women like that?"

"I think it depends more on the man than the location." ~Don't give him too much.~

"You sound as if you speak from experience." Gil moved a bit closer again. His right hand was still barely touching her hair. He slowly moved it to her neck, idley rubbing his thumb on the underside of her ear lobe. He smiled as she shivered faintly. ~Take a chance.~

"If you're asking me if I've had sex in a car, the answer is no. I have yet to meet a man who could charm me into that." ~Until now. He could make an artic glacier sound as appealing as a king-sized bed!~ Her left hand had, with a mind of it's own, wandered onto his leg. Her fingers were playing with the seam of his pants, inside his thigh, right above the knee. His eyes glanced down very briefly, wanting to make sure he wasn't imagining the contact, but not wanting to risk losing the desire in her eyes that he had held steady with his own. His eyes met hers again and she moved her hand a little higher, testing him, wanting to see if he would break their gaze another time. He didn't. "Don't get me wrong, I've had my share of kisses in a car. But, like I said, it's all about charm. Not enough charming men in the world. Sad, isn't it?" She smiled. He smiled.

"I would say it is." Their hands refused to move from their respecive places on each other's bodies. Gil and Catherine both sat perfectly still, except for the small movements of fingers grazing.....teasing.....testing.....waiting for the other to make a more permanent, irreversible move.

"We got lost because I was thinking of you." Gil blurted it out before he could stop himself. Momentum kept him talking....."I was thinking of touching this very spot on your neck." His fingers moved a little lower and put a forth slight pressure, wanting her to know the precise point. He breathed in deeply, continuing, "I lost my concentration, forgot where I was, and here we are now." He was relieved to admit it--admit something. Before he could say anything else, she was moving towards him. And before he could register what she was doing, her lips were on his. They touched his lightly and she pulled back. She was hovering awkwardly above him, one hand propped on the steering wheel, the other on the back of his seat. Their bodies weren't making contact any longer, but heat was enveloping the space between them. Two pairs of closed eyes soon opened, wanting to see the emotions that the others held. Catherine waited for Gil to decide where this was going to lead. ~It's up to him now. I made it clear enough what I want...if he wants the same then he needs to be the one to---~

Before she could finish her thought, she felt Gil's arms wrap around her back and with a ferocity that she couldn't even register through her brain, her back was against the passenger side door and Gil was on top of her. As awkward as their positioning was, Catherine was in no state to voice concerns. "You o.k.?" She heard him whisper it, apparently surprised by his own frenzied actions. She smiled and nodded.

"Kiss me.....please, Gil."

He slowly leaned his head down towards hers, tilting slightly. He wanted this to be so right. He put his fingers to her lips, tracing the path that his own lips would soon take. She opened her mouth slightly and kissed them, each one getting special attention. Then she reached her own hand up to his, removing his fingers, and tightly weaving her own around them. He smirked at her and kissed her cheek, lips lingering there. Moments later he finally gained the courage to move to her mouth. Lips slightly grazed, just as they did when Catherine took initiative, but Gil soon surrendered to his wants and advanced the kiss. He pulled her bottom lip into his mouth, sucking gently, relieved when a moan of pleasure escaped Catherine's mouth. She wanted more and grabbed his curls, forcing his head closer to hers--their mouths seering together in a kiss that couldn't be described as anything other than erotic. Mouths meshed, tongues collided, and murmers and sighs combined to form a beautiful harmony. They continued this for several minutes until the need for air overrided the pleasure they were experiencing.

"Wow," Catherine mumbled first, her hands still twisting in his hair.

"Uh, huh." Gil's mouth was on her neck now, his tongue searching for that exact spot that started the evening's events. Catherine was laughing and squirming underneath him.

"That tickles!"

"You want me to stop?" He hadn't made any move to halt his actions, only intensifying the pressure with his tongue.

"Yeah.....for a second." Gil tried to push himself upright at hearing this, but his foot was tangled in the driver's side seat belt. He looked at her questioningly as he tried to determine if she was regretting what was happening between them. "That's exactly why we need to stop for a second," she said as she pointed to his incapacitated foot. "That, and I think your emergency brake likes me. I want to reposition." He watched as she adjusted herself in her seat, so she was sitting as a normal passenger would, seat slightly leaned back. "O.K.....done."

~Am I supposed to just climb back on top of her? See, I knew I was out of practice.~ Catherine began to wonder what was taking him so long and grabbed his waist guiding him onto the passenger seat, atop of her. ~Guess that answers that question.~

"Mmmmm, Gil," Catherine sighed as one of his hands began its ascent up the skin underneath her blouse, his face still buried in her neck. She decided it was best to reciprocate his actions and unbuttoned the top three buttons of his shirt--enough to partially expose his chest--and ran her nails through the light hair there. ~Curly too!~ Just as his mouth was finding hers again, they heard a noise coming from the floorboard. Catherine adjusted her head to find it, stretched downward towards the gas petal--pulling Gil's form confusingly with her--and pulled up his cell phone. She showed him the display screen, it's bright green light illuminating the Tahoe. SERVICE RESTORED. Gil removed the phone from her hand and tossed it into the backseat.

He pressed his lips to hers forcefully, raising his smiling eyes to her questioning ones an instant later, "I don't quite think I'm ready to be found yet."

Catherine let her hands creep to his belt buckle. As she slowly began to undo it, she watched his eyes widen and playfully grinned. "You are a very charming man, Mr. Grissom."

THE END