Darkness surrounded the both of them, the only light coming from the interrogation room on the other side of the two-way mirror. They watched, bodies hovering just inches from touching the other's, as Warrick and Brass questioned the latest suspect in a murder case.

"So I liked your tough act yesterday," Catherine murmured.

"Huh?" The statement caught him off-guard.

He felt her grinning next to him, though he never turned his head, and after a moment she spoke in a low growl, mimicking him. "'I hand out the assignments, this isn't a negotiation'..."

"What, too much?"

He caught her shaking her head in his peripheral vision, and what she said next had his blood boiling, her voice low and seductive. "Not enough."

He slowly turned his head to look at her, eyes burning suggestively. "Really?" She paid no notice, her eyes still trained on what was happening in the interrogation room.

"Mmm-hmm," she murmured.

"So it's the tough guys that get to you?" he ventured next, unsure of what exactly made him ask such a bold question.

She smiled, still not daring to turn and meet his eyes. If she did, she knew she'd end up doing something that could get one or the both of them fired. "Sometimes," she sighed. "But most of the time it's the surprise that gets to me."

"The surprise..."

"Yeah, the surprise. It's like the normally lethargic cat that suddenly pounces," she explained. "Sometimes it can be the normally docile man suddenly cutting loose that's the biggest turn on."

"Is that so?"

His tone of voice caught her attention, and she slowly turned to meet his eyes, almost gasping at the raw desire written plainly in them. She could only nod as a response to his question, her voice gone. She'd never seen that look in his eyes before.

"So let me get this straight," he murmured, reaching out to grasp her shoulders. "If a guy like, let's say, Eddie for example... were to pin you against a wall, it would be no huge surprise."

"Nope," she replied, enjoying where this was heading.

He gripped her shoulders tightly, heart racing at the prospect of what he was about to do. "But, if a guy like me were to do that, and maybe..." He shoved her against the opposite wall. "Pin you to the wall right here, the surprise factor would be the biggest turn on... correct?" His eyes burned into hers as he slowly glided his hands up her arms, pinning her wrists over her head.

"Y-yeah," she breathed, stunned and completely turned on by the 180-degree turn his personality was taking.

He smirked, using one hand to keep her wrists in place while he used his right one to glide down the side of her body. His smile widened when he felt her involuntarily shudder, and he stroked the side of her breast before slipping his hand down to her thigh. "And... if a guy like me were to do this as well..." He grasped her thigh tightly, bringing her leg up to his hip and guiding it to his backside, encouraging her to wrap her leg around him while his hand stroked up and down her thigh. "What would you do, Catherine?"

A tiny moan escaped her lips. "I'd probably snap and tell that guy he'd better kiss me before I lose it."

Without hesitation, their lips crashed together, passion unleashed, and his hand left her wrists to join the other one in roaming her body. She gasped beneath the attention, her hands winding through his salt and pepper hair to the curls at the back of his neck, pulling his head closer to hers as their lips simultaneously parted, tongues dancing together heatedly.

She groaned into his mouth and he pressed himself flush against her, allowing her to feel the effect she was having on him. When the need for air became too great, they broke apart, his lips immediately finding the warm flesh on her neck. "Oh God, Gil," she gasped, touching him anywhere she could.

"Hey guys, Brass and I are--whoa!"

Warrick's voice surprised them both, and they jumped, both of their heads snapping to look at him. He stood staring at them, stunned, his eyebrows raised to their highest point on his forehead. They stood pressed together, not knowing what to say... her hands still on his neck and his still grasping her hips while they both opened and closed their mouths in futile attempts to explain the position they were in. "Uh... Warrick!" Catherine finally managed to squeak out, her cheeks flaring bright pink.

Warrick's shocked expression faded to an almost smug smirk, his eyes still moving back and forth between the two of them. Both of their eyes were mysteriously clouded, their faces bright red, and both sets of lips were pink and swollen... the trademark sign a powerhouse kiss had taken place. He shook his head as if shaking off a trance, remembering why he was there. "Uh, I was just coming in to tell you that Brass and I were gonna go round up the rest of those car wash employees if you still wanted to do that DNA test on all of them." He smirked. "Unless you're... too busy."

Catherine turned her head to hide a smile while Grissom's expression remained carefully blank, and they released their hold on each other. "No, Warrick, we're not too busy," he replied, as if what he'd walked in on was nothing out of the ordinary. "We'll meet you out at the Denali."

He nodded. "Sure thing." He slowly backed out the way he came, tossing a smile in Catherine's direction before wordlessly making his exit.

The two collapsed against the wall together, laughing, still breathless from their kiss. They leaned their foreheads together, lips feather-lightly caressing, as Catherine sighed out, "Duty calls, as usual."

Grissom hummed a chuckle. "Unfortunately." He dropped a kiss to her cheek before pulling away, his arms still around her waist, hands resting on the small of her back. "But Catherine, when shift is over, would it be too presumptuous of me to ask you to breakfast at my townhouse?" He quirked an eyebrow and lowered his gaze, giving her a smoldering look beneath his lashes. "I could show you my tough act again, if you'd like."

She giggled. "Hell, you'd better." She kissed him quickly again and grabbed for his hand, pulling him toward the door. "Come on."

Grissom shook his head as he followed her out, surmising aloud to himself, "And to think all it took was pulling out my tough act..."

~FINIS~