Platypus 11: Too Tough to Cry

“Hey, Baby,” Catherine grinned as she saw her daughter rush towards her, despite her anger with Eddie.

The little blonde girl greeted her with a hug. “Hi Mommy. Daddy’s taking me to dinner tonight.”

Her heart pounded in her throat. She glanced at Eddie briefly, and knew what he was planning. She kept the smile pasted on her face. “He is?”

Eddie answered. “Main room at the Orpheus.”

Lindsay was so excited; it pained Catherine, knowing she was going to have to disappoint her beloved daughter. “They had lions and tigers at the restaurant and daddy said I can go to a show after.”

She tried not to sound too much like a party pooper. “Well, you know, honey, it is a school night, so I need to discuss that with daddy first.”

“C’mon Mom!”

“It’s just this one night,” Eddie added. Catherine felt her blood pressure skyrocket.

“Ed...” Her voice was threatening to crack.

Warrick appeared. Catherine was glad it was him, instead of Gil. She knew what could happen if Gil saw them arguing, and she didn’t want to burden him with her problems.

“Hey Lindsay,” he strode over to the trio. She looked up at him, biting her lip, wondering what he was going to do. “I got some games on my computer. You wanna see?”

She smiled and nodded. “Sure.”

“Let’s play one.”

Catherine sighed, temporary relief washing over her. “I’ll see you in a, uh, bit, honey.” When their daughter was out of earshot, she looked at Eddie and spoke angrily: “You set me up!”

Eddie countered. “How? By taking our daughter to dinner?”

She looked around. The break room was nearby, and she knew that Gil and possibly Nick or Sara were in there. She didn’t want them to see what she had to deal with. “Get over here. C’mon.” She started walking down the corridor, until they rounded a corner.

Eddie protested loudly, waving his arms around. “What?” When she didn’t reply, he repeated himself: “What?!”

“You,” her voice was venomous. “Are so pathetic.”

“What?”

“Just so pathetic,” she spat out.

“Watch it, Cath.”

She continued: “Sucking up to our daughter ‘cuz I caught you robbing me.”

He leaned in close. She didn’t smell alcohol, which was a bonus, but she didn’t like him in so close to her. “The only thing I ever robbed you of was good sex.”

The words made her stomach churn. She briefly considered her stomach’s need to purge itself, but managed to put the need on hold. “No sex is worth you and you aren’t taking my daughter to a club with one of your music whores!”

“Oh,” his eyes were wild. She was almost scared. “They’re whores. When I met you, you were taking your clothes off in a strip club.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gil behind Ed. She wondered if he had heard the commotion or if Warrick had given him a heads up. She growled at him: “It was a job, Ed, and it supported you. Just like every job I’ve had—including this one!”

Gil took two hesitant steps towards them. Eddie muttered: “Yeah? And who paid to close up your nose?”

Her stomach clenched. Her mind froze. Furious and afraid, she tried her hand at insulting him. “Oh, you’re such a—” She never got the chance; Eddie grabbed her and pushed her against the wall. She trembled, not being in this position in so long. “Let go of me...” Her voice wavered little, but she knew both Gil and Eddie would be able to sense her fear.

Eddie had, and he was playing on it. “What?” He smirked. “I’ll let go of you when I’m damn good—”

Catherine felt a second wave of relief as Gil rushed up to them and pulled him off of her. “Let go of her, Ed!” Eddie backed off, not as brave in front of others. “Catherine...”

His voice was so tender, dripping with concern, that she started to feel her defenses slide. Tears filled her eyes and she knew she had to get out of there. “Just get him out of here.”

She rushed to his office, the one place she knew would be safe for falling apart. As she ran to hide, she heard Gil telling Eddie to leave. She hoped he would listen; she didn’t want him around. Any chance he had at repairing things was destroyed.

The office comforted her; she sat in Gil’s chair and let herself cry. The sobs wracked her body as she rid her system of the fear that had gripped her. She bent over and rocked back and forth. When she finally felt her system level off, she straightened up and wiped her face.

Then, she picked the phone up and dialed her sister’s number. “Hey, Sis,” she spoke when the familiar voice answered. “It’s me.”

“Gosh, Cath... are you okay?”

“Eddie stopped by the office. Brought Lindsay with him for protection. What an asshole.”

“Ohhh... did he hurt you?”

“No, no,” she replied. “He tried, but Gil managed to get him off of me. I heard him kick him out.”

“Gil saved you?” Catherine heard a light teasing tone in her sister’s voice. “Oooooh. Knight in shining armour.”

“Hey, now. Gil and I aren’t...” Catherine trailed off to think, before jumping back in again. “I don’t think I like what you’re implying.”

“Oh, right, of course you don’t. Let me tell you about the looks I’ve seen you two exchange.” Before Catherine had the chance to interject, she jumped back in. “At the picnic you had a while ago, inviting everyone from work, all of Lindsay’s friends...”

“Right.”

“Did you want me to come and get Lindsay?”

Gil came into the room, Lindsay nowhere to be seen. “Actually, yeah,” she said, while letting her eyes meet his. “Do you mind coming to get her?”

“No, not at all.”

He lifted his hands up, “Cath? Why don’t I give you the rest of your shift off? I can drive you and Lindsay home.”

“One second,” she told her sister. Then, she spoke to Gil: “Wanna take the rest of your shift off, too?”

He smiled and nodded. “Already signed us out. Sara went home, and Nick and Warrick said they’d stay until the overlap, just in case something happens.”

“You’re being awfully... presumptuous.”

“I only want to take you home and cook you breakfast, and make sure you tuck yourself into bed to get some rest.”

“Rest is the last thing I need.” She quickly turned back to her conversation with her sister. “Hey, Sis... Gil’s giving me the shift off. I’m gonna take Linds home myself.”

“Make sure you get plenty of non-rest.”

Catherine laughed for the first time in a while. “Oh, hush. I’ll talk to you later. Love you.”

~*~

Gil carried Lindsay, who was sleeping soundly, to the front door, while Catherine fumbled with her keys. She managed to get the door open, and they walked inside together. Wordlessly, she pointed down the hall; Gil followed the thought she was presenting and carried the sleeping girl to her bedroom.

When he managed to set her down on her bed, he felt Catherine’s hands on his back. Warmth rushed him. “I’ll get her dressed in her pj’s.”

He turned his head and nuzzled her. “I’ll make tea.”

“Great.”

He headed out of the room and walked down the hall, pausing to take his shoes and coat off at the front door, and then he headed into her kitchen. It was fairly organized and he found everything he was looking for easily.

She appeared, clad in loose hospital pants and a tank top, a smile on her face. “I can’t believe she fell asleep.”

“Me, neither. Who knew a crime lab could have so much for a little girl to do?” He left the teapot to pull her into his arms; he had seen the smile falter and knew she’d eventually need to lean on someone. “How are you holding up?”

She sighed. “I can’t believe I married that guy.”

To comfort her, he kissed her forehead. At the contact, she moaned. “None of that tonight,” he chuckled, glad to see he still affected her. “You need to rest. Hard shift. Sleep fixes.”

“Those were some pretty bad sentence fragments,” she commented with a laugh. “Would you just kiss me?”

He couldn’t believe he was going to decline. “You should really have some tea.”

She pouted. “But, what would really help me...”

He gave in. “Maybe later.”

“Goody,” she grinned up at him, leaning into him to kiss his neck.

When her kisses turned into licks and nibbles, he tried to pull her off of him. “Tea, Cath. Soothes the nerves.” He pried himself loose, and headed to the stove, where the tea was waiting. He started to pour one cup, when he felt her arms wrap around him from behind. “We aren’t having tea, are we?”

“Nope,” she muttered in reply, while concentrating on untucking his shirt from his pants. “Definitely not yet, anyway.”

Still wrapped in her, he turned to face her. She smiled up at him. He kissed her sweetly, struggling against his desires to take her in the kitchen. “You’re going to do one thing for me, first.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah,” he nodded.

She shifted her weight. “What’s that?”

“Shower.”

Her face wrinkled. “I smell bad?”

He shook his head. “No, no, you could never smell bad,” he kissed her forehead before speaking again. “I just think that warm water and some sweet smelling shampoo and maybe an extra pair of hands would help you relax better.”

She nodded, her smile growing. “Yes, it might. You’re one smart cookie, Gil Grissom.”

His name, rolling off her tongue, sent shivers up and down his spine. His nerve endings were tingling, his blood boiling. Catherine Willows only had to say his name and he was ready to fall apart.

She licked her lips, slowly, suggestively. He gulped, gripped her arm, and took her to her bathroom. When the door was locked, he turned his back on her, and started running the water until it reached a suitable temperature for a shower.

When he turned around to face Catherine again, she was standing in front of him, completely naked. His mind blanked.

“Gil,” she smiled, taking a step towards him. “You’ve seen me naked before, I don’t know why this is so effective at silencing you now.” He tried to speak several times, but nothing would sound right, so he stopped. She took another step towards him. “You know, you’re overdressed. Unless you want to get your clothes soaked.”

He managed to shake his head. “No.”

“Good,” she chuckled while unbuttoning his shirt. “We’ll talk later, I promise.” She kissed his chest. “Right now, though, I just need... to feel.”

“Oh boy,” he gulped, helping her take his shirt off by shrugging his shoulders. The room was starting to steam up by the time he was stepping out of his pants; his mind was also very foggy.

Catherine took his hand, and pulled him into the shower behind her. He watched the water run down her body, dripping off her breasts before running down the rest of her. She lifted her hands to her hair and pushed it off her face. She turned them so he could get wet; when his hair was soaked, she reached to a hanging basket and pulled a bottle of shampoo out.

The next thing he felt was her hands massaging his head. The scent of heavy spices and pumpkins assaulted his system. “Don’t worry,” she spoke softly. “It’s not too girly a smell.”

“I wouldn’t have minded anyway,” he admitted, letting the sensations wash over him. He briefly considered closing his eyes, but watching her was more intense.

“Want to rinse?”

“Sure,” he smiled, dipping his head back into the stream of water. When his hair was rinsed free of the soap suds, he turned her around. “And now, it’s your turn.”

“Oooh goody,” he heard a shudder in her voice. He poured an adequate amount of the orange soap into his hands and rubbed them together. When he made contact with her short, blonde tresses, he felt her sway under his touch. For a brief moment, he thought he heard her purring, but he wasn’t sure.

He nipped lightly at her earlobe. “Time to rinse.”

They changed their positions; he helped her remove the suds from her hair, and then he stole a kiss from her damp lips. She looked up at him and wiggled her eyebrows, before kneeling down in front of him.

“Cath!” He gasped at the contact of her mouth on his erection. “Wouldn’t you rather do this sort of thing in the bedroom?”

She shrugged, pausing in her careful treatment of him. “We can do it there, too.”

He grunted as she took him into her mouth, reaching up to put his hands on the walls to support himself. This time, he gave himself permission to close his eyes; behind his lids, he saw amazing colours flashing around him.

“Eyes, Gil,” she chuckled, before continuing. Keeping his eyes on her, while she worked him with her mouth, was intense. She bobbed her head, but made certain she could watch him.

Normally, he thought this was sort of behavior was strange. He had never felt that eye contact throughout sex was so important; with her, it was like looking into her soul, and knowing she was looking into his. He found it hard to believe that they were only using each other for physical pleasure; he didn’t think that Catherine would open herself up like that for just anyone.

When he felt an end drawing, he tried to tell her to wait, but she kept at him. His knees weakened, and he exploded.

“God, Cath...” He shuddered when she stood up.

She grinned. “I know, I know. I’m amazing.”

“Your turn,” he winked, after catching his breath, sliding down onto his knees in front of her. She leaned into a corner, propping herself up by bracing her arms on the wall and by locking her knees.

He kissed her stomach and worked his way down, using her sighs and quiet moans as guidelines for what to do. Oral exploration had never been his thing; it hadn’t been something they did together until this night. Gil had never worked on his oral skills extensively, but when he looked up into her eyes, he knew she was satisfied with him.

“Ohhhhh... Gil... I’m gonna....” she gasped as his tongue darted out against her in a quick flicking action. “Fall over....” He put his hands on her hips and held her firmly. “Better.... OOOOoooh!” He chuckled, knowing he hit the right spot. He kept at her, and when he felt her trembling, he doubled his efforts. Within seconds, she collapsed against him. “Goodness.”

Her hands connected with his head, her fingers wove into his hair. “You’re probably pruning,” he commented, kissing her bellybutton for fun. “Maybe we should dry off.”

She giggled as he flicked his tongue into her navel. “That sort of behavior is doing nothing to dry me off.” She looked down ar her hands, lifting them from his head. “But, you’re right, I am pruning.”

She shut the water off, and they got out. She tossed him a towel and they dried each other, before wrapping the towels around them and heading out into the hallway.

Catherine was about to head into her room, but Gil pulled her the other way. She groaned. “Talking?”

“Yes,” he brought her wrist to his mouth, to nip at the soft skin. He noticed discoloration, probably from Eddie’s tight grip. “We haven’t gotten around to that yet.”

Clad only in towels, they sat down next to each other. Catherine leaned against his bare shoulder. “Thanks for getting him out of there. I couldn’t stay.”

“Did he put the money back?”

She nodded. “Bank called a couple days ago, to tell me the mortgage had been canceled. He was just trying to stay out of trouble by bringing Lindsay. I should’ve known we’d fight...” she sighed. “I shouldn’t have lost my temper. It only sets him off.”

“You aren’t going to shoulder the blame for his short fuse.” He reached up and touched her cheek. “You’re so much better than him.”

“And, he’s the father of my baby,” she continued. “He’s in my life permanently.”

He frowned. “I wish I could help.”

She chuckled. “Short of marrying me and adopting Lindsay, there isn’t much you can do,” she put her hand on his chest, toying with the light hairs she loved so much there. “Just having you to lean on is a huge help, Gil. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” She lifted her hand and rubbed her face. “Man, what a day.”

“Yeah,” he nodded, his heartbeat slowing down after her suggestion of marriage, as he realized there was nothing to it—even though he knew he’d marry her and adopt Lindsay without a second thought. “Maybe we should scrap talking and head to bed.”

She seemed relieved. “I have a gorgeous black nightie that I know you’d love.”

He kissed her before they jumped up. “It won’t be on long.”

The End!

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