DISCLAIMER: CSI Miami and its characters are the property of Jerry Bruckheimer and CBS. No infringement intended.
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.
SERIES: This is a continuation of Theories.

Solutions
By sinjenkai

Part 1

Calleigh Duquesne quietly opened the door to Natalia Boa Vista's hospital room and peered in. Seeing her lover asleep, Calleigh crept in and took her usual spot in the chair beside the bed. She'd been doing this routine for almost two weeks since Natalia had come out of the coma and had insisted that she go home at night. She'd leave around 10 o'clock under the guise of going back to her condo to sleep. What she was actually doing was just going home, taking a shower, changing clothes and coming back to be with Natalia. Calleigh would sit there all through the night just watching Natalia sleep, occasionally she would take a nap, but it never lasted for long. The images that came in her dreams always woke her drenched in sweat. Occasionally during the day whenever Natalia would nap, Calleigh would also, but those days were fleeting.

Later that morning, Natalia and Calleigh were in the solarium enjoying the warmth and just being with each other. As Natalia looked over at Calleigh, she saw that the blonde had her head tilted back with her eyes closed, just basking in the sun with her hair streaming down like spun gold.

"You take my breath away."

Calleigh turned her head to look at Natalia, her jade green eyes twinkled as she responded. "Now that can be a good thing every once in awhile, because I love to leave you gasping for air."

"Yes, that can be a very good thing. You'll have to show me once we get home."

Calleigh sat up. "Speaking of getting home, I want...."

"Move in with me Calleigh. I've plenty of room, there is the pool which we've enjoyed already and I don't want to be away from you any more than I have to."

Calleigh got up, just to kneel back down at her lover's feet. "I was just about to ask you to move in with me. But the answer is yes. My lease on the condo is just about up so it's perfect timing."

Natalia leaned forward to capture her lips in a slow, sweet kiss. "I can't wait to get home to get into our bed. I miss sleeping with you."

Standing in the doorway, Dr. McManus coughed to get their attention. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I've got some news. If you want to leave today, you can. You're healing nicely and I don't foresee any other problems showing up. You will have to refrain from any heavy lifting for awhile, but other than that, you cleared to do whatever you want. I don't want you to go back to work for another week though. I know that you do a lot of bending and I want you to try and build up your back muscles. I know that you've been working with a therapist so you know what to do and I trust that Blondie here can help you with that."

"Hey, I resemble that remark. Don't worry. I know exactly what she needs."

"I'm sure that you do, but make sure that she does her therapy too."

Natalia laughed. "Oooo, good one. Thank you again Doc. We can never repay you for all that you've done."

"You're welcome. Now get out of here."

And that is exactly what they did. The couple went back to the room where Natalia got into some street clothes and was then wheeled down to the lobby where Calleigh was waiting to drive her home. The ride was short, but to Natalia, it took forever. She was relieved when they pulled up into the driveway.

Calleigh jumped out of the car, and ran around to help Natalia out. When they got inside Natalia exclaimed, "I have never been so happy to be home." She sat down on the sofa while Calleigh went around opening windows and the sliding doors out to the pool, airing out the house.

Kneeling in front of Natalia, Calleigh took her hands in hers and asked, "Will you be ok by yourself for a little while? I want to go to my place to get some clothes and things. I won't be gone too long."

Leaning forward to give Calleigh a slow kiss, Natalia whispered. "I'll be fine. Just hurry back. There's something that I want to get into with you."

"I want to get into something with you too. You don't do anything. Just hang out here on the sofa and I'll be back before you know it."

Calleigh took off and Natalia sat back, enjoying the quiet for a few minutes. 'She's going to get clothes. I need to make sure that there is enough room in the closet and armoire.' Getting up and going into the bed room, she opened up her walk-in closet. Luckily most of her clothes were on one side anyway, but she did have to move over some items from one drawer to another. Walking back into the bathroom, she made sure that there were a couple of shelves free for anything else Calleigh might bring.

After finishing that, she decided that she would get into the pool for awhile. Changing into a turquoise one piece swimsuit, she went out and slowly walked in to the pool, letting her body adjust to the cool water. She did a couple a slow laps to stretch out her back and did some fast laps until she was a bit winded. Stopping in the middle of the pool, she leaned her head back and floated, watching the clouds drift by and enjoying the silence.

That's how Calleigh found her, floating silently. She had brought in one load of clothes, laid them on the sofa and stepped out onto the patio.

"Talia."

Hearing her name, Natalia bought up her head, and began to tread water while she watched Calleigh as she slipped off her sandals and slowly unfastened the buttons to her cream brushed jeans, pushing them off to reveal pale green silk panties. Never looking away, Calleigh reached up and began unbuttoning her shirt to expose a matching bra. Removing the shirt, Calleigh walked into the pool until she was treading water around Natalia.

Leaning in, she spoke in a low voice. "I thought that you were going to stay on the sofa to wait for me."

"I got too hot and needed to cool off. But if you want to warm me up again, I wouldn't mind at all"

Calleigh swam up behind her, leaning Natalia back until her head was on Calleigh's shoulder while she was treading water. "Darlin', I would love to warm you up, but you just got out and I think that we should take it easy at least for tonight. How about we just float around for a bit then, fix some dinner, unless you want to go out to eat."

Natalia's voice drifted back to Calleigh, sounding a bit disappointed. "You're right, it's just I want you so much. But tomorrow, you're all mine."

"We'll see, darlin'. What would you like to have for dinner? Do you want to stay in, order in or go out?"

Raising her head and turning to face Calleigh, Natalia wrapped her arms about her neck. "Let's just stay in. I'm sure we've got something that can be thrown together, but we'll need to go shopping tomorrow."

Swimming over to the steps, Natalia got out first and went to pick up the towel that she had left on a chair. Turning, she watched as Calleigh walk up the steps, her underwear beautifully transparent and then over to pick up her discarded clothes and sandals. Calleigh walked over to her and placed a finger under her chin, closing her mouth.

"You don't need to stare darlin'. It all belongs to you and I'm not goin' anywhere." And with that she strolled inside. Turning at the sliding doors. "Are you coming or are you staying out here all night?" Natalia shook herself out of her reverie.

"Oh yeah."

They ended up merely changing into their nightclothes and fixing some scrambled eggs and bacon. As they ate on the sofa, listening to soft jazz, they discussed their plans for the next day. Calleigh had gotten most of her clothes that day, and only had some paintings and personal items that she cared about, as the condo had come furnished.

Natalia cleaned up while Calleigh put away her clothes and when she finished, she walked into the bedroom to find her lover putting the last item away. Together they turned down the bed and crawled in. Calleigh opened her arms and Natalia laid her head on her shoulder. Switching off the lights, Calleigh began to trace lazy patterns along Natalia's back.

Raising her head to look Calleigh in the eyes, Natalia asked. "Is there anything that I can do for you?"

Kissing her gently, Calleigh answered. "No, I'm quite satisfied just the way I am, holding you in our bed. Right this moment, there is nothing else that I want."

Natalia was soon gently snoring while Calleigh lay watching her. She was praying that tonight might be different than the others of the past two weeks. Every night since Natalia had been hurt, she hadn't slept for more than two or three hours. She would wake up in a cold sweat and had nightmares about seeing Natalia bleed to death up on the roof. Nightmares that had Jake throwing the knife repeatedly into Natalia's back. Hopefully tonight would be different now that she was holding Natalia, that she could feel her heart beating in time with hers.

But it wasn't to be. Every time she was just drifting off, Jake's voice drifted into her thoughts. "If I can't, she won't". And she saw Natalia falling into pools of blood. After lying there for three hours with no relief in sight, she carefully got out of bed, making sure that she didn't wake Natalia. Quietly she changed into shorts and a tank top, grabbed a towel and padded into the living room. Spreading the towel down on the rug, she proceeded to do three hundred crunches and then another three hundred push-ups. Upon finishing those, she got up, went out to the pool, dove in and began doing laps.

After 45 minutes or so, she happened to look up and saw Natalia wrapped in a terry cloth robe, sitting on the sofa in the living room watching her. Quickly she got out, toweled off and went inside. Closing the sliding doors, she knelt in front of Natalia.

"What are you doing up? Are you feeling ok?"

"I'm fine. I woke up, you weren't there and I missed you. Are you ok?"

Gathering one of Natalia's hands in hers, she looked up into velvet brown eyes. "I just couldn't sleep or get comfortable. I guess I'm just excited about you being out of the hospital and us moving in together. I'm sorry that I woke you."

Laying down and opening her robe, Natalia beckoned. "Come here."

Calleigh laid down, wrapping her arms around Natalia's waist and entwining their legs. Natalia whispered. "Sleep my love. I'm home and you're where you're supposed to be." Now she rubbed Calleigh's back and whispered softly to her when she began to get restless in her sleep. As she laid there, another thought came to mind and she smiled as it took root and expanded. Smiling still, she finally drifted off to sleep. It wasn't until about five in the morning, that they both were asleep.

Part 2

Natalia awoke to feather-light touches and sweet kisses placed along her body. Breathing in the aroma that was uniquely Calleigh, she smiled and opened her eyes to find a blonde temptress staking her claim.

"Good Morning darlin'. Are you ready to get started or are you going to lay around all day?"

Pulling her down for a searing kiss that left them both breathless, Natalia answered. "Now it's a good morning, and you already got me started. The question is are you going to finish?"

Jade eyes gleamed wickedly as Calleigh's lips slowly followed the hands that were exploring warmer regions, humming as she went along. Coming upon a nub, she paused to suckle and Natalia surged up, hands grasping at something to anchor herself down. Humming, Calleigh added a couple of fingers to the magic potion that she was creating and was rewarded a delicious moan that reverberated down to her ears. Raising her head slightly, she saw Natalia's head tossing back and forth.

"Natalia... Talia....look at me."

Natalia raised her head and tried to focus. Letting another moan, her head slammed back as her back arched and eyes rolled back. Tremors were running rampant and she buried her hand in golden tresses that were slowly making their way back up her body, while the fingers inside her became a quartet.

Calleigh kept thrusting even while nibbling her way back up the pulsating body. Stopping every once in a while at a sensitive spot, she finally made her way to a pair of luscious lips that seemed begging to be ravished. Leaning down, she licked a path along Natalia's chin and moved up to her mouth, where her tongue was granted access to spar with Natalia's.

Reaching behind Calleigh, Natalia raked her nails down her back, making her lover arch into her. She tore her mouth away and screamed out Calleigh's name as she came. Laying down beside her, Calleigh fluttered her fingers and slowly withdrew, then pulled her close and placed gentle kisses along her damp face.

They laid there for quite awhile while Natalia quieted her breathing and Calleigh delighted in the pleasure that this woman brought her. It felt so right and she knew that she was extremely lucky to still have this amazing woman in her life. She couldn't get over the fact that Natalia didn't blame her for what Jake had done. Calleigh vowed that she would do whatever it took to keep Natalia safe, and make sure that she knew that she was loved.

Raising her head, Natalia looked at the woman that held her in her arms. Calleigh's beauty always took her breath away, but upon looking closely, she could see slight circles underneath her eyes, and that worried her. If last night was something that happened often, they would need to talk about it soon. Natalia had an idea to what was the matter, but thought that it should be Calleigh that should bring it up.

"Hey, you ok?"

Calleigh opened her eyes to look into warm chocolate eyes. "Yeah, I'm great. Are you ready to get going?"

"Yeah, but would you mind if I didn't go with you to your condo? I need to do a couple of things around here and I won't be able to help you very much there as I can't lift anything. You can go there, get whatever you want to bring over here and when you get back, we can go grocery shopping. Our cupboards are pretty bare."

"I should've thought of that myself. I just have a couple of paintings and the rest of my clothes. I can go back tomorrow and clean before I turn in the key. You're sure that you'll be ok here by yourself?"

Kissing her quickly, Natalia reassured her lover that she would be just fine for a few hours.

Calleigh got up, dressed and borrowed Natalia's car since was larger that her Crossfire, but not before she gave Natalia a kiss that left her weak in the knees. She then drove to her condo and gathered up everything that she wanted to keep and got it in the car. Stopping by the management office, Calleigh informed them that she wasn't going to renew her lease and then headed back to the house to leave her stuff and pick up Natalia.

While Calleigh was at her condo, Natalia was on the phone calling in a few favors. She arranged to go to a recording studio that was owned by a friend the next day for a few hours. After setting up to rent a cottage for the next week, she called Horatio and arranged for him and Alexx to meet them in five days. When she told him what she had planned, he arranged for a friend to fly them there and back in a private jet. Told her to consider it as a gift. She then called a friend that was a pianist to find out where she was playing. Thankfully she was still where she hoped. She made a deal with her and emailed her an arrangement.

The next day was going to be a very busy day as she still had a lot of things to do to get her plan in gear.

Calleigh got back home to pick her up for the grocery store about three hours later. They then drove to the store and spent the next hour and half in the store, each one learning more about the others likes and dislikes. By the time they got home, it was early afternoon and Natalia was beginning to tire out. As soon as they parked the car in the drive, Calleigh had her go unlock the door and just help put away the food while she brought everything in.

After putting all the food away, Natalia went to take a hot shower, hoping that it would help her sore back. Neither one felt like cooking so they decided to order in a pizza and take it easy. After ordering the pizza, Calleigh put away the rest of her clothes and personal items. While waiting on the pizza, she opened a couple of bottles of beer and fixed a quick salad.

When the pizza arrived, they sat on the sofa eating and tried to decide where to hang the paintings that Calleigh brought over. Afterwards, they laid on the sofa cuddling and listening to music until Natalia started to fall asleep. Calleigh got her up, helped her to the bed, drawing her into her arms and laying there as she fell asleep.

Once again, it was a long night for Calleigh. She actually started to drift off after about two hours of laying there when she opened her eyes and could have sworn that she saw Jake standing at the end of the bed with his bloody knife. She was barely able to stop herself from bolting from the bed and waking Natalia. That specter haunted her for the rest of the night until the sun's morning rays were creeping through the window. Only then, did she get an hour of sleep.

Part 3

The first thing that Natalia noticed that morning was how tired Calleigh looked and how much darker the circles were underneath her eyes. This was gonna have to stop. She was going to have to bring up the subject, but decided to save it until that evening. Natalia quietly got out of bed, got dressed and went into the kitchen to fix breakfast.

Natalia was just putting a pancake on a plate when Calleigh padded into the kitchen, looking very disheveled. Natalia handed her a glass of orange juice and said, "Good Morning Sunshine."

"Morning darlin. Sorry didn't mean to sleep late."

Handing her a plate of pancakes, Natalia grabbed her own plate and went to join her at the breakfast bar, but looked puzzled when Calleigh placed the plate down on the bar and went to look for something in the pantry.

"Where did we put the peanut butter?"

"Peanut butter! What do you need that for?"

Finding the peanut butter, Calleigh rejoined Natalia at the bar. "When I was small and whenever my dad had a good weekend, he would make us pancakes so I was brought up eating peanut butter and syrup on my cakes. I know that it sounds strange, but try it before you turn up your nose at it.

After a bit more coaxing and a lot of kisses, Natalia did try the concoction and declared that it wasn't as near as bad as she thought, She even ended up eating a whole pancake covered with peanut butter and syrup.

After they finished and had cleaned up, Natalia said, "I hope that you don't mind, but I need to run some errands today and I need to do them by myself. I have a surprise that I want to do for you."

"Oh, a surprise? No, go ahead. I need to go back over to the condo and get it cleaned. I'll be there for the rest of the day. Do you want to meet somewhere for dinner or come back here?"

Natalia swallowed some of her juice before saying, "Why don't I call you later and we can decide then. I'll call you around five then, ok?"

They agreed and each went their separate ways. As soon as Natalia got into her car, she was on the phone calling in and asking a few more favors. By the time this day was done, her bank account was going to get a lot lighter. She drove down to the music district and spent the next five hours in the recording studio that she set up the day before. Her final stop was an exclusive shop that she had bought a few items from before. Taking her time to wander the store, she found the finally decided on the perfect one and paid for it. Walking out of the store with her purchase, she called Calleigh.

"Hey, you ready to get something to eat?… Ok, are you still at the condo?… No, I'll swing by the house and pick you up. You want to what… ? About 15 minutes then….? Ok, I love you. Bye."

And she headed home.

When Calleigh left the house that morning, she decided that she needed to run her own errand before she got down and dirty at the condo, so she jumped into her car and headed to a store that a friend had recommended. She walked in and was immediately in awe of all of the beautiful things available. Walking around the store, she looked at each item. She knew exactly what she wanted, but didn't see anything close. When the sales person asked if they could help, she described what she wanted and was pleasantly surprised when they brought just what she was looking for out of the back. They hadn't even had the chance to put it out yet. She paid for it and walked out feeling rather pleased with herself. She spent the rest of the day cleaning and packing up the miscellaneous items at the condo. When she finished, she took whatever she didn't want over to the Salvation Army and donated everything. She got home close to four, so she jumped into the shower and cleaned up. She had just finished getting dressed when her cell phone rang.

"Hi there darlin'…. Yeah, I'm starving... Nope, I'm home…. I want to grill some steaks…. Ok, see you then….I love you too. Bye."

As Calleigh hung up the phone, she realized what she had said. That she was at home. She realized that she was truly at home where she belonged. Everything that she ever wanted was right there. She had someone who loved her no matter what and who she loved more than she ever thought that she could.

Calleigh was in the kitchen prepping for dinner when Natalia got home. Walking inside, but stopping just inside the garage door, Natalia watched for a few minute unobserved. Calleigh was humming as she worked and she looked content, but still very tired.

Natalia came up behind her and wrapped her arms about her lover's waist.

"It is so nice knowing that I am coming home to you. I just smiled all the way here, just knowing that you were waiting for me."

Calleigh leaned back to rest her head against Natalia's shoulder. "I know. When I was talking to you on the phone, I caught myself after I said I was at home, but this does feel like my home now. Wherever you are darlin' is my home. So how was your day? How do you feel?"

"I'm still a bit sore, but it was a good day. By the way, I need for you to pack enough clothes for about a week."

Looking surprised, Calleigh asked. "Kicking me out already? Jeez!"

"No silly, we're going on a mini vacation. I figured that we needed time away from the city, somewhere where things are a bit slower and relaxed. Pack some casual clothes, bathing suit, couple of nice dresses and shorts. We're going to be leaving in the morning so we'll have to pack tonight or first thing in the morning."

"So where are we going?" Calleigh asked.

"I'll never tell so don't ask. It wouldn't be a surprise then, now would it? Would it be ok if I went and took a quick shower before dinner?"

"Of course, take as long as you need. I'll come get you when things are about ready."

So that's what she did, Natalia went and took a long hot shower, while Calleigh stayed in the kitchen, mixing up a steak marinade, soaking wooden skewers and getting things ready to use with the gas grill that was out on the patio. She opened a bottle of red wine and poured a glass to take to Natalia, but when she walked into the bedroom she found her napping.

Calleigh wasn't sure how long she stood there watching her sleep, but when she finally did notice, the wine glass was empty. She felt so damn guilty for getting Natalia hurt. If she had never taken the assignment, this would've never happened. If she had never kissed Jake where Natalia could see or if she been able to shoot him before he threw the knife. Whenever Calleigh looked at the scar on Natalia's neck, she saw Jake cutting her up on the roof. And even though she had to massage Natalia's back as a part of her therapy, she had a hard time looking at the scar and touching it made her sick to her stomach sometimes. They had never talked about what had happened. Every time Natalia brought it up, Calleigh changed the subject. She just couldn't talk about it yet, she felt too guilty.

Calleigh put the glass down on a nightstand, and pulled a light coverlet over Natalia. Gently placing a kiss on her forehead, she picked up the glass and walked back into the kitchen, pouring herself another glass. Taking the glass and the ingredients for dinner out onto the patio, she fired up the grill. Waiting for it to heat up, she sipped the wine and walked around the yard. Natalia had a green thumb as hibiscus and bougainvilleas splashed their colors throughout. Bright yellow and purple blended in with deep red. The yard was as multi-faceted as the woman that took care of it.

Walking back into the kitchen, she picked up the plates and utensils and headed back out to the patio, setting up the table to eat out there. After finishing that, she went back inside and sat down next to Natalia, running her fingers through her hair.

"Darlin', do you want wake up? Dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes. How's your back feeling?"

Natalia rolled over and stretched, arching her back and raising her arms above her head. "It's ok. I didn't mean to fall asleep. Just wanted to rest my eyes."

Calleigh had to drag her eyes away from the lithe body that was stretching in front of her before she could put two words together.

"Um... that's ok. Um... you hungry?"

Sitting up and winding her arms about lover's neck, Natalia nuzzled it. "Yes, but I'm hungry for you. I want you underneath me."

Closing her eyes, Calleigh held her close for a moment, inhaling the scent that was uniquely Natalia. "Soon darlin', I promise. But right now I have a meal that is fit for a queen, which you are." Standing, Calleigh held out her arm. "May I escort you to your table my lady?"

Rising from the bed, Natalia laid her hand lightly on Calleigh arm. "Lead on McDuff."

They walked out to the patio and Calleigh sat her down and proceeded to fix dinner. Marinated shrimp were grilled and enjoyed while the steak finished cooking. Then right at the last couple of minutes of cooking, she grilled some asparagus.

After they had finished eating, Calleigh cleared the plates and when she came back out, she brought marshmallows and two wooden skewers.

"I thought that you might want something sweet and I haven't done this in a long time."

"Cool."

And for the next fifteen minutes, they proceeded to burn, toast, and eat almost a whole bag of marshmallows.

"No more, no more. My stomach is beginning to hurt." Natalia complained.

"Mine too."

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Natalia spoke up. "How long has it been since you've had a full night sleep?"

Calleigh delayed answering the question by pouring herself another glass of wine. After taking a sip, she said. "Since right before Jake took you. The last good night of sleep was two nights before, when we met at the beach."

"You haven't had a full nights sleep in almost two weeks? What in the world were you doing when you went home at night?"

"I would just go shower, change clothes, come back and sit with you until you woke up in the morning. I'd sleep a little bit."

Natalia tried to get Calleigh to look her in the eye. "How much do you sleep?"

"At the most three hours, but usually just an hour or two. I just can't sleep."

Calleigh was looking away from her so Natalia moved her chair so she would have to look at her. "Why can't you sleep Calleigh?"

Calleigh simply stared at her for a few moments, her face impassive and then suddenly got up and walked over to the edge of the patio, standing in the shadows, her head bent.

"Because I keep seeing you up on the roof, bleeding. I keep hearing Jake say, 'If I can't, she won't'. He throws the knife over and over again and I can never move fast enough to save you. I failed you. I couldn't protect you. I shouldn't have taken the assignment."

Natalia went over to her and tried to touch her, but Calleigh pulled away.

"You didn't fail me Calleigh. You saved me, in so many ways. And you were doing your job. It's a big part of you, a big part of who you are. It's one of the reasons why I love you. You're an honorable person, and you took the assignment because it was the right thing to do."

Calleigh turned to face her lover, her eyes flashing and her hands clenched. "The hell it was, what I should've done was tell them to shove it. It was because of my pride that I took it. Part of me wanted him not to be dirty because I didn't want my judgment to be that wrong about someone. What do they say, pride goes before a fall? Well, I didn't fall, you did. What happen wasn't worth it. He should have never had the chance to get to you. I almost shot him when I first saw you on the roof. He had hurt you and I shouldn't have put you in that position."

"Damn it, Calleigh. You didn't put me in that position. I did. Because I went and accessed his files. If I hadn't done that, nothing would've happened. But you know what, I'm glad that I did it and I would do it again because I didn't want you anywhere near him. I don't care that I ended up in the hospital because I couldn't stand thinking about him touching or kissing you."

Calleigh took a step back, her eyes wide with just the thought. "Don't you dare say that! It almost killed me having to sit there for days wondering if you were ever going to wake up. You laid there so lifeless and I had to watch them inject you with drugs and I couldn't do anything to help. I was powerless. I couldn't help you."

Natalia went and stood in front her, placing her hands around Calleigh's upper arms. "I will do anything and I mean do mean anything, I have to do to protect you and I know that you'll do the same thing. But you have to quit blaming yourself. If you're going to blame anyone, blame him. Blame Jake. He made his choice. He chose to turn his back on his job, his family and you for his own personal gain. How many innocent people did he hurt before we stopped him? He probably got his partner killed and the informant who was helping him in the so called drug case? He also tried to put me away for killing Nick. How many more that we don't know about.? I blame him Calleigh and you should too."

Calleigh looked up meet dark chocolate eyes with tears streaming down her face. "Last night, I could've sworn I saw him standing over our bed with a bloody knife. And I just keep seeing you bleeding and I can't stop it. There is so much blood and it keeps pouring out. I keep losing you."

Natalia took one of Calleigh's hands, placing it over her own heart. "You haven't lost me. Feel this, this belongs to you. I'm right here, loving you. I'll fight the devil himself to be with you."

Slowly she leaned in, placing her hands on either side of the blonde's face and gently kissed her. "Come with me, my love."

Taking Calleigh by the hand, Natalia led her inside to the bathroom. She quickly took off both of their clothes and got her into the shower. Getting the water just right, she proceeded to wash Calleigh's hair, massaging the scalp until she was almost purring. Rinsing the shampoo out, she gently scrubbed her body, getting her clean. After finishing, she quickly cleaned herself and led them out to towel off. Sitting Calleigh down on a stool in front of the mirror, she began to brush out the long golden hair, getting out the knots. By the time that she was finished, Calleigh was almost asleep. Gently leading her to the bed, Natalia laid down, drawing Calleigh into her embrace, covering them with a sheet and turning out the lights.

Kissing her forehead, she whispered. "Sleep my love. I am right here and will be here when you wake up."

Calleigh wrapped her arms about her waist and was almost immediately asleep.

Natalia stayed awake for a long time thereafter, just caressing her lover's back and whispering to her when she became restless. She laid there in the dark thinking that she had been right. Calleigh had blamed herself. She shouldn't have let that go on as long as it did. Natalia knew that this vacation was going to be good for the both of them and she soon joined Calleigh in her dreams.

Part 4

When the alarm went off the next morning at seven, Natalia silenced it and kissed the forehead laying on her shoulder.

"Time to get up Cal. We need to be at the airport in a couple of hours."

A pair of sleepy eyes looked up at her, "Where exactly are we going?"

"You'll see when we get there. Now come on, let's get this show on the road."

They got up, collected their clothes and started to pack. Each hid their gifts in their suitcases and set them next to the front door along with Natalia's camera bag. They got dressed, but as they were about to walk out the door, there was a knock. When Calleigh opened the door, a chauffeur was on the front step and a limo parked in the drive.

"Morning ma'am. My name is David and I am to drive you to the airfield, compliments of Alexx Woods. May I get your baggage?"

Calleigh looked at Natalia. "Just how many other people know what's going on?"

Looking a bit shocked, Talia answered. "This is news to me too. Didn't know that she planned anything, but let's go."

Locking up the house, they got into the limo and were on their way to the airfield. When they pulled up to the private airfield, before Calleigh had a chance to question her, Natalia spoke up. "Horatio arranged for a private jet. Said that we should enjoy and he'll see us later."

"Ooo, darlin'. Does this mean that we can join the mile high club?"

Natalia grinned wickedly. "I'm sure that it could be arranged."

The limo stopped next to the plane and David quickly got out and helped them from the car.

"Ms. Boa Vista, I'll be available when you come back. If you could just please call this number before you depart, I'll be here waiting."

"Thank you David, I will."

When she tried to tip him, he refused stating that Alexx had already taken care of everything, so she got onto the plane to find Calleigh being served orange juice in a crystal glass.

"Good Morning Ms. Boa Vista. Welcome aboard. My name is Jack and I'll be your co-pilot today. Captain John Thomas is up front going through the final check list. We'll be taking off momentarily and out flight should last about an hour and a half. There is juice, café con leche and muffins or croquetas if you wish. There are blankets and pillows in the over head if you wish to nap. If you should need anything else, please buzz us. If not, we shall leave you to your privacy. We'll inform you when we are about fifteen minutes out."

And with that he went up front to the cockpit. Calleigh stood up and grabbed both a pillow and a blanket out of the overhead compartment.

"And what exactly are you going to do with those?"

She just smiled and sat next to her. Soon they were taxing out onto the runway and taking off. After about ten minutes, the seatbelt light went off.

Calleigh unbuckled her seatbelt and stood up. She moved in front of Natalia, leaned down and unbuckled her belt. Reaching over, she picked up the pillow and dropped it on the floor in front of her. Kneeling down on the pillow, she pulled Natalia's hips toward her and then pulled the blanket over her head and Natalia's lap.

Natalia's eyes went wide as deft hands unbuttoned, unzipped and pulled off her jeans. Her head slammed back against the headrest as a warm body settled between her legs and an even warmer tongue delved into her moist center. Natalia's hands gripped the hand rests so hard that her knuckles turned white as fingers joined the tongue. A throaty moan was heard from under the blanket as her legs were lifted to over Calleigh's shoulders. She bit down on her bottom lip to keep from screaming out Calleigh's name.

A hand snaked out from under the blanket to press the recline button of Natalia's seat and back she went, letting out a sigh and arching her back, pushing the fingers in deeper. The hand then worked its way up under Natalia's shirt to cup her breast, rolling the nipple between the fingers. Then went back to the hand rest to lift it up out of the way before disappearing back under the blanket. After producing a couple of earth shaking orgasms, Calleigh appeared from under the blanket, crawling up Natalia's body, making sure that the blanket was still covering her, looking like the cat that ate the canary.

In a low, husky voice she said, "I need to kiss you."

She barely had the words out before Natalia grabbed her golden hair, pulling her head down for steamy kiss. Natalia tasted herself and moaned, pulling Calleigh closer and running her hands down her back.

Calleigh raised her head enough to look down into warm chocolate eyes. "What a way to start a vacation huh?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way ."

A buzzer went off and a voice came through hidden speakers. "Just to let you know that we are about 15 minutes out."

Calleigh slid out from under the blanket and held it front of Natalia while she dressed. Then she went to the bathroom to clean up. Soon they felt a resounding bump and heard the roar of the engines as they landed. After a few minutes they stopped, and Jack came out of the cockpit.

As he was opening the door, he told Natalia. "Ms. Boa Vista, we'll be here Sunday night at six o'clock so whenever you are ready to leave, we'll be here. We hope that you had a pleasant flight."

Barely keeping a straight face, Natalia answered. "Yes, it was quite pleasant. We'll be here at six. Thank you."

He helped them get their baggage out of the plane and then the women walked toward a car rental.

Calleigh looked around, grinning as she realized where they were. "Key West. I haven't been here in a long time. What made you pick here?"

Natalia leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. "I wanted some place that we could relax and this was the first place that I thought of. I wasn't even sure if you even had a passport."

"I do, but this place is perfect. I'll give you a proper thank you later."

"Babe, you already did, but don't let that stop you from doing it again.... repeatedly."

Calleigh tilted her head back laughing. "Practice makes perfect."

Laughing, they rented a car, which Calleigh insisted paying for and drove to the management company to pick up the keys for the cottage that Natalia had rented. After arriving at the cottage, they unlocked the door to discover that it was a quaint two bedroom, two bath cottage, with a state of the art kitchen, sound system and a private back garden with an in ground spa.

Quickly putting away their clothes and changing into shorts and tank tops, they decided to go to the market to get food to last for the week. After getting everything, coming back to the cottage to put things away and they decided to go do some sightseeing. Looking at some brochures that they picked up at the management company they agreed to go to the Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory.

Soon the women were in a glass enclosed building surrounded by lush, exotic plants and over fifty different types of butterflies and small birds. As they walked through the winding walkways, they were awed by the richness of the colors that came around each corner. The air was quiet, peaceful like and if you listened carefully you could almost hear the beating of the tiny wings, like whispers.

Natalia left Calleigh alone for a few moments to go ask a question and when she returned, she found Calleigh sitting quietly on a bench with her hands resting on her thighs with butterflies resting atop her head and shoulders. Slowly Natalia brought up her camera and took a few pictures. Calleigh turned her head in Natalia's direction very slowly and the beauty of the moment took Natalia's breath away. It seemed that Calleigh had a living crown of color, with the butterflies slowly undulating their wings. She quickly took a few more pictures before the butterflies took off.

Walking over to Calleigh, Natalia slowly leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss. "I adore you." Calleigh wrapped her arms around Natalia's waist. "And I you." They stayed wrapped in each others arms until some other people came down the walkway and they pulled apart. But not completely, Calleigh kept hold of Natalia's hand and that's the way they continued, holding hands.

They walked into the gift gallery, looking at the items available and Calleigh found a necklace that she thought would look beautiful on Natalia. It had five tiny blue butterflies hanging from a delicate gold chain and when Calleigh imagined Natalia wearing it and only it, she had to buy it. And she did.

Natalia walked up behind her, wrapping her arms about her waist and leaning her chin on Calleigh's shoulder. "What did ya get?"

Leaning her head back just enough to kiss her on the cheek, Calleigh whispered. "It's a surprise. Turn about is fair play darlin'."

"Ok, that's fair. Are you hungry?"

"Yeah, what I ate this morning..."

Natalia stopped her. "Don't even go there, you brat."

Calleigh had the grace to look a little embarrassed. "I was just going to say that it filled up a different hunger. Let's just go back to the cottage, fix lunch and relax."

"That sounds good to me."

So with that, the couple left and went back to the cottage where they fixed lunch, working together in companionable silence. Natalia was fixing a salad while Calleigh grilled some chicken. While Natalia was slicing a cucumber, she took a slice and held it out to Calleigh. Without thinking, Calleigh leaned over and took it out of her hand with her teeth.

Natalia stopped for a moment, thinking of that gesture, the rightness of it, and the way that they were working. The easy flow in which they moved without bumping into each other, the gentle touches that they would give in passing. She knew that it had a lot to do with the fact that they did work together, but deep down she knew that it was something more, something special. Closing her eyes, Natalia gave a quick prayer of thanks that they were together.

Calleigh's voice brought her back to the moment. "Come on slow poke. The chicken is ready and you're still making the salad."

"Watch it. All you had to do was cook one thing. I had to chop all of these ingredients and I'm working with a knife. Have to be careful not to cut my fingers as they are very important."

Wrapping one arm around her waist, Calleigh gently took the knife out of her hand, placing it on the counter and took Natalia's hand once again, bringing it up to her lips for a gentle kiss.

"Yes, your fingers are very important, but not as important as your heart darlin'. As long as I have your heart, I'm as right as rain."

Natalia drew their joined hands down, placing them over her heart. "You have it. Now and forever."

Calleigh leaned into Natalia's embrace and they both stayed that way for a few minutes, just swaying in tune with each other, enjoying the closeness. Then Calleigh's stomach growled loud enough for them both to hear.

Taking a step back and raising her eyebrows, Natalia exclaimed. "Okaaay, I guess that we need to feed the beast. I better finish this salad."

She finished up the salad while Calleigh set the outside table which was in the shade of a huge banyan tree. Pouring a couple of glasses of white wine, she carried them out as Natalia was bringing out the salad. They ate lunch at a leisurely pace, talking about what they wanted to do for the rest of the day and that evening. They sat in the shade for a couple of hours, sometimes talking and sometimes not, but always touching. Maybe it was just them holding hands or when Calleigh was trying to make a point, she lightly grazed her fingernail up Natalia's forearm.

By the time mid-afternoon rolled around, they had finished a bottle of wine and were feeling a bit sleepy, so they decided to go take a nap. After taking the dishes inside, and placing them in the sink, they walked upstairs to the bedroom and where Calleigh laid down on the bed while Natalia opened the French doors to let in the afternoon breeze. Lying down with her head on Calleigh's shoulder, Natalia soon joined with her in sleep.

Calleigh couldn't figure out what had woken her up, but when she could focus her eyes, the vision that she saw took her breath away; the sun was setting so the sky was lit with fading reds and gold and Natalia was laying on her side with her head propped up on her fist. The light coming in turned Natalia's caramel hair even a richer color and making her bronze skin almost shimmer. With her face in the shadows, rich chocolate eyes were warmly caressing Calleigh shape.

Quietly Natalia spoke, "I know that we never talked about this, but when Jake had me, all I could concentrate on was getting back to you. It had taken me so long to be with you and I would've done anything that I could do to get back to you. I would've taken anything that he decided to dish out because I knew that you would be there when everything was over. And I want you to know that I will always be here for you."

Reaching out with a finger, Calleigh drew it down Natalia's jaw. "I've never asked this question because I thought that you would tell me if it had happened, but I need to say this out loud. I need to hear the answer."

"No, he didn't rape me. He just hit me a few times. He was too involved in himself and what he had done. He talked about that and you. Saying that you were one brave broad and a wildcat in bed. And that he was going to talk you into leaving with him. I'll admit that when he said that, I couldn't contain myself, I told him that he was just fooling himself if he thought that you would leave your job and your friends for someone like him. He didn't like that too much. That's when he did this." She touched her eye socket. "But I was able to head butt him and break his nose, and it felt great to be able to do that."

Calleigh whispered. "When I heard your voice mail, I was terrified. I knew that he had a violent streak and didn't know what he would do if he found out about us. I guess that we know the answer to that now. And you are right, I will be here for you, no matter what. Whatever happens in the future, I will always be here."

Rising to kneel on the bed, Calleigh drew Natalia up to mirror her. Reaching out, she took the bottom of Natalia's tank top and drew it over her head. Natalia mimicked her actions, taking off Calleigh's shirt. They each took off their shorts and Natalia lay back with Calleigh on her side next to her.

With her left hand, starting at Natalia's forehead, Calleigh gently traced her features, like the butterflies whispers against her skin and as she reached the lush coral lips, she scrapped her nail against the bottom lip and watched a the tip of Natalia's tongue peek out to wet the upper lip. Calleigh then drew that nail along Natalia's jaw line, down underneath her chin to the hollow of her throat where she could feel Natalia's throbbing pulse. Trailing the finger along Natalia's collarbone, she moved lower down to the swell of a breast, dragging her nails across the hardening nipple, making Natalia catch her breath. Reaching across her body, Calleigh did the same to its twin, getting the same reaction, but she didn't remain there. Moving her hand slowly and keeping her touch light, Calleigh dragged her nails across Natalia's stomach, making her jerk and squirm and then arch her back as she tangled her fingers in caramel curls before sliding into Natalia's slick and pulsating center. In and out at various speeds and force, Calleigh kept bringing Natalia to edge, but never quite letting her go over the top. Soon Natalia's body was covered in a light sheen of perspiration and she was clinching and unclenching the sheets trying to find an anchor.

"Cal… leeigh, please. My god, you feel so good. Pleeaase, let me.... ooo."

Relenting Calleigh leaned over, kissing her and letting her tongue match her fingers. Then she flicked her thumb nail over the tight nub, making Natalia arch off the bed, thrusting her hips upon Calleigh's fingers even harder.

Natalia wrenched her mouth away from their kiss and screamed out Calleigh's name.

After the tremors ceased Calleigh slowed her thrusts and Natalia lay panting. Reaching down, Calleigh brought up the sheet to cover them both and gathered Natalia into her arms. Calleigh turned her head to place a kiss on Natalia's damp forehead and to smooth away her hair from her face.

"I've got ya darlin'. Talia, I love you."

After a few minutes, Natalia breathlessly answered. "I love you too, so much"

Natalia's body was still humming and she had never felt so alive, but there was no way that she could move right then. She was content to lay within Calleigh's arms and bask in the afterglow. As she lightly traced patterns across Calleigh's stomach, she reflected on her past. She knew that she had been loved and had loved in the past, but nothing came close to the feeling that she had with Calleigh, And it wasn't just the physical aspect of it, though that was out of this world. She knew that in her past that she had been a possession, something that was controlled like with Nick. He had to be in charge, to feel like a man. He couldn't just let her be. And then with Eric, it had just been the physical touch that she had been craving, to be close to someone. She knew that she now only thought of him as a friend, nothing more. But this that she had right now, this was the real deal. She knew that Calleigh would always be there, would support her with whatever she did and her love was genuine. She could see that in Calleigh's eyes, could feel it even in the briefest of touch and even in the way that she said her name. With Calleigh it was all or nothing.

Slowly Natalia raised her head to see that Calleigh was asleep. The moonlight was coming in from the open balcony door making her hair shimmering silver. Natalia was so glad that she was able to sleep and hated that the problem had gone on as long as it had. This relationship was still so new that they were still scared to talk about certain things or at least they used to be. Maybe all of the talking they had done for the past couple of days had changed that and they could be more open, not so afraid.

Laying her head back down, Natalia soon joined Calleigh in their dreams.

Part 5

'Bacon, I smell bacon." Calleigh's brain registered as she slowly awoke. Blinking against the bright light that was streaming in, she turned her head to see Natalia placing a tray on the night stand next to the bed. Clearing her throat, she said, "Bacon."

Laughing, Natalia corrected. "No, first thing that you say is 'Morning darlin', then you can say bacon. Not the other way around."

Making sure that the tray was all the way down, Calleigh reached out and pulled Natalia onto the bed. "No, the first thing to say is that last night was amazing and that I love you. But the first thing that I need to do is this." And very slowly she lowered her lips to Natalia's, but right before they touched, she reached over and snagged a piece of bacon and popped into her mouth. She quickly scooted off the bed before Natalia could react.

Putting the bed between her and Natalia, she explained, "Now darlin', I had to do that cause the first thing that I though of when I was waking up was that I smelled bacon so I just had to have it."

Natalia moved like she was going to go around the bed, making Calleigh jump on the bed to get to the other side, then Natalia reached out to pull her underneath her. Throwing a leg across Calleigh's waist to straddle her, Natalia pinned her hands above her head.

"Calleigh, that was wrong on so many levels, I don't even know where to start. I guess that I'm just gonna have to teach you a lesson."

With that, Natalia leaned down to suck on Calleigh's neck, making sure that she was leaving a mark and as she was doing that, her free hand was slowly traveling down Calleigh's body, making sure to stop at all of her sensitive areas. Areas that made her catch her breath and squirm. Finally upon reaching her damp curls, Natalia proceed just to tease, to barely slip her fingers inside and then withdraw. To rake her nails all around the pulsating nub, but never touch it fully.

Calleigh bucked underneath her, pleading. "Go in.... come on Nat....go... ah please....don't... tease .... ooo... please Na...talia...please."

"And what did you learn from all this?"

Straining to relieve her need, Calleigh growled out, "I need to tell you Good Morning and that I love you before I ask for bacon."

Bending down and quickly giving her a kiss, Natalia released her and rolled off the bed. "Good girl."

Calleigh looked at her in amazement. "You're not going to leave me like this, are you?"

Leaning against the door jam, Natalia smirked. "Yup, how else are you going to learn."

"Ok then, I'm gonna have to do this." And with that, Calleigh reached down and began to pleasure herself, sliding fingers in and out quickly. She looked over to Natalia to see her straighten up from the door jam with her lips parted and her eyes glued to the action before her. As Calleigh continued to self gratify, she watched Natalia's eyes turn almost black.

"To hell with that." Natalia ground out, pushing aside Calleigh's hand and replacing it with her tongue and fingers, quickly bring her lover to a climax. Wave upon wave crashed through Calleigh, making her shudder and arch against the relentless tongue. Just when she thought it was over, Natalia would twist her tongue or do something else that Calleigh couldn't figure out, and the tremors would begin anew.

Finally, while leaving her fingers inside the blonde, Natalia crawled up Calleigh's body to kiss her. Tasting herself on Natalia's lips, brought Calleigh to another mind splitting orgasm, arching her high off the bed. Slowly Natalia stilled her fingers and gently withdrew them, reaching to cradle Calleigh in her embrace.

After a few minutes, Calleigh raised her head to gaze into Natalia's eyes. "And what did we learn today?"

Laughing Natalia answered. "Don't tease unless you can please?"

Putting her head back down. "Good girl. Glad to know that we've got settled. Now, where's my bacon?"

Rolling them over until she was on top, Natalia leaned down and gave Calleigh a quick kiss. "Sit up and I'll serve you, though things may be a bit cold."

Calleigh sat up, draping the sheet across her lap while Natalia placed the tray in the middle of the bed and joined her. Leisurely they ate the now cool breakfast, deciding what they wanted to do for the day. Making up their minds, they decided to go to one of the beaches for a few hours and then do some sightseeing in the afternoon. Natalia took the tray back down stairs while Calleigh got up and dressed.

Picking up a few towels and taking them downstairs, Calleigh found Natalia making sure that they had sunscreen and a couple of bottles of ice water. They got into the car and followed the map to Smathers Beach. Parking the car, they crossed the sand and rented two lounge chairs with an umbrella. Spreading out the towels on the chairs, they kicked off their sandals and stripped down to their bathing suits. As Natalia pulled off her jeans to reveal a blue bikini, Calleigh stopped spreading the sunscreen on her arms and watched as silky bronze skin came into view. As Natalia pulled off her t-shirt, Calleigh dropped the bottle in the sand, swearing as she groped for it, never taking her eyes off the beauty in front of her.

Walking over to Calleigh and closing her mouth with a slim finger, Natalia drawled, "No need to stare darlin'. All of this belongs to you, and the only place that I'm going is in the ocean. You coming?" And with that she turned and sauntered towards the Atlantic.

'Man, payback is such a bitch.' As Calleigh's own words came back to haunt her. Finally picking up the sunscreen bottle and finished spreading it over her arms and shoulders, she jogged out into the surf to join her lover. Diving beneath an oncoming wave, she swam out to where Natalia was treading water.

Natalia looked over. "Paybacks a bitch huh. Did you put on enough sunscreen? I don't want you burning cause I have plans for you later."

Swimming over to put her arms around Natalia's neck, Calleigh leaned in to lick her ear. "And what exactly do you have planned? Will I like it?"

Natalia propelled them a bit closer to shore so that she would be able to stand, but still have the water up to her shoulders. "Well, the surprise is actually on Thursday and I hope that you will like it."

"You mean I have to wait two more days, the suspense will kill me. You know that it's in my D.N.A., I'm very curious."

"I know, but I promise or at least I hope, that it will be worth the wait. I want to ask you a question real quick. Totally off the wall one, I am so not complaining, but have you noticed that we've been more touchy feely since I've been out of the hospital."

Calleigh leaned back a bit so that she could look into Natalia's eyes. "Yeah, I've noticed, but I think that I know the reasons why. First is that we came so close to losing each other and we are just reassuring ourselves that we're ok. The second is that we subconsciously know that once we go back to work, we won't be able to see each other or touch each other as much so we're making up for it."

"I was worried because I can't seem to get enough of you. I guess that I'm just a Calleigh Duquesne addict because the way that you make me feel is better than any drug known to man."

Leaning back in close to whisper in Natalia's ear. "I know, I'm gonna have Boa Vista withdrawals the first day back at work and I'll probably jump you when you walk through the door at home."

Closing the gap between their lips, Natalia breathed out. "You can jump me any time and any place that you want, love."

"I'll keep that in mind darlin', I wouldn't mind jumping you right now, but I have a thing against people watching. But I'll take a kiss on retainer."

In response, Natalia ran her tongue over Calleigh's bottom lip and was instantly drawn into her warm mouth. Moaning, Calleigh pulled back. "Never mind. I don't think that I could stop if we started kissing." With that, she removed her arms from around Natalia's neck and dove underwater, coming up a few feet away.

Closing her eyes, Natalia took in a deep breath. 'She's right. If we started, I know for sure that I couldn't stop. It's really is like I'm addicted to her. Addicted to her kisses, to the taste of her skin and oh god, the taste of her essence is enough to drive me wild.'

Watching Calleigh walk out of the surf and to their chairs, Natalia shivered. 'I love the way that woman moves, in more ways than one.'

Natalia leaned her head back into the water to wet her hair and then she started walking towards shore.

Calleigh grabbed her sunglasses, and put them on before sitting down in the lounge chair. She had just stretched out as Natalia walked up and out of the surf. 'Man! When God made her, he broke the mold. That woman is perfect. That's what Venus must have looked like when she rose from the Aegean. And she's all mine. I don't know how I got this lucky, but I thank God that I did. '

Natalia walked up and took a seat, grabbed her sunglasses and then leaned back in the chair. "That water isn't cold enough. Nope, not a bit." Looking over, she saw that Calleigh was trying to keep a smirk off of her face. "Yeah, you better keep quiet. I know that it isn't cold enough to cool you off either."

They lay there in silence for awhile. Natalia turned over after awhile to lie on her stomach and soon Calleigh could tell she was asleep. Natalia had taken off her sunglasses so Calleigh was able to look at her without interruption. The broken eye socket had healed and left no scar, the spot where Jake had cut her neck was barely noticeable if you didn't know where to look. Calleigh sat up to take a closer look at the knife/surgery wound and saw that the scar had lost the redness and now was just a bit darker than Natalia's natural skin tone. They had been rubbing on some cream that was made to lessen scars and it seemed to be working. Calleigh knew that in time, it would fade away, but it would always be there in her minds eyes, reminding her of how close she came to losing Natalia. She leaned back and watched the people walk by until Natalia began to stir.

Leaning up on her forearms, Natalia looked over to Calleigh. "Sorry love, didn't mean to doze off. Hope that you haven't been too bored."

Smiling back her, Calleigh replied, "Nope, just watching a beautiful woman sleep. One of my favorite things to do actually. Are you ready to go do some sightseeing?"

"Yeah, how about the Hemingway House? I want to see the six toed cats."

Calleigh got a very mischievous look on her face, but before she could say anything, Natalia cut her off. "Don't even go there, don't even think it. No, Calleigh.... damn....you're already there." Hanging her head, she just said, "Go ahead and say it. I know it'll drive you up the wall until you do."

Shaking her head, and laughing." No, I'm good." Her eyes twinkling. "I'm fine."

Natalia laughed. "You do know what fine stands for don't you? Fucked up, insecure, neurotic and emotional. Trust me when I say this, you are anything but any of those. Let's just go."

Laughing they both pulled on their jeans, tanks tops and sandals, and then walked back to their car. After getting in, they checked the directions and headed over to the house.

After sightseeing and a light lunch, they decided to go back to the cottage and relax. After showering the salt water off and changing into short and tank tops, Natalia walked around the cottage, opening the windows to let in the tropical breezes while Calleigh put in a selection of CD's in the stereo. On their way back to the cottage, they had stopped and bought fresh fruit and vegetables, so Natalia decided to make some white sangria while Calleigh fixed a vegetable dip. Soon they were out on the patio, once again underneath the banyan tree enjoying the shade and companionship. This time they were on the sofa with Natalia lying against the cushions while Calleigh leaned up against her.

They spent the afternoon on the sofa talking about everything and nothing in particular, just watching the changing colors of the setting sun as it came through the branches of the tree.

Calleigh couldn't ever remember being this relaxed or this happy. Usually she do something, had to be active, but right at that moment Calleigh couldn't think of anything else that she would rather do. She grazed her nails along the arm wrapped around her waist, admiring the strength and enjoying the softness. Those two traits were two that she admired most in the woman who held her securely in her arms. Natalia had showed everyone the strength of her character with the way that she handled herself when it came out that she was the FBI mole. That she didn't run and hide when Nick came back into her life and tried to make it hell. Natalia's softness showed when she was talking with victims families and children. The softness in her eyes almost glowed whenever she looked at Calleigh across the lab when she was discussing something with Eric. The touch that she used to gently wake Calleigh in the middle of the night hid the need that was coursing through her. Calleigh gave a contented sigh and watched the shifting light.

At the same time, Natalia's thought's also were of the woman she held in her arms and she leaned down to kiss the top of the blonde head tucked underneath her chin. Calleigh's self-confidence practically oozed out whenever she set her mind to something. Her keen intelligence was evident each time she was asked about any type of weapon. Her knowledge in this subject amazed Natalia. She used to think that someone that knew about weapons would look like a hulky, buffed out man, not a petite, sexy, green eyed blonde female who could make Natalia's heart beat double time with just a look. She knew that she got to see a side of Calleigh that few people got to see, the mischievous imp that hid a squirt gun in the living room at the house and had kept shooting Natalia while she cooked. Or the comedian that would yell out one liners during movie nights at the house when they were curled up on the sofa. And the sensual woman who fulfilled every need that Natalia had and a few that she didn't know about. Natalia shifted the arms that surrounded the amazing woman and smiled.

The object of her thoughts turned her head to look up at her. "How do you feel about going out dancing tonight? I know about a woman's bar that we can go to. Have you heard of 'Pearl's'?"

Natalia looked into sparking green eyes and was almost carried away. "Uh….yeah. That sounds like fun. I'd love to dance with you, get all hot and sweaty." Arching her eyebrows, Natalia laughed. "And then we can come back here and get even hotter."

Calleigh twisted in her arms, rising up until she was straddling Natalia's lap, pulling her hips close to hers until Natalia gasped. "Darlin', we don't have to go to a dance club to get all hot and sweaty. We can do it here just perfectly fine if that's what you want to do."

Natalia's hands clinched to fists in blonde hair as she slowly pulled Calleigh's lips to hers. Licking Calleigh's bottom lips, then nipping at it, Natalia whispered. "Actually dancing sounds like great foreplay. I get to tease you in public and you can't do anything at all about it. But then again, so can you, so it sounds like a plan. But let's get something more than the veggies in our stomachs."

Calleigh agreed and they got up to eat something more substantial, then went upstairs to get ready. Calleigh put on a pair of black jeans and a blue tank top. Slipping on a pair of sandals, she went downstairs to wait on Natalia. After a few minutes, Natalia was standing next to her wearing an outfit that looked like she had bought it in Puerto Rico, a turquoise cotton skirt with a matching top that she wore pulled off the shoulders and a burgundy sash. She had her hair swept away from her face with a few tendrils hanging free with silver and turquoise hoop earrings.

When Calleigh turned and saw Natalia, she gasped and then her eyes took a predatory look as she walked over to her. "I'm gonna have to be in bodyguard mode to keep the women away from you. You are beautiful darlin'."

Natalia blushed. "And here I was thinking that I'm going to have to beat the women off you. Maybe we should just stay here and have our own party."

"Nah, let's go tease 'em with what they can't have. I'm in the mood to show you off and darlin', you're gonna knock their socks off. Let's go."

"But first." Natalia backed Calleigh to the wall with a blistering kiss. Her tongue easily slipped in Calleigh's mouth causing her to moan deep in her throat, while a toned thigh between her legs made her jerk her hips in response. Pulling a way a bit, Natalia whispered. "This was just a preview to what will come later." And then she turned and walked outside.

Calleigh was transfixed by the swaying hips as they walked away from her. Only when Natalia rounded the corner did Calleigh come to her senses. 'Damn, I'm in so much trouble. But what a way to go.'

As they walked up to the entrance of the club, they could feel the thumping beat of the music reverberate in the air, and it seemed to increase their own pulse rate as they walked through the door. The place was crowded so they held hands as they walked over to the bar, where Natalia leaned close to Calleigh and told her that she wanted a shot of rum. Calleigh gave their order to the bartender and soon received two shots of rum. She handed one to Natalia and they toasted each other before downing the shots.

The golden liquid burned slightly as it went down Natalia's throat, but almost immediately she could feel the warmth begin to seep through to her blood. She turned to watch the crowd and began to move with the beat of the music. Feeling a touch to the small of her back, she turned to see Calleigh smiling up at her.

"You ready to go get hot and sweaty darlin'?"

Leaning in so that she wouldn't have to shout, Natalia gave Calleigh's ear a quick lick before she replied. "You have no idea how ready I am. But you should know just one thing." She pulled away so that she could see Calleigh's face. Quirking an eyebrow, Natalia said, "I'm not wearing anything underneath my clothes." Then she stepped backwards, beckoning Calleigh to the dance floor.

Calleigh's eyes widen and immediately darkened as she saw in her minds eye what was hidden from her sight. Following Natalia out onto the dance floor, they moved through the throng of people until they found a spot that suited them. A slow and sensual beat came from the speakers as Calleigh came up behind Natalia, molding their bodies together and moving with the beat. Lightly placing her hands on Natalia's hips, she slowly moved one down and forward to splay her hand against Natalia's pelvis while the other hand traveled up to lightly graze the underside of a breast.

Natalia leaned her head back to rest on Calleigh's shoulder while reaching behind her to rub her hands against the well toned thighs pressed up against hers. She rolled her head to the side as she felt Calleigh place a kiss underneath her ear, then slowly trail kisses down her throat and bare shoulders. Raising one arm to pull Calleigh's head closer to the hammering pulse point on her throat, Natalia moaned as the lower hand grazed her curls.

Calleigh's voice huskily breathed into her ear. "I love the way that you respond to me, to every touch..." Her right hand came up to cup her breast, flicking the nipple. "To every kiss." And she pressed kisses along her jaw. "Or when I tell you to look at me while we're making love and you shudder, arching against me." Natalia's nails were digging into Calleigh's thighs. "I love the way that you moan when I slide inside of you, so warm and wet. Or the way that you look up at me when you are licking me." Natalia moaned deep in her throat. "I love the way that you curl up in my arms after a night of making love. Or when I awake in the morning to see your head on the pillow next to mine with our hair intertwined." Natalia twisted around, placing her arms around Calleigh's waist, pulling her close, and giving her a hard kiss, breaking away only because they had to breathe.

Looking into Calleigh's eyes and fisting her hands in the golden tresses, Natalia growled out. "I've danced enough. We're leaving right now."

Taking Natalia's hand in hers, Calleigh led them out of the club and to their car. After getting into the car, Calleigh had to take a deep breath so that she didn't squeal out of the parking spot, but she got them back to the cottage in record time. Both were opening their doors as the car came to a stop and were inside front door before the engine noise had died down.

When Calleigh closed the door, her tank top was already pulled over her head and her jeans, unbuttoned, unzipped and pulled off. In turn, she pulled down Natalia's blouse exposing her breasts and slid one hand underneath the skirt to slide three fingers into Natalia's slick opening. Natalia braced herself on either wall of the stairwell, trying to remain upright, but slowly sank to the stairs. Calleigh raised her head from a breast to gasp as thigh came into contact with her own throbbing center.

"Get up here and kiss me." Natalia growled out. As Calleigh angled her body to answer the demand, Natalia pressed three fingers into Calleigh's center, making her moan deep in her throat. The kiss was hard and needy, tongues battled for dominance while matching the thrusts of hands. Tearing her mouth away to pull in a harsh breath of air, Natalia looked up at the woman above her to see swollen lips and flashing green eyes looking down at her still with unanswered need. Slowly withdrawing her fingers from Calleigh, she reached to slide the hand that was stroking her out, inhaling at the loss. Rising up, she grabbed Calleigh underneath her hips and stood up, making Calleigh gasp. Calleigh wrapped her legs about Natalia's waist even while she was warning her about her back.

"My back is fine, just get the door." Walking towards the patio only stopping long enough for Calleigh to open the French doors before Natalia walked down and into the in-ground spa that she had turned on earlier in the day.

Warm water slid over sensitive skin and fingers returned to pulsating, throbbing centers to renew the rhythm. Calleigh arched her back as Natalia drew an extended nipple into her warm mouth while she drew her nails up Natalia's back. They both rested their heads on the others shoulders as they increased the force and speed of their fingers, each bring the other to climax at the same time, shuddering with the release.

Leaning back to take a deep breath, Calleigh closed her eyes as minor spasms continued. Hands moved down her side, bringing her attention back to Natalia. Looking down at her, Calleigh couldn't help but to lean down and give her a gentle kiss.

"That was amazing darlin'. Thank you."

Smiling up at her, Natalia replied. "No, thank you. It was more than amazing. With all that you were saying at the bar and everything, it was.... I don't have the words for it. Would you mind though if I finally got out of these clothes?"

Calleigh quickly got up off of her lap and watched as Natalia stood up to pull off the soaked skirt and blouse, then wringing them out and throwing them close to the cottage. Then kneeling, she ducked underneath the warm water, coming up to stand directly in front of Calleigh.

Wrapping her arms about Calleigh's waist, she drew her back down so that she was once again sitting on Natalia's lap. "I'm sorry that we didn't dance very much, but it was either leave, or take you right there on the floor."

Calleigh placed her palms on either side of Natalia's face. "No need to apologize. I'm not complaining. I just hope that you didn't hurt your back."

"It doesn't hurt at all. We'll just soak for a bit, and if it starts bothering me, I'll just have to find someone to give me a massage."

Running her tongue along Natalia's bottom lip, Calleigh whispered. "I'm sure that I could find someone that might want that job. I know that it might require long, hard work, but I feel that after intense consideration, that I would be perfect for the job."

Natalia drew the teasing tongue into her warm mouth while drawing her nails down Calleigh's back, making the other woman arch against her. "I would have to agree. You will be perfect for any job that has you putting your hands on my body. You've got the job for as long as you want it."

"Deal. Now what do you say about getting out and getting into a nice soft bed?"

Natalia pretended to think. "Hmm, staying in here and becoming a prune or joining you in a nice, soft, warm bed. Decisions, decisions. And the winner is.... let's shower off and go to bed."

That's what they did, Natalia picked up her sodden clothes and followed Calleigh inside where she picked up the clothes that were strewn around the front door. Going upstairs, the set aside the clothes and got into the shower where they washed each other bodies and hair. Getting out and drying off, they got into bed, pulling the sheet over their nude bodies.

Natalia laid her head on Calleigh's shoulder, wrapping an arm about her waist while Calleigh wrapped her arms around her warm body. They both gave a sigh of contentment almost at the same time. Soon they were both sound asleep.

Part 6

Waking up to an empty bed was something Natalia decided that she didn't like. Raising her head, she looked around the room, not seeing Calleigh. Throwing off the sheet, she pulled on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt while looking out of the balcony, but still not seeing her. Quickly she padded downstairs and looked into the kitchen, she wasn't there either. As she was just about to go out the front door to see if she could see her, Calleigh walked in through the patio.

"Morning darlin'. I'm sorry that I wasn't here when you woke up. I thought that I would dash off to the bakery, get some croissants and get back before you got up. Thought that you might like fresh croissants with guava preserves and coffee."

Giving Calleigh a quick kiss, Natalia peered into the bag that she was handed. "It's ok. It was just strange waking up and you weren't around. Kind of scared me."

Calleigh came up behind her and wrapping her arms about Natalia's waist, and laying her cheek against Natalia's back. "I really did think that I would be back in time. I'll leave a note next time."

Turning in Calleigh's arms, Natalia pulled her close. "Honestly it's ok. And beside I'm gonna have to go somewhere this afternoon for a little while and leave you to your own devices."

Looking at here with a questioning face. "And where exactly are you going? Is this my surprise?"

"Yes, it's part of the surprise. And would you do me the honor of being my date tonight? You'll need to dress up though."

"Ooo, we're going to someplace nice. I'd be honored be your date, but wait. I though that you said that I was going to have to wait two days for the surprise. Not that I'm complaining, but what happened?"

Smiling indulgently, Natalia studied the face gazing up at her. Waiting a moment before she answered, she finally stated. "You are absolutely beautiful. Tonight is just the first part, tomorrow will be the rest."

"Thank you darlin'. So are you. Ok, I'll hang out here this afternoon while you go do whatever you're going to do. What did you want to do until then?"

"Well, we can have a lovely breakfast out on the patio and do the crossword puzzle. After that, if you want, we can go shopping."

Rubbing her hands together. "Shopping, my favorite thing to do. Well, actually my second, no third...wait fourth favorite thing to do."

"Ok, what are the first three favorite things to do?"

Ticking them off on her fingers. "In no particular order, they are making love to you, kissing you and shooting any kind of gun."

Natalia laughed while walking out onto the patio, sitting down at the table. "Nice to know that I rank above shooting."

"Hey, I said in no particular order. I'm kidding, I'm kidding."

They then enjoyed breakfast while doing the crossword puzzle, then went and spent a few hours shopping. After they finished, Natalia dropped Calleigh off at the cottage with a very long, fierce kiss and went off on her errand.

Calleigh walked into the cottage fanning herself. 'Whew, I do like the way that she kisses. Yes ma'am.'

On the way to the errand, Natalia called the management company and arranged for something special to be done to the cottage while they were out for the evening. Arriving at Michael's Restaurant, she walked inside and asked for Cindy Mortenson. She was directed to the main dining room where she found an attractive young woman playing a piano.

Waiting until the woman finished playing the song, Natalia finally said, "Mort."

Without turning around, the woman said, "There are only two people that call me that, one is you and the other is in Texas. How are you Natalia?"

Walking up beside the piano, Natalia hugged the woman when she stood up. "I'm good Cindy. How are you doing?"

Cindy Mortenson stood as tall as Natalia, had brown hair and green eyes and was very attractive. "I'm doing quite well. So who's the lucky person?"

"Her name is Calleigh Duquesne and she's amazing. I want to thank you for helping me out. I hope that this isn't too much of an imposition."

Sitting back down at the piano, Cindy replied. "Nope, Chef Michael owed me a favor. I told him that you wouldn't scare any of the customers away. And she must be special because you are glowing. Have you decided which one?"

Looking over to the arrangements, Natalia pointed one out. "I think this one says everything that I want it to."

"Did you want any additional backup? I've got some friends that owes me some favors and we can go all out for you."

"How fast can they get here?"

Cindy laughed. "I figured that you would say that. If you turn around, I'll introduce you." And that's what happened, introductions were made and they got to work. For next couple of hours, they practiced and got everything the way Natalia wanted. When they finally they finished, Cindy told Natalia that she would go on at the end of the first set, around 9 o'clock. She would also give Natalia a heads up a song before she would go on.

Natalia pulled out her wallet, wanting to pay them for helping her out. "That's fine. We have reservations for seven thirty. That should give us plenty of time to enjoy dinner and listen to you. This is for you and this is for the band. Thank you so very much, all of you, for helping me out."

After leaving the restaurant, Natalia headed back to the cottage when she decided to take a detour to the beach. Finding a secluded spot, she got out of the car, took off her shoes and walked along the sand. She stood there for quite awhile, not really seeing the blue water, the clouds in the sky or feeling the cool wind. She knew that tonight was going to be a turning point in her relationship with Calleigh. Natalia knew without a doubt that she loved Calleigh with all her heart and knew that Calleigh loved her back, but still this was going to be a big deal. This was something that she had to do, the situation with Jake had proved to her that if you don't grab the chances that you are offered, that they may not come around again. So she was going to take a big step and try to grab the brass ring. Taking a big breath, she turned, walked back to the car and drove to the cottage.

Walking through the front door, Natalia called out Calleigh's name. Getting no response, she quickly walked upstairs and found it empty. Looking out of the balcony, she saw that Calleigh was out on the patio, asleep on the sofa. Quickly she went downstairs, out onto the patio and knelt beside the sofa. Gently she moved a strand of golden hair off of Calleigh's face, smoothing it back over her ear. Natalia gazed upon the face of the person who had become the most important person in her life, ever. Who would have thought this more than four months ago when all she had was a fantasy of her and Calleigh being together. Real life was so much better than anything that she could've dreamed about.

Leaning in, Natalia gently kissed Calleigh, barely grazing her lips. Softly she called to her lover. "Calleigh, baby. I'm back."

Slowly pale jade green eyes opened and Calleigh gave Natalia the sweetest smile. "Hi darlin', I missed you. Did you get everything that you needed?"

"I missed you too and yeah, I got everything done. Did you have a nice nap?"

Instead of answering, Calleigh leaned forward to capture Natalia's lips in a kiss. Reaching up to grab a fistful of caramel hair, she moaned as Natalia's tongue slid in and began caressing hers. Without losing contact, Natalia joined her lover on the sofa, stretching her body against Calleigh's. Natalia brought a hand up to gently caress Calleigh's face, it was smooth as satin. Pulling away slightly, Natalia breathed, "I love you Calleigh Duquesne."

"And I love you Natalia Boa Vista. So very much."

The lovers lay on the couch for quite a while, softly kissing, and caressing each other, whispering declarations and meaningful phrases until Natalia noticed the time.

"We need to get dressed. We have reservations in an hour and a half. How about I meet you back down here in an hour?"

"Deal, I can't wait to see what this big surprise is. I tried to figure it out, but I can't."

Getting up, Natalia held out her hand to help Calleigh up. "I think that you are going to like it."

Darlin', if it's from you, I know I will. I'll meet you right here in one hour."

And with that they went upstairs and each went into a bedroom to get ready.

Forty-five minutes later Natalia walked downstairs to wait for Calleigh. It hadn't taken her as long as she thought it would to get ready, or she was so nervous that she rushed so she wouldn't be late. The sleeveless ice blue dress hugged every curve, showing a bit of cleavage and thigh. Her hair was up in a French twist with a couple of tendrils framing her face. She checked her purse one more time to make sure that she had put the gift inside.

Natalia was standing out on the patio when she saw Calleigh come down the stairs. The vision in front of her took her breath away. Calleigh was wearing a sleeveless dark red dress that came just past her knees with her hair pulled away from her face.

Calleigh paused on the stairs when she saw Natalia. Once again she realized how lucky she was to love this woman, she was gorgeous. Calleigh walked down the rest of the stairs in a daze, finally coming to a stop in front of Natalia.

"You are beautiful." They both said at the same time. Laughing Natalia leaned forward to lightly kiss her lover, careful of the makeup. Inclining her head a bit, she asked, "Would you give me the honor of escorting you to dinner, my love?"

"Darlin', you can escort me anywhere your heart desires."

Together they walked out, got into the car and Natalia drove to restaurant. As she drove, Natalia reached over to take Calleigh's hand in hers, rubbing the back of her knuckles with her thumb.

As they arrived at 'Michaels', they got out of the car and handed it over to a valet. Walking inside, Natalia gave her name and they were escorted to a table near a small stage where a piano and drum set sat. Calleigh looked around the room, impressed. The tables were covered in white linen cloths and the paneling was a rich oak, while the waiters were in tuxedos and though there were quite a few patrons there, the tone wasn't as loud as she thought it would be.

After looking at the menu, they decided to order a bottle of wine and Natalia ordered a seafood crepe while Calleigh ordered scallops and Brie as appetizers. For the main course, Calleigh decided on grouper with lobster sauce and grilled vegetables while Natalia took grilled salmon with kiwi salsa and grilled asparagus.

They were almost finished with their meal when Calleigh noticed that an attractive young woman had come up to stand next to Natalia, placing a hand on her lovers shoulder. A flare of jealousy was quickly squished when Natalia introduced her to Cindy Mortenson.

"Natalia tells me that you are quite the pianist. Very talented. I'm looking forward to listening to you."

Smiling Cindy replied, "I'm sure that I'm nowhere as good as Natalia says. I do have a loyal following though so I really can't complain. Maybe we can talk after the first set, right now I need to get up there."

And for the next half hour, Cindy played and Calleigh had to admit, she played beautifully. Asking Natalia how they had met, she was told. "We have a mutual friend who is very outspoken. She and Mortenson were out one night in Orlando and were having dinner at the same restaurant that I was when some drunk came up and started harrassing me. Jen took it for about two minutes while everyone else ignored it until she couldn't take it anymore. She got up, walked over to the guy, grabbed his wrist and twisted. He went down to his knees and she whispered something into his ear. He nodded his head, she released him, and he apologized to me and left. We've been friends ever since."

"What did she say to him?"

Shaking her head, Natalia replied. "Jen would never tell. Mort says that she has always been that way; protecting people, and she's not much bigger than you. She lives in Texas now, but hopes to visit over here soon. I would like for you to meet her."

Looking puzzled, Calleigh asked. "Weren't she and Cindy lovers?"

"No, Mort is as straight as you can get. Jen and she have known each other since high school." Looking over to Cindy, Natalia saw her nod her head. "Would you excuse me for a minute? I'll be back in a flash."

Calleigh listened as Cindy finished playing a song and then watched as a couple of young men joined her up on the stage, one bringing up a guitar and the other sitting down at the drums. The Cindy made an announcement, "Ladies and Gentlemen. We have a special guest this evening and from what I understand this is a one time performance. So please welcome Natalia Boa Vista."

Walking out with a microphone, Natalia nervously looked over to Calleigh, who sat there wide eyed. Cindy quietly counted down and Natalia began singing.

Tripped along many stones

Enough to say

I found my own way

I don't know where to go

Couldn't see where it leads

Making castles in the sand

Afraid no one else would hold my hand

I'm stained from the world

Sad, sad, sad little girl

But I see in your eyes

Your wear no disguise

Help me find my way

I'm like a bird in the sky

You helped me to fly

Fly away

Fly away

Back home... back home

Holding on to memories

Often scared

Of what I'd see

And then you came

And then you came

And rescued me

And I'm okay

I'm okay

But I see in your eyes

You wear no disguise

Help me find my way

I'm like a bird in the sky

You helped me to fly

Fly away

Fly away

Oh and I know you'll never leave me alone

I'll follow you just anywhere that you go

In my life I can see you

I know I believe you will stay, oh

In your eyes

You wear no disguise

Oh oh oh

Like a bird in the sky

You helped me to fly

Oh yeah oh oh oh

In your eyes oh oh

Oh yeah, oh yeah

Yeah hey yeah oh

I said you're like a bird in the sky

You helped me to fly

Fly away

Fly away

Back home

Back home

In your eyes

During the song, Natalia slowly made her way over to where Calleigh sat until she was singing to her. By the time she finished, they both had tears in their eyes. After the last note had been played, there was a brief silence and then thunderous applause. Natalia took a bow and walked back over to the piano to leave the microphone, where Cindy said, "That was perfect. Don't leave yet. I have something for you. I'll meet you at your table in a few minutes."

Agreeing, Natalia turned and walked back over to her table. Calleigh stood as she walked up. Stopping the barest breath away from Calleigh, Natalia whispered. "Surprise."

Instead of answering, Calleigh reached up and pulled Natalia's head down for a kiss. Her tongue slid into Natalia's mouth causing her to moan. Pulling back, Calleigh whispered back, "We need to leave now."

Natalia looked down at the woman who had captured her heart. "Yes, we do. But Mort said that she will be right over and I need to pay for the check."

"You've got ten minutes top or I'm gonna scream."

They sat down holding hands as Cindy walked up with a gentleman in a chefs coat. "Natalia, this is Chef Michael."

Chef Michael went straight to the point. "That was amazing. Anytime that you want to come and sing with Cindy, just let us know. And to say thank you, dinner is on me and please accept this bottle of Cristal."

Natalia thanked him and he left. Cindy handed her a disc. "Here, I had you recorded so you could watch it. This is the only copy, I guarantee. And I know that Jen will want to see it when she comes down. I hope you both have a great evening and Natalia, thank you for letting me share this evening with you." And then she walked off.

Taking the bottle, and picking up their purses, Natalia and Calleigh walked out of the restaurant, and got into their car as it was brought around.

Instead of driving back to the cottage, Natalia drove to a quiet beach. Shutting off the car, she turned to Calleigh. "Walk with me?"

"Anywhere."

Taking off their shoes, they got out of the car and joining hands, walked down towards the water. The moon was just coming out over the Atlantic, frosting the waves in silver, and stars were beginning to glitter like diamonds on dark velvet.

Standing at the water's edge, Natalia turned to Calleigh and softly began. "It wasn't that long ago when all I had was a fantasy of you and I being together and then thankfully that all changed. I have fallen so deeply in love with you Calleigh and you have become my now, my forever. I don't know what tomorrow or the next day will bring, I just know that I want you in my life. I want to wake up to you every morning and fall asleep every night with you in my arms. Will you do me the honor of allowing me to become your wife? Will you marry me?"

Reaching up to caress Natalia's face, Calleigh whispered. "There is nothing that I want more than to spend the rest of my life with you. I will be honored to be your wife."

Leaning down, Natalia brushed her lips against Calleigh's briefly, then deepened the kiss. She moaned as Calleigh's tongue caressed hers and when Calleigh slid a thigh between her legs. Calleigh's hands were busy pulling out the pins that were holding Natalia's hair until caramel hair hung down, framing their faces.

Finally pulling away, Natalia looked down with tears in her eyes. "Would tomorrow be too soon to have a ceremony? Because I've already made arrangements for one, but we can have another ceremony for our family and the rest of our friends later. Horatio and Alexx will be here as our witnesses, they get here tomorrow afternoon."

"Tomorrow will be perfect. But I want to do something first. Right now."

Taking Natalia's hands in hers, Calleigh looked up to her lover with unshed tears in her eyes. "I, Calleigh Duquesne, take you Natalia Boa Vista as my wife, my partner. To have and to hold from this moment forward. For better or for worse, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish for the rest of our days."

Natalia had to swallow a few times before she could respond. "I, Natalia Boa Vista, take you, Calleigh Duquesne as my wife and partner. To have and to hold from this moment on. For better or worse, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish you for the rest of our days."

The kiss began slow and soft with all of the promises of what a lifetime together would bring. As it went on, it became more heated, more intense like their love that had grown from friendship to something so much more.

This time it was Calleigh who pulled away. "Let's go back to the cottage. I don't want sand anywhere near me right now."

"Ok, let's go."

They walked back to the car, got in and drove to the cottage. Calleigh had only let go of Natalia's hand long enough to get into the car and then she picked it back up. The ride back to the cottage was quiet as each was lost in her thoughts. They arrived at the cottage and Natalia led them around to the patio gate, opening it, she let Calleigh walk through first.

Stopping barely a foot inside, Calleigh was amazed. There were candles lit everywhere, soft music played in the background and rose petals were floating in the spa. Natalia came up behind her, wrapping her arms around her waist.

"Surprise.... again."

Leaning back against Natalia, Calleigh chuckled. "I can't believe you did all of this."

Natalia walked them over to the sofa and sat them down. Reaching into her purse, pulled out a small box, opened it and presented to Calleigh. Inside was a three-carat emerald cut emerald ring with a half carat diamond on either side. There was also an eternity ring with alternating emeralds and diamonds.

Calleigh looked up at her with tears in her eyes. Slowly she reached into her own purse and pulled out an identical box, opening it and handed to Natalia. Inside was the exact same ring, but instead of an emeralds, there were sapphires.

"Great minds think alike." And with that Calleigh took the sapphire solitaire ring and slid it onto Natalia's ring finger on her right hand and then Natalia did the same with the emerald solitaire.

Once again, it took Natalia a few swallows before she could saw anything. "I know that we can't wear these at work, but..."

Calleigh interrupted. "We can wear the eternity rings with our gloves. These will be for when we aren't at work. But what do you think about us also getting plain bands for our left hands? I want the world to know that I'm off the market."

"That's fine for me too. We can pick something up while we are down here. We also need to find something to wear for the ceremony. We can do that before we pick up Horatio and Alexx at the airport. Now on to something a bit more important, would you be interested in a glass if champagne?"

Calleigh stood up only to sit back down, straddling Natalia's lap. "I'm more interested in getting these clothes off and getting my hands all over your body."

Reaching behind her lovers back, Natalia pulled down the zipper to Calleigh's dress. "Well, why didn't you say so?" She parted the dress, pulled it away from Calleigh's shoulders and down to her waist. Murmuring, "You are beautiful." Then leaned forward to place gentle kisses against Calleigh's collarbone, moving down her throat and much softer areas.

Leaning back as the kisses went farther south, Calleigh let out a low moan, then with Natalia supporting her, pulled herself back up to a sitting position. Reaching forward to capture Natalia's lips with her own, Calleigh threaded her hands in caramel hair, holding her lovers head while she kissed her time and time again.

"We need to go to bed now. Not later, right now."

Releasing Calleigh and grabbing the bottle of champagne, Natalia followed her lover upstairs, shedding shoes, dresses and underwear as they went. By the time, they got to the bedroom, both women were nude and reaching for each other.

777

Calleigh awoke the next morning in a tangle of limbs and sheets. Turning her head, she found that she was nose to nose with Natalia. Resisting the urge to wake her, Calleigh let her eyes linger on the face of the most amazing woman she had ever met. Remembering back to the previous evening, Calleigh had been more than surprised when Natalia had walked out on the stage and started singing. All of the other people in the room seemed to disappear for her, leaving only Natalia. Calleigh was sure that Natalia had never seemed more beautiful than she did at that moment. And when they committed themselves to each other on the beach, they had both had been over come with emotion.

Then the thought hit her, and she almost sat up. She was getting married today, getting married to the lovely woman who was sound asleep next to her. Calleigh began to think about what she was going to say during the ceremony. Even though it wasn't legal in the state, this was the one and only time that Calleigh was going to get married and she wanted to make sure that Natalia knew it. Calleigh was also glad that Horatio and Alexx were going to be there to witness it. They had helped so much during the Jake investigation that even if they weren't family before, they were now.

Seeing Natalia eyelids flutter, Calleigh reached over to caress her face.

"Morning darlin'. How did you sleep?"

"Morning my love. I slept like a well loved woman, which I am. How long have you been awake?"

Brushing the caramel hair away from Natalia's face, Calleigh answered. "Just a few minutes. I was just been laying here thinking about last night. In case I forgot to tell you, you're an amazing singer. How come you never told me that you sang?"

"It's nothing that I do on a regular basis, just on very special occasions. Only my family and a few very close friends know. Now are you ready to get this show on the road? We've got a lot of things to do before Horatio and Alexx get here."

Agreeing, they got out of bed, dressed and took off to go shopping. They stopped at a small diner to have breakfast and then walked over to a jewelry store. There they picked out two plain gold bands and each arranged for something to be engraved inside. After leaving there, they parted ways as neither one of them wanted the other to see what they were buying to wear. They agreed to meet back at the car in three hours which would give them plenty of time to have lunch before they had to go to the airport. But as Calleigh walked away, Natalia couldn't help but exclaim, "As much as I hate to see you go, I love to watch you leave."

Calleigh turned to look back over her shoulder. "Darlin', you say the nicest things." She replied with a grin.

After making sure that Calleigh had walked away, Natalia turned and walked back into the jewelry store. While they had been walking around, she had noticed a tri-gold bracelet with Celtic designs that she thought Calleigh would like. Feeling rather pleased with herself, she finally left the store to try and find something to wear.

A little less than three hours later, Natalia was leaning against the car watching people stroll by when she caught sight of Calleigh walking towards her. 'Damn, I love the Calleigh Strut. She looks so hot. I don't know if I enjoy watching her walk towards me or away from me more. She works well both ways.'

The object of her perusal walked right up to her, placing herself between Natalia's legs. "So you like the way that I move? Any particular way you like more than others?"

Natalia pretended to think. "Well, I do like the movement that you do with your tongue when yo... hmmf"

Calleigh quickly covered Natalia's mouth with her hand. "That is not meant for the public ears, but I will keep it in mind for later. Yuck!" As Natalia licked the palm of the hand that covered her mouth.

"Sorry, couldn't resist. Let's go see if the rings are ready."

They walked back into the jewelry store and found that the rings were ready. After paying, they got into the car and drove to the cottage. Neither one was very hungry so they decide to sit out on the patio.

"What time are Horatio and Alexx getting here?"

Looking at her watch, Natalia replied. "They should be here in about three hours and the ceremony is an hour after that. I was thinking that after the ceremony, we could go out to eat. Do you know what you want to say yet?"

"Yeah, I know what I'm gonna say. You?"

Oh yeah. I got it. Hey would you mind if we go upstairs, lay down and just cuddle for a bit? I just want to hold you."

Calleigh stood up, holding out her hand. "Darlin', you don't have to ask me twice. Holding you is one of my favorite things to do."

They went upstairs holding hands and lay down with Calleigh's head on Natalia's shoulder. Natalia was tracing lazy patterns on Calleigh's back, just letting her mind wander. She closed her eyes for what she thought was just a minute, but when she opened them back up, the shadows seemed to be a bit longer against the wall. Looking at her watch, she was alarmed to see that they had fifteen minutes to get to the airport to pick up their friends.

"Calleigh, wake up baby. We've got to get to the airport or we're gonna be late."

Before Calleigh rolled out of bed, she gave Natalia a quick kiss. "Sorry, didn't intend to fall asleep. You're just a comfortable pillow."

"I know, I didn't mean to either. Come on, let's go."

They scrambled downstairs, to the car and to the airport. They arrived just as Horatio and Alexx were walking out of the terminal. Horatio was just putting on his sunglasses.

"Hi guys. Sorry that we're late. We took a nap and lost track of time."

Alexx raised an eyebrow. "Is that what they are calling it now, a nap?"

Calleigh blushed while Natalia just rolled with it. "No, actually it's just called a nap with perks, but we won't go into details. Thank you both for coming. We're so glad that you could share this with us."

Horatio canted his head before giving Calleigh a hug. "You look happy, the both of you do." As he turned to hug Natalia also. "That's all that we care about."

Natalia ushered them into the car. "We have about an hour before we have to be at the site and we've got to go change clothes so if it's ok with you, we're all going to go to the cottage and you guys can have a drink while we change."

After getting to the cottage and making sure that their guests had something to drink, Calleigh and Natalia went upstairs to change. They each went into one of the bedrooms to get ready. After a few minutes, Alexx knocked on one of the doors and asked for permission to come in. Calleigh called out her agreement and she walked in. There she found Calleigh wearing cream draw string cotton pants and a pale mint green Indian style pullover embroidered shirt.

"Baby girl, I am so happy for you. You both deserve the best and you're getting it. I'm just glad that everything has worked out so well. Now let's look at the pretty green stone on your right hand."

Holding out her hand, Calleigh replied. "Isn't it beautiful and we bought the rings at the same store and in the same style. And I couldn't ask for anything more that what I have right now. Would you do me a favor? Go see if Natalia is ready. I want to give her wedding gift before we leave."

Alexx agreed to see if Natalia was ready, but admonished Calleigh. "You can't see her before the ceremony. It's bad luck. If you want me to give her something, I'll be honored to."

"Well, I don't know how we are going to get to the ceremony without seeing what each other is wearing, but give her this." And Calleigh handed Alexx the necklace that she had bought at the Butterfly Conservatory.

"Oh, this is beautiful girl. I'll take it right over. You stay here until I get back."

Crossing over to the other bedroom, Alexx knocked and asked to come in. Getting permission, she walked in to find Natalia in an almost identical outfit except her top was a pale blue pullover.

Hey, girl. I'm here delivering a gift from the beautiful blonde across the hall because I won't let you two see each other before the ceremony. And in case you're wondering how we're going manage that, it's called blindfolds and you may want to remember that for a later time. I hear that they can be a lot of fun."

Smirking, Natalia said, "No, really? Hmm, will have to try it sometime. Thank you so very much for coming. We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you and Horatio.

Handing her the box, Alexx took a step back to give her a bit of privacy. When Natalia opened the box, she gave a little gasp when she saw the necklace. Taking it out of the box, she turned to Alexx to help her put it on.

"Aww girl, that is gorgeous. I am so happy for you two. You deserve as much happiness as you can get and I can tell how much you love each other. Thank you for asking us to be here with you."

"Well, you and Horatio stood by us both through everything, so I knew that you deserved to be here for the good stuff too. Now would you mind delivering another gift?" Natalia handed her another box.

"I'll be glad to." As she took the box and walked back across the hall, knocking on the door and walking in.

"I've got something for you from across the hall."

Taking the box, Calleigh opened it and sighed. "I saw this earlier at the store. She must have seen me looking at it."

Putting it on, Calleigh turned to Alexx. "We should be leaving soon so how do you plan for us not to see each other?"

"Do you have any scarves?"

Calleigh went through their clothes and found something that could be used like scarves as Alexx leaned out over the balcony and called up Horatio. As he reached the landing, she explained that she didn't want them to see other before the ceremony and that that they were going to blindfold both Calleigh and Natalia and drive them to the ceremony.

After being blindfolded, escorted and placed in the car, Natalia gave Horatio the address for the ceremony. Reaching across the back seat, Natalia found Calleigh's hand and held onto it. A little more than fifteen minutes later, the car came to a stop and Horatio and Alexx helped the two out of the back seat.

When Calleigh's blindfold came off, she blinked several times and the first thing that she noticed was how blue the sky was and that wasn't a cloud in sight. A soft touch turned her to face to face with the woman who had stolen her heart. Warm chocolate eyes twinkled as Natalia whispered. "I like your outfit."

It was then that Calleigh noticed that they were wearing almost identical clothes. "This brain cell that we're sharing is scary sometimes darlin'. Thank you for my bracelet. I was looking at it in the store."

"You're welcome, my love. I love the necklace. Are you ready to start our life together?"

"I have never been so ready for anything in my life."

They walked over to where the official and a photographer were waiting with Horatio and Alexx bringing up the rear. After they introduced themselves, the official asked if they wanted a traditional ceremony or did they want to make it personal. They told her that they wanted to make it personal and she started the ceremony. She welcomed Horatio and Alexx, saying that they were a part of Calleigh and Natalia's special day and after saying a few standard lines, she turned to Calleigh and motioned her to begin.

Calleigh let her eyes caress the face of the woman standing in front of her a few moments before she began. "Colors are brighter, more vivid now since I've been with you. Music is richer and life is fuller. You brought sunlight into all of the dark corners of my world and have shown me what I've been missing. You have shown me a love that I had only dreamed of and have given me the strength to stand up for what I want. My life is worth more with you in it. I want to share the laughter, the tears, the joy, and stupid jokes with you. I waited so long to find what I had been missing and here you are. You are my missing half, the part of my soul that I've been searching for. So I, Calleigh Duquesne take you Natalia Boa Vista as my wife and partner. To join our lives in happiness and in health, to love you and cherish you for the rest of your days."

With eyes shining bright with unshed tears, Natalia began. "As a child, I had a dream of someone who was good, someone who would stand up for me and who I knew would love me no matter what. I thought that I found that person once, but I was wrong. Then you walked into my life with your golden hair and beautiful smile and I knew immediately that you were the one, the one that made everything else that I had gone through worth while. Everything else that I had gone through before led me to you and no matter how bad it was, no matter how hard or how much it hurt, it led me to where I'm supposed to be. With you sharing my life. You are my now, my life and my love. You are the sun in my life and yes, you are the missing part of my soul that I've been searching for. And I, Natalia Boa Vista take you Calleigh Duquesne as my wife, my love and my partner. I will try my very best to guide you when you are confused, hold your hand when you are lost, kiss your lips when you feel disappointment, and carry your cross when you feel you can't anymore. I love you and will always adore you and I thank you in advance for being the best thing that has happened in my life. To share my life, my joys, my fears and my really bad one liners. To give you what you desire, what you need and to help your dreams to come true. I promise to be by your side in sickness and in heath. To honor you, to love you and to cherish you for the rest of your days."

They both turned to the official. "Do you have rings that you want to exchange?"

Both Natalia and Calleigh pulled out the rings that they had in their pockets. They were already wearing the solitaire and eternity rings on their right hands so they placed the gold bands on each others left hands, but not before they each showed what they had engraved on the inside. And once again, that brain cell had been shared because inside of Natalia's ring was 'Natalia Boa Vista-Duquesne, my forever' and inside of Calleigh's was 'Calleigh Duquesne-Boa Vista, my now'.

Laughing as they slid the rings on, they turned once again to the official with smiles on their face. "By the power vested in me by the State of Florida and in the Republic of Key West, I now pronounce you married. You may kiss."

Natalia took Calleigh face between her hands and gently brushed her lips against Calleigh's. Then she deepened the kiss until they were both breathless. Pulling back, she whispered. "Hello wife."

Bright green eyes glistened while gazing into sparkling chocolate. "Hello wife. That sounds so right."

"Doesn't it though."

They both turned and thanked the official and the photographer arranged to get them their DVD delivered to them the next day. With huge smiles on their faces, they then turned to greet their friends.

"Congratulations, we wish a very long and happy life together." Horatio hugged Calleigh as Alexx wrapped her arms around Natalia.

"Yes, congratulations. We are so very happy for you. So are you guys going to take each others names or what?"

Natalia looked over to Calleigh. "We've never talked about it. I think that Natalia Duquesne has a nice ring to it."

Looking like the Cheshire cat with a huge grin on her face, Calleigh agreed. "Yes, it does, but how would you feel about combining the names to come up with DuVista. It just hit me and I think that Natalia DuVista has a better ring to it."

"Hmm, Calleigh and Natalia DuVista. I like it. Great idea wife." And Natalia gave Calleigh another slow kiss.

"Thank you wife."

Turning back to Horatio, Calleigh couldn't quit smiling. "Are you guys ready to go and get something to eat?"

"Actually, we need for you to take us back to the airport. We both have important meetings first thing in the morning that we can't be late for, but we were not going to miss this event for the world."

"You mean you can't stay the night and leave first thing in the morning?" Natalia asked.

Shaking her head, Alexx answered. "No, we've got to be there by seven so we need to get back tonight. But like Horatio said, there wasn't anyway that we were going to miss this. All this means is that we'll have an excuse to get together when you get back to go out and celebrate."

"That sounds like a plan. So let's hit the road and get you to your flight."

And that's what they did. They all got into the car and went to the airport, getting there just in time for Horatio and Alexx to board their plane and take off. When they got back inside the car, Calleigh looked over to Natalia and just stared. Natalia turned and stared back.

"Wife, what would you like to do now?"

Taking a deep breath, Natalia got a wicked look upon her face. "Do you want it any specific order or will random be ok?"

"Random order works for me. That way I can pick and chose."

"Ok, here it goes. Making love, walking along the beach, getting naked, eating sushi, making you scream, you making me scream, ice cream sounds good, slow dancing, drinking champagne, nibbling up your body, you nibbling on me and just holding each other."

Nodding her head, Calleigh asked. "Ok, it that it?"

"For starters."

"And when do you want to do all of this?"

"Well, we don't have to be at back at work until Monday morning, so that gives us… two days? What do you want to do first?"

"Something that you didn't mention." Calleigh leaned over to gently fist a handful of caramel hair and slid her tongue into Natalia's open mouth. Her other hand drifted lower and slid beneath the waist band of the pants, down the flats abs and past the silky panties into something just as silky and very moist.

Natalia surged up, pressing the fingers in even deeper, moaning deep in her throat. One hand went to the door handle to anchor herself while the other wrapped around Calleigh, trying to pull her closer.

Dragging her lips down to suck on a bronze throbbing pulse point, Calleigh growled out. "We need to leave now. Where are the keys?"

"Hmm, you're asking me?" Looking around Natalia grinned. "In the ignition, babe."

"Oh yeah. Good place for 'em. Let's go."

They were back at the cottage in record time. As they walked inside, Natalia turned to Calleigh. "Would you mind giving me ten minutes alone. There's something else I want to do for you."

"Sure, I'll call the sushi place and arrange for a delivery. Just come on down when you're ready."

Natalia went upstairs while Calleigh looked at the menus that had been supplied by the management company and called 'Ambrosia'.

"Hi, I'm calling for a delivery... 919 W Lincoln Av... I need it in exactly 2 hours, no sooner... I want two orders of everything; tuna tataki, mixed sunomono, Grand Ambrosias, chirashi, futomaki, a bottle of plum wine and a bottle of sake... Yes, one bottle of each..."

Right at that moment, Natalia came down the stairs wearing a white nightgown that came to her mid thigh, had spaghetti straps and lace in all the very right spots.

"Umm... make that three hours exactly... If the delivery person is early, there will be no tip, but if he's on time, the will be a large tip... yes, thank you."

Grinning wickedly, Natalia drawled out. "Three hours huh? You think that we'll be finished by then?"

Walking up to stand a whisper away from her new wife. "Hell no, but we'll need something to eat by then. Now it's your turn to give me ten minutes." Ghosting her hands along Natalia's thighs, Calleigh took a deep breath before she almost ran up the stairs to search through her clothes.

'Please let me have it.... Please.... Please...Yes!'

Taking a few minutes to jump in the shower, bathe and towel off, Calleigh quickly dressed, but instead of going back downstairs, she stepped out onto the balcony. Looking down onto the patio, she spied Natalia sitting on the sofa. She must have made some kind of noise, because Natalia looked up and smiled at her. Slowly rising, she walked inside and was met on the second floor landing by her sexy, blonde wife.

"Talia, you take my breath away."

Once again, Calleigh's words came back at her. "Now that can be a good thing every once in a while, because I love to leave you gasping for air. And you my love, are stunning."

Calleigh was wearing a black nightgown that hugged every curve and almost.... almost left nothing to Natalia's imagination. But Natalia had a great imagination for what she wanted to do right then, so she glided up to her wife and grabbed Calleigh's hips. Pulling her so that they were molded together, curves and valleys meshed perfectly. Leaning down, Natalia captured Calleigh's lips in a gentle kiss that quickly turned hard and needy while backing Calleigh up into the bedroom until the back of her legs hit the bed. Natalia steadied her as she started to fall back.

"Not yet. Not until I take this off." Slowly Natalia's hand traveled down Calleigh's back, cupping her ass as she passed and even more slowly drawing her nails around the side and slowly just dipping below the hem and drawing it up. Inch by torturous inch, the gown made it's way up peaches and cream thighs until the tips of Natalia's fingers brushed golden curls, making Calleigh's breathing hitch.

With her fingers barely touching Calleigh's thighs and curls, her eyes gazing down onto her wife's face, Natalia whispered. "When I first met you at work, I was floored by your beauty. And then as I got to know you, I admired the way that you worked with everyone. When you treated me no differently after it came out that I was spying on the lab, I respected you even more. But all the while, I was falling in love with you just a little more each day. I was sure that it was only a fantasy that we would ever be together, but after your were shot down at the docks and ended up at my house that night, everything changed. You took a chance on me, on us and I'm not sure if I would have done anything if you hadn't. So what I'm telling you while teasing the hell out of you is that I am hopelessly in love with you, Calleigh DuVista and I am so glad that you are my wife, my other half and my friend."

Leaning down, Natalia gently kissed the parted, waiting lips of her bride. Calleigh moaned and slid her tongue into Natalia's warm mouth. As Natalia pulled up the nightgown with one hand, the other hand slowly slid through the curls to find a slick nub. Calleigh jerked and swayed a bit after Natalia completely removed the gown, but Natalia held her upright. Running her free hand through the corn silk hair, she deepened the kiss and slid two fingers inside Calleigh's pulsating center, swallowing the groan that came from deep inside Calleigh. Slowly sliding in and out, Natalia could feel Calleigh begin to tremble. Pulling away from her lips, Natalia whispered. "Lay down baby."

Calleigh almost collapsed on the bed, and as she fell, Natalia dropped to her knees and began to suckle on the tiny nub as she continued to stroke in and out. Calleigh arched and fisted the sheets as she tried to anchor herself. As Natalia started humming, the vibrations seemed to vibrate all the way to Calleigh's core and she started keening. Adding another finger as she removed her mouth, Natalia started making her way up the sweaty body, stopping to nibble at sensitive spots and finally made her way to a pair of luscious lips.

Before she kissed Calleigh, Natalia needed to see her eyes. "Baby, look at me. Come on....Cal... let me see those beautiful green eyes."

Briefly she saw a flash of green before Calleigh reached up, pulling her head down for a hard kiss with their tongues warring for dominance while she slid a thigh between Natalia's legs, pressing against her wet center. Releasing a moan from deep inside, Natalia flicked the slick nub with her thumb, causing a spasm to rip Calleigh's lips away from hers as she screamed out Natalia's name. Natalia felt Calleigh's muscles tighten and continued to thrust, bringing another wave of spasms through her wife.

Reaching around and pulling Natalia to her, Calleigh twisted until she was atop of her and quickly slid three fingers into Natalia's super slick center, making her gasp. Moving in time with Natalia, Calleigh broke them both free of the restraints that held them earthbound. Slowing down, with golden hair framing their faces, Calleigh pressed soft kisses against the side a glistening bronze neck before collapsing next to her wife.

Gently, Natalia withdrew her fingers from Calleigh, making a slight tremor roll through her. Turning her head, she saw Calleigh was lying there with here eyes closed, trying to catch her breath. Reaching over, Natalia brushed away a strand of damp, golden hair that was across her face. "You alright babe?"

A thumbs up was her response.

Laughing Natalia rubbed Calleigh's back. "Poor baby. I wore you out."

And to that she was flipped a bird. "That's exactly what wore you out hon., but if you want to more, I can certainly go for it."

This time Calleigh raised her head and whispered. "Hold on for a bit." and then dropped back down.

Brushing the hair away from Calleigh's face, Natalia let her eyes gaze upon the beautiful creature laying next to her. Her wife, who would have figured? Pressing a quick kiss to the top of the golden head, Natalia got off the bed and put on a pair of shorts and t-shirt.

"Would you like something to drink babe?"

Raising her head slightly, Calleigh said, "Yeah, some oj would be great. And the food should be here pretty soon. I'll be right down. Just give me another minute or two."

"Take your time, 'cause I'm not done with you yet."

Natalia had to laugh on her way downstairs as she overheard Calleigh's response. "But what a way to go."

She had just finish pouring the juice when Calleigh came up behind her, wrapping her arms about her waist and laying her head against Natalia's back.

"Darlin', thank you. That was amazing. I have never been loved like that before, and I do mean loved."

Turning within the circle, Natalia wrapped her own arms around her golden girl. "Well babe, you are loved. I was just trying to show you how much and I haven't really started yet. It's gonna take me years to show you just how much."

Beaming up at Natalia, Calleigh laughed. "I can take the next sixty or so years doing that with you. We'll go through a lot of beds, but I believe it is worth the money."

Natalia was about to respond when they heard a knock at the door. They let go of each other and Calleigh opened the door. The delivery boy stood there with his arms laden with bags. Calleigh took some and handed them to Natalia.

"Right on time. And for that, we thank you. What's the damage?"

He handed her a receipt and Calleigh exclaimed. "Really! Not bad. Hold on a sec."

She went into the living room and got her wallet. Coming back, she handed him the correct amount and then handed him a fifty dollar bill. "Thanks so much for being on time."

He thanked her and left. Calleigh turned and walked into the dining room to find Natalia placing the food on the table. She was leaning across to the table to put down a dish and it was all that Calleigh could do, not to sweep the dishes off the table and take Natalia right there. As that thought raced through her mind, she remembered when Ryan had asked her if she had ever pushed aside the dinner plates to get some. Laughing Calleigh went and helped Natalia set out the food.

"What's so funny?"

Grabbing a piece of cucumber, Calleigh answered. "Just thinking about something Ryan said once. Asked me if I had ever pushed the plates aside to get some, and right now it's looking like a really good idea."

Natalia looked sideways at her wife. "Keep that thought for later babe. Right now I need something to eat. Could you tell me one thing though? Why did you get a bottle of plum wine and sake?"

Going into the kitchen and bringing out two wine glasses. Calleigh opened both bottles and poured equal amounts of each in each glass. Handing one to Natalia, Calleigh explained. "I used to have a group of friends that loved to eat sushi and they came up with this drink and called it a Seppuku Cocktail. It's a bit different, but I think that you might like it."

Taking a sip, Natalia had to agree that it was a bit unusual, but she decided she liked it. They sat down and ate everything that Calleigh ordered. By the time that they were done, they both were stuffed and leaning back in their chairs. Natalia had put her feet up in Calleigh's lap and was receiving a foot rub.

"Oh baby. I would've married you sooner if you had given me one of these before. This feels so good."

Calleigh laughed. "Damn! If I had known that, I would have done it earlier. I've known that I wanted to marry you a while back, I just thought that you wanted to wait. That you weren't ready."

Natalia was quiet a moment before she said anything. "I don't think I was. I knew that I loved you and wanted to be with you, but was too afraid."

"What were you afraid of?"

Once again, she was quiet before she answered. "Nick really did a number on me. I thought that I would mess things up and end up losing you as a friend too. That I was opening myself up to really be hurt and I wasn't sure that I was ready for that. But I knew that I needed, that I had to be with you and I would have eventually been ready to marry you. After what happened with Jake, I knew that I had to take the chance now. To take the chance of having at least one day of happiness with you."

Gently picking up Natalia's feet, Calleigh placed them on the floor and then went to kneel in from of Natalia. Taking Natalia's hand in hers, Calleigh said. "Darlin', we're going to have more than one day of happiness. We're going to have years and I'm going to make sure that you feel loved every single day."

Looking down at Calleigh, Natalia smiled. "I know that my love and I am going to do the same for you. I'm ashamed that I was scared, because I should have trusted how you felt for me. But it's easier to believe the worse about yourself and Nick was very good at making me believe that everything was my fault. But you give me the strength to stand up for myself and for what I want. And that in itself makes me feel so alive after being in the dark for so long. I love you Calleigh DuVista."

"And I love you Natalia. Is this where I push the plates aside and have my way with you?"

"No babe, this is where you take me by the hand, lead me upstairs and we make love for the rest of the night."

Rising up to kiss her wife gently on the lips, Calleigh whispered. "Good plan." And that's exactly what they did.

888

It was late morning when Calleigh opened her eyes to find caramel hair across her face. When she tried to turn her head, she discovered that Natalia's head was on top of her hair. Slowly she pulled away until she was free and she could look at her wife. Natalia had been sharing her pillow with her arm tucked underneath her chin. The sheet was low across her back and Calleigh could see some light scratches that she knew matched the ones that she had. Smiling she leaned over to kiss the small of Natalia's back and when she made contact, Natalia reached out and pulled Calleigh back down.

Brushing the hair away from Natalia's face, Calleigh pressed a kiss on her forehead. "Morning darlin'. Are you ready for some breakfast, I mean some lunch? I don't know about you, but I need some food. I'm gonna go downstairs and fix something ok?"

Turning over, Natalia looked up at Calleigh. "Morning sunshine. How about us taking a shower first and then we can fix something to eat?"

"That sounds like a good idea. I'll even let you wash my back."

They got up and got into the shower with the good intentions of just bathing, but one thing led to another and they didn't get out until they had run out of hot water. Toweling off, they decided to fix a salad and then go on a sunset cruise that evening.

Calleigh made it into the kitchen first, took the salad ingredients out of the fridge and began to assemble the salad. Natalia walked in a few minutes later and began to mix the ingredients for a dressing. A short time later they were in their favorite dining spot under the banyan tree munching on the salad.

"Part of me wishes that we didn't have to go back tomorrow and another part of me is excited to go home."

Calleigh agreed. "I know what you mean, but I think Horatio might have a problem covering for us if we stay away any longer. And I don't even want to think about the condition of our departments or the back log that we should have."

"Do you want to drive in together or take separate cars?"

Thinking for a moment before she finally answered, Calleigh said. "I think that we should take our own cars for a few days. Odds are that at least one of us will be working late until we catch up. That way whoever gets home first can start dinner. And if it's ok with you, I would like to agree that work stays at work and does not come home with us. I know that there will be times that we will slip up and talk about it, but any problems stay at work. Our home is for us, not work."

"I'm glad that you said that. And you're right, there will be times that we will slip up and talk, but our time is too precious and I'm not sharing you any more than I have to. In fact, would you mind if we didn't go on the sunset cruise? I just want to spend time with you."

"That's fine with me. We don't have to see anyone else until we leave tomorrow if you want. Just you, me and the bed. And maybe the spa... and sofa."

Laughing, Natalia leaned forward to give her wife a lingering kiss. "Got it honey. We're gonna wear each other out and go into work Monday looking like we need another vacation."

Calleigh stood up only to sit back down, but straddling Natalia's lap. "Just want to make sure that we have plenty of quality time. It's gonna be rare next week and like I said before, you're my new addiction and you don't want me going through withdraws."

Pulling off Calleigh's shirt, Natalia dipped her head to take a honey colored nipple between her lips while her hand was dipping underneath the waistband of Calleigh's shorts. Sliding two flingers through the slick folds and becoming surrounded by pulsating walls, Natalia moaned at the wetness that engulfed her.

Calleigh leaned back until she felt the table behind her. Putting her arms out to the side, she propped herself up so that Natalia wouldn't lose contact with her breasts and then slowly started to scoot back across the table. She growled out. "Just let me lie back darlin."

Standing, that's what Natalia did, all while not stopping what she was doing. The slow thrusts were getting deeper and began picking up speed. Releasing Calleigh's breast, Natalia looked up and watched Calleigh. The expressions that flashed cross her face made Natalia weak kneed as they were so beautiful. Reaching with her other hand, Natalia caressed Calleigh's cheek.

Calleigh turned her head so that she enveloped Natalia's thumb in her mouth and looked up into hot chocolate eyes as she sucked.

Feeling the moisture pool between her legs, Natalia delighted in the warm feelings that both hands were experiencing. Her eyes were almost black as they looked down at the peaches and cream body that was undulating underneath her. Her breath was matching her thrusts and Calleigh's responses. Tilting her head back, Natalia closed her eyes and enjoyed the sensations that she was creating and experiencing. Suddenly her head came forward and her eyes snapped open as a very toned leg made it's way between hers, making her jerk against it. Natalia removed her hand from Calleigh's warm mouth and placed it on the table next to Calleigh's head to steady herself as she thrust into and against Calleigh.

Dark green eyes never waived from deep brown with mouths open, gasping for air. Sweat slowly ran down chests and hearts throbbed in time with each other's pulses. Then Natalia flicked her thumb over the tight nub of Calleigh's clit and Calleigh froze, her breath hissing from clinched teeth. She was perfectly still for about ten seconds, then Natalia began to move again and Calleigh arched her back as her eyes rolled back and she released a moan that seemed to come from deep inside of her.

Natalia slowed then fluttered her fingers before removing them from Calleigh's warmth to pull her into her arms and sitting them back down in her chair. Calleigh leaned her head against Natalia's shoulder, still trembling and trying to catch her breath while Natalia placed soft kisses against her damp forehead. And there they sat for awhile as they both calmed their breaths and pulses.

Putting her arms under Calleigh's thighs and around her back, Natalia stood up, walked them over and stepped into the spa. The water was warmed by the afternoon sun and it soothed the tired limbs and muscles of them both. After a few moments, Calleigh pulled away so that she could see Natalia's eyes.

"I have nothing to say.... That was perfect. I do have one question though?"

"What my love?"

Quirking an eyebrow. "How come you always seem to keep you clothes on?"

Looking down, Natalia laughed. "I'm not sure. I just guess you're too busy to take things off."

Putting her head back down on Natalia's shoulder, Calleigh muttered. "Gonna have to work on that. Yup."

"You do that babe. You do that."

After a few more moments, Calleigh stood up, pulling off her shorts and threw them near the cottage door. Turning, she pulled off Natalia's muscle shirt, then her shorts before she went to slide her hand between Natalia's legs. But before she found what she was searching for, Natalia stopped her. Calleigh looked at her puzzled.

"Wha....?"

Smiling Natalia softly explained. "Like you just said… perfect. Even though you may think that was one sided, it wasn't. You were making love to me in the best way possible. And right now there is nothing more that I need or want."

Leaning down, Calleigh placed kisses along Natalia's jaw. "Everything about you turns me on, but I do believe that your words are your hidden assets. I do love you Natalia, so very much."

"And I love you Calleigh. A bushel and a peck.."

"And a hug around the neck… I haven't heard that in years. My grandmother used to say that to me. What made you say that now?"

Shrugging Natalia replied. "I'm not sure. Just sounded like the right thing to say right then. Maybe your grandmother is giving us her blessing."

"That would be like her. She was a little Cajun woman who did things her own way and always seemed to know more than she let on. Always knew what to say and when to say it. She would've liked you because you stand up for your friends."

"I'm sure I would've liked her too - because she loved you. Do you wanna get out of here and dry off? I'm beginning to look like a prune."

Stepping out, Natalia held out her hand to help Calleigh out. They picked up their sodden clothes, rang them out and went inside.

For the rest of the day and into the night, they make love, talked and raided the fridge. When they finally drifted off to sleep, the dawns' light was just peeking through the French doors of the bedroom. They slept till early afternoon when Calleigh happened to turn over and look at her watch.

"Talia, it's four o'clock. What time are we supposed to meet the plane?"

Natalia raised her head from the pillow. "They will be here at six. We need to get packed, do something with the left over food and return the keys and car. Why don't we do this; I'll go down stairs and take care of the kitchen while you pack everything. Just leave me out a pair of jeans and a top. Then we'll take a shower, return the keys and be at the airport on time."

"Sounds like a plan to me. Let's go home darlin'."

Calleigh leaned over and gave Natalia a kiss before rolling out of bed. As she walked into the bathroom nude, Natalia gave a wolf whistle. "Hot mama walking."

Laughing, Calleigh called out over her shoulder. "You know it babe."

Natalia laid in bed a minute more, giving thanks for being so happy before she got up to take care of the food in the kitchen.

After an hour, they had finished their chores, bathed and were locking up the cottage. Getting into the car, they drove to the management company, dropped off the keys and then drove to the airport to return the car and to wait for the jet. Natalia called David and told him that they should be landing at around seven thirty. He told her that he would be waiting and should have them home by eight. While Natalia was on the phone, Calleigh watched as the jet landed and taxied over to the gate. Picking up their bags, she began to walk towards the door. Natalia caught up just as the planes cabin door opened and Jack, the co-pilot came down the steps.

"Good Evening Ladies. I hope that you had a good vacation."

Calleigh smiled and answered. "Yes, it was the best one yet."

He took the bags from her and motioned for them to proceed into the plane before him. Once inside, he stowed the baggage and informed them that the flight should only take about an hour as they would have a good tail wind. He asked them to buzz if they needed anything and went back into the cockpit to prepare for takeoff.

The roar of the engines soon signaled that they were taking off and soon thereafter the seatbelt light went off. Calleigh once again unbuckled her seat belt and pushed up the hand rest, but this time, she lay down with her head in Natalia's lap and they both fell asleep, only waking when they heard the fifteen minute out warning.

Soon they were back at the private airfield climbing out of the jet and getting into the limo. During their ride to their home, Natalia leaned against Calleigh's shoulder and went back to sleep. When David opened the door, he coughed a couple of times to wake them. Sheepishly, they got out and thanked him. Calleigh insisted on giving him a tip.

Natalia waited at the front door for Calleigh to finish with David before she unlocked it. Coming up to stand next to her, Calleigh looked at Natalia with a puzzled expression.

Smiling, Natalia explained. "I was thinking about carrying you across the threshold, but decided that we could just hold hands and go into our home for the first time as a married couple."

Calleigh took the offered hand, watching as Natalia unlocked the door and they walked through together, ready to start their new life.

The End

Return to C.S.I. Miami Fiction

Return to Main Page