Hello! Thank you to
Linda and
Mel for your comments.
And here's the next update.
You know the saying, 'Ask and you shall receive'? Well you asked me for romance and I'm giving it to you.
I was inspired during the week and I wrote this piece as the aftermath of the novel 'Heat Wave'. When I was typing this up and listening to random songs on my iPod, I came across the song 'Nobody Wants to be Lonely'. I have always loved this song and it had always reminded me of H and Cal, so I added in the lyrics to the story, and they fit quite well actually!!
I hope you enjoy, this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Let me know what you think!
Here we go!
Epilogue to 'Heat Wave' - 'Nobody Wants to be Lonely'
It was dusk in Miami, the sun slowly and surely sinking beneath the horizon, painting the countless windows in the hundreds of buildings shimmering gold and burnishing the sapphire ocean, the amber waves crashing on the white shores.
In the Miami-Dade crime-lab, things were settling down, the dayshift's work complete, awaiting the arrival of the graveyard shift. It had been a long and arduous period, with the looming gang war barely averted, the many casualties on both sides, each and every lab-tech, detective and CSI pushed to their limits.
Horatio exhaled a long sigh tinged with weariness, rubbing his eyes. He had just finished clearing his desk of paperwork. This case had been putting the moves on him, and taking its toll on himself and his team. He was just glad it was over, the relief pushing thoughts of Jeremy Burnett and Gabe Nickerson's vigilante activity to one side.
Stifling a yawn, he decided to call it a night, feeling the need to escape from work for a small while.
One thing he couldn't escape was Joanna Burnett's pending funeral. At least when he was working on solving the case, he couldn't focus on his grief. His mother taught him to confront and deal with his feelings, but lately...
Putting a hand on his forehead, Horatio breathed deeply, the pain of her loss threatening to overwhelm him. He was determined to let grieving and mourning have their day, but he knew it was unwise to bottle it all up.
'Talk to someone,' his conscience prompted. But to who? Smiling wryly to himself, Horatio knew there was no one left to talk to. They had all gone home for a well-deserved rest. And even if they were here, he wouldn't burden them with his problems. They had enough to deal with. He was supposed to be the foundation, the glue that held the team together. If he fell apart, what would become of them?
Horatio got up, wincing as his body protested movement, and left his office, clicking the door shut behind him.
As he walked through the corridors, he looked to his left into the ballistics lab out of pure habit, and his heart gave a sudden jump of surprise. Instead of it being empty, he saw Calleigh sitting there, bent over a case-file.
There you are, in a darkened room
And you're all alone, looking out the window
Your heart is cold and lost the will to love
Like a broken arrow
Here I stand in the shadows (In the shadows)
Come to me, come to me
Can't you see that
Feeling his mouth go dry, Horatio willed himself to stay calm. Why did he get nervous around her when they were alone? Was he a man or a schoolboy? Staying quiet, his eyes found her again and took her in like he had done before in that stolen moment when he had taken time to watch over her as she worked. It seemed like an age ago now.
In an instant, he craved her presence near him. He wanted to tell her how proud he was of her, and to see how she was doing. Through all of the grim and bleak business of investigating murders, she truly was a light, a beacon in that darkness. And he knew deep down that she would listen to him if he felt the need to unburden his conscience. To be open with Calleigh was a dream that sustained him.
Nobody wants to be lonely
Nobody wants to cry
My body's longing to hold you
So bad it hurts inside
Time is precious and it's slipping away
And I've been waiting for you all of my life (ohh)
Nobody wants to be lonely
So why (why), why don't you let me love you
Calleigh was just finishing up some paperwork of her own, determined to put this case to bed once and for all. It had been tough and gruelling to say the least, and all she wanted right now was to leave her work behind her and let loose, have some fun. She smiled to herself, knowing that a girls' night out with her friends was long overdue.
Suddenly, she felt a presence in the room other than her own. She turned to meet Horatio's eyes, surprise and pleasure at seeing him flooding through her.
"Horatio," she said with a smile. Horatio gave her a smile of his own, and replied in a deep rumble, "Calleigh."
Feeling a tremble run through her at the sound of her name on his lips, Calleigh dipped her head demurely to hide her blush. She turned away briefly from Horatio's gaze to sign her name on the case-file, and flipped it closed, intoning, "Case closed." Horatio nodded, echoing her, "Case closed."
Turning back to Horatio, Calleigh rose and walked up to him, her eyes soft as was her voice, "How are you doing?"
Her question surprised him, but he still managed to answer her, "I'm... I'm okay." Pause. "I appreciate you asking." Calleigh smiled. "I wouldn't care if I didn't ask."
Horatio felt his heart skip a beat. He cared about her too on so many levels. He realised that fact even more when they were alone, and his attention was solely focused on her. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he had trouble thinking straight when she was looking at him the way she was now, and whenever she was so close...
The silence was beginning to stretch, so Horatio spoke up again, saying quietly, "I'm proud of you, Calleigh." The sight of her eyes lighting up was his reward.
"Thank you," she replied. A beat.
Horatio watched as she raised her hands to his tie, lightly straightening it.
"You look tired," she observed. He felt tired. Bone-weary and completely drained. "It's been a long haul," he said, flashing back to the difficult and heavy case they had just closed.
"You should go gome, and get some rest. You deserve it." Calleigh put the slightest hint of insistence in her voice, hoping he would heed it. He needed to rest. Just rest.
Horatio closed his eyes briefly, turning away from Calleigh slightly. "I've been thinking."
"About what?" asked Calleigh. "About life."
His answer temporarily stunned her. Her silence begged him to reply to her unspoken question.
"Ever since Joanna died, I've been so focused on this case, so loaded with work, I never had the time to fully process what happened to her. I didn't even have time to stop and mourn her. But now with her funeral..." He stopped.
Calleigh bit her lip, clasping her hands, unsure of what to do or say. He was being so open with her. All she wanted was to ease the pain he was feeling right now. But her rational side won out. She didn't want to back him into a corner, so she let him speak his mind, and she listened.
Horatio continued in a voice that was just above a whisper, "I've come to realise in these last few days, Calleigh, even more that I did before, how brief, how fragile life is. 'A walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and is heard now more'."
Silence. "Macbeth," said Calleigh quietly, recognising the quote. A brief smile from Horatio, but his eyes held a faraway look.
Gently putting her hand on his arm, Calleigh summoned all the tenderness and feeling she had for this man to show in her eyes.
The touch of her hand shocked Horatio out of his trance, and he faced her again.
"I know this is a difficult time for you, Horatio. But I just want you to know that if ever you want to talk about anything at all, I'm here for you. No matter what."
Horatio felt a pull on his heart at her compassion and the depth of her caring.
In a slightly raw whisper, "Thank you, Calleigh. Thank you." She smiled, giving his arm a soft squeeze.
Can you hear my voice, do you hear my song
It's a seranade, so your heart can find me, ohh
And suddenly you're flying down the stairs
Into my arms, baby, ohh
Before I start going crazy (Going crazy, ohh)
Run to me
Run to me
Cause I'm dying...
A brief pause passed by, before Calleigh did something impulsive that took all her courage to do.
Beofre Horatio knew it, Calleigh had stepped even closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck in an embrace. He shut his eyes as her vanilla scent surrounded him, the silk of her hair brushing his cheek as she rested her head against his chest, next to his wildly beating heart.
For a second or two, his hands hung uselessly by his sides, unsure of where to place them. But he slowly brought them to rest on her back, returning her hug.
Calleigh's only thought was, 'I wish I could make things better for you. I wish I could.' She hugged him that bit tighter.
Horatio exhaled shakily, feeling slightly overwhelmed by her display of affection. But he didn't want to let her go. Having her so close was pure Heaven.
He turned his head to lightly kiss the crown of her head, and Calleigh smiled, delight spreading through her. What a step they had taken!
They held each other for the longest time, finding comfort in each other.
Nobody wants to be lonely
Nobody wants to cry (I don't wanna cry)
My body's longing to hold you (I'm longing to hold you)
So bad it hurts inside
Time is precious and it's slipping away
And I've been waiting for you all of my life (ohh)
Nobody wants to be lonely
So why
Why, why don't you let me love you
When they pulled back from their embrace, Calleigh found herself close to Horatio, closer than she'd ever been. Her hands rested on his arms as she looked up into his face that was so familiar. His flame-red hair. Those eyes, such a startling shade of blue. His mouth...
Feeling self-conscious for staring at him, she made to pull away, but Horatio stopped her. She looked up at him, albeit reluctantly, a question in her eyes as they flitted back and forth across his face. His expression was unreadable to her, but there was something in his eyes that caused her heartbeat to flutter.
She watched as as he slowly raised his right hand that hovered towards her cheek, tucking her hair behind her ears. She shivered as he ran his fingers through the length of her hair and up again to slowly move behind her head.
Calleigh's heartbeat began to quicken even more, and she let out a shaky breath.
Horatio watched her expression, fearful of stepping over the line, of being too forward, seeing her amaranth lips tremble. He couldn't resist her allure any longer that called to him like a siren's song. He would die if he couldn't have her...
I wanna feel you need me (Feel you need me)
Just like the air you're breathing (Breathing)
I need you here in my life
Don't walk away, don't walk away
Don't walk away, walk away
No, no, no, no...
Nobody wants to be lonely
Nobody wants to cry... yeah, yeah
Bending his head towards hers, Horatio reduced the gap between them to mere centimeters. stopping just short of Calleigh's mouth, hesitating. The aching grew stronger, almost unbearable as her breathing hitched and gusted across his lips. A mere second later and she had reached up to close the distance.
White-hot pleasure exploded his senses at her kiss, the indescribable feeling shaking him to the core.
He pulled her closer, angling his head so he could kiss her deeper, pressing his lips into hers even harder.Calleigh eagerly opened her mouth, her arms holding onto him tight and her fingers running through his hair. Horatio drank her in like a man dying of thirst, his kiss urging and passionate.
Calleigh could feel her heart knocking in her chest. She didn't want this to end. Her hand drifted to cup Horatio's cheek, stroking her thumb along his skin.
The touch of Calleigh's hand sent more sparks along Horatio's nerve endings. His hands splayed possessively along her back, keeping her close.
Many long moments later, they broke apart, though loathe to seperate.
Blinking blearily, Calleigh still cupped Horatio's cheek. Her lips felt pleasantly swollen after his kiss, and she could feel her legs shaking.
The silence was broken only by their breathing that was slowly returing to normal.
Horatio kept his eyes closed, resting his forehead against hers, regaining his control again. When he opened them and saw Calleigh's face, he knew that there was no one else in this world more beautiful or more pure than Calleigh Duquesne. She was his world, all he ever wanted.
Nobody wants to be lonely (Yeah ohh ooh)
Nobody wants to cry (Nobody wants to cry)
My body's longing to hold you (Is longing to hold you)
So bad it hurts inside (Hurts inside)
Time is precious and it's slipping away
And I've been waiting for you all of my life (Ohh)
Nobody wants to be lonely
So why (Why), why don't you let me love you
Let me love you...
Doing his best to keep the shaking out of his voice, Horatio whispered, "Calleigh..." She gave him a smile. "Horatio," she replied, her voice caressing his name.
He ducked his head slightly as if to avoid her gaze, gathering his courage. Raising his head again, he looked deep into her eyes.
"I've never told anyone this before in my life..." He paused. Calleigh trembled, holding onto him.
"Calleigh... I need you." Tears sprang to Calleigh's eyes at his admission, and she let out the smallest cry of happiness, hugging him close again. Horatio held her tight, feeling his chest swell with love and adoration for this woman.
Calleigh shut her eyes in rapture. No one had ever needed her before, not like Horatio did. The thought filled her with such joy.
She pulled back to face him again. Breathless, she said, "I don't know what to say." Horatio laughed. "You don't have to say anything."
Calleigh let out a happy sigh, bracketing his face with her palms. Horatio took hold of her hands and kissed her fingers. They shared a look that was full of longing, that spoke promises of what was yet to come.
Though reluctant to part, it was obvious that they both needed sleep to recharge their batteries. But as the old saying says, 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.'
Horatio gently released Calleigh's hands. She gave him a soft smile and a touch to his arm. "Goodnight, handsome." Horatio smiled back, knowing that this was the start of something amazing, and he swore to cherish every single moment.
"Goodnight, Calleigh." And with that they parted, both of them knowing that they would never be lonely again. They had found each other
Nobody wants to be lonely
Nobody wants to cry (Nobody wants to cry...)
My body's longing to hold you (I'm longing to hold you)
So bad it hurts inside (So hurt inside)
Time is precious and it's slipping away
And I've been waiting for you all of my life
Nobody wants to be lonely
So why (why), why don't you let me love you
Why (why), let me love you
Why don't you let me love you
Why, love you, let me love you