Lindsey Go Home

Lindsey stood, wrapped in Danny's protective embrace, the spots in her eyes from the blinding light of the flash grenade slowly fading.

They'd caught the men who were after the blood diamonds stolen from the jewelers, and if Lindsey hadn't have dropped the bag with the grenade in it when she did, she might very well have been dead.

Now, with the familiar scents of Danny's aftershave and the cigarette smoke that clung to his clothes in her nose, she breathed deeply, willing her heart to stop it's relentless pounding in her chest.

She felt Danny's arms like bands of steel around her, and felt him brush her temple with a light kiss.

"Are you okay?" he asked, pulling away to look into her face.

Lindsey nodded, swallowing hard and willing the adreneline rush to stop.

"Yeah," she whispered shakily, and looked around the room before resting her forehead against Danny's shoulder.

Thankfully, he shut his eyes, glad to know she was fine. He'd been upset with her when she volunteered to go in as a decoy. His heart had constricted in fear as he listened to the men threaten her. Danny, Mac and Stella had heard it all over the wire Lindsey wore beneath her clothes. Now he was here, and she was safe in his arms. At that moment he felt he'd never let her go. Mac approached, an eyebrow raised as he saw the embrace. Clearing his throat, he hid the smile that tried to show as the two CSI's jumped apart.

"Good work, Lindsey," he complimented, and her cheeks coloured as she nodded, accepting the compliment.

"If you'd like to take the rest of the day off, it wouldn't be a problem." Mac offered, and Lindsey shook her head.

"It shook me up, but not that bad. I'll be fine." She glanced at Danny, who was watching her carefully.

"Go ahead Linds," he prompted, shrugging.

"We can take care of the rest of this." He looked around the room at the suspects and the bag that held the flash device.

"No, I'm fine," Lindsey stated firmly, and Mac nodded.

"It's your decision," he replied, and turned to walk away.

Lindsey stood staring after him, feeling Danny's eyes on her. She looked at him, wondering what he was thinking. She didn't have to wonder long.

"Come on, Montana. I can take you home, you can relax for the day, and come in tomorrow." His blue eyes still held concern for her in their depths.

Suddenly Lindsey felt weary. The effects of the adreneline coursing through her system left her weak and sleepy. Taking the rest of the day off to do what she wanted was tempting, and she wanted to, but she still had a job to do. Smiling, she shook her head.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm fine." She gazed at Danny, who was still regarding her skeptically.

Moving closer, Lindsey placed a hand on his arm.

"Really," she assured, "I'm okay." Danny held her gaze a moment and then shrugged.

"Your choice," he said and walked away, leaving Lindsey staring into the space he'd been just a second before.

The sudden desire to be wrapped again in Danny's arms hit her so hard, she physically flinched, and she gasped at the sensation. She wondered if her refusal to go home had upset Danny, and she frowned, wondering why he'd be angry about that. She knew he'd been angry at her for volunteering; she could tell by the set of his jaw and the way his eyes turned a deeper shade. But he hadn't been angry when he'd held her in his arms. In fact, she was sure he'd held her closer than necessary for a co-worker. She grinned when she remembered the spontaneous dance they'd shared in the lab several weeks before. That night, he'd not only held her, but had kissed her, leaving her feeling strangely dizzy. Now what? Obviously, he thought more of her than just friends; hell, he'd kissed her then, and kissed her just a minute ago. Turning, she studyed him as he bagged evidence. She felt helpless and confused, unsure what to do next.

Get ahold of yourself, Montana! She scolded, taking a deep breath and approaching Danny and Flack.

"What do I need to do," she asked, unsure where in the processing they were. Danny glanced up as he bagged the gun that had been pointed at her earlier by one of the African men now in custody.

"Go home," he stated brusquely, causing Flack to shoot him a questioning glance.

His words, spoken in impatience, knifed through her; she'd done nothing to make him angry, and wondered why his mood had changed. She could see Mac watching them out of the corner of her eye. Turning, she met her boss's gaze. He nodded subtley, and Lindsey dropped her eyes, resigned to the fact that everyone shared the same opinion: go home.

"If you don't need me..." she trailed off, noticing theway Danny was pointedly ignoring her.

Flack was still watching Danny, who bagged and tagged evidence almost angrily.

"You're always needed, Monroe," Flack said, giving her a reassuring wink.

Watching Danny a second longer, Lindsey finally turned and walked quickly out of the room. She walked fast because she didn't want anyone to see how Danny's sudden change of mood had affected her.

Danny. With all the sweet things he'd done for her, Lindsey was quickly falling for him. His typical New York accent always made her smile, especially when he exaggerated it. He was always kidding her about being from "the country" and she'd become accustomed to his calling her Montana more than he called her by her given name.

Hearing footsteps behind her, Lindsey turned, seeing Danny walking after her, head down, and his hands shoved in his pockets.

"Danny?" she questioned, and he looked up, a lock of hair across his eye as usual.

"Yeah, I.." he trailed off, feeling like an idiot.

"I wondered if you still wanted a ride home," he said, and gave her a half-smile.
Lindsey smiled back, glad to see his friendly face once again.

"That would be nice; I don't really feel like taking a cab."
"Then it's settled," Danny said, holding his hand out to her.
"I'll take you home, and come back after work and take you back to your car. That way, you can rest."

Lindsey shyly took his hand, and they began walking down the sidewalk together. Again, Lindsey felt the unmistakable feeling of being watched, and she looked up to see Danny staring down at her. Grinning, he let loose of her hand and slung an arm around her shoulders.

"Promise me something, Montana," he said, and she looked up curiously.

"Don't scare me like that again, okay?" he finished, and hugged her against his side.

"I sorta like having you around."