AN: Don't own 'em, just love 'em.

The following morning Nick and Greg were settled on the couch watching Carter play with his toys on the living room floor. Marie had left as soon as breakfast was over and the two men were enjoying the quiet.

"Why don't you go and get some sleep, G. I can watch Carter for awhile. I'll get some sleep after you wake up." Nick pulled Greg closer and wrapped an arm around him. "You look beat."

Greg shook his head. "You go crawl in bed, Nick. I'm okay. If I get too sleepy, I'll turn the television on, put him in his playpen, and crash here on the couch."

Nick sighed, but he didn't move, except to rest his chin on top of Greg's head. "I almost forgot with all the moving and drama yesterday, Mama sent Carter a Halloween costume. I think my dad must have picked it out though." He chuckled. "Carter's gonna look really cute in those chaps and cowboy hat."

"A Halloween costume? He's only sixteen months old! There's no way I'm sending him up to a stranger's door asking for candy. That's just asking for trouble." Greg seemed overly dramatic and Nick realized it was probably due to his degree of exhaustion.

"So we take him to Grissom's and Catherine's. I bet most of the lab techs will be expecting trick or treaters, too. I'll ask Judy to pull up their home addresses for us."

Greg relaxed slightly. "That's okay, I guess. Are you going to dress up, too?"

"Uh uh, G. I've already told you I'm not going to dig out my old policeman's uniform. So just stop right there."

The lab tech sniggered. "I thought it might be worth a shot."

Nick just shook his head and ran his hand up and down Greg's arm. "Is he really sixteen months old? It seems that it was just yesterday when I first met him. He was nine months old then, wasn't he?"

Greg nodded. "Yeah, time flies when you have kids. They seem to grow up so fast."

Suddenly Nick tensed. "Shit, I missed it," he said sitting up a little straighter.

"Huh?" Greg responded, as he slid away from the warm spot against Nick's body.

Nick turned to look at Greg more fully. "I missed our six month anniversary. We would have been dating six months back on the seventeenth of September. I can't believe I missed it."

"You didn't," Greg smiled in return, as he tried to resettle against Nick's chest.

Now it was Nick's turn to question. "Huh? Of course I missed it. I only just remembered it, G."

Greg shook his head. "Naw, we went out to eat at that new Italian restaurant and went to see the new Adam Sandler movie, remember?"

"But…," Nick began.

"You even bought me that big movie theater box of Milk Duds. You hit the trinity of date requirements, Stokes. Don't let it bother you." Greg yawned and closed his eyes, as Nick struggled to accept the man's thought processes.

"I didn't bring you flowers, though, did I?" he asked, a hint of humor in his tone.

Greg snorted. "I'm not a cut flowers kind of guy. If you find the need to go organic next time, try coffee beans. Besides, the really big six month anniversary is still coming up."

"Oh yeah, what's that, G?" Nick asked playfully.

"Next weekend is the six month anniversary of our first cookout together," Greg responded as he rested a hand on Nick's chest.

"A cookout?" Nick answered with a question in his voice. Greg didn't say anything. He wondered how long it would take for Nick to realize what that meant. It took a few minutes, but he could tell the moment that Nick remembered by the way his body relaxed and melted even closer into his own.

"The cookout was the day after….," he paused and kissed the top of Greg's head.

"Yeah," Greg grinned. "That's the really big anniversary. Do you want me to plan something, or do you want to handle this one?"

Nick smiled and hugged Greg a little tighter. "I think I can handle it. Maybe I can talk Grissom into giving us both the night off."

Greg began to chuckle out loud. "What?" Nick asked.

"We both already have the night off, Stokes. But really, you can plan the rest of it, I promise."

Nick growled and nipped at Greg's ear playfully, causing the young man to yelp and wiggle. Carter turned to look at the two men wrestling on the couch and smiled, pulling himself to his feet and toddling over to join the fun. He giggled out loud as his father reached down and lifted him onto Nick's lap and both men started to tickle his tummy.

Nick spent the next few days trying to plan for the special event. He even brainstormed with his sister, although she wasn't the most helpful of people. She told him the best advice she could give was for Nick to listen to his heart, then he'd know what to plan for the evening. He held an internal debate all the way to a crime scene in Pahrump, he'd even let Sara drive so that he wouldn't have to think about the traffic.

He'd thought about asking Sara's opinion, but with an inward grin he acknowledged that she was probably the least romantic person on the graveyard shift. He'd have more luck with Catherine, or even Grissom, than Sara. The only thing holding him back from discussing anything with Catherine was the fear that it would get back to Greg. The young man had already teased him about being unable to plan a romantic evening; he certainly didn't want to prove him right.

Nick had listened to Beth and had tried to plan something he knew that Greg would love. He'd debated about making reservations at one of their favorite restaurants, as opposed to going with something new and flashy, or maybe one of Vegas' tried and true oldies. He tossed out the idea of a movie, deciding that we wouldn't repeat Greg's anniversary of a month ago. He'd even scoured some of the papers printed especially for the tourists that contained all the current events happening in the Las Vegas area. But everything he came up with just didn't seem right, not for the upcoming weekend.

He slumped down a little in the seat of the SUV, glad that Sara had allowed him the time to stew over his dilemma. He was getting a little frustrated when his co-worker decided to break the silence. "There are some really nice houses out here. I've been thinking about buying, ya know. From everything I've heard it's a real buyer's market right now." She glanced over to Nick. "What do you think?"

Nick shrugged his shoulders. "I prefer owning a house to an apartment, but you've got to be willing to put a little sweat equity into your own place. There will always be something that needs done." He grinned at Sara. "Can't call your landlord and complain."

Sara returned the grin. "Yeah, but I know someone who could help me out if I needed it." She drove for a bit longer before she continued with the conversation. "How do you like your neighborhood? Is that area pretty good?"

"Well, I haven't been called to any crime scenes close to the house, so I guess I'd consider it good."

Nick looked out the window at the passing houses that had sparked Sara's train of thought. "Exactly how serious are you, Sara?" he asked.

"Well, I haven't boxed anything up yet, but I've talked to my banker and a couple of realtors. I had to cancel an appointment with one earlier this week when I had to pull a double." She glanced over at Nick. "Do you have a house in mind?"

Nick smiled and gave a little nod. "Yeah, I might have just the house for you. It's been updated recently and I have it on good authority that the seller might be motivated to sell."

Sara gave him a huge smile. "Really? I wonder when I could get a look at it?"

"You've already seen my place, Sara, but if you want to look at it again I could be manage to be there whenever you'd like to stop by."

"Nick?" she asked as she pulled the vehicle to a stop outside of a house lit in splashes of red and blue light from couple of police cars. "What's going on?"

He shrugged. "I think I've just decided what's in my heart, Sara. I can't say more than that until after the weekend." His brown eyes bore into hers. "This conversation stays between us, just us. No Catherine. No Grissom. No Warrick. And definitely no Greg."

Sara nodded. "I'll keep quiet. Don't worry." She opened her car door and stepped out, walking to the back of the vehicle to retrieve her kit. Nick also reached in and grabbed his kit that was sitting beside hers. As she shut the back door, Sara turned to Nick and grinned. "I can wait until next week to look at the house. I'll give you time to do what you have to do this weekend first."

Nick smiled in agreement and tilted his head toward the illuminated house. "Let's get this over with. I'd like to finish on time tonight. I've got some investigating of my own to do tomorrow."

Sara raised her hand and gestured toward the sidewalk. "After you."

When Greg had offered to drive, Nick had shook his head. "Nope, I made the plans, so I get to drive."

The young blonde lab tech had merely shrugged and smiled. He made a big deal of turning around and sashaying his hips in the process. "Do I look alright, or should I go change? I don't really know what I'm dressed for. Want to give me a clue?"

Nick leaned forward capturing the inviting lips before him. "You look perfect, G. Don't change a thing."

"You both look pretty good." Nick and Greg turned around and smiled at Marie, who was entering the living room from the kitchen with Carter trailing along beside her.

"Thanks, Marie." Nick bent down and picked up the toddler. "How are you doing, Carter? Did you have fun with your daddy at the park this morning?"

Carter smiled and patted his hands together. "...wing, …wing, …wing," he chattered in a sing-song voice.

Nick grinned. "So you liked the swings. That's good information to remember, Carter. Would you like me to take you back there tomorrow?"

The child squealed and lunged forward to throw his arms around Nick's neck showing his eagerness to go back to the playground at the park.

"It's a date, buddy, but right now it's your daddy's turn." He passed the child back to Marie who settled him on her hip.

The men said their good-byes and walked out to Nick's truck.

"So, still not going to give me a clue?"

"Nope, just sit back and enjoy the ride, Sanders," he said with a grin.

Greg relaxed into the seat and watched the scenery as Nick drove around through the city. "I was surprised you wanted to do this so early. I expected we'd be going out for supper, not a late lunch," he finally said, getting restless and unsure of where Nick could be heading. The Texan had passed the streets that would have taken them toward the strip and the other more commercial areas of the city.

Nick looked over and smiled. "We're almost there, G. Relax."

Greg nodded and looked back out the side window at the suburban setting. He sat up straighter when Nick pulled into a parking lot outside of a café with a dark green awning. He had never heard of this restaurant before, but wasn't going to question his lover on the choice. Greg was just pleased that Nick had taken the time to find some out of the way café for their date.

The two men relaxed over spinach salads and warm rolls, while they waited for their main course. They were sitting by the window and Greg glanced out at the people walking down the street. Many of the people were young and some were pushing strollers. "Nice area," he said to Nick. "How did you find this place?"

The dark-haired man smiled. "Brass. He mentioned that this area has the lowest crime rate in the city, so I thought it would probably be nice."

Greg nodded. "I like that the shops around here seem to be the mom-and-pop types. I don't think I saw a chain restaurant or store for at least a dozen blocks. That's hard to do in this city."

Nick grinned. "How about we take a walk around the area before we leave?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Yeah, a walk sounds nice," Greg responded as the waitress brought their main course.

Walking around the neighborhood was relaxing. The two men enjoyed the full grown trees and the older houses that were in direct contrast to all the new housing developments that were sprouting up around the city in abundance. Nick pointed over towards a small park and the two men crossed the street to walk towards the playground area.

"Carter would love this," Greg said softly. "It's too bad it's so far away from the apartment."

"Yeah," Nick agreed. "It's too far to drive from your apartment, and my house. But…," he paused pulling Greg forward into his arms and wrapping his arms around his waist, "if we moved in together, maybe to somewhere in this neighborhood, it would be within walking distance."

Greg's eyes widened and his jaw dropped open. "Are you asking me to….? You really want to….?"

Nick chuckled at the normally verbose man who was having trouble forming a complete sentence. "Yeah. I would like you and Carter and I to all be together. All the time, day and night. Would you consider that possibility?"

"Yes."

"Yes, you'll consider it, or yes, let's start packing our belongings?" Nick asked, his eyes shining.

"Yes, I want us to all be together," Greg whispered, rubbing his hands up and down Nick's upper arms that were still holding him close.

"Good," Nick responded, leaning forward to place a chaste kiss on Greg's lips, cognizant of the fact that they were standing in a park in full view of several children and their parents. "We have an appointment with a real estate agent in twenty minutes. She deals with this area primarily and she's got some houses already lined up for us to view."

Greg shook his head in bewilderment. "How did you….?"

"I just followed my heart, G. It told me that as long as I had you beside me it didn't matter what else happened in my life. I didn't want it to be my house or your apartment. I wanted it to be our house and our yard and our memories together. I want to be Carter's second daddy and your lover for the rest of my life."

"Wow," Greg said quietly when Nick paused. "I want that too."

Nick nodded. "I also thought that if we could find a place big enough that I'd like to ask Marie to move in with us. She's at your place almost twenty hours a day as it is. She's family."

"I love you," Greg said as he leaned in and gave Nick a much more substantial kiss, not caring for a second that they were in a public park, possibly in front of their future neighbors. "And this is officially the best anniversary ever."

Epilogue:

Nick sat on the edge of the deck and looked out over their new backyard. It was much larger than his old yard and the hours that they had put into its transformation had really paid off. Already the space had provided rich memories that warmed his heart. He ran his hand over the smooth surface of the wood that comprised the new deck and remembered watching Greg swing a hammer, nails sticking from his mouth, as he concentrated on keeping the nails straight as he placed the floor boards. Nick glanced over to the back planting bed and remembered Marie, down on her hands and knees, planting ornamental grasses, and with a chuckle remembered Carter following right behind her pulling each plant back up as soon as her attention shifted.

But his favorite memory was when all four of them had placed their handprints in the wet cement he had poured to secure the wooden posts that strengthened the framework of Carter's new wooden play equipment. Greg had insisted that the cement be covered with sod after it had cured so that Carter wouldn't be hurt if he fell, but they all knew it was there. They had put their mark on this property, making it theirs in more than just signatures on a piece of paper.

Nick heard his son laugh and he glanced over to where Grissom was tossing a soft ball to the youngster. The ball was one of many gifts Carter had received at this party celebrating his second birthday. Nick was glad he had held out for the larger property when Greg was worried about the taxes. They were going to need every last square inch of space if his co-workers continued to be so bountiful in their presents.

He continued to look around the yard and saw his sister and Warrick standing beside the table that held the decimated remains of the birthday cake. Warrick was spreading icing on Beth's lips and kissing it off, as she looked around to see if anyone was watching, resting a hand on the slight bump of her abdomen. Nick smiled at the sight. That little bump was the reason Warrick had drug his sister to a wedding chapel just off the strip, with only himself and Greg in attendance. The green-eyed man told Beth they had to be married before telling her parents that she was pregnant. Nick had the feeling that Warrick was a little frightened of the judge, even if he wouldn't admit it. The funniest thing had been the look on Greg's face when Beth tossed him the bouquet after the ceremony. The lab tech's eyes had been enormous and Nick had kissed him thoroughly until they had fluttered shut in surrender.

"Hey." The object of Nick's musings walked up and settled down beside him, resting a hand on the older man's thigh.

"Hey yourself. I saw you talking to Jackie. How's she doing? Is retirement everything she thought it would be?" Nick stretched an arm out to wrap it around Greg, pulling him closer.

Greg sighed. "Things are a little crazy at her place right now. I think she'd rather be back in the lab." He began to trace little swirls with his pointer finger on the denim under his hand.

"What's wrong?" Nick searched the yard with his eyes to find Jackie sitting with Catherine, who was patting her on the back.

"Her youngest daughter just announced she's pregnant. Her youngest, unmarried daughter, Keeley."

Nick winced, suddenly glad that Carter was male and would never come home announcing his own pregnancy, married or not. "Have they decided what they're going to do?" he asked, watching as Catherine passed Jackie a tissue.

"Keeley's decided that she is putting the child up for adoption when it's born. Jackie is torn between being relieved and hating the fact that she'll never get to know her grandchild." Greg rested his head against Nick's shoulder and sighed. "Keeley was accepted to graduate school out east and was able to postpone it for one semester, but she doesn't want to give up her future because of a one night stand."

"Christ," Nick muttered. "Poor Jackie."

The two men sat quietly, watching their guests mingle, their laughter floating across the yard, in juxtaposition to the two women sitting off to the side.

Nick drew a deep breath and gave a small grunt. "I just remembered something, Greg." When the blonde raised his head and turned to look at the brown-eyed man he saw Nick shaking his head in disappointment.

"What?" Greg couldn't think of anything he'd done, or forgotten that would have put that look on his lover's face.

"You don't have any girls parts, G," Nick said matter-of-factly.

Greg sat up straight and turned his body more fully towards Nick. "Of course I don't, we covered that a long time ago, Stokes. What's your point?"

Nick gave the blonde in front of him a grin. "Do you think it would make Jackie feel better if she knew the couple who adopted her grandbaby?" His voice softened as he spoke, watching Greg's face for a clue to his reaction to Nick's words. "When is Keeley due?" he asked quietly.

"The week before Christmas," Greg whispered, his eyes wide and luminous, beginning to follow Nick's train of thought. "Yeah?"

Nick nodded with a smile, "I was thinking of getting Carter a puppy for Christmas, but maybe a little brother or sister would work instead." His eyes twinkled merrily.

"I love you, you big goof," the young man said, leaning forward to press his lips to Nick's. As he broke off the kiss he reached over and grasped the Texan's hand and gave it a tug. "Let's go talk to Jackie."

Nick nodded and the two men rose, wrapping their arms around each other as they stepped off of the deck and headed across their yard. His life, Nick admitted to himself, was pretty near damn perfect. Sometimes, he decided, it was worth taking a chance and going for broke.

AN: Hope you enjoyed it!