I am so sorry that it took this long to update! But hopefully this will be worth it. The chapter is on the longer side, but I hope you enjoy. :)

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It was six in the morning, and Calleigh lay in her bed, unable to fall back asleep. She had to be at work in two hours, but she wished there was someway she didn’t have to go. She could not stop thinking about her kiss with Ryan. Sure, ever since Stetler had left the lab, employees had been much looser with the “no dating co-workers” policy. But Calleigh wasn’t even sure that she wanted to date Ryan, or anyone for that matter. The previous night, she had gotten the best kiss of her life. Now, however, she wasn’t certain about anything. The whole matter made Calleigh upset because a) she always liked to be in control and she now felt lost and b) because Ryan was making her act un-Calleigh like. Calleigh felt like jelly around him. She was normally the one making other people feel like jelly. Calleigh was also extremely embarrassed to think about what she had said to him last night, and how she so easily spilled her secrets to him. Many things of those things she had tried to keep hidden in the past. He probably thought she acted like a child. She sat wondering how Ryan felt, and prayed that she would not run into him at work. Little did she know that Ryan was lying in his bed, thinking the exact same thing.

On his way to work, Ryan wondered what he should do if he saw Calleigh. Should he pretend like nothing had happened? Or talk to her about it? In the end, he decided just to wait and see what Calleigh did. As he parked his car, he took a deep breathe and tried to calm his nerves.

An hour into work, Ryan still hadn’t seen Calleigh. He was starting to relax a little when he suddenly saw her talking to Eric. He quickly turned away and walked in the other direction.

As the day went on, Calleigh was surprised that she had not talked to Ryan at all. She saw him a few times in passing, but he didn’t notice her. Calleigh was beginning to think that she would not have to speak to him at all, when Horatio announced that he wanted to talk with everyone in his office. Calleigh walked toward Horatio’s room, praying that she wouldn’t have to speak to Ryan.

Ryan started walking toward Horatio’s office as well. He wondered what would happen when he saw Calleigh. She might ignore him or pretend like nothing happened. When he got in Horatio’s office, he saw that everyone was there already, so he sat down quickly. Ryan didn’t hear a word of what Horatio was saying, because his mind was focused on Calleigh. He quickly glanced over at her. She was staring up at Horatio. Fifteen minutes later, after Ryan hadn’t listened to a word Horatio said, everyone began to get up and leave.

As Calleigh got up, she looked over at Ryan. He was looking right back at her. She wasn’t sure what she should do so she smiled at him, but realized she was blushing too. Calleigh became embarrassed and walked out of the office before Ryan. She started in the direction of the elevator. As she pressed the button, she realized someone was standing next to her. She looked over and saw that it was Ryan again. They got into the elevator, and Ryan broke the silence by finally saying, “Calleigh, we should talk.”

Calleigh breathed a sigh of relief. “Yeah, I agree.”

“So what happened yesterday,” Ryan began, taking a step towards Calleigh. At that moment, the elevator doors opened and Frank stepped in.

“Phew,” Frank said. “What a day.” He expected some sort of response from Calleigh or Ryan, but he felt them both glaring at him instead.

“So how are you two?” Frank asked. They said nothing, just nodded at him. Frank quickly pressed the button and got out of the elevator. “On second thought, I think I will just take the stairs. Nice chattin’ with you,” he said sarcastically, and got out.

Once Frank left, Calleigh smiled coyly at Ryan. He blushed slightly and asked, “Do you maybe want to go grab some coffee and just talk a little?”

“Sounds great,” she said, flashing her brilliantly lit smile at him.

When the two got inside the shop, they bought coffee quickly and sat down in a quiet corner near the back. “So Ryan,” she began.

“So… umm… do you have any thoughts on any certain matters?” Ryan asked.

Calleigh laughed. He was so adorable when he was nervous. She was starting to feel like she was in control of everything again, so she decided to test it. Calleigh slowly leant in to kiss Ryan.

“I thought we were supposed to be talking right now,” Ryan said, but finally gave in.

Calleigh broke away a minute later, leaving Ryan speechless. He finally said, “So is this what you want? To… uh… be together?”

Calleigh raised an eyebrow. “I honestly don’t know, Ryan. I like spending time with you. Why don’t we just see how things go?”

Ryan nodded. “Maybe we should slow down a little, though. Just a little.” He winked at her.

“So what do we tell people?” Calleigh asked.

“Do we have to tell them anything? It’s our business,” he replied.

“Yeah. ‘See how things go’ then, right?”

“You bet,” Ryan said. “So, now that we’ve got that talking out of the way… Well, we do have some time to kill…”

Calleigh laughed and leaned in for another kiss. This one was a small peck on the lips. “You’re going to have to wait for our first date for another real one.”

“So are you free right now?” Ryan asked, jokingly.

Calleigh chuckled. “Seriously, Ryan.”

“Well, I might have an idea for a special someone. How’s Friday night? I will pick you up at five.”

“Oooh, and where are we going?” Calleigh said, excitedly.

“It’s a surprise.”

“Ryan,” Calleigh moaned. “You have to give me some sort of clue. Like what should I wear, for example?”

“Anything you’re comfortable in,” Ryan said.

Calleigh snorted. “The only reason I’m letting you get away with this is because it’s our first date. Don’t get used to it.”

Friday night could not have come soon enough. Ryan had been anxiously awaiting the night, and it finally arrived. He was nervous and excited at the same time. He got out of his car and walked slowly up the steps to Calleigh’s apartment. After taking one final deep breath, he rang the doorbell.

Ryan heard some shuffling around behind the door. “One second,” Calleigh yelled.

A few minutes later, Ryan heard Calleigh open the door. “Come in!” She shouted from behind the door. Ryan put his hand on the doorknob and slowly pushed open the door.

“Uh, Cal?” Ryan cautiously asked once he got inside.

“You’re irritatingly on time,” Calleigh said from the other room. Calleigh then came out of her bedroom.

“You look… great,” Ryan said. Calleigh looked absolutely beautiful. She wore a casual, blue spaghetti strap dress and blank sandals. She left her hair curly, and it hung below her shoulders.

“So, can I know where we are going now?” Calleigh pleaded.

“Not yet.” This warranted another stifled moan from Calleigh.

“Ryan, come on.”

Ryan just shook his head. “Ready to go?” He held the door open for Calleigh.

“Fine, but I’m going to pout the whole way there.”

Calleigh was very eager, so the car ride seemed like it took an hour instead of fifteen minutes. After Ryan told her that she could not ask, “Are we there yet?” anymore, Calleigh became even more impatient.

Finally, Ryan pulled into a parking lot. He stopped the car and got out, then went around to the other side to open the door for Calleigh. She smiled and stepped out. She saw that they were at a beach, at a small restaurant. They walked in and were seated outdoors, in a private area where they could see the ocean. The sky was beginning to get dark, and it made the blue sea glow.

Calleigh closed her eyes and breathed in the scents of the beach. She listened to the waves crashing on the shore. She suddenly realized that she was still on a date, so she opened her eyes and looked back over at Ryan, who was watching her. She blushed.

“I… oh… sorry,” Calleigh stammered.

“No, it’s okay,” Ryan said calmly. “I’ve never seen anyone look like that before. You were so serene, so beautiful.”

Calleigh blushed even harder, and decided to change the topic to something that wouldn’t make the blood rush to her face. “This place is great, Ryan. Have you been here a lot before?”

“A few times,” Ryan said. “It’s nice, isn’t it?”

Calleigh nodded breathed in, and the scent of ocean filled her nose again. “It’s perfect. I love it.”

Ryan’s heart skipped a beat when she said ‘I love…’

Idiot, she wasn’t talking about you. It’s the first date. Do you expect her to get down on one knee or something? And you probably won’t hear that in the future, since she obviously likes this place more than she likes you. Shut up! Ryan told himself, silently. He glanced back over at Calleigh, who, thankfully, didn’t notice his talk with himself.

Two hours later, they were done with dinner.

“Do you want to maybe walk around on the beach a little?” Ryan asked.

Calleigh became excited. “Let’s do it.” Calleigh took off her sandals and held them in her hands. They started walking toward the ocean.

“So, do you have any siblings?” Calleigh asked.

“My brother, Max. He’s a goofball. But I love him,” Ryan replied.

Calleigh smiled. “That’s nice. I always wanted a sibling, but I never got one.”

They started walked along the ocean line, and the waves brushed up against Calleigh’s feet. Ryan noticed she was shivering a bit. He slowly took off his jacket and gave it to her.

“No, Ryan, that’s okay. I’m perfectly fine,” Calleigh said through clenched teeth.

“Yes-s-s-s, I can t-t-t-t-t-ellll,” Ryan said, mocking her. Calleigh reluctantly put his jacket on. It was warm inside, and had the slight smell of his cologne.

“Thank you,” she said. She stopped walking, and suddenly sat down on the sand. Ryan sat next to her. She loved how chivalrous Ryan was, but not overly gentleman-like. He would do things like pull her chair out for her, but he wouldn’t feed her or something like that which would embarrass her. She put her head on Ryan’s shoulder.

Ryan put one arm around her and picked up her hand with the other. He was surprised at how relaxed he was. Usually first dates were awkward, and embarrassing. But with Calleigh he felt like they had been dating for a long time. His heart soared every time she touched him, yet he wasn’t very nervous.

“This is nice,” Calleigh said, calmly.

“Yeah,” Ryan said. They pulled each other in for warmth. Calleigh looked at Ryan in his gorgeous green eyes, and put her hand on his face. He felt how cold it was, so he put his hand over it and breathed his warm breath on it. Calleigh leaned in and kissed him. Ryan kissed her back, passionately. He pulled away for a second, and looked at Calleigh. Was this all really happening?

Calleigh proved that it was by leaning in for another kiss.

A few minutes later, the two were up and walking again.

“So to the car?” Calleigh asked.

“Oh, no,” Ryan said mischievously. “Next, we have part two of the evening.”

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Oh my goodness, what will part two be:O Thanks for being so patient with me. I promise to hurry it up a little with the updates. Please review, it will make my day!