LOS ANGELES -- "CSI: Miami" is never going to be mistaken for "Grey's Anatomy," either onscreen, where plot drives the show more than character-based drama, or off, where despite its status as a top-10 hit it doesn't generate quite the buzz of some of its counterparts.

Not that star Eva LaRue isn't trying.

"It's amazing," says LaRue, who joined the cast of the CBS series this season. "Because we barely get any press, I can actually date George Clooney, and no one even knows. ... The guys fight over clothes in the wardrobe department -- who's going to wear what color. But the paparazzi just don't come down this way that often."

We should note here that while LaRue imparts this information with a completely straight face, she is, in fact, joking. The show, however, is dipping its toe into the character-driven waters Monday with a love-triangle subplot involving LaRue's character, Natalia Boa Vista, and colleagues Eric Delko (Adam Rodriguez) and Ryan Wolfe (Jonathan Togo).

Boa Vista and Delko have been carrying on a discreet thing for a while now, but after they "back off," as Delko puts it, Wolfe asks her out. As is the case with countless other inter-office romances, everyone's uncomfortable.

"Adam's character and my character have always been a little bit at odds," Togo says during a break in filming the episode last month. "It's just that competitiveness that people have at work, and it's sort of spilled over into our personal lives."

So, if this is a "Grey's"-style scenario, which leg of the love triangle is he? "I think I'm the nerdy guy," Togo says. "I think I'm gonna lose. I get that feeling. But it's going to be interesting."

Fans of "CSI: Miami" needn't worry that the show is getting all touchy-feely; the team will, after all, still be solving a heinous crime while the romantic tension simmers underneath. But all three actors say they're having a ball playing the personal scenes.

"I think what people respond to over the long haul is the human condition, and sort of going through these people's lives with them," Rodriguez says. "They tune in every week because they want to not only solve the case, but also deal with the character's lives. So it's been great this season to have some [character-driven] stuff."

The love triangle arises from a miscommunication, with Delko telling Wolfe that Boa Vista is "clear for landing." Word gets back to her, and suffice to say she isn't pleased.

"She's like [shocked expression on her face], Not only do you blow me off through your friend, but you pimp me out through your friend?" LaRue says. "It'll be interesting to see where this triangle goes, because I think for Natalia it was more that she was hurt by Adam's character, and sort of pleasantly surprised by Togo's character -- he was so charming and funny and sweet about asking her out."

Alas, unless a crime occurs during it, viewers probably won't actually get to see Natalia and Ryan on their night out. "We never actually show what happens outside work," Togo says. "If we did, I think that'd be hilarious. ... But I think there will just be a lot of talking."