Disclaimer: Don't own the main characters

Title: Winding road to Home

Summary: After getting rejected by the woman he loves and feeling lost, Grissom does something he wouldn't normally do and it could change his life forever. Will GSR end up walking down the winding road together? Or is it really the end? Set before the beginning of season 6.

AN: This story does have the potential on having sequels, depending on the interest level so keep that in mind.

AN #2: Sorry if Grissom is a little out of character but in order to make this work he had to be a little off so go easy on me.

Title: Winding road to home
Rating: T
Time-line: End of Season 5 but before the beginning of season 6
Spoilers: Subtle hints from Play with fire, Butterflied, Bloodlines, Grave danger
Warnings: Implied adult situations, light language
Main Parings: GSR, Sara/OC
Minor Parings: CatNip, Greg/OC, Warrick/OC

Winding Road to home

Chapter 1: Too Late?

Sara looks at Grissom like he just lost his mind and in shock on what he just said then she looked away from his blue eyes a few seconds later. He still looks at her as his heart was pounding on what he just confessed and was waiting for Sara to respond. She took a few more moments to herself, looked back into his blue eyes and ever so softly but loud enough for him to hear, she asked. "You love me?" He nods, grabs her hand and now both hearts start pounding a little faster at the contact and the warmth from his hand flows through her.

Grissom swallows and replied. "I do Sara, I really do."

A tear leaked out of the corner of her eye but before it traveled down her cheek she wiped it off with her free hand then shook her head, pulled her hand out of his and said. "You tell me this now!? Where was this confession 8 month's ago?" She shook her head again, walked past him and puts her hands on the railing of the balcony they were standing on. She looked out in the Vegas lights for a few minutes then looked back at him, which he had turned to look at her, and she continued. "Hell even five years ago, what do you expect me to do? Jump in your arms and confess my love to you?"

He gets a little smirk on his face and replied. "Well jumping is optional."

In other circumstances Sara would have chuckled at that or maybe even smiled but she just shook her head with a frown. Grissom realized she didn't find that funny so he lost the smile and took a step closer to her but she puts her right hand up to stop him and he stopped immediately. She puts her hand down and replied. "This is not a joke Grissom, I am getting married tomorrow and you tell me now, why?"

This time when Grissom walked up to her she let him, he looks into her brown eyes and speaks from the heart. "Honestly, I wasn't sure if you would actually go through with it." Sara opens her mouth to speak but he puts his finger to her lips to stop her and continues. "I see the way you look at him and I know you love him I am not doubting that but deep down I know it's not as much as you love me and you can't deny it, can you?"

He moves his finger from her lips and wipes a tear off her cheek then she nods her head and replied. "You're right I can't deny that I have loved you from the moment I met you and it only has gotten stronger through the years despite the hurt and the rejection I have gotten from you." He was going to open his mouth to speak but this time she puts her finger to his lips and continued. "And I really want to believe you are telling me the truth but I feel this is one of your twisted games you play, where you give me hope then when I get too close to you, you turn around and take all that hope away and I am left with nothing. I can't and won't play this game with you anymore."

He takes her hands, looks into her eyes again and says urgently. "Sara this is not a game and it never has been. I didn't mean to do those things to you and I am so sorry I hurt you in the past that was never my intention, I was keeping you away for both of our sakes but more so mine because I know what could happen to me if you decide you didn't want me anymore but I am done thinking 'what could happen' I want to live in the present. I want to try an us and I am hoping you do too. If this is my last chance, I am fighting for you. I do love you Sara, you have to know that was never a lie."

He sees another tear go down her left cheek, he takes his hand out of hers and reaches for it but doesn't get there because she takes his hand to stop his movements then she squeezed both of his hands, looks into his eyes again and spoke. "I believe on what your feeling and that your sorry for hurting me." She stops to take a breath, Grissom nods and she continues. "I want you to know that I had never cared that your 15 years old than me or had gray hair or any of the other imperfections you think that would have kept me away from you, I would have loved you forever and I know our love would have carried us till the end of time, I don't doubt that and no one could convince me otherwise."

Grissom's heart was pounding faster and he was mentally trying to calm himself but he did have enough calmness to ask. "What are you saying Sara?"

She released his hands, wiped the tears that was going down both her cheeks, looks back into his eyes for the umpteenth time, cleared her throat and continued. "And if you would have told me months ago on how you felt then I wouldn't have hesitated a second and tomorrow could have been our wedding but I can't do this now." She watched him look away then she walks past him to head back inside the building. She was wiping more tears away as she got to the door, knowing that was the hardest thing she ever said to him.

Grissom turns around and said. "Sara we can't have this end before we even begin."

Sara turns back to look at him and speaks. "I would have waited forever for you if you would have given me something real to hang on to but I am sorry, you are too late."

Those words hit Grissom like a ton of bricks and what she said three yeas ago came back to him. 'By the time you figure it out, it really could be too late.' He looks away again and walks slowly up to the railing then puts his hands on them to keep himself standing. Sara looks at his back for a second, wipes the remaining tears away and walks back inside the ball room were the party was going on.

It was a big classy room with a chandelier hanging up in the middle, a big bar that just about went from the length of one side of the room to the other with three bartenders dressed in their tuxedos, servers were also wearing tuxedos while passing out various drinks from their trays, multiple round tables that could fit up to 6 people so they could eat, talk or just rest from dancing, an area in the middle of the room to go dancing and the balcony behind her for some privacy.

She was going to look back but shook her head. She knew she couldn't look back anymore it was about going forward, it was time to move on, no matter how impossible that seemed at this moment.

AN: What happens next? Is that really the end? Find out what happens next. Please review.