Stay With Me

Summary: Grissom and Sara have breakfast together that leads them to confess their feelings and to a tassel that could change both their lives forever. Fluff, fluff, and more fluff.

Chapter 1: The Best of Me

Gil Grissom sat behind his desk going over a case file he and Sara had been working on. It was a particularly hard one for them.

A man found dead with his wife standing over him covered in his blood and a eight year old girl named Kim locked in the attic of the house, she was nearly dead from dehydration and malnutrition. As soon as he'd seen the case he'd known he couldn't send Sara with it. But he didn't have a chose. Greg and Warick were on a case in a remote, unreachable, no cell-phone service area, Catherine was on vacation in Miami, and Nick was at a seminar in New York. So unwillingly he had given Sara the case. The only thing that made him feel slightly at ease was that he'd be there to help her.

He heard the sound of heels on tile and looked up, almost expecting to see Catherine Willows walk through the door. But instead Sara studded into and sat down in a chair across from him. Grissom closed the file, laid it on the edge of his desk, took off his glasses, and got ready to listen to her.

"Let's have breakfast." Was all she said before getting up and going toward the door.

"Ok," Grissom said grabbing his coat and walking out of his office door. After closing and locking his office he went down to the locker room to find Sara Sidle retrieving her jacket and purse.

"Where do you want to go?" Grissom asked looking over at her as they drove along down the strip.

"Surprise me…I kind of like surprises." She commented smiling at him.

"Not a problem." Grissom said reassured by her smile. He drove toward his townhouse and looked at Sara out of the corner of his eye. She had her head leaned against the window and was staring blankly at the road ahead. It wasn't until he pulled into his garage that Sara realized where they had been headed.

"What are we doing at your townhouse?" She asked unsure of Grissom's intentions.

"I'm going to make you breakfast then was can talk about the case…Is that ok." Now Grissom was a bit unsure of if she would go for the offer.

"That sounds great." Sara said opening the door and climbing out. Grissom fallowed and opened the door for her. Once inside Grissom realized it had been a while since they had been in such close quarters together. He took her coat and hung it in the hall closet then escorted her to the living room.

"There's the remote if you want to watch TV, there's books on the shelves that I think you would like if you want to read, and there's a CD player over in the entertainment center if music is what you'd like. Make yourself at home Sara." She nodded but made no move to do anything. Grissom entered the tiny kitchen and dug around in the refrigerator for something to fix.

"What am I going to fix her?" He wondered out loud as he stared at the contents of the fridge.

"Eggs and toast are fine." Sara's voice startled him and he rose up hitting his head on an open cabinet door above the fridge. Grissom could have sworn he hadn't opened any cabinets bur didn't think too much about it when he looked over at Sara. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she kept her hands fisted at her sides. Grissom's heart began to bleed as he looked on at the sight of such a beautiful woman standing in his kitchen crying.

"I'm sorry…I'm usually able to…hold it all…in…bottle it up and hide it away." Sara said as Grissom approached her. He liked his dry lips and put his hand on her face. She didn't need his comfort. All she needed was a fresh start in a new place far away from the damaging effects of the world.

"Sometimes I wish I was a butterfly." Her words made him smile as he caressed her cheek. She closed her eyes and continued in a much lower and huskier voice. "Butterflies are so beautiful and free and if you catch them you can hang them on your wall and keep them forever. They're not like humans they don't just disappear and never come back there's always another one there to take its place." Sara's words were hauntingly true.

She opened her eyes and Grissom saw the pain and anguish in them. He saw all the years of hurt, all the people who had let her down, Grissom saw himself reflecting in her beautiful down eyes. A huge lump formed in his throat as he stood there still caressing Sara's soft cheek.

"I'm so sorry Sara…for everything…I've been a fool…A cold, blind fool." Grissom said wrapping his arms around her and hugging her close.

"You don't have to be sorry for anything Griss. I ruined us with my actions. I understand that and except it." Sara's tear stained cheeks turned a rosy red.

"No, Sara. The reason we never took a chance is because I'm a coward and not man enough to reach out and grab what I want." Grissom cradled her close to his heart. She'd gone and in two minutes broken down every barrier that he'd built up so high around his heart.

"I think we can agree to disagree on that one for a while." Sara unwrapped herself from his arms and stepped back. "I miss what we had Griss. The friendship, the sense of closeness, I want all that back." Grissom nodded and looked away out the window. He had to say something to keep her from thinking he only wanted her as a friend.

"What if I told you I didn't want to be just your friend?" Sara looked at him shock evident in her eyes.

"What else could you want to be?" She asked knowing she was pressing the issue but not really caring.

"I don't know, just something more than your friend." Grissom reached for her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing her palm softly. Sara felt a shiver run down her body as he looked up at her. "Would you like to help me fix breakfast Sara?" She nodded but neither made any move to start it. Finally giving into impulse Sara leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to Grissom's lips. The first taste was a trail but the second was an explosion of feelings and long over due confessions.

The delicate slide of Grissom's lips on Sara's made her heart beat double time as they stood in the kitchen exchanging their feelings for each other. Grissom's tongue darted out and ran alone Sara's bottom lip asking silently for entrance. Sara's mouth opened to him and he plunged his tongue deep into her mouth, making her groan at the sweetness of the sensation. Grissom's hands seemed to move with the will power of a controlled man. They bit at her flesh as they moved along her back and down to her read end. Grissom squeezed her butt gently causing her to gasp in surprise. He drank in the sound as he continued to kiss her. When only the need for air separated them did they realize what they were doing meant.

"Grissom, I…I…" Sara couldn't form one sentence and all coherent…anything had gone out the window with the mind blowing kiss.

"I know Sara." He said still holding her waist as they stood in his kitchen, breakfast completely forgotten. Grissom smiled down at her and watched as slowly she smiled back. Without warning Sara let out a huge yawn and almost died of embarrassment.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry Grissom…I'm just so emotionally drained right now and…" Sara trailed off looking away her cheeks rosy red again.

"Come on, let's lay down and sleep before we start breakfast, we could both use it." He motioned toward the hallway just off the kitchen. They enter his room and after he handed her an oversized shirt of his to change into and showed her were the bathroom was, stripped down to his boxer briefs and sat on the edge of the bed. Sara emerged wearing his shirt and a smile that almost caused him to melt as he sat there watching her.

"Ready?" He asked turning down the blankets and sheets. Sara knew the question meant more than what it sounded as she responded the only way she could.

"I've been waiting on you for a long time, Dr. Grissom." She smiled as they climbed in the bed and he wrapped her tightly in his arms.