A/N: Grissom and Sara are spending a couple of days at Laguna Beach. The story takes place after the season 6 finale. It's very fluffy, but hey, I'm in the mood. I hope you'll indulge me and enjoy.

And as always thank you for reading and leaving a comment if you do. I appreciate all the feedback and encouragement.


A Vacation To Remember


Sara had forgotten how good she felt being in the water, how free and relaxed too. How empty of thoughts her mind was. It had been so long since she'd last indulged. The surf was just perfect, the gentle breeze coupled with the incoming tide making for perfect spilling waves. She wasn't as good on the bodyboard as she once was, but it was slowly coming back to her. And anyway, it didn't matter how she looked as long as she was having fun.

She'd catch a wave, riding it to the edge until she ran aground, tasting a little salt water in the process, and then run back out again and catch another one. She couldn't get enough. Few people were in the water at that time of day on a Tuesday, which suited her just fine. She hadn't had much growing up, but the ocean had been a constant in her life, a friend with moods often mirroring her own she could depend on. She'd missed it.

Every time a wave brought her back to shore, she'd look up at the expanse of beach ahead and locate Grissom sitting with his hat on in the folding camping chair he'd hauled all the way from Vegas. Turned out he didn't much like lying on a towel on the sand. Still, he was there with her and that was all that mattered. They'd had a leisurely morning and late breakfast, and had already decided on having an early dinner at the small beachfront restaurant opposite the B&B they were staying at. She was happy and carefree and, despite the fact that he was yet to test the water, she knew he was too.

"Gil!" she called excitedly, kicking up sand as she trotted over to him.

Smiling, Grissom lifted his eyes off the book he was reading.

She pushed her wet hair out of her face. "You should totally try it!"

He laughed. "I don't think so."

Carefully, she set the rented bodyboard down on the sand and then used her towel to dry her face and hair.

"Did you have fun?" he asked, watching her from behind his sunglasses.

"I did. The water's just…perfect."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"What are you so scared of?" she asked, rummaging in her open backpack for her sports drink bottle.

"Making a fool of myself?"

She uncapped the bottle. "You don't care about that," she replied, taking a swig before offering him some.

Laughing, he shook his head in reply. "What if I got hurt? What would I tell work then, huh? I'm not as nimble as you are."

Standing, she dropped the towel and drinks bottle on top of her bag and reached back for the pull cord to unzip the shortie wet suit she'd also rented for the day. "Nimble?" she queried wryly, as she contorted herself to pull the cord down.

"Yes," he said, his lips twitching with a happy smile. "Nimble. I was watching you out there, and you're nothing if not nimble. And lithe. You're a natural in the water."

Sara pursed her face thoughtfully. "I do miss the ocean, so this little…getaway is a real treat for me."

"Oh, for me too, believe me."

Crouching down, she hugged him from behind. "Thank you for making it possible."

"You're wet! And cold!" he exclaimed with a start.

Laughing, Sara pulled back.

His smile broadened. "But the pleasure is all mine." Turning on the chair, he touched his fingers to her face tenderly. "Being boss does have its perks."

Sara leaned over for a kiss, which he readily returned. Standing back up, she pulled the wet suit off one shoulder and then off the other, pulling her arms out and letting it rest at her mid-section while she picked the towel up and patted her chest dry. She could feel the gentle caress of his gaze on her skin.

"I'm just saying that you're missing out, that's all," she went on, tugging the wetsuit down to her ankles and stepping out of it.

"Missing out?" he repeated dreamily. He raised his eyes from her feet back to her swimsuited body then up to her face and beamed sweetly at her. "Oh, I don't think I'm missing out at all."

Laughing, she gave her head a shake of disbelief. Then she slipped her sunglasses and her ball cap on, lay the wet suit on top of the board and spread out her towel so she could sit down on it. Letting out a long, contented breath, she angled her face to the sky, closed her eyes and let the warm rays of the sun do their magic.

"I could teach you, you know," she said, looking over to him after a while.

Once again, Grissom looked up from his book.

"Bodyboarding's not that hard, not compared to surfing, and I promise you wouldn't get hurt."

"I'm happy here reading my book," he said, the corner of his mouth lifting in a half-smile as he raised Lee Child's latest instalment in her eye line. "I'm relaxing, and having a great time as it is. But thank you."

Knowing when she was beaten, Sara gave a nod. "Is it good?" she asked, nodding toward his book.

Grissom pursed his mouth. "A little formulaic, but I like it."

She laughed with disbelief. "I never took you as a Reacher fan."

"There you have it. I'm a man full of mystery."

She laughed. "Mystery, huh?"

He winked at her, and again she shook her head.

"It's a light, easy read," he added with a shrug. "My mind is clear of thoughts. Well, aside from the worry of whether you – and Reacher – might get hurt in your…respective endeavours."

Her laughter came easily. "I don't know about Reacher, but you can rest assured that I am perfectly safe."

His words gave her pause though, and she wondered what mystery he had planned for them on their second day. They could only stay at Laguna Beach for two full days – they'd drive back to Vegas overnight after the second day and catch up on sleep the following day before shift – and they'd agreed that each would pick activities for them to do on one of the days. She'd chosen the beach and bodyboarding and he…was steadfastly keeping his plans a secret.

Sara's gaze travelled from the book to his face, taking in the wraparound sunglasses and straw hat combination, down to his Tommy Bahama shirt and matching board shorts she'd bought him for the occasion. Stopping at his feet, she shook her head. "Why don't you…take your sneakers off?" she asked, badly suppressing her amusement. "Feel the sand between your toes."

Wincing, Grissom looked down at his feet and dug his right toe into the sand. "I don't much like sand between my toes."

Sara didn't let that put her off. "How about your shirt? I mean, you look the part, but…" she let her words trail meaningfully.

Grissom's lips twisted. "Alright, the shirt's coming off. But only if you put sunscreen on me."

Sara narrowed her eyes at him. "Deal, but only if you repay the favour afterwards."

"I positively look forward to it," Grissom said, his smile as wide as she'd ever seen it.

He put his book down and sitting forward took off his shirt but, instead of undoing the buttons, he pulled it off over his head, getting it caught on the straw hat. Laughing, Sara pushed to her feet and rummaged in her backpack for the sunscreen. Grissom stood and, after he'd got himself untangled and put his hat back on, she sprayed lotion onto his front she began massaging in, making sure she didn't miss any spots. When she finished, she looked up and met his gaze, shyly returning his tender smile before motioning for him to turn around. He stared at her for a moment longer, the smile staying on his lips, before he finally offered his back to her.

"I appreciate the sacrifice," she said, as gently she began rubbing lotion onto his shoulders.

"What sacrifice?" he asked, his voice a little hoarse as he turned his face toward her.

"You agreeing to come here to the beach with me." She kept her eyes on his back as she continued spreading the sunscreen. "I appreciate that this isn't your first choice of holiday destination."

Fully turning toward her, he caught her eyes, his expression earnest and sincere as he spoke. "Honey, there's no place else I'd rather be at this moment in time than here with you." A cheeky smile formed, tugging at his lips. "And your hands massaging my skin."

She made an unconvinced sound.

"It's true," he laughed. "Sara, honestly, this is great. I'm happy just to spend a little time with you like this. When's the last time we did that?"

Sara's expression softening with love, she held his gaze and stroked her hand to his bearded cheek. "Without Hank? Never."

"Exactly."

She pressed her lips to the side of his mouth. "You know I love you, right?"

His smile widening pleasurably, he brought his hands up to cup her face. "And I love you," he said, moving to kiss her lips tenderly. "Now turn around so I can do your back before you start to burn."

The smile lingering on her face, Sara did as bid. She took off her cap and gathering her hair twisted it in a makeshift bun before trapping it under the cap. Grissom gently lowered the straps of her one-piece swimsuit off her shoulders and sprayed a little sunscreen. Closing her eyes, Sara dipped her head and enjoyed the feel of his strong hands as he worked the lotion into her skin and the kinks from her shoulders and neck.

"I love being able to be like this with you," she said, turning her face toward him.

"Like what?"

She shrugged. "Just like a normal couple. You know, not having to look over our shoulders in case anyone's looking, or worry that we're breaking the rules."

Grissom's hands stilled. "Me too." Slowly, he pushed the straps back up onto her shoulders. "Voilà," he then said. "You want me to do your front too?"

A wide smile on her face, Sara turned around on the spot. "How can I refuse when you put it so eloquently?"

Grissom pursed his lips, feigning offence at her teasing, but happily obliged all the same. They'd been catching the sun in companionable silence for some time, he sitting in his chair reading his book and Sara lying prone on her towel, when she looked up from her magazine toward him. Despite the fact that his book was still open in front of him, the slump of his shoulders and slight slackness of his jaw told Sara he had dozed off.

Smiling, she pushed up to her feet and checked that his shoulders and chest weren't reddening too much. Satisfied that he was fine, she turned to look at the ocean, scanned her eyes over the idyllic landscape and smiled. The pull of the ocean once again too hard to resist, she retrieved the wet suit and was slipping it on when Grissom woke up.

"Sorry," he said, sitting up groggily, "I just shut my eyes for a minute."

"It's okay. I'm going to go back in if you don't mind."

"Go back where?" he asked. "To the B&B?"

"No. To the water. Catch a few more waves before the tide's too high and we have to make tracks. There won't be much beach left soon."

Grissom gave a nod. "The water can't be that warm if you've got to wear this thing," he remarked as she finished putting the suit on.

She shrugged. "Helps with the chafing too."

"Ah."

She was pulling at the cord to do up the back zipper when Grissom stood up. "Let me," he said, motioning for her to turn around.

Smiling, Sara stopped and offered him her back and he did the suit up for her. She thanked him with a smile, but shaking his head he tapped his lips. Her smile broadening, she dutifully kissed him on the lips and he closed his arms around her for a long embrace. Then she picked up the board and removed her sunglasses and cap before shaking her hair loose.

"I'll only be ten-fifteen minutes," she said.

His lips twitched, twisting left then right before he sat back down on his chair. "Hold on," he called, pulling at his laces when she began walking to the water. "I'll just…come to the edge and…dip my toes in the water. See what all the fuss is about."

Sara's face lit up, and she waited impatiently while he took his sneakers and socks off. Standing, he took a step on the sand and then another. "It's not as bad as I remembered," he said, and she laughed.

"How long has it been?" she asked as they walked down to the water's edge.

"What? Since I've been to the beach?"

She nodded. "And the shores of Lake Mead don't count."

He pulled a face as he thought about it. "You don't want to know."

Sara stepped into the water confidently, walking purposefully until she was knee-deep while Grissom was more cautious, but after a little encouragement they were both standing, waist deep in water. A bigger wave broke ahead of them and Grissom took a few steps back while Sara pushed forward assuredly before turning and lying down on the board when the next wave came. She rushed past him, over and over again. They were splashing, laughing and having fun. He still wouldn't go on the board, but at least she'd got him into the water, no mean feat in itself.

When the water began lapping at her towel, it was time to go. They got out and after Grissom helped Sara out of the wet suit, they hurriedly got dry. Grissom put his shirt and hat back on. While he began packing his book and chair away, Sara wrapped her towel around herself so she could change out of her wet swimsuit and into her clothes without being seen.

"Do you need a hand?" Grissom asked, laughing.

Her brow arching, Sara gave him a look.

He raised his hands by his side. "Hey, I just meant…I'd hold the towel for you."

"You know what?" she said, casting a quick look around the beach. As no one was looking, she dropped the towel to the sand and quickly lowered the straps over her shoulders and the one-piece suit down to her waist.

"I mean…this way works fine too," Grissom said, matter-of-factly. Reaching for her T-shirt inside her bag, he passed it to her. "Better in fact."

Laughing, she snatched the T-shirt out of his hand and quickly slipped it over her head.

"Oh, how I wish I'd known you where you were young," he said.

She frowned. "How do you mean…young?" she exclaimed, unsure whether she should get offended by his words.

He batted her comment aside. "I meant when you were twenty, at college maybe." A smile formed, tugging mischievously at his lips. "On spring break."

She giggled. "Believe me, you don't. And besides, I wasn't this carefree back then. Or happy," she added, meaningfully.

Giving her a soft smile, he reached for her shorts and, after lowering her swimsuit down her legs, she slipped into them.

"Commando," he said. "I like it."

"The B&B is only across the road. I don't think anyone will notice."

"I've noticed all right."

They shared a long smile before they leaned across for a soft kiss on the lips.

"Did you ever go on spring break?" she asked as she wrapped her swimsuit in the towel and put the towel in her bag.

"No, not really. Not my scene, is it? Not like it's come to mean anyway."

"I tell you what," she said, shouldering her backpack. "Why don't we call this little vacation our very own spring break?"

"Because it's June?"

"Still springtime, for a few more days anyway."

Grissom's brow creasing, he looked up to the sky.

"What are you thinking?" she asked, puzzled when still looking skyward he kept quiet.

"I was wondering if it was too late to change tomorrow's plans."

Sara followed his gaze, saw nothing except a few white clouds and a couple of gulls circling over cliffs beyond. "Change them to what?" she asked, her confusion intensifying.

Grissom met her gaze. "Delta Airlines. Flight 1109. Boston-Miami. March…" He frowned, "…94?"

The penny dropped. "93. It was March 93." She watched him with disbelief. "You remember?"

He gave a sheepish shrug. "I remember everything you say."

Sara gave him an indulgent smile. "Then, you will recall that I also said the experience was way overrated." Taking a step closer, she took his hand. "No. I think you should stick to your original plans. I'm having a much better time anyway."

Grissom lifted his free hand and stroked her face before their lips met for another kiss. "Then I will."