And So it Goes...part four
By: Manigault
Note: Thank you for reading this and again, thank you for all comments. After watching last nights episode some of this story has already been shot down regarding canon such as Catherine not inheriting anything if I heard that correctly. Anyway, for purposes of this story she lied to Nick. Lied. Also, for purposes of this story Grissom is gone six weeks and not four weeks as Grissom stated. Oh, and I guess the team knows where he went...on the show that is.
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Grissom picked up on the first ring and Sara could detect the wariness in his tone as he spoke.
"I went overboard, I know. I also know that you wanted to wait until I come home to speak face to face but I couldn't stand waiting, not knowing what I would find when I did come home."
"Grissom!" Sara had tried several times to cut into his rambling and was finally met with silence. She could imagine his anxiety and took no pleasure in making him suffer and wonder. It wasn't fun. "Grissom, thank you."
"I know that you like vegetation," he said softly. "I wasn't sure if you would like roses but I wanted to send them to you."
"It's the first time anyone has ever sent me roses," she mused and then added with a smile, "I did have a man send a plant to me once."
"Not very romantic of him," said Grissom with a heavy sigh, "unlike sending roses."
"I don't know about that," she countered with amusement, "roses are beautiful but the plants will last much longer."
"I would have had everything sent to the townhome but decided that it would have more impact if you saw everything lined up. It was lined up?"
"It was." Sara thought about the vegetation, as Grissom put it, and groaned. "I don't know where I'm going to put all of those plants."
"There should be plenty of room at home for them and you can always leave some of them in my office."
"I'm not staying at your townhome right now, Grissom." The silence on the other end of the line was heavy as she waited for him to speak.
"You moved out? Why?" The betrayal in his voice irritated her more than it should have and she held back from snapping that she was the one that had been betrayed.
"I couldn't breathe when I was there, not since you left." She decided that honesty would be the best approach. "I wasn't sure that you wanted me there if you came home."
"If I come home?" Grissom's voice vibrated with anger and she heard something break, almost like he had dropped a glass. "I'm coming home in less than a month Sara, and I hope that you'll be back in our home when I do return. Where are you staying?"
"I've been staying in one of Catherine's hotels. It's nice. I'll put the plants in your townhome and keep them watered, but I don't think that I can stay there. Not right now."
A groan reached her ears and she steeled herself from his reaction. "Honey, I picture you in our bed when I'm trying to sleep. I feel like I have someone waiting at home for me when I finish this seminar."
"I'm sorry to inconvienence you Grissom but I can't be there right now."
"Fly out here to visit me." Grissom said with sudden urgency. "Fly out here and visit me so that we can speak face to face and sort everything out."
"I'm in the middle of a big case, Griss, I can't leave right now." She touched the necklace that she had placed on the desk in front of her as she dialed his number.
As if reading her mind, Grissom asked with a new uncertainity. "You opened the drawer in my office?"
"I did."
"Sara? Don't leave me in limbo."
"I love the necklace, it's beautiful. It's too much though, Grissom, and I'm not sure that I can keep such a treasured heirloom."
"I thought of you the second I held it in my hands," said Grissom in a subdued tone. "It belongs to you. Sara? My students are filing in and I have to go, but do me a favor? Keep the necklace and wear it for me."
"Okay. Griss?"
"Yes, dear?"
"I do miss you and I love you."
After hanging up from the phone call, Sara lifted the necklace and placed it around her neck. She wanted nothing more than to grab that plane ticket and drive as fast as she could to the airport to catch the first flight to where Grissom waited. She couldn't leave right now, however, and in fact didn't have a day off for the next few days. Maybe Warrick would pick up a day for her since she had taken his days. Was she really contemplating this? Smiling, Sara fingered the necklace and stood up from the desk.
Oh, yeah, she could and the first chance she got she would see him so that they could speak face to face. Gathering the cards she made her way to her locker so that she could stow them safely inside her purse. Insecurity followed her along the hallway and she pushed back the feeling as she tried to recapture the confidence that she had developed in Grissom's feelings for her over the past two years. It had been such a work in progress before he made the sudden revelation that he was leaving. She tried to assure herself that she would make it clear to him that if he ever made an important decision such as leaving Vegas and didn't consult her first then that would be it. No third chances.
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"Everything okay, Sara?"
Catherine stood outside the locker room as Sara stepped out of the room. She couldn't help but be aware of the speculative look in Catherine's eyes as she caught sight of the necklace.
"That's beautiful, Sara, I don't remember you wearing it earlier."
"Thank you," Sara touched the necklace and smiled weakly. "I know it doesn't go with this outfit but I didn't want to lose it." She didn't want to put in back in that drawer, away from her reach. She also knew that Grissom wanted her to wear it and she felt compelled to do so.
"I think that it's time for that dinner," said Catherine with a toss of her hair as she surveyed Sara's guarded expression. "What if I meet you for dinner tommorrow night before we come to work? The hotel where you are staying has a decent restaurant on the same floor as the coffee shop that you love to frequent."
"How did you know I've taken stock in your coffee shop?" asked Sara as she strived for humor.
"You come in every day with a coffee and I recognize the logo, of course."
"Of course," she replied with a faint grin. "I figure since you have been so nice to let me stay in that suite then the least I can do is buy coffee every day."
"And, Bernie tells me that you have never even stepped foot in the casino area. That's remarkable."
"I didn't know that they were watching my every move," said Sara with irritation.
Sensing the shift in mood, Catherine quickly tried to explain her statement. "They aren't watching you, Sara, but Bernie keeps an eye on all the goings on when it concerns the casino. He likes to stay on top of everything and I guess it intrigued him that he has never seen you gamble."
"I don't have any desire to waste my coins in the slot machines and I could care less for playing poker or whatever else. If I did play then they would ban me for counting cards." Sara laughed softly and grinned as Catherine rolled her eyes.
"You telling me that you could win a fortune playing cards if you wanted?"
"Absolutely, it's all logic isn't it?"
"If you say so," Catherine smiled suddenly. "I want to see you in action, Sara, to see if you are as good as you think you are."
"Seriously?"
With a nod, Catherine smiled.
"If I prove that I"m ban worthy then you'll let me have a week off?"
Catherine's eyebrows shot up but she held off on her questions. They would wait until dinner tommorrow night. "You can take a week off anyway if you give me a good reason."
Sara hesitated only briefly before she admitted, "I need time to sort out some personal issues and hopefully I'll be able to move out of the suite when I return to Vegas."
"You're planning on going out of town? Where?" As if she didn't suspect where Sara was going. She was impressed, she had to admit. Vowing to phone Grissom as soon as she and Sara parted ways she had every intention of threatening to beat him upside the head if he ever hurt Sara again. The plants were a nice touch, though, and the necklace was stunning.
"I'd rather not say," said Sara.
"Good enough. We'll pick this up tommorrow night."
Sara shook her head as Catherine waltzed off looking like the cat that just ate the canary. Oh, well. It served Grissom right if Catherine knew about them.For now she needed to wrap up this case and that meant finding Warrick.
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Dinner was more than decent. It was fabulous. Sara had avoided eating in the expensive restaurant, opting for the quick fast food court on the second level of the casino. She was picking up her fourth stuffed mushroom when Catherine asked the dreaded question.
"So, how long have you and Grissom been seeing each other?"
Dropping the mushroom on her plate, Sara sighed and looked up to meet Catherine's gaze. "Almost two years."
Surprise registered in Catherine's eyes as she choked the water she was sipping. "I was thinking more along the lines of two months, not two years! How did you manage to keep this from me and everyone else? Nobody else knows do they?" Catherine's eyes narrowed at this last question and Sara couldn't help but smirk.
"You're the first to my knowledge."
"I better be," Catherine nodded shortly and thought back on her conversation with Grissom yesterday. She had phoned him and demanded he answer her questions regarding Sara. In response he had told her he couldn't talk but if she wanted information regarding his relationship with Sara then ask her. She was miffed when he hung up quickly, leaving her with the same questions that she had when she called him.
"We've been living together for the past nine months," offered Sara. The bitterness of that last admittance wasn't lost on Catherine.
"He didn't discuss this sabbatical with you before he decided to leave?"
"No."
"Bastard." said Catherine.
Sara gave her an odd look but couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her lips. "I never thought that I would see you be defensive of my position, especially when it comes to Grissom."
"We're both strong independent women, Sara. It's no surprise that we've clashed over the years but you should know that I've always admired you. I also know that Grissom has been obsessed with you for years, even before you came to Vegas. I used to think that you were the one that was pushing him away, but over time I realized that it was all Gil Grissom. His fears that kept you at bay."
"We both had fears, it's just that I've always known that I wanted to be with him and he was certain that I would break his heart."
"And he's broken yours over and over," said Catherine with a touch of anger.
"I think that we've disappointed each other because of our own insecurities." Sara picked up her glass of water and took a sip. "We finally got our acts together two years ago and everything fell into place. I was probably at the most secure level of our relationship when he up and left without discussing this sabbatical. Wait, that's not exactly true. For the few weeks preceding his leaving I did know that something was weighing heavy on his mind, but I couldn't get him to discuss it with me."
"Gil is a very private man. It's remarkable that you've broken through his defenses to the degree that you have." The look in Catherine's eyes was one of admiration and it made Sara feel uncomfortable.
"I suppose he could have left without saying anything at all. I could have been walking the halls trying to find him and everyone would have known except for me." Sara searched for the humor in her own statement and felt nothing close. Deciding to change the subject she waved a hand through the air to indicate the restaurant. "What's remarkable is that you own all of this."
Taking the bait, Catherine sighed dramatically and rolled her eyes. "I inheritated all of this by default. One half brother is dead at the hands of the other brother. I was the only one left to take over and now I don't know if I want the responsibility." Catherine took a bite of her almond crusted salmon and chewed it thoughtfully before adding,
"I've had offers to buy me out. I would be set for life and so would Lyndsey."
"You aren't set for life now?" asked Sara as she took in the expensive decor of the restaurant and thought about the suite she had been staying in. She marveled at the fact that Catherine hadn't resigned as a CSI already.
"It's not who I am or what I want my daughter to see." said Catherine with a light shrug. "There are times when I've thought about quitting so that I can spend more time with Lyndsey, but I've worked hard to get where I am and I love my job."
"You can have both worlds." Sara said without envy. She had poured so much of her own life into work she wasn't sure if she wouldn't go insane if she had the opportunity to quit. Being a CSI gave her purpose and it was one that she shared with Catherine. Who would have thought the two of them would have anything in common other than sharing a bond with Gil Grissom?
"I'll figure it out. For now we'll toast to the future." Catherine picked up a glass of wine and was amused when Sara shook her head. "You're not joining me in a toast?"
Picking up her glass of water, Sara gave her a geniune smile. "I have to be at work in a few hours and my supervisor wouldn't approve."
"Your supervisor is many miles away and I won't tell him."
"That's okay, I need to keep my wits about me if I'm going to prove that I can be banned from the casino." Sara sipped her water and hoped that Catherine wouldn't push the subject.
Thankfully she didn't and the rest of dinner was filled with polite conversation about co-workers and Lyndsey's latest pursuits. After dinner, Sara quickly proved that she was ban worthy and then insisted that Catherine keep the winnings she had accumulated as small payment for allowing her stay in the suite. By the time they reached work, Sara was feeling much better about the future and looking forward to getting away after she helped wrap up her current case.
TBC