Chapter Seven:
Grissom sighed when he saw her standing there.
"I saw Hank leaving," he said heaving.
"You're out of breath."
"I took the stairs," he explained. "The elevator was stuck."
He stood there and saw that she had been crying.
"He was just apologizing," she explained.
He glanced around as if processing a crime scene.
"You thought he might have hurt me again," she stated.
"It would be a lie if I said I didn't," admitted Grissom.
"He wouldn't hurt me," she insisted.
Insecurity took hold of each of them.
She wasn't sure how to react to Grissom's odd behavior. He saw her as a victim. It made her uncomfortable.
He wasn't sure how to react to Sara's behavior. She saw Hank as guiltless. It made him uncomfortable.
He did not understand her need to defend a man who had physically and emotionally hurt her.
They stood there awkwardly until she motioned for him to sit and he took the couch, sitting where she had sat just a few minutes ago as Hank knelt at her feet.
She now sat in Hank's spot.
She wasn't sure why she needed the places to be reversed.
She only knew she longed to have Grissom profess his love.
It did not come.
Grissom leaned back on the couch.
"You look tired," she managed to get out as she cradled her injured arm.
"I am tired," he said. "We had a triple homicide. Sofia and I must have walked several miles following blood splatters…finally found the last victim in an alley."
Sara pretended not to care that Grissom had just spent the last several hours with Sofia.
They were working a case….
Nothing more…
She wondered when the jealousy and insecurity would leave.
"Greg was disappointed he didn't get back to try out the cast in the utility closet," teased Grissom.
"I'll reschedule," she replied.
She looked at him. "You should sleep."
"Gotten any sleep?" he asked.
"Ten hours," she announced. "Pain medication works wonders for insomnia."
He examined the injured arm. "This is swollen."
"I need to prop it up," she admitted.
"Sara, stay home," he said.
"And miss all the fun at work?" she teased.
It did not come out as playful but rather mournful.
Grissom leaned forward and she waited for the lecture.
It was sure to come.
He started to speak but stopped.
"Griss, what is it?" she asked.
"I'm worried about you," he said. "I don't think you comprehend the seriousness of Hank's actions."
"Wait. I know domestic abuse when I see it…perhaps even go overboard reacting to it but this was not abuse. He got angry…he never meant to hurt me."
Her arms folded in front of her and he knew she would have no part in anything he had to say.
He persisted.
"He took his anger out on you. He broke your wrist in two different places…Sara, that is abuse."
"If I hadn't been standing near the edge of the building…my wrist hit the edge…it had been weakened before….I broke it as a child," she protested.
"If Hank had not grabbed her wrist, shoved you against the building, causing your wrist to hit the edge…Sara, if this was a case…"
"I know Hank," she said. "That makes the difference!"
Grissom reached over and took her injured arm.
"These marks…these cuts…he used quite a bit of force to do this," cautioned Grissom. "Sometimes, we don't see the worst in someone because…"
"It was not abuse!" she declared quickly getting up.
A million questions flitted through his brain. He wanted to know if she still had feelings for Hank. He wanted to know the reason for the tears. He wanted to know why she still felt the need to protect Hank despite the cruelty he had inflicted.
"Let's not do this," she pleaded. "Hank is out of my life…because of you."
He couldn't bring himself to believe that.
He closed his eyes as his exhaustion caught up with him.
"I should go," he breathed. "I'm past exhaustion."
"You could sleep here," she offered.
"I have something I have to do," he replied.
His rejection caused a sense of uneasiness.
"Then I'll see you at work tonight," she said trying not to sound so disappointed.
They stood.
The awkwardness returned.
He startled her when he leaned in and kissed her.
It wasn't a soft peck on the lips but rather his hands cupped her face as his tongue demanded entrance. She moaned when his tongue darted in to meet hers and for a moment the throbbing wrist disappeared.
"We need to talk," he whispered as he gently pushed her back.
"I had something else in mind," she quivered.
"After shift…let's talk," he implored.
"Should I be worried?" she asked as she felt an odd sensation in the pit of her stomach.
"No," he said.
His answer still did not seem to ease the tension she felt.
She pulled her body against his.
He groaned.
"Sara…," he whispered. "I want nothing more than…"
He kissed her once more and then hurried out the door before he changed his mind.
She leaned against the door and groaned.
Cold shower Sara…
He worried when she did not show up early for work. He glanced at his watch once again and was tempted to call her but forced himself to focus on the reports.
He grabbed the assignments and headed toward the conference room when he spotted her rushing in the door.
He sighed.
She slowed once she saw him.
He met her halfway.
"I'm sorry," she breathed.
"You're not late," he retorted.
"But you were worried," she said.
"Yes, I was," he admitted.
She grinned despite his sense of uneasiness.
"I had to go back to the hospital."
She held up the new cast.
"What happened to the old one?" he asked.
"Too tight," she explained. "It was cutting off the circulation…causing the arm to swell and throb."
She held up the arm. "Much better!"
"I'm glad," he said. "Do I get to be the first one to sign this one?"
"Hank signed it," she said.
He stared at her.
"I ran into him at the hospital," she explained. "He's still mortified about what he did."
"He should be!" seethed Grissom. His voice carried down the hall.
His anger caught her by surprise.
She knew better than to try to pursue the subject with others in listening range.
They stepped into the conference room.
"Hey, that's a different cast," claimed Greg.
"Didn't like my drawing?" asked Nick.
"I didn't even get to sign the first one," said Warrick.
Catherine looked concerned. "I didn't even know about the cast until…"
"Could we get to work?" asked Grissom.
They took their places.
Sara sat between Nick and Warrick. Greg leaned over and drew a smiley face on the cast.
Sara grinned.
"Bubble bath ruin the first one?" whispered Nick.
"Too tight," replied Sara.
Sofia stepped into the room and sat down beside Grissom.
Sara pretended not to notice when she leaned in and whispered something to Grissom. His hand rested slightly on her arm before she pulled away as she sat back in her chair.
Sara said nothing as she was paired with Nick.
She felt her pulse quicken when he paired himself with Sofia.
"Any questions?" he asked.
Why can't I work with you?
Why are you with her again?
Sara stood and waited for Nick to look over the assignment. She glanced over and saw Sofia walk out of the room with Grissom's hand pressing against Sofia's back.
She breathed in deeply.
It's nothing Sara…
Don't read anything into it…
She was relieved when they finished up early. She emptied the bottled water and wiped her brow.
"How's the arm?" asked Nick.
"It's good," said Sara.
"I never thought Hank was the type that…"
"He's not," puffed Sara.
"Stay away from…"
"He's not going to hurt me," she declared. "He came by the apartment and…"
"Are you nuts?" he asked.
"No, I'm not," she stated. "It was an accident. Nick, drop it, please."
He said nothing more but packed up the evidence bags and loaded them in the Denali.
She finished the report and headed toward Grissom's office.
Her hand rested on the door that was ajar. She froze when she saw Sofia in Grissom's arms.
"You shouldn't feel threatened," said Grissom.
"I am. Look, I don't mind sharing. Believe me I've done my share in my lifetime but…"
"Stay at the townhouse," he whispered.
"Okay, if you feel you can talk with her. Get her to accept me…I mean I'm not going anywhere," said Sofia.
"I wouldn't expect you to," assured Grissom. "Can I talk you into cooking something for dinner?"
"I think I have a few sheets to wash," she said. "We left quite a mess. Of course, we were interrupted when Sara showed up on your doorstep."
Sara stepped away from the door. She clenched the report in her hands as she struggled to breathe. She hurried to the front desk and slammed the report into his basket.
"That must have been some case," chuckled Judy. "Hey, what happened to your…"
Sara clocked out and quickly left.
She slammed the vehicle into reverse as she fumed.
If he thinks I'm going to share…
No wonder he was attracted to Lady Heather…
She ignored her phone when it rang.
It stopped but then started again.
She glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Grissom.
"You left without coming by," he said.
"I left the report at the front desk," she quipped.
"Sara? Are you alright?"
"Just great," she seethed.
"Is it too late to get something to eat?" he asked.
"Yes, it is. It's too late for a lot of things," she yelled as she closed the phone and threw it into the passenger seat.
Grissom sat down at his desk.
What did I do?
The warm bath did nothing to calm her nerves as she paced the apartment. She kicked off her shoes and replaced them with running shoes. She opened the door and came face to face with Grissom.
"Going somewhere?" he asked.
"I'm going for a run," she said.
"Can it wait?" he asked. "I'm too tired to chase after you."
She said nothing but stood there.
He knew she was mad and hoped he could come to the bottom of the problem before he passed out from exhaustion.
"I thought we were going to talk," he said.
"Fine. Let's talk," she shot back motioning him inside.
He waited until the door closed to begin.
"Want to tell me why you're so angry?" he asked.
"Want to tell me what it is you have to talk with me about?" she asked.
He sighed out loud. "Mind if we sit? I'm pretty tired."
They sat down.
"Sara, what happened between you and Hank…"
Sara groaned. "Accident. It's over. It's never going to happen again."
"You should have pressed charges."
"You're trying to make him into a monster and he's not," she declared. "Give me some credit for dating a decent guy while you refused to even give me the time of day!"
"I couldn't," he confessed. "This is still not easy, Sara."
"Only because you want to make it difficult," she countered.
"Let's not fight about the past. I can't change that. I don't want Hank around you."
"Hank is sorry for what he did. He would never…"
"I've asked Jim to run a background check to see…"
"What?" she yelled as she stood there in front of him.
"He could have done this before. Sara, you don't know…"
"This is getting blown completely out of…"
"Hank is not the person you think he is," warned Grissom.
"You don't know Hank…"
"I know he likes seafood. I know he frequents a certain restaurant outside of Vegas. I ran into him a few times with…another woman."
Sara stood there with her arms folded.
"It was probably someone he works with. I went out lots of times with Nick and Greg."
"Sara, I don't like having this conversation but I think we need to clear the air about the last few months."
"So you want to accuse Hank of cheating on me so I won't see him anymore? I broke it off Grissom."
"I just want you to be careful. We see the end results all the time in domestic…"
"Don't. Okay just don't say anything further. I tried for years to get you to accept this between us but you just pushed me away. When I saw that you had moved on, I did too. Hank is a nice decent guy. We dated for months. He never hurt me. Just when I thought I was finally starting a new life with someone, you show up on my doorstep. Do you have any idea how long I waited for you to do that? I chose you the moment you asked me if it was too late. I realized it would never be too late. I slept with you. I chose you Grissom. I broke it off with Hank. He had a right to be angry. He was hurt. Do you know what it feels like to be hurt?" she yelled. "It was an accident. I will not have you attacking him…"
"I'm not attacking him. We can't move forward…I need to know if you have any feelings for…Hank," he said quietly.
She looked at him strange. "I slept with you. I never would have…" she stopped.
She had slept with Hank when she had feelings for Grissom.
"What about Sofia?" she asked in defense.
He leaned back into the couch. "Sofia is a friend and nothing more."
Sara scoffed.
"I'm glad we're clearing the air," he said. "Sofia is in love with Jim."
Sara felt the color drain from her cheeks.
Note from author:
I'm afraid Sara is about to realize how deep her mistake was....