Disclaimer: The shows existing characters, storylines and references are not mine.

Chapter Ten: 'Concerned'

When Sara woke up she didn't quite remember where she was. The Nevada sun was streaming on her face through a glitch in the curtains. When she opened her eyes she saw Grissom staring down at her. His blue eyes were full of concern. She felt his arms around her waist, as if they were glued together. As dazed as she was from sleeping she felt utterly lost in his eyes.

After a while Grissom finally spoke. "Mornin'. How are you feeling?" He asked lazily caressing her waist with his thumb.

"I'm okay, I guess." She replied hoarsely.

"Did you sleep okay?" He asked looking at her alarm clock.

Sara sighed and shifted her head slightly. "Yes actually, I slept pretty well. What time is it?" She asked realizing that the light wasn't the sunset.

"8:00PM" He answered gauging her reaction.

Sara frowned. "Wow, I don't think I've slept this long in years." She said as a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

Grissom was surprised. "You mean you don't mind?" He asked incredulously.

At that Sara smiled. A shiver ran down Grissom's spine as her lips revealed the cute gap between her teeth. "No, I actually got some rest and believe me that doesn't happen very often." She answered as she stirred.

Grissom licked his lips preparing for objections. "Can you please not go to work tonight?" He asked tentatively.

Sara sighed. "Sure, I kinda don't feel up to it anyway."

Grissom stared at her with amazement. "You mean this for real?"

"Yeah." She answered softly. "I mean, if you wanna stay."

Grissom smiled. "I don't mean to sound overprotective but I wasn't really planning on leaving you alone." He said waiting for her reaction.

She passed him a small smile in return as she moved out of his gentle grip and swung her legs out of bed. "I'm gonna go use the bathroom." She said as she stood up and walked out of the room.

Grissom glanced at the empty space she left behind. Grissom sighed as he stepped out of bed and padded into her kitchen. He opened the nearest cupboard to the coffee machine as a logic guess. He turned out to be right; the two bottom shelves of the cupboard were filled with cans of coffee from various brands. He picked an open pack of Starbucks' mild roast.

He prepped up the machine and walked over to the fridge. The fridge was full of fruit and vegetables. For some reason he pegged her for someone who's fridge was always almost empty, she was a workaholic after all. When he spotted a bar of chocolate in the door he decided he's make her chocolate chip pancakes.

She turned on the shower and stripped out of her clothes. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she stepped under the warm spray. Daniels voice was still fresh in her mind. As the water enveloped her body she gripped the wall.

She had just felt so safe in Grissom's arms. All the confusion had molten away when he uncovered more of her. Maybe hiding everything was doing the opposite of its intention. Maybe surrendering could set her free. The previous events were a complete blur. She only remembered the feelings she'd experienced.

As she stepped out of the shower and cut the water off, the smell of pancakes intruded her nostrils. She opened a cabinet next to the sink and pulled out a pair of jeans and a grey tank top. She didn't quite feel like walking over to her bedroom in a towel that happened to be just across the kitchen. (A/N In Nesting Dolls it looks that way as I've observed, correct me if I'm wrong)

When she looked halfway reasonable she made her way to the kitchen. She found him sweating over the stove. She silently walked over to the counter, braced herself and scooted herself on it. Grissom immediately dropped the spatula startled by her presence.

"Damn, You scared me Sara!" He sighed looking over to the counter she was sitting on.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." She lied grinning.

Grissom felt the sudden urge to kiss her. Her pose was to his advantage, he called for all the restraint he had in his body to keep himself from letting go. "So are you in for some chocolate chip pancakes?" He asked.

"Yeah." She smiled. "You know you didn't have to do all that." She said regretfully.

"I didn't really expect you to have anything edible so I thought I'd make something from scratch." He replied.

Sara sighed. "Is that so unbelievable? Just because I'm a workaholic doesn't mean I don't know how to take care of myself." She said reassuringly.

Grissom smiled. "Hey 'Miss Independent' I have the right to be worried about you when I hardly ever see you sleep or eat." He pointed out.

Sara scoffed. "Hey, I thought you were 'concerned', not worried." She shot back as a joke.

Grissom blushed. "Do I still have the right?" He asked suddenly dead-seriously.

Sara's smile faded and her head hung low.

Grissom shook his head. "Sara, look, never mind-"

"Griss." She cut him off. "I trust you with my life" She said as she raised her head. "Though I've never been so confused in my life." She sighed. "You do have the right to be concerned." She slumped her shoulders and avoided his gaze.

Grissom grabbed her chin and tried to raise her head. "Sara-"

Sara shook her head. "Stop." She said looking up into his eyes. "I want to see Daniel."

Sorry for the delay! I haven't really had time to access my PC that much and type this chappy. I hope this chapter was ok, because the end is near…that sounds weird. Another cliff…I'm becoming mean… (Last re-edit: Saturday, 25th of August, 2007)

Written by: Kacey Cunningham ©