A/N: I'm back! Anyway, I have to start off my incredibly long A/Ns with a HUGE, HUGE thank you to everyone. I found out that I was nominated for a few stories in the 2008 FanFic Awards on LJ. And honestly…wow. Just wow. I was completely, completely surprised and thrilled and ecstatic (and I could go on and on naming adjectives to describe my mood when I found out but I'll shut up now). So again thank you…it really, really means a lot! Being nominated is such a huge honor.

A/N2: Two quick notes about last chapter: Egyptian Rat Screw is a real game and was suggested to me by Clayfish32 (if you haven't read any of her stories, then you should!), and it was Grace who suggested Grissom pair Sara with Nick as a sign of forgiveness (and I loved the idea). Speaking of Grace, thanks to her for the beta of this chapter. I changed it a bit more so any remaining mistakes I claim. Plus, a few thanks to various people who I asked their opinion at one time or another on the "going ons" of this chapter: Becky, Brooke, Jen, and Kristen… thanks for the opinions/listening to me worry!

Warning: Um, yeah, maybe some adult like activities happening…

Disclaimer: Own CSI? Only in my dreams…

Sara woke to find something cold and wet pressing against her hand. She opened her eyes slowly and found Bruno by her bedside. Since she wasn't sure what time Gil had arrived home last night, she wanted to let him sleep in as late as possible. Smiling at the dog, she got out of bed and quietly made her way to the kitchen to feed him.

After he finished eating, Bruno joined her in the living room where she had turned on the television and was half-listening to the news.

When the phone rang, she answered it quickly. It was Catherine calling to say hello and invite her to a late lunch that afternoon. Apparently, Lindsey was driving her crazy, and she really needed to get out of her house. Otherwise, Catherine claimed, she wouldn't be responsible for what happened to her daughter.

After hanging up the phone, she checked to see if Gil was still asleep and found that he was. So, after a few minutes, she decided to attempt a major personal feat –cooking breakfast. Very scary, she thought to herself. Gil had surprised her with breakfast in bed several times; therefore, she wanted to do the same for him. Plus, it couldn't be that difficult. On the other hand, it was also true that all of her memories involving cooking were of meals that hadn't turned out well. Still, she refused to let fear of failure deter her from cooking her husband breakfast. With high hopes, she set off toward the kitchen with Bruno trailing after her.

Mentally, she debated what to make for breakfast. Eggs? Eggs weren't that hard to cook. Maybe eggs and some French toast? It sounded good to her.

After taking a carton of eggs and the butter from the refrigerator and some bread from the pantry, she placed them all on the counter and then located the spices and cookware that she needed to make breakfast.

Thirty minutes, half a dozen eggs, and at least that many bread slices later (along with several choice words), she blew out a frustrated breath.

This was so not working.

The first batch of scrambled eggs had turned out well but by the time she had produced decent looking French toast the eggs had turned cold. No problem, she thought, as she heated them up in the microwave. The downside, however, was that the now hot again eggs no longer tasted so great. That meant she had to make more eggs and more French toast, which both turned out to look and smell great. She was extremely happy with her accomplishment. That was until Bruno managed to trip her, and all her hard work dropped to the floor to be wolfed down by the canine in less than two minutes flat.

Maybe she wasn't meant to cook. Or maybe it was that the cooking gods just didn't like her.

She was personally leaning toward the second one.

Nonetheless, she wasn't one to quit. So she decided to give cooking breakfast one more shot then she really would have to give up because there would be no more eggs or bread left.

A few moments later, she swore out loud when she saw that she had burnt the toast. Again. She remembered that she had seen some powdered sugar in the pantry, which she hoped would mask any burnt tasting spots.

Another ten minutes later, she carried two plates of highly powered, syrup-laden slices of French toast along with eggs that were ever so slightly runny toward the master bedroom to wake up her husband.

The smell of food must have roused him from his sleep because by the time she entered the room his eyes were open.

"Good morning." She graced him with a smile.

Grissom returned the greeting, sitting up in bed and getting comfortable. "You made breakfast?" he asked, surprised. With the exception of his mom and his grandmother, he never had another female in his life cook for him. "Thank you," he said and truly meant it.

She set the tray down next to him and then crossed to the other side of the bed, sitting cross-legged and facing him. "You might want to try the food first before you start in with the gratitude," she admitted.

"I'm sure it will be fine. Looks good," he commented as he scooped up a forkful of eggs.

They ate in silence for a few minutes before they caught each other's gaze and began to smile and then to laugh.

"I warned you, didn't I?" Sara giggled. "It's not good, is it?"

Though he was laughing along with her, he didn't want to hurt her feelings. "The toast is definitely, uh, crunchy…"

"Sorry! I'm sorry. I tried, really I did. And, by the way, we're out of eggs and bread…and we should probably pick up some more powdered sugar, too," she managed to say before breaking off into laughter again.

"Oh, really? Though technically I shouldn't be too surprised about the powdered sugar since you drowned the French toast in it," he teased.

"Well, you see, I sort of did that on purpose," she confessed.

"And that reason would be…?" He queried with a raised eyebrow.

"To cover the fact that I might have burnt the toast," she stated the fact as if it should have been obvious to him. "Then again, that apparently didn't work out so well for me either."

"It's the thought and effort that counts," he replied as he moved the tray of mostly uneaten food to the bedside nightstand and turned back to see her grinning at him. "What now?"

"Nothing… you just have some powdered sugar on your cheek."

"Oh." He started to lift his hand to his face but she stopped him.

"No, let me," she spoke softly, looking into his eyes while raising her hand to gently brush the powder from his cheek.

In his mind, he flashed back to nearly four years ago when they were at a crime scene and she wiped chalk from his cheek. He had been so surprised by her touch, the intimacy of it. "Thanks," he murmured when she removed her hand.

"You're welcome."

She was staring at him intensely, and he couldn't keep himself from leaning in and kissing her, tasting the sweetness from her lips.

The shrill sound of the phone ringing a few minutes later interrupted their passionate embrace.

"Don't answer it," Sara pleaded between kisses.

At first, he ignored the phone completely until it rang again. "Sorry. Sorry, let me get it," he said, disentangling himself from her. Picking up his cell phone from the nightstand, he answered the call as he moved out of the bedroom and into the hallway.

When he came back into the room again, his mind had cleared. He found Sara still lying on the bed.

She smiled as she asked, "Where were we?"

"Um, actually…about that… um, maybe now's not the, uh, time," he stumbled over the words.

She sat up on the bed. "Oh. Okay," she drew out the syllables in the last word. She ran a hand through her hair, pushing it back away from her face as she slid off the bed. Picking up the breakfast tray, Sara walked out of the room.

Grissom followed her into the kitchen where she was already placing the dirty dishes into the sink. "You're okay? We're okay, right?" he asked with a hint of hesitation in his voice.

She turned to face him. "Yeah, we're fine. Why wouldn't we be?" she said, waving off his concern. "So, uh, anyway who called?"

"It was the Crime Lab. They had a couple of questions they needed some help with."

"Oh. Well, anyway, I was going to let you know that Catherine called this morning and invited me out to have a late lunch with her. I told her that I would get back to her with an answer."

"That sounds like fun. You should go. I have a few things I need to do around the house before we go to work," he added.

"Okay, good. I'll call her and then take a shower," she replied before walking away.

xxx

In the shower, she let the hot water wash down over her. Gil had asked if they were okay, and she had responded with an automatic "yes."

Still, she couldn't keep from asking herself if that was really true. Were they okay?

She honestly didn't know what to think. They were in bed and everything was great. Then the phone rang and he came back and 'changed' his mind. It had been three weeks since she came home from the hospital and nothing had happened between them except for kisses and a few serious make out sessions.

He said he was worried about her and that he didn't want to rush her.

However, the thing she couldn't help but think was what if that wasn't the real reason he was holding himself back? What if before her accident they were having marital problems?

What if they were on the verge of separating and then she got hurt? Gil wouldn't have wanted to upset her because of the amnesia. Plus, the doctor was pretty adamant that she didn't need any additional stress while she was recovering.

Could that be what was going on? That would explain the whole no sex thing. Maybe that's why he was holding himself back. Not because he was worried about her health but instead because they were splitting.

Because the thought of them splitting and having problems made her stomach roll and left her weak in the knees, she pushed the negativeness away as she got of the shower to dress for her lunch date with Catherine.

xxx

A couple hours later, Sara was already seated at a booth when Catherine rushed in.

"Hey! Sorry I'm a little late. Lindsey and I got into yet another fight right before I left. I swear that girl is trying to drive me insane or something!"

Sara smiled sympathetically. "You know what? I'm pretty sure I heard a rumor about how kids, especially daughters, have been trying extra hard lately to drive their mothers crazy," she joked, in an effort to make her friend laugh.

"Well, Lindsey is definitely trying me!" Catherine exclaimed. "I'm going to have to go to my hairdresser earlier than normal because she's probably given me at least twenty new gray hairs since last week!"

Sara was still chuckling over Catherine's comment when their waitress arrived at their table. She wrote down their drink and food orders and left.

They were halfway through their entrées when Catherine stopped herself. "I just realized that I've been monopolizing most of this conversation. You should have shut me up at least half an hour ago, Sara!"

"It's fine," Sara assured her friend and then repeated it after she saw that Catherine didn't quite believe her. "Honestly, it's fine. You needed someone to vent to and I'm a pretty good listener." Plus, listening to Catherine talk about Lindsey helped (sort of) to distract her from thinking about the uncertainties of her marriage to Gil.

It wasn't until they were eating dessert when Catherine noticed that Sara seemed a bit distracted. "Is everything okay?" she questioned.

Since dessert had arrived, she had been trying to decide whether or not to say anything to Catherine. She was a private person, and it was –what she felt –a personal question. But she also felt that she needed to talk to someone about her worries. "Actually, I was wondering something," she began.

"Okay?"

"I feel slightly, uh, weird bringing this up but, I mean, we're friends. Right?"

"Yes, we are," Catherine answered slowly, unsure what direction Sara was going to go with her question.

"I'm just going to say it… or, well, ask it. Were Gil and I having problems?" At Catherine's blank look, she clarified, "Before the accident, before the amnesia… were we having some marriage difficulties?" Sara held her breath, scared about what her friend might reveal.

Catherine was definitely not expecting that question from Sara. "No, no," she quickly said. She winced slightly but then figured that she wasn't really lying. Or, technically, she wasn't lying since Grissom and Sara weren't actually married so therefore they couldn't have had marriage problems. "Sara, you should know how much Grissom cares about you. He would do anything for you." She thought to herself, "And, boy, was that last statement true!"

"Yeah… I know. Thanks for reminding me of that." Sara smiled as she continued, "It was just me being silly, I guess."

As they finished up their meal and paid, Catherine hoped that she had done the right thing by keeping her mouth shut.

xxx

Sometime between having lunch with Catherine, working last night, and that afternoon, Sara came to a decision.

She was going to seduce her husband. And he was going to enjoy it.

She loved that he was thoughtful, considerate, and so sweet. But enough was enough!

Gil had just finished leaving a few minutes ago. The Crime Lab had called him again, but this time they needed him to actually go in. He had apologized for having to leave and even asked if she wanted to come with him. It would only take a few hours, he promised.

She had said no because she was already formulating a seduction strategy for the night.

They both had the evening off, which was highly convenient since she had plans for the two of them that did not involve bugs or dead bodies.

Making a mental to-do list of what she needed to get, she grabbed her keys and headed out the front door of her house.

Though she wasn't a huge fan of the mall, it was a one-stop shopping place so that was where she went. It was her viewpoint that there was a specific arsenal necessary for a successful seduction. Smiling to herself, she inwardly declared that she was definitely not planning to fail her personal mission.

She bought some candles before heading to Victoria's Secrets. Nothing compared to sexy new lingerie, and she was pleased when she found the perfect matching set. As she headed to leave the mall, a dress in the window sidetracked her. Honestly, she wasn't really a dress wearing person, but the dress caught her eye. Impulsively, she decided to try it on and, when it fit perfectly, she knew she had to purchase it.

After making her last stop of the evening, she headed back home to change into her new clothes and to set everything up for the evening's festivities.

xxx

She was placing the food onto plates when Gil arrived home.

"Hey, honey," she greeted him, happy that he was back from the lab.

"What's all this?" he questioned, referring to the dimmed lights, the wine glasses and the bottle of wine.

"I thought that we could use a nice dinner at home." She smiled at him as she added, "Don't worry… I didn't try to cook this time. I picked up some Chinese takeout for tonight."

"I wasn't worried." When he saw that she didn't quite believe him, he continued in a teasing tone, "I didn't smell anything burning or see any smoke coming from the kitchen."

"Hey now! Is this the thanks that I'm going to get for going through all this trouble?" she asked, gesturing widely. "I'll have you know that it takes an incredible amount of skill and talent to transfer food from takeout boxes to plates." She crossed her arms against her chest, pretending to look miffed.

"I'm sorry," he murmured softly, stepping closer to her and producing what he had been hiding behind his back. "Does these help?"

"Oh, wow." Her breath caught and she melted at the sight of him, wearing a boyish grin and holding a ridiculously large bouquet of yellow tulips and irises. "They're gorgeous. Absolutely perfect! Thank you!" She took the bouquet from him and sighed happily before giving him a quick kiss on the lips.

"You're welcome," he called after her as she headed into the kitchen. He was extremely pleased she liked the flowers that he had bought on a whim before heading home for the evening.

She walked back seconds later with the flowers in a vase and set them in the center of the table.

He finally took note of what she was wearing. A dress. It really shouldn't have taken his breath away. The dress was simple, nothing super fancy or especially tight and clingy. It wasn't even very revealing. Still, his heart did a funny little flip in his chest as the sight of her. "You look nice," he commented. More than nice actually, she looked beautiful. Then again he was pretty sure that if she was wearing a paper sack he would still think that no woman had ever looked as lovely.

She looked down, smoothing imaginary wrinkles from her dress, before looking back up and into his eyes. "Thanks," she said demurely. "After you left, I decided to get out of the house for a while so I went shopping."

He pulled out her seat for her before taking his own and pouring some wine into both of their glasses.

"Shall we toast?" he asked as she raised the glass to her lips.

"Yes. That sounds nice," she replied, nodding to him to do the honors himself.

He thought for a moment before he spoke. "To you," he began as he lifted his glass, "a woman who halves my sorrows and doubles my joys."

xxx

While he cleared the table, Sara moved into the living room, taking the candles she had lit with her and turning the stereo on low.

Surprising her moments later, Grissom wrapped his arms around her waist. Leaning down, he whispered into her ear, "May I have this dance?"

She turned with a smile on her face. "Of course."

He placed his hands on her waist, and she slid hers around his neck. Slowly, they began to sway in time with the music.

"This is nice," he murmured, pulling her closer to him.

"Mm-hmm. It is," she agreed, falling into the magic of the moment as she rested her head against his chest. She was beginning to feel heady, and she didn't think it had anything to do with the wine she had consumed earlier.

She lost count of how many songs had played through when she finally lifted her head to look him in the eyes. She spoke softly, "Will you be with me tonight?" It was as much as a request as it was a plea of longing and want.

He took a step from her, both physically and mentally, knowing inherently what she meant. "Sara," he started.

She interrupted. "I want you to make love to me. I want us to be together… really together again."

"And 'that' was the entire problem," he thought to himself. They hadn't ever been together before, not even on a date. "Sara, the accident… I don't want to hurt you, we should wait."

"Gil, you're wonderful and considerate with all of your concern, but I can't help but think…"

"You can't help but think what?"

"I can't stop myself from thinking that there's another reason. Maybe you don't feel the same way about me anymore, maybe you don't want me anymore and maybe… maybe," she broke off what she had been saying when she felt her voice begin to break. Turning her back to him, she struggled to regain her composure.

"Sara?" When she didn't answer him immediately, he closed the distance between them and gently turned her to face him. He saw the bright sheen of tears threatening to fall from her eyes, and he lost it. "The hell with it. The hell with everything," he thought dangerously, "Who cares about the rules? The consequences?" He was fairly certain he was going to be damned anyway, and he couldn't –he wouldn't –let her think, even if only for a moment, that he didn't want her. That he didn't care for her. That he didn't love her.

She was still staring at him, her eyes wide, waiting for him to say something.

"Please, don't ever think that I don't want you, that I don't need you," he demanded before he kissed her. He bent slightly and picked her up, carrying her into the bedroom and dropping her onto the bed.

She sat up, on her knees, and watched him as he lit the candles that she had placed around the room earlier. He dimmed the lights before pausing in the middle of the room to look at her.

"Come here," she commanded softly, beckoning him toward the bed, toward her.

He kicked off his shoes before taking a seat on the bed.

She leaned forward –almost shyly, cautiously –and touched her lips to his as his right hand moved to the front of her dress and undid the row of buttons. His other hand took the clip from her hair, letting her hair fall down in gentle waves. When he softly tugged her bottom lip between his teeth, she opened her mouth and allowed his tongue entry.

She moved her hands to his chest then lower, pulling his shirt free from his waistband. After unbuttoning it, she drew the shirt down his shoulders and off. Placing a hand over his chest, she felt his heart speed up as her other hand explored the contours of his body. She delighted in the feel of his muscles and in his body's reaction to her touch.

When her hand began to dip lower, he stopped her exploration as he broke their kiss. She whimpered at the loss of contact until he brought her hand to his lips. Turning it over, he placed a kiss first in the center her palm and then another on her wrist. "I want to see you," he murmured, his hands moving now to the hem of her dress. She lifted her hips slightly and he slowly drew the fabric up over her body, tossing it to the floor.

His eyes took in the full sight of her. She was naked to his gaze but for a few scraps of lace in the color of dark wine. "You are so beautiful, so lovely," he whispered reverently as he skimmed his lips along her jaw before taking her mouth in a lingering kiss. Tonight was special. He wanted to remember every little detail –from how utterly exquisite she looked in the flickering flames of candlelight to her every sigh and sound she made. He wanted everything imprinted in his mind forever. For better or for worse, right or wrong, she was his tonight and he was hers.

Gently, he laid her back on the bed. His fingers lazily explored the delicate lines and curves of her body, causing her to sigh and to moan in pleasure.

Tonight she had planned to seduce her husband, and she was finding that it was she who was being seduced by him. His kisses were so sweet, so tender. His breath was warm against her skin as he placed a feather-light kiss to the hollow of her throat.

When he pushed the straps of her bra down and removed it, she shivered involuntarily. His knuckles brushed the underside of each breast, and he drew languid circles around her nipples. She moaned in frustration, wanting and craving more contact. He bent his head and teased her nipple with his tongue as his free hand made a downward journey.

Her hands fisted in his hair before roaming up and down his back. "So, so good. More," she spoke in short, raspy sentences. She arched her back, trying to get closer to him. Trying to soothe the ache that was building inside of her.

Her response was driving him crazy, fueling his desire for her, but he didn't want to rush. He wanted to take his time to discover her, to learn her body fully. So he brought his hand back to her cheek to caress as he captured her lips once again in another mind-dissolving kiss.

Everything felt right. Everything was perfect. Nothing else mattered, she thought fleetingly. She wanted to stay in this moment, in his arms, forever. She took a hand and brushed his hair away from his face as she whispered, "Only you. There's only you."

"Only you," he agreed later when he finally slid inside her. Her eyes held his as they began to move together, slowly at first and then faster. He saw her eyes begin to blur, and he knew in that moment nothing had ever felt so right and nothing ever would feel so perfect again. She held his heart.

At last when they lay spent, she curled into him, her face pressed into his chest while a hand splayed across his back. He bent his head to kiss her temple and whispered a soft, "I love you," but she had already fallen asleep.

A/N3: I had a lot of internal debate about the chapter/the happenings. I'm sure some will be happy the smut (finally) happened, and others will be upset with me (thinking Grissom took advantage). Truth be told, I always knew I wanted this chapter to occur before Sara's memory came back, so I felt I should stay true to how I saw the events playing out. Hopefully, everyone will stay with the story and let me "fix" the fallout. And, as always, thanks so much for reading!