Sara sat upright on the left side of the bed in a tank top and a pair of cotton underwear, the soft down comforter pooled comfortably in her lap. Glancing over at her phone as she reached for her hand cream, she winced at the time. 10:30pm.
Six years ago at this time, she likely would have been on her way into the lab to start a shift in Vegas.
Now, at almost 50 years old, she was moisturizing her long fingers in bed, preparing to sleep.
She shook her head in pleasant disbelief as she removed the ring off of her left hand, and placed it safely on the bedside table. Squirting out a small amount of the L'Occitane hand cream she had brought home from Paris last month, she inhaled the scent deeply. A glorious mixture of lavender and honey filled her senses, reminding her of their time in the flower filled city.
Sara and Gil returned to their favourite place shortly after she met him at his boat that September. Paris in the fall was beautiful. It was their favourite. They spent a month together in a rented apartment, re exploring one another's bodies and working out the kinks.
A lot of late night walks along the river, French wine induced tears, a lot of fresh bread and a few mild disagreements left them more in love than they had been back in Vegas years ago when their romance was a secret.
They had gotten married again in the city in October and shortly after decided to resume their travels.
Grissom had always wanted to see the pyramids, so they did.
Sara wanted to spend time on his boat and go to the beach, so they went to Mexico and got wonderfully tanned.
They both wanted to see Ireland, the Cliffs of Moher and the Giant's Causeway, so they did.
Eventually they settled back down and purchased a small two bedroom townhome in the bay, San Fransisco, where everything had begun for them nearly 25 years before.
It wasn't a grand place, it was a simple yellow home with room for a car in the driveway, and a small yard for their dog, Sid. He was a boxer, similar colouring to their previous beloved dog, Hank, just a little chubbier.
They had a table out back where they could drink coffee and read together in the sun, or watch the butterflies fly around the milkweed they had planted. A BBQ for cooking vegetables and from time to time, a steak for Grissom.
The second bedroom had been turned into somewhat of an entomology and art history library, filled with books that both of them loved, a small desk in the corner that once housed Gil's miniature making supplies but was rarely sat at anymore. A dog bed in the corner for their beloved pet.
The kitchen was a warm shade of cream with red exposed bricks, overflowing with plants and life. It was used daily. Back in Las Vegas, even when they had shared a home, the kitchen was only used once or twice a week to make simple meals. Now their kitchen always had dishes in the sink, crumbs on the marble counter, and homemade leftovers in the fridge. It was a home, and every room was used every day.
The living room was filled with more of Sara's vegetation and plants, as well as souvenirs from both of their travels. A piano that had travelled with Sara from Las Vegas. It had been Betty's and was gifted to her by her mother in law. Photos of the two of them that Sara had filed away in a box after the divorce were now once again displayed around the room; her favourite being the one John had taken of them in Costa Rica the afternoon Gil had arrived.
On shelves were more books, some of the more well loved ones, including the entomology textbook, for easy access. One shelf even held a sex pot from Peru, a gift Gil had thought would be hysterical when he returned to Vegas to visit her after their video call. His mother had been right, they needed to see more of one another. To anyone else it would simply be a cute clay pot, but to them, it was an inside joke that never got old.
Sara smiled as she rubbed in her hand cream, and looked around at their purple and orange bedroom. It was warm. Similar to how her apartment in Las Vegas had been 15 years ago. It made her happy. He had told her to decorate their home, their room, however she wanted. She wanted their room to be a reminder of the morning in her living room when everything changed for them. He brought her breakfast on a Sunday morning after the Adam Trent case, and the rest was history.
The windows were open, and the sheer cream curtains blew in the wind as the fresh sea air cooled the room and awoke goosebumps on her forearms.
Placing the tube of hand cream back on her nightstand, Sara returned the simple gold band to her finger with a smile, and adjusted her glasses as she sunk down with her book.
She used to read crime books for fun.
Now she read whatever she felt like, right now she was reading Little Women because it was a favourite of hers as a kid, and they had found a vintage copy of it at the small book store down the road last weekend.
Gil never changed, he still kept his gold rimmed Shakespeare sonnet book on his bedside, along with a first edition Sherlock Holmes tale. A gift she had surprised him with last year, that he re read over and over.
Finding it hard to focus on her book, Sara curiously listened in to the conversation her husband was having on the phone in the other room.
She noted he sounded somewhat annoyed at first, but as the conversation went on, his tone changed to happiness. She wondered who it could have been, and smiled as she returned her focus to her book, knowing she would find out eventually.
It still took her some getting used to every once in a while, that this was their life now.
Away from the lab.
Away from Las Vegas.
Away from death and decomp and darkness.
The most they worried about these days was the expert level Sunday crossword puzzle in the San Fransisco Times, and whether or not they let Sid out to pee before bed. They lived by the sunlight, not the neon street signs.
Their new life wasn't without it's fair share of challenges from time to time, but nothing compared to being abducted by serial killers or holding active bombs in their hands or testifying at court only to let murderers and rapists walk free.
He had taken her back to Paris last month as a surprise, and it had been wonderful. He knew how much she loved Paris in the fall, and it was their 6 year anniversary of being reunited on his boat.. September 27th. They joked about it over lush red wine and French bread with cheese one evening, before falling into bed to celebrate together.
When they returned home and picked up Sid, they celebrated again.
They had always had a very physically intimate relationship.
Hell, the Sunday they finally gotten together all those years ago hadn't even been an official date and still ended in sweaty limbs and panting breath.
There was never any doubt between them that the physical attraction was strong, and their partnership in the field, their ability to work well together as a team, carried over very well to... other activities.
But after he turned 65 in August, it's as if something shifted in Gil and his flame of lust had been reignited. He blamed it on her 'enticing 50 year old body', but in reality, he was just happy.
Completely and utterly happy.
He was in love. He had a dog. His wife was glowing and happy. He had accepted a part time teaching position at the University - he taught entomology and occasionally, forensics. It was going well for him.
Sara had taken up a casual position at a local women's and children's shelter, providing contact information and connections for women who had fled abusive homes. From time to time she also tutored young teen girls in the foster system, science and math usually. She had been known to take a few of them out for coffee or to the beach instead of just sitting in a cold and grey room learning about basic physics. One teen in particular, Madison, had really began to thrive on the personal attention and care. Her grades had improved, and she was considering becoming a scientist herself after high school. She had even been to Sara and Gil's home a few times for a BBQ or to watch a movie. They had recently begun a weekly Wednesday night dinner with Madison. Sara was no cook, but Gil would give them a list of ingredients and the pair would go out to the market to collect them, and then he would teach them how to make the meal. Tonight it was spicy lemon and avocado pasta with shrimp, for himself and Madison. She'd drove her back to her foster parent's home afterwards, always stopping for a cake pop and a Frappuccino for desert on the way. Tony and Andrea, her foster parents, were some of the good ones. They appreciated the time Sara took to help.
They had no plans to foster or adopt or have any children of their own, but both Sara and Gil found Madison to be particularly special. Her long brown curly hair and blue eyes reminded both of them of what their own child may have looked like, and her brain's ability at 15 to absorb information impressed them both. Madison walked Sid for them from time to time, and they paid her for her time, and had started to set aside a small amount every month for her collage tuition, if she decided to go. They hadn't told her, or Andrea and Tony yet. But planned to give it to her when she started looking at schools.
After her mother died last year, Sara had realized that her passion and drive stemmed from her own past, and she wanted to help, instead of just sitting around.
They both worked out their shifts and schedules so that they worked the same days, and had the same days off.
And they never spent a night apart again.
Betty may have been overbearing and blunt, but she had been right about a lot of things. They had agreed to never spend another evening apart unless absolutely necessary, and nothing had interfered with that yet.
"Alright, David. I'll let her know. Thanks for giving me a call, and congrats again. We'll see you soon." Gil's deep voice resounded through the hall as he stepped back into the bedroom, closing his phone.
"David who? Super Dave or Hodges?" Sara smiled as her lover slipped his pants down, and crawled into bed beside her in his boxers and a Cubs t-shirt. His body had aged, but it had aged beautifully. She was just as physically attracted to him now as a 65 year old man as she was when she met him at barely 41.
"Hodges." He replied with a quirky smile, leaning over to give her a kiss on her cheek as he pulled the covers up around his waist. "He's getting married in a few weeks."
"No way." She laughed in disbelief, "Who's the lucky girl?"
"Take a guess." He raised an eyebrow.
Sara took off her reading glasses and placed them on her bedside, scooting her body down to rest against his. Her head on his chest, and her arm draped over him.
"Gosh, probably some young thing from the lab. A fingerprint tech or something? Maybe the receptionist?" She giggled, feeling her husband's own torso vibrate with laughter.
"Nope." He shook his head, "She's a level 3 CSI. Recently moved back to Vegas."
"Hm.."
"Wendy Simms, soon to be Wendy Hodges." He shook his head with a chuckle.
"No way!" Sara exclaimed as she rose her head with a beaming smile and then let out a loud laugh.
"Way." He returned the laugh as his lips met hers for a quick kiss. "He'd like us to come for the wedding."
Sara nodded, "Of course."
"He asked me to, ah, stand up with him."
"As his best man?" She raised an eyebrow in shock, and received an apprehensive nod in reply.
"I've never been a best man before. I'm 65 and the only wedding I've been in is my own."
"Weddings," Sara corrected him playfully.
"Mm." He nodded with a grin.
"Are you going to do it?"
"Yeah, David is a good guy. Weird as ever. But a good guy. He's my friend." He nodded again, his finger tips beginning to caress her bare shoulder gently.
"Good." She smiled as she returned her cheek to his chest, listening to his heartbeat, and let out another quick chuckle, "Wendy, huh? Way to go Dave."
"He says she transferred back to Vegas once Morgan and Greg left for San Diego, I guess the lab was short." He nodded.
"Man, Nick is running quite the operation down there now. If we're not careful he will recruit us too." Sara yawned with a smile as she breathed him in, he still, after all these years smelled like books and lemons, "Good for her. Good for all of them."
"Mm." He nodded again, sinking lower into the bed, turning to his side to face her sleepy form. "Do you regret not having them all at our wedding?... Weddings?"
She pursed her lips and gave a one sided smile, "No."
"Why not?"
"Because if we had a big wedding with everyone invited we would have had to entertain them all for a few hours after, instead of what we actually did." Sara laughed, remembering how quick they were, both times, to get undressed and consummate their marriage. "Do you?"
"No." He replied quickly.
"Do you ever miss them?"
"Of course. I miss Jim and Nick and Catherine." He nodded, "Sometimes even Dave and Greg. Although Greg can be scary when he's mad at me."
He laughed, and pulled her hips closer to his own, pressing his hardening member into her soft thigh.
"Well, you kind of deserved it." Sara elbowed him playfully as she kissed him quickly and he nodded.
"You smell nice." He whispered deeply as he brought her fingers up to his lips to kiss them, "You smell like Paris."
She kissed his lips softly, but their mouths quickly sparked a passion, and he deepened his ministrations.
On a breath, he let out a chuckle, "Will you take a trip with me back to Sin City, Mrs. Grissom?"
His lips met hers again, deepening the kiss. Their tongues duelled for a moment before she sucked his lower lip into her mouth and gave him a gentle, inviting bite.
She had taken his name this time.
He said it wasn't necessary, but she had wanted to. Not for herself, but for him. She loved how he smiled to himself every time Madison would call her Mrs. Grissom, even though she insisted she call her Sara.
His lips released hers and made their way down her neck and she let out a husky, pleasurable moan before answering him, "As long as you take me out to that vegetarian Thai place on the strip for dinner one night, Dr. Grissom."
He laughed, his body next to her long form, as his lips met her collar bone his hands found the waist band of her underwear, and began to sneak them down her soft hips.
"Deal." He quirked, as his lips returned her hers.
I refuse to believe that they will be brought back to our screens with some kind of traumatic event, so if anything brings our couple back to Vegas, it will be a geek wedding.
Enjoy!!!
I own nothing.