Disclaimer - see chapter one
Chapter Six
Neither of them had mentioned the song for the rest of the evening.
It wasn't like Grissom to be so open about his feelings, so Catherine had thought, perhaps, it hadn't meant as much as she had read into it. Not wanting to make a fool of herself, she waited for him to introduce the subject.
He knew it had touched her, her face showed that, but he still wasn't sure if she shared his feelings. He had made his move, and now he was waiting for her to respond.
They had enjoyed the rest of the evening, but their minds were constantly thinking about the other, wondering and waiting. They laughed genuinely, but it masked their fears. They danced, but not with each other, they couldn't risk getting lost in the music and the moment and doing something stupid. They drank sensibly, knowing that they needed to be in control of their actions.
In the noise and excitement of the party it was relatively easy to hide the tension, but in the walk up to their rooms, the silence didn't conceal anything.
They had left the party still laughing at the image of Grissom's uncle's striptease, undertaken during his much demanded encore performance. Seeing a sixty year old man remove a bra, from his own chest, and wave it around above his head had caused Catherine to start giggling uncontrollably. Her laughter had been contagious, and despite his embarrassment, Grissom had joined her in her hysterics.
This had kept them occupied for the first flights of stairs, but as the exhilaration wore off, they awkwardly fell into silence, neither knowing what to say or do. With three floors, and, therefore, six flights of stairs, to go, they decided it would be better to take the elevator.
They waited, impatiently, in front of the doors, looking around, anxiously, smiling politely whenever their eyes met, then redirecting their attention quickly.
Finally the elevator arrived. Grissom courteously indicated for Catherine to step inside first. She obeyed, with a nod of appreciation, and, took the opportunity of having her back to him, to close her eyes and take deep breaths to calm herself down.
Grissom watched her longingly as she walked in front of him, then stepped in after her. Fighting his desire to gaze at her forever, he turned and pressed for the fourth floor.
During the slight delay before the doors closed, a shout came from towards the stairs.
"Gil!! Hold the elevator!"
Startled from his thoughts of Catherine, Grissom quickly did as instructed, and waited while his Uncle ran towards the elevator and joined them inside.
Immediately Catherine had to repress the giggling that was bubbling within her and yearning to be set free. Standing behind the two men, she lifted her hand to her mouth to try to hide her smile.
"Fifth floor, please," he said, re-arranging the bags of women's clothing he carried with him.
Catherine almost lost control when the bra fell out of its bag and onto the floor of the elevator. Hearing her sharp intake of breath, Grissom turned to her and tried to reprimand her, but his glare was lost behind his smile.
The older man bent down to pick up the object, but as he did so another of his bags tipped up and his thong fell out.
Catherine lost her battle, and her laughter broke free, accompanied by streams of tears. She tried to calm down and apologise, but the words wouldn't come out. However, soon she found she had no reason to try because both men were also laughing.
"The things they make me do," the uncle chuckled.
"It was an excellent performance," Catherine said, eventually finding her voice again, but still giggling.
"Bet it wasn't as good as one of yours," he joked, turning to wink at her.
Grissom's laughter ceased and he glared at his uncle seriously. "Bob!"
"She knows I was joking!" he defended.
Grissom turned to Catherine and smiled apologetically. She smiled back to let him know it was okay. She wasn't offended. But she was surprised.
The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and the two CSIs stepped out, saying their goodbyes to Bob. After the doors had closed they began walking towards their rooms.
"I'm sorry about that," Grissom said as they stopped outside Catherine's door.
"It's fine. I'm flattered, actually," she grinned, comfortingly. "I'm just - " She stopped and shook her head. "Doesn't matter."
"What?" Grissom asked, concerned.
"Nothing."
"Cath!" he persisted.
She gave in. "Well, I'm just surprised he knew, that's all."
"They know all about you," Grissom responded, suddenly feeling uninhibited.
Catherine stumbled for a second, trying to read the meaning of that comment and of the look in Grissom's eyes as he had said it. Then she tried to continue.
"Right.. But, I . I didn't think you would want them to know I used to be a stripper," she laughed.
"I'm not ashamed of you, Catherine," he said, simply.
She silently wished he would say more. She had no idea how to respond. He seemed to be saying what she hoped he would say but she was convincing herself that she was misunderstanding.
An awkward silence enveloped them again, but this time they couldn't look away. Their eyes had found each other and wouldn't let go. It created a force between them, pulling them together. They could both feel it, and they both tried, in vain, to resist it. Subconsciously their bodies moved closer, breathing and heart rates increasing as the space between them decreased. They told themselves they could be making a big mistake, but didn't listen. It felt too right to be wrong. Their hands met and fingers intertwined. The contact sent jolts of electricity through both their bodies. They revelled in the feeling as they removed the last few centimetres of separation. Letting their bodies make contact in as many places as possible they leaned toward each other. Their hands separated, reluctantly, comforted by the fact that they were only moving to strengthen the embrace. Their arms wrapped around the other's body, pulling it closer and assuring that they wouldn't let go. As their faces moved together, their eyes checked for uncertainty and hesitation, but didn't find any. As their lips brushed, their eyes remained open needing to be sure there was no doubt. The answer came in the deepening of the kiss. As their eyes closed, neither knew who had initiated it, but both knew they had wanted to.
It was a gentle, tender kiss that clearly expressed how both felt. Their lips caressed each other thoroughly, tasting and enjoying. They needed air but they didn't want it to end. With the greatest difficulty they pulled apart, locking their eyes again as they gasped for breath. Simultaneously they smiled and then laughed with happiness. And as soon as they had enough oxygen they fell together again.
When they next came up for air, Catherine found that she had been backed against the wall for support. The situation was certainly making her knees go weak and her legs were trembling, she imagined it must have been having the same effect on him.
Having sufficiently replenished his air supply, Grissom leant in to continue where they left off, but Catherine stopped him, placing her fingers to his lips.
"We can't stay out here all night doing this," she said, with a smile that assured him that she wished they could.
"No," he agreed. "But we don't have to stop yet," he smiled as his lips met hers once more. He felt her sigh against him and she melted into his touch.
Each time they were apart they considered saying goodnight and going their separate ways. And each time they kissed again, unable to bear the thought of not being together.
Eventually they realised they had to control themselves and start thinking logically. They would see each other the next day. They would only be apart for a few hours.
"Gil, I really should go in," Catherine said, trembling as he placed light kisses along her neck. "Your Mom'll be wanting to get back to her room."
"You're right," he said, taking her lips to his one last time.
"It's just a few hours," she smiled, lovingly.
"I know," he replied.
"Yeah, I think I was telling myself," she laughed. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yeah."
Their eyes locked again and they could feel the force building up. They longed to give into it, to see where it would take them.
Catherine shook herself free. "Right. I really have to go now, or else I don't think I will." She took hold of his hand and raised it to her lips, kissing it softly.
"That's it? My hand?" Grissom teased.
"To kiss you anywhere else would be too dangerous," she grinned, seductively. "Goodnight, Gil."
"Goodnight, Catherine."
Catherine felt for the lock and inserted her room key without turning round. Then she slowly backed into the room, prolonging that moment for as long as possible before, hesitantly closing the door.
TBC.
Chapter Six
Neither of them had mentioned the song for the rest of the evening.
It wasn't like Grissom to be so open about his feelings, so Catherine had thought, perhaps, it hadn't meant as much as she had read into it. Not wanting to make a fool of herself, she waited for him to introduce the subject.
He knew it had touched her, her face showed that, but he still wasn't sure if she shared his feelings. He had made his move, and now he was waiting for her to respond.
They had enjoyed the rest of the evening, but their minds were constantly thinking about the other, wondering and waiting. They laughed genuinely, but it masked their fears. They danced, but not with each other, they couldn't risk getting lost in the music and the moment and doing something stupid. They drank sensibly, knowing that they needed to be in control of their actions.
In the noise and excitement of the party it was relatively easy to hide the tension, but in the walk up to their rooms, the silence didn't conceal anything.
They had left the party still laughing at the image of Grissom's uncle's striptease, undertaken during his much demanded encore performance. Seeing a sixty year old man remove a bra, from his own chest, and wave it around above his head had caused Catherine to start giggling uncontrollably. Her laughter had been contagious, and despite his embarrassment, Grissom had joined her in her hysterics.
This had kept them occupied for the first flights of stairs, but as the exhilaration wore off, they awkwardly fell into silence, neither knowing what to say or do. With three floors, and, therefore, six flights of stairs, to go, they decided it would be better to take the elevator.
They waited, impatiently, in front of the doors, looking around, anxiously, smiling politely whenever their eyes met, then redirecting their attention quickly.
Finally the elevator arrived. Grissom courteously indicated for Catherine to step inside first. She obeyed, with a nod of appreciation, and, took the opportunity of having her back to him, to close her eyes and take deep breaths to calm herself down.
Grissom watched her longingly as she walked in front of him, then stepped in after her. Fighting his desire to gaze at her forever, he turned and pressed for the fourth floor.
During the slight delay before the doors closed, a shout came from towards the stairs.
"Gil!! Hold the elevator!"
Startled from his thoughts of Catherine, Grissom quickly did as instructed, and waited while his Uncle ran towards the elevator and joined them inside.
Immediately Catherine had to repress the giggling that was bubbling within her and yearning to be set free. Standing behind the two men, she lifted her hand to her mouth to try to hide her smile.
"Fifth floor, please," he said, re-arranging the bags of women's clothing he carried with him.
Catherine almost lost control when the bra fell out of its bag and onto the floor of the elevator. Hearing her sharp intake of breath, Grissom turned to her and tried to reprimand her, but his glare was lost behind his smile.
The older man bent down to pick up the object, but as he did so another of his bags tipped up and his thong fell out.
Catherine lost her battle, and her laughter broke free, accompanied by streams of tears. She tried to calm down and apologise, but the words wouldn't come out. However, soon she found she had no reason to try because both men were also laughing.
"The things they make me do," the uncle chuckled.
"It was an excellent performance," Catherine said, eventually finding her voice again, but still giggling.
"Bet it wasn't as good as one of yours," he joked, turning to wink at her.
Grissom's laughter ceased and he glared at his uncle seriously. "Bob!"
"She knows I was joking!" he defended.
Grissom turned to Catherine and smiled apologetically. She smiled back to let him know it was okay. She wasn't offended. But she was surprised.
The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and the two CSIs stepped out, saying their goodbyes to Bob. After the doors had closed they began walking towards their rooms.
"I'm sorry about that," Grissom said as they stopped outside Catherine's door.
"It's fine. I'm flattered, actually," she grinned, comfortingly. "I'm just - " She stopped and shook her head. "Doesn't matter."
"What?" Grissom asked, concerned.
"Nothing."
"Cath!" he persisted.
She gave in. "Well, I'm just surprised he knew, that's all."
"They know all about you," Grissom responded, suddenly feeling uninhibited.
Catherine stumbled for a second, trying to read the meaning of that comment and of the look in Grissom's eyes as he had said it. Then she tried to continue.
"Right.. But, I . I didn't think you would want them to know I used to be a stripper," she laughed.
"I'm not ashamed of you, Catherine," he said, simply.
She silently wished he would say more. She had no idea how to respond. He seemed to be saying what she hoped he would say but she was convincing herself that she was misunderstanding.
An awkward silence enveloped them again, but this time they couldn't look away. Their eyes had found each other and wouldn't let go. It created a force between them, pulling them together. They could both feel it, and they both tried, in vain, to resist it. Subconsciously their bodies moved closer, breathing and heart rates increasing as the space between them decreased. They told themselves they could be making a big mistake, but didn't listen. It felt too right to be wrong. Their hands met and fingers intertwined. The contact sent jolts of electricity through both their bodies. They revelled in the feeling as they removed the last few centimetres of separation. Letting their bodies make contact in as many places as possible they leaned toward each other. Their hands separated, reluctantly, comforted by the fact that they were only moving to strengthen the embrace. Their arms wrapped around the other's body, pulling it closer and assuring that they wouldn't let go. As their faces moved together, their eyes checked for uncertainty and hesitation, but didn't find any. As their lips brushed, their eyes remained open needing to be sure there was no doubt. The answer came in the deepening of the kiss. As their eyes closed, neither knew who had initiated it, but both knew they had wanted to.
It was a gentle, tender kiss that clearly expressed how both felt. Their lips caressed each other thoroughly, tasting and enjoying. They needed air but they didn't want it to end. With the greatest difficulty they pulled apart, locking their eyes again as they gasped for breath. Simultaneously they smiled and then laughed with happiness. And as soon as they had enough oxygen they fell together again.
When they next came up for air, Catherine found that she had been backed against the wall for support. The situation was certainly making her knees go weak and her legs were trembling, she imagined it must have been having the same effect on him.
Having sufficiently replenished his air supply, Grissom leant in to continue where they left off, but Catherine stopped him, placing her fingers to his lips.
"We can't stay out here all night doing this," she said, with a smile that assured him that she wished they could.
"No," he agreed. "But we don't have to stop yet," he smiled as his lips met hers once more. He felt her sigh against him and she melted into his touch.
Each time they were apart they considered saying goodnight and going their separate ways. And each time they kissed again, unable to bear the thought of not being together.
Eventually they realised they had to control themselves and start thinking logically. They would see each other the next day. They would only be apart for a few hours.
"Gil, I really should go in," Catherine said, trembling as he placed light kisses along her neck. "Your Mom'll be wanting to get back to her room."
"You're right," he said, taking her lips to his one last time.
"It's just a few hours," she smiled, lovingly.
"I know," he replied.
"Yeah, I think I was telling myself," she laughed. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yeah."
Their eyes locked again and they could feel the force building up. They longed to give into it, to see where it would take them.
Catherine shook herself free. "Right. I really have to go now, or else I don't think I will." She took hold of his hand and raised it to her lips, kissing it softly.
"That's it? My hand?" Grissom teased.
"To kiss you anywhere else would be too dangerous," she grinned, seductively. "Goodnight, Gil."
"Goodnight, Catherine."
Catherine felt for the lock and inserted her room key without turning round. Then she slowly backed into the room, prolonging that moment for as long as possible before, hesitantly closing the door.
TBC.