Disclaimers: Not mine.

Spoilers: Inside The Box

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A MOMENT IN LIFE – (Chapter 5)

"Hey Griss?"

Grissom looked up, ready to scowl at whoever just interrupted his train of thought. He hated when people bothered him when he was trying to do his paperwork.

"Before you yell at me!" Nick held up his hands in a defensive stance, "It's 7:00. You told me to come knock on your door when it was 7?"

"Oh right..." Grissom glanced at his watch. How did 5 hours pass without him knowing? Making up for his preparation to yell at Nick, he smiled, "Thanks Nick."

"No problem." The younger CSI lingered for a moment longer in the doorway as if he was going to ask Grissom where he was headed to, but knowing better, Nick waved goodbye and headed back to the conference room where he and Sara had been working on their latest case.

Relieved that Nick hadn't asked where he was going, Grissom grabbed his jacket and raced out the door before anyone else's curiousity could get the best of them. He wanted to get to Catherine's as soon as possible. If it wasn't to prove to her that he could keep a promise, than at least to prove to himself that his work didn't engulf his entire life.

He got to Catherine's within 10 minutes, possibly a record best. Smiling to himself, he rang the doorbell and a few minutes later, was greeted with a half-dressed Catherine. His eyes widened and his gaze involuntarily lowered down her body. When he realized he had been staring, he cleared his throat and quickly met her gaze again, "H-hi...did I catch you at a bad time?"

She was grinning, satisfied to discover Grissom wasn't as different from other men as he would've liked her to believe. "I just took a shower. I wasn't expecting you..." She said rather apologetically, a little guilty she had underestimated Grissom's ability to pull himself away from his work.

Grissom shook his head to indicate it was alright she had thought this and walked inside when she stepped aside for him. "I cheated."

"What?" Catherine closed the door and looked at him, not understanding what he meant.

"I had Nick be my alarm clock." He smiled sheepishly at the confession.

She looked at him with new wonder. Did it mean *that* much to him to be here? She hadn't taken his offer for dinner seriously, knowing once he returned to the lab, he would be too engrossed in his work to remember. His confession surprised her but before she could question him about it, someone else took his attention.

"Uncle Grissom!" Lindsey came squealing down the stairs and jumped right into Grissom's open arms.

Chuckling, he hugged the little girl, "Hey Lindsey!"

"Are we gonna go get ice cream now?" Children never forgot promises, not even ones made by dazed hospital patients on pain killers.

"No." Grissom made a deliberate pause before continuing, "We're gonna go to dinner first. Then we'll go for ice cream."

"Yeah! Let's go!" Lindsey pulled Grissom by the hand.

"Whoa...we gotta wait for your mom." Grissom turned to Catherine, looking at her robe with a smirk, "As much as the restaurant manager might appreciate your choice of clothing, I think it would best if you chose something a little less...revealing."

Catherine gave him a look but laughed as she headed upstairs, "I'll be right down."

Grissom watched happily as Catherine disappeared into her room. Sighing, he hoped that all this courage he had gotten from proving whatever it was he came to prove would not disappear on him. He needed every ounce of it if he was going to say the things he had to say tonight.

"Uncle Grissom?"

He looked down as he felt a tug on his hand, "Yes Lindsey?"

"Your ear must've been hurting you a lot before you went to the hospital."

"Why do you say that?"

She shrugged and said with the innocence only a child could possess, "Cuz you seem a lot happier now."

*To Be Continued*