Chapter 90

Sara turned over slowly, trying not to wake the man sleeping beside her, and smiled. She had an urge to touch him, but it was so close to their waking time that she knew he'd wake up if she did. Instead, she slipped out from between the sheets and pulled on an undershirt, then padded toward the kitchen.

Silence was not the strong point of the canine bouncing around the kitchen, however, and Newton yipped excitedly when she heard footsteps approaching. "Shh," Sara admonished her. "Don't wake daddy up." In the month that had passed since Newton had come home, Sara and Grissom had both picked up the rather pathetic habit of referring to themselves as the dog's parents. At least they hadn't let it slip to anyone else, Sara reflected. Now that would be embarrassing.

"Ok, ok, calm down," she whispered to the puppy that now stood thigh-high on her. Squatting down, she stroked the dog's silky ears and smiled a little sheepishly. She loved waking up to this, though she had never thought of herself as exactly Miss Domesticity before. A wonderful man in her bed, a wonderful dog to greet her when she left that bed; what more could a woman ask for?

Well, if you were Newton, you could ask – loudly – for breakfast. The puppy chose discretion, though, and she let out a low bark, as though she knew not to wake Grissom, who could be a bear when pulled out of bed by someone other than Sara.

"You little brat," Sara chuckled, then kissed the top of the dog's head and stood up to get the bag of dog food off of the top of the fridge. A wave of dizziness hit her suddenly and she quickly dropped the arms she had been reaching with back to her sides, then squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again.

Newton had moved toward her and was now standing at Sara's knee, looking at her with what Sara would swear was a worried expression on her doggie face. "I'm ok, sweetie," she assured the dog, then shook her head to try to clear it. This only made the dizziness worse, though, and Sara took a firm hold on the edge of the counter to keep herself upright.

Newton whined and pushed under Sara's free hand. Her back was right at the level of Sara's dangling hand, so Sara put a small amount of her weight on that hand and leaned against Newton while she sank back to her earlier position on the floor. "Good girl," she whispered to the dog, and wondered what the hell was going on. Had she forgotten to eat again?

A quick mental inventory revealed that no, she and Grissom had gone out to dinner last night and she had definitely eaten. "Maybe I just stood up too fast," she told the dog reassuringly. Newton whined again and pushed her nose against Sara's chest. With a sigh, Sara leaned back against the cabinet and closed her eyes again. The dog echoed her sigh and sat down, resting her head against Sara's shoulder. Sara opened her eyes for a moment and surveyed their position with the vague thought that this would probably make a good calendar photo. The energy to go get Grissom so he could take a picture wasn't in her, though, and so she just closed her eyes again.

"Sara? Sara!" The combination of Grissom's voice in her ear and his hands shaking her shoulders woke Sara up fifteen minutes later. She blinked, then looked sleepily at him.

"What the hell is going on, Sara? You fell asleep on the kitchen floor?"

She managed a small smile. "Guess so. I got dizzy so I sat down with the dog . . . must've gone back to sleep. How long've I been out?"

"I don't know; it's 5:30 now. What time did you get up?"

"Oh," Sara told him brightly, "I've only been asleep for about fifteen minutes then, it's fine."

Grissom looked at her incredulously. "You passed out on the kitchen floor with the dog in your lap and you're telling me it's fine because you were only out for fifteen minutes? Are you nuts?" He closed his mouth, suddenly aware that he was nearly yelling at her and that Sara's eyes were still only vaguely focused on him. "Tell me the truth, Sidle. Are you really ok?"

Sara leaned her head back against the wood behind her. "I think so. I just got dizzy, so I sat down. I feel fine now, no dizziness, I think I probably just stood up too fast when I went to get the dog food." She blinked slowly, then opened her eyes and focused on him. "I'm fine, Gil, I promise." She held out a hand expectantly, silently ordering him to help her up.

Grissom did so, still looking at her suspiciously. "Did you forget to eat again?"

Sara laughed. "That was my first thought too. But no, remember we went out to dinner and I stuffed myself?"

"Oh." He looked thoughtful and kept a firm grip on her hand, leading her back to the bedroom. "You're not hung over again, are you? Been hitting the whiskey while I was asleep?"

"Very funny, bugman. For the five-hundredth time, I'm fine, I'm not drunk, and I remembered to eat." She tugged her hand out of his and smiled in apology. "I'm gonna get in the shower. If you hear a thump, it means I passed out . . ."

"Sara!"

". . . and if you don't, then I'm fine." She cupped his cheek and kissed him gently. "And you won't be hearing a thump, so relax."

Grissom frowned deeply, but let her go. "Don't lock the door!" he called after her. "If you do fall, I want to be able to get to you!" He was answered by her gentle laughter as she shut the bathroom door, but there was no sound of the lock clicking. "Good girl," he muttered, more to himself than to her, then headed for the kitchen to check on his other girl.