The nearer I got to Vegas, the more nervous I became. Nick had told me he had spoken to Warrick on the phone. Warrick wanted to know if we were going to come into work that night. I said we might as well, but I wasn't really sure I wanted to. Don't get me wrong. I love my job, I don't think I could see myself doing anything else. Ok, the thought of becoming Nick's love slave and surfing partner did cross my mind, but there's not any money in that, especially if you'd like to stay in Malibu.

Nick had told Warrick about us. I'm not sure exactly what he told him, but he was aware that our status had changed from being just friends. I wondered what Warrick thought about that. Somehow, I was pretty sure that Warrick would approve. I wondered what Grissom would think. I chuckled at that thought. I didn't really care what Grissom thought. He could be completely against the idea and I wouldn't care. I had never bothered to return his phone calls. He had called me a couple more times, leaving similar messages each time about how much the lab needed me. What a load of crap. I knew the lab needed me. What killed me was that the man couldn't admit when he needed someone. I was done with it. I had reached my saturation point for Grissom. It would not matter to me what he said at this point. I was done feeling anything for him outside of pity. I wasn't even sure I wanted to feel that.

I thought about the last few days and smiled. Who else but Nick Stokes would take off without notice at work and drive four hours just to make sure I was ok. I felt valued by Nick. I was so glad that he had come. I would probably still be wallowing to myself on the beach if he hadn't. I certainly wouldn't have gone surfing, and I probably wouldn't have gone to Disneyland. I laughed. Nick and I had had so much fun, and I couldn't wait to get the pictures developed so I could see how silly we looked in those damn mouse ears. I smiled as I remembered our first kiss. His lips were surprisingly soft. I loved the taste of him.

I picked up a Red Vine and smiled as I took a bite from it. Nick liked how my lips tasted. I giggled. I never had someone tell me that before. Nick and I were just so comfortable with each other that we just made sense. Little things like the flavor of Red Vines on my lips made us happy. I couldn't think of anyone else in my life that I would have had more fun with in California. I was really glad he came to see me.

I felt the need to stretch. I called Nick's cell phone.

He answered it on the first ring. "Hey, Sara."

"Nicky. Let's pull over." I suggested. I had seen a sign for rest area not too far ahead.

"Sounds good to me." I could tell he was smiling. "Hey, have you been eating Red Vines again?"

I giggled. "I'm eating some right now."

He chuckled. "Good."

We pulled into the rest area and got out of our Tahoes. I grabbed his hand and we took a walk around the parking lot. "I think we're about an hour outside of Vegas."

Nick pulled me into a hug. "Yeah, I know. Do you want to go home first, or do you want to go straight to the lab. We should be getting into Vegas a little before shift starts."

I let out a deep breath. "Let's go to the lab. If everything is going to hit the fan, I'd really like to just get it over with."

"Ok." He pulled me closer and kissed the top of my head.

I leaned back and looked at him. "Nicky? I'm really glad you came out to California. I needed you." I smiled. "I still need you."

He grinned at me. "Hmm. That's a coincidence. I need you too."

I chuckled. I looked at Nick curiously. "What did Warrick say?"

Nick raised an eyebrow. "About what?"

"About us?" I replied. Apparently, they had talked about more than just us, I'd have to ask later.

Nick smiled at me. "He said he'd kill me if I hurt you."

I laughed. One of those deep throaty laughs. "I'll have to thank him." My laughter subsided. "What else did he say?"

Nick let out a sigh. "He talked to Grissom."

I raised an eyebrow and let Nick continue.

"He told him he couldn't jerk you around and treat you like crap. He also told him that we all knew about his hearing and that he should have told us, that we all feel like he didn't trust us." Nick explained.

I let out a sigh, "Did Grissom say anything?"

Nick shook his head. "No."

"That's Grissom." I rested my head on Nick's chest. A smile broke out over my face. "Hey, Nick?"

"Yeah, Sara?" He replied.

I chuckled. "I really don't know what I ever saw in him." I leaned back and looked into his eyes. "You and I just fit."

Nick grinned at me. "Yeah, we do, don't we?" He leaned down and kissed me, smiling into the kiss.

I giggled against his lips as I thought about the taste of Red Vines on my lips.

"You taste good, Sara." Nick chuckled.

"Would you say that if I ate tofu?" I teased.

Nick raised an eyebrow, "Oh, I don't know. Tofu might be pushing it." He grinned at me teasingly. "Of course, since it would be your lips, I think I might put up with just about anything."

I giggled and glanced at Nick's lips. "Hmm, really?"

Nick chuckled and nodded leaning down and kissing me again. As we broke the kiss Nick looked at me with a serious expression. "As much as I hate to say this, we need to go."

I let out a sigh. "I know. Time to face the music."

Nick kissed the top of my head before he let me out of his embrace. "Yeah, but we'll face it together."

We walked back to our Tahoes and headed back to Vegas.