********Author's notes: Here is chapter 3 of our story. Hope that you are
continuing to enjoy reading it, as much as we are loving writing it!
Please do review. They make Xant and I smile, and encourage us to write
faster, and post often! Thanks!**********
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Chapter 3: Stuck only once, for a moment or two
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Sara hung the flashing underwear back on the rack and sighed. Nick maybe, Greg definitely but Grissom? Never! She finished work early, after wrapping up her case and had been combing the strip ever since, searching for the perfect gift. She hadn't found anything that seemed right; it was either entirely predictable or way too impersonal. She was getting nowhere fast and her patience was quickly wearing thin.
As her weary feet carried her towards the door, she heard a cheerful voice call out to her. "Hey Sar, wait up." She turned to see Greg loping towards her, one of his goofy grins fixed on his face.
"Hey, watcha doin'?" he asked.
"Well," replied Sara, icily. "In a few minutes I'll be examining the crime scene in this store."
Greg looked around the store, a puzzled look on his face. "What crime scene?" he asked.
"Yours," she stated her eyes boring into his face.
"Whoa Sar, take a chill pill," he said, gesturing with his hands for her to calm down.
"Don't Sar me, Greg," she said. "How could you even think about pulling a stunt like you did earlier in the break room?"
Suddenly Greg looked very pleased with himself. "Oh come on Sara, are you trying to tell me that you haven't been dying to kiss Grissom?" he smirked.
"What" demanded Sara. "How could you even..."
"Don't waste your breath Sara," Greg interrupted. "You'd have to be a complete idiot not to sense the sexual tension between you two."
Sara's eyes grew wider by the minute, her mouth opening and closing like a guppy.
"I'm not the only one that's noticed either," continued Greg. "In fact, I'm surprised there isn't some sort of office pool on the two of you," he stopped, seeming to contemplate that idea for a while.
Sara just stood at stared at him, her head a whirlpool of thoughts. Yeah sure, she had wanted to kiss Grissom but not like that, she had always imagined something slightly more romantic than being forced to kiss in the break room by Greg. What was more worrying to her at this moment however, was Greg's comment that people had noticed the tension between Grissom and herself. She shook her head, trying to regather herself.
"Anyway Sar," began Greg again. "The way I see it, you owe me." Before Sara could form anything coherent, Greg winked at her and disappeared out the door, leaving her looking like a stunned mullet.
She gradually came to her senses and remembering her current task, followed the path taken by Greg. She found herself wandering through the revolving doors of the next store in line, a bookstore. 'Hmmm,' she thought, "Maybe I'll have some luck in here.'
She roved up and down the isles of books, her fingers lightly touching the spines and her thoughts soon began to drift. Greg's words played over and over in her mind. Was it that obvious to everyone else? She had always thought that the attraction was there, but after the rejection she suffered on the night of the lab explosion, she had come to the realization that it was just wishful thinking on her part. Now, after hearing Greg's admission, she wasn't so sure.
She thought back to the kiss under the mistletoe. She had never expected there to be such electricity between them with such a simple kiss. Of course, was anything that simple when it came to Gil Grissom?
Her thoughts were broken when her hand came to stop on a book. She picked it up, and turned it over it in her hands. Reading a few pages, she smiled to herself. This would be perfect! She closed it and headed to the register, proud of her find.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Grissom was pacing in his office. He didn't even notice that Warrick was standing in his doorway until he spoke.
"Grissom, if you aren't careful you'll wear a hole in the floor if you keep going at that pace!" Warrick chuckled as sat down in one of the chairs by Grissom's desk.
Grissom looked at the young man, and an idea flashed across his face. He walked over to the door leading to his office and shut it before taking a seat behind his desk. He looked thoughtfully at Warrick, deciding how to best phrase his question.
"Warrick.. do you mind.if I.uh.asked you for some advise?" Grissom asked, a little unsure of himself.
"You, want my advice?" Warrick said, his eyebrows rising.
"Yes I do," he said, taking off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose in typical Grissom-like fashion. "It's this secret Santa thing, I just don't know what to get."
Warrick cut him off, "Don't tell me Grissom! Just tell me if the person is male or female. Although if you're asking for my help, I'm going to take a wild guess that it is female," he smiled.
"Very perceptive of you Warrick, ever think about becoming a CSI?" Grissom enquired sarcastically.
"Hey man, you want my help or not?" Warrick asked, raising his eyebrows once more.
At Grissom's nod, he continued, " Look Griss, I would say that you can't go wrong with either flowers or chocolate, but in this case I don't think it would be the best option. Flowers are sweet, but they don't last too long, and with your taste in chocolates," Warrick said as he eyeballed some of the chocolate grasshoppers, "I'm going to discourage that as well."
"Warrick, I want to know what to get them, not what I shouldn't get them!" Grissom was becoming impatient.
"Ok, well get something that you know she will like, but with a Grissom twist," Warrick shrugged casually.
"A Grissom twist?" repeated Grissom, clearly confused.
"Yeah you know, something that is meaningful to you but also lets her know that you got it with her in mind," Warrick explained.
Grissom tilted his head, and began to think.
"Well I'm heading out, but I will see you at Cath's party tomorrow." Warrick waved as he stepped out of Grissom's office, leaving his boss deep in thought.
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Catherine and Greg were laughing about something when Warrick strolled into the break room, a huge grin on his face.
"Well, you certainly look pleased with yourself," Catherine commented as Warrick joined them at the table.
"Actually, you're the one who's gonna be pleased," said Warrick, still smiling. "I just completed another part of your little plan."
Catherine suddenly became very attentive. "Okay, spill Warrick."
He chuckled at her intensity. "Well, oh devious one," he said dramatically. "I just stumbled upon the incredibly socially inept Dr. Grissom, quickly wearing a hole in his carpet. So of course I stopped to see what the problem was."
"Yeah and?" prompted Catherine.
"Jeez Catherine, let the man speak will you," interjected Greg. Catherine ignored the interruption and raised her eyebrows in Warrick's direction.
"It seems that our illustrious leader is having problems with gift ideas," smirked Warrick.
"So did you give the poor guy a clue?" asked Greg.
"Yeah, well I pretended like I didn't know who he was buying a gift for," he said, grinning at Catherine. "And just told him to get something that was meaningful to him but would also show that he'd bought the gift with the person in mind."
"Nice job," said Catherine approvingly. "It's all falling nicely into place."
"Yeah," said Greg. "I was just telling Catherine that I saw Sara out shopping for her gift. She was a little pissed with me about the mistletoe stunt."
Warrick laughed. "I'm glad I'm not in your shoes bro. Catherine told me about what happened, I still can't believe you got them to do that," he said, shaking his head.
"Just call me Dr. Loooove," crooned Greg.
Catherine interrupted their playful banter. "Okay, so as far as we know, they are both coming to the party. Nick said that he had spoken with Sara and she had picked out a costume and Greg saw her shopping for a gift," she said, ticking off the points on her fingers. "We also know that Grissom is pondering what to buy as a gift. Anyone know if he's got a costume yet?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at the two men.
"I caught a bit of the conversation between Sara and Griss before the mistletoe event," said Greg. "It sounded as though he had been out looking for one."
"Great," said Catherine, smiling. "That just leaves the final phase of 'Project Strangelove'."
"Which is?" asked Warrick and Greg in unison.
She looked at each of them in turn, her smile widening. "Let's party boys!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Grissom drove slowly but deliberately, guiding his Tahoe to a small store a couple of blocks away from the main Vegas strip. After his conversation with Warrick, he had spent the rest of the night trying to think of a gift with a 'Grissom twist'. Finally, he had thought of something perfect, something that would be meaningful to him and, he hoped, be meaningful to Sara. Parking his Tahoe, he got out and entered the store, a tiny bell announcing his arrival.
Inside the store was an array of finely handcrafted jewelry, each piece exquisite in its own right. The owner was an old family friend and he smiled as he approached Grissom.
"Gil, so nice to see you! How are you? How's your mother?" he asked, holding out his hand.
"Hello Stan," he replied, shaking the smaller man's hand. "My mother is fine thank you. She's still keeping busy with her art gallery," Grissom smiled and began to look in the glass cases.
"I don't suppose you're here to pick out an engagement ring are you?" the old man's eyes hopeful.
"Not yet," Grissom said, with a thoughtful expression.
"Well then, what can I do for you?"
"Well I have to be a 'secret Santa' for this girl." Grissom began to explain.
"Ahhhh, secret Santa?" said Stan knowingly. "It wouldn't happen to be the little lady at work that you've told me about would it..Sara?"
"Actually yes it is. I need to find something special for her.something nice.. but ah.. not too nice you know?"
"Yeah I understand, you want her to feel special, but not something that says, 'I want to marry you, have babies and grow old with you.' Right?"
"Yeah, I'm not quite ready for that," admitted Grissom. "Yet," he added with a smile at Stan. "I had an idea about a gift but I'm not sure you'd be able to do it on such short notice, I need it by tomorrow.
"Well Gil, let's go talk out back and I'll see what I can do," he said with a wink.
Grissom gave Stan a half smile and followed him out to the rear of the store. 'Maybe this won't be so bad after all,' he thought.
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Chapter 3: Stuck only once, for a moment or two
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sara hung the flashing underwear back on the rack and sighed. Nick maybe, Greg definitely but Grissom? Never! She finished work early, after wrapping up her case and had been combing the strip ever since, searching for the perfect gift. She hadn't found anything that seemed right; it was either entirely predictable or way too impersonal. She was getting nowhere fast and her patience was quickly wearing thin.
As her weary feet carried her towards the door, she heard a cheerful voice call out to her. "Hey Sar, wait up." She turned to see Greg loping towards her, one of his goofy grins fixed on his face.
"Hey, watcha doin'?" he asked.
"Well," replied Sara, icily. "In a few minutes I'll be examining the crime scene in this store."
Greg looked around the store, a puzzled look on his face. "What crime scene?" he asked.
"Yours," she stated her eyes boring into his face.
"Whoa Sar, take a chill pill," he said, gesturing with his hands for her to calm down.
"Don't Sar me, Greg," she said. "How could you even think about pulling a stunt like you did earlier in the break room?"
Suddenly Greg looked very pleased with himself. "Oh come on Sara, are you trying to tell me that you haven't been dying to kiss Grissom?" he smirked.
"What" demanded Sara. "How could you even..."
"Don't waste your breath Sara," Greg interrupted. "You'd have to be a complete idiot not to sense the sexual tension between you two."
Sara's eyes grew wider by the minute, her mouth opening and closing like a guppy.
"I'm not the only one that's noticed either," continued Greg. "In fact, I'm surprised there isn't some sort of office pool on the two of you," he stopped, seeming to contemplate that idea for a while.
Sara just stood at stared at him, her head a whirlpool of thoughts. Yeah sure, she had wanted to kiss Grissom but not like that, she had always imagined something slightly more romantic than being forced to kiss in the break room by Greg. What was more worrying to her at this moment however, was Greg's comment that people had noticed the tension between Grissom and herself. She shook her head, trying to regather herself.
"Anyway Sar," began Greg again. "The way I see it, you owe me." Before Sara could form anything coherent, Greg winked at her and disappeared out the door, leaving her looking like a stunned mullet.
She gradually came to her senses and remembering her current task, followed the path taken by Greg. She found herself wandering through the revolving doors of the next store in line, a bookstore. 'Hmmm,' she thought, "Maybe I'll have some luck in here.'
She roved up and down the isles of books, her fingers lightly touching the spines and her thoughts soon began to drift. Greg's words played over and over in her mind. Was it that obvious to everyone else? She had always thought that the attraction was there, but after the rejection she suffered on the night of the lab explosion, she had come to the realization that it was just wishful thinking on her part. Now, after hearing Greg's admission, she wasn't so sure.
She thought back to the kiss under the mistletoe. She had never expected there to be such electricity between them with such a simple kiss. Of course, was anything that simple when it came to Gil Grissom?
Her thoughts were broken when her hand came to stop on a book. She picked it up, and turned it over it in her hands. Reading a few pages, she smiled to herself. This would be perfect! She closed it and headed to the register, proud of her find.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Grissom was pacing in his office. He didn't even notice that Warrick was standing in his doorway until he spoke.
"Grissom, if you aren't careful you'll wear a hole in the floor if you keep going at that pace!" Warrick chuckled as sat down in one of the chairs by Grissom's desk.
Grissom looked at the young man, and an idea flashed across his face. He walked over to the door leading to his office and shut it before taking a seat behind his desk. He looked thoughtfully at Warrick, deciding how to best phrase his question.
"Warrick.. do you mind.if I.uh.asked you for some advise?" Grissom asked, a little unsure of himself.
"You, want my advice?" Warrick said, his eyebrows rising.
"Yes I do," he said, taking off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose in typical Grissom-like fashion. "It's this secret Santa thing, I just don't know what to get."
Warrick cut him off, "Don't tell me Grissom! Just tell me if the person is male or female. Although if you're asking for my help, I'm going to take a wild guess that it is female," he smiled.
"Very perceptive of you Warrick, ever think about becoming a CSI?" Grissom enquired sarcastically.
"Hey man, you want my help or not?" Warrick asked, raising his eyebrows once more.
At Grissom's nod, he continued, " Look Griss, I would say that you can't go wrong with either flowers or chocolate, but in this case I don't think it would be the best option. Flowers are sweet, but they don't last too long, and with your taste in chocolates," Warrick said as he eyeballed some of the chocolate grasshoppers, "I'm going to discourage that as well."
"Warrick, I want to know what to get them, not what I shouldn't get them!" Grissom was becoming impatient.
"Ok, well get something that you know she will like, but with a Grissom twist," Warrick shrugged casually.
"A Grissom twist?" repeated Grissom, clearly confused.
"Yeah you know, something that is meaningful to you but also lets her know that you got it with her in mind," Warrick explained.
Grissom tilted his head, and began to think.
"Well I'm heading out, but I will see you at Cath's party tomorrow." Warrick waved as he stepped out of Grissom's office, leaving his boss deep in thought.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Catherine and Greg were laughing about something when Warrick strolled into the break room, a huge grin on his face.
"Well, you certainly look pleased with yourself," Catherine commented as Warrick joined them at the table.
"Actually, you're the one who's gonna be pleased," said Warrick, still smiling. "I just completed another part of your little plan."
Catherine suddenly became very attentive. "Okay, spill Warrick."
He chuckled at her intensity. "Well, oh devious one," he said dramatically. "I just stumbled upon the incredibly socially inept Dr. Grissom, quickly wearing a hole in his carpet. So of course I stopped to see what the problem was."
"Yeah and?" prompted Catherine.
"Jeez Catherine, let the man speak will you," interjected Greg. Catherine ignored the interruption and raised her eyebrows in Warrick's direction.
"It seems that our illustrious leader is having problems with gift ideas," smirked Warrick.
"So did you give the poor guy a clue?" asked Greg.
"Yeah, well I pretended like I didn't know who he was buying a gift for," he said, grinning at Catherine. "And just told him to get something that was meaningful to him but would also show that he'd bought the gift with the person in mind."
"Nice job," said Catherine approvingly. "It's all falling nicely into place."
"Yeah," said Greg. "I was just telling Catherine that I saw Sara out shopping for her gift. She was a little pissed with me about the mistletoe stunt."
Warrick laughed. "I'm glad I'm not in your shoes bro. Catherine told me about what happened, I still can't believe you got them to do that," he said, shaking his head.
"Just call me Dr. Loooove," crooned Greg.
Catherine interrupted their playful banter. "Okay, so as far as we know, they are both coming to the party. Nick said that he had spoken with Sara and she had picked out a costume and Greg saw her shopping for a gift," she said, ticking off the points on her fingers. "We also know that Grissom is pondering what to buy as a gift. Anyone know if he's got a costume yet?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at the two men.
"I caught a bit of the conversation between Sara and Griss before the mistletoe event," said Greg. "It sounded as though he had been out looking for one."
"Great," said Catherine, smiling. "That just leaves the final phase of 'Project Strangelove'."
"Which is?" asked Warrick and Greg in unison.
She looked at each of them in turn, her smile widening. "Let's party boys!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Grissom drove slowly but deliberately, guiding his Tahoe to a small store a couple of blocks away from the main Vegas strip. After his conversation with Warrick, he had spent the rest of the night trying to think of a gift with a 'Grissom twist'. Finally, he had thought of something perfect, something that would be meaningful to him and, he hoped, be meaningful to Sara. Parking his Tahoe, he got out and entered the store, a tiny bell announcing his arrival.
Inside the store was an array of finely handcrafted jewelry, each piece exquisite in its own right. The owner was an old family friend and he smiled as he approached Grissom.
"Gil, so nice to see you! How are you? How's your mother?" he asked, holding out his hand.
"Hello Stan," he replied, shaking the smaller man's hand. "My mother is fine thank you. She's still keeping busy with her art gallery," Grissom smiled and began to look in the glass cases.
"I don't suppose you're here to pick out an engagement ring are you?" the old man's eyes hopeful.
"Not yet," Grissom said, with a thoughtful expression.
"Well then, what can I do for you?"
"Well I have to be a 'secret Santa' for this girl." Grissom began to explain.
"Ahhhh, secret Santa?" said Stan knowingly. "It wouldn't happen to be the little lady at work that you've told me about would it..Sara?"
"Actually yes it is. I need to find something special for her.something nice.. but ah.. not too nice you know?"
"Yeah I understand, you want her to feel special, but not something that says, 'I want to marry you, have babies and grow old with you.' Right?"
"Yeah, I'm not quite ready for that," admitted Grissom. "Yet," he added with a smile at Stan. "I had an idea about a gift but I'm not sure you'd be able to do it on such short notice, I need it by tomorrow.
"Well Gil, let's go talk out back and I'll see what I can do," he said with a wink.
Grissom gave Stan a half smile and followed him out to the rear of the store. 'Maybe this won't be so bad after all,' he thought.
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