Sara walked quickly out of the room and met Grissom before he reached them.  She stopped just short of him as he finished his approach.  Both were unsure of what to say.  "Sara, I, umm, well, we leave tomorrow night and I wanted to, well, you know, talk before we left."

            Sara gave him a small smile and nodded.  "I do too.  Umm, but let's talk somewhere else, too many interruptions here.  Why don't we go outside?" 

            They both turned, in an almost synchronized movement.  Grissom waited, however, to let Sara precede him.  Then followed as they went to the elevator and then out of the Hotel.  When they got to the lounge, they found it nearly deserted.  Sara nodded at the bartender.  He nodded back then motioned for one of the waitresses to move toward the bar where they could then be seen having a discussion.

            Finding a seat in the rear, Sara and Grissom sat down across the table from each other with Sara facing toward the main area of the lounge and with her back to the wall.  Grissom noticed her position and realized she was setting herself up for observation.  He took a look around the place and although it was decidedly deserted, he wasn't sure if this was an appropriate place for their discussion.  "Sara, wouldn't you prefer somewhere with less possibility of distractions or interruptions?"

            Sara smiled at him and said, "It's been handled, Grissom.  No one will bother us back here."  She pointed toward the bartender with the tilt of her head.  "Thomas, at the bar, has by now instructed all of the staff here to keep us secluded."

            Grissom glanced up to the bar and noticed that the bartender kept looking toward them.  Thomas looked back at Sara and gave her a quick wink.  'She seems to have everything covered.'  Grissom thought as he glanced back at her.  'She makes a great leader.'  He had noticed how through this past week that her relationship with the staff was very friendly and yet she still held her position with them.

            "Grissom, I need to explain something and I don't want you to take this the wrong way."  She looked down at the table for a moment then he reached over and took her hand in his.  Glancing back up, she went forward, "I want to go back to Vegas, but there is going to be a slight detour before I can."  She saw a glint of something in his eyes, maybe it was fear or just misunderstanding but whatever it was, she knew that she had to get the rest out quickly to help him understand.  "I have been asked to head up a special project with the CIA and it will take about a month maybe longer.  I'm not going back yet.  And I think that with everything else, it's the best thing.  I need to settle within myself what I am doing now -how I am going to go back to CSI and be accepted there again and how to still keep my other life secret.  And I am going to have another added responsibility with Joshua."

            Grissom tilted his head as if trying to understand what she was saying.  He understood and yet was wondering when all this had come about.  "What project? And what do you mean responsibility with Joshua?"

            Sara's mind raced with the possibilities of how to answer him but only one was possible.  "I can't tell you what the project is because it's a project of the CIA's.  But I can tell you that it won't be very long, just a month maybe a week or two more than that.  And I am the only one, right now, available to do this."

            Grissom nodded in understanding.  He knew it had to involve national security of course, since it was the CIA but still wished she could tell him.  "Okay, I can understand that but what about this thing with Joshua?"

            "Well, Jarod and I had a discussion just a little bit ago in regard to Joshua's future and it was decided that it would be best if he lives with me, permanently.  Not passed back and forth between the others."  Sara finally let it dawn on her that it meant that she would now be a 'mom'.  Her expression fell as she realized it and Grissom took note of that.

            "I take it that it was unexpected."  Grissom asked her as he squinted at her expression.

            "Well, I wanted it, sort of.  It was something I had thought about before but since Joshua asked and wanted, well, he needs some training and Jarod didn't really want him to be trained, just to have a normal childhood."  Sara looked at Grissom to make sure he understood her explanation because at some point she knew he would be involved in this.  "Right now, Joshua is a liability, to me, to Jarod and especially to himself.  Without the proper training he won't be able to defend himself against the Triumvirate if they ever find out where he is.  And I am the best qualified to complete his training."

            "Are you referring to combat type training?"  Grissom was a little worried that Sara would train a kid in combat.

            "In a way, yes, but mainly it would be self-defense.  He needs to be able to protect himself from being captured."  Sara looked around the lounge quickly, keeping an eye on the surroundings before continuing on with their conversation.  Delving into deeper matters, "Grissom we need to discuss what happened the last few nights, especially in regard to the DSAs and our night together."  She watched him flinch as she mentioned the DSAs.  'He didn't really think I was going to skip over them?'

            "Sara, please let me say, that I knew what I was doing would upset you if you found out.  And I am truly sorry."  Grissom rushed through his words as if on fire.  He wanted to say it before she came down on him.

            Sara sat for a moment and digested his words.  'Exactly how did he intend that apology?  Surely he didn't mean that he was sorry I found him with them?'  Sara's face scrunched up in a frown as she tried to decipher his meaning, causing Grissom to once again flinch.  She noticed.  "What exactly are you sorry for?"

            Grissom knew exactly what she was wondering.  He hadn't worded it as well as he had planned.  "I am sorry that I felt a need to watch them.  I am sorry that I hurt you.  I apologize for doing so behind your back."  He swallowed hard then met her eyes.  "I'm not sorry that I watched them."

            Sara slowly pulled her hand out of his grasp.  "Would you do it again then, Grissom?"

            "Not like that, no.  I would ask first.  But Sara, and this is no excuse for my behavior, but I am so confused by you.  I don't know who I am speaking to at any given moment.  I want so much to understand, to," His mouth twisted, as he was unsure of how to describe what he wanted.

            Sara huffed as she realized the word he was looking for.  "Dissect is the word, Grissom.  You want to dissect me."

            Grissom's eyes grew large and his eyebrows rose as he saw how that word hurt her.  "Sara, I'm sorry."

            "I have been 'dissected' most of my life, over half of my life.  I don't need someone else doing that to me, let alone my lover."  Her voice was strong but had lowered as she ended her statement.  She saw how he seemed to enfold himself at her description of him.  She whispered, "Isn't that what you are Grissom…My lover, my friend, my soul mate?"

            Grissom couldn't pull away from her eyes as he saw the depth of emotion hidden deep within.  "Am I?"  He choked on a whisper.

            Sara saw Jackson approaching the lounge out of the corner of her eye and she knew her time was up.  It wasn't in Jackson's nature to interrupt a conversation in seclusion, so she knew something had developed.  "Grissom, I'm sorry, but it looks like I am being called away."  She stood and so did he as he saw what she had seen.  Sara walked to his side of the table until she stood a mere few inches from him.  "You are."  She leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips then pulled away as Jackson made his approach.  She looked in his eyes and saw the understanding.

            "Sara, I'm sorry for intruding but we just received a communiqué.  There is a situation."  Jackson relayed this to her in his usual quiet manner.

            "What's happening Jackson?" she asked while holding onto Grissom's hand.

            Jackson looked from her to Grissom then back to her again.  "I, umm, I can't go into the details here but there is a car waiting to take you to the airport."

            Sara took in a deep breath.  'If they sent a plane… that meant only one thing.'  She looked down at her hand that was now clenching Grissom's and released it slowly as she looked back up at him.  "Well, this is good-bye, Grissom.  I'll call you as soon as I can and let you know when I'll be in Vegas."

            They stared at each other for several seconds before she turned and motioned for Jackson to precede her out of the lounge.  As she stepped out into the sunlight, she turned around to look back at Grissom, watching her leave.  Grissom had an awful feeling in his gut that it was going to be awhile before he saw her again.