A/N:  Finally, I have finished this chapter.  So many things happening in RL and online, a new forum created, the holiday season is upon us and 2 jobs to keep me busy.  Hope you all enjoy this and I thank everyone for their kind words.  And to anyone who thinks that Grissom and Sara are 'sleeping' together too much, wait for the next chapter.  All good things come to those who wait… patiently!

Thanks to Marlou and LSI for beta'ing and encouraging me to keep going on this fic.

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            Sara rose slowly from her pillowed sanctuary; the intense light from the newly uncovered windows helped in waking her senses.  A maidservant, moments before, had entered the room most likely intent on ensuring that Sara was still resting.  The look of surprise on her face upon seeing Sara's eyes open and staring at the flickering light of her candle sent a chuckle through Sara's throat.  Sara had a part to play and although her head still pounded, she felt she was up for the challenge.  She mumbled to the maid to pull back the drapes then asked her, "Would you be so kind as to fetch me something to eat and drink?"  The maid did as she was asked then left the room with a short curtsy.

            The maid returned with a tray covered with a white cloth.  She sat it upon Sara's lap, asking if there was anything else she would like.  Sara stared over at the window, still squinting from the glaring sunlight.  A thought struck her, "A bath.  I would love to be able to take a hot bath."  The maid again curtsied then left.

            She removed the cloth from the tray and breathed in the wonderful scent of the hot chocolate and warm buns.  She wasn't sure about what the other items were but she could definitely identify meat in at least one of them.  She would be satisfied with the buns and hot chocolate.  Her head was still pounding and she hoped she'd at least be able to keep those two items down.

            Before she was able to complete her repast, a knock at the door kept her from taking another sip of her hot chocolate.  "Come in," she called.

            A head peaked around the door and then entered the room fully.  The woman, possibly only seventeen or eighteen, entered and walked to the side of the bed.  She was a short but petite woman with a grace that bespoke elegance.  The thought crossed Sara's mind that this might be a relative of the Earl and Countess, possibly his sister or cousin.

            "Lily informed me that you had awakened.  I thought that since your husband is out of house that I would check in on you."

            Sara recalled the young woman from the night before and that she'd been the one to help her back into bed when she tried to search out Grissom.

            "Thank you, I appreciate your concern.  You of course know who I am.  May I ask who you are?  We've met twice without any sort of introduction."  Sara smiled kindly, hoping to get some sort of information.

            "I am Danielle.  My brother is Lord Wentworth.  You helped save my mother?"

            The question was not lost on Sara.  The girl was unsure of what she'd heard and wanted confirmation.  "Yes, I did.  It wasn't as much as you might think.  I only helped Gr… my husband with your mother."

            The room became quiet suddenly –neither knowing what else to say.  Sara stared at her tray for a moment and dropped one of the buns back on it, her appetite now slackening.  Danielle must have felt the same uneasiness and shuffled her feet.  Then just as quickly as it had quieted in the room, she became lively with conversation once again.  Rambling on about her brother and what she'd been told.  She came closer to Sara and retrieved the tray from her lap to place it on a dresser.

            Her ramblings soon came to an end.  She huffed and sent a strand of hair flying that had fallen over her face.  With her hands now placed firmly on her hips, she stated, "You were in want of a bath I believe.  I'll check to make sure that it is being prepared.  My brother mentioned that your belongings had been stolen.  I cannot say that I have anything that would fit you but perhaps my mother might have something.  Since you won't be going any further than this room for a while, perhaps just a night shift with a robe will do.  I'll return shortly."  And with that, she flounced in her turn and quit the room.

            Within a shorter amount of time than she'd expected, the bath was poured for her near the fire and the sister and maidservant helped her from the bed over to the bath.  She felt very self-conscious as the maid helped her out of her clothing and into the tub.  Having other persons undress her wasn't something she was used to, but she soon got over that as she sank into the steaming water.  They had scented it with herbs, mainly lavender and rose petals, and the scents wafted up to her nose, relaxing her senses.  She leaned back with a large smile on her face.  The maid left afterward with her clothing to have it washed; at least that's what she thought.

            Sara luxuriated for what seemed like ages in the scented water.  The sister chatted with her from a chair near the fire and it was then that Sara learned where Grissom had gone.  Her eyebrows rose slightly as she listened to the sister, Danielle, tell about how the Earl whisked the 'doctor' off to become properly attired.  Danielle giggled and it soon became infectious.  She couldn't help it.  "It was so much like me and my mother.  Off on another shopping spree.  I can only imagine what your poor husband is going through.  Men just do not appreciate a good venture in shopping."

            Sara couldn't suppress her laughter.  The thought of Grissom, being shuffled from store to store, was just too much to bear.  What was worse, Sara didn't think she would be able to stand it either.   Her laughter stopped when she considered that she'd be next in line, possibly the next day or the day after.  A groan escaped her lips at the prospect.

            "Are you all right?  I suppose you must be getting tired again."

            "I'm quite all right.  I was just thinking about shopping for myself.  I have to confess that shopping is not one of my favorite..." she searched for the word, "favorite past-times."

            Danielle appeared dumbstruck.  She probably didn't know anything else but shopping, visiting friends, tea parties and all the other things that ladies were expected to do in this time.  She reassured her with a quick smile, "Don't get me wrong.  I like shopping but it's not an all-consuming event for me."

            "I can't imagine what else you would find to do.  What is it that you do when your husband is not at home or is away with his work?"  Danielle inquired with great interest.

            Sara had to think hard about this.  What could she tell the young woman without sounding insane?  "Our marriage, I suppose you could say, is a partnership.  I work alongside my husband and we share the same interests."

            "Your marriage then is not arranged?"  Danielle asked incredulously.

            Sara blinked for a moment, not understanding.  Did Danielle think that… oh, the age.  That must be it.  Sara smiled.  She was glad Grissom hadn't been here to hear that.  The fact that they weren't married had to be taken into account.  But Danielle didn't know that.  To Sara, the age difference never mattered.  She loved Grissom even knowing how much older he was.  She paused, loved Grissom… that was it.  She did love him.  Perhaps not on his part, but she knew that on hers it was a love match.  Grissom was attracted to her, that she knew.  It was proven back at the Inn.  Whether he felt the same about her was another story.

            Seeing that the sister was eyeing her in wonder, Sara responded to her question finally.  "No, it wasn't arranged.  You would call what we have, a love-match.  I've been in love with him since the day we met."

            She could see her answer was not what the girl had expected.  But she had no explanation for it.  It was what it was.

            The water grew cooler and she decided it was time for her to get out.  The maid was called back and helped Sara to rinse off, and then she stepped out of the tub with a bit of shakiness in her legs.  She was tired again.  Not sleepy, but somewhat tired.  The maid gave her a cloth to dry off with and then she donned the new gown that the sister had brought in for her.  Instead of going straight back to bed, she sat in a chair near the fire, letting the warmth seep into her limbs.  To straighten her hair she would need a hairdryer but she wouldn't be finding one of those here.  She'd have to let it just remain in its haphazard curls.  With the cloth, she pressed her hair within it and allowed the heat from the fireplace to help in drying it.  It was actually quite relaxing.

            Danielle sat in the other chair opposite her and they waited for the maid to return with more hot chocolate and some pastries.  After another hour of chatting and nibbling on their mid-day snack, Sara retreated back to the bed and fell asleep almost as quickly as her head hit the pillow.

            Later in the afternoon, she woke again, her head much clearer this time around.  She reached for the bell pull that the sister had pointed out to her and tugged on it once.  Shortly after, the maid entered the room.  She was so glad to be able to empty her bladder and then crawled back into bed.  She wasn't as tired as before and asked the maid if she would be able to fetch something for her to read while she remained resting.  It was no sooner asked then the maid quit the room and returned with a book.  She was informed that it was much favored by Miss Wentworth.  It was of course the time's version of a romance novel.  Sara stifled a giggle as the maid left the room.

            She spent some time reading but soon found her mind drifting off in wonder about how Grissom was faring.  She contemplated the turn in their relationship, not that it had furthered too considerably but still, it had shown some progression.  She stared at the window, wondering what the weather was like.  It appeared warm but she knew England could be quite deceiving.  It wasn't until she heard the scrape of metal and stone that she became aware of someone else in the room.  She shifted and turned her head to see a gentleman near the hearth.  Her heart thumped at first in something close to fear until she realized the figure was familiar.  It was Grissom and he looked, well, he looked absolutely breathtaking.  She exhaled and the sound alerted Grissom to her.  She couldn't help the smile that played up into her eyes.  He looked fabulous.  The midnight blue of his coat contrasting the almost pure white cravat and shirt beneath it gave his blue eyes even more depth.  His trousers were of a camel color with his boots being a slightly darker shade.  "Wow, you clean up nice, Mr. Grissom."

            His eyes twinkled and he walked to her side of the bed.  "I could say the same of you."  Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he reached out to touch her hair.  "I take it you had a bath.  You're not cold are you?"

            "No."  Her breath caught at his touch.  "I'm just right."

            "Good.  I'm exhausted," he deadpanned.

            Sara giggled and Grissom's eyebrows rose in question.  "We figured you would be.  Danielle, the Earl's sister, kept me company today.  She told me where you'd gone."  She looked him up and down, her eyes taking in everything about him.  "You take my breath away." Her voice sounded overly husky to her ears.  She wondered where that had come from.

            Grissom's eyes roamed over her body, what wasn't covered that is.  "You know, I walked in and saw you sitting here in the sunlight and I found it very hard to breathe too."

            His confession caused a momentary silence between them.  The acknowledgement of the other's effects on each of them was quite telling.  He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead, holding it longer than was necessary.  All the while, Sara held her breath, anticipation running wild within her being.  While his lips pressed yet another kiss to her cheek, he mumbled, "I'm glad you're feeling better."

            Just when she thought he was going to press the next kiss to her lips, he pulled away and then stood.  "I, umm, well, I'm exhausted.  I was thinking that…"

            "Do you want to come to bed?"

            They looked at each other with quiet acquiescence.   He began to undo his cravat then the buttons of his cuffs.  Sara in turn, rearranged the pillows and then sank down further into the bed.  Grissom walked to the other side of the bed, and then pulled off his boots.  The rest of his clothing quickly came off save for his newly acquired underclothes.  Furtive glances were shared between the two during this activity, each holding their thoughts to themselves.

            Sara could feel herself becoming aroused but she wasn't sure that now was the time to try and further their relationship.  For one, she considered that she quickly tired still.  And she certainly didn't want to fall asleep on Grissom while making love.  She bit her bottom lip as she thought deeply about him as he crawled under the covers next to her.  Her fears were quieted though when he pulled her close and whispered, "Just sleep, Sara."

            CRADLED IN WARMTH, Sara stared aimlessly into the flames from the fireplace, wondering briefly if Grissom was aware that he was holding her so close that there was no space left between them.  Well, she was too warm to care.  Their relationship was making gains every moment and she wasn't about to ruin it by over-analyzing it.  She had wanted this for too long and now that it was within reach, she would fight with everything she had to keep it –to keep him.

            She sighed contentedly, thanking whatever force that had sent them to this time together.  This could be a very romantic interlude; it all depended on how they handled it.  The attire and the atmosphere would set the mood.  She'd just have to make sure that she used them accordingly.  A smile crept up her face as it dawned on her what she was thinking, planning for Grissom.  Seduction was the name of the game and she was up for playing –and winning.  The arm around her suddenly tensed and she didn't move lest he sense she was awake.  She wanted to know what he'd do knowing how he held her tightly, her back pressed firmly against his chest.  Her answer was in his arm tightening and pulling her closer.  It wasn't what she expected but she welcomed it with open arms.

            "Are you awake?" he whispered.

            "Hmm, yes."  She fought the urge to turn over and face him.  The best thing for her to do now was to let him think he was taking the lead.  All the while, she'd be guiding him to her way of thinking.

            "How long have you been awake?"  He sounded a bit groggy still.

            "A little while… not long.  What time is it?" she asked without thought.

            Grissom chuckled.  "I could tell you what my watch says but I don't think it would be quite accurate."

            Ok, that was a dumb question, she thought.  Of course he wouldn't know.  "I didn't mean that exactly… just, do you have an idea of how long we've slept?"

            "No, but I could find out."

            Grissom began to maneuver away from her and without thinking she stopped him hastily.  "No."

            Sara knew her actions and wording came across to him as desperate, but she couldn't help it, not with the closeness they had been sharing and the warmth she'd enjoyed.  Turning over to face him, his body almost resting on top of hers, she softly said, "Don't go."

            His hand came up to brush her hair off of her face and he throatily asked, "Are you sure?  Are you feeling all right?"

            She couldn't voice what she really wanted.  To play this right, he'd have to be the one to begin this.  It was a game and she knew how to play.

            Her eyes fell from his, straying to his lips then traveled back up to his eyes, only to see the ripples of desire she'd felt reflected back at her.  She waited with abated breath, wanting him to close the distance, to fulfill her dream, and with the slightest touch of his fingers on her cheek did she have any indication that he would actually take action.  The bed creaked as his body began to press into hers.  The weight was not unwelcome, it was necessary to her very being.  And when his lips finally grazed hers, she exhaled on a sigh, returning the kiss, deepening it as her hands snuck around to his back then up to the back of his head.  Her fingers tangled in his curls and she found herself pulling him closer.

            This time she wasn't afraid she'd fall asleep.