Chapter 13
[Spoilers: ???]
Sara walked through the large open double doors that led into the hotel's lounge. The tables were small like coffee tables and the chairs were large and overstuffed. Some single and many comfy couch's for those who wanted to get closer. The room was almost empty as it was still early and those who had drank too much the night before at the party, were still hiding from the sun and nursing a hefty headache.
Slowly strolling down the centre of the room, she looked around for Grissom and the doctor. They had agreed to meet in the lounge because they had suspected it would be quiet and neither Grissom or Sara wanted to be cooped up in a small room with a could-be killer.
After falling asleep beside the pool late last night, Sara had woken and patiently waited for Grissom to leave their room so she could get showered and changed without an uncomfortable confrontation.
Now she stood, watching him from afar, talking to doctor Jenkins. -I guess I should just act natural- She sighed and made her way towards the two men sitting, talking and drinking coffee.
Grissom looked up quickly when he felt her presence. -God, she looks so tired-
"Morning Sara." Jenkins greeted and stood to pour her some coffee.
Sara sat down beside Grissom hesitantly and took the coffee from the doctor. "Thank you." She sipped at the hot brew and relished the heat. -I shouldn't have stayed outside all night. It was freezing- She told herself as she enjoyed her first cup of coffee.
Grissom leaned into her slightly as Jenkins went to the bar to get more coffee. "You ok?"
"Sure." She nodded and finished her coffee with one last gulp. "How are we going to do this?" She asked him a moment later.
-What is she talking about? Last night or this morning?- He asked himself as he stared at her.
Jenkins sat down with a smile and placed a fresh pot of coffee on the table. "Here we go. Did you enjoy the party?"
Sara smiled and nodded. "It wasn't my kind of thing, but I did enjoy it."
Grissom sat back and decided to get on with this before someone noticed something was wrong between them. "We don't crowds, but the party was very nice."
-I wonder which bit he liked most?- Sara smirked a little, but it faded when she raised her second cup of coffee to her mouth. -We still need to talk-
Jenkins looked between the two with a gentle smile and realised that both were nervous. He sat forward and clasped his hands together. "Alright then, lets start from the beginning."
"The beginning?" Sara inquired as she swallowed hard.
"The good doctor would like to know how we met and why we waited so long to get married."
She turned her head to stare at her husband. -He's not serious!-
-Play along Sara, come on, you know the background Jim gave us- He coaxed her with his eyes as he reached for his coffee.
"Well," She began, looking back at Jenkins with a small smile. "You could say we first met at work. I suppose."
Grissom chuckled good naturedly. "It's so long ago now, I can't even remember exactly how we met."
Sara cracked a smile and nodded in agreement. -Oh, I remember every detail-
"Ok," Jenkins laughed lightly and helped himself to one of the pastry's that sat on a small plate. "Why are you here today?"
"What do you mean?" Sara asked, puzzled.
"Well, the day we met, both of you were adamant that you didn't need to talk to anyone like myself." Jenkins observed the glances Grissom and Sara shared and sensed a heightened tension in the air.
Grissom finally spoke and cleared his throat. "We, um..."
Sara sighed. -Might as well make use of this situation- "We had a disagreement."
Grissom's head snapped up and whipped round to stare at her. -What is she doing!?-
"And?" Jenkins asked.
"And," Sara continued, avoiding eye contact with Grissom at all costs. "I didn't like what he was saying."
Jenkins shifted in his seat and returned his food to his plate. "Sara, do you want to elaborate on this disagreement you had with your husband?"
-God I hate it when they do this. Start with the questions, make you look a fool while you spill you guts to the group- Sara huffed inwardly, but shrugged and sat up, clasping her hands together in a nervous gesture.
"He was keeping a secret from me and he didn't like it when I told him I already knew." She sighed and dropped her head slightly.
Grissom stared at her intently. -She's not going to tell him, is she? No, she can't. She has to know I don't want anyone knowing.-
"I guess the fact that I knew, upset him because he decided all of a sudden that we couldn't be together."
Jenkins eyes darted to Grissom's shock stricken face and had to question himself whether Sara was telling a lie to get back at her husband or telling the truth to get her husband to reconsider.
"I get the feeling that Gil is having an affair and you found out?" Jenkins ventured, but shrank back when both sets, brown and blue, eyes shot him down the second his mouth uttered the words. 'or not.'
Grissom shook his head. "No. Nothing like that."
This time, Sara looked at him and watched him struggle to interact to this personal invasion on his life.
"I would never do that to Sara," He paused and turned his head to look at her. "but I don't think this would work out."
"Why not?" She asked suddenly.
He shrugged and dropped his eyes from hers to settle on her hands in her lap. "Sara, I'm... I haven't got anything to give you. I'm not young anymore and my hearing won't get any better-"
"So?" She interrupted and scooted closer to him. "I don't care about all that. All I want is you," She looked at him carefully before slowly taking his right hand in hers. "Hearing or not. It's you I want, not anyone else."
Grissom stared into her eyes and saw that she meant every word of it, but before he said anything further, he suddenly realised that they weren't alone and his head whipped round to catch Jenkins surprised face.
-How was this suppose to help the case anyway?- Grissom asked himself.
Sara looked down and sighed as she back away from him, sliding her hand out from his slowly. -I guess that's that. He'd close off for sure now. It was something to actually get him to talk, but to talk in front of a stranger was something else-
Jenkins decided it was time for a break, so he made a move to stand and checked his watch at the same time. "I'll be back in ten minutes so you two can talk briefly on what you've discussed so far." He stepped away hesitantly and was surprised that they looked even more uncomfortable left alone than they did with his presence.
Sara sighed heavily and pushed herself backwards until she was practically hiding in the corner of the couch. She sniffled lightly, but it wasn't from the rush of emotions surging through her, it was because of the damn chill in the room.
-Did it just get cold in here or is it me?- She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself as casually as she could without letting Grissom notice.
Several minutes floated by and it occurred to both that neither were going to speak first. Sara had decided that he was going to make the first move this time. She was sick of leading the way only to be let down. Grissom knew he was going to have to make the next move, he just didn't know how and when.
-I want her, no mistake about it, but I can't let her throw her life away with me. She'd leave as soon as a someone new and exciting came into her life- He argued, surprisingly emotional.
How was he supposed to compete against someone he hadn't even met, or maybe he has and he didn't know it. She'd leave and he'd be alone.
-What if she's telling the truth and all she wants is me?- He reasoned, pushing the bad thoughts away to think about the 'what ifs', even if he didn't believe in them.
Grissom looked at her then, looked at her with more intensity than he had allowed himself in a long time. He couldn't believe he thought that, and he mentally kicked himself. -How could I even think that? Sara's never had a reason to lie to me, especially something as important as this-
Sara shivered again and glanced at the other end of the couch with a sad defeated look in her eyes as she caught his stare. -What!?- She mentally screamed. -Never seen someone with a broken heart before!?-
He noticed it then. She was cold. -Damnit, I knew I should have looked for last night-
Sitting up, he sighed. "Sara-" He paused, scared to even talk to her without making things worse.
-Great, he can't even bare to talk to me anymore- She nodded silently. -I should have listened to myself from the beginning. He'd never change-
Grissom caught doctor Jenkins eye and waved him over. "I'm sorry about this Ian."
Sara's head snapped up.
"Is something wrong?" Jenkins inquired.
Grissom reached out as he moved closer to Sara and took her hand in his. "Sara's not well. I'm going to take her upstairs to get some rest."
"I'm fine." Sara spoke softly, although she was deeply confused by the sudden concern being directed at her.
Jenkins smiled softly. "That's ok. Will you be joining Sean and Allison this evening?"
Grissom nodded and stood, gently pulling Sara up with him. "We will. We can, perhaps, carry on this discussion tomorrow sometime, or maybe this evening?"
"Of course. "Jenkins offered his hand. "Please think about what you have both said this morning. Don't think that one session will help, sometimes it can be more. I might be able to help."
Taking his advise into advisement, Grissom escorted his wife from the room.
~*^*TBC*^*~
[Spoilers: ???]
Sara walked through the large open double doors that led into the hotel's lounge. The tables were small like coffee tables and the chairs were large and overstuffed. Some single and many comfy couch's for those who wanted to get closer. The room was almost empty as it was still early and those who had drank too much the night before at the party, were still hiding from the sun and nursing a hefty headache.
Slowly strolling down the centre of the room, she looked around for Grissom and the doctor. They had agreed to meet in the lounge because they had suspected it would be quiet and neither Grissom or Sara wanted to be cooped up in a small room with a could-be killer.
After falling asleep beside the pool late last night, Sara had woken and patiently waited for Grissom to leave their room so she could get showered and changed without an uncomfortable confrontation.
Now she stood, watching him from afar, talking to doctor Jenkins. -I guess I should just act natural- She sighed and made her way towards the two men sitting, talking and drinking coffee.
Grissom looked up quickly when he felt her presence. -God, she looks so tired-
"Morning Sara." Jenkins greeted and stood to pour her some coffee.
Sara sat down beside Grissom hesitantly and took the coffee from the doctor. "Thank you." She sipped at the hot brew and relished the heat. -I shouldn't have stayed outside all night. It was freezing- She told herself as she enjoyed her first cup of coffee.
Grissom leaned into her slightly as Jenkins went to the bar to get more coffee. "You ok?"
"Sure." She nodded and finished her coffee with one last gulp. "How are we going to do this?" She asked him a moment later.
-What is she talking about? Last night or this morning?- He asked himself as he stared at her.
Jenkins sat down with a smile and placed a fresh pot of coffee on the table. "Here we go. Did you enjoy the party?"
Sara smiled and nodded. "It wasn't my kind of thing, but I did enjoy it."
Grissom sat back and decided to get on with this before someone noticed something was wrong between them. "We don't crowds, but the party was very nice."
-I wonder which bit he liked most?- Sara smirked a little, but it faded when she raised her second cup of coffee to her mouth. -We still need to talk-
Jenkins looked between the two with a gentle smile and realised that both were nervous. He sat forward and clasped his hands together. "Alright then, lets start from the beginning."
"The beginning?" Sara inquired as she swallowed hard.
"The good doctor would like to know how we met and why we waited so long to get married."
She turned her head to stare at her husband. -He's not serious!-
-Play along Sara, come on, you know the background Jim gave us- He coaxed her with his eyes as he reached for his coffee.
"Well," She began, looking back at Jenkins with a small smile. "You could say we first met at work. I suppose."
Grissom chuckled good naturedly. "It's so long ago now, I can't even remember exactly how we met."
Sara cracked a smile and nodded in agreement. -Oh, I remember every detail-
"Ok," Jenkins laughed lightly and helped himself to one of the pastry's that sat on a small plate. "Why are you here today?"
"What do you mean?" Sara asked, puzzled.
"Well, the day we met, both of you were adamant that you didn't need to talk to anyone like myself." Jenkins observed the glances Grissom and Sara shared and sensed a heightened tension in the air.
Grissom finally spoke and cleared his throat. "We, um..."
Sara sighed. -Might as well make use of this situation- "We had a disagreement."
Grissom's head snapped up and whipped round to stare at her. -What is she doing!?-
"And?" Jenkins asked.
"And," Sara continued, avoiding eye contact with Grissom at all costs. "I didn't like what he was saying."
Jenkins shifted in his seat and returned his food to his plate. "Sara, do you want to elaborate on this disagreement you had with your husband?"
-God I hate it when they do this. Start with the questions, make you look a fool while you spill you guts to the group- Sara huffed inwardly, but shrugged and sat up, clasping her hands together in a nervous gesture.
"He was keeping a secret from me and he didn't like it when I told him I already knew." She sighed and dropped her head slightly.
Grissom stared at her intently. -She's not going to tell him, is she? No, she can't. She has to know I don't want anyone knowing.-
"I guess the fact that I knew, upset him because he decided all of a sudden that we couldn't be together."
Jenkins eyes darted to Grissom's shock stricken face and had to question himself whether Sara was telling a lie to get back at her husband or telling the truth to get her husband to reconsider.
"I get the feeling that Gil is having an affair and you found out?" Jenkins ventured, but shrank back when both sets, brown and blue, eyes shot him down the second his mouth uttered the words. 'or not.'
Grissom shook his head. "No. Nothing like that."
This time, Sara looked at him and watched him struggle to interact to this personal invasion on his life.
"I would never do that to Sara," He paused and turned his head to look at her. "but I don't think this would work out."
"Why not?" She asked suddenly.
He shrugged and dropped his eyes from hers to settle on her hands in her lap. "Sara, I'm... I haven't got anything to give you. I'm not young anymore and my hearing won't get any better-"
"So?" She interrupted and scooted closer to him. "I don't care about all that. All I want is you," She looked at him carefully before slowly taking his right hand in hers. "Hearing or not. It's you I want, not anyone else."
Grissom stared into her eyes and saw that she meant every word of it, but before he said anything further, he suddenly realised that they weren't alone and his head whipped round to catch Jenkins surprised face.
-How was this suppose to help the case anyway?- Grissom asked himself.
Sara looked down and sighed as she back away from him, sliding her hand out from his slowly. -I guess that's that. He'd close off for sure now. It was something to actually get him to talk, but to talk in front of a stranger was something else-
Jenkins decided it was time for a break, so he made a move to stand and checked his watch at the same time. "I'll be back in ten minutes so you two can talk briefly on what you've discussed so far." He stepped away hesitantly and was surprised that they looked even more uncomfortable left alone than they did with his presence.
Sara sighed heavily and pushed herself backwards until she was practically hiding in the corner of the couch. She sniffled lightly, but it wasn't from the rush of emotions surging through her, it was because of the damn chill in the room.
-Did it just get cold in here or is it me?- She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself as casually as she could without letting Grissom notice.
Several minutes floated by and it occurred to both that neither were going to speak first. Sara had decided that he was going to make the first move this time. She was sick of leading the way only to be let down. Grissom knew he was going to have to make the next move, he just didn't know how and when.
-I want her, no mistake about it, but I can't let her throw her life away with me. She'd leave as soon as a someone new and exciting came into her life- He argued, surprisingly emotional.
How was he supposed to compete against someone he hadn't even met, or maybe he has and he didn't know it. She'd leave and he'd be alone.
-What if she's telling the truth and all she wants is me?- He reasoned, pushing the bad thoughts away to think about the 'what ifs', even if he didn't believe in them.
Grissom looked at her then, looked at her with more intensity than he had allowed himself in a long time. He couldn't believe he thought that, and he mentally kicked himself. -How could I even think that? Sara's never had a reason to lie to me, especially something as important as this-
Sara shivered again and glanced at the other end of the couch with a sad defeated look in her eyes as she caught his stare. -What!?- She mentally screamed. -Never seen someone with a broken heart before!?-
He noticed it then. She was cold. -Damnit, I knew I should have looked for last night-
Sitting up, he sighed. "Sara-" He paused, scared to even talk to her without making things worse.
-Great, he can't even bare to talk to me anymore- She nodded silently. -I should have listened to myself from the beginning. He'd never change-
Grissom caught doctor Jenkins eye and waved him over. "I'm sorry about this Ian."
Sara's head snapped up.
"Is something wrong?" Jenkins inquired.
Grissom reached out as he moved closer to Sara and took her hand in his. "Sara's not well. I'm going to take her upstairs to get some rest."
"I'm fine." Sara spoke softly, although she was deeply confused by the sudden concern being directed at her.
Jenkins smiled softly. "That's ok. Will you be joining Sean and Allison this evening?"
Grissom nodded and stood, gently pulling Sara up with him. "We will. We can, perhaps, carry on this discussion tomorrow sometime, or maybe this evening?"
"Of course. "Jenkins offered his hand. "Please think about what you have both said this morning. Don't think that one session will help, sometimes it can be more. I might be able to help."
Taking his advise into advisement, Grissom escorted his wife from the room.
~*^*TBC*^*~