A/N: I hope to continue cranking out chapters in a timely fashion, but I want to warn everyone that I start my new teaching job tomorrow (Monday) morning, so things may be slow for a few days as I get acclimated. Thanks for understanding, and as always, thanks for the reviews! I loved the feedback for the last chapter!
Warrick and Greg looked completely grossed-out by the mental images Grissom's comment had put in their heads, but Nick simply shot back, "Well, you must be pretty hot in the old sack, judging by the way Sara comes limping in here most nights."
Grissom blushed furiously, Warrick and Greg groaned, Catherine doubled over laughing and Sara pulled off the sweatshirt she had tied around her waist and chucked it at Nick. "What'd I say?" he drawled, playing dumb. Then he broke into a grin and stepped forward, swinging Sara up into a Texas-sized bear hug. "I'm so happy for you, Baby Sis," he whispered into her ear. "You make him treat you right, ok?"
He set her gently down and she smiled up at him. "He always does, Nicky," she replied in a low voice. "Thanks."
Clearing her throat, she got down to business. "Catherine, will you be my wedding planner?"
She grinned exuberantly. "You bet!"
"Good. You want to come over to our place tomorrow morning for breakfast?"
"I'll be there."
----------
When Grissom and Sara arrived back at the townhouse, he realized that the adrenaline levels were still way too high for sleep to be in either of their immediate futures. They were chatting animatedly about paint, furniture, honeymoon destinations, and wedding colors. As soon as the door was open, Grissom pulled Sara inside and swept her into a passionate kiss. "God, I can't believe you said yes," he whispered in a husky voice.
"I can't believe you bought me a house," she giggled. Then, becoming serious, she murmured, "Of course I said yes. I wouldn't spend my life with anyone else, Griss. You're the only man who can make me happy."
He pulled away and looked at her carefully. "I have something for you, but you might think it's a little cheesy," he said.
She gave a small smile and said, "Gee, a huge house and a huge ring in one night. What else could you possibly give me? I'm curious. What is it?"
"Come with me."
He led her into his office, where he opened a drawer and pulled out a CD case. Handing it to her, he held his breath as she looked at the cover. It consisted of a collage of pictures of the two of them, with a title overlaid—Songs for Sara. Her breath caught in her throat as she turned the case over and read the list of songs.
Comfortably Numb, Pink Floyd
Facades, Philip Glass
Brown Eyed Girl, Van Morrison
Pretty Woman, Roy Orbison
Accidentally in Love, Counting Crows
Iris, Goo Goo Dolls
The Reason, Hoobastank
Come Away With Me, Norah Jones
She Will Be Loved, Maroon 5
Moments Like This, Alison Krauss
Hey Leonardo, Blessid Union of Souls
Truly Madly Deeply, Savage Garden
Call and Answer, Barenaked Ladies
Who Needs Sleep? Barenaked Ladies
Sara looked up at Grissom, her eyes filled with tears. "I didn't even know you knew how to make CDs," was the only thing that came out of her mouth.
He chuckled. "I didn't. I had to…ask Greg for help," he winced.
Her eyes reflected quiet surprise that he would enlist Greg's help for something so utterly…personal. As if reading her thoughts, Grissom answered, "He didn't see the entire list of songs. I just had him help me with the first couple, then I took over from there. He did help with the cover, though…is that a problem?"
Her attention was entirely focused on the precious gift in her hands. "Of course not," she breathed.
He moved in to explain. "The songs are…well, they sort of represent the progression of our relationship. "Comfortably Numb" is a personal favorite of mine, but it's also the perfect representation of my life before you. I used work as an anesthetic against everything. I was numb, and I was totally comfortable with my life as it was. Then there's "Facades," which of course, has personal significance because of how I saw you dancing," he almost whispered, "but I think the song itself is important because I spent so much time building up this huge façade around you. The next two songs are just fun songs that I think describe you perfectly, my brown-eyed girl," he said tenderly, caressing her face. "And somewhere along the way, I fell in love—totally by accident. I never intended it to happen. It just did," he said matter-of-factly
"Then, the next song—I first heard "Iris" about three years ago, and I just sat in my car shaking. All I could see was your face." He shrugged lightly. "Since then, I've never heard the song that it hasn't had the same effect on me."
"Then the other day I heard the song "The Reason" in the lab, and I nearly knocked Greg down trying to get to the CD to find out what is was. I mean, Sara," his eyes were full of intensity, "it could have been written about me. Open the CD—I included the lyrics on the inside of the cover."
Sara opened the case and quickly scanned the inside cover. She had heard the song, but had never really paid attention to the lyrics. She read slowly,
I'm not a perfect person. There's many things I wish I didn't do.
But I'll continue learning. I never meant to do those things to you.
And so I have to say before I go, that I just want you to know—
I've found a reason for me to change who I used to be,
A reason to start over new, and the reason is you.
I'm sorry that I hurt you. It's something I must live with every day.
And all the pain I put you through…I wish that I could take it all away,
And be the one who catches all your tears—that's why I need you to hear—
I've found a reason for me to change who I used to be,
A reason to start over new, and the reason is you.
I'm not a perfect person. I never meant to do those things to you.
And so I have to say before I go, that I just want you to know—
I've found a reason for me to change who I used to be,
A reason to start over new, and the reason is you.
I've found a reason to show a side of me you didn't know,
A reason for all that I do, and the reason is you.
She choked back a sob. This man that she had fallen so deeply in love with—it seemed that he found new ways to amaze her every day. She looked up at him, tears spilling over. He gently brushed them away as he continued. "Even though I didn't discover that song until after we were already together, I think it perfectly describes why I was finally able to take the chance." He paused to gather his thoughts. A small smile formed on his lips as he said, "Then I asked you to come away with me, so I included the Norah Jones song. The next song is the one promise I can always make you—no matter what, you will be loved. "Hey Leonardo" simply says, "she likes me for me," not for all these other reasons. It always reminds me that even though I'm older and ostensibly not the best catch in the sea, you love me because I'm me, and that's good enough for you. I don't know why, but it is," he said, shaking his head in disbelief. The next two songs are just songs I really like, and I think they describe how I feel for you. And the last song," he grinned widely, "is just a fun song that I included to commemorate the one thing that it seems we will always have in common—insomnia."
Sara stood there in front of him, slowly shaking her head. She was shocked at the amount of love and thought he had put into this project. She wiped her eyes and looked up at him. "Is it silly of me to say that this means just as much to me as the ring and the house?" she asked in a whisper.
He grinned, cupped her face in his hands, and placed the gentlest of kisses on her lips. "No. I'm glad you don't think it's stupid," he said, smiling against her mouth.
"Never." She shook her head vehemently against the idea.
---------
As Catherine had predicted, Grissom and Sara did indeed do some "celebrating," and finally fell asleep in the wee hours of the morning. Sara had set the alarm for 7 am, in order to be ready for Catherine's breakfast visit, and when the alarm went off, she stretched lazily before rolling over and looking into Grissom's clear blue eyes. He had apparently been awake for awhile. A random question popped into Sara's mind, and she voiced it. "Do you think we'll manage to have a blue-eyed child?"
Grissom considered. "Well, brown is dominant, but if either of your parents has blue eyes, you'll carry the gene as a recessive…" his voice trailed off. He didn't want to bring up the still-unknown issue of Sara's parents, but her question necessitated it. He hoped she wouldn't get angry.
She nodded, her expression unreadable. "My father had blue eyes, so maybe there's a chance."
Grissom mentally noted her use of the past tense when discussing her father and resolved for the hundredth time not to push her on the issue.
----------
Sara placed the omelets on the table as Grissom opened the door to Catherine. She wasted no time getting down to business. "Date?"
"March 12," Sara answered.
"Time?"
"We figured we'd do a sit-down dinner since it's not going to be a huge affair, so probably 6 pm." Catherine noted this on her pad of paper.
"Attendants?"
Grissom and Sara looked at each other. They hadn't yet discussed this. "Well…" Sara began slowly, "I'd like for you to be my maid of honor, Catherine." Catherine dropped her pen and her jaw in perfect unison.
"Really?" she breathed.
"Of course. Who else would I have?"
At this, Catherine squealed and hugged Sara. "I would be so honored, Sara. Thank you for asking me!" Sara laughed and Grissom rolled his eyes.
"Women," he intoned in mock exasperation.
"Then," Sara continued, "I'd like to have my friend Ashley as a bridesmaid, as well as my friend Elizabeth. And it would be my honor if Lindsey would agree to be a junior bridesmaid."
Grissom was frowning, wondering who Elizabeth was. Sara had never mentioned her. On the other hand, Catherine was grinning happily. "Oh, she is going to flip when I tell her, Sara! She'll absolutely love that!" Moving on, she said, "And I assume your father will be giving you away?"
Grissom's head fell into his hands. Craptastic. He yanked his head up in time to see Sara set her jaw and say, "No," in a hard voice. He caught Catherine's eye, gave her a Look, and shook his head slightly, indicating that she should drop the subject now.
"Ok," Catherine said smoothly, as if absolutely nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. "Will you be having anyone give you away, or are you just going to go solo?"
Sara pursed her lips and looked at Grissom. "Actually, I was thinking of having Jim give me away."
Grissom paused. If Sara wanted Jim to give her away, then that's what Sara would have. But he wasn't sure about something. "Catherine," he began slowly, "I was going to ask Jim to be my best man. Is there any reason he can't do both? If he can't, then I'll gladly surrender him to Sara."
Sara looked at him lovingly. She hadn't thought about Grissom asking Jim to be his best man, and his gesture of "giving" Jim to her was touching.
Catherine chewed on the tip of her pen as she considered. "No, I think he can do both," she said.
Sara gasped suddenly.
"What?" Grissom asked, alarmed.
Sara squeezed her eyes shut and slapped her hand to her forehead. "I'm such an idiot! Dr. Durham should give me away!"
Grissom shot Catherine another Look that said she should not even think of asking who Dr. Durham was.
Now Sara was torn. "I really had my heart set on asking Jim to walk me down the aisle, but I also want Dr. Durham to do it. I don't know what to do!" she cried, looking to Catherine for help.
"Well, I might have a solution, Sara," she looked carefully at Grissom, "but I need to ask you a question that may cause your fiancé here to kill me."
Sara nodded. "Go ahead."
"I'm assuming by your earlier reaction that your parents will not be attending the wedding?"
Grissom winced, but Sara replied calmly, "No. They will not."
Catherine breathed a sigh of relief at her calm reaction. "Ok, then. I take it that you are very close to this Dr. Durham…and his wife?" she said, questioningly. Sara nodded. "Well, since your parents won't be at the wedding, someone will need to sit in the parents' row on your side. If you're that close to them, why don't you have them sit there and include a note in the program about your special relationship to them—or something along those lines? Then you can still have Jim walk you down the aisle, and after he does that he'll join Gil and the other attendants. How does that sound?"
Sara smiled. "You're a genius, Catherine. That sounds brilliant."
Catherine returned the smile. "I live to serve. Continuing, she said, "Gil? Your other attendants?"
"Warrick, Nick, and Greg," he answered. "I haven't asked any of them yet, obviously, but I assume they'll say yes."
She laughed. "Are you kidding me? Greg will probably pee his pants that you asked him!"
----------
After an hour or so, Catherine declared that they had made quite enough decisions for one morning, and she headed out the door to grab some sleep. As Sara closed the door after Catherine, she turned and leaned up against it with a sigh. Looking across the room at Grissom, she said, "After this morning, I know you have more questions than ever about my parents, and I want you to know how much I appreciate your patience and understanding. However, I think I've probably kept my past a secret for long enough. If we're going to be married, then you deserve to know everything, regardless of how ugly it is. But I'm warning you, it is ugly." She paused for a moment. "Are you ready to hear this?"
Grissom's face tightened as he nodded silently.
Sara gestured toward the couch. "I think you might want to sit down for this."