Just a note: Thanks for the reviews on my last chapter. I really didn't like it, so your positive feedback helped me write this one. Thanks!

Also kudos to the RED Sox's for winning the World Series!!!! What a great comeback!

Chapter 22

Sara was furious as she stormed down the hallway. How dare he treat them that way? She stood outside his doorway for a moment trying to get her resentment back under control. She took a deep breath and pushed his door open. Grissom looked up from the file he was reading ready to reprimand whoever it was that had barged into his office unannounced. He sucked in his breath when he saw her standing there in all her furious glory. He had never seen her look more beautiful.

Sara stood there with her hands on her hips, her lovely face flushed and her dark eyes sparking with anger. "Is there a problem Sara?" he asked evenly as he met her heated glare. She raised an eyebrow at him before shutting the door with a resounding bang. She advanced on him stopping on the opposite side of his desk. Her dark brown eyes held his steely blue ones for a moment.

"There's a problem all right!' she grumbled as she leaned down and placed both of her hands on his desk, all the while never breaking eye contact with him. "YOU- You're the problem." she growled. His eyes widened in surprise as he subconsciously leaned away from her and her livid glare. Maintaining his ever so infuriating righteousness he calmly said, "I don't remember humiliating myself with a coworker in one of the labs. I do believe you did that all on your own Sara."

Sara pulled herself up to her full height, her eyes flashed dangerously with fury. Grissom could feel the temperature drop drastically in the room He braced himself. Sara Sidle was pissed. "Don't you push this on to me Grissom." she hissed. "That night you brought me home from the police station you made your choice. You made it perfectly clear how you felt. You didn't let me have any say in the matter so you sure as hell don't have any say in the choice that I've made now."

"Sara this has nothing to do with me. It has everything to do with you and Nick and your disgraceful conduct." he chided. "That's bullshit and you know it! Nick and I were in a closed room. There were no windows and the door was shut. No one saw us. You purposely walked in on us!" she growled.

"And if I hadn't of walked in would you have let him taken you right there on the table?" Grissom spat venomously. Sara reeled back like she had been slapped. "I never...Nick would never...How can you think that of me?" she choked out.

With narrowed eyes Grissom said, " You're not who I thought you were." Sara's eyes filled with tears at his hurtful words. "No thank God! I'm nothing like you!" she cried as she wheeled around to escape the suddenly too small office. She faltered at the door. She knew she needed to tell him what was in her heart. It was now or never. She turned slowly to face him. His face was a mask of indignation. His blues eyes stared at her with icy coolness.

"Grissom," she sighed warily, her eyes softening as she looked at him. "For the longest time you were the center of my world. I wanted so much for you to see me, to love me. But I could never reach you, no matter how hard I tried. I thought it was my fault that I wasn't pretty enough or smart enough for you. It took me a long time to realize that it wasn't me. It was you who couldn't reach out to me." She stopped and gazed into his sad blue eyes. "I thought you and the lab would be enough, that I would be happy with just being near you and taking what little affection you could offer me. I was so wrong. There is so much more to life and Nick has shown me that. For the first time in my life I want more Grissom. I want to be in a relationship with a man who's not afraid to love and who's not scared to experience life head on. I want to get married. I want to have a baby or two. I want a family to love and who loves me back. I want Nick to be the man that I experience these things with." She stopped and looked at him with hope and sorrow in her eyes.

Grissom just stared at her, the hurt obvious in his eyes. "Sara I don't think Nick is the right man for you." he said softly. A small smile played across her lips. "Grissom you don't understand. I've told Nick all my secrets and all of my fears. And guess what? He still wants me. He loves me. I can see it in his eyes. I can feel it in his touch. He's not afraid of his love for me. It surrounds me. It makes me feel safe and wonderful. I can't imagine anything more right then that. For the first time in my life I'm not scared of my future."

Grissom came around his desk and tentatively stepped toward her. "Sara please," he said. She shook her head remorsefully, "Can't you just be happy for Nick and I?" she asked quietly. He looked in her pleading brown eyes and couldn't answer her. She was finally walking away from him and he wasn't sure if he could let her go because he could feel his heart breaking into a million little pieces.

Sara could see the inner battle raging behind his blue eyes. She knew she had to say the words out loud in order for him to accept what she was saying. She also knew that by doing so she would be changing their relationship forever. She reached up and touched his cheek. His skin was like ice. He flinched when he felt the scorching heat of her fingertips.

"I'm in love with Nick. He makes me very happy. I'm sorry Gil." He closed his eyes as his name passed between her lips. He savored the sound of it, committing it to memory. He had always dreamed of her whispering it. He leaned into her touch for a moment before pulling away from her. His stomach had knotted itself up into a tight ball. He struggled for something to say. He turned away unable to take the pity he saw in her eyes. "Just watch how you conduct yourself in the future Sara." he said tersely. "Gil?" she questioned sadly.

He turned to face her, his stone facade back in place. "Close the door on your way out Sara. I need to finish this and I don't want any more interruptions." Sara watched him go back to his desk and sit down. He immediately started reading the case file in front of him. He would not look at her. She sighed sadly willing the tears not to come until she was outside the lab. She whispered, "I'm sorry." one last time before she shut the door quietly behind her.

After waiting a moment to make sure she was really gone, Grissom looked up at the closed door. The door signified exactly what had just happened. She had finally shut the door on him. It was over. A single tear rolled down his cheek. He wiped it away. It was all he would allow himself to grieve. If he wanted to keep his 'family' together, he would have to find a way to deal with Nick and Sara's relationship. He sighed sadly and went back to what he knew best- his job.

As Sara walked out to her SUV, she knew it would be a very long time before she and Grissom would be comfortable with one another. Their once close working relationship was now a thing of the past. She climbed into the vehicle and let her tears come. She cried tears of sadness for the love she had lost and she cried tears of happiness for the love that she had found. As she sat there she realized she needed to hear Nick's voice. She needed to feel Nick's arms around her. She needed to feel Nick's love. She smiled to herself. It was time to show Nick how much she loved him.

She pulled out her cell and punched in Brass's number. "Brass," answered a voice over the phone. "Hey it's Sara. I need a favor."

"Shoot," he said. "I know that it's important to the case that I go home but I need to see Nick." she said with earnestness. "Oh really," he said with a chuckle in his voice. Sara pursed her lips fighting a smile.

"Yeah really. Can you help me?" she replied. "Anything for you Sara. Where are you?" Brass answered.

"I'm in the CSI parking lot." "I'll be there in 5." "Thanks Jim." "Anything for true love Sara." Brass said before clicking off. Sara couldn't help but smile as his words.

Within 20 minutes Sara was standing in front of Nick Stokes door with a duffel bag in hand and a stomach full of butterflies. She glanced over at Brass who had insisted on driving her over. "I'm sure Nick will give you a ride back to the lab," he had said with a knowing grin. She grinned at him before turning back to the door. She hoped the time would finally be right for her and Nick. She steadied her nerves and rang the bell.

TBC

Sorry to leave you hanging at such a critical point. I hope to update soon. Please let me know what you think about Grissom and Sara's confrontation. I would love to hear both positive and (hopefully very few) negative comments. Thanks!