DISCLAIMER – Not mine. Belong to Anthony Zuiker, et al, CBS and Alliance Atlantis.

A/N –Okay, this chapter may seem a little more G/S than Gr/S stick with it coz it gets better at the end.

Also, a thank you to - loose-canon-with-a-gun & csiatlantis.

Chapter 10

Sara followed Grissom to his office. One way or another, things were going to be resolved. It was on work time, but she no longer cared. The feelings the two men stirred up in her were unsettling her already shaky psyche even more.

Without a knock or pre-amble she entered his office, locked the door and closed the blinds. Grissom spun on his heel, and was glaring at her when the final blind was closed.

"Sara! What the hell are you doing?" It was a demand that would have been shouted had they not had a mere pane of glass between them and the rest of the hallway.

Sara sat calmly in the chair that faced his desk, a serene smile on her face that belied the nervousness she felt. When he finally finished ranting, she looked up at him. "Griss, what do you feel for me? And don't give me crap about how valuable I am to the team, what a good CSI I am. I know that. How do YOU feel about me?"

Grissom took his glasses off. "Well, Sara…you know I'm very fond of you."

Sara rolled her eyes and stood up. He'd been pacing the room, and she stopped him by standing in his way. Grissom swallowed hard. Brazenly Sara looked into his gorgeous blue eyes, that had intensified with being confronted.

She lay one of her hands over his chest and again asked, "What do you FEEL for me?"

She felt his throat then did something she'd dreamt about for years.

One hand remained on his chest while the other cupped his cheek. There was no resistance as she pulled him closer. After what seemed an eternity, Sara's lips finally met Gil's.

Under her finger tips, his fluttering heart beat still faster. As he started to relax, he leaned into her kiss, and she smiled inwardly at the small groan that rumbled deep in his throat. A kiss that lasted mere seconds seemed to last forever.

Grissom pulled back suddenly, and added to the distance by taking three steps back. "Sara, no!"

Her face fell, and her heart practically stopped. She lowered her eyes. Well, she'd wanted to know the answer and now she had it beyond a shadow of doubt.

Grissom recovered the three steps that he'd taken back. He took her cheek in his hand in much the same manner as she'd done with him. "Oh Sara, I'm so sorry. I know I've been hot and cold toward you, sent mixed messages, and for that I am so sorry. I trust your judgement. I know you're not a child, and that what you feel is very real and not just a crush. But this is about the fact that I can't commit to a relationship with someone I work with. It's too complicated. I care for you deeply, more than anyone I've ever met and if circumstances were different…well there'd be no question about a relationship between us."

Grissom lowered his eyes. Sara let out a breath she hadn't even been aware she'd been holding. Her eyes shimmered over with tears and she left without another word. Watching her leave, Grissom hoped fervently that it was just his office and not his life she was leaving.

Sara held her head high as she went to the locker room to gather her things. She met no one she knew on the way to her car where the tears that had been threatening to fall, finally did. She brushed them away angrily.

What had she expected? Had she been so naïve as to believe that he'd drop everything he'd created for himself, everything he was in essence for HER?

She pulled into her parking space and burst into tears. It wasn't so much that she'd finally had the answer to the question that had plagued her for so long. She'd pretty much been resigned to the negative since he'd said no to her dinner invitation. No, she was crying because she was angry that his rejection still stung so much. And worse still was that she'd been expecting no less. Trudging up the stairs to her apartment. The tears were tapering off, but she was beginning to feel foolish about her overt gesture. Throwing her bag onto the table, she went to the liquor cabinet and grabbed a bottle of J.D.

Forgoing any mixers, she grabbed a glass and fell back onto her sofa. She filled the glass almost to the brim, and downed it in one swallow. It'd been weeks since she'd had a drink, so it burned a little more than she'd expected and hit her a little quicker than she remembered.

An hour later, half the bottle was gone and Sara had become as the song says, 'Comfortably Numb'. It was nice not to care: about Grissom, about her past, about any of the feelings that crowded her mind.

A ringing started in her ears, and it took almost a minute for her to recognise it as the phone. She fumbled it twice before holding it to her ear. She didn't speak until she identified the voice on the other end. "Hey, Greggo! How you doin'?"

She knew he was talking, but had no idea what about. "Hey Greg, whatcha doin'?" she asked again.

Greg shouted through the line. "SARA? Are you alright?"

"Oh hey Greg. Yeah I'm fine."

"You've been drinking again." It wasn't a question.

Sara's voice became grouchy, "Hey, you're putting a serious damper on my very cool buzz. Besides, I only had a little."

"How much is a little Sara?"

"Half," she said in a small voice.

"Half what?"

"Uhh,…half a bottle."

"Half a bottle of what?"

"Jack was here!" she shouted gleefully.

"Dammit Sara!" He hung up the phone. She'd be pissed that he was coming over, but he also didn't really give a shit. For whatever reason she'd gotten herself sauced and he took it upon himself to make sure she was okay. And hopefully, finally discover the reason behind her binges.

TBC