AN: Wow, I know it's been awhile since I posted the last chapter, well the wait is finally over here is a new one. Enjoy!
Genre: Romance, Hurt/Comfort
Rating: T
Spoilers: Only if you don't know about Grissom's Sabbatical
Timeline: Post Law of Gravity (Season 7 Episode 11) Post Fallen Idols (Season 7 Episode 17)
Warnings: Implied Adult Behavior, Mention minor character death
Main Parings: GSR
Minor Parings: None
Other Characters: Catherine, Keppler, Brass (All mention only)
Chapter 6: Welcome Home
Flashback
Two weeks earlier
After making sure Catherine was ok, Grissom headed home, and since he came to the lab right after leaving the airport, this would be the first time he's been home in a month.
Once he made it inside the apartment, he found the living room empty while dropping his bag on the hardwood floor, which he thought was a little curious since he was sure Hank would had been all over him the moment he got home, even though with the evening he had, he wouldn't have been in the mood for it. In fact, he wasn't much in the mood for anything, except to see and hold on to Sara for dear life.
Just as he thought of her name, Sara, who was in a robe, walked into the kitchen/dining room area, their eyes connecting, and she smiled wide while walking up the steps to the living room. "Hey babe, your home a little late than I was expecting. I uh, I asked the dog sitter to keep Hank for the night, if that's ok?"
Grissom cleared his throat with a nod. "Uh, yeah, that's fine."
While he did look excited to see her, something felt off with him, especially considering how he was earlier when they saw one another at the lab for the first time in a month, it was like he was on autopilot to get to her and it didn't matter where they were, so she cupped his cheek with a worried look on her face, the romantic air that she was trying to pull off instantly gone. "Griss, what's wrong?" He just took a breath before bringing her in his arms, needing to hold her, but that just caused Sara to be extra worried, so she asked again. "Griss?"
He took another breath before finally telling her that he had to comfort Catherine after seeing Keppler dying in an ambulance, which caused Sara to gasp in shock. "Wait, What!" She pulled back to look into his eyes. "Keppler died, how?"
After telling her what he knew, which wasn't very much, he brought her back into his arms, where she went willingly, both now needing that comfort, then she asked. "Is Catherine ok?"
"I think under the circumstances as well as can be expected. I know he was only at the lab for a month while I was gone, but how she reacted tonight their connection must have been strong."
"Yeah, it was. I saw/felt it too."
They pull back again before she takes his hand and walks them to the couch, where they sat down so they could cuddle in each other's arms a little more comfortably than when they were standing up.
He sighed after a few minutes against her temple after kissing softly. "I'm sorry. I'm sure this isn't the reunion you had in mind, especially after a month of being apart."
She moved her hand to his and slipped her fingers through his. "It's ok. It's not your fault. And I'm sure that wasn't the type of reunion you were expecting."
He turned his body while slipping his hand out of hers and cupping her cheek. "Absolutely not." He ran his thumb up and down her cheek as he whispered with love in his eyes. "I've missed you so much, Sara. I almost considered quitting so I could come back to you early."
She looked a little surprised on that, not the missing her part since she could see the longing in his eyes, but that he really considered quitting the job, a job he enjoys, outside of being a CSI, so he could come back home to her earlier than planned.
And hearing that statement, hearing him being so open about how he really felt made her tear up as she cupped his fuzzy cheek. They kiss softly before pulling back, then mostly out of curiosity, she asked. "Why didn't you?"
He smirked while running his thumb up and down her cheek. "I think I would've had to have a better excuse than missing my girlfriend."
She nodded with a chuckle. "Yes, I guess you have a good point there." They kiss softly again before she spoke again. "So, besides missing me to the point of almost bailing on them, how were you? Did you get the break you needed? I must say your eyes don't look as dull as they were when you left."
Yeah he missed her like crazy, but at the end of the day he can't say he regretted going, it was something he truly needed to do, so he nodded. "Yes, I got exactly what I needed." They smile at one another before he spoke with sincerity. "And thank you for understanding."
She shook her head as she cupped his cheek again. "You don't need to thank me babe, I just want you to be happy and healthy, that's all I've ever wanted."
"I know you do, but you could have been a little more resentful."
"Never would have happened, you needed that break and I'm sincerely glad you got it." She took a breath and sighed as she moved her forehead so it was touching his while she had her eyes closed. "But God Griss, I also missed you like crazy."
He smiled with his eyes closed, their foreheads still touching. "Yeah?"
She chuckled. "Oh yeah. In fact, I missed you so much I almost considered going there to surprise you."
Now it was his turn to pull back in shock. "Really?" After she nodded, he asked. "Why didn't you?"
She then smirked. "I believe I needed a better excuse to leave the team shorthanded and so quickly than I miss my boyfriend and I need to see him. I think they would have been a little shocked by that statement. " They chuckled, then she sighed. "I probably would have been fine, but I do believe that it would have been a little suspicious if we were both gone at the same time, considering our demeanor towards one another at the lab has been different the last year and a half, I didn't want to risk it."
He nodded in understanding, then took her hand from his cheek and kissed her palm before just looking at her, which she was just look at him in return, both happy he was home again.
After a moment, he asked. "So, besides missing me, were you ok? How has Hank been? How was the team?"
"For the most part I've been ok. Hank missed you as well, and the team, well, let's just say there was some rough patches."
Grissom raised an eyebrow, a little surprised on hearing that. "Really? What happened?"
She shook her head as she snuggled into his embrace. "I don't really want to talk about that right now."
He kissed the top of her head and whispered. "Ok."
As he held her in his arms, there was another moment of silence before Sara smirked again. "And Griss, I thought you took your razor with you?"
He chuckled. "What, you don't like my new look?"
She chuckled in return. "Now I didn't say that. When I said you look good at the lab, I meant that. It's just you also look like a mountain man."
He nodded with a smile before he sighed. "I just didn't feel like shaving, considering I had no one to impress."
She pulled back to look in his eyes while cupping his cheek one more time. "Hey, I'll take you with a beard or not, you are sexy as hell with or without out it." When he gets a shy look on his face she chuckled. "You are so cute when you do that, when you think you're not that good looking and pretty much every woman wants to be with you." Grissom was about to object to that, but Sara continued with a smirk. "In fact, I would bet those young women at your seminar were totally smitten with you."
No hesitation, he smirked in return. "Well now that you mentioned it, there was this one girl."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Oh really?"
He nodded with a smile, playfulness in his eyes. "She was really young and beautiful and kept asking me all of these questions, I think she was trying to get up the nerve to ask me to dinner."
She was about to get completely tense but stopped her body reaction when she noticed he was trying not to laugh, realizing he was talking about her when they first met when she attended a seminar that he was conducting seven years ago in San Francisco. Then she slapped him on the shoulder while shaking her head with a smile. "Ok you, you almost had me going there."
He moved his hand to her cheek to cup it and spoke after a sigh. "I don't care what other women think of me or if they want me or not, I'm only looking at one woman, the only woman I'll ever truly look at. I love you and only you, now and forever."
She smiled with tears in her eyes as she took his hand off her cheek and kissed it before whispering. "And that's what makes me the luckiest woman on earth. I love you too, Grissom, and welcome home."
He smiled with a nod as he leaned down to kiss her lips, which before he did, he whispered. "It's great to be home."
End of Flashback
Two weeks later
Grissom was standing in front of the mirror with shaving cream on his face and was about to pick up the razor when he heard a knock on the bathroom door frame. "Griss, I'm..." She trailed off when she saw what he was about to do, then smiled. "I see you're getting rid of the mountain man look."
He nodded, then a spur of the moment idea came to him, so he turns to her and asks with a raised eyebrow. "Would you like the honor?"
She cleared her throat as she walked into the room, this would be a first for them, she's never shaved his face before, so admittedly she was a little nervous he had asked. "Uh, really?"
He nodded again with a smile. "Really."
She nodded with a smile in return. "Ok."
He grabbed a hand towel and placed it over his shoulder before stepping back so Sara could get to the bathroom counter, she looked down at the straight razor that was sitting down and picked it up, then she asked, seeing his reflection in the mirror. "Do you trust me?"
As she was turning around, he whispered. "Intimately."
She takes a few steps closer to him as they stared intently at each other, then she placed her free hand on the side of his head before she placed the blade to his cheek so she could start to shave him, slowly taking her time, making sure she gets his face as smooth as possible while not putting a scratch on his handsome face.
When she was done, she grabbed the hand towel that was on his shoulder and wiped his face with a smile before asking. "So, what do you think?"
She took a step to the side to let him pass so he could get closer to the mirror as he ran his hand down his face before he turned to her with a nod and smile. "I think from now on I know who to ask when I want a shave."
She chuckled as she stepped towards him before cupping his cheek and running her thumb up and down. "Not bad if I say so myself."
He shook his head as he brings her closer. "No, not bad at all. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Then their lips touched for a kiss.
After they pulled back, she suggested. "I was thinking take-out tonight."
"Sounds good, how about Chinese?"
"You got it."
She hands him the razor and towel back to him, and after one more kiss, she leaves the room while he finished cleaning up.
After they had their meal, Sara started cleaning the little dishes they had, and just as she was finishing up, Grissom had walked up behind her, slipped his arms around her waist and kissed her neck, causing her to close her eyes at the feel of his lips on her skin.
As he continued light kisses on her skin, he slipped a hand under her shirt at her stomach, sliding his thumb up and down her skin, signaling to her, which she found completely adorable for some reason, that if she wanted they could take things further tonight, and since they hadn't had time since he's been back from his sabbatical since there was a new miniature to deal with, much to the surprise of everyone, it's been a little longer than a month for them, which would have happened this morning, or at least that's were things appear to be heading, but they were interrupted by Brass who needed Grissom's assistance on a new case that involved teenagers.
So, she was all for it, but she sighed as she slipped her hand on top of his that was under her shirt. "You know we are on call tonight, right? So, we might be interrupted once again."
"I know, but I'm willing to risk it, if you are. Plus, we can be a little quicker. I mean it has been a little over a month for us."
She nodded as she turned around, their hands slipping from her shirt before she cupped his cheek. "That is true. As much as I love it when we take our time, I really do miss you."
He takes her hand off his cheek and kissed it as he whispered softly. "I miss you too."
After making sure this was something they both really wanted, she slipped her fingers through his and lead him to the bedroom, where they spent some of the night reconnecting, proving it didn't matter how long they had to wait, their connection was still so strong and passionate.
AN: Thanks for reading and please review. So, the good news is with my other GSR story done, I have a little more time to concentrate on this one now, so hopefully the updates will be a little more regular, even though there aren't many planned chapters left. But I might do a sequel, we'll see about that. I'm still brainstorming on it.
Hope you enjoyed the new chapter, had a safe and wonderful weekend, and be safe out there, until next time.
