Grissom yawned slightly as he glanced down at his watch; as if on cue, Sara appeared in his doorway and sagged a little against the frame. He could write a paper on the nuances of her emotions as she leaned against the support of that door; framing her in a window between him and the fluorescent lights of the lab hallway. He blinked and realized that she had been talking. This meandering really needs to stop. He tilted his head to the side and one eyebrow rose. "Come again?" A brief flicker of concern crossed her face before she repeated herself, her eyes never leaving his face.
"Do you want to meet me at the airport in about two hours? I just want to go home and hop in the shower before heading out."
She was making sure he could see her lips moving. With a pang of his conscience, he should have realized his team would figure out about his hearing. That Sara would figure it out. Fortunately that was behind him now.
He shook his head and she opened her mouth to speak again but he interrupted her. "I don't see any reason in putting both of our cars at risk, waiting at the airport. I'll just come pick you up."
"Uhh, sure. Do you, that is, umm, do you know where I live?"
"I remember," he murmured and Sara ducked her head.
Score one for Mr. Subtlety, he chided himself. He glanced down at his watch and said, "Well, it's just seven now. Why don't we grab some breakfast and then go home to clean up. Our flight doesn't leave until ten, I figure we should be there around nine." He glanced at her over his glasses, "Will that give you enough time to get everything together?"
"Sure – I just have to throw a few things in a bag and I'm ready to go. I travel lightly."
He knew that already, somewhere he acknowledged that Sara Sidle had gotten to Las Vegas very quickly for a workaholic CSI in San Francisco. It was funny how the years could change people so much – ten years ago he had found Sara intelligent and attractive. Now, he was in love – or at least, by process of elimination, that's what he thought this emotion was.
&&&&&&&&
The flight was average as such short trips tend to be – it seemed as though the flight attendants had no sooner finished discussing the unlikely event of landing in a large body of water while flying over Nevada, than the "fasten seatbelts" sign came on and the were landing in Reno.
Of course, in Grissom's opinion, the flight seemed all too short given the fact that Sara fell asleep on his shoulder rather than the window. Her gentle exhalations made his skin tingle as though there was no cloth between them.
He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, intent on remembering everything in this moment. The weight of her body against his, the way her hair tickled his neck with its fineness, the gentle metronome of her breathing measuring out the limited time of his bliss. Remembering, he fell asleep.
"The Biggest Little City in the World" was small peanuts compared to the lights of Vegas, but it was doing its best to attain urban sprawl. The little airport actually hosted international flights – and not just those that went to Canada. Carson City was nowhere near as exciting as some of the other destinations; fortunately, the company was good. Better, in fact, than it had been for a long time.
After landing they collected their carry-on luggage and made their way through the panoply of noises in the airport down to the main floor. They passed the ever present slot machines and over priced gift stores and were faced with a large metal sculpture of a skier. It seemed out of place in the dry climate of Nevada, until he remembered that Reno butted up against the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The car rental kiosks were set against the left side of the wall, the baggage claim area to the right of them.
Grissom walked back from the car rental kiosk, juggling the keys handed to him. Sara was flipping through the pages of the itinerary with a slight frown on her face.
"Grissom," she glanced up as he neared. "There aren't any directions for getting to Carson City or the Governor's mansion."
"I've got that partly covered. The car rental attendant told me we're quite close to the freeway to Carson and," Grissom waved a map, "someone gets to be navigator."
"Hmm, let me guess who that would be."
"Now, now, Sara. I can't help it if your eyes see better than mine."
"Hah! Yah, that's been the case for a while," muttered Sara.
Grissom pretended not to hear her and gestured towards the doors. "I believe they've called a shuttle to take us to the car lot. Shall we?"
"Let's. The jangle of the slot machines is beginning to get on my nerves – and ears."
The shuttle ride was quick and quiet, and mercifully free of the boisterous family they had waited with. They pulled into the lot and totting their luggage behind them they followed the numbers on the parking spaces until they reached the one on the key chain. In its space was a silver convertible. Sara glanced over her shoulder, one raised eyebrow speaking volumes about his apparent car choice. He forestalled any verbal commentary with a raised hand.
"They didn't have the mid-sized car I reserved, so they offered me a truck or a convertible at the same rate. I figured that we drive enough in trucks so I picked the convertible."
Sara turned and eyed the car again. "Well, at least it has some trunk space." She turned and grinned at him. "We could totally cruise around Lake Tahoe in this."
Grissom heaved a mental sigh in relief at her acceptance of the car. He had been afraid she'd think he was having a mid-life crisis – a convertible with a younger woman…. He shook his head at the trite image that presented. Sara's smile faltered a bit so he hastened to say, "I think that would be a great idea. We could even catch the fireworks there."
"That'd be nice."
Grissom popped open the trunk and they both unconsciously began scanning the upholstery. Grissom was the first to laugh at their behavior and soon Sara joined in. Shaking her head, she shoved her small carry-on case into the trunk and then grabbed Grissom's. She had the trunk shut and was walking to her door before he could protest.
"Well?" She called. "Are we going to hit the road, Easy Rider?"
"That was motorcycles – this is a convertible," he grumbled as he as slid into the driver's seat. The radio flared to life and began to blast rap music as the ignition turned. Sara glanced at him as she changed the dial on the radio. "Based on the evidence, I'd say that was a mid-life crisis."
"You're listening to KOZZ – Reno and Lake Tahoe's best classic rock station."
"Bonus."
They pulled onto the freeway and Sara carefully unfolded the map. "Oh-kay. It looks pretty simple – we just follow this freeway just until it stops. There will be an exit before it splits off to Lake Tahoe. Hey, did you notice the transmission date on that fax? It's from June. Ecklie sat on it for awhile."
"Huh. I didn't check the fax date actually. He probably just wanted to throw me off balance by having to do everything last minute. Maybe he thought that I'd decline it and he could go instead."
"Well, I have to admit I was surprised that you did accept."
Grissom shrugged. "It's good for the lab to receive recognition – it might mean more funding for us. Also, the CSIs deserve to know their efforts are appreciated. That someone is noticing how hard they work. It may be just a plaque – but it's proof, evidence of approval."
"You surprise me sometimes Grissom." Sara turned her attention back to the itinerary. "It takes about half an hour to get to Carson City from Reno, assuming there's no traffic."
Grissom nodded. "After we meet with the secretary we'll go check in at the B&B. The area around it is supposed to be good for easy hikes and since the place only has two rooms, we'll have it to ourselves. Well, and the owners of course."
Sara shuffled the papers in her hands. "Did you see that we're supposed to help judge the floats tomorrow? Then we receive our award and attend a lunch with the Governor."
"Do you want to go to Tahoe after the lunch? We might be able to go on the M.S. Dixie II – hear all about Tahoe Tessie."
Sara grinned. "Ah yes, and the underground river passage between Lake Tahoe and Donner Lake that she used. Oh there's the signs – we want to be in the right lane."
Once out of Reno, the remainder of the drive was much like driving in Nevada anywhere – a mixture of beiges and burnt yellows, low scrub covering the foothills. The air rushing over them was like a warm caress. It was almost like they were driving into the sunset in some movie, their troubles left in the dust of a small city with only the horizon in front of them. But the horizon shifted and soon they were descending into a valley and the buildings of Carson City began to appear. They were back to being them, back to their strained friendship and the boundaries placed by Grissom and work.
They found their way down the main drag easily enough to the Governor's mansion. A tall man with white hair, brown eyes, and a wattled chin awaited them with a woman about 5'8", with a short blond bob and bangs.
"Dr. Grissom, Ms. Sidle." Governor Guin shook their hands. "Sorry to be so rushed but I have a meeting to attend – I just wanted to personally thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to come up here. Mr. Ecklie mentioned that you might have some trouble making it here as he thought you might be attending a conference, Dr. Grissom. And I commend you on volunteering for the SPCA, Ms. Sidle. Mr. Ecklie said that you are quite good with the cats and kittens there."
Grissom saw Sara mouth "kittens?" over the Governor's shoulder, an incredulous look on her face. He was hard pressed to look the Governor in the eye and make the appropriate responses. "Well, we felt it was important to be here in recognition of your support of our lab."
"Thank you both again for coming. I have to dash off now, but Ms. Luevano will get y'all settled and coordinated for tomorrow. I'll leave you in her capable hands." The Governor shook their hands once more and strode down the hallway.
The woman left with them was wearing a simple suit that fit her well and was of a high quality; her smile reached her eyes as she extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Jan Luevano, Governor Guin's Executive Assistant and Director of Scheduling. I actually looked up your lab's solve rates and history. You two are quite the workhorses."
Sara and Grissom glanced at each other and gave wry smiles. Sara said, "It's a job that inspires dedication."
Ms. Luevano smiled and said, "Now, I notice that you're a vegetarian Ms. Sidle. The lunch after the parade is actually a bar-b-que, will you be okay with veggie burgers and tofu dogs? There will be other side dishes of course, but those will mostly be salads and vegetables anyway."
Sara shot a surprised look at Grissom and replied, "Yah, that will be fine. Thank you."
"Excellent. Now here is a map – it will get you to the parade end point where you'll be with the other judges. The stage where you will be presented with your plaque and the bar-b-que will be held at the same park. I understand that you're staying at the Deer Run Ranch Bed and Breakfast. It's a good choice, lovely surroundings and the Vhay's are good people. I've stayed there once myself. Now, if you don't have any questions for me I'll let you go. I know you're usually asleep by now."
"I can't think of anything." Sara said. "How about you Grissom?"
"I think we're set."
Ms. Luevano nodded and began walking with them towards the doors. "Well then, I'll let you folks explore Carson or go get some sleep." She smiled. "It's a pleasure to have you here."
They parted ways in the bright sunlight, the city spread out around them in a mix of new and historic buildings. The sky was a blue that made you feel the distance between earth and space, made the clouds brave sentinels in an azure sky. Sara's stomach rumbled. The sentinels carried on, unconcerned and Grissom smiled. "Want to get some lunch?"
"Let's walk, I'd like to see some of the city before tomorrow."
He
nodded and they set off, strolling down the sidewalk for all the
world to see them together. Grissom was content as he placed a hand
on the small of Sara's back to guide her into a café with a
patio open. They ordered their food and sat sipping ice tea,
commenting on the people that passed by. Sara seemed agitated by
something and finally said, "I can not believe Ecklie tried to tell
the Governor's office that we weren't available. That's just
so…."
"Catty?" Grissom quirked an eyebrow.
"You did not just say that," said Sara, a pained expression on her face.
"I guess the cat's out of the bag now."
"I think the SPCA might have something to say about that."
"So you think some fur might fly?"
"I suppose you think you're being very punny."
Grissom opened his mouth to say something and then narrowed his eyes at her smirk. "Ohh, you just couldn't resist, could you?"
Sara threw up her hands. "Resistance is futile."
I'm going to have to remember to send Ecklie a gift basket of bran muffins for sending us, thought Grissom as he and Sara laughed.
&&&&&&&&
