Summary: In which Greg and Sara form a bond over a silly question.

Disclaimer: I officially do not own any of the CSI characters.

A/N: This is my first proper Sandle fic and it's fairly dialogue heavy. It's set over a long period of time, from when Greg is still the DNA lab tech to when he's a CSI. Enjoy!


"How much do you want me right now?"

Greg was holding the DNA results of the epithelials from a ring Sara had found at a crime scene. She peered at him, a confused expression flickering across her features.

"How much do I want you?" she repeated.

Greg's face broke into a grin. "Tell me the truth or I won't give you your results."

Sara sighed impatiently. "Just give them to me." She reached but Greg held them out of her reach.

"Uh-uh. Tell me how much you want me."

Sara hesitated. "Not much," she admitted coolly.

Greg looked crushed for a moment but Sara grinned at him fondly and added, "Not much at the moment."

Greg's face broke into a triumphant smile as he handed her the results. He was rewarded with a kiss on the top of the head as Sara darted from the lab.


"So, Sara, how much do you want me today?"

Sara looked up from her pacing and turned to Greg, a bemused expression on her face. He was holding a piece of paper and staring calmly back at her.

"Oh, not this again," Sara said with a roll of the eyes.

Greg nodded. "Yup. This again." He gazed at her with mock seriousness. "I need to know Sara, or I can't give you this very important piece of paper."

Sara felt like hitting the lab tech. She was tired and unconvinced that they had the right suspect. Normally she wouldn't have really minded Greg's random questions but today she did.

"I don't want you at all," she snapped, "I just want the results!"

Greg feigned looking hurt but handed the paper to her. He watched as her previously moody expression turned into a wide smile.

"Thank you Greg!" she exclaimed and bolted out of the lab. Greg smiled sadly to himself and turned to see what was next on his list of things to run through CODIS.


Sara was walking past the DNA lab when she heard Greg call her name. She poked her head around the lab door. "Yep?"

"Will you take these results to Grissom? I paged him but he's not come."

Sara raised an eyebrow. "Since when did I become your messenger service?" she demanded.

Greg held his hands up defensively. Then he grinned. "So I guess now wouldn't be a good time to ask how much you want me?"

Sara rolled her eyes but she couldn't suppress the smile that found its way onto her lips. "Give me the results then. I'll find Grissom."

"How much do you want me?" Greg got up from his stool and stood in front of Sara. He wasn't that much taller than her, which for some reason made Sara laugh.

Greg leered towards her. "That much, hey?"

Sara gave him a pursed lips smile. "Yes Greg, that much," she replied, snatching Grissom's results from Greg's hand and leaving the lab.

Behind her, Greg whistled.


Nick and Sara entered the DNA lab but it was empty. They exchanged glances and began prodding around to see if they could find the results that Greg had just paged them about.

"Keep your hands off my stuff!"

Both of them jumped as Greg stormed into the room. He looked mad. He took a folder from Nick's hand and slammed into onto the work surface. Then he turned to the duo with a friendly smile.

"Ahh, it feels good to have the power to scare you every now and again."

Nick rolled his eyes. Sara prodded Greg in the arm. He clutched at it and pretended that she'd hurt him. He picked up their results and handed them to Sara. As she went to take them, he quickly pulled the paper back.

"How much do you want me?"

Nick spluttered slightly. "What?"

Sara rolled her eyes. "I want you a bit, Greg. But I want the results more."

Greg beamed and gave her the paper. Nick peered over Sara's shoulder. They both turned to Greg.

"No match?" Nick checked.

"No matches," Greg affirmed with a shrug. "Sorry, I did what I could."

As the two of them left, Sara turned back. "I want you even less now," she told Greg with a teasing smile.


Grissom wandered into the lab and sat down on the spare stool. Greg looked up from his microscope at the supervisor.

"How can I help you?"

Grissom said nothing for a moment, then, "Are the results from the cigarette back yet?"

"Not quite," Greg admitted, "But it's next on my list."

"Mind if I wait?"

Greg shrugged. "Nope."

Sara walked in. "Hey, Greg, I got your page," she informed him cheerily.

Grissom glanced at Greg, who was grinning at Sara. "You did hers before mine?"

Greg's grin changed to slight embarrassment. "She asked nicely," he protested weakly.

Sara smirked and Greg couldn't help but notice the look of triumph she shot in Grissom's direction. If he noticed it, Grissom didn't acknowledge it.

"So, Sara," Greg beamed at the CSI, "How much do you want me today?"

Sara felt Grissom's eyes on her and for a moment she found the situation distinctly uncomfortable. When Greg nodded his head towards her hopefully, she shook that feeling and tried to take the piece of paper from him.

"Why don't you let me see the results and then I'll tell you?" she asked him teasingly.

Greg gave her a sly grin. "Nope. I need to know beforehand."

Sara tilted her head to one side, as if seriously considering the matter. Grissom sat and watched the scenario in silence.

"I want you – more than I did yesterday," Sara said thoughtfully, "But I'll want you even more if the results you give me are what I want."

Greg grinned. "Just remember, I am usually the bearer of all that is good." He handed her the sheet of results and her face broke into a wide smile. With a triumphant "Yes!" she was gone.

Greg watched her go, trying to postpone the situation that was about to arise with Grissom.

"'How much do you want me?'" Grissom repeated, his voice sounding slightly strangled.

Greg flipped it to one side casually. "Yeah. It's a little joke we have." He tried to hide the pride in his voice but even Grissom with his less than average people skills could hear it.

Grissom got to his feet. "Page me when you have the results from the cigarette."

Greg shifted on his seat as Grissom left. Hmm. He didn't seem happy.


Sara was poring over a sheet that was spread over the table in the layout room. She was absentmindedly humming to herself when she noticed a figure in the doorway.

"I didn't peg you for an Avril Lavigne fan," Greg remarked.

Sara stood up straight. Her back was stiff from having been leaning over for so long. "It was on the radio earlier," she replied with a shrug, "And it's stuck in my head."

Greg started singing a terrible rendition of My Happy Ending. Sara winced and continued examining the sheet. She noticed something and stood up straight again.

"Hey, Greg?"

Greg stopped singing and materialised at Sara's side. "You rang?"

Sara pointed at a dark smudge in one corner of the sheet. "What would you say that was?"

Greg squinted. Sara handed him a magnifying glass. After some thoughtful consideration he announced, "It's charcoal."

Sara beamed. "I thought so too." She took a swab of it and handed it to Greg. "Take that to trace for me, will you? I need to make sure it is."

"Sure." Greg was about to leave when he realised he'd forgotten something. "Hey, Sara?"

Sara, who had gone back to examining the sheet, turned her head towards the lab tech.

"How much do you want me?"

Sara gave Greg her adorable sideways smile. "Quite a lot, actually."

Greg's eyes widened excitedly and he skipped off down the corridor, whooping loudly.


The members of the graveyard shift, minus their supervisor, were assembled in the breakroom. Sara was pouring herself a cup of some strange coffee flavour when the owner of the coffee entered the breakroom. Sara shifted slightly so that Greg wouldn't see her using up the last of his beloved Blue Hawaiian. She shifted a few moments too late.

"That's my coffee!" Greg exclaimed, dashing towards her.

Sara smiled sheepishly. "Well it was."

Greg pouted. "You used up the last of my coffee."

"We'll all chip in and buy you more," Catherine reassured Greg, "It wasn't just Sara who drank it."

Greg smiled with relief. Then he turned towards Sara, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "How much do you want me now?"

On the other side of the breakroom, Catherine spluttered into her coffee and Nick and Warrick exchanged smirked glances. Greg was undeterred by this.

"Well?" he prompted Sara.

Sara smiled flirtatiously at Greg. "Because you let me drink the last of your coffee," she paused and leant towards him, her voice soft and teasing,"I want you a lot."

Greg's eyes almost popped out of his head. Sara smirked then moved towards the rest of the team as Grissom came into the breakroom. Greg remained where he was standing until Nick pinching his arm finally prompted him out of his reverie.


The sun was coming up when Sara and Greg finally made their way from a crime scene to the SUV. They had been processing for nearly four hours. Before that they had been working since four that afternoon, when they'd been called in on a lead in an apparently dead case from two weeks ago. The lead had proved to be nothing more than a wild goose chase.

Greg went to get into the driver's seat but Sara grabbed his arm and pulled him back. He spun around.

"It's my turn to drive," Sara informed him.

"No it's not! You drove on the way out here!"

Sara raised an eyebrow. "No, you drove out here."

Greg considered this, then, realising Sara was probably right, he smiled sheepishly and handed her the keys. They both got into the car. Greg's stomach gurgled as they pulled out onto the road. Sara laughed.

"Hungry?" she teased.

Greg grinned. "That obvious?" He patted his stomach. "I need to be fed more often than this." He paused. "Know what I'd love right now?"

"A donut?"

Greg stared at Sara, amazed. "Yes! How did you know that?"

Sara took her eyes off the road for a second and gave Greg a sideways smile. "I could tell."

Greg nodded thoughtfully but said nothing. A few minutes later, Sara swerved the SUV across two lanes and pulled into a Dunkin' Donuts. Greg beamed ecstatically. The two of them got out and went into the empty – excluding the one bored-looking employee – store.

"Can I get a bag of donut holes to go?" Sara asked.

"And a chocolate sprinkles donut and a blueberry iced coffee," Greg added.

The employee silently processed their order. Sara paid.

"Let's sit here and eat," Greg suggested.

Sara held up the to go bag. "I got these 'to go', Greggo. We're going to go. We need to take our stuff back to the lab. And then I need to go home and shower."

"You smell fine to me," Greg simpered as they crossed the parking lot towards the SUV.

Sara rolled her eyes. They got into the SUV and sat there for a moment, munching on a donut hole each. Sara absentmindedly reached into the bag to get another one, but instead she found Greg's hand. They both looked at their intertwined hands in the paper bag, then looked up until their eyes were level. Sara felt an odd sensation wash over her. Greg blinked, indicating that he had felt it too.

A small smile touched the corners of Greg's lips. He leant forward and asked in a low voice, "Right now, how much do you want me?"

Sara swallowed. Their hands were still entwined in the bag. She glanced down at them again. "I – I don't know," she murmured, avoiding Greg's eyes.

His fingers tightened around hers for a moment before he let go, taking a donut hole from the bag as he did so. Slipping it into his mouth, he grinned at her. Despite whatever had just transpired between the two of them, Sara couldn't help but grin back.


Sara stifled a yawn as she shoved her blue jumpsuit into her locker. She had just spent the best part of four hours in the garage. Two of those hours had been spent underneath the car, searching for signs that it had run over something. Her neck was stiff and she stank of oil and grease.

"Sara!" Greg greeted her cheerfully as he entered the locker room. Sara looked at his clean clothes enviously. "You going now?" he asked her.

Sara shut her locker and slumped onto the bench in the middle of the room. "Yeah," she murmured, "I need to shower." She rubbed a hand across her shoulder and tilted her head backwards. "Every part of me aches."

"Allow me," Greg said with a grin, darting behind Sara. She groaned inwardly, wondering what he was going to do. She didn't have the energy to fight him. His fingers trailed lazily over her shoulders and she shivered with satisfaction. Greg's hands tightened and he began to gently knead her shoulders. Sara shut her eyes and let her head hang forward as Greg's fingers nimbly massaged her aching shoulder muscles.

When he stopped, Sara's eyes flew open. "Why did you stop?" she asked, twisting her head around to smile up at him.

Greg returned the smile and Sara felt her stomach lurch sharply. This was Greg, for God's sake! He bent his head forward and said with a teasing grin, "I'll carry on if you tell me how much you want me."

Sara fought back the urge to pull him closer towards her and plant her lips on his. Instead she shifted on the bench so that she didn't have to crane her neck to see him. "How much do I want you?" she mused playfully. Greg's hand came to rest on her shoulder and her breath hitched slightly. "I want you this much." She held up her hands about two feet apart.

Greg said nothing. He carried on massaging her shoulders. The situation was slightly bizarre, he thought, but if Sara Sidle was willingly letting him touch her then he wasn't about to stop. It was when she moaned softly that he had to step away. The situation was getting more bizarre by the second.

Sara must have realised the same thing because she got up and grabbed her bag. "Thank you," she said weakly, "My shoulders feel a lot better." With that, she was gone.

Greg shook his head disbelievingly as he stared at the empty doorway.


"Hey, Sara?"

Sara snapped out of her thoughts to find Warrick walking towards her. She smiled at him and he returned the smile. "Greg's looking for you," he informed her.

Sara nodded absently. "Okay, thanks." She carried on walking.

She fell into step with Grissom as he left his office. "Got anything back from trace yet?" she asked.

"Not yet," Grissom admitted. They were about to separate: Grissom to go into the layout room, Sara to go into the breakroom, when Grissom spoke again. "Oh, by the way, Greg is looking for you."

Sara frowned as she pushed open the door to the breakroom. What did Greg want? She went over to the coffee and poured herself a cup.

A few moments later, Greg came into the breakroom.

"I heard you were looking for me," Sara remarked.

Greg came over to her. His expression was serious. Sara wondered what could have caused this sobriety. He licked his lips nervously and took the coffee from her hand, laying it down on the counter.

"How much do you want me?" he asked.

Sara stared at Greg. The question was usually asked teasingly or in jest. This time he seemed to want a genuine answer. Sara shifted uncomfortably. Then noticed the playful glint in Greg's eye. She sighed with relief and smiled at him. "Honestly?"

Greg nodded eagerly.

"A lot more than I'm going to admit." Sara gave Greg a pursed lips smile. "Why?"

Greg suddenly found great interest in the floor. "I was wondering if, if maybe you wanted to, uh, go out for dinner tomorrow evening?"

When Sara didn't reply, Greg began to move away, still not taking his eyes off the floor. That was it; he'd blown it. He felt a hand grasp his arm and he slowly looked up. Sara was gazing at him intently, her mouth formed into a gentle smile.

"I'd love to," she answered truthfully.

Her answer was rewarded by an almost deafening whoop. Sara laughed as Greg grabbed her by the waist and swung her around.

"You two seem happy," Catherine remarked, poking her head around the breakroom door.

"I have a date with Sara Sidle," Greg announced, his grin stretching from ear to ear.

Catherine laughed fondly. "Good for you."


When she opened her front door, Sara couldn't help but burst out laughing. Greg was peering over the top of a humungous bunch of flowers. They were gorgeous flowers, too: carnations, lilies, echinaceas and some others that Sara recognised but didn't know the names of.

Greg beamed and thrust the flowers at her, bowing exaggeratedly as he did so. "For you, madam."

Sara accepted the flowers, feeling an odd sensation of being back in high school again, feeling girly and coquettish as a boy attempted to woo her. She'd never been into that sort of thing back then. This felt different. The weird part was, she actually liked the feeling of helpless girlyness.

"Come in for a moment." Sara stood aside to let Greg in. She noticed that he looked smart but not overly dressed in a pair of black cords and a typically 'Greg' shirt. "Let me put these in water."

Greg wandered into the kitchen. He stood behind her and watched as she pulled out a vase from a cupboard in the kitchen and filled it with water before placing the array of flowers carefully in. She stepped back to admire the display, not realising that Greg was there. He yelped as she trod on his toe.

"Oh God, Greg, I'm so sorry!" Sara exclaimed, spinning around to face him.

Their faces were dangerously close together. Greg grinned. "It's a good thing you're light," he remarked playfully.

Sara gave him a friendly shove and he fell back against the counter. Not making any move to stand up straight, he raised his eyebrows suggestively at her. "Ooh, I like a woman who's got the guts to push a man around."

She smirked at him and felt a rush of adrenaline suddenly flow through her veins. Grabbing him by his shirt collar, she yanked him upright. Their lips were practically touching. Neither bothered to disguise the want in their eyes.

"Hey, Greg?" Sara whispered.

Greg tore his eyes from her lips long enough to see the mischievous twinkle in Sara's eyes. He grinned. "Yes Sara?"

"How much do you want me?"


End