Sara returned after putting Laredo in her bed to nap. It was still early in the afternoon and now she and Grissom would have time to talk. She grabbed a couple of waters out of the fridge and handed one to Grissom and then as he leaned on the arm and back of the sofa, Sara laid against his right side with his arm cradling her, and discussed the move she would be preparing in the next week.
On the following Saturday she would have movers come to take everything to Vegas. There wasn't going to be enough room in her apartment for everything, so Grissom offered to get a storage unit for her when he got back and she agreed. The second bedroom at her apartment was empty, so she wanted all of the stuff in Laredo's bedroom to go in there.
Grissom thought of something to help out. "Why don't we have Catherine and the boys help with unpacking and that way they can all be introduced to Laredo at the same time?"
"Are you sure? They're going to know just from seeing her who her father is." Sara asked as she tilted her head up and backward to meet his eyes. She needed to make sure that Grissom wanted to take that step.
Grissom gazed down at her and smiled. He knew what she was thinking. "I know. I already thought about that and I think the best course of action is to come straight out with it. I had planned on telling them as soon as I got back about Laredo, with your permission of course."
Sara squeezed his hand and smiled. This gets better all the time. "If you feel comfortable with it then by all means do so. I wasn't sure how to tell them as it was. This will work out even better." She put her head back down and settled back against him once again.
"It might be a good idea if I get your key from you, so we can be there when you arrive along with the movers." But that wasn't all he had planned to use the key for. No way, Grissom had another project for the week ahead for himself and his team.
"Hmm, okay, maybe you guys can re-shuffle the furniture in the living room, so the movers will have more space to maneuver through." She said that without even thinking about it. Her thoughts were suddenly elsewhere as she remembered her letter that she had written to him. She turned and looked up at him. "Grissom, why did you..." She hesitated, not sure if she should ask.
Grissom's eyebrows rose at her hesitation. "Why did I what?"
She repositioned herself so that she was facing him and put her head on his chest as she stroked his hand that was on his stomach. "Why did you come down here? I mean I know you wanted to meet Laredo, but..." Again she was hesitant about asking.
Grissom wasn't sure what she wanted to ask, but had a feeling of what it might be. He gently put his finger and thumb on her chin and tilted her head upward to look into her face. "Sara, what is it? You can say it and it's not going to make me want to leave."
"What do you want from this? Laredo and me? How far do you want this to go?" She put her head back down quickly, not able to meet his eyes.
"I think that is something to be decided between us both, don't you?" Grissom felt her tense when he spoke. It wasn't what she had wanted to hear. But he wasn't finished yet. "Would it be alright if we take some time and actually do this right? You know, some dates, dinners, time spent together outside of work. Learn how to communicate." She nodded. He pulled her closer and whispered, "I want everything."
She looked up at him again, but this time leaned closer and touched his lips with hers in a passionate kiss. She pulled away and licked her lips tasting him. She wanted to do so much more, but he was right, they needed to go slow, so she pushed herself away from him and stood up. "I should get some stuff done while she's sleeping. Would you mind watching her for awhile if I leave to get some boxes?"
He smiled. Again he knew what she was thinking. She wanted to leave before things got out of hand. "I'll be fine. I've watched Lindsey plenty of times for Catherine. Go ahead but don't take too long."
Sara leaned over and kissed him again then put on her shoes, grabbed her purse and was out the door.
After she left, Grissom walked down to check on Laredo. He peaked in to see if she was still asleep and sadly, she still was. He went back to the living room and looked through Sara's books, but found that most of them were parenting books or children's books. Then he noticed the photo albums on the bottom shelf. He pulled one out and started to flip through it. The first page held a picture that appeared to be a sonogram and it read - Baby Sidle: 13 weeks. That's Laredo at 13 weeks. Grissom thought as his fingers touched the picture. He slowly made his way back to the sofa with the album.
The next picture was of Sara as she held her shirt up to the bottom of her breasts and her other hand had pushed the front of her pants down exposing her tummy. It was slightly round and the picture read – 6 months. She really isn't showing much. But then he saw the next one and it was of her again only it read – 9 months – and it looked like she had swallowed a pumpkin. Right below the picture was another of her with her hair up and wisps of it had fallen out and around her neck and face. She was in the nursery in a white cotton nightgown standing in front of the crib and she was looking at her tummy with a smile and appeared to be gently rubbing it. Grissom smiled. The picture was lovely and he thought about taking it to put on his desk at the office. He would ask Sara when she got back.
There were several pictures of Sara at eight or nine months working on the nursery with two other women. Grissom recognized one of them as Shannon and figured that the elderly woman in the pictures that was helping her with the decorating must have been her aunt. He wondered how it was that Shannon was in a position to take over for Sara so much in parenting Laredo. I'll have to ask Sara about that... He thought as he turned the page to see Sara in a hospital room looking worn down and her hair was damp with sweat. She must have been in labor and the look on her face was one that he had seen before. It had all the signs that she was saying – Get that damn camera out of here. Whoever had taken the picture was not a smart person.
He looked around the room at that point and over toward the television where she kept the videos. I wonder if she has a video made of the birth? He decided not to look for it until she got back. He turned the page to see Sara cradling a very small and tightly wrapped bundle of joy in a pink blanket. The picture next to it was of Laredo, newborn. Her eyes were open and her face was a blotchy red. He touched the picture and smiled. On the next page were pictures of the baby shower and one of Sara and Laredo in the shower. Laredo must have been about four months. He wondered who took the pictures, but then realized it was probably Shannon. There were more pictures of Sara and Laredo, and Shannon and Laredo, and Sara's Aunt and Laredo. In all of them, Laredo was always happy. He sat back and relaxed as he daydreamed about how he imagined Laredo must have been the last three years. He couldn't visualize her crying. He had seen her get a little cranky earlier because of being hungry but that was nothing. Then Grissom started to think about all the times he missed out on because of one comment he made to Sara. Just one comment had kept him out of his daughter's life for three and a half years. No, make that four. I wasn't there during the pregnancy. He finally allowed the tears to fall that had been building up in his eyes. He set the photo album on the coffee table and stood up as he wiped the tears off of his face. He needed some air.
SARA ARRIVED BACK after about forty-five minutes to a very quiet house. Grissom was nowhere to be seen. She set the boxes she had in her arms down on the floor in the living room and then quickly went to check on Laredo. She was still sound asleep. Where is he? He wouldn't have gone far, not with Laredo here. She considered that as she walked into her bedroom and found it empty too, but then the curtain on the French doors moved from the wind. At the same time, she saw a shadow fall across the patio and knew where he was.
Grissom stood against the railing that made up the wall of the wood patio and stared out at the toys and swing set in the backyard. He allowed the tears to continue to fall, not realizing that Sara stood behind him.
She quietly walked up and then put her arms around him.
He on the other hand jumped at her contact and tried to quickly wipe the tears away, but wasn't quick enough.