A/N: My Sara muse was feeling neglected, and I couldn't work on "Then I saw her face" until I banged out this story. I hope you enjoy this fluffy GSR piece. Spoilers for Nesting Dolls, Committed, Iced, and Grave Danger. Also foreshadows my work (can you spoil your own work - well, I am! :)

Don't own anything - otherwise, we would have seen much more of these scenes on our TV's!

When I was a little girl, I was afraid of the dark. I wasn't afraid of monsters under the bed or ghosts in the attic, or things that go 'bump' in the night. No, my monster was real and alive in the shape and form of my father.

When I was five, my mother gave me a seashell shaped nightlight that cast a dim glow all over my room. She gave it to me on the down low because my father would have thrown the thing across the room, insisting that no child of his needed such a thing.

Which is pretty much what happened.

I needed the light for an early warning system. I had always been a light sleeper, waking at the first sound of my parents' raised voices down the hall that would quickly escalate to a full-on screaming match with objects and occasionally my mother being thrown across the room. When I was little, I cowered under my blankets and waited for the storm to pass, knowing that when it got quiet, my father would come in to kiss me good night, crushing me underneath his body, his breath hot and smelly in my face. If my mother was still conscious, she tried to prevent him from coming, as he was very drunk and overly affectionate with me; but her actions always resulted in more injuries for her. I knew that once the silence descended, he would be coming soon. That's why I needed the light – he was so quiet that my only clue to his arrival was the shadow he cast across the floorboards.

The night he broke my seashell nightlight, I could tell my father was surprised to find a glowing light instead of darkness when he stepped into my room.

"What the hell?" he roared. I heard stomping footsteps and suddenly the room was plunged into darkness. "Are you a baby, Sara?"

"No, Dad." I trembled under my covers, not daring to poke my head out to look at him.

The next sound I heard was breaking glass as my nightlight hit the wall next to my head and I buried myself further into the bed. Suddenly the covers were yanked off and I kept my eyes screwed shut as I felt my father looming over me, his breath hot on my face.

"Are you scared of the dark, Baby?"

I shook my head mutely, unable to speak.

"Jonathan! Leave Sara be – it's the middle of the night. She has school in the morning."

I opened my eyes to slits and peered out from underneath to watch as my father straightened up and turned to look at my mother leaning in the doorway, her face and upper arms bruised and bloody. I felt the tears coming so I quickly closed my eyes again and rolled over, clutching my pillow.

I heard my father leave and then the bed dipped as my mother sat down, placing a light hand on my hip.

"Sara."

I ignored her. I just wanted to sleep. I wanted this whole night to be another bad dream – and I knew that it wasn't.

"Sara," her whisper was in my ear now and I knew that she didn't want to be overheard. "I'm sorry about your nightlight. I will get you another one-"

I rolled over and opened my eyes to look into her dark ones. "No, Mom, he will just break it too."

My mom pursed her lips thoughtfully and then gave me a small smile. "What if I got you a little flashlight that you could hide under your pillow? Do you think you could make that work? Then you and I would have our own little secret."

I grinned and sat up, throwing my arms around her waist, gently squeezing her since I didn't know how badly she'd been hurt this time. "Just not a pink one, ok?"

"Of course. Nothing too girly for my girl."

Now that I was all grown up, chronologically speaking, my fear of the dark was gone. But the demons from my childhood remained and so did the penlight under my pillow. I found it more than a little ironic that I worked the night shift, but hey, I had never slept well anyway so why not work at night? Especially since in my off hours, I just fantasized about the one man in my life who was emotionally unavailable to me and that I just happened to be completely and totally in love with.

We didn't talk anymore – not unless the case made it absolutely necessary, and we didn't work that many cases together. In fact, when I was updating him on evidence just a few weeks ago, I caught him staring at me. It unnerved me and I stopped talking, silently wondering if he was even hearing what I was saying.

"Grissom – what is it?" I demanded, my voice low and questioning.

"Nothing – I just – I haven't seen you in a while- have I?"

I didn't know whether to scream or cry or hit him. I knew that I couldn't hit him – we were in the hallway at work and he's my supervisor. I also knew that I shouldn't get emotional – Grissom had always gotten on my case for being too emotional at work. In the end I only sighed and gave him a sad look.

"You see me every day."

And then I walked away.

But since my DUI last fall, things have started to change. He came to the station to pick me up and held my hand all the way out to the car. He apologized for being distant for so long. He told me the fault was entirely his and that he truly regretted the loss of our friendship.

Then he asked me for another chance. A chance to be a friend to me, someone I could talk to, someone I could lean on when I needed to.

What was I supposed to say? No?

Even after all the times I'd put myself out there and wanted more from him and been rejected – here he was finally offering me something. Of course, I said yes. But I also told him that I knew at least five ways to get rid of his body and no one would ever find it if he hurt me again.

He had quirked an eyebrow over his coffee cup. "Sidle, I'm scared of you."

That had been nearly six months ago now and we were almost back to where we had been when I first came to Vegas.

I knew he'd come.

I didn't see him on my way out of the lab and I didn't stop to leave him a message. I knew that he'd hear all about it from Catherine or Ecklie and he would come talk to me when he could.

I'd only been home for an hour when the knock came. Glancing in the peephole out of habit, I opened the door and greeted him with, "Well, if you're here, it can't be good."

"Can I come in?"

I waved him in with my hand that was holding a beer. "Want to ask me if I'm drunk."

Gil frowned at me. "We both know that's not your problem. I spoke with Catherine."

I shut the door and turned to face him. "Ecklie?"

"He wants me to fire you."

"I figured. Can I get you anything?"

"Sure. An explanation."

I attempted to explain that I lost my temper and crossed a line, but he wanted to know why, that it mattered to him why I had been losing my temper so much lately.

"Leave it alone."

"No, Sara."

"What do you want from me?"

"I want to know why you're so angry."

I felt the moisture gather in my eyes as I went and sat down, still facing him. "Please," I whispered. "Leave it alone."

He closed the distance between us and squatted down in front of me. "Sara, talk to me. You can tell me anything-"

My eyes settled on his. "Can I?"

He nodded.

I licked my lips and dropped my eyes to my lap. "You want to know why I'm so angry? Why I lost my temper? Why I always lose it on these kinds of cases?"

I stopped and waited for him to speak but he didn't. I knew that he would wait for me to keep talking so I did.

"When I was twelve, my mother stabbed my father to death." I heard his sharp intake of breath, and I knew that I had shocked him. "He was an abusive alcoholic that sent my mother to the ER multiple times a year and before you ask, yes, I had a few broken bones from his rages but only when I got in the way – when I was stupid enough to try and protect her from him when I was older." I raised my eyes to his, wondering what emotion I'd see there but his eyes were unreadable, just intently focused on my face.

I sighed. "I suppose I should also mention that my mother has paranoid schizophrenia. I don't think the illness manifested itself until I was around nine or ten - at least that's when I started noticing her odd behavior. I was never afraid of her, but she began to talk about the voices and that one day, they would come and save us from him. I guess – in her mind – that's what happened."

I shivered, suddenly feeling cold and a bit claustrophobic with Gil right in front of me. I got up and moved into my sitting area, crawling into an easy chair, and pulling my legs up in front of me. I heard him sigh and his knees creak as he straightened up and followed, sitting nearby on the couch, close but not too close.

I don't think I spoke for another ten minutes, and he just sat with me in the quiet of my apartment, not uttering a single word.

"It's funny, the things you remember and the things that you don't. I remember the smell of iron in the air – castoff on the bedroom wall. There was this young cop puking his guts. I remember the woman who took me to foster care – I can't remember her name – which is strange cause I couldn't let go of her hand."

Gil spoke for the first time since I started my trip down memory lane. "Well, the mind has its filters."

"I do remember the looks. I became the girl whose father was stabbed to death." I nodded slowly before I looked at him. "Do you think there's a murder gene?"

His gaze was solemn and sad as he looked at me. "I don't believe that genes are an indicator of violent behavior."

"You wouldn't know that at my house. The fights- the yelling – the trips to the hospital – I thought that was how everybody lived. When my – mother – killed my father – I found out that it wasn't."

The emotions that I'd been holding inside finally burst and I began shake as the sobs overtook me. I tried to pull inside myself, hide myself away from him. I felt so exposed and vulnerable and part of me just wanted him to leave. I didn't want him to see me like this. But then I felt his hand grip mine, his fingers warm and strong yet gentle at the same time.

"Sara." He spoke my name softly as my sobbing increased. "Oh honey, come here."

The hand covering my eyes dropped and my eyes met his as the endearment he called me registered. He nodded and tugged gently on our clasped hands. Still at a loss for words I allowed myself to be pulled onto the couch and he drew me into his side. I buried my face into the nape of his neck, marveling at the softness of his beard hair. He didn't say anything, just kept his arm around me so that I was pressed to his side and after a few minutes, my emotional storm passed. I felt my eyes growing heavy and I realized that I was tired, so very tired. I smothered a yawn against my hand, hoping Gil wouldn't notice, but he did.

"You need to get some sleep."

"What about Ecklie?"

"I'll take care of Ecklie, Sara."

I settled further into him, listening to the sound of his heartbeat under my ear. "Gil?"

"Yes?"

"You don't think any – I mean – what I told you-"

He reached down and tipped my chin up so that my sleepy eyes were looking into his. "Sara, what you told me – thank you for trusting me with your past and know that it will stay between us. It explains so much about you – where you've come from but most importantly the strong, confidant woman you are today. To have survived something so tragic- I only wish I had known you then – could have been there for you-"

"You're here for me now, Gil."

"Sara-" he breathed my name and my own heartbeat was roaring in my ears as his lips covered mine in a short but intense kiss that I felt from my head to my toes.

It's 4:03 and I can't sleep

without you next to me

I toss and turn like the sea

—Shinedown

I sat up in bed, my heart racing, my hand reaching for the penlight I kept under the pillow as I clicked it on and swung it around the room searching the darkness.

Don't look at him! Look at me!

I'd been dreaming – or rather reliving my attack by Adam Trent at the mental hospital. God, how I'd hated this case. I hated how just the smell of the place reminded me of the one and only time I had gone to visit my mother after she'd murdered my father. I hated how I could feel Grissom's protective nature, feel how much he didn't want me there. I knew he was just trying to protect me from the demons of the past but damn it, how was I going to conquer them if I didn't face them?

I raised my hand to the throbbing tender spot on the right side of my neck where Adam had held a pottery shard not that long ago. I thought it was the needle that I had dropped in our struggle – the one that contained nothing but air. As I realized the feel wasn't that of a needle against my throat, Gil's face appeared in the window. There wasn't a clock in the nurses' station, so I had no idea how long he'd been gone but it hadn't been that long. Definitely less than five minutes – hell, I think it was less than two. All I wanted in that moment was to get out of that room and throw myself into his arms. Then Nurse McKay appeared at the window and Adam began screaming at her, released me, and the door flew open, setting me free.

A light tapping sound came from my front door and I jumped to my feet, dropping the penlight and it rolled under the bed. I glanced down to see if I was decent, not remembering if I had put on clothes after taking my shower and collapsing in bed. Seeing that I was only wearing underwear, I opened my drawers and pulled out a soft sleepshirt, pulling it on over my head as I walked to the front door. Making sure the bottom hem covered my butt I called softly: "Hello?"

"Sara, it's me."

I unlocked my two dead bolts and as soon as the door opened, I threw myself into his arms. "You're late."

"Sara," he sighed my name into my neck, his lips finding my bruise and kissing it softly. Keeping me within his arms he walked me backwards into the apartment and shut the door. "Sara-"

I pulled away at the tone of his voice and searched his eyes. "Something happened – what is it?"

He sighed and raised a hand to cup my cheek. "Adam Trent is dead."

The shaking started again. I had managed to hold it together until I had gotten home and then I had shaken like a leaf for hours as I waited for him. He had texted me a couple hours ago saying he was about ready to leave the lab. I should have known from the delay that something had happened, and that it wasn't good.

"Tell me-"

"Sara, you're shaking-"

My fingers dug into his shirt, twisting the material. "Tell me, Grissom. Was it Joanne? Did she kill him before we picked her up for questioning?"

"Let's sit down." He walked me to the couch and sat, pulling me into his side. "Are you warm enough?"

"Hm, for now. Tell me what happened to Adam."

"They found him in his room two hours ago. His throat was slit."

I wrapped an arm around his waist and buried my face in his chest. "Let me guess, another pottery shard?"

"It seems he had sharpened one into quite a point-"

"Guess I got off lucky."

Gil pulled away enough to look down on me. "I never should have left you."

I reached up and cupped his face. "You were doing your job – we both were – and you only left me for a minute or two –"

"We both know that a minute or two is all it takes. Sara- you- I could have-"

I surged upwards, fusing my mouth to his. I didn't want him to finish that sentence. I didn't want to hear how close I had come to dying. Not now that I was so close to having everything I had ever wanted.

One of his hands came around the back of my neck and pulled me up into his body, deepening the kiss, causing me to shake for a very different reason this time. I felt moisture on my face and neck, and I pulled away to see that the tears weren't mine. I lifted my hands and brushed his tears away, caressing his bearded cheeks.

"I'm right here."

He shuddered under my hands. "I can't lose you, Sara – not now, not after everything we've done to get here."

I shook my head. "You won't." I watched as a wave of exhaustion washed over his face. "Let's get some sleep."

Fear bloomed in his eyes, and I fought the urge to throttle him. "Gil, listen to me. We've just come off a triple – I'm having nightmares – can you honestly tell me you're not going to have nightmares?"

He shook his head.

I swung my leg over so that I was now straddling his lap and I wound my arms around his neck. "Don't you wanna sleep with me, Gil? Or would you rather go home and sleep with your dog?"

He reached out and caressed the red mark on my neck with gentle fingertips. "That's not a fair contest, Sara. You are much sexier than my dog."

I giggled. "I hope so."

Hours later, my eyes flew open as I tried to get my breathing under control. I wasn't trapped in that nurses' station with Adam. I was safe and sound in my own bed with – Gil? I looked down to see an arm wrapped around my waist and I smiled. This wasn't the first time he had slept in my bed, but it was still new enough that I was a little disoriented upon waking and finding him curled up behind me. His breath was warm and tickled the baby fine hairs on the nape of my neck with each inhale and exhale. His body shifted, he muttered in his sleep and pulled me closer, his hand drifting lower on my belly. The fire was building inside of me, and I couldn't help but wonder how long it would be before we weren't just sleeping together.

I began to scoot away, doing my best not to wake him as my sexual desire had also made me realize that I needed to pee. Finally, I just lifted his hand and set it down gently on the mattress.

"Sara-" he mumbled sleepily and his eyes drifted open.

"Shh- go back to sleep." I brushed a kiss across his bearded cheek. "I'll be right back. I'm just going to the bathroom."

While I was in there, I took the opportunity to remove my bra. I couldn't believe that I had slept so long with it on. But then, I was beginning to realize that I slept better with Gil in my bed than without. I wondered if this would continue to be the trend once we were actually intimate.

"Sara?"

I poked my head out to see Gil propped up on an elbow, his eyes darting around the room as he looked for me. He sighed audibly when he saw me in the bathroom doorway.

"Where did you go?"

I grinned. "I told you, I needed to use the bathroom. I'm still here, honey. It's my apartment after all." I noticed his pale face and understanding dawned. "Bad dream?"

He nodded and scrubbed a hand across his face. "Dear?"

My heart leaped at the endearment but all I said was, "Yes?"

"Come back to bed."

When he wasn't plagued by nightmares, Gil Grissom was a sound sleeper. He would climb into bed, wrap an arm around my waist and in a matter of minutes, be out like a light for hours. I envied him that ability and must admit I was a little jealous.

While I slept deeper and my own nightmares became less frequent, I was still a light sleeper and continued to suffer from bouts of insomnia. Not even the enormous pleasure I received from being held in Gil's arms could prolong the amount of time I slept. Gil however seemed to sleep better when I was physically in bed with him, so my penlight now became a reading light during the hours that I was awake, and he was asleep.

A few weeks after we started our sleepovers, Gil rolled over and opened his eyes to see me propped up in bed beside him.

"What are you doing?"

I smiled. "Reading."

He pulled himself up, so he was sitting next to me in bed. "How long has this been going on?"

"A couple hours-"

"Sara-"

I clicked my penlight off and turned to face him in the semi-darkness. "You know I don't sleep much, Gil."

"You've mentioned it-"

I reached over and took his hand. "But you seem to sleep better when I'm here so-" I trailed off and shrugged.

He frowned. "I don't want you to stay in bed for me, Dear. If you need to get up and move around, go for a run, that's fine. I'll be here when you get back."

A wave of relief and love for this man washed over me. How did he know that's exactly what I needed to hear? I was fine with our relationship the way it was but part of me was scared that because we hadn't taken that final step, he could still wake up tomorrow and decide this wasn't what he wanted. That I wasn't what he wanted.

"I'm not going anywhere, Sara," he murmured as he drew me down into the circle of his arms and began to kiss a trail from my ear to my lips and down my neck.

"You should have seen the look on Greg's face when that toilet blew up – I mean, that's what he was trying to do – but he still must have jumped two feet in the air-" I broke into laughter and buried my face in the pillow, my whole body shaking.

Gil was lying on the bed across from me, relaxing in a gray sweatshirt and pants now that court was finally over. He was propped on his side, one hand under his head and the other was on my hip, tracing light patterns on my sleep pants.

"Sounds like the two of you had much more fun today than I did."

I lifted my face and wiped a couple of tears away, my merriment disappearing. "Come on, Gil, I know Ecklie lightened up your day."

Gil's lips quirked. "Ecklie and the case of the missing corpse."

I laughed. "You're awful!"

His eyes twinkled. "I missed you today."

"I missed you too." I leaned forward, closing the space between us and brushed my lips across his.

Ever since I had opened up and shared my family history with him, Gil had kept me close to him on cases. It had also been the catalyst that kick started our more than friends' relationship, something that I had dreamed of for years but had almost given up on.

Gil pulled away from me and I could see the serious look in his eyes.

"What is it?"

"Sara-" he looked away and his face grew red. "Are you- uh, happy?"

I frowned. "Of course, I'm happy – why would you ask me that?" I scooted over, eliminating the distance between us so I could loop an arm around his waist.

"I – uh – this case – with the college kids – it got me thinking about us-"

I bit my lip. "Gil, please don't compare you and me and our relationship to a pair of horny teenagers. I mean, trophy condoms, sex journals, rating systems – does any of that sound like us – at any point in our lives?"

"Well – we've never talked about – our partners-"

I huffed and pulled away, sitting up on the bed. "Ok, you really want to do this – now? I've had three sexual partners: Jimmy Stinson, my high school boyfriend that I lost my virginity to when I was fifteen – and we broke up soon after. Yeah," I rolled my eyes, "He was quite a catch, huh? Two, Ken Fuller my spring break fling in grad school-"

"Ah yes, your mile high conquest."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Don't interrupt. And three, Robin Kort. We dated off and on for a year when I was just starting out as a CSI."

Gil had sat up beside me by this time, leaning back against the wall. "What happened with him?"

I shrugged. "He got a job offer in Seattle – he asked me if I wanted to go with him, but I liked Frisco. He left, I stayed. Six months later, I met you."

"Sara-"

I reached out and took one of his hands in both of mine. "There hasn't been anyone else since I met you."

Gil raised his hand and kissed my fingers. "I can't believe that you've waited all this time for me, Sara."

I freed my hands to cup his face, bringing his mouth to mine. He swept me up in his arms, laying me down on the bed under him. I didn't pull away until air became a necessity.

"Are you happy, Gil?" I panted into his neck after he had once again shifted to lay beside me.

He dipped his head and deep blue met my dark browns.

"Honey, I'm happier than I ever thought I could be."

I grinned. "Then stop over-analyzing and enjoy what we've got going on right now – we've worked so hard to get here." I snuggled into his warmth and my eyes grew heavy with sleep.

"Yes, we have."

The knocking came a second time, and I bit my lip as I glanced at Gil's peaceful countenance. He had only just fallen back to sleep after the last nightmare – I really didn't want him to wake up again so soon. But if I got up and answered the door at his townhouse, whoever was on the other side would be highly suspicious of my presence here. It didn't matter that we had just come out of a highly emotional situation or that I was fully clothed – just finding me here at Gil's house would set fire to the gossip mill.

When the knock came again, a bit louder, I knew that whoever it was wasn't going away so I threw back the covers and put my jeans on. Gil's boxer, Hank, followed me to the door and taking a deep breath, I threw open the door.

"Well, hello Kiddo. Fancy finding you here."

"Come in, Brass." I motioned with my free hand as I kept the other on Hank's collar to keep him from bolting into the front yard, and from there into the street.

"Is Gil here?"

I nodded. "He's sleeping – I brought Hank home a while ago – thought I'd stay and keep an eye on him."

Brass looked like he wanted to ask me something but all he said was: "I just came by to check on him but I can see I'm not needed here, so I'll head back out-"

"Any word on Nick?" I swallowed as the fear of the past two days threatened to take hold of me again. Nick had been abducted and buried alive by some maniac bent on revenge for his daughter. The team had found him in time – barely – but I knew all too well the psychological trauma would be deep and long-lasting.

"He's stable. Other than a slight infection from all those ant bites and severe dehydration, the kid is fine, physically. His parents are with him. I know he'd love to hear from the team-"

I nodded. "We're all going to the hospital later."

Brass came close and laid a hand on my shoulder. "Get some rest, Sara. Make sure Gil takes care of you too."

"I-"

"Hey –" Brass' hands flew up in the air. "Your secret is safe with me. I'll just say this: it's about damn time!"

I shook my head at him as he winked and let himself out.

Gil is going to kill me.

"SARA! NO!"

My feet flew up the short flight of stairs at the sound of his shout, Hank at my heels. I snapped my fingers and pointed, Hank following my silent directions and went to his doggie bed as I climbed in next to Gil.

"Honey, wake up! You're having a nightmare!"

"No, Sara. Hang on-" Gil continued to thrash and moan, caught in his nightmare world.

I swallowed as I realized he was now dreaming of me being in danger instead of Nick. "Gil! Wake up!" I shook his shoulder, hard, and sat back with relief when his eyes flew open, and his body grew still on the bed. I sat and waited, giving him time to orient himself

"Sara?" He sat up slowly, his eyes scanning the room and finally landing on me.

"I'm here," I whispered, reaching for his hand.

He attacked my mouth with such speed that it stole my breath away. His hands were in my hair as I threw my leg over his and fell into his lap. My arms looped around his neck as his hands drifted lower, finding the strip of skin between my tank top and my jeans. His fingers began to creep the bottom of my shirt up and I tore my mouth away from his.

"Gil-" I gasped out his name. "Are you awake right now?"

He grinned. "Do you think I'm still asleep?" His fingers continued their journey on my bare skin, and I shivered as he drew patterns on my rib cage.

"I – I – just want you to remember what you're doing- and have no regrets-" I breathed out a sigh as he leaned in and kissed my mouth.

"My only regret is making you wait this long-"

I placed a finger on his lips. "Some people are worth waiting for – you, Gil Grissom, are worth the wait."

"I think we've both waited long enough," he breathed the words in my ear as he slowly inched my tank top up and off. "Don't you?"

A growling stomach drove me from the bed hours later. I knew I had the biggest, dopiest grin on my face as I stood looking down at a very naked Gil softly snoring on his pillow. I draped a sheet over his waist and lower body and grabbing his dress shirt, I slipped it on as I headed for the kitchen to make us something to eat.

I checked Gil's phone and saw that he had missed three calls from Ecklie. There was no way in hell I was going to call him back, so I left the phone in the living room and went to see if there were ingredients for French Toast. I had forgotten how hungry I got after sex – well, it had been years after all.

If my absence from the bed didn't wake him, I knew the smell of food would – but I still jumped when his arms wrapped around my waist from behind as I took the last piece of French Toast out of the frying pan. Turning off the burner, I spun in his arms and lifted my face for his kiss. One turned into two turned into three and soon he had backed me into the counter and his shirt was hiked around my waist, his fingers creeping towards-

I slapped his hands away and pushed him back. "Food."

"Sara-"

"No, Gil. I'm starving! We need to keep up our strength for our extracurricular activities – trust me." I smirked at him and walked away, wiggling my hips for extra effect.

"You're a tease, Sara Sidle."

"Yes, I am, but you love me!" I laughed as I searched the fridge for some syrup.

I turned back to see him frozen in the same spot I'd left him, a panicked look on his face. What had I – Oh no! "Gil, I didn't mean it like that – I mean – oh damn it, you know I'm always over talking around you-"

"I do, Sara."

I nearly dropped the bottle of syrup I was holding. "What?"

He came and stood in front of me, his hands hanging down by his sides, looking very much like a lost little boy. "I do love you."

I placed the bottle of syrup on the table before taking one of his hands and leaning in for a soft kiss.

"I love you too. But then, you already knew that didn't you?"

I waited for his answer and after a moment, Gil nodded and smiled.

"I did."

"Well, now that we both know, can we please eat before it gets cold?"

"I have an idea – I have these trays that I never use. How about I get them, and we load all the food up and take our breakfast back to bed?"

I laughed, one of my deep belly laughs that shook my whole frame as I wagged my finger at him. "I thought I was going to be the insatiable one."

He gave me a boyish wink before scanning me from head to toe, his eyes alight with need. "Dear?"

I licked my lips and tried in vain to keep my body from responding to his desire. "Yes?"

"Come back to bed."

Reaching behind me, I grabbed two pieces of French Toast and sashayed past him, letting my body rub against his. I was only a few steps in front of him when I felt his arms come around my waist and lift me up in the air. I squealed and held tight to my food as he carried me up the stairs and back to bed.

Bed – the place that had once been the source of such terror was now a place of love and light. Instead of waiting in terror for my father, now I had Gil's arms to hold me and love me and keep me safe from the terrors of the night. Having someone who understood you, who loved you and wanted to make you happy – those were all gifts that Gil gave to me.

Gifts that were worth so much more than a simple seashell shaped nightlight.

A/N: Aren't they so sweet? So, whenever Grissom's bull headedness in "Then I saw her face" gets you down, head back here and re-read this one! Oh, and if you caught the lyrics, they are from a song called "If you only knew" by Shinedown.

Reviews are LOVE!