CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Three weeks later…
Monday morning at the CSI lab was business as usual. Grissom was in his office when he saw Iris and Jim walking by. Iris gave him a wave and big smile as she headed to the locker area to get ready for the day shift she was covering for just that day. Grissom still had her on his graveyard team and glad of it. She seemed to be positively glowing to Grissom as she walked by quickly. Brass, looking very tan and relaxed, stopped in for a quick chat with his best friend.
"Hey, Gil," Jim said.
"Welcome back, Jim. So how'd it all go?" Grissom said with a wink.
"Man, I gotta tell you I've got the whole package in that little gal. She's an awesome cook, loves our old house, and, well, let's just say the lovin' department is more than covered. Know what I mean." Jim gave one of his little half-smiles with an upraised eyebrow. "And did I mention she loves me…me of all people."
Grissom gave one his secretive smiles in return; Brass knew it had everything to do with Sara.
"Your day's coming, pal," Jim said. "She's every bit as special, too".
Jim went on to tell Grissom of the whirlwind honeymoon trip they'd undertaken. They flew first to Indianapolis to meet Iris's clan. He'd been made to feel welcome from the first moment, finding himself a new uncle to three nephews and four nieces. Iris's oldest nephew, Sean, was in college taking courses for a degree in criminal justice and law enforcement with aspirations of joining the Drug Enforcement Agency. Jim had found a kindred spirit in the young man who was the apple of his aunt's eye. From there, they had flown on to visit Jim's mother in Newark. She'd cried upon meeting her new daughter-in-law and being called Ma by Iris. Jim had been away too long he knew and that would change. They'd also caught a Boston Red Sox baseball game, as Jim was delighted to find a sports fan in his bride. In Dallas, she had been a huge Dallas Mavericks, Stars, Texas Rangers, and Cowboys supporter. It could be a divided camp come play-offs she'd warned him.
They had also gone to Montreal, as Iris had never been out of the country before and it was the closest thing to visiting Europe. They had then flown to Fiji for a full two weeks after that, somewhere Brass had always wanted to go. Jim now had some very special memories of making love on the beach as well as out in the warm ocean waters under a moon that seemed just out of reach of their grasp. He and Iris had just returned the night before.
"You two covered a lot of ground," Gil surmised.
"She's been the best thing to come my way besides Ellie. Well, gotta go put the nose to the grindstone." Brass finished as he headed on to his office.
Grissom watched as Brass left. It could be said that Jim and Iris were opposites in some ways, but then again opposites attracted and he believed all the more that what those two shared would be enduring and strong to stand the test of time. He desired the same for Sara and himself.
That night, as Jim and Iris cleaned up after dinner, he marveled at how at home he felt now. Before, this had been where he lived, where he ate, where he slept, the place being not more to him. Now it was truly their home and a place where he wanted to be more than ever. Later as they went on to sleep, Jim held Iris close to him, to have and to hold.
THE END
THANK YOU FOR READING "TO HAVE AND TO HOLD". JIM AND IRIS'S NEW LIFE TOGETHER CONTINUES NEXT IN "HEIDI'S SONG" WHICH WILL BE COMING VERY SOON.
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