The next day Catherine practically skipped into the lab with a permanent smile etched on her face, one that hadn't moved from the moment Sara had kissed her outside her house. After checking on an already slumbering Lindsey she had gone to bed still feeling those shivers running through her body from the kiss. The way Sara had pinned her to the post and kissed her had sent her body into override. Catherine had never been one to shy away from her sexuality, or her preferences in the bedroom, but she was certain she had never shared with Sara just how much it turned her on when her lovers took control and were a little rough with her. Grissom and Warrick both knew Eddie had liked it rough, and Warrick through admission later that she also enjoyed it that way. But not Sara. It was all so thrilling. If Sara's kisses were anything to go by she was in for a wild ride.

Smiling she waved to Judy, the receptionist, and headed straight to the break room for assignment handout. However, when she got there Grissom was nowhere to be seen and everyone else had taken seats to wait for their boss. Everyone except Sara.

"Where's Sara?" Catherine paused in the doorway and scanned the room. "And Griss?" she added suddenly feeling exposed as everyone looked at her when she enquired after her brunette colleague.

"Hell if I know." Warrick shrugged and handed her a coffee he had already prepared for her.

Muttering her thanks she moved to sit at the table but before she could even pull the chair out a voice stopped her movements.

"Ms. Willows?" Judy stepped into the room. A small, mousy looking woman she seemed almost intimidated by the scientists gathered around. "You've got a delivery." She murmured as she walked over to the table and placed the vase full of sunflowers on the table. Offering the team a small, nervous smile she rushed back out of the room and to the safety of her desk.

Catherine placed her mug of coffee on the table and ran her finger delicately over the deep yellow, almost burnt orange, petals of one of the flowers. Instinctively she knew they were from Sara causing another smile to break out on her face.

"You looked absolutely beautiful last night. Kiss." Greg's voice caught Catherine's attention, turning her face to look at him she saw the little white rectangle in his hands.

"Greg!" she scolded as she snatched the card and scanned the printed words for herself. There was no indication as to who had written it. No signature. Nothing to give away who thought she had looked beautiful.

"Got an admirer?" Nick chuckled as he turned the vase around on the desk followed by a whistle. "Whoever it is pushed the boat out on these. I got an ex of mine some flowers from here once, 'bout cost me an arm for a smaller bunch than this."

Still smiling Catherine picked the vase up. "Excuse me boys." Without a glance back she made her way down the hall to her office and placed the beautiful floral display on her desk.

Making her way around to the other side she took a seat in the leather chair, not taking her eyes off the flowers, and picked up the phone from its holder on her desk. Quickly typing in the number she twirled the cord around her finger as she listened to the dial tone.

"Sidle." Just the sound of Sara's voice caused those pesky tingles to take up residence in her stomach again.

"Thank you for the flowers, they're beautiful."

"Cath?" Some slight muffles indicated Sara had pulled the phone away from her ear to check the caller ID. "This isn't your cell number?"

"You'd be correct. Its my office line." She relaxed back into the seat and crossed one leg over the other. "You know the guys all the saw the flowers."

"I figured they might." She could hear the smile in Sara's voice. "I figured it'd be easier to explain than for Lindsey to see me giving them to you last night." Her voice had dropped to a quiet murmur.

Catherine smiled at the thoughtfulness as she was once again reminded that Sara thought everything through.

"Did you sleep well?" Sara asked not able to take the silence after her statement.

"Very well." Catherine smirked and shifted into a more comfortable position in her chair. "I'd been out on one of the best dates I've ever been on...oh and I got kissed senseless on my porch." A smirk tugged at her lips when the memory once again presented itself in her mind. "You?"

She heard Sara shuffling around on the other end of the line, assuming she was still in bed she smiled once again.

"hmm, I had a wonderful dream." Her voice has taken on a slightly whimsical tone.

"Oh yeah? Care to share?"

"Oh no. I couldn't possibly do that." Sara laughed as she teased Catherine. "I'm not a kiss and tell kind of woman."

"So it was a naughty dream then."

"I guess you could say that."

Sara's statement was sending Catherine's temperature through the roof. She shifted in her seat once again and unbuttoned the top button on her blouse in an attempt to cool herself down. Her eyes settled on the flowers.

"Why sunflowers?" she asked curiously. Partly because it was an odd choice to send to a romantic partner after a date and partly because she desperately needed to divert this conversation. Unlike Sara she was at work and she really didn't fancy spending the entire shift aroused.

"Because they remind me of you. They're so vibrant and full of life. I dunno, I guess I should have gone with roses huh?"

Why did everything Sara say have such an impact on her. She had to take a moment to get her emotions in check before she could reply.

"I think I prefer the sunflowers." Her voice was barely above a whisper and she knew Sara would detect the slight undertone of emotion there.

As she finished speaking her office door opened and Nick poked his head in, he noted the phone in her hand and motioned to the break room signalling Grissom had arrived. Nodding her head in acknowledgement she waited until he had shut the door again before speaking.

"I've got to go hun."

"Yeah, sure. Be careful babe."

Smiling at Sara's concern Catherine assured her she would before bidding her goodbye and placed the phone back into its cradle. She stood from her chair and leant forward to sniff the flowers one last time before starting her shift. The smile from the previous night even more firmly etched on her face at Sara's latest display of affection.

*

Over the following weeks Catherine quickly realised how romantic and caring Sara really was. After their first date she had become even more tactile around Catherine. Whenever she had the opportunity to touch the other woman she would, brief presses of her hand to the small of her back when walking, a brush of fingers down her arm when she moved to stand next to her, resting her hands on her shoulders as she leaned over her to look at something for herself. Not to mention how she would touch her when they were alone. Both the subtle, brief touches and the burning intense touches in private were rapidly causing Catherine to become a walking ball of desire.

And the dates, when they'd had the chance to go on them, had also added proof to just how much Sara hid of her true self. They had gone out for a meal which had led to some flirting and a make out session in the car. They had been to a jazz club, which Sara admitted was kind of cool after grumbling about Catherine's choice of venue. And most recently Sara had invited Catherine to watch a show.

Sara had surprised Catherine yet again when she had left the tickets in her locker after her hearing Catherine telling Grissom she had wanted to see it for so long but just hadn't done it for one reason or another. Sara had taken this information and planned the whole evening starting with having a beautiful navy blue evening gown delivered to Catherine's house. When Catherine had tried the dress on she had audibly gasped. It was made of a beautiful silky fabric that fitted around her torso before flowing out from her waist. The front coming just below her knees while the back continued down to trail on the floor slightly. The dress was finished off with a sheer fabric covering her collarbone and shoulders embossed with sparkling gems. It short, it was stunning. And far too much as Catherine had stated when she had phoned Sara.

"Please Catherine, just accept it. Its a gift."

"A far too extravagant one!" Catherine had argued back despite the fact she had yet to take the dress off.

"That's irrelevant. I want you to have it."

"But why?" Catherine had queried as she sat on the side of her bed.

"You'll find out soon." The sound of the call being ended brought an end to their conversation causing Catherine to sigh.

Two nights later she had found the tickets in her locker sealed in a white envelope with 'wear the dress' scrawled across the front. When she had opened the envelope and seen the tickets her hand had flown to her mouth, her eyes quickly scanning the other occupants of the room to check they hadn't noticed her sudden shock.

Sara, once again, had managed to evade her for most of the evening due to a callout on a road collision. It wasn't until hours later when Catherine had cornered her in one of the evidence rooms that she had confessed to hearing her discussion with Grissom.

"But that was weeks ago." Catherine's brow furrowed as she recalled the case they had worked at the theatre.

Sara nodded in response then shrugged. "I needed time to plan and to get the right dress." She smiled at Catherine hoping to pacify the other woman.

Sighing Catherine had taken a seat on one of the stools, looking down at the envelope in her hands that had spent the better portion of the evening burning a hole in her pocket.

"Sar...the tickets, the dress. Its too much." Looking up she saw Sara's face fall. "You don't need to do all this to prove anything to me."

"I'm not doing it to prove anything. I'm doing it because I've waited for this chance for so long and now I have it I want to give it everything I've got."

"Not your life's savings though Sara!" This had been their first disagreement since they had started this little dance called dating.

Sara scoffed and folded her arms. "Its tickets and one dress, hardly my life's savings."

"Why do you have to be so infuriating?" Catherine voice rose in frustration as she stood up again and placed herself squarely in front of Sara.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" Sara countered, drawing herself up to her full height. If they were going to have a verbal sparring match she was going to have to brace herself, Catherine was vicious when she needed to be.

"Dammit Sara!" Catherine's eyes were blazing. "I don't want you spending your money on me!"

Sara, right at this moment, was finding it hard to be interested in what they were fighting about. She was far more interested in the way Catherine had invaded her personal space, the way her chest was rising and falling rapidly, the way there was a slight red flush blooming across the pale skin there making her wonder if it would flush like that when she felt other intense emotions. Her eyes flickered across the exposed skin at Catherine's chest before skipping up to the lips that were still talking despite her no longer listening. She felt that familiar warmth growing in her stomach and spreading to her groin, Catherine in this state was turning her on.

Catherine was still ranting when she suddenly found herself hoisted up into Sara's arms and pushed against the nearest filing cabinet with Sara's lips attacking her own, the brunettes fingers digging into her ribs where they held her firm against the metal. The slight pain in her back from pressure of being pushed against the hard metal was far outweighed by the intense pleasure suddenly coursing through her body. For a moment she pulled the other woman in closer and kissed her back until her senses kicked in and she pulled back breathless. "The lab." She breathed out as Sara ducked her head to the flushed skin that had caught her attention earlier. Sara placed a brief kiss to the skin there before letting Catherine's feet touch the floor once again. She took a step back and met the eyes of the now dishevelled blonde.

"Please, just let me do this for you." The earlier argumentative tone had left her voice to be replaced with an almost pleading one.

Sighing Catherine adjusted her now rumpled shirt. "Okay." She met Sara's eyes as the brunettes face broke into a smile. "But no more extravagant gifts."

"Scouts honour." Sara held up her hand making Catherine laugh.

"Wrong fingers hunny." She adjusted Sara's fingers into the correct salute and smiled at the brunette before scooping to pick up the dropped envelope and leaving the room.