Grissom – I can't stop loving you

He was released from hospital later that night. Sara and Nick had been sent away to get some rest as he intended to make the drive back to Vegas early the next morning but the doctor had been very insistent he remained within distance of the hospital for 24 hours and he didn't drive. The cab pulled up at the hotel as dusk was beginning to fall, his pain medication made him really tired but he had one place he had to go before he could let sleep come. One thing he had to take care of before it was too late… again.

He knocked on her door before nerves could take hold of him and they were taking hold of him. If he had hesitated he may have turned back, if he had listened to the logic in his head he would have gone to his own room and slept off the events of the past couple of days. He would have woken refreshed and alert and more capable of dealing with something like this. Something so unmistakably huge that would change the course of his life.

She was taking a long time to answer the door. Too long for his liking, it gave him too much time to think. He was actually about to spin around and head back to his room. He could pretend the whole thing didn't happen; Sara probably wouldn't bring it up for fear of another rejection. He could feasibly return to Vegas with only the memory of her soft skin under his fingers. The problem with that was that he wouldn't always be able to taste her lips on his, eventually the memory would fade and he would need more. He would always need more.

So he knocked again, despite the fear flowing through his body and the many, many impulses that told him not to. When she appeared in the doorway they were all forgotten. Every last one.

She stood there silhouetted by the bright lighting in the room, one white towel wrapped around her body and another one in her hand tousling her wet hair. The entire room was filled with the soft lavender scent that he had come to accustom with her, it was known for its abilities to relax but in this case it did nothing but arouse.

At first her expression was one of confusion, they had all expected him to be in hospital at least for the night. He was probably the last person she expected to arrive at her door that night. The confusion was soon replaced with something else, he wasn't sure what it was but there was deepness in her eyes as she stepped aside and let him in.

"Shouldn't you still be at the hospital?"

"No, they let me out"

Her expression told him she didn't believe him but she didn't challenge him. She dropped the towel in her hand onto the dressing table and switched on the blow-dryer as he watched her from the center of the room. He was bewildered, all the way over here, all the way from the hospital he had ran through this moment in his head. He had imagined every possible scenario and every outcome. It was what scientists did best after all; they considered the variables and predicted the conclusion.

He couldn't have predicted his sudden inability to speak, he wouldn't have predicted just how breathtakingly beautiful she would be straight from the shower. The beads of moisture still dabbling her skin like diamonds and the humidity twisting her hair into soft curls he longed to run his fingers through. He was aware he was staring at her and so was she. He couldn't help but meet her eye in the mirror over and over again while he watched and shamefully willed the towel to come loose and pool at her feet.

"What do you want Grissom?"

She stood in front of him, almost toe to toe and met his eye. He had been so lost in his thoughts he hadn't even noticed her switching the blow-dryer off or slipping the complimentary hotel robe over her shoulders. He had outstayed his welcome, he either had to make his excuses and leave or make his move. It should have been a cut and dry decision. He should have been able to come up with a beautifully poetic quote that perfectly summarized how he felt but the only words that spilled from his mouth were ones he would instantly regret.

"Nothing"

He saw the rage light the fire in her eyes right away. He could feel the rant building and bubbling under the surface as she stared at him, stared right into his eyes.

"Nothing? All of this, this … game…. It was for nothing?"

She paced the room, venting her frustrations as he had often seen her do. A lot of the time it was his fault she had those frustrations. He wondered sometimes if she would maybe be an altogether calmer person if he wasn't in her life. Still he couldn't form the words he needed, they didn't seem to exist. in his vast linguistic knowledge there were no words that could properly express it so instead he reached out to her another way. He rested a hand on her arm, heavily padded by the bathrobe. It stopped her pacing at least; it made her look at him again. She was defeated, he realized that when she looked at him. She had given up. What she had given up on he couldn't be sure but she had definitely given up.

"What do you want?"

He turned the question onto her, if nothing else it would buy him some much needed time but apparently she didn't need long to consider her answer. She brushed his hand off her arm and faced him with every bit of defiance and self-worth she had left.

"I want you to want me" he was sure his mouth gaped open when she let the robe fall to the floor. Although the towel remained in place it was glaringly obvious the angle she was going for. She reached out for his hand and hovered it above her chest. He wasn't touching her but he could feel her breath as her chest slowly moved with its rhythm, he could almost feel her heart thumping through her skin as she stood there waiting for him to make his move. "I feel like I'll explode if you just touch me Grissom"

He could have easily moved his hand the mere millimeters to her chest but something snapped in his brain that made stoic, controlled Gil Grissom topple right over the edge of his passion. Like a river breaking its dam, it may have taken a long time for the trickle to become a stream but all it took was one twig out of place for the whole thing to come crashing down.

He cupped his hand under her jaw, his fingers lacing in her hair as he pulled her close and danced his lips on hers. That kiss, that delicious soft kiss awakened all the secret longings and desire he had buried. It almost hurt to feel her lips grace his but in a strange way it was the most exquisite kind of pain he had ever experienced. The sensation awoke reactions all over his body as she pressed against him and he whispered in her ear.

"I have always wanted you"