The sound of the key in the lock brought Grissom out of shock. He was standing in the entryway of Catherine's house, and she was holding his hand, looking at him with need and an animalistic hunger in her eyes. What was he doing here? This couldn't happen. Not now…not ever. But the way she was looking at him made him think twice about turning right around and walking out the door.
"Gil…" her voice was a throaty whisper. "Come to bed with me."
Just that one statement took his breath away. The moonlight from the adjacent window shone milky white upon her soft skin. Could he resist this woman tonight? Could he turn away from the promise of a night, just one night, with the woman he'd been in love with for years? The answer came all too quickly.
"Show me the way."
The brush of Catherine's lips was the only answer that night. The taste of her skin and the enticing smell of her hair was the only thing real. Their bodies moved together in the night as if they were made for one another.
Catherine gasped as she realized the beauty of the moment. Grissom was here with her, at last. No more avoidance or pain, all she had to look forward to was a lifetime of Gil…always.
She lay in Grissom's arms with that thought in mind as he tenderly stroked her hair and back. The soft glow of dawn greeted the sated lovers as they drifted to sleep.
"Gil…" Catherine glanced up at him tenderly as he dressed.
"What's wrong?" he asked hurriedly, his face etched with worry.
"I need to know."
A simple statement, and yet it held so many meanings. He knew what she wanted. He knew that she needed to know about the case; about Nick, about Sara's father. But most of all he knew the one thing she wanted most, and yet he could not answer. She needed to hear from him what was to become of them. And that was the one thing he did not know.
"Okay Cath…I'll tell you everything."
The sun was streaming through the windows as Grissom finished telling her about the case. Every tiny detail he covered, and when Catherine had questions he answered them patiently. She had a right to know, after all.
"Grissom" Catherine began after he had finished. "What about us?"
"I don't know yet." He replied with a tired sigh. His eyes were filled with a mixture of pain and a tinge of sadness.
" I- I love you!" She nearly shouted her declaration to him while tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Cath…" Grissom wiped her tears away with the pad of his thumb, tenderly caressing her smooth skin. "I love you too. But I don't know where we're going from here. Just give it time. Not too much longer, but we need to give it time, okay?"
She nodded slowly. "Okay." But inside she secretly hoped it would be soon. There was no telling when this killer would strike again, and she knew she needed Gil by her side if she was to make it through this again.