A/N: I know this has been a long time coming. I wanted to get it just right, it was important to me that I struck the right tones with the reunion. GSR is thin on the ground at the moment so writing a lousy GSR piece was just not on my to-do list. I hope I have been able to do it justice and I hope you will be happy with this. Originally it was supposed to explore Grissom's 'Heaven' but in the end the reunion and emotions associated with that took over and assumed much more importance so there will be at least one more chapter with Grissom involved. I hope you all enjoy, please let me know... oh, also...you DO get fall in Vegas. I looked it up as I wasn't sure and its the one thing my lovely Beta Otie pointed out when proofreading this for me.
Lots of Love and hugs
Charli xx

Her favourite place at home was the swinging loveseat hanging from the rafters of their back porch. Roses and tiger lilies wound their way around the chains and their scent hung in the air like a melody. That was where she found herself next; sitting in the seat listening to the sounds of nature and the soft creak of the support beam above her.

She loved it here in the spring when the garden was alive and the sun kissed her skin. She had spent so many long afternoons out here with Grissom that it had almost become synonymous with his memory. Sara still lovingly tended to the many plants and flowers he had planted although she couldn't claim to have the same in depth knowledge or passion for gardening that he had.

Her heart seemed to know he was there before she did. Over the years it had developed its own rhythm reserved only for him and right now it beat that rhythm gallantly.

Sara was almost afraid to open her eyes again. The journey to contentment had turned out to be filled with turmoil but now she could feel the sun on her face and a gentle breeze rustled some far away leaves and tousled her hair. She could smell the lavender and rosemary that grew on the borders of the garden and hear that oh-so-familiar sound of the swing creaking under her weight.

Sara knew exactly where she was without opening her eyes. She wasn't sure she was ready to face him yet. She might be able to speak to him, touch him…kiss him. Her heart couldn't bear it, it had been so long.

The scene seemed to come alive as she realised it, almost as though it wasn't really there until she saw it. She could feel the cold wood of the swing and feel the gentle rocking motion it provided. Her hands instinctively moved to the surface of the seat touching the well-worn upholstery brushing her fingertips. It was like greeting an old friend.

She assumed it had only been a matter of days, possibly hours since she came to this place and yet it felt like she had spent a lifetime in this new reality. Time had no meaning for the first time in her life and it was strangely unnerving. She had, like most people, used time as a tool to control her life. Time was always moving, too slow, too fast, running out, wasted…. Now she had time in abundance and it frightened her a little.

She could picture her feet on the old wooden porch before she actually saw them. Her old beige slippers had seen better days she silently confessed, although it was slightly liberating to know she didn't need to buy a new pair. She slid them off her feet figuring splinters were probably the least of her worried right now as she forced herself to her feet.

There was a huge tree on the outside of their garden, the leaves creating a symphony of oranges and reds waiting on the branches for their chance to pirouette to the ground. Sara loved fall, it was one of her favourite seasons to just sit on the porch with a mug of hot chocolate between her hands and watch everything changing before her eyes.

Some movement caught her eye further up the garden and her breath hitched in her chest. She couldn't supress the wide joyful smile or the sheer overwhelming live that washed over her as she saw him there at the bottom of the garden. He was crouched down on a gardening pad, thick green gloves covered his hands and a set of gardening tools lay to his right. She could hear his voice as he explained the benefits of pruning to Hank the completely disinterested boxer to his left.

"This ensures we get a healthy crop of flowers again next year" he stated before allowing his eyes to travel to her.

Everything about the scene was perfect, right down to the melody played by the wind chimes hanging on the porch and the blades of grass tickling between her toes.

Grissom clipped one beautiful rose from the bush and handed it to her as she approached making her heart stop in her chest, assuming of course it was actually still beating somewhere. Sara studied the delicate petals and the beads of dew resting upon them like crystals.

She wasn't sure any of this was real. She wanted it to be, more than anything, but logic told her it was impossible. She never thought she'd see those eyes or that smile again. The shock of it all brought her to her knees before him her hands reaching out for his broad shoulders, a part of her expected him to disappear like an apparition but instead she fell into his arms.

Tears took over as she felt his arms wrap around her. His body was warm, not cold and stiff as it had been the last time she had saw him. He smelled like she remembered him, subtle hints of coffee and peppermint mingled with the earthy tones that surrounded them.

After a moment of sheer indulgence in the closeness of his body she pulled herself back and sat there across from him, taking in the tiniest details of his face like she was experiencing it for the first time. She had lay in bed beside him in years gone by carefully memorising the lines on his palm and the creases beside his eyes. She knew that the beautiful connection they had would be temporary and she had been determined to preserve and cherish as much of it as she could. Her life had told her that happiness was fragile and precious but it had also told her it was short lived.

She placed her hands gently on either side of his face, looking deep into his crystal blue eyes. He smiled at her, a wide, genuine smile and her heart turned somersaults in her chest. He looked good; somehow younger than he had at the end. His eyes sparkled with enthusiasm and happiness. His beard tingled under her fingers and bristled at her skin as he brought his lips to hers.

She had forgotten just how easily he could spin her around in circles with his kiss. He was always so gentle, even in the throes of passion his kiss was tender and romantic. It left her breathless; the kiss, his touch, the closeness.

"I missed you" He whispered as their foreheads pressed together and their breath mingled. Her eye lashes fluttered against his eyebrows as she sought out his gaze.

"You have no idea…." She smiled, a lone tear snaking its way across her cheek.

"I thought I'd be waiting longer" He confessed and she realised that he had been waiting on her all this time. "I hoped I'd be waiting longer"

Sara moved back slightly, studying his face. He was good at hiding his emotions, he had always been a hard one to figure out but she could tell that he was torn when it came to their reunion. The happiness was evident but there were clear undertones of sorrow and regret there that he tried to hide.

She wondered how much he knew about her life, how much he had seen from this place where he had been waiting for her. It was something she figured she would find out soon enough, it had occurred to her that everyone here had to wait for someone before their time came to really pass over. She figured that if she got to wait here with Grissom then she wouldn't have minded waiting forever. In fact, she would prefer it that way. Forever wasn't really long enough.

"How did it happen?" He questioned, inadvertently answering her silent questions. If he didn't know how she had died then it was unlikely he knew how she had lived. Although living was all it had been, her time without Grissom could hardly be accused of masquerading as a life.

"I'm not sure" Sara confessed, and this was true. She could remember noise and searing pain, she could feel the sorrow and loss that Greg had expressed when she was near but she could only hazard an educated guess at her cause of death. "I think I was shot"

"I hope you didn't suffer" Grissom soothed as he wrapped her in his arms again. He had a strange way of making the most horrific ordeal seem miniscule and insignificant. It was probably why he was so good at consoling the families they had met through their work. His voice calmed people like a lullaby and his manner enlisted trust and faith.

"Would I know if I did?" She asked, she wasn't naïve to the fact that she felt more comfortable asking him these questions than anyone else. She and Grissom had always shared an unusual freedom of communication. There was really nothing she felt she couldn't say to him; that had been part of the problem with their early relationship of course; she could say it all but he didn't necessarily want to hear it.

"Does it really matter?" Grissom made a good point. If she had suffered then it had obviously not been enough for her to suffer any ill effects of it on this side. The only real concern she had about her demise was Greg's reaction, something that Grissom anticipated and addressed before she could even bring it up. "Greg will be fine…in time"

Sara nodded, returning her eyes to the man in front of her in awe. He was really there, holding her like he had done before. His hands rested on her hips like they belonged there, the gloves now discarded onto the deep green grass. His eyes looked deep into her soul, seeing things she didn't realise were there and filling her heart with the love and joy it had been missing. There had been a hole in her life for so long, a space she couldn't seem to fill and sitting here with him she realised that he was the source of that emptiness…and he was the only one who could fill it.

This was where she was happy.

When she had confessed to Pamela that she had never been happy it had been a lie. She had simply supressed her happiness because if she had thought about it at all she would have drowned under the loss of it. Everyone had been so concerned about her when they had split, they avoided mentioning him as much as possible afterwards and when he passed on nobody knew how to deal with it. She had received condolences from the people who knew her most; Greg, Nick and Brass. They knew just how deep and intense her connection with Grissom had been and they knew that it was never going to be a simple case of moving on.

Losing Grissom had crippled her, she didn't admit it to anyone but she had never felt loss like it before. Nothing felt the same afterwards, the things that she had once enjoyed in her life had become mere distractions. If she was brutally honest she didn't really feel anything anymore, his death had been the demise of all her emotions. She had been numb.

"I don't think I was living anyway" She whispered, pressing her lips against his once more and sinking into his embrace.