13 October 2000- 12:45 hours

            Grissom had asked Sara to stop by his townhouse before he took her out to lunch, complaining about the need for a fresh shirt after standing several hours in the Nevada sun. He could already feel the tender pinch of a sunburn starting on the back of his neck. It was an occupational hazard in Vegas.

            “Can I get you something to drink?” Grissom asked escorting Sara into the wide expanse of his living room.

            Sara watched him as he headed towards the kitchen, pulling the black polo he was wearing from his waist band.

            “Water’s fine,” she answered with a smile, glancing around the townhouse.

            It was like a time capsule. Nothing had changed except for the man in the kitchen. Sara watched Grissom pull two bottles of water from the fridge. His hair was shorter, trying to control the curl, Sara thought. He had added a couple of pounds but he had been a little too skinny the last time she had seen him and he seemed a little more solemn.

            Maybe it is just the girl?
           
            Grissom arched a curious brow at Sara, noting her inspection of him.

            Sara just chuckled and thanked him for the water. Some battles were hopeless causes. When Grissom turned on the charm she had little defenses, best to retreat when the first ‘look” was fired.

            “What?” Grissom asked with a smirk, watching her head over to the window by his sofa and look out. He knew he shouldn’t flirt with her but it just came so natural with them. They had flirted and eyed one another for a year before he had even kissed her. After that everything kicked up a notch or two. If it hadn’t been for the miles that separated them, their romance would have put a Las Vegas quickie to shame.

            “You,” Sara answered turning to look at him, “It’s good to see you.”

            One corner of Grissom’s lips curled up in a smirk that had Sara’s chuckle turning into a laugh. Sometimes he was just too hard to resist. Throwing her arms around his neck, Sara hugged him playfully as she felt the vibration of his mirth against her chest. It really was good to see him, she thought as she pulled away, patting his chest as she did so.

            Grissom allowed her to pull out of his embrace but held softly to her hand as he led her to the sofa. His spirits had lightened ten fold, just being with Sara.

            “I have to clean up- really quick,” he said playfully shaking her hand by her fingertips. “You take it easy. When I get back you can tell me what you are in the mood to eat, okay?”

            Sara smiled and nodded. He was so animated. It reminded her of when they first met. Grissom had been full of barely contained energy and an excitement for teaching and learning that had been infectious. She had only taken the seminar because her boss had suggested it to her as away to increase her chances of getting out of the lab and into the field. Little did she know what was in store for her?

            Grissom hopped down the stairs and crossed the polished concrete floor to stand in front of her a few minutes later. His hair was still damp from his quickie shower and he had traded his black polo for a light blue one that accentuated his eyes. Sara loved him in blue.

            “So where are you taking me?” she asked taking his hand so he could help her to her feet.
           
            “What are you in the mood for?” Grissom asked as he walked hand-in hand to the door.

            “Mmm, know any place that serves calamari?” Sara asked knowing perfectly well that he did. In one of her trips to visit him, he had taken her to a nice little place out at Callville Bay.

            Grissom grinned. “Yes, I do,” he declared his tongue darting out mischievously.

            Sara caught the gesture. Knew it was just him trying to contain the rogue he hid so well but she couldn’t help the flare of desire that erupted within her. Sara didn’t say anything, she didn’t even act on it but she knew he knew. The darkening of his irises told her he had sensed her body’s betrayal.

            “Gil…” Sara whispered before his mouth descended on her’s. The warm ember that permanently resided in her belly for him burst into flames at the first touch of his lips.

            Grissom knew what he was doing, knew that he should probably stop but short of Sara telling him to stop he wasn’t about to. This had always been good for them, amazing for them. Even after things started to go wrong, when words became short and hurtful they had had this. And this was so much better than words.

            Grissom had lived most of his youth without words. He had found them to be difficult. Sure a pretty prose was always something to enjoy but words were just sound and to Grissom they didn’t hold near the depth and meaning as action.

            He loved Sara still. He knew it, had known it before she had come to Vegas. Now all he wanted to do was show her.

            Grissom’s newly donned shirt was the first clothing casualty. Sara snatched the shirt from his waist band, her fingers running up underneath it, teasing the warm flesh as she slipped it over his head. Tossing it haphazardly away, she wrapped her arms around his neck as Grissom held her tightly to his broad chest.

            It only took a few moments to traverse the distance between his living room and the hall outside his bedroom. Pushing his bedroom door open with his foot, Grissom spun Sara into the room walking her backwards towards his large bed. His fingers itched for the remembered feel of her skin and sought it out, sliding underneath her blouse and splaying across her sides to her back. He had once confessed to her he had a thing for the small of her back. How the slight camber acted as a beacon to the luscious curve of her ass.

            Their clothes quickly disappeared in a frenzy of overeager hands, culminating in the warm, naked bodies that climbed eagerly a top the bed. There were no words. Just sighs and moans as they reacquainted themselves with traveling hands and hungry lips.

            Sara felt the hard length of him pressed against her outer thigh as he lay next to her, his mouth feasting on her neck before traveling across her collarbone and laying claim to a painfully taut nipple. With a broad stroke then swirl of his tongue around the sensitive bud, Sara was lost.

            Any reservation she might have had disappeared in a gasp of heady delight. Grabbing two fistful of hair, just behind his ears, Sara tugged him upwards to hungrily claim his lips. Her tongue plundered his mouth, matching his ardor.
           
            Grissom had originally wanted to make slow love to Sara, to stoke her passions with long kisses and gentle caresses. But the hungry assault on his mouth and the needy, grasping caresses of Sara’s hands told him she was too far gone for that. And for that, Grissom was grateful.

            He had gone without sex for too long and he had gone without Sara for longer than that. Following her bodies urgings and his own, Grissom knelt between her warm thighs. His right hand caressed the side of her breast. Traveling down across the length of her taut belly, his fingers swirled gently through the soft down covering her woman’s entrance before slipping softly within.

            Sara felt his cock twitch against her thigh as his fingers slid gently within her. She was hot and wet and so aroused she was in pain. It had always been this way with them, their bodies responding to signals that their minds were unaware of. They started and completed one another regardless of what they tried to tell themselves.

            Pulling his fingers from her warm, slick body, Grissom slipped his hand underneath the back of her left knee. Lifting her leg along his hip he slid deeply within her. A duet of blissful sighs broke into the chorus of moans that had been the rooms only sound.

            “Ohhh, gahh, mmm,” Sara moaned her hands clutching desperately at Grissom’s back as she arched into him.

            If great sex was the only criteria for a happy and successful relationship, she and Gil would still be married. This had never been their problem. It was everything else that had been hard and it only got harder after the tragedy that had slowly cleaved them in two.

            Grissom leaned to his left, rolling on to his back and taking Sara with him. Straddling him, Sara gave him a small sultry smile as she slowly began to ride the length of his turgid shaft. Her head lolled backwards on a long, pleasurable sigh.

            Sara knew he was trying to prolong their pleasure. Grissom liked his sex long and passionate and enjoyed giving pleasure as much as he did receiving it. Sara considered him to be her first true lover, the first two not really counting in her book once she had experienced what making love truly meant.

            Grissom could feel the coils of her pleasure tightening. Her palms resting on his chest for leverage were slowly curling into tight fists. Sara increased their tempo. Her breaths were coming in short gasps, matching his own as he gripped her hips tightly; thrusting deeply. Sometimes their need to be one was overwhelming, making them strive, harder and faster to find that point where physical separation was washed away by the blending of hearts and souls.

            Grissom could see the pink flush of Sara’s skin, just under the light sheen of perspiration. He watched as she curled her lower lip under her tongue in delight before kneading it with her teeth. Her eyes were dark pools of desire as she pierced him with her lusty gaze and elicited a deep groan from him.

            She was close. He was close. There bodies pounding frantically together, racing towards an oblivion of liquid fire and cataclysmic quakes.

            “Soo, close, so close,” Sara panted, feeling each delicious, deep thrust.

            “Come, honey…just come,” Grissom groaned.

            With a loud exhaled moan Sara came. Her inner muscles contracting, suckling his hard length until the sharp jolt of pleasure shot through him and he was coming with her. Grissom’s warm desire filled her as she slumped forward onto his damp, heaving chest.

            Sara snuggled her face up under his chin, her arms encircling his head. She needed to catch her breath but more than that she just wanted to enjoy the warmth and feel of his body for a little while longer. She knew the regrets would be coming soon and they would return to their game of pretend, where he pretended their separation was for the best and where she pretended that she would eventually be happy.

            “Sara?”

            Grissom was the first to break their silence. He didn’t have anything to say except I love you but knew he wouldn’t dare. They were the three most powerful words in the human lexicon followed by I forgive you and he desperately wanted to hear them both but knew it was too much to hope. Sara had loved him once. Maybe she still did but he doubted she would ever forgive him.

            “Shhh”

            Sara placed fingertips gently across his lips. She didn’t want to talk. They sucked at talking; at least when it came to the important stuff. No, she didn’t want to talk and she knew he didn’t either. So they just laid there in silence, holding tight to one another until exhaustion overtook them.