A Bed of Roses

Chapter XIV

Sunday Evening
(Back where we started)
Las Vegas Crime Lab
Beginning of Shift

“You’re kidding!” Warrick was too amazed to laugh.

“No, I’m not. Went right through. My insurance company is looking into suing my contractor for repairs. Something was overlooked. One of us could have been seriously hurt.” Grissom shrugged. “I don’t care what happens there as long as the fix it and quick.”

Warrick dropped his head to the side, thinking. “Okay, so…I know most of what you told me…though the bathtub part is news. Lived through part of it with you in fact but I still don’t get it.”

“Get what?”

“Why Sara is so flaming mad at you and why she walked in here with busted ribs. I didn’t talk to her much during her little visit the other day but I was pretty sure it was just her wrist that was messed up and you just said neither one of you was hurt when the bathtub went through the ceiling.”

Grissom blushed a little. “Oh that. Well…after we recovered from the shock…”

Saturday Evening
The Night Before
Grissom Residence
9:46 pm

“Honey, don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re a mess!” Grissom kissed the end of her nose, so grateful that neither of them was hurt on the bathtub’s first solo flight.

She stoked a soft finger down his cheek and grinned back. “Like you’re spotless. Wait till we tell the guys at the lab about this.”

“You’re going to leave out certain details, aren’t you?”

“No, in fact, hold on. I want to get my camera…I’m not sure words can do this scene justice.” She said it with such a straight face that for a minute he actually believed that she was serious. But then she laughed and he relaxed in relief. “Stop being an idiot and stand up. You’re starting to get a little heavy.”

He balanced himself carefully and levered his body away from hers. She waited till he was clear and then sat up. He extended a hand. “Here, let me help you out.”

“I think I can get out of the bathtub by myself, Gil.”

“Sara, just give me your hand. The last thing we want you to do is re-injure your wrist.”

“Gil, I’m fine. Besides, with all this dust, I don’t think it would be a good-“

“Stop being so stubborn and let me help you.”

She glared at him, but gave in all the same, extending her good hand and clasping his tightly. “Fine.” She placed a hand on the edge of the tub and pushed…

With one hand on the far edge and the other gripped in his, there was no way to catch herself when she lost her footing in the dust. Back she fell into the tub, banging her head against the tap in the process and pulling him off balance in her panic to break her fall.

Grissom reached for her instinctively, not thinking about how slippery the floor was under his feet and toppled back into the tub, with practically his whole weight dropping onto the center of her chest.

“Grissom?”

“Oh my god. I’m so sorry. Are you okay? Sara?”

“No. Actually, I hurt pretty badly. I think we need to make a trip to the emergency. I might have busted a rib or two.”

Sunday Evening
Las Vegas Crime Lab
Beginning of Shift

“Whoa.”

Grissom nodded. “Yeah. Not exactly the end of the evening I’d planned. She hasn’t said too much about it but…her temper’s been a little short.” His cell phone buzzed and a text message popped up. I’m waiting, was all it said but it was obvious that there were a lot of undercurrents attached to that short message.

“Well, then, I’ll leave you to it.” Warrick snatched the assignment card from his supervisor’s hand and got the hell out of Dodge.

As for Grissom, he topped up his coffee and made sure to fix one for Sara too before he trudged down to his office. Whether she liked it or not, he was going to win on the lab confinement thing…at least for tonight…but he thought it might be prudent to meet with her bearing a gift of caffeine. It might help the hard line he intended to take go down a little smoother.

A/N: And that’s the end guys. It’s been a long, interesting, convoluted trip but I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. I hope you did too. Thanks again to everyone who stuck with this story from beginning to end, tossed out encouragement and suggestions, and basically made it a joy to create. Love to you all!

danceoftheheart.