Thanks again to Nessa Owen for her beta-ing. Any errors are mine.
Fingering the key that Sara gave to him last week, Alex hesitated outside her door. He was still not used to the shift in their relationship and he was sure that the same could be said for her. The past few months had been great, wonderful even, but he still held some reservations concerning her commitment to him. Sharing keys---sharing entrance into each other's home was supposed to be a step forward, but he still felt an odd distance from her. He was not blind. Everyone knew of the attraction between Sara and Grissom. It was not the secret they thought it was. Sara had confided in him about how they met, the flirting, the feelings, and the rejection. There were times, however, that he caught Grissom gazing at Sara. Had Sara been aware of Grissom's scrutiny, she would also have been aware of his love. If Sara was given another chance with Grissom, he was afraid she would take it.
Looking at the key again and smiling Alex whispered, "But I'm with her now." The key slipped into the lock and turned without effort---he saw that as a sign.
The smell wafting through the apartment was deceiving. He could swear that he smelled steak and onions but having been told early on not to expect meat cooked by her, he knew that he was mistaken.
"Alex, is that you?"
"Yeah, babe. Hey, it smells as though you entered the dark side here. Please tell me that you have a steak in the oven."
"You know better than that."
Yes, he did know better. Upon inspection of the roasting pan he realized that the smell was one of tofu in disguise. She once told him that you could make tofu into anything you want---even steak.
"Sidle, this looks…gross." Wrapping his arms around her from behind and kissing the back of her neck, he tried to contain his grin. "I really wanted to say "great", but being the stand-up honest guy I am, I had to tell you the truth. You, however, look very cute. I love you in pajama pants."
Smelling the soft scent of her shampoo, he once again was reminded how lucky he was that she was with him. They were still in the early stages of their relationship and if and when the issue of Grissom came up, he'd worry about it then.
"Last night you said that you loved me out of them." He smiled at the memory. He asked her to go away with him and she answered by taking him to bed. He had hopes that this trip would help forge their relationship and bring them closer.
"That reminds me --- were you able to get the time off?"
Hesitant with his next question, he asked, "So, he uh, really didn't have a problem with it?"
"Why? Should he?"
Tightening his hold on Sara he said, "No, not at all." Desperate to get off the subject of Grissom, he was thankful that she changed the subject.
"Did you get a chance to stop by the store?"
"Yep," he said. "One tub of banana fudge chunk, as ordered. You know," he said, letting his hands slip under her shirt and glide across her belly, "I can have the ice cream for dinner while you eat that…stuff."
"What will you have for dessert?" The seductive tone in her voice almost made him drop to his knees.
Turning her around, he placed each hand on either side of her face and brought her lips to his. When she brought her hands up to rest behind his neck he gently pulled away. Resting his forehead on hers, he whispered, "You."
Letting his hands drift down her sides, he grasped the hem of her tee-shirt. Slowly raising it over her head, he once again thanked whatever entity brought her here with him. His lips made their way down her body in a trail that started at her neck and ended at her drawstrings. Taking hold of the tie, it slipped loose with a slight tug.
"Do you always have your dessert first?"
He looked up at her then. They had only been lovers for a short while, but he was well aware of what arousal looked like on her. Beautiful.
"Yes."
He eased her out of her pants one leg at a time, his fingers drifting over her long limbs. Suddenly inspired, he stood up and on his way flung her over his shoulder, igniting a gasp of surprise from Sara.
"Wow. Who knew you could be so romantic?" Her laughter overshadowed any sarcasm in that statement.
Flinging her down on the bed, he began to rid himself of his clothing. "I aim to please."
He left his boxers on so that they could remove the last of their offending garments together. Joining her on the bed he trailed his hand up her calf and behind her knee until he reached her bottom. After giving it a firm squeeze he then began to remove her panties. The shrill ring of her cell phone on the nightstand, however, halted his mission.
"Do you want to get that?"
"No," she said, raising her hand up to his face. " We're busy. They'll call back if it's important."
Lowering his head to kiss her stomach, he asked, "What if it's work."
"Then they'll call back. I'll answer if it rings again. Now, get up here." She pulled him up until they were face to face. "I'm hungry. I thought we were going to have dessert."
Never able to resist a request from this woman, Alex obliged and worked on satisfying her craving.
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Sara lay in her bed, wide-awake, with Alex's arm loosely wrapped around her waist while he slept. Glancing over at her nightstand, she grabbed her phone and read the display---1 missed call. Flipping through the call history she looked to see who it was.
"Grissom," she whispered, holding the phone to her chest.
Shaking her head, she turned to look at Alex's face as it rested on her pillow. Giving a small smile at the drool from the corner of his mouth, she reached back over and returned her phone to the nightstand.
TBC
