Disclaimer: Not mine. Don't sue. Thank you.

Author's Notes: Thank you so much to Kristen Elizabeth for the encouragement and the editing. Thanks to Smacky30 and Cropper for reading this, for giving me some good suggestions and encouraging me to get a pair and finally post this. Finally…all ye be warned. Fluff off the port bow.

Living

by Golden Grasshopper

Gil Grissom awoke to the early afternoon sun streaming across his bedroom. As he stretched and slowly rose through the varying levels of wakefulness, he eventually became aware of another warm body sharing his bed.

With a soft smile, he turned his head to observe his sleeping companion. She was sprawled out across the sheets, taking up as much space as her lithe body possibly could. It still amazed him just how long she was. Her delicate feet and her fawn-like legs; arms that so willingly wrapped around him; and that elegant neck that he loved to tickle until she giggled helplessly.

She stirred slightly, moving her head just enough to allow him a partial view of her beautiful face. In the sunlight, her pale, pure skin practically glowed, highlighting the constellations of freckles across her cheeks and nose. The corners of her full lips were turned up slightly creating the deceivingly knowing smirk and little dimple he adored.

Unable to resist any longer, he leaned forward and buried his nose in the soft hair along her temple and inhaled. He smiled at the familiar scent of her shampoo. It was the smell of innocence…and of home. As he pulled back, he was met by a pair of sleepy amber eyes, blinking heavily. Her smile came quickly, as it always did, and, as usual, the gapped-tooth grin didn't fail to elicit a similar response from him.

"Just couldn't wait to see me, huh?" he chided quietly. She blushed sweetly and nodded, and rolled into his offered embrace.

"Let's see if we can sleep just a little bit longer okay?"

"M'kay," she whispered and tucked her head under his chin.

Sighing with contentment, Gil Grissom allowed himself a moment to reflect, to appreciate how lucky he really was. It had taken him long enough, but he had finally realized that until he had allowed someone to share his life, to share his heart and soul in fact, that he really hadn't been living at all.

The owner of those liquid brown eyes had become as essential to him as air, and as cliché as all of it seemed, she filled a space within him that he hadn't even known existed. She had become his everything.

Just like her mother.

Life was indeed good.