The Rain

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI. I don't own any of the characters.

Author's note: This is a sort of sequel/ second chapter of "The Rain". I've been thinking about writing the same story from Grissom's POV and when SylieT expressed the wish to read this kind of a story I got the necessary push to actually do it. Therefore this story is set during "Lady Heather's box" too.

Author's note 2: thanks for the reviews:). They're always welcome:).

(Gil Grissom's POV)

The Rain starts to consume her. It is so heavy her silhouette becomes hard to make out in the darkness of the night. I can see her shoulders rise and fall. 17 breaths in, 17 out, 18 breaths in, 18 out. She seems to be unmoved by the wetness of the robe. It sticks to her body. The scapula rises, the muscles tense up, and slowly relax. I can hear the wheels in her head turning. I don't want to move and disturb her. I'm fairly sure she thinks I'm asleep. I'm unable to close my eyes and my body aches. As I smell the air I can't help myself but smile. The Smell.

That's the first thing I noticed when I met Lady Heather for the first time. Her Smell. Almond mixed with lavender and something else I wasn't able to identify. All those smells mixed together and she seemed to smell of mystery. When she looked at me and talked to me, it felt as if she saw right through me by all possible means. I felt naked and real. And frankly- I felt uncomfortable. But the moment I left the dominion I knew something had changed.

I'm not a saint. My curiosity has led me places nobody speaks about loudly and led me to do things people usually aren't proud of. But ever since I was just a little boy I was the experimenting type. In order to understand, I need to observe, to see with my own eyes. But this case was different. I saw her but I still had no chance of understanding. The more I though about her, the more she seemed to bewilder me. The one puzzle I wasn't able to solve. The one specimen I didn't get to tag and put on the memory shelf in my brain.

When Nick told me where the victims of our case worked, something in my stomach shifted. My mind went blank for a moment. And it hit me- The Smell. How much I wanted to feel The Smell of mystery surround me.

17 road signs, 53 cars, 7 of which were blue, 14 people wandering towards the desert and 3 times that Jim caught me not paying attention to what he was saying. I was counting. A childhood habit. Whenever I'd get anxious or nervous I used to count. Everything.

13 steps from the car to the Lady Heather's dominion, 5 seconds before some unfamiliar blonde answered the door, 1 second of sheer panic that it wasn't Heather herself. I'm not even sure what I expected.

First came her Smell. It intoxicated me, and then her eyes. They burned me and left no place to hide. My hands were tingling. Her eyes… She didn't see me as "Gris", she didn't see me as "The Bugman". Heather saw me as a Man and that was more that enough to kill everything that was rational in me. But when I touched her face her shoulders tensed up just like they did a few moments ago. I saw something in her eyes crack. I realized- she was trying to control herself, she was fighting herself. So I agreed just to have some tea with her. Who am I to push?

As we were drinking the tea, I could see how she was observing every move I made. Her eyes followed me like a tigress follows her pray. She looked at me like I was already doomed, like I already belonged to her. I tried to concentrate on her words, but The Smell and her eyes cut the ground from under my feet.

I imagined she'd be demanding, controlling. But Heather gave up all control. She allowed me to explore her body as much as I felt was necessary. There were no bugs, no victims and no numbers. Just me and Heather. Her skin, her lips burned with passion. I knew from the beginning I'd get burned by Lady Heather. No man walks away from this kind of a woman without shedding some blood, both literally and figuratively. But I didn't care. Some risks are necessary to take.

Then The Rain started. I would've left earlier, but I wasn't sure I'd be able to drive in this kind of a rain. Or I wasn't sure I wanted to leave. I felt Heather slip from my arms. She opened the balcony door. As she was stepping outside I realized I haven't though about my work the whole night. Now I feel like a new man. I feel like I've truly rested. My body hurts, but it's the good kind of pain- the sort of pain that reminds you that you're still alive.

I don't want to say anything to make this disappear. I don't want Heather to tell me this was a mistake. I don't want her to remind me of my position as a CSI. So I put my hands on her waist and hope. Her robe is wet, but the skin underneath is burning. She turns her head to face me and when I see her eyes I know- she's not going to say anything. I can see the same passion, the same need and hope in her eyes.

She kisses me. A small voice in my head screams that all of this can't end well. I will have to pay for this. But I'm not going to listen to this voice because I know I should've done this a long time ago. With her I can't hide, her eyes tell me more that any other woman ever did with her words and she smells like lavender and mystery. She smells like my woman. I have to stay here. I'm willing to pay the price. And when the time comes- I will.

As I already mentioned- reviews are always welcome:).