In the matter of how babies are born, Sara was fortunate. Her pelvic passage was made for childbirth, and with a little effort and pain quickly forgotten, her first child was delivered. She had never given much thought to motherhood yet over the past months, she had grown to realize the instinct for caring for others included her child.
As for the baby?s father, a man who had never held a newborn child until he held his own, he cried more tears than his wife as he held the pink infant and soothed her infant cries. Sara, as many new mother?s, went from tears to smiles in seconds; her fingers traced along a dark eyebrow, lifted a tiny, downy curl of hair, and, when the baby?s delicate mouth turned downward and her chin trembled, Sara cuddled her little girl against her breast and whispered words of an old song in a little ear.
?She looks like her mother,? one nurse said.
?Yes,? said another, ?but she has her father?s heart.?
Greg had entertained the small group of women who waited patiently and quietly for news of the delivery. Even nurses and visitors were drawn into the circle of listeners as he told stories of Las Vegas. Everyone knew about Vegas and laughed and shook their heads at recaptured history, some truthful, some imagined and some unbelievable. But when the man in baggy pants and a blue and white shirt appeared at the door of the waiting room, all eyes turned to his?the grin of new parenthood slapped across his face said more than his first words.
?She?s here!?
Hours later, Greg arrived with enough gadgets to launch a rocket but all he had to do was link a hospital room to a crime lab. Easy, he said, and within minutes, a tiny camera captured dark hair, pulled back and sent the first close-up of Elizabeth Grissom to her audience in Las Vegas. The parents heard applause before they saw the faces of friends grouped around a screen.
?Ahh?she?s beautiful!? Said one of the men.
?She looks like Sara,? said another.
?She?s adorable,? came from one of the women.
?How?s Mom?? asked one.
?How?s Dad?? was followed by laughter.
As if on cue, the baby, just a few hours old, opened her eyes for the camera, giving a dazed, unfocused stare into the lens. Those watching took amazed double-takes into blue eyes they recognized?the intense blue of a desert sky were those of her father.
Someone said, ?She has Grissom?s eyes!?
The conversation that followed was one of beautiful babies, how Greg managed to arrive in time for the birth, and dozens of other topics before someone realized mother and baby had drifted to sleep.
Catherine asked the last question, ?Will you call her Elizabeth??
Grissom?s finger was softly stroking the baby?s cheek when he answered. ?She?s Bizzy?our little Bizzy Bee,? and with that, most people forgot she had been named Elizabeth.
Greg proved to be a surprising, helpful houseguest?he stayed with Hank at night and drove Sara?s mother to the hospital each day. After the new parents and Bizzy came home, he disappeared and returned with food. He did not intrude on privacy yet he got up in the middle of the night and sat with Sara as she nursed and rocked her baby and Grissom dozed beside them. While Sara slept and the baby was rocked by her dad, Greg talked to Grissom.
During his last night with them, he prepared dinner and held Bizzy while Sara and Grissom ate.
?You?re a good cook, Greg,? said Grissom. ?I guess I never realized just how good?this is almost as delicious as Sara?s lasagna.?
Sara and Greg shot a glance at each other. ?Where do you think I got the recipe?? Greg asked.
Sara laughed. ?Confession time, Gil. I learned how to cook from Greg!?
Their laughter caused a stirring from the infant and Sara reached for the baby. ?Before you go, Greg, we want to talk with you about something,? she said.
Grissom pushed food in his direction, saying, ?We want to name you as guardian to Bizzy?should the day come when she needs one.?
Greg?s fork stopped in mid-path to his mouth. ?Guardian? For?me?? His eyes were wide with surprise.
Sara smiled. ?Greg, you?ve always been like a brother to me. Both of us realize how important it is to name a guardian?just in case.? All he could do was nod his head to agree.
For Grissom, from the moment he knew he would be a father, and even more so after his daughter was born, his philosophy and thinking about much of life changed. He never thought he would be so openly and shamelessly proud to be a father?and it did not wear off. He found a sling carrier similar to what they had seen while traveling and carried the baby with him, often having to hurry to return to Sara when hungry protests signaled feeding time.
?She?s smart, Sara.?
Sara kissed the top of Grissom?s head and combed a hand through his hair. ?She?s two months old, Gil.?
Both parents believed in their own way their child was a gift, a miracle, a surprise to began the next segment of their lives. An easy delivery was a sign of her life?she slept well, smiled quickly, soon learning that a gurgle or grunt would bring the faces of those who provided care. She seldom cried; she rarely had a need to be angry or frustrated. The good natured personality of Sara?s firstborn meant her parents thought all babies were like this.
Bizzy would sleep for hours after visiting their neighbors, a long walk through a field of flowers, a quick check of beehives and hunger satisfied. Sara stepped from the shower to find Grissom holding a towel. She had planned this?what she wanted to say, what she wanted to do, but, as with many other times, he already knew.
As much as Grissom loved his daughter in the way of a father, he never grew tired of loving his wife. Every hour with Sara meant he loved her more?from a simple gesture, a kiss, a particular way of playing, how she gave herself to him, to their daughter. He was insatiable, inquisitive, and absolutely ready for anything this woman might wish of him.
He kissed her hair, her forehead, pulling her body to his. ?Sara,? he whispered, ?do you know how much I love you, how much you?ve always meant to me? Because of you, I have learned to love. It is because of you that my heart has not dried up.?
Sara smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. ?Once you said you cared about me, Gil. That day, I knew?you could, you did love me because you said you cared. Half my life, it seems, I spent trying to get you to know you loved me?and now, you give me everything.?
Grissom would never refuse her request. She had no need to explain?she wanted a sister or a brother for their child; Grissom loved his daughter and he would love a second child. His smiled found its way to her lips; the towel dropped somewhere between bathroom and bed. His hands warmed against her body as fingers found intimate areas known only to lovers. She responded?her passion had heightened after the birth of her daughter?with feathery touches that made him groan. She could feel him pressed against her, aching with desire. His lips on her skin, the smell of her body, the stimulation provide by intimate contact brought both into the sparkling whirlpool of sensuous waves, rushing, tumbling, rolling and swelling as the pull of love surged within each.
Several months later?Sara unwrapped the pencil sized instrument and followed instructions. The small area immediately changed to positive. She smiled. She heard Grissom talking in his office?to his daughter, planning a day for the two of them. She knew he thought this child was the smartest human being on the planet. She grinned as she slipped an arm into her jacket. Their life could only get more?interesting.
A/N: Thanks for reading our bit of fiction! We have another in progress, but it will be several weeks before it is ready to post!
