Title: Dance With Me
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Greg Sanders/Gil Grissom
Fandom: CSI: Vegas
Rating: PG-13
Table: Fluff, mission_insane
Prompt: 5, Dance
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Greg Sanders or Gil Grissom, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

Gil glanced over to where Greg sat on the couch, idly leafing through a magazine. His boyfriend appeared to be more relaxed than he'd been for a while; Gil couldn't help hoping that the events of the past few weeks were finally starting to fade into the background.

He really shouldn't let himself think like that, he told himself a moment later. Of course it was going to take a long time for Greg to put all that had happened behind him; he couldn't be expected to simply get over what had been done to him and go through his life as though nothing had happened.

The moments of depression had been getting fewer, though, and Gil was glad of that. He didn't want Greg to hold on to those horrible memories; he wanted his boyfriend to be able to put that terrible experience behind him, and live a full and happy life from here on out.

Not that everyone didn't have their moments of depression and sadness at times, he told himself. He didn't expect Greg to be completely happy all the time; no one could be. But he intended to make Greg's life as happy and fulfilled as he possibly could.

He hadn't really been doing that lately, had he? Gil couldn't hold back a sigh at the thought. As much as he wanted to be Greg's anchor, his rock, he had other things in this life that he had to give attention to, even though he wished that he could focus exclusively on his boyfriend.

Greg understood that he had his job; neither of them were people who could be satisfied merely sitting at home and being with each other. As much as they both treasured their relationship, they needed their work to keep them busy, and to keep their minds occupied.

Greg had gone back to work at the crime lab, but Gil knew that everyone there was keeping a close eye on him. No one wanted a repeat of what had happened, and they were all especially on their guard now that one of Greg's abductors had been seen at one of their crime scenes.

The thought chilled Gil's blood; he didn't want to acknowledge the fact the one of those men could still be after Greg, looking to finish what they had started. It was frightening to think that his boyfriend could still be in danger, no matter how much Gil tried to protect him.

He resolutely pushed those thoughts away; they weren't what he wanted to have on his mind while he was here with Greg and the two of them had time alone together. Rather, he wanted to think happy thoughts, and try to help his boyfriend relax a little.

Getting up from his chair, he moved to the couch and leaned forward to place his hands on Greg's slender shoulders. When the younger man looked up, raising his eyebrows in question, Gil took his hands and pulled him to his feet, smiling as he did so.

"I think it's about time we stopped being melancholy," Gil said softly, smiling and guiding his boyfriend across the room to the cd player. He pressed a button, waited for the cd to start playing, and led Greg to the center of the room as the strains of Etta James' "At Last" surrounded them.

Gil pulled Greg close against him, wrapping his arms around the younger man's waist as he began swaying to the music. After a few seconds, Greg's slim body relaxed in his embrace, swaying gently along with him, his arms sliding around Gil's waist to hold him close.

"This is out of the blue," Greg told him with a soft laugh. "What gave you the idea of dancing? Not that I don't like it," he added hastily, pulling back slightly to look at Gil. "I just wondered what brought this on. Were you thinking about doing this for a while, or was it just a spur-of-the-moment thing?"

Gil laughed along with Greg, shaking his head ruefully. "I'd like to say that it's part of some great romantic plan, but the truth is, I just wanted to hold you. I was thinking of some less-than-pleasant things, and I just needed to get them out of my head by being with you."

Greg nodded, looking serious for a few moments before he laughed again. "Well, I'm not going to ask what those thoughts were, because I don't need to know. I'm just glad you decided that you wanted to dance. I haven't done anything like this for a long time."

"You mean dancing?" Gil asked, feeling a stab of jealousy at the thought that Greg had danced like this with other people. Of course he had, Gil told himself firmly. Greg wasn't a child. He'd had relationships, he'd been with other people. That was in the past now; it didn't bear thinking about.

Greg nodded, his arms tightening around Gil's waist. "Yeah, it's been forever since anybody wanted me to dance with them," he said, sounding almost wistful. "It's not like I've gotten to do a lot of it, either. I'm not exactly the kind of guy people want to slow dance with."

"You are now," Gil said softly, raising a hand to brush gentle fingertips across the velvety softness of Greg's cheek. "I've wanted you to dance with me ever since we were working together at the crime lab. If I could have asked you to dance back then, I would have."

"I would have danced with you any time you wanted me to," Greg answered, his voice soft and husky. "But I don't think it would have been a very good idea to do that at work. It would have given people the wrong idea -- and we might have gotten fired, too."

"That wouldn't have been good," Gil agreed, laughing in spite of himself. "But there were so many times when I wanted to do more than just dance with you, Greg. I can't count how many times I wanted to just grab you and kiss you -- or at least tell you how I felt. Sometimes I wish I'd done that."

"If you hadn't, then we'd be different people now," Greg pointed out. "And our relationship might not have lasted. We were both younger then, and I don't think either one of us really knew what we wanted. We're both older and wiser now. And we're more suited to each other."

Gil could only nod in agreement, a rueful smile on his lips. "When did you get to be so smart?" he murmured, leaning in to brush a gentle kiss against Greg's cheek. "You're exactly right. But still, I'd like to have been able to dance with you then. I'm just glad that I get to do it now."

"You can dance with me any time you want to," Greg said softly, his dark eyes full of love as he and Gil gazed at each other. "I love dancing with you. I've never though I was all that good a dancer -- but with you, it's easy. I feel like I'm waltzing on air when I'm in your arms."

"Then that's where you'll stay whenever we dance," Gil whispered, unable to take his gaze from Greg's face. It was still hard for him to believe that this young man was with him, that he finally held his heart's desire in his embrace after so many years of yearning for what he'd thought he could never have.

In spite of all that had happened, and all that they still had to overcome, he was one of the luckiest people in the world to have found love. And Greg was lucky to have come through his ordeal without being far more damaged than he was -- and to have someone to take care of him in the aftermath.

Gil closed his eyes as the two of them continued to sway to the music, holding Greg close against his heart and feeling thankful that he could do so. He hoped that their luck would continue to hold out -- and that he would be dancing with Greg far into the future, for the rest of their lives.

***