He'd be lying if he said he hadn't thought about it, because he had.
Since the night at the club, all he could hear in his head at night were the words he thought he would never hear her admit out loud, "I am too your type."
He could hear his conscience, which sounds suspiciously a lot like Ray's voice, tell him what he had known since the first time he saw her, she's the one who will make you realize why it never worked out with all the other girls. She's the one who will make you stop all the games.
Their playful mood from earlier in the morning had quickly changed when they stepped foot into the boat shed. Granger was back and he was out for blood.
As the day's events unfolded, they seemed to have hit him almost as hard as they hit her. Seeing her being put through the emotional rollercoaster of her father's death made him just want to take her away from it all. If he had the power to, he would sweep her away to somewhere where no one could cause her any more pain. No one would hurt her.
He hated seeing her look so lost. This was not the Kensi he was used to, nor the Kensi he would joke with. This wasn't the person he found himself trying not to fall for.
She was secretly happy to see him on her doorstep with a cup of stale coffee from the store down the street. But she couldn't bring herself to crack a smile.
When she saw him pull out a piece of paper, she wondered just exactly what he was doing. "Everything will be fine."
He tried as hard as he could to get a smile out of her, and when he did, he was secretly patting himself on the back. Because he knew her, and he knew that by getting her to crack a smile, it was her way of saying she understood that he was going to be there for her. Sometimes the silence between them was more powerful than words, and this was one of those times.
Then he got the call that he had been hoping he wouldn't get, and he watched her face fall, because she knew exactly what was coming next. He didn't want to bring her in, and she knew that.
All he could think about was how are we going to get her out of this? All she could think about was how am I going to spare my partner the pain that this mess may cause?
They both knew that this would take its toll on the team, as well as their partnership. She knows that Deeks will always have her back, because that is what a good partner does. He knows that she is innocent, because the Kensi he knows wouldn't kill without provocation.
The Kensi he knows wouldn't sacrifice her career and the career of those who mean the most to her due to a selfish act. She is the strongest person he knows.
He sees Granger going at her full force and he wants to make the man suffer for all of the pain he is causing her. He wants to send Granger back to Washington and make him sorry he ever came to Los Angeles and stepped foot in their city. Hetty tells him that they are better out in the field trying to clear her name. She tells him not to worry, she will watch out for her. In that moment, he knows that she will go to the ends of the earth for them as they did for her.
He hears the words he's been dreading to hear all day; she's being taken into custody. She's being led away and all he, Sam & Callen can do is watch. Nothing is said between the three men, but it is all understood. Find the person responsible and bring him to justice. They need to do this for Kensi, for the team and most importantly for the relationship that they think no one sees.
"Does your boss know about you two?"
Harris' words hit him like a ton of bricks. He remembers Ray's words before he left, "you two have a thing." Truth was their "thing" had taken a life of its own in the recent months. He even thinks to himself that their "thing" got stronger after his last undercover operation with LAPD. It took him weeks of donuts and Starbucks to get back on her good side, but he didn't mind. He knew that she had forgiven him almost immediately, but he wouldn't let her know that. He continued to let her think that she had the upper hand. Harris' words once again brought him back to reality; who is he actually kidding? He shouldn't lie to himself or to her anymore.
He knows how much they mean to each other. It's never been a question, they are friends, they are partners, they are…
They could be so much more, if things were different.
Then he hears a gunshot, followed by another. He hears Sam call out her name and in that instant, his world comes crashing down.