Kel wakes up with Dom.
Aftermath
Rain was still drumming heavily on the roof when Kel woke. It was a pleasant sort of muted cacophony that drowned out all other sound and seemingly diminished the world, leaving in focus only the small bedroom where she lay in Dom's arms.
His forehead rested against hers as he shifted his head slightly, rubbing the tip of his nose along her cheek. She snuggled closer to the warm sergeant – her warm sergeant now, she thought almost giddily, feeling girlish – and his arm on her back tightened around her. She opened her eyes to look up at him, but his face was too close to see so she pulled her head back a little. His eyes flicked open as she shifted and, as they held her gaze, took on a kind of happy, sparkling lustre.
"Good morning," he said, bringing the hand that was on her back up to cup her cheek and neck.
"G'morning," she replied, smiling, the warm feeling of bliss in her chest colouring the tone of her murmur.
He stared at her a moment longer, then leant in and tenderly pressed his lips against hers. She responded with eagerness, but Dom kept the kiss light and soon pulled back slightly, leaving their foreheads together.
His thumb was stroking her cheekbone as he quietly admitted, "I was worried you might not be here when I woke up."
She smiled at him with bemusement as she tried fruitlessly to unite the double image of his face so close to hers into one.
"Why?" she asked.
He was silent for a few seconds, and then smiled crookedly. "Well, you keep those ungodly training hours, for one," he said, chuckling. Kel grinned, but Dom's expression was sober again and she decided not to interrupt in case he had something else to say. He reached forward to brush his lips against hers again, then said hesitantly, "It happened so suddenly. I thought you might... that you might regret it."
Kel pushed herself up onto one elbow, one hand supporting her head and the other coming to tangle her fingers in the hair behind the blue-eyed sergeant's ear. "Dom," she said solemnly, and leant down to kiss him. "You don't know how long I've been waiting for this," she continued, and then added uncertainly, "For us."
His expression was hard to gauge as he looked up at her, until a broad smile began to spread across his face. She grinned back, elation bubbling up in her. He reached up to kiss her quickly, then flopped down onto his back and coaxed her into lying down with him again with his hands. She settled herself against his body, left arm across his broad chest, head resting on his shoulder.
"Kel?" he asked after a while, drawing lazy patterns on her shoulder with his fingers.
"Mm?" she hummed against the soft skin of his neck.
"I've never known anyone like you, love," he said.
She smiled happily against his skin, as pleased by his use of the pet name as she was by his compliment. She lifted her head and kissed him, lingering as she searched blindly for the covers with her hand. She pulled them up to their shoulders and settled back down with him.
"Nor I," she murmured.