Sammy & Ilna - it just gets better and better. Love you both!
REALMcRollers - Thank you for every word and for all the love and support.
Back At It
As Danny and Kono said goodbye to Angie and went to their offices, Chin passed her back to Catherine.
"It's back to work time for Uncle Chin, too," he said with a finger-wave for the baby as he grinned at Steve and Catherine. "Thank you for bringing coffee and donuts, Angie. See you soon."
Catherine waved the baby's little hand at their still smiling friend. "Say bye bye, Uncle Chin, sweetheart. We just came along to say hi real quick." She kissed her daughter's cheek. "You and Mommy are going to have lunch with Aunt Carrie while Daddy catches bad guys," she said to the gurgling baby.
Steve's smile was a mile wide as he ran a hand over Angie's head, kissing it. "Daddy loves you. See you later." Looking up he said, "We're light so far, hopefully I'll be home by six. I'll pick up dinner."
She nodded and placed the baby in her carrier as Chin left for the evidence locker. "Carrie should be here in a minute. Maybe bring fish wraps home?"
"Got it." He nodded and leaned in to peck her lips. "Love you."
"Love you. See you later."
They turned simultaneously when Carrie's voice preceded her as she was escorted into the bullpen. "Hey, that's not right."
"What?" Catherine's head tilted in question as her best friend came up and gave her a one armed hug before bending to place a gentle kiss on Angie's forehead.
"Those jeans." She stepped back and pointed, gesturing up and down at Catherine's lower half with a two fingered point
Catherine glanced down and back up. "Uh oh, did I miss a spit up stain?"
"No." Carrie snorted a laugh and shook her head. "I was with you when you bought 'em." At Catherine's blank look she continued, "Before you were pregnant."
"Oh." She shrugged. "Yeah."
The blond rolled her eyes before leaning over the carrier to tickle Angie's tummy. "Hey, gorgeous. Tell your mommy that wearing her pre-pregnancy shorts and t-shirt home from the hospital was one thing, but fitting in skinny jeans when your baby is 17 days old …" She let the sentence drop.
"Steve, we've got the info on Barton and Akemi." Danny exited his office holding a printout. "Hey, Carrie."
"Okay, I gotta go." Steve gestured towards the door. "And the jeans thing is outta my realm of expertise. Stagler, add to my daughter's knowledge about the Academy over lunch." He gave a nod and went to join Danny.
Carrie saluted. "You got it, McGarrett. Embarrassing stories only." She turned to Catherine but addressed the baby. "C'mon, let's get going. I can hear all about this morning's doctor visit and I'll take the afternoon watch so Mommy can relax on the deck."
Steve pulled the fish wraps out of the bag and set them on the table. There was a nice breeze and it wasn't too hot for Angie so they'd decided to eat on the deck. "How was lunch with Carrie?" he asked as he passed Catherine a water.
"Great. She did a feeding afterwards and we sat out here till it got too warm. Then she watched Angie while I took a nap on the sofa." She kicked off her flip flops and extended her feet, displaying the crimson polish. We even did home pedicures. Carrie brought me this polish called Red Hot Mama."
Steve barked a laugh. "Of course she did." He leaned over and kissed her. "Totally true by the way."
"Aww, thanks." Catherine tickled the baby's tummy and smiled when she kicked her legs in delight. "Carrie and Grace already have dibs on Angie's first mani-pedi."
"When she's like fifteen, right?" He took a bite of his wrap to hide his smirk.
"More like seven or eight at a salon. Probably three at home; they make kids' polish and everything." She laughed and spoke to the baby with a wink. "We'll work on that, Angie."
Steve stood, lifted the infant and held her against his chest as he retook his seat. "Speaking of working on things…." he murmured. "It's Daddy, Angie. You're gonna help Daddy win a little … wager with Mommy, right?" Signature grin firmly in place, he chanted, "Dada … Dada … your first word is gonna be Dada. Keep that in mind, okay, sweetheart?" He kissed her head and looked up at his laughing wife. "What?"
"Seriously? Because no way you're going to win."
"She's brilliant, Cath, she totally understands." He burst into a full-on smile as he tapped the little chin. "Besides, I can't slack off because Mommy's got a plan, doesn't she, baby? Your mommy always has a plan." Even while teasing, he couldn't keep the pride from seeping into his voice.
Catherine leaned in to kiss him. "Maybe Angie and I formulated a plan together." She winked and tickled her feet. "Because you're totally gonna say Mama first, aren't you, sweetie? You're gonna help me win the bet? Mama … Mama. Mommy's totally gonna win." Her eyes danced with mirth.
Steve shook his head and tickled the baby's tummy with a finger. "You'll see. You keep thinking, Dada … Dada, Angie. Daddy doesn't give up easily."
"Your daddy doesn't give up, ever." She placed a hand over Steve's where it rested on their daughter's tummy. "Pretty sure you won't either." Catherine caught and held his gaze as she gestured between her husband and daughter. "It's a McGarrett thing."
She saw the light in his eyes at her words and smiled softly.
Later that evening, Catherine came into the bedroom after a brief walk with Cammie. Pulling her hair into a ponytail, she clapped her hands and held them out. "Come see Mommy, let's get you fed."
Steve stood from where he'd been sitting in the bedside chair thumbing through his new book while cradling their daughter. Smiling at how Cammie came to check on her newest charge before settling in, he kissed Catherine and passed her the baby while saying, "Give me five minutes," as he went to take a shower.
Settling against the headboard to nurse, Catherine murmured, "See that, your daddy and I are a well oiled machine." Angie latched on, her little fist opening and closing as she ate. "You definitely have our appetites." She ran a finger down the soft cheek. "Although Daddy's eaten a lot more of what Uncle Danny would call strange sh … um, garbage - I cleaned that up for you," she said with a grin, "than I have because he was in country on missions so much of the time. But we've tried a lot of things together." She bent to kiss the baby's head. "Let's see, we had camel meat when I met up with him after a mission in Qatar, and goat's head in Italy which Nonna says her mom used to make, snake in Kabul…" She looked up to Steve's voice.
"... rod duan, those are bamboo worms, in Phuket." He'd emerged with a grin. "Are you taking our daughter on a culinary trip around the world?" He grabbed a pair of boxers from the drawer and tossed his towel in the hamper before pulling them on.
"I'm telling Angie I'm pretty sure she's got our appetites." She used one finger to push the soft, dark hair off her daughter's forehead. "And how we've tried all kinds of foods but you had to scrounge meals in the field way more often than I did."
Steve joined them on the bed and took Angie to burp her. "When my team was on a mission, sometimes we had to eat what was available," he told the baby in a soothing tone as he placed her against his shoulder. Kissing her cheek before gently patting her back, he continued, "I ate dried hermit crabs once. Not much taste other than fishy. And tarantulas in Cambodia. When you meet your Uncle Hoss you can tease him about how he thought they tasted like chicken. And we ate grasshoppers more than once when MREs were running low." Angie burped and he said, "Good job, sweetheart," as he went to place her in the bassinet.
When she seemed to look right at him with wide eyes he beamed at Catherine. "She said she's all secure for lights out. I'll take the 0024 feeding, you can get six hours."
She clapped her hands quietly and stood. "Yay! I love you." She said, "Did you hear that, baby? You and daddy are going to have the next feeding. Tell him all about your bath today when Aunt Carrie had more fun than you did." She gave him a happy smile. "I'm gonna hop in the shower."
"Go ahead, I've got the watch." He moved to sit on her side of the bed and watched Angie sleep for a full minute to before sliding to his own side and picking up his new book.
When she returned, Catherine pulled on a comfortable nursing tank and a new pair of purple bikini panties she'd gotten at her bridal shower and had yet to wear. Grinning at being out of what Jenna called the 'granny panties' she'd worn the last month of pregnancy, she remembered her friend's words when she'd brought the kids over to meet the baby. 'You look incredible. Of course you're already back in your clothes,' Jenna had chuckled. 'I wore my regular jeans home from the hospital with Cody. By the time Jacob came along it took me two months to fit in normal clothes.'
Catherine tossed her towel in the hamper and kissed her sleeping daughter. Her tummy fluttered when she looked up to see Steve's eyes darken as they washed over her and she grinned. All these years later and he still gave her butterflies.
He placed the ever-present book and highlighter back on his nightstand and lifted the light blanket for her. Catherine rolled toward him as soon as she slid into bed. Resting head-on-hands, she settled across his chest and shoulder.
He ran his knuckles gently over her cheek before pecking her lips. "I'll shut the light."
"Not tired yet," she said while sliding so their bodies were flush head to toe. She placed a kiss on his collarbone and followed with a slow moving trail to his lips.
Steve slid a hand through her hair and returned the kiss. They lay like that, enjoying languid caresses until Catherine stilled, hummed, "Hmmm" and smiled against his mouth.
"Getting sleepy?" he inquired, assuming she was.
She responded by kissing him again, softly at first, then less so and murmured, "I'm kinda wide awake, Commander." Followed by an intense, passionate kiss. "Wanna help me relax?"
He pulled back and looked at her with a slightly surprised grin. "Wait, really?"
"Yeah." She nodded and cupped his cheek, her thumb running across his bottom lip as she pressed intimately against him. "Really."
His mind began to calculate even as every drop of blood in his brain headed south. "But I ... it's not … six weeks," he ground out.
She ran her fingers through his hair, pausing to trace his ear. "I'm very aware of how long it's been," her words were swallowed up in his kiss and when they broke to breathe she finished, "since I pushed our seven pound, eleven ounce daughter out of my body," with a saucy little chuckle. "Here we go with that sexy talk again." The brown eyes danced and her fingers skimmed his shoulders.
"But it's only been ..." he growled as she played with the waistband of his boxers before pushing them down. "Ahhh God, Cath …" He shook his head and focused on her face. Her cheeks were flushed pink, her lips parted. "It's only eighteen days. We can't..." His face was filled with concern. "What if I hurt you?" The beautiful eyes flashed stormily at the thought.
"Hey." She pulled back to better see those eyes. "Do you know how much I love you for always, always making sure I'm safe and comfortable? For putting me first?" She kissed him gently, with so much love that she felt his breath hitch and knew he understood. She placed a hand to his cheek. "I promise I'm not suggesting we do anything that might hurt or risk infection. I feel good." Her tone lightened. "Great, actually. And I don't wanna wait any longer. I need you."
He still had a slightly wary look but was smiling. "If you're sure…"
She could still feel a trace of concern. "I checked with the doctor."
"You called Kucher?" His brows rose.
She nodded. "He was happy I asked what was okay. He explained that while the literature says 'no sex', that's the broad brush term. He said, and I quote, 'As long as there's no intercourse you can engage in other activities within reason as soon as you feel ready.' " She pressed against him, drawing another groan, "I feel ready, Commander."
"The book didn't …" He started but drew a short breath when her hand danced across his abs and traced over his v-line.
"Your book also says no intercourse until I'm cleared at four to six weeks. I looked on three medical websites before I called Doctor Kucher's office. Lynne, the nurse practitioner said I was one of the few patients who asked. Everyone just assumes. And it's usually guys who call and ask how long they have to suffer because their partners are putting them off."
"No way." He was appalled.
"Some men ask before they even leave the hospital." She wrinkled her nose in distaste.
"That's just scummy." He couldn't imagine … Catherine's comfort was his top concern. Not just sexually - in every aspect of his life.
She smiled, inherently knowing his thoughts. "Lynne and the doctor both said if I feel okay I'm clear for…" she giggled, "what she called outercourse. And I repeat, I feel way better than okay." She smiled down at him and nibbled at his lips. "Help me prove it."
"First, that can't be an actual word." Steve shook his head at the term but she knew he trusted her judgement and the doctor's. He nuzzled her neck and whispered, "And second, I'm behind the concept a hundred percent," as he traced the shell of her ear with his tongue.
When she rolled back onto her side and pulled him flush against her he kissed her breathless, his hands sliding down her back to her butt, slipping under the waistband of the silky panties.
"Mmmm, excellent concept. Especially when it's been nineteen days since we've had sex." Her whisper ended in a deep kiss.
"As long as you're sure, Cath," he said one more time, panting between kisses as the pretty new underwear joined his boxers which she'd tossed towards the foot of the bed.
"I'm very … ohhh … very sure. Leave my top on though, or … mmm… we might end up in a puddle of milk."
His grin was both adorable and sensual. "More sexy talk, Lieutenant?"
"Totally." She all but purred when he kissed a sensitive spot on her neck. "We'll make a … few little compromises for the moment. Now, let's get back to it."
Steve took a second to focus on her words. When he did, he chuckled and she felt the vibration as he spoke. "Told you once, I'd agree to sex in a rowboat to be with you."
She laughed in delight and nodded as she kissed a path down his chest, glancing down then up with a raised brow. "Looks like you're really happy to be back at it, too, hmm, Commander?"
"God, yes, but … wait,"
"Wait?" she moaned softly. "After almost three weeks?"
He tugged her up and kissed her again, so intensely she lost herself for a moment. She was reeling a little from all the sensations when they came up for air. "Don't wanna wait, Steve …"
"Definitely not gonna wait." He settled her back against the pillows and traced a hand over her tummy to her hip, peppering the path with kisses.
"Good," she sighed and buried a hand in his hair when she felt him speak against her skin. A smile crossed her lips at his words.
"What I meant was the McGarrett rule's back in effect." He nibbled gently around her navel. "And you're first."
# End. Thanks for reading.
Catherine's research was on the following websites:
Parenting +c0m
Accessed July 22, 2017
BabyCenter * c0m Accessed July 22, 2017
AmazingPregnancy.com Accessed July 21, 2017
BabyCenter.in Accessed July 21, 2017
If anyone wants the full references, just ask. Like Steve, I learned outercourse was an actual word.
Stop by our website to see Angie's birth announcement - and let us know what you think!
marirealmcroll dot wixsite dot com backslash real-mcroll
Find all our REAL World stories in 'chronological order on our website as well.
Or in the McRoll in theREAL World community here on fanfiction dot net (Thanks to Katy!)
Find us on Tumblr: mcrollintherealworld dot tumblr dot com
You can always join our mailing list or say hi by emailing us at realmcroll at yahoo dot com with add me, please! in the subject line.
And say hi to me anytime on Twitter where I'd love to hear your opinions on all things McRoll in the REAL World! Mari21763 and tag #RealMcRollers