Life Doesn't Always Go As Planned
The Meeting: Chapter One
Looking around the dark room, she's confused for a moment, not remembering where she is, and then it all comes back to her. She was in the guest room of the head of Five-0 after her brother was killed in his own house. She had originally wanted to stay at a hotel, but the leader had insisted, telling her she could be in danger. He'd given her a choice: stay with him in his guest room or he would be bunking with her in that hotel room. She figured it would be more comfortable for them both in his house than in a small hotel room. Turning her head, she hears what woke her up. Getting out of bed, she slips on her robe and goes out into the hall. The moaning and mumbling gets louder and she quietly makes her way to the main bedroom. Glancing through the open door, she can see him tossing in his sleep, mumbling something about his mother not being his mother. From the doorway, she can see the tenseness throughout his body, the veins standing out on his neck and forehead and the distress on his face. The covers, tossed aside and she couldn't help but notice the fine physique straining against unseen bonds. His arms were straight at his sides, muscles taught, veins standing out clear as day. The tattoos on his upper arms were twisted and seemed to be pulling all directions. She felt ashamed, seeing him so exposed and when he sat straight up, she quickly moved back into the hallway, her back against the wall, her breathing stalled. She listened for him to move to the door and sighs when she hears the water turn on in the bathroom. Moving quietly, she makes her way back to the guest room, closing the door most of the way and sitting on the bed. She can hear him moving around, footsteps moving close to her door. Lying back on the bed, she turns her back to the door. She hears the door creak open and then close again and she relaxes. Leaning over to the bedside table, she turns on the light, pulls out her laptop and turns it on. Signing in, she types in the name: Lt. Commander Steven J. McGarrett. Her eyes widen as the screen fills with information. Clicking on a link at the bottom of the screen, she pulls up all the redacted information and classified files. Scanning through it, her heart hurts at all that he's seen and survived. A creak outside her room has her closing the machine and hiding it under her pillows.
Knocking on the door, she sees his head peer around, "Hey, can't sleep?" He grins.
"You either?" She replies, smiling back.
"Lots on my mind. How about you?"
"Moving a mile a minute."
"Wanna join me outside?" He nods toward the back of the house.
Nodding, she climbs off the bed and follows him down the stairs. Watching him move around the kitchen, it's hard for her to believe that just a few minutes ago he was tossing in his bed, whimpering and mumbling, completely vulnerable. His movements, very deliberate and precise, are completely in line with the military background. "Beer?" He holds up two bottles.
"Why not?" She laughs, grabbing one out of his hand. "I don't think either of us will be getting any more sleep tonight." She turns and heads out the back lanai door, hearing him right behind her.
He follows her out the door, watching her walk out into the dark. He can't help but notice how the robe wraps around her, showing off her curves. He couldn't help but notice the skimpy tank and shorts on under the robe and he watches her bare feet traipsing through the grass out to the Adirondacks. Following her lead, he sits in the empty chair, crosses ankle over knee and opens the beer. For a few minutes, they just sit in silence, drinking and looking out over the water. She's pulled her legs up onto the chair, arms around her knees, bottle dangling from her fingers. Looking over, he catches a reflection off her face as a tear runs down her cheek.
"Were you two close?" He asks, gently.
She sighs heavily, taking a long drink from her bottle. "When we were kids, we were inseparable. He was my shadow. He was ten years younger than I was and since my parents were never home, I practically raised him. I know, it sounds so cliché, but that's how it was. For the first five years of his life, I was his mama. When I was fifteen, I started having trouble in school and couldn't spend as much time with him. By the time I graduated from high school, I barely saw him anymore and then I was off on my own. We kept in touch over the years, but my work kept me away and the traveling didn't allow much time for visiting. When I got this job and found out I was coming to Oahu, I figured it would be a great chance to get together and bond again." Her voice breaks on the last couple of words. She shifts in her chair, her back to him, arms hugging her knees to her chest. "We only had three days together. We had so many plans and then never…" her words fade out.
Steve looks over at her, and though he can't make out her face, he can't mistake the shaking of her body. Instincts kicking in, he moves in front of her, kneeling in the sand, and tenderly takes her in his arms, pulling her close. He expects her to resist, but she melts into his arms, burying her face in his neck. For some reason, he wants to protect this woman, to keep her safe and take away all her pain. He knows how hard it is to lose someone you love and for it to be her baby brother, well, his heart breaks for her. Her arms go around his neck, her fingers gripping onto his shirt, pulling it into her fists. He can feel the desperation in her, the need to have someone there for her, to be able to let it all go, if only for a few minutes. He's been waiting to find someone like that for years. He feels her pull him tighter to her, crushing him to her body as if he's the only thing keeping her from falling apart. He can feel the wetness soaking his t-shirt as the tears fall unbidden and without restraint. The bottle forgotten and draining out onto the ground next to the chair, he feels her slip from the seat onto the ground with him, her grip not loosening and the sobbing becoming hysterical. He continues to hold on to her, recognizing the need for human contact and giving her what she needs. As many times as Danny calls him a non-feeling, robot, killing machine, he needs human contact just as much as the next person does. He does get it, just not the kind he looks for late at night when he wakes from one of his night terrors and is just looking for someone to hold him close. So, for as long as she needs it, he will hold her…and let her cry it all out. He can't help but feel there's more to this than just her brother, but he'll be patient and wait for her, if she wishes to share.
Unclear how much time passes, he feels her grip begin to loosen and her body relax. Pulling back from her slightly, her head falls back and he realizes she's fallen asleep. Taking care not to jostle her too much, he picks her up in his arms and carries her up to the guest room. Laying her down on the bed, he starts to pull a blanket over her when he feels a hand on his arm.
"Don't…" She pulls on his arm. He looks into her emerald eyes and, for a split second, he sees fear and hopelessness, then it's gone and all he sees is sadness and pain and again, he wants to just take her in his arms and make it all go away. Pulling his gaze away from her eyes, he can't believe what he's feeling at this moment. It's crazy that he feels so protective over her, but he does and if he's learned anything, it's that he needs to follow his instincts. Watching her scoot over on the bed, he sits down, legs up on the bed, and puts an arm around her. Settling against him, she puts her head on his shoulder and her arm across his chest, her hand resting on his ribcage. Automatically, he moves his arm over hers, his hand resting on her upper arm.
"Thank you." She whispers, not wanting to break the spell.
"You are welcome." He replies, laying his cheek against the top of her head.
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Squeezing his eyes tight, he tries to shut out the light. Realizing it's not going away, he slowly opens his eyes to the sun shining in the windows. Blinking rapidly, he wonders what time it is. Moving carefully, he pulls his phone out of his pocket and sighs when he sees the time.
"What time is it?" He hears from his shoulder. Turning his head, he looks into the most wonderful sight to wake up to - the most beautiful, emerald-green eyes he's ever seen.
"Just after seven." He smiles down at her. "How'd you sleep?"
She stretches her legs, moving up into her back and slowly sits up, stretching her arms above her head. "Hmmmm, fabulously. You?" She smiles at him, seeing his edginess.
"Uh, better than I have in a long time, even if only for a few hours." He swings his legs over the side of the bed and stands.
She reaches out, grabbing his forearm lightly. "Um, Commander…" she hesitates. "Thank you for last night. I didn't mean to become so hysterical. I just couldn't…"
He shakes his head. "No problem." He places his other hand over hers and gives it a squeeze. Nodding at her, he pulls away. "If you can give me five…" he pauses, looking at her stretched out on the bed, robe tangled under her, hair tousled and framing her face, face flushed and eyes shining. "No, make that ten minutes and the hot water will be all yours." He smiles, turns and walks out the door. Should be plenty of hot water. I'll only be using the cold, he thinks as he walks into his room.
While he's in the shower, she decides to get coffee going, knowing they're both going to need the caffeine. Finding everything she needs, she pours herself a cup when it's done brewing. Hearing the water turn off, she heads back up to the guest room, scrolling through her email on her phone. Reaching the top of the stairs, she glances up, almost running into a wet, bare, muscular chest. "Oh, shit…" she huffs out, balancing the mug of coffee to keep it from spilling all over him.
He glances away from his phone to see her falling back and he reaches out, grabbing the arm not holding the coffee. "Whoa, I gotcha!" He reaches out, pulling her towards him, keeping her from tumbling down the stairs.
She can feel her face turning bright red and she drops her head hoping he doesn't notice. It was one thing last night curling up on his chest, covered by a t-shirt and crying her eyes out. It's another thing to almost plant her face into his naked chest, covered by a light sheen of water sparkling against his chest hair and smelling clean and fresh. Despite all that's happened, she's still a woman, faced with a younger, physically fit, amazing looking, military man and she can't help where her mind wanders. Steve takes a step back, allowing room for her to pass by. Not letting go of her arm yet, she takes the top step and glides past him, their hips brushing. As she passes him, he doesn't want to let go of her. He wants to take her into his arms again, but for a completely different reason. Holding his breath as she walks away, he stares at the sway of her hips and the curve of her ass. Grabbing the towel at his waist, he's not sure if he should go down for his morning coffee or head back for another cold shower.
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"All right," he says, coming down the stairs, "you sure you'll be okay here?" He looks at her sitting on the couch. She looks up at him, her smile putting him at ease.
"Listen, Commander, I know you feel I could be in danger but I don't think anyone will come after me here, in your house. I'll be perfectly safe until my meeting this afternoon."
"What time is your appointment?" He pulls out his phone.
Realizing he's not going to let this go, she relents. "Three p.m. I'm expected alone so no, you cannot come with me. I can't have this deal go south. My boss will not take kindly to that."
"I understand, but you are not going anywhere alone until we find who killed your brother. I think your boss would appreciate Hawaii's finest looking after you." He types into his phone a reminder to be back here by two.
"Commander, being escorted by the governor's task force is not going to help this deal go down." She cannot have him or any cop anywhere near this deal.
"You have no choice, Liz. I'm not letting you wander around this island on your own until we catch your brother's killer. The only reason we figure they killed him was looking for your diamonds. That puts you right in the line of danger, so you get a body-guard until we solve this."
Staring into his eyes, she can see that he's not going to let this go. "Fine, but I have to ask you to do what I say. Please. This is the biggest deal of my career and I cannot have it going wrong. If I don't complete this deal, I'm gonna be without a job." She has to be judicious how she handles this man. He's tenacious and if she's not careful, he'll ruin everything.
"You'll be the boss. I'll just be a simple cop guarding a potential target." He feigns a look of innocence on his face. Smiling at her, he opens the door. "I'll be back here at two. If you're not here, I will find you. Don't make me do that." His face still shows innocence, but his eyes tell a different story.
"I'll be here." She nods at him as he leaves. Watching him get into his truck and pulling out of the drive, she turns back to her laptop. Opening up a secure browser, she types in the private URL and waits.
"I've been waiting. What's going on?" A face appears on the screen.
"I told you, I'm staying with the leader of the task force. He gave me no choice. I had to wait for him to leave."
TBC~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~