Sammy & Ilna, thank you for the undying support in all aspects of life. I appreciate it more than I could ever express. You're truly La Famiglia. Always.
REALMcRollers your feedback and the love you have for the REAL World brightens every single day. Many hugs to you all.
Kelly, this one's a nod and a smile to all the great times we've spent in shore houses!
Shore Leave
The Mixx Bar and Grill
Oahu
Catherine took a swallow of her beer after taking it back from Steve. He'd finished his and grabbed hers after tasting Carrie's very, very hot kimchi rice. "Where was I?"
"Summer break stories," Danny prompted.
"Oh, yeah, so, it was after graduation, but bunch of us rented a house on one of our first chances to schedule leave after we were commissioned." Catherine and Carrie exchanged an amused look as Steve grabbed Danny's abandoned water and took a long drink, but when he coughed, Catherine's hand moved to rub small circles on his back.
Danny reached for another slider. "There's definitely a story there, ladies. Tell." He and Gabby had joined Steve, Catherine, Carrie and John for drinks and appetizers after work, and the subject of Catherine and Carrie meeting up on one of their leaves came up.
The group laughed together as Catherine gestured to her friend to start the tale. "There was always a story when the two of us managed a shore leave. Carrie, you go ahead."
"And you jump in …" Carrie took a sip of her drink and began. "So, like Catherine said, five of us rented a house for a girls' week because Cath and I hadn't seen each other in almost a year. We had leave coming, got a deal on a place in Mo'ore'a and invited another Annapolis grad, Leah; Catherine's shipmate, Tina; and my friend Savannah." At Danny and Gabby's looks, she added, "Mo'ore'a is French Polynesian. It's one of the Windward Islands, about 17 clicks ... uh," she caught herself, "I mean 11 miles northwest of Tahiti."
"Ohhh exotic. My post college trip was to the Florida Keys." Gabby grinned.
"Then you went farther than I did. We all went down the shore." Danny raised his bottle to toast his home state.
Carrie laughed at Danny's toast to his beloved New Jersey. "You just said, not ten minutes ago, you hate the beach."
"I do hate the beach, but as I've explained to these two," he said and pointed at Steve and Catherine. "Down the shore in Jersey-speak does not mean on the beach. It's the area, and the atmosphere of the shore towns. I never went in the water." He exchanged a glance with Steve, and Catherine knew Danny was thinking of his lost friend and Steve was offering support in the form of a nod. "Anyway, this isn't about me." Danny prompted, "Girls' week in the tropics … continue."
Carrie had caught the brief flash of sadness in Danny's eyes and glanced at Catherine, who silently communicated it was alright to continue so she did. "Okay. So, we picked a place that was in the same hemisphere as the majority of us were serving. Catherine was on sea duty like me, although on different ships, but we were all less than half a day's flight to Tahiti. She got in last." She looked at Catherine with a grin. "Remember that nice, helpful hotel clerk?" Catherine rolled her eyes and Carrie snorted a laugh. "Bet he still remembers you."
"Yeah, well." Catherine shrugged with a smirk.
Carrie leaned in towards Gabby. "I realize I was the old married lady in the group, but you know how on girls' trips there's always the one who's the …" She looked around the table and Gabby finished for her.
"Slutty friend?"
"I was gonna say … wild one, but, yeah." Carrie smirked. "Now, don't get me wrong, Savannah was … is an excellent naval officer and of course she's mellowed but back in the day … the second she was on leave? Yeah."
"So who's this hotel clerk? Because ..." Gabby gestured between Catherine and Steve. "Weren't you two already together?"
"Oh definitely. They were definitely, completely together. Finally." Carrie snickered, and her husband laughed. "Without any labels, of course."
Steve and Catherine shared an unrepentant smile as Danny snorted, "Of course." He pointed at Steve. "Don't make that face, Steven." He toasted Carrie. "Where were you during my years of explaining the definition of girlfriend to this idiot? I could have used your help."
"At sea, unfortunately, because I'd have loved a good game of 'tag team busting on McGarrett'."
"You're going to bust my chops after you boiled my insides with that," Steve waved at her plate, "suicide kimchi? Don't you have a story to finish, Stagler?" he groused, but his smile gave him away.
"Then shhh, McGarrett." She rolled her eyes at him. "Where was I? The hotel clerk that probably remembers Catherine ..."
"Fourteen years later ..." John added with a nod to his wife.
"... because it's kinda hard to forget a girl that looks like Catherine, especially one who asks you to drag an unconscious guy outside with her."
Danny burst out laughing. "That is priceless. What happened?"
.
Flashback
When she'd arrived at the rental house, Catherine dropped her duffel and entered the foyer to find Carrie flying to catch her in an excited hug.
"Caaaaaaatherine!" Carrie was bubbling with excitement at seeing her Academy roommate in person for the first time since Catherine and Steve had been at her wedding. They'd talked and laughed well into the early hours that first night, and the group of women enjoyed massages poolside, swimming, and generally being off duty for the first few days before they began to break off in twos and threes and explore the island.
Carrie and Catherine returned from a morning of parasailing, followed by relaxing on the beach on day four of their leave, when upon entering the house, they nearly stumbled over the prone body of a naked man about their age just inside the door.
"Shit." Carrie huffed and called out "Savannah! What the hell?"
"God, really?" Catherine dropped her beach bag on the table and stepped around the man to kneel and feel for a pulse.
"Not dead, just dead drunk?" Carrie raised an eyebrow and called "Savannah! One of your 'empties' is blocking the door," while tossing her beach towel over the guy's torso.
"I'll get her," Catherine said as she hopped over the man's legs.
Just then, the guy groaned, sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Hey, how's it goin'?"
"How's it … Really? Please." Carrie stepped back. "The only thing goin' is you. Out of here."
"Savannah's not here. They're all out," Catherine said as she returned from checking the rest of the rooms.
"That's just … perfect. C'mon, Buddy, up and out." Carrie crossed her arms and shook her head.
"Aww, can I use the bathroom first?" He looked from Carrie to Catherine. "I'm Joey by the way. From Henderson." When neither girl spoke, he added, "Nevada."
"Okay, Henderson, hit the head and then the road." Carrie pointed down the hall. "And don't miss. Savannah's not here and we..." She gestured between herself and Catherine, "are not cleaning up after you."
"Savannah?" He looked confused.
"The tall blond?"
"Ahh, sorry, we didn't get to names."
"Of course you didn't," Catherine muttered. Savannah's behavior all week was a little off the charts, but this was the first time she'd left some guy alone in the house.
When Joey from Henderson, Nevada stood, clutching the towel, Catherine pointed to the floor beside him. "Hey, hey, pants!"
"Huh?"
"Don't forget your pants."
"Oh, yeah." He made grab for the crumpled jeans and, holding the beach towel around his waist, shuffled down the hall.
Present day
Steve barked a laugh at Danny's expression and slid an arm around Catherine's shoulder.
"You two are awesome." Danny grinned at the women. "But what happened next? You said he was awake; how'd you end up moving him outside with the hotel clerk?"
"Cath?" Carrie smiled at her and gesture she should tell the next part.
Catherine took a swallow of her beer, offered the rest to Steve, and grinned. "He was awake, and he did go put his pants on …"
"Thank God," Carrie muttered and everyone laughed as Catherine continued.
Flashback
Five minutes after Catherine and Carrie had checked around to see if anything was missing, Joey exited the bathroom looking fairly alert and grinning. "Hi." He eyed Catherine's bikini clad form head to toe and Carrie rolled her eyes.
"You need to go." Catherine's voice was tight. She was angry at the situation and sorry that Carrie felt the need to apologize for Savannah's behavior, since she'd invited her. She'd told Carrie it wasn't her fault, but she'd have done the same if the situation were reversed.
"You're feisty." His grin was feral. "And really hot. You in the Army, too, like ..." He searched for a name but was clearly drawing a blank.
"Navy. Like Savannah. And you, are starting to piss me off."
"C'mon, what say we hang out tonight? We could order food and have a party right here." He gestured down his body. "You've already seen the merchandise …" At Catherine's withering stare, he shrugged. "Oh, I get it, you don't wanna ditch your friend." His eyes slid to Carrie who was staring openly at his idiocy. "You can join us, Blondie."
"That's it. Get the hell out, right this second." Catherine took a step closer to the door and Joey made a mistake in judgement. A big one. He put his hand on Catherine's shoulder.
"Remove your hand." Her voice was ice cold.
When he didn't comply and began to wheedle, "Awww don't you …" He was over the kitchen island and lying in a heap on the floor before the next word left his mouth.
Carrie let out a snort. "Shit, Cath, nice takedown. You okay?"
"I'm fine." Catherine smiled. "Joey from Henderson, Nevada, on the other hand …" She shrugged.
"Asshole had it coming," Carrie huffed.
"Absolutely," Catherine agreed. "Now, let's call for help to get him outside because I don't want him claiming I assaulted him for no reason and causing a mess."
Carrie called the desk and minutes later the clerk helped Catherine carry the still out of it guy outside.
Present
"Oh, no." Gabby looked between the other women. "Do you think he would have …?" She let the question hang.
"No," Catherine and Carrie said together, and Carrie continued, "We'd have called the police if we'd have thought that. Even though Catherine handled it, we wouldn't have risked him assaulting another girl who may not have been in a position to protect herself."
"Yeah, he was an overly confident creep that needed to be taught a lesson as opposed to a predator." Catherine nodded.
Gabby smiled. "Definitely picked the wrong girls, huh?"
"Definately," Danny agreed. "Which is why we've all taught Grace self defense moves already. After the first lesson with Catherine, she flipped me. Broke a lamp in the process."
"Gracie nailed that move." Steve nodded proudly at Grace mastering the technique Catherine taught her.
"That creep was actually lucky, coulda been so much worse," Carrie told them.
"Worse than Cath knocking him across the room?" Gabby raised an eyebrow.
"Worse if he'd been there a day later because he'd have encountered …"
Carrie's eyes shifted and Danny barked a laugh. "SUPERSeal?"
"Well, that was before he was a SEAL, but yeah." Catherine grinned. "Steve got a three day pass and surprised me for the weekend." She patted his knee and gave Carrie a grateful nod. "She was in on it."
"Yes, I was. And I did a slammin' job of keeping it secret." Carrie toasted with her beer. "Steve contacted me in the beginning of the week and said he wanted to surprise Catherine on Friday night, if he wasn't messing up our girls' week. So I told him everyone was leaving either Friday afternoon or early Saturday morning anyway, but Cath had an extra day because her leave was til Sunday afternoon. She was due back on duty Monday at six p.m.
Flashback
Friday 10:00 a.m.
"Since everyone but you has a flight either today or early tomorrow, wanna come up and keep me company while I pack? We can come back and swim later," Carrie asked Catherine as they headed out of the water.
"Sure, I said goodbye to everyone else, c'mon." Catherine grabbed her beach bag and followed Carrie toward the house.
When they got to the door, Carrie said, "Go in, I wanna shake out my towel."
Catherine shrugged and slipped the key into the lock. As soon as she entered the foyer, her bag hit the tile floor with a thud as her hands came to her mouth. "Oh."
"Hey." Steve was rising from the sofa just off the foyer.
She was airborn is seconds and in his arms with a gasp. "Steve. How?" She pulled back for a heartbeat to see his face light with a smile before she kissed him with everything she had.
"Catherine." Her name came out as a hoarse whisper when he broke the kiss to rest his forehead against hers.
Seconds later, Carrie cleared her throat as she entered. "Yo, McGarrett. You're welcome." She winked at her friends. "And Cath, come hug me goodbye, because you're not gonna be here when I leave."
Catherine turned in Steve's arms. "Carrie, you …"
"I knew. I helped. You're welcome. I love you, too. C'mere." She opened her arms and the two girls embraced. "Best week ever, even with the almost dead guy and his creepy pants. I'll contact you from the ship next week." She winked. "Have fun." Carrie moved to hug Steve. "Hello, goodbye." She kissed his cheek. "Be safe."
"Thanks, Carrie. Give John my best when you talk." He hugged her once more before she backed into the room she'd shared with Catherine.
Carrie's head popped out for a second. "Oh, and Cath? Your bag's packed." She pushed Catherine's duffel just outside the bedroom door. "Go. Love you."
Catherine rushed to hug her friend again. "Love you, and thanks, Carrie." When Carrie closed the bedroom door, Catherine turned to Steve and moved immediately back into his arms. "Where we goin', and how many hours leave do you have?" She was hoping it was at least 24. Her tummy flipped with joy at his answer.
"Three days. We have till Sunday when you fly out." He bent to grab his bag while Catherine hoisted hers, and he slid his arm around her shoulders as they exited the house and moved down the path. "And we're going to the Beachcomber, it's walking distance." He pointed across the road, about half mile away at a small group of bungalows that Catherine and her friends had passed on their way in and out of town several times.
Catherine's eyes lit mischieviously. "Race ya?"
He eyed her feet. "In slippers?" He was in boots and BDUs, having come directly from the dock after catching a hop to Tahiti and a boat to the island.
"They're flip flops," she teased. "And yeah."
"I have a better idea." He tightened his hold as her free arm slid around his waist. She could see he had no intention of letting her go for more than a second if possible. "I get to hold you while we walk."
She beamed up at him. "Okay, if you put it that way." They fell in step and dropped their arms to hold hands. "Walking it is."
Present
"Aww that's very sweet." Gabby smiled.
"And right now, trust me on this, is where we need to say, 'stop, no more details.'" Danny held up a hand. "Because, let's not overshare."
Everyone laughed as Steve rolled his eyes and Catherine chuckled. "We need to get going, anyway."
"Yeah, Cammie's gotta go out soon," Steve echoed.
"Well, that was a great story, and it even had a romantic end," Gabby said. "But I need to get going, too. I have a meeting with a collector at eight tomorrow morning."
Everyone said their goodnights and parted for home.
McGarrett/Rollins Home
When Steve caught Catherine's eyes in the bathroom mirror as he dropped his toothbrush in the holder, she let out a laugh.
He returned her smile. "What?"
"I haven't talked about that leave with anyone but Carrie in a long time." She grinned. "Her face when we almost tripped over that idiot ..."
"Yeah, well, Carrie was right. If he ran into me, he'd have been in way worse shape."
"One look at you, he'd have run like the creep he was." She turned and leaned up to kiss him. "That was a great surprise leave."
"I did good that time."
"You did very good. Of course Carrie helped you plan."
"My idea though," he teased.
"Your idea, Commander. And a very good one." She patted his tummy and reached past him to switch off the light.
"Our shower is way more comfortable." He pointed out.
"Like we cared."
"Absolutely didn't. I'm just sayin,'" He ran a hand down her arm and laced their fingers. "Our shower is way more comfortable."
She squeezed his hand. "Wanna prove that theory?"
He switched the light back on and she chuckled, then sighed into his kiss as she thought back to that day, a smile gracing her lips.
Flashback
Steve opened the door to a bungalow which was decorated in beachy, nautical hues with a small kitchen, living room and private deck. They took a cursory glance before both duffels and the beach bag Catherine was still toting were on the ground and they were in each others' arms. Steve strode through the doorway to the bedroom with her legs wrapped around him as he held her aloft.
"You're ... way ... way ... overdressed," Catherine breathed when they broke apart and she slipped her legs down to stand. She was already fumbling with Steve's belt as he unbuttoned his uniform shirt and and pulled it and his t-shirt over his head in one movement. "Hmmmm. I need … a shower," she panted when sand flew as her bikini bottoms and the shorts she'd donned over them landed on a bedside chair. "I'm covered ... with sand." She stopped speaking to pull him closer and kiss him almost desperately. "Need ... shower."
"Me, too." He groaned as she pressed against him. "Now or later?"
"Now." She took his hand and dragged him towards the bathroom. "Right now. Sand'll be uncomfortable. C'mon." Her eyes darkened as she breathed, "C'mon, Steve," impatiently against his lips.
In the bathroom, Catherine let go of him reluctantly to turn on the water, noting the just large enough shower stall with a grin as Steve leaned against the sink to hastily untie his boots.
She returned to kiss him again, and he chuckled. "Impatient, Ensign?" he teased, but it ended in a groan, and the boot fell from his fingers as her hand began to roam beneath his waistband. "You keep doing that I'm not gonna make it to the shower, let alone get my other boot off."
She kissed him hungrily, stepped back with a huff and said, "Hurry," while stopping to look over her shoulder as she moved under the spray.
He joined her few seconds later and they didn't leave the shower until the water ran cold.
Present
Steve stepped out of the shower with a grin and grabbed a towel. "See, I was right. Our shower's more comfortable."
"Definitely." Catherine toweled off her hair and grinned up at him. "Ya know …"
"What?" He followed her into the bedroom and tossed his towel into the hamper on top of hers.
"Our bed's more comfortable, too. But I'll need you to help me gather more data before I formulate a complete hypothesis."
Steve caught her around the waist and pulled her onto the mattress. "There's nothing I'd rather do more, Lieutenant."
.
End. Thanks for reading.
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