After tossing and turning for a couple of hours, Shauni realized sleep wasn't going to come easily for her that night. She couldn't seem to turn off the thoughts in her mind about all she had going on this week or her worries over her deranged fan. Then there were the thoughts of Steve McGarrett….asleep in the next room. Truthfully, he was invading her thoughts more than the other issues at hand and it was completely distracting.

Enough of this! she thought with a sigh as she pulled back her covers and sat up. I need some fresh air.

She got up as quietly as she could and redressed. When she stayed in hotels, one of her favorite things to do was to surprise fans in the middle of the night who would hang out in hotel lobbies hoping for a glimpse. She really did have great fans and she appreciated the loyalty they gave to her; Except for those like Carl Matthews, of course. Whenever she could, she would go down to hotel lobbies to meet with them, sign autographs, and take pictures. It was like an impromptu "meet and greet". Knowing Steve McGarrett would never approve of it, she wrote a quick note for him, tiptoed into the main living area of the suite where he was sleeping on the couch. She stopped for a moment to admire him. He looked so peaceful when he slept. He had some of the longest eyelashes she'd ever seen. Not to mention his full lips, chiseled jaw, broad chest, and the list went on. How she would love to kiss her way down his neck and keep going south until...

She shook her head again. Definitely time for some fresh air! She made her way across the floor, opened the door, and closed it with a quiet "click". The bodyguards in the hall stood up immediately. "Can we get you something, Ms. Steele?" asked one of them.

"No, I'm fine." She whispered. "I just can't sleep and want to go downstairs to meet some of my fans. One of you want to go with me?"

They looked at each other apprehensively. "Commander McGarrett won't like this ma'am".

"Oh poo. Who cares what Commander McGarrett thinks. I'm the one in charge here, remember?" She said sweetly and flashed them her most dazzling smile."

Clearing his throat nervously, Guard # 1 who's name was Tyler, said, "Actually, ma'am, McGarrett is in charge. Why don't we get him to go down with you?"

Shauni frowned, "Because we all know that he would NEVER 'approve' of this. But I AM going…..so either one of you can go with me or I'll go by myself. The choice is yours." And with that, she started walking towards the stairs with Tyler falling in behind her. "I'll go with you, Ms. Steele." he said. "But we can't stay long. McGarrett will have my ass if anything happens."

************H50******H50******H50*****H50

Steve woke up with an uneasy feeling in his stomach. Something wasn't right. He blinked trying to wake up more fully and realized that Shauni's bedroom door was open. He got up quietly and approached the door not wanting to wake her if she was sleeping. He peaked inside and noticed to his horror that she wasn't there. He quickly turned on the light and walked in, "Shauni?" He called out but there was no answer. "Shauni!" He said a little more urgently. Still no answer. He made his way through the entire suite realizing she wasn't there. That's when he found her note on the counter in the kitchen area:

No worries, Commander. I can't sleep….Just going out for a quick walk. I'll take one of the security guys with me. XOXO-Shauni

SON OF A…., Steve crumpled up the paper and strode out into the hallway like a man on a mission. As soon as the remaining bodyguard saw Steve's face, he knew he was probably in for a butt chewing.

"Where the hell is she?" Steve asked.

"Sorry, Commander. She just wanted to go for a walk, so Tyler went with her. I'm sure they're fine. He would've called me if there was a problem."

"That's not the point. She wasn't supposed to go anywhere without ME!" Steve shot back. "We'll talk about this later! He snapped and walked quickly towards the stairs: There was no time to wait on the elevator….He could take the stairs more quickly and hopefully find Shauni downstairs safe & sound. His frustration grew with each floor he descended. How could she be so careless? More importantly, how did she get the slip on him? He was never going to hear the end of this from Danny.

Steve finally reached the lobby floor and walked out into the mass of people congregating there. Quickly scanning the crowd, he found Shauni happily in the middle of all of them signing autographs and taking pictures. He had to admire her loyalty to her fans but he was furious with her at the moment. He made his way through the crowd and to her side. Her eyes were a little startled when she first saw him, but she quickly camouflaged the look with a smile, "Hello, Commander. Give me just a few more minutes and I'll be finished."

Steve was having none of that. He told Tyler to go hold the elevator for them as he took Shauni by the arm. "Time's up. We're going now." He said. She started to protest again until Steve tightened his grip a little more on her arm. He leaned down to whisper into her ear, "Get on the elevator right NOW unless you want me to make a scene." He said quietly but firmly.

This is not the time to argue, girl. Her good sense told her. She could see she wasn't going to win this one so she quickly said goodnight to the fans and ignored the look on Steve's face as she promised to come back down soon.

It was a quiet ride on the elevator with more than a little tension in the air. Tyler was afraid he was going to get fired, Shauni was furious at Steve for ruining her time with fans, and Steve was mad at BOTH of them. When they finally reached the 12th floor, Steve took Shauni by the hand. He looked at Tyler and said, "Look, I know she can be charming with that sweet smile of hers, but this better not happen again. Understand? If she's not going to care about her own safety, I need to know I can count on you to do so."

"Now just a minute, Commander..." Shauni started to protest, but Steve silenced her with a glare. Then, he looked back to Tyler.

"Yes, sir. It won't happen again. You have my word." Tyler said gratefully. Steve nodded in agreement and led Shauni down the hall towards her suite. It wasn't until the door had closed behind them that he let go of her hand.

"What the hell do you think you were doing?" He snapped. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that little stunt was?"

Shauni tried to minimize the situation as she walked away from him towards the couch, "Would you relax?. This was a spur of the moment thing. I wasn't in any danger. I mean, I didn't leave the hotel AND I even took Tyler with me. Besides, IF Carl is going to show up, it will most likely be at a publicized event…..And you all have those covered with security out the wazoo, so I have nothing to worry about."

Steve couldn't believe her nonchalance. "Are you kidding me?" He said a little louder than he'd intended, "How do you know he won't be hanging out here? If memory serves me correctly, he DID sneak into a hotel room in New York and steal one of your scarves once! That shows he's totally capable of being where you least expect him to be."

The fear of that moment brought her back to reality and rendered her speechless even as she tried to stand defiantly up to him. Steve lectured on. "This man is insane, Shauni. I've read the file on him…Maybe YOU need to read it again. He is out to get you! What don't you understand about that?"

He was right, of course. "I'm sorry." Shauni said quietly and sincerely. Steve had been expecting more of a fight, so her honest apology now made him speechless. Shauni looked at him and said it again, "You're right, Steve. I'm sorry. It won't happen again. I just…"

"You just what?" Steve asked.

Shauni sighed and walked towards him until she stood close enough that he could smell the sweet scent of the lotion she had put on before bed. She looked up at him with her big brown eyes and he felt his heart flip flop, "Sometimes I just need to get out, ya know? I can't stay cooped up inside all the time." Suddenly she looked like a little girl in front of him and he softened.

"Look, I get it." Steve said, "I know it's probably suffocating to be under 'house arrest' like this." He joked and she smiled. "I promise you we will do what we can to get you out whenever possible while you're here, okay?" She nodded gratefully up at him. Then he got serious again, "But I swear to God, if you ever pull something childish like that again, I may paddle your ass."

Shauni batted her eyelashes at him and smiled, "Oooh. Are you going to get all Fifty Shades on me, Commander McGarrett?"

Steve eyed her curiously, "What are you talking about?"

"Fifty Shades of Grey? Don't tell me you've never heard of the New York Times Best Seller for a thousand weeks in a row." she teased.

"Cant say that I have. I don't have much time for reading." He looked clueless and she laughed.

"Well, ask the women in your life about it. I'm sure they've heard of it." She giggled at him and he smiled back at her even though he had no idea what she was talking about. She leaned up, kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Once again I'm sorry about tonight. It won't happen again. Goonight, Steve." It wasn't until she'd reached her room and shut the door behind her that he found his voice and whispered, "Goodnight, Shauni."