He should've guessed that her father would hold some expectations of him, hell he knew what Sam had gone through to get his wife's father's approval. Although, he suspected that being a SEAL was a great starting point for the man.

Him? He didn't even have a name. That made a thought cross his mind; how was he going to explain that one to him? To any of the family? And the fact that he didn't have any family. He let out a sigh and watched as Emily was bustled into the living room.

'Great,' he thought as her father hung back. They were alone and he offered the man a stern stare. Emily had mentioned that the man used to be a Colonel and had retired. With a firm nod Callen said, "Sir."

"Callen right?"

"That's right."

"One second mum," Emily's appearance in the doorway was a life boat as she smiled from him to her father. "Hey Dad, this is Agent Callen. Callen, this is my Dad Thomas."

With a kind smile Callen held a hand out, "Nice to meet you Sir and can I say you have a lovely daughter."

The man offered a little twitch to his lips. "Well as long as I know she's being looked after."

"I am," Emily interrupted, but neither man withdrew their gaze. Callen held it a moment longer, retaking his hand back and placing it by his side. "The party's in here by the way." He turned his gaze then and nodded, a soft touch tracing a smile on his face.

"What are we waiting for," he turned his attention back to Thomas and waved towards the door, "After you Sir?"

There was a brief pause between the two men before Thomas nodded his head and advanced through the door first. Callen sighed when the man left his vision. This was going to be a long night. "Feel free to ignore him," Emily told him. His heart was beating wildly in his chest, telling him that he didn't belong here in her world. He forced those thoughts to the side as she took his hand in hers and gently tugged him behind her. "Anytime you want to leave, just let me know. Okay?"

Now she turned and looked up at him with a generous smile. Callen couldn't help the warm smile on his face and nodded his head. "Of course."

As introductions were made he was fully aware of faint whispers that were being carried around the room. There were even a few blatant points in his direction. He was thankful it was a small gathering and to save the awkwardness of having no first name, both he and Emily had decided to keep it as Agent Callen. If anyone asked about his first name he simply shrugged and moved onto a different subject.

When he'd met her mother, Elaine, she'd passed a comment that made him choke on his drink and almost made him blush; "Well he's certainly a charmer. I'm sure he's got the package to go with it." The last comment was meant to be a whisper to Emily, which definitely made her blush.

Her sister said something along the same lines and when they walked away Callen was smirking, "If my family try to steal you away from me I'll kill you."

"Me? It isn't my fault."

"No, but it'll stop us arguing over you and falling out." The smirk she offered him only made him laugh and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Tonight, he felt himself straying not too far away from Emily. It was one place he felt comfortable; near her.

"What if I refuse to run away? Does that make it better?"

"A little."

Next up was her brother and the guy merely stuck out a hand with a smile and said, "Keep an eye on her, she bites." He'd laughed at that and followed Emily towards the buffet table to grab a bite to eat.

As the evening progressed he felt his stomach begin to relax. It was settling down just a little, but Thomas' appearance twisted it again. He glanced over towards Emily on the other side of the room and back to Thomas with a smile. "Sir."

The man nodded to him and nodded his gaze towards Emily across the room. "So how'd you two meet?"

Callen mentally tried to figure out where this conversation would go. "Coffee shop. She spilt coffee on me."

That made the man quirk a brow. There was a moment of silence between them before Thomas opened his mouth, "Agent Callen huh? First name?"

The cogs in his head stopped momentarily. First name. First name. First name. It went blank. What could he say? As he opened his mouth he felt his phone vibrate. With a 'sorry' smile he took his phone out and glance at the caller ID. It was Sam. "I have to take this."

The man waved an arm at him, "By all means."

Callen stepped away and answered the call, "Is there a case?"

"Yeah, Petty Officer found drowned in the River just a few hours ago. Nell's texting you the address soon."

"I'll meet you there then." He hung up and turned around to face Thomas. With a sigh he stepped towards the man. "I'm sorry, that was work. Something's come up and I have to go."

Thomas merely looked at him for a few silent moments before nodding. "Okay. You have a job to do and I appreciate that. You best get going then."

Callen nodded and retreated to find Emily. "I'm sorry but I have to go, work."

She nodded and said, "Okay, I'll leave too."

He waved her off, "You stay."

"Meh," she said. He looked at her and tilted his head with a smirk before she agreed. "Fine," she stepped closer to him and pecked his mouth with hers. "Go catch 'em. I'll grab a cab later."

"You tell me when you're back." She smirked and gently laid a hand on his cheek. "I will. Now go, go catch the bad guys. I'll see you tomorrow."

When Callen met Sam he was given a quirk of the brows. "Where were you at? Sounded like a party?"

He sighed and stepped closed to the crime scene. "Emily's sister's birthday."

"Ah, met the family did you?" Callen spared him a grimace and Sam's smirk slid away. "Okay, okay. I'm sure it wasn't as bad as you think it was."

"Sam, I met her family. That's, that's something I don't do."

"Neither is calling a girl up or staying the night with her." Callen sighed and focused on the crime scene. "Look, just, carry on taking it slow like you guys already are. Besides, she's not pushing you is she?"

He nodded his head towards Sam, "That is a point Sam. That is a point."