A/N - annnnnd it's already happening. I'm already considering expanding my short and sweet vacation story into something more. We'll see. xoxo - tmtcltb
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Chapter 5
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Danny was whistling as he let himself into the suite, stepping over Jason to get to the corner where he vaguely recalled dropping his bag when they first arrived. A quick glance around showed that Frankie was nowhere to be seen, presumably inside the closed bedroom area with some chick or other, and Berchem was on the couch. Danny pulled out some clean clothes and then, after a moment's consideration, tossed a few extra things into his daypack with the plan to leave them in Kara's room.
This morning could not have gone better.
He wasn't talking about the scene with Kara's friends, as amusing as it might have been. No, what had Danny whistling was the look on Kara's face when she turned to find him wearing only a towel. She had been adorably disheveled, not entirely awake, wearing just an oversized white tee and pink undies that he could see through her shirt, a flush covering her cheeks as she took in his appearance. If they had been alone, he definitely would not have stuck to the plan of keeping all physical contact outside of Kara's room for the next day or two. Not that his goal had changed - Danny was confident that he and Kara would ultimately end up in bed together at some point over the next week - but as he contemplated the ceiling from Kara's lumpy couch, Danny kept coming back to one undeniable conclusion.
The evening had been fun.
A simple sentiment, sure, but one that led him to re-think what he wanted out of this vacation. Danny couldn't remember the last time he went on a date. One where he picked the woman up, bought her dinner, and took her home without expecting anything more than maybe a goodnight kiss. Where his goal was to get to know his date, to see if he liked her, rather than saying whatever he figured that she wanted to hear as he entered and exited her bedroom. Even with Rebecca there had been little "dating" when they got back together, their reunion at a mutual friend's wedding ending with him waking up in her hotel room and the two deciding to give it another go before leaving for the airport where each caught their plane home. Spending the evening with Kara was a much needed kick in the ass, a reminder that there was something between Frankie's revolving door of bedmates and buying an engagement ring. And what was more, he had been presented with the perfect opportunity to brush off some very rusty skills in a low-risk environment.
With a woman he actually liked.
That was the result of an hour of deliberation last night before he fell asleep and, if Danny had any doubts that it was the right plan, his decision was reinforced by the way Kara's friend glared at him. Not the harpy. She was merely annoying and Danny figured that either Frankie or Berchem could be steered in that direction. The person who really mattered was Alisha, Kara's self-described best friend. The one who hated her ex-boyfriend and who, if her reaction to finding Danny in Kara's room was anything to go by, had confirmed Danny's suspicions that there was more to the situation than just a bad breakup.
Frankie stumbled out of the bedroom area, eyes bleary. "Whoever is whistling, for the love of god, stop."
"Morning sunshine," Danny replied, picking up the resort pamphlet and flipping through. The walk from Kara's room took less than two minutes and his change of clothing maybe five, which meant he had another fifteen minutes to burn before picking up Kara. He might as well spend that time figuring out what the resort had to offer. "No company?"
Jason's head appeared from under a blanket, although he didn't move from his position on the floor. "Steve ended up chucking his cookies all over the prospective lady's shoes. That never seems to impress them."
"And you claim that I'm the cockblock," Danny retorted, stopping on a page about snorkeling. That seemed like something most women would like. Scuba diving would be more fun but he didn't know if Kara had her certification. Last night he learned that she grew up in Kansas and didn't see the ocean for the first time until after she enlisted. The idea seemed unfathomable to a guy who grew up a spit's throw from a Connecticut beach, spending weeks each summer swimming and surfing and playing in the dunes. Obviously she now knew how to swim, that was a pretty basic requirement for joining the Navy, but he didn't know if she had any interest in water sports.
Frankie stopped in the process of swallowing a handful of painkillers. "You appear to be in a good mood for a guy who spent the night on a pool lounger."
"Probably because I didn't spend the night on a pool lounger," Danny replied, flipping to the restaurant section. He needed some chopstick free options.
"Holy shit. My boy got laid!" Frankie announced, slapping Danny on the back. "I knew that you just needed a push. So, does she have any friends? A sister? Twin?"
Danny rolled his eyes. "You really are disgusting but, as it happens, she's here with friends. A couple of whom are single. And I'm meeting them for brunch in ten minutes. You're invited."
"And you're just telling me now?" Frankie demanded, already headed into the bathroom. "I'll be ready in five."
"You hanging?" Danny looked over at Jason.
Smith nodded. "I'll keep an eye on Jay. Last night was a bad one. He's worse when you aren't there."
Danny felt a pang of guilt. Berchem had been devastated when his wife filed for divorce last year but recently seemed to have reconciled himself to the demise of his marriage. Then, two weeks ago, Steve found out that his ex was remarrying. Worse, Missy was planning on moving with her new husband to New York, taking Steve and Missy's little girl with him. The news had sent Berchem spiraling.
Danny sighed. "Kara's in room 1674. If things get bad again, call me there or have the front desk track me down. Last thing we need is him getting arrested and causing an international incident."
"Copy," Jason replied. "So, Kara?"
"She's ... nice," Danny said finally. "Navy. Actually, she's on Cruz's ship. In operations. Laughed at me when I ate the sushi with my fingers."
"So your type."
Danny glanced up, surprised. "What?"
"Your type," Jason repeated. "Physically fit nerd with a deadpan sense of humor. Like the Queen Bitch. Although hopefully this one has a few more redeeming qualities."
"Jay," Danny said, voice low. "I get enough of it from Frankie. I don't need it from you too."
Smith rolled off the floor, walking across the room to the small coffeemaker. "If that was true you would recognize what a blood-sucker she was. A leech in human form."
Giving up, Danny checked his watch. If Frankie wasn't out of the bathroom in thirty seconds he was going to... Right on time Frankie streaked into his bedroom, throwing on some board shorts and a coverup. "I'm ready."
They were halfway down the hall when Frankie spoke. "Steve's losing it, man. You've been caught up in your own shit. Which I get so don't think that I'm busting your balls. But Missy's plan to leave the state with Emma is eating him alive."
"He'll pull it together," Danny replied. "He always does."
"This time's different, Danny," Frankie said, shaking his head. "He got into it with some rando because the guy's girlfriend looked like Missy. If security had been about two minutes quicker, we would all be on a plane back to Virginia right now."
Well, shit.
Danny had been hoping that Smith was exaggerating. But with both Frankie and Jay suggesting that something more was going on, Danny was going to have to have a sit down with the guy. "I'll talk to him."
Frankie gave him the side-eye.
"Kara's here with a group," Danny said, deliberately changing the topic. "Two couples and three single ladies. I met one of the singles this morning and she's here for some fun. Right up your alley. But whatever you do, don't hit on Kara's friend Alisha. She's here with her long-term girlfriend - apparently they're practically engaged - and she's already giving me the evil eye."
Frankie shot him a grin. "Don't worry about me, oh wise leader. Last time I checked, I was not the one struggling to score."
Ignoring Frankie's ridiculous comment, Danny knocked on Kara's door. Inside he could hear female voices and, sure enough, when Kara opened the door, Alisha was there as well. He noticed that her hair was floating around her face rather than tied back as it had been yesterday. Not overly practical but pretty. Danny smiled. "Hey gorgeous. I acquired a stowaway. This lowlife is Frankie."
Kara surprised him by standing on tiptoe to plant a kiss on his lips, before turning to Frankie. "Hi. I'm Kara and this is Alisha. You hungry?"
As they headed towards the lobby, Danny grabbed Kara's hand, tugging until they were lagging several feet behind Frankie and Alisha. He waited until they could see Kara's friends lingering by one of the restaurants before tugging her into the seclusion of one of the water features. Kara looked up. "What..."
Not letting her finish, Danny wrapped an arm around her waist while the other cupped her neck, leaning down to capture her lips. Kara gasped, apparently caught by surprise, but almost instantly she relaxed against him, arms coming up to grasp his arms. Reluctantly, he kept the embrace short, pressing a final kiss to the soft spot under her ear before stepping back.
Kara's eyes narrowed but, before she could speak, Danny slung an arm around her waist, steering her towards the restaurant where their friends stood waiting. He leaned down, feeling her shiver as he murmured in her ear. "Smile for the audience."
Forty-five minutes later, Danny was fairly certain that he had navigated the entire meet the friends mission without any major incident. As expected, Frankie and Nina immediately hit it off and Danny anticipated that both would be naked within an hour after lunch. Hopefully that meant Nina would move on to different prey and Danny wouldn't have to spend any more time with her. Although Kara considered the woman a friend, he found her needlessly rude and catty.
"What are you two planning for today?" Sarah asked, the question directed at Kara and Danny. Unlike Nina or even Alisha, Sarah seemed to have no hidden agenda so Danny took the question at face value.
"I was thinking maybe snorkeling or scuba diving," Danny replied, turning towards Kara, trying to get a feel for what she preferred. "Although I did promise you a couple hours of beach time, too."
Nina snorted. "A warning, Green. In Foster speak, beach time translates to reading." She turned to Frankie. "You won't believe this but Kara claims that she met Danny when they started talking about the book that she was reading. Some tome on the Coast Guard. Have you ever heard something so ridiculous?"
Frankie set down his mimosa. "Well, damn, and here I kept telling Green that reading all those books with the little print was pointless. Think Caroline will write me the cliff notes?"
"Caroline?" Kara asked quietly, glancing at Danny.
"My sister," he supplied, equally quiet, ignoring Nina's stunned face. "Have you ever been scuba diving?"
"Yes, I have my certification although I don't go often." Kara tilted her head, watching him. "How about we do that first and then relax later. Sound good?"
"So wait," Nina shrieked, drawing everyone's attention. "You mean that whole we met talking about books thing is true?"
Frankie laughed. "Wouldn't surprise me one bit. My friend over there is a total closet nerd."