"Not to be rude ma'am but you look tired." Kate startled, almost tipping her wine glass as she put it down. Buffer was dressed up, nice jeans and a shirt with a collar. She supposed he was right, the last few weeks of broken promises and baffling silence were sitting in the bags under her eyes and the tightness of her shoulders. She smiled at him ruefully.
"It's been an adjustment without you on board." He grinned back and she gestured him to the empty seat at her table. "Is the Launceston in port?" He sat down, resting his arms back on the armrests and looking relaxed and casual.
"In again for the exhaust fumes in austere. We nearly gassed a boatload of fishermen last week." He shrugged, amused. "Finding another place to contain them for three days was interesting."
"Junior sailors quarters?" She guessed, taking an amused sip of her wine. He laughed.
"Junior sailors. They bitched worse than 2Dads."
"Did you remind them that the Navy is all about sacrifice?" She let her posture relax a little, leaning back in her own chair.
"That I did X, then I had them running fire drills all day to keep their minds off it."
She laughed, draining the last of her glass of wine and glancing at Buffer's outfit.
"I'm getting another glass, do you want to join me or do you have somewhere to be?" She watched him notice her gaze on his outfit and he shook his head.
"Nah, looks like I got stood up." He said, chagrined before shrugging. "What can you expect from internet dates?"
"Beer or something harder?" She asked, standing up. Buffer tried to stand with her but she gestured him back to his seat. She stared him down until he gave in and asked for a beer.
She looked back at him from the bar as she waited for the head on the beer to sink a little and the barman to dig out the house white. She wondered about the woman who had stood him up.
He nodded thankfully at her when she placed a schooner in front of him, sitting down with her own glass of wine. She sipped her drink silently, letting him decide if he wanted to talk any more about his date. He took a long drink from his beer and laughed at her.
"I'm fine X, not the first time I've been stood up." He grinned crookedly. "Does the silence work on getting your new Buffer to talk?"
She leant forward in her chair, elbows coming up to frame her glass. "Not in the least, I can't get more than ten words out of the man."
"Not everyone is as effective a communicator as I am ma'am." She laughed, sipping at her wine.
"I'm not your XO anymore Buff, you don't have to call me ma'am, you can call me Kate." She said before she'd really considered it. He met her eyes and something almost imperceptible changed in his posture.
"Well then Kate, I suppose you should call me Pete."
She was caught by a sudden sense memory of his lips against her fingers and his accidentally prophetic words. If you wait for something, it'll never happen.
She pressed her fingers to the icy condensation on her glass and took a long sip, his eyes still on her. The silence lingered for a long, almost uncomfortable moment before he sat back, in a move she recognised as giving her space. It only made the sense memory worse.
"So what's up with your new Buffer? He not quite up to the old standard?"
She gratefully accepted the new topic. "He pushed me out of the way on a boarding but won't admit anything is odd about that."
His eyebrows climbed and he whistled. "Asshole or issues?"
"An asshole with issues?" She replied, a grin tugging at her lips. It was nice to talk about Dutchy with someone who didn't see his war record and automatically assume she was oversensitive.
"What's your guess?" He asked, his elbow on the table. This was the conversation she had tried to have with Mike, to have someone value her instinct. Mike had brushed her aside and instead she had Pete waiting for her answer.
"I think he lost an XO." She leant in, sharing a confidence. For a moment she thought about what they would look like from outside, her leaning into Pete, his eyes focused on her. She almost pulled away, trained for so long at keeping a professional distance from Mike but deliberately stopped herself. "His citation was for gallantry under fire during a boarding, but I think he lost his superior officer." She was close enough to see the small muscle along his jaw twitch and feel his breath as he released it.
"Yeah, that'd do it." His voice was a little rough and she remembered all the times he'd put himself in danger and stood between all of them and harm. "You'd think the shrinks'd be better at spotting that shit by now."
"Like you've never lied to the navy psychologists after a trauma." Her amused tone and deliberate half-smile drew him back out of his momentary silence.
"Would I do that Kate?" His eyes crinkled at the edges as he smiled and she couldn't help but smile back fully.
"Maybe I should ask you if you've got an XO that's stopping you from pulling any stupid stunts."
Pete laughed. "He's a good bloke, but he has some big shoes to fill. He does his best." She hid her smile in her wine as he grinned happily at her. She'd almost forgotten what easy, uncomplicated conversation felt like.
"So, what does the Boss say about this new Buffer of yours?" He asked after a moment.
Kate's mouth twisted just a little and her shoulders stiffened slightly but Pete was used to reading her body language in combat, through a helmet and a vest, here in a pub wearing a floaty top she was an open book.
"I'd have thought he trusted your judgement by now." His voice was soft and it was that softness that Kate blamed her honesty on.
"Yeah. Me too."
Pete reached out and squeezed her forearm, just once, and then withdrew his hand. She always wondered if the crew suspected Mike and her and from the way Pete looked at her now she knew with certainty that at least he did.
"Give him time." He said, after a few moments of silence. She jerked her eyes up to him, confused. "Your new Buffer." He clarified. "He'll figure out that you can take care of yourself."
She smiled back and sipped at her wine, feeling the warmth of his hand long after it should have faded.
Kate steered the conversation to lighter subjects and Pete let her, bouncing between stories of 2Dad's latest idiocies and the Able Seaman Pete had who reminded him of Spider in his earlier, more useless, days.
Kate stared down at her empty wine glass and seriously considered a third, not wanting to go home to her empty house, but also aware of her car outside and her usual two glass limit. Pete noticed her movements and drained the last of his beer.
"Two drink limit?" He asked.
"Only if I don't want to leave my car in the carpark overnight."
Pete laughed. "And that's asking to find it burned out in the cane fields next week."
She smiled back at him, shifting her glass but still reluctant to leave.
"We'll keep in touch." He said, shrugging. "It seems like you need someone to bounce things off of and I'm outside of it now."
This time it was her who laid a hand on his arm. "Thanks Pete." He laid his own over hers and squeezed.
"Any time Kate."
Keeping in touch was the biggest lie any of them ever told. No one had the time or energy to keep in touch while at sea and Kate had expected Pete and her to be the same.
Except Dutchy was still avoiding her on the boat and overprotective on boardings, Mike was overprotective and dismissive in turns and her head ached from her most recent kidnapping.
The email she wrote mentioned none of that, it was full of stories about the resort and thinly veiled references to the latest bets Charge was running that the officers pretended not to know about. She didn't mention any of her problems and yet somehow felt better for it.
It helped keep her face calm when she watched Mike look at the ship and the action of offloading passengers.
"People in love, they can make some bad choices, hey?" She knew even as she said it that he wouldn't understand how much she meant it. Even she was surprised by how much she meant it.
"Yes, they can." She could feel him looking at her but just kept staring out at the ambulances.
She knew even as she asked him about what Commander White had said about a permanent commander that it wasn't going to be a good answer.
It wasn't the answer itself she was dreading, she knew how slowly the Navy wheels could turn, but the unconcerned look in his eyes when he replied, "Nothing."
She knew then with blinding certainty and a rock in her belly that he wasn't going to leave this ship until someone forced him, and she wasn't enough to change that.
The crew had shore leave until they sailed in the morning but Kate had paperwork and no interest in the wine headache she was sure to give herself if she joined them.
She powered on her computer and opened a blank template, ready to write another of the incident reports she had become far too good at. She'd taken a deep breath and placed her fingers on the keys before her attention was stolen by the flash of her email notification. Happy to take the distraction, she opened it and couldn't help the grin when she recognised the sender.
Kate,
Don't think news of your kidnapping didn't reach Launceston, it was a relief to get your email, it arrived just before news of your rescue did. Though from the sounds of the buzz you didn't need much saving.
Naval gossip travelled almost faster than light, Kate mused as she read the rest of Pete's email. His calm assurance of her skills was a balm on the raw places Dutchy and Mike's overprotectiveness had opened and his mundane stories of the pranks played on Spud, his useless Able Seaman, helped release the tension in her shoulders she hadn't even realised was there.
She glanced back at the window open to her report and decided it could wait until later.
Pete,
Well, I did knock a guy out with a pair of bolt cutters.
She didn't expect it to become a habit, didn't expect to accidentally memorise Pete's internet access times.
His emails were always rambling, stories of fishing off the boat, Spud's newest stupidities, the squid he'd found in the Typhoon cover after a storm.
Hammersley seemed to run into a lot more problems than the Launceston did. Kate replied to Pete's stories with her own stories of 2Dad's latest schemes but also losing Bomber on an island and finding an opium-growing gang among a group of hippies. His amused responses made her miss his solid presence at her back, miss not having to defend herself not only against the dangers outside but also from Dutchy's misguided protection. She'd stopped bringing it up to Mike, which said more for their relationship's deterioration than anything. But she mentioned it to Pete, the latest awkward silences in the passageways and the way she was increasingly sure she'd been right about Dutchy losing an officer on a boarding.
It was the kind of conversation she couldn't have onboard, always too conscious of her rank and her gender, placing her apart from even the most senior non commissioned officers and now without even the Nav for company. It was the kind of conversation she'd sometimes had with Mike before she'd started pulling away and realised he hadn't noticed.
Pete's stories turned to the cafe that had completely ruined his scrambled eggs and how terrible his apartment smelt after being empty as he returned home for two weeks leave. Kate's next leave wasn't for three weeks and she stared at his happy stories with a sharp pang of homesickness she'd never experienced for anything other than the sea.
Then three assholes and a poor pilot dropped out of the sky in front of them and after a bit of excitement, they deposited their injured passenger and recaptured criminals back in Cairns with the appropriate emergency services.
She sent the text without thinking about it.
In port for a 12-hour turn around.
She'd barely slipped it back in her pocket before it chimed with a reply.
Dinner? There's that new Thai.
Thai actually sounded wonderful. As did an evening away from the boat.
Meet me at six?
His response was just as quick.
I'll do you one better. See you at the gate at 10 to.
She smiled and dropped her phone back in her pocket, heading into the ship to make a few people very upset with a duty roster and get the next lot of paperwork done.
The duty roster took only a few minutes and after informing the unlucky few and releasing the rest she printed a copy and ducked into Mike's office to notify him and add it to the paperwork.
He stood up from his chair as she entered and she handed him the printout.
"Duty watch informed and the rest of the crew is on leave until twenty-three hundred." She nodded and headed for the door. He closed it in her face. She felt a momentary concern she'd never before associated with him as the door shut so abruptly, her body tensing slightly in an anticipatory response she couldn't stop. He didn't notice.
"Kate, I know this situation is frustrating for the both of us."
She stared at him, feeling untethered because she suddenly realised that she'd barely thought of him or their relationship in weeks and for the first time in years, she actually thought she could live without him.
She watched him explain that NAVCOM was moving slower than usual and all she could think was that he had limited time.
"Well, let's hope they speed things up because patience isn't one of my strongest virtues." She wasn't sure he understood but she knew herself. If she thought she could live without him now, in a few months she would be sure.
Pete grinned at her and reached over to pop open the passenger door. She felt the last of the tension from her conversation with Mike fade away.
"Hey, how was the Arafura?"
"As humid as ever." She replied, sliding in. "Being on leave has limited your access to the usual buzz, we had escaped prisoners on board the last few days."
He laughed and threw a look at her as she shut the door. "And where the hell did you find them?"
"They fell out of the sky Pete." She replied, deadpan.
"It sounds like a story but after all the things I saw on the Hammersley, I'd believe anything."
"Did you not feel like going through security today?" She asked, nodding at the security gate as he pulled back onto the road.
He shrugged. "Figured if I did we'd end up with half the ship with us."
Kate smiled, leaning back in her seat. "Yeah, we would have."
The car fell into comfortable silence and Kate watched the smile she could see on the profile of his face.
Kate felt a grim sense of achievement as she and Mike walked out of NAVCOM. She'd been right, he wasn't going to leave the Hammersley until they dragged him off and when it was there in front of him, she was nowhere in his consideration.
She worked her jaw as she followed him out of the building. She was almost as angry at herself as she was at him. She'd known this is who he was, from the moment at ADFA when he walked away from her straight to his new command without so much as a backward glance. And yet here she found herself, three years into waiting for a man to whom she would always come second.
It was hard to give up on something she'd put so much of herself into and she wasn't sure she was quite ready to close this door, but for the first time she willing to see what might be on the other side of it.
Kate had been keeping Pete updated on her newest interactions with Dutchy. He was perfect, both knowledgeable enough and removed enough to be her sounding board but more than anything because she trusted his judgement. It also made her realise how much he knew her, his suggestions were always confirmations of the path she had chosen for herself and he never once suggested she try to speak to the captain.
Kate put her fingers to the cut on her throat and imagined how he would react to the most recent event. She wasn't sure how to tell him about it and explain that Dutchy had made the only choice he could but how she was still terrified of the pause that had made that choice inevitable. She couldn't help but put Pete in the same place and knew with certainty that had it come to him facing her with a machete to her throat, he too would have put down his gun. She also knew it wouldn't have come to that had Pete still been the one at her back.
She had covered for Dutchy with the captain but still wasn't sure why. With one word, the whole failure would have rested firmly on his shoulders and she would have been free of him but there was something in him that made her give him one last chance.
She watched Dutchy sit at the table, body curled around his untouched food, shoulders high and an instant biting defensiveness in his voice and could only pity him. He reminded her of the dog that snarls and bites to hide its terror. She would give him this final chance.
She considered the email she would write to Pete and immediately stopped. He would support her choice but she would be able to read his concern in between every word. She would tell him when she knew more.
Pete stood from the table as she entered and Kate smiled, offering her cheek for a kiss.
"Sorry I'm late, formal whites and Italian don't mix."
The slight stubble of his mouth made her skin tingle as she took her seat. He laughed and sat back across from her.
"You missed the time one of ET's 'dates' threw a glass of red wine over him in his whites." The memory of ET was still bittersweet but enough time had passed to remember with fondness.
"Did it ever come out?"
He laughed again. "Nah, he was up for a new set and we didn't hear the end of it for weeks." He poured both of them a glass of wine and looked back up at her. "What were you up to this week? I heard Hammersley's name but never any details."
He wasn't the most subtle man but Kate found she liked that about him. There had to have been rumours floating around HMAS Cairns about the loss of their guns and radios but he was trying to be polite.
"We caught some grog runners and a corrupt police officer." She eyed him. "And we got our guns and radios back." His slight wince told her the news had spread as fast as she'd thought.
His eyes flicked down to her neck and then back up to her eyes. "Looks like you were in the middle of it again."
She paused before she spoke but decided on ripping off the bandaid.
"This was from the boarding when we lost the guns, one of the grog runners held a machete to my throat and then they captured Dutchy and I a few days later and tied us up in a floating tank." She took a sip of wine and watched his face pinch. "But we came out of it fine, the cut is the worst of my injuries and it only stings in the shower."
She watched him carefully phrase his next question and waited for him to ask it.
"Was it…Did your new Buffer…" He paused again. "Would it have happened if I was still on the boat?" The question came out in a rush and she felt an incredible flush of affection for him. He wanted her to be safe but he would never discount her own skills, and for that he would get an honest answer.
"Maybe not the machete, but you would have been in that tank right beside me. Dutchy was pushing the boundaries investigating the grog runners but it's nothing you or I haven't done before." She met his eyes and he returned a wry smile. "Dutchy and I have come to an understanding."
That did drag an actual smile from him.
"He finally realised you could take care of yourself?"
"I don't think that hurt." She acknowledged. "But apparently he just needed to be tied up and in danger to talk."
That startled a laugh out of Pete and she took another sip of wine as she watched the way his eyes crinkled at the corners.
Kate was comfortably full of pasta and flushed with wine when they finally left the restaurant into the still muggy evening. It was the strange cross over time when the after work crowd ceded the pubs to the night crowd and the streets became temporarily busy with taxis and early drunks. It wasn't the easiest time to catch a taxi but Kate couldn't regret leaving her car at home, she'd needed the release of long conversation, half a bottle of wine and not caring about her blood alcohol level.
They'd called for a taxi before they left the restaurant but were happy to linger on the street as their request made its way through the queue.
"I refuse to believe someone could be more clumsy than Spider was." She was laughing easily, body turned into his, creating their own private conversation among the passing noise of the street. She could see the flow of people over his shoulder and she blamed the slight fog of the wine and the constant blur of faces for not recognising Dutchy until he was meeting her eyes over Pete's shoulder, barely two metres from them.
She made a small noise, enough to alert Pete to the direction of her eyes and he turned to see what had drawn her attention.
Dutchy must have been either sober or excellent at faking it as he easily fell into formal posture and nodded at her.
"X."
Kate nodded a greeting back at him, her mind whirling with the unfounded sense of being caught.
"Dutchy, having a good night?"
She felt more than saw the flick of his eyes towards Pete and resigned herself to the introduction.
"Petty Officer Dylan Mulholland, meet your predecessor on the Hammersley, Petty Officer Peter Tomaszewski."
Pete offered his hand and from the way he said, "Buffer, nice to meet you." Kate just knew there was stupid macho hand squeezing happening.
But before they forced her to step in Dutchy's face broke out in a grin that reminded her of why she'd stuck her neck out for him.
"They just couldn't figure out how to properly shorten Tomaszewski, so they just stuck you with Buffer?"
His amused question forced a started laugh out of Pete, breaking the stern face he'd adopted.
"It certainly doesn't fit one of the defaults, Dutchy."
Dutchy laughed with him and Kate watched them, baffled, as the situation quickly got away from her.
A crowd of girls tottering on too-high high heels forced them to step back against the building, the three of them forming into a little triangle. Pete was pressed up against her side and she turned slightly towards him in a long-ingrained movement, letting him put himself between her and the crowd without blocking her view. Even slightly hazy from the wine she noticed Dutchy spotting the practised body language between them.
"You serve together long?" He was asking both of them, but he looked at her as though he was filling in some gaps.
"About three years," Kate answered with Pete adding,
"I was already on board when she joined the crew." He grinned at Dutchy conspiratorially. "She was so straight-laced when she first joined, only ever been on big ships, but we beat it out of her."
She couldn't stop an indignant noise. "Or maybe I just got used to non-coms who wouldn't know proper deference to an officer if it bit them." Pete grinned at her and Dutchy joined him.
"Yes, Ma'am." The two on them chimed in unison, each throwing her a salute.
"Stop it, the two of you." She said, surprised by the fondness in her voice that couldn't just be blamed on the wine.
Pete was grinning, amused and relaxed and Kate watched him laugh and chat with Dutchy with a sudden understanding that felt somehow inevitable.
She knew the assumptions Dutchy was making and didn't want to deny any of them. Instead, she let herself lean a little more into Pete, who just unconsciously adjusted his stance to take the pressure of her shoulder against his, and smiled back at the conversation before her.
Kate saluted Mike as he stepped out of the staff car and curled her pleasure at her lack of reaction into a warm smile. She'd been right. Left long enough and her need for him had faded.
"How was Jarvis Bay?"
"The course went well." He replied.
"Anyone interesting in the group?" She asked, increasingly sure he didn't see the irony of the conversation.
"A couple of bright up and comers."
"I'm sure they appreciated the wealth of your knowledge sir." She replied, her lips threatening to twitch at his ignorance.
She huffed out an amused breath that was drowned out by the thumping of approaching music.
Kate watched Dutchy pull up to the boat in another convertible, this time with only one woman and couldn't quite hide her amusement until he stood, his hand firm on his companion's neck as he kissed her. Her attention froze on it, imagining the hand of another man holding her close like that, until Dutchy pulled away and she looked down, trying to avoid his eyes.
"Morning, X!" He called cheerily to her.
"Morning, sorry to drag you away from all of that." She glanced back at the car, her equilibrium restored as he waved her off and headed on board and she shook her head. Dutchy was a lot easier to handle now he was just a womanising crew member and not probably a misogynist.
Kate mulled over her situation as she and Mike walked into Karumba. She wasn't sure what she was going to say to him to explain the disinterest that she was sure he would find so abrupt. And honestly, while she wouldn't deny Pete's part in it, it was Mike's own self-absorption that had finally brought her to this point.
The thought of Pete brought her pause. She thought she knew Pete's feelings but she would be wrong to reveal that to Mike before either of them had a chance to discuss them. She trusted Dutchy's discretion enough not to worry about it from him.
No matter whether she was single or whether Pete and her took the step she thought she could glimpse just ahead of them, she couldn't continue with the weight of Mike's gaze on her.
She swore internally as she saw the rest of the crew at the bar. She only had so many chances to have this conversation with him and there was no way they could turn around now.
She plastered a smile on her face and let Bomber draw her into the group, delaying the end of something that needed to end but still somehow grateful to avoid the uncomfortable conversation she knew had to come.
The conversation did not hold off as long as she had been thinking it would and it bubbled out of her the next morning as she was neck-deep in organisation for the relief efforts and Mike suggested a coffee.
Kate bit back harsh words about how busy she was that were just as inappropriate as the conversation she was about to have with her CO, especially while standing exposed on the docks.
"No thanks." She rejected his suggestion as politely as she could with her frustration so close to the surface.
"Is there a problem?" He asked and it took all of her control not to snap at him. The woman who had spent the last three years pining after this oblivious man who would not let her move on was still too present to stop.
"You know there is." She bit out and then she couldn't stop the torrent of words, all the bitterness for the lost years and limited choices he had given her. She wasn't sure she was clear enough, as she talked about needing to make choices about children and family, that he had already lost his chance to be considered in any part of that. But at this point she no longer cared. The airing of her grievances giving her the sense of completion she needed. If he couldn't identify her lack of interest, it was no longer her problem but his.
"Enjoy your coffee." She smiled tightly at him and walked away, feeling freer than she had in years.
"X. There's a cool bar over near the marina, I was going to grab a drink if you wanted to come?" Dutchy asked as she stepped away from another conversation with Mike that proved how little he understood how she felt.
"Absolutely, yeah." She answered, grateful for the distraction as she followed him off down the dock.
They were just out of earshot when he added, "And Buffer as well if he's in port."
She looked at him, judging again his perceptiveness and smiled.
"No. He's at sea until next week, unfortunately." Dutchy nodded and they walked for a while longer in silence.
"He's a good bloke."
Kate smiled at his simple friendship.
"Yeah. He really is."
The gods of Navy leave smiled on Kate, and the Launceston towing a FFV into Cairns two days before Pete's leave was due to start meant their time on shore overlapped unexpectedly.
She'd been on Hammersley, organising some supplies for their next mission when she saw the Launceston pull in.
She smiled when her phone chimed less than a half-hour later.
Early shore leave thanks to some Trochus fishermen. Do you have plans for dinner?
Kate only thought for a moment because she knew Pete and even if she was completely off base about what he felt, nothing she said tonight would break the bedrock of their friendship.
Come over to mine and I'll cook.
There was a long pause in which she could imagine Pete staring at her message and trying to guess her intention before he finally replied.
Sounds good. See you at 6.
She knew she looked good as she opened the door but it was gratifying to see the heat in Pete's eyes as he exchanged a bottle of wine for a soft press of lips to her cheek.
"You look great."
"You too." She returned with a smile, eyes drifting over the way his biceps filled out his sleeves and the nervousness of his smile that she found so charming.
The sizzle of the pan from the kitchen stole her attention back away from him and she led him further into the townhouse.
"Glasses are above the sink and beer is in the fridge." She called to him as she shifted the steaks a little to stop them from sticking and checked the sauce that had started forming lumps. She was so focused on the stove that she was almost surprised by the glass of wine that appeared at her elbow. She gave the sauce one last stir, deciding she'd done all she could before turning and accepting her wine.
She let their fingers brush as they exchanged the glass and wondered at the bashful confusion she could see on his face.
She remembered with a pang once dismissing his interest in an intelligent, educated woman and damned herself and everyone else who had made him believe he wasn't worthy of it.
"Dutchy tells me you bagged yourselves some cattle rustlers." She smiled, pleased by the quick friendship that had grown between the two men. It also gave her a sense of security, knowing that someone on board would know to tell Pete if anything happened to her.
"Did he tell you about pulling a calf out of the mud for Bird and how she tried to get him to take it onto the boat with them?" She replied, leaning her hip into the counter beside him, close enough to feel the heat radiating off him and the clean sweat smell of him.
"He left that part out." He conceded with a laugh, his eyes crinkling with his smile. She wanted to reach up and touch the small lines at the corners of them but the steaks were almost ready and it wasn't a conversation she wanted to interrupt with burning food.
Conversation over dinner might have been stilted, confined by the conversation that was brewing in her mind but she should have known to trust the very thing that had brought them to this point, their genuine pleasure in each other's company.
She topped off her wine glass and led the way out to her balcony, leaning her elbows on the railing and looking out to the water. She felt more than saw Pete come up beside her and glanced over as he rested his hip on the railing, his body turned towards her as he cradled his half-empty beer. She turned herself, finally giving in to her urge to stroke her fingers along the line of his jaw. He watched her, eyes dark as she let her body drift closer.
"Kate." His voice was hesitant and laced with insecurity and she realised that she had to offer him surety. She stepped back only long enough to put her wine glass down on the balcony's table and then pluck his beer for his hands and do the same with that.
Then she stepped back into his space, one hand on his face, the other on the back of his neck, drawing him in. He came easily, his own hands fitting perfectly on her waist and back as she leant up into the soft touch of his lips.
The first few kisses were soft and careful until he drew her closer with a strength that thrilled her and she arched into him, breasts pressed against his chest. She kissed him until she had to pull back, chest heaving and mouth red. Pete stared at her, mouth shiny and eyes dark but instead of kissing her again, he cupped her face in his hands, thumbs tracing over her features.
"Kate," He said softly. "Please don't give me this if it's only going to be for a night." He paused, but before she could answer he continued. "Or if I'm just the second choice."
Kate raised her hand to cup Pete's cheek in return. There was a much longer conversation that needed to be had but they didn't need to have it tonight.
"You are my only choice."
Pete stared at her and then slid his hands down to her thighs. Kate realised what he was doing just before he pulled her upwards, letting her legs wrap around his waist as he kissed her again. She groaned at the feeling of his body between her thighs and the intense warmth of his skin.
"Bedroom is upstairs." She said and he grinned at her, clutching her tighter and pausing to kiss her once in the lounge and again at the bottom of the stairs before he released her thighs and let her legs fall back to the floor. She shuddered at the feeling of his cock against her belly as she slid down his body and clutched at him.
"I am not going to risk dropping you on the stairs and having the most idiotic sex injury story in the Navy." He laughed into her ear while he grazed his teeth across her ear lobe. She arched into him and grinned, remembering again why it was him here with her.
"Well, we wouldn't want that." She pulled away until she was only holding his hand. She nodded towards the stairs. "Come to bed?"
Pete smiled at her and she led the way up the stairs, him following just a step behind.
Mike had been the last man Kate had woken up with. She remembered the satisfaction of finally having what she'd been hoping for but wondered now how much of it had been desire and how much had just been that satisfaction.
Pete's body was warm against her back, his slow breaths ruffling her hair and his hand resting comfortably over her belly. She smiled and let her hand rest over his. What she was feeling now was not satisfaction, apart from the pleasant ache in her body, but something closer to anticipation.
Pete began to stir behind her and Kate shifted until she was facing him, watching as he opened his eyes and smiled at her softly.
"Good morning."
She leaned in and kissed him lightly.
"Good morning."
He propped himself up on one arm and looked at her.
"I didn't expect this." He saw her reaction to his words and rushed to reassure her. "I'm really happy it happened, but I always thought…" He trailed off and she winced internally.
"You thought I was involved with Mike." He shrugged and she decided on honesty. "I was."
Pete's jaw clenched just a little but she knew him too well to not notice it. She pulled herself up against the pillows, but kept her hand over his.
"We met on a course he was teaching years ago and we slept together once when he was posted off the ship. But when he got the chance to take the Hammersley again he didn't think twice and I realised that I was always going to come second." She looked at him and stroked her fingers across his jaw. "And then I saw you again and I couldn't help but compare how I felt with you to how I felt with him." She leant down and kissed him. " And it was Mike who came off second best." She kissed him again and he leant into her, cupping her neck and drawing her towards him.
They kissed for a long moment before she pulled away. She could see the uncertainty still in his eyes and realised she'd answered 'why not Mike' but not 'why him'.
"You've always had my back but you've never stopped respecting me or the choices I've made." She made sure he was meeting her eyes. "You're a good man Pete."
"And you're a good woman Kate." He replied, eyes dark as he crawled up the bed to kneel over her.
She looked up at him, enjoying the way his body covered her without crushing.
"I don't have to be back on the boat until 0700 tomorrow."
He grinned down at her. "Well, let's see how we can make use of that time."
Maybe Kate should have expected more to change but honestly, it said something about the solid grounding of their relationship that the only change was that she now knew the warmth of his body to miss it when she woke alone in her rack.
In reality, they synched their leave calendars and came to the silent but mutual agreement that her townhouse was nicer than his apartment.
They'd decided not to announce their relationship and Kate remembered the conversation fondly.
"Do you want to tell people?" Pete's voice was hesitant and she turned in his arms to see his face.
"About us?" She clarified and he nodded.
Her immediate reaction was no. She could think of nothing worse than being the topic of ships gossip but she could also acknowledge that a lot of that reaction was learned behaviour from loving a man she couldn't on duty.
Her silence stretched and she could feel the way Pete's body tensed and she laid her hands over his arms, forstalling his movement.
"I don't want to be ships gossip." She finally admitted. His body relaxed and he grinned.
"How about we just let people find out?"
She laughed, imagining who on the crew would be brave enough to ask her if they heard a rumour.
"And I'll tell the navy at the end of this posting, make sure we don't get posted together." His gaze was intense again, his voice hesitant. It would be an admission, that their relationship was serious, that it was committed. Kate just leant in and kissed him.
"Or when I make captain, whichever comes first."
"I'm not sure if I should interrupt the two of you, you look perfectly happy here on your own." Kate took the spare seat at the bar table, barely rating a notice from the two men deep in conversation.
Pete broke off first, hand cupping the back of her head as he kissed her.
"I hope a hello is enough from me, X." Dutchy added with a smirk.
"Ha." She laughed dryly at him. "What has the two of you so absorbed?"
"Cowboys are playing the Knights tonight and this poor man was brought up a Knights fan." Pete laid his arm across the back of her chair and Kate leant into his touch, nodding absently.
Dutchy raised an eyebrow at her lack of reaction and Pete grinned wickedly.
"She's on the actual dark side, she only watches soccer."
"Football." She returned tartly. "And the Premier League is more interesting than Rugby."
Dutchy and Pete exchanged looks and Pete laughed.
"Don't bother, I've already tried." He and Dutchy exchanged speaking looks before he changed the subject.
"So I heard you guys almost managed to lose 2Dads."
Knowing 2Dad's was off causing havoc in a poker game somewhere made joking about the last week a lot easier.
"So close, and then Charge had to go and spot him." Dutchy joked. "Couldn't even go on a dive without getting into trouble."
"There were a few times I thought about dropping him off on a sand island. Anyone suggested putting him back yet?"
Kate and Dutchy made amused eye contact.
"Less than an hour after he was back on board," Kate said, Dutchy laughing along with her at the memory.
Dutchy was leaning against the portside railing as Kate came up on deck.
"You did a good job on that island." She said, announcing her presence, leaning down next to him. "It mustn't have been easy moving an injured boy across that much jungle."
Dutchy looked up with a soft smile.
"Thanks, X." He snorted. "All I did was get myself clocked over the head climbing out of a tree."
Kate's eyebrows climbed up her forehead.
"Did Swain check you over?"
He shook his head. "They were a bit busy with Tiken, I'm fine though."
Kate shook her head and reached her hand up to poke him in the back of the head. Dutchy winced and pulled away.
"Yeah right, you're fine," Kate said firmly. "Come on, you need a scan."
"Come on, X, I'm fine." Dutchy's voice had a bit of a whine to it and Kate just stared at him emotionlessly.
"Hospital and scan, because I bet you passed out too." Her voice was firm and he sighed in acceptance.
"Only for a second." He added but he pushed back from the railing, letting her clasp a hand to his upper arm.
"I'll come with you, make sure they see you ASAP." She grinned. "And if you don't whine too much I'll buy you a beer afterwards."
He laughed and they turned back towards the port side door and then stopped abruptly.
Mike was standing in the doorway watching them and his face was frozen and harsh.
"Sir," Kate started, "Dutchy took a hit to the head on Vatinaie Island. I'm going to take him to the hospital to get a scan."
Mike's face unfroze and he nodded, absently.
"Good idea X."
Kate used the hand she still had on Dutchy's shoulder to push him forward until Mike had to step out of the way.
Dutchy led the way silently down the passageway until they reached the senior sailor's quarters where he finally stopped and turned around to face her, eyebrow raised in question.
She sighed. "Don't ask."
Kate was yawning her way through the last five minutes of Middle Watch when Dutchy climbed up the stairs, a mug in each hand.
"Brew for you X." She took it sceptically from him but smiled when she smelled camomile rather than coffee. He leant on the back of the captain's seat and she could smell the strong coffee in his own cup.
"It's been a quiet night. No maydays or requests for assistance. Nothing from NAVCOM or coastwatch."
"Good. I like a quiet watch."
Kate stretched in her chair but sipped again on her tea as the last few minutes of her watch ticked down.
"We still on for dinner next week?" He asked, nonchalantly. Dutchy thought the idea the Captain would think they were seeing each other was ridiculous and enjoyed bringing up connections they had outside the ship any time he thought someone was listening too closely. Kate cut her eyes across him to where Bird was absolutely listening in. Kate was not as calm about it as Dutchy was but the elbow she currently wanted to dig into his ribs would look even worse.
The 'we' was Pete, Dutchy and herself in what had become their usual pub when on shore, a schedule and location that he knew as well as she did.
"Yes." She sighed out and shook her head, watching the time tick over to 0400.
She stood from her chair, shot him another look and announced "Dutchy has the ship."
"Dutchy has the ship." He replied but she could hear the smile.
As the cyanide had already been reversed before she returned to the Hammersley, Kate was only given a quick check over before being sent to her cabin to rest so Swain could focus on 2Dads.
Her hands shook as she peeled off her DPNU's, her skin crawling as she remembered the pressure of the hands on her wrists pinning her down.
She kicked her DPNU's off and into a corner, sitting down heavily on her bunk and running her hands over her tangled hair.
She sat for a long time before she finally stood, dragging on a pair of pants and grabbing her shower supplies.
If she scrubbed harder than usual it was her own business but by the time she returned to her cabin she felt calmer if still a little shaky. At least that she could blame on the cyanide.
She was carefully redressing in fresh DPNU's when there was a knock on her door and Dutchy's voice called out.
"X."
Kate took a deep breath before settling her face and opening the cabin door.
"Dutchy, what can I do for you?"
Dutchy was watching her carefully and Kate bit back the words she wanted to snap at him.
"It's more about what I can do for you X."
She narrowed her eyes at him, instantly suspicious. He took a step back and started walking down the corridor towards the communications room. When he looked back and saw she hadn't moved he waved at her to come.
"Trust me."
She sighed but that was enough to get her moving.
RO was sitting in the communications room with the Sat phone in hand when they arrived.
"All ready?" Dutchy asked without preamble. RO scowled.
"You know, I shouldn't be doing this."
Dutchy just sighed at him. "Yes, but is it ready?"
"Of course it is." RO said, scowling differently now. "Since when is it difficult to set up a Sat phone call?" He stood, handing the phone to Kate. "I'm going to get a brew. You have five minutes."
Kate stared at his retreating back and then back at Dutchy, baffled. He just gestured to the Sat phone.
"It's for you."
Kate lifted the phone to her ear and said, "Hello?"
"Kate."
Her legs weakened and it was only Dutchy directing her into RO's vacant chair that stopped her from falling. He placed her down and then left the room, closing the door carefully behind him.
"Pete." Her voice was thick and she could feel the careful walls she'd built around her emotions crack a little.
"Dutchy said you'd had quite a day." Pete's voice was just as thick as hers and for a moment she hated the Navy for keeping him on one boat and her on another.
"I'm okay." She replied, knowing he would hear the lie.
"I know you have to be the XO until you get back to port but right now you can not be okay." His voice was the mix of rough accent and soft tone he used when they were alone. "I've got you."
Kate bent over her knees and the tears fell without her permission.
"Did…" Her voice shook for a moment. "Did he tell you what happened?"
Pete's voice was strained. "He said you'd been accidentally poisoned and attacked."
She rested her head in her free hand. "Pete, he was going to rape me." The words felt like lancing a boil, they hurt to come out but she felt somehow cleaner for them.
Pete's side of the line was silent for a long moment apart from the sound of his shaking breath.
"But he didn't and you're okay." His voice was aiming at confidence but she could hear the question in it.
Kate took a long, shaky breath and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. She could already feel herself able to sink back into the persona of the XO.
"Yeah, I am." It already felt less like the lie it had earlier.
There was a noise on the other end of the line and Pete's voice became muffled for a moment.
"Kate." His voice was regretful. "My time's up but I love you and I'm glad you're safe."
Kate's heart jumped. She was sure he hadn't meant to say those words but they didn't sound untrue, and they felt true to her.
"Pete. I love you too. I'll see you in a week." She pressed the button to end the call and let the Sat phone dangle in between her knees as she let her head drop and breathed out shakily.
After a moment of silence, the door pushed open and Dutchy stood in the doorway. Kate pushed herself up, brushing the last of the tears from her cheek and grabbed him by the shoulder, hugging him tightly as he carefully wrapped his own arms around her.
"Thank you." She said as she pulled back.
"Any time X." He replied with a warm smile.
"Don't mind me, just stuck in the passageway." RO's voice interrupted them as he pushed past them back into his office.
Kate shook her head in her usual amazement at his lack of social skills.
"Thank you, RO. We'll get out of your office." Dutchy stepped out first but RO's voice stopped her as she tried to leave.
"X." Kate looked back towards where he was sitting at his station.
"I don't gossip." He announced. She looked at him, waiting for him to continue, but he just looked back down at his paperwork.
"Good to know RO." She said and left the room.
She felt tired but also as if now, if she said she was okay, she'd be able to mean it.
"So, what do we think is the chance of Dutchy walking out of here alone tonight?" Pete whispered in her ear as they watched the three tables of women who were watching their friend like a hawk.
Kate laughed and Dutchy looked up from his beer to stare at them.
"What?" He asked and Kate met Pete's eyes before grinning. She nodded towards the women who were circling.
"You're popular tonight." She said, deadpan. Dutchy glanced up and noticed the attention he was getting and turned back to them with a raised eyebrow.
"What can I say, I'm well-liked."
"It looks more like they want to eat you," Pete said, eyeing one of the women and her stiletto heels.
Dutchy laughed and leant back in his chair.
"You are dating a woman who is regularly armed and I know you must have seen take down multiple men, and it's some bird in a pair of high heels that scares you?"
Pete just smiled and draped his arm over the back of Kate's chair.
"Different kind of scary Dutchy. She's not likely to cut my balls off."
"Yeah, she's an angel," Dutchy commented dryly as Kate dug an elbow into Pete's side.
"Dutchy," Kate interjected, a slight smile on her lips. "I don't suppose you'd like to tell us how you select for the one with the convertible?" She looked to Pete to include him in the tease. "Dutchy's favourite arrival to the dock is in a convertible with a beautiful woman."
"Who's wouldn't be?" Dutchy said with a grin.
Kate shook her head and leant back against Pete's arm. She let her gaze slide out across the pub, scanning across the sea of faces until she spotted one she knew.
She could only see Bird's face in profile but she recognised the scuttle of a junior sailor avoiding an officer on a night out, especially because she would guarantee that the glass she could see in her hand wasn't lemonade.
Kate waited for the surge of fear to wash over her but it never came. She turned away from Bird's disappearance into the crowd and ran her thumb down Pete's jaw.
"I don't know. Mine for one." She added into the conversation and felt Pete's cheek move with his smile.
Kate groaned at her phone as it buzzed on her bedside table. The conversation in the pub last night had ended in about three too many wines for her phone to be ringing at dawn.
Pete tried to hold her close as she lifted herself out of his arms to reach her still ringing mobile.
"Kate McGregor, hello." She answered as she batted at his sleepy grasp.
"Ma'am this is the duty officer of HMAS Cairns, the Hammersley has been crash sailed, please report by 0800." The duty officer barely waited for her sound of assent before he hung up, presumably to ring the next person on his list.
Kate flopped back down, patting Pete's hand where it lay on her stomach.
"You've been crash sailed?" Pete's voice was somewhat muffled by the pillow he was burying his head in.
"0800." She said with a sigh. Pete lifted his head just enough to see the clock and groaned.
"It's already 0600, barely time to pack, let alone send you off properly." The hand he had resting on her stomach started to climb up until he was cupping her breast. Kate sucked in a breath but rolled over and whispered in his ear.
"Barely enough time to pack and rouse our guest in the spare room."
Pete buried his head deeper into the pillow for just a moment before he gave in and rolled onto his back.
"You go get dressed. I'll kick sleeping beauty into gear."
Kate kissed him, deeply once, and then again, before she pulled away. "You're a good man Pete."
"Go get dressed." He grumbled. "Before I drag you back into this bed and forget all about what you're supposed to be doing."
Kate almost considered it for a moment, watching him lie there, still half asleep with pink creases in his face from the pillow but her duty forced her up and into the bathroom.
She showered as quickly as she could, coming down the stairs to the sounds of soft conversation in the kitchen.
Dutchy looked just as rough as a man who had got drunk enough to need to be poured into her spare room would.
Pete handed her a travel mug full of coffee as she walked in. He looked sleepy and comfortable in her kitchen, barefoot, wearing only a pair of shorts. She kissed him as she took the mug and Dutchy groaned from his seat at her counter.
"Well if you hadn't gotten as drunk as a skunk, you could have gone home with one of your fan club." She commented over her shoulder at him. Dutchy just groaned again and squinted at his own mug. She laughed, her few too many wines were nothing in the face of Dutchy's hangover. She let go of Pete and turned to Dutchy.
"I'm no pretty girl in a convertible but the taxi should be here in a few minutes and I can drop you at your place on the way."
Dutchy saluted her sloppily. "If you don't mind waiting two minutes I've got a go bag already packed, I can just run in and get it."
Kate shrugged. "Fine with me."
She turned back to Pete, first fishing something out of the bowl of odds and ends on her bench.
"Here." She handed him a set of keys. "I was going to give them to you when my leave was up anyway."
He was staring at the keys, a little stunned, so she kissed him again and when a horn sounded outside she nodded to Dutchy and headed out the door.
Dutchy still looked terrible by the time they reached the base and while Kate would usually walk to the dock she looked around in her seat to where he was slumped in the back and pulled out her ID to show security.
Dutchy noticed what she was doing as they pulled through the boom gates and thanked her in a mumble that made her smile.
Dutchy slouched out of the taxi as Kate paid and he saluted her again sloppily as he headed up the gangway.
Kate shook her head and threw her bag across her shoulder, stepping out of the way of the taxi and looking up at the boat. Mike was staring at her from the upper deck and she met his eyes for a second before dismissing him and heading on board to get changed.
"You were going to follow me to meet Lara no matter what I said, weren't you?" Kate challenged as she and Dutchy walked back towards the Hammersley.
"Yes." He replied, unrepentant. She cocked her eyebrow at him. "It's my responsibility to keep you safe. It's a lot easier when I can see you."
"I can take care of myself." She said, rolling her eyes but with just a fraction of frustration in her voice.
Dutchy stopped walking and Kate stopped to stare at him. "I know that."
"And yet you had to come keep an eye on me." She replied.
"Yep." He answered and after a long second of staring she shook her head again and started walking. Dutchy took two long steps and after only a moment was walking next to her again.
"I can take care of myself too and you watch my back." He said after a long moment and Kate's mouth twitched a little.
"That's because you get yourself into all sorts of trouble if I leave you alone."
He grinned at her and after she finally looked away he murmured, "And Pete would kill me if I let you get hurt."
Kate bit her lip and pretended not to hear him.
"We didn't get a good look at either of them," Kate added as she followed Mike through the passageway.
"We?" He asked, his voice strained.
"Dutchy had my back."
"Kate." He started, staring at the combination on the communications room door before slanting his eyes over to her. "Please tell me you're not doing anything stupid."
She frowned at him and found herself suddenly angry. "Mike, it's not like you haven't investigated outside of our normal scope, what is so different for me?"
He ran his hand over his hair and scowled, turning more fully towards her. "That's not what I was talking about."
She was confused for a moment but her face firmed. "Lara said Albie Dumas was in danger. She was clearly terrified."
Mike's jaw clenched and she could see the muscle twitching with concealed anger.
"We'll be talking about this later."
Kate stared at his blatant anger for a moment before she shook herself and bit out, "Yes, sir."
Kate gave in to the inevitable and when she decided to dive on the yacht she went straight to Dutchy, who, rather unsurprisingly, just grinned at her and informed her that he would be coming with her. She laughed and was heading back into the boat to grab her gear when Mike's voice stopped her.
"We've been requested at NAVCOM, they want a report from the both of us." His voice was curt, with none of the familiar friendliness she was used to.
Her brow furrowed and she fell back on the comfort of Navy protocol. "Yes, sir."
She threw a look back at Dutchy who shrugged with his expression and twitched his head back the way they had been going.
Kate sighed and watched Mike stalk off. At least someone would still be looking into the yacht.
Kate rubbed her fingers together as she stood, looking out from the flybridge towards where the sunken yacht was. They'd spotted the boat they assumed Dutchy had taken out on the EOD but as they got closer Bomber announced there was no one on board. Kate let her breath out carefully, she really hoped that next time she saw Pete wouldn't be to tell him that she'd gotten their friend killed.
"Dutchy was in that?" Mike asked, looking from the boat to her. She nodded.
"Yeah, we were going out together to look around."
"We?" His voice was suddenly harsh and she glanced at him cautiously before continuing.
"Well, I was supposed to go with him before you called me away. I was just surprised he went out alone." She could feel his eyes on the back of her neck as she stared out at the water but she had more important things to figure out at the moment than Mike Flynn's emotions.
Kate stretched as she sat down in her cabin and opened the lid of her laptop. She had reports to start but allowed herself to open up her emails first. Pete would enjoy the story of today too much not to share it.
Pete,
Dutchy set himself up for some ribbing today. He collapsed on a shore party he shouldn't have been on and made a fool of himself on pethadine. It sounded like something you would have done.
She smiled at the words and was about to dig Dutchy's hole deeper when there was a knock on her cabin door. She closed the window and turned towards the knock.
"Enter."
Swain was standing in the passageway looking resigned.
"What is it Swain, is Dutchy okay?" She asked, suddenly alarmed. He looked started and then shook his head.
"No Ma'am, he's still fine." He took a breath, his mouth twitching into a frown. "I need to notify you of an incident of fraternisation among the crew."
Kate felt her heart freeze for a moment as she registered the panic she had always associated with that word. She let her jaw set and huffed out a sigh.
"Who is it Swain?"
"Bomber and 2Dads."
Kate shut her eyes, of course it was the two of them. "You're certain, Swain?" She asked, hoping it was something ambiguous enough that she would be able to have a careful conversation with the two of them before they did something they'd regret.
He nodded. "I walked in on them kissing in the Junior sailors' mess."
She closed her eyes in resignation. Idiots.
"Thanks Swain, I'll go tell the Captain."
"Sir," Kate called out as she knocked on the open doorway of Mike's quarters.
Mike looked up from his desk and smiled tightly at her. "X."
"I need to speak with you about an incident of fraternisation on the boat."
Mike turned in his chair, his shoulders stiff and his mouth pursed.
"Go on X, I'm listening."
Kate took a careful breath, she hated that part of her duty would be to ruin someone's career for something she'd nearly been stupid enough to do herself.
"Swain has just notified me he witnessed Bomber and 2Dads kissing in the Junior Sailors' Mess."
She watched his face freeze. "Bomber and 2Dads?" He asked, sounding confused.
"Yes sir. I'm not sure of any of the details or how long it's been going on."
He stared at her for a moment before shaking his head and nodding.
"If you'd go and collect them, we should deal with this as soon as possible." He paused, sounding suddenly sharp. "I just wish they'd spoken to me upfront. It's always worse to get caught." He was looking at her like he thought she would have an answer but she just nodded and said, "Yes, sir." before heading out to grab the two idiots.
"I trust you know why you're here." Mike sounded stern and disappointed. Kate couldn't blame him, she was just as disappointed, especially in Bomber who had just tanked any chance she had of promotion for the foreseeable future.
"Yes sir." They chorused.
"I need to ask you if you are engaged in a sexual relationship." He sounded as annoyed as he was angry.
"Yes, sir we are." Was the reply and Kate sighed.
"It only just started." 2Dads tried but Mike held up a hand.
"You can't help who you fall in love with." Bomber interjected.
Kate watched Mike's face freeze. "Yes, you can." His voice was low and dangerous and Kate knew it wasn't just aimed at Bomber.
Mike took a sharp breath and looked back towards 2Dads and Bomber. "You know the regulations, and to make matters worse you brought it onto the boat, which is something I can't overlook."
He stepped back and clasped his hands behind his back.
"At least neither of you report to each other." His voice was sharp. "It would have been a lot worse if one of you were a Divisional Officer."
Both Bomber and 2Dad's faces looked confused and Kate frowned, suddenly sure that he was talking about something more than the current issue.
He paused for long enough that Kate was about to prompt him when he sucked on his teeth and knocked his hand against the table.
"One or both of you is going to have to post off."
Kate watched Bomber take the blame and the way 2Dads stared at her while she did it. She nodded in acknowledgment to Bomber when she announced she wouldn't be signing up for another contract and hoped the two of them would be able to be happy.
Mike finally sighed and dismissed them.
She had expected him to look tired and resigned, even frustrated. Mike Flynn was many things but a stickler for the rules wasn't one of them and unlike some commanders, he really did care for every member of his crew.
Instead, he looked furious. His jaw clenched and shoulders tight.
"Sir, I'm sure this won't reflect badly on your leadership, junior sailors have been known to break the rules before." She tried to reassure him, choosing the only reason she could think he would be so angry.
"And what about Lieutenants, Kate?" He stared at her and she suddenly realised that all his anger wasn't directed at them, it was directed at her. The force of his stare froze her for a moment in it's surprise.
"We did nothing wrong. We weren't posted together at the time and it's long over now." She tried to reason with him, unsure of why he was suddenly so angry about something from months ago.
He stared at her, disbelieving.
"I'm not talking about us Kate, I'm talking about you and Dutchy."
Kate blinked and stared at him. "Excuse me, what?"
He planted his hands on the table and leaned towards her. "You think I didn't notice that something had changed between the two of you?" He challenged.
"We became friends!" She exclaimed. "We're not sleeping together!"
He scowled at her. "You think I didn't notice you pulling away from me these last few months, and the whole time you're getting closer to Dutchy."
Kate froze and her voice went deadly cold.
"So this is more about you losing out than any real evidence you have that I'm doing something wrong." She watched him flinch and felt an internal flare of achievement. "I think this conversation is over."
She pushed past his temporarily frozen body and was almost at the door before he grabbed her by the arm.
She wrenched her arm out of his grasp and stared at him.
"If you have evidence, bring us up on charges. If not, this conversation is over." She hissed and swung open the door, nearly running into a wide-eyed Bomber and 2Dads as she walked as quickly away from him as she could.
"X." Kate recognised Dutchy's voice through the door and looked up from where she was sitting, massaging her temples in hope that her anger headache would fade.
There was another knock and she stood up with a deep breath and opened the door.
"I hear that we're sleeping together." He looked a mixture of amused and incredulous. Kate clenched her fists in frustration.
"Dutchy this is the kind of thing that can ruin a career." Her jaw was tight but her lips were trying to shake. "You shouldn't be here. It's fueling the fire and you're injured."
His expression changed immediately. "X," He tried to guide her back into the room. "You should sit down."
Kate straightened and resisted his push. "No, I am not going to give him any more ammunition to throw at us."
Dutchy straightened up and took his hands off her.
"Whatever evidence he thinks he has is bullshit and we both know that. If he wants to throw his leadership into question because of his jealousy it'll be him who is up on charges."
Kate stared at him, shocked.
"Please X, he's been looking at me like he wants to knock me out for weeks." He shrugged. "And his accusation wasn't the only thing the idiot twins heard."
Kate's breath hissed in and she pursed her lips.
"Okay, but try not to antagonise him, at least until we get back onshore?"
Dutchy looked mulish but nodded.
The mood on the bridge was tense and Kate carefully ignored Mike's eyes on her as she did her duties.
Dutchy was still on light duties and that had allowed Mike to change the watch schedule to put them on opposite times and as far away from each other as the boat would allow. She'd barely seen him since their conversation in her cabin.
Mike didn't say a word to her that wasn't a curt order and Kate wondered if that was because he believed her or if he realised that he'd walked into his own minefield of possible charges.
Accusations or not though, the atmosphere of the boat was stifling.
It was just about the longest two days sailing of Kate's career and she didn't think she'd ever been so pleased to see Cairns.
Mike brought the ship in as usual and Kate happily left the bridge as soon as the ropes were tied, planning to go home as soon as she was able.
Swain and Mike handed off the prisoners and their gold to the police while she finished the last pieces of administration for tying up in dock and carefully packed the few things she'd brought with her when they were crashed.
She threw her bag across her shoulder and hoped that she would manage to leave the boat without seeing Mike again.
She stepped out of her quarters and almost ran into Dutchy, who was leaning up against a bulkhead, waiting.
"Are you out of your mind? The last thing we need to do is walk out together!" She hissed at him.
Dutchy put his hand out and squeezed her shoulder. "There's nothing wrong with us walking together." His face broke out into a mischievous grin. "And you won't want to miss this."
"What?" Kate asked, suddenly thrown by his positivity.
Dutchy just grinned.
"Trust me X."
Kate huffed out a breath and shook her head but followed in his wake onto the deck.
Mike was standing at the gangway and he narrowed his eyes at them as they came out. He looked for a moment like he was going to speak when a voice called out loudly.
"What the hell are you doing here stranger?" Charge's voice boomed out from the front of the group on the gangway; the rest of the crew turned to look at who he was talking to.
Pete was slouching against one of the bollards looking casual and amused. It was only because of how well she knew him that she should see the anger in his posture.
"What, you miss me Charge?" He replied, pushing himself upright and walking to where Charge was striding over to him. Charge wrapped him in a hug and Kate noticed Pete had a wallet clenched in his hand.
By the time Charge let Pete go the rest of the crew had all filed over, including Mike who looked like his usual self for a moment, friendly and pleased to see Pete.
"It's good to see you again Buffer." Mike grinned at Pete and Kate could see Pete's return smile was a little shaky. "What brings you around?"
Pete gestured with the wallet in his hand. "Returning something a friend of mine left in the guestroom we had to pour him into last week." He smirked, making eye contact with Dutchy who looked sheepish.
"Hey Dutchy, forget something?"
Heads turned to look between the two of them.
"Hey, are you checking up on your replacements now? How do you know Dutchy?" Charge asked for all of them, eyes following the arc of the wallet as Pete tossed it to Dutchy.
Kate watched the two of them make eye contact and knew that they'd planned this whole show. She shot a quick look at Pete and let her mouth twitch up into a smile. He smirked at her and turned back to his crowd.
Dutchy walked over to him and clapped him on the back. "Thanks, Buffer."
"Okay, but how do the two of you know each other?" 2Dads broke in, his face curious. "Served together, met in a bar fight, long lost brothers?"
"Nothing so interesting 2Dads, his girlfriend introduced us," Dutchy answered for him.
There was an instant rush of noise from the older members of the ship's company as they hooted in amusement.
"Buff, what poor woman did you finally con into dating you?" Charge asked, laughing.
Kate watched the crowd and the smug grin on Pete's face and shook her head in amusement. She was just about to step forward and put an end to their game when she heard a dry drawl.
"Oh, please, like it's not obvious."
RO suddenly had the undivided attention of over a dozen people. He just stared back at them.
"Really, you are all highly-trained Naval personnel and you didn't figure this out?" His voice was disbelieving in the way he had that made you feel like an idiot. He rolled his eyes and after a moment Swain snorted, drawing his own attention.
"I think I've got a pretty good idea." He looked back at the people staring at him but his eyes caught Kate's for just a little longer and he quirked a smile at her.
"Uh, I know who it is too." Bird piped up quietly, sounding a little nervous.
"What? How the hell does Bird know, she wasn't even on the boat when you were." 2Dads sounded almost offended and Kate couldn't help but smile at his face as she slipped through the back of the crowd until she was standing right next to Pete.
"I saw them out at the pub together." Bird replied with a shrug, she might have been mistaken for looking at Pete while she said it but Kate met her gaze with a reassuring smile.
"How the hell would you recognise Buffer's girlfriend…" 2Dads was working up a steam of amused frustration before he suddenly stopped mid sentence and stared at her and Pete.
"But I thought…?" He stared at them and then Dutchy.
Kate finally let herself laugh and suddenly had everyone's attention.
She took a step closer to Pete and let him wrap an arm around her waist, leaning up for a quick kiss.
"Welcome back, sailor." He murmured, his mouth close to her ear. "Heard you needed a hand."
"You two are enjoying this too much for me to owe you anything." She whispered back before pulling away.
The first eyes she met were Mike's and she satisfied herself with the humiliated blankness she saw there.
"Okay, okay, so you," Charge was shaking his head and pointing at Pete. "Are dating the X."
Pete nodded at him, grinning smugly enough Kate wanted to elbow him.
"And somehow RO knew before any of us." He looked to Bird and Swain for confirmation.
Swain shrugged. "I've only known since Bird described who she saw having drinks with Dutchy and the X, and that was last week." He grinned at Pete. "Your tats are memorable."
"It couldn't have been that long though, one of us would have noticed."
Dutchy smirked from where he was leaning on the edge of the chaos he had sparked.
"Oh, not that long, just six or seven months." He threw in offhandedly.
"We ran into each other just after the Captain was posted back on the Hammersley." Kate met Mike's eyes deliberately, her gaze challenging. "How long ago was that sir, closer to seven months I think?"
Mike seemed taken off guard being addressed and cleared his throat before he answered.
"Uh yes, almost seven months seems about right."
"How the hell did you guys keep that a secret for over six months!" 2Dads burst out.
Kate smiled and nodded at Swain, RO and Bird.
"I don't know 2Dads, it seems like we didn't really keep it a secret, you're just not that observant."
The assembled crowd turned instantly to ribbing 2Dads, even Charge who had been similarly surprised. Kate leant more into Pete and watched them.
The group teasing 2Dads finally broke up and came over to properly say hello to Pete. Kate stepped back from them, Pete meeting her eyes as she pulled away. She raised her eyebrows and nodded behind her where she could feel Mike's eyes boring into her back. He let go of her hand but watched her step away.
Mike was standing away from the group, looking out of place and unmoored. He stared at her as she walked over to him.
"You should have told me." He wasn't looking at her anymore but staring at the crew where they clustered around Pete.
"I told you that you shouldn't wait too long." She replied. He flicked his eyes over to her and she met them unflinchingly.
"And so Dutchy…?" He left the question open and she sighed at him.
"Is a friend, a good friend." She looked over at him. "You of all people should know that I wouldn't break frat rules with someone I was serving with."
She could see his wince and the way he bit out his next question.
"And Buffer?"
She made sure he met her eyes. "Is the man I love."
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry."
Kate sighed and looked back over at the crew and Pete, who met her eyes and smiled.
"Thank you, but it's a bit late now."
Kate shook her head and walked back over to Pete, leaving Mike standing alone.
Pete wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her cheek.
"All good?" He asked quietly
Kate returned his kiss and tucked herself closer to him.
"All good."