Well it's been a fun one.
5 years later…
She leans back against the couch, the soft music from the kitchen reverberating throughout the house. Her eyes start getting heavy when suddenly the front door bursts open and in walks their very enthusiastic 5-year-old. "Mama! Guess what?"
"What?"
"Daddy said he knows one of Santa's elves."
The brunette's eyes shift from her little girl's to her husband's as he trails in behind her. "He does?!"
"Yeah, his name is Hollace!" Harper states excitedly before running off towards her room.
Sitting his keys on the table, Marty watches Kensi's brow raise, stunned.
"He's going to rise from his grave and kill you, you know that, right?" Her eyes go wide as she looks past him.
He quickly spins around expecting to see his wife's old boss in ghost form standing there with a stone face expression. Clutching his chest when he sees nothing there, he turns back around. "Don't do that. You know he still scares me."
"You brought it on yourself, mister."
Shaking his head, a smile spreads to his lips as he has a moment of deja vu from the first time they met. Taking a step forward, he stretches out his hand towards her.
Her brow furrows at his actions but she just shrugs before slapping her hand against his for a low five without thought.
He huffs a laugh, shaking his head. "Give me your hand."
"Why?"
"Just give me your hand."
Giving in, she places her hand in his and slides into his embrace as he pulls her up off the couch. Her forehead finds its place against his as he starts to sway their bodies to the beat of the soft melody still reverberating through the house.
"You guys are so cute!"
The pair turn their attention to the couch where Harper has somehow ended up without them even noticing. Both wearing mirrored smiles before turning back to each other.
"Does our 5-year-old ship us?"
"I mean…who wouldn't. We're pretty adorable." The stuntwoman smirks.
The younger brunette's brow furrows when something from earlier suddenly crosses her mind. "Mama, where's Attaka?"
"Egypt, why do you ask?"
"Daddy was talking about it with Uncle Sam."
"No-no I wasn't." He can't help the stutter that escapes his lips.
Harper's brow furrows as she looks from her mom to her dad. "Yes, you were."
"Marty?" The former SEAL's questioning tone draws her husband's attention back to her.
"Huh?"
"What's going on?"
"No-nothing."
"Marty."
His shoulders deflate as he lets out a sigh. She's not gonna give up until she knows. "It was supposed to be a surprise."
"Well, it still will be. Just tell me."
"Yeah, daddy, tell her!"
Pulling out the big guns, Kensi pooches her lower lip tilts her head, and looks up at him underneath her eyelashes, innocently.
He leans forward, bringing his lips to the tip of her nose placing a kiss there. "Remember when I came back from Egypt and I said we should go back one day?"
"Yeah."
"Well, that day is next Monday."
Her mismatched chocolate orbs light up in surprise. She closes the small distance between them, bringing her lips to his for a soft kiss. "So I guess we're finally getting that honeymoon we never got."
"We are."
"What's a honeymoon?" The curious 5-year-old asks.
The matriarch answers her mini-me, making it sound and simple as possible. "It's a vacation people take after they get married."
"Ohhh. Can you go anywhere on a honeymoon?"
"Uh, yeah." Marty nods in confirmation.
"Then I wanna get married so I can go to Disneyland." Harper nods her head in understanding as she states matter of factly.
Kensi can't help but roll her eyes. Their girl is only 5 years old and a handful she really can't imagine what she's gonna be like when she becomes a teenager. "Oh, brother."
The tiny brunette gasps in shock. "Mama, are you having a baby?"
"What? No!" She looks at her perplexed husband, shaking her head. "No."
"You said, oh, brother." Then her eyes go wide as if suddenly remembering something. "There's this girl in my class that has 5 brothers. Well, one is her step-brother. What's a step-brother? Is it like a brother who stands on a step? If he stands on a step, what kind of step is it? Does it have to be a specific step?"
The duo shares a look, both biting their lip as they try to fight off their smiles. Marty pulls Kensi back into his embrace as they continue to sway to the soft murmur of music and their rambling 5-year-old who has now made her way from talking about brothers to horses.
Everything about this moment is perfect. Their life together. Being in her husband's arms with their little girl going on about something nearby. "I love you."
"I love you, Chief Petty Officer Blye."
Their eyes meet, conveying everything they feel for the other without words. Life is full of beautiful surprises, especially when you fall in love in a war zone.