Guardian
A/N: Thank you all of your patience when it takes me a bit to get a chapter posted. Last week's weather created a bit of chaos in my travel plans, but alas I returned and finally had a chance to sit down and work on this.
For those interested, I posted a new chapter in Guardian: Love Explored that falls between chapter 46 and 47. Feel free to check it out.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters and make no money doing this. I'm just having fun playing with them.
Chapter 47
The room was dark expect for a slender ray of moonlight that snuck through the curtains. Glancing at the alarm clock, Steve noted it was only 4:30 in the morning, too early to go out for a swim. He wasn't sure what woke him. There had been no nightmare, he didn't hear Grace or any other sounds from the house, but something had brought him out of a dead sleep.
Knowing he wouldn't easily fall back asleep until he knew why he was awake, the Seal carefully rolled onto his side to watch his sleeping partner. After a few quiet seconds, a strangled mumble escaped the sleeping man's lips.
Bingo. That was the reason he was awake. Unsure what was causing the evident distress, Steve slid closer to his partner and pulled the shorter man's body into his arms. At first, the movement drew another anxious sound from him, but once he was settled against Steve's chest, long arms wrapped securely around him he quieted.
Letting his chin rest a top Danny's head, Steve guessed it had been a bad dream and hoped his presence would help keep it from returning.
Two hours later, the pair remained in the exact same position. Steve's eyes remained open, diligently keeping watch over his slumbering partner. He knew it was time to go workout, had planned a run and swim this morning, but hesitated to leave Danny.
After a few more minutes, Steve felt the Jersey native move against him. He nearly jumped when he felt warm lips press against his collarbone. His breathe caught when the lips continued.
"Morning Danno." The words came out as a husky whisper.
"How long have you been awake?" The words were muffled against his skin.
"A while." He hedged, not wanting to Danny to feel guilty about the loss of sleep.
"Not that I'm complaining, but is there a reason your awake and wrapped around me like a security blanket instead of hanging out with your fellow marine life?" The detective quickly guessed McGarrett was trying to hide something. The answering silence only confirmed it.
"When you say a while, does that mean minutes or hours?"
"Doesn't matter." Steve's long arms seemed to involuntarily wrap more tightly around Danny's body.
"I'll take that to mean hours." Danny quipped, no longer expecting or hoping for a straight answer. "Were you just feeling an irresistible urge to play guard seal or did I manage to wake you up somehow?" He didn't remember having a nightmare, but he also didn't remember what he had dreamed so the possibility seemed likely.
"Guard seal?" Steve asked and Danny's mind filled in the arched brows that inevitably accompanied those words.
"If the title fits..." The detective smirked lovingly. He was beginning to realize that accepting McGarrett's protective tendencies would be far easier than fighting them and if he was honest with himself, it felt good to have someone that both wanted to protect him and was capable of doing just that.
"Alright, I give. No more questions. Well, one more. What time is it?"
"6:41." At least the Seal didn't' try to evade that one.
"Shouldn't you be outside getting sweaty by now?" Danny asked playfully.
"Maybe." Steve replied.
The detective read quite a bit into the evasive answer. Yes, he should be, but he refused to stand down from guard seal duty while Danny was sleeping.
"You know, I could use a workout this morning. Why don't I join you for the run? Then I can hit the shower while you swim to the mainland and back?" He offered. It was true, the workout would do him good, but it would also ensure that even if Steve had lost sleep on his account, he wouldn't also lose the peace he found in his morning exercise.
"Really?" Danny couldn't help but smile at the kid on Christmas morning voice from his crazy Super Seal.
"Yes, really." The detective squirmed so he could place a soft kiss over the Seal's heart. "Come on, if we're going to do this we should get moving."
Steve loosened his hold on Danny, tugging him up slightly to find his lips. After a quick kiss, he rolled over and sprang out of bed.
Following more slowly, Danny couldn't help smiling at the overgrown kid he'd fallen in love with.
Ten minutes later, the pair were slipping out the back door. Leaving Steve's towel and their water bottles on the lanai, they headed toward the road.
This time, Steve matched his pace to Danny's shrugging off the funny look he received. "What?"
"You know I don't expect you to slow down and stay with me, right?"
"I know, but I like the idea of being able to run with you, not just at the same time as you." The look Danny gave him made him laugh as they continued down the road. "If it makes you feel better, I'll do some sprints so you don't think I'm going soft."
Danny reached over and smacked the Seal on the stomach. "You better. I can't have you ruining your perfectly sculpted physique. That would ruin this." He teased.
"Perfectly sculpted physique? Seriously, who talks like that?" Steve argued, seeing the glint in his partner's eye that warned of a coming rant.
"I'll have you know…" Danny started before it registered Steve was sprinting away from him. "Neanderthal!" He called after him, laughing as he followed at a more reasonable pace.
Steve grinned at Danny's teasing nickname as he widened the gap between them. He wouldn't let himself get to far away before he turned back and rejoined him for another stretch. He'd just give his partner a couple minutes to let the rant die down first.
/ GUARDIAN /
Watching her granddaughter sleep, Dianne thought over the last week. Last Wednesday she'd woke alone in her too large house in England, having no idea her entire world was about to be tossed upside down.
That night she'd crawled into bed in a state of grief stricken shock that her only daughter had been killed by the husband Rachel had always led her to believe was perfect. She wished they'd been closer; that Rachel had trusted her enough to be honest. Based on what she knew now, her daughter must have been miserable and he'd been to blind to see it, to blind to help her.
Yawning, she glanced at the clock and realized it was still early, not even seven yet. Allowing her mind to drift to the more pleasant reality of the family she now found herself a part of, Dianne's eyes drifted closed again. Slipping back to sleep, she rested one hand on the small of Grace's back, a physical reminder of the family she still had.
/ GUARDIAN /
Dripping in sweat, Danny and Steve approached the lanai and grabbed their water bottles.
"You sure you don't want to join me for swim before you head inside?" Steve slipped behind Danny as they each took a drink and pulled him snuggly against him.
"As tempting as that offer is babe, I think I'll pass. I'm sure people will be waking up by now and if we wait and shower together they'll all starve waiting for us to eat breakfast."
Only pouting slightly, Steve gulped down the rest of his water before turning Danny for a quick kiss. "Fine, but next time I might just take you with me by force."
"Neanderthal." Danny repeated the word that was quickly becoming an unconventional term of endearment for his crazy Seal. "Go bond with your fishy friends, I'm going to grab my shower." Swatting at McGarrett's backside, Danny stayed planted where he was for a moment as he watched the taller man jog down the beach, tossing his towel into a chair before diving into the surf.
Finally pivoting around, the detective headed inside to grab a quick shower and get ready for the rest of the day.
/ GUARDIAN /
Coming out of the bedroom freshly showered and dressed Danny nearly collided with a frantic Dianne.
"Daniel, Grace is gone. She's not downstairs or in her room. I was awake less than an hour ago and she was still in bed, but I woke back up and she's gone." She was almost to the point of tears. "Beth is in the shower, so she isn't with her and she's not downstairs. It's too early for her to be outside, especially by herself."
The detective smiled as he gently grasped her arm. "Just take a deep breath. I'd be willing to bet she's just fine."
Guiding her back down the stairs, he led her to a window facing the beach. "Look." He pointed toward the chairs near the water where two feet hung visible over the edge, wrapped in the towel he'd watched Steve toss into the chair not long before.
When she started to pull away and head to the door, he kept the hand on her arm, restraining her.
"But Daniel, she's alone out there. It's not safe." Her voice was full of worry.
"No, she's not alone and she's perfectly safe. This is a private beach so there are no strange people out there." He turned her to look back out the window. Judging by the time, Steve would emerge from the water any moment. "Just trust me and watch."
He'd explain after, but he didn't want her to miss it or she wouldn't understand. He still remembered the first time he witnessed it.
As they watched, the Seal rose from the water where Dianne hadn't realized he was. The pair watched as Grace scrambled from the chair and ran, Steve's towel flying like a cape behind her. Spotting her, the Seal dropped to his knees in the sand, opening his arms to catch her.
They stayed like that, his arms wrapped protectively around her, for a while before he rose. She remained in his arms, wrapped around his wet body as he grabbed the towel and draped it across his shoulders.
When they reached the chair, he stood her carefully on it to dry off before pulling her back into his embrace and cradling her small body as they sat.
Standing at the window, Dianne and Danny were both a bit awed by the love and devotion evident between the pair.
"They share a special bond, don't they?" Mrs. Bradly finally spoke, a bit choked up by the scene they'd just witnessed.
"Yes, they do. It's like nothing I ever imagined when I first met him, but now it's hard not to see it every time I look at him." Danny's voice was also full of emotion. "Aside from the biology, he is every bit the father to her that I am.
He felt her head lean against his shoulder. "I can't believe I ever thought to take her away from here. I had no idea how close she was to the people here. I didn't pay enough attention on the rare occasion I spoke to her and Rachel was always so hostile when she spoke of you and your team."
"I'm glad you changed your mind. It's so much better this way." He pulled her into a hug as they both continued to stare out the window at Steve and Grace.
/
I do believe the next chapter will start off with the Steve & Grace perspective of this last scene. Reviews are greatly appreciated.