Guardian
A/N: It was great to hear from several of you after the last chapter. Hopefully getting two updates in less than a week won't freak you guys out too much. I will say all the McDanno goodness this season is making it far easier to keep the muse alive for this one. Though it seriously killed me to watch Steve watch as Grace and Danny walked away from him on Friday's episode. Just sayin' ….
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters and make no money doing this. I'm just having fun playing with them.
Chapter 50
"I don't think I'm going to fit any of my clothes when I get back home Sunday." Dianne set her fork on the side of her empty dessert plate, leaning back into the chair. "With just me in the house I'm not used to eating half as well as this."
Everyone around the table laughed. It was a very good thing the task force and Catherine stayed active or with the Williams parents moving to the island they'd all be shopping for new larger clothes soon.
"Now that we're moving to the island, I think I'm going to have to learn my way around some of the fish and fruits. I know Paul and I could stand to mix it up some, and Steve has introduced us to some delicious things."
"Please tell me this doesn't mean you're going to start trying to make me eat pineapple too." Danny fussed. "It's bad enough that Super Seal convinced Grace it was an acceptable topping for pizza."
"But Danno, it really is good." Grace defended before yawning.
"Maybe we'll wear him down before you head off to college." Steve laughed. "But for now, you should probably go get ready for bed."
The little girl gave him a quick hug before heading toward the door. "I'll be back."
"I suppose that means we should stick around until she returns." Kono grinned. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not leaving without my hug."
"Relax rookie, we won't kick you out." The Seal rose to start collecting dishes.
Danny quickly joined him. "Why don't the rest of you relax while we clean up?" As much as he loved having the house full of people, he just wanted a few moments of relative normalcy with his partner, and washing dishes seemed like as good an option as any.
"I would argue, but I'm actually rather tired, so for this evening I'll concede." Dianne admitted. The emotional whirlwind of the last few days was finally catching up with her. The others murmured their assent, opting to head back to the living room.
Setting the last of the dishes next to the sink where Steve had already started washing, Danny paused. Wrapping his arms around the Seal's waist, he let his head rest on the broad back. He heard a plate getting set on the drying rack and then felt Steve's still damp hands cover his own.
"You okay?" Steve's voice was barely more than a whisper.
"Yeah." The response was muffled against his back. Gripping his partner's hands tighter so he could loosen them from his middle, Steve pivoted around to face the shorter man before he could protest the loss of contact. Pulling the detective to his chest, he wrapped his arms around him, letting his chin rest on the top of his head. They stood embracing for several moments before Danny spoke again. "You know we're supposed to be washing dishes."
"I was washing dishes, but something more important came up, so I decided to tend to that first." Steve kissed the top of Danny's head as the shorter man started to step back.
"Thanks." Danny spoke quietly as he reached around the Seal to grab a towel to start drying the dishes. "I don't know why …"
"Hey. I know this will sound funny coming from me, but you don't need a reason to need a hug, a kiss, or anything else from me." Steve interrupted, his expression serious.
The detective couldn't help but laugh. "You're right. Coming from the man that has traditionally run screaming from all forms of affection, that does sound funny." Swatting the Seal on the backside with his towel, he kept laughing. "It's nice to see that even a neanderthal can be domesticated."
Steve laughed at the remark, too happy that he'd managed to make his partner laugh to let the teasing bother him.
It didn't take long for the pair to finish cleaning up once they settled into the task. Putting the last dish away, Steve grabbed Danny's hand and led him toward the living room to join the others. Given that there weren't really enough seats for the entire crew, they grabbed a spot on the floor along with Catherine, Chin, and Kono.
"I'm starting to think I need different furniture in here."
"Nah, brah. Maybe just some cushions to throw on the floor." Chin replied. "There would barely be room to move if you actually had enough seats for all of us."
"And where does one find things like that?" The look on Steve's face made everyone laugh.
"Perhaps one just gives the women some money and they find them for him." Kono managed to answer between giggles.
"That I can do."
"Speaking of women," Dianne spoke up. "I'd really like to treat all the ladies to something nice before I leave. Do you think you could spare a few hours on Friday?"
"You don't need to do that." Beth retorted.
"I know, but I would very much like to. Despite the circumstances, I have enjoyed this trip far more than I ever expected and you all played a big role in that. I thought perhaps a few hours at the spa might do us all some good. Mary, what time do you fly back to LA?"
"Not until six in the evening. I have to be at work on Saturday, but wanted to stay as long as I could."
"Perfect." She looked to Danny and Steve, "I'd love for Grace to come if we can find a location you think she'd be comfortable with."
"I think with both her grandmothers and all three of her aunts, she should be okay."
"Kono why don't you call Kalea and see if she can fit you all in?"
"Good plan cuz." The petite Hawaiian grabbed her phone from her pocket as she stood.
"Another cousin?" Danny guessed.
"You got it, brah."
"Dianne, why don't you join me and we can arrange the details if she answers." Kono asked has she headed toward the kitchen to make the call in the relative quiet. Ms. Bradley rose and followed.
"While they all go play, I think I'll pop by HPD and see what the latest is. Speaking of, Duke called just before dinner and said that they have everything they'll need from Rachel's house. He thought we might want to know in case Dianne would like to sort through Rachel's things, plus he thought we might want to get more of Grace's stuff."
"Good to know." Danny replied. He understood why Chin waited until neither of them were in the room to mention it. "We can ask Dianne what she'd like to do once Grace is in bed." He'd barely finished speaking when they heard the girl's footsteps coming down the stairs.
"All clean, Gracie?"
"Yep." The little girl came straight to her Daddy and Danno to give them hugs. She was still with them with Kono and Dianne rejoined the group.
"We're all set. She had plenty of room for us Friday starting at 10, and she's even going to have a nearby restaurant bring in lunch for us." Seeing Grace's confused look, Dianne clarified. "We're having a bit of a girls' day on Friday at the spa."
"Oh." Grace looked a bit nervous.
"I thought it would be a nice chance for you, your aunts, Grandma Williams, and me to relax a bit." Dianne spoke quickly to reassure her granddaughter that she would be surrounded by family.
"That sounds fun." Grace spoke with much more enthusiasm this time as she continued to make her way around to give everyone hugs.
"Would you like someone to read with you?" Steve asked as she finished.
Looking around the room, Grace's eyes settled on Mary. "Would it be okay if Aunt Mary read tonight? She's leaving soon." Her eyes flitted to her grandmothers, a little afraid they might be upset given that they'd handled bedtime reading since their arrival.
"I bet your Aunt Mary would love that." Dianne encouraged knowing she still had a few more nights with the little girl.
"I'd love to." Mary jumped up from the chair, taking Grace's hand. "You know your Daddy used to read to me when I was little." Her voice faded as they headed up the stairs.
"Never thought I'd see Mary so excited about bedtime." Steve's eyes were still fixed on the point where his sister and daughter disappeared. "Then again, I never thought I'd be getting called daddy either." Danny squeezed his hand.
"I think it's just impossible not to love that kid." Catherine spoke in a hushed tone as the room fell silent.
A moment later, Danny cleared his throat and looked at his ex-mother-in-law. "Dianne," he paused as she turned to face him. "We've been informed that Rachel's house is no longer under police lock down." He didn't want to say it was no longer a crime scene. "I'm sorry to bring it up, but we wanted to make sure you had time to go through her things before you left if you wanted."
The older woman sat looking a bit stricken for a moment. Beth reached over and took one of her hands, a silent gesture of support.
"I could go with you if you'd like." Catherine moved so she sat at Dianne's knees. After helping Dianne through Rachel's funeral, she had grown especially fond of the woman.
"Me too." Kono offered.
"Thank you. I don't think I could do it alone, so I would truly appreciate that."
"I'll let you decide what you'd like to take and what you think Grace might want, now or in the future." A few days ago, he imagined she might have taken anything of meaning, but now he guessed she would only take the things that had some shared meaning to her and Rachel and leave the rest for Grace.
"Do you think we should go tomorrow?" While she wasn't looking forward to it, Dianne thought it might be best to get it over with instead of dampening her spirits after Friday's intended fun.
"There are some boxes in the garage from moving my things. You're welcome to use those. If you label them we can make sure anything you'd like to take home with you is packed safely and shipped."
"Thank you, Danny." Hearing the clock chime, she glanced at the time. "Oh dear. I should have called for a car."
"No need. We'll take you with us, and then we can pick you up in the morning. If that works for you, we can do the hard part of the day first so it's over."
"Then maybe we can do a Skype test run when you guys get here." Chin offered, wanting to give her something else to think about for the following day.
"That sounds like a plan." Seeing Kono yawn, she smiled at the others. "I think that is a sign that we should all be heading to our respective beds.
"Give us a call around eleven and let us know if you'll make it for lunch." Beth requested as she gave Kono and Catherine each a hug.
"Yes, ma'am." They agreed.
Several minutes later, Beth, Steve, and Danny were the only ones remaining as they listened to the sound of car doors shutting.
"I don't know about you boys, but I'm tired." Beth gave them each a fond look. "I'm going to head to bed. I'll see you tomorrow morning." Danny watched as she headed toward the stairs, Steve busy checking the looks behind him.
Feeling strong arms wrap around him, he felt a tremor run up his spine when Steve's breath ghosted over his ear. "Ready for bed?"
"For bed or for sleep?"
"Whichever you'd prefer." The Seal pulled him tighter against his chest.
"Mmmmm." Danny hummed contentedly.
"Just let me know what you decide." Steve released him and headed for the stairs.
"Neanderthal."
/ GUARDIAN /
There will be a new Guardian Love Explored chapter going up between this and chapter 50. ;)
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