Disclaimer: Ideas are fictional; not making any money on this. Hawaii 5-0 belongs to CBS. That's okay because none of this would work on TV.

Family Life, Chapter 3

Fall, 2021

"Admiral, am I here because Commander Rollins requested the change in my status?"

Admiral Halloran's respect for Steve went up another notch. "Yes, you are. Sit back Steve and I'll tell you a story."

Steve sat back in his chair and crossed his legs. He was appalled to learn that he would be working with Catherine after all these years and even more so to learn that she had engineered his reactivation into the Navy. He only hoped the Admiral knew what he was doing.

"Commander was stationed in the D.C. area until a few weeks ago. She reported to Admiral McKuen while she was there. He was very fond of Commander Rollins and gave her glowing performance evaluations. For the first few years, she warranted her reviews. Then about three years ago, I started hearing complaints from some of her male coworkers. Before I go on, may I ask how Commander Rollins reacted when you told her you were in a relationship with Detective Williams."

"Well, Danny and I were together for several weeks before we went public. One of my team had been suspended and we didn't want to risk losing anyone else on the team until we could get Kono cleared and back on the team. Once that happened, I told Governor Denning about Danny and me. He agreed to let us stay partners. At the time, Catherine was stationed overseas. I didn't want her to hear the news from someone else, so I told her over the phone. I hated doing it that way, but the alternative was flying there to tell her in person. I didn't want to do that either."

"How did that go?"

Steve closed his eyes for a moment and thought back to the awkward conversation.

Ten Years Earlier

"Steve, I got your text asking me to call you when it was convenient. Is this a good time for you? Catherine spent the last few hours wondering what was so important to warrant a special phone call. She usually only heard from Steve when he wanted a favor, but then he would call her no matter what the time. For years, Catherine hoped that Steve would want her for more than just the occasional hookup. Maybe Steve finally realized that he needed more than that from her. She crossed her fingers and hoped for the best.

Steve knew that this would be a difficult phone call and was relieved to have Danny by his side. "Thanks for calling me back so promptly. How's the assignment going?" Now that he had Catherine on the phone, he wasn't sure how to proceed. Danny was fixing a late breakfast for them but stopped his preparations to sit by Steve and lend his support.

"You know how it is. It's going okay. I miss being on the island. I hope you're calling to tell me you're coming my way. I could take some leave and meet you somewhere. It seems we never have enough time together."

"Well, that's not why I'm calling. Catherine, you and I have known each other for a long time. We were friends before it became something more, but we never pretended it was going anywhere more than that. I wanted to tell you before you heard it from someone else. I'm with someone now and we're going to make it permanent on New Year's Day when civil unions are legal in Hawaii."

Catherine couldn't believe what she was hearing. Steve was breaking up with her. She always meant it to be something more. And what did he say about a civil union? He was with another man! It had to be that loudmouthed detective from the mainland. She knew that there was something special between Steve and Danny, but she was sure that Steve couldn't be gay.

"Catherine, are you still there?"

"Yes, I'm here. Steve, I don't understand. It's Danny, isn't it? You're with your partner, aren't you?"

"Yes, Danny and I are together. He moved in last summer when he needed a place to stay with his daughter Grace. I love them both so much. Grace calls me Step-Steve and she's so smart."

Catherine had heard enough. "Steve, I don't understand. We were always great in bed, and everywhere else too. How can you be with him? You're not gay. I'd know if you were."

"Cath, I don't know how to explain it. I've never been attracted to men, but I love Danny and he loves me. I'm sorry to tell you this way, but I wanted you to hear it from me." Steve knew this was going to be hard, but it was worse than he thought.

"Then I guess there's nothing more to say. Best of luck to you and Danny. You're going to need it." Catherine ended the call before she broke down with Steve on the other end. She refused to let him know how much it hurt. She doubted they would last more than a few months. Steve and Danny argued about everything. Catherine tried not to think about the makeup sex. She decided that she would be there when it fell apart.

Steve put the phone down and leaned into Danny. "That didn't go as well as I had hoped."

"What did you expect from her babe? You are an amazing man even if you are a Neanderthal with limited social skills. I love your ass, and the sex is off the charts. Didn't you ever get a sense that maybe Catherine wanted more with you?"

"To tell you the truth, no I didn't. We both had our Navy careers that usually kept us in different parts of the world. Besides, my memories of family life were pretty warped. I intended the dysfunction to end with me. I could never imagine myself with someone much less with a child. You and Grace are the gift that I never knew I wanted."

Back in the Present

"Admiral, it was a very difficult conversation. She was stationed overseas when Danny and I came out to the governor and mostly everyone else. Catherine was surprised that I was with Danny. She wished us luck but not in a way that made me think she was sincere. Then a few weeks after our civil union ceremony, she showed up in my office. She said that she just needed to see for herself that I was happy."

"Was that the last time that you saw her?"

"No sir, I saw her a few months after Jack was born. I was sitting in the park playing with Jack when she walked up. She just happened to see us there and came over. I think that was really hard for her."

"Yes, I can imagine that it would be difficult. I'm not sure if something else happened over the last few years or if she just grew bitter as time passed. There have been complaints about a hostile work environment from some of the men who report to her. Her C.O. back in D.C. wouldn't even listen to them. We lost some good men as a result. I suspect she will try to interfere with your marriage. If that doesn't work, she will move to make your life miserable or even discredit your career."

"Admiral, I find it hard to believe that the woman I knew would stoop to such behavior. If what you suspect is true, it will cost her the career she's worked so hard to build."

"Steve, it would be better to have her out of the Navy rather than lose other personnel. I've had an office assigned to you. Commander Rollins has an office; the rest of the team is assigned to an adjacent conference room. You're officially assigned to the team in an advisory capacity. If she gives an order that is suspect, contact me immediately. Here's my cell phone number if you need to reach me after hours. I regret that it was necessary to drag you away from civilian life, but you'll be helping us out. At minimum, you'll help the Navy take care of a personnel problem. I also suspect that you will help us deal with the latest terrorist cell."

Steve knew when he was being dismissed. He accepted the information from the admiral and went in search of his office. A tech aide was waiting for him with a laptop and his login information. He had a fresh cup of coffee to take to his first official meeting with Catherine; he wished he could spike it with some of the good brandy Danny bought him for his last birthday.

Steve took a deep breath and knocked on Catherine's door. "Commander Rollins, is this a good time to brief me on my assignment?"

Catherine knew the exact moment Steve entered the area and heard him moving around in his office. Her original plan was to be overly pleasant to Steve and hopefully win him over that way. She couldn't think of a better plan, so she went with it for now.

"Steve, I think we can dispense with the formalities. We've been friends too long to stand on ceremony. Have a seat and I'll tell you what we know so far. It's been what, 7 or 8 years since we've talked? How's the family? I hear you have another son."

"Danny and the boys are great. It's so much more than I ever thought I could have. Danny and I adopted Jesse last spring. He is Jack's best friend and came to live with us when his parents died. Grace is in college and studying in London this year. How have you been?" Steve knew a little about playing nice after all the years with Danny. He decided to go along with whatever game Catherine was playing.

"I've been great. I loved my time in D.C., although I missed island life. I'm sorry we had to interrupt your routine but you were always the best at tracking the bad guys. From what I've read about your 5-0 team, nothing has changed."

"I've got a great team. Danny, Chin, and Kono are the best. Chin and Kono are married. Chin and Malia have a son a little younger than Jack and Jesse. Kono and Finn have a son and daughter. We've doubled the size of the team so there are eight of us now. It keeps us from working so much overtime, and we actually get weekends off now."

"Wow, that's different. I remember all the times I came to visit on leave and you would get a phone call from the governor. We had some really good times." Catherine didn't like anything she was hearing from Steve. It seemed that everyone was married and had a family except her.

"To tell you the truth, that seems like another lifetime ago. I never knew what to do with my time off then. I had my job and not much else. Now Danny and I are so busy with the boys that I can't imagine life without them. Now what can you tell me about the bad guys." Steve very determinedly steered the conversation back to work.

Catherine took over an hour to brief Steve with their progress in finding the terrorists suspected of hiding in Hawaii. It should have taken half that time but Catherine kept interrupting her narrative with flirty comments. She moved from behind the desk to sit on the front of the desk with her legs crossed. Catherine made sure that she showed a lot of skin.

Steve didn't mind the early pleasantries, but the way Catherine flaunted her body just inches away from him made him uncomfortable and embarrassed for her. Finally he stopped her. "Catherine, I think that I have the gist of it. Let me read the progress reports and see if anything pops."

As Steve prepared to leave, Catherine made a weak attempt for more time. "That sounds like a plan. We could meet for lunch and I can pick your brain for any ideas."

"Sorry Catherine, I'm meeting the team for lunch. I'm trying to keep an eye on what's going on at the Palace, and it's possible that I might have some questions related to our case that they might have some ideas on. I'll be careful about sharing any sensitive information." Steve went back to his office and closed the door behind him for more privacy. I pushed #1 on his speed dial to call Danny.

"Hey babe, do you miss me already?" Danny was surprised to hear from Steve so soon. He was showing the rest of the team pictures of the newly promoted Commander McGarrett.

"You know it Danno. Can we meet somewhere close to the base for lunch? I can give you and the rest of the team a clearer picture of what is going on here."

"That works for me. I'll bring along whoever doesn't already have lunch plans. Do you want to meet at the noodle house?"

"That sounds great. You know, I was in the Navy a long time before we met. But I feel so out of place in my uniform now. I miss my badge and my gun. And I miss watching your back."

"Wow, I never expected to hear you say that. At least you know that Catherine is watching your back while you're there."

"No Danny, she's watching my ass. There's a difference!"

"Yeah, just like there's a difference between a brown-noser and an ass-kisser."

"What's that?

"Depth perception, Steven."