a/n my beta pointed out to me that not everyone has spent the last 18 months obsessively researching Hawaii ;) so just to say that malasadas and poke are both typical local Hawaiian fare - poke is a marinated fish salad, malasadas are a little like doughnuts :)

5. GIBBS

The view was nothing short of glorious once they got out of Honolulu. Gibbs couldn't help thinking that he could get used to living somewhere where the sea was always so near at hand... even though he was mainly looking out the window in order to not stare at Kate.

They'd stopped to get malasadas and poke at food trucks Kate had assured him were amazing, then followed the highway round the coast. Part of him wanted to insist on wining and dining her somewhere a little more special, a little more... well, romantic, if he was honest, but maybe it was for the best. His resolution to keep this whole thing on a 'just friends' basis, at least for now, was already proving even more challenging than he'd anticipated.

Kate had apparently gone native in her choice of driving music, but he found he didn't mind. The soft thrum of the ukulele and a soulful voice made a perfect backdrop to the sea and mountains. He'd admitted to Kate that he'd never quite made it to the North Shore when he'd been here as a Marine, and he had the impression she was rather excited to show him something of the island that he'd never seen before.

Much as he hated that she lived so far away, he couldn't deny she seemed like she had settled in well. She looked better than he had seen her since her reappearance; tanned, healthy and smiling. He felt quietly proud of her for successfully making a new home for herself. It was hardly her fault she was further bewitching him in the process.

They finally pulled in at Turtle Bay, and Kate navigated the large parking lot with the ease of familiarity. "This place is kind of a 'best kept secret' among the locals, you know?" she explained as she retrieved their bags of food and gave him a rolled up picnic blanket to carry. "I expect the tourists will find it eventually, but they haven't yet."

Gibbs looked over at the hotel that dominated the bay. "You sure 'bout that, Katie?"

She followed his gaze, then laughed and lowered her voice conspiratorially. "Well, we aren't going to that beach. This one's special. Secret."

He cocked his head to one side, raised an eyebrow. "So when did you get initiated into all these local secrets, huh?"

She grinned. "Oh, I have my sources."

He thought about it for a second. "Will?"

Her ripple of laughter was all the answer he needed. "It's just as well no tourists ever get near him - if he knows a local beauty spot or the best place to go for food, he has to enlighten you, can't help himself. I think he must be distantly related to Ducky."

Gibbs chuckled. "Yeah." He shook his head then laughed again. "Yeah, that would explain it."

"Wouldn't it? I'm glad he showed me this place, though. It's a bit of a walk, but it's totally worth it."

Kate lead the way down along one piece of road, then another, to a break in the greenery that she confidently took, despite the fact it looked decidedly unpromising.

For a while they walked in silence. The trail, such as it was, wound along the shore, over rocks, then through some trees, then back to clambering over rocks, and Gibbs began to feel vaguely lost. He loved the idea of more privacy, fewer people, and he could easily believe that not many tourists made it this far along the coast, but he hadn't expected a half hour's walk to get there.

Kate had obviously done her fair share of hiking since he was last here, he realised, somewhat impressed. She had almost baulked at cutting down the hillside when he'd introduced her to Kalalauo Falls, and now here she was - in flip-flops no less - making her way along an unmarked trail as if she'd been walking it since she was a child.

They cut off inland again. "You sure you know where you're going?" He hadn't meant to actually voice his doubts, but he wasn't used to relying on someone else's sense of direction over his own. Fortunately, she just laughed at him.

"Of course I do, Gibbs. You worried we'll get lost and end up having to live in the forest till someone comes to rescue us?"

When she put it like that... His idiot brain supplied unhelpful images of spending a couple days alone out here with Kate, foraging together, snuggling for warmth at night, and he tried to ignore the ridiculous notion getting lost on purpose would be a good thing. He suspected sleeping on the ground wasn't her idea of a romantic time, and he was supposed to be keeping this platonic, anyhow. He forced himself to concentrate on her voice as she continued talking, apparently blissfully unaware of his regression to teenaged boyhood.

"I promise, it's worth it." She grinned. "Just don't get a coconut on the head, they don't get picked down here so sometimes they just fall unexpectedly."

He looked upwards, slightly alarmed, unsure whether she was just pulling his leg. Kate merely laughed again and grabbed his hand to pull him along behind her. Well... he figured he could deal with potential death by coconut if she was going to keep ahold of his hand, which she apparently was.

Eventually they emerged from the forest onto the edge of a small, deserted bay. There was a narrow strip of sand around calm waters, and no one else in sight. "Wow." He looked around, took in the gold, green and blue all round them, and then back at Kate who was grinning up at him, clearly delighted by his reaction.

"This is Kawela Bay."

"'Kawela'?"

"It means 'the heat'."

He raised an eyebrow.

She grinned and looked away from him. He got the impression she was rather proud of herself for knowing, even if she was also a little self-conscious about it. "The local kids are educating the haole. Worth the coconuts?"

He pulled her closer to wrap an arm around her shoulders. "Definitely. Gorgeous view." She didn't need to know he wasn't really talking about the scenery. She slipped her arm around his waist casually, leaning into him, as if this intimacy was second nature, and he closed his eyes for a moment to savour it.

When Kate had looked her fill, she tugged on his waist and lead him down into the trees then out onto the beach. They stood on the shore and looked out over the water. Out beyond what Gibbs guessed was a reef, he could see intrepid souls braving the winter surf, but this lagoon was quiet, waves lapping gently against the sand.

It was hard to believe there was such a secluded place only a short walk from the huge, crowded resort.

"If you're here at the right time of year and you get lucky, sometimes the turtles come to swim and sunbathe here too."

He shook his head. It was almost unreal, a genuine slice of paradise, and they had it to themselves. Kate had brought them to the most romantic spot imaginable, and he wanted to believe it was intentional, but he hurriedly squelched that notion.

The fact she was sharing a special place with him was enough. It would be unfair on her to read more into it just because he wanted it to mean something else.

"So, sun or shade?"

"Huh?" He looked down at her, confused. She had him daydreaming. I am so totally and completely screwed.

She laughed up at him, and it was all he could do not to just give in, bend down, and swallow her laughter in a kiss. "You want to eat in the sun or in the shade?"

He managed to drag himself back to reality enough to make sense of the question. "Hmmm. Shade."

She nodded and lead him over to a stand of trees where they could lean back against the trunks and enjoy the view out over the water.

Kate dug out the food and two forks, then settled herself down next to him, close enough that her shoulder brushed his and the scent of her hair was making him want to pull her into his arms and kiss her stupid. He settled for digging into his food as the safer option.

They ate in comfortable silence, the waves and seabirds and the occasional shout from a distant surfer a relaxing soundtrack. Kate finished her lunch and opened the bag of malasadas, and Gibbs didn't comment when she popped one into her mouth whole (she grinned up at him, her cheeks like a hamster, as if she was being terribly mischievous), then settled back down with her head resting on his shoulder.

It was tempting to desert the last of his poke in favour of sliding an arm around her waist, but he had been trying very hard not to come on too strong and scare her with his painful eagerness. He made himself continue to eat at the same steady pace. Only when he'd swallowed the last mouthful and put the paper tray back into the bag did he allow himself to slip his arm around her, resting his hand on her hip. He kept half-expecting her to get self-conscious about how tactile they'd become with one another, but he couldn't seem to stop himself from wanting to be close to her. When she just let out a deep sigh and nestled herself snugly in under his chin, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head and smiled. If she was okay with it, he definitely wasn't about to grumble. He was just glad there was no one around to see the stupid grin on his face.

As much to distract himself as out of hunger, he snagged a malasada with his free hand and bit into the doughy sweetness. So far, so good. She hadn't even threatened to shoot him, she was happy to spend time showing him round the island, and he could definitely get used to being her pillow.

In all the vague hopes and fears he'd had on the flight out here, it hadn't for one moment occurred to him it could possibly go quite this well. He didn't want to get ahead of himself. There was no guarantee on when or even if Kate might be ready for more than friendship with anyone, and given his age and his track record and the fact he lived a continent and change away, only a fool would think he was the best man for the role.

He smiled and shook his head. He was a fool, a stupid old fool. He did want more. But he'd settle for whatever she was willing to offer, and still think himself much luckier than he deserved to be. He just had do his best to not screw it up.

His mind drifted to the gift that was burning a small but very persistent hole in his pocket. Finding the perfect moment to give that to her was going to seriously test his abilities in the 'not screwing up' department. It had been a total impulse buy, something he hadn't been looking for but had been unable to resist. It was just too perfect, too right. The idea of actually presenting her with it, though...

He had absolutely no idea how she'd react, or if he might as well have enclosed a note saying 'oh, by the way, I'm so completely in love with you I can't think straight'.

On the other hand, if he went home without giving it to her, he would be spending the entire journey back kicking himself for his cowardice, and after more than four thousand miles of that, he'd walk with a limp. And besides, he knew she'd appreciate it, and he wanted her to have it. Maybe he should just man up and give it to her, trust her good sense and their friendship that she wouldn't get freaked out.

Kate made a small, satisfied noise, leaning closer into him, her hand casually slipping down to touch the skin of his leg as she relaxed. He grinned to himself, very pleased how comfortable she'd gotten around him. Yeah, he was totally okay with being her pillow, and had no complaints about her napping on him, either. As habits went, it was one he could fully endorse, and right now, it might even give him enough time to come up with a plan.