I have to be up for work in four hours, so this has only had a cursory edit. But I wanted to post it. J Would have been finished it earlier, but spent a lot of time planning out the rest of the story. Wow, outlines. That's new for me!

Thanks to 4thofFive for pointing out a mistake in chapter 1, which I've fixed, and to bswindle20 for pointing me to the story I was looking for! J

The Camaro's engine growled with impatience as Danny hovered just below the speed limit. He tried to soothe her by caressing his thumb across the side of the stick shift where his hand rested.

"I'm sorry, baby. I know you didn't sign up for a family gig. I'll take you out dancing later." Just be glad McGarrett isn't riding you hard, as always. At least I know how to treat a lady.

Giggles from the back seat had him looking away from the road for a brief moment to narrow his eyes at the monkey in the back seat. Good thing he didn't say that part aloud.

"I thought you were listening to your boy band." His voice was annoyed, but Grace would be able to see the laughter in his eyes as he met hers in the mirror before turning back to the road.

" I was, Danno, but I was wondering why we're going this way to get to mom's."

"Just want to check something out, Monkey. Won't take a minute."

"'Kay." And then the ear buds were back in and her head was bopping to that ridiculous music.

One set of lights – that he came to a slow stop for, and gently pulled away from on the green – and two minutes later, Danny pulled into the parking lot of the Palace. As suspected, a familiar blue truck sat parked in its usual spot.

Danny hadn't spoken to Steve since Friday night, let alone seen him. His partner hadn't called and had so far ignored all the texts and voice mails Danny had left. If he hadn't had Grace, he would have tracked Steven down long before now. He parked next to the truck, turned the car off, and released his seatbelt to twist around to Grace.

"Hey Monkey!" Grace looked up from her phone, for the first time seeing they were at Palace, Steve's truck next to them, and broke into a grin. She pulled the ear buds out with a swift tug.

"We're going to visit Steve?"

Danny nodded. "Just sit tight here a sec, 'kay? I'm gonna call your mom first." She nodded and he stepped out of the car, closing the door behind him and leaned against the truck as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and hit Rachel's speed dial.

"Yes, Daniel?" He cringed at the tightness of her voice; as if she already knew what he was going to say.

"Rachel. We're going to be back a bit late."

She huffed into the phone, but he continued before she could come out swinging. "Not long. Ten, maybe fifteen minutes. We're just swinging by work. I'm going to check in with Steve. And yes I could wait until I drop Grace off but," he sighed, pinched the bridge of his nose. "Steve's been... off a bit. I just thought he could use a couple minutes of Grace-time." He stopped there, finally letting her speak.

Which she did not do for a few moments. He was about to start a practiced rant about how little time he had with Grace and how he usually had her home promptly at the desig-

"Of course, Danny. Just don't be too long. Dinner will be ready soon and it won't hold long."

"Thanks, Rache."

He ended the call, slipped the phone back into his pocket and opened his princess' chariot. Giving her a deep bow, he held out his hand to her.

"M'lady, your SEAL awaits." Grace giggled – which, really, was pretty much the best sound in the entire world – and let him help her out of the car. Hip checking the door closed and making sure it was locked, he walked her into the Palace and to His Excellency's chambers.

Steve sat at his desk, hunched over his keyboard. He wore board shorts, a tee and slippers. Though his hair was short, it still managed to point up in all directions. Through the glass wall, Danny could see salt stains on the dark shirt. Focused on the screen, Steve didn't seem to hear them approach until Grace squeezed through the door, before Danny could open it all the way, and her little feet pounded across the floor of his office.

"Uncle Steve!" He flipped the monitor off and swivelled his chair around just in time to catch her.

"Hey there Gracie." Steve looked up and smiled at Danny, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Danno."

He'd barely greeted Danny before Grace launched into an excited play by play of their weekend together. Danny couldn't help but smile and shake his head. They'd barely left the house, but she still seemed to have a novel's worth of things to tell Steve. Despite the reason for this little visit, he couldn't help but feel a bit smug that this didn't happen after a quiet weekend at home with Rachel and Stan.

And Steve... Danny was certain he wouldn't be as focused on a single other person even if it were his Commander-in-Chief personally giving him orders for an Op. By the time Grace finished, Steve's grin took up his whole face, including those eyes.

Mission accomplished.

Too bad it didn't last.

"Monkey, why don't you go hang out in my office for a minute while I chat with Steve, then I'll get you home."

"'Kay."

The moment Grace wrapped her arms around the SEAL's neck, the mission fell apart. Danny had been successful for approximately ten point four seconds.

"Can we go surfing my next weekend with Danno?"

"I... I'll be working at Pearl that weekend Grace." Which was weird. It had been years since Steve's monthly reserve duties had landed on a Grace weekend. The SEAL hadn't mentioned it specifically, but Danny was pretty sure he'd arranged it that way to either spend time with them if the Williams' wanted, or cover for Danny if they caught a case.

"Oh. Okay. Maybe another time." Another squeeze of the hug. "Bye Uncle Steve."

"Bye Gracie." Steve's arms tightened around her, his eyes slipping shut.

Steve hugged Grace like she was a lifeline, the only thing keeping him from drowning. He hugged her like he was never going to see her again. His voice cracked when he said "I love you, kiddo." It was barely noticeable, but it was there. Danny heard it, had heard it before in the most horrific of circumstances.

And now he'd heard it as his BAMF Navy SEAL partner hugged his One Direction-loving daughter.

The SEAL opened his eyes when he pulled back from the hug. While they were mostly dry, it was like his entire soul was torn open and laid bare for them to see. Danny hoped Grace was too young to notice anything so deep but even before she turned back to him, he knew that was too much to hope for. She hesitated, keeping her arms around his neck. Then Steve's walls were back up and he grinned at her.

"Go on, Gracie, before your mother sics assassins on Danno for making you late." She couldn't manage half a syllable that was more sigh than laugh.

"See you soon?" Danny didn't think he'd ever heard her voice beg as much as it did in those three quiet words; he could swear McGarrett almost flinched as he finally released her from the hug.

"Stay out of trouble 'till then." No nod of agreement. No conspiring grin or knowing smirk.

Steve's choice of words also weren't lost on him. His partner had never lied to her, even when she asked hard questions like 'is my dad a murderer?'. But he always answered her questions. That... was not an answer. What the fuck was wrong with him?

Grace kissed his cheek and he helped her to the floor. When she turned to face her father, her smile disappeared and she looked at him with wide eyes screaming 'FIX IT!' before she hurries away to leave the two men alone.