Chapter 73 "Valentine's Day"
A/N: (10 January 2018) Hello after quite a hiatus! I've missed you all, and writing for you! So much went wrong with my health, but I think we're on the rebound and I feel much better! God willing, I'm okay!
It's a pleasure to get back to writing, so I hope you enjoy this chapter! I feel rusty, so it's maybe a bit lacking in umph for that reason, but as the saying goes, "It's better to get it written than right."
CBS owns Hawaii Five-0 and is kind enough to let us play with it.
Chapter 73 "Valentine's Day"
(Tuesday, 14 February 1917, 6 p.m.)
"I'm so terrified," repeated Steve McGarrett for the 49 billionth time since he had pulled into Danny's driveway, behind Dr. Cornett's 4-door Mercedes. The three men had met in the house, while Danny's kids and Dr. Cornett's daughters got ready for the dinner reservations at the covered outdoor lounge at the Hilton on Waikiki. They had gone for early reservations, so Charlie could be there for most of the night. He'd be sent home with his usual babysitter, who would be there at the dinner party until it was time for Charlie to go home.
Danny and the Doc took turns adjusting Steve's black bowtie. "Why?" asked Danny. "Just think about this favor we are doing for our future father-in-law, who wants to do something unexpected and romantic for his wife, our future mother-in-law. We want the points we'll get tonight from Sarah, right?"
The doc burst out with a laugh, the kind where you are glad you didn't just take a sip of water. "You will get points from Becca and Hannah, too. You'll do just fine! Why don't you ever call me Isaac?"
Ignoring that last question, Steve broke out his busted record again. "I'm so terrified, I'm so terrified, I'm so terrified! I have performance anxiety!"
Which reduced Danny and Doc almost to tears. "This isn't a high school guitar solo, and it isn't the other kind of performance, which you don't have any anxiety about. You'll do fine!" comforted Danny, trying not to let his own nerves get to him. He and Steve were as ready as they physically could get. "We just have to help Doc, and then make sure Becca and Hannah are happy. If you think of the look on her face, you'll settle down."
"We'll make the papers and all the news broadcasts and YouTube and God only knows what else!" wailed Steve.
"Along with Doc and a lot of other people. Nobody will bother with us schmucks," soothed Danny. But the truth was, he was on the verge of fidgeting and heading for the airport to grab any flight anywhere far far away, except that he was really looking forward to the look on Sarah's face, Hannah's face, Becca's face, and maybe even gaining some respect from his suddenly grown up daughter.
"Okay, men, let's make sure we have everything we need for tonight, and go pick up our ladies.
Steve let out one more strangled, "Terrified," before adding, "Valentine's Day is torture for men and Heaven for women, except for the people who just hate it on general principle."
Danny snorted. He agreed with Steve, having suffered through many Valentine's Day nightmares with first Rachel, then high daughter, then girlfriends, and now was spending his first with Becca, and he could only hope he met whatever expectations she might have. He thought about it, giving Steve a glance, and wondered if Steve had ever had much anxiety about Valentine's Day. You didn't have to get too romantic with someone who was only an occasional date, and Catherine Rollins hadn't been around that much even when she was Steve's lover. Maybe lack of Valentine's Day practice was the source of his terror, and of course Hannah's presence tonight.
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Three cars went in two directions. Dr. Cornett turned to head for his house, to pick up his wife of 30 years. Steve and Danny headed for the apartment Becca and Hannah shared, and where Danny would also pick up Grace and Charlie. They took separate cars in the hope of needing them after the dinner party broke up.
Danny's breath caught in his throat when he saw Becca and Grace. He thought Hannah looked really nice too, and was absolutely certain Steve would eventually remember to breathe and say something nice about her Holy Wowsa tomato red dress that screamed without being rude about it that SHE was thinking nice cross out naughtly things about Valentine's Day. But Danny had eyes only for Becca and Grace. Becca was in a floaty watercolor confection of white with soft, stylized roses painted on it, subtle and dreamy and making Danny's mouth go dry with the way it fit where it should and floated where it should and showed off an almost dangerous amount of leg. He'd have to be careful if he dipped her when they danced. Or swirled. Which made him wonder what kind of undergarments she was wearing, which was evict-able thinking since it made him very aware that he was entirely attracted to her in ways that could occasionally be embarrassing. And then she swirled for him to show off her dress, and he realized she had a Red. Formfitting. Slip. Under the dress, which confounded the daylights out of him because now he really wanted to know what was under that slip.
He shut that part of his brain down and presented her with a red rose wrist corsage, and was pretty sure he told her she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life, and he loved her. And then he turned to Grace, who had blossomed before his eyes and wore a pink dress that should have been innocent, and was about 90% innocent, except when did she look that enticing in a dress when she was going to spend the evening sitting next to Will Grover, and have that sparkle in her eyes? He gave her a pink rose wrist corsage, wondering if it was going to have competition with the one Will gave her? He was going to have to keep an eye on Will tonight. Hm. An unforeseen complication. He also decided he would have to speak to Becca about Grace and dresses, because this dress was what he probably should expect from now on, but he wasn't willing yet to allow her to go below 90% innocent. Not for another ten years.
Charlie blew Danny out of his reverie over the ladies in his life by making strangled sounds. "My tie is too tight! Why do I have to wear a tuskeedo?"
Danny finished kissing Becca and sparkling when he saw the look in her eyes, and murmured, "Tuxedo, and get used to it, Tiger, because men wear tuxedos on Valentine's Day. At least Lexi isn't around."
"I'm just a kid!"
"You are a boy kid and boys are males and males wear tuxedos on Valentine's Day, on special ones anyway. And this is a special one."
"Why?"
"Because it is, and other than that I am not saying, since you can't keep a secret to save your life," said Danny while his eyes had an entirely different and delightful conversation with Becca. Steve seemed to be having a similar one with Hannah.
Charlie harrumphed eloquently. "Since when? I can keep a secret!"
Danny sighed, and bent down to Charlie's eye level. "Remember the secret we had about the 'slingshot' grown males need when playing sports, and you promised not to tell anyone about using it to shoot rocks all over Steve's beach when I wasn't there, and you ended up telling the entire daycare all about it, because the mothers were there picking up All. Those. Other. Kids?"
Charlie's face showed that he remembered, vaguely. "I just forgot it was a secret."
Danny nodded. "I rest my case."
Steve, who had indeed kept breathing, and wasn't looking quite as nervous, unless it was a different kind of nervous, said, eyes only on Hannah, "Shall we leave now to make our reservation at the Hilton?"
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They had the best of the large tables reserved for large parties, right on the edge of the dance floor. The food was excellent, the wine didn't exactly flow, since Danny, Steve and Dr. Cornett were making their single glasses last. It was because they knew champagne would follow the surprise.
At 8:30, Charlie left with his sitter, Mrs. Wilcox, who had enjoyed the dinner and conversation which flowed around the table. Lou, Renee and Will Grover had joined them, as per plan, and as Danny suspected, Will and Grace were now chaperon-less now that Mrs. Wilcox had left with Charlie, who managed to eat a huge dinner while strangling (his words, not factually true) from his tuxedo tie. Sarah Cornett had noticed Danny's increasing agitation and took over the task while still seeming to pay the vast majority of her attention to her husband.
Dancing began at 8:30 p.m., not coincidentally the time Charlie was spirited home with Mrs. Wilcox. Fifteen minutes later Danny gave the signal, and he, Steve and the doctor excused themselves to the men's room. There, Steve went into full terrified mode again, and Danny almost did. But since Dr. Cornett was looking pale and sweaty, they gave up their personal terrors and got his courage back to where it needed to be. They snuck out of their hiding place and waited for the MC of the night to make the announcement of their surprise.
The native Hawaiian man who had that perfect Master of Ceremonies voice took the microphone, and called the music to a halt. "Enough of ukulele romance, we need something with a bit more umph to it, and I have it on good authority that a certain gentleman wishes to surprise his wife of thirty years. He will be aided by two men we all know on these islands. So, let us welcome to the floor," (which had been discreetly cleared by the junior MC), "Dr. Isaac Cornett and his co-performers, Commander Steve McGarrett and Detective Danny Williams! Mrs. Sarah Cornett, please take your place center edge of the dance floor."
Sarah was blushing and looking nervous and startled, until she caught her husband's eye. She was flanked by her daughters and Grace Williams, and accepted very graciously the huge bouquet of native flowers presented to her.
By then, the three "performers" had taken their places, the doctor flanked on either side by Steve and Danny.
The doc nodded to the out-of-sight DJ.
And then Beyonce's voice on recording filled the room.
"All the single ladies!"
And the woots followed almost immediately, as the three men did the choreography (almost) perfectly in specially made tuxedos to give extra stretch, since some of the moves could never have been done in a regular suit.
Phones came out and recorded the performance, and joy filled the room! By the hip slaps, the crowd was entirely in the palms of the "dancers'" hands, and they were enjoying performing. Sarah, Hannah, and Becca especially were enjoying it, and Grace could not make up her mind whether she was astonished or humiliated, and finally decided to just go with the fun. Her father could not have surprised her more if he had dyed his hair flaming pink!
The song hit the crescendo, the doc, Steve and Danny hit their final poses, feeding off the energy of the appreciative audience, they accepted thunderous applause, and then the doctor held his hands up for silence.
His speech to Sarah was touching, and eloquent. "I put a ring on it 30 years ago, but I think it's about time for a special follow-up ring, because this woman is my life, my soulmate, my lover, and my love. In this life, we need someone to see us through the good and the bad, to share whatever comes our way, and Sarah has been the perfect partner for me, the only woman I ever wanted to marry, and the one I hope to grow very old with."
He walked across the dancefloor and got down on one knee before his wife. He pulled out a ring box, and opened it to reveal an eternity band of heart-shaped diamonds. "Sarah, will you marry me again? I would love to renew our vows, and spend at least another thirty years with you, my dearest love."
Her response was to kiss him with an igniting passion fuel by all their years together, their happiness. The room erupted in applause, which lasted through the kiss(es) and for awhile afterwards.
Until Steve and Danny signaled the room back to silence, after giving the happy couple enough time to thoroughly enjoy their special moments.
"Hannah," said Steve. "Come to my side?"
"Becca," said Danny. "Come to my side?"
They did.
Steve went down on one knee before Hannah, while Danny went down on one knee before Becca.
"Hannah, would you make me the happiest man in the universe by marrying me?" Steve pulled out a ring-box, opened it to display the oval diamond flanked by two smaller sapphires on a gold band.
"Yes, Stiff!"
"Becca, will you marry me, my two children and my kitten?" The ring he displayed was a brilliant cut surrounded by smaller diamonds alternating with pearls.
"Yup! I sure will!"
It wasn't choreographed, but the rings went on their fingers in unison, and they kissed and swung their be-ringed soulmates around in matching circles, and Danny forgot all about Becca's red slip, which everyone watching got a good look at, including the internet audience once someone uploaded the video. The congratulations flowed with the champagne, and the happy couples got so many hugs and kisses, they lost track as their thoughts were only on their loves, and how completely happy Valentine's Day was. Until Danny finally caught Grace and Will kissing a little too exuberantly, just as Lou did, and they met at their offspring's sides and read them a watered-down riot act, considering how happy they were, and they both approved of the match, just not their ages.
They would have their day in the future, if they lasted. Everyone hugged everyone, and they returned to the stars of the night, who did indeed make a sensational YouTube hit!
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A/N: I hope you enjoyed this. Reviews and critiques are always welcome!