Steve could barely wait to see her. Waiting on Stacy and John to finish their visit was one of the most difficult things he'd ever done. When Stacy finally returned to the waiting room, Steve interrupted his conversation with an HPD officer to approach her.
"How is she?" He needed to know. ASAP. Or one hour ago. Anything besides waiting without any word one way or another. Patience was not one of his virtues.
His protectiveness hadn't gone unnoticed by Stacy. Over the last few days since Five-0 had taken over Shauni's security, Steve had been competent, efficient, and somewhat demanding. Even controlling…which had been an interesting thing to watch between him and Shauni who was not use to be told what to do. Stacy had noticed with interest how their interactions had changed somewhat since the afternoon outing at Steve's house when he had taken her away for some fun away from the prying lenses of paparazzi or fans. Shauni had seemed different when they returned. She was more relaxed and on the verge of "giddy", for lack of a better word. She seemed to always need to know where Steve was if he wasn't by her side. And there were a number of times Stacy had caught the two of them looking at each other with obvious attraction and interest in their eyes. When Stacy had pushed her for details, Shauni had only said they'd had fun at Steve's house and offered no further details.
Stacy thought it had to be more than just fun since Shauni had barely been able to put together a coherent thought that afternoon and evening. And honestly who could blame her? After the string of actors and other musicians Shauni had gone out with, no one had seemed to catch her interest like the handsome Steve McGarrett. He was driven. Controlling. Sexy. And he challenged her. No one ever challenged Shauni because she was the "star". Having someone who wasn't afraid to stand up to her or call her out on the crap she tried to pull at times was probably refreshing. Stacy could see how it turned her on when they went toe-to-toe. Yes, Steve McGarrett was the furthest thing from anyone in "the industry" that Shauni had ever met, so it was no wonder he was appealing to her. Not only did he challenge her, but he was also gorgeous. Any woman in her right mind would be weak-in-the-knees coming into contact with him.
There was no doubt Shauni had been distracted and her eyes had been searching for Steve at every turn. Stacy had never seen her boss & friend like this before. Seeing the concern on Steve's face as he asked about Shauni, Stacy was convinced there was "something" there.
"They say she'll be okay," Stacy answered Steve. He looked relieved but not completely convinced.
"Why don't you go back and see her." It was a statement, not a question. "She hasn't regained consciousness yet, but it may help for her to hear your voice."
Steve didn't need to be asked twice. He thanked Stacy and quickly made his way to Shauni's room. As he approached the door, John was coming out on a cell phone call. He motioned for Steve to enter.
Steve opened the door and walked in tentatively as he searched for Shauni. She was lying on the bed with an i.v. in her arm and a heavily bandaged shoulder. Had it not been for those things, she would almost look like she was just sleeping. Steve studied her sweet face peaceful in sleep as he walked to her bedside.
He had let her down. He was supposed to protect her and he'd let her down.
He moved a chair closer so he could sit down beside her and picked up one of her hands in his own. "Shauni, can you hear me? It's Steve. Can you open your eyes for me, sweetie?" He wasn't surprised when she didn't respond even though he'd been hopeful.
He felt a lump forming in his throat as he looked at her. He reached out to caress her cheek with his fingers, "I'm so sorry. I let you down….and I'm so sorry."
He didn't notice John reenter the room until he heard his voice behind him.
"This isn't your fault, you know."
Steve wasn't buying it. "How is it not my fault?" he sounded completely defeated…..totally unlike the confident and competent Navy SEAL John had known him to be that week. "I was supposed to protect her. It was my job to make sure this didn't happen and it did…..on my watch."
"She'd be dead if it wasn't for you and the quick action of your team, Commander. You did everything you could. Now, Carl Matthews is in custody, so we don't have to worry about him anymore. Right? "
Steve turned to give John a weak smile. "I guess that's one way to look at it. It would be better if we could've done that without her getting hurt, though."
John's phone rang again, so he excused himself to take the call. Before leaving the room, he squeezed Steve's shoulder. "Why don't you stay with her and just let me know when she wakes up, okay?"
"Don't worry. I'm not leaving again." Steve's eyes never left Shauni as John left the room to handle the media chaos that had erupted over the incident. By this time, every news station and celebrity magazine had heard what had happened and everyone was clamoring for an exclusive "in" on the story.
Steve stayed in the chair he had pulled close to Shauni's bedside and continued to hold her hand, willing her to wake up so he could hear from her lips that she was okay. Coming down from the adrenaline rush he'd experienced at having her nearly killed in front of him, exhaustion eventually overtook him and he feel asleep at her side. Never letting go of her hand.
*************h50********h50***********h50
Sometime later…
Steve felt Shauni squeeze his hand, almost imperceptibly at first, but there was definitely a weak grasp at his fingers as he held on to hers. Steve woke with a start as he realized she was definitely starting to stir. Her eyes were closed as he looked expectantly at her face.
"Shauni, wake up, sweetie. It's Steve." He reached out to caress her cheek again. "Can you open your eyes for me? Please?"
Shauni's eyes slowly fluttered open and Steve was so relieved he could have shouted with joy. Looking in to her beautiful eyes, he saw uncertainty there as she looked around the room trying to figure out where she was.
"Steve? What happened? Where am I?" She started to sit up, but grimaced in pain as that small movement took her breath away.
"Lie still, sweetie." He reprimanded her softly as he tried to gently push her back down. "You're in the hospital. Carl Matthews attacked you after your show tonight. He stabbed you twice and caused one of your lungs to collapse. Do you remember anything?"
Confusion made way to recollection as she remembered what had happened. "So that's why it hurts to breathe?" she asked and he shook his head in confirmation.
"I remember." Shauni looked at him sheepishly. "I did the Meet and Greet even though you didn't want me to. I told you I wouldn't do it….. and then I did it anyway." She was full of remorse and regret as tears quickly filled her eyes, "God, how could I be so stupid? I'm so sorry…."
"Hey….shhhhh. We'll talk about that later." Steve reached out to touch her hair as he smiled at her. "I'm just glad you're okay. Let's focus on getting you better so we can get you out of here. Okay?"
After a couple more minutes of talking to her and filling her in on what had happened, Steve excused himself briefly to let the doctor and others know she was awake. Stacy and John both made their way back in for brief visits as well as the members of her band. Everyone seemed to be breathing easier now that she was awake.
Before Steve could make his way in for another visit with her, he noticed that everyone around the nurse's station seemed a little more alert all of a sudden. The women, in particular, seemed to be anticipating something. Then, he realized why. They must have received a "head's up" because Mr. and Mrs. Derek Steele rounded the corner in search of their daughter. Steve had been around political figures and dignitaries many times. Even various Presidents. But he couldn't help but be a little star struck when he was about to come face to face with his childhood hero. Even at 55, Derek Steele still looked very much like the action hero Steve had grown up watching in movies. As the Steele's approached one of the nurses to inquire about their daughter, Steve walked up to them.
"Mr. and Mrs. Steele, I'm Commander Steve McGarrett. My team and I have been in charge of your daughter's security this week."
Recognition crossed their face as they recognized the name of the one who had been protecting their daughter during this leg of her tour. "Commander. It's wonderful to meet you." Derek's smile was genuine as he shook Steve's hand and introduced him to his wife, "This is my better half….my wife, Olivia."
She took Steve's hand as well, "I'm so pleased to meet you, Commander. I just wish it was under better circumstances." Steve didn't miss the look of concern on her face.
"Please call me Steve." Steve took a deep breath as guilty washed over his face again. "Please accept my apologies, Mr. and Mrs. Steele. I…..uh…I dropped the ball and put your daughter in danger. You'll never know how sorry I am that that happened."
Derek's face grew collectively serious and compassionate as he looked directly into Steve's eyes. "First of all, if we are going to call you by your first name, please do the same for us." His gaze softened as he smiled at Steve and continued, "And from what we hear, there was nothing you could have done. Our little girl has never been good at following directions. Especially when it comes to security. It sounds as if you did everything you could do to keep her safe. You are not at fault for the decisions she made to go against your advice. It was apparently her decision to sneak in for a Meet and Greet. Am I right? "
Steve swallowed the lump in his throat as he looked first to Olivia and then to Derek Steele, "I never should have left her, sir. Not for a second. If I wouldn't have left her, this never would have happened because I wouldn't have allowed her to go into that room in the first place."
Derek put a supportive hand on Steve's shoulder, "It's not your fault, son. You have taken great care of our daughter and for that I will always be grateful. Had it not been for the quick action of you and your team, she would be dead!" He paused for just a second letting the words sink in. "Now, tell me, how's our girl?"
Steve sighed in relief even though he still felt partially responsible for what had happened. "The doctor says she's lucky, but she should recover just fine. Follow me and I'll take you to her room and find the doctor for you."
Steve led them into Shauni's room and saw the relief on both of their faces as they saw their daughter was awake and smiling at something on of the band members was sharing with her.
"Momma and Daddy!" she looked like a little girl as she greeted her parents; not at all like the seductive songstress who had graced the stage a few hours earlier or the tempting "California girl" he had enjoyed at his house that afternoon with her carefree attitude and barely-there bikini. Steve found he was fascinated with every part of her personality as she interacted with people in her life. Seeing her parents enter the room, everyone excused themselves to allow them some time with her. As Steve turned to go, Derek stopped him. "You don't need to go, Command…..I mean, Steve." Derek smiled catching himself as he almost called him "Commander". "Please stay."
Olivia immediately went to embrace her daughter, followed by Derek.
"Oh, baby, we're so glad you're okay!" exclaimed Olivia as she kissed Shauni's cheek again.
Shauni looked at her parents. "It's because of Steve." She paused then to look at Steve. "I'm only okay because of him."
Derek crossed his arms over his chest, which was still substantially muscular, to look at his daughter; a combination of relief and scolding in his eyes. "Yes, well from what we hear, you didn't make that easy, young lady."
Shauni's eyes diverted downward. "I know, Daddy. You're right." Then looking back at Steve again, she continued, "I thought Steve was being overprotective. But he wasn't. I should have listened to him."
Olivia just dismissed it all, happy to have her daughter alive. "We can talk about all of this later, boys. For now, I'm just happy that my baby is alive. And I owe it all to you, Steve. How can we ever repay you?"
She looked at Steve, gratefulness evident on her face. He could only look at Shauni, his own relief that she was going to be okay evident on his face. Olivia Steele didn't miss a beat….Especially when it came to her daughters. Seeing the looks going between her daughter and the handsome Steve McGarrett, she smiled to herself and made mental note to talk to Shauni more about this in the very near future.