"Mommy, can I have my juice?" Max asked quietly as he played with his fire truck toy on the living room floor. Kensi was sitting on the floor with him.
"Its on the table, do you think you can reach it?" Max was only a few days over three years old, but he was growing like a weed.
"I can do it!" he declared, getting up off of the floor and running to the table. Kensi got up to follow him, worried her little man may not actually be able to reach it.
Suddenly she heard the door click and open, and paws hit the floor. Max darted to the door to attack his pup with a big embrace.
Deeks found her in the living room. "All clear from the vet this year," he said, pulling her into his side and kissing her temple.
"I love you," she said.
"I love you too, babe," he whispered.
They hadn't noticed that Max was standing in the doorway after his initial excitement of seeing Monty. Often, Max noticed everyday intimate moments between his parents, but he doesn't understand what they mean. He's heard them say the word love, he's even said it back to them. But he doesn't understand what it means. His Mommy and Daddy say it an awful lot, to each other and to him.
Shyly, he peeps his head around the corner and asks, "Mommy? Daddy? What does wuv mean?"
They both look at each other, dumbfounded for just a moment. How to explain such a word? Such a word that has so much meaning, depth, importance.
Deeks grabs Kensi and pulls her down on the couch with him, and pats his leg for Maxwell to hop up into his lap. Max does, but finds the little space in between his Mom and Dad.
"You wanna know what love is, buddy?" Deeks asked. He nodded, grinning his signature grin.
"When you care about someone more than anything else on the planet, that's how you know you love them. You give them lots of hugs and kisses," he said, pressing a quick kiss onto Kensi's lips. His lips find the top of his son's head, and he kisses it too.
"When you always want the best for someone. When you love someone, you always look out for them. You cuddle with them, and play with them too," Kensi said, squishing in, pushing Max up against his father's side until he giggled. They realize how hard the concept is to explain.
Max's giggling subsides. He thinks again. "Wuv is really happy, I think."
Kensi smiles. "Yes, love is really really happy."
"Wuv is like," he says, starting to use his l sounds, "when Daddy reads me a story? And when Mommy plays fire trucks with me?"
Deeks nods. "Yep, it definitely is little man."
He turns around, and points to Kensi. "You love me." He repeats it, pointing to Deeks."
Then he dives into Deeks' chest. "I love you, Daddy." After a long hug, he repeats the process of slamming into Kensi's chest. "I love you too, Mommy."
"We love you, Max," she whispers into his ear.
"More every single day," Deeks says.
Max giggles wildly, and Deeks begins to tickle him. Kensi's heart swells with joy. She's never felt quite loved this much in her entire life.