Kara is glad when she is finally able to be discharged from the hospital, they have kept her in this bed for the last two weeks and she is going stir-crazy. She's grateful to have so many people in her life that care about her and are willing to come and sit with her for a few hours to help pass the time.
Lena has been by her side for the better part of every day, only going home to sleep when Kara insists and uses her super-effective pout to get her own way. Just because she is stuck there, it doesn't mean that Lena should be too.
She has a considerable wound on her side, shrapnel from the explosion had caused a deep gash along her side, it will probably leave a nasty scar, but she is just grateful that it wasn't worse.
It very much could have been, if she was any closer, if she hadn't dived away at the last second, she would have more than just a few bruises and a bad cut.
On top of that cut, she has some moderate bruising to her torso and left leg, as well as a couple of superficial cuts to her face. Her lip is busted and there is a graze across her cheekbone that she is certain is healing much quicker than the rest of her injuries because Lena kisses it better for her every night before she settles down to sleep.
She happily lazes back into the wheelchair as Lena pushes her out of the doors of the hospital, a grin is plastered on her face. They are flanked by bodyguards on either side of them, watching everything around them with a suspicious eyes.
Kara can't help but tense up as they come up to the car waiting for them. Lena seems to sense her apprehension and gives her a loving squeeze on her shoulder. "It's ok, darling. I'm right here with you and the entire car has been thoroughly checked and there has been a guard inside it the entire time it has been parked.
She is a little embarrassed when she has to do a slow painful shuffle from the chair into the car, but Lena doesn't pay any mind to anyone else, simply wrapping her arm around her to take some of her weight and then buckling her in, despite her protests of independence.
She finds herself tucked into Lena's side as she counts the bodyguards, trying to guess just how many are actually there. She knows that Lena has probably hired some to blend in with the public too just in case the visible ones aren't enough.
She can see two up front, one driving and the other one using the mirror to keep an eye on them. There are two cars with theirs, one in front and one behind. She guesses that there are another three or four in each.
"I'm going to guess ten."
Lena smiles down at her. "Ten what?"
"Bodyguards. Two with us and then four in the two other cars."
When she hears Kara's explanation her smile grows even bigger and give kisses her forehead. "You're cute. We have two with us and then three in one car and four in the other. We also have a team of twelve surrounding the house when we get there."
"What house?" Kara was under the impression that they were going back to the penthouse.
Lena bites her lip, her genius brain working on overdrive to break the news as gently as possible. "I own a house that is better suited for protection than my penthouse."
Kara can sense that there is more to this than Lena is saying, her reporter senses are tingling. "And you owned this house all along?"
"I…erm.." Lena stutters, knowing that she struggles to lie to Kara.
"Please tell me you didn't buy a house just for me, it's too much, Lena." The words cause a noticeable drop in Lena's mood. It's like someone just told her that every puppy in the world just got kicked.
Lena gathers herself for a second, putting on her CEO persona to avoid showing emotions. "The house is a temporary measure, after that it will be a good piece of real estate that can be rented out."
"Don't do that." Kara hates it when Lena shuts down, she hadn't meant to make Lena feel self-conscious about her decisions, she's just wary of how it will look to the public when Lena offers her everything she could get her hands on, just because she can.
It's not only that, but she also feels incredibly selfish to accept everything that Lena can give and willingly gives because she pales in comparison. What can she truly offer the woman who has everything?
"Do what?" Lena's arm is still around her shoulder but now it is completely stiff, the stress building in Lena's body and weighing down her bones.
"Don't shut down, I'm not criticizing you. I just want the truth and we will have an open and honest conversation from there." Kara keeps her tone light and gentle like she is talking to a skittish little dog about to run away at any second.
Lena pants in short breaths as she forces her muscles to relax. Whilst she really knows that Kara is just trying to bring up a valid point, one of her greatest weaknesses is being put down by the people she loves so she gets defensive at the mere sniff of negative talk.
"I'm sorry. I don't mean to clam up." It's said through gritted teeth, but Kara can still tell that it's sincere, so she takes it as a win.
Kara takes the hand that rests on her shoulder with one of her own and twists her head enough so that she can place a soft kiss to her palm. "Don't worry about it, baby. We'll talk it all over when we're not sat in the back of a car."
Kara's certain that she saw the barest hint of a nod, so she lets herself relax back into Lena's side again. It seems to affect Lena too, her own body relaxing as she presses back into Kara's weight, balancing them out.
There is no way for Kara to be sure of how far away the house is from the hospital or where exactly they are since they both dozed off in the back of the car, the gentle bumps going a long way to helping them drift off.
"Excuse me...excuse me, madams?"
Lena isn't sure of how long the guard had been attempting to wake them, the young man seemingly too afraid to nudge them awake in fear of reprimand for unnecessary physical contact.
Lena thanks the man gruffly, the acknowledgement is enough for him to take his leave and take his station a few feet away from them. With a hushed tone and a gentle stoke to Kara's cheek, Lena coaxes her awake, cautious to not shock her, so she doesn't jolt her injuries.
Kara does grumble for a second at being woken up but does shuffle half-heartedly to the side of the car where Lena is setting up her wheelchair. "I can walk, I don't need the chair."
Lena hits her with a stern look. "You can only make short trips, the doctor told you to rest as much as possible so come on."
Kara simply sighs and carefully clambers out of the car and into the chair, there is no point in arguing with Lena, when it comes to her health, Lena will always advocate for what is best for her whether Kara likes it or not because Lena doesn't care for her pride when her physical well-being is on the line.
A couple of the bodyguards have already taken their bags up to the house for them and are now just on guard, keeping a close eye on the women as Lena pushes Kara along the long paved driveway to the house.
Kara noses around as she gets closer to the house, happy with the tall trees surrounding the property for privacy and the fancy brickwork on what appears to be a relatively modest house. She acquests that she will probably be staying here a while and that it doesn't look like a terrible place to be staying…at all.
"The house is nice." Kara waves the white flag on the house disagreement they just had. "I like the garden."
Lena simply keeps on manoeuvring them toward the house, not saying a word. Unbeknownst to Kara, her words are bringing a smile back to her girlfriend's face.
The porch steps force Kara out of her wheelchair and into Lena's stabilising arms. A hand is snaked around her waist and holds her just so. Her other hand is rattling the doorknob, trying to click the stiff lock open.
As the door swings open with a gentle thud to the wall behind it, Lena goes to move her hand from Kara's waist so she can get her wheelchair from the bottom of the steps, but Kara stops her, holding her hand in place and continuing to walk into the house.
"I'm ok, I want to have a proper look around without you having to push me all of the way."
Lena really wants to protest but the fire in Kara's eyes, the way her jaw is set, and her eyebrows are furrowed tells her that she hasn't got a chance in hell of getting her back in that wheelchair right now unless she is willing to physically force her to. "Just take it slow, darling."
The use of the pet name puts Kara at ease, not just because she loves hearing Lena say it so much but also because it means that Lena is letting her walls back down again. She needs to be careful with what she says about the house, she knows that sometimes the only way Lena knows to show her love is to solve every possible problem she can think of and throw much more money into it than anyone can comprehend.
With little shuffling steps they make their way through the house, Lena pointing out little things here and there. She is really trying to sell the house to Kara without being too obvious about it, acting as nonchalant as she can as she purposely draws Kara's attention to things that Kara has mentioned she would want in a home.
"There is a window seat in the living room and the second bedroom."
Kara gasps excitedly. "That's so cool, Alex and I had one in our bedroom in Midvale, and they are the perfect spot for some light reading."
"Really? I actually think that I vaguely remember you mentioning that before." Lena plays dumb but Kara sees right through it and she doesn't think that Lena could be any cuter if she tried.
Kara doesn't make it upstairs before the pain becomes a little much and she needs to sit down so she gets Lena to help her to the couch in the living room. "I like it so far. How long do you think we'll have to stay here?"
Lena settles down next to her, pulling her legs up onto the couch with her, "until the case is closed, I would assume. The police and the FBI are involved since the explosion and all of your information on the article had to be handed over."
Kara nods thoughtfully. "Right. That could be a while then."
"I would guess so."
"What about my job?"
Lena shuffles closer so their knees are brushing, and their hands can clasp together. "Your job will be waiting for you when you get back, Cat made sure of it. You're not allowed to actually write anything at the minute that can be published though in case you accidentally give anything away about your location."
Lena can practically see the cogs turning in Kara's head.
"Baby?"
"Yeah?"
"I think I'm going to go stir-crazy."
Lena tries her best, she really does but the way Kara said it with so much dread makes her bark out a laugh. "I guess I'll just have to try my very best to keep you entertained."
"Yes, you will." Kara smiles as she says it, but her face turns more serious after a few seconds. "Can we talk about what happened in the car?"
Lena visibly shrinks back into herself but doesn't release Kara's hands.
"Yes, we can but first I need to apologise. I put my walls up instead of taking accountability for buying a whole house like it's nothing and then dumping it in your lap and not expecting a negative reaction. It was on me."
Kara is getting whiplash from the stone-cold Lena turning into a lovable apologetic Lena. She is very grateful though that Lena is willing to now have an open chat about the house.
"I don't want you to be sorry, Lena. I know that you did it with good intentions and I was too harsh in the car and for that, I am sorry too. I was just shocked."
Lena is currently thanking every god she can think of that she has the most understanding and kind girlfriend on the planet. She never fails to put her mind at ease or help her work through tough situations.
"I appreciate that, but I really should have spoken to you first."
Kara rubs her thumb over Lena's hand in what she hopes is a comforting gesture. "Yeah, you should've but it's done now so why don't you tell me all about the house and explain what you were thinking about when you bought it and we'll go from there, together this time?"
Lena can't resist the pull of her lips as a smile forces its way onto her face and Kara happily returns the gesture.
They spend the next couple of hours simply chatting, Lena telling her all about the house and how she purposely chose this house because it has lots of features that she knows Kara will love but she doesn't mention how she is hoping that one day they could possibly call this their shared home. Some things she is pretty sure that she should keep to herself…for now at least.
Kara was right. It's been less than a week and she is already going stir-crazy. It's not so bad when Lena is with her but during the day when she is at L-Corp, a posse of bodyguards in tow, Kara feels like she is going to lose her mind.
Lena keeps on bringing her files that Cat sends her because she's still injured so she isn't really leaving the house much. The most she's able to do is go for a brief stroll around the garden but even then she is surrounded by bodyguards so she can't really relax.
The investigation is coming along slowly, they almost have enough proof now to write the article and send it to print but there is still a huge security risk with the whole thing, the police are still looking into it but haven't yet concluded whether or not it had anything to do with the case, so they aren't doing anything about Lord. As far as they know, they haven't even spoken to the guy.
Kara is now sitting in the living room with her files spread out across the coffee table as she sips her coffee with indulgence, simply going over all of her information and organizing it ready for when she writes her article so she can make it as clear as possible.
Cat is handling a second article to come out beside it that will detail exactly what has happened to her and how she was targeted because of her excellent snooping skills.
Kara flips over her page just as her phone chimes, signalling a text. With a quick glance over she sees it's a text from Alex asking her to meet her down by the front gate on the property, so she heaves herself up from where she was sitting on the floor, leaning back into the couch and making her way there.
She takes the walk down the driveway with a steady pace, whilst she is recovering well, she still has some pretty bad injuries that will take longer than a few weeks to heal fully, especially the gash she has in her side, the stitches are doing a great job at keeping her held together but it is still remarkably tender.
Alex has parked just inside the gate and is now leaning against the passenger side door whilst chatting jovially to the security guards down at the entrance. She waves her arrival and takes great comfort in the tight hug Alex wraps her up in immediately.
"Ready for an excursion, sis?" Alex holds the passenger door open for her and beckons her inside.
"I didn't know we were going anywhere. What do you have planned?" Kara eagerly jumps in the car anyway, as nice as the house is, she wants to see something else.
She has her seatbelt buckled before Alex could even make it around to her side of the car and is practically buzzing in her seat as she waits for her to get in and start the engine.
Alex doesn't disclose where they are going for quite some time, she simply drives and throws gentle smiles her way in between peeking through her mirrors and watching the road. Eventually, she lets it slip. "We're going to your old place to look for clues. I managed to get clearance for us to break and enter, one of the perks of a government job."
That brings a smile to Kara's face, she's been longing to find out more about her loft since she couldn't get back inside before. "And why all of the mysterious mystery?"
"I had to lose your bodyguards, it was easier than I expected it to be."
Now, that does take Kara by surprise, leading to her whipping her head around in search of the car with the guards in it that were meant to be following them.
"You do realise that I'm going to have Lena blowing up my phone any minute now, don't you?" Kara fixes her with a displeased look.
Alex shrugs nonchalantly. "Do you want me to pull over and let them catch up? I can do that, but they won't let you anywhere near that place and you know it."
"Just drive, make it worth my while."
"Yes ma'am." Alex presses her foot down a little more, cruising them across town.
Kara enjoys the shift in atmosphere, she hadn't realised how quickly she had become accustomed to being watched all of the time. She really does appreciate the effort and the intent Lena has with the security but it is a bit smothering so she is going to enjoy today as much as she can before she lets Lena lock her back up in a tower.
Speak of the devil, her phone is now buzzing insistently. "Looks like Lena knows we lost the guards."
"Are you going to answer?" Alex inquires, sneaking a glance over.
Kara answers her question with a sigh and presses the green button. "Hey."
Alex can hear Lena's voice raising in pitch through the phone and is immediately worried for her poor sister's eardrums.
"I know, I'm with Alex and we'll be fine. I'll meet you back at the house in a few hours."
That doesn't go over well, Lena's demands for her to tell her where she is fall upon deaf ears as Kara just talks over her.
"Sorry, babe. Have a lovely day at work, see you later, bye!"
The phone goes down and then Kara shuts it off quickly, knowing that if she doesn't then Lena's next step would be to track it.
Alex squeezes her knee reassuringly. "You're gonna get it when you get home."
"I know."
"It's because she loves you that she's being so protective," Alex says as they pull up in front of Kara's old building.
Kara doesn't respond right away. "Just because I love her doesn't mean she loves me back, it's still early days, Alex, and I don't want to put too much on her too fast."
Alex rushes to her side to help her out of the car even though Kara is more than capable of getting out herself. "I honestly don't think you have to worry about that, you both make each other so very happy, and you love so hard that I don't think either of you could scare the other off in a million years. Besides, I already told you that she once admitted her love for you to me ages ago."
"I'll keep that in mind."
Alex leads them around to the metal fire exit staircase and takes the lead in heading up, keeping track of the boarded-up windows until they reach what would have been Kara's loft.
Kara didn't even notice that Alex had a backpack on until she was pulling out a crowbar and prying off the boards. It takes a little bit of time, but Alex doesn't let her have a turn despite her offering numerous times.
It comes off with a bang when it hits the floor which makes them both jump slightly before Alex pulls out her keys. Kara looks at her confusedly when she fits a key in the lock.
"It's a good job I still have the keys to this window. I used to smoke a little in college when I lived here so I had the key on me and just never remembered to give it back. It serves to be rebellious and forgetful."
The window is a little stiff from lack of use, but they manage to get in with no real issues. Alex crawls through first and then a hand is offered to steady Kara as she follows.
The first thing they both notice is the lack of water in there now, they were both privately hoping that would be the case but didn't want to say it aloud in case they accidentally jinxed themselves.
The backpack must be magical because where the crowbar went in, out came two flashlights. They are good ones too, lighting up the small loft with ease.
They were both expecting the place to still be filled with Kara's stuff that she left behind, but everything was gone, right down to the rugs she had across the floor. It's completely barren of everything.
"I don't understand why they would get rid of all of my stuff instead of letting me take it." Kara tries to keep the sadness out of her voice, but she hasn't really let herself process everything that happened and being back here is really kicking her ass.
Alex can hear the restrained tears in her voice and her body acts on pure sisterly instincts. Kara is wrapped up in a tight comforting hug before she can say anything else. "I'm sorry, Kara. I don't think it was a matter of not letting you have it, I think it was a matter of someone else wanting it."
"You think Lord took it?"
Alex pulls back slightly and wipes away a couple of rogue tears from her sister's face. "I do. I think he orchestrated the whole thing and took it all so he could look through everything. It makes sense with how quickly everything happened, this place was already shut the day after, and your landlord is completely missing. It's fishy."
Kara nods along. "Alright, let's take a look around for clues to see if we can prove your theory."
With a playful tap to the top of her head, Alex moves away from her to head for the kitchen whilst Kara takes the bedroom.
It feels strange walking around here when there is no furniture, the place has completely lost all of its life and joy that it used to hold. What was once one of the most comforting places to Kara, is now just a hollow creepy shell.
She paces around and lets her eyes flit about the place in a desperate search to find something so they can hurry up and leave.
"I can't find anything, can you?"
"Yes and no."
Kara sighs, she is not in the mood for cryptic Alex. "Just explain.
Alex clears her throat before setting off into her explanation. "There are no marks from the furniture being dragged out, the water would have made the floorboards especially prone to any damage from heavy furniture being dragged across it."
"What does that mean?"
"They used a moving company, most likely an overnight one, which will help us narrow down which one it was so we can find out where they took it all."
"Alex, I could kiss you."
"Please don't."
Instead, she settles for another hug before heading back over to the window. Alex is right behind her, happy to be leaving too, it's just way too strange to be there now so neither of them wants to linger just for the sake of it.
They don't say much in the car on the way back to the house, only agreeing that Alex would find out about the moving company for her whilst she is tasked with cooling the temper of her very worried girlfriend.
Lena is waiting for them at the gate when they pull in and based on her demeanour, she has been pacing for a long time already.
Kara is pounced on immediately, the car door is ripped open, and she is pulled into Lena's waiting arms. "I was so worried about you, don't ever do that to me again."
Alex joins them into the house for the explanation of where and what they found. As much as Lena hates that they went there without any security, she does have to admit that they wouldn't have this lead if they didn't because they wouldn't have been allowed to go there in the first place.
Lena finds herself spooning Kara on the couch after Alex leaves and takes the moment to discuss her worries very gently. "I get scared when you don't have security with you, I'm terrified of what will happen if you get hurt again."
Kara wants to argue that she doesn't need to be watched all the time and that it is unnecessary but in her gut, she knows it's the right choice and at times, it does make her feel more secure too. "I know, I will discuss any other outings with you before they happen, and you will get a personal invite. Today was not planned, but it was needed. I need time away from all of this too."
Lena hums in acknowledgement then kisses the back of her neck with gentle lips. "I'll find a way to get you some more time away from this place, so you don't feel so smothered, I know it's all a lot and just way too much. We can't back down over your safety though."
"That's all I ask, baby. I just want you to try and I really appreciate everything you've done, I don't want to seem ungrateful." Kara turns over so she is still in Lena's arms but now in the perfect position to kiss her on her perfect lips.
"I know you're not ungrateful, darling, but if you do want to say thank you then I've heard the bedroom is the perfect place for that."
Kara raises a playful eyebrow. "Really? I guess we should go check it out then."
"We really should." Lena kisses her soundly in between giggles as they make their way up to the bedroom.
Lena wakes to her arms full of her very attractive girlfriend.
Kara is still fast asleep enjoying being the little spoon and having Lena's comforting heat against her back and her possessive arm around her waist. Lena dots little kisses along her bare shoulder, basking in the soft joy of holding the woman she loves, not that she is ready to admit that out loud quite yet.
She spends this time with Kara simply holding her and thinking about everything. About how she almost lost her and how much danger she is in and how much she just wants to hide her away from the world to protect her despite Kara's growing annoyance at the lack of privacy.
It had scared her half to death when she got the phone call that Kara and Alex had left, and the security was unable to track them, but every bit of that worry was worth it when she saw the spark back in Kara's eyes when she revealed their new lead.
The woman is built to report, she lives and breathes it, and she sees now that she was getting in the way of that, Kara needs the opportunity to carry on with her normal life as much as she possibly can, within limits, of course.
Lena is going to see if she can organise for an office to be cleared for her at L-Corp, that way she can continue to work and have somewhere to go every day. The security at CatCo was completely compromised, and the footage was erased permanently long before they could pull it so sending her back there in the meantime is a bad idea.
She is startled a little when Kara suddenly turns over in her arms, her eyes open and looking at her with a fond twinkle.
"Good morning, darling." Lena kisses her chastely on the lips then rests their foreheads together.
"Hm, good morning yourself."
They spend several minutes laying together and welcoming the sun across their skin from the large balcony window of the master bedroom.
Eventually, Kara's rumbling tummy forces them up and showered so they can make a start on breakfast.
"So, what are the plans for the weekend?" Kara questions, pouring coffee into Lena's favourite mug for her, the one with the periodic table on the side that Kara had got her as a 'just because' gift a few months back.
Lena happily takes the mug from her, breathing in the scent of her morning caffeine leisurely. "Well, I was thinking that we could either work on the case together or…"
"Or…what?" Kara is intrigued and it shows very plainly on her face.
"Or, we haven't had a chance to try out the hot tub yet and it would be a shame to let it go untested."
As much as Kara wants to work on the case, a relaxing day in the hot tub does sound good, especially since she feels more refreshed anyway thanks to her outing with Alex yesterday and then her night with Lena. "I suppose it would be a shame to overlook it."
"I was hoping you'd say that. Breakfast first though?"
"Breakfast always first." Kara laughs, already pulling the bacon out ready to cook.
They eat together at the dining table for the first time since they moved into the house. Lena has been so busy the last week that she has been here a lot less than she would like to be but there wasn't much she could do except power through. It was certainly a powerful motivator to get home knowing that Kara was waiting for her.
"Are you feeling alright after last night? Are your stitches still good?" Lena asks between bites, double-checking with Kara despite checking on her last night before they went to sleep.
"Yeah, I'm fine. You were very careful, and it was appreciated." Kara smirks at her, remembering their late-night activities. "In fact, you probably could have been a little rougher and I would still be fine."
That causes Lena's signature eyebrow raise to come to fruition. "Hm, I'll keep that in mind for later on."
"Please do." Kara matches her smouldering look with one of her own but when Lena throws a sexy smirk into the mix she can't help but blush and duck her head.
When they moved in, Lena really thought of everything. She replaced a lot of the items that Kara lost before she had even thought of them and had even expanded her wardrobe for her, going as far as to hire a stylist to pick out similar clothing styles to what Kara likes to wear so she doesn't have to worry about going shopping herself.
Having the house set up was the perfect project to keep Lena's mind at bay and stopping her from going over the edge whilst Kara was in the hospital so she can't blame herself for going a little bit overboard in places.
The things that they had managed to salvage from Kara's loft before everything crazy started happening, Lena had personally placed around the house to try and make it feel a little bit homier and to bring an air of comfort around the place.
Seeing Kara's belongings mixed with her own is always a welcome sight, Lena sometimes allows herself, just for a minute, to picture this as their marital home. Kara and herself, spending cold winter nights by the fireplace in the living room and cooking Sunday brunches together in the kitchen.
She always wonders if Kara has thought about it too, she wonders if she also lets herself daydream and wonder but always cuts herself off before she can linger on the thought, the relationship is still new, even if the feelings are not.
She has to admit though, their relationship has been expedited by everything that has happened in the past weeks and the level of comfort they are able to bring each other is undeniable. She can feel the way Kara relaxes when she holds her, and she is familiar with the sensation of her stress and anxiety leaving her when she has her love in her arms.
Lena rifles through the dresser for bikinis, fairly convinced that she has seen them somewhere when Kara strolls in carrying towels. "What's taking so long slow poke?"
"Just looking for…ah hah!" Lena pulls out the bathing suits with a flourish, holding them in the air triumphantly. "As much as I would enjoy going in with a little less clothing, the security guards will not be given that privilege today."
Kara nods along with a giggle. "I wholeheartedly agree, but you better still wear that red one."
Kara takes the red one from the pile in her hands and holds it up, humming contentedly as she holds it in front of her girlfriend.
Lena snatches it back and tosses it onto the bed then rifles through the few in her hands before she settles on a white backless one piece and dangles it from her finger. "I'll wear that one if you wear this one."
"You've got yourself a deal, Ms Luthor." Kara takes it from her, leaning in for a kiss.
They separate after a series of short slow kisses and start to get changed. It takes them back to their days of friendship where they snook little glances at each other appreciatively whilst they were getting changed, never daring to let their gazes linger for a second too long so they don't let on what they are really feeling.
Lena's gaze pauses on the stitches on Kara's side, she'd spent plenty of time kissing delicately around the area last night to show her love and her tender side, but it still takes her breath away to see it.
It still causes her heart to ache at how close she was to losing Kara, the three weeks that she was in a coma were the longest of her life and she doesn't think she could possibly go through that again.
"Kara."
Kara raises her head to look up at Lena. "Yeah?"
"You look hot." It's the only thing Lena could think of to say short of professing her undying love, but it definitely isn't a lie. That bathing suit is absolutely stunning on her, not that she wouldn't be stunning in literally anything. This woman could wear a garbage bag and still look cute at the very least.
With their towels wrapped securely around them, they head down to the hot tub and climb in, settling into the warm jets and sighing at the sensation.
"Now this, this is what I'm talking about." Kara breathes out, stretching her arms out around the sides and sinking a little bit further under the water.
Lena chuckles at her but also sinks into the lovely, hot water. "Did I just create a monster? Am I going to find you in here every day?"
"Quite possibly."
Lena grasps onto Kara's ankle softly and pulls the other woman over to her until she is straddling her legs in the water whilst she is sitting on the inbuilt bench. "Come closer."
Kara's thighs tense around Lena's own and she ducks down to kiss her languidly as her arms warp around her shoulders with a loose grip. "I don't think I can get much closer."
"Try anyway." Lena's own grip on Kara's hips tightens and their kiss turns into an impromptu hug. "I've missed you this week. I'm sorry I couldn't be here more, I know it's been rough."
"For both of us, don't apologize when you've had it bad too, you couldn't help it." Kara kisses up the side of her neck, grasping her hair loosely to tip her head and give herself more room. She thoroughly enjoys the little gasp as she runs her tongue against her favourite neck freckle and sucks her mark into her skin.
Lena acknowledges her statement with a low hum and tilts her head the opposite way to give her access to the other side of her neck. "It won't be crappy for too long, we'll figure it all out, we'll just have to put our heads together and come up with a plan."
"Oh! I forgot to mention, I was thinking about how to find out who the mole is." Kara's head springs up from Lena's neck, making the cold breeze tickle her rapidly cooling flesh.
Lena sinks them down further to make up for the temperature change. "How so?"
Kara clears her throat. "Well, since it is someone I trust, I'll just tell each person at CatCo that I would normally tell about any potential leads and where I'll be, but I'll tell each one a different location. Wherever the creepy people show up to take another shot, that will lead back to the mole."
"That doesn't sound very safe." Lena is immediately unsure about this plan, it could potentially put Kara in a lot more danger.
Kara slips her knee and to the side of her but angles her body so they are still somewhat facing each other. "Well, I wouldn't actually go to any of the places, we'd just set up surveillance of some kind and if anything sketchy happens then we'll have our answer. The most dangerous part would be going to CatCo but with the bodyguards and my badass girlfriend with me, that shouldn't be a problem."
Kara can practically see the cogs turning in Lena's head as she thinks it over. "I suppose it could work, we'll be taking all possible safety measures though."
"Deal. Now, how about I go grab some wine?"
Kara is about halfway standing when Lena pulls her back down. "I'll go, you sit back and relax, darling."
The sight is very much appreciated as Lena stands to leave the hot tub. The water runs down her back, reflecting the light through the drops and making her skin shine in a way that makes Kara long to trace her lips across every inch of her for the rest of eternity.
It amazes her how she can spend a week caught up in knots but one day Lena has her all straightened out today with her unwavering support and inability to break her heart. Kara genuinely believes that Lena couldn't break her heart if she tried, she doesn't have it in her.
Kara has her head tilted back against the side of the pool, her eyes closed and her toes wiggling in the water slightly. She is completely relaxed and happy. She opens her eyes again when she hears the door close softly, expecting her love to be on her way back.
As her head is tilted back and her vision is upside down, she spots something strange. There is a birdbath just across the garden next to the flowerbed and from this angle, she can just make out something stuck to the underneath of it.
She is standing and out of the hot tub just as Lena returns with two glasses in hand. "Hey, what are you doing? Do you have to pee?" Lena questions her as she wraps a towel around herself loosely and begins her trudge across the lawn barefooted.
"Hold on, I just thought I saw something." Her response doesn't make Lena feel any better and she is hot on her heels.
"Let me get the guards to look, come back in the house." Lena tries to convince her, but her reporter instincts have kicked in and she is in full investigative mode.
Kara marches right up to the bird bath and skims her fingers underneath it until she finds what she had seen stuck underneath it before. With a harsh tug, she pries it free, wobbling the structure slightly so the water sloshes over the edge.
It's small, it fits into the palm of her hand easily and it's solid black. "Is this one of our security cameras?"
Lena takes it from her hand and clicks the SD card out of it. "No, but I'm going to find out who put it there. We need to get the guards to do a full sweep of the house, if there is one camera, there will likely be more, come on."
Lena takes her hand and leads her back into the house. Maybe today won't be as relaxing as she had hoped.