Someone asked for another story with Mel and our favourite navy seal from Hawaii. Here it is. I hope you like it.

Chapter 1

Mel was once again on her way to Düsseldorf. The real estate agent had contacted her. There was a buyer for the house and she had to appear in person at the notary to sign the contract. Steve was in the middle of a case, and he would have liked to accompany Mel. So he merely took her to the airport.

For a long time he held her in his arms.

"I miss you already."

"Me too."

"Give my love to your family, Mattes and Chris."

She pressed one last kiss to his mouth, then picked up her small travel bag and walked through the checkpoint. Steve looked after her with an uneasy feeling. He had not yet forgotten what had happened last time in Düsseldorf. When she turned to him once more, he sent one last air kiss after her. Then he slowly walked back to the exit, got into the Silverado and drove to Danny's HQ. His thoughts were still with Mel. Once at HQ, he sent Mattes a text message asking him to keep an eye on Mel. Less than a minute later came his reply that he would, of course. A little calmer, Steve now turned to their current case, but not without texting his girlfriend a few words first.

Sadly, Mel looked out the window and saw the airport disappear from her field of vision. Fortunately, she wouldn't be staying long. She checked her hotel reservation again to make sure everything had worked out. Cillian had offered that she could sleep with them, but Mel didn't want to be a burden to anyone, especially since space at her brother's was limited. Darragh, at thirteen, had reached the middle of puberty and was reluctant to give up his room, and Teagan, at ten, was now her own as far as her room was concerned. There was no guest room and so Mel preferred to go to a hotel, then she could also escape the chaos if it became too much for her.

Just as she was about to put her phone in flight mode, another text message arrived.

'I love you and miss you already.' She quickly typed another reply.

'Me you too, see you in a few days.' Then she turned off the cell phone.

Mel trudged grumpily through Frankfurt airport. Her plane had been diverted because Düsseldorf airport could not be approached due to snow and ice. In the airport terminal, she tugged her winter jacket out of her travel bag. How she hated the cold, wet German winters. In the past, they had often gone to Ireland with her parents in winter; the climate there was somehow more pleasant, even in winter. In a bad mood, she pulled her luggage toward the long-distance train station to get from there to Düsseldorf. That would cost her time. She took out her cell phone and called the hotel to check in later.

"Frau Dr. You should consider staying the night in our hotel at the long-distance train station, we can gladly rebook you. Everything is coming to a standstill in Düsseldorf right now, not even the cabs are getting through to us."

Mel didn't think twice.

"Alright, thank you very much. Then please rebook me. Is there any prediction yet when it will get better?"

"Unfortunately no, your best bet is to call back tomorrow morning and I'm sure there will be an update."

"Thank you very much, I will. See you tomorrow."

Mel hung up and wrote to her brother and Steve that she was stranded in Frankfurt. How good that she had planned enough time, the appointment with the notary was only in a few days.

Searching, she reoriented herself and made her way to the hotel. The reception was overcrowded, apparently more people were trying to get a room here for the night. Mel had to watch as some travelers left the lobby shaking their heads and grumbling. Sure of her booking, she first went to the hotel's attached café and ordered herself something to drink. She sat down so that she could keep an eye on the reception desk, and when the crowds had finally died down, she paid for her coffee and then went back to the lobby.

As she stepped closer, she could already see the receptionist preparing for the next bad-tempered traveler. Mel wasn't happy about her unplanned stopover either, but ruining the day for others was out of the question for her. She approached the woman behind the counter with a friendly smile.

"Melia Kinsella, there should be a rebooking for me from Düsseldorf?"

The receptionist nodded.

"Yes, Dr. Kinsella, it has arrived. It's a king size room though, I hope you don't mind?"

Mel shook her head.

"No, that's ok. The main thing is to have somewhere to rest my tired head."

The receptionist smiled and handed her a card.

"Please take the elevator to the left and then to the third floor. I wish them a pleasant stay."

"Thank you."

Mel accepted the card and said goodbye in the direction indicated. Once in her room, she just put her bag in the corner and dropped onto the large bed. Shortly after, she was asleep.

When she woke up, it had already become dark and thick snowflakes were dancing against the windows of her hotel room. Mel glanced at the clock. 7:00 p.m., she could certainly still get something to eat in the restaurant. I wonder if they had frankfurter schnitzel here. She grabbed her backpack and headed down to the first floor. Outside the restaurant, she hesitated briefly. It had been ages since she had gone out to eat alone. But then hunger made her enter the restaurant after all. On the menu, she even found the advertised schnitzel with green sauce and fried potatoes, accompanied by a sour apple cider.

She leaned back and watched the snowflakes outside. In the meantime, Frankfurt Airport was probably also closed and the flights now went to Leipzig or Berlin. She had still been lucky with Frankfurt.

Her food arrived quite quickly and Mel thought it was not bad. However, she could imagine that it would certainly taste even better in a typical Sachsenhausen location. She ordered another cider and asked to take it back to her room. The waiter nodded, but of course.

Mel thanked him, paid and went back up to her room. Sitting in the chair and watching the snow, she dialed Steve's number. He took the call right away.

"Good morning my darling. How is my castaway?"

Mel laughed.

"Better than some. I have a warm room, just had a delicious dinner and can watch the snowflakes. Meanwhile, they're already rerouting to Leipzig. Frankfurt is also at a standstill. Let's see how it is tomorrow. Maybe I'll take a car, too. It's not that far from here."

"Then do that if it's better than riding the train, you know better than that."

She heard a honk in the background.

"Sorry, Danny's here, I have to go. I love you and take good care of you."

Mel promised and hung up. Then she changed her clothes, lay down on the bed, and let a talk show play over her head. When her eyes kept falling shut around ten, she turned off the TV and the light and lay down in the soft bed. Not five minutes later, she was asleep.

Mel startled. Something had woken her up, she just didn't know what. Then she heard it again. Someone was knocking on her door. She threw on her hotel robe, grabbed her crutches and opened the door.

"Dr. Kinsella? Sorry to bother you. We have an emergency down the hall and the ambulance we called can't get through."

The young man in hotel clothes looked at her pleadingly.

"I'm coming."

Mel quickly put her key card in the pocket of her robe and followed the young man.