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4 weeks until Christmas
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"I thought we had a date tonight" Mike stated, as he followed Kate through her front passage.
"I thought we cancelled" she bit back, still furious from their interaction at NAVCOM.
"I'd just like to know why you walked away from me today" Mike asked.
Kate whipped her head around and stared through him "Because you've turned."
"What's that supposed to mean?" he scoffed.
"Well, You're clearly one of the bureaucrats now" she replied, disappointed in him.
Mike sighed, frustrated with the conversation "I'm just doing my job, I have responsibilities that come with this new position, like it or not."
"Oh, and that includes not supporting your former crew, does it?!" Kate rolled her eyes.
"I have to be impartial, it's not personal."
Kate sighed, shaking her head "Oh, that is a load of crap. You know… you hide behind this veneer of command. I look at you with your straight back, and your square shoulders, and it is your armour and you won't let anyone in. You are an emotional coward Mike Flynn, and I have put up with it for three years now." Kate cried, as tears began to stream from her eyes "and here I am, I'm such an idiot for thinking that I could be anything more to you than your executive officer." She groaned as she turned to walk away.
"Kate…" Mike pleaded as he reached forward to grab her arm.
"Don't touch me." She spat as she turned around to face him. "Do you enjoy tormenting me?" she asked, her voice thick with emotion.
"Oh, come on, Kate!" Mike argued back, his voice rising. "That's unfair, you know the regulations."
"You knew the regulations too when you took me to your family home for Christmas, when you gave me your grandmothers diamond necklace. Was this fun for you? This back and forth 'I'll give her an inch to keep her around, but not too much that she expects more from me'!? You let me develop relationships with your family, your mum sends me messages, your nieces and nephews call me Aunty Kate"
Mike watched as she got louder and more frustrated with every sentence. He couldn't bare to watch how upset she was. He opened his mouth to respond.
"NO! Mike, just stop. I don't want to hear it. Those regulations, they don't apply anymore and LOOK at you. You haven't made one single…"Kate was interrupted as Mike pressed his lips against hers, pushing her smaller frame against the passage wall.
He pulled back and looked into her eyes, before feeling her arms wrap around his neck, pulling him close again. She had waited so long for this moment, it was all she had been able to think about for three long years.
Mike lifted her body up, hers pressed firmly against his. She wrapped her legs around his waist, not letting their lips break apart.
"Which way Kate?" He whispered as he walked towards the kitchen.
"Second door on the left" she responded as she pressed her forehead against his.
Mike walked them to her bedroom. He sat onto the bed, before lying down, pulling her down on top of him.
Kate giggled as her legs straddled his firm body, her hands gently resting on his chest.
"God, look at you" he sighed, gazing up at the woman above him. He had wanted this for longer than he would care to admit. He had told her he was in love with her. He had shared parts of his life with her that he had never shared with anyone before, and now here she was. The woman of his dreams, and he was about to make love to her.
"Come here…" she whispered as she pulled him up to be seated, her arms around his neck, she pressed her body against his, and embraced his lips again.
Mike moaned against her mouth, as he massaged his tongue gently against hers. "Kate…?"
"Hmm?" she responded as she rolled over onto the bed pulling him on top of her.
Mike looked down at her and ran his fingers through her blonde hair "Why did I wait so long for this…" He shook his head in disbelief at his own stupidity.
Kate smiled softly. She knew he didn't need her to tell him. They both knew he was scared, but here they were now, and she never wanted to be without him again.
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Kate stood on the bridge, looking out over the ocean. She had just had the best week of her life, and two phone calls later they were 10 steps back….
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Two days earlier
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Kate lay half asleep wrapped in Mikes arms, her fingertips gently caressing his chest as she dozed. The sun was shining through her sheer curtains and onto their naked bodies.
Mike had spent the last week practically living with her, with the pair not venturing outside of the safety of her home. Their relationship was fragile, they knew that, it was in its early stages of the pair of them both committing to making it their reality.
It was funny, once they had decided they couldn't be without each other, they really didn't want to be without each other. They talked about everything, from previous partners, to favourite foods – although in working so closely they both had a fair idea of the others preferences, they talked about hopes for their future, and their desires to get married and have children.
Mike was everything she knew he would be. He was always touching her, a hand on her lower back, his fingers entwined with hers, a hand on her cheek as he gazed into her eyes, his arms wrapped around her body as he stood behind her while she was in the kitchen.
She started to tease him about it playfully, to which he responded "I'm just making up for lost time…" or "That doesn't sound like you're asking me to stop".
Kate knew it would be challenging when she was sent back out on patrol, but what she didn't expect was NAVCOM's choice of replacement CO.
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So as she stood there, Mike barely arms length away, she had never felt such a wedge between them.
They had been crash sailed, and as she gathered the crew on the bridge, his familiar presence climbed up the stairs. He sheepishly announced that NAVCOM couldn't secure an alternate CO, and as he had experience on board Hammersley, they believed him to be the best option.
He didn't miss the way Kate's face fell at his announcement, but this was the navy, he didn't really have a choice.
And now, 48 hours later, they were in pursuit of a man accused of kidnapping his child, and tensions were running high. When Dutchy volunteered to go undercover Kate lost her composure.
"I should be the one who is going, sir." She argued, her eyes blazing as she stared up into his.
"I need you here, X." Mike countered.
"SIR, they requested Wantha, when he doesn't turn up, they are going to be highly suspicious…"
"That's enough! We're wasting time here." Mike cut her off and looked at their buffer Dutchy, full protective gear, get ready."
As the crew dispersed Kate took a step closer to Mike and said quietly "A word. Your cabin. Now."
"when they see that it is not Wantha, chances are is that they are going to freak."
"Well, hopefully they'll be more interested in the jewels than the money."
Yeah? But what if they're not?" she argued, turning to face him. "What if they start shooting?"
"Exactly!" he exclaimed as he reached forward to touch her arm. "this is a dangerous operation, that's why Dutchy…"
Kate pulled her arm back "No, Mike, a woman… is less likely to cause them any alarm."
"No." Mike responded, standing his ground.
"No?" she asked "You really don't think so?"
"Alright, maybe… there's no guarantee of that, we don't know who we're dealing with."
"The same reason that that little girl Mia has to be our first priority here."
"But… What if something happens to you?" Mike asked, his voice thick with emotion.
"Sir, As commanding officer…"
"Kate!" Mike interrupted, did he have to spell it out for her?
"No, NO. Don't do this. You came back on the ship. You accepted this posting. You chose this over us again. It was your choice." Her voice began to break "I had no say here. This was our relationship, but you decided that you being onboard this ship again was your priority and that our 'relationship' was to be professional. Don't you dare make this personal now."
"I can't just block out how I feel about you."
"I am the only logical choice for this operation and you know it."
Mike took a step closer to her, and gently cupped her cheek with his hand. Kate closed her eyes, a tear escaping, and lent into his touch. He sighed, wiping the tear, before gently caressing his thumb across her lower lip.
"Alright, but Dutchy goes with you."
"Mike. No. He is too much of a cowboy."
"He goes with you, or you don't go at all. I will not send you out in harms way without Dutchy. He is the only man, aside from getting on that fishing boat with you myself, that I trust to keep you safe."
Kate stared up into his eyes and it was only then that he saw how red rimmed they were. It broke his heart to realise that her pain was a result of his actions. She bit down onto her lower lip, and her eyes fell to the ground.
Mike stepped forward again, their bodies almost touching, and gently lifted her chin. "Sweetheart, I am so sorry…" he pressed his lips to her forehead and heard her try to compress a sob "Oh, Kate…" He wrapped his arms around her body and held her tight against his. "I tried to refuse them, I promise you. I didn't want to come back out here, to fracture what we had created in this past week. But short of telling them of our engagement, which we had already decided we didn't want to do so soon after I was on Hammersley, I had no real excuse that would be enough."
Kate angled her chin up and stepped onto her tip toes, pressing her lips to his neck. "I just… it feels like we've taken 10 steps backward and I don't know where we stand anymore."
Mike moved them sitting her down on his bunk, he knelt on the floor before her, not unlike what he had done 4 days earlier when he presented her with the engagement ring he had bought and asked her to be his wife. He reached up and pushed the shorter, wispy strands of hair out of her face and behind her ear. His hand trailed down the side of her neck, and found the long chain that her engagement ring was threaded through. He pulled it out from under her overalls and held it between them. "If ever you need reminding of where we stand, you think of this, ok?" he said gently.
"But…" She started, but he quickly interrupted her.
"There are no 'buts' Kate. It's you and me, do you hear me? It has always been you and me, and it will always be you and me."
"What if the navy don't find your replacement for another 6 months?" She asked.
"We will deal with things, as the arise, together. It won't change how I feel about you…" he assured her.
"I don't want to be on this ship with you…" she confessed, her voice barely audible.
Mike felt his heart drop "What do you want us to do?"
"I'm going to resign my position." She stated, her eyes finally meeting his.
"Kate, no. You can't do that." He argued, knowing exactly what she was doing.
"They may not have a replacement CO, but they will be able to find a replacement XO."
"Kate… I don't want you to give up your career, that is not you."
"I don't want to live within such close proximity to you for months on end and not be able to touch you… to talk freely to you… to plan our wedding…"
"Please, Kate. Just hold on, just a little while longer… I know this is less than ideal. I know it's not what either one of us want. But I also know that if you gave up your career right now, before achieving everything you wanted to, that you would grow to resent me, resent our relationship."
Kate sighed. She knew he was right. She didn't want off the ship yet, and she knew that good Commanding Officers were few and far between.
"Okay…" she agreed "But we need to set a few rules here."
He smiled "What would you like to propose?" he asked, allowing her to take the lead.
"No more protecting me, I can't have the crew think you're undermining my authority." She began, raising her eyebrows at him.
He laughed gently and leant forward to kiss her lips, his hands resting on her knees "Kate, I will always want to protect you… but I will do everything in my power to put you in charge of every operation that you are the best fit for."
Kate smiled "Thank you." She placed her hands on top of his "Every week, you and I will have a 'briefing'…"
Mike raised his eyebrows.
Kate rolled her eyes "Not that sort of briefing. I mean, we will get our dinner, bring it into your office and spend a period of time where we can pretend we're not stuck on this ship together and talk." Mike smiled and nodded.
"And lastly, lets not be weird towards each other. We were friendly before the engagement on board Hammersley, lets be friendly still. No one will suspect anything."
"That all sounds very reasonable to me." Mike agreed, turning his hands over so that he could hold hers. "Could I make a request?"
Kate looked at him, prompting his question.
"If I do something to upset you, please tell me. Don't let me think nothing is wrong… Because I hope that you would do the same."
"I will." She smiled softly and leant in to kiss his lips again.
The quickly pulled apart as a knock sounded at the door, Kate stood up from Mike's bunk and opened the door.
"What's up Dutchy?" She asked
"I'm ready to go, Ma'am, Sir." He said, looking at his superiors.
"Slight change of plans, Dutchy." Mike announced "The X will be going with you."
"Okay, Sir." Dutchy agreed.
"Head up on deck, the X will be there in 5 minutes and you'll be away."
"Sir" Dutchy nodded, walking back up to the deck.
"Kate" Mike said pulling her close "Please, just be safe."
She smiled up at him "I promise."
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Kate sat on the boat with Dutchy, watching out to the horizon "There they are Dutchy, straight ahead."
As the boat rapidly approached, Kate stood up, her hands in the air.
"Don't shoot, he's been injured" she called out "He fell and he broke his ankle, so he sent us. We have everything that you asked for" Kate gestured to the bag that they had been sent with.
"Where's the girl?" Dutchy asked.
"Below" the kidnapper snapped in response looking between Kate and Dutchy.
"We need to see her" Kate demanded
"You need to do as your told!" he shot back.
Dutchy stood up, holding the bag of jewels in his hand over the fishing boat "You shoot us, and this goes to the bottom of the ocean. Show us the girl"
The kidnapper sighed and called out to his side kick "get her."
When Mia appeared Kate immediately began to reassure her "Hello Mia, it's okay. Everything will be okay"
"We'll see about that, now give us the stuff" The kidnapper demanded.
Dutchy handed over the bag and then men quickly began to open it.
"Pass her over" Kate called out to the kidnapper.
"I'll pass her over when I see what 1 million dollars worth of jewels looks like" he snarled.
As the bag opened, blue paint squirted out into the face of the man. Kate quickly jumped on board their ship, determined to keep Mia safe.
As quickly as the boat had arrived, it pulled away again. This time though, Mike watched on as one of the men held a gun to Kate's temple.
Dutchy stood up and began shooting at the boat. Trying to disable their attempt at getting away.
Aboard Hammersley, Mike was starting to panic. He knew this was a bad idea. "Full steam ahead Charge!"
On the kidnappers boat Kate rolled over, and stood up. They must have hit her head. "Oh Mia, sweetie. It will be okay."
"No it won't. You've got blood on your head. You're a prisoner too."
Kate lifted her hand to her head, looking down at her hand, she saw it was covered in blood. "sweetheart, my friends are going to be looking for us, okay?"
Mia rubbed at her tear stained cheeks.
"Don't cry darling" Kate soothed, cradling the small girls head "I promise I will keep you safe. Now, how long have I been here?"
"I don't know" Mia muttered, trying to control her tears "I don't know, not very long."
"Okay, " Kate sat beside her. "Now, I need you to hold on, alright?" Kate scoured the room, looking for anything she could use to keep them safe. She spotted a life vest.
"Alright Mia, put this on."
Mia shook her head "I don't want to."
"Come on darling, you can do it." Kate assured her, to which Mia shook her head "Mia, just do it." She said more forcefully and helped the young girl safely secure the life vest.
Kate continued her frantic search, looking for something, anything that would help them.
"What are you looking for?" Mia asked, her voice frightened.
"I really don't know" Kate admitted, before spotting a radio device. "This." She smiled to herself turning on the transmitting device. Within seconds, there was a gun pointed to her head.
"What the hell do you think you're doing." He snatched the device from her hands and threw it over the side of the boat, pushing her up the stairs and onto the edge of the boat.
He held the gun close to the front of her head. "Got any last words?" he asked with a laugh.
Kate looked down the barrel of the gun and her mind immediately went to Mike. Her heart started to hurt. He had tried to stop her going on this operation. She covered her eyes and lowered her head.
The gun started shooting, just beside her ear. He was shooting the transmitter.
All of a sudden the boat lurched forward, they were moving again, this time towards the small island in the distance, and as they docked at the island, Kate grabbed Mia's hand and the pair were forced through the thick of the bushland to a small shack.
"Daddy!" Mia yelled happily as she ran towards the man in the shack.
"What?" Kate asked as she took in the mans appearance. She has seen him before "You're the one behind all of this!?"
"What are you doing here. This isn't one of Wanthas people you idiots" he yelled at the kidnappers. "She's navy!"
The two men looked at Kate, and she couldn't help but pray that Mike would find her soon.
The men shoved her deeper in the shack and walked out, locking the door behind them. Kate could hear them arguing. She quickly scoped the room and noticed a window wide open.
"Quick Mia, this will be our only opportunity." Kate said gently "I need you to listen, and I need you to keep being brave okay?" Mia nodded and followed as Kate led her out the window, lifting her so she could reach. As they both stood on the outside, the sound of a automatic rifle filled the air.
"Mia, hold my hand." Kate whispered "We are going to run to the boat okay? I will keep you safe, but you have got to listen to everything I say."
The little girls eyes widened in fear, but she nodded, and the pair started to run in the direction of the boat.
"Darling I can see my ship out there, keep running, they're coming to save us, okay?" Kate said, puffing as they continued to run for the shoreline.
"HEY!" yelled the kidnapper from the shack.
"Mia, move faster. Come on, we're almost there."
"I'm tired" whined the little girl
"I know sweetie but those men are really bad men, and we have got to keep moving." She said firmly as she practically pulled the little girl along to quicken her speed.
Gunshots fired again, this time they felt much closer.
Kate pulled Mia along, until they got the the speed boat and wuickly started the engine.
"Mia, Get down below deck!" Kate yelled as shots ripped through the air
"I'm scared, Kate" Mia said and began to cry
"Honey, I know you're scared. I am keeping you safe, now get down!"
The Hammersley continued to get closer, before Kate heard more gun shots, this time firing from the Hammersley to the shore line. She knew now that they were safe.
As the rhib pulled up beside the speed boat she was in Kate smiled at her crew mates "about time you lot got here"
The crew smiled at their leader, before helping her and Mia into the rhib and back aboard Hammersley.
"Great work, X." Mike smiled as the rhib was lifted back up for the crew to get aboard Hammersley.
Kate smiled and nodded, ushering Mia downstairs to the kitchen.
"Alright, Mia. I know you're tired and hungry so lets get you something to eat alright, honey?"
Mia nodded and reached for Kate's hand.
Mike followed behind the two and into the galley.
"Hot chocolate sweetie?" Kate asked as she put the kettle on.
"Yes please." Mia smiled.
"Here, Mia would you like a seat?" Mike asked gently
Mia looked to Kate, unsure of speaking to this man she had never met.
"It's okay, darling. That is the captain of this ship." Kate said to assure the girl, who then nodded to Mike. "And, he's actually a very, very good friend of mine"
Mike smiled, and lifted Mia up onto the bench, before standing alongside Kate, the side of his body against the side of her body. He just wanted to be close to her. It just looked like they were making brews, right?
"How about a chocolate bikkie, Mia?" Mike asked, to which a grin broke out from cheek to cheek on Mia's face.
"Michael, she has had no food or drink for hours… we should probably give her some real food."
"No, Kate. I love chocolate biscuits, honest!" Mia pleaded.
Mike and Kate looked at each other and laughed. Kate walked the hot chocolate over to Mia, and the promised biscuits and gave her shoulders a hug.
"Sweetheart, you were so brave out there." She said softly to the girl, brushing her hair back behind her ears "Thank you for listening to me, and trusting me. I am so proud of you."
Mia smiled, remnants of chocolate biscuit around her mouth "Thank you for making me safe, Kate."
"You're welcome, honey." Kate smiled, as she felt Mike's hand against the small of her back.
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3 weeks until Christmas
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"Kate?" Mike called out, as he walked through the front door to his house. The Hammersley crew had been notified that they were to be out at sea over Christmas and New Year, so as a result, they had been given 7 full days or R&R with the guarantee that they wouldn't be called in to work.
None of the crew were overly happy to hear that they wouldn't be spending time with their families over Christmas, but they also knew that this was the navy and it was part of the job they had signed up for.
Bomber had taken requests for the kitchen for a Christmas feast, with all crew sharing their favourite parts of the Christmas meal, and Swain had organised a secret santa amongst the crew.
Mike was proud of his team for being good sports, and while he too wasn't ecstatic about spending Christmas aboard Hammersley, he was glad that his being placed back onto the boat meant he would spend the holidays with his fiancé.
"In here!" she called out from the kitchen. Kate had suggested that Mike's parents come to spend a weekend with them while they were on leave, so that they could catch up before the end of the year, and share their engagement news with his parents. Mike was thrilled to spend time with his parents, but was conscious that having his parents stay meant the pair only had one night together alone after they left.
"So, I managed to find everything on the list" Mike started as he placed the shopping bags on the island counter "What can I do next?" he asked as he moved to stand behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Mike leant down and placed a lingering kiss on the smooth skin of Kate's neck.
"Hmm…" she mused as she relaxed under his touch. "I think I have everything under control here, until you have to fire up the barbeque… the only thing we really need to do is give the spare room a freshen up."
"Well, I can do that if you want to keep going in here?" he asked, arms still wrapped around her tiny frame.
"That would be great, thanks honey" she responded as she turned around in his arms so that they were facing each other.
Mike tightened his arms around her waist and pulled their bodies closer before angling his head down to place a kiss on her lips.
"Hi" she whispered when she eventually pulled back. Their relationship had gone from strength to strength in a very small amount of time. This was so new for them, to both be so open with their feelings and communication. They were committed to each other, and to this working.
"Hey yourself" he whispered back, before rubbing his nose gently against the tip of hers.
"Are you trying to distract me?" she asked with a soft chuckle.
"I'm just trying to make the most of every moment we have alone before heading back out to sea" he said as he planted a series of kisses across the features of her face.
"Well Skipper, we've got about 30 minutes until your parents arrive, so you might need to hold that thought." She said with a giggle.
Mike pouted playfully before pressing his lips against hers one more time.
"Alright, I'll go and air out this room." He said playfully rolling his eyes and walking towards the spare bedroom of his house.
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"Oh Kate, this looks just delicious" Margaret commented as they sat down to share dinner under the alfresco.
Kate blushed and said with a grin "I really enjoy cooking for others". She felt Mike's hand squeeze her knee under the table. He knew she was a little nervous to prepare an entire meal for his parents, but he also knew that she was a brilliant cook with a real knack for mixing the right flavours and textures together. He had been spoilt with her cooking countless times.
"We obviously wanted to catch up with you because we'll be out to sea for Christmas" Mike started, looking between his parents. He felt Kate's hand cover his on her knee, and he turned his hand over to hold hers. "but we actually wanted to talk to you both about something else."
"Oh…?" Margaret asked, looking between her son and the beautiful woman he had so obviously opened his heart to. She looked at Joe with a smile as wide her face could hold.
Joe rolled his eyes with a shake of his head "Margaret…" he sighed. He knew his wife was desperate to welcome Kate to the family officially and their relationship had been a constant topic of discussion between the older couple.
Mike laughed at his parents and gave Kate's hand a gentle squeeze "Oh mum…." Kate giggled too, and returned the squeeze of his hand "I asked Kate to marry me…"
Margaret gasped, her eyes instantly filling with tears "I knew it!" she exclaimed before the four stood up and exchanged many hugs and kisses and congratulations, with Mike's parents thrilled with the news of the impending nuptials.
"We actually have more news…" Kate said when the group had calmed slightly. Margaret covered her mouth in disbelief.
"Oh darling, a new grandchild!" Margaret started as her hands moved to her chest.
"Oh… no mum… that's not what we meant…" Mike quickly intervened.
"Oh!?" Margaret asked, surprised.
"Not yet, we're really working on establishing ourselves as couple first." Kate started, watching as disappointment came over Mike's mums face.
"It's something we definitely would like to explore in the future, but for right now… it's just not the right time…"
"You know what they say Michael…" Margaret said.
Joe cleared his throat quickly and grunted a warning "Margaret…"
But Margaret continued "There is never a 'right time' to add a baby to the mix, but when the baby comes…"
"Ma!" Mike said firmly, his voice raising.
Kate started to feel a little bit uncomfortable with the conversation, and he felt her squeezing his hand a little more tightly.
"That's a conversation that Kate and I will continue to have, and when the two of us decide together that we are ready, we will work on adding to our family."
"What I was actually going to say…" Kate started nervously, looking at Mike for support.
"What we were trying to tell you is that we've actually decided that we're going to go down to the court house tomorrow morning and get married... And we wanted the two of you to be our witnesses" Mike finished for her, smiling at Kate.
"if you want to, of course…" Kate added, somewhat nervously.
Margaret and Joe looked at each other and smiled. They too had married at the court house, many years ago.
"We would be honoured, Son." Joe responded, his voice thick with emotion as he stood up to shake his sons hand. Margaret followed, hugging her son, with tears in her eyes. Her boy was happy.
"We can't wait to officially welcome you to the family, love" Joe said as he hugged his sons fiancé.
"Thank you, Joe" Kate said, wiping her tears.
Kate caught Mike's eyes, as each hugged one of his parents. She smiled softly at him, her eyes full of love for the man before her. He mouthed 'I love you' to her, and she returned his sentiment by mouthing 'I love you too'.
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Two weeks until Christmas
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"Hammersley, this is Bomber, come in Hammersley, over" Bombers frantic voice came over the radio.
RO picked the call up "Bomber, go ahead over"
"I have a medical emergency, I need to talk to swain, over."
"Bomber what is the medical emergency?" Mike asked, a sense of urgency in his voice.
"It's the X sir, she has collapsed. She is having trouble breathing" The young woman said quickly, the guilt washing over her. Her and 2-dads had been mucking around, and as she went to squirt a bottle of water in his direction, Kate had walked in and been the unintended target of the unknown liquid. "I need to talk to Swain, please!? I don't know what to do."
"Swain is on his way, over." Mike responded, his heart dropping at the thought of Kate being aboard a foreign fishing vessel.
"I'm here sir" Swain said, panting slightly as he ran up to the deck. Mike held forward the radio for Swain to take and communicate.
"Bomber, it's me. Tell me exactly what happened, over." Swain said calmly over the radio.
Bomber sighed. "She got squirted in the face… we thought it was water… the crew can't tell us what it is."
Mike and Dutchy looked at each other on the deck, perplexed at the information.
"How quickly did it effect her?" Swain asked, also confused by the younger officers statement.
"Very quickly" bomber responded "Almost instantaneously."
Mike looked at Swain, and asked his much trusted medical officer "Well, what do you think?"
"Sounds like a poison? Or a neurotoxin of some description sir."
"Bomber it is critical that you keep her airways clear, wash her face with clean water, keep her comfortable… if she stops breathing you are going to have to perform CPR, over."
Mike took the radio and addressed his young sailor "Bomber, we are on our way and will be there as soon as we can. What is your position."
Bomber begun to provide their location, before the crew aboard Hammersley heard her crying out, the sound of a struggle, and yelling filled the room.
"Bomber?! Do you hear me?" Mike asked urgently "Bomber? Come in Bomber!" he yelled into the radio.
The following few hours saw the Hammersley travelling full steam ahead, in pursuit for the vessel that they knew their crew to be on. Mike tried to control his emotion, but his communication with his crew had become short and more direct that usual. They could tell he was feeling stressed by the situation.
Aboard the vessel, 2dads and Bomber did their best to keep the X safe, with Bomber continually monitoring her heart rate, and 2dads searching for a way to communicate with the Hammersley their location. Both of the young sailors knew the seriousness of the situation and were desperate to not be responsible for the demise of their much loved superior officer.
When the Hammersley crew finally found and boarded the vessel, Bomber was relieved to have back up. Dutchy, Swain and Charge quickly took control of the vessel, while Mike watched on from the deck, his binoculars in hand as he frantically searched every inch of the boat in search for Kate. He watched as his crew disarmed the men one by one, until he finally spotted Kate. She was unsteady on her feet and looked disoriented. The fact that she was up, and walking allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief that she was alive, until he realised that behind her was the master of the vessel, with a gun pointed directly at her.
He picked up the radio "Dutchy, X! Starboard side!" watching in horror as Kate swayed on her feet, oblivious to the vessels captain. He heard the sound of gunfire, and made a sharp intake of breath, as Bomber disarmed the master, saving the X again.
When they finally carried her back onto the Hammersley, Mike was there and ready to give away their secret. He didn't care anymore who knew about him and Kate. He could be fired from the Royal Australian Navy and he wouldn't care. He only cared that his Kate was safe and returned to the ship relatively unharmed.
Swain took in Mike's appearance and knew, instantly. "Sir, we need to take her somewhere private, where she can be monitored for the next 24 hours."
"Uhh…" Mike stuttered "Her cabin? Or you could take her to my cabin, I have bit of paperwork to catch up on after this event."
"Your cabin is probably the best option, Sir." Swain agreed, relieved that the boss had suggested his cabin "I think the X would appreciate that privacy."
As Dutchy and Swain carried her into his cabin, Mike pulled back the blankets.
"I'll, uh…" Dutchy stumbled "leave you two to sort her out from here." Dutchy knew that his superior would be mortified when she awoke at the thought of half of her senior crew seeing her so vulnerable.
After the door closed behind him Swain turned to the Boss and said "Would you like a hand, sir? I have to agree. We all know what Kate is like" He knew, but he didn't want his CO and XO to know that he had worked out their relationship. If they wanted anyone to know, he knew that they would've made it known.
"You're right Swain, she would hate it." Mike said with a smile, relieved that his crew showed so much respect for Kate, and were conscious of her feelings "Leave it to me, I'll just remove her boots and get her comfortable"
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Christmas Eve
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Kate sat on the CO's chair from the deck, it was 11pm and her watch rotation had her completing the first watch, which was from 20:00hrs until midnight. It had been a reasonably quiet evening, and Kate had enjoyed the time to herself, the time to think and the time to reflect.
She had had a very eventful few weeks on Hammersley, and a lot had changed for her in the last few weeks. Her and Mike had finally gotten together, engaged and then married. Mike's parents had been their witnesses to the marriage, and joined them in celebrating their relationship. They were now breaking all sorts of Navy regulations in being husband and wife whilst being co and xo of the Hammersley, but at this point in time, neither of them cared any more about any regulations that kept them apart.
Whilst Kate wasn't thrilled they were working together aboard Hammersley, and hiding their relationship, she recognised there was a huge positive to their situation. She was a navy woman who was able to spend majority of every day with her navy husband. This was an absolute rarity.
Kate's daydreaming was interrupted at the sound of someone walking up the stairs to the deck, she turned around in the chair and smiled as Mike's face appeared.
"I thought you could use a brew" he shrugged with a smile.
"Ah, Mike Flynn, you really do know the way to my heart." She smiled as he walked over to her and handed her the mug. She looked into the cup and smiled. Peppermint tea. He really did know her.
Mike extended his hand forward and gently cupped her cheek, rubbing his thumb across her cheekbone.
Kate smiled and turned her face towards his hand, kissing his palm.
"I know we're not entirely happy with me posted on Hammersley again, but man I am so glad I get to spend another Christmas with you." He said softly.
Kate chuckled quietly "I was just thinking the same thing" she smiled up at her husband.
"It really is our time of year isn't it, honey?" he whispered as his thumb moved to caress her lips.
Kate slowly kissed his thumb, closing her eyes to savour the moment. They might be in a position where they live and work in very close proximity, but they were both missing the physical contact and connection.
When she opened her eyes, they begun to gloss over. She sighed and looked up to the roof, willing herself not to become emotional.
"Hey…" he soothed, his hand following the line from her cheek down her arm to grasp her delicate hand within his much larger one.
"I know I should be grateful that we are together, but I just… I miss you." She admitted, her voice barely audible.
Mike nodded as he gently squeezed her hand "I know… I miss you too." He begun, but upon hearing the sound of footsteps travelling up the bridge he released her hand and looked behind her.
"Hey Bird" He greeted warmly "You're here early for watch."
"Yes, Sir." Bird responded, a little glumly "I couldn't sleep, so I thought I might as well just come up early and keep the X company."
"Thanks, Bird" Kate responded with a smile. She was very fond of the young woman, Jessica Bird had been through a lot in her life and had gradually opened up to Kate more and more the longer they knew each other. "You okay?"
Bird responded a very unconvincing "yep" Mike and Kate looked at each other knowingly.
"Well, X, I will add what we've discussed to the report, if you wouldn't mind signing it before heading off to your cabin?" He announced, not having a document for her to sign, but wanting to make sure he could see her one last time alone before she went to bed. He also recognised Birds need to seek Kate out. He knew that the two had developed a really sweet relationship.
"Yes, Sir." Kate smiled, knowing exactly what Mike was doing.
"Goodnight, Bird" He said as he walked towards her, he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze "Merry Christmas"
"Thanks, Sir… Merry Christmas to you too" She strained a smile at her commanding officer.
Bird moved to sit in the chair beside her superior and let out a loud sigh.
Kate cocked her head to the side, and took in the younger woman's expression. "What's really going on, Birdy?" she asked kindly.
"This is my first Christmas away from home…" Bird started, her eyes firmly looking out to sea "And… I mean I think it will probably be one of the nicer Christmases I have had in a long time, but I realised today the only Christmas tradition I have, I'm not going to be able to do."
Kate reached over and gave Birds arm a squeeze "What's your tradition, Bird?"
"It seems dumb, I know…"
"Anything this important to you isn't dumb Bird."
"My sister Hannah and I would watch Home Alone every Christmas day when she was alive, we thought it was funny… the kids parents left him home accidentally, ours left us home on purpose."
"That's a nice memory to have with your sister, I'm sure she felt the same way too."
"Yeah, it was fun. We would try and set up our own little traps for when our parents came home drunk, but we would always disassemble them before we went too bed."
"You've told me a lot of lovely memories you have with your sister, sometimes the holidays make grief and pain even harder than usual."
"Yeah… it does." Bird said as she quickly swiped the tear that had escaped her "I kept watching home alone, every year after she had died… I just didn't think to bring it with me."
"Ahh, I see." Kate nodded, an idea coming to her. "Well, unfortunately I don't have a solution for getting a copy of Home Alone… but when 2dads joins us, I want you to come with me for a few minutes, okay?"
"Where is the little birdy going, that I can't come too, ma'am?" 2Dads voice appeared as he climbed the stairs.
Kate and Jessica looked at each other and laughed. They could always rely on 2Dads for some comedic relief.
"Ahhh, 2dads. Nice of you to join us!"
"Hey! I'm early Ma'am!" he feigned shock.
"I know, I know…" she laughed and stood up "do you mind taking over a few minutes early, Bird and I just have to do something quickly, I'll send her back up as soon as we're done."
"Of course Ma'am" 2Dads smiled. The entire crew had a soft spot for their young gap girl and were always looking out for her. "See you soon chicken legs."
Kate gestured for Bird to walk down the stairs first and as she led her to the CO's cabin, she softly started to talk "Now, Jess… I know that nothing can take the pain away of you losing Hannah, or let you forget how you have felt since she passed away… but I have something I want to share with you, if that's okay?"
"Of course Ma'am…" Bird responded, a little confused about where this conversation was going.
Kate knocked on Mike's cabin door, and turned to smile at Bird.
"Come in" Mike called, and Kate opened the door.
"Sir, I was hoping I could access the personal items I have in your safe?" Kate asked. Mike instantly knew she wasn't alone.
"Is everything ok, X?" he asked.
Kate gestured to Bird to enter the cabin, now Mike was really confused.
"Absolutely fine, Jess, take a seat at the CO's desk." Kate directed "Sir, can you open the safe for me?" She asked, giving him a subtle wink.
"Uhh… sure X." Mike walked over to the safe and unlocked it with the code. Kate followed him and searched for the light blue jewellery box.
"Jess, this is something I bought for myself for my 21st birthday…" Kate started, her fingers rubbing the outside of the box "You know that I don't really have any blood related family either, so I bought this for myself as a reminder for how strong I knew I was, and how proud I was of myself for what I had achieved."
Mike smiled to himself, he knew where she was going.
"I know that you have been through so much on your own too, and I want you to have this necklace now." Bird tried to interrupt Kate, but she continued "You are an incredibly strong young woman and you should be very proud of the person you have become Jess. I want you to have this necklace as a reminder of that, but also of the fact that you're not alone anymore. I will always be here for you, okay? For anything. Even if we're not on the same ship, even if you decide after your gap year that you would rather not join the Navy, I am only a phone call away."
Kate watched as Jessica's eyes filled with tears, she quickly closed the distance between them and wrapped her in a warm hug. The sound of Bird sobbing filled the cabin, and Mike couldn't not offer her some comfort too. He sat on the desk beside the chair she was occupying and placed his hands around her shoulder.
"You should believe her Jess, Kate is the most loyal and loving friend you could have." He smiled at his wife, and gently squeezed her arm.
Bird pulled back from Kate's hug and wiped at her cheeks, Mike walked to his ensuite and grabbed a box of tissues, bringing them back for Bird to use.
"Thank you, Sir… I'm sorry for crying in your cabin, and on Christmas eve too!" she said with a giggle.
"Don't ever apologise for that, Bird." He smiled gently.
Kate opened the box, and removed the necklace. She undid the clasp and reached around behind Bird's neck to fasten it.
"Merry Christmas, Jess"
Jessica gently touched the necklace and smiled "Merry Christmas, Kate… and thank you for this beautiful gift."
"You're most welcome, Jess. I'm so thrilled to pass it on to you."
"I suppose I had better join 2Dads up on deck…" She said with a smile. Kate nodded. "Thank you both, I am very fortunate to be on this ship and to have so many wonderful influences in my life now."
"Well, we feel very lucky to have you in our lives too" Kate said as she looked from Mike to Jess.
As Bird got up and walked out of the cabin, Kate followed to close the door behind her.
She turned back around to Mike and smiled "Merry Christmas, Mike."
Mike grinned back at her and closed the distance between them, pressing his lips to hers "Merry Christmas, Beautiful."
She wrapped her arms around his waist and breathed in his familiar scent.
"If possible, that exchange made me fall even more in love with you, Kate…" he whispered as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.
"Well… Someone changed Christmas for me a few years ago. I decided Jess shouldn't have to wait until she's my age to stop feeling alone."
Mike felt his heart clench, and he couldn't help but wish he had been that person for her when they had first met each other.
"You have the most beautiful heart, Kate Flynn."
Kate pulled back, looked at him and grinned "I love you, Mike Flynn."
"Merry Christmas." He choked out, overcome with emotion and pressed his lips against hers again.