Hello! I'm back with another freshly written chapter. I have a feeling all the shippers out there may feel more than pleased after reading it. So go on now and don't forget to leave a word or two.

Chapter 7

After eating their modest breakfast, Thomas and Juliet decided to do some brainstorming and gather up all the information they had about their kidnapping. Once again they went back to the events of the previous day.

"I guess we still don't know much about what's going on here." Magnum stated a bit irritated.

"At least we know why you were feeling bad so suddenly. My drink was spiked with that thing." Juliet told him.

"Yeah. You know, I was wondering how could that happen. I'm sure Rick can vouch for the bartender – that man can't be bribed. So the only time that could be possible was when…"

"That tourist showed up." They both said in unison.

Thomas and Juliet looked at each other and sheepish grins instantly appeared on their faces.

"Oh, I see you've been thinking about that too." He said still smiling.

"Yes, I pondered about it last night." She admitted quietly.

"I was sure you fell asleep at once." He said with surprise. He thought it was only him whose mind was busy with analyzing their serious situation. It turned out Juliet was doing the same thing at the same time.

"Well, I couldn't sleep for some time so I let my mind be occupied with something useful." She replied.

To tell the truth, she had to think about their situation in order not to think about something else, namely the fact that she was lying in her partner's arms and it felt so good despite everything that was happening around them. A faint blush crept up her face at this memory.

"Higgy, are you all right?" Magnum's voice brought her back to reality. "Are you cold?"

"A little." She said weakly as the coldness really returned.

"How about you lie down a little." He suggested.

"No, I'll be fine. Let's not waste any more time." She shook her head and stood up, leaving him alone on the mattress.

"We know 'how', now let's talk about 'why' they kidnapped us." She murmured and started pacing the floor. "Apparently, I was being followed for a couple of days and it was me they wanted to capture."

"Yeah, then I came along and evidently their plans changed." Magnum added.

Juliet came to a halt and met his eyes. Luckily, neither one of them mentioned the comment Nick told them about her deep feelings for her partner.

"There's also this boss that forbid them to hurt you. Do you have any idea who that might be? Maybe someone holds a grudge against you?" Thomas asked her.

"Magnum, I could give you a dozen of such people's names from my past but they're either in prison or dead so it's very unlikely that it's one of them." Juliet stated.

All this time he was looking closely at his partner. He couldn't help but notice the instant change in her body language and her voice when she mentioned her MI6 time. He felt that job of her was deeply rooted in her and whenever it resurfaced, it was affecting her profoundly.

She sighed. Although she had some good memories when it came to working for Her Majesty, Juliet knew she was a different person then, she simply had to be if she wanted to survive all those secret actions. She needed to be indifferent, always on alert, her feelings put aside and never question the orders she was given. Then there was Richard but that didn't end well.

When she came to Hawaii, at first she felt lost, no secret operations, no danger, she had to remodel her whole world. She left that cold professional Juliet behind and day by day with her Ohana's help she became a much calmer and open person. Truth be told, this was evidently her place on Earth and she knew it. With a certain PI by her side, of course.

"Juliet." Magnum recognized her far-away look. "Juliet." She felt his gentle touch on her arm. When she finally got back to reality, she found him standing in front of her with eyes full of concern. "Perhaps you should give it a break?"

She gave him a bittersweet smile and turned down his offer. "No, don't worry about me. Really. Besides, you shouldn't be standing up. You need to save your strength."

He shook his head with a grin at how fast she could change the subject.

"I can't really think of anyone who would go this far to get to me." She murmured.

"Either it's a mysterious madman or a secret admirer, maybe a billionaire who is crazy about you." He told her.

"And he hired those men to kidnap me because he wants me all to himself. Do you hear how preposterous it sounds? Magnum, your theories are getting weirder these days. If you really think so, you must be crazy." She said and turned away, pondering about what he had said anyway.

Maybe I am crazy… for you. That was Magnum's first thought but he put it aside immediately.

"Anyway, being a billionaire and having lots of money wouldn't be something to make me consider him a perfect match for me." Juliet added quietly, still not looking at him.

He chuckled at that, once again forgetting about his sore ribs. She instantly heard it and turned to face him.

"So what would make him a perfect match for you?" He couldn't stop himself from asking.

Higgy fell silent for a short moment, her eyes fixed on him.

"A perfect match would be someone who doesn't think about himself, puts others' needs higher than his own and is ready to risk everything, even his life, when someone needs help. Someone who knows how to make me happy even though he used to be a real pain in the ass." She said that and there was complete silence. She couldn't believe she had told him that and she held her breath, observing his face and waiting for her partner's reaction.

"Used to be, huh? And someone who isn't a billionaire?" He spoke. "Actually, I may know someone like that who exactly matches your description." A wide grin followed his words.

Now, it was her that chuckled and she felt she could finally breathe again. In normal conditions they would probably continue this and it would be maybe even followed by admitting their feelings but in their situation both of them knew it wouldn't be a good idea to talk about that in this place.

Slowly, Juliet approached Thomas, placed her hand on his chest and pushed him gently backwards, guiding him to the mattress. "Magnum, will you finally sit down and at least try to rest?" She said, aiming at being stern but her warm eyes told him something otherwise.

For a moment, he put his hand on hers, gave her a light squeeze and gazed deeply in her eyes. Their silent communication seemed to have no end but finally Thomas spoke quietly, "Okay." and sat on the mattress. All this made Juliet blush deeply however she got surprised by his sudden obedience.

"What? No talking back? No discussion? You never do as you're told."

"You're lucky. Simply enjoy such a rare thing." He replied with a cocky grin.

She didn't reply to that, just smiled knowingly. She moved to the middle of the room and started pacing again. "Let's get back to our fact gathering. What do you think? Where are we?"

"This whole place seems quite big. Although I couldn't see anything on my way to the bathroom, I think the corridor was quite long." Magnum stated.

"And did you feel those whiffs of air?"

"Yeah, the vents so there must be some kind of a ventilation system." He replied.

"I guess we may be in an abandoned WWII bunker." Juliet stated.

"Like the one on the Kualoa Ranch which you can visit on those Jurassic Park trips?"

"Yes but this one may be bigger and definitely hasn't been visited for a while." She said.

"You're right. That bathroom was quite grubby and it was evident that it hasn't been used for a long time."

"So we're somewhere in the middle of the jungle with a very low probability of someone showing up here as those bunkers are usually very well masked and can't be seen from the air." She sighed heavily. "Frankly speaking, there's a very slight chance of getting out of this." She said and sadly hung her head.

Hearing her say that, Thomas raised from the floor and slowly approached her. "Hey." He whispered and lifted her chin so that their eyes could meet. "Don't say that. The Juliet I know and admire would focus on the good things. She would know that she wasn't alone in all of this…" He stated seriously, "and she would admit that her partner's ideas are always the best." He added and gave her a wink.

As soon as she heard him, her mouth opened and her eyes grew big in surprise. "I would never say something like that." She protested at once and smacked him on the arm.

"Ouch." He hissed. "Never say never."

"Sorry for that but it's all you fault." She told him but knowing her so well he was sure it was all part of their everyday share of teasing.

"C'mere." he whispered, reaching out and hugging her to him.

Very gently she stepped into his embrace, putting her arms around him.

"You know I was right, huh?" He said and quickly explained. "I mean about the first thing – you're not alone. You'll always have me."

Juliet closed her eyes and smiled at that. "I know. Thank you for that, Thomas. And I'm sorry that sometimes you may get the impression that I underestimate you but I want you to know that it's not true. I really appreciate what you're always doing, as well as your help, your teasing me all the time and simply being there for me. It means a lot to me." She murmured and then she stepped away just enough to be able to gaze into his eyes.

She didn't care about the situation they were in anymore and she decided not to let it hold her back. She knew it was now or never and that was this fateful moment she dreaded so much. But she started it now and it wouldn't be quite fair to Magnum if she finally didn't admit her feelings for him. She thought about it so many times but obviously she didn't expect it would happen at this time or place. Well, life can surprise you, that's for sure.

She swallowed hard and mustered all her courage. "You… mean a lot to me, Thomas." She spoke quietly and then started babbling, "And even if it may seem insane, considering the situation we're now in, I felt I had to tell you this, you know?"

For a moment there, the man thought he was dreaming and it was truly a dream which he definitely didn't want to wake up from and stay in it forever. But then it all suddenly came back – the kidnapping, his sore ribs, this awful place and he realized that it really wasn't his imagination and it was all happening for real. He would expect anything but this. His eyes were fixed on her. It was still hard for him to believe it. Here she was – the woman he secretly loved was finally opening her heart to him.

"Have you finished yet, Higgy?"

She nodded.

"Good, cause actually I wanted to tell you for a long time now that I feel the same to you." He said and instantly witnessed the most radiant smile appearing on her face and he became so happy that it was meant only for him.

Thomas didn't even have time to think more about it as in a split second her soft lips touched his in a passionate kiss. She didn't have to wait long for his response because he kissed her back with as much feeling. He put his hands on her waist, slowly pulling her closer and just when she moved a little too quickly and pressed against him, she heard his quiet hiss of pain. She instantly broke the kiss and rested her forehead against his, panting for breath.

"I'm sorry." She murmured, her eyes closed and her breath coming in short gasps.

"I hope you're not sorry for what you have just said because I'm not." He stated softly.

She chuckled and gazed at him, stepping away a little. "No, I apologize for forgetting once again about your well-being."

"Hey, I can assure you that my well-being was just fine a moment ago." Magnum protested which only made her laugh happily even more.

"I don't think so." She finally said, giving him a meaningful look.

"I really meant what I'd said earlier." He stated.

"Me too." She replied and they both shared a knowing smile.

After a moment, Thomas broke the silence. "What do we do now?"

"We can try to find a way to get out of here." She said, however it wasn't the answer he had expected.

"Juliet…"

She knew exactly what he had meant, he didn't have to say anything else, his face told her everything. She sighed. "What we have means a lot to me and I don't want to risk losing it. Can we take it slow, one step at a time?" She asked with some kind of fear. She wanted this to happen so much but she was still afraid to lose herself in this feeling. She was waiting for his reaction with baited breath.

"Of course, Higgy. Whatever you need." Magnum spoke and noticed how she breathed in relief and her whole face lit up making her look radiant and even more beautiful.

He couldn't help himself and caressed her cheek lovingly, gazing deeply into her shiny eyes.

"Thank you." She replied quietly and gave him a quick kiss on the lips before she hugged him, this time much more carefully.

His arms went around her instinctively and they stayed like that for a long moment.

Thanks for reading. How was it? To tell the truth, I wasn't really planning to make them reveal their feelings so early in the story - it just happened somehow. That's how it is with writing, you never know what comes to you. So until next time.