A Smooth Sea Never Made a Skilled Sailor
Chapter 1
Steve McGarrett closed his eyes and allowed the ocean to support his weight, the water lifting him effortlessly over the waves. It was a small moment of pure relaxation that he savored and did not take for granted. When he rolled over onto his belly, he felt refreshed and eagerly dove forward towards the shore. His muscular arms worked with the tide propelling him towards the sandy beach surrounding his house. When Steve's feet touched the ground, he stood, the water running down the hard muscles of his chest and blue swim trunks. Shaking his head to brush the water out of his eyes, Steve headed for the chair where he'd tossed his towel. If he'd judged the time right, and he was sure he had, he had enough time to dress and start breakfast before his kids returned from their run. A prickle ran down his neck and thoughts of scrambled eggs were immediately gone. Years of experience alerted him that he was not alone. He'd barely registered the empty chair that no longer held his towel, before starting to scan the area.
"Looking for this?"
Steve felt his heart skip a beat at the familiar voice. "Catherine?"
A tall, dark haired woman stepped off the patio, holding out his towel. She gave him a hesitant smile. "Hey, sailor."
"When did you get in?" It was the natural question, and it fit his usual need for information, but even as Steve asked, he found he really cared very little. All that mattered was that Catherine was standing in front of him now. When she'd turned down the Naval Intelligence position that would have kept her living on Hawaii, his hopes of a future together had disappeared along with the Navy warship she'd deployed on. He'd tucked the engagement ring he'd purchased in the back of a dresser drawer and attempted to move on with his life, focusing on his work and even dating other women.
He really hadn't started to heal however, until the two teenagers that now called him dad had come crashing into his life, and ultimately his home and heart. Fatherhood kept him too busy, and honestly too happy to think about it much, but Steve would be lying if he said there weren't occasional times when he wondered about Catherine and what might have been. He'd seen Catherine on occasion since her deployment but it had all been strictly professional and in regards to work. He certainly wasn't prepared to have her standing on his patio that morning, looking all too tempting in her tank top and cropped shorts.
"I just got in this morning." she answered. "I came straight from the airport. I… I'm sorry I should have called but I honestly didn't know what to say. So I figured it'd be okay to just come in person."
Steve hadn't meant to leave her hanging, but when he didn't respond immediately he saw the look of hesitation in her dark eyes, which seemed out of place on the face of the normally confident woman he had planned to marry. Catherine tentatively held up his towel as though it was a peace offering. Steve couldn't restrain himself and pulled her to his chest, figuring the towel between them might keep her dry but not really caring if it didn't.
"It's good to see you." Steve murmured into her hair.
"It's good to see you too." Catherine responded, resting her head against his chest like she had hundreds of times before. There was something different in her manner though Steve couldn't pinpoint what it was. This felt entirely different than the last time he'd seen her. When he'd asked her to protect his mother and Myah, romance had been the last thing on his mind, but now, kissing her seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Their lips had just touched when footfalls sounded behind where Steve and Catherine stood entwined. Steve looked up and immediately met the dark eyes of his sixteen year old son.
Nahele's eyebrows shot up as he took in the scene and he immediately turned with the clear intention of vacating the premises. However good his intentions were, he was thwarted by his sister, when Myah flew around the corner of the house and tackled him from the side.
"Don't tell me you're tired now!" she said, laughing, before looking up and catching a glimpse of Steve and Catherine just before they pulled away from each other. "Oh, shit." Myah flinched and quickly covered her mouth. "I mean shoot. I mean, sorry… are we interrupting?" She stumbled over her words. "We clearly are, come on Nahele." She grabbed his wrist.
"No, no, it's okay." Catherine said, smiling warmly at the teens. "I'm the one who's interrupting your morning workout! It's so good to see you guys." She stepped forward and offered a light hug to each of them.
"I'm really sweaty." Myah said apologetically, although she accepted a loose hug.
"No shame in sweat." Catherine responded. "What's this though? You can't let Nahele beat you." She smiled teasingly.
Myah shrugged. "He's kind of a superhuman. I have to be realistic."
Catherine shook her head and smiled again. "I've got plenty of techniques that will really increase your speed. I'll be happy to show you some."
Steve could see from the look on Myah's face that the last thing she wanted to do at the moment was participate in anything more to do with running and decided to change the subject. "Let me change and make breakfast. You'll join us?" Steve met Catherine's eyes. The back door slammed as his kids took the opportunity to vacate the patio.
"I will." she smiled.
"How long are you staying?" Steve couldn't help but ask.
"That depends. How long do you want me to stay?"
Steve didn't answer, but he didn't try to hide the depth of his feelings. He pulled her in to finish the kiss that had been interrupted.
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"Ouch!" Myah winced and shot Nahele a glare. Turning her gaze back to the window, she rubbed her stinging thigh. She had been trying to discreetly catch a glimpse of whatever was going on in their backyard. When Nehele had caught her, she'd earned the snap of a kitchen towel across her bare skin.
"Myah…" her brother said warningly, pulling the towel back as though readying it for a second round of fire.
"Come on, aren't you curious what's going on?"
"It's pretty obvious what's going on." Nahele rolled his eyes. "Catherine's in town. The one dad always said got away." He surrounded the words with air quotes.
"Yeah, but they were kissing!"
"So?"
"So that seems a little intense considering they're not even dating, doesn't it?"
Nahele shrugged. "They're intense people. Now go shower. You stink."
"I do not." Offended, Myah followed him towards the stairs, slowing her stride just long enough to take a sniff of her shirt. She would admit to not exactly smelling fresh. Their morning workouts were no joke and that morning had been no exception. Prior to interrupting the beachside makeout session, she'd been quite proud of the pace she'd set. Myah recalled Catherine's words and shook her head. It would take a miracle to outrun Nahele. Some people could just naturally run like deer and her brother was one of them. Steve pushed her hard, but Myah couldn't remember him ever suggesting that she should be able to outrun or outlift Nahele.
Myah wriggled out of her sweaty tank top and shot a self-deprecating look at her body in the mirror. She'd slimmed down quite a bit since moving to Hawaii, but still felt self-conscious about her stomach. She tried to tell herself that strong and muscular was just as good as willowy and slender like Catherine was, but honestly wasn't certain she believed it. Crinkling her nose, Myah also guessed that Catherine had always been one of those naturally skinny people who could eat whatever she wanted and didn't even have to try. Feeling the water warm, Myah stepped in.
Myah quickly rinsed off in the shower and tried to recall her previous interactions with Catherine. Steve had brought Catherine on board to protect his mother and Myah at a safe house when WoFat was on the loose and threatening Doris specifically. That had been a frightening day but Myah remembered Catherine to have been calm and collected throughout, purely professional. Of course, Doris being Doris, she had asked Catherine point blank if she was in love with her son. Catherine had clearly been embarrassed but had managed to dance around the issue. There was no dancing around the issue out there, Myah thought dryly, still feeling caught off guard about having caught Steve mid makeout session. It wasn't the first time she'd seen him kiss a woman. He had been dating Lynn when Myah had first come to live with him, but the small pecks that had been exchanged between the two of them could not even compare to the passion that she had witnessed on the back patio.
The thought of Lynn called to mind the memory of when Steve's ex-girlfriend and inadvertently Myah, had stumbled upon an engagement ring in Steve's dresser. Steve had not followed through on his promise that he'd tell her one day who it was for. Nahele had been fairly confident that it had been for Catherine, though he was no help in providing details on what had gone wrong between the two.
Myah threw on clothes after showering and detecting the smell of bacon, wasted no time in heading down the stairs, but quickly sidestepped when she realized Catherine was on her way up. She had a large military style green duffle on her back and was pulling a black suitcase behind her. Her ease of movement with the load was impressive.
"Oh, sorry." Myah said, stepping back and then automatically offered, "I can grab that suitcase for you." She reached for the handle.
"It's no problem, I've got it." Catherine said, waving her off. "Thanks though. Is that your room?" She motioned towards the door Myah had just vacated.
"Yeah."
Catherine paused to poke her head through the doorway and take in the turquoise oasis. "Very cute. I love the color. The update was much needed."
"Yeah." Myah said wryly. The previous decor had probably been considered stylish at one time, but the wallpaper specifically had not aged well. She suddenly wondered if her room was where Catherine used to sleep and if the woman had assumed the other furnished rooms would be available. In all fairness, Myah and Nahele hadn't moved in until after Catherine and Steve had broken up. If the luggage was any indication, Catherine was clearly planning on staying with them and Myah was suddenly concerned about the arrangements. Nahele's room was by the bathroom and other than Steve's room at the end of the hall, there was one other small bedroom, but they used it for storage and the sagging twin bed didn't even have sheets on it.
Hoping to avoid any awkwardness, she tried to quickly formulate a plan. "I could always sleep on Nahele's floor." she offered. "There's a sleeping bag in there, and you could use my room." Even as she spoke, she couldn't help but grimace internally. Or you could get a hotel. I love my room and J is not going to be happy if I take his spot. Nahele's best friend J Aarons slept over more often than not, it seemed.
"Oh." Catherine seemed surprised by the suggestion and Myah detected a slight flush to her cheeks. They stood awkwardly for a moment, and then Catherine spoke. "That's alright, Myah, although that's very generous. I'll be fine in here." She readjusted the green duffle on her back and pushed open the door to Steve's bedroom.
I'm an idiot. Myah felt the desire to facepalm. She couldn't quite bring herself to watch the dark haired woman make herself at home in her dad's room, and so turned and hustled down the stairs. She busied herself with setting the table. Watching Steve out of the corner of her eye, she couldn't help but notice the odd smile on his face as he manned the skillet.
"Mmm. Smells like you haven't lost your touch, sailor." Catherine breezed back into the kitchen, closely followed by Nahele.
Steve was a good cook, and Myah had never complained about food at their table. Still, she couldn't help but feel mildly impressed with how quickly Steve had thrown together the feast that was before them. There was bacon and eggs, as usual, but also sausage, biscuits, hash browns, a fruit salad, yogurt and what looked like french toast sticks. She almost asked what the occasion was, but then realized it was rather obvious.
"So I hear Kono's engaged?" Catherine asked.
"Yeah. Tonight's actually her engagement party." Steve said. "It's at Felix's."
"Oh, nice, I love that place. Sounds like I made it just in time."
Myah carefully placed a sausage patty and pile of scrambled eggs onto the biscuit she'd sliced in half. She tried to remind herself that just because Catherine hadn't been a part of her own life since she'd moved to Hawaii, the woman had had a life on the island and had been very much a part of the ohana that Myah now cherished.
Myah's phone vibrated in her pocket and she discreetly slid it onto her thigh. Her best friend Sam Grover had sent pictures of herself in possible outfits for that night, through the chat group that they, along with the third member of their party, Grace Williams had formed. Ignoring the pictures, for the moment, Myah silently tapped out a message to Nahele. "She's sleeping in dad's room apparently!"
Myah served herself some fruit and watched as Nahele shifted slightly in his chair, clearly answering her back, as artfully as only another teenager could do. His answer was about as irritating as any teenage boy's could be.
"So?"
"So are they dating again?"
"They're kissing anyway."
Myah rolled her eyes without thinking, and suddenly found Catherine's eye on her.
"Texting at the table, babe?"
Myah felt her lips part slightly in amazement. Catherine's tone was playful but had she really just called Myah out? Steve's work dictated that he always have his own phone close by and as a result he was not overly strict about their cell phone use at the table. Catherine didn't know that though. For all she knew, it could have been a punishable offense.
"Myah…" Steve scolded, shooting her a look. It occurred to Myah she had never thought he was strict about it because they had never abused the privilege. She certainly hoped it wasn't a punishable offense.
Myah also suddenly recalled what he'd made very clear as his standing rule, which was that he could go through their phones at any time, and decided she needed to get out ahead of this. "I'm sorry." Quickly switching back over to her friends chat, she held up her phone to show the collage of pictures. "Sam's having a fashion crisis about tonight."
"Oh." Steve rolled his eyes and returned to refilling his coffee mug. "Cath? More coffee?"
"Of course."
Myah wasn't surprised to see she drank her coffee black.
Catherine seemed to sense that she was the subject of her thoughts and the woman shifted in her chair. "I can't even imagine if cell phones were around when I was growing up. Whenever I visit my dad, he can't stop ranting about my nieces being on the phone. Of course, they act like they're going to die when he says no phones at the table." She chuckled and shook her head.
"So what's your stance on it?" Myah asked, keeping her voice sweet. Catherine's words had only served to irk her further. If Catherine really found her father's behavior outdated and amusing why in the world had she still found it necessary to call Myah out.
"Oh." Catherine seemed surprised, glancing quickly at Steve. "I don't think it's a big deal, but of course, whatever Steve… your dad says, goes."
Myah prickled but tried to contain it. "Well, yeah, obviously." She took a bite of her breakfast biscuit. Obviously I wasn't questioning dad. Does she think I'm that immature?
"I can't exactly set the best example in that regard." Steve said. With absolute perfect timing, his own phone buzzed. He sighed. "Looks like I need to run into the ME's office. Just for a couple hours this morning."
"Need any help?" Catherine perked up at his words.
Steve smiled. "Always happy when you've got my six."
Myah rolled her eyes and was relieved that even Nahele couldn't contain a snort.
"If that concludes our chick flick moment of the day, someone please pass me the hash browns." he said.
Steve playfully cuffed his son across the back of the head and then set the potatoes in front of him, clearly not offended. "How soon can you be ready?" he asked Catherine.
She downed her coffee. "90 seconds. Just need to change." She quickly vacated her seat and Myah had no doubt she would be back before the 90 seconds were up.
"We should be back well before the party." Steve said, answering Myah's question before she could verbalize it. "I'll text if not. Just take care of the basics today and let me know if you decide to go out."
"Yes, sir." Nahele said.
Myah nodded. Steve had several levels of housecleaning that he insisted they operate by and "the basics" just included the normal weekend chores that shouldn't take too terribly long. She held back a sigh. The weekend chores were generally a lot more fun when Steve was working with them. It was a bummer that he'd gotten called into work.
"One more thing." Steve zeroed in on his kids with an expression that had them both sitting up straighter. "An occasional text is fine. A whole conversation under the table is not. Am I clear?"
"Yes sir." Nahele said, amazement along with a little embarrassment showing in his expression.
"Yes sir." Myah repeated. She then couldn't help herself and asked, "Dad, how long… how long do you think Catherine will be staying with us?" Having seen how incredibly happy he clearly was at her presence, she was careful to not allow any of her trepidation at the situation to seep into her tone.
Steve exhaled. "I honestly don't know, kid. She and I will need to talk soon." He leaned down and kissed her on the head. "Be good." He gave a pointed look.
"I'll try."
Steve rolled his eyes at her response and exited the kitchen, as they heard Catherine calling from the living room.
"Get a move on commander! Last I checked, if you're not early, you're late!"
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Author's Note: Hey to the jewels of the sea aka the best readers out there. Trying my best to get back to writing when I can as the McGarrett family is always near and dear to my heart. This story has me exploring a lot of emotions, as the kids get older and Steve continues to try and figure things out. Hope you all enjoy! As always let me know what you like, what you don't and what you wish for.