Page 49 of Pallas & Kawehi

He heard her soft laughter and smiled even more. "Are you making fun of me? Or do you mean it?"

"You know I mean it," she sighed softly. "I'm just so happy you're home I can't seem to stop smiling."

Hearing her thoughts and words made his whole chest swell. "Same here. Wolf said I should call you, but I wasn't sure if you were awake. If you were sleeping, I wouldn't want to disturb you."

"Disturb me!" She laughed out loud. "It would be the best wake up call. I've been worried about you since you've left."

He stretched his legs out and didn't mind the ache in his back. "I'm sorry you were worried, but it's nice to know you were thinking about me."

"Of course I was! The hard part was that every time the news came on, I was listening in to see if there was a news story about the Marines. It's strange. I was listening to the news, but I was hoping I wouldn't hear any, because I feel like news could only be bad news."

He nodded, knowing that she couldn't see him. "I wouldn't want you to hear bad news that way, but I'm also hoping there will never be bad news for you to hear."

"Me, too." Her voice was softer than it had been a moment before. "I was on eggshells when I wasn't working myself harder to keep myself distracted."

"I'm sorry, 'Wehi."

"No. No." He heard something that sounded like an ache in her tone. "Please don't be sorry. I'm so thankful that you're back safe, that my aching feet don't even ache anymore."

He couldn't stop himself from chuckling, just a little. "Why do I think that's not quite the truth? I mean, I bet your feet still hurt, relieved or not."

"Okay," she grumbled, "my feet still hurt, but I don't think I'll stop smiling anytime soon."

"I like the image I have in my head now."

"Oh?" She laughed. "I hope that means you're thinking of me looking amazing and smiling about you."

"You always look amazing, Kawehi. Don't ever doubt that."

"Ahh... Well, you've never seen me first thing in the morning. Wait until you've seen me with bedhead and my clothes all twisted."

He spoke before he thought about his words. "I can't wait."

"That's sweet for you to say, but-"

"I mean it." He decided to say what was on his mind. "I'd rub your feet."

"Oh, that's low down and dirty, Dom."

He laughed at the longing he heard in her voice. "I mean it. I've got strong hands."

"Oh god..." She groaned. "You can't say something like that."

"Oh? I can't?"

"Because now I'm thinking of what it would feel like and I'm going to go to bed thinking about it."

"I'm not that far away from you." He wasn't sure how far he should take this, but he'd been apart from her for over a week and his willpower was lower than he'd like. "If you're not already in bed I could meet you on the porch. Rub your feet before you go to sleep."

Another soft groan reached his ears and he had to exhale his own breath to keep his voice steady. It didn't help that her voice was breathy now.

The images in his head were changing, looking more like some of his dreams.

"You're so mean."

"I'm not mean." He loved talking to her. Her playful words and soft, sweet voice made him happy. Happier than he'd ever been.

"You're putting that idea in my head and now I'm going to have to climb into bed wishing you were here."