No Ordinary Love - G.Callen NCIS L.A

Chapter 35

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching her sleep. Normally, she would be up with him, making breakfast, chatting away about everything and nothing, but she was having trouble sleeping ever since Lindy's funeral.

Her chest rose and fell with every breath she took. Her hair fanned out over her pillow. Softly, he tucked a strand in behind her ear. The past month had been a constant struggle. He wanted things to be better, and because of that he was pushing, talking, struggling to make changes she thought he didn't have to make. They had taken long walks on the beach, talking about her fears of his job, the hurt she felt now that Lindy was gone, and how he feared he would not be able to protect her in the long run. He tried not to be overly protective, but she'd called him out on smothering her more times than he dared to count. It was a delicate balance, but one they were slowly reinventing and tried to make work.

Thankfully, Kensi had been there, on more than one occasion, for a girls' night out. If only to let her vent about how he was getting on her nerves. He would spend those nights with Deeks, sometimes Sam, bonding, talking. He had even introduced Dee to Michelle, and Michelle took her out to lunch and made sure she had someone else to talk to, too. It helped. But they still had a ways to go. They were improving, though. And each time she kissed him and just took a breath before sending him out of the door was a blessing, no matter how much time there was between those mornings. Grisha considered them victorious. Every time he left he wanted to promise her that he'd come back without a scratch on him, only to realize that that was not a promise he could make.

Looking at his watch, he pressed a soft kiss to her temple. "I love you."

Maybe it was good for her to spend some time with her family. And although he'd miss her terribly, perhaps it would give her some space to think things through. Decide whether or not she wanted to re-open Indulge or do something else altogether. Hetty had been hinting about the house, but he had let Eric and Nell fine-tune the alarm system and for now that had to do. Yes, giving her time off was a good idea.

He'd been so immersed in thought that he hadn't seen the figure coming to him in the hallway at the mission. "Penny for your thoughts?"

He looked up, startled. "Jeez, Deeks, you almost scared me."

Deeks grinned at him. "I can't remember the last time I was able to startle you."

"Don't get used to it," he warned.

"You okay?"

Callen dumped his bag on his desk and walked passed Deeks to get his tea. "Getting better every day."

Deeks patted his shoulder. "Give it time. It's still a lot to deal with."

"I know."

From upstairs, Nate was standing next to Hetty. "Callen looks good," he observed. "Bit stressed, but not more than normal."

"That's just the way he stands."

Nate glanced in her direction. "You sure you just want his evals? It's almost time for everyone else's, too."

"Start with him, please, Mr. Getz."

Nate had learned long ago not to argue with the older woman. "Alright." He lingered. "Anything you want me to know before I try and coax things out of him?"

"Just that he's been happier."

That didn't tell him an awful lot, other than that Callen had something or someone to be happy about. Maybe he and Joelle had gotten back together? Mmm... maybe not. He'd just keep an open mind and try to talk to him. Everything he could find out would only be beneficial.

Kensi was the first to spot him. "Nate!"

He wrapped her in a warm hug. "Hey, Kensi."

The men shook his hand.