Tango for Two
The charity ball for MDPD was not usually something that was looked forward to. Smiling for press photos while the feds took credit for the work and Stettler took credit for the lab; big whoop.
"Geez, I hate this." An unhappy Natalia murmured.
"I know, but what're you gonna do?" Calleigh smiled sweetly, as another flash bombarded her green eyes. "I'm goin' blind."
"I know, right?" Eric mumbled.
"Eric, I'm to your right, you're talking to a Ficus." Calleigh smiled, looping her arm in his and guiding him away from the plant. "Though I'm sure she's very flattered, I'm your date tonight."
"And you're much better looking than a plant." Eric smiled.
"Well I'd hope so." Calleigh whispered, walking away with her man. Her long black gown dragged on the floor behind her.
"I hate these things so much, and my dress is so not my color." Natalia murmured as she beside Valera, who was enjoying herself.
"You look good in any color." Ryan smiled, coming from behind.
"Aren't you charming?" Natalia smiled as he offered his arm. She took it gladly. "You know you didn't need to wear a suit, right?"
"Yeah, but I figured I can't pull off leather like Eric." Ryan shrugged, admiring Natalia in her deep green gown. "What do you mean? Green's so your color."
"Hello, Rick." Horatio greeted cordially.
"Horatio, so glad you could make it." Rick smiled.
"You're a good liar." Horatio replied smartly, leaving the deflated man to wave at the camera men and pretend he hadn't been burned.
"Hello, Horatio." An exotic voice said sweetly.
"Yelina." Horatio turned to see the woman in a red gown with a low back and flowing bottom which barely brushed the red carpet.
"I wasn't expecting you to come." She said quietly, almost as mysterious as he himself.
"Wouldn't miss it." He was slightly caught off guard when she hooked her arm in his shyly and turned away from him, but he just smiled and put his hand on her arm. "Wouldn't miss it."
The inside was magnificently decorated with subtle but rich colors to set the mood and so much velvet you could ship them all to Chine in a crate and they'd be fine...except for food and water of coarse. Even the table cloths had a simply white cloth underneath a high end red velvet cover.
"Wow, it's like my grandmother came back from the dead just to decorate this place." Calleigh noted dreamily. "Just without the doilies."
"I know, do you think I could rob the place and get away with it?" Natalia looked at the intricately designed ceiling and the black velvet curtains that kept out the red sunset soon to be blue moon.
"I don't think so, besides, where would you hide your loot?" Ryan chuckled, referring to her revealing dress and earning a slap on the arm.
"This place is nice." Eric nodded, sitting next to Calleigh and taking her hand in his. "Has anyone seen H?"
"I think he's..." Calleigh looked over to where Horatio was talking with Yelina and Stettler. Or more so he was talking to Yelina and Stettler was pretending to be in on the conversation. "I'll be right back."
"So I said to him, you clean up that debris or you're fired." Stettler chuckled smugly. Horatio and Yelina simply traded bored looks and nodded.
"Rick, if you're referring to the time one of my CSIs could have died in that fire, you will regret it." Horatio promised.
"I believe that CSI would be me." Calleigh said happily, despite that fact they were talking about her life being endangered.
"It would, Miss Duquesne." Horatio smiled.
"Hey, H, hi Yelina." The blond smiled at the older woman. "Oh, I love your dress! Red is such a good color on you!"
"Oh, thanks Calleigh, I like yours too." Yelina smiled.
"I agree, red is your color." Stettler said loudly, moving toward her and being blocked by an angry Horatio and a smiling Calleigh.
"Oh...Rick, you really don't look good in a tux. Actually, you don't look good in anything, but maybe going casual could've been good for you." She said in a light, whispering tone in her sweet way.
"What, like your fish-boy over there?" Rick asked, pointing to Eric. Caleigh's eyebrow twitched in anger.
"Well he looks a hell lot better than you." She huffed, turning away from him and back to Horatio and Yelina with a sugary smile.
"I'll see you two later, and H, that's a nice tux. I like it." She smiled, winking at Yelina. "See ya'round pal."
"See you 'round." Horatio smiled at his friend warmly.
"I like that girl." Said Yelina.
"I'm glad." Horatio was indeed glad the woman he loved got along with on of his best friends. He looked at the Columbian woman, admiring her beauty; her wavy auburn hair, her dazzling blue eyes with the tiniest bit of brown spiraling from the center. "Yelina-" Horatio was interrupted by the music as it began to play, an upbeat tango.
"Yelina, would you like to dance?" Stettler asked with alcohol on his breath. He leaned in closer, almost touching her olive skin. She leaned away, squeezing her eyes shut, trying to make him go away.
"Oh...n-no...not really...no. Definitely not...no." She repeated, slinking away like a snake.
"Oh come on, it's for charity." Rick moved a little quicker, going to grab her arm.
"You lay one finger on her and I'll kill you." Horatio said in his ever calm voice, with just a hint of malice in his level voice.
"Fine." Rick bit, leaving rather flamboyantly.
"I wonder about him sometimes." Horatio muttered to himself.
"Thank you, Horatio." Yelina smiled shyly. "Would you like to..."
"I'd love to." He smiled as he guided her to the dance floor with her small soft hand in his calloused one. He placed one at the small of her bare back and the other in hers.
"Oh, that's so sweet."Calleigh gushed. "Aren't they cute?"
"Yeah...hey, let's dance." Eric smirked, taking off his black leather jacket, leaving him in his charcoal silk shirt.
"Let's." Calleigh smiled, getting up with him and letting him spin her gently. He spun her around once then spun her out. "Oh."
"Calleigh!" Jake burst drunkly. "Whater, what-what are you...?"
"Watch it, Berkeley!" Eric growled, stepping in between the tiny Calleigh and the drunk Jake.
"Hey! Elic-E-Eriss-Er-Erica!! What's-what's going on with you and my Kaylee-Cafferdy-Gallilee?" He stuttered dumbly.
Eric simply stared at the man blankly, guessing he was so far out of it he wouldn't be able to find his own ass with an ass-detector. "First of all, her name is Calleigh, second she's not yours, and third, you better back off."
"Hey!" Jake shouted. "Shut up! If that bitch-"
"Bastard!" Eric wheeled around and hit Jake square in the face.
"Well...you're a...you're a jerk!" Jake shot back, wiping the blood from his cheek.
"Wow, two gorgeous guys, cops no less, fighting over you. How do you do it, Cal?" Natalia asked the shorter woman.
"Oh...it's not the blond hair, is it?" Calleigh asked worriedly, touching her creamy, platinum locks self consciously.
"I don't think so. Eric loves you, he's in love with you, and Jake...well I don't really care about him. Do you?" Asked Natalia.
"No." Calleigh replied simply. She continued to watch the men fight like children until Jake got a hit on Eric's arm. "Oh no he di'int!"
"Go get him Cal!" Natalia shouted. "Be careful, hon! He's-"
"I got him!" Calleigh shouted from atop Jake's back. "I got 'im!"
"Go Calleigh!" Natalia cheered.
"Like you don't get fought over." Ryan grumbled.
"What are you talking about?" She asked, an eyebrow raised.
"I beat the guy from the shooting range up for talking to you." He said outrageously, obviously trying to earn some points.
"That's sweet...violent, but sweet." Natalia smiled, pecking him on cheek and earning a blush.
"What in the world?" Horatio turned his attention away from Yelina to see his CSIs in an all out brawl.
"Is that normal?" Yelina asked, blinking in surprise.
"Fairly, Yelina..." He kissed her cheek sweetly. "Fairly."
"So this happens frequently?" She asked.
"Maybe..." He paused. "Frequently isn't the right word. Perhaps more-so...often." Answered Horatio.
"Look out!" Calleigh jumped off Jake's back just in time to avoid hitting the buffet table with him. She hit the floor gently as Eric stepped in front of her with his arm out protectively.
"Banana..." Jake murmured before dropping off to sleep and onto the floor.
"Who let him drink all the booze?" Rick asked rhetorically.
"Like he should talk." Horatio whispered to Yelina, who giggled. Horatio looked at her happy smile and got an idea. "I'll be right back."
"Yes?" Rick turned to face whoever was tapping him on the shoulder. He was met with a classic banana cream pie in the face.
"Special delivery." Horatio smiled. "And remember...we never close."
Cheers and whistles were heard all around them as Rick wiped cream out of his eye sockets. Horatio simply flicked a tiny piece of cream of his tux, making sure it was still spotless. It was.
"Yeah! Go H!" Calleigh cheered. Eric whistled.
"Woo! Horatio!!" Natalia laughed.
"My knight in shining armor." Yelina laughed, placing a hand on his chest. She leaned in to kiss him when a hand grabbed her away.
"Rick!" Horatio warned angrily.
"Shall we?" Yelina simply stared at him like he was insane.
"Oh, Rick." Horatio moved rather quickly for such a calm man, hitting Rick square in the nose. Rick doubled over in pain, releasing Yelina from his grip. Horatio caught her in his one arm, sweeping her away, and pushed Rick into the punch bowl with his other hand. "Okay, now we're closed."