This fic has been previously published on another site so if you're super impatient you can head over there. On the other hand, I have decided to add a few chapters to the version I'm posting here so maybe you'll want to stick around. This fic is rated M as a whole (This particular chapter is rated T but the next is M and from there on there are M's peppered throughout.). If you aren't comfortable with healthy adult sexuality then you might want to skip it. There're lots of other great fics out there minus the smut. I tried to keep the characters as true to the show as I could but since this is a backstory fic, there's a lot of filling in the blanks that comes out of my sorry excuse for an imagination. I'm going to try to keep the chapter postings coming every day to two days apart.

-EMW

**I Love Rock n' Roll, Joan Jett**

Kara looked out over the crowded bar as she waited for her drink. It was a warm March evening in the Norfolk, Virginia hotspot. She made eye contact with a guy five or six people down the bar. He gave her a chin nod and smiled. He was a good looking man, tall with a shaved head, tan skin, and… the tell tale outline of dog tags on his chest. Nope, not for her. She looked away without nodding back.

"Sorry for my reach." A man's voice sounded from the other side of her as a long arm reached past to place a 20 on the bar and pick up three bottles of beer. "You shut him down quick. Don't want to get elbowed in the ribs for invading your space." There was no mistaking the note of amusement in his voice. She was so tightly packed in that she couldn't really turn to see him, but the wrist and forearm that showed beyond his neatly rolled up oxford was large and capable looking with a light smattering of freckles and a few scars showing white against a light tan peppered with cinnamon freckles. Kara fought the urge to run a finger over them to feel the texture of his skin. From the mirror behind the bar she could make out that he was tall with a sandy beard.

"I wasn't interested in him. No point wasting anyone's time." She signaled to the bartender that she was ready to order and asked for two mojitos, a sloe gin fizz, a vodka collins, and a sidecar. She slid a 50 across the bar. When she looked up again the freckled man was gone.

The crowd of twenty and thirty somethings was taking advantage of the nice weather to show a little additional skin. Kara was no exception. Her short black skirt and seashell pink bandeau top felt particularly freeing after 10 months at sea in her usual uniform. Add to that the strappy gold heels and the sweep of dark hair teased over her shoulders and she felt positively decedent. As they did every time they got into port, she and her girlfriends were out for 80's night, and they were all in high spirits.

Accepting the tray of drinks, she made her way to the high top table where her friends giggled and crowd watched as they caught up on the best gossip. Since Kara's ship, the USS Nathan James, had been operating in a communication blackout for the last two months, there was a lot of juicy news to catch up on. Plus, the beat of a Michael Jackson song had her bobbing her head and tapping her feet in anticipation of some fun dancing to come.

"Did you hear that Riley got passed over for promotion again? A petite girl named Sarah was passing on the news from her location tucked up against the taller frame of her girlfriend Alicia. Alicia's dark yes grew round. "You mean my Riley?"

"Yep, well I told you she wasn't too smart if she didn't stick with you, right sweetie?" Sarah, a willowy woman of Asian decent smiled at her partner reassuringly. "So now you have proof. Six years out of the academy and she's still an ensign."

Alicia laughed. "You were right about that, and that I was the one who lucked out in that break-up."

As the two women turned to kiss Denise scoffed good naturally "Knock it off lovebirds. You know the rest of us have gotten any for 10 months and we won't unless you help us find some prime targets soon. You can go snuggle at home later. Right now, Lieutenants Foster, Nelson, and Zimmerman need to find some sweet lovin' stat."

The group laughed and began to scan the crowd. "Hot guys at 2 o'clock, 6 o'clock, and 9 o'clock." reported Kara in the voice she usually reserved for status reports in the CIC

"I call 6 o'clock, going in fast and dirty." Said Georgina Zimmerman as she peeled off from the group and began approaching a group of guys directly across the circular bar from them. As they shifted to accept Georgina into their group she saw that one of the guys with his back to her was likely the man from the bar earlier. He was tall with the upright posture of a soldier and between that, the close cut sandy brown hair, and muscles he looked like the kind of guy Kara would prefer to avoid. But then again, he had a beard and an oxford rolled at the cuffs over a plain tee that had her hoping he was some kind of accountant or computer programmer or something else she could work with.

"Ugh, she's breaking code." LTJG Denise Nelson disparaged to the rest of the group. Kara looked the guy over again and was surprised when he turned and met her gaze directly over Georgina's artful toss of blond curls. Tall, shoulders a girl could rest her head on, and twinkling green eyes. Oh yes, he might look like he belonged in a uniform but then again he looked worth it. "You're new Denise, otherwise you'd know that Georgie always ignores The Code. If he's hot and willing she goes for it, even if he turns out to be in her chain." Kara remarked, still not breaking eye contact with the guy. His smile felt like he was issuing a challenges across the room somehow. She felt the warm heat of her blush all the way up to her hairline and resisted the urge to let her hair fall forward and hide her face.

"Well, why did she make me come up with this whole back story about being a kindergarten teacher if she's going to spill the beans right off the bat?" Denise wrinkled her brow in confusion. "I thought the rule was no dating military or guys who are into the military?"

"Trust me," Kara watched Georgie start to talk animatedly to the men. The man with the sandy hair threw his head back and laughed at something she said and then nodded and turned to the bar to order more drinks. She was smiling now too as she advised "Georgie is better at the hookup game than anyone. If she promises that kindergarten teacher will break a 10 month drought, I'd go with it." She grinned at the younger woman, relieved that the man with the intense gaze had turned away. The women sipped their drinks while continuing to watch the crowd.

"Yeah," Alicia chimed in. "Look, it took her 30 seconds to get that one to buy her a drink...and now she's on a first name basis with his buddies too." They watched as Georgie shook hands with a handsome man with a recently shaved head and another man with several colorful tattoos peaking out from under his shirts sleeves. Georgie began leading them over to the rest of her friends. Alicia and Sarah exchanged a glance. "It's 80's night, we gotta dance. See you ladies on the floor." The two women headed to the dance floor hand in hand.

"Wait, what about safety in numbers?" Called Denise as Kara laughed. But Alicia and Sarah just waved them off and disappeared into the crowd. "They're coming this way, I call the tattoo guy." she reported to Kara. "Quick, what's your story?"

"Scuba instructor on cruise ships out of Virginia Beach...exotic, explains being fit, and it gives me an excuse to have to leave town." She felt nervous, and she never felt nervous around men. Then again, she rarely dated and never hooked up either but, she'd promised Georgie she'd try tonight, before she was an old lady surrounded by her 75 cats. She took a steadying breath while smoothing her skirt and checking her hair with the other hand. She knew she could attract men if she put a little effort toward it and she'd had a few opportunities for shore leave hookups before. But the sandy haired man's assessing gaze earlier made her feel less sure of herself. Bolstering her confidence with her own advice she continued "It's always worked for me even if I've never actually followed through on the potential encounters." Glancing back to where the group had been standing she saw the man gesture politely for Georgina to lead the way. She was indeed bringing the whole group their way and Kara fought a moment of panic as she realized he was still watching her as he crossed the room.

Georgie beamed from ear to ear as she introduced the men. "Ladies, I have found us some interesting company to join us for drinks." Kara edged closer to Denise to make room as they all circled the table. The intense man spoke first, establishing himself as the leader of the group. He had a strong, warm voice that reminded Kara of her father. The note of confidence and authority were unmistakable. "So, I hope you don't mind, but we were just about to get a round of shots when Georgina invited us to join you so I asked the waitress to bring some for us all."

Leading in with shots? Kara raised an eyebrow but said nothing about that. Georgie did always go for the wild ones. Although, she noticed Georgie had wedged herself next to the buff black guy. Well, I guess it's go time, thought Kara, careful not to make too much eye contact with any man in particular. "Hi." She made a rainbow kind of wave toward the whole group, like a middle schooler, her inner voice cringed. "Sounds like fun. I'm Kara." Denise followed suit, although her introduction seemed to be more directed at Mr. Tat in specific. That left Kara with Mr. Sandy.

Georgie made introductions as the waitress arrived with a bottle and told the shaved head guy she'd add it to his tab. So, thought Kara, Tat guy was Scott. Shaved head guy was Frankie. And Sandy, whose fingertips just grazed hers with an electric shock as he passed over a shot glass, was named Danny.

Shaking off the unexpected jolt she asked "Are you drinking to celebrate something or are you guys just drinking to drink?"

When he smiled back at her his green eyes wrinkled at the corners and she felt an answering wriggle somewhere in her midsection. "A nice summer evening with lovely ladies for company is reason enough."

She couldn't help but smile back even though that should have sounded corny from anyone under 60. She was surprised to feel herself attracted to him even more. Normally such a line just annoyed her, but somehow this time it didn't.

"Well then here's to an evening of possibilities." Georgie winked at Kara and raised her glass. After a chorus of responses they downed the burning liquor then launched into the next round of introductions going over who does what and where they live. The conversation rapidly bounced back and forth between the men and women. George gave out her fictional career, travel writer, just in town to visit her girlfriends for a long weekend. Frankie it turned out was a police officer, Danny said he was a scuba instructor, and Scott was a dog trainer.

Denise totally pulled off kindergarten teacher with her dimpled smile and perky ponytail. Suddenly that guy Scott was looking speculatively at the younger woman. Georgie had clearly claimed Frankie. So Kara was going to be left with Danny, the intense guy, scuba guy. It was going to be her turn and shit, she couldn't say scuba instructor now. She had taken some classes but she didn't know enough to pass herself off as an instructor with someone who did it for a living. She felt his gaze on her and she panicked. "I'm a meteorologist." She managed to stammer out. "Well, sort of. Not the TV kind. The data analysis and, um, computers and.."

"You're pretty enough to be on TV." Blurted out Scott, the tat guy, from one side of her.

Denise frowned and put her hand on his arm, clearly claiming him for the evening. Denise made an attempt to shift Scott's attention away from Kara. "Do you have tattoos all over?"

He laughed and waggled his eyebrows at her. "Maybe you can find out later."

Kara rolled her eyes. Her cheese-meter was apparently working fine after all, so she didn't know why she still wanted to drag Sandy Danny into a corner to get to know him better. She watched as he took a long pull on his beer. He had one of those upper bodies that just screamed I-could-throw-you-over-my-shoulder-and-carry-you-off-to-my-cave-if-I-wanted-to. She began to blush as she realized he was aware she was staring at him.

Georgie saved her with an impish smirk. "What Kara's saying is that she's a nerd. She hardly ever gets away from all those computers of hers, and she needs to let loose for once. Let's get some more drinks in her and get her to dance." Thanks Georgie, she thought. But her nerd status didn't seem to deter the men at all. It wasn't long before they joined Alicia and Sarah on the dance floor to Rock the Casbah.