The letter arrived the same day as the barbecue that Steve had planned as a celebration for Grace's birthday. She was too old for either Danno or Uncle Steve to be invited to her party with her friends two days ago (the two partners were no longer as cool as when she was only 10), but that hadn't stopped them from planning a small celebration of their own. It had been a while since the team had gotten together outside of work, and Steve justified the gathering as some well-deserved R&R after a long series of tough cases. As he readied the steaks in the kitchen, Danny came through with beer and a stack of letters.
"You got mail," he called on his way to the back yard. "Leaving it on your… huh."
Steve looked up at the sudden silence. " 'Huh'? 'Huh' what, Danny?" he called out.
"This letter," came his friend's voice from the living room.
Steve swung his hands over the sink to rinse the raw steak juice off. "Opening other people's mail is a federal offense, Danny," he called.
"This one has my name on it," Danny returned defensively. "Well, both our names," he muttered quietly.
"Your name on it? With my address?" Steve turned off the water. "Danny?" Steve quickly dried his hands and followed his partner through the living room and out the back door where the others had gathered around the grill. Danny had paused a few feet away from the group, the contents of the letter now in his hand. The others, sensing something was up, gathered around.
"What's wrong?" Kono asked immediately.
"Bad news, brah?" Chin followed.
Their concerns were cleared when Danny looked up grinning. He passed the envelope and letter over the Steve, keeping a small photograph for himself. Steve glanced at the address. He skimmed the letter. Then he saw the photo. His eyes narrowed.
"Give me that."
Danny sidestepped his hasty swipe and moved toward the safety of the rest of the team. "What's the problem, Steve?" he asked, grinning wolfishly. "Afraid I might drop this?" He waved the photograph about, pretending to hand it to Kono. "Afraid Kono might see it? Or Grover?"
"Danny… please." Steve was pleading, but the damage had been done. Kono, curious and unable to resist, snatched the photo from Danny's willing fingers. A wide smirk broke out on her face as she passed it to Chin, who handed it to Catherine.
"Is that you, Uncle Steve?" Grace had come up behind Catherine from the beach and was now peering around her at the photograph in hand. Steve groaned in humiliation. "That looks like it hurt," she commented, eyes wide.
"Oh, it hurt," Danny confirmed. "His pride more than anything else. I'm not sure it ever completely recovered."
Steve glared at them all, feeling that this ganging-up was entirely unfair, and he was ready to abandon the steaks and go on a long swim when Chin pressed a cold beer into his hand. "What's the story, brah? You can't just show us a picture like that without giving the story."
"Don't leave us hanging, boss," Kono said, doing her best to pull an innocent puppy face, but her eyes were twinkling.
Steve scowled over her head at Danny who shrugged and said "If you don't tell the story, I will."
"Fine." Steve fetched the steaks, positioned himself by the grill while the others gathered around, and began…