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Jersey-fy

It was the end of the day and Catherine entered Steve's office with Angie in tow. "There's Daddy's girl!" He greeted her with a smile as she ran into his arms chattering happily. Looking at Catherine he said, "Case wrapped, I'll follow you home." as their toddler wriggled down to her feet.

"Daaaannnnno!" Angie called, having seen her Uncle Chin and Auntie Kono as they exited the building, she moved in search of her godfather.

"Shh, shh, baby girl, indoor voice," Catherine laughed as Danny appeared saying,

"Annnnnngie!"

"Danno Hi!" She clapped as he knelt down to her level.

"Hi, and for the record, your outdoor voice is way better than your father's indoor one." His smirk earned him an eye roll from his partner but he sobered briefly when he studied Catherine for a moment. "Ouch. That looks like you went a little Jersey on someone." He rubbed his face. "Grace stood up once when I was bending down to pick her up. Felt like an uppercut. My jaw was bruised for a week."

She smiled with only the tiniest wince. "It's not too bad. Rite of passage with a toddler, so I'm told."

Danny nodded. "Definitely, but next time, honey, mess up your father's face." He winked and Catherine shook her head. "It's not like anyone would notice." Standing, he offered his hand and Angie readily took it. "C'mon, Uncle Danno has a cookie in his desk."

The bright eyes lit further. "Mama, go wif' Danno," she announced as her parents shared a smile at how Danny kept animal crackers in his office for her visits.

Steve locked his desk and followed his wife and daughter into his best friend's office, where Angie was happily munching her cookie and Danny had a look that could almost be described as mischievous.

"What are you up to?" Steve's hands rested on his hips.

"What? I can't give my beautiful goddaughter a cookie and not be up to something?" The detective spread his arms, but the twinkle in his eyes gave him away.

"You're plotting something," Steve insisted, shaking his head.

"We may have something to show you." He acquiesced. "Angie, honey, do you want to show Daddy and Mommy what we learned?"

Catherine's look was amused and quizzical as she wondered exactly what Danny had come up with while babysitting the previous week. Whatever it was, she knew it was designed to get a rise out of Steve - his expression said as much.

As Danny pulled out his phone, Angie immediately said, "See!" and he once again crouched at her side. "Okay, tell Daddy who's that?" He pointed to a photo and prompted, "Jon …"

"Bovi!" She bounced and clapped.

"Good girl!" Danny chortled with delight. "And who's this guy?" He thumbed to another image as Steve's eyes widened at his two year old's imitation of the whispered hint.

"Pin-teen!"

"Yes!" He held up a hand and the little girl gleefully slapped it. "Jersey in the house. That's what we're talking about." He hit play and Angie began to bounce to the music. "Dance with Uncle Danno," he said with a huge grin as the first lines of Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run filled the room. Lifting his best friend's daughter onto his hip, Danny danced around in a circle with his niece. When he sang the final part of the first verse,

"We gotta get out while were young,

'cause tramps like us, baby we were born to run."

Angie echoed "Baby bo' wuuuuun!" and his delight was complete.

"Danny!" Steve palmed his face as Catherine laughed out loud. "You taught my kid Born to Run?"

"Steven, she needs to know classic music." He swayed and Angie giggled, saying, "Mo!"

Danny obliged and when the next song in the playlist began, he sang along while bouncing the laughing child to the music. Every few verses, Angie would chime in with a word or two and when her godfather took her tiny fingers in his own and sang, "Take my hand and we'll make it, I swear, whooooa, livin' on a prayer," she added, "wiv oh pear!" as enthusiastically as she would sing The Wheels on the Bus."

When the music ended, Danny was laughing uproariously and Angie was smiling ear to ear. "Where's the best music, Angie?" He prompted with a kiss on her cheek before placing her on her feet. "New Jersey, right?" He threw up both arms.

The curls bounced as she nodded, even if she didn't understand the concept. "Ooh zeee!" she followed suit, giggling again at her Mommy's laughter.

"Are you…" Steve's brows rose. "You are. You're trying to Jersey-fy my daughter!"

"Ah ha! Welcome to my world, Mister coolest uncle ever, who takes my kid to skydive and La Mer and had her knowing what a best case scenario was at ten." He was still chuckling, and wiped tears of laughter from his eyes. Looking from Steve to Angie, he clapped. "Just wait til Christmas, sweetheart, when Uncle Danno introduces to real Italian restaurants and pizza and we have so much fun at Nonna's house."

"Nonna," Angie repeated, recognizing her beloved great grandma's name from their many skype calls. She ran up to tug on her father's pant leg. "See Nonna, Daddy?"

"It's late at Nonna's house, baby girl, we'll see her tomorrow." He lifted her and smiled when her arms wound around his neck. "You can show her how you say Daddy." The pride radiated off him in waves, making Catherine smile.

Danny's grin returned and he clapped at Angie, "Know what else you can tell Nonna? Who's our team?"

"Don't even …" Steve began, when at Danny's cry of "Go Jets" Angie yelled, "Jets!" Pointing at his best friend and trying his damnedest to keep a smile off his face, he said, "That's it..." Facing his daughter, he whispered, "Washington! Tell Uncle Danno, Jets are yucky, yay Washington!"

"Yay! Ash tin!"

"Meanwhile, your father just said the word yucky in reference to a football team," Danny snorted.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Catherine reached for Angie and bounced her. "Mommy's girl is gonna root with Mommy. Yay Cowboys!"

"Boys!" Angie said. "Yay Boys!"

Steve and Danny exchanged a look and Catherine burst out laughing at the simultaneous, "Not boys." "No boys yet! Mommy said COW-boys."

Looking between her father and godfather, Angie giggled with her mommy. "Cow. Moo."

Shaking his head and taking in his partner's expression, Danny snapped a photo, then took one of Angie in Catherine's arms and pocketed his phone. "That's so I can show you what you your daddy looked like before he's all grey. Because you …" he pointed and leaned over to kiss the little cheek. "Already have the moxie of a Jersey girl."

# End - thanks for reading

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