There were so many things that she loved about Christmas. She loved the snow, the decorations, the lights, the singing, the family, the presents, and the list goes on. But there was one thing that Lindsay Munroe absolutely hated about Christmas and that thing was mistletoe. She tried to avoid it at all cost, but no matter what she did, she always managed to get caught under it with someone every year. She swore that people kept putting up more and more when she wasn't looking.

So far this year, she had been lucky. She had spotted all the mistletoe that people had hung up all over the lab and avoided them when she could. When she had no choice but to step under them, she walked through quickly and made sure not to stop underneath them. There weren't that many at the lab anyway. People at this lab didn't decorate as much as the people at her old lab. There were only three hanging up; one in the doorway to the trace lab, one over the coffee pot in the break room, and one in one in the doorway to the garage. She had managed to avoid all three and was feeling very proud of herself.

That feeling didn't last long however. She, Danny, and Mac had been working on a case together for a couple of days and they had only now gotten a break. Danny and Lindsay had been in the trace lab waiting for the results on a substance found at the crime scene. When they got them, they both headed to the door at the same time.

Danny stopped before he reached the door and held out his arm in front of him. "You'd better go first. Wouldn't want to get caught under the mistletoe with little ol' me," he said jokingly.

"Yeah, I hate that stuff. It has brought me nothing but trouble."

"Really? How so?" Danny was intrigued. He himself had always enjoyed mistletoe. He had gotten some nice kisses from some beautiful women under the mistletoe.

"Last Christmas I got caught under it with the most lecherous man I have ever met. I still gag every time I think about the look on his face when he leaned into kiss me." She shuddered at the memory. "I tried to move away, but the little jerk was too fast. And that's only one story about my misadventures with mistletoe."

Danny smirked. "I'm sorry. Well, maybe this year will be different. Good things can happen under the mistletoe."

"Yeah right," Lindsay said sarcastically. "I have gone to great lengths to avoid all mistletoe this year and I intend to keep doing it!"

Danny just shook his head and smiled as they continued to walk to Mac's office. When they got there, Mac was about to leave his office, so Lindsay and Danny stopped in the doorway and filled Mac in on the case. When they were finished, Mac nodded. "Good work you two. I'll go with Flack and bring in the suspect. You guys can go ahead and go home and I will call you if I need you." Mac walked out the door and left them both the standing in the doorway.

"Well, looks like we have the day off," Danny said, surprised. Mac hardly let people go home early.

"Yeah. I'm gonna head out." She turned to walk away when he grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Wait. You can't go yet."

"And why not?"

Danny didn't answer; he just pointed to something above their heads. Lindsay looked up and saw the thing that was the bane on her Christmas. "Oh, no, no, no, no," she protested. "Not gonna happen."

"Oh, come on, Munroe. It's tradition and you seem like the type of girl who always follows traditions. Just a little kiss." He pursed his lips in a very comical way and Lindsay couldn't help but laugh. She knew that she wasn't going to get away with not kissing him, so she reached up to do it. She had intended for it to be a quick peck on the lips, and then she would walk away and go home. But things were just not going as planned that day.

When her lips touched his, she felt a jolt go through her entire body. You always hear things about fireworks and the earth moving when you connect with a special someone but Lindsay had never believed that it could happen. And while she didn't see fireworks or feel the earth move, for the first time in her life she believed that it was actually possible to experience those things with someone. She pulled away after a few seconds and realized that her eyes had closed. When she opened them, she saw a dazed look on Danny's face that she was sure reflected her own.

Danny's tongue reached out to lick his lips like he always seemed to be doing. "Wow, Montana. I'm really glad I tacked that up there a half an hour ago."

His admission combined with the irritating smirk on his lips made her regain her composure and made her a little angry. She didn't bother to respond; she just rolled her eyes and turned and stomped away, ignoring Danny's pleas for her to stop and let him explain.

---

Later that night, Lindsay was getting ready to head to bed when she heard a knock at her door. She went to answer it and saw Danny on the other side of her door through the peephole. She opened to door but made no move to let him in. "What do you want, Messer, and how did you get in without me buzzing you up?"

"One of your neighbors let me in. It's amazing the places you can get into when you show people your badge. As to what I'm doing here, I wanted to explain what happened today. Can I come in? I don't want to wake up the neighbors."

Lindsay debated it for a second, but then decided that it would be a good idea to let him in, just in case she got mad and started to yell at him. She moved aside and let him in. "So, what do you have to say about today?"

"Ok, first of all, I didn't put up the mistletoe in order to trap you under there and get a kiss. That was just an unexpected bonus." Seeing the glare that she shot him, he hurriedly continued with his explanation. "I put it up there in order for Mac and Stella to get caught under it. Unfortunately, Stella went to a crime scene right after I hung it up, and then Mac went to get our suspect, so they didn't get a chance to get caught under it."

"Ok, I guess that makes sense, but why would you want to kiss me under the mistletoe. Especially after I had just gotten done telling you how much I hated it."

"Honestly?" Danny wanted to tell her, but he was afraid of what she might say. He had seen the look on her face earlier, but there was still the fear that he had misinterpreted it.

"Yeah. The truth would be nice."

Danny nodded and walked over until he was standing just a few inches from her. "Being under the mistletoe just gave me the opportunity to do what I've been wanting to do since I met you. You're an amazing woman who just happens to be gorgeous, and I desperately wanted to kiss you. I didn't set you up, I just saw an opportunity and I took it. I'm sorry that I offended you. But I'm not going to apologize for enjoying the kiss."

Lindsay looked at him with a very surprised look on her face. "You- you enjoyed it?"

"Yeah. You couldn't tell?"

"I was kinda taken by surprise. It barely registered that we had even kissed. But, now that you mention, I do seem to recall a glazed look in your eyes." Lindsay tried to hold back a grin, but failed. The guy she had harbored a crush on for months now just admitted that he liked her too and she couldn't contain her excitement. "Maybe we should recreate the event and re-evaluate the results."

"That is a fantastic idea. And I have just the thing." Danny reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a slightly crushed piece of mistletoe.

She laughed as he lifted his arm and held the mistletoe over their heads. "Ever the boy scout, aren't you Danny."

"Yeah," he said as he leaned in, "it always pays to be prepared." His lips touched hers and she was almost positive that this time, she saw fireworks. One of her hands reached up to cup the back of his head and his other grabbed his jacket to pull him closer. She tugged at the back of his head to pull him closer and deepen the kiss. Danny's free hand cupped her cheek and the hand holding the mistletoe dropped it on the ground in order to bury itself in her hair. When the oxygen in their lungs ran out they pulled back and gasped for air. Lindsay laughed and shook her head before resting her forehead against his.

"What?" He asked, still trying to catch his breath.

"Nothing." She answered. "It's just... I really love mistletoe."

Danny laughed himself and then leaned in again to capture her lips and show her just how much he loved it too.