Title: My Apology
Fandom: CSI:NY
Characters: Danny/Lindsay
Prompt: 021. Creative
Word Count: 899
Rating: PG-13 for Danny's thoughts
Warnings/Spoilers: A few of Danny's perverse thoughts regarding flannel
Summary: Danny's put his foot in his mouth (again) and Lindsay won't accept a simple 'I'm sorry'. For my Danny/Lindsay 100moods challenge over at livejournal.

"Come on, Montana. I said I was sorry."

"Well, 'I'm sorry' doesn't fix everything!"

Danny groaned. Never in a million years did he think that he, Danny Messer, would ever be chasing after a girl apologizing. But, there he was following Lindsay as best as he could, while she stormed through the halls of the crime lab. She couldn't have been angrier if there were little black clouds following her.

"All I said was,"

"Don't you dare repeat it, Danny," she yelled at him without even breaking her stride.

Danny immediately bit back the rest of his sentence.

"I didn't mean it like that," he tried, rephrasing his thought.

"Well, it sure sounded like you meant it that way."

"Now, you're just being unreasonable."

He should have known that wouldn't work. She stopped, turned around and fixed him with a death glare.

"Unreasonable? I'm being unreasonable? Don't you turn this on me, Danny. I'm the one you insulted, remember?"

"I said I was sorry."

"And I said 'sorry' isn't good enough!"

"What do I have to do, Montana?" he asked, desperation and frustration evident in his voice.

"I don't know, Messer," she said, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Be creative!"

With that she stormed into their office and slammed the door.

Danny looked around and all the lab techs quickly looked away and got back to their work.

"You know," said a voice behind him, "this isn't what I meant when I said to keep personal stuff out of the lab."

Danny turned and saw Mac standing in a nearby doorway.

"I know, Mac. But in all fairness, I pissed her off at work, not at home."

Mac gave him an annoyed look. "Just fix it, Danny."

Danny ran his hand through his hair. "But how do I fix it?"

"You heard her. Be creative, Messer."

Mac gave him a little smug grin and walked away.

"Great," Danny grumbled. "Big help that is."

-----

The next day was Danny's day off. He spent the day arranging a surprise for Lindsay. He had to make up with her, not only because he hated being on the outs with her, but also because his back couldn't stand another night on their couch.

He showed up at the lab when her shift was over. Her eyes widened when she saw he was wearing jeans and a flannel button up. It wasn't exactly his usual dress, but it was part of her surprise. Plus, he knew how good she thought he looked when he dressed like a cowboy.

"Hey," he said.

"What are you doing here, Danny?" she asked. There was still anger in her voice, but Danny saw the tell-tale signs that he was turning her on.

"Being creative. I've got a surprise for you. It's my apology."

He handed her something from his pocket.

"An apple?"

He grinned. "Don't eat it. You'll need it when you see the surprise. Come on."

He held out his hand and she took it. He led her out to a rental car and helped her into the passenger seat. Forty-five minutes later, they pulled up to a series of buildings outside the city.

"Where are we, Danny?"

"You'll see," he said mysteriously.

They got out of the car and he could see that she recognized the smells in the air because her face lit up. He grabbed a duffle from the back seat and led her into one of the buildings.

"Oh, Danny," she cried. "Horses!"

He grinned at her enthusiasm. A woman walked up to them and smiled.

"You must be Mr. Messer," she said holding out her hand.

"Yeah, I'm Danny," he said, shaking her hand. "This is Lindsay Monroe. She's the one this is for."

"Right," the woman said, shaking Lindsay's hand. "I'm Kate Alden, and these are my horses."

"They're gorgeous," Lindsay said.

"Thanks," Kate replied. "Well, Lindsay, on the phone, Danny said you know a thing or two about horses."

She nodded. "Back home in Montana, my father owns a ranch. I grew up with horses."

"Great. Well, let's get you saddled up and in the ring, shall we?"

Lindsay's face positively glowed at the thought of riding.

"I get to ride?" she asked Danny as they followed Kate.

He nodded. "Surprise."

She smiled. "Thanks, Danny."

"So, does this mean you forgive me? I am sorry, Lindsay."

He always used her real name when he was his most serious and she knew it.

"I forgive you, Danny."

She kissed his cheek and jogged over to the horse Kate was brushing.

-----

Later, after Lindsay rode for two and a half hours and hung around the horses for another thirty minutes, Danny and Lindsay were sitting in the car driving back to the city. She was now wearing a flannel shirt and riding pants that Danny had brought with him. He was admiring how nicely the fabric of the shirt stretched over her chest and wondered why no one thought flannel was sexy. Her voice broke through the silence and interrupted his musings.

"That was so much fun. Thanks a lot, Danny."

"No problem, Montana. I just wanted to show you how sorry I was and make you feel better. I know how much you miss your horses."

"Most guys would have just done dinner. What gave you this idea?"

He looked at her and grinned. "You said to be creative."