Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.

-- Henry James

Major Evan Lorne and his sea otter dæmon Riau walked out of the Jumper that had landed on the beach of the mainland and were enveloped by the smells of citronella and coconut sun cream. It was the quarterly Atlantis Beach Party and it had been in full swing for about three hours before Evan and Riau arrived. There was a large crowd of both scientists and Marines, and Evan thought he could hear the bright sound of a recording of steel drums blasting from a boom-box somewhere. The atmosphere was festive, even more so than usual because the Daedalus had just dropped by and delivered much-needed supplies and a few new personnel.

A large majority of the Expedition gathered on the beach wore shorts and t-shirts, and a few of the more daring personnel had opted for swimwear. Evan himself had a tank-top and shorts on, as well as sandals that he had brought with him to Atlantis, just in case. It was almost as if he'd been transported back to Earth and Miami, though the sight of the Athosians in their customary bathing costumes didn't quite mesh with the idea of Palm Beach. A couple of kids ran past, their dæmons frolicking in the shallows and flicking from shape to shape in their exuberance. Evan smiled, remembering the times he'd done the same with his friends back on Earth when he was a kid.

He was shaken out of his reverie by an accented voice calling his name. Given the fact that it could've been any one of the fifteen or so people from the former USSR on the Expedition that knew him, Evan turned to see who it was, not automatically recognising who it was as he did so. It took him a moment to realise that it was Doctor Katya Petrova of the Ancient Tech department and her ermine dæmon Serrano, especially since she was wearing a pair of black board shorts and a bikini top that matched. He usually only saw her in the Science Team uniform of blue shirt and tan slacks, which apparently hid her figure rather well. He'd always known she was petite, but never had he guessed that a beautiful slender figure hid itself so well underneath that uniform. Riau coughed slightly to catch his attention, snickering softly at his attitude towards Katya.

'Hello, Major, Riau.' Katya said, with her customary bright grin. 'Are you enjoying the party?'

'Yeah.' Was Evan's eloquent response as he nodded vaguely. 'It's nice.' Inside, he winced at his seemingly traitorous brain that had decided to first turn his normally adequate speech skills into mush and then run off giggling madly to Tijuana. 'You look nice today.' He said, waving a hand at her clothes.

Katya raised an eyebrow. 'Are you saying I don't look nice any other days?' she asked. Evan's eyes widened and he began to backtrack.

'What? No, no. Of course not.' He stammered, flailing a bit. 'I just meant that your clothes really suit you and that-'

'Hello, Major, Doctor Petrova.' Evan turned his head to see Radek Zelenka standing there in a t-shirt and jeans, his gecko dæmon Braela perched in her customary spot on top of his head. Radek didn't seem to mind, and the sight of Braela's bright green and yellow form amongst his flyaway brown hair was a familiar one to the members of the Expedition. Lorne rather liked the quirky Czech; he was one of the few scientists that could actually get along with the acerbic McKay.

'Hi, Radek.' Katya said, turning her attention to him. 'You do know you can call me Katya, yes? We're not in the labs.'

'Of course. Sorry.' Radek said, tilting his head a bit. Braela shifted as he did, moving her grip so she didn't fall. 'I heard you were looking for someone to play volleyball with, Katya, and Rosenberg, Ortega, and Campos are willing to be on team with you. They're waiting over by the drinks tables for you.'

'Thanks, Radek.' Katya turned back to Evan. 'We'll talk later, Major. Perhaps you'll watch the game?'

'Sure.' Evan agreed, making Katya smile. She waved and took off, heading towards the drinks tables. Evan watched her go, and Radek must've seen something in his expression, because the physicist chuckled softly, a smile crinkling his eyes.

'You've been bitten.' He told Evan. Evan blinked.

'What? I have?'

Radek nodded. 'Oh, yes. The love bug has bitten you hard and deep, Major.'

Evan's brow furrowed, and then his eyebrows rose. 'Excuse me? Sorry, Doc, but I think you're barking up the wrong tree.'

Radek's smile grew wider. 'I saw you talking with Katya, Major. There was something happening between you two, and you can't deny it.'

'We're just friends, and nothing more.'

'Ah, but you wish that were different, right?' Radek said shrewdly. When Evan didn't answer, Radek's smile widened and he patted Evan on the shoulder. 'Don't worry, Major, I'm sure it will work out. But you do realise you'll have to make a move soon or else she may not wait much longer for you. Have a nice day, Major.' With that Radek wandered off, disappearing into the crowd. Evan watched him go and then took off his shoes, wriggling his toes in the warm golden sand while contemplating Radek's words.

Damn. Was he really that obvious?

'Yes, you are, and you should go talk to her.' Riau said, nudging his leg with her head. 'You really shouldn't talk out loud to yourself, by the way. People will think you're crazy, otherwise.'

'Or they'll just think I'm talking to you.' Evan said.

'Not if I don't answer back.' Riau countered smugly. Evan could've sworn she was smirking, but otters couldn't do so, as far as he knew.

'Eh, whatever. Let's go get some food before the Marines eat it all.'

'Good idea. Then we can watch the game, and maybe you can talk to Katya.'

Evan groaned. 'You're gonna be like this the whole day, aren't you?'

'Yep.' Riau said, scampering alongside him.

'Great. How I got stuck with you, I'll never know.' He grumbled.

'You're just lucky like that, I guess.'

'Hunh.'