Facing the Music
A/N: Danny's in for it now.
'She loves you and you know that can't be bad.'- The Beatles, She Loves You.
Kate smoothed her hands over the black silk. As much as she hated to admit it, Aby was right; the dress she had picked looked absolutely amazing on her. It was a black spaghetti strapped evening gown with a v-neck and silver lace accents on the bust. She gave herself a final once over in the mirror before leaving the bedroom.
"Well, how do I look?" She asked, giving a little spin for Aby.
"Can I say it?" Aby begged.
"Go ahead." Kate sighed, knowing exactly what was coming.
"I told you so." Aby smiled brightly. "You look great."
"Why thank you." Kate said with a little curtsey. A knock on the door signaled her date's arrival. Aby hurried off to answer the door while Kate went to fetch her purse and shawl.
"Well look at you. Don't you clean up nice?" Aby commented as she let Danny in.
"I hate wearing a tux." He grumbled. "Where's my girlfriend?"
"Right here." Kate appeared in all her glory. Danny's jaw dropped.
"Wow." He was totally stunned. "You look….." He stumbled over his words, trying to find the right ones. Finally, he just took her close to him and kissed her.
"That good huh?" Kate raised an eyebrow and laughed as he kissed her again. Aby shook her head and rolled her eyes. New love was so, sappy, for someone like her to watch. But they were an adorable couple.
"Alright you two, get out of here." She barked as she shooed them out the door. "And get a room!" She yelled down the hall at them before they disappeared into the elevator. Once in there, Danny ordered Kate to close her eyes.
"Can I open 'em yet?" She begged as he led her outside.
"Go ahead." It was her turn to be stunned.
"Oh Danny." She shook her head in disbelief. Sitting outside her apartment building was a stretch limo.
"What, did you think we would take the subway?" He asked as he held open the door for her.
"You're hopeless boy, completely hopeless." Kate caressed his cheek before sliding in.
"Only when it comes to you."
The grand ballroom at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel was dressed up to the nines along with its attendants. Kate stayed close to Danny. She felt completely out of place among all these people. Unfortunately, Danny was even less comfortable with being there than she was. Mac was going to be so pissed when he found out.
Danny scanned the room, looking for any signs of his boss. He found a friend instead.
"Stella!" He called out to her.
"Hey Danny. Who's this?" she pointed to the Kate.
"This, is my girlfriend, Katharyne." Stella smiled.
"You were right, she is gorgeous." Kate had the good grace to blush. "Well, come on. I'll take you over to the others." The couple followed her to a table towards the back of the room. Already seated around the table were Aidan, Lindsey, Don and Hawkes.
"Kate, you remember the girls and Flack from the other night?" she nodded. "And this is Sheldon Hawkes, our M.E. turned CSI." Danny introduced the two as he pulled out a chair for her. "Where's Mac?" Danny asked cautiously. He hoped that by some chance, he had gotten called away on a case and wouldn't be able to attend.
"He's out smoozing with the top dogs?" Stella informed crushing Danny's hopes.
"Mac? Smoozing? Are we talking about the same guy?" Aidan asked. Stella nodded in confirmation. "That's so unlike him."
"I know. But if it means more funding for the lab and keeps us in good standings with the chief of police, Mac will bite the bullet and kiss ass with the best of them." She explained.
"That doesn't seem right though. I mean, shouldn't our funding depend on things like our solve rate not it Mac sucks up to the right people?"
"It's New York, Lindsey. Nothing is what is seems." Stella said with a toss of her hands.
"Well here comes the man himself." Hawkes announced. Danny's head whipped around to see him coming straight at him.
"Do you want to dance?" He asked Kate urgently.
"Ah, sure." She agreed hesitantly. Danny stood and was about to hurry off with her but it was too late. They'd been spotted.
"Well this is a nice surprise. I didn't expect to see you here tonight, Katharyne." Mac commented as he stood next to Danny.
"Danny didn't tell you I was coming with him?" Kate questioned as she looked up at her friend.
"No. He, uh, forgot to mention it." Mac replied smiling. That's when Danny knew it. He was done for.
Mac watched the couple slow dance on the dance floor. He watched the way Danny held her close to him. Protecting her and caressing her at the same time. He watched Kate gaze up at him with total love and admiration. Something deep inside him erupted when he saw the two kiss.
"I don't like it, Stella." He confessed to his friend, who was sitting next to him.
"Don't like what?"
"Danny and Kate. I don't like her being with him." He repeated.
"Why? He seems to really love her." Stella said, not really liking where this was going.
"He's just not good for her." Mac insisted.
"Who are you to decide what's 'good for her' or not? Katharyne's a big girl. She can make her own decisions. And as far as Danny's concerned, I don't think you have a right to judge his love life. What he does in his personal life is none of your business. Even if it does involve someone you know. You can't tell them what to do and you can't break them up. I know you don't like it, you don't have to. But you do have to accept the fact that they are together and seem to be happy. And remember, she choose him. She didn't have to give him her number and she didn't have to say yes when he asked her out. But she did. And you can't change that." Stella stopped her preaching and looked at Mac. She tried to read his expression but it was indecisive. In his head, Mac made his decision. He and Danny were going to have a little chat.
While Mac and Stella were talking, Danny and Kate slipped outside to the empty balcony. The night air was cold and she shivered. She'd left her shawl inside. A pair of big warm arms wrapped around her along with a suit jacket.
"Thank you." She whispered. He kissed the back of her neck.
"It's not what you think." He said, his breath warm against her skin. She signaled him to continue with a little 'hmm'. "I wasn't trying to hide you. I was just scared to tell Mac because I knew he'd be mad. Forgive me?" Kate turned around to face him.
"I was never mad. Just, confused. You shouldn't be scared of Mac. When I said he was protective, I didn't mean he was going to kill you for dating me. And besides, he's not my dad. And even if he was, I wouldn't care. I love you, Danny. And nothing, not Mac, not family, not friends. Nothing, could change that." She held his face with her hands and pulled him down for a long, slow kiss to show him that what she said was true.
"I love you too." After he said it, Danny realized it was the first time he'd ever said that to a woman.
