A/N: Doesn't really fit in at any specific point in the canon, but it won't mention any major events from the series. Alexis is 21 in this and in her last year of Columbia. Kevin is 32 and recently divorced (no Sarah Grace in this).
Detective Kevin Ryan didn't expect to be spending his Halloween clubbing. For the last three years, the only thing that would bring him to a nightclub like this was a murder scene. He had thought he'd been moving towards a phase in life where this holiday would be marked by carving pumpkins and taking kids out trick-or-treating, but instead Kevin was moving backwards.
Immediately following his divorce, Kevin had been reluctant to put himself back in the dating scene. Eventually Esposito's onslaught of offers to play wingman convinced him that if he was forced to be single again at thirty-two, he was going to make the most of it. For the last month, Kevin had been going out with Javier and picking up women more often than he ever had in his twenties. He had always looked at dating as means to finding a wife and starting a family, but recently he had just wanted reassurance that he was still desirable, that women would still want him now that he was a divorcee.
So this Halloween Kevin found himself dressed as a 40's gangster, at a masquerade party in a swanky nightclub Castle had recommended. The anonymity that his wide brimmed fedora and the slim black mask that covered his eyes provided helped him to relax after the long day of work. Although that could have been the effect of the three drinks he had already downed. At the sound of Esposito's voice, Kevin looked up from his scotch and over to his partner dressed in a matching costume.
"I'm gonna do a lap. See if anyone catches my eye. You coming?" Javier asked.
"Yeah, man. I'm right behind you," Kevin replied, pulling himself upright from where he was leaned against the bar.
The slowly made their way closer to the tightly packed dance floor, the blue and purple lights that shone down on the crowd, pulsing to the beat of the loud dance music that played, combined with the outlandish costumes of the dancers gave the scene a surreal almost otherworldly quality. There were several gorgeous, scantily clad women throughout the room, and Javi was nudging Kevin almost immediately. He pointed to a group of girls with fangs and fake blood accessorizing their leather corsets and masks.
"How about a sexy vampire girl? Or are you still traumatized from that one chick who wanted to do it in a coffin?" Esposito joked.
"Never again," Kevin shuddered exaggeratedly then chuckled, "I'd rather go home with you tonight."
"Sorry bro. You're not really my type, but she sure is," Esposito trailed off, his eyes following two women who ambled off the side of the dance floor, making their way to a private table behind a velvet rope, where fresh drinks were waiting for them.
"Oh, come on. Women who can afford bottle service do not go for cops. You know that."
Although even as the words left Kevin's mouth, he couldn't help but stare after them too. The pair had been dressed as an angel and the devil if their respective halo and horns were anything to go by, but their costumes consisted primarily of lacy white and red lingerie. Their feathered masks covered their faces, but the rest of their bodies were on display. Both women were stunning, but Kevin only had eyes for the angel.
Her glossy red hair, shining in the light of her glowstick halo, hung in curls around her slim shoulders, framed by white feathered wings. The shadowy lighting of the club emphasized her curves, cleavage on display in a white bra, the lace cups and the small scrap of lace that was her panties only just protecting her from a public indecency charge. Kevin's eyes trailed down her body and he took in the milky white skin of her toned stomach, the garter belt that hugged the curve of her hips leading down to shapely legs clad in white, lace trimmed stockings that stopped just above her knees.
"You're forgetting. We're not cops tonight. We're gangsters," Esposito said tugging on the lapels of his pinstriped suit jacket before turning on his heel and heading straight for the women.
Kevin reached out and grabbed his arm, stopping Javier in his tracks. "Wait, wait. If we're going to do this, then which one are you going for?" he asked.
"Relax man. I know the redheaded good girl is all you. Besides fire and brimstone could be fun," Javi said with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
Now on the same page, the boys approached the velvet rope that separated them from the objects of their affection for the night. Projecting confidence Esposito marched right up to the rope, Kevin a step behind before flanking him on the left.
"You look far too good tonight to be sitting over here by yourselves. What do you say to a dance with my boy and I instead?" Javier asked loudly, catching the women's attention, his eyes focused on the brunette devil.
The devil grinned before turning to her friend and giving her a pointed look. Bringing her attention back to Esposito, her smile widened, and she said, "A dance is exactly what we need."
She dropped the rope barrier between them and wrapped one of her arms around one of Esposito's, his bicep in her grip, and stepped away from their table towards the dance floor. She took two steps before turning back and looking at her friend, tilting her head towards the dance floor and urging her to follow, "Come along."
And with those parting words the devil lead Esposito into the crowd leaving Kevin alone with his angel. He looked down to where she sat in her booth, bright blue eyes peering up at him from behind the feathers of her mask. As his gaze met hers, he was sucked in, his heart quickening as he was trapped in what felt like a never-ending moment. His eyes dropped to her full pink lips, slightly parted as she breathed heavily, before flicking back up to her eyes. Realizing he was still stuck in their intense prolonged eye contact, Kevin put what he hoped was a friendly smile on his face and reached out his hand to her.
"Shall we?"