A/N: You will recognize part of the conversation between Mac and Danny in the second section from the episode "Til Death Do Us Part". It was what triggered this whole fic, and it's so cute I couldn't resist using it :)

Maddie was arranging equipment at a lab station in her classroom when Don walked in.

"Hey Maddie. Whaddaya doin'?" he asked.

"Hey Don…I'm setting up the experiment we're doing in class tomorrow," she replied.

"What's the experiment?"

She grinned mischievously. "Watch this." She placed a small quantity of something silver-colored in a Petri dish and picked up an eye dropper, dipping it into a beaker of clear liquid. "Ready?"

He nodded cautiously.

She let loose a couple of drops of liquid onto the silver substance. Heat erupted from the Petri dish accompanied by a cloud of purple smoke.

Don jumped back a step and Maddie laughed. "I love doing that."

He recovered and shook his head. "You and Danny…both scientific practical jokers. No one's safe around you two."

Maddie grinned again and quickly cleaned up the mess she'd made. "So what brings you by this afternoon? Get a call over this way?"

"Yeah I did, and I thought I'd stop by and see how you were."

Her smile faded a little, but remained on her lips. Don, along with Danny, had been rather protective of her since the attack, and she appreciated their concern. But it had been a long day. "Well, today was kinda rough, but I made it through," she replied. "How 'bout you? Your day going well?"

"Well, that depends on the answer I get to a question," he told her cryptically.

She stopped her work at the lab station and looked at him, wondering what he was talking about. "What question?"

He suddenly found a nearby graduated cylinder very interesting and studied it as he spoke. "I know a guy over at this restaurant in midtown…he got me a reservation for Friday, and I asked Aiden…"

"Finally!" Maddie exclaimed.

Don grinned sheepishly and looked up. "Well, the thing is, I got so nervous asking her that I kinda told her you and Danny were coming too."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "What? Like a double date?"

"I chickened out at the last minute." He frowned. He never had that problem with any other woman, but he was always afraid he'd screw things up with Aiden. "We're going to dinner and then do something afterwards, but you don't have to come. Danny won't want to…"

"Do you want us to come?" she asked.

"Maybe just for dinner? And it wouldn't be a date for you guys, 'cause, I mean, it's you and Danny…"

She smiled. "Okay. I'll talk to him. And if things go well for you and Aiden, we'll make an early exit."

His gin returned. "You don't mind?"

"Not at all. You're picking up the check right?"

That same afternoon a woman died at the alter on her wedding day. Mac and Danny headed over to the church to process the scene.

"According to the hotel brochure," Danny was saying as Mac examined the body of the bride, "'the flight of the doves is a symbol of the couple's union and eternal love'."

Mac paused in his inspection and looked up at Danny. "It could happen to you, you know," he told his subordinate, remembering Maddie's words to him at his birthday party.

"What, marriage?" Danny asked as he collected evidence.

"Love," Mac stated simply, a teasing look in his eyes.

Danny shook his head and continued his collection with only a cursory look at his boss. "Don't even say stuff like that Mac, it's not funny."

Mac grinned and went back to the body. "What about Maddie?"

"What about her?" Danny asked in reply.

"You two ever thought about dating?"

Danny pressed his lips together. "No," he replied. "We're friends. That's all."

"That's how the best relationships start, you know," Mac persisted gently, thinking of the way Danny looked at Maddie when they were together. It reminded him of the way he had looked at Claire when she was alive.

Danny shook his head again, being careful not to make eye contact with the older detective. "It doesn't matter anyway," he said quietly. "I'm not good enough for her."

Mac stopped what he was doing and looked squarely at Danny. "Who told you that?"

Danny stopped, too, and looked back at Mac. "No one told me that, Mac, it's just the truth."

"What does Maddie think?"

Danny looked away and shrugged.

Mac resumed gathering evidence. "Well, maybe you should ask her."

Danny knocked on her door at seven o'clock as promised. She looked quickly through the peephole and smiled as she opened the door. He was wearing a black suit, complete with a silky tie, blue shirt, and an expression of excitement mixed with displeasure.

"Wow, you look great!" she told him as he walked into the apartment.

"New suit," he answered a little shortly. He wasn't thrilled with the idea of tagging along on Don and Aiden's date.

"You even wore a tie."

He smiled grudgingly as she picked up the tie and ran her fingers over it. "It matches your dress, too."

She looked down at the blue strappy number she was wearing and laughed. "It does! You must've read my mind."

He smiled a little more. "Or you read mine."

She grinned. "Scary."

She grabbed her purse and a little crocheted sweater, and the pair headed over to the restaurant where Don and Aiden were already waiting. They were seated at their table, dressed to the nines but looking a bit uncomfortable.

"Hey guys," Maddie greeted them cheerfully.

Don and Aiden rose as their friends approached. Hugs and handshakes were exchanged and the four arranged themselves around the table.

"You look beautiful," Don told Maddie. "But I bet it's not the first time you've heard that tonight."

Danny looked chagrined, knowing that he had not, in fact, mentioned to her how nice she looked.

"Thanks Don," she smiled. "And I know you told Aiden that when you picked her up, right?"

Aiden grinned. "He called me gorgeous."

The two women giggled across the table and Don looked rather proud of himself.

"Okay, you've been here long enough to form an opinion now," Aiden continued, trying to keep the conversation going. "How do you like New York?"

"I love it," Maddie smiled. "I miss Detroit a lot, but this place is amazing, and there's so much to do."

"Have you been to all the touristy places yet?" Don asked.

"Danny did a good job showing me around," she replied touching his arm. "It took a month, but I think we hit everything in all five boroughs."

"We missed the Empire State Building, though," Danny reminded her. "It was too windy to go up the day we saw Manhattan, and we never made it back."

"That's right," she remembered. "Well then, I guess I've been to almost all the touristy places."

"You know, the Empire State Building is still open," Aiden commented. "We could go up there now."

Don seemed to like the idea, and even Danny appeared okay with it. And it was better than trying to continue the small talk in the stuffy little restaurant. So Maddie agreed. "Sure, I'd love to."

They gathered their things and left before even ordering drinks.

"Should we take a cab?" Don asked as they stepped out onto the street.

"It's a nice night," Danny said looking up at the sky. "Why don't we walk?"

Don smiled. "You ladies wearin' comfortable shoes?"

Aiden grinned, looking forward to walking in the moonlight with her date. "I'm good."

Maddie wasn't about to spoil the fun now. "I'll live," she winked.

"If your feet get too sore," Danny told her, "I'll piggy-back you the rest of the way."

She laughed and took his arm, following Don and Aiden down the street. "That'll work well in this dress."

He leaned in a little closer. "You know, Flack was right. You really do look beautiful tonight. I should have said something earlier."

"You did," she told him. When he gave her a confused look she elaborated, grinning, "I saw the way you looked at me when I opened the door."

"You did?"

She laughed. "As well as you can read me, Danny Messer, I can read you better."

He smiled crookedly. "You know me so well."

The four walked along in no particular hurry, with Danny and Maddie carefully hanging back a few steps to allow their friends some privacy.

Maddie smiled when Don reached over and took Aiden's hand. "That's so sweet."

"What? That they're holding hands? That's not a big deal," Danny replied.

"Of course it is," Maddie protested. "How many times have you ever held my hand?"

"Well, none," he said raising an eyebrow. "We're not exactly together..."

"Exactly," she told him. "That's why it's a big deal. It's a sign of affection…"

"But you take my arm all the time…like now. Isn't that a sign of affection?"

He was baiting her and she knew it, but she responded anyway. "That's different…"

They debated all the way to the Empire State Building, almost forgetting about Don and Aiden until the four joined up again and rode the elevator to the observation deck together. Don and Aiden wandered off in one direction when they reached the top, while Danny and Maddie subtly went in another.

"Looks like everything's working out for them," Maddie smiled as Don slid his arm around Aiden's waist. "And it's a beautiful night."

Danny sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Too bad you're stuck with me," he replied.

She looked over at him. "Stuck with you?" she grinned. "I asked you to come tonight. I had to practically beg you!"

He looked out over the city, trying not to make eye contact with her. "Yeah, but you should be up here on a real date, not wastin' your time with me."

She took his arm and stopped walking, looking up into his blue eyes. "Danny," she said, brushing a hand over his cheek, "Time spent with you is never a waste."

He looked down at her and met her gaze, feeling butterflies forming in his stomach. He reached out and took her hands in his, smiling shyly as he did. She returned his smile, her eyes shining brightly in the moonlight, and squeezed his hands gently.

That's when he knew he loved her.

It hadn't been love at first sight the way so many other people claim to have fallen. He had admired her from the very beginning, appreciated her for her insistence that being a teacher was more than just a job. They had become friends because of it, then close friends as they got to know each other. Now he knew he was in love with her and couldn't imagine his life without her.

He took a step closer, his nervousness outweighed only by the wave of happiness washing over him. He was certain he saw it in her eyes, and found himself searching for the right words.

"Maddie, I..."

He was interrupted by an employee making his last rounds of the night. "Last call, folks," he called. "It's closing time. The elevator's making one last trip down..."

The pair froze momentarily, distracted by the employee. They snapped out of it rather quickly, but it was too late. The mood was broken and Danny lost his nerve, suddenly wondering if he'd fooled himself into believing she shared his new-found feelings. "I guess we should get going," he said instead, releasing her hands.

Maddie nodded. "Yeah, I guess we should."

Was that disappointment in her voice? He shook his head as they turned toward the elevator. She shivered a little in the cool night air and he slid his arm around her as they walked, wondering if he'd just narrowly averted losing his best friend or totally blown his chance at happiness with the woman he loved.