"I don't know why I let you talk me into this. There is a perfectly nice tree at my parent's house, why do I need one?" Danny asked Ann as she strung lights around the Douglas Fir that stood in the corner of his living room.

"Because this is your home, such as it is, it's Christmas and you should have a tree that's why." She answered as she continued to wrap the tree in the multi-colored bulbs. "Besides, it gives us an excuse to get Hank and Evelyn together in the same room."

"I knew there had to be an ulterior motive to this." He shook his head but to his credit, he was smiling. "Annie you can't keep pushing them together the way you have; they need to figure things out for themselves."

"Says the guy who's been trying to persuade a certain Lieutenant Henry Metcalf to ask one Evelyn Ahern to the squadron Christmas party this weekend." Ann reminded him and he had the grace to look embarrassed. "Has he done it yet?"

"He hasn't said anything to me." Danny admitted to her. "Is inviting them to this little tree trimming party a plan to find out if he asked?"

"And maybe giving him the opportunity if he hasn't." She said to him as she pushed the plug into the light socket to see if the bulbs would light and breathed a mental sigh of relief when they did. "Now if they would both get here we could put the ornaments on the tree."

"Why don't you have a cup of cider while we wait?" He put an arm around her shoulders as they stood in front of the tree and he kissed her cheek. "You did a nice job with the lights Miss Ann."

"Thank you." She smiled at him. "Mama always asked me to do it when Dad wasn't home. She said that I did as good a job as he did."

"That's high praise because your tree always looks really nice every year." Danny commented.

"I'll tell Dad you said so." She laughed. "He takes a lot of care into putting the lights on. He leaves the decorating of it up to Mama and she always lets Shelby, Tom and I put up the ornaments but she puts on the tinsel."

"Why?"

"She says that it looks too clumpy when we do it. So we each have our part in decorating the tree and that's why it looks so nice." She explained as she heard a knock at Danny's front door. "It sounds like you've got company."

"It sounds like we have company. Remember that this is your bright idea." He grinned at her as he walked to the door.

"So noted Lieutenant." Ann smiled back and waited to see who was on the other side. It was Hank and he looked a little tense.

"Come on in." Danny invited his friend inside. "Evelyn's not here yet so you can relax."

"What is it Hank?" Ann was concerned because it looked as though he had something on his mind as he stepped into Danny's quarters.

"I'm an idiot, for one." He frowned.

"You're going to need to explain that." Danny had a sudden look of concern on his face.

Hank walked to the sofa, sat down and sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. He looked frustrated and upset and Ann couldn't help but wonder if it had something to do with Evelyn. "Well Dan, you haven't exactly been Mr. Subtle when it's come to getting me to ask Evelyn to the Christmas party."

She was right.

"She said no." He looked disappointed himself as he sat down next to his friend. "I'm sorry."

Hank shook his head. "She didn't turn me down. She said that she'd think about it but now she probably will say no."

"I'm sorry Hank, I don't understand." Danny looked at his friend in confusion. "Why would she turn you down?"

He sighed again. "Because after I asked her I thought that I would give her an added incentive to think about it and I tried to kiss her but she stopped me cold."

"Did she say why?" Ann asked. "There could have been a perfectly reasonable explanation."

"Yeah, like she doesn't want me that close!" He barked at her. "With her it's two steps forward and about a hundred steps back. I'm starting to think that she's not worth all of this grief."

"If she weren't worth all of the grief, you wouldn't be tying yourself up in knots over her." Danny said reasonably. "You also know that she isn't doing this on purpose."

"I know she isn't."

"Hank, when you made the decision to pursue her you knew that it was going to be a challenge. I believe that she cares for you and it doesn't take much to see that when she's around you. So just be patient and keep letting her know that you aren't going anywhere." He advised.

Hank glanced at Ann and then at Danny. "I think I'm in love with her and it's making this even harder."

Danny smiled at him then and clapped him on the shoulder. "Those are words I never thought I'd hear you say."

"Well they don't mean much if she doesn't feel the same, now does it?" His friend's happiness seemed to irritate Hank. "I've been through unrequited love before and I don't want to go through it again."

"I don't think it's unrequited." Ann stepped in. "If Evelyn weren't the least bit interested in you she wouldn't give you the time of day and I'm not telling you something that you don't already know. I think Danny is right and you just have to let her know that you aren't going anywhere. Maybe you could give her flowers once in awhile. Stop by her desk to say hello just to let her know that you want to be around her for no other reason that you enjoy her company, which I know you do."

"Flowers?"

"I know she would appreciate it." Ann smiled at him as she warmed to the idea. "Don't send roses, of course because those aren't the right flowers to give her just yet. Send her some carnations, or daffodils."

"You want me to give her daffodils?" He looked confused.

"Go talk to a florist and tell them who they're for and they'll suggest the right ones." She persisted. "You'd be surprised what flowers will do for a girl."

She smiled at Danny and knew that he understood why; she still had the roses he'd left for her before he was shot down.

"Are you sure about this?" He seemed skeptical.

"She needs to know you're serious about her." Danny seemed to be trying to reinforce what Ann was saying. "She needs to understand that you don't always play the fool and aren't going through life just looking for a good time. She needs to know that you're a solid guy that she can depend on."

"She can depend on me!" Ann thought at first that he was being defensive but realized that Danny's observation hurt him.

"Then you need to show her." She commented gently. "Instead of sparring with her all the time, you need to show her that you can be romantic. Show her that under that lighthearted exterior there's a man who isn't afraid to show his feelings a little. Evelyn needs to know that you're the kind of guy that she can talk to, to share her hopes and her dreams and her troubles. She needs to know that you aren't going to crack a joke when she needs someone to listen."

He sighed again and Ann believed that they'd gotten through to him. "Have I really been that bad?"

"You don't do it all the time." Danny said to him. "I've seen the two of you talk when you aren't trying to be cute and she seems to enjoy it. If you just start doing more of that she might actually start seeing you the way you want her to see you."

There was another knock at the door and Danny looked at Hank before he walked over to answer it. "Now's your chance to show her."

Ann grabbed his arm so he would stand up. "Help me start decorating so she won't figure out that we've been talking about her."

He followed her lead and picked up an ornament just as Danny opened the door. "Evelyn, please come in. Annie and Hank decided that they couldn't wait, so they got a head start on us."

"You're decorating without Christmas music." She remarked as Danny closed the door behind her. "I find it so hard to get into the Christmas mood without it. Of course, it's a little hard to get into the season here because there isn't any snow."

Without realizing it, Evelyn gave her an opening and Ann took it. "Well then, why don't you take my place and while Danny finds some music, I'll get some cider for us. That'll get us into the spirit."

"What can you do about this balmy weather?" She laughed and Ann saw Hank's ears turn red and he was trying to hide a smile.

He had it bad all right.

"There isn't anything I can do about that. You'll have to go back to Chicago for snow." Ann replied with a smile that Hank couldn't show, or wouldn't.

He finally turned around and when she saw him Evelyn's face flushed. "I have two weeks off for Christmas and was supposed to fly home late Friday morning but Henry told me that your squadron is having a Christmas party and asked if I'd go with him." She smiled at Hank. "I just called my folks to let them know I'll be flying out Saturday afternoon instead because if your offer of a squadron Christmas party Friday evening is still open, I'll go with you."

It wasn't the answer that he was expecting and it showed on his face. He also seemed to lose his power to speak because he didn't answer and Evelyn's smile began to fade.

"That is unless you've changed your mind." Her voice became a little breathy and it seemed as though she was bracing herself for him to tell her that he'd had a change of heart. "I would understand completely."

Ann got the feeling that Evelyn was trying to telegraph an apology to Hank for rebuffing his attempt to kiss her without actually saying it in front of her and Danny.

He stood in front of the tree with an ornament still in his hand and Ann could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he tried to figure out if she had just accepted his invitation. But Evelyn was beginning to look very uncomfortable and she tried not to smile as an amused Danny stood behind Evelyn and did just that.

"Hank, you need let her know that you heard her."

She coaxed him to answer and then something seemed to snap back into place because he smiled and it lit up his whole face. "The dance starts at eight o'clock but there's going to be dinner and cocktails at six. Can you be ready to go by five thirty?"

Her face flushed again as she smiled back. "I'll be ready."

"I don't know if I made it clear that it's a formal dance, so if you'd rather not go I'd understand." He was trying to give her a chance to back out even though she'd accepted and Ann wanted to roll her eyes in frustration. She glanced at Danny and he was trying not to laugh.

That certainly wasn't going to help things.

"And miss a chance at seeing you in full dress uniform?" Evelyn's tone was light but Ann suspected that she was telling Hank exactly what she thought. "It just means that I'll have to do some shopping between now and Friday but I'll still go with you."

"Great." He told her with a smile on his face that widened, as it seemed to sink in that Evelyn Ahern just agreed to go out on a date with him. A real honest to goodness date.

Her face flushed even more. "Well, this tree isn't going to decorate itself Henry. So while Dan and Ann find some Christmas music and get some cider to set the holiday mood, you can help me get some of those ornaments on the tree."

"Sure." He nodded his head as he handed Evelyn the ornament he'd been holding and picked up another from the carefully packed box that Danny's mother had given him.

While their two friends bantered back and forth as they began the task of trimming the tree, Danny found a Bing Crosby album and put it on the stereo. White Christmas began to play and Ann saw Evelyn smile. "Now that's the song to get into the Christmas spirit with."

Ann in the meantime stood at the stove and filled four cups with hot cider and the irony wasn't lost on her. It was going to be another typically balmy Christmas and her family and Danny's would be home to celebrate that year. Mrs. McCawley's parents were planning on coming out because Mr. Johnson decided that he wanted to experience at least one Christmas where he wouldn't have to shovel snow.

There had also been some discussion about getting Tom and Sarah McCawley to come back and James and Margaret O'Connell as well. Thanksgiving had been such a wonderful day with Ann and Danny's grandparent's there and as Grandpa O'Connell commented at the time, none of them were getting any younger. It had taken too many years for all of them to get together in one place and have the chance to meet each other instead of just hearing about each other from their mutual grandchildren.

"Where are you Miss Ann?" She heard Danny's voice close to her ear and when she turned to look at him he was smiling at her and holding a sprig of mistletoe in between his fingers. "Do you know what this is?"

"It looks like tree fungus." She commented and tried to keep a straight face. "I hope you wash your hands after you throw that away."

"Didn't you just get done telling Hank that he needs to be more romantic?" He leaned closer and Ann could feel her own face flush. Danny had been so cautious when they'd been together of late that his unabashed display of what he wanted surprised her. "Well, that's what I'm trying to do."

She couldn't give him the satisfaction just yet and managed to maintain her straight face. "By holding a piece of fungus over my head?"

He smiled as he moved in closer so that his body just touched hers. "This isn't just any old tree fungus, you know. It's magical."

"How do you figure that?" She raised an eyebrow in feigned skepticism.

"Because if I do this." He lifted the mistletoe over their heads and his voice became low and husky. "I get to do this." And he kissed her.

He hadn't kissed her since they'd come back from Tennessee and Ann suspected it was the reason that he'd let her talk him into putting a tree in his quarters. He probably thought that he'd have her to himself for an evening and she knew that was the one thing that couldn't happen.

His lips were warm and tasted of the cider he'd had earlier. They were soft and persuasive as she felt his arms move around her waist and pull her close. She felt one of his hands caress her and even as she kissed him back, desperately wanting to follow his lead she knew that she couldn't. They had the relative privacy of a dark kitchen but they also had two people out in the living room waiting for them.

"Danny?"

"Mm-hmm?" He answered as his lips trailed down her neck and her heart beat double time.

"As much as I'd like to continue this, we're not alone." She reminded him quietly even though there was nothing more that she wanted to do than to go on.

His lips stilled and he sighed as he pulled away enough to look at her. "You had to remind me of that, didn't you?"

"If I didn't, we would have embarrassed ourselves one way or another." She tried not to laugh at the barely concealed frustration that she saw in his eyes. "And it's a good bet that we've probably embarrassed them by being in here for so long. So if you would take some cider out to your guests, I'll be right behind you with some for us."

He picked up two of the cups that steamed with the hot cider and he smiled at her. "We're not done yet. Once they leave I get a real kiss."

Ann felt her cheeks warm again and she smiled back. "We'll see about that."

"I love a challenge." His smile turned into a grin as he headed out to the living room leaving her behind to revel in the idea before she picked up the other two mugs and followed him.