It was the night of the party. Fresh from the shower, Mac was sitting on the edge of her bed wrapped in a towel, staring at the red dress draped across her duvet. Going shopping for a new dress had been a weird and random impulse. She already had several outfits in her closet that would have suited the 'Red, Black or Gold' dress code she and Tiner had selected for the party. Yet something had led her to her favorite department store the day before, and the dress had been staring her in the face almost as soon as she walked through the door.

It was love at first sight. From the moment she viewed the stunning, knee-length number with a flared skirt and molded, halter-necked bodice, she knew she had to try it on. When she did, the saleslady let out a loud gasp.

"You look absolutely amazing, ma'am. This dress was made for you."

Mac eyed the dress again. It was strange, but she felt there was something special, momentous even, about it. She laughed to herself. Now that really is crazy, she thought. It's just a dress.

I'd better get dressed, she thought to herself, standing up and heading towards her lingerie drawer. Idly she wondered what Harm would wear – he looked great in pretty much everything, but she had always liked him in more casual attire – like a dark, v-necked sweater, fitted but not tight, with the sleeves partially pushed up to reveal his attractive arms. She shook her head – why do I care what he wears? Then she wondered if he would bring a girl to the party. She wondered if he was dating again, then reminded herself sternly that if he was, it was none of her business.

But as she slipped on her underwear, her thoughts were still on the question of if Harm was seeing someone new. Then she quickly dismissed the idea – Harm was more private than most men, but he'd never hidden his romantic relationships. Still, that didn't mean he wouldn't decide to find a date just for tonight's party. She imagined him arriving at the club with a beautiful woman clinging to his arm… and then pushed the thought out of her mind… she had too much to think about tonight without stressing out over something that was really nothing to do with her. Harm could show up with Angelina Jolie for all she cared.

Meanwhile, in his apartment, Harm was getting dressed too. Black v-necked sweater, black pants, black shoes… maybe a little too much black, he thought to himself, but he wasn't inclined to wear anything else. Maybe it was an appropriate color choice; to match the dark mood he was usually in around this time of the year. Besides, he vaguely remembered something about the dress code for the party being black – or black and something… or whatever.

As he pulled on a pair of black socks, his mind traveled to Mac – a place his mind liked to visit all too often these days. He wondered about her and that Santi character. He had overheard her laughing with him on the phone a couple of times during the last few days. He wondered what the man looked like. Was Mac was thinking about dating him? He thought to himself that it would be weird if she did – a career-minded Marine and a nightclub manager would make a pretty odd couple. No more odd than a Naval officer and a video director, he thought self-mockingly. Besides, it's none of my business who she dates. He shoved his wallet in his pocket and headed out the door.