A few hours later

The party was in full swing. Mac was delighted to see most of her colleagues on the dance floor. The room was filled with laughter and the relaxed camaraderie of old friends.

Looking around her, she spotted Bud sitting alone in a corner of the room, and decided to keep him company for a while.

She gestured to the seat next to him. "Mind if I sit down here for a second, Bud?"

"Of course, ma'am," Bud smiled up at her.

"I would try and convince you to call me 'Mac' tonight, but I know from experience that it would be an exercise in futility." Mac grinned teasingly as she sat beside him.

Bud blushed. "I guess it's force of habit."

"So where's Harriet?"

Bud pointed his wife out to Mac. "Right there – burning up the dance floor with Tiner." He laughed. "Did I ever tell you about the time I almost tackled Tiner because I thought he was interested in Harriet?"

"No," Mac exclaimed in surprise.

"Yep. Harriet was pregnant at the time, and I was convinced Tiner had the hots for her."

Mac waved her hand, laughing. "Okay, you were expecting a baby, and your brain was a little fried. Completely understandable."

"I guess. They look good together, don't they?"

Mac studied Harriet, resplendent in a short, shiny, gold dress, as Tiner twirled her around. Both were laughing. Mac shook her head. "They may be having fun, but they're not a patch on you and Harriet. One of my favorite memories of you two is watching you dance at that ball when you first got together. You were both glowing – so clearly happy and in love."

Bud smiled wistfully. "Back when I was a stupid kid with stars in my eyes."

"Hey, watch it," Mac scolded teasingly, "I'm pretty fond of that kid."

They laughed, and for a while sat in companionable silence.

When his dance with Harriet ended, Tiner walked up to Mac. "This party is going great, isn't it, ma'am?"

"Yes, it certainly is. You've done a great job organizing everything. And you're certainly keeping the dance floor nice and warm."

Tiner smiled. "I'm dancing with Commander Imes next, but I was hoping that you might give me the honor of the one after that?"

"Sure," Mac replied, "I'll find you."

As Tiner moved away, Mac excused herself and headed to the ladies' room to freshen up. On her return, she spotted Harm leaning against one of the walls with a drink in his hand. Shaking her head, she walked up to him.

As Harm watched Mac approach him, he felt his composure start to disintegrate. His thoughts scrambled. He'd been watching her all evening – and after a quick 'hello', he'd largely avoided her; afraid that if he got too close, he might blurt out something dumb, like "You look amazing tonight." Because she did. She sizzled in a sexy red dress that shimmied flirtatiously around her slim hips with every step she took. Her lips were a sultry shade of red, her hair pulled back from her face to skim the back of her neck, her dark eyes seeming to glow from within. The small gold hoops at her ears trembled when she moved, as did the two gold bangles on her wrist. She looked sensational, irresistible, and it was all he could do not to pull her towards him and….

Suddenly she was standing in front of him. "Hey Harm," Mac teased, "the life and soul of the party, as always. Did I remember to put some money on that one?"

Harm laughed. "Don't count me out yet," he warned, "I'm just getting started."

"Okay then – we'll see if the party animal in you comes out to play before the night is through. Are you having a good time?" Mac smiled again, and as always, Harm was transfixed by that smile.

When he replied, his words came out more tersely than he'd expected. "Yeah. Great party."

"Well, it can't be all that great if all you've done for the past hour is stand here sipping a drink. You should dance," Mac said, looking around the room. She casually slid one arm through one of his, nudging him gently towards the dance floor. "I know you probably don't know the steps, but I could get one of Santi's assistants, Carmen or Josie, to help you out. They could show you the basics during the next song."

The words slipped out before Harm could stop them. "Why don't you show me, Mac?"

When Harm issued the casual invitation, Mac's startled eyes snapped back to his face. There was something so tempting about Harm's tone – it was probably all in her mind, but she felt as though he was asking her to show him a lot more than some basic salsa steps.

She felt her cheeks burn as a clear mental image invaded her mind – Harm sitting on the edge of her bed, his eyes burning into hers, as she reached behind her neck to loosen the tie that held up her red dress, and it whispered its way down her body, pooling at her feet. She shivered involuntarily at the thought, feeling her belly tighten, and knew it was time to beat a swift retreat. She couldn't be all relaxed and nonchalant around Harm, not right at that moment. Maybe she'd had a little too much sangria, and it was making her think crazy thoughts. "Maybe later," she said quickly, disengaging her arm from his, as one song started to fade into another, "Tiner and I are dancing the next one together."

It was a slow, romantic number, and Tiner placed a tentative arm around her waist.

"May I say that you look stunning tonight, ma'am,' he said, as they started swaying to the music.

"Thanks Jason, you look great too." After a short silence, Mac continued. "I thought you might bring a date to the party."

"I'm not seeing anyone right now. Between work and school, there's just no time for a relationship."

Mac nodded. "I can understand how you feel – but trust me, if you met the right girl, you'd make time for her."

Tiner smiled. "I'd like to think so, but I don't know… I guess I'm a bit cynical about romance. So many people seem like they'd be great together, but it just doesn't work out, no matter how they try."

"And some people never try," Mac said wistfully, her thoughts on Harm. They'd never tried, and maybe they never would. The thought made her sad, and she felt the familiar longing deep within her for the things she'd always wanted – someone to share her life with, the chance to start a family.

The song ended, and as Tiner moved away from her, Mac felt a warm hand on her bare shoulder. She spun around to face Santiago. Strangely disappointed, she mustered a smile. 'Hi Santi. You and your team are doing a great job."

"Didn't I promise you that we would?" Santiago asked. "But apart from that last one, I haven't seen you dance all night."

"Well, I've just been busy making sure everyone's having a good time…."

"You must dance this one with me, señorita. Please."

"Señorita?" Mac queried with a little laugh.

"Yes, Colonel. I'm sure you are an excellent officer, but you are also a beautiful lady, with a dark mystery in your eyes, a magnificent red dress, and a bewitching smile that would warm the coldest heart."

Mac managed to restrain herself from rolling her eyes, but it took some effort. "Thank you, Santi. But I really should go check on –"

"Please, Colonel. Just this one. It is my favorite, a classic."

Mac opened her mouth to protest, but before she could let out another sound, Santiago went on, "And please don't even try to tell me you can't dance. You're a natural – I can see the rhythm of the drums in your eyes – you feel the music, you understand its heartbeat, you sense its soul."

With that, he pulled her into the circle of his arms, and they began to move in unison to the beat. Instinctively, they seemed to understand just where they wanted each movement to go, and as he spun her out and whipped her back into his arms, Santiago smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling attractively. "I knew it. A natural."

From his perch in the corner of the room, Harm caught a flash of Mac's flirty red skirt, lifting and spinning through the air. Even through the noise in the room, he could hear her warm laughter. He tried to convince himself that he was better off not taking a closer look, but he couldn't stop himself from moving, drink in hand, towards the dance floor. Once his eyes settled on her, he couldn't look away. He reflected to himself that watching Mac's easy sensuality as she swayed, shook and shimmied smoothly to the music was a peculiar form of torture, especially when she was dancing with someone else.

Mac and Santiago's skilful dancing quickly caught the attention of the other couples on the dance floor, and soon they were alone in the center of the room, surrounded by an admiring, cheering audience. Uncomfortable with being the center of attention, Mac tried unsuccessfully to pull away. "Uh, I guess we should stop, Santi. Everyone else has stopped dancing."

Pausing to dip Mac and then slowly, gracefully pull her back up, Santiago shook his head. "Why are you uneasy? A beautiful woman like you should enjoy having all eyes on you. It is nothing less than you deserve."

Mac laughed. "Oh you're smooth, Santi… okay, we'll finish this song, but then we'll give everyone else a chance to get back on the dance floor."

Mac was out of luck… it was a long song. And if it felt long to her, it felt even longer to Harm. Even when the song was finally over and Mac was shyly acknowledging the appreciative applause of the crowd that had surrounded her and her dance partner, Harm couldn't stop staring. His gaze followed her as she left the center of the dance floor and returned to where Bud and Harriet were standing.

Bud and Harriet applauded Mac again as she approached them. "That was amazing, ma'am," Bud said. "I had no idea you were a salsa expert."

"Hardly an expert." Mac blushed as she pushed a stray tendril of hair behind her ear. "Santiago's toes are probably sore right now – I think I stepped on them at least twice."

Harriet rolled her eyes. "Like he'd complain if you did! He couldn't take his eyes off you and –." Harriet paused, remembering Bud was still nearby. "Would you mind getting the Colonel a drink from the bar, Bud? I think she needs to cool down after all that dancing."

Realizing it was his cue to give Harriet and Mac some privacy, Bud quickly elicited Mac's preference and then headed towards the bar.

"So…," Harriet began, her eyes twinkling at Mac, "what's the deal with you and the Latin dance god?"

"Are you kidding? There is no 'deal', Harriet."

"Why not? He's gorgeous, sexy and a terrific dancer… and you know what they say about good dancers."

"Harriet!"

"Seriously… why not?"

"He's not exactly my type," Mac replied.

Harriet shrugged. "Maybe not, but I'm not saying you should get married. A few dates with him could be… fun. Dinner, dancing and… dot dot dot." She winked.

"I wish it could be that simple. Things always seem to get… complicated when it comes to me and men."

"Speaking of complicated," Harriet interjected, clearing her throat, "Santiago's not the only guy who couldn't take his eyes off you during that dance."

Mac was puzzled. "What are you talking about?"

"That's all I'm saying," Harriet said mischievously, looking in Harm's direction. Mac's eyes turned to follow Harriet's, and her skin prickled as her eyes clashed with Harm's. Their gazes held for a minute. Harm looked away first, checking his watch. Mac turned back to her friend, feeling unsettled. Harriet was obviously jumping to all the wrong conclusions. Oh Harriet – you are so wrong, Mac thought to herself, if Harm was watching at all, he was probably thinking how inappropriate it was for me to be twirling around in the arms of the nightclub manager.

Oblivious to the bitter thoughts running through Mac's mind, Harriet looked over her shoulder. "And here comes Bud with your drink."