#beau simpson

Mav barked a laugh, turning his head to look out at his team.

“Builds moral,” he said conversationally.

“Lets them get in pot shots at each other without being discharged, you mean,” you grinned as Phoenix tackled Hangman to the ground.

“Like I said,” Mav turned and smirked at you, “builds moral.”

It was your turn to laugh. Well, at least he had his Squad’s best interests at heart.

“You heard about the Navy Gala?” Mav asked suddenly and you gave him a wide grin.

“Are you kidding? Between the moaning, groaning, complaining and dress shopping, yeah. It’s been mentioned once or twice.”

The Daggers had all been invited by the COMPACFLT himself -you secretly figured this was a convoluted way of Ice making sure his wingman actually showed up- and were both excited and dreading it.

Lots of good food and dancing, but lots of high brass and pressure.

You didn’t envy them one bit.

“You going with anyone?” came the next question and you snorted.

“Uh, no. The Invincible Iceman didn’t invite me so I don’t have to go,” you grinned. You’d had a lot of fun rubbing that in the Squad’s faces. High society parties were not your forte. And since you weren’t Navy, you were off the hook.

“Now, I’m surprised at that,” Mac said, eyes boring into you from behind his signature shades. “I figured one of the guys would try to snap you up quick as their Plus One.”

You gave Maverick an exaggerated once over. “Oh, they did. Almost all of them. But I’m very choosy.”

The booming laugh from Maverick carried across the beach and you leaned back in your chair satisfied.

“Would you like to go?” Maverick asked after a few moments and you tilted your head.

“If this is your round about way of asking me to accompany you, Mav, the answer is absolutely not. I’ve seen Penny’s dress for the gala and I’m pretty sure she’d poison me if she couldn’t wear it.”

Cue another laugh from Maverick.

“No,” he explained with a smirk, “not with me. But I do have someone in mind if you’d be interested in going.”

You looked at the Captain dubiously.

“….Sarah didn’t put you up to this, did she?”

The moment you met Tom and Sarah Kazansky, at a party the Daggers had thrown for Mav, they’d taken you under their wing and both had been very interested in your love life since. Or lack thereof at this point.

If you met one more “friend of the family”, you were going to scream.

Maverick’s chuckle brought your attention back to him.

“No,” he assured you, “Sarah didn’t put me up to this. But, I know she and Ice would be glad to see you there. Ice thought the same thing I did: that you’d be a Plus One for a Dagger, which is why he didn’t invite you specifically. Then you wouldn’t have to find someone or go alone.”

Huh. Well, that was nice of Ice. It would have sucked to get an official invite and then try to figure out who to take. It’s not like you had close friends outside the Squad. You wouldn’t have wanted to go alone and you would have never heard the end of it if you turned down the invitation.

“And what poor man do you have in mind?” you asked, mentally rehearsing a multitude of reasons why you couldn’t go. Everything from watering your plant to a staged family emergency.

Maverick stared at you for a moment, before saying nonchalantly, “Cyclone.”

Your brain drew a blank on your rehearsed reasons.

“Cyclone,” you repeated dully. Then, “Cyclone?!”

Maverick drew his sunglasses down a bit on his nose and peered over the rims at you.

“No?” he asked lightly, though his gaze was searching.

You just stared at Maverick.

Cyclone? The Air Boss? You’d met the man a few times- hard not to when your circle now contained the Commander of the Pacific Fleet and a dozen direct reports of Admiral Simpson’s- but besides polite small talk, you hadn’t engaged much with him.

He was very stoic, accomplished and stupidly handsome- you got tongue tied quick around that man. And besides, you weren’t as straight laced as he seemed to be. You were professional when needed and not a total idiot, thank you very much, but you still had a wickedly sharp tongue that you used whenever possible. You were not the quiet, meek or stoic woman you could see someone like Cyclone bringing along. You were way too mouthy.

And Mav thought you being on his arm all night would be a good idea?!

On his arm… that was something to think about though.

“I’m not entirely sure I want to be a part of another prank of yours against the guy,” you finally settled on.

Maverick snorted.

“Despite apparent popular belief, I’m not dumb enough to pull a prank on my direct superior. Well…not anymore. And buzzing the tower doesn’t count.”

“That last bit sounds a bit rehearsed,” you muttered and gave Maverick an angelic smile when he flicked a little sand your way.

“There’s no pressure, Y/N,” Maverick assured you. “I just figured it’d be good for Cyclone not to go alone this year. I hear that Admiral Chaney and his wife got divorced and she’s been on the warpath- flirting and sleeping with everyone she can.”

“Ah,” you grinned, “so that’s it. This is a decoy mission. If I’m with poor Cyclone, the former Mrs. Admiral Chaney can’t sink her claws into him.”

Maverick gave a shrug. “Eh, two birds. You get to go to a Gala and see everyone and Cyclone gets to spend the evening with someone who’s not insane. Win win.”

“Huh. Well, thanks for not thinking I’m insane, Mav. That means a lot. And really, your strategic powers are to be applauded- sounds like you thought of every angle.”

“I tried,” Maverick grinned. “So can I tell Cyclone he has a date?”

You gave a theatrical sigh, even as you grinned and nodded, though the sudden butterflies in your stomach almost made you nauseous.

“I suppose, Mav. The man has got a date.”

/////\\\\\

Apparently, Maverick had not only told Cyclone you were going with him as his date, but everyone else as well, because you’d been essentially kidnapped the next day by Sarah and Penny to dress shop.

Sarah had been beside herself, horrified that she had never thought to bring you and Cyclone together. Maverick beating her to the punch was unforgivable and while you tried to assure her that she was still a great matchmaker and Maverick hadn’t meant it like that, you were going as a decoy after all, she wouldn’t be swayed.

You and Penny had shared conspiratorial smiles as Sarah Kazansky went on about Cyclone’s attributes. For practically the whole trip.

Penny -wonderful, amazing Penny- finally stepped in and changed the subject when Sarah started talking about wedding venues.

Yeah, she and Ice were far too interested in your relationship status.

But the trip had been a success- you’d found a beautiful evening gown that both women approved heartily of (and which started another of Sarah’s rants of how attractive Beau would find you) and then the night of the Gala was upon you.

All of you girls had been invited to get ready at the Kazansky house and while Halo and Phoenix were hesitant at first (you were so glad you didn’t have a military rank to get in the way of friendships), you all ended up a lot closer than you started.

The ridiculously expensive champagne Sarah had laid out may have had something to do with that.

But the time came for your ‘dates’ to pick you all up (including Tom- Sarah had gleefully kicked him out of the house to go get ready with Mav- she was adamant she would get picked up at their front door too) and you felt any lingering effects of the champagne disappear when you laid eyes on Rear Admiral Beau “Cyclone” Simpson.

Your first thought was, Dress whites should be illegal.

Your second thought was, You were not going to make it through the night without making a fool of yourself.

You always knew the man was good looking - you’d never found Khaki so attractive before – but this was…WOW.

“I’m not going to be able to steer Sarah away from booking the wedding venue if you keep staring like that,” Penny quietly teased at your side and you dropped your gaze hastily.

“Shuddup,” you whined quietly as the men came up to the wrap around porch, each man heading to his date.

You found yourself holding your breath as Beau approached you. You really needed to get it together and be your normal self. Maverick, the Kazanskys and the Daggers were used to sarcastic and witty Y/N. It’d be rude to short change the Admiral.

“Miss Y/L/N,” he greeted and you felt yourself melt a bit at his voice. You’d noticed the deep timbre before, how could you not, but something about that voice saying your name while you were going to be his date for the evening- it hit different.

Yeah, you were absolutely not making it through this night with your dignity or your sanity. He was going to make you being normal a bit difficult.

A pointed cough somewhere else on the porch jolted you out of your stupor and you figured you should probably say something back to the man. Honestly. Good thing you’d spoken to him before or else he would assume you were an idiot.

“Admiral Simpson,” you greeted with a smile. “Or is it Rear Admiral? Honestly, there are far too many ranks for us ‘normal’ people to remember.”

His deep chuckle practically made you swoon.

“Beau or Cyclone is just fine for tonight – no ranks,” the man said with a small grin that honestly did wonders for his looks. The man was ridiculously good looking when he was serious but when he smiled? Game over.

You were so screwed.

“Well thank you for that small mercy,” you quipped.

“We’ve got cars ready to take us to the Gala,” Ice said loud enough for everyone to hear and with murmurs from the assembled group, you all started to descend the stairs and head to the parked cars.

Beau offered his arm and with a smile, you looped your arm through his, waiting until most the group had already made it off the porch before following behind.

“Since you rode with Pete and myself,” Tom said to Cyclone as you passed him and Sarah on the stairs, “you two will have to carpool with us to the Gala.”

You gave Ice an angelic smile that instantly had Sarah turning her head away to hide her smile.

You almost felt sorry for Cyclone. He seemed to be so professional all the time. And his boss was right in front of him…ah well. Ice was too good a friend at this point for you to treat him too respectfully. And he should have known what he was getting into – they all should have.

“That is so sweet of you, sir,” you laid it on thick, even batting your eyelashes, “but I have already promised my date that he can drive my car to the Gala and you wouldn’t want to make me a lair this early in our relationship, would you?”

The look Ice gave you made you grin even wider– oh, now you understood why Maverick enjoyed poking at Ice. Not only was it remarkably easy, but it was fun!

“I mean, your wife is the one who mentioned this is like Prom, so I’m not sure how I’m supposed to have a Prom night if I don’t have a back seat.”

The man standing beside you tried valiantly to turn his laugh into a cough, you’d give him that. Honestly, you weren’t sure Beau had that kind of sense of humor. It was a pleasant surprise.

“Y/N,” the COMPACFLT standing in front of you sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and you laughed.

“Tom, relax. I’m kidding. Well…sorta. Beau and I are going to take my car. Just in case someone needs to get away for whatever reason. But we’ll be right behind you guys. Scout’s honor.”

Ice muttered something under his breath and you just smiled placidly at him. You both knew he was going to cave eventually.

“Fine,” the man sighed, which made you shake your head amusedly. Like he really had any say if you took your own car. “We’ll see you there.”

You and Beau made your way to your car as Tom and Sarah headed to the car where Maverick and Penny were waiting.

“We could have rode with them,” Beau said quietly as he opened your door for you. You grinned up at him.

“You’ve not only gotten ready with Pete, and have to spend an entire evening around him, but you’re also willing to ride to and from the Gala with him? My, my, my. Have you guys become best friends since he first started?”

Cyclone barked a laugh, shaking his head. “Not quite. I just don’t want you uncomfortable.”

You gave him a sincere smile this time. “Thank you, Beau. But I assure you, I feel perfectly fine driving with you. Besides, Ice’s car is small and I get carsick.”

Huffing in amusement, Cyclone finished helping you into the passenger seat of your car and then headed for the driver’s side.

“Well, it seems that Ice is taking his protector role very seriously,” the Air Boss remarked as he buckled in. At your inquisitive look, he gestured to the idling car waiting for you both.

You rolled your eyes. “I’ve heard stories of Ice’s ‘mother-hen’ tendencies when they were all in Top Gun and during their careers afterwards. I think it’s gotten worse the higher up he’s climbed the ladder.”

Beau hummed in amused agreement. “He’s got the power now to back it up. Poor Mitchell never stood a chance.”

You laughed and then you both spent the rest of the car ride swapping stories of Pete. The man really was a menace. A lovable, competent, thoughtful menace.

Beau offered to drop you off at the front while he parked the car – he wouldn’t think of the valet service doing it; true military man though and through, he wanted to know exactly where it was parked and make sure he had plenty of room for a hasty leave, just in case – but the look you leveled him with made him just grin and go park.

“I’m perfectly capable of walking through a parking lot, even in heels,” you griped good naturedly as he helped you out of the car and he gave you a dry look.

“I believe I heard some rumors about you sprinting through a parking lot after Lieutenant Seresin in heels, so I have no doubt you can walk just fine through one.”

You gaped up at him and then gave a wicked grin. “Why Beau Simpson, I do believe this is going to be the start of a beautiful relationship.”

The man gave you a small smile, his face and eyes suddenly more serious. “I hope so,” he murmured and then seemed to shake himself out of it.

“Come along, Y/N. I shudder to think what Admiral Kazansky will do to me if we’re too much later.”

You blinked in surprise, taken aback by the mood shift, but then shrugged it off. You had all night to get him back to…whatever that serious part was. Because that was something you definitely wanted to explore.

Looping your arm back through his, you both made your way to the doors of the Navy Gala. You could feel your nerves creeping back in. You’d never been to one of these, or anything remotely like it. You weren’t exactly sure what to do or how to act.

When you said as much to the man beside you, he drew you a little closer to him.

“It can be a rather stuffy event, more political than fun most of the time, but none of us will leave you alone. Just follow my lead and we’ll get the niceties over with as soon as possible. Unfortunately for you, as an Admiral, I have to greet and speak with quite a few people. But I’ll make it as painless as possible. Or drop you off with Mitchell.”

“Uh, the whole reason I’m here is to be your plus one, Beau. Can’t really plus one if I’m not with you.”

“Fair enough,” the man said with what sounded like relief and then you were swept through the doors and into what felt like a thousand different conversations.

No wonder Pete never wanted to move past Captain.

/////\\\\\

“If I have to fake smile at one more man looking at my chest, I’m going to start throwing hands,” you groaned as you and Beau finally headed to sit at your table.

You’d been paraded around for the last hour and a half while Beau made nice with the proper people. You’d even been introduced to Admiral Chaney and Beau had actually tucked you further into his side when the former Mrs. Admiral Chaney was mentioned. He’d apparently heard about her too.

“You handled that all with remarkable calmness,” Beau observed, pulling out your chair for you. “Quite honestly, I’d have expected something barbed to escape your lips the third time I had to repeat myself to ol’ Jeffrey.”

“Ah, Wandering Eyes Jeffrey. Yeah, he was about three seconds away from a broken nose,” you grumbled, relishing in the deep chuckle beside you.

“I’m sure you would have gotten off with a warning,” Beau shot back and you laughed, looking over at him.

“Beau, please do not take this the wrong way, but you are much lighter and funnier than I expected.”

The man didn’t seem offended or surprised by your statement.

“Ah, yes. The Air Boss persona,” he nodded, eyes meeting your own. “I admit, I am serious and all business on Base – I have to be. I have the lives of everyone there – and those deployed under my command – in my hands. There are decisions I have to make on a near daily basis that aren’t easy and I can’t let emotion rule. However,” here he paused as if unsure and looked down at his place setting, “I like to think I’m not that kind of person outside of work. Admittedly, I haven’t had much reason to be ‘lighter and funnier’, but,” he looked up at you again, “I think that may have changed.”

You felt your eyes widen and the butterflies in your stomach spontaneously change to pterodactyls. Doing summersaults.

What.

There was no way that Air Boss Rear Admiral Beau “Cyclone” Simpson was saying what you thought he was saying.

Beau cleared his throat somewhat awkwardly and you realized you were still staring.

Your hand shot out and covered his own.

“I-wow. I was not expecting that, Beau. Not in a bad way! I just…I guess I never thought of myself as anything other than the decoy tonight,” you said someone self-depreciatingly. After all, that’s what this has been set up as; you keeping away the claws of former Mrs. Admiral Chaney.

The hand under yours shifted so Beau’s fingers could intertwine with yours.

“You’ve been much more than a decoy from the moment I saw you,” Beau murmured, eyes soft and unguarded.

You gave a soft smile, giving his hand a squeeze. “That’s good. Otherwise, my growing feelings for you would be super awkward.”

Beau gave a soft laugh, thumb stroking the back of your hand. “What do you say to an actual date? I come pick you up with flowers, dinner reservations, the whole thing.”

You were sure your eyes were absolutely sparkling. “I’d say that sounds like the beginning of a beautiful relationship.”

Beau raised your hand to place a soft kiss to the back of it and then rested your joined hands on his knee.

“Think Admiral Kazansky or Mitchell will be the one with the shovel talk?” he asked lightly after a moment and you snorted, thinking of matchmaker Sarah and her wedding plans she’d already started.