I. Tango

"Has anything out of the ordinary happened with our new number?"

"Not yet Finch." John replied as he casually sipped his wine watching as their new number pinned a number tag on the front of his vest before placing his masquerade mask on and moving to the dance floor with the other contestants.

"Yeah something better happen before all the damn dancing starts so we can hurry up and get out of here."

John turned smirking "Not a fan of The Tango Shaw."

"Not the vertical kind." Shaw snorted

"I don't see why not Ms. Shaw, it's a very beautiful art form. Symbolizing the powerful push and pull essence of the…"

"Can the dance history lesson Finch, all I'm saying is; if I have to dance in these damn heels I'm stabbing the perpetrator…twice."

John held back his laugh as he looked back at their number seeing him talking and laughing with a woman. His eyes scanned the woman taking in her form in the backless red lace and fringe dress, his eyes locking onto the distinctive puckered skin of a healed over knife wound above her shoulder blade.

"Hey Finch can you find out who's name is registered under number 65, she's chatting up our number and from the knife wound on her shoulder it looks like she might be our perpetrator."

"You thinking Mata Hari...,"

Shaw smiled "…she does have some nice tattoos thou."

John eyes examined the blotch of ink on the back of the woman's neck, his sight traveling down her toned back glimpsing the vine like design and angel wings on her lower back.

Harold began scrolling though the roster for the masked tango event "It seems like guest number 65 is registered to…oh my."

"What's wrong Finch who's number 65?" Shaw asked prepping herself in case the woman was armed and dangerous.

"…Jocelyn Carter." Harold breathed out in shock.

"What!" John looked back up at the woman, shock running through his veins as he stared at Joss dressed in a skimpy dress.

"What? That's Carter!" Shaw reaffirmed sizing the woman up smiling "Damn, I didn't know she was tatted up,…nice legs too."

"Oh dear the Detective might be in danger if she's caught in the cross hairs of Mr. Wrights' situation." Harold huffed out slightly panicked.

Suddenly the lights dimmed as the dancers began to move to the dance floor.

"Shaw cut in with Wright" John ordered as he slide his eye mask into place heading to the dance floor and posing with Shaw as couple ready to dance.

As the alluring melody of soft strings instruments mixed with an according began to play, John positioned them close to Wright, as he and Shaw began to dance, eyeing Joss and Wright for the perfect opportunity for them to intercede without causing too much of a distraction. When Wright spun her out, he swiftly he sidestepped Shaw grabbing Joss's hand and pulling her into his arms as Shaw stepped into Wrights path grabbing him and continuing the dance.

Joss gasped in surprise as another man cut into her dance, leading her away from her partner. Her eyes traveled up his broad chest passed the crooked bow-tie her eyes locking with blue ones, her nose catching a woodsy spicy scent laced faintly with gun powder. As soon as she saw the smirk, she pursed her lips in anger.

"Damn it John! What the hell are you doing here?" Joss huffed out under her breath looking back at her partner seeing Shaw man handling him throughout out their dance moves.

She stepped away from him before moving into his personal space again as she slowly strutted around him before he pulled her back into his chest their feet and legs entangling and detangling as they moved counter clockwise around the ballroom.

"Sorry Joss but your dance partners our new number and he might be dangerous."

"Of course he is…so I guess I can't finish my dance then." Joss asked as she ran her hand up his arm, resting it on his shoulder as she brought her heels together gently swaying her hips before spinning out.

John reached out pulling her into a reverse embrace resting his nose and lips next to her ear, whispering "Of course not Joss…you can finish your dance with me. I know what I'm doing."

Joss smirked before dramatically letting go of his hands turning around and walking him backwards with her hand on his chest.

"Really? I guess we will have to find out if that's true or not." she breathed out moving into his personal space, their chests touching briefly before she ran her hands down his chest, slowly dropping down into a squat with one leg extended out, her hands resting on his waist.

John could feel eyes on him, he looked to his left seeing an older couple looking at them. When the old man made eye contact with him he smirked and nodded before grabbing Joss's wrist and pulling her back up, wrapping on arm around her waist, and pulling her closer resting his forehead on hers walking her forward.

"Impressed yet Joss?"

"Not yet," she smiled back.

John smirked "Okay then. How about some feet walking?" he asked as he lifted onto the balls of his feet balancing on his heels allowing her to use his feet as steps as he slowly pivoted them around earning some claps and murmurers at his moves.

Not to be outdone, once she touched back down on the floor, Joss cupped the back of his neck and slide the tip of her foot up his inner leg her knee brushing into his pelvis before swinging her entire leg out then wrapping it high around his waist pulling him closer. When she felt something solid between them, she looked down.

"I think your gun is in the way."

John stared at her intently "You know very well that's not where I holster my gun."

"I was talking about the one hidden behind your back that's digging into my calf not the one that digging into my pelvis." Joss replied huskily sliding her other arm around his neck, leaning in closer till their noses touched, their lips hovering centimeters apart. As she tightened her leg around his waist as his hand tightened around her back.

"Hey Rico Suave, stop putting the moves on Carter for a second. There's two perps, ones at your 10 o'clock and the other is at your 6 o'clock, they're both armed. I got the one on your 10….On the count of five."

John turned his head around at Shaw's prompt seeing a waiter moving towards Shaw and the number trying to conceal his gun under a serving tray.

"Keep a tight grip Joss" John whispered locking his hand and forearm around her waist, spinning them both around to face the perp, her leg still locked at his waist as he lunged forward on one leg, bending her backwards with one arm before using his free hand to pull his weapon from his back and shooting the perp in the leg.

He smiled as he brought her back up from the dip.

"Adios hermosa," he winked before letting her go and following Shaw and their new number as they hurried out of the panicked ballroom.

Joss put her hands on her hip glaring after him as she listened to the panicked voices of the ballroom guest, as well as the moans of agony from the two men clutching their busted kneecaps.

AN: For a visual effect, the feet walking move can be seen on YouTube on a video called "TangoViPedia 50: Collection of Lifts and Jumps"by Shlomo Laufer the feet walking is at the 0:22 time mark. My old high school Spanish is a little rusty…but according to the internet; 'adios hermosa' should translate to goodbye beautiful or bye beautiful.

Brownie points to anyone who can guess what movie the smirk and head nod to the elderly dancing couple was inspired by.

Stay tune for part 2, the ratings definitely going to go up….let's just be glade John's loft is very spacious for "dancing" ;)