They lay there in silence for a while, letting their breathing calm and listening to the steady pounding of rain against her window. Suddenly she felt him shift beneath her, and she glanced up at him, eyes gracing the strong line of his jaw. His eyes were slowly returning to their usual slate-blue, but she could see that something had changed. Something had changed, and it was good.
"Hi," he said with a wide grin.
She giggled softly and kissed his chest. "Hi."
"That was…" His voice trailed off, and he frowned, frustrated at his loss of words. "That was…"
"Yeah, me too," she said hastily, her grin widening. "Thank you."
He smiled and leaned over to kiss her tenderly. Stella shifted a little, wrapping her legs and arms around him. He chuckled softly, moving his hand to run absently up and down her arm. "I'm not going anywhere, Stel."
Sighing, she tightened her embrace. "I know. You make a good pillow."
Mac's laugh rumbled through her cheek, and she grinned. "Nice to know I'm good for something."
"Mmm. I think you proved that you're good for a lot more than that."
He laughed again and kissed the top of her head. A comfortable quiet settled over them as they lay there together, broken only by the soft pitter-patter of water against the window. The rain had slowed considerably, and Stella listened to the steady beating of his heart beneath her ear.
Mac shifted beneath her suddenly, and she looked up at him. "What is it?" she asked.
"Just thinking."
She searched his eyes for a moment, reading the nearly latent concern there. "About the lab? What we'll tell everyone?"
He nodded, his grip on her shoulder tightening. "There's just a lot to figure out."
"I know." She let her words hang for a moment, biting her bottom lip. She didn't think he would back out on her now. His eyes held no regrets, no hesitation. But he took his position of authority very seriously, and a relationship (because it was far more than just sleeping together) with a subordinate held the potential to cause problems.
Suddenly she yawned, and Mac glanced down at her. She was exhausted, and he knew it. "You know, we don't have to deal with it tonight."
"Mac, you're worried about this. Are you sure?"
He kissed her hair tenderly and let his hand trail up and down her back. "Absolutely. Sleep, Stel. We'll talk about this in the morning."
She snuggled against him, yawning once more. "I love you, Mac," she murmured sleepily.
He smiled, even though he knew she couldn't see him. "I love you too."
Her eyes fluttered closed, and within moments, her breathing evened out. He laid there for a moment, gently stroking her back as she slept. She was so strong, so self-assured, yet he knew her heart was fragile. But she'd placed it in his hands with no hesitation. The faith she had in him empowered him, and her touch had healed the scars on his soul.
But he was worried about this getting out. Despite how much he loved her, a relationship with a subordinate had its problems, especially where Sinclair was concerned. The man had been after his job for years, and though he knew she wasn't concerned about it, he loved his job. But now that they'd done what they'd done…
If it was a question of whether to give up his job or her, he would take her without hesitation. She made him whole.
That was the final thought to cross his mind before his eyes slowly closed, unable to fight a restless sleep any longer.
A thin finger of morning light crept through the window, its warmth gently caressing Mac's face. Groaning against the intrusion, he reluctantly opened one eye, scanning his surroundings. The rain from the previous night had disappeared, and a warm summer sun had broken through the remaining clouds. A few drops of water still hugged the window, the only reminder of the refreshing downpour from the night before. His eyes traveled around the room, slowly taking in the strange décor. Instead of the beige walls of his bedroom, these walls were a soft green, decorated with pictures of a familiar-looking exotic island. The sweet scent of coconut clung to the sheets. Stella's scent.
Faintly a smile appeared on his face. His hand automatically went to the other side of the bed, but it was met with cold sheets. His other eye opened immediately, and sure enough, she was nowhere to be found. He sat up quickly and listened for some sound: water running, footsteps in the hall, anything to tell him where she was.
But he heard neither. Instead, soft humming wafted into the bedroom from out in the living room, accompanied by a strange popping. Less than a second later, the smell of cooking bacon reached his nostrils, and he smiled. She was cooking him breakfast.
Mac reached down and grabbed his boxers and undershirt off the floor. Throwing the covers back, he donned the clothes and got up. He yanked the door open and slowly padded out into the living room.
And suddenly stopped short.
Stella stood in the kitchen in front of the stove, humming quietly as she flipped over some pieces of bacon. She was wearing his dress shirt from the night before, and it hung to her mid-thigh like a short skirt, leaving her tanned legs open to his very appreciative gaze. Her curls, mussed from sleep, softly touched her shoulders.
It was such a rare display of domesticity, and it was without a doubt the sexiest thing he'd ever seen. The woman who had been his best friend and was now his lover had him completely under her spell. And the crazy thing about it was that he was entirely okay with that.
Silently he tiptoed into the kitchen as she continued cooking, seemingly oblivious to his presence. Just as he came close enough to touch her, she said, "Good morning."
He laughed and wrapped his arms around her from behind. "How'd you know I was here?"
"Mmm, I'm a woman. I have eyes in the back of my head."
"I'll remember that," he replied, kissing the back of her neck. She tilted her head to the side to give him better access, and his lips followed the thin tendon up to her jaw.
She giggled suddenly, and he stopped. "What?"
"You need to shave." Stella twisted in his arms and kissed his lips gently. "You didn't get much sleep last night, did you?"
Again, it was much more a statement than a query. "I slept all right."
Glaring at him warningly, she frowned. "Mac."
He sighed and released her. Taking a couple of steps back, he leaned against the table and raked a hand through his hair. "I was just thinking. About last night, and us, and the lab."
A shadow passed over her face as she reached over to turn off the burner, and he hastened to reassure her. "Stella, last night was absolutely perfect. Better than I ever imagined. I regret absolutely none of it, and I want you to know that."
The worry in her eyes disappeared, replaced by comprehension. "You're worried about everyone's reaction."
Mac nodded, grateful she understood. Now that they'd found each other, he never wanted to lose her. "The team won't have a problem with it, I don't think."
Stella chuckled. "They'll be ecstatic about it."
Mac grinned despite himself. "You really think so?"
"Absolutely. You should've seen the look on Flack's face that one morning we got to the lab at the same time and came in together."
"You're kidding."
She shook her head. "Not at all. And Lindsay's been hinting at something for the last couple of weeks."
He grinned, but it faltered quickly. "Yeah, well, Sinclair's another story."
She frowned. "You've saved his ass enough times to where this shouldn't even be a question."
"True. But everything's a question with him, especially when it comes to me. He's more concerned with looking good for the mayor than he is about law enforcement."
He looked at her for a moment, determination shining in his eyes. "I'm not letting you go, Stella. Now that…" his voice trailed off, and he averted his eyes for just a moment before catching her eye once again. When he spoke again, his voice cracked with emotion and sincerity. "I meant what I said earlier. I love you."
Stella smiled gently at him. "I love you too," she whispered.
Mac sighed again. "I just… I don't know what to do."
A tense silence pressed down on them, and they stared at one another thoughtfully. Suddenly her green eyes lit up. "We don't have to tell anyone yet."
For a moment, he wasn't sure if he'd heard her correctly. He stared at her, surprised. It seemed like too simple a solution. "We don't?"
Stella shook her head, smiling coyly. "We don't."
"I don't want to keep us a secret."
"Neither do I. But we don't have to broadcast it yet, do we? If something happens to come up, we can deal with the consequences then. We have time to figure out what we need to do about this. What Sinclair doesn't know won't hurt him."
Mac thought about it. His brow furrowed for a moment. He hadn't thought of that. It was so simplistic, yet so logical, and he wasn't quite sure what to think of it. He'd been so concerned about what Sinclair would think, but was that fear really necessary?
Suddenly he smiled. She was absolutely right. Sinclair never had to know until they got to the point of making it permanent, which he fully intended on doing. But by then, thousands of things had the potential to change. It wasn't much hope... discovery was still quite a possibility. But he wasn't about to risk losing her. She was his last chance. And after last night, he was fully prepared to take the consequences if it meant being with her. Still smiling, he stepped forward to place his hands on her slender waist, drawing her closer to him, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.
She returned his smile, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I have faith in you, Mac. Have faith in us."
"You always did have faith in me."
"And you've never let me down." She leaned up to kiss him. "Whatever happens, we're together in this. All the way."
He grinned and leaned down to kiss her again, this time a little deeper. Pulling back a little, he caressed her face with one finger. "I might have trouble keeping my hands off you at the lab."
Stella laughed. green eyes twinkling. "We'll just have to figure something else out, won't we?"
"I think I'll like that." He pressed his lips to hers before she could retort. Her mouth opened to him on a sigh, and he easily slid his tongue in, dueling with hers. Arousal sang through his veins like heroin, her kiss making him dizzy. Breakfast was quickly and easily forgotten as they lost themselves in each other. For the thousandth time, he wondered how he could've ever been afraid of this.
Moments passed, and eventually they pulled away from lack of precious oxygen. Eyes twinkling, she smiled at him. "If you keep that up, you'll never get home and get changed, and then we'll really be late."
"Okay." His fingers reached for the buttons on the shirt she wore. "But if I don't get my shirt back, I'm gonna look really strange hailing a cab in my underwear."
She grinned seductively and kissed him. "You'll have to get it back yourself."
Mac chuckled and suddenly lifted her into his arms, smiling at her surprised squeal. "Deal," he whispered as he carried her back to her bedroom and swiftly kicked the door shut behind him. Now, it was just her and him. And that was more than enough.
Finis.