Authors Note: First CSI NY fic, mainly because I've only watched season 7 so far. I am a total Mac/Jo fan already, they are so into each other! I had to write something even if this was the outcome. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Unless someone wants to give me Jo/Sela's wardrobe.

Mac Taylor felt a presence behind him and turned his head to see Jo's reflection in the glass next to him. He faced her as she started to fire a question at him, "Ellie and I are going bowling tonight, do you want to come along? I mean, you don't have to if you already have plans or if you just don't want to."

"I wouldn't want to intrude on your mother-daughter time."

"Oh, please. Ellie will get bored playing after about ten minutes then go off to make new friends or text her old ones. I want to win a game that is played until the end!"

"And you think you can beat me?" They were challenging each other and neither would give in to such easy competition.

"I think there's a strong chance that I could thrash you. So are you saying yes?"

"Fine, if it will calm you down a little," Jo was practically jumping up and down on the spot at the idea of being the reason for Mac Taylor to lose at something outside of work.

"Come round to my place at about six and I can make food before we go."

"You cook?" He had never thought of her as someone so domesticated.

"I did not say cook, I said make. Big difference."

"That's one way of preparing me for microwave food I suppose." Jo simply winked before turning toward the door to the outside world.

Just after six o'clock Mac knocked on the front door of Jo's home and Ellie let him in.

"Mom is getting changed, she'll just be a minute. Make yourself comfortable wherever," she said motioning to the living area. Mac smiled at the girl as he sat down on the pale blue sofa and took the opportunity to gaze at all the possessions the family had gathered into the one room. They both turned toward the hall door when they heard a muffled crash and "Owch" coming from what Mac guessed was Jo's room.

"Mom, you okay?"

"Fine sweetie, just that stupid laundry basket getting in my way again! Was that Mac?"

"Yeah, does he know yet that you are the clumsiest person on the planet," Ellie looked at him and said in a slightly quieter voice, "At least three times a week that basket magically appears at the foot of her bed to purposefully hurt her." A cushion came flying through the air in Ellie's general direction from Jo's room, quickly followed by the woman herself, attempting to put in an earring whilst simultaneously zipping up knee-high boots over her dark jeans.

"It's all lies Mac; my brain is nowhere near that level of disorientation."

He smirked at her and then spoke to the younger female again, "Ellie, does your mom have an endless supply of multi-colored post-it notes here as well as her office?"

Before Ellie answered Jo replied, "Wow, five minutes alone together and you have already made it your joint mission to mock me! Before I forget, there will be no pre-game meal here since the microwave gave up on me - possible cause is over-usage but to early for speculations - and ovens and I don't play nicely with each other," she casually shrugged her shoulders as she leaned over the small coffee table in front of Mac to retrieve her small bag from down the side of the seat. He had to stand up so she could reach and when he did he was unable to resist taking a quick look at what she was wearing and her curvacious figure underneath.

It only lasted a fraction of a second but she still caught his eyes when they got stuck on her waist. She bit her lip to stop herself from laughing and ultimately grabbing Ellie's attention, and raised her eyebrows at him. Mac wished the floor would give way right there and then to escape the humiliation, he interpreted the look she gave him as one that told him how much of a jerk he was so he hastily began to take great interest in a vase of plastic flowers.

Jo checked her hair in the mirror then broke the silence, "Has anyone else lost the desire to go bowling? Instead, how about we just grab a bite to eat somewhere, we can even get ice cream."

Ellie glanced up from her phone screen and was surprised to see a faint blush settling across Jo's cheeks, "Erm, I'm not bothered, ice cream suits me."

Jo turned to face Mac again, "How about you?"

"I should probably leave. You two go and enjoy a meal."

"You just got here though," the two CSIs stared at each other, trying to read what they were thinking. They hardly knew the other person; had met under one year ago but there had been something that appeared between them even back then that neither could describe or explain. "Please Mac. Just one dinner." He eventually conceded defeat after hearing the vulnerability in her voice that she had never let out before in his presence.

The walk to Jo and Ellie's local fast food restaurant was silent between the two older members of the trio but he spoke to Ellie about how school was and other mundane things that nobody truly cared about. He did get a hint that there she liked a boy called Luke considering he was the only person she named when chatting but it wasn't his place to enquire about that, especially if Jo hadn't worked it out yet.

When they got seated - and had ordered enough calories to last them a year each - the atmosphere was a lot better than the journey, even though Mac and Jo's knees constantly brushed against each other because the table they had been given was too narrow for adults to properly sit at. He learned more about Tyler and what there life had been like before when the two females started to speak and he loved watching their interactions. It was clear that Jo adored her daughter and that she secretly hated chastising Ellie about how she was always moving her thumb across her cell phone.

Half way through dessert Mac and Jo were finally back to acting how they usually did and all three were laughing until Ellie's phone started to play music as someone was phoning her.

"Ellie!" The smile vanished from Jo's mouth as she got more annoyed with the electronic device.

"Sorry, but can I take this, it could be important?" Mac caught Jo's eyes and he conveyed that she should let her go and answer it.

She looked back over at her daughter and warned, "Five minutes, that's all."

"Don't be too harsh on her Jo. She's a good kid."

"I know, she gets that off me." She said grinning.

"Look, about earlier. I didn't mean anything by it." She knew instantly that he was talking about what had occurred between them earlier in her living room.

"Oh... okay." Jo diverted her eyes to the window next to them and tried to disguise the confusion she was feeling internally.

Mac might not be as good at people-watching as she was but he still could see there was something that was bothering her with the comment he had made.

"What's wrong Jo?" He didn't like the slight vulnerability that he could see in her dark hazel eyes.

She ran her hand through her hair before turning back to look at him. "Well, usually when men look like what you did at someone it generally means the guy is interested or at least taking a moment to work out what they have close to them. I've never known it to mean nothing."

"You looked like you wanted it to mean nothing back at your house."

Jo's mouth dropped open as her eyebrows crinkled together, finally realizing that Mac had got it all wrong. She placed her lower arms on the table and leaned closer to him, "That look I gave you was of shock; shock that a guy that I like would actually be interested in me again."

"What are you saying?"

"Do I honestly have to spell it out to you, Detective Taylor? Have I seriously not played with my hair or nervously touched my neck enough," she said referring to their conversation about Hawkes a few months previous.

He tried to hide a smile that was threatening to appear on his face. Then he reached out and gently ran his thumb down her cheek. Her eyelids fluttered shut in response and he had just enough self control to stop himself kissing her straight away, so he took a moment to admire her peaceful facial features. He did that until she had moved her head so close that he could only see her eyes. Their lips eventually met and neither could believe they were doing this after only a short time together. But that didn't change how much enjoyment thy were getting from it, even if the tiny table between them was hindering their actions somewhat.

Ellie only realized what had happened between the two when she finished up on her phone and saw them slowly making out. They weren't like her friends and their boyfriends who kissed, this was so much more tender and if anyone could see them they would have to admit that the couple were a little besotted with each other. Or they just wanted some hot steamy sex with the person opposite them.