"Her eyes sparkle even in the dark." I mean, COME ON! SERIOUSLY?! If you're not shipping them after Jack pulled out that line, I don't know how to help you. There was so much eye sex going on in this episode I couldn't stand it! Except obviously I could and was loving every moment.

I have a feeling that everything will go deeply wrong in the next episode so I want to enjoy Jack and Maya's flirty hook-up for as long as possible. This here is just my little take on what might have happened after episode 2x13 ended.

Beer for Breakfast

"Ok guys, I'm out." Travis drained the last of his beer and threw the bottle in the recycling. "See you next shift."

Jack raised a hand in farewell. "See you man."

Maya smiled. "Bye Travis."

Travis picked up his jacket and smiled back. "For what it's worth, I think Miller's an idiot. You'd be an amazing fake date."

Maya laughed. "Thanks. I think."

With Montgomery gone, Bishop and Gibson were alone in the houseboat's kitchen and the air in the room hung heavy with possibility. They were silent, and Maya leaned back on the countertop and regarded Jack with a raised eyebrow.

He could hazard guess at what she was about to say and responded with a smirk, enjoying extending the awkwardness a little longer. "What?"

"My eyes sparkle even in the dark?!" Maya repeated his words back to Jack in a tone somewhere between annoyance and sarcasm, but Jack definitely detected a nervous edge to her voice, and more than a hint of flirtation. "What the hell was that?"

Jack took a step towards Maya with that look in his eye that she found deeply infuriating. Infuriating, because she had found herself increasingly unable to resist whenever he turned on the charm. Maya Bishop was not someone who lacked self-control. Usually.

"You're not very good at taking compliments, are you?"

Jack was close enough to her now that she could reach to bat him away with her hand and she did just that. "Are you crazy? What if Dean cottons onto what's going on? I don't want this getting out before we've talked to Andy."

Maya's choice of words was not lost on Jack. Before they talked to Andy. Not ever. But he knew she wouldn't react well if he called her on it so let the moment pass. He stepped back again, leaning against the opposite counter. "Maybe I am crazy. But I still meant every word."

Maya sighed and a smile began to creep onto her face despite her best efforts to keep it at bay. The last thing she wanted to do was let Gibson know he had the upper hand. Their rivalry far outdated whatever this new dynamic between them was and it wasn't easy to let go of.

"Especially the part about you being annoying."

The grin that Jack gave Maya then was bright and cheeky and now Maya was the one to think that it was Jack's eyes that sparkled.

Jesus Bishop, Maya thought. Get a grip. But she found that she didn't want to fight it. As much as she enjoyed the banter with Gibson that flowed so easily, this other thing… Well, she was enjoying that even more. She took a deep breath, the sarcasm and insults she used as a barrier melted away and she relaxed. When she looked up from the floor and her eyes met Jack's she was calm.

"What are we doing here?"

"We're having beer for breakfast."

Maya huffed and rolled her eyes. "I meant…"

Jack nodded, suddenly serious. "I know." He put his beer bottle, still half full, down on the counter top and moved towards Maya again, his arms reaching out for her. He trusted that this time she wouldn't push him away and he was right.

Jack's hands found her waist and his touch sent shivers through Maya's whole body. But something was holding her back, keeping her from throwing her own arms around his neck and sinking into the moment. She knew exactly what that was. Guilt.

"Jack, we can't, not until… We need to be honest with Andy. I owe her that."

Jack looked past Maya to the wall behind. "We do. And we will tell her, but do we have to talk about her now?" He leaned in and his lips brushed Maya's neck. She closed her eyes, savouring the moment, but her body tensed again. Jack sensed this so stopped, but didn't let her go. "Look, if this was just a one-time thing, I'd say Andy never needs to know. But you and I both know that's not what this is. I like you, I think you know that. I want this to be more, so we will tell her. Just not right this second."

Maya stood up straight so her body was pressed against Jack's and now she did wrap her arms around him. "You said yourself I'm not usually the relationship type. I'm bad at it."

"Well, I'm not the 'casual hook up' type. Opposites attract I guess."

Jack tried to be flippant but Maya saw in his eyes an ocean of meaning behind those words. She'd seen in the past how deeply and completely Jack fell for someone and knowing what she now knew about his difficult upbringing it made perfect sense. He held onto the people in his life with such ferocity. The fact that he deemed her worthy of that gave Maya a funny feeling of discomfort. She feared that she couldn't measure up to such high expectations.

"Dean had the right idea, he didn't even want to fake date me."

Jack smiled. "I don't want to fake date you either. You're too hard on yourself."

Maya raised an eyebrow at him but let herself laugh too and finally relaxed fully into Jack's arms. "I'm not very good at sharing feelings" Maya said. There was something about Jack Gibson that forced honesty from her. There was an earnest and puppy-like quality in his gaze that she felt compelled to trust.

"Yeah, I'd noticed."

"This caught me completely off-guard. You're the last person I ever thought I'd get involved with romantically."

Jack put his hand to his chest in mock disbelief. "I know it's nothing to do with my devastatingly handsome looks or irrepressible charm."

For once, Maya didn't respond to his sarcasm in kind, instead her face remained serious. "You know that's not it."

Jack knew, and regretted spoiling the moment.

"I like you too" Maya continued, and it was a big thing for her to admit. She had never been one for bullshit when it came to relationships. Rarely was she not honest with her partners, or potential partners, but that honesty usually consisted of her telling the men and women she got involved with that she was only looking for something casual, and if a serious relationship was what they wanted then she wasn't the girl for them. It had been a long time since the shoe was on the other foot.

Letting herself be vulnerable terrified her.

Jack spoke as if he were able to read her mind. "It scares you, doesn't it? Opening yourself up to someone."

"I'm a pretty open book" Maya said, but her heart wasn't in the reply.

"Maybe" Jack said, "but everyone has hidden layers. If you'll let me, I'd like to get to know yours better."

Jack took a chance and leaned in for a kiss then and Maya responded, she couldn't help it. But she didn't understand why Jack would feel that way. She possessed endless confidence in most areas of her life, but in her ability to be a good girlfriend, she was insecure.

What are you thinking like that for? That inner voice again. You're nobody's girlfriend.

In the age-old tradition of lovers everywhere, trying to distract themselves from analysing their feelings, Maya pulled Jack's head towards hers and kissed him, letting her lust take over.

Jack saw right through her ploy but wasn't about to complain. The truth was that although he acted so sure of himself, like he had everything mapped out in front of him and knew exactly what he wanted, he was just as lost as Maya was. This thing had caught him by surprise too, but in hindsight all the signs were there. He'd just never before thought of Maya that way, not until they survived that crazy day on the train. She was Andy's best friend and was off limits, or so his subconscious tried to tell him. But he pushed the thought of his ex to the side and ran his hands through Maya's hair.

"Wait." Maya pulled away breathless. "Are you sure this is a good idea? What about Miller?"

Jack cast a glance at Dean through the glass doors. He was fast asleep on the deck and snoring heavily. He looked back at Maya and raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry about him."

Maya smiled. "If he's not wise to us after your hardcore flirting earlier, I'm not sure he'll ever be."

"Well, it wasn't directed at him." Jack paused, a naughty glint in his eye. "Did it work?"

Maya rolled her eyes for the second time since she'd entered Jack's kitchen. "Shut up" she said, and Jack had no choice but to obey the order as her mouth once again met his, making it impossible for him to speak even if he wanted to.

When they pulled apart again, breathless, Jack searched Maya's face for a clue to how she was feeling. Her large beautiful eyes were fixed on his with an intensity that Jack almost couldn't stand and he knew she was on the same page as he was. "You don't have to go home do you?" he asked, hoping the answer was a big fat 'no'.

Maya hesitated only for a second. "No time soon" was her reply and Jack's heart started to pound harder.

"Good. Shall we?" Jack swept his arm out to indicate the direction of his bedroom.

Maya was nervous and she didn't know why. It wasn't like this was the first time anything had happened between them, but this felt so different to their hungry shower encounter or their roof-top kiss. Those moments were pure animal instinct, and this felt more intimate, like they were taking a step towards something that it would be very difficult to back away from. But nerves didn't scare Maya Bishop. Her career as an athlete had taught her to use her nerves to her advantage and push forward.

Maya unbuttoned Jack's shirt as he kissed her and pretty soon it was off and discarded in a heap on the floor. Maya put her hand on Jack's chest and pushed him towards his bedroom. He stopped, crouching down to pick up his shirt, pretty sure that even Dean would notice a trail of discarded clothing leading to his door and jump to the obvious conclusion.

Jack had to admit to himself that he was enjoying the sneaking around, he'd be crazy not to. It was new and dangerous and the spark between them made him feel alive in a way he hadn't for a long time. But he didn't want to make it too easy for his roommate to find out, that was just a little too dangerous.

"Good point" Maya said. She pulled away to talk but the front of his t-shirt was still crumpled in her fist. Jack couldn't stand it and leaned into kiss her again, his hands sliding up under her sweater. "Wait, wait" Maya said. "My jacket."

Jack grabbed it from the back of the sofa as they passed, a frenzy of kisses and limbs. As if, Jack thought. As if this is happening with Bishop. He was still surprised, even weeks later But he wasn't sorry, not even a little bit.

The door slammed behind them louder than they would have liked, but if the noise woke Miller they couldn't do anything about it now. "We have to be quiet" Maya said between kisses. Jack only grunted in response.

Afterwards, exhausted but happy, Jack lay back onto his pillows and closed his eyes, enjoying the calm after the storm and the heat of the mid-morning sun streaming through the open window. He felt the mattress move as Maya threw off the covers and stood up.

"Hey hey" he said, opening his eyes to see she was already gathering her clothes. He sat up. "What's the hurry?"

"I have to go home, I have to get some sleep" Maya replied. Was that a note of regret in her voice?

"You can sleep here?" Jack said, hopeful.

"You know I can't. Have you forgotten who I live with? She'll start to wonder if I don't come home. Besides, we're not at the sleepover stage yet."

Yet? Ha. This time, Jack didn't let it go. "Yet?"

Maya realised what she'd said but it was too late to take it back. She smiled bashfully. It was a look Jack hadn't seen on Maya before. He liked it.

"Ten minutes" he said. "Come back to bed."

"Jack…"

"Come on. Or I might start to get the idea you're using me." Jack meant it as a joke but Maya turned, serious.

"I promise I'm not" she said, "it's just…"

Jack reached over and grabbed her hand. "Ten minutes. That's all. Can we just enjoy this, for a little bit? It's peaceful and warm and I'm happy. I'm in no hurry for these feelings to end."

Maya relented and sat back down on the bed. Jack pulled her towards him and draped the sheet over both of them. "I'm not very good at staying still and enjoying the moment" Maya said. She lay her head on Jack's shoulder and placed her hand on his chest. "Perhaps I need to work on that."

Jack kissed her temple. "Definitely."

"Set an alarm" Maya said, her voice sounding quiet and half way to sleep already. "If I fall asleep, I will kill you."

Jack let out a laugh. He would love very much to wake up in time of their next shift like this, in each other arms, but knew for a fact that Maya's threat wasn't idle. He'd seen her angry, he had no desire to be on the receiving end of her wrath. He grabbed his phone from the nightstand and did as he was told. But set it at 15 minutes, not 10. This little victory was enough for now. Small steps.

Maya did doze, but when the alarm sounded, she didn't wake with a start, she emerged from her slumber gently and reached across Jack for his phone. He was wide awake and staring at the ceiling, his arm wrapped tightly around Maya's shoulders.

"Will you let me go now?" She asked.

Jack sighed but nodded reluctantly. "Yeah, but I'm not happy about it."

Maya pulled on her jeans and walked quietly towards the door to retrieve her sweater that Jack had unceremoniously flung into the corner. She paused, facing away from the bed, wondering whether to say the thing that was hovering on her lips. She was being more honest with Jack than she had been with any partner for a long time, but at that second she was trying to decide whether there was a limit, whether this was a step too far. No, she decided. What was the harm?

"I don't want to leave" she said, and turned slowly to see Jack's reaction. "But I have to. You get that right?"

"Yeah" Jack said. He sounded as disappointed as Maya felt. He watched Maya dress in silence, regretting many things about the situation they were in, but not the basic fact that they were in this situation. Not at all.

"Do you want me to check the coast is clear?" Jack asked.

Maya shook her head. "No, it's alright. I'll be quiet. I'll see you at the fire station tonight." She gave Jack one last smile and slowly opened the door.

"Hey" Jack said, and she turned. "Can I give you a goodbye kiss?"

Maya shook her head, but it was a gesture of mild exasperation and disbelief, and not a 'no'. She walked to Jack's side of the bed and leaned towards him. Their lips met, and the kiss was soft and tender this time and not the hungry lustful kisses they'd shared earlier. It was nice, as was the intimate look they shared afterwards.

When she turned and left for real this time, Jack watched her back retreat and a moment later heard the front door close behind her. But the image of her face lingered in his mind even after she left him alone.

Her eyes sparkled in the sunlight too, Jack thought. Wow.