Hah! An expansion. I never knew this would become such a hit overnight- literally. Anyways, here you go again. New IAB woman should die in a trench.

WOW. Thanks for the reviews and inspiration suallenparker, lily moonlight, autumngold, Moska, chrysalis escapist, csi kane, Tomate, Bonasera, Jag Lady, FernClaw, anonymous, ssbailey, Hope06, CSIBabs, theAlyCat

Shower's Effect

"You couldn't keep yourself out, could you?" he asked, his voice loud over the rushing of water over his body as he reached for the shampoo.

The day was done. The case had been solved, the boyfriend was practically on his deathbed, and MacQuinn Taylor was behind bars for the murder of Macabee Taylor and Melinda Katana. It had been confusing- so many people by the name of "Mac Taylor" had been found in New York, and one of them had actually been the killer. As the detective lathered the shampoo through his hair, he could hear Stella sighing on the other side of the curtain. "I can't talk to you through a door, Mac."

He chuckled a little. "So. About this morning- why were you so surprised? I'm not that good looking, you know."

She smiled and shook her head, leaning against the counter and hearing the water fall again. "I beg to differ. You've got the looks of someone half your age or something, and you don't think you look good? What are you thinking?"

"I'm not, Stell. I'm trying to douse myself in water and clear my head."

Stella laughed as she listened to the soap wash free from his hair and empty into the drain. Her thoughts drifted to a moment in which she nearly wanted to take off her clothing and get in the shower after him. She held his towel in one hand and rested her other hand on the counter. "Nice try, Mac. You're trying not to think about how I would look in the shower, aren't you?"

He gave a slight groan. "I'm not that horny, you know. I'm actually very clean."

"Figuratively or literally, Mac?" she teased.

The water rushed over his body as he ran his fingers through his hair. She was one heck of a woman. It made him wonder if he really did love her as something more or as just a good friend. There was silence in the bathroom for several moments before he finally began to wash his body and speak once more. "What do you see between us, Stella?"

The woman looked at the shower curtain in confusion. "Why?"

He shrugged, shuddering slightly as the water beat down on his backside and he scrubbed on his chest harder than normal. "Well, think of it like this. The entire lab sees us together as some sort of couple and everything. I see us as the closest of friends we could ever be. But what do you see in us?"

The woman fingered Mac's towel and took a deep breath. "I can't say I really know for sure," she admitted softly. "I want to see us as a family or something, but- right now, I can only see us as a sort of brother-sister relationship. It's hard to explain, if you know what I mean." She closed her eyes. "You kind of understand it, right? It's complicated and everything."

The shower turned off, and Mac's hand appeared from behind the curtains. The woman handed her companion the towel and sighed after he took it. "Fact is, Mac- I like you. I wish it would turn into something more."

He opened the shower curtain and looked at her, the white cover-up wrapped tightly around the bottom part of his body. The woman's breath caught in her throat. His eyes held a sort of caring calm, hand gripping the towel and stepping out of the shower. "Honestly, this is a little awkward," he tried to joke.

"I…" She shook her head in awe and blushed once more, smiling and turning away as best as she could. "I kind of agree."

She opened the bathroom door and allowed the man to go first, standing in the doorway then and staring at him with her wandering eyes. He turned to her and raised an eyebrow. "I can't be that good looking, can I? I'm wet, getting out of a shower and stuff, and you're giving me this look of a rabid fan girl of some sort of movie."

"Who wouldn't?" she asked quietly.

Mac opened his mouth but stopped. There was an air of stunned surprise swirling around them. He looked down at his towel and back up at the woman in front of him. She was still there, blushing as much as ever and looking away. He took a look at the nearest window and walked over, checking to make sure they were completely shut. Stella blinked. "M-mac?"

He turned to her, his eyes twinkling again.

"What would happen if you and I were both in the shower, Stella?"

She placed a hand over her mouth in shock. "Y-y-you're…"

His eyes held the serious and stern Mac she was so accustomed to. "The closet isn't that messy. And I promise I won't peek."

Slowly, a smile spread across her face. "You want to warm up the water, Detective?"

He walked back into the bathroom and turned the handle. Water gushed forward from the nozzle, and he dropped the towel from his waist.

This was going to be such a relaxing third shower for the day…

I'm not doing ANYTHING more with this. You want to, fine. But I would ask if you would give me credit and tell me where it was. Thanks.

The brother-sister idea was from the thoughts of the actors themselves and what they thought of Stella and Mac's relationship.

Hope you enjoyed the expansion.