I'm going to try to post a new section every other day. If I get ambitious, I may post more often.

The rich smell of roasting coffee wafted through the door of City North Coffee as I slipped inside. It was crowded, not surprising at this time of day, with the college and several large businesses nearby. The noise of so many quiet conversations was enough to cover the sound of door closing behind me. In a dark slacks and white button down shirt, I didn't exactly blend in on a Saturday, but I didn't really stand out that much either.

Despite this morning's little bit of exercise, I still had a fair amount of time before my meeting with the realtor across town, so I headed to the counter to place an order. I could relax with a good coffee and catch up on the local and financial news. I'd been here before, so I didn't really have to think about what I was ordering. Instead, I let my thoughts center of the list of tasks I needed to accomplish while I was in town this weekend.

You'd think after that morning's adventure I'd pay a little more attention to my surroundings. City North was safe enough though. I'd taken a good look around when I first came in and there weren't any GS agents present. That's why I let my attention wander.

My attention re-centered on the here and now pretty quickly when someone bumped me and sent a nearly scalding wave of coffee down the front of my shirt. I blinked and focused on the auburn haired woman I'd just collided with. She looked up, an apologetic expression on her face, and froze. It was just for a second, but when I caught the grass green gaze, I froze too. I was pretty sure we'd never met, but I could swear there was a sense of recognition for both of us.

xxxxx

Rose Briggs was mentally reviewing her current work situation as she headed to the counter to order another coffee. It wasn't a pleasant review. She'd taken the job because it offered her the opportunity to find some information she'd needed, but so far she hadn't had any luck uncovering it. The job itself wasn't bad, but her employer was becoming more objectionable, especially to someone with her abilities, as the days and weeks went by. It was getting bad enough that she was starting to have trouble getting to sleep at night.

She felt the man's presence just before she bumped into him. She'd rebounded a few steps before it actually registered. Embarrassment brought a flush to her cheeks, and she saw the coffee staining his shirt even as she lifted her eyes to see his face.

She'd already started to apologize when blue eyes met her gaze and the words froze. Abilities she'd learned to trust a long time ago told her she knew the victim of her inattention, even as her memory told her otherwise. She stood silent, caught in his gaze and her own confusion, until she blinked and the connection was broken.

"Oh my gods! I'm so sorry. I wasn't paying attention!" Rose snagged some napkins from the closest table. Handing them to the man, she took the nearly empty coffee cup from him, using the instinctive actions to try to regain some of her composure.

He took the offered napkins with a wry smile and soaked up the worst of the damage. "Not your fault. My mind was somewhere else completely."

His voice was more amused than irritated, which relieved Rose just a bit. He seemed a little distracted as he continued to soak up the spilled coffee, so she took the opportunity to study him. The slacks and button down shirt said corporate, though the dark blonde hair was cut just a bit longer than she'd expect from a young executive. He had a trim build, but she'd gotten the impression of solid muscle when she'd collided with him. Combined with the warm blue eyes a person could drown in, as she'd already discovered, he probably got a lot of attention from both genders.

She was still trying to figure out why he felt so familiar, why she felt like she could trust him, when something about his shirt caught her attention. A closer, covert look found what she was looking for and she sucked in a quiet breath. His shirt was high end designer. Either he was very successful or her hapless victim was dressed in his best for some event or interview. Just her luck to potentially ruin someone's chances for a job or promotion or something.

xxxxx

"I am so sorry! Unless I miss my guess, you're dressed for something special."

The words, and the anxiety in the soft, contralto voice jolted me out of my thoughts. Not that they'd been that far away. I'd been trying to figure out why this woman reminded me of Emma, and if she'd felt that same shock of recognition that I had when we met glances. That anxiety was far more than the situation called for though, so I pushed my thoughts to the background for the moment.

"No worry. I've got time to pick up a new shirt or get to the hotel and change. It's not a big deal, really." I tried to reassure the woman, though it didn't seem to do much good. She met my eyes for a split second before looking away, and it was obvious my reassurance wasn't having much of an effect.

"That's an expensive shirt." She glanced at me again very briefly before continuing, her words hesitant. "If you've got time to get a new one, I can save you the cost. I can clean it, if you're willing to come to my place."

I cocked my head to the side, considering. Maybe she had felt what I had earlier. Or maybe she was just impetuous. I was already intrigued and wondered if she might be a new mutant. Despite that sense of recognition, it did seem more than a bit risky for her to be inviting a stranger to her home though, and I said as much.

"I'm a better than average judge of character." Was that an indirect way of saying she had unusual abilities? I couldn't tell, though it was seeming more likely. I couldn't help but smile at the somewhat mischievous glint in her green eyes as she stuck out her hand and introduced herself. "Rose Briggs."

That little shock happened again when I took her hand. "Jesse Kilmartin, nice to meet you."

The introduction didn't seem to reassure Rose, in fact, by the way she pulled her hand from mine, it seemed to make her more uncomfortable. I watched as she ducked her head to hide her expression. It bothered me, though I didn't know why.

After a moment she chuckled, though it sounded a bit forced. The look she gave me when she raised her head was straight forward with just a bit of pleading in it. "Now we're not strangers..." A slight smile touched her lips. "Strange maybe, but not strangers. Now, are you going to let me fix your shirt? It's my fault its stained in the first place."

We could argue about that for quite awhile since I knew I hadn't been paying any more attention to my surroundings than Rose had been. It occurred to me then that we were still standing in the middle of the coffee house and blocking traffic. I smiled back at her and ran through my options. I still didn't know if she was a new mutant, and if she was Adam needed to know about her. Even if she wasn't, there was that sense of familiarity that I still hadn't figured out. And it wasn't as if she posed any real danger to me. If she was willing to take the risk, there really wasn't any reason for me not to take her up on it.

"If you feel that strongly about it, I guess I have to. I wouldn't want to call your judgment into question." I nodded and motioned toward the door. At the very least I could get us out of the way of City North's other customers. We stepped outside and a cool breeze seemed to kick my brain back into gear.

Rose paused just out of the way of the door. "My place is within walking distance, but I can give you the address if you want to move your car."

There was an uncertainty in her voice that hadn't been there before, but now wasn't the time to figure out what caused it. I half nodded. "I could use a walk, lead the way."

We didn't talk, but it wasn't silent long enough to become uncomfortable. Rose hadn't lied when she said her place was close. The house she led me to was small, with a postage stamp sized yard, but it was in decent shape and gave a welcoming impression.

xxxxx

Rose didn't know why she made the offer. There was that sense of recognition but that was hardly reason enough to invite someone she didn't know to her home. When the man introduced himself, all the pieces fell into place. Jesse Kilmartin. She'd never met him, but it explained why her abilities had "recognized" him.

It also proved her luck wasn't getting any better. Of all the people for her to run into, she had to run into one that could pose a real danger to her. Yet another reason to regret where she currently worked because her sympathies definitely lay with Jesse and those he worked with.

At this point Rose could only hope that her employer didn't find out she'd run into him. She almost regretted making the offer to clean his shirt, but only almost. Yes, it would cause trouble for her if her bosses found out, but at the same time, she really did want to get to know Jesse better. And she couldn't take the offer back now without raising questions in Jesse's mind. She already had more than enough questions to deal with.

Unsettled as she was, she appreciated the silence as they walked. Jesse didn't seem to feel the need to keep up conversation. In fact he seemed fairly deep in thought himself. Whatever he was thinking, the quiet gave her the time to regain some of her composure.

Still, she fumbled a bit as she unlocked the door. She had just enough time to do a quick scan of the living room and make sure it was presentable before she swung the door open wide enough to let her companion in. Rose gestured to the couch as she hung her bag on the closet doorknob.

"Make yourself comfortable." On her own ground, she felt a little more comfortable and her voice warmed up a little as she headed toward the kitchen. "Can I get you some coffee or tea or something? I can't match City North, but I do have some whole bean Colombian I can brew up."

Jesse cocked his head to the side, watching her as he sat down on the sofa. She wasn't sure what he was thinking, but she was pretty sure he wasn't going to tell her. "Coffee would be good, but don't brew up a pot if it's just on my account."

This time her chuckle wasn't forced. "If I brew it, I'll drink it. Don't worry about it going to waste. Just give me a sec."

The tiny galley kitchen wasn't much, but there was enough room for the necessities. It only took her a couple of minutes to grind the coffee and get the coffeemaker going. As the smell of brewing coffee filled the small space, she returned to the living room, glad to see that Jesse seemed comfortable enough for the moment. Seeing the brown stain on the white shirt made her sigh, but she covered it up. "It'll just be a couple of minutes. Let me see if I can find something for you to wear while I get your shirt cleaned."

It had been a long time since she'd been involved in a relationship, but her ex had left a few things behind. Hopefully one of them was a shirt that would fit her guest. Besides, looking for it meant that Jesse didn't have the opportunity to ask any uncomfortable questions.

After digging through a few drawers, Rose found a t-shirt that should work. Returning to the living room, she tossed it at the blonde. "This should fit. My ex left it behind."

xxxxx

I caught the shirt Rose threw in my direction, not certain what to make of her words. I tried to keep the frown from my face as I just nodded and said thanks. I'm not sure my host even heard me as she disappeared into her kitchen again.

As I changed into the borrowed shirt, I had to wonder if Rose was trying to avoid me. Maybe now that she'd had some time to think, she was regretting her offer. I couldn't blame her if she was, but I was hoping that wasn't the case.

"How do you like your coffee?" Rose poked her head out of the kitchen, obviously waiting for his answer.

"Black is fine, thanks." I tried to catch her eye, but she disappeared as soon as she had her answer.

It was a few more minutes before she came out again, setting a mug in front of me. She flashed a slight smile in my direction as she gathered up the shirt and undershirt, but she disappeared back into the kitchen again before I could say a word.

After a moment I heard the sound of running water from the kitchen. It struck me as a bit odd, but I had to assume Rose knew what she was doing. I let it go and studied the living room, trying to see what it could tell me about my new acquaintance.

Something about the place reminded me of Sanctuary. Physically, it wasn't anything like home, but it felt comfortable and welcoming all the same. At the same time, there wasn't anything personal about it. I mean, it fit what little I knew about Rose, and it was comfortable in a kind of average way. But it didn't give any clue as to what her interests were or what she did for a living.

There were no personal pictures, no books laying around. Even the few pieces of artwork on the walls were the generic kind you could buy at any hobby or art store. There was a closed laptop on the corner of the coffee table but that was about it.

Despite the comfortable feel of the place, it struck me as wrong that there was no sense of personality about it. It was obvious that Rose had lived her for awhile, so the lack wasn't because she had just moved in. Everything I could see indicated that she spent a fair amount of time here, so why didn't it reflect her more?

My thoughts were interrupted as Rose took a seat across from me, a mug of light coffee cupped between her hands. I covered my startlement with a sip of surprisingly good coffee from my own mug, only then noticing the sound of a dryer in the background.

"It shouldn't take too long to dry." Rose offered a smile, but she didn't seem any more comfortable than she had earlier. I felt like I needed to do something about that. No one should be uncomfortable in their own home, but I was at a loss for how to change the situation. The best I could think of was to try to get a conversation started.

"So, what do you do when you're not inviting strangers into your house, Rose?" I meant the question to be joking, but it didn't really come out that way. I couldn't help it. Rose had sparked my curiosity.

The question seemed to make her uncomfortable and I sighed as she took a drink from her mug. Probably to giver herself time to think about her answer. I marked another one down on the "something's not right here" meter in the back of my head.

"Work mostly," Rose shrugged, fidgeting with her mug. "I'm a technical researcher and writer for a scientific research firm. When I'm not working I'm usually coding websites."

I didn't get the feeling she was lying, but I wasn't sure she was telling me the whole truth either. There was something about her voice, about the way she spoke that made me think there was more to it, but she obviously didn't want to talk about it. I really wanted to draw her out, get her to give me something personal. "Doesn't sound too satisfying for you."

"Unfortunately true, but it does pay the bills." She shrugged slightly, looking at her mug instead of me. "There are other, less tangible, benefits to the work."

Now that was an interesting little tidbit of information. Too bad it didn't really tell me anything, but I filed it away anyway. Time to change the subject before things got even more uncomfortable. "So, you appreciate good coffee. What do you like to eat?"

Now Rose glanced at me and there was faint appreciation in her expression. Most likely for the change of subject, I guessed. She took a few seconds to consider the question and then shrugged. "I'm not picky really. I suppose I have a fondness for Italian if I have to chose."

Now that was a subject I knew about. I could keep the conversation going for a good while. Something about my mutation keeps my metabolism very active so I eat a lot, and Italian is one of my favorite kinds of food. I was surprised by how much Rose knew about it though. I grew up around traditional Tuscan cooking, but it seemed my host had a pretty good knowledge of regional styles in Italy.

I was enjoying the conversation and Rose seemed to have relaxed some. Enough to argue for her favorite dishes with me anyway. I was so involved in the discussion that I didn't notice the odd expression on Rose's face at first. In fact, it wasn't until she tilted her head to one side and studied me for a moment that it registered.

"You speak Italian fluently." The corner of her mouth quirked upward in an almost smile. "In fact, I'd guess you grew up with it."

My brain did a dead stop and I knew I was gaping. I closed my mouth and picked up my mug. A swallow or two drained the last of the coffee and gave me the change to get my thoughts back into gear. I knew I was frowning a bit, but I couldn't help it. "Yeah..." I looked at Rose as I set my empty mug on the table. "But how did you figure that out?"

She flashed me a half-smile over the rim of her mug that contained just a bit of amusement. "I lived in Tuscany for a few months. Never learned to speak the language very well, but I learned enough to understand it and tell the regional differences apart." She shrugged with a slight nod in my direction as she continued. "You say certain words, mostly food related, with a Tuscan accent."

Chalk up another mark on the list I was compiling in the back of my mind. Rose was certainly observant. I shook my head slightly before saying anything else. "My grandmother was from Tuscany. We mostly spoke Italian around her at home." I knew my voice betrayed something of my surprise, but I smiled. "You're good."

I noticed a slight blush on Rose's cheeks as she shrugged. "Technical researchers have to be observant."

The dryer buzzed just then and Rose set her mug down as she rose. I thought she was heading into the other room, but instead she pulled an ironing board from the closet and set it up. She ducked into the room where the dryer was before I could say anything.

"Starched or just ironed?" Her voice was a little muffled, but clear enough to understand.

I hadn't expected her to do anything other than clean the shirt, so despite the ironing board, it took me a few seconds to answer. "Just ironed is fine, Rose, but you really don't have to go to the trouble."

"A wrinkled shirt isn't going to make a good impression, Jesse, no matter how expensive the suit and tie are." The words were accompanied by a half laugh as she came back into the living room and tossed me my undershirt.

I couldn't really argue with her reasoning, though I winced internally at the bit about the suit and tie. She made quick work of ironing the shirt, and I just watched. More and more just didn't add up, but it made me more curious rather than uncomfortable. When she was finished, Rose handed me the shirt before gathering up the mugs and heading for the kitchen.

I was just buttoning the cuffs when Rose returned. I grinned, wanting her to know that I appreciated not only the shirt, but her company as well. "Thanks. This was certainly more fun than replacing the shirt. It looks like new. The coffee and the company were pretty good too."

"Least I could do, since it was my fault." Rose leaned against the wall, her arms crossed and though she smiled a little, the discomfort from earlier seemed to have returned.

I shook my head just a little, but decided not to argue the point with her. It wouldn't do anything but make her more uncomfortable which was the last thing I wanted. What I wanted was to find out more about her but I didn't have any excuse to stick around. Rose knew that I had an appointment this afternoon. Then again I also had a reservation this evening.

"Look, I've got a reservation at Cucina della Nonna for tonight and I hate to eat alone. I could use some company, Rose. Join me?"

xxxxx

Rose had been trying not to think once they'd entered the house. Making coffee and cleaning Jesse's shirt had kept her occupied but finally she had to sit down and be sociable. Jesse seemed to realize she was uncomfortable and when he turned the discussion to food, she was grateful. To be honest, she had enjoyed the conversation.

And she had to admit to enjoying the expression on his face when she told him he spoke Italian. It didn't occur to her that her observation might raise some questions she had no desire to answer until after she'd made it. Luckily the dryer finished its cycle and saved her from any uncomfortable questions Jesse might have had for her.

By the time she'd ironed his shirt and returned it to him and taken the mugs back into the kitchen, Rose felt like she might get through the whole thing without there being too much in the way of consequences.

His smile when he thanked her, made her reconsider. It was boyish and endearing, making the blue eyes sparkle. It also made her uneasy, though she wasn't sure why. Given what she'd seen so far, Jesse was unlikely to let this remain just a passing acquaintance. She liked what she knew of him and his team. And that was far more than he realized. But as much as she liked him, just knowing him was likely to cause her trouble.

She almost missed his invitation, but the name of the restaurant caught her attention. Cucina della Nonna was one of the best eateries in the city. Expensive and exclusive, it was someplace she'd always wanted to go to, but it was way out of her price range. She inhaled and let the breath out slowly giving Jesse a wistful smile.

"I appreciate the offer, Jesse, but Cucina's a bit out of my budget."

She hoped he'd accept the excuse and worried the inside of her bottom lip as she waiting for his reaction. She'd already taken a big enough risk. If anyone at work found out she went out to dinner with him, she'd be in more trouble than she even wanted to think about.

Rose bit her lip as she watched him. He frowned, playing with his earlobe for a moment before saying anything. When he finally did speak, his voice was sincere and he tried to keep eye contact with her. "I'd really like your company, Rose. Don't worry about the check. Seriously, I really hate eating alone."

She sighed, trying to gauge just how stubborn he was likely to be about this and didn't much like the answer. For whatever reason, Jesse was determined to get her to accept his offer. She studied him for a long few seconds, actually meeting his eyes before she finally replied. "Why do I get the feeling you're going to pester me until I agree to go?"

He flashed that endearing grin at her again and shrugged lightly. "My friends do say I can be stubborn as a rock." Glancing down, he straightened his cuffs before looking at her again. "Pick you up at seven?"

Rose expelled a breath and couldn't help but laugh a little. "All right. if you're going to be that insistent. You really don't have to though."

Her guest just grinned as he headed for the door. "I'll take that as a yes. See you this evening."

Rose leaned back against the wall as the door closed behind her, wondering not only what she had gotten herself into, but how she'd managed to do it.