Thank you to my wonderful beta, dark rolling sea.
And a hugethank you to all the reviewers. Glad you're liking this :)
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CHAPTER 14 – Of Mornings, Fatigue and Groceries
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Lindsay glanced at the thermometer before heading outside. It confirmed her suspicions about the weather being chillier than during the past couple of days. Otherwise the Monday morning was beautiful: there were no big chunks of clouds in the sky, no sign of approaching rain and of course she was in an extremely good mood. Lindsay's thoughts drifted back to the previous night, like they had for countless times before. Her relationship with Mac had taken a new turn and of which she was very thrilled. 'Speaking of which,' she thought. "I should get going…" The clock on the wall read 7:23 and she figured she should get her things and head downstairs to meet Mac.
Collecting her cell and a couple of other items, she stuffed them in her bag. Quickly throwing on a jacket she left her apartment. Knowing Mac, he'd be there at exactly 7:30. As she strolled down the flight of stairs she noticed the lingering feeling of anticipation and longing and couldn't help but smile.
When she reached the bottom floor she stepped outside to find Mr. Ferguson there. He greeted her and they exchanged a few kind words. She could already spot Mac in the distance, walking towards them. When Mac reached them, she said goodbye to Mr. Ferguson.
"Bye," he said. "You take good care of her now," he continued, aiming the statement at Mac.
Lindsay was about to say something, but Mr. Ferguson beat her to it. "I know, I know…" he muttered and headed back inside.
Lindsay saw the smirk that was forming on Mac's face. "Oh, please…"
"What?" he said innocently.
Lindsay shot him her best 'oh-like-you-don't-know'-look but it turned into a smile.
"So, morning," Lindsay said and turned to face him completely.
"Morning," Mac replied, looking straight into her eyes for a brief moment and leaning in for a quick kiss. He was somewhat relieved when Lindsay complied and responded. "Not a bad way to start the day," he said as they began to walk along the sidewalk.
"Not at all," Lindsay retorted and with that their hands sought out for the other. Their fingers were entwined within seconds and the grip was tight. The feeling of warmth that followed was unpredictably soothing.
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When the two reached their workplace, they let go of each other. There was a silent agreement of keeping things quiet. Work was work and that's how they were going to keep it, at least for now. Lindsay went to the lab, while Mac headed to his office.
"Hey there," Stella greeted Lindsay when she entered the break room. Lindsay was hovering around the coffee maker, measuring the two key ingredients.
"Oh, hi!"
"No new cases yet?" Stella queried, taking off her coat.
"I'm sure there will be. The weekend shift sure got their share…"
"Yeah, I heard they came this close to calling us in," Stella stated, demonstrating the alleged amount with her fingers.
Lindsay finished with the coffee maker and moved to sit with Stella. They continued to chat about this and that and drinking their coffee. It was rarely possible to start the morning this calmly.
"Well, I gotta go finish my report," Stella announced when she stood up.
"Me too," Lindsay said, doing the same.
Stella looked somewhat intrigued. "I thought you finished it on Friday after we left,"
"I didn't, I left soon after you guys."
"Found something more interesting to do?"
"Something like that," Lindsay said mysteriously. Stella had an idea what it could be but then again, it could be anything. Her trail of thought was brought to a halt when Danny stormed in.
"Hey Montana, we got a case!"
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As Lindsay had ensured Stella, all of them soon found themselves in the midst of a case. Mac, Hawkes and Stella worked on one while Danny and Lindsay had the other. Flack was also running back and forth making it a normal Monday.
In the afternoon Mac stopped by the lab Lindsay was in. She was fixated on a watch she was examining.
She heard the door open and looked up from the item. "Hi," she said with a small smile.
"Hey, is the case coming together at all yet?" Mac asked, walking to stand right beside Lindsay.
"Nothing groundbreaking. I just sent more samples to DNA and the previous ones aren't done yet…"
"What about…" Mac began, nodding at the watch in Lindsay's hands.
"There were no blood spatters, but it has stopped. I'm thinking it probably broke when he fought back. See these marks here?" Lindsay told him and pointed them out.
Mac leaned closer to see the tiny marks. "Looks like it hit something pretty hard," he mused, turning his face to Lindsay.
"Exactly, I'll try to find out what," Lindsay said, finding her face only a couple of inches away from Mac's. With a knowing smile they moved away from each other.
"So, keep me posted," Mac said rather softly and then left.
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"Mac!" Stella yelled when she saw him coming out of one of the labs. "What's with the smile?"
Mac was startled when he heard the last part, but in his usual manner, didn't show it. "Nothing too interesting," he said a little more flatly than he had initially intended.
"If it makes you smile it's gotta be good…" Stella reasoned. "Come on, what?" she pleaded. Then she noticed where he came from and could see Lindsay. "Then again, it's not a what but a who…"
"I thought you had something you wanted me to see," Mac said, trying to change the subject.
"Yeah," she said, letting the matter drop for the moment. "Actually, Sid has. I was just coming to get you."
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The next couple of days were spent trying to solve the cases at hand. Lindsay and Danny's case wrapped up on Thursday when they finally managed to find that one critical piece of evidence to convict the man they already knew was the killer. Since the other case was still open, they helped with it. With the mutual effort, the perb was caught early on Friday evening – much to the joy of the team. That meant they could hopefully have an uninterrupted weekend.
The week had gone by so fast in the hectic environment that everyone's social life had been reduced to zero, or very close to it. Later that night the entire gang decided to go and grab a bite at their usual dining spot, before heading home.
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Flack was getting an extra cup of coffee. He was waiting for the waiter to finish when Stella appeared beside him.
"Hey, thought I'd get one too," she said.
Flack turned around and looked at the others who were seated at the table. Danny and Hawkes were debating over sports – he could easily hear enough to know that – while Mac and Lindsay were listening to it, exchanging a few comments here and there. He also noticed that they were sitting extremely close.
"OK, is it just me or is there something going on between those two?" Flack asked Stella, who smiled at his observation. "I mean, there's always that one extra glance and a lot of smiles directed at the other one…" he continued, shifting his eyes from Mac and Lindsay to Stella in search of an answer.
"I was wondering when someone else would pick up on it."
"So there is?"
"Well, I can't say I'm a hundred percent sure there is, but there could very well be. I mean look at them," she exclaimed, though quietly, nodding at the pair.
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Meanwhile, at the table the mostly playful dispute between Hawkes and Danny was ceasing. Lindsay was on the verge of bursting out laughing because of the weird glances the two were now exchanging along with a few more arguments.
"I don't think you're going to settle this… but how about finding at least some common ground," Mac said in amusement.
They gave him a weird look and idly changed the subject. Stella and Flack returned to the table and the conversation started brewing again.
"I believe it's time for me to get going," Lindsay informed the group and tried to stifle a yawn, failing miserably.
"I'll give you a ride," Mac said and got up.
They said their goodbyes and started toward the front door. Mac opened the door for Lindsay and the way his hand stayed on her back didn't go unnoticed by both Stella and Flack. Stella turned to Flack and showed off with her best 'I-told-you-so'-smile.
Lindsay yawned yet again, the tiredness becoming even more evident. Mac unlocked the car and they got in. The drive was quiet. They were both deep in their own thoughts. Mac glanced at Lindsay and sighed mentally. He had really missed her during the week. Seeing each other briefly maybe once or twice a day just wasn't enough – especially when it was at work. He loved seeing her like this; completely relaxed and with no obvious worries. Her features were calm and she seemed to be at peace and not just because of the fatigue.
Lindsay tucked a few strands of stray hair behind her ear and closed her eyes for just a few seconds before turning her attention to Mac.
"What do you have planned for tomorrow?" she asked.
"I was hoping you might have something planned."
"I like the way you think," she mused as the car stopped. "Tomorrow then," she said before leaning closer for a kiss. "Night."
"Night."
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The morning had been sunny and warm and very appealing. Much to the dismay of most people, the weather was taking a drastic turn. Lindsay was strolling along the sidewalk with a bag of groceries. She started pacing faster when she felt the first droplets on her skin. Judging by the thick and dark clouds hovering over the city, the rain would soon get heavier. 'Please, don't rain just yet. I only need two more minutes,' Lindsay hoped but with no avail. 'Figures…' The slight breeze in the air felt cooler than it had before which was due to the slightly damp clothes. She was glad that she was able to get inside the apartment building, before it started raining cats and dogs. Looking outside she sighed in relief. Had she taken even a little bit longer, she would be completely soaked.
Heading for the stairway she soon found herself at the door and rang the doorbell. After a small wait Mac opened the door. He was clearly surprised to see her there.
"Hey," Lindsay greeted.
"Uh, hi. What are you…" he began, stepping more to the side so she could come in. He noticed her jacket and hair had been spared from the heavy rainstorm and figured she must've just made it inside before the massive downpour.
"We are going to prepare some lunch," she stated with a smile and walked inside.
Mac closed the door and grabbed the bag from her hands. "Are we now?" he asked no one in particular and peered inside the paper sack to get a glimpse of the contents.
Lindsay hung her coat on a hanger so it could dry properly. Mac had already started toward the kitchen and she quickly followed. He placed the bag on the counter and turned to look at Lindsay with a questioning glance.
"Well, dig in!"
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So there you have the latest chapter… Tell me what you think and I'll be very, very happy ;)