A/N: I'm sorry for being MIA for the longest time. We had a two-day power outage here and no Internet connection. Boo-hoo. Good thing I have added a few chapters to our little story. I hope you're still with me.

Thanks for all the reviews -- they really make my day. I'm trying to make this as interesting and as in-character as possible.

Enjoy!

You tell me things I've never known
I shown you love you've never shown
But then again, when you cry
I'm always at your side

The next day would be a bit awkward for Stella and I. I waited for her outside the lab hoping for a chance to talk to her. She's a bit late today, which is rare. I could call her up, just to check if she's on her way over here. I could still see how upset she was last night. Just when I was about to dial her number (which I have memorized by heart), a hand lands gently on my shoulder.

"So that's why you're not answering your office phone." It's Peyton. Smiling, she continued, "Are you waiting for me, Mac? Well, I'm here now and we can go to the lab together. I have to give these results to Stella." My ears could be fooling me but it almost sounded that she spat out Stella's name. "Is she in already?"

"Uh no, not yet." She enters the elevator with me and holds my hand. I started to pull back, "Peyton…"

"Shh… Just for this moment, Mac. We're all alone," she whispered. "One of these days, they'll find out about us eventually."

We're lucky that we are able to keep this down for the mean time. It's inevitable that my team would hear about it first. Lindsey felt something was up and asked me about it. She swore no one would know about it from her. And nobody did. Everything came from me. All of them were shocked – especially Danny – but they were all happy for me… for us.

I don't know but getting Stella's stamp of approval felt like a rock was shoved off my chest. I never liked hiding anything from her since she was always open to me. I figured that if I poured my heart out to her when I lost Claire, she would be okay with it if I share my newfound romance with her. But somehow, it took me almost six months to talk to her about it. I was afraid that she wouldn't listen, afraid that she would think that it's none of her business.

In a way it was, yet, she's my best friend. When all else fail, she's my rock to lean on to as I am to her.

The elevator doors open as Peyton inched away from me. We walk together to my office and she sets the case file on my already cluttered desk. She picks up Claire's picture and says, "She must be really special. After all these years, her picture is still here." Peyton set it back down and picked up the next frame… her picture. "Oh Mac. You see me everyday and still you have my photo here? I'm touched." I smiled at her. When she was about to lean in for a kiss, Lindsey barged in my office.

"Mac, there you are! The DA's pressuring the whole lab on those results. We're the only ones working on that case and I cannot do this alone, Mac. I thought you said that you can't afford either of us to be late then you…" she stopped her babbling when her eyes fell on the other person in the room. "Oh Dr. Driscoll. I'm sorry to disturb you."

"No worries, Miss Monroe," Peyton smiled, walking over to the CSI. "You're just doing your job. And Mac here is in fact late, for a change. I'll be on my way then. Bye." Then she was out.

Lindsey approached my table and crossed her arms, "I thought you said no romance in the office?" I shrugged. It wasn't me who made the advance. "Anyway, have you seen Stella? Don and Danny are looking for her everywhere and she's not answering her phone."

"What? She's not answering her phone?" just when I said that, my office phone rang.

"Taylor… where the hell are you?" It was Stella "What do you mean you're calling in sick?" It was taking everything in me not to yell at her. "What's the matter with you?"

I could her that she's sobbing a bit. "I'm not feeling well today, Mac. I'm very sorry. Kindly tell Danny and Sheldon that they can continue on without me. Danny can be the lead CSI on this." She ended her sentence with a definite sob.

All my plans to scold and yell at her flew out the window when I heard her sob. Right then and there, I felt the need to console her; be on her side. "Where are you exactly, Stella? Wait for me there." I saw Lindsey roll her eyes.

"No, Mac. I'll be fine. Don't worry about me," she said with her voice shaking. "I just need to take a break… alone," she continued. "You just go on with what you're doing and I'll be back to work tomorrow. Bye."

"Bye, Stell and take care of yourself," I said as she hung up.

I sat down and sighed. I almost forgot that Lindsey's still in my office. "Knowing you, Mac – I know that regardless of what Stella tells you, you would still do what you think is proper." True. In other times, I would be hailing a cab or taking the department car to her apartment armed with bags of take-out and beers. But I know she'll have my head if I contradict her now. A bad mood Stella is worse than a pack of wild wolves.

"No Lindsey, let's go back to work," I firmly say following her out to Ballistics.