About a week later, Megan was intently staring through the lens of her microscope when Peter came in. She could tell it was him even before he spoke, his insistent energy and overpowering aftershave always alerting her to his presence.

"You ready to break for lunch?"

"Won't be for another hour. Then meeting Dr. Murphy in the cafeteria downstairs," Megan absently replied as she continued to peer down at the slides before her.

"Huh," Peter huffed. "So, are you and Kate best friends all of a sudden, or what?"

That caught Megan's attention. She sat up straight and spun around on her stool.

"Dr. Murphy," she made a point of emphasizing he use, "and I can always find plenty of work-related things to discuss, even some things non-work related. And yes, we're friendly." This was not a lie. It just wasn't the whole truth.

"That's a pretty dramatic shift from how it's been, don't you think? What changed?"

"Not so dramatic, and …we just realized we have more in common than we have differences. We're playing for the same team."

Megan suddenly realized how that sounded, and searched Peter's face to see if he caught on to the double meaning. She didn't think so.

"Right. Well have fun on your lunch date then. Guess I'll be steering clear of girl time," he whined before leaving the lab. Despite his choice of words, he was clearly oblivious, and Megan was just beginning to realize how much she wished she could keep it that way.

"He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, Megan." Kate smirked as she sipped her coffee. "At least not socially, though he thinks he's a pro. I'm not surprised he doesn't get it."

Megan frowned. "He'll put two and two together eventually. But I don't think I want him knowing the details."

"Well, nobody gets to know the details but us," Kate whispered. "But you're right. People eventually are going to know. If we show up to events together and never bring a husband or boyfriend, people are going to talk. Not that they don't already."

"I'm just not very fond of people trying to figure out my business."

Kate raised an eyebrow. "Now you know how I feel."

Megan glared at her playfully.

"Though I'm pretty sure some people already have it figured out," Kate said as she waved through the glass at Ethan and Curtis, who were just coming back from some gory assignment. They smiled awkwardly but politely at the two women, with brightly curious eyes. Kate couldn't lip-read exactly what they were saying, but their body language suggested it was probably along the lines of "Those two sure have gotten close."

Megan gawked. Then, as she thought about it, felt less skeptical "You might be right. But Peter's different."

"Because he's into you."

"Yes! He's been on my ass for months, telling me I need to get out more, not be so consumed with work. Now he's even worse. I'm realizing he just wanted me to be more consumed with him."

"Just let him down gently. Or not so gently. I don't care."

Megan pursed her lips. "Suggestions?"

"You don't have to tell him outright. We can just…send him signals. Make him wonder, to the point of assuming. If you make it clear you're not available, he'll back off."

"I thought I was already making it clear."

"No, you've made it clear you're not interested, not unavailable. Men don't care about not interested. As long as there's no ring on your finger, they think you're fair game."

"Hell, even with the ring they sometimes think you're fair game."

Kate rolled her eyes. "We'll just show him somehow that there is something more going on between us. And that he's not invited," she added firmly.

"You could always grab my ass as I'm walking down the hall."

Kate grinned. "Tempting. But not exactly the best example for the boss to set."

"Damn."

The two sent heated glances at one another across the table. Anyone watching them closely would have been a fool not to pick up on the fact that they were smitten.