Jo closed the folder in front of her, the last of five that required her review. She loved this job; but just like back at the Bureau, she could do without the paperwork. She considered cleaning up her desk, but only for a moment. Surely there were more important things to do than clean up a silly old desk.

Standing up, she dropped the files onto another pile, one that she was at least 98 percent certain was designated for completed paperwork. They were her designations, so who cared, right? She could see the look on Mac's face now, were he to ever be privy to her unique filing system.

"Or lack thereof," she chuckled under her breath.

Turning, she rolled her neck and caught a glance at the aforementioned detective out of the corner of her eye. He was intently reading the file before him.

'Or maybe he just stares at them without actually reading but likes to keep us on edge with that Taylor intensity,' Jo mused in her mind. "Oh Jo, that's just silly," she thought out loud.

She shook her head at the notion of talking to herself in her office, though she was quite certain it wouldn't surprise anyone in the lab. Turning her gaze back to Mac, she thought back to lunch on Saturday.

It had been fun. Ellie seemed to enjoy Mac's presence, especially when he regaled her with tales of Jo in CSI-mode. Mention of Jo's careful dissection of a victim's personality by Mac was confirmed by Ellie's description of the stories she and her mom would make up about strangers; and Mac's chuckling over Jo's neon post-it note collection brought on Ellie's squeal of delight: "You should see our fridge!"

"I guess it turns out that CSI Danville isn't all that different from Jo the mom," Mac had said when the stories had all been told and their laughter had died down.

"Finally, a statement I don't have to defend myself against," Jo had sighed dramatically.

The food had been good, too. Still, the trio's separation became imminent as the lunch hour drew to a close. Ellie politely thanked Mac for coming to her game and treating them to lunch, which he had done despite Jo's protests; Mac said he hoped to come to another match sometime soon. Jo bid Mac goodbye until Monday, and he saw the pair to the steps of the uptown train before heading off in the direction of a downtown train.

Jo looked up upon hearing a tap on her glass door.

"Hey Lindsay," she said with a smile. "Got something for me?"

"The Miller file," Lindsay acknowledged, handing a manila folder to Jo. "Pretty cut and dry... You okay?"

"Me?" Jo asked with a bit of surprise.

"Yeah," Lindsay laughed. "You looked like you were on another planet until I knocked."

"Oh yes, I'm great. Just all googly-eyed from too much paperwork, I suppose."

"Ok good. Well, I'm headed out. I'll see you tomorrow, Jo. Have a good night."

"You, too, Lindsay," Jo said as Lindsay turned to leave.

As she gathered her things, Jo's thoughts wandered back to Mac.

'He's not really my type,' she thought. 'Oh, Jo! Why are you even thinking about that? That's so ridiculous.'

She indulged herself nonetheless, thinking back to his chivalry, his rapport with Ellie, his laughter. Mac Taylor was unlike anyone she'd ever met before. Sure, parts of him were common within the law enforcement field, particularly in higher ranks, - intensity, stoicism, a fierce pursuit of justice. But there were other parts of him that she was beginning to see, parts that stood out, parts that she didn't think he allowed many people to see. Maybe...

Jo shook her head, grabbed her messenger bag and headed out of her office toward Mac's.

"You headed out," he asked without looking up as she came to stop in his doorway.

"How do you do that?" she questioned, hand on her hip. Mac looked up. " You always know I'm coming!" Jo laughed, as she took a few steps into his office. "I can never sneak up on you."

"Well, I am a detective," he deadpanned.

"What a line..." Jo smirked. "I'm leaving for the night. I trust you are, too, at some point."

Mac looked back and forth between Jo and the pile of paperwork on his desk; "Those aren't going to sign themselves, but I'll get out of here at some point."

"Maaaac," Jo drawled. "Come on. It's only Monday; you have all week to do them."

Mac chuckled, "But the pile will be even bigger tomorrow. Besides, what else am I going to do on a Monday night?"

"Well," Jo smiled, "I can think of one thing..."

Mac looked at her as if to say, "Go on."

"It's baked mac-and-cheese night at the Danville household. Even Tyler comes home for that." Jo held up her hand. "Before you object, they'd love to have you. Ellie cannot stop talking about how much fun she had with you on Saturday; she just thinks you're so funny. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone here."

Jo looked expectantly at Mac who replied, "I don't know, Jo. There's a lot in this pile."

"Tell you what – bring them with you. You're not allowed to work at the kitchen table in my house, but surely the couch and a nice glass of wine are better than this fishbowl."

Mac thought for a moment, put down his pen with a smile and said, "Alright, you've won me over; but only because mac-and-cheese was my favorite dish as a kid."

Jo grinned as Mac stood and gathered his files. Walking around his desk he held the door open for Jo, who stepped out of the office before him. As they were walking toward the elevator she turned to him with a grin, "Mac and cheese was your favorite, huh? Is that because it's got your name in it?"