This is a companion fic to We Survived the First Year it covers the party but with a more smacked angle...enjoy!!!
Disclaimer: I own nothing
"I can't believe you got two days off in a row!" Stella whined as she buttoned her shirt.
"I'm sorry that's just the way it worked out" Mac shrugged.
"But I don't get to see you" She sighed.
"I met you for lunch yesterday" He reminded her.
"Yes, you were a very good fiancé and you were great with Maeli" She replied with a wink. Mac blushed deeply. He had offered to watch the toddler while her parents put her party together. They had met Stella at a small diner, it was hard for him to ignore the fact the she stared at him lovingly as he tended to the child during the meal.
He stood from the bed and walked out of the room to read the paper and let her finish getting ready. Stella grabbed her gun and her badge and left shortly after him.
"Mac?" She called, getting no response. She found him consumed by his paper in a chair at the kitchen table. She walked between him and the table and swiftly brought the toe of her boot down between his thighs which were spread on the chair, narrowly, but intentionally missing his manly parts. Mac jumped, abandoning his paper and trying to break free from the chair. One leg got tangled up, nearly sending him to the floor. He quickly recovered and stood in front of a laughing Stella.
"I may be a Marine, but there is no man who wouldn't shy away from a pointed toed boot in close proximity to his testicles" he stated, his voice slightly husky. Stella smirked at him. "That was mean" he added, cautiously approaching her. She was now sitting on the table. Once sure she was not going to kick him, he set a hand on either side of her, putting himself very close to her.
"I just wanted your attention" She said innocently, nibbling on her lower lip. Mac raised a hand to her face and ran a thumb over her cheek bone. He captured her lips in a sweet kiss and slowly pulled away.
"Well you have it" he smiled.
"What car am I supposed to take?" Stella asked reaching up to run a hand through his hair.
"The Mercedes" Mac answered.
"Sure, give me the car that's out of gas" She grinned.
"But it's not, I filled it up this morning while you were in the shower" He fired back with a grin of his own.
"Oh, impressive" she teased.
"I try" He said simply. He turned to gather his paper that was still scattered on the floor. Stella hooked a finger into one of his belt loops and pulled him back to her. She wrapped her arms around his midsection and kissed him again.
"Can't you just take me to work and pick me up?" She asked hopefully, snuggling against his chest.
"I wish I could, but you know they need my truck for Maeli's party so I have to get there early and could be busy when your shift ends. I don't want to keep you waiting." Mac explained running a hand down her back.
"That and people might find out we're together" Stella sighed.
"Is that a bad thing?" Mac asked casually. Stella released him, sat straight up and met his eyes.
"Well that's your decision. If you say the word, I'm right there with you but I don't want to push you" she responded, slightly shocked.
"I'll let you know. We are getting married, everyone is going to have to find out sometime, especially if we plan on having that baby you want" He winked at her, she blushed and smiled shyly. "Plus, I kind of want people to know you're mine" He finished with a smirk.
"Or that you belong to me" she countered Mac smiled. Stella kissed him again and went to leave. "Where's my present for Maeli?" She wondered, noticing it wasn't by the door where she left it.
"In the trunk" He called, she nodded then left. Mac didn't miss the fact that she left her engagement ring in the small bowl of odds and ends sitting by the door, like she did everyday. He breathed a light laugh and went to dig the ring out. He slid it into his pocket and turned to clean the kitchen.
"Hey Mac!" Jess greeted him when she opened the door.
"Hey, the truck has arrived, what needs to go down?" He asked. Jess led him to a pile of things in their kitchen.
"Mac!" A little voice squealed with extra emphasis on the "k" sound. Mac spun around to find Don holding Maeli.
"Hey birthday girl!" Mac smiled. The toddler furrowed her brow and poked a tiny finger towards herself.
"May-we" she addressed herself, clearly confused by what Mac called her.
"Yes sweetie, I know your name is Maeli, but it's your birthday, so you're the birthday girl" He laughed. She probably only understood a few words he said, but it seemed to satisfy her. The little girl reached for him. Don obliged and handed her over. "I thought you had a shift today, Flack" Mac acknowledged.
"I just needed to finish up some paper work" Don explained. Mac nodded.
"Maeli, I need to get stuff ready for you party" He addressed the child in his arms. Her little blue eyes, the ones identical to her father's, lit up at the mention of her party. Jess took her daughter from him. Maeli giggled wildly in excitement for the days events.
"Ok, you guys can load up the truck and me and the birthday girl will meet you there" Jess suggested. Both guys agreed. The mother shouldered the diaper bag and left for the park.
Mac and Don successfully loaded the coolers, a large blanket, a couple of bags of food and a portable stereo all into the bed of Mac's truck.
"Where do you want me to park?" Mac asked as he pulled up next to the curb and rolled down his window.
"Just back it in next to the tree" Jess directed.
Eventually the party was set up and guests were arriving. Slowly people from the lab filtered in as their shifts ended.
"Mac, is that you? I almost didn't recognize you since you haven't been at the lab in what? Two days?" Danny joked.
"Yeah, yeah" Mac rolled his eyes.
"Just ignore him and don't worry, we've kept him in line while you were gone" Lindsay chimed in.
"Yeah on threat of…" Danny began only to be cut off by his wife.
"Daniel Messer!" She reprimanded. Don couldn't hide his laughter.
"Shut up, Flack!" Danny grunted, his cheeks were visibly pink. Adam and Melody soon joined the group along with Hawkes.
"Hey Mac?" Jess called.
"Yeah?" Mac left the group to see what she needed.
"I don't have anything to cut the cake with, do you mind running back to the apartment?" She pleaded. "I mean I could send Don, but" She began to ramble.
"Jess, I don't mind" He laughed lightly.
"Oh, ok, thank you. It should be in the drawer closest to the sink." Jess smiled dropping her keys into his hand. Mac jogged off towards his truck.
In Mac's absence, Stella pulled up in her sliver Mercedes convertible.
"Woah, Stel, when did you get a new car?" Adam gasped as she approached the group. Stella fought hard to hide her blush. The truth was Mac prodded her to trade in her old Sebring for a new car and he graciously funded the difference for her extravagant upgrade to the Mercedes, the car he wanted her to have.
"Oh a couple of months ago, the old one was getting up there in miles and well when it was time to get a new one I decided to treat myself." She came up with a suitable explanation.
"You really did, that baby is sweet" Adam replied.
When Mac returned, he smiled when he saw his fiancé laughing with Don and Jess. He knew Jess already knew about their relationship, but as far as he knew, she had yet to learn they were engaged. It was time to change that and well, it was time to let everyone else in on their secret relationship as well, he decided.
"Jess, here you go" Mac said, handing her her keys and the spatula.
"Thank you" She said appreciatively.
"Oh and Stella, you left something at home this morning." He continued. Jess only smiled and Don's eyes widened at the allusion that Mac and Stella were living together. Mac pulled the ring from his pocket and held it out to Stella. Jess gasped lightly. Stella took a second to search Mac's expression. He winked at her and slid the ring on her left hand.
"Thanks babe" She responded, slipping an arm around his waist and kissing his cheek.
"Well, I take it he found the perfect ring?" Jess questioned, recalling the writing on Stella's hand at Lindsay's bachelorette party.
"Yeah, it's a love knot ring with engraving on the band; he found it at an antique shop" Stella mentioned, leaning into her fiancé. Mac kissed her temple. Don was still gapping, not at the fact Mac and Stella were together necessarily, because anyone in the right mind knew they belonged together, but more so he was surprised at their admission of said relationship. Mac was severely private.
"So uh, how long, uh, how long have you" Don started to pull some kind of question together, but failed miserably, subconsciously rubbing the back on his neck.
"Don't hurt yourself there, Don" Jess laughed, elbowing him in the ribs. The young detective blushed.
"We've been together for awhile, but just got engaged a few weeks ago" Mac provided, being somewhat non-specific. Don just nodded, trying to not make himself look more like an idiot.
"Now if you'd excuse us" Stella jumped in, taking Mac's hand and pulling him in the direction of his truck. She led him around so they were hidden on two sides by the massive black truck and the old willow tree. She gently pushed his shoulders against the truck and met his lips for a fiery kiss.
"How was your shift?" Mac wondered when they broke apart.
"It was pretty slow, which was good I guess since we all wanted to make it to Maeli's party" Stella said with a laugh. Mac smiled, her laugh warmed his insides. "Now, about this" Stella began again, pointing to her ring. "Are you sure you're ready to let the world in?" She asked, eyeing him closely.
"Yes ma'am" he answered with a nod.
"We've only told one more person, it's not too late to turn back" She added.
"Stella, I want to do this" He assured her. "However, I don't want to make a big deal out of it, this it Maeli's party after all. Just treat me like your fiancé instead of your boss and let everyone draw their own conclusions" He laid out a plan. A huge smile returned to Stella's face just before she took a fistful of his grey t-shirt and kissed him again.
"Um, unless you two want to be found out, you might want to come join the party, the food is ready" Jess announced, coming around the bed of the truck to grab the extra bags of chips. The couple stared at her for a second the looked back at each other and grinned. Mac pushed himself off of the truck and took a step towards Stella. He let his hands fall to her hips and pressed his forehead against hers.
"Let's go eat" He suggested, dropping one last sweet kiss on her lips. Jess rolled her eyes and let out a light laugh, turning back to her daughter's party.
The whole team settled down around a large picnic table, enjoying hot dogs, hamburgers and other picnic like foods. Mac and Stella took seats next to each other, like the usually did. This time, though they allowed themselves the closeness they had grown used to in their private time. Lindsay watched as Stella forked some macaroni salad off of Mac's plate. In turn he glared at her in mock anger. As Stella met his eyes, he broke into a huge smile. If Lindsay wasn't mistaken she swore she saw Mac run his free hand up and down her back. Lindsay couldn't help but smile inwardly. As Stella brought her left hand to rest on the table top, Lindsay observed the object that had not been there before, the ring. She nearly choked on her cheeseburger. Her face turned red and she began to cough, gathering everyone's attention.
"Ya alright there, Montana?" Danny asked, gently patting her on the back to ease her choking.
"Uh, yeah, um" She tried to form a sentence, instead she ended up pointing a finger between Mac and Stella. Mac let out a laugh and pulled Stella even closer and kissed her innocently.
"Am I the last one to know about this?" Danny whined instinctively.
"No honey, I just figured it out a second ago" Lindsay giggled, ruffling her husband's hair.
"Yeah, I didn't know" Hawkes admitted.
"Me either" Adam added. Mel just nodded and shrugged in agreement.
"I found out at the beginning of the party" Don informed.
"I knew" Jess spoke up it a slightly guilty tone.
"Jessica! You knew and didn't tell me?" Mel gasped lightheartedly. Heads whipped around to look at the blonde woman, not expecting her to be so out spoken, she was normally shy and quiet. Jess laughed.
"Sorry, I was sworn to secrecy and it's not like I knew they were engaged. I just knew they were together" She added defensively.
"Then I guess we can forgive you" Don shrugged with a laugh and kissed his wife on the cheek. "Who's ready for presents!" He cooed, scoping Maeli up. The little girl squealed with excitement. Jess smiled warmly at her family as Don peppered their daughter's tiny face with kisses. He carried Maeli to another table where all the presents were set up. All of the women automatically took off after him. Mac laughed to himself as he began to pick up the empty plates they abandoned.
"So you and Stel?" Hawkes casually started a conversation. Mac just nodded. Hawkes grinned as he noticed Mac watching Stella. "I didn't think you were the kind to get all mushy, man" He commented. Mac blushed ever so slightly, then gathered himself.
"I love her" was his only explanation. The both fell silent as Stella pulled Maeli onto her lap and tickled her senseless.
"Have you talked about kids?" Hawkes questioned with a slight laugh after watching Stella's actions around Maeli.
"She wants them" Mac replied, crossing his arms across his chest and leaning back against the picnic table.
"And you?" Hawkes pressed on.
"With her, I want them" Mac added simply and moved to join the group. He slid up next to Stella.
"Hey" she greeted him.
"Hey yourself" He smiled, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
"Mac!" Maeli acknowledged his presence.
"Hey honey" Mac laughed, running his free hand through the child's hair. "Are you having a good time at your party?" He inquired.
" Pwesents" She grinned, pointing to the boxes on the table in front of her.
"That's right it's time for presents" Jess interjected. "We need the birthday girl at the head of the table." She said more to Mac and Stella than to Maeli. Stella handed her over.
After presents the party moved on to cake time and soon everyone began to head home. Mac noticed Stella sitting next to Jess at a picnic table with little Maeli on sitting on the table quietly playing with a set of blocks Adam and Mel had given her. He pushed the last cooler into the bed of his truck and met Don by the presents.
"There's some more room in the truck if you need it " He informed the young detective in passing as he approached the females.
"What's going on over here" He questioned with a smile.
"Oh girl talk" Stella smirked. Mac could tell she was tired from her shift. He took it upon himself to gently knead the tense muscles in her shoulders. "Mmm thanks" She sighed contentedly.
"So Mac, I hear you're quite the romantic." Jess commented. A deep blush crept into Mac's cheeks and neck.
"Well the ring really set it up for me. I just looked up some information about the love knot" He shrugged. Jess breathed a light laugh. "Ok, well the truck it loaded, I'm going to drop everything off at the apartment, then I'll meet you at home" Mac said finally, leaning down to kiss Stella's cheek.
"Alright, it's been fun Jess, thanks for inviting us, and goodnight miss Maeli. " Stella mentioned as she stood from the bench. Maeli looked up at the sound of her name. She waved with one little hand.
"You're welcome, and thank you Mac for all your help" Jess replied, hugging both of them.
"No problem, bye Maeli" Mac stated. Maeli waved again. Stella and Mac walked towards the cars and Jess gather Maeli and her things and left for their car. Mac climbed in his truck and rolled down the window, still waiting for Don to join him so they could go unload.
"So I'll see you at home?" Stella checked.
"Of course" Mac promised.
"I can't wait" She grinned. Mac smiled and leaned out of the window to kiss her.
Stella walked into the dark apartment. She half expected the newspaper to still be scattered all over the floor from their little moment that morning. However she quickly remembered she lived with Mac, Mr. Military and knew he would never leave the apartment in any sort of disarray. That thought made her laugh. She discarded her things by the door and went to change out of her work close. She tossed on a worn t-shirt that said Greece on it and a pair of track pants. She curled up on the couch and took to reading the book she was halfway through. She heard the door open, but didn't look up. Mac soon stood in front of her. He took the book from her and set it on the table next to her. He threw his body onto the couch next to her and stretched out, pulling her to his chest.
"You did good today" Stella praised.
"I was just being myself" He stated simply, tucking on of her curls behind her ear.
" I wouldn't say opening your personal life up is something you normally do" Stella chucked.
"I guess you're right." Mac admitted. Stella settled her head on his chest.
"It was a fun party" She mentioned.
"Yeah, that little Maeli gets so spoiled being the first lab baby" He laughed.
"you've seemed to taking quite the liking to her" Stella mused.
"Stel, are you jealous of a toddler?" He joked.
"Maybe, especially if she's trying to steal my man." She played along.
"Not possible" He assured her, wrapping his arms tightly around her shoulders. They laid their silently for a few minutes.
"Do you think we could have a big wedding? I mean not huge but with all of our friends because you know growing up I never had these big get togethers and I guess it's just what I imagine having a big family would be like." Stella broke the silence.
"We can have whatever type of wedding you want. I just don't want so many guests that we don't know the people we invited" He chuckled lightly.
"Thanks Mac" She said softly.
"No problem" He exhaled. They fell into another companionable silence. "Well, I think I'm going to shower" Mac announced, kissing his fiancé and sliding out from underneath her.
When Mac finished his shower, he found Stella in the study looking at something on the computer.
"What's that?" He wondered, walking up behind her.
"Pictures from Maeli's party" She answered.
"wow Jess is quick" Mac laughed.
"Yeah, she said Don had Maeli in the bath, so she had sometime on her hands." Stella replied. She scrolled through the pictures seeing a lot of her and Mac a few of the whole group and some of them with Maeli. There was on particularly cute one of just Mac and Maeli, they were both grinning like crazy and Maeli had a tiny hand stuck to his cheek and the other trying to put a party hat on his head. Stella made a mental note to print that one later. When she got to the last picture she gasped and quickly covered her mouth with her hands. "Mac, look" she said finally. Mac, who had only been halfway paying attention, dropped to his knees beside her.
"What?" He inquired, then he saw the picture. He was in his truck and Stella was on her tip toes and they were kissing sweetly. "Print that one" He instructed. As she hit the proper buttons to print the picture, Mac's lips found her neck, leaving a trail of warm kisses on her skin.
"Mac" she moaned. "If you want this picture put in a frame that's going to have to stop" She added, keeping her wits about her.
"The picture can wait" His voice was husky. Stella smiled and allowed him to lift her from the chair and take her to the bedroom, leaving the picture in the printer. He was right, it could wait.
ALSO!!!!! If you haven't checked them out yet...I added links to my profile of things I have mentioned in my stories i.e Mac's Truck, Stella's Car, the engagment ring...