“You can do this. Shane won’t be in there. He’s probably in another district.” I squeezed my hands around the steering wheel, my knuckles turning white, and continued with my pep talk as I sat in the parking lot outside the station. “And if he is in there, you won’t even see him. You’ll be locked away in a lab he’ll have no business being in. Hell, he may not even be in the building. Probably roaming the streets as a super cop anyway. You can do this.”

I squeezed my eyes shut and took a deep breath to further steady myself. But behind my closed lids, I imagined walking in and seeing him. He would stare at me and realize what an ass he was, and what a huge mistake he’d made. He’d eye me across the room and follow me to the lab, where he’d sweep all the pipette tips off the counter and take me right there.

“Enough,” I growled. I needed to shut down my imagination and get in there. I didn’t want to be late on my first day.

I entered the one-story brick building and was checked-in. Security at the entrance looked through my purse and had me walk through a metal detector. While all of this went on, they made a phone call and by the time I had my jewelry back on, a dark-skinned woman with curls that bounced with each step, strode toward me.

“Juliana?” she asked with a smile.

“That would be me.” I moved my purse to the crook of my arm and offered an awkward wave.

“How nice to meet you.” She took my floundering hand and shook it. “I’m Laney, supervisor of the crime scene unit. I’ll be showing you around and helping you get settled.”

I followed her down a labyrinth of hallways as she pointed out things here and there until she opened a set of double doors to the lab. “And this is where you will be most of the time.”

“Oh, wow.” I stroked my fingers lovingly across the new science equipment, the large machines unmarred by years of wear and tear. “Is this the new RapidFire Mass Spectrometer? It’s so beautiful.”

“Spoken like a true lab rat.” She laughed softly at the way I looked at each instrument with reverence. “We recently got funding to upgrade some of our space and old equipment. And with more space, we can hire more people. That’s where you come in. We’ve worked closely with Dr. Voet and the entire department at UC. We believe in hiring locally as much as possible and helping each other out. So, thank you for taking the time to come here.”

“I was honored to be chosen. This is one hell of an experience.”

She walked me around the lab, explaining how it was set up and introduced me to some of the workers there. I got a good vibe from the space and my excitement increased.

“Why don’t I show you the rest of the building? Get you comfortable with your surroundings should you need to go anywhere else.”

I set my purse down at my bench and followed her, trying to remember each turn we took so I could find my way back to the lab.

“This is the bull pen,” she said, pushing open another set of double doors. “This is where all the cops, detectives, and everyone else resides.”

I took in the rows of desks, each with a computer and cluttered with paper, half-empty coffee cups, and takeout containers. Offices flanked each side where I assumed the higher-ups on the force were located. Men and women walked around hurriedly. Some in uniform and others in street clothes. I blinked a few times, taking in the organized chaos until my eyes clashed on a giant of a man across the room with ice blue eyes staring straight at me.

I choked on a breath and fought to keep my eyes from widening. I would not let him know he had an effect on me. I lifted my chin and held his gaze until he was forced to look away when someone began talking to him. I still stared, hoping if I looked long enough it would be like contact therapy, and my heart would stop jumping up into my throat every time I’d see him.

He stood across the room, dressed casually in jeans and a long sleeve, gray Henley, that did nothing good for the pounding in my chest. I had to make sure my jaw was hinged closed from the way the shirt stretched across his broad shoulders.

“Girl, don’t waste your time. As closed off as a wall, that one is.” Laney interrupted my therapy session, dropping the same words that Evie and Luella used last night. “He’s okay with the other detectives, and he’s polite if not a little rough around the edges, but he isn’t very friendly beyond that.”

I let out a short laugh. “Oh, don’t I know it,” I said, recollecting his not so kind words from the other night. It had been a week and they still managed to knock the wind out of me. When Laney looked at me, eyebrows raised, I rushed to clarify. “He’s my brother’s best friend, but I don’t see him much. They usually hangout around work-related things or go out for drinks.”

“MacCabe,” Laney said. “I thought your last name sounded familiar. Now Jack’s nice. Especially when he brings some of Luella’s cookies to share with everyone. Those delicious treats are always an added bonus when the station contracts his security company.” She smiled before turning back toward the door. “Alright, I have a few more places to show you, then we can get back to the lab.”

I followed Laney out but shot my eyes one last time back at Shane, who was looking at me again. I wished I was closer so I could see what those depths held, but all I’d probably see was that same blank stare.

Laney continued to point things out, but I was too consumed with the fact that Shane was here in this district building. What were the freaking chances? I wanted to tamp down the excitement and smother any hope. Stupid hope. Stupid imagination, hoping for anything positive to happen with him. Stupid memory trying to remind me of the look in his eyes when I’d dropped to my knees in front of him.

“We were lucky enough to get a small cafeteria added on recently,” Laney said, bringing me back to the present. We walked into the last room on the tour, and my stomach grumbled at the smell of food wafting through the air. “It’s not much, but better than a vending machine if you forget your lunch. Let’s run back to the lab, grab our purses and we can come back and have something to eat. Then we can sit and you can ask me any questions you have up to this point.”

I didn’t really have any questions. Probably because my mind was consumed with thoughts of Shane for most of the tour, but I managed to think of a few while we ate. A couple of people from the lab sat with us at the bench-style seating and it was nice getting to know them.

When the doors opened again, I could tell it was Shane from the corner of my eye. He was taller than most and his broad shoulders were hard to miss. Plus, my body seemed to have developed a sixth sense where he was concerned, and zeroed in on his presence. Traitor.

He stared right at me, just as aware of my presence as I was of his, as he walked toward the lunch kiosk with a man next to him.

I tried to divert my eyes and focus on the others, laughing at the table, but it felt impossible. Even more so when the two men came over to our table.

“Hey, Laney.” The man who walked in with Shane greeted Laney with a flirty smile.

She cocked her eyebrow in return, but responded. “Hey, Reese.”

“This spot taken?” He asked gesturing to the open seats next to her. He didn’t wait for an answer before sitting down. Shane sat beside him.

“Reese, this is Juliana.” Laney introduced me. “She’ll be training our new technicians on the lab equipment and procedures. Juliana, this is Reese Hill, the only man dumb enough to be partners with Shane over there.”

Shane just grunted and stared down at his sandwich, but Reese stretched his arm across the table for me to shake. “Nice to meet you.” His full lips stretched into a handsome smile.

Hmm. Shane’s partner. It seemed like an interesting combination. Shane, with his lighter hair and eyes, and his closed-off personality. And then there was Reese, who was dark in contrast and seemed to have an easy smile for everyone. Maybe the two of them worked perfectly and used the good cop, bad cop routine.

“So, Juliana, do you have any plans this week?” Laney asked, returning to our conversation.

My eyes flicked to Shane who still wasn’t looking at me. Coward. “Actually, I do. I’ve got a date on Friday.” I made sure to say it loud enough so he couldn’t even pretend not to hear.

“Oooh, good for you, girl. Where did you meet? Where is he taking you? Give me some details.”

Again, I looked to Shane. This time he stared back at me from beneath his lashes. “I’m not sure where we’re going. He’s surprising me. But I met him at work. He works on the floor above me in the physics department.”

Shane let out a loud scoff. “Sounds boring.” Reese laughed and elbowed his partner.

I sent a withering glare in Shane’s direction. He had no right to comment on my dates. What a dick.

“He sounds smart.” Laney leaned past Reese and glared at Shane, before sitting back and waiting for more details. “What’s he look like?”

“He’s very sexy in that smart, nerdy kind of way. Very buff, but wears glasses. Think Clark Kent.” I made myself sound more excited than I really felt. I wanted to make sure Shane knew I was fine without him. “And he’s very smart. He’s new at the university, just like me, so, we have that in common.”

“I’m sure he’s just as young and cute as you,” Shane said, interrupting the excited oohs and ahs from Laney. “There’s another thing you have in common with him. A little girl and a little boy on a sweet little date.” One side of his mouth tipped up and leveled a challenging stare at me.

I wanted to slap him each time he said the word “little.” And I didn’t miss the way he reminded me of how “cute” he thought I was.

“Don’t be mean to our new girl, Shane.” Laney waved her hand in his direction. “Just because you have a cold heart doesn’t mean we all have to be miserable.”

“Burn.” Reese laughed and Shane smacked the back of his head. Reese shook it off and turned to Laney with a smooth smile. “Hey, Laney, you know I have a heart of gold and would love to share it with you any time.”

“Please.” Laney chucked at Reese’s come-on. “I know what you want to share with me and it isn’t your heart. And what you do want to share with me . . .” Her eyes dropped to below his waist. “I’m gonna need more than that.”

The table erupted in laughter and I thought I even saw Shane’s lips twitch, but as soon as he caught me staring, they flattened again. Lunch moved quickly after that until we were all getting up to go back to work.

Before I could walk away, Shane gave me one last parting shot.

“Have fun on your cute, little date, Mini MacCabe.”

Asshole.