“Sounds like a kickass meet cute, actually. I mean, Jasper and I met at a Starbucks. Totally boring.”

“Tell that to Jasper’s testicles, pretty sure you nearly burned the skin right off them when you dumped your coffee on his crotch if his rendition of your first meeting is to be believed.”

“It was an accident!” Tessa protested. “And besides,” she said, gesturing at her protruding belly, “clearly there was no lasting damage.”

Micah snorted. Clearly not – considering the woman was over seven months pregnant, with twins, nonetheless. She’d been pregnant for nearly as long as Micah had been a member of the precinct, one of the reasons he and she were often partnered together on the same boring cases. Micah couldn’t deny that he loved working with her, though. (Just loved her, actually.)

Even if he couldn’t help but wonder what it said about his social life that his best friend was his thirty-year-old pregnant co-worker.

Tessa pressed her lips together. “Well, even if you’re not going to pursue this guy – which, by the way, I think is a mistake – there’s no reason you can’t find someone else to fill the void. You know, nearly everyone is heading to Club Trinity tonight after work – to celebrate the high-profile arrest. You should come too.”

Micah frowned. “Why are you going to a club?” he asked, pointedly eyeing her distended stomach.

Tessa rolled her eyes. “I’m pregnant, not handicapped,” she said. “Besides, I’ve heard good things about this place. Apparently they serve huge-ass pickles with their bloody marys.” Of course, the pregnant lady was focused on the size of the place’s pickles. “Plus, it’s not nearly as expensive to get into as it’s fancier counterparts since it’s still new. I heard whoever is responsible for the place also owns The Seven Deadly Sins, so you know it’ll be an experience.”

The Seven Deadly Sins were possibly the seven most exclusive clubs in New York. Scattered across the five boroughs, each one was named after a deadly sin – though none were so popular as Lust, a strip club in Manhattan that catered to rich, eccentric clientele.

Micah sighed. “I don’t know, Tessa.”

“Come on. I’ll buy you a shot – or three. That way I can get drunk vicariously through you.”

Micah pressed his lips together. Alcohol did sound pretty good right then to be honest. “Will Jensen be there?” he asked.

“Well, he is the man of the hour. But Club Trinity is a big place – two floors, even, I heard. We can say a quick congratulations and disappear into the crowd.”

“I’ll think about it,” Micah finally agreed, if only to get Tessa off his case. He didn’t think she’d put up too much of a stink if he decided to back out later. “Now are you planning on actually letting me get any work done today or what?”

She peeked past his shoulder at the computer screen. “Oh yes, damaged mailboxes await no one.”