This is the fourth story in a series, and follows immediately after 'A New Chapter.' I will attempt to make it possible to follow this story, even if you chose to skip ANC due to it's overabundance of adult content.
For those who did skip it, then there are a couple things you should know. Jane and Maura spent most of two weeks on a tropical island for their honeymoon. A few days before they were due to leave, they decided that they were homesick and decided to leave early to spend the rest of their honeymoon at home. They managed to arrange a flight, instead of the charter plane they were planning to take there and back, and are currently on their way home. Oh, and they decided to start planning for kids once they get home.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, but I'm not sure the same can be said of my cats. They're cats, it's very possible that they're running the world, and us humans just haven't figured it out, yet.
Jane groaned when she saw the view from the plane as they got closer to Cleveland.
Looking over her shoulder, Maura nodded. "I have warm clothes and our outerwear packed in my carry-on. You can either change in the restroom before we land, or wait and change in the airport."
Glancing down at herself, Jane raised one eyebrow. "Maura, I'm wearing shorts and a tank top. I am NOT waiting to change in the airport, I'll freeze to death before I get inside."
Rolling her eyes, Maura stood up to get the bag out of the overhead compartment. "You will not freeze to death, but you would be extremely uncomfortable. I wouldn't be surprised if the temperature is well below freezing, but it is hardly at a level that poses immediate danger when exposure is limited to the short amount of time it would take to make it into the airport. However, I can understand your reluctance to expose yourself to the elements without protection."
Digging through the bag, Jane finally managed to yank a pair of jeans and a shirt out. "You are not convincing me that I wouldn't freeze to death, or at least have body parts freeze off. You just told me that it's ridiculously cold enough to be dangerous if we're outside for longer than a few seconds. You really need to rethink your approach to pep talks, Babe."
Watching Jane look at the clothes in her hand and the seats they were sitting in before shrugging and sitting back down, Maura stared at her in confusion. "I thought you were going to change. We should be approaching the airport, soon, and you won't be allowed to leave your seat. If you wish to change, you should do so, now."
Smirking, Jane nodded. "I am. I just don't plan on trying to change in a tiny airplane bathroom. There's plenty of room right here."
Eyes wide, Maura stared at her in shock. "That is really not the best idea. Do you really want to be arrested for indecent exposure? It's bad enough when you change in the car, but at least that affords some minimum privacy. Please, go change in the restroom. I will not be happy if you get us permanently banned from this airline."
Sighing, Jane rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to be exposing anything. I'm just putting these clothes on top of what I'm already wearing. I can take the shorts off later, when I have more room. Do you really think I want to be arrested by the air marshall? The guys would NEVER let me live it down."
Relaxing against her seat, Maura shook her head. "You did that on purpose, didn't you? Well, I will be changing in the restroom, if you will excuse me."
Chuckling, Jane watched Maura grab her own clothes out of the bag and make her way toward the restrooms. Ignoring the looks from a few passengers and a flight attendant, she quickly yanked the shirt over her head and squirmed into the pants. Digging through the bag, again, she found a pair of socks and her boots at the bottom. Smiling, she tucked the sandals she'd been wearing in the bag and was pulling the socks on when Maura came back.
Seeing the jeans and sweater, Jane smirked. "You packed those on purpose. You knew we'd be changing like this, and packed things you knew wouldn't wrinkle."
Smiling, Maura nodded. "Of course. You know I hate wrinkles, and I knew we would not want to wear heavy clothing until we were closer to home. Although, I thought we would be taking the charter plane home, and have more room, and privacy, to change. We really should have changed while we were in London, but, I admit, that I temporarily forgot about the change in climate we would be facing."
Looking thoughtful, Jane shook her head. "Yeah, why is that? England is at the same latitude, right? So why wasn't is as cold and covered in snow? Even Paris wasn't that cold."
Putting the bag back in the overhead compartment, Maura sat back down. "The proximity to the ocean keeps the air from cooling quite as much, and keeps snow from falling as heavily. Their winters are not as cold, and they experience more rain. It also seems to be an unusually mild winter for most of Europe, this year."
Shrugging, Jane kept looking out the window. "Yeah, well, there's plenty of snow out there. I have no idea what state we're flying over, but everything is covered in snow. I know I wanted to go home, but I forgot it was winter, at home. Why can't we have both? Be home, but have the weather from the island? Don't look at me like that, I know it's impossible, but it doesn't stop me from wishing."
Shaking her head, Maura smiled. They spent the rest of the flight mostly in silence. After a brief transfer, they were back in the air and headed for New York. A quick meal in the airport, and they were flying to Boston.
It was the middle of the night when they finally landed and collected their luggage. Finding a cab, they made it home and went right to bed. Jane, after several minutes of quiet arguing in the back of the cab, was able to convince Maura that unpacking could wait till morning, since she was just going to have everything sent to the cleaners, anyway.
Jane woke the next morning to a scream and a crash. Bolting out of bed, she grabbed her gun from the night stand drawer and ran from the room. Running into the kitchen, she found Angela staring at a very naked Maura, Bass' water dish broken on the floor between them.
Looking around, and not seeing anything else, Jane took a deep breath and set her gun down on the counter. "What happened? Why did you scream?"
Eyes wide, Angela looked back and forth between them. "You're naked. You couldn't put on clothes before coming out of the room? You scared the daylights out of me. What are you girls even doing home? You should still be on your honeymoon. Did something happen? Nothing's wrong, is it?"
Looking down at herself, Jane blushed and grabbed an apron off a hook to try to cover herself. "I heard a scream and a crash, and thought something happened. I didn't exactly want to take the time to get dressed if Maura was in danger. What are you doing in here?"
Angela's eyes opened wider when Maura turned to head back toward the bedroom. "Is that a tattoo?"
Coming back with their bathrobes, and handing Jane hers, Maura nodded. "Yes, it is. I got it in college. I didn't mean to startle you, Angela. I came out to start the coffee, and didn't even think that you might be here. We decided to come home early, and spend the rest of our honeymoon here. It was a last minute decision, and I forgot to call you to let you know."
Nodding, Angela looked back and forth between them. "I know why Jane was naked, but why were you? Do you always start the coffee naked?"
Smiling, Maura shook her head. "Not generally, no. I guess I became more accustomed than I thought to being nude while we were on the island. The house is very secluded, so there was very little need for clothing. In fact, I had to remind Jane to get dressed before we left for the airport. Again, I'm sorry that I startled you."
Waving a hand dismissively, she grinned at Jane's blush. "It's fine. I just didn't expect you to be there when I turned around. I just came in to feed Bass before I left for work. I need to get going, and you have a honeymoon to finish. Do you want me to cook dinner, tonight, or would you rather spend the time alone? I don't want to interrupt your honeymoon."
Looking toward Maura, and getting a small smile, Jane nodded. "Dinner sounds good. We came home because we missed everyone. We had more than a week by ourselves, and the rest of our lives together. Spending time with our family won't interrupt anything. I'll call Frankie and Tommy later, and invite them over."
Picking up the pieces of the broken dish, Angela threw them away and searched for something else to use. "I can pick up some groceries after work. There really isn't much here, and I don't want you to have to worry about grocery shopping on your honeymoon. You girls just relax. I'll call when I'm on my way home, to give you time to get dressed. Maura, I never imagined that you would have a tattoo, but at least it's not something tacky, like a rose or a heart. You'll have to tell me about it, later, but I really have to go before I'm later for work. I thought about getting a tattoo, you know, but never found a design I liked enough. Maybe you can help me."
Gaping, Jane watched her rush out of the house, grabbing her purse off the counter on the way. "Did Ma just say she thought about getting a tattoo, and wanted you to help her pick one? First she insists on keeping the pimpmobile Giovanni turned her car into, and now tattoos. Do women go through a mid-life crisis?"
Head tilted, Maura blinked before shaking her head. "Yes, I believe she did. Women typically have what is referred to as 'empty nest syndrome,' but Angela would have experienced that several years ago. It, typically, occurs when the youngest child moves away from home. Although, it's possible that the stresses of the last year and a half, or so, have caused her to reevaluate aspects of her life. A mid-life crisis is, generally, an attempt to either relive experiences from earlier on in life, or experience things one never had the opportunity to explore. The fear of almost losing two of her children on the same day, combined with the divorce and the lengthening of Tommy's incarceration, may have prompted her to examine her life more closely and decide to make changes that were never seen as possible, or necessary, before. After all, for more than thirty years, her primary role in life was as a wife and mother. Now that she no longer holds the role of wife, and her children are independent adults, I can understand how she would feel the desire to explore her life beyond the confinement of those roles."
Shaking her head, Jane smiled. "You know, you could've just said, 'Yes, she's going through a mid-life crisis.' Just try to convince her not to get a tattoo, or at least try to talk her into something small, and not on her ass. She'll want to tell everyone about it, and probably show them, and I don't need to hear, or see, that. So, if she really wants one, try to convince her to get it on her ankle, or something. Somewhere she can show in public without undressing, at all."
Thinking for a moment, Maura nodded. "I'll try my best. Considering she wants my help choosing a design, I find it likely that she will want me to accompany her when she gets it done. I find the prospect of watching her get a tattoo on any portion of skin typically covered by undergarments to be, unappealing. I have no moral issues with nudity, but I have no desire to knowingly enter a situation where seeing Angela undressed is a likely outcome."
Jane laughed. "You just basically admitted that seeing Ma naked would be creepy. Yes. I knew it. It's not just me. No one wants to see their parents naked."
Nodding, Maura finally started making the coffee she had originally come into the kitchen to make. "Yes, while Angela had no hand in raising me, I do see her as a parental figure. Now, would you like to help me find something to make for breakfast?"
After a couple minutes, they finally gave up. Most of the perishable items had either been used before they left for their honeymoon, or given to Angela so they wouldn't go to waste. The refrigerator was nearly bare, with only condiments and Bass' fruit and greens present. Getting dressed, they decided to go out for breakfast and go grocery shopping.
It was almost lunch when Jane remembered to call Frankie and Tommy. Both were surprised to hear they'd come back early, but happy to come over for dinner. After thinking for a couple minutes, she called Frost and Korsak and invited them, too. Then, she called Angela to tell her not to worry about grocery shopping. It took a couple minutes of arguing, but she finally managed to convince her that since they'd already bought groceries, it was pointless to argue over rather or not they should be grocery shopping during their honeymoon.
Angela found them in the kitchen when she got home after work. Maura had insisted on making the dish Jane had cooked for her on the island, even though she insisted it was pure chance it came out edible.
Angela stopped to stare what she saw Jane directing Maura on how much of different ingredients to add. "How did you get Jane to cook, and when did she start learning new recipes?"
Smiling, Maura ignored Jane's blushing. "We're making a dish Jane made for me while we were on the island. We were low on food and she was able to put together a very delicious meal with very little planning involved. I made her write down the recipe, as best as she could remember it, so we could recreate it at home. I thought it was the perfect meal to prepare for tonight. Jane, you really should come up with a name. It would be much faster than calling it 'the dish you invented on our honeymoon.'"
Blushing brighter, Jane shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't really have anything in mind when I was making it. I just threw a bunch of things together, and hoped for the best. I guess it's kinda a shepherd's pie with pasta? I really don't know. You name it. I don't really care what we call it."
Clapping her hands, Angela walked over to give Jane a kiss on the cheek. "Oh, Janie, I'm so glad making you help in the kitchen when you were growing up finally paid off. We'll have to have you help more often. An extra pair of hands would come in handy during holidays. You know how frantic Maura and I were to get everything ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas."
Sighing, Jane rolled her eyes. "Ma, you chased me out of the kitchen every time I came anywhere near it. You swatted me with a spoon when all I wanted was a glass of water. Even if I'd wanted to help, I couldn't have. Besides, this was just a fluke. You know my cooking isn't edible half the time. Which, is why I get chased out of the kitchen with spoons and dish towels."
Ignoring her, Angela started helping Maura wash and chop the vegetables. By the time everyone started showing up, the food was almost done. Frankie, by virtue of being the first to arrive, was recruited to set the table.
Dinner was loud. Jane asked the guys about the cases they'd had, until Angela told them to stop talking about murder during dinner. Everyone wanted to hear all about the island and the plane and the beach house. Jane did most of the talking, happily telling about everything while Maura smiled, interrupting to correct or add to a statement.
When Angela asked to see pictures, Jane looked at Maura, who shook her head. "We don't have any pictures, Ma. I didn't even think to take any until we were leaving. I have pictures of our private plane, and some of the view out the window, but they're on my phone. If Maura or Frost can help me get them off, I can show them to you. You know I don't really take pictures."
Tommy's eyes widened and he sputtered a bit before he managed to speak. "Did you say your private plane? Since when do you own a private plane, and why didn't you tell us about it."
Seeing the look Maura shot her, Jane sighed. "Ok, it's not TECHNICALLY our plane. TECHNICALLY, it belongs to the vineyard we own, but I still say that means we own a plane. It's one of those little planes, and can't really fly very far. I think using it to get from the island to the mainland was about as far as it could go, but the view was amazing. It can't fly as high as a bigger plane, so you can see everything out the windows."
Still staring, Tommy's mouth dropped open a little bit. "The vineyard you own? Sis, just how much have you not told us? Since when do you own a vineyard?"
Grinning sheepishly at Maura, Jane shrugged. "I might've forgotten to mention the meeting with your accountant and what happened there."
Sighing, Maura shook her head. "As you all know, I come from a rather wealthy family. When my mother tried to insist that I make Jane sign a prenuptial agreement, I decided that instead of waiting until after our wedding to start sharing finances, I would go ahead and add her name to my accounts. We met with my accountant and lawyer, and got all the papers signed so that Jane now has complete access to all of my money and accounts. Everything I have, is now also hers. The island we spent our honeymoon on, is partially ours. Our land there includes a vineyard, as well as the beach house we stayed in. As I explained to Jane, the plane is owned by the vineyard, and is used mostly to shuttle guests to and from the island for business or events at the vineyard."
Grinning, Frankie laughed. "Jane's rich? Does that mean she gets to start dressing like you?"
Rolling her eyes, Jane started to look for something to throw at him, before seeing the glares from Maura and Angela. "Yeah, 'Jane's rich.' And, no, I will not be dressing like Maura. Can you see me trying to chase down a perp in heels and a dress? Can you see me trying to walk in heels? No thank you. I am just fine with what I wear."
Exchanging looks, Tommy nudged Frankie to get him to ask. "So, our sister is rich and married to a high society doctor. Does that mean we can expect you to be eating caviar and going to the opera and talking about which wine goes best with what cheese?"
Jane glared at both of them. "Do you honestly think I would do any of that? Ok, I've been to the opera with Maura a couple times, but only ones in English, I refuse to listen to people sing if I can't understand them. Did it JUST occur to you that marrying Maura makes me rich, too?"
Sharing looks, Frost was the only one who didn't shrug. "I figured you had worked out some sort of shared financial agreement at Christmas. There's no way you could've afforded that bracelet and earrings on a detective's salary unless you'd been saving up for awhile, and I know you hadn't been. Maura's not the type of person who would marry someone and insist on separate bank accounts."
Korsak shrugged again. "Honestly, I forget that Maura has money, most of the time. I mean, yeah, she wears fancy clothes and then bought this place, but it's not like she's ever made a big deal out of it. She's just always been one of us, and I forget that she's rich, unless something happens to bring it up. So, do you own anything else we should know about? Any sports teams, or anything?"
Eyes wide, Jane turned to Maura. "You remember when you told me I should buy something big that I could never afford before, so I would feel like the money really is mine? Do you think I could buy a sports team? It'd have to be a good team. I'd have heard if the Sox or the Celtics were for sale. That'd be all over the news within the first hour. Who do you even ask about something like that?"
Head tilted, Maura thought for a few moments. "I'm not sure. If you're serious, I can see if I can find out. I assume you would prefer a Boston team, or at least one in New England. It's doubtful you would be able to acquire full ownership, or even a controlling share, of a team, but it might be possible to buy partial ownership. The accounting firm might know where we could start asking."
Frankie started choking on his food, while the others all stared at them. "Are you seriously talking about buying a sports team like most people talk about a new pair of shoes?"
Snorting, Jane grinned. "That is pretty close to my reaction when we met with the accountant. I went from thinking she was using a savings account somewhere to pay for our wedding, to finding out she has enough money to buy and entire island, to finding out she already OWNED part of an island. Also, when Maura says we own part of a small island, what she really means is a chunk of paradise almost as big as Boston, with a castle in the middle."
Angela finally stopped staring, at the mention of a castle. "You never mentioned anything about castle. You told us about the vineyard and the beach house, but never mentioned a castle. How could you go to an actual castle without taking pictures?"
Jane shrugged. "I'm not sure you can call it an actual castle, but I'm not sure what else to call it. It looks like a giant house, but it's big enough to be a castle. I think the entire station could fit in just the part Maura showed me, and that was just some of the public areas on the main floor. The place has it's own ballroom. As far as I'm concerned, the only places with ballrooms are hotels and castles. Since it's not a hotel, it has to be a castle. Honestly, I was a little overwhelmed by the 'mansion' Maura inherited to even think about taking pictures. If you want to know more about it, you'll have to ask Maura. I can't remember what all she told me about it."
Seeing everyone turn to her, Maura nodded. "It's almost two hundred years old and was built by a minor nobleman as a vacation home. It has four wings, more than forty suites, a ballroom, a formal dining room, and a library, as well as several other public areas. It came into my family about a hundred years ago, and I inherited it after my grandfather's death. I bought the land that separated the house from the vineyard, and combined them. The house, technically, belongs to the vineyard, and is used for events and business meetings. The suites house most of the vineyard employees above management level, and their families. I believe, that prior to that, it was still used as a vacation home by my family. I just couldn't see the point in one person staying there. I had the beach house built after my first visit to the island. If you'd like, I'm sure I can find pictures of the house with the rest of the information on the vineyard. It is a gorgeous building, and features quite prominently in most literature about the vineyard."
When everyone nodded excitedly, Maura headed for her office. Jane and Angela cleared away the dishes and put the rest of the food away. By the time they were done, Maura came out with her laptop and a file folder. They all gathered around as she pulled up pictures and files and got out brochures. The next hour was spent talking and looking at pictures Maura had of the vineyard, house, and island.
Frost offered to help get the pictures off Jane's phone, and she agreed. Before she could hand it to him, Maura took it out of her hand.
Jane stared at her in confusion. "Maura, he's just going to get the pictures off so I can show everyone the plane."
Shaking her head, Maura kept it in her hand. "I know, but there are pictures I don't think you want everyone seeing."
Rolling her eyes, Jane sighed. "The only pictures I took were of us by the plane, and the view from the plane. I know I said there was no way I could brag about the plane when I first saw it, but I changed my mind."
Looking around, Maura pulled up the pictures on Jane's phone, and handed it back to her. Coughing and turning bright red, Jane hit buttons to go back to the main screen and shoved it in her pocket. Getting up, she dragged Maura with her into the kitchen.
Making sure no one could hear them, Jane leaned in and spoke quietly. "When did you take those, and why didn't you tell me? You have to get those off my phone before we go back to work."
Maura nodded. "I know, and I intended to. I didn't expect Barry to offer to help get the pictures from the plane off. You just looked so beautiful I had to take your picture, and your phone was closer. If you'd like, I can take my laptop back into my office and get all the pictures off your phone, now."
Sighing, Jane nodded. "Ok, just make sure those pictures are in a folder buried as deep in your computer as possible, and protected by a password, or something. I do not need anyone but you seeing those."
Smirking, Maura headed back toward the couch to grab her laptop. "I'll put them with the rest."
Blushing, Jane handed Maura her phone, then went to hide in the bathroom. Splashing cold water on her face, she stared at the mirror until someone knocked on the door. Apologizing, she opened the door and started to leave, groaning when she found Angela standing on the other side.
Making no move to let Jane out of the bathroom, or try to enter it herself, she stood in the doorway. "It's ok if most of your pictures aren't ones you can share. It was your honeymoon, and you had an entire beach to yourselves. Don't think I didn't notice that neither of you have tan lines. All that really matters is that you enjoyed yourselves, and have something to remember it by."
Leaning against the sink, Jane ran a hand over her face. "We really didn't take any pictures. I didn't even take a camera with me, and I don't think Maura did, either. I didn't know she used my phone until just now. I don't need pictures to remember our honeymoon, there's no way I could ever forget."
Moving out of the doorway, Angela moved back toward the living room, making sure Jane was following. "I know you could never forget your honeymoon. It's just nice to have something to show people while you tell stories."
Smiling, Jane sat on the couch. "We do. Kinda. Did you know Maura's never gone hunting for shells on the beach? She didn't know what I was doing or why I would want to collect shells. Anyway, she decided that each year, when we go back for our anniversary, we'll collect shells, and frame our favorite one. There's a big empty wall with one framed shell hanging in the middle of it, waiting for us to fill it up."
Seeing Maura coming back in the room, Angela got up and pulled her into a hug. "That's so sweet. I just want you both to be happy. If you don't need pictures to go with your stories, then that's ok. All that matters is that you have stories to tell. Now, do we get to see pictures of this plane?"
Laughing, Maura sat down next to Jane. The rest of the evening was spent talking and laughing and sharing stories.
Lying in the dark, late that night, Jane spoke up. "I'm glad we came home early. Tonight was perfect. Spending time alone together is great, but I like being able to spend time with our family, too."
Sighing happily, Maura burrowed further into Jane's arms. "Yes, it was perfect. I think I want to start looking for a donor, tomorrow. We don't have to worry about Angela overhearing anything, if we search while she's at work. I know it's not very much time, but we do have a few days before we go back to work. I doubt we'll make a decision in that amount of time, but it will give us time to narrow down our options."
Smiling, Jane kissed her head. "Sounds like a plan. Are you sure you're ok with this? Not starting a family, being pregnant. If you want to wait, we can always adopt, first. I don't care how we start our family."
Jane was starting to fall asleep when Maura finally answered. "I find I've become attached to the idea of being pregnant. If you want to adopt, then we can start the approval process. It can take up to a year to be approved, and longer to find an available child, especially if we want to adopt an infant."
Yawning, Jane buried her nose in Maura's hair. "I don't know. Let's sleep, and talk about it in the morning. We can get all of the hard stuff of out of the way while Ma's at work."
Nodding, Maura kissed Jane's shoulder. "Sleep. I love you."
A/N: In case you couldn't tell, this story is probably going to focus more on their family than anything else. Then again, the focus may end up shifting, if the characters decide they want to wander off in a random direction. I don't plan stories before I write them.
There will be talk of, and planning for, kids. Angela will find out, eventually, which should be fun. There will also be times for the girls to just be a couple, and some of those times will probably include adult situations. After all, not all of life is PG rated.
This story will be closer to the T rating than M, but will still be rated M for those scenes and chapters that require it.
As always, I love reading reviews, suggestions, and even critiques. If you see something that needs corrected, point it out. It doesn't matter if it's a canon fact, spelling, grammar, punctuation, or an inconsistency within this series. I don't have a beta, and don't always catch everything. I will do my best to correct any mistakes that are brought to my attention.