Maura's To-Do List
Maura stared down at her calendar, realizing that for the first time in a few months, she and Jane had a free weekend together. No work, no family engagements, nothing. Maura smiled and reached for her phone. It was time to make a few arrangements before she returned to her latest autopsy. A man in his eighties committed suicide when he learned the district attorney's office planned to charge him with involuntary manslaughter in an assisted suicide of the man's wife. He failed to leave a note, however, and so Maura performed the autopsy to close out the D.A.'s records. Now, she grabbed a pen and made a few notes. Writing notes with pen and paper was easier when Maura was mid-autopsy. She thought for a moment then wrote a reminder note to notify the caretaker to open the cabin. She might as well have the liquor store deliver her favorite wine and Jane's beer on Friday afternoon. She scribbled fruit and cheese underneath the wine. The "liquor" store she ordered from was actually a gourmet store that carried only the finer things in life. Maura used them extensively.
"Maura are you in here?" Jane's distinctive footsteps came closer. Maura completed her note, hastily scribbling 'Jane' before setting down her pen.
"In here Jane," she replied and smiled up at the detective. Jane returned the smile and looked at the body on the table. "Are you sure it's suicide, Maura? I'd hate to have a weekend off with an open homicide on the books."
"Aside from guessing, Jane, I'll have the rest of the lab work later this afternoon. So far everything is consistent with suicide, or at least, nothing suggests anything else." Jane nodded. She seemed lost in thought for a moment.
"Penny for your thoughts," Maura said quietly. Jane smiled briefly but didn't look at the medical examiner.
"Jane do you have any plans for this weekend?" Maura held her breath awaiting Jane's reply.
"No, I haven't made any plans since you last asked me Maura. Why?"
"We both have the weekend free. I'd like for us to go to my family's cabin at the beach."
"Sounds good to me, M," Jane said. She turned to leave. "I'll run up and tell Frost what you said about our friend here and finish up a few files on my desk. Say, your 'cabin' isn't really a six bedroom mansion is it?" Jane teased. Maura blushed.
"No it's a two bed two bath cabin with an outside shower so we don't track sand inside," Maura said. "Bring the usual stuff for a beach weekend, Jane, but don't forget a sweater or long pants. It can get cold in the evenings."
"Gotcha. Thanks, Maura. Hey maybe Ma will have a couple of dishes in the freezer we can take with us and warm up for dinner."
"There's a nice restaurant not too far away, Jane. I made a reservation for us for dinner there Saturday night. But your mother's dishes might be nice for Friday night. That way we won't have to pick up fast food or worry about cooking after the drive."
Jane nodded and left the morgue. Maura listened to her distinctive footsteps tap-tap-tap up the stairs. Maura returned her attention to the body in front of her.
"I told her to bring long pants but I didn't really mean it," Maura muttered to the dead man. "I plan on seeing those pants on the floor of the bedroom when I make a move on Jane." Maura blushed to the roots of her hair even though the man couldn't reply. While she continued the autopsy she reviewed her thoughts on Jane Rizzoli and how she came to learn the detective's feelings for Maura.
Two weeks earlier they were finishing a particularly brutal homicide: two children and one mother gunned down in their front yard. Following conflicting witness statements it became apparent to the homicide team they were tracking down the husband of the woman and the father of the children, who happened to head one of Boston's most notorious street gangs. At the time Jane and Frost had a theory that one of the Irish mobs might be involved but evidence Maura found during an autopsy shot that theory to pieces.
Maura removed the long hair from the entrance to the bullet wound from the youngest child, a six year old girl. Maura hated that children ended up on her autopsy table but she prided herself on being able to speak for the dead and she took particular pains when the victim was a minor. Maura bagged the hair and gave it to Senior Criminalist Chang for special handling in pulling the DNA from the strand. Since it was found at the entry of the bullet wound it likely was on the bullet itself and could lead to a positive identity of the killer. Her pulse quickening Maura pulled off her protective clothing and ran upstairs to tell Jane of the latest development. Maura wore her booties instead of her high heels because she wanted to hurry upstairs.
She ran upstairs and overheard Jane's voice in a heated conversation with Barry Frost. Jane sounded tired and strained. Maura hated to hear that because she knew Jane was running on fumes and needed a break in the case so she could go home and rest.
"No Frost, I will not tell Maura," Jane was arguing. Maura stopped in her tracks. What won't Jane tell me? She wondered.
"Jane, you two have been dating for the past couple of years now. You passed friendship a long time ago, my friend."
"Frost she's out of my league. And if I do tell her, I'll lose her friendship. Maura might run and hide and then where will I be?"
"She might not, Jane. I think she feels the same about you. When we're at a crime scene her eyes light up when you walk up; if we're at the Dirty Robber she slides in next to you every time."
"I can't lose her, Frost." Jane's tone of voice was defiant, stubborn. Maura stood behind the door, afraid to move. She wanted to hear the rest of the conversation without being seen but was also afraid of being discovered, and of eavesdropping. Reluctantly Maura turned back to the morgue.
She went into her office and shut the door. Dropping into her chair Maura found herself almost out of breath. Calm down, she told herself. You've known for a long time how you felt about Jane, now you know the feelings are returned.
But what to do? Maura wasn't sure an outright confession would be welcomed by the detective and Maura didn't want to scare Jane off either. She decided to wait and see if an opportunity presented itself.
The next two weeks passed in a blur. The case was cracked and Jane went home to sleep. She appeared at Maura's house thirty-six hours later looking rested and relaxed.
"I brought Chinese and movies," Jane said, holding up both bags. "I'm in the mood for something funny so I brought a couple of older movies."
Maura took the movies from Jane and examined the titles. "Pillow Talk and All That Heaven Allows," she read. "Were they having a Rock Hudson fanfest?" she called out. Jane laughed.
"I think so. A lot of his other movies were there, along with Doris Day's. Ready to eat?" Jane motioned to the spread of Chinese takeout on Maura's coffee table. Maura sat on the sofa next to Jane and they began sharing the food.
Maura was a little surprised. Jane wants to watch romantic comedies? She asked herself. Inwardly shrugging a little she wondered if Jane was trying to open a conversation about their feelings for each other. Maura waited.
But the evening passed the same as all their other movie nights. Jane fell asleep on the sofa, her head in Maura's lap. Maura finished watching the second movie then nudged Jane and led her into the bedroom. Half asleep Jane changed clothes and fell onto her side of the bed. Maura put the leftover food in the fridge and went into the bathroom to change. She slipped into the bed next to Jane, same as always and felt Jane's arms pull her close for a cuddle. The two drifted off to sleep, Jane none the wiser about Maura and Maura unable to tell anything different about the evening other than the selection of movies.
Maura continued to watch Jane's moves and words and analyzed it to death. Nothing was any different. Partially frustrated with her own inability to tell Jane of her feelings for the detective Maura was overjoyed when she noticed their free weekend together. Maura reminded the caretaker about opening and cleaning the cabin and confirmed the order of the selection of fruits and cheeses. She was determined that she and Jane would be a couple by the end of the weekend or their feelings shelved. She hoped for the former but feared the latter.
Friday afternoon finally rolled around and Maura pulled her gloves off and examined the now spotless morgue. No cases came in and she spent the day cleaning the morgue, getting it ready for the next week and finished her files. She and Jane skipped their normal lunch together in the interest of leaving a little early. She glanced at the clock. Two fifty-five p.m. She heard Jane's footsteps coming downstairs.
Jane dropped her duffle bag just inside the door. "Ready?" she called. Maura stood and nodded. They walked out to Maura's car and Jane tossed the duffle bag on the backseat. "I'd ask you if I could put it in your trunk but if I know you, Maura, the trunk is full of your clothing."
"I refuse to take the bait, Jane," Maura pretended to be hurt. Jane laughed.
"I'll take that as a yes," she said. The two laughed as they drove onto the interstate.
The drive was pleasant, even for a Friday afternoon escape from Boston. The normally heavy traffic was non-existent and Maura went into one of her 'googlepedia' moments explaining traffic patterns to Jane. After three minutes Jane's head rested on the passenger window and she was asleep. Maura smiled. She wouldn't wake Jane as she knew the detective probably needed the extra sleep.
And it gave Maura the chance to examine Jane without being noticed. Jane was a beauty all right, Maura thought. Her wild hair, which Jane claimed to hate, was only one of her outstanding features. A slim build, Jane was built for strength and speed and demonstrated it all too often to various perps as they were being chased down and tackled. Maura took in Jane's hands resting comfortably in her lap. A small shiver ran up Maura's spine as she wondered what those hands and long tapering fingers might do to her if they acted on their feelings. Maura pulled her gaze away from Jane's body. She knew she'd been in love with the detective for the longest time.
"Come on, Maura, at least guess," Jane stamped her feet in frustration. This only made Maura smile wider at her. 'You're cute when you're a whiny child' Maura thought but she knew she couldn't voice that to the detective. Jane's frustration came more from the thought of her younger brother Tommy being sent to prison for a murder he vehemently denied committing. Jane was also upset at Maura because the medical examiner failed to find someway to tip Jane off that the feds were looking closely at Tommy. Maura hoped to win her back but wasn't sure how.
"You know I don't guess, Jane. I know the type of paint used and it's for house painting."
"Great Maura! I'll tell Frankie. This proves Tommy was telling the truth. He and John were painting houses yesterday so they couldn't have been involved in the robbery."
Jane rushed out of the morgue with new hope and Maura loved the feeling she had when she could help her best friend solve a case, especially one like this. After confirming the rest of the items in the van she went up to the bullpen to talk to Jane. Instead she found herself watching the screen as Jane became the point man for another bank robbery in progress, this time with hostages.
Maura watched in horror as Jane offered herself up as collateral for removing an injured bank hostage. She covered her face with her hands, unwilling to watch further but unable to look away. Oh Jane, no, she pleaded. Come back to me, I love you.
Maura stunned herself with the admission she loved Jane. She examined her thoughts toward the detective and found she really loved the detective, was in love with Jane Rizzoli. Not knowing what to do she breathed a sigh of relief and returned to the morgue. Jane was safe and uninjured. Maura had time to think about her feelings and what to do.
But I didn't do anything, Maura remembered. I became afraid that Jane didn't return the feelings and not only would the friendship be gone but my whole family structure would vanish. Angela might not be friendly toward me and both brothers are like mine. They'd support Jane not me. So I kept my mouth shut.
Now, Maura knew she wanted to say something. Not knowing exactly how she was going to broach the subject she hoped to find the courage this weekend. Taking Jane out of Boston so they could concentrate on a weekend together Maura knew this was her chance. It might be her only chance. She suspected Jane's on-again off-again relationship with Casey was mostly off because of Jane's feelings toward Maura. She hoped so. Maura wanted to give Jane a chance to explore a relationship with her. Maura looked over at Jane one last time as she made her exit off the interstate and pulled onto a small access road to the beachfront property her family owned.
It's now or never, Maura thought.
TBC