PRIORITIES
*All characters belong to Tess Gerritsen.
Falling into bed felt like falling instantly into a cloud, which embraced her and whisked her off to a dream land. She deserved this sleep. It was well-earned and her body and mind needed it desperately after the month she had.
Jane let her body sink into her mattress, the city sounds outside her apartment window were a comforting soundtrack to her impending coma.
Sleep. She loved it so much she wanted to marry it and have its babies.
The night, day, week and month faded quickly, as her mind slipped into a soft, black nothingness.
Expensive black heels, toned legs crossed casually and clothed to mid-thigh in a form-fitting blue, ribbed dress. One foot bounced casually, setting a rhythm while a set of manicured black nails tapped in time on the desk she sat upon. A faint scent of Hermes and glint of silver and jade set in the ring on a slender finger.
Jane sighed in her REM-filled bliss and snuggled gently into her comforter. The dream continued.
She was adoringly moving a dark-blonde lock of hair behind the woman's ear. The ear was adorned with a sterling silver earring, set with a sapphire stone to complement the outfit.
"Baby, there's no need to be anxious. As soon as I'm done with this email I will go get ready. I'll even drive. That will give you time to practice your speech in the car. Okay?"
Jane's lips moved as if to participate in the dream she was having. Her countenance displayed a mixture of concentration and deep adoration.
The stylish blonde smiled, revealing two adorable dimples as she bent down to kiss the brunette sweetly.
"I'm not nervous Jane, just eager. Those are two very dissimilar emotions. For instance, you displayed anxiety when you explained to your mother that the doctor you were seeing was in fact me, and not that dreadful internist she set you up with last year. While, I on the other hand, displayed eagerness to undress you and make love to you after you told her how much you cared for me."
The brunette stopped typing and slowly dragged her eyes across the other woman's form, swallowing the saliva that had suddenly accumulated in her mouth.
"Maur, if we are going to be on time to this thing you probably shouldn't say things like that while you're wearing…that."
"Things like what Jane?" The blonde whispered as her voice dropped to a seductively low pitch.
"Uh oh." The detective quickly hit send before she became too distracted.
In one, swift maneuver the blonde was straddling the brunette's lap and kissing her neck. The afternoon sunlight lit the kitchen with a warm glow. Percolating sounds of French roast coffee were mixed with the light gasps and moans that escaped the two lovers at the breakfast table.
"Mm Maura. I don't know what I did to deserve this 'afternoon delight', but I'm okay with that."
The blonde began to unbutton the brunette's dress shirt while offering an explanation to go with the kisses she trailed along the slender chest.
"Jane, every time you tell somebody close to you about me or introduce me to them you sound so proud to be with me. To love me. It drives me insane and I want to do things to you that would be very inappropriate in such settings. So I am forced to be patient and make it up to you now. I hope that clarifies things."
The brunette could do nothing but moan into the other woman's mouth and nod slightly as she tightened her grip on the other woman's waist, pulling their bodies close together. She loved how the fabric felt against her skin. She loved how the dress looked on her wife's perfect body.
Jane had tossed her sheets and comforter off the bed, her body writhed and her mouth hung slightly ajar. She spoke in her sleep, occasionally moaning and sighing.
Hours later the morning finally cast its acerbic rays through the wooden blinds of the detective's bedroom. Jane awoke half clothed with sheets strewn about and her alarm clock buzzing on the floor. She looked around, one eye cracked open, to examine the chaos.
"What the hell?"
Bits and pieces of the recent dream began to filter through her groggy brain.
Oh.
She realized why she felt well-rested but sexually frustrated.
Well I guess at least one human need is taken care of.
That other need would have to wait, again. Work always ranked higher on Jane's priorities than sex or relationships—mostly because she hadn't met a person worth reprioritizing.
Wearing a freshly dry-cleaned blazer and dark jeans, Jane quickly applied some eyeliner and lip gloss, sprayed her neck with perfume, and then glanced at herself in her hallway mirror before exiting the apartment.
After grabbing a steaming cup of coffee and greeting fellow cops in the elevator she made her way to the homicide unit. The office was fairly empty as the unit had closed a complex case just 24 hours prior. Turning to her computer to check her work email Jane suddenly stiffened at the familiar click-clacking of designer heels walking towards her desk.
Stay cool. She can't read your mind. She doesn't know about the dream, and frankly, you should probably stop replaying it in your head now.
"Good morning Jane. I just came to give you a congratulatory Danish from your favorite bakery for closing the McNulty case. It looks like you finally got some sleep last night, you look radiant. Is that perfume new?"
Jane slowly turned her desk chair towards the sights and smells of one Dr. Maura Isles holding a mouth-watering baked good. In that moment Jane noticed what the blonde was wearing: a blue, tight-fitting, ribbed dress and black heels.
She felt the blush spread down her neck before she could begin to process the image.
"Do you like? I found it at this cute little boutique in a part of town I normally avoid like the Bubonic plague."
The blonde grinned genuinely, dimples gracing her smile as she shimmied her shoulders in a seductive manner.
Lacking an appropriate response, Jane could only stare and process a singular thought. Uh oh.
*That's all she wrote. Reviews are nice things!