Who is that?
Some of the conversation that we didn't get see from the dinner with Frankie's ex, Theresa and her daughter Lilly, S2.07.
"Well, isn't this nice? My whole family here under one roof." Angela, who was in the kitchen, put down the plates she was holding and looked across into the dining room where everyone else was finding themselves a seat. Her gaze settled on the youngest of the group,
"Come here, Lilly, and help me set the table while the adults talk."
Lilly looked towards her mother who shooed her in the direction of Angela, "Go on, help your Grandmother."
At the word, 'grandmother' Angela smiled lovingly, first at Lilly, then at Frankie.
"Grandma Rizzoli," said Jane, looking pointedly at her mother. "I don't know why you like that so much. It makes you sound old."
"Shh, Jane," Maura shot a 'look' at Jane, who stared back, and shrugged, mouthing, "What?"
"Don't listen to your Aunty Jane, Lilly. I love being a grandmother. We're all very excited to have you in our family and we look forward to getting to know you... aren't we, Jane?"
Jane didn't immediately say anything, but Maura spoke for her, telling Lilly that her Aunty Jane was in fact delighted to meet her.
Jane put down her beer and turned towards Maura opening her mouth to speak. This time, before Maura could shush her, Angela got in first, saying, "girls, girls. Please. I don't know what's got into you today, Jane. Can you make sure everyone has a drink and Lilly and I will get the food onto the table."
Angela and Lilly carried the roast over, proudly holding one side each, and placing it in front of Frankie, who proceeded to carve.
"Ma's never let anyone but Pop cut the meat before," Jane leaned over and said to Maura, with a hint of shock, but also awe in her voice.
" Well, now Frankie's a father..."
"We don't know that, Maura," Jane pointed out. Then, under her breath,
"Maura, if one of us turned up pregnant would we get this sort of red-carpet treatment?"
"Knowing your mother as I do, then yes, I think we probably would."
"Urgh. Why do we need to breed to make our mothers happy? I do not want to be my mother's grandchild making machine, sitting here thinking that carving the Thanksgiving turkey is the highlight of my year."
"Don't be harsh on your mother, Jane. It's a biological urge for some women to want to nurture young children."
Maura was interrupted by Lilly who had been walking around the table handing out plates, and was now begging another round, this time with glasses, and naming each diner as she went:
"Grandma Angela," she said, and Mama Rizzoli beamed, reaching out to hold Lilly as she moved off. "Come back here, darling, and say that again."
Lilly laughed. "Granma Angela," and moved on, "Mummy, Frankie – Daddy. Auntie Jane, and, who are you?"
"This is Maura, sweetie," explained Jane again, reaching her hand across and putting it on Maura's arm. You remember Maura from the day in the park, in her car."
There was a silence as probably everyone remembered the incident with some level of embarrassment.
"Maura is Jane's friend, Lilly," said Theresa. "Now finish up with the cutlery." But Lilly wasn't ready to finish with Maura,
"Are you my auntie, too?"
"No."
"Oh, Maura," said Theresa. "Of course you can be her aunt."
"Well, to be fair, in order to be her aunt, we would need to know for sure that Lilly is your daughter, Frankie, and secondly I would need to be...
"Maura!" Angela almost shouted. "Lilly, darling, you can be part of this family, regardless of blood."
Lilly didn't seem fazed by Angela's outburst; she was much more focussed on Maura, reaching out to touch her hair as she spoke. "So, Maura, if you don't think you're my aunt, why are you here?"
"Lilly, sweetie," Jane said, reaching over to take the child's hand off Maura, "I think Maura would like it if you got her a drink to put in that glass - from the kitchen."
"No, Lilly – " at the sound of her mother's voice Lilly, turned her head to listen, " – go back to your seat and sit down and start your dinner, please. Angela and I will go into the kitchen and get everyone a drink. Angela?"
Angela stood up, with a puzzled look on her face, but followed Theresa into the kitchen, where she stood waiting to hear what Theresa would say, obviously aware that she had been dragged there for a purpose that was more than getting more drink. Theresa launched straight into her rant:
"This is pathetic. You need to talk to Jane, Angela."
"Theresa. Jane's just a bit protective of her family. That stuff about proving Lilly is Frankie's daughter, that's just – "
"I'm not talking about that. I know that Jane doesn't like me for some reason (she never has), but, but at least I don't go around pretending like you and she do."
"What. What's going on?"
"It's 2011, Angela. I'm not going to go telling Lilly that Maura and Jane are 'special friends' or some other euphemism! If Lilly is your granddaughter, then Maura is one of her aunts. I think we should be able to acknowledge what's going on, especially in front of a child. I'm raising my child to be protected from your sorts of prejudices, not from Jane and Maura. And, you know, maybe Jane would stop trying to be so 'protective' about what her family can and can't talk about or do, if there wasn't this giant elephant in the room that you're all trying to steer each other around!"
"I don't know what you're talking about, Theresa. I love my kids. All I've ever wanted from them is for them to be happy."
"Then maybe you should let Jane be who she is and stop trying to make her and Maura into people they're never going to be. The way you treat those two is pathetic. And the same for Frankie He's a loyal, intelligent, loving man; he was all those things before he ever met Lilly; he doesn't need to be a father to get your respect."
"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm three-times your age, Theresa. I think I know how to raise children."
There was a pause. Theresa took a breath, and looked at Angela. "You really don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"
Angela cocked her head in way that suggested Theresa was right but didn't actually give any ground.
"Think about it, Angela. When was the last time Jane had dinner with a man she invited? How often do she and Maura have dinner together? Breakfast together?"
"You mean, Jane and Maura...?"
Theresa raised her eyebrows, but didn't have time to say anymore, as Frankie burst into the room, "Come on you two! Bring in the drinks! We need to make a toast."
"Wait, Angela." Theresa picked up a bottle of champagne in one hand and handed it to Frankie. She reached out her other hand to her mother in law, who took it. "We're on our way!"
As they neared the table everyone turned to look up at them.
"A toast," said Frankie, raising his glass and putting his other arm around the little girl who had climbed onto his lap.
"To family," said Angela.
"Um, yeah. To family."
"To family."
And that's why Angela made such a show of giving Jane and Maura 'space' after that dinner was over.