"Let me see your list again," Jane said, motioning to me across the kitchen island. "You wanted to do something on my list. There's got to be something on your list that I'll want to do."

I laughed and shook my head. I had pushed the concept of the bucket list in an effort to get to know Jane better. She had jumped off the bridge without a second thought, which terrified me. I was starting to feel like maybe I didn't know her as well as I thought I did and I was going to take any opportunity to change that.

I handed my list back to her, knowing good and well that she wasn't going to like any of the items on it – she'd already read through it at least a dozen times.

"Visit the Lama Temple. What's that?"

"It's a beautiful Tibetan Buddhist temple in Beijing. It has a statue of Maitreya Buddha that is 85 feet tall and constructed out of a single piece of white sandalwood."

"No thanks. The Cave of the Crystals?"

"It's a cave in Mexico that houses some of the largest natural crystals ever discovered. The extreme heat in the cave caused microscopic crystals to form, eventually growing into crystals that are more than three feet long! Isn't that amazing?"

"To you, maybe," she said, shaking her long dark curls out of her face. She sighed loudly. I could tell she was getting frustrated.

"Well, how about something that's not on that list and not on yours either? They just opened a karaoke place up the street from the Robber. What do you think? It could be fun!"

"How about we just hang out here?"

"That's what we always do, Jane! This exercise was to get us out of the same old routine. By making bucket lists, we make goals for ourselves. We make sure we're living our lives to the fullest and doing all the things we really want to do. All I could think of the other night was that there were things I wanted to do with you and I hadn't had the chance yet. When you went in the water, I thought my chance was gone. Now that I know you're here and safe, I want to do those things!"

"And those things include karaoke?"

"Yes, Jane. Tonight those things include karaoke."

"Maura!" she whined.

I stuck out my lip at her in a fake pout. "Jane!" I imitated. "I almost lost my best friend." I knew she couldn't say no to that.

Half an hour later, we walked into the lobby of Boston Karaoke and were greeted by neon lights and a gargantuan bar.

"At least there's beer," Jane said. "Maybe this won't be too bad."

I spoke with the host, who grabbed two menus and led us to a small, private room off the main hallway. Jane and I sat together on a comfortable sofa and I grabbed the iPad off the table to plan our track list while Jane entertained herself with the drink menu.

"Do you want to do songs from a single genre or decade, or would you rather they be an eclectic mix?" I asked.

Jane grunted without looking up from the menu.

"Well, I'm not going to be singing alone all night. You're going to have to sing sometime. What do you think? Showtunes? Madonna's greatest hits? Songs of the 70s?"

"Whatever you want, Maura," Jane said. "This was your idea."

The door opened and a waiter came in to get our drink orders. Jane ordered her usual Blue Moon and I ordered a glass of chardonnay. I hoped that a beer would loosen Jane up a little bit and get her in the mood to have some fun. I had decided that my goal for the night was to make sure she enjoyed this night out, since she'd been so against going out in the first place.

The waiter returned with our drinks right as the first song started up: Shania Twain's "Man, I Feel Like a Woman." Jane rolled her eyes as I stood up and started singing into my fist like a microphone. I danced around the room and wiggled my hips, determined to get her to crack a smile. By the end of the song, I could hear her starting to hum along.

After a few more songs, and another drink for each of us, Jane was finally starting to sing along with me. We sang our way through Pink's "So What" and Bon Jovi's "Livin on a Prayer" when Jane finally took over the iPad to input a few of her own song choices. Ace of Base started playing and I leaned my head on her shoulder to watch her add more songs. She handed the iPad back to me and got up to go out to the bar and grab us another round. As I scrolled through the song library, I saw a song I'd been listening to a lot lately that always made me think of Jane. I added it to the list with a smile, then sat back and waited on her to return.

"What's that grin for?" Jane asked. "You look like the cat that ate the canary."

"Oh, nothing," I said.

"Hives, Maura," she said, smugly. She knew me too well.

"Okay, okay. I added a song while you were gone."

"What'd you add?"

"Oh, just a song I like. You'll see." My stomach flip-flopped as I thought about it. A secret addendum to my bucket list had been to finally tell Jane how I felt about her. I'd been so sure on the bridge that night that I'd never get the chance. I wasn't going to let another day go by without her knowing. Life was too short to spend hiding my feelings.

As Jane's choices played, she danced around the room, singing loudly. At one point, she pulled me up off the couch to dance with her. I was singing and laughing so much my face hurt. The room got quiet as the sound of an acoustic guitar began.

I sat down on the couch and looked up at her. "I have something I need to tell you, Jane. Something I've been wanting to say for a long time now." I grabbed her hand and pulled her down next to me.

"Sure, Maur. What is it?" she asked.

I smiled and began to sing along with the music: "I took you at your word when you said you would steal my heart. Now this might sound absurd, but would you be my thief – take all of me, every part."

My eyes searched her face for a reaction, but I couldn't read one, so I continued: "Love, love, love is my crime, so, baby, come catch me and let's do the time. I think we might be outlaws. I think I might be in love 'cause I'm all out of reasons, like seasons – winter, summer, fall – they're all washed up. If you're still way over there, baby, slide on in by my side 'cause I'm just an outlaw – wanted – if you want me. I'll love you every day and every night."

I felt a single tear slip down my cheek and she put her hand on my cheek to catch it. I gasped at her touch.

"Maur. Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"I'm saying that I love you, Jane Rizzoli. I'm in love with you. I don't want to spend another day keeping my feelings from you. I was so scared that I had lost you and I was even more afraid that you'd never know how I felt." She stared at me with those big brown eyes that made me melt. "It's okay if you don't…"

She stopped me there with a kiss. Soft and sweet and perfect. She pulled back and looked into my eyes once more. "I love you, too, Maur." Then her lips crashed back into mine.