Continuation of the "closet" scene in Dance With The Devil…just because I couldn't help but wonder what Jane would have said to Hope when they were alone – and what Maura and Jane would have said to each other after Hope left. I don't own them, I just wish I did. Note: I have incorporated dialogue from the actual episode. Also…I don't have a BETA, so mistakes are my own – I apologize wholeheartedly ~ scaf

Jane wrung her hands as she rounded the corner of Maura's closet with Maura's biological mother in tow. It killed her to see her best friend this vulnerable and she hated the fact that she felt powerless to help. The brunette was so lost in her thoughts, it barely registered when Hope reached out to her as they made their way to Maura's kitchen.

"I'm glad you called me."

"Yeah, about that. Hope, I'll be honest with you. I was surprised when Maura asked me to and I had a half a mind to ignore her request.

"What do you mean?"

Jane shrugged and made eye contact with the woman who looked so much like her best friend it nearly took her breath away.

"You've treated her like shit, Hope. Look, I know that finding out she was alive came as a huge shock to you, I get it. I do. But think about Maura. She grew up with parents who were distant and cold. I know they loved her, but they weren't great about showing it. And she didn't know how to ask for the attention she desperately needed. She's been alone her entire life. And then in a span of a year, not only does she find out she has a brother – who just happens to be on her autopsy table, she finds out her biological father is a notorious mobster and her mother has spent her entire life thinking her child died at birth."

Jane filled the tea kettle with water and placed it on the stove,

"She was so proud of you when she found you. Proud and scared to death. Hell, she scared me. She was crying all the time, and nervous, and…" Jane ran her fingers through the tangles in her hair, "She just wanted to know you, even if you would never know who she truly was. She wasn't trying to trick you or hurt you."

"I know that, Jane."

"Well if you knew that, then why did you treat her that way? Why – after all she's done for Cailin – why have you been distant? I mean, you haven't even thanked her!"

Hope's chin trembled.

"She deserves people in her life that care for her and that will look out for her. I'm sorry I'm getting upset, I don't want to add more stress; it's just that Maura is so…she deserves…Dammit." Jane could feel her anger rise and her eyes prickled with unshed tears. The last thing she wanted was to cry in front of a woman she barely knew. She moved away from the stove as Hope walked around her to switch places.

"I've…I've been selfish. I see that now. And I've felt horribly for the way I've treated her. That's why I came here this morning for coffee."

"Pffft." The brunette scoffed, "You thought she was at work. You were going to leave it on the doorstep."

"Yes, but….I knocked on that door, Jane. Maura doesn't deserve this circus surrounding Paddy and she certainly doesn't deserve my distant behavior. She deserves so much more than that. I am so unbelievably proud of the woman she's become. Of the life she has made for herself. It hurts to think about all I've missed out on. It pains me that I've had nothing to do with who she is. I do want a relationship with her, Jane. You must believe that. I will do my best to make her believe it, as well."

The detective nodded, hoping for Maura's sake that Hope was actually going to commit to Maura and to developing the relationship her friend had wanted so desperately.

"It is strange getting to know her as an adult"

"I can't even imagine"

"Every year on her birthday I would come to Boston and visit her grave. And I would add up the years and think about how old she'd be. Wonder what she'd turned out to be."

"Well, is she everything you imagined?"

"She's better. She is so much better than I imagined. And I have a good imagination," Hope smiled, handing Jane her cup of tea. "But Jane, you were wrong, what you said earlier. Maura isn't alone. She has you."

"She deserves more than me," Jane sighed.

"Can I ask…I mean, I know it's none of my business, but how long have you two been together?"

"Together?"

"Yes. Together. I've seen the way you look at her. You look at Maura the way that Paddy used to look at me."

"I don't….we're not together, Hope."

"Huh. Well, I have to say that I've seen the way she looks at you, as well. Are you sure it's not that you two have somehow gotten your signals crossed?"

"Why would you think..." Before Jane could finish her thought, a dejected Maura entered the kitchen

"I'm so sorry. I should have offered you some tea." Maura pulled her sweater tight around her shoulders as she addressed Hope.

"And girl scout cookies," Jane volunteered, grateful for the interruption.

"I ate them."

"Even the thin mints?"

"I ate those first."

"I know this is your house, but could I make you some tea?"

"I would like that."

"Hey. Did Hope leave?"

"Yes. Shortly after you went to call your mother. Dr. Martin has an early day at the clinic."

Jane sighed as she sprawled out on the couch beside her friend, "It was nice she came over the way she did tonight. I think she's trying… in her own awkward way."

"Yes."

"You okay?"

"Yes."

With the most excitement she could muster at midnight, Jane presented an unopened box of thin mints from behind her back, "Ta Da!"

"Jane! Did you steal these from your mother's house?"

"Yes. I did. And why are you whispering?"

Maura shrugged and fought the smile that tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Wait, did you just say 'ta da?"

Jane answered by opening the box and shoving three cookies in her mouth. When she handed the package over to Maura, the blonde waved her off.

"No? What do you mean no? I ventured into my mothers house, broke into her sweet stash, and stole these cookies and your going to refuse them?"

"I ate two boxes of cookies, Jane."

"So."

"In one sitting."

"So."

"So, I don't have your highly functioning metabolism."

"Stop, Maur. You are perfect."

"I am fat"

"What the…? You're being ridiculous."

"You're the one who told me I was out of shape."

"Like two months ago, and you know that's not what I meant when I said it. You are struggling right now – I can see that, but I will not allow you to add to this pity party. You are beautiful. Your body is beautiful. And you should never compare your metabolism to mine. Where I'm all angles and hard lines you are curvaceous and feminine."

The ME rolled her eyes and brushed her hair from her face.

"Don't you dare roll your eyes at me. Where are these body issues coming from?"

Maura shrugged, "When I was with Garrett and things would get difficult with either his family or mine, I would find comfort in food. If I over did it, Garrett would be sure to…"

"Stop. Stop right there – if you're going to tell me that that asshole kept track of what you ate I will march down to his cell and…Jesus Christ you've dated a lot of assholes."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth she regretted them. And the minute she saw the words register in Maura's big brain she felt something tighten in her chest.

"I guess I'm more like my mother than I thought. Hope, I mean. Ugh…give me those cookies." Maura took a dainty bite and stared at her hands. The blonde wasn't at all surprised to see Jane's hand appear in her eye line as they grasped tightly to hers.

Though the lines between friendship and "other" had always been blurred on some level, the last few months found those blurred lines nearly non-existent. The strain placed on their friendship forced by the Doyle shooting and its subsequent mending only served to bring them closer. It was as though the time apart had only reaffirmed how desperately intertwined their lives had become. Maura needed Jane as much as Jane needed her. Sometimes in very different ways – and sometimes in a way that was blatantly common. The more they attempted to look to other relationships to find that same connection, the more they realized that connection existed in its complete entirety – only between them. No one would ever compare to the other. It simply wasn't possible.

"You know, Hope thinks you're amazing and I…I think that's truly an understatement."

"Jane."

"Maura you are frighteningly intelligent and gorgeous and funny – sometimes without intending to be," Jane nudged her friends shoulder with her own, "and so…real. You are all about doing good and giving back, and being honest and transparent. I am literally in awe of you and the way you carry yourself every day."

Maura met Jane's gaze and felt paralyzed by it. She was horrified by what she had said to Paddy – horrified by the fact that she had actually wished death on another person, let a lone a person who just happened to be her father. But in that horrifying statement, she had made her choice. She chose Jane – Jane was her family. And in that brief, unsettling moment in the Dirty Robber, she stated unequivocally that Jane's actions that day in the warehouse were warranted.

"I'm not honest, Jane."

"Hmm?"

"If I was honest I would…I would have…"

"What is it?"

"If I was honest with myself, I would have recognized and come to terms with these feelings I've had long ago. If I was honest with you I would stop pretending that we're just friends and I would have told you."

"Told me what? What do you mean pretending to be friends?"

"I…there's a reason I can't keep my hands off of you – that I feel the need to touch you every chance I get. There's a reason your mother lives in my guesthouse and your family uses my house for family dinner every Sunday. There's a reason that every man that falls into my bed has a fatal flaw. There's a reason that you are the only person I allow to comfort me. There's a reason, Jane, that it's always you on my couch, in my home, on my mind. There's a reason for it all and I can't keep avoiding this."

Jane glanced down at their joined hands – Maura was her lifeline. She was the grounding Jane had always needed.

"Huh." Jane hummed

"That's all you have to say? 'Huh'? Really?" Maura was incredulous. She had just spent the last few minutes expelling words she had never expected to say aloud and all Jane could say was 'huh'?

"Really? What are you stealing my lines? You going to add it to the list of things you've already stolen?"

"List? What else have I stolen from you? Your friendship?"

"My heart", Jane shrugged.

Maura shut her mouth, hoping that she had heard Jane correctly.

"Jane Clementine Rizzoli that is perhaps the cheesiest line I have ever heard in my lifetime."

"But it's true. I love you, too Maura. And I wanted to tell you ages ago but I was scared of losing you."

"I'm right here. Not lost. At least, not anymore."

"Can I…"

Before Jane could finish her question, Maura leaned in for chaste kiss.

"That was nice", Jane exclaimed in hushed tone. Her eyes, which had closed upon feeling the ME's lips upon hers, had remained closed. She hadn't yet dared to open them for fear that if she did, this would have been an illusion, just another fantasy.

"Hey"

"Hmmm"

"You okay?"

"Yes"

"Now you're the one whispering", Maura chucled.

Jane opened her eyes and smiled, "What about you – you okay?"

"Definitely"

"You tired?"

Maura nodded, "Jane, we're going to be okay, right?"

"Of course. Let's just focus on one thing at a time, okay? Let's get this Paddy situation out of the way and then we can focus on us."

"There's an us?"

"Oh, most definitely. Not a doubt in the world."

Jane stood from the couch, pulling Maura with her. "And…even though we're going to focus on the case first, there's no reason we can't continue down this, um, affectionate path, right?"

"Affectionate path? Do you mean kissing?"

"That's exactly what I mean."

"Then I think we can figure something out."

Maura allowed herself to be led to her bedroom by the blushing detective. Yesterday had been a whirlwind, and the trial of Paddy Doyle loomed ominously ahead – but she had Jane. And when it came right down to it, that's all that really mattered.