AN: In case you don't care, The Red Sox won the World Series.

"The next round's on us!"

The bowling alley that surrounded Jane Rizzoli erupted with cheers, as every single patron raised their glasses to her. She drank from her glass of beer deeply, glad that her friends and fifty strangers surrounded her on her bachelorette party. Tomorrow she would marry Maura, and while nights like this were bound to happen again, she was missing Maura something fierce.

The few friends she had made in Quantico came up to Boston for the wedding, her new colleagues at the Boston Police Academy were there as well, along with Vince and Ron and Kent and her brothers. Her mother had decided that she was going to stay with Maura and the other women who were watching the children at their house. Nina would have rather come with them, but as she was pregnant again no one thought that she should be in a bar surrounded by drunken fools, and even Nina had seen the wisdom in that.

Constance, Cailin, Hope, Nina, Kiki, Tasha, Christine, and Angela were all with Maura, and that is where Jane would honestly rather be. Not with the rest of them, but with Maura. She had only recently left Quantico and the week she had been back in Boston were spent doing last minute preparations for the wedding and not nearly enough time spent with Maura. And while they were two women getting married, already subverting the Catholic Church, Jane's mother had insisted that Jane and Maura spend the night apart holding on to as many wedding traditions as she could. She couldn't even call Maura because Angela had confiscated both of their phones before Jane left the house.

But Jane could also see how much effort her friends and brothers had put into this night, and she would enjoy it. She would only have two or three drinks, wanting to be bright eyed and clear tomorrow for her wedding.

But no one else, save for Tommy, was following that directive. Jane had been worried about him when she learned that the plan was for them to go to the bowling alley and that alcohol would be flowing freely, but he had given her the patented Rizzoli smirk and say that he was good. And he had been, not just tonight, but for a long time. Jane was so proud of him and the man that he had turned into.

They finished the game that they were playing and everyone took a minute to go to the washroom or outside for a smoke, so Jane walked to the bar behind the lanes to take a minute for herself.

She couldn't stop herself from smiling. In less than 24 hours she was going to be married to the love of her life, and she couldn't control the warmth and joy that spread through her body. Their relationship hadn't been the most conventional path and while she wouldn't have it any other way, Jane couldn't help remembering the other life she had almost had.

If Jane had married Casey, Maura would be here by her side as her Maid of Honor. Though Jane had no doubt that he bachelorette party would not have been held in a bowling alley if Maura had been her Made of Honor, it would have been somewhere fancy and upscale because Maura wouldn't have it any other way. So Frankie was her Maid of Honor, rather her Best Man, as were Tommy and Vince But Maura wasn't here because Angela had forbidden it. If Jane had had her way, their combined parties would have been just Jane and Maura on their couch in front of the TV, wine and movies on in the background. Jane couldn't wait until tomorrow.

"Jane?" The hand that had been lifting the new glass of beer to her lips stalled and sloshed a couple of drops down her hand when someone she had never thought she'd see again said her name.

Casey.

How bloody perfect.

"Casey." She put the bottle down and watched him walk closer as he looked her up and down.

She had discarded the "Bachelorette" sash as soon as they had stared bowling, but judging by the smirk on his face she had forgotten the sparkly pink tiara that sat atop her head, thankful that they hadn't chosen the gaudy ones with fake penises everywhere. This one actually said "Birthday Girl," Frankie admitting that the only one without penises they could find was in the kid's birthday section of the party store.

"It's not your birthday," he said taking the stool next to her. As he signaled for a beer, Jane removed the tiara and set it on the bar.

"No," she swallowed thickly, "bachelorette party actually."

Jane couldn't read the emotions that crossed his face when he took a sip of his beer, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. They weren't together anymore, but Casey Jones would always been somewhere in her mind because of the baby she lost. Unfortunately the way it had worked telling him about the baby was the same day that she told him about the miscarriage. She would forever feel guilty about that, even though he said he didn't blame her. He understood protecting Tasha and he understood, but Jane could never be certain if he did because she still wasn't sure that she did.

She didn't regret what happened, Tasha was about to start her senior year at BCU and would be the most amazing doctor, but sometimes the baby floated through her mind and she wondered what would be. She wouldn't blame Casey if he was mad at her.

"Where's Maura?" The question from left field threw Jane for a loop.

Casey wouldn't, couldn't know about her and Maura. Or maybe he did, Jane didn't know where he'd been or how long he'd been back stateside, though judging by his civies he had been here for at least a day. How could he possibly know?

"Umm... she's at home."

"Oh, I thought she'd be here. So who's the lucky guy?" He didn't know.

"There isn't a guy. It's Maura. I'm marrying Maura." She sounded small even to herself.

But to his credit, and Jane would give it to him willingly, he didn't show any emotion at that, only took another drink of his beer. "Oh."

"Oh?" She'd asked, wondering what he was thinking.

"I mean," he paused, glancing at her again, "I mean I'm not really surprised."

What.

Jane just looked at him.

"When you decided not to marry me, which for the record I'm sorry about how I behaved about that, I wondered."

"Wondered what?"

"If there wasn't something more to you two."

Jane was flabbergasted. "What do you mean?"

She also wanted to know that if Casey saw it, had seen something that she hadn't figured out herself until three years later, how much else had she missed.

"It's just that you and Maura were always a lot closer than I think you guys realized. I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just something that is. It's the way you smiled at her. It was the same way you smiled at me. And." He cut himself off there, a blush rising to his cheeks just the same as was rising on Jane's.

"And what Casey?" She needed to know.

"Your hands." His voice was a whisper and she had almost missed them in the loud alley.

"What about them?"

"You let her touch your hands. No one else was allowed unless you started it. Not even your mother. If I tried to hold your hand you would pull away, put them in your pockets. You would take my hand sometimes, you would hold my hands only when you wanted to." A memory burst suddenly into Jane's mind.

Maura had come to her apartment once when Casey was there. She and Casey had changed together, completed their morning bathroom rituals together, had made and eaten breakfast together, but once the food was done and everything cleaned away they had sat at the breakfast bar reading the paper together. He'd tried to grab her hand. She'd reacted without thought and pulled away from him, tucking her hand between her knees.

The times this had happened with her mother and brothers, even TJ when he was just little, followed that memory quickly.

But then Maura had come in because they had lunch plans. Jane hadn't even realized it had happened at the time, so she had paid no thought to the way that her fingers gripped Maura's back when she had grabbed her hand.

She was paying it thought now.

But Casey hadn't stopped talking and her mind focused back on him, "and I know what happened but you've always been so protective about people seeing them and even then, there was just something about it. I'm not surprised, is all I'm saying."

"Huh." Was all Jane could manage.

The silenced that stretched moments between them seemed to drag on until out of the corner of her eye Jane saw Frankie answer his phone and start walking towards them.

"Congratulations Jane," Casey said as he stood up to walk over to his friends.

"Thanks Casey." She replied, but he was already gone.

"Janie, come with me for a second." Frankie said holding up his phone, a giddy smile on his face.

"Why, who's on the phone?" She asked, following him.

"Trust me Janie."

She sighed and followed him around the bar, and watched as he nodded to the barkeep who had come over and opened his office door for them.

"Thanks man," Frankie had said, holding his phone to his chest.

"No problem, just close the door when you're done." He offered them a smile and then turned back towards the bar.

Frankie just waved Jane into the office and lifted the phone to his ear, "I've got her in private, go ahead."

Frankie handed the phone to Jane and walked out of the office closing the door behind him. Looking at the screen all it had was a number, no name so Jane didn't even know whom she was talking to.

Suddenly she heard Maura's voice offer a tentative "Hello?"

"Maura?" She said once she lifted the phone to her ear.

"Jane? I thought we weren't supposed to talk to each other?"

"Me either. Whose phone are you using?" Jane asked, slipping into the managers chair.

"Cailin's. She asked to show me something upstairs already on the phone, then told me that she would run interference and left me in our room."

And suddenly Jane knew why Frankie was smiling like an idiot. He and Cailin had planned this. It was so Frankie and Jane, finding a way around their mother's decrees.

"I'm on Frankie's."

"Oh, that explains what they were doing at lunch today. I saw them out in the courtyard before we ate, and he gave her his card."

Jane just chuckled and gripped the phone tighter, thankful for her brother and her soon to be sister. Cailin would fit right in with them if she was part of this plan. Whether she thought it or just participated in it, Jane was thankful.

"How are you?" She asked.

"I miss you," Maura's voice had dropped and Jane could hear the love in the new depth.

"I miss you Maura. Every second I'm away from you."

"Mmm," was all Maura said. The silence between them enveloping them.

"How much longer?" Jane asked. She knew this phone call was all she was going to get until she saw her tomorrow at their wedding.

"Too long. But fifteen hours and twenty seven minutes."

"That's fifteen hours and twenty eight minutes too long."

After that they talked in whispers for several minutes, not really saying anything of great value, just enjoying the company of the other.

Then suddenly Jane heard Cailin's voice in the background, a not of fear in her voice "Hang up quick Maura, Angela knows and she's on her way."

Before Maura or Jane could finish their "I love you" the phone disconnected, and Jane knew that she and Frankie, and probably Tommy and all of their spouses, would have to protect Cailin tomorrow. And probably the rest of time. Angela wouldn't do much more than yell once or twice and bring it up if anything like this happened again, but brothers and sisters had to stick together.

Closing the door behind her, she went back to the lanes where there were already on the third frame, Jane handed Frankie his phone back and saw that so far she had two strike's and a spare.

"Who's idea was that?" She asked as Tommy rolled himself a strike.

"Cailin's. She pulled me aside and asked if I thought it was a good idea. She had the whole thing planned. Even said that she should make the first call because she had to maneuver not just one mom, but three and it would be tricky to get Maura alone."

The both laughed.

"Ma's gonna kill her." Everyone laughed at that.