A/N: It's still *technically* Easter for another hour where I'm at, so I'm not really late!

I don't know how this happened except that it did. I was flirting with disaster by typing it straight into tumblr because it was meant to be a very short thought - like not even a fic - but the words just started and didn't stop and that's so rare for me I absolutely had to go with it.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters. Not making money. ETC. ETC.

Maura blinked slowly to wakefulness. Sleep clung to her bones and it took several seconds longer than usual for her brain to fully wake up. She couldn't help the smile that raced across her face, as it did every morning, when she breathed in the familiar scent of the warm body beneath her.

Jane's dark hair spread across the pillows and underneath their shoulders in a tangled mess. She lay half under Maura flat on her back - a position Jane somehow managed to find herself in night after night regardless of the fact that she claimed she couldn't sleep that way. Her head was thrown back, mouth slightly open. The sound of her steady, deep breathing and the lull of her heartbeat had settled Maura into a deep, deep sleep when the woman curled into bed beside her late the night before.

Maura traced random patterns against the flat of Jane's stomach. Her fingers gently easing under the thin bed shirt Jane wore to tease incredibly soft skin. Jane twitched, but didn't wake up.

They had a full day of festivities planned for later. And really the sooner they woke and began their day the better it would be for them. But Maura was always loath the wake Jane. It was so rare they were able to have a lie in. So rare that Jane was this relaxed, even in sleep. She looked younger somehow. Softer. She didn't want to use the word delicate to describe Jane, because that's the last word she would ever pick but it was the next word her tired brain settled on. Next was peaceful.

Maura had slept beside Jane long enough to know that peace wasn't something that came easy or often. But there were moments. They were becoming increasingly more frequent these days, and Maura was a little chuffed about that knowing that she'd been the reason why. At least hoping that she'd been the reason why.

They had finally dived into the romantic side of their friendship after years and years and years of toeing the line. Maura had never been happier. And she knew on some visceral level that Jane felt the same way.

Maura smiled at the small snuffle Jane made as she shifted ever so slightly into her touch before settling back into the bedding, her breathing going back to the deep patterns of sleep.

Maura sighed contentedly as she smoothed Jane's shirt back over her stomach underneath the blankets. She placed a gently kiss to her shoulder and murmured a very quiet I love you into the warmth under her touch before gently moving from the bed.

Her body immediately missed the heat of the blankets and the warmth of her companion. She gave one last look to Jane, smiling softly to herself, before moving to the bathroom.

After taking care of business, she slowly shuffled towards the kitchen while pulling her robe around herself and stifling a yawn. They had been working court cases and their backlog for the better part of the month. It was grueling and tedious work, but was par for the course as far as their careers were concerned. Jane had been out with the guys the night before to celebrate one of her detective friend's from another unit's engagement. Maura had been invited, of course, but had been too tired to join.

She stifled another yawn as she made her way to the coffee machine. She blinked and stopped in surprise as she stared at her kitchen table.

Sitting on the table was a small basket. She raised an eyebrow as she approached cautiously. Sitting inside the basket was an assortment of chocolates and a miniature bottle of wine along with a card.

She pulled the card open and read the sweet Happy Easter note Jane had left for her inside in her neat printed handwriting. She quirked an eyebrow at the PS which just said happy hunting! "What does that mean?" She wondered aloud.

Before she could any more puzzles together she decided she'd need coffee. She walked to the cupboard and pulled her favorite mug down. She blinked rapidly as her eyes caught a bright pink oblong shape sitting inside it. Brows furrowed, she pulled it out of the mug and held it quizzically. She cracked it open and inside sat a piece of chocolate.

Maura couldn't help the grin that spread across her face as she finally put the pieces together. She had told Jane that Easter egg hunts were not something she'd ever done when they had talked about it the previous week. They were hosting a party for Jane's family and their friends. They were discussing the preparations with Angela when the matriarch had brought up having some sort of Easter egg hunt for TJ. He was old enough now that he could remember the celebration and actually be able to participate more in things of that nature.

Maura's smile remained in place as she placed her mug and turned the buttons on for the coffee machine. She remembered the way Jane had looked at her completely flabbergasted when she'd admitted to not ever having participated in an Easter egg hunt. And now, now it seemed after being out with friends for the evening before Jane had somehow managed to have an Easter basket waiting for her and an egg hunt to begin.

She walked towards the basket taking out the bags and boxes of chocolates before placing the lone egg she'd found so far inside it. She giggled softly at the idea of hunting for these colorful eggs in their home. Something giddy and childlike surged through her. She couldn't help the eager way her eyes darted around the kitchen, suddenly more alert and awake than she'd been just a few minutes before.

There was a small green one sitting in one of the plants on the windowsill above her sink. A purple one sitting in one of the empty spaces on her spice rack. She opened drawers and cabinets curiosity getting the better of her. By the time her cup of coffee was finished she'd found four. She placed Jane's mug and began her search anew, list time drifting further into the dining area.

She'd found two more hiding in plain sight by the time Jane's coffee was finished. She snagged a small chocolate from the table next to her basket popping it into her mouth before taking both her coffee and Jane's to the stairs.

As she walked she'd noticed three eggs - yellow, orange, and blue - sitting on different levels of the staircase and made a mental note of them before continuing up the stairs.

Her grin was face breaking as she walked into the bedroom. Jane was right where she'd left her - eyes still closed, but with one hand resting on Maura's pillow as if she'd been reaching for her.

Maura put both of the mugs down on her nightstand before crawling onto the bed. Her movements were slow, effortless as she moved above Jane. Tenderly, gently she traced a feather light touch down the side of Jane's cheek with her fingertips before replacing them with her lips. She kissed both her cheeks, her eyelids, her nose, before finally landing the softest of kisses to Jane's lips.

Maura settled more comfortably on top of Jane. It wasn't often she indulged in waking Jane up like this. There were only some days it was an appropriate course of action. It was a struggle at first to learn when she could and when she couldn't - one Jane didn't want to talk about which made it just a little more difficult but one that Maura was more than willing to put the work in to know when it was right to wake her with her weight and a kiss. But here and now, she knew it was right.

Jane's arms came to wrap around her waist her eyes still mostly closed. A small smiled played at her lips. The fingers of one hand played with the tips of Maura's long golden hair. "Morning." She hummed.

Maura kissed her chin, settling comfortably underneath Jane's chin. Her ear rested just over the steady and strong beat of Jane's heart. "I think the Easter bunny came last night." She said quietly. Suddenly, she felt shy. A lump had formed in her throat as the weight of what Jane had done for her slammed into her. For just as she had worked hard to understand Jane's limits and needs, Jane had quietly worked just as hard to understand her own. No one, friend or lover, had ever done that for her before.

"What'd you get?" Jane mumbled sleepily. Though there was an unmistakable grin in her voice. Her fingers moved to massage Maura's scalp.

"Hmm." Maura sighed blissfully, turning into the touch. "Some of my favorite chocolates. A cute, mini-wine bottle. And I've found some eggs..."

"How many?"

"Nine, I think."

Jane finally opened her eyes looking down at Maura. Maura could barely breathe at the love and compassion and just a hint of mischief staring down at her. "Better get to work." Jane tutted. "You've got like twenty-one more to go."

"What?!" Maura squeaked.

Jane laughed heartily at Maura's outburst. She urged Maura further up her body so she could look into her eyes. She knew she didn't need to say the words, not in this moment. Because Maura knew. But, god, with Maura looking at her like that - so open and honest and endearing, she couldn't help herself. "I love you."

And Maura melted into her body then, her mouth dropping to Jane's in a soft, sleepy, gentle kiss. "I love you, too."