Disclaimer - These characters are not my own. I am truly thankful to Janet Tamaro & Tess Gerritsen for creating such wonderful, rich characters with whom I hope to have many more good times! Please feel free to leave comments, suggestions, critique in a respectable manner - I welcome it!

Chapter Two

Det. Jane Rizzoli's heart thundered in her chest as she came to a grinding halt, a drop of sweat falling from her brow. Hunching over, leaning upon her knees, she inhaled deep lungfuls of air as she peered at the path she'd just sprinted; all uphill. Still, she could not shake the image of Maura Isles from her mind and she grunted, forcing herself to continue on. Jane would run until one of two things happened. Either her legs gave way, or Maura's beautiful face stopped haunting her every waking thought.

In actual fact, neither of these events occurred. Jane surrendered at the second clap of thunder and the increased strength of the downpour that had begun. Soaked to the bone and with a stitch forming in her side, the one that had not been shot through, she limped back towards her neighborhood.

"Aw, Joe! Don't look at me like that!" Jane whined as she fell through the front door, the Cairn Terrier resting her chin on her front paws, looking forlornly up at her mistress as Jane kicked off sodden sneakers and yanked her tousled locks from the haphazard ponytail. Peeling off the damp Boston Police Dept. t-shirt she wore, Jane tossed it in the general direction of the laundry hamper as she hopped on one foot, removing the men's shorts, then the lycra ones she wore beneath those.

Standing beneath the hot spray, Jane let her head tilt back. Feeling the sweat and sediment wash away, she scrubbed at her body with the honeydew-scented body wash Maura had... Jane groaned. For all of two minutes, she had kept all thought of the Medical Examiner at bay. Grunting, she shut the water off and stepped out of the cubicle, hair dripping. Wearing nothing but a towel about her midsection, Jane made a dash for the bedroom and glanced over at Joe Friday, who had moved from her spot near the window to the spot she'd claimed on Jane's bed.

"D'ya mind?" Jane asked indignantly and the pooch covered her snout with one paw, diverting her gaze as Jane gave a satisfied smug. Toweling off, she drew on a pair of comfortable flannel pajama pants, tartan striped ones followed by a grey tank before padding barefoot to the kitchen. Retrieving a bottle of Miller General Draft 64, 'her' beer, she carried it through to the living area, flopping down upon the sofa with a guttural grunt. Taking a long pull, she held the bottle by its neck and watched the beads of condensation trickle down the glass. Joe Friday's claws clipped across the wooden floorboards and a moment later, the small hound clambered her way onto the sofa, looking at Jane forlornly.

"C'mon, tell me about it." Jane said, patting her lap and allowing the scraggly creature to crawl into it. Stroking Joe's soft fur, Jane finished the beer and balanced the bottle precariously on the arm of the sofa, watching the beads of water soak into the material. Jane's head fell back as she stifled a yawn, seeing Maura every time she closed her eyes. At first, Jane tried to resist, staring wide-eyed at the television screen. Then, slowly, she began to surrender.

When the cell phone sounded, seemingly louder than usual in the silence of her apartment, Jane leapt out of her skin, cursing as the beer bottle crashed onto the floorboards. Scooping Joe under one arm, the brunette danced about trying to avoid the shards of glass, snatching the mobile off the counter.

"Rizzoli!" Jane snapped.

"It's Korsak. We've got a body, corner of Berkeley and Beacon, just behind the laundromat."

"The one Mr. Wang runs?"

"That's the one. Jane... it's pretty gruesome."

"How gruesome, Korsak?"

"You'll see when you get here. Dr. Isles is on her way."

At the mere mention of Maura's name, and in spite of the homicide she was being called to, Jane could not help but give a shiver of anticipation as she ended the call and dropped the cellular telephone back upon the counter. Carrying Joe to the bedroom, she dropped the dog and made quick work of sweeping the shards of glass up. Changing out of her pajamas and into the same pant suit combo she'd worn earlier that day, Jane pulled back her still-damp locks. Twisting the unruly curls into a make-shift bun, she left her apartment barely five minutes after the call from Korsak had come through.

"Rizzoli, Homicide, Victor-2-8-5." She declared herself to the uniformed policeman standing just within the police tape, breezing past him as she spied Korsak and Frost, the latter of whom looked decidedly green. "What've we got?" She asked, strictly business, with a dip of her head in Frost's direction before glancing to Vince Korsak.

"Caucasian, female. Took a beating." Korsak spoke in a low, respectful tone as Jane withdrew standard issue blue latex gloves from the pocket of her jacket and snapped them on. Linking her fingers together, she followed her former partner, her current one on her flank, towards the alleyway.

Dr. Maura Isles knelt over the body, treacle hair pulled back from her face and a charcoal trench coat covering her body. Given the late hour, it always amazed Jane how Maura could look so completely impeccable. Despite the severity of the situation, Jane could not help but wonder what Maura wore beneath that trench coat and offered a short smile to her friend as she approached.

It was not unusual for Jane to have thoughts other than the case at hand, as did the others around her. Jane had overheard conversations that seemed entirely out of place at the scene of a crime, had even participated in them herself and knew if the general public overheard, they'd be outraged. It was simply a fact of life, however. Certainly, Jane Doe had met with an untimely demise. This did not mean that Police Officer Peterson's daughter had had her first date or that Detective Frost didn't have a dentist appointment he was fearing. Life, they all knew, went on; it simply had to.

Still, thoughts of Maura were not at all appropriate and the Detective did her level best to regard her friend impassively.

"What can you tell me so far?" Jane asked, although she knew it would be a fruitless question, as did Maura. Glancing up, Isles offered a grim expression.

"Female. I can tell you that for certain." Recalling how Jane had tricked her once before into 'guessing' the gender of a recently deceased, Maura had decided to try to loosen up, just a notch, when her friend and colleague asked for details.

"Cause of death?"

"Jane..."

"C'mon!"

"I won't know until I get her on the table." Maura reprimanded.

"Alright, alright. That's not a defensive wound then?" Jane asked, pointing to the scratches on the girl's forearm as she quirked an eyebrow.

If Maura knew what Jane was attempting, she did not let on. Instead, the M.E looked to the girl, then back to Jane. Looking to the girl once more, she drew in a short breath.

"One might say those are defensive wounds."

"Oh, might one?"

"Yes."

"Fantastic. We've got defensive wounds, maybe we'll get DNA."

"It doesn't always work like that." Maura's warning fell on deaf ears as Jane turned to talk with Korsak. Tsking, Maura returned her complete attention to the young woman's body, taking down several notes upon her clipboard.

The process of removing the body from the scene was a lengthy one, one that Maura oversaw up unto a point. The moment the body was zipped into the large, black bag and placed into the back of the wagon, Maura's presence was not strictly necessary. Crime scene technicians would retrieve anything they deemed pertinent to the case, freeing Maura to begin an immediate autopsy. And, leaving Korsak and Frost to question the two witnesses; one a homeless man, the other a nosy woman who lived in the nearby apartment building, Jane rode to Boston PD in solitude.

Knowing Maura would have only just arrived shortly before she had, Jane took her time in starting a new case file, turning her attention to brewing a fresh pot of coffee and generally loitering around her office before finally heading for the elevator. Riding to the basement, she stepped out into the foyer of the most advance morgue in the greater Massachusetts area. Stunted heels clicked over the cement flooring as she breezed through the swinging double doors.

Maura Isles stood directly across from Jane, her form now covered by the black scrubs she favored, matching black latex gloves covering both hands. A tendril of golden brown hair had fallen from its shaggy ponytail, hanging forward and Jane fought off the urge to brush it back behind Maura's ear as she offered a smile to the Medical Examiner.

"The victim was eighteen weeks pregnant." Maura's tone was severe, conveying both her professionalism and her deep-seeded caring for the woman on her table.

"Oh, Mar..." Jane trailed off, furrowing her brows. "Are you sure?"

"I don't guess, Jane." Maura's reply was terse and she closed her eyes in silent apology. Giving a dismissive nod, Jane moved around the empty stainless steel table, bridging the distance between them ever so slightly.

"Extensive lacerations to the facial region, compound fractures to the fifth and sixth rib. Several molars are absent."

"Absent?" Jane echoed.

"No longer in her mouth."

"Oh. And would you care to hazard a... no, you wouldn't." Jane corrected herself, seeing the disapproving look glimmer across Maura's gaze. Clearing her throat, she rocked back on her heels. After making a note, Maura set her clipboard aside then gave Jane a once-over.

"I'll give you my findings as soon as I have them, Jane."

Maura's polite words were code for 'You're hovering, please stop' and the Detective gave Maura a sheepish grin.

"I'll go bring you some coffee, maybe a bagel?"

"I would like that, thank-you." Maura replied, offering a dazzling smile before picking up the clipboard once again. Jane gave a thumbs-up before retreating from the area, although she could not help but cast a glance back at Maura who was already immersed entirely in the task at hand the minute Jane had departed. The way Maura's eyes narrowed as she studied the body before her, paying absolute attention to every detail, the way she saw something, went to make a note and then stopped to double check what she'd seen, every expression that danced across the woman's symmetrical face only served to endear her more to the Detective. The elevator doors were sliding shut before Jane even realized it had arrived and she shoved her body between the large doors.

Uttering a deep sigh, Jane threw herself against the cold steel walls of the elevator, closing her eyes and inhaling. Holding her breath, she then slowly exhaled. These feelings she had for Maura, they were beginning to spiral out of her control. And that was one thing Jane Rizzoli did not want; to be out of control. But, she reasoned with herself, how did one control love? The thought surprised Jane, but in the privacy of the elevator, she dismissed the shocked expression she felt her features twist into.

Yes. Jane Rizzoli. She loved Maura Isles.

Now, all she had to do was figure out what exactly she was going to do about this feeling.