Author's Note: Thank you very much for all your reviews and lovely words about me, it means a lot. It really does.

Chapter Ten – Lunch III

Jane looked at her cell phone for a couple of seconds before looking at Maura. She frowned. Maura was peacefully reading some science magazine while sipping on her organic Christmas tea as if she didn't give a damn about what had just happened. Yet what had just happened was anything but normal. Jane didn't believe in coincidences. Even less when said coincidences were linked one way or another to Maura.

"How... How did you know they were gonna call me?! This is my day off. I'm not supposed to work today. How did you know? Did they call you? Did..."

It didn't make sense at all.

Maura didn't even bother looking at Jane. To be honest, she was kind of glad that Jane was about to leave because she had a lot to prepare for the evening. Of course she still had to deal with her mother who would show up to the Beacon Hill house within a few minutes now. But all in all, Maura was confident. Everything would go smoothly. She was in control.

In control of absolutely and literally everything.

She could do it.

"Call it instinct."

"I thought you didn't trust your instinct."

But Jane didn't have much time to lose. She had to leave immediately, even more now that the roads were snowy and icy. It would take her longer to reach the BPD. The traffic would be horrible. She knew it. Just as she knew that she did not have much of a choice.

So she went for her coat and missed how Maura rolled her eyes at her remark. Then she mumbled apologies before saying goodbye.

Maura put the magazine down on the coffee table the moment Jane left and closed the door. She stood up, smiled at Jo Friday who was obviously enjoying a cozy moment by the fireplace and walked to her desk. She turned her iPad on and made some research.

A knock on the door almost immediately interrumpted her.

"It's open!"

The silence that followed highlighted the surprise caused by Maura's words but Constance Isles nonetheless ended up walking in. Yet she stopped there, just by the door. With a look of confusion on her face.

"Were you expecting me? You shouldn't yell at anyone who knocks at the door to come in, Maura. We're in Boston. In a city. Who knows who could come in?"

Maura shrugged very matter-of-factly.

"Should I be worried about you coming in though? Not really." Maura cast a glance at her living-room. She sighed then talked again to her mother who was still looking at her with great perplexity. "I don't know if we should stay here or go out... I... Well..."

And then it hit Maura. She had self-confident but absolutely no plan whatsoever. She had no idea how to win against this odd trick of the passing of time. She had no idea why it was happening, how it worked. The only thing she knew was that she had to find a way to let Jane know about all these feelings she had for her. And maybe she also had to find a way to prevent Jane from meeting that mysterious man who kept on ruining Maura's plans. Maybe. Probably.

But where to start in order to achieve all this?

"Have you ever watched Groundhog Day?"

Constance looked at her daughter as if she had just lost her mind. She shook her head and finally made a few steps into the living-room. She seemed distraught but then Maura was being strange. A bit off as if she had been knocked out by some force.

"I don't know much about animals, I'm afraid. Though we do have the National Geographic Channel, I guess..."

Maura held back a laugh. It was clear where her lack of popular culture knowledge came from. Yet she didn't say anything mean. It wouldn't have been fair. After all, she still ignored to the existence of that movie two days earlier herself.

Or at least it was a two-day-earlier scheme of some sort.

"But you don't want to watch it, do you? You want to go out with me. You want me to pick a restaurant and maybe a nice little coffee after a walk through Boston Common. You want to bond, to have one of these mother-daughter moments that we've never really had. And then I'd tell you all about my life. It's what you want, don't you?"

"Maura, are you alright?"

Maura shrugged. That was the most honest answer she could give her mother right now. She had no idea how she felt. She kept on going from being self-confident to feeling lost and hopeless.

But then there was Jane. She had to focus on Jane. Jane was her goal.

"We could order lunch and share it here. I mean... This house... I like this house. It's my house. I feel fine here. And safe. So why going out?"

"... Okay. It's all fine to me, Maura."

Clearly it wasn't all fine but Constance looked worried and she didn't want to upset Maura. So she took her coat off, hung it by the door and walked back into the living-room before standing still by the couch. She looked lost.

"Good. Besides... Hmm... There's something I'd like to talk to you about."

Maura didn't want to go out. She wanted to stay in in order to set up her plan. And perhaps her mother would help, in her own way. Perhaps she would come up with other advices as well. It all depended on how Maura worded the situation after all. Everything was possible. Absolutely everything.

And then when Jane came back, they would talk. Openly. Freely. And Maura would give her the ring.

There had to be a way. Somewhere, somehow. Maura couldn't remain stuck on Christmas Eve for the rest of her life. Would she even age if that ever happened? Would she ever go back to work? She didn't want to stay trapped in that incomprehensible scheme. She had to find a way out of it. Or else she would end up crazy.

And maybe instead of seeing people as obstacles, she needed to start seeing them as allies.