Disclaimer: All recognizable Rizzoli & Isles characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners including, but not limited to Tess Gerritsen. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this fanfiction story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No financial gain is associated with the publishing of this story. No copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Note: More of the fallout from "I'm Your Boogie Man" (1x08)… And introducing themes from "The Beast In Me" (1x09). Relying heavily on canon is essential for this story. I am indebted to Detective Marx who graciously offered input on how to proceed with this story. –dkc
To Get Me To You – Chapter Ten
The sudden movement of the bed is what woke Maura. She was beginning to orient herself when thrashing forced the mattress against her nightstand, sending her abandoned wine glass crashing to the floor.
Jane, she thought as her heart pounded. The detective shot up at the sound of the shattering glass and appeared terrified. She wasn't fully awake as she rummaged through the items on the bedside table next to her looking for what Maura assumed was her sidearm.
"Jane, it's okay," she whispered while gently touching her friend's shoulder. "It was a nightmare. I am right here."
The scared woman shuddered at the touch.
Not taking another moment to so much as turn on the lamp, Maura moved closer and hoped her proximity would help.
"There is nothing to be afraid of," she hummed.
Jane seemed to be calming though tears were now lightly gracing her cheeks. When she looked at Maura there was finally the acknowledgment of reality. Looking around she took in her surroundings as well as her safety.
"Was that glass breaking?" Jane's voice was raw.
"It was my wineglass. It's fine," Maura explained.
Jane hid her face in her hands.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled.
Putting her arm around Jane's trembling shoulders, Maura shook her head as if to say no apology was necessary and the glass was inconsequential.
"I hate this," the broken, raspy voice croaked, giving way to sobs.
"Oh, Jane," Maura nearly fell apart, too.
Placing another arm around her friend, the doctor did all she could to keep from sobbing alongside Jane as she held her body tight against her.
Unable to do anything until the sobs subsided, Maura's busy mind wandered. What was it Hemingway said about the night? That night was never the same as the day, day: that what happened in the darkness of night could never be understood in the light of day. She felt this way about Jane's nightmares. Her medical mind knew the science of it; she knew the pathos of PTSD. What she knew in the light of day never changed the emotional toll of these dark moments.
"Maur?" Jane's eyes were on the tears now marring the doctor's cheeks.
Rolling her eyes at her own tears, Maura reached to wipe them away, but was stopped by the detective 's firm grasp on her wrist. She looked at Jane as a palpable friction grew. Her raised eyebrow did the speaking for her and its response came via lips on hers. A fierce kiss ensued. The grasp of Maura's wrist released to allow strong hands to tangle in her loose light brown hair.
"Oh," the doctor gasped at the feeling of Jane's hands cupping her ass, all but guiding Maura into her lap.
Straddling her friend, Maura abandoned caution and allowed Jane to lead the way. She reveled in the feelings coursing through her. Her hands held to the firm jaw that was the very symbol of stoicism. Her thumbs grazed Jane's ears as she pressed her tongue further into the woman's mouth.
Maura Isles lost her ability to breathe when she felt two determined sets of fingers go to work on the top button of her silk pajama top. She was unashamed of the sudden closing of her thighs and obvious pertness of her nipples.
The scientist in her should have considered that what was happening might be a symptom of her best friend's undiagnosed PTSD. Her logical mind knew that Jane could simply need to feel anything but the fear and terror that woke her from sleep. But the woman in her, the human with human needs and desires, wanted this. She wanted Jane desperately. And she hoped that for Jane the desire was deeply rooted, not merely a distraction.
When the final button was undone, the two sides of her top fell open to reveal her breasts. Their kiss was broken so that the woman whose hands had done the work could see what she had exposed.
In the darkness, Maura could barely see how Jane's pupils dilated to engulf her irises. She could, however, make out the subtle movement of her friend's tongue, the tip darting out briefly.
"Jane."
Her voice was sultry, thick with arousal. Masked by the more obvious emotions, her fear wreaked havoc on her mind. What if Jane changed her mind? Her fears were tossed aside at the sensation of scarred yet gentle hands cupping her breasts. She should not have been surprised to find those hands so gentle.
Looking at one another once again, their eyes were locked in a silent conversation. Where one set said they could stop now, the other said they could go on. Reversing roles, dark brown orbs said they could go back to sleep and forget this had happened. Hazel eyes said there would be no forgetting the feeling of this moment.
The hands holding her breasts released causing Maura to assume Jane had decided against going further. She was mistaken. The detective gripped the bottom of her shirt and pulled it quickly over her head making a mess of raven curls. They had arrived at this place where both were bare-chested, without bras and exposed. The doctor shrugged off her open pajama top with a seemingly practiced wiggle of her shoulders. The slight movement drew Jane's eyes lower. The movement of perfectly proportioned and perky breasts mesmerized her.
"Oh," came Jane's gravelly moan.
Doctor's hands were skilled hands. Maura's were no exception. Fingers together, palms flat against Jane's breasts, she slid her hands up and down. Fingers parted with precision, trapping and teasing hardened nipples.
Jane was beyond aroused. She wove her hands in Maura's hair, bringing their mouths together once again. When the woman atop her dropped her hands, she was desperate to regain that touch. Something better came when the doctor arched her back. Their chests pressed together in a delicious manner, nipples finding needed pressure against skin and equally hard nipples. The detective's moan was stifled by their fierce kiss.
Her friend's hands firm on the fronts of her hipbones, Jane couldn't hide the involuntary thrust of her pelvis. Knowing the tilt had brought their cores dangerously close; she felt a rush of heat and wetness to her nether lips.
She was becoming terrified. Her movements became rigid, her eyes moist with new emotions.
"It's okay," she heard the words whispered near her ear, but was unable to hold off the tears.
The detective tried to maintain control. She clenched her teeth and refused to look at the concerned eyes on her. She dropped her hands to Maura's shoulders, tracing patterns understood only by her subconscious. Then the floodgates opened.
"Come here," Maura pulled her in close.
Jane could not believe her timing. The woman she had been pining after was half naked and straddling her, yet she stiffened and cried uncontrollably.
"God," Jane choked on the words. "I didn't mean for this—"
Maura stopped her with a gentle kiss before swinging her leg over and gesturing for Jane to lie down. Keeping her arms wrapped around Jane, she reached for the blanket and covered their bare upper bodies.
"It's going to be alright," she soothed. "I'm not going anywhere."
The outwardly tough detective felt more weak and fragile in this moment than she ever had, but she believed her best friend's words. She thanked God that Maura understood this for what it was rather than rejection. She thanked God for this beautiful, brilliant woman who would do anything for her without hesitation. She thanked God for this woman she loved. Yes, loved.
Jane's tears dried and her body surrendered. She was asleep against Maura's bare chest, in her tender embrace.
Maura sighed. The adrenaline of their middle of the night activity wore off slowing and exhaustion set in. She kept her arms tight around the woman she cared for more than anyone she had ever known. It was becoming rapidly clear to the medical examiner that she was either falling in love with her best friend or had fallen already.
oOo
They hadn't talked about the long night when daylight arrived far too early, as did a call from dispatch. Jane arrived on the scene in a terrible mood, but attempted to lighten up by teasing Maura about her brightly colored dress. It seemed ridiculous, joking about clothes at a crime scene where a man had been murdered with what appeared to be a dumbbell. Better to joke about Maura's close than the poor guy whose fate was decided in what must have been ridiculous circumstances.
"Frost, you stay here until the body is transported, I'll meet you and him back at the lab," Jane instructed in a gruff tone.
"See ya, Maur," she said to the M.E. before walking away.
The doctor's eyes followed Jane's path to the car before returning her attention to the body.
"Is she okay" Detective Frost asked.
"Jane? Yes," Maura chose not to elaborate.
"She seems a bit off is all," he shrugged his shoulders. "It's totally understandable, I mean. If it was me I'd have taken a day."
Maura thought about how crazy it would have made the detective to be at home, especially after her latest encounter with Hoyt.
"She needs time," the doctor said. "Time and uninterrupted sleep."
Frost chose not to comment on the sleep matter. He didn't have to wonder if Maura had intimate knowledge of Jane's sleep patterns.
"She's lucky to have you, Doc," he smiled as he walked over to the police tape and ducked under it.
I'm the lucky one, Maura thought.
oOo
Having dozed off reading, Maura was quite startled when her phone chimed. The clock on her nightstand read 2:46.
Suspect in booking, the text read.
She thought through what she knew of arrest procedure before responding.
Interrogation now? she asked.
It took a minute for the detective's response, enough time for Maura to put her book away and turn off the lamp.
Will proceed at 9. Should be easy. The dipshit had the matching dumbbell. Done for tonight. Going home.
The doctor couldn't help but feel disappointed that Jane was going to her own home to sleep.
Need clean clothes. Jane explained before Maura could reply.
Pack some to bring over next time.
Maura questioned if Jane would find this pushy. She was endlessly worried about forcing Jane into doing or feeling anything she wasn't ready for. Having clothes at Maura's house was relatively new.
Any other requests? she could almost hear the sarcasm in Jane's question despite the silence of her empty bedroom.
Oh, I have many. ;-)
The doctor smiled as she waited out the detective.
Teasing in the middle of the night? You, doctor, are on your game.
You have no idea, she flirted. You've only seen part of my game.
Maura wasn't usually good at innuendo. She was naturally a blunt person. However, she was successful in making them both think of her half naked the night before.
Sitting at her desk, Jane grinned. She didn't care if her partner noticed.
You're out of the office all day tomorrow, right? I'll miss you.
The doctor's grin, though physically miles away from BPD, matched her friend's.
I'll miss you, too.
Time to wrap up. Goodnight, Maur, Jane typed.
The detective's eyes caught those of Barry Frost. He offered a knowing smile and rolled his dark brown eyes when her phone chimed one last time.
Goodnight. x
It wouldn't be easy sleeping alone, but Jane would undoubtedly go to sleep with a smile on her face.
oOo
At the second consecutive crime scene, Detective Rizzoli arrived in a horrid mood. Though the M.E. hadn't seen her friend at all the day before, she knew the cause: Jane was either not sleeping or continued to be plagued with nightmares.
Jane once again attempted to adjust her mood by teasing the doctor about her heels. The thought of Maura attempting to run in her tight skirt and inappropriately high heels made her chuckle. The doctor was good for Jane in so many ways, especially when her mood was sour and she hadn't slept.
"An ice pick?" Jane scratched her head.
Lost in the possibilities that left their DOA in this predicament, Jane hadn't caught whatever Maura had said to her.
"Hmm?" Jane refocused.
Maura raised a sculpted eyebrow in concern.
"Have you had any sleep?" she asked softly as not to allow her staff and the surrounding patrolmen to hear.
The detective shrugged her shoulders as if it wasn't important.
"A couple hours," her answer was nonchalant.
Stepping closer to her friend and gently touching her forearm, the doctor quieted her voice even more as she looked into Jane's tired eyes.
"Come over tonight," she whispered.
Jane nodded. Something about lying in bed with Maura made getting through the day seem possible. She offered the doctor a small, grateful smile as she saw Frost waving her over.
"See you back at the station."
Neither woman knew if it was a question the doctor was posing nor did they know how those words would repeat in both their minds as the case played out. Both women would return to Maura's simple statement—a promise, really. Both women would use it as their driving force to be in each other's presence again.
To be continued…