11th December

"Maura?" Jane called out. Unsure where her friend had disappeared to. "Maura, where'd you go?"

Jo Friday's leash jingled in her hand as checked to make sure her dog was at her side. "See what happens when you run off, Jo." She sternly admonished her pet. Jo Friday just looked quizzically up at her owner. Unsure why she sounded so angry. Jane continued on, muttering under her breath. "You turn your back for just a minute and everything runs off. First my damn dog, then my… Maura."

Clearing the tree line that Jo had run into, Jane called out again as the playground came into view.

"Jane!" A breathless, but happy sounding Maura called out. "What are you yelling about? I'm right here."

Huffy, Jane stalked towards her best friend who was sat on the ground in the snow. "I couldn't find you." Jane shot an irritated glare her smiling friend.

"You clearly didn't look very hard. I'm not that far from where you left me."

The amused tone in her voice seemed to aggravate Jane even more. "I didn't leave you. Jo Friday decided to go walkies where she shouldn't. I could hardly leave her." The grumpy brunette paused in her grumbling for a moment. Finally registering that her best friend was sat on the ground. "And what on earth are you doing, sat in the snow like that?!"

Maura grinned. Pointing at an area of disturbed snow near the playground border, her happy voice filled Jane in. "Snow angels. I thought it might be fun to try and make one."

Jane shook her head in awe of the woman before her. Her sour mood instantly evaporating. "You never cease to amaze me."

"Thank you." And with that, Maura Isles, Chief medical examiner of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, flopped back in the snow and waved her arms and legs back and forth.

Jane was utterly enchanted.

She stood there just watching her beautiful sophisticated friend playing in the snow like a child. She really was in awe of the woman.

A minute later, red faced and excited, Maura jumped up, carefully clearing the area of snow she had just lain in. Turning to Jane, eyes wide and searching, she asked, "How does it look?"

Jane had to work hard to keep a straight face. Maura was looking at her with something akin to a need for approval. As if this was an important test she had to pass and everything hinged on Jane's assessment of her hard work.

Pretending to seriously study the snow angel at her feet for a good minute, Jane turned to her not quite patiently waiting friend. "It's great, but it's missing one thing."

Maura turned to look at the snow angel she'd made. Her head tilting to the left as she tried to figure out just what she hadn't done right.

Jane could practically see smoke coming out of her ears.

"I see nothing missing."

Jane just shook her head. A faux serious look on her face. "Here, hold this." Handing Jo's leash over, she stood to the right of the snow angel, turned around and flopped back into the snow. In a quick and efficient manner, Jane moved her arms and legs, then stood back up.

Hopping out of the flattened snow she nodded her head in approval. "There. Now it's perfect. Can't have a lonely angel. She needs her best friend at her side."

Maura looked absolutely smitten as she gazed the woman beside her.

Stepping forward, she crouched down in the snow and drew a M+J under the hand holding snow angels. Standing up, she pulled out her phone and snapped a picture, then looped her arm through Jane's. "I think I'm ready to go home."

Calling for Jo to follow, the two women walked arm in arm through the snow.