Author Notes: Thank you for reading the last chapter, I'm really enjoying writing this one, and I'm glad some of you are enjoying it, too. It seems to be flowing freely at the moment, and I hope it will continue to do so on through to the end.


Maura stood against the wall by the door, watching the crowd of mourners share stories, and discuss the life of Angela Rizzoli. She clutched a glass of lemonade in her hand, it was her only distraction from the absurdity of the situation. She had contributed to the grief in the room, she was the reason Tommy sat in a chair still crying his eyes out about the loss of his mother. She was the reason Jane milled around the house with snacks and fresh drinks, her aunts' still passing judgment on her every move.

"Sorry I'm late traffic was horrendous, I'm glad I didn't miss the whole thing," someone said, approaching the aunts. She sat down beside them and glanced around the room. When her eyes landed on Maura, she lowered her voice.

"Who's that?"

"Frank won't tell us, but the way they're acting, I'd say she's Jane's girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" She rested a hand over her mouth. Maura stared ahead, ignoring them as best as she could. "Angela would be turning in her grave."

She placed her glass down on the shelf beside her and headed for the kitchen. She couldn't listen to their judgments any longer. Jane had vanished, only her father and a man she didn't recognise stood at the far side. They stared at her as she carried on through to the back door. She opened it and escaped the claustrophobic environment.

The yard was small, filled with potted plants and a swing set that had seen better days. A bike lay on its side at the far end, beside it, Frankie leaned against a wooden table, a rolled up piece of paper to his nose as he snorted up a white powder.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you," Maura said.

He turned, knocking a pot over, water seeped across the table, soaking up the last of the powder.

"You fuckin' idiot," he shouted, scooping at what was now a mush. He slammed his hand down on the table and glared at her.

"I'm sorry." She stepped forward. "But drugs don't help, not in the long term. What is it anyway? Meth? Cocaine?"

"You owe me twenty bucks."

"So it's meth."

"I said you owe me twenty bucks." He stepped toward her, his eyes burning with rage.

Maura stood her ground. She'd seen enough drugs through her father, and had dealt with the effects from the people who worked for him. She stared into Frankie's eyes, already large with the effects. She narrowed her eyes. She doubted he'd been off it all day.

"Are you addicted?"

"No."

"I bet it feels pretty great right now, you've got so much more energy than usual."

"You know nothin' about me," he shouted, his face inches from her own.

She stared him down. "But you will come down. There's a good chance you'll suffer from drug related illness, maybe eventually you'll become psychotic, maybe you'll suffer brain damage."

"You know fuck all, so fuck off," he screamed.

"You could suffer a stroke, your lungs or kidneys could fail, or you could die. Do you want to die?"

He stared back, his eyebrows pulled together, he gritted his teeth, his fist balled at his side. "Stop tryin' to scare me."

"I'm not trying to scare you. I'm presenting the facts."

"Fuck the facts." He inched closer. "Fuck you."

"You're just upset about your mother," Maura said. She stepped back but he grabbed her wrist.

"Don't talk about Ma. You know nothing about it."

She let him hold her wrist, knowing that eventually he would have to let go. "I know it hurts, to lose someone."

"Shut the fuck up," he shouted, gripping tighter. He grasped her other hand. "You're just a fucking dyke who knows nothin'. I bet all you need is a good fuck by a real man."

The rage in his eyes, the smirk on his lips, worried Maura. She thought she could at least talk some sense into him, even though she knew he'd already presented a sense of paranoia. It was stupid of her really, she knew that, now he was holding her there.

"A great, proper, fuck," he whispered, pulling her round until her back was to the table. She tried to push him off but his grip on her wrists was too tight. She could smell alcohol on his breath, and intense body odour. The table pressed into her back. He grinned, one hand reaching down to the zipper on his pants. His mouth moved across her cheek, wet lips trailed across her skin. She turned her face as far to the side as she could get. Her heart drummed faster. She tried to breath but fear stopped her momentarily.

"Get off me," she shouted, using every ounce of energy age had to hit him hard across the face. He stepped back, stunned, then moved toward her again.

"Get away, Frankie!"

Jane appeared out of nowhere and wrapped her arms around his chest, pulling him backward. She tossed him across the yard, he fell onto the floor a few feet away. Maura still leaned against the table, her eyes wide, her heart raced. Jane pulled her into her arms and Maura clung to her.

"I'm sorry," she said, stroking a hand down Maura's face. "Come back inside."

"I should just go," Maura said.

"Why? I need you here."

"What the hell is going on out," he stopped speaking, Frank Senior stood on the other side of the yard staring from his son on the floor, to Jane and Maura, arm in arm. Behind him, a small crowd of Jane's aunts gathered at the door. "What did you do to your brother?"

"How about what did he do to Maura?" Jane asked, loosening the embrace.

"He's grieving, it's not his fault," Frank said, stalking across the lawn and helping Frankie to his feet. He rested a hand on the back of his neck. Frankie shrugged it off. "He's just a kid."

"A kid who attacked my girlfriend."

"Your girlfriend." Frank shook his head. "You're talking crap again, Jane."

"No, I'm not."

Maura stepped away, but Jane pulled her back. She wrapped an arm around Maura's waist and leaned in, brushing her lips softly against Maura's before deepening the kiss. Her hands trailed across Maura's body. If they hadn't been in full view of half her family, Maura would have responded, desperate to feel her close. Eventually, she pulled away, her eyes on the ladies gasping by the door.

Jane smiled at them, at her father. "She's my girlfriend, and I love her. You don't have to like it, but it is what it is."

"Then get out," he screamed, holding up his hand. "You get out of this house, disrespecting your mother's memory. She would be so angry."

"She loved me," Jane said, stepping toward her father. She stood inches from his face. "Ma loved me no matter what, she was happy for me. If you can't see that she didn't care if I was gay, then I don't wanna live here anyway."

She turned, reached for Maura's hand and together they walked out the side gate.

x

They pulled up outside a small townhouse in a quiet neighbourhood on the other side of Boston. Jane glanced out the window at the street, much cleaner and tidier than her own. She thrummed her fingers across her knee.

"Where are we?"

"This is where I live," Maura said. "When I'm not in school."

"Oh." Jane took another look. Maura rarely talked about her family, unlike Jane, who had shared almost everything about hers with Maura. "It's nice."

Maura shrugged. "It's nothing special, but it's home."

She opened her door and climbed out. Jane followed her lead. She hovered by the car until Maura reached a hand out, she linked her fingers with Maura's and they walked together up to the front door. Inside, a woman, who looked like an older version of Maura, greeted them with a smile. Jane let go of her hand.

"Two visits in one week, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Hope asked, kissing Maura on the cheek.

"This is Jane, my girlfriend," she said, clasping her hand again. "Jane, this is my mother, Hope."

"It's lovely to meet you. You have a nice home."

Hope tilted her head from one side to the other, her smile never faltered. She stepped forward and enveloped Jane, pulling her tightly into her arms. "It's wonderful to meet you, you make Maura so happy. I was very sorry to hear about your mother."

Taken aback, Jane barely moved in her arms, allowing Hope to guide the embrace until she eventually pulled away. Jane forged a smile, though she felt the sting of tears on the edge of her eyelids. The day had taken its toll and Jane hadn't allowed herself to shed a tear. Hope's friendliness, and interest, pushed her past her ability to cope.

"I'm sorry," Jane said, turning around and walking back out the front door.

She stood on the doorstep, staring out at the quiet street. A dog ran down the sidewalk, followed by a small boy, and an older girl behind them both. Her heart ached as she thought of her own family. She missed Tommy, and knew he'd be missing her too when it came to bedtime. She wiped the backs of her hands across her face.

"Was that too much?" Maura asked, resting a hand on her shoulder as she joined her on the doorstep.

Jane sighed. "Today's been hard."

"I hope I didn't make it worse."

"No." She turned to face her. She brushed her lips with her own. She wiped again at her cheeks. "You've made it easier. I don't know how I'd have got through it without you."

"It's what I'm here for," Maura said, cupping her cheek and brushing fresh tears aside. Maura kissed her other cheek, stopping them in their tracks. "You're welcome to stay here tonight, if that would help."

"Is it okay with your mom?"

"She's fine with it."

Jane nodded. She wrapped her arms around her, clinging to her. She stepped back and rested a hand over her mouth, as a yawn took over.

"You look tired."

"I haven't been sleeping well."

"Why don't we go to my room? You don't have to sleep, but maybe you can get some rest."

x

Lying down beside Jane, Maura wrapped her arms around her. She nuzzled her nose against her neck and listened to the gentle sound of her every breath. Jane turned in her arms, until her face was inches from Maura's.

"This is why I love you," Jane said, stroking her palm across her cheek. "You've been there for me, you've made the worst week of my life a little easier."

"It's what I'm here for," Maura said.

Jane lifted her leg up, sliding her ankle across Maura's lower leg, trailing her toes across her skin. She drew circles over her face, following the contours of her skin. Maura smiled, cherishing the moment of intimacy. She moved her fingers along Jane's thigh, running her fingernails over the fabric of her slacks.

"How much privacy do you get?" Jane asked, nibbling her earlobe.

"We've got a couple hours before my stepdad gets home and dinners ready." She tangled her fingers up around Jane's hair. "Nobody's going to bother us til then."

"Good."

Capturing her lips, Jane rolled herself on top of Maura, sliding her body up and across her. She slid her leg back over her leg, her foot moving back and forth across bare skin. Maura held her head close, deepening the kiss with every movement of her lips. Jane's hands moved across her thighs, skirting under the edge of her dress, pushing the fabric up and around Maura's hips. She reached up and around herself, tugging at the zipper, which Jane pulled the rest of the way down. Maura moaned against her neck, nibbling her skin. She fought the button and zipper on Jane's pants, her breath caught in her throat as Jane's hands slipped into the band of her panties. She bucked her hips up to meet her touch, pushing her panties down her legs and kicking them away. She sat up, making it easier to pull Jane's pants away. She leaned back down, nibbling and kissing Jane's body through the fabric of her shirt. She pushed her fingers under the band of Jane's underwear and moved forwards, pushing them closer together with every touch.