See Ch1 for disclaimers etc…

The two jumbotrons on either side of the stage rolled photos of the Fenway Clinic staff interspersed with the names of the event sponsors and major donors in the muted light. The Isles Foundation Charitable Trust flashed and caught Jane off guard. She had forgotten she was here escorting the face of an organization. She had expected to feel awkward and out of place at Maura's side but she didn't. She took a sip of wine and amended her thoughts. It wasn't awkward, but it was a little uncomfortable and it was for reasons she never anticipated.

Like right now when she caught herself staring at Maura unconsciously yet again.

She forced her attention back to her plate and pushed her salad around with her fork, occasionally spearing a small mouthful when Maura glanced at her. Why people wanted to eat dandelion greens mixed with goat cheese and cranberries was beyond her. The candied walnuts were okay. She picked up her wine glass and took a sip, letting her eyes scope out the table while Maura was deep in conversation with the funny looking little man in the bowtie. Her eyes rested on him for a moment. Maura seemed to know him well and had introduced her. Chester Barnsfeather, the new CEO of Fenway Clinic. She thought CEOs were supposed to be tall, stuffy men, not look like retired racehorse jockeys.

Next to Chester was his partner, Roger. He reminded Jane of her high school's drama teacher. She wasn't sure how she felt about the fact that Roger's shirt matched the purple polka dots in Chester's bowtie, but then again, Maura had changed her shoes because of her shirt. Of course Chester was married to Roger. She wasn't married to Maura. Jane pushed a halved cherry tomato around her plate watching it create a trail through the salad dressing considering the comparison. She took a deep breath. In their case it made sense because she was Maura's escort. Of course they needed to complement each other.

Or really, not just an escort now, she was Maura's date. She still wasn't clear how that had evolved or what was supposed to change for the rest of the night, but she'd figure it out. So far it seemed to entail that she focus on Maura, which was effortless, but it was making her notice little things. Like right now when Maura turned to her and seemed to study her carefully for a second before giving her a little smile and waiting until Jane smiled back before turning her attention back to Chester. Did Maura always check on her like that? Did she just not notice it?

Jane frowned, wondering if that was what was happening tonight. She and Maura looked like a couple, so everyone was acting like they were a couple and now she was over analyzing every little thing. She nodded slightly to herself. Everyone just needed to see them outside of tonight.

Jane glanced to her other side at Kat and Shannon, happy that neither of them was in her head. She looked across the table at Phyl and two glinting eyes were looking right at her while she said something to Roger that made him burst into laughter. She stabbed a tomato with force. She did not want to know what Phyl just said.

Watching Roger laughing hysterically next to Phyl, Jane was relatively sure that Roger had developed some sort of strange gay man crush on Phyl and seemed entirely enchanted. Maybe that was the trick with Phyl. You had to be a gay man to understand her.

Mayor Nemio on the other hand was a different story. She'd met him on several occasions in an official capacity. In particular she'd sat with him at the awards ceremony after the BPD shooting a few years ago. She could tell he was glancing at her every so often, trying to figure out where he knew her from. Jane sighed. Last thing she needed was him making that particular connection.

When the waiter started clearing the salad plates away, Jane noticed Phyl chatting animatedly with the Mayor and looking right at her again. Diversion. She needed to create a diversion. She grabbed her wine glass and drained it, nudging Maura as she leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Maura, Phyl is looking at me, you've got to help me out here."

The scent of Jane's perfume hit her at the same time warm breath caressed her ear. Maura flinched and swallowed. She slowly turned to look at Jane. "I'm sorry, what was that Jane?"

There was something in the way that Maura was looking at her that made Jane want reach out and cover one of Maura's hands with one of her own. She clasped them together in her lap, absently running her thumbs over the scar tissue along her palms. "Phyl is focusing on me and I need something to distract her before she opens her mouth and I'm drawing a blank."

Maura could catch the hint of the Chardonnay Jane had been drinking. She slipped a hand over Jane's fidgeting fingers, feeling them instantly settle as she leaned into Jane to catch Kat's attention. "Kat I was just remembered that you promised to tell me about how you and Shannon met at dinner."

Phyl perked right up and nodded. "I just loved this story, nothing like landing in an international fiasco to spark a great romance story."

Jane shifted slightly against the tight tingle in her chest. Maura hadn't moved since she leaned over to ask the question. Her hand still firmly covered Jane's own as she looked intently at Kat, amusement creasing the corners of her eyes. Jane loved when Maura looked like this, happy and content.

Kat blushed and looked at Shannon. "It wasn't an international fiasco so much as it was a small miscalculation on my part."

Shannon snorted. "Miscalculation, darling? Really that is the best you could come up with?" She pointed at Kat. "The first time I met this one was in a French prison. If we really want to get down to it, we can always say we were set up by her parents because they're the ones that hired me." She rolled her eyes at Kat. "The genius over here managed to sleep with the Liechtenstein ambassador's wife. Which, while not the best choice, wouldn't have been an international issue if the wife hadn't been the primary target of a French investigation in money laundering."

Kat knew she was bright red. She rubbed her hand over her forehead and could feel the heat. "I didn't even realize Liechtenstein was a real country. I thought she was trying to impress me."

Shannon shook her head. "Oh it's real and it's also known as a haven for international business that would rather not have to deal with even the Swiss banking laws." She smirked at Jane. "You're in law enforcement. You can just imagine what happened with all the clandestine, coded messages. The French thought Kat's claim to be raising funds for an international documentary on women and the AIDS epidemic was a cover to slip funds out of Liechtenstein's LTT Bank through the Ambassador's wife."

The redhead paused for a moment, taking a sip of wine for effect. "Now Mayor perhaps you can appreciate this from a political perspective. What happens when someone in a position of power gets offered a large sum of money from a suspect to, and I'm quoting, "grease things along"?"

Mayor Nemio looked at Kat. "Please tell me that you didn't?"

Kat buried her head in her hand. "Shan, I'm going to kill you later."

Thoroughly enjoying the moment, Shannon leaned back in her chair so the waiter could put down dinner. "Oh she did, so then on top of trying to work with authorities to clear her name I now had to deal with a bribery charge." She smiled at Kat. "I kept her out of jail, but the sum of the fine was something we still don't talk about."

Kat just growled something that made Shannon grin harder as she attacked her dinner.

Jane tried to cover up her laugh with a sip of wine but she couldn't even raise the glass part way before she was laughing hard enough that she had to set it back down. "Well I hope that woman was worth it because that was an expensive piece of…." She jumped when there was a pinch to the inside of her knee and bit back a curse. She glared at Maura but the other woman didn't acknowledge her.

Maura didn't even try to hide her amusement, leaning against Jane while she laughed, partially at Kat but more at the slightly scowling brunette at her side. "I think it sounds about right." She winked at Kat. "But how did you end up together? That had to be a conflict of interest." She couldn't help but let her thumb stroke the knee under her hand, trying to sooth Jane's irritation, swallowing another laugh when Jane tensed. She flicked her eyes over the set jaw and raised her eyebrows. She slowed her caress and Jane looked at her for just a second before whipping her face away, her cheeks flexing as she swallowed. Intrigued, Maura couldn't help but move closer, not caring about the impression she was making, waiting for the inevitable shift or sarcastic retort. When Jane didn't do anything other than relax after a heartbeat, Maura couldn't help but lose herself in quiet speculation.

Shannon caught the expression on Jane's face and nudged Kat's ankle under the table "It was a conflict. And I told blondie over here about 50 times a day that I was her lawyer, pretended that I had a lover at home and reminded her that kind of thinking might have had something to do with her situation." Shannon rubbed the back of Kat's neck. "Which exactly why once the investigation cleared I got on the first flight I could to back to Colorado."

Kat cut off a bite of asparagus. "You know what is great about my job? Editing work can be handled in a variety of locations. And that winter I developed an intense interest in skiing. Colorado is a great place to indulge a new found winter hobby. A little Irish hot cocoa, a roaring fire and a snowstorm helped me win my case."

"Good girl!" Phyl just raised her glass and toasted Kat. "It will make a great story for your grandchildren."

Kat shook her head. "Not possible. I'd have to have children first to end up with grandchildren."

Phyl nodded enthusiastically. "I know, but that is just a temporary problem. We talked all about it earlier when you were waiting downstairs. Shannon is going to have the cutest babies." She winked at Shannon.

Baffled, Kat stared at Phyl. "But I don't want children." She gestured between Shannon and herself. "We don't want children." The look Shannon was giving her was confusing. "Do we?"

Tilting her head, Shannon considered Kat. "Well it's not the first time I've thought about it. Look at it this way; it would give you someone to play with."

Kat kept looking between Shannon and Phyl. She briefly looked over to Maura, but Maura seemed occupied with watching Jane. Jane however seemed to be enjoying her confusion and was looking at Kat with a smug grin.

Phyl patted Roger's hand. "Roger dear, pass me the Chardonnay. I had better polish off that bottle. I think poor Kat has had enough. She seems confused." She watched Roger filling her glass. "A touch more, no sense in wasting space in the glass, I don't plan on leaving it in there long enough to need to breathe."

Jane tapped the hand on her knee. She was surprised when Maura didn't move, lost in whatever she was thinking. She rubbed Maura's forearm until she finally acknowledged her. "They served dinner."

With a quick survey of the table Maura realized that everyone was actively eating the main course. Discretely she pulled herself fully upright and removed her hand from Jane's knee, running her fingers along her palm, missing the touch. She flexed her hand a few times, letting out a level breath as she started picking at her food.

Roger and Chester asked Maura a question and despite the ready response, Jane could see the perfunctory way Maura was eating between moments of mechanical small talk. Grabbing the bottle of wine, Jane tipped the last into Maura's glass. "You look like you wouldn't mind a refill."

When Maura went to thank Jane she realized Phyl was staring at her and Kat was chuckling into her wine. Even Jane seemed to be watching her with inquiring eyes. She smiled brightly and stood up quickly. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to step out for a moment and see about some ordering some additional wine for the table."

Maura blew out a long breath as she walked towards the back of the room. She could feel Jane's eyes on her back and she pushed through the doors with a feeling of relief.

Watching Maura until the doors closed behind her, Jane turned back to her meal, recognizing Maura's need for a moment of space. Chewing she made a face. The chicken seemed tough and had distinct flavor she couldn't quite place. "Kat, is your chicken okay? Mine seems a bit off."

"Well that would make sense since this is duck, not chicken." Kat speared a bit of duck and cheerfully chewed as Jane's face contorted.

Swallowing the bite in her mouth, Jane realized her wine glass was empty and without a second thought grabbed Maura's wine and took a generous gulp. "You're telling me I'm eating Daffy Duck?"

"Not what I'm saying at all. I have no idea if the duck was named Daffy, it might have been a Donald." Kat cut another bite off. "Either way, tastes like chicken."

Baleful, Jane poked at her plate. "Maura usually warns me about this sort of thing."

Shannon smiled at Jane. "I have a feeling her attention was a bit distracted with whatever she was doing under the table earlier."

Jane felt her face flush. "It wasn't like that. She wasn't… I mean." She gave up and just took another long drink from the wine glass. There wasn't anything she could say right now.

Kat wiped her mouth and nudged Jane. "So tell me, do you two always share the same wine glass? It's very cute."

Shannon laughed and Kat joined in. Jane knew they were teasing, but still. She rolled her eyes at them but they only laughed harder. She quickly looked at the Mayor but he seemed invested in dinner. Phyl however was watching her with a giant smile. It was time for a strategic retreat. "I'm going to have to excuse myself for just a moment."

Resisting the urge to look back Jane followed the same route Maura had taken out of the room.

Maura quickly signed for the bottles of wine, adding a generous tip for the effort the hotel had made to go down into the wine stores and bring out the bottle of Chakalaka she favored with duck and turned back to her conversation with the Director of the New England Home for Little Wander's, Waltham House. "I am sorry I had to interrupt us but my table was out and I'd hate to return empty handed." Looking over the Director's shoulder she saw Jane exit the dining room and practically run towards the silent auction.

She tried to bring her focus back to the conversation. The woman in front of her was animatedly pitching her idea about collaborating with the Isles Foundation to create a work study program for LGBTQ youth. She forced herself to concentrate but her mind kept wandering. Wondering where Jane had escaped to. Why she had left. Judging by the speed Jane had been walking Maura could only imagine what had just happened at the table.

She made another apology to the other woman, interrupting her description of the program scope and turned back to bartender. "One last request, do you carry MGD 64?" The man hit a few keys on the computer, finding that the sports bar downstairs carried it. "Could I trouble you to call down for a bottle please? Perhaps you could stock a few directly here?"

Opening her clutch, Maura pulled out a business card and handed it over to the other woman. "I'm sorry, but I just saw my date head into the silent auction and I believe she is looking for me. Just contact the email address on that card and the foundation will make sure it gets to me." The woman thanked her as she left and for a moment Maura was by herself at the bar while she waited for the beer.

She hoped that Kat hadn't been too hard on Jane. Maura smiled as she thought of the blond, flashes of theatre camp, being goaded into learning lines while the rain poured down and a young girl's stolen kiss. At the time they'd laughed away the significance and Kat had jumped out of the gazebo in a flash, daring her to run through downpour. On hindsight it was a beautiful moment of innocence.

Looking again to where Jane disappeared, Maura couldn't help but wonder what that same moment might be like if Jane had been the one to steal the kiss as Romeo to her Juliet. The second that image hit her imagination she could feel her heart rate increase. Coming out of her brief fantasy she realized she was rubbing an index finger along her lower lip. Maura sighed. She didn't lie well and there was no point to lying to herself.

Jane was compelling, dynamic and when contained within the barriers of their friendship, the perfect companion. Nobody understood her quite like Jane.

However, facts were facts. Tonight that natural affinity she had for Jane was surprising her in its intensity. All the little gestures that were inherent to their friendship seemed amplified until she couldn't find a logical reason to explain them away. The longer she stood and thought, the more her joke to Alexander about a Le Smoking fantasy was starting to lose humor. The simple truth was that if Jane was to walk up to her right now and kiss her like Kat had done 20 years ago, Maura's response wouldn't be innocent at all.

Maura bit back a laugh when she tried to picture what Jane's face would be if she could get a replay of what was going through her mind right now. It was almost a shame that was impossible.

The hotel runner arrived with the bottle of MGD 64 and in that second Maura made up her mind. She snagged it off the waiter's tray, leaving the glass behind with a smile and tipped him extra to bring the wine to the table while she went to find Jane with a sense of purpose.

Because in the end there was one fact Maura knew they had agreed on for tonight. Jane Rizzoli was, for all intent and purpose, her date. And that was how she was going to enjoy the rest of the night.

Staring at herself momentarily in the bathroom mirror, Jane was again reminded how different she looked tonight. She wished the rest of their table could understand that 99% of the time Jane Rizzoli did not look like this. She was usually jeans, cotton shirts and sensible shoes. Not tailored Wolford suits, figure-8 updos and diamond necklaces.

Maybe then Shannon and Kat would stop teasing her and Phyl would realize that tonight was just a blip in her friendship with Maura. They did find each other attractive, Jane wasn't dense, she knew that, but that was just how they were. They flirted. They pushed each other's buttons. That didn't mean they had any interest in becoming lovers.

No matter what anybody said, the little gestures between them just showed they were close enough that Maura assumed Jane would take care of the little things like holding her purse. Romantic partners were also friends. Who was anybody to define what level of friendship crossed lines? It was just who they were.

Never mind the fact that If Maura Isles was interested in her, Jane was sure she'd know. She'd been around the other woman long enough to know that when Maura wanted to date someone she dated them. The problem with tonight was the entire situation was making her feel oddly upset that she wasn't dating Maura and that was just fucking strange.

Jane continued to study herself, trying to see what had changed beyond the hair and the clothes. 24 hours ago if somebody had told her she'd be actually disappointed that she wasn't dating her best female friend she would have laughed hysterically and depending who it was, likely hit them over the head.

Resolutely she pushed away from the sinks and away from the mirror. She needed to get back to the table and stop getting flustered. This wasn't anything she couldn't handle. Pushing open the bathroom door Jane looked over at the silent auction tables.

Tomorrow everything would be upright again. Tomorrow she was positive they'd get a good laugh over this for months.

But that didn't mean she couldn't have tonight. They agreed that they were each other's dates and that was how she was going to enjoy the rest of the night.

A/N – Sorry for the delay all… I was a bit distracted with Darkside but now that I've got my need to write angst ridden smut buried again I'm back to work here… I think there were a few reviews and I think a pm about a dance. I like it… it works… it will not be the next chapter but possibly the one after that. Now how to get dear Jane on a dance floor….my mind… it's churning.