The girls do lunch
Anastasia's viewpoint
Natalie was working through some paperwork when I dropped in to see her. She always looks nice, but I did like the look of her in a suit, today it was a tightly tailored pinstripe and heels.
Mind you the suit I like her best in is her birthday suit, but that might be a little inappropriate for work, it does make for some very nice mental images though, 'specially while doing boring paperwork.
I told her that Maura and I had been chatting and decided we'd all do lunch while discussing places we might want to go sightseeing. She happily agreed, marking the time as out of office on her schedule.
Come 12.30 I stepped out of the lifts to see Maura and Nat standing together. They both looked lovely, striking features, graceful poise, shining blonde hair and personalities that drew people to them. If Maura was anything like Nat I could easily see why Jane had fallen for her. Walking up I smiled at them both, before leaning in for a quick kiss from Nat. Maura smiled at us before nodding towards the lift.
"Good timing, here comes Jane now" I turned to greet Jane as she strode up to us, smiling at Maura.
"Sorry I was late; I had to wrap something up. Let's get lunch, I'm starving" Falling into step besides Maura, Jane directed us towards a group of shops on the next block.
"The guys in the squad said that the food down here's not too bad, so we can check them out"
Several minutes brisk walk found us looking into several café's, before heading into one that looked bright and cheery. Sitting down to order we started to look over the menus when Jane smiled widely, dropping hers on the table.
"Hot damn, burgers" I watched as a look passed between Maura and Jane, as one of Maura's eyebrows rose, bringing a small smile to my face. A thought crossed my mind and I leaned in to see what Nat was concentrating on. As I guessed she'd skipped right past anything healthy and had gone straight to cholesterol, fries in fact.
"Nat…" She looked up at me, a trifle guiltily.
"What? I hadn't ordered anything yet" I smiled gently at her.
"And what exactly are you looking at ordering?" She looked down at the menu, flipping it over to look at the salads section.
"I don't know, something nice" We exchanged a look, before I turned back to Maura and Jane, to find them both watching us, making me smile slightly.
"Anyway, what are you eating?" I turned back to Natalie and indicated a Caesar salad on the menu, which she peered at. "Ok, at least you're eating"
Turning to our lunch partners Natalie explained.
"When Ana gets busy she tends to skip meals, which isn't a good thing, so I'm just happy to make sure she eats well"
Maura nodded in agreement, before glancing at Jane out of the corner of her eye.
"When Jane's busy with a case she either skips meals or eats particularly unhealthy meals" I could see Jane sit up as if she'd been poked.
"Hey, what's wrong with bread, beef, salad and vegetables?" Maura just smiled.
"Nothing darling, except in the case of a burger, in which case it's full of oil, grease, trans-fats, cholesterol, salt and who knows what else and that's without the fries you insist on having with it. You really should consider the grilled fish and salad, it's much healthier"
Looking down to hide a smile, I looked across at Natalie.
"So have you worked out what you're having Nat?"
"I don't know; something…" I gently tapped the Thai chicken salad further down the list.
"That would be a bit better for you, at least until you find a regular gym"
I looked up to see Jane and Maura both trying to hide smiles. Nat also saw them and sighed.
"Ana here hassles me about what I eat, she thinks I don't eat as well as I should" She shrugged. "She's probably right, especially as I haven't found a gym yet to work off any extra pounds" Jane frowned.
"What about the LAPD gym, I got told it's free for all employees?"
"I'm not really comfortable with that idea, I don't like working out surrounded by people I work with. I have enough issues dealing with how they see me without them staring at me all hot and sweaty in Lycra" Both nodded in agreement at that.
The waitress wandered over and we ordered, Maura and I both had the Caesar while Natalie went with a grilled eggplant salad, Jane ordered the fish, after some good natured grumbling. A carafe of chilled water was placed on the table, together with four glasses and I filled drinks for everyone as Nat chatted to the others.
"So you've only just got here too?" Maura nodded.
"We're here for six months on secondment from Boston PD, I had the chance for a professional development secondment and Jane was able to come too" I nodded.
"What's it like in Major Crimes, compared to back in Boston?"
"Busy, we had a smaller team and nothing like Major Crimes, I was in homicide, here it's a lot broader range of crimes investigated, although many include a homicide component" Nat nodded.
"They certainly get their share of high profile crimes but Major Crimes has quite a reputation for closure rate"
"Yeah, I hope to learn a lot while I'm here" Natalie cocked her head at Jane.
"Are you enjoying Major Crimes?"
"Yeah well, mostly. It sucks being the low man on the totem pole. It's a senior team, lots of experienced people, which means everyone's either a sergeant or a lieutenant. Only Sanchez and I are detectives. I hate being the junior newbie"
"Everyone has to start somewhere" Jane frowned.
"I did that back in Boston" Maura leaned in, changing the subject.
"I understand you have only just arrived here yourselves?" I glanced at Nat and she answered.
"Yes, we were both working in Seattle, same jobs as here. Ana was asked to take up the job here, and I started looking for a job. Fortunately the LAPD media role was being advertised and I applied. I'd also applied to several state and federal agencies, plus two of the local news channels, but I was happy to be able to work with Ana again" I felt her hand on my thigh under the table and placed mine on hers, as she twined her fingers with mine. Maura nodded.
"It's nice to work with your partner" Jane and Maura exchanged a look and smiled back at us, as I noticed they each had a hand under the table, I bet they were holding hands as well. Natalie smiled at me.
"Yes it is. I'm so glad we ended up here. It's a promotion for Ana and a big step up for me as well. I mean we're doing the same jobs, but the LAPD is a lot bigger than the Seattle PD, so the pays a lot better for me and it's a lot more prestigious role for Ana, even if the pay rise isn't as big as mine" I jumped in.
"It had better pay better, the cost of living here in LA is a lot more expensive than Seattle" Maura nodded.
"We're renting and it's a nice place up in Westwood, but the monthly rent is a lot more than I initially expected here" Natalie looked up from the coffee section of the menu to agree.
"We have a two bedroom apartment over near the Miracle Mile, it's pricey but it's reasonably close to work, which is a good thing, because I'm starting to realise I'm likely to get a lot more call outs than I first imagined" Jane shook her head.
"Yeah, that's gonna suck after a while" Natalie and I shared a look.
"We know, but we both agreed that it's worth it, it's a good career move and it's a good learning experience. Isn't that why you guys came?" Jane nodded, looking at Maura.
"Initially it was a secondment for Maura, but when I found out I was going to Major Crimes, well as you said, they have a really good rep" Maura leaned forward.
"It also gave us a chance to spend some time together in a new location" I noticed Jane's eyes widen slightly as Maura spoke. "We haven't been together all that long and there was certain expectations that people had back in Boston" I was going to let it slide but Nat leaned forward and asked the question.
"What sort of expectations? People at work, or family and friends" Maura looked thoughtful.
"A bit of both really. Not everyone was as supportive as they might have been, so this secondment was a wonderful chance to spend time together away from the scrutiny and pressures" Nat nodded.
"Completely understand guys. We've had a few issues as well, mostly at work. Nothing we couldn't handle, but it's still something we shouldn't be having to deal with, it's the 21st century for god's sake. Hopefully LA will be a little less judgemental"
I decided to change the subject, as I was picking up a weird vibe from Jane, as if she wasn't comfortable talking about personal issues with people she didn't really know well. I'm a little like that as well, even if Natalie isn't, so I understood her discomfort.
"I understand you guys went to Disneyland? How was it?" Jane smiled, either at the memory or at the change in subject.
"Fantastic, I'd always wanted to go, since I was a kid, we had a really good time" Maura smiled.
"It's really quite fascinating; the animatronics they use are quite amazing, in particular the Pirate's area and the Haunted Mansion were quite intricate. Disney has some of the world's best animatronics experts working on their attractions" Jane smiled, wrapping her arm around Maura and giving her a quick hug.
"You'll have to forgive Maura, everyone else goes there to get scared by the ghosts, Maura has to analyse how they work" Natalie laughed happily, glancing at me out of the corner of her eye, I knew exactly what she was going to say.
"Don't feel bad Maura, Ana here was too busy trying to work out how it worked to enjoy it, we ended up doing it twice, to satisfy her curiosity" Jane just lifted an eyebrow at me.
"Really? I mean really Ana? Maura I can understand, Dr Google here sees the world as a science puzzle, but you went to Disneyland to work out how it works?" I shrugged, feeling my cheeks warm up.
"I like to know, no biggie. You're a detective; you must want to figure things out too"
"Nope, not Disneyland, some things are there to be enjoyed, not explained"
We were interrupted by the arrival of our lunches, which turned out to be quite good.
Natalie paused over her eggplant, looking across the table.
"So you guys are looking at some more tourist stuff, what's your preference?" Maura finished a mouthful of salad and looked up.
"A studio tour would be on the list, as well as the Hollywood walk of Fame, plus I would like to see Grauman's Chinese Theatre" I interrupted Maura with an apologetic look.
"Grauman's? I thought it was Mann's Chinese Theatre?" She smiled.
"It was originally and then it became Mann's after they bought the theatre after Mr Grauman died. I think it went back to the original name a few years ago" Natalie just looked at her with an appraising look on her face. Noticing her scrutiny Maura looked at her with a question on her face. Natalie narrowed her eyes at Maura.
"I SO want you for any trivia team I'm in" Jane laughed.
"Maura was our secret weapon at our local pub's monthly trivia nights back in Boston. She's amazing" I smiled.
"Yeah, we used to be part of a trivia comp back in Seattle, we did pretty well" Natalie laughed.
"We did better than well, but we have to get a team going here, I want to see Maura in action" The subject of our discussion blushed at the attention.
"While I'm good on some things, I'm not really that good at sport, or pop culture or lots of other things" Jane grinned.
"Don't let her modesty fool you, back in Boston the rest of us were there to make up numbers and drink the winnings, Maura did all the work"
"Jane, that's not true and you know it. You'll have to forgive Jane, she tends to be a bit melodramatic" Jane rolled her eyes, spreading her arms wide, playing the ham.
"Me! Melodramatic? I'm shocked, shocked I tell you, to even contemplate you thinking of me like that Maura"
Maura just rolled her eyes and slapped Jane's arm gently.
"As I was saying, there are plenty of other attractions, not all of them are the usual. I would quite like to visit Griffith Park, it's over 4,000 acres of nature reserve and attractions and I really would like to see the Griffith Planetarium and the Los Angeles Zoo" I nodded.
"We're up for some outdoor stuff; we used to hike up in Seattle. We also wanted to see Madame Tussaud's, we saw the one in London, but this one specialises in actors and celebrities" Jane nodded at the idea.
"I could handle the waxworks, it'd be cool" Natalie grinned.
"That sounds like a plan; we could do that in the morning and something else in the afternoon, if you're ok with that, or maybe some shopping" Maura's answering smile was bright and lovely.
"I love shopping, do you have anything in particular you need to shop for, clothes, shoes, anything special" I looked up to find see Jane looking at me raising her eyebrows. We exchanged a look I could only describe as 'long suffering' as Natalie and Maura started talking labels.
I looked back at them as names like Jimmy Choo, Galliano, Louboutin, Armani, Alexander McQueen, Versace, Vera Wang and more flew back and forth, before turning to look at Jane again.
"I think we need a few alternatives for us Jane, they go shopping and we go do something else" Jane looked over at the girls then back to me and smiled.
"Damn good idea, I like the way you think" Natalie and Maura broke off the discussion to look at us.
"You're not thinking of abandoning us; we need your opinion on what we might be trying on"
"Maura babe, I'm sure anything you pick out will look wonderful, you know I'm no good with high fashion. Besides you'll have Natalie with you, she always looks good so she'll give you much better advice than I ever could"
I desperately smothered a smile, admiring her escape attempt; 'smooth Jane, very smooth'; time to back her up here.
"Yeah Nat, you were commenting the other day on how good Maura always looks, I'm sure that together you could both come up with the perfect outfits. I know Jane and I will love whatever you both come up with, it'll look great" Fortunately Jane had my back.
"You each look sensational, so no matter what you choose; together you'll come up with something stunning"
"Yeah, this way it'll be a surprise, I love being surprised by what you're wearing, especially that high end lingerie you choose" Both women looked at me through narrowed eyes. I tried to look guileless.
"What? It's the truth. I loved the La Perla stuff you got just before we moved here" Fortunately it distracted Natalie, as Maura looked over at her.
"I do like La Perla, although I have a fondness for Agent Provocateur"
"I haven't much Agent Provocateur, just a white basque, do you like the range?"
"Oh yes, their material is lovely and very well made"
"I must check it out then"
I looked back to see Jane favour me with a discreet nod, looks like we'd escaped.
"Mind you, I do need some more nice lingerie; someone who will remain nameless tried taking my best bustier top off in a hurry one night, with their teeth! It's ruined now"
Or maybe not.
I felt my face burn. It wasn't helped by the smirk on Jane's face. Fortunately her reprieve was short.
"I know what you mean; a certain someone tore my best silk and lace garter belt, apparently they were in a hurry and couldn't wait for me to undo it" I smirked at Jane as she blushed, 'gotcha'.
"It's agreed then, after the waxworks we should find some decent lingerie stockists, they can go off and do whatever they want while we get some decent shopping in"
"I'll do some research and we can compare notes on outlets, it should be fun"
Jane and I exchanged another long look, before tucking back into our lunch.