Last day for Rizzles Fan Awards voting! I'm not sure what time voting closes so hurry, hurry, hurry on over!
This is the last chapter before the epilogue. So sad.
"I wanna buy you a souvenir."
"Jane," Maura said as they continued to wander along the beach, their footprints being washed away with each wave that rolled in. "You don't have to get me a souvenir. This weekend with you was more than enough."
"I know I don't have to," Jane smiled as she began to swing she and Maura's clasped hands between them happily. "But I wanna. Not something tacky like a t-shirt or keychain but, like, something nice. A piece of jewelry or fancy antique book or something."
"Is there any point in trying to convince you that you really don't have to do this for me?"
"Nope."
With a smile tugging at her lips, Maura stopped walking and, when Jane continued to walk, tugged on the detective's hand until Jane turned around and allowed Maura to wrap her arms around Jane's neck.
"You gonna say anything or just keep staring?" Jane grinned, the glint in her eyes hidden by her aviators.
"I love you," Maura smiled. "And now that I've said something, I think I'll keep staring," she added.
"Stare away cuz, once we're back in Boston, the shorts and tank tops are gonna be replaced with slacks and blazers," Jane noted as she felt Maura's eyes roam over her denim shorts and black ribbed tank top.
"With button ups, not v-necks," Maura instructed.
"You like the button ups?"
"Very much so," Maura noted. "Especially the anticipation that comes with unbuttoning each button."
"Keep talking like that and we're going right back into the house for the rest of the day," Jane warned.
Laughing, Maura kissed Jane gently before turning around and once again tugging on Jane's hand.
"Let's go into town and find this souvenir you're determined to find me."
Just like at the beach, the two women walked with clasped hands down the Cape Cod streets. Maura's soft blue sundress fluttered in the ocean breeze and Jane eagerly dragged her to store window after store window to find the perfect souvenir.
"Let's go in this one," Jane beamed as she gestured to an antiques store tucked at the end of a row of boutiques. "Some of the stuff in the window looks promising."
Looking at the items on display, Maura couldn't stop the soft gasp that happened when she noticed the display was largely of jewelry, a prominent collection of rings on display.
"Relax," Jane murmured when she kissed the side of Maura's head. "I'm not gonna propose...Yet."
"That wasn't what I-"
"Unless you've got some calamine lotion and Benadryl at home, you might not wanna finish that sentence," Jane interrupted.
Rolling her eyes at Jane's interruption, Maura allowed Jane to guide her into the shop and smiled at the scent that came with all antique shops.
"Shoo."
"Shoo?"
"Yes, shoo," Jane repeated. "I've got a good feeling about this place and I don't want you to see what I'm getting you. So go explore and let me surprise you."
With an exaggerated sigh, Maura gave Jane a quick kiss before making her way towards the stairwell, a sign directing her to the books in the lower level.
"Looking for anything in particular?"
"Uh, not really," Jane admitted as she turned to the elderly saleswoman, a name tag reading Annie on her blouse. "That woman is my girlfriend and I just really wanna get her something special. It's been a crazy two months and I wanna show her how much I love her."
"Are you thinking of something for her house, like a photo frame? Or jewelry? Something else entirely?"
"Can I see your jewelry? You saw her and, well, that's her definition of casual. She's always runway ready so maybe you have something really simple that she can wear with anything?" Jane asked.
"We do have some pretty basic pieces as well as really classic ones that could go with a variety of outfits," Annie smiled as she watched Jane tug on her fingers nervously. "Follow me and I can show you to the counter."
Smiling gratefully at the woman, Jane followed her towards the jewelry counter and immediately regretted her decision.
"I know there's a lot, but I'm here to help," Annie chuckled.
"Its that obvious how clueless I am?" Jane smiled.
"Not clueless," the saleswoman noted. "But it is obvious how much you love your girlfriend and how much you want to find the perfect gift."
"She's saved my life in a lot of ways," Jane noted. "So show me what ya got."
"Alright, let's try to narrow down what you're looking for. Do you want earrings, necklace, bracelet, ring, or brooch?" the grey haired woman smiled.
"No to the brooch," Jane said confidently. "She's not really big on earrings and bracelets bother her when she's trying to type reports up," Jane replied.
"So we're down to either a necklace or a ring, correct?"
"That's right," Jane nodded. "And please tell me that's cut down my choices by at least half cuz there's a ton of stuff in these cases."
"Honey, there's no need to be nervous," Annie smiled. "Even from where I was standing, I could feel the love between you and your girl from the instant you walked into my shop. Anything you pick for her, she will love."
"I hope so," Jane sighed. "I'm really lucky to have her," Jane smiled wistfully.
"And I'm sure she feels the same about you," Annie noted. "Is this piece for any special occasion?"
"Not really," Jane said. "It's a long story but today is our last day here and I wanted to get her something to thank her for bringing me here and letting us be just us together," Jane explained as she began to peruse the case in front of her. "To show her how phenomenal she is."
"Phenomenal?"
"Yeah," Jane smiled. "One of her favorite poems is Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou and I think that word is one of the best to describe what Maura is."
"Do you by any chance know her ring size?" Annie asked, turning her back to reach into the case behind her.
"Not off the top of my head but I'll call her," Jane replied as she pulled her phone up and hit her first speed dial.
"Calling me from the same building?" Maura laughed when she picked up the phone.
"Yup," Jane laughed. "But stay downstairs! I'm not done yet. I'm actually wondering what ring size you are."
"For now or for future reference?" Maura teased.
"Both," Jane admitted.
"Oh, my," Maura breathed, having expected a teasing response in return. "I'm a size 7," she added softly.
"Thanks," Jane smiled. "I'll text you when I'm done. I love you."
"I love you, too."
Ending the call, Jane slipped her phone back into her pocket and smiled at the woman behind the counter.
"She's a 7."
"It looks like the stars and planets have all aligned because this is a size 7," Annie stated as she slid a cushion across the glass counter towards Jane.
"Are you for real right now?" Jane asked, looking up at the saleswoman with wide eyes.
"I am," Annie confirmed. "It's a fairly basic ring that could be worn every day if your girl wanted to."
"Yeah," Jane breathed as she picked up the silver band and ran her thumb over it. "This is what she deserves. What I wanna give her."
"See?" Annie teased. "Not so hard of task now was it?"
"Piece of cake," Jane laughed, placing the ring back onto the cushion.
"Do you want it in a small pouch or in a ring box?" Annie asked as she grabbed a cloth and gave the ring a quick wipe.
"Let's do a pouch," Jane stated. "Save the box for when I buy the ring."
"Good idea," Annie winked as she pulled a teal mesh bag from below the counter and slid the ring in before tugging the drawstrings closed and dropping the mesh bag into a gift bag.
Giddy with excitement, Jane handed her credit card to the saleswoman and, with a quick signature and text to Maura, the women were waving goodbye to Annie and stepped out into the Cape Cod sun.
"You seem very happy with whatever it is you've found," Maura noted.
"I am," Jane beamed. "And I hope you're happy when I give it back to you back at the house."
"I'm sure I'll love it," Maura smiled, wrapping an arm around Jane's waist as they walked down the sunny sidewalk.
"I hope so," Jane replied as she kissed the crown of Maura's head. "Let's head back to the house now. I don't wanna wait to give this to you."
Thanks to Maura insistence they pack before Jane gave her the present, the women's bags were sitting next to the front door and the two women were sitting facing each other on the couch.
"I wanna read you the last letter, then give you the gift," Jane admitted. "Is that okay?"
Maura could only nod, already feeling emotions welling up inside of her.
"I promise it's a good letter," Jane smiled. "And I promise it's a good souvenir, too."
"I believe you," Maura whispered.
"Come 'ere," Jane beckoned, sliding to face forward and allowing Maura to scoot over to her and into her arms. Maura snuggled tightly against Jane, resting her head on a strong shoulder.
Maura,
I opened the door today. You knocked and I opened. And then I invited you in and, God, your face was so happy. We sat on my couch and, even though you snapped at me, I made the decision to not be a chicken and showed you all the letters I've been writing. I'm so glad I decided to not be chicken anymore cause now...Now you're in your kitchen making your evening tea, I just checked all the doors and windows, and we're about to watch cheesy cop shows sharing the blanket on your couch like we used to do. And things are back to normal.
Except they aren't back to normal. Because now I realize how much I really do love you. How much you mean to me, how much I want and need you in my life forever, how much I wasn't imagining it when I told myself I was in love with you.
I'm in love with you, Maura Isles. And if we've kept up with this whole me reading letters to you thing, then hopefully I've already told you that and shown that to you. But if I haven't, this is me saying that I, Jane Rizzoli, am in love with you, Maura Isles.
All my love,
Jane
"This was the day you came to my house for the first time after the siege," Maura noted softly.
"Yeah," Jane smiled. "You were humming as you made tea and it just hit me that...That I love you. And I felt like I was gonna explode if I didn't write you one last letter."
Smiling widely, Maura tightened her arms around Jane's waist and peppered any skin she could reach with kisses.
Laughing, Jane reached into her pocket and pulled out the mesh pouch, maneuvering with the hand not wrapped around Maura to tug it open and fish out the ring.
"The lady at the antiques shop told me that the stars and planets must have aligned for me to be able to get this ring for you," Jane smiled as she reached for Maura's right hand. "I remember you saying this was your favorite poem and, well, I think it's perfect for you," she added as she slid the ring onto Maura's finger.
Lifting her head from Jane's shoulder, Maura looked down at her hand and instantly felt tears well in her eyes, though a wide smile was on her face.
"It says 'phenomenal,'" Maur breathed as she read the word stamped on the ring.
"Yeah," Jane smiled as she slid her hand into Maura's, resting the back of her hand on Maura's leg so the doctor could still see the word stamped on the ring. "I figured it could be a good reminder of what you are. A phenomenal woman and all. Because you really, really are phenomenal. And loads of other things, but I think phenomenal suits you bed. Plus it could be a reminder of our time here in Cape Cod."
"It's perfect," Maura smiled, turning to look away from the ring and at Jane. "You're perfect. And I'm never taking this ring off."
"I was kinda hoping you'd say that," Jane admitted. "And I'm also kinda hoping that, every time you look down at the ring you see a beginning. Yeah, it's the end of this whole letters to Maura journey but it's also a beginning. Of our lives together, officially moving nowhere but forward."
"Nowhere but forward?"'
"Yup."
"I can't wait."
I just left work and will be heading to bed but I do hope to write the epilogue tonight when I'm at work and have it up soon-ish. As I told a reader, I feel like I'm gonna explode if I don't get the epilogue written.
Love to hear your thoughts on this final letter! And love to have a few Rizzles Fan Award votes!