Janes gut was tied into a solid knot when she climbed onto the bus the next morning. They would be going to see some dull art exhibition today and if it hadn't been for her job, the brunette would have loved to skip this excursion.

She first glanced at Mr. and Mrs. Jolly who were seated in one of the front rows and greeted them politely. Then her eyes nervously darted towards the back of the vehicle to spot the familiar blonde head plunged into a book.

"May I?" she asked silently, pointing to her seat which was by the window. Maura gave her a repellent glance but stood to let Jane pass.

"Thank you." Jane said, once she was settled in her spot, trying to give the blonde a smile. But Maura had already took up reading again. God, this was going to be a long and awkward day the detective thought as another wave of frustration rushed over her.

She badly wanted to talk about the kiss and clean the air which was so tense that one could cut it with a knife. But this didn't seem to be the right place. Therefore, she settled to glance out of the window for the whole one-hour drive through the busy streets of Nairobi.

It was yet another hot and sunny day which allowed her to cover her eyes with her pilots. But sometimes the window mirrored the blonde beside her. Jane couldn't help but watch her. When the tension became almost unbearable, she grabbed for her notebook and scribbled the words 'I'm sorry.' Onto a fresh page.

After ignoring Janes attempts to hand her the book several times, Maura finally took it and read the message. Jane watched the blonde kind of disappear in her huge purse, wondering what the blonde hoped to find in it. Hopefully a pen to reply she thought. What on earth could the blonde carry around in that bag anyways? Obviously not a pen, because Maura gave a sigh when reappearing and Jane silently handed her own pen to Maura.

Her heart beat sped up when the notebook was shoved back into her direction and she read the reply. 'Don't be.'

Jane tried to give the blonde a questioning look, but any further attempt to communicate was ignored by the blonde. Just like the question mark she had scribbled under Maura's reply.

R&I

The Art Gallery was not only huge but also full of the weirdest stuff Jane thought as she followed the couple through various rooms. The whole group had split and walked off into different directions. Maura was no where to be seen which seemed off to Jane who knew that the blonde was also supposed to observe Mr. and Mrs. Jolly.

Was it possible that the ME was relying on Jane to do the job? If so, Jane wasn't sure that SFPD had chosen the right undercover agent for this mission. Not that she did a bad job, but Maura couldn't possibly know her well enough.

What did Don't be mean anyways? Don't be sorry?

Grumpy, Jane pulled out the phone of her back pocket and typed out a message. Where are you?

The reply came by the minute and read: Watching you and the others over the cameras. I have already seen the gallery in person twice. Its supported by the Isles foundation.

Now Jane felt even grumpier than before. You could have told me that we have access to the cameras.

Don't complain. Do you want to come and join me?

No, thanks. I'm fine.

Looks like you're dehydrating from here. You should drink more.

Jane was wondering if Maura was playing a game with her. But her gut told her that the blonde was really worried. A sly grin spread on her face as she grabbed her bottle of water and dropped it into a dustbin.

Jane! Came the immediate response and the brunette imagined Maura jumping from her seat and chuckled.

Why Maur? Why did you say that I shouldn't be sorry? She typed out. There was no incoming message for almost three rooms. And three rooms with Mr. and Mrs. Jolly were like an eternity. The brunette began to regret her action. Throwing away the water had been the stupidest idea ever she thought as the sweat was running down her back in the heat of the half dark rooms. This was more of a palm house than a gallery she cursed.

But most of all she regretted teasing Maura. What if the doc was really mad at her now?

"Where is your partner?" an old lady from the group suddenly stood next to her. "My partner?" Jane stumbled, thinking that they had been uncovered already by an old lady with a stick.

"Yes. You make such a lovely couple. I really don't get why you hide it. Times have changed you know?" the woman's eyes were sparkling, and she wore a sweet smile. Jane sighed in relief when realizing that the old woman had meant partner as in lover and not as in work partner.

"We are not…" Jane began but got cut off by some loud screams. "What happened?" she shouted while she ran towards a quickly growing crowd. The phone was buzzing in her pocket, but she ignored it. Instead she parted the group of spectators to find another traveler lying on the ground.

"She must have fainted. Her husband said that she hadn't had enough to drink today." Maura gave Jane a meaningful glance while filling her in. "The doctors will take good care of her and she might return to the hotel tonight."

"I had enough to drink!" Jane huffed and Maura gave her a crooked grin and tilted her head.

"What?" Jane asked at her antics.

"You can be so stubborn Jane Rizzoli." Maura chuckled and the look she gave the detective made her blood flow speed up again just like at Maura's message in her notebook.

"Can we talk?" Jane asked after seeing that no one else was around them. Maura locked eyes with her for a short moment and then looked away quickly. "I need time Jane. I'm confused and I want to …. I'm not ready."

"Not ready for what?"

"Not ready to talk about it. I like you Jane. I like you as a friend. I don't know what happened yesterday. That's what I want to find out before we talk. Because only if I find out…" Maura paused and took a deep breath before searching Janes eyes. "It can't happen again. It won't happen again."

"Then why…" Jane stopped when seeing the painful expression on Maura's face. "Okay. I'm sorry. Take your time. Just tell me when your ready." She whispered as some people of the group were approaching them.

Maura nodded and thanked her. She gave Janes hand a quick squeeze to the brunette's surprise before letting go and walking off to the bus.

The brunette wasn't happy, but she was fine with the reply Maura had given her. The main thing was that they still were friends. As to the rest: years had made her an expert of suppressing her feelings.

She made a show of grabbing a water bottle out of the huge ice bucket upon climbing the steps into the bus. Maura chuckled softly at her antics and shook her head. Jane decided that she liked to make the doc laugh. Her laughter was warm and contagious, and it gave herself some comfort. With Maura the world seemed to be much brighter and Jane gave the blonde a crooked smile.

R&I

"Hey Jane. Where's the doc?" Frost greeted her after they had been able to establish a connection over the slow Wi-Fi. The brunette rolled her eyes. Maura had excused herself after dinner and said that she needed some alone time. Instead of telling it to Frost she simply shrugged.

"Any news?" she asked, and her partner tilted his head. This is really a hard nut. But we are working on it. There was no match to the fingerprints in the common data bases. So, we are checking police etc."

Jane nodded. Nothing in this case had indicated that it would be an easy one to solve. The thought that if they weren't able to solve it before their vacation was over would give her reasons to contact the ME when back at home occurred to Jane briefly. She scratched her head.

"Earth to Jane…" Frosts voice called over the loudspeakers. "Where are you?" he asked as soon as he had her attention again. He was now leaning a bit towards the cam of his computer.

"I don't know. Its been a long day. And I didn't sleep well last night." She said glancing at his slender figure. "Troubles at home huh?" he tried with a small smile.

"How would you know?" Jane asked suspiciously.

"Well, Angela told me when I passed by the one division café this morning to fetch some coffee." Jane gasped and he furrowed his eyebrows. "She asked if I knew something and I said no. I also said that I believe that its none of our business." Jane could tell by his body language that he wasn't happy.

"I'm sorry that she bothered you." She said and he nodded. "Its not your fault. I think that she's just worried, that's all."

A knock to the door startled both. "Why don't I text you what I have so far, and you go and check for the door." Frost said with an encouraging smile. This was why she liked Frost so much. He never said much, but he had his ways of showing his support. And he didn't only have her back at work but also in her private life without judging her.

"Thanks man." She quickly said before closing the lid of her laptop.

R&I

A slightly disheveled looking Maura sat on the chair while Jane was sitting crossed leg on the bed. It felt weird when they locked eyes for the first time upon the blonde's arrival at her place. They had spent more than one hour discussing the case and exchanging ideas and information.

And now that they were done a long silence came up with both more or less nervously tugging at their clothes or fidgeting with their hands.

"Why?" the blonde asked into the silence and Jane wished that the otherwise so articulated woman wouldn't always be so short worded when it came to talking about private stuff.

"Why what?" she asked patiently despite her inner turmoil.

"Why did you kiss me?" Maura asked with a broken voice. Janes mouth went dry. Her eyes fell into her lap while she was looking for words. The answer was clear, and she had assumed that it would be clear to Maura too.

"Maur, I didn't really think. I just felt drawn to you in that moment." She decided to be honest. "I have never done such thing before by the way. I'm sorry that this created such a mess."

Maura gave her a small smile.

"Why did you kiss me back?" she returned the question curiously.

"For the same reason." The blonde replied without hesitation. "It cants happen again, right? I think that we were just very emotional in that moment which led to our reactions."

"Right." Jane said. "We're both married." The brunette gauged Maura's reaction carefully while saying the sentence. Maura who had never said a word about her marriage nodded. The whole thing felt like pulling teeth and Jane decided to drop it.

"Okay. So, we're good. Aren't we?" she asked, and Maura agreed.

"Jane?" Maura spoke up again after another phase of silence.

"Yes?"

"Why are you still talking to me? I mean your husband is with the FBI and my father is one of their most wanted."

This was the moment Jane realized that nothing was okay between them. Really nothing. Maura questioned her. Probably even assumed that Jane wasn't there to observe Mr. and Mrs. Jolly but her.

She glanced at the ceiling this time as if her lap had turned boring. "I am not the FBI, nor am I working for them. I was assigned by the BPD for this case. It was never my choice to come to Nairobi. They had to make me go. And I personally don't care whose daughter you are, unless you are a criminal or supporting him in any way. Are you?"

Her eyes drilled into green freckles, studying her reaction. "What? No, no! The only thing I know is that hes my father and that he gave me away after telling my mother that I was dead. I was adopted by Constance and Arthur Isles. I wouldn't even know how to contact with him if I wanted to."

No hives. But Jane realized that she would also have believed her without the proof.

The evening left a bitter aftertaste in Janes mouth and she was only too glad that the day was over and she could climb into bed to get some rest after Maura had left soon after her last question.

Coming home to Boston wouldn't be easy. There was a lot to sort out and even more to face. But Jane was willing to face it all. And even more important: she was willing to fight for keeping Marcella in her life.