AN: Hello friends, thank you so much for your patience. It's been a long time now since I published a new chapter. But the thesis is finished and all sorts of exams are written and life gets a bit easier again *lol* I hope you enjoy this chapter. The story is not over. I might not post regularly over the next weeks, but I try to post a new chapter as often as I can.

Maura watched Jane talk to the lady at the check-in counter. The tall brunette was dressed in a pair of Jeans, a Polo shirt and Sneakers. She was handing the woman the required papers and turned her head to give Maura an excited smile. The pilot who had appeared to be always cool and composed had a way of enjoying live that Maura never knew despite of all the richness she grew up in. She returned the warm smile to her girlfriend who nodded slightly before refocusing on the procedure.

The doc used the time to check some of the other passengers who were waiting in line for their turn to receive their keycards and all sorts of instructions. They came in different shapes and sizes and colors. Maura felt the social anxiety raise but before she could fall into a whole, Jane was there to catch her. It was only then when Maura realized that she had been swaying slightly.

Her partner knew her well enough to see what was going on and took her hand with a wink. Although feeling a tad better, the blonde was still fighting an upcoming panic attack. "Its okay baby. Lets just go to our cabin and get settled." She stated and Maura saw the women's head turning as Jane walked by. The brunette must have noticed because she pointed to their locked hands with a grin and a shrug. Clear disappointment was showing on some of their faces and Maura suddenly felt proud. A grin split her face and she began walking more upright.

Once they reached the door to their cabin, Maura had to fumble into Janes backpocket of the jeans to fetch one of the keycards. Jane who was carrying all the luggage waited patiently, looking pleased by the intimate touch.

It was a small cabin despite being one of the high-class ones. It made the doc wonder about the low-priced ones because theirs was already being hard to move around. There was a king size bed, a small closet and only half a meter around the bed.

"We are going to spend most of our cabin time in bed anyways I guess." Jane chuckled and wiggled her eyebrows which made Maura laugh. "You think so Captain?" she took on her flirtatious tone.

"I strongly believe that we will." The brunette replied and showed her dimples which made Maura's heart do a summersault each time she saw them.

"In this case it shall be this way." She replied and both laughed about it.

"Come here." Jane softly said, stretching her hand toward Maura who still stood in the doorway.

"Don't you want to unpack first?" the blonde said, pointing to the pile of luggage of which most belonged to her.

"Later." Jane's voice was raspier than usual. "But I have dresses which need to be hung otherwise…" Jane had pulled her onto the bed before she could finish the sentence. "Jane.." Maura tried to save some of her dresses from getting wrinkles, but when soft lips brushed over her and when she felt the warm breath stroke her cheek, she gave in.

They made love or tested the bed as Jane called it. Being already late for dinner then, they showered quickly and rushed off to look for the dining room. They got lost several times on their way, but Maura didn't mind, because each time they ended up in a cul de sac or a dark corner, Jane pulled her close to exchange a kiss.

This vacation was already starting in a good way Maura decided while sipping some excellent Chardonnay, which came along with her salad. Jane ate some linguini with sea fruit and it was a delight to Maura to see her savor the red wine.

It reminded her a lot of their first visit to a restaurant after the talk show. Never in a thousand years would she have imagined ending up in a relationship with this beautiful woman. "Maur?" she realized that she had been lost in thought and missed Janes talking.

"Yes Jane?" she replied after clearing her throat. "I'm sorry, I was just absentminded."

"I could see that." Jane gave her an amused glance over the rim of her wineglass. "What have you been thinking about?" she asked without pushing.

"Our first visit to a restaurant."

"Ahhhh" Jane nodded and took on a dreamy look. "I'll never forget how you asked me to join you for dinner." Maura smiled happily. They already had stories to share, and their life was just getting more and more entangled by the minute.

"Yeah, actually, you asked me. I just hinted." Jane corrected Maura with a chuckle.

"You were shy." The voice sounded astonished as if she had only understood Jane's notion now. Jane shrugged and smiled softly. "Well with an impressive woman like you." She replied. "Or maybe I was too afraid that you would say no." she winked.

Maura took a sip of her wine and nodded. Jane did a great job of playing cool, but she let some people peek behind her coolness and what was to be found there was a soft heart.

R&I

Back in the room, Maura finally unpacked her stuff while Jane took a shower. When she returned from the shower herself, she found Jane leaning against the railing of their tiny balcony, glancing out onto the sea. The sun was setting on the horizon and from this point of view the world seemed to have no end like the love Maura felt for Jane.

The doc wrapped her arms around the slim waist and enjoyed the comfortable silence while they watched the sun disappear. "I love you." Maura whispered into Jane's ear. "I love you too Maur." The doc couldn't see her face, but she could hear the softness and the smile in the voice and it made her smile as well.

"What are we going to do tomorrow?" Jane asked with a yawn as they slipped into the sheets. The air had freshened up after the sun had disappeared and so they had decided to go to bed.

She automatically lifted her arm for Maura to snuggle up against her. The doc sighed. "I don't know. What would you like to do?" Maura asked and lifted her head to look at her love. Jane furrowed her eyebrows and thought about the possibilities.

"How about sleeping in, then breakfast, maybe a swim in the pool and a nap in the afternoon. We could join the casino after dinner." She finally said and Maura nodded wistfully, glad that their activities didn't include too much contact with others. It would give her time to get accustomed to the mass and it would ease her social anxiety to get first used to the new location.

"And what about the time between the nap and dinner?" she asked. Jane pulled her a bit closer with a sigh. "Dunno. We could watch TV or enjoy our balcony. I feel like relaxing is the best thing to do tomorrow. Would that be okay?"

The doc nodded. The last case had been hard on her, and she knew that Jane was tired as well. Both had urgently needed this vacation and Maura had no objections against the laid-out plan. Her head went back to Jane's chest and she listened to the even and strong heartbeat. With that calming sound she soon fell asleep. To her everything was fine, and she was already long asleep when Jane was still awake with some thoughts on her mind.