The next morning, Jane was up early with Noelle who had decided to rise with the roosters.
Sleepily walking into Noelle's room Jane quickly picked up the fussing baby to avoid her waking Maura. "Shhh, it's alright little one." She cooed as she held Noelle close before reaching for a diaper and wipes. She had done this so many times now she could do it with her eyes closed.
Placing Noelle on the changing table Jane continued talking. The softness in her voice began to soothe Noelle. "I bet you're hungry huh?" Noelle gurgled and smiled up at Jane causing her to chuckle.
"Since we have an agreement let's get you cleaned up," Jane remarked as she began to unfasten the onesie and then the diaper.
The smell that greeted her was not one she was ever prepared for no matter how many times she'd done this. "Geez, kid! My lord, what did Maura feed you yesterday?" Jane gagged as she quickly began to clean Noelle.
"You saved this just for me didn't you?!" Gag. "Well, I guess only one of us is eating breakfast this morning," Jane remarked, pulling her shirt over her nose. Her antics made Noelle giggle even more.
Jane was sure of one thing. It didn't matter how gross the situation was she was dealing with, Noelle's laughter always made her laugh. Wiping off the last bit Jane hurriedly wrapped the soiled diaper up before placing the clean one on. After snapping the onesie closed she picked up Noelle.
"Now that's better, you're all fresh again." Jane remarked, blowing a raspberry on the child's cheek. With her free hand, she grabbed one of the little bags Maura bought for such situations and tied up the offending diaper before tossing it into the diaper bin on the way out the door. She made a mental note to pull the bag later.
Once in the kitchen Jane settled Noelle in her high chair, giving her a few apple flavored puffs to keep her quiet long enough to get the coffee started and Noelle's breakfast made. They had discovered she loved soft scrambled eggs.
Maura came into the kitchen just as Jane finished feeding her.
"Someone was up extra early this morning," she said, smiling at Noelle before walking over and placing a soft kiss to the top of her head.
Jane cleaned off Noelle's face as she spoke. "Yup, she was an early riser today. That and she had a surprise waiting for me, but we handled it like champs, didn't we munchkin?"
Noelle squealed and kicked her feet.
"So no gagging this time?" Maura asked over her shoulder as she poured herself and Jane a fresh cup of coffee.
"Oh no, there was definitely gagging involved but I pushed through."
Maura laughed as she walked over and placed the hot cup in front of Jane. "You'll be a pro in no time."
Jane offered a silent thanks and took a sip of her coffee as she took in Maura's attire for the first time. "Wow, you look great Maur. No yoga pants today?"
Maura shook her head as she swallowed her sip of coffee. "Mmmm, no yoga pants today. I have to go into the clinic." It was at this moment Maura realized with all the excitement yesterday she forgot to tell Jane that she would be on her own today with Noelle.
Jane nodded in understanding and looked over at Noelle. "Well little Miss, it looks like we are on our own today. You know that means don't you?" Jane asked as grabbed Noelle's foot and shook it. "Lots of naps and junk food!"
"Jane," Maura said with her eyebrows raised and a warning in her voice.
"I'm kidding Maur, relax. Noelle and I will be fine. This actually works out because I need to do some last minute Christmas shopping. Oh that reminds me, Noelle's birthday is Christmas day, do you want me to grab some birthday supplies while I'm out?"
Maura's eyes grew wide. She had completely forgotten about Noelle's birthday. Before Maura could panic Jane spoke.
"Hey Maur. It's alright if you forgot," she said as she covered Maura's hand with her own. "We've had a lot going on since Noelle came to stay with us."
Jane's reassuring smile put Maura at ease. "You sure you don't mind?"
"Not at all Maur, you can't take care of everything all the time. I can help too."
Maura smiled over at the brunette before catching the time on the clock on the kitchen wall. "Shoot, I've got to get going or Nina will make it to the clinic before me." She remarked as she pushed her chair back from the table. She made quick work of rinsing her cup and placing it in the dishwasher before grabbing her bag from the couch and slipping on her heels.
Jane had already removed Noelle from her highchair to walk Maura out. Once at the front door Maura slipped on her coat and grabbed her keys. "I shouldn't be late leaving the clinic. I do have that date with Jack tonight but still. Um, if you need anything you have my cell and the clinics number."
Jane chuckled before cutting Maura off. "Maur, Noelle and I will be fine. You're going to be late if you don't get going."
"Right," Maura said as she double checked to make sure she had everything. "Okay, I will see you two later." She remarked as she kissed the top of Noelle's head and without thinking, placed a kiss on Jane's cheek before opening the door.
Jane's face flushed and her heart leaped at the action. Did Maura realize what she just did? She thought to herself before shaking her head as Maura spoke.
"Bye you two, have fun today and behave!" She yelled over her shoulder as she quickly walked to her car. Jane took Noelle's arm and raised it to wave at Maura when Maura waved as she backed out.
Jane shut and locked the door behind her. She touched her still tingling skin where Maura's lips had been and smiled. She wasn't certain if Maura felt the same for her but that small action instilled a little bit more hope in her.
Noelle squealed and brought Jane back from her thoughts. "Alright little one, let's get you and me dressed in something warm and then the fun can really start! We get to go Christmas shopping for Aunt Maura and for your birthday!" Jane said excitedly as she bounced Noelle on her hip making her giggle. It took Jane only about thirty minutes to get them both dressed and out the door.
Meanwhile, across town, Nina was waiting when Maura arrived at the clinic.
"Hey! You beat me here. I was trying to get out the door. Come on back. Let's see how that baby girl is doing."
Maura couldn't help but chuckle as she watched Nina try and fail a couple of times to stand so she extended her hand to help her.
"Laugh it up Dr. Isles. It will be your turn some day."
"I hope so," Maura said as she smiled. "My biological clock is ticking pretty loudly if I don't find someone soon."
Oh for the love of God. She's right under your nose, Nina thought to herself. Instead she simply said, "You'll find someone someday."
When they got back to the exam room Maura did the typical routine stuff; temperature, blood pressure, o2 stats, checking the baby's heartbeat, and Nina's least favorite last, weight.
"You've gained about thirty five pounds. You're at the end of your pregnancy and it's within the acceptable parameters so I'm OK with that."
"I'm glad one of us is," Nina grumbled.
Maura laughed. "Once this little girl gets here you'll get it off in no time. Go ahead and lay back for me." She took some measurements before getting out the ultrasound gel that Nina called goop.
Nina jumped as the cold gel made contact with her belly.
"Sorry," Maura said. "Let's take a look shall we? This new fancy ultrasound machine is 4D. That means we should get a really good look at baby. You're officially the first person to use it."
Maura was not an obstetrics doctor and honestly this was going to be her first baby to deliver. Well, not counting the baby she delivered from a corpse that one time. She had invested in this fancy ultrasound machine with Nina literally being her only pregnant patient.
After leaving the world of the dead, she had decided to take up family care. She had to admit she had enjoyed overseeing Nina's pregnancy. Enough so that she was considering changing specialties but no one knew that yet since she hadn't made a final decision.
"Well look, there she is," Maura said as she smiled. "Look, this baby is definitely a Rizzoli. She has the Rizzoli nose and…" Maura's voice trailed off as she stared at the screen.
At first it scared Nina until she realized what Maura was looking at and busted out laughing. There her little girl was, flipping off the camera with her middle finger high in the air.
"Oh yeah, she's definitely a Rizzoli," Nina said as she laughed so hard tears started to roll.
Maura wiped off her belly.
"Now the fun part. Feet in the stirrups," Maura said with a grin.
Nina groaned. "You know, if you would have told me five years ago we'd be here now I would have called you a liar." As awkward as it could be, Nina knew she and her baby were in good hands with Maura.
As Maura took her place at the end of the exam table, she started to chat while she put on her gloves.
"Can I tell you something Nina? Just between you and me?"
Nina nodded. "Sure."
"I had the weirdest dream last night." Maura began to talk about her dream, apparently forgetting that Nina was spread eagle on an exam table.
"Um, Doc. Not that I don't care but, can we maybe finish this then you can finish telling me about your dream?"
Maura chuckled. "Yes, of course. I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking." Maura proceeded to do Nina's exam in silence so as to not get distracted again.
"Well, it looks like you're about three centimeters dilated. It could be any minute now so no cross country trips."
Maura snapped off her gloves and threw them in the hazard waste bin before continuing.
"Now, I know we talked about this in the beginning but I just wanted to remind you. If for any reason an emergency is to arise and you need a c section my mom is going to be on standby to step in. I am capable of doing a c section but the only one I've ever done was on a corpse so you would probably be much more comfortable with her experience," Maura said as she chuckled.
Nina nodded. "Okay. You can continue now. Do me a favor though? Next time you want to tell me about a sex dream, don't do it when your all up in my business, if you know what I mean."
Maura's face reddened a deep crimson red.
"What? It wasn't a sex dream! What in the world made you think that?"
"Well, you said it was about Jane and I…" Nina stopped mid sentence, her turn to be embarrassed.
"It wasn't a sex dream. Get your head out of the alleyway."
That made Nina laugh. "Gutter Maura. It is get your head out of the gutter."
"Well, you know I have another date with Jack tonight right?"
"Um, you mean Jack Whitman, the new ME? No! I didn't. When did this happen?"
"Just the last couple of weeks. We've been out a couple times already. He's a really nice guy but the thing is I like Jane. I mean REALLY like Jane. I guess you know that given your sex dream comment."
Nina laughed. "Everybody knows it, Doc. We all thought the only ones that didn't know were you two. If you like her, what's holding you back?"
"Because, I can like her all I want but she doesn't like me like that. Trust me, I've thrown her all kinds of hints through the years. Nothing. I've done everything but come right out and ask her."
"Um, then what's wrong with coming right out and asking her? Not all of us can read between the lines," Nina pointed out. Remember this is a Rizzoli you're dealing with," Nina said with a laugh.
"I know but I'm afraid to come right out and ask. Jane and I, we have a great friendship. I don't want to ruin that by making the assumption I have a chance and scare her off. Last night though, I had this dream that she got married and moved away. I was begging her not to leave but it was like she couldn't hear me, just kept packing stuff in her car."
"Well I'm no expert but I would say that's your spirit's way of telling you to tell her how you feel before it's too late."
Maura sighed. "So I can not tell her and lose her or tell her and lose her. I need a third option," Maura said with a sigh.
Across town, Jane had made her way to a local zoo. She wasn't sure where she could find a dinosaur,um tortoise, for Maura, but this seemed like a good place to start. The pet stores had been a bust. This zoo was going to be closing at the end of the year and they were actively adopting out their animals to other zoos. Jane hoped that maybe, for the right price, she could make a deal.
As she walked in pushing Noelle in the stroller she was approached by one of the zoo employees.
"Hello, welcome. We don't open for another hour but the gift shop is open, just so you know."
"That's okay I'm actually not here to see the zoo. Um, I'm not sure who to speak to and this may even be a stretch but I'm looking to buy a tortoise. I've looked at every pet store with no luck. They would have to order one and that could take weeks. I need one by Christmas," Jane said as she pushed the stroller back and forth to keep Noelle quiet.
"Hmm. I see, let me give Brent a call and see if he's available. He handles all things tortoise around here. Maybe he can help. My name is Jenny by the way, if you want to have a look around feel free to do so." She remarked, smiling at Noelle.
"Thanks, we will just be in the gift shop." The young girl nodded before disappearing into the office. Jane wandered around the gift shop while waiting. She stopped and looked at a few things that she thought TJ might like when she heard Noelle giggling and squealing with excitement.
Jane looked down to see what Noelle found so exciting. Noelle had grabbed a hold of a stuffed giraffe. Jane couldn't help but laugh when she realized that Noelle's excitement wasn't because of the plush animal but because she had succeeded in getting her little hands on it to begin with.
"Well someone seems very excited about that stuffed giraffe."
Jane looked up at the sound of the voice. "Actually, I think she's more excited that she got her hands on it."
The man smiled before extending his hand. "I'm Brent. Jenny told me that you're looking for a tortoise?"
Jane shook the man's hand. "Uh yeah. Give me just one second to pay for this." The man shook his head and waved off Jane's comment.
"That's alright, it's on the house. Think of it as a small gift for the little one there."
Jane smiled gratefully, not because she couldn't pay for it but because had she taken it from Noelle to pay for it, it was sure to make her scream. "Thanks."
"No problem, I have a two year old at home. I know how it can be to take something away even if it is just to pay for it. Figured I would give your ears a break," he said with a chuckle.
They began to walk out of the gift shop when Brent asked. "So what can I do you for?"
"Well, a friend of mine has always wanted a tortoise. I'm actually looking to buy her one as a Christmas gift. An Aldabra Tortoise to be exact. I know you guys are closing up soon and I thought, well, hoping really that I could purchase one from here if any are available."
Brent thought it over for a moment. "Well, you may just be in luck. What are you thinking as far as size? We have obviously very large adults which will cost you upwards of twenty thousand."
Jane's grew wide. "Twenty thousand dollars? For a turtle?" She asked in disbelief.
"Tortoise, and yes," Brent says with a laugh. He could see the disappointment starting to settle on Jane's face. "But don't worry, we also have a few hatchlings. Those are usually in the range of fifteen hundred."
"You mean like babies, that just hatched?"
"No, not necessarily. Baby tortoises up to a year old are considered hatchlings. After a year we call them yearlings." Jane nodded at this new information. She didn't need to think about it. This was the one thing Maura wanted for Christmas and Jane was going to make sure she got it.
An hour later Jane and Noelle emerged from the zoo with a baby tortoise in tow and all the information needed to care for the creature. Jane would need to make a trip to the pet store to get the necessary supplies to hold the little guy over until he could go home. First, she needed someone to tend to him until Christmas.
Riley she thought to herself as she buckled Noelle into her carseat. She needed to head over to BPD anyway to check if Riley had any new leads on Natalie.
On the way to the station Jane couldn't stop smiling as she thought about the look she was sure she would see on Maura's face Christmas morning.
When she got to BPD she started to grab Noelle and head inside when it hit her. She also had a tortoise in the back seat. "Damn it," she muttered as she pulled out her phone.
She dialed Riley and she answered in a couple rings.
"I was wondering if you're able to break free for the day? I know you sit on your PTO like I did so I'm sure you have plenty of it. I need you to come with me for a little while. I've got a huge favor to ask."
Riley laughed. "I'm afraid to ask Rizzoli. Give me a few minutes to tell Korsack I'm headed out and I'll come meet you at your car."
Jane told her where she was parked and thanked her before hanging up.
It was only about five minutes later when Riley climbed into the passenger seat.
"So what's up Jane? What's this big favor you need?"
"I need you to babysit."
"Wait, what? Um, uh. Nope! Sorry Jane. I don't do babies. Not that they aren't adorable and all but I don't even know how to change a diaper."
Jane laughed. That was exactly the reaction she was going for. She could play it for a bit but decided to let Riley off the hook. Well, almost. She had to have a bit more fun first.
"Not Noelle. I need you to keep a different baby. I adopted one this morning."
Riley stared at Jane for any hint she was joking. "You what? Wait, doesn't something like that take months? Hell, even years?"
"Nope. Not when the price is right. You write them a check and they just hand the baby over. Pretty cool huh?"
"Jane, have you lost your mind?"
Jane couldn't hide it anymore as she started to laugh hysterically. "Look in the backseat," she managed to say as she tried to catch her breath.
Riley turned and didn't immediately notice.
"Inside the box."
Riley leaned over, peering into the box. "Oh, a turtle? You want me to babysit a turtle?"
"Don't let Maura hear you call it a turtle. It's a tortoise," Jane said in her best Maura voice.
"It's for Maura for Christmas. I asked her what she has always wanted and that was what she told me. I obviously can't bring him home until Christmas day. I've got a little care instruction booklet here that can tell you anything you need to know. If we can drop him off at your place I can go by the pet store and get you some supplies and things."
When Riley didn't immediately answer, Jane stuck out her bottom lip. "Please? Pretty, pretty, pretty please with whipped cream and cherries on top?"
Riley made a face. "God Rizzoli. Don't beg. You sound pathetic. Fine. I'll do it, but you owe me."
"OK. I'll buy you lunch. Let's drop him off at your place then we can go to lunch and the pet store, and you can go to the mall with me to finish my Christmas shopping."
"Shopping? SHOPPING? That wasn't part of the deal! I'm staying as far away from the stores as possible right now Jane. Have you seen how people act in the stores this time of year?"
"Come on Ry. You handle the roughest and toughest of Boston but you can't deal with one day of Christmas shopping? Who is telling who they sound pathetic," Jane said as she grinned.
"Oh screw you Rizzoli," Riley remarked back as she punched Jane in the arm.
"Hey no violence in front of the little one." Riley couldn't help but laugh.
"Let's go before I change my mind."
Jane grinned as she pulled out of the parking space. "Thanks for coming with me Ry."
"It's not like you really gave me a choice in the matter, Rizzoli. I swear, you were a step away from locking the doors so I couldn't escape."
"It'll be quick. I promise. I just have to get a few gifts still. I did most of it online. Plus, I am going to pick up some things for Noelle's birthday. Speaking of Noelle, have you found anything else on Natalie? You said you were going to look into it."
Riley sighed. She had hoped this could wait until later. She didn't want to ruin Jane's day.
"Why don't we talk about that later huh?"
Jane glanced over at Riley before returning her attention to the road.
"OK, what do you know Coop? Spill it."
Riley hesitated before finally answering. "She was arrested a few months ago for prostitution."
"Damn it." Jane hit her hand on the steering wheel in frustration.
The two were silent for a bit before Jane spoke again.
"She was a good kid Riley. Smart, really smart. I thought if we helped her get through school it would steer her away from trouble. How can such a smart kid make such stupid choices? I don't get it. She almost got killed before. What is she doing? Going for round two?"
"Let's not jump to conclusions about why. I do think you need to consider the possibility that someone she is involved with may be trying to sell her baby. Those types of men would love nothing more than to get their hands on a healthy baby girl, especially with blonde hair and blue eyes. They have the highest market value."
Jane felt her stomach turn inside out. Suddenly the baby buying jokes she had made not ten minutes before wasn't so funny.
"I don't want to send you into some kind of hysteria with the what if's, but I think it would be a good idea for Noelle to sleep in the room with you, you know, just in case."
"Yeah," Jane said as she glanced in the mirror at a sleeping Noelle in the backseat. A few minutes passed in silence before Jane spoke again. "Wait a minute, Nina ran Natalie's name through the database at BPD. Why didn't anything come back on her arrest then?" She asked, genuinely confused.
It was Riley's turn to sigh, boy Jane is never going to let Nina live this down Riley thought before speaking. "Nina misspelled her name." She mumbled as she rubbed her hand across her face.
"She what?" Jane said a little too loudly, receiving a grunt from Noelle for the abrupt nose. "She what?" Jane remarked again in a quieter tone, not to wake the sleeping child.
"She misspelled Natalie's name."
"Nina?" Jane said, looking over at Riley who nodded. "Nina Holiday? The same Nina that is the best damn IT tech to come through the doors of BPD since Frost? That Nina?"
"The one and only."
Jane couldn't help but laugh. "Oh man, I'm never gonna let her live this down. I mean isn't that something they teach you on the first day? Like, Step one, check the spelling of a name, Step two recheck it again before searching?" She remarked with another laugh.
"C'mon Rizzoli, cut her some slack. She's pregnant after all."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
Riley shrugged, "I don't know, maybe she has pregnancy brain or something."
Jane snorted with laughter and looked at her friend. "Pregnancy what?" If this was a real thing Jane had never experienced it but she was pretty certain Riley was just messing with her.
"You know Pregnancy brain, it's actually a real thing. Women during pregnancy struggle to remember details or even give their full attention to a single task."
Jane came to a stop light and looked at her friend in disbelief. "Do you have an earpiece that Maura is feeding you info through?" She asks as she looks at Riley's ear only to be shoved away.
"Get outta here," Riley says with a laugh. "No, I don't have an earpiece. I just read a lot. Maybe you should try it some time."
Jane just stared down Riley before they both fell into laughter. It only lasted a short amount of time before Jane became serious again.
"We have to find her, Coop."
"I know," Riley said with a heavy sigh. "But what happens if we can't Jane? What happens if she doesn't turn back up before or on New Years?" She wasn't trying to be a jerk but she knew Jane. She knew how Jane would drive herself to the brink of madness trying to find Noelle's mother. She has seen her do it too many times before in some of their cases.
"What do you mean what happens? It's a no brainer. If she doesn't show up and I can't find her, I'll adopt Noelle. There's not an alternative option. I love her already and I'm not sending her into the system. I need to find Natalie though. I need to know exactly what in the hell is going on because you know what? I cared about her also. Here was a kid that got pulled into some shitty circumstances because of life you know? I wanted to save her. I wanted her to make something of herself. I guess I fucked that up didn't I? I should have kept in touch with her. I should have made sure she was OK."
"Jane, I know you are remembering her as this kid but she's not a kid anymore. She's almost thirty years old. I know you and I know what is swirling around in your head. This isn't your fault."
Jane gasped. "Did you say THIRTY? There's no way! Am I that old?"
Riley started to laugh. "Nope, I'm not touching that one Rizzoli. Look, all I'm trying to say is whatever she has gotten herself into isn't your fault. She's an adult now. She's responsible for her own choices."
Jane sighed heavily. "I know that Coop, but that doesn't mean I'm going to give up on finding her, especially if she's gotten herself into some kind of trouble."
Riley patted Jane on her shoulder. "That's what made you a damn good cop, Rizzoli. You never give up on people, not even those who have been deemed lost causes. I'll help you look for her. I'll pull whatever information I can. We'll find her."
"Thanks Coop."
Riley shrugged, "Don't mention it, that's what friends are for. I mean, let's face it. You're not the easiest person to work with. It takes someone with real skills to handle you," she says with a smirk.
"Oh, and you think you have those skills huh?" Jane remarks as she pulls in front of Riley's apartment.
"Hell no! That's Maura, that woman has you wrapped around her little finger. She can make you back out of or step into any situation. Nah, she's the one with the real skills. Speaking of which, how are you going to explain you moving Noelle into your room?"
Jane put the car in park and shut off the ignition. "I haven't figured that part out yet. Then again, she has a date with Jack tonight so she will probably come in long after Noelle is asleep."
"Whoa, another date with that new ME? Jane, are you really going to let that guy take over your territory?"
Jane snorted in laughter. "Maura's not MY territory and yes she has another date," Jane remarked, not even hiding the distaste for the situation.
"You know Jane, you could do away with the whole Jack situation if you just grew a pair and told Maura how you feel." Jane landed a hard punch to Riley's upper arm. "Ow! Hey you said no violence in front of the little one."
"Yeah well, my car, my rules," Jane said, sticking out her tongue like a child. "Take the dang turt, I mean tortoise inside so we can get to the mall. I'd like to get everything done today."
"Geez. Someone needs to get laid," Riley remarked laughing as she quickly exited the car to avoid another shot to the arm.
A few hours later Jane and Riley entered Maura's house with an exhausted sigh as they placed some of Jane's Christmas gifts on the couch.
"You take care of little bit and I'll go get the rest of whatever the hell you bought," Riley said with a laugh.
After everything was put away, Jane and Riley visited while she fed Noelle, then she took Riley back to her apartment. By the time she was back at home for the night, Noelle was sound asleep in her car seat. Jane carefully got her out, trying her best not to wake her up.
She walked upstairs and was just about to put Noelle in her crib when she remembered. "Shit," she muttered. She went ahead and laid Noelle down in her crib just long enough for her to run downstairs and fetch the playpen that was set up in the living room. After she sat it back up in her room she moved the sleeping baby before heading downstairs to fix herself something for dinner.
Since Maura wasn't home she opted to order Chinese delivery for herself. She settled in and watched some TV while eating her dinner. As the night went on she found herself glancing at her watch time and time again. Still no Maura.
"Give it up Jane," Jane muttered to herself. She sighed heavily as she headed up to bed.
It was much later, at about 1 AM, when she was startled awake by the sound of Maura screaming. She was out of bed in a flash, grabbing her gun from the nightstand. Following the sound of Maura's screaming, she found her in Noelle's room. A quick look around told her nothing was amiss.
"Maura, what's wrong?"
Maura's response was so garbled with sobs Jane couldn't understand her.
"Did he hurt you?"
I'll kill him, Jane thought to herself.
Maura shook her head no.
"Noelle," she finally said, her voice shaky.
All of a sudden it hit Jane what Maura was freaking out about.
"Oh, I'm sorry Maur. Noelle is in my room. I was going to call you and tell you then it completely slipped my mind."
At that moment if looks could kill, Jane would have been dead.
"I'm sorry OK? I didn't mean to scare you."
Maura looked at the gun Jane was holding in her hand.
"Why do you have that?"
"Because you were screaming Maura!" Jane responded a little more loudly then she intended.
She sighed. "Sorry. Look, I'm going to keep Noelle in the room with me going forward until we figure out what is going on. We found out Natalie has been in some trouble, the same as before. The thing is we don't know if they may be trying to get to her baby. We have no proof that is the case. We're just on the side of precaution OK?"
Before Maura could respond they heard Noelle begin to scream in the next room. This time it was Maura's turn to look at Jane apologetically.
"Go ahead to bed Maur. I've got her." Jane kissed Maura on the side of the head and headed to her room.
"Jane?"
Jane turned and looked behind her. "Yeah?"
"This may be silly but, I would feel much better if I was in the room with you and Noelle. You know, if something is going on? I don't want to be off by myself."
Jane and Maura had plenty of brushes with criminals in the past and the thought that Noelle could be in some kind of danger scared the hell out of Maura. Not to mention that put her and Jane in danger as well, something they thought they put behind them when they left BPD.
Jane nodded as she gestured for Maura to go in front of her.
Maura picked up Noelle, who immediately quieted down.
"I'll go down and get a bottle," Jane said.
When she came back up she smiled when she saw Maura was already in her bed asleep with Noelle asleep beside her.
"I guess I don't need this after all," Jane said, looking at the bottle in her hand.
She went over and put it in the small fridge she kept in her room before climbing in bed beside Maura and the baby.
"Goodnight my girls," she whispered before drifting off to sleep.