"Did you need something, Detective?"
Jane stood in thought for a moment before responding. "No, I'm good, thank you."
She smiled and turned back around and continued her journey to Maura's room. "Am I crazy or do they think Maura and I are a couple?" Jane thought to herself before making it to the door.
...
She stopped, took a deep breath as she pushed away her thoughts and tried to mentally prepare herself to see Maura. She peeked her head around the door frame and saw Maura lying still. She donned a hospital gown now instead of her Cassandra Strickenberg dress that was most certainly crumpled in a bag somewhere and not hung properly according to Maura's standards. She had a bandage wrapped around her head that was covering the staples and she looked very pale. Other than that, Jane couldn't believe how peaceful and beautiful she looked. Almost angelic. Her hair was still curled and cascading down her shoulders and her make up had remained intact. Jane felt a strange feeling inside her stomach at that moment. "Get it together, Rizzoli," she whispered to herself.
"She's doing much better," a voice startled her out of her revelry. "Dr. Parker," she said breathlessly, covering her chest with her hand.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," he said genuinely. Placing a hand on her shoulder.
"It's ok, I was just lost in thought."
"Her wound closed nicely and should heal rather quickly. It will scar but her hair should cover it, no problem. She will need someone to clean it for her daily though. Her vitals are also stable. She lost a lot of blood so we have her on several IV's. She's also on a few pain killers so I wouldn't anticipate her waking up until the morning. She's going to need time to regain her strength but she should be out of here in a few days. Are you ok, Detective, do you need anything?"
"I'm fine Doc, thank you," she said, smiling awkwardly at him. He just stood there and smiled back.
"My mother is here and she brought me a change of clothes. She also brought enough homemade gnocchi to feed a small country so if you're hungry, go talk to the crazy Italian woman in the waiting room," she said with a chuckle, feeling the need to change the subject.
"Her gnocchi is the best!"
"I see that you got cleaned up. You look good...uh, I mean, I hope that helps you feel better," he said rubbing the back of his head nervously.
Jane stood, silently.
"I would kill for some homemade gnocchi right now," he said, breaking the awkward silence that had formed between them.
"I might just have to take you up on that offer! If...you're hungry, maybe we could grab some together?"
Jane just started at him and then looked back at Maura.
He gave her an understanding smile. "Maybe another time," he said nervously. "Right, well, I'll leave you to it. Please let me or my staff know if there is anything that you need. I'll be back to check on Dr. Isles in a few hours." He turned to leave but turned back to steal one more look at Jane. Thankfully, she didn't notice because she was too busy hobbling into Maura's room with her crutches and bag.
Dr. Parker was an attractive man, right around Jane's age. He had a professional amount of stubble and a full head of salt and pepper hair. Probably too young for it but it made him look very distinguished. He looked fit. Jane could see that he was muscular through his scrubs and lab coat.
If Jane was in a better state of mind, she might have noticed how attractive he was or the fact that he hit on her but she was too preoccupied. She set her things down and pulled a chair over to Maura's bed and sat down.
