Jane Rizzoli: A Case Study

Part Nine: Reanalysis

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: Maura's not a guesser. So, when she comes up with a theory as to her best friend's recent change in behavior, she sets out to test her hypothesis the only way she knows how: careful observation and experimentation. Slow burn, fluff, eventual smut, some angst.

Warnings: The following fic is rated M (NC-17) for language and sexual situations. Readers be warned.

By the time Maura got to work that morning, she was an utter mess. She had to wait in the parking garage for nearly twenty minutes before the hives settled down. Her heartrate was elevated, and her breathing exercises were not doing much to curb her anxiety. She had no idea how she escaped Angela without breaking out, but she was paying for it now.

"Maura?" came a voice from outside her car window.

"Jane?!" Maura jumped.

Jane pulled the car door open. "Are you okay?!" She put an arm on Maura's shoulder, leaning down and looking at her worriedly. "What happened? What's wrong?!"

"Nothing," Maura tried, stepping out of the car while shaking her head.

"No." Jane insisted, "Something's wrong. What is it?"

Maura kept shaking her head, fighting back tears.

The brunette pulled her into a tight hug. Startled at first, Maura didn't reciprocate. Then the smell of Jane's shampoo filled her nostrils. She couldn't resist burying her face in Jane's neck.

"What are you doing?" Maura whispered weakly.

"Helping." Jane said, tugging her closer. "I hope."

Maura wrapped her arms around Jane, pulling just a bit closer. Her lips were millimeters from Jane's skin as she whispered breathlessly, "Well … hugs have been proven to release oxytocin, which can—"

"Help with anxiety. I know." Jane interrupted her. She released Maura slowly, stepping back to look the honey blond in the eyes. There was a warm smile on her face, "I do listen to your Google mouth occasionally."

Maura was certain that Jane could see her blush. Her heart fluttered at the adoring look in Jane's eyes. She couldn't quite muster a response.

Jane's expression changed slightly, as if she was gently reprimanding her when she said, "Who did you lie to?"

"Your mother." Maura admitted, trying to focus on anything other than Jane's hands, which were still at her waist.

Jane rolled her eyes, stepping back. Maura gently bit her lip with frustration. With Jane's hands on her, she had felt like she was hovering inches above the ground. Now she felt as if she had fallen back to Earth.

"She's interrogating you now?" Jane said with agitation. She put her face in her hands. "I knew it was a mistake to try to talk to her."

"What were you trying to talk to her about?" Maura asked, trying not to give her hopes up. There was not yet enough evidence that Angela's suspicions were true.

Jane looked at Maura, her cheeks flushed. She avoided Maura's curious gaze, glancing at her only briefly. "Well… I…"

She definitely just bit her lip, Maura observed. And that glance was not at my eyes, but my lips.

"It's kind of what I've been trying to …" She looked around the parking garage nervously as if worried about onlookers, "talk to you about too."

When Jane stepped forward again, Maura couldn't help the smile that escaped her lips. The brunette's eyes dipped down to Maura's lips. Maura held her breath, gazing briefly a Jane's slips before bouncing back up to coffee brown eyes. They locked eyes, and the honey blond swallowed, her heart racing.

"Hey, Rizzoli!"

"Fuck." Jane cursed under her breath, scrunching her eyes closed. She dropped her hands that had gravitated back to Maura's hips.

The honey blond looked over Jane's shoulder to see Frost sprinting their way. They sighed simultaneously. Maura had to put her hand on her chest to settle her racing heart.

"You okay Doctor Isles?" the young detective frowned as he reached them.

"I'm fine," Maura shook her head dismissively. She glanced at Jane, who's cheeks were bright red. The brunette fidgeted with her hands, only smiling awkwardly.

Frost turned to Jane, "We've got a body down on the docks. Korsak says you've been ignoring your phone." He looked at Maura, pointing to her car. "I think you might want to get that."

Maura suddenly became aware of the ringing coming from her purse in the passenger seat.

"Just five fucking minutes." Jane cursed, again, under her breath. "Is that too much to ask?"

"What?" Frost said, his brow furrowing.

"Isles." Maura answered, her eyes on Jane. She only realized she was biting her lip when Jane blushed even more.

"He's been trying to reach you." Frost repeated with annoyance. "Did you put your phone on silent again?"

"Huh?" Jane said, only now pulling her eyes away from the honey blond.

"God," Frost said, rolling his eyes exasperatedly, "can you two focus on work for five minutes?!"

Both Jane and Maura looked at him in shock. Jane gave Maura a baffled look and then asked her partner, "What are you talking about?"

Frost shook his head, "You guys are so fucking clueless." He walked away in a huff. Maura was fairly certain she heard him grumble, 'You guys need to just bone already' under his breath.

After a moment of watching Jane's partner walk away, they looked back at each other. Jane was still blushing, but she moved a bit closer. Her hand drifted to Maura's.

The honey blond closed her eyes frustratedly. She so wanted to continue their … conversation, but she had apparently ignored two previous calls in her panicked state. The press was already pressing close to the scene. Maura needed to make an appearance quickly.

"I'm sorry," Maura sighed heavily, "but I've got to go."

"Oh…" Jane said, her voice small, almost deflated.

Maura tugged Jane closer by the hand, her other going to Jane's shoulder. She couldn't stop herself from twirling some of her hair in her fingers. She bit her lip though she tried to resist doing so. She saw Jane swallow and glance at her lips.

"But we'll talk later, right?"

Jane nodded wordlessly.

The doctor did not have much time to think on the drive to the docks, but as she gripped tightly to the steering wheel, she slowly became more confident than ever that Jane was in fact attracted to her. How else could she explain what had just happened? Friends don't look at each other like Jane looked at her—like she'd been looking at her for weeks. Every time it happened, it seemed more obvious.

And Frost had noticed. If he was making comments about their behavior, then it would be clear to anybody else. Jane's mother was starting to suspect that Jane was gay. Was Jane still struggling to accept it herself?

Jane arrived on the scene with Frost about ten minutes after Maura did. Instantly, Jane's eyes went to Maura's. The brunette tried a shy smile, but when Maura bit her lip, she responded in kind. The thrill sent shivers down Maura's spine. Jane looked away, but Maura noticed she kept glancing at her out of the corner of her eye as she examined the scene.

Maura studied the body, which had been pulled from the water before she arrived. She tried to focus on her work, but she hadn't had much practice in compartmentalization of her feelings for Jane in a long time. It had taken a few weeks originally, as the two got to know each other, for Maura to bury her feelings. Now that Jane seemed to be reciprocating her feelings, the thought of her watching her was driving her mad.

She shook her head, trying to focus. The recollection of Jane's hands on her hips, the smell of Jane's hair, the warmth radiating off Jane's skin—she couldn't keep them at bay. They kept bubbling up moments after she pressed them down.

The doctor could hear Jane's voice behind her. She peaked over her shoulder to see the brunette was standing next to Frost, who was interviewing a witness. Her hands were on her belt buckle, near her badge. She appeared to be struggling to stand still and was only half listening to the witness. Her eyes were very clearly on Maura—specifically on Maura's ass as she bent over the body. Jane very obviously bit her lip.

"Okay," Maura practically groaned, standing up. "Let's get the body back to the lab."

Susie nodded, gesturing for another tech to help her move the body to a body bag.

Maura let out a ragged breath.

"You okay, Doctor Isles?" Susie frowned.

The honey blond bobbled her head in a half nod, half shake. She was definitely not okay, but not in the way Susie probably suspected. Finally, Maura managed, "I'm fine. It's … very cold out here."

Susie shivered sympathetically, "You're not kidding."

"I'll see you back at the morgue." Maura said, turning away.

It might have been below freezing on the docks, but Maura was far from cold. She was, in fact, very warm. Too warm. She needed to collect herself. She spent a few minutes in her car breathing slowly, but to no avail. Finally, she leaned her head down on the steering wheel with resignation.

This is going to be a problem, Maura thought with a sigh. If Jane was going to keep looking at her like that while at work, she was going to have trouble concentrating on anything else. Maura was a professional. They both were. There needed to be some sort of agreement between them. But how would they come to an agreement when neither of them had admitted to what this was?

I have to get her to make a move, Maura thought resolutely. I need to know for sure that she's ready to take that step.

As Maura drove back to the station, she began planning her next—and hopefully last—experiment. It would involve testing the waters a bit beyond what she originally planned. And it would involve doing so at work. This would be by far the most dangerous, and perhaps most exhilarating, test of their relationship.

To be continued