A/N: I have no idea when I'll be able to post again. I'm sorry. (P.S. Yes, I was inspired by Stana's pic on Instagram.)

Chapter 6

After less than an hour, Kate turns off the engine in the parking lot. The sun is shining full force on their head, the light breeze of the morning completely vanished in favor of the warmer temperature.

She feels Maura slowly lifting her head from her back, but her hands seem reluctant to pull away. She has been a good passenger, never moving nor stirring or trying to talk over the deafening sound of the traffic.

"You brought me to a beach?" Maura asks, straightening her back and taking in the view over Kate's shoulder.

"As I told you, you had to enjoy the journey. I wanted you to experience the bike, this is just a place where I like to come."

"Well," Maura says, rising from her seat and placing her hand on Kate's shoulder for support. "I wasn't criticizing your choice. And for the record, I did enjoy the journey quite a lot."

Kate doesn't make a move to come down and just watches Maura take off her helmet, she throws her head back and shakes it, her blond curls waving in the air. She smiles as Maura's hands straighten the wrinkles on her blouse and then unties the scarf around her neck.

"How so?" she asks as she takes off her own helmet and rises.

"It was quite… exciting to see the drivers look at us," Maura answers, looking ahead, a little smirk on her mouth. Kate turns to unzip the back pack and pretends she hasn't noticed how her voice turned a little smaller.

Maura told her she can't lie, but she's sure she has developed little tricks to get herself out of bad situations, ways to tell herself she's not properly lying so she doesn't get hives. She saves her question for later, maybe when Maura is more relaxed and doesn't feel as tense as now.

"You just enjoyed having your arms around me the entire ride," Kate teases, looking at her over her shoulder for a moment. Maura laughs as Kate hands her her things. She takes her own phone, the blanket and the camera and puts them as well as she can in the helmet she's keeping at her elbow.

"You are indeed very comfortable."

Kate thanks her as she offers her the other arm and starts walking toward the beach.

"What are you doing?"

She can hear Maura falter as Kate takes off her shoes. She has placed the blanket on the sand, her helmet resting beside it, and Maura watches her remove her jacket as she stays a few steps away from her.

"Kate?" she tries again and she smirks.

"I'm taking my clothes off," she states, without letting her smile show in her voice and keeping her head down. "I'm going to take a swim."

"Are you out of your mind?" Maura answers, her tone so serious and disapproving Kate has a hard time stifling her laugh. "Kate, it's the first week of April, it's the middle of the day and anyone could walk by. Although it is a little warmer than normal it is not as hot as it would be appropriate for a swim. Plus, you don't have your swimsuit with you and riding with your hair or skin wet is highly dangerous for your health."

Kate looks up and finds her brows furrowed and her face frozen in an incredulous expression. It is almost scaring to witness her soft self turning into a very stern one, her inner dominance showing in her voice and in her posture, her hands resting on her hips and her helmet hanging from her wrist.

"It's warm enough, we'll spend the next three hours lying under the sun and it's not the first time I do this. I have a very strong immune system and if someone passes by I'll have my underwear on, so it's not like they can say anything."

"Underwear is hardly appropriate for this situation."

"You rode naked," she replies with a soft smirk, trying to soothe her staring gaze. Maura gasps, her head tilting to the side, offended. Kate doesn't let her answer: she takes the hem of her t-shirt in her hands and tugs it over head. When she looks up Maura's gaze is still firm, her eyes sharp, but she notices the way they shift from her face to her chest for a moment.

She kneels on the blanket and then moves to lie on her back, her t-shirt resting under her head and an arm coming up to cover her eyes from the sun. Maura doesn't move, just watches her from above as she breathes, the well-fitting red bra doing little to hide Kate's skin. Maura observes how the light covers her curves and reveals the slow dip at the base of her neck and the downturn of her flesh where her ribs end.

Kate scoots to the side without moving her arm from her eyes and Maura sighs. She follows her, gently comes down to lay on her left. Kate's lips are upturned when her eyes go back to her.

"Why do you like to tease me so much?" Maura asks, moving her right arm, bending it to rest under her head, no real offense in her voice.

"You're easy to tease."

"Of course I am, you seem to have a habit of taking off your t-shirt in front of me," she answers, turning to study her profile even if Kate can't see her. She tracks the slow movements of her chest, involuntarily starting to breathe at her rhythm. Instead of relaxing her, the cadence of her breathing makes her restless: she can't tear her eyes off of her, can't help but stare.

Maura waits for her to exhale another time before she straightens her back and sits. She shrugs off her leather jacket and her hands fumble with her blouse, the smooth fabric seems to slide off her fingers. She successfully pulls it over her head, ignoring the part of her mind that tries to make her rethink her move.

Kate hums behind her, a feather-like touch gazes the skin at the base of her back and she freezes. It lasts just a moment, the contact so fleeting she wonders if it wasn't the breeze. She likes to think it wasn't.

She leans back down and when she turns on her side Kate's eyes travel from hers down her neck, her chest, patiently taking her in, before moving back up at her mouth. Maura lets her watch as she smirks, enjoying the little payback and Kate's antics.

"You made me feel overdressed," she states and Kate's eyes lose focus on her lips and meet hers.

"I'm glad," Kate grins before turning to lie on her back again.

Kate's beautiful.

She's still watching her and her mind always goes back to that only thought.

Her cheekbones are high, her jaw line sharp. Her skin looks soft and she can't help but follow the long line of her neck. Her hands spasm a little, begging to trace the lines of her collarbones.

She's effortlessly stunning. And she's aware of her beauty, of the effect it has on others and her. It's difficult to detect the boundaries they shouldn't cross when they seem to be already so open with each other. She's not used to having a close friend at all, how can she know what is okay to do and what isn't?

"I like this."

She doesn't know why she is saying it, but her fingers come up to caress Kate's cheek, her digits stroking the skin around her mole.

"I used to try to scratch it off when I was younger," Kate replies, smirking, tilting her head toward her and meeting her touch. "It's meaningless."

"In French they call it marque de beauté," she answers, her fingers still tracing the silk of her skin. "Mark of beauty."

Kate hums as Maura strokes the edge of her jaw and then up, her hairline and her brown locks. Kate bends her head backward, exposing her neck and chasing her caresses. It's frightening to witness how easy it is for her to stop thinking about what is right and what isn't when they're together.

Kate is impulsive, a tidal wave Maura can't seem to fight.

"I think it makes perfect sense," Maura continues as her hand keeps on studying her. It traces the line of a curl until it meets her neck, her shoulder. Kate's skin ripples at her touch, making Maura wonder just how sensitive her neckline must be.

Kate moves under her fingers then, turns on her left side and faces her. Maura retreats her hand and places it between her cheek and the blanket as Kate moves her own toward her.

"I prefer these," she whispers as her finger gazes her neck. Maura shivers and goosebumps erupt as Kate inches down her chest, stopping when she's almost between her breasts.

"My breastbone?" Maura asks, her voice shaky enough to make Kate's lips turn upward and her eyes glance up to hers. Her irises look mostly green in the sunlight, some sparks of gold in between.

"No," she mouths, her teeth nibbling at her lower lip in a way it makes Maura mimic her gesture. "Your freckles."

Kate's eyes glance at her chest before locking with hers again, her smirk completely disappeared. For a moment she fears Kate is teasing her again, testing her reaction; but there's a glint in her eyes and an irregularity in her breathing that she wouldn't be able to fake.

"I used to cover them with makeup. I still do sometimes."

Her voice is enough to snap Kate out of her thoughts, her eyes blink and her hands retreats, resting on the blanket between them now. Should she add that she doesn't plan on covering them anymore if that's the reaction she will get from Kate every time?

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

Kate's question makes her smirk, her eyes stare directly into hers expectantly, open and golden. Maura whispers a no in response, on impulse, almost afraid Kate won't believe her if she takes a moment to answer. Kate bites her lip again, and she would like to tell her her habit is not healthy, but the gesture is just too entrancing for her to comment.

"A girlfriend?"

"Neither," she answers, aware deep down in her belly that that question was the only one Kate wanted to ask in the first place. She tries to soothe Kate by stroking her hair like before, she brushes her locks off her shoulder, a little grin tugs on Kate's lips.

"What about you?"

"No to both," Kate answers, returning the touch along Maura's blond curls, their gazes never dropping.

"Why did you ask?" Maura asks again, both of them sinking in the comfort of each other's caresses.

"Because I suppose they wouldn't be too happy to know their girlfriend is lying shirtless on a beach with someone else," Kate answers slowly, smirking. "Someone that happens to find said girlfriend very, very attractive."

TBC