Hey guys – thanks so much for continuing to follow my story! It really means a lot to me. I know some of you have complained about the gap between updates, so I'll just apologize and say that family life at home this summer has been hell lately. My paranoid mother always wants to know what I'm doing on my computer -_- But, praise Liza, I'm moving out in two weeks and I'll try to do much better. Also, some of you are really in the camp of "poor Maura," but don't forget about Jane! This is her dream on the line here. She's only known Maura for like three days. If you stick around, I imagine it'll all work itself out ;)
Chapter 7
"Wake up, time to shop!"
This time Jane knew it wasn't Audrey Hepburn. The light from the window next to the bed was streaming onto her face and her dull headache got worse by the second as Maura continued her rousing instructions.
"Now, if you have any trouble using the credit card I'm leaving here on the night stand for you, have them call the hotel for confirmation."
"Ugh…more shopping?" Jane pouted groggily. The young officer didn't like to hear any words before 8 am, but "shopping" was more than she could handle at such an early hour.
"Yes Jane. There are plenty more outings to come that will require you to be dressed elegantly. I'm surprised you didn't buy more than one dress yesterday."
Now Jane was embarrassed as the humiliating experience from the shop the day before flooded back to her. It sounded like seven-year-old Jane Rizzoli talking and pretending not to cry after a confrontation with the "pretty girls" when she said to Maura, "Yeah, well…they were mean to me."
Maura ceased her flitting about the room like a chipper morning bird and stopped in her tracks. Jane could swear she heard squeaking wheels on the pavement.
Maura pivoted in her high heels to face the object of her affections and she could feel her face growing warmer. If she hadn't been so angry, she would have taken the time to reason through the scientific causes for her reaction to bring herself back down. But she was, in fact, more angry than she could ever remember being. All that Maura could manage to do was repeat Jane's final phrase.
Jane watched Maura's eyes became slits as the honey blonde uttered in disgust, "…Mean to you?"
It was all over. Jane was turned on to the max, and she hadn't even had coffee yet.
~LT~
Jane and Maura walked hand and hand back down the same route Jane had taken the day before, only this time the undercover cop's tube top was concealed by one of Maura's looser fitting white blouses. Still, one could only do so much to downplay stiletto pleather hooker boots.
Jane could feel herself sweating bullets, but not because of her state of dress. She adored the sensation of holding Maura's hand – in fact it brought her exactly the state of wholeness she had always hoped for. She was just worried at the moment that someone might recognize her without her wig. If anyone even said her full name out loud, this would all be over.
"People are looking at me…" Jane said through gritted teeth.
"Because you're gorgeous, Jane. Hasn't anyone ever told you that?"
Jane stumbled a bit, and much to her dismay, Maura's look changed from adoration to concern. Having ruined the moment, Jane simply reverted back to complaining.
"But Mauraaaaa…. I don't want to go shopping! The ladies in the stores here aren't nice to me." Jane heard what she sounded like and pretty much accepted the fact that today, she had downgraded about twenty-five years.
"Stores aren't nice to people, they're nice to credit cards." Maura was enjoying Jane's pitiful act a little too much. "Besides," she continued, a playful gleam in her eye, "You've never been shopping with me…" Maura gave Jane's hand a squeeze and winked at her.
That was enough to shut Jane up. She could only stand there dumbfounded imagining what helping Maura with a zipper might entail when the Doctor began to give out orders again.
"Okay, stop fidgeting! Get rid of your gum." Maura gestured toward a nearby trashcan, but sophomoric Jane came back with launching her gum in a spitball past three Red Hat Society ladies and a postman to the other side of the sidewalk and smiling proudly down at her companion.
Maura wanted to scold her, but instead she felt herself smile and she closed her eyes, holding in her laughter. "I don't believe you did that."
Jane was still smirking when the crossed the threshold of the shop Maura led her to.
The guising hooker hung behind and Maura approached the shop owner as if they were old friends. From the back, Jane could see that he was a balding man of medium height and build, dressed in a suit that appeared to be strangling him.
This should be fun.
"Mr. Hollister, how nice to see you again!" Maura said in her professionally polite tone.
"Doctor Isles, always a pleasure! What can we do for you today?"
Maura began her introduction by placing her hand at the small of Jane's back and pulling her toward the store manager. "This is my dear friend Jane. Do you have anything in this store that's as beautiful as she is?"
Jane felt Mr. Hollister fighting a losing battle to not openly stare at her, and this time she opted to bat her eyelashes rather than pull a "what's he lookin at."
"Oh yes…" Mr. Hollister answered with a slight tremor apparent in his voice.
Maura frowned slightly, and Mr. Hollister made a quick recovery.
"…er, Oh no!"
Jane smirked again. This guy was a real sucker.
"Oh no…no no…" Hollister continued. "I'm saying we have many things as beautiful as she…would want them to be! That's the point I was getting at, and I think we can all agree – "
"Perfect," Maura said, apparently satisfied by his answer. Then she began to outline her demands. "We're going to need a few more people to help us out today because we'll be spending an obscene amount of money. Do I make myself clear?"
Jane felt her jaw go slack at Maura's blatant use of her power as a means to an end. She noted that if she still possessed the power to move her own arm, she could have easily knocked Mr. Hollister over with a feather. Jane watched as Maura's commanding gaze shifted to lock with her own.
"Today is all about Jane," Maura said.
The two women stood there smiling at each other like no one else was there. That might as well have been the case, because Mr. Hollister wasted no time in calling his professional shopping team together to throw Jane a regular shopping spectacular.
As she stood there and took in the flawless couture-loving doctor who for some strange reason had taken a shine to her, she felt something change deep within her. It would be ludicrous for someone to expect Jane to suddenly become a shopping-crazed fiend, but somehow, in that moment she convinced herself to make the most out of this day. No one – not even her own mother – had ever devoted so much time and effort to make Jane feel special. Yes, Maura needed an escort to keep up her level of professionalism, but she didn't have to go to all of this trouble. She didn't have to call Jane gorgeous. She didn't have to look at her like this.
Jane was just worrying she'd have to say something when Mr. Hollister came swiftly back to Maura's side.
"Exactly how obscene an amount were you talking? Profane, or really offensive?" he asked in a cautious tone.
Maura smirked and answered him, her eyes still locked on Jane. "Really offensive."
Jane melted into a puddle and Mr. Hollister nearly did the same, touching the Doctor's arm as he whispered, "I love you so much, Maura!"
~LT~
The rest of the morning had been a blur of people, price tags, and fabric. Of course, Maura continually insisted that Jane not look at the price tags, but Jane just couldn't fathom that some people could afford to buy a $400 blouse with matching $800 shoes. Who lived like this?
Apparently Dr. Maura Isles did, because she had remained cheery the entire time, relishing seeing her extremely uncomfortable employee model couture. When Jane walked out of a fitting room in a particularly ridiculous looking white suit, the young officer reminded herself for the second time that week that everything was pretty much worth all the trouble just to see Maura smile.
At first, the Doctor had assisted her with some zippers – causing Jane's senses to be on high alert – and stayed pretty close by to give her opinion on each piece, but after Jane got the hang of the process and began to bond a little with Hollister, Maura had stepped away, glued to her phone. Jane realized that this must be keeping Maura from her commitments at the precinct, and suddenly it dawned on her that she was lying down on her own job. Thankfully, Maura walked closer to check on her a few moments later.
"Jane, I just realized it's lunch time. You must be starving."
"Nah it's okay Maur, I was just –"
"Mr. Hollister?" Maura's down to business tone always shut Jane up.
"Yes, Miss Isles?"
"Could you ask one of the girls to order Jane some lunch? I'm sure she's famished. She's not exactly used to shopping sprees."
"Of course! What could I order for you, Miss? Perhaps a gourmet pizza from down the street?"
"Sure, yeah, that's great." Jane dismissed Hollister and turned back to Maura. "Hey Maura, you looked awful busy over there. I'm probably keeping you from all kinds of stuff down at the precinct, so you should just go. I think I can handle this."
"Thank you, Jane, but I was able to rearrange my morning to be here with you. Now that I see you're receiving the proper attention, I'll head down to the precinct – you have my card."
With that, Maura stepped toward Jane and practically over the top of the woman hemming Jane's skirt just below her to place a kiss on the tall brunette's cheek. She lingered for just a few moments to whisper softly in Jane's ear, "I'll see you tonight – you look absolutely beautiful."
Jane was frozen next to Mr. Hollister who had just returned from his phone call. Both of them watched in awe as the Doctor disappeared through the door and down the street, her honey blonde curls bouncing behind her and the tight black skirt leaving little to the imagination.
Once Maura was out of sight, Jane turned and noticed Mr. Hollister staring. In an attempt to cover her growl, she cleared her throat at him. He jumped and mumbled something about getting her another outfit to try on as he scampered off through the racks. Jane laughed and shook her head. If she could find a way to keep Maura around, she'd be the luckiest woman alive.
~LT~
Maura had barely made it out of the shop when her phone rang.
"Maura darling! Have I caught you at lunch?"
Maura closed her eyes and held in her heavy sigh. "Well, not exactly mother. I was detained this morning and I'm just now able to go in to the precinct. Is there something you wanted?"
"Oh good! You haven't gone in yet?"
"…No, I haven't. Why do you ask?"
And then Maura saw her. On the park bench just down the block near the front of the station, Constance Isles sat waiting for her daughter to pass by. Maura didn't even have time to make a disgusted face, because Constance had long since spotted her as well, waving her toward the bench wildly. Maura hung up her phone and kept walking, but there might as well have been lead in her shoes.
Constance was putting her phone away in her purse as Maura approached the bench. Her mother smiled warmly, but her sickly sweet tone suggested an ulterior motive – as always.
"Maura!"
"Mother…what a pleasant surprise." The Doctor took her seat leaving a safety buffer between them on the bench.
"Isn't it, though? Your father absolutely hates it when I surprise him at work, but I thought surely you wouldn't be so sour."
"Aren't you usually working at this hour as well?"
"Oh, I suppose I probably should be, but what good is being the boss if you can't pay someone to work for you every once in a while? Besides, my daughter needs me!"
"…I do?"
"Oh don't be silly, Maura! We have to celebrate your decision to move to Africa to help Ian!"
"Excuse me? Mother where are you getting your information from?"
"Well good heavens, Maura don't give me the third degree. I spoke to Ian yesterday long distance and he said everything on his end has been finalized. All you have to do is sign some papers back here, pick up your ticket at the airport and set off. That is, of course, after you say your goodbyes to me as I'll miss you terribly."
Maura's head was swimming. How was it that no matter how hard she pushed away to have her own life, she always found her mother right back in the middle of it?
Several moments had passed and Constance was growing restless. "Maura? So what are you doing in this ghastly old facility today? Can't you just sign off on something and let them know of your plans?"
Only more silence came for an answer as Maura meditated with the sounds of passing cars and the feeling of the Sun on her face. Suddenly a memory came to her, and before she could filter it, she was speaking.
"Mother – you know what I used to love when I was younger?"
"Maura, I hardly see how this is releva – "
"Murder mysteries. I would read Christie and Conan Doyle and act out the stories with my dolls. I was always fascinated by the fact that no one was ever there to speak for the dead. The victim's only hope for vindication was that the detective would put together the pieces to the puzzle and finally solve the case. Then maybe they could rest in peace. But in my stories, I would give my victims the help they deserved. I learned to speak for the dead – because without me, they had no voice."
"Oh, Maura stop being so morbid. You're just avoiding the subject at hand! Everything is all set – all you have to do is call him, for heaven's sake."
"This is the subject at hand."
"Maura what the hell has gotten into you this week?"
"I'm really not sure."
"Well it's time to get sure about something for once in your life. Ian is practically handing you the opportunity to do something decent – perhaps even another chance at him! It's time to come in for the kill! Call him, Maura!"
Maura could feel the tears stinging her eyes and she fought the urge to run and never turn back.
"I'm sorry, mother. I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow at the match." Maura made her escape up the front steps into the precinct. Once inside, she ducked into the nearest hallway and caught a shaky breath.
A person can only be smothered for so long before they suffocate. Some of them even forget how to breathe.
~LT~
Some three hours later, Jane had enjoyed her pizza and selected her favorite ensembles. She made Mr. Hollister promise not to show her the final total as she swiped Maura's platinum credit card. She thanked everyone for the day and left the store feeling like a new woman. They had insisted she wear one of her new items home, as her old outfit was "too drab for a woman of her level of charm." Whatever that meant.
Jane did feel decidedly more sophisticated, and even if she truly didn't belong in a place like this, she could allow herself to pretend for at least the rest of the week. When she looked back up to get her bearings, she saw a familiar name on the shop window up ahead. She felt a devilish grin overtake her as she sold herself on her latest idea. After all, one more stop couldn't hurt.
The bell on the shop door rang to announce the now elegant-looking Jane Rizzoli's arrival. Marie greeted her instantly with an over-exuberant, "HI! May I help you?"
But Jane shut her down with a short, "No thanks" and practically ran Marie over as she burst through the shop toward the Ice Woman.
"Hi! Do you remember me?" Jane asked in the most sarcastic tone she could muster.
"No, I'm sorry…" she answered with a look of panic, making the assumption that Jane must be someone very important.
Jane blinked twice in disbelief and continued,"Really? I was in here yesterday. You wouldn't wait on me. Remember now?"
The Ice Woman looked like she had seen a ghost. "Oh…"
"You work on commission, right?"
"Uh, yes."
"Well, tough luck, sister. You picked the wrong lady to be a bitch to. Big mistake. Big. Huge! You're under ar – er, I mean…I have to go shopping now!"
Jane practically ran out of the shop as fast as she could in her new pumps. She was laughing at her automatic instinct to make an arrest, and what's more, that was the most fun she'd had in a long time.
When she walked back through the lobby of the Four Seasons, she felt ten feet tall. A Roy Orbison classic played in the background, and she was doing a killer job of walking in these heels thanks to all the practice in those stiletto boots. With all of her confidence back, Barney the hotel manager recognized her as Officer Rizzoli almost instantly. But he didn't stop her. He just smiled and nodded at her, showing his approval of her makeover. Jane was clearly on a mission, and he silently wished her all the luck in the world.
~LT~
It was after five o'clock when Jane had put the finishing touches on the suite. She had spent the last twenty minutes attempting to angle the chair just right. Finally, she gave in and decided Maura would probably approve of any angle – at least she hoped. Jane scurried to the bedroom to put on the exquisite pearl necklace she had picked up for Maura with part of the money she had paid her the other night. Cavanaugh was probably already tipping Kit pretty well anyway, and Maura deserved something special after making Jane feel like a princess today.
Jane looked in the mirror and shook her head at what she had become. Here she was after a long day of shopping all smiley and doe-eyed waiting for the girl of her dreams to return. If only the guys she played ball in the vacant lot with could see her now.
She came back in to the dining area just in time to hear the elevator ding, and she scrambled to get in position.
Shit! I forgot the music…
Jane sprang from the chair and pushed the button and the surround sound stereo system came to life. A seductive Kenny G melody played from a selected playlist Jane had made on Maura's iPod earlier that day. She could barely hear the card slip into the lock on the door as she sank back into the chair. She was ready as she'd ever be.
Maura desperately needed to relax. She had barely been there at all during the lab tech's presentation; her mind was occupied by her horrid confrontation with Constance. Maura knew all too well that the truth – that confiding in someone she trusted – would be the best therapy. Until Jane, there had been no one she trusted to this degree, and she wasn't really sure what it was about this young woman that made her relinquish her reservations so easily, but she was about to. She was going to tell Jane everything tonight.
Upon her entrance to the suite, Maura was greeted once again by music, but this time it came from the stereo system. Nothing could turn a girl on quite like Kenny G. That is, of course, unless they had access to the sight that Maura Isles experienced before her.
Jane had set the table complete with a full course room service meal and glowing candles in the center that gave the whole room a romantic ambiance. All of that made the Doctor clutch her hand to her heart in awe, but only Jane in the flesh would make her gasp.
Literally.
Jane was completely naked save for the pearl necklace she had purchased for Maura. She reclined in the high-backed dining chair, twirling a raven curl with one finger as she rasped, "How was your day, dear?" Maura's apparent desire fueled Jane's intense, hungry gaze. The young officer could feel herself becoming slick between her long, crossed legs.
Maura's mouth had gone completely dry. As she watched the pearls drift tantalizingly close to Jane's hardened nipples, she couldn't believe what she was seeing. She supposed it was possible that she was hallucinating due to the massive stress levels the day had brought her, but if she was, she planned to indulge herself and play along.
"Nice necklace," the Doctor managed.
If it was possible, Jane's voice got even deeper as she replied, "I got it for you."
Maura unconsciously licked her lips. How did Jane know that freshwater pearls were one of her little known weaknesses?
Jane arched an eyebrow and continued to relish the sight of the Doctor undone. This was going to be one long, delicious dinner.
~LT~
"Well, my mother was a studio artist, and she married my father who was extremely wealthy by birth. Then they decided to adopt a child, which turned out to be me. Somewhere along the line, they got bored and decided that giving me everything I wanted would be sufficient enough to raise me."
Jane and Maura were unwinding beneath the warm water of the giant Jacuzzi tub. The honey blonde reclined between the legs and against the chest of her much taller lover, who was listening to her story and gently massaging her with a small exfoliating sponge. While Jane was troubled by what she was hearing, she had to admit she was enjoying rubbing Maura down with the sponge. For obvious reasons, of course, but mostly because she was taking a rare opportunity to help someone else unwind, and Maura certainly deserved it.
"…then when it became quite clear that I was an odd child who wasn't satisfied by only material things and yearned for higher learning, they sent me to a boarding school. When I was fourteen, I knew that I was experiencing attraction to the other girls, but I just never mentioned it. I kept living my life 'normally,' the way I thought I was expected to. I even dated a man for a short time at BCU. Eventually he could tell I wasn't really into it. He sat me down one day and begged me to tell him the truth. I could tell that he was the first person in my life that genuinely cared about me as a person, and so I told him. He was the first person ever to know. He hugged me and told me he was there for me, and he would always love me, but he understood who I was and was willing to support me. That meant everything to me."
"Wow. Your boyfriend really sounds like a great guy, Maura. Where is he now?"
"Well, you see, that's the issue I'm facing today. I never told my mother about my sexuality because she doesn't need another reason to regret making me her daughter. She had plenty of ammunition already when she learned I wanted to go into forensic medicine – something she can't easily explain to her sorority sisters. Mother fully expected me to marry my boyfriend after college, so when he moved back out to London to finish school, she assumed that I had driven him away. Those were the saddest months of my life, Jane. He had moved away to do what was best for his career, but I had lost the only friend and confidant I ever had in life. I had never been able to talk to anyone like this…until I met you."
Jane felt her heart flutter, and she gave Maura a light squeeze. "You can talk to me any time, Maur. I'll always be here to listen."
Always? They seemed to share this similar thought as Jane continued, "But who gives a shit what your mother thinks, Maura? You should do what makes you happy – live your life how you want to."
"My mother has nothing to do with it, Jane. I've been dating women ever since he left and I have never even discussed the issue with my mother. If she knows, she's chosen to ignore it and keep pushing her male Vanderbilt friends on me. I can handle that. What I can't handle is having absolutely no familial support in my life. It's hard enough knowing you used to be an orphan, but when you don't live up to your parents' expectations…you feel like you're climbing a mountain that's constantly growing taller. Having him as a best friend was the only period in my life where I felt stable enough to grow stronger. A few days ago he asked me to join him and his relief team in Ethiopia…he's a doctor too."
Jane wanted to sink beneath the surface and never come up. At least she now knew for sure that Maura wasn't a spy…
"Obviously my mother assumes I'm going and has practically already married me off again, and the man that loves me is waiting for me to say the word. I'll never earn my mother's approval, Jane. I know that. I just don't know if I can let him down again when he's given me so much."
Now Jane could detect Maura's negative feelings toward this arrangement in her tone. She let herself cling to the hope that she truly wanted to stay here in Boston – to stay with her. But tonight Jane needed to be strong and support her new friend, and that's what she would force herself to do.
"What does your father have to say about all of this?"
There was a beat before Maura gave Jane the most honest answer she'd ever heard.
"My father has never said a single word that mattered to me in my entire life."
Okay…note to self: Never bring up Maura's father again.
"Right. Well Maur, it's like I said. You have to do what's best for your life, and only you know what that is. Not even your best friend can make that decision for you."
"I know…that's what makes it so hard."
Jane could hear the tears consume the sweetest voice she'd ever heard, and she couldn't let it go on any longer or else she'd start crying too. And Jane Rizzoli doesn't cry.
"Hey Maur…" she began with caution, "did I mention that – wait, how long did you say my legs are again?"
"Jane, I told you, it would be impossible to determine your exact leg length without a measuring tape. Leg length is unique to each individual and is not always directly correlated to height, but there are some fairly accurate ratios that could bring one close to a guess."
"Thank you, Doctor. This is not a fitness exam. Just give me your best guess."
"I don't guess."
"Oh come on, Maur, for Christ's sake! You said it earlier…"
"Actually I said it would be abnormal for someone of your height and build to have a leg length of less than 44 in – "
"Thank you! All I needed was a number. Was that so hard?"
"You tricked me."
"Yeah, well, it's for your own good. What I was going to say is that if my leg is 44 inches from hip to toe, basically we're talkin about 88 inches of therapy wrapped around you for the bargain price of – "
"…$3000." The women recited the number together when Maura caught on to the joke. The Doctor was sitting up slightly and had turned to face the brunette. They were both beaming, lost in each other's eyes and in no hurry to get out.
"Yeah," Jane heard herself whisper, still smiling as she could swear that after tonight, she could see even deeper into the woman who trusted her.