A/N: Here is a chapter updated in a timely fashion.
"Oh, God, Maura, you're gorgeous, but we should stop. We can't keep doing this…no, no, no don't take off your shirt. Fuck, Maura. You're making this so damn difficult…ohhhhhhh."
Ian's lips go limp as she reaches down his jeans. He moves against her, reaching to press his hands against her bare back for support. "Okay, fine, just let me…" They breathe heavily for a moment. "No. Maura. We shouldn't."
He removes her hand from his pants, and then drapes the sheet around her bare shoulders. Her skin boils with frustration. She feels aggravated and foolish, as he treats her like a small child caught finger painting on the walls.
"We need to talk about this."
She deliberately looks away, curling the edge of the sheet around her fingers.
"I hate her." Maura's tone is dark.
"You deserve better." Ian reminds her.
Maura only glowers.
"Look, she's a fucking idiot, running off with that piece of shit stoner. If she had any common sense, she would have realized what a good thing she had when she was with you. Also, she wouldn't have dropped out of school."
Maura tries not to smile, but it catches in her teeth anyway.
"And," he waves his hand between the two of them, "you deserve better than this."
She lets out a tiny sigh.
"Come 'ere." He opens his arms. She's still slightly miffed, but she huddles up against him, tucking her chin under his neck. "I'm not saying that we can't have a little 'fun' sometimes," he concedes. "But I would like it to actually all be in good fun. We both deserve that, don't you think?"
"You're much too good to me." She wiggles her toes under his calves, keeping them there until they become warm.
XXX
"I'm glad you came tonight," Angela smiles warmly. She hands a dripping pot to Maura to dry. Despite Jane's warnings and copious eye rolls, dinner with the Rizzolis had been a pleasant and lively affair. After Angela had stuffed them each to the brim, the family had dispersed, Frank to watch the news, and Jane and the boys to play basketball out front. Maura hardly minds taking on the task of dish duty. Angela's maternal warmth is contagious, and she keeps a steady conversation going without Maura needing to contribute more than necessary.
"It's so nice to see Jane making friends," Angela murmurs. "I worry about her, you know. She always been a bit rough around the edges, but even since her...accident, well, she's been even more withdrawn. And Casey..."
Maura perks her head up, her heart throttling against her chest. She holds her breath as she waits for Angela to continue.
"He's a good man." Here, Maura's stomach drops, crashing all the way to her toes. "A man with such admirable qualities and intentions." Not only has Maura's stomach dropped, but it now churns uncomfortably. "I worry about him, too, though."
Maura finds Angela's eyes, certain she sees a battle raging behind them, but it could just be that Maura is looking too deeply. "I worry, too." Her voice is soft. She adds her words as a quiet afterthought.
Angela stops scrubbing for a minute. "Jane a strong girl, though. They're both strong, sticking together after all they've both been through. Nowadays, you don't see many young people stick together the way they do."
Maura purses her lips; it's not appropriate to argue, though the angry words edge at her lips. She lets out a tiny sigh, placing the dishtowel on the countertop. "I think I'll go see what Jane and the boys are up to."
She steps outside, inhaling a breath of chilly air. She spots Jane across the driveway, aggressively dripping the ball around Tommy. She watches for a few moments, a warm sort of longing settling even more deeply into her heart.
"Maur!" Jane spots her, a goofy grin spanning across her face. "Come play!"
"I'm hardly dressed for the occasion," she calls back, though she slowly steps down off the front porch. A coil of hair has escaped from Jane's ponytail, and it spirals gently against her gleaming forehead. She can't help it; something primal in her is stirred whenever she sees Jane in such a state.
It's hardly barefoot weather, but she tugs off her heels nevertheless. The pavement chills her feet, but she steps bravely toward the Rizzoli clan. "Alright, shall it be Jane and I against the boys?"
Tommy and Frankie glance hesitantly at each other. "Uh," Tommy speaks up. "Are you sure that's fair?"
She knocks the ball suddenly out of Tommy's grasp, barely catching his stunned gaze as she dribbles across the driveway. "I suppose we'll find out."
XXX
"Holy shit. You are full of surprises." Jane gasps in a mouthful of air. She rests her hand against her stomach, a tiny sliver of skin exposed between at the waist of her pants. The boys have gone inside, but Jane and Maura have sprawled against the side lawn, watching their breathe cloud into little puffs above them.
She grins, proudly, glad that years of intramural sports with Ian in college have now paid off. She turns, finding Jane's face in the glow of the lamppost, her heart aching so wonderfully.