Part 14

"Maura, can I ask you a question?" Jane was rubbing her thumb across 'her' ME's hand as they drove back towards the precinct.

"Of course Jane." Maura smiled sweetly at 'her' detective.

"Back there when that girl was speaking to me, why did you move so close to me?" Jane knew she was jealous but for some reason she wanted to hear it from Maura's lips.

"I was done collecting my samples and just thought I would offer my assistance. I thought I could help you with the ladies, "spoken harsher than she intended, "and any tells that they were lying." Maura took a deep breath as if to force herself to stop talking before it became a ramble. When she looked at Jane she noticed the smirk and spoke her next sentence as a whisper. "I may have felt a little jealous."

Jane squeezed her hand, "You know, you don't have to be." She looked at the beautiful woman. "But it was kinda cute."

After a moment Jane continued. "Maura, I know you have noticed I get flirted with. Why the jealousy now?"

"I have always felt some jealousy. Now, I can allow myself to feel the emotions I have had to hide for so long. Now, I know you feel the same way." She smiled at Jane. "Besides, you have always been jealous in certain situations. I mean "protective" of me in many situations." She winked earning a playful scowl.

"Okay, so we are both "protective" with the other." Jane couldn't wipe the grin off her face if she wanted to.

They parked and with a mouthed 'I love you' they exited the car and headed in. Once inside the doors of the precinct Jane's phone buzzed and she looked to check her message.

Frost and Korsak were walking towards them.

"I just texted you." Frost said walking a little faster to meet up with his partner.

"I know." Jane raised her eyebrows as if to say 'no kidding' and held up her phone. "The last guy in the photo huh? Let's hope this one is still alive."

Maura visually chastised Jane for her rather harsh choice of words. Jane noticed and responded without even thinking about where they were. She closed the distance and placed her hand back on the ME's back. "Sorry babe." She freezes in that moment, realizing her mistake and starts to retreat. Maura quickly reaches for her hand, afraid Jane will retreat inside herself.

Korsak notices the quick change in his old partner's movements and quickly goes to reassure her. "Jane, it's ok." He puts his hand on her shoulder.

Jane looks dazed and then it dawns on her. He doesn't care. Maura is holding her hand so tight now she is sure the feeling is leaving her fingers. She gives Korsak a quick thank you look and then faces Maura. "I'm not going anywhere. You can let the circulation in my hand begin again." She is looking right into those hazel eyes willing Maura to see that everything is fine.

Maura searches the brunette's face for any sign of concern. When she evaluates that smile and those words finally resonate in her big brain she gives Jane a giant smile. She finally loosens her grip and Jane can't help but act hurt, earning a playful slap from that same hand that just had a death grip on her.

After a moment the ladies turn and look at their colleagues and friends. "Not exactly how I planned this moment." The familiar sarcastic tone returning to the detective's demeanor.

"Me either." Maura looks at Jane. "But I'm thankful for the Freudian slip." She gives Jane a wink.

A thought just occurs to her as she notices her mom in the café. "We should probably go tell my mother before she finds out some other way." She is looking straight at Korsak as the words leave her mouth.

"Me?" He acts stunned and hurt. He knows she is probably right though.

"Do you guys mind?" Frost and Korsak shook their heads understanding the situation. "Oh, and you don't know before her." She couldn't resist the reminder knowing how her mother gets when she isn't the first to know the important stuff about her daughter. Well, aside from Maura. She is pretty sure that Maura is the exception for her mother.

The ladies head into the café. "Hi Angela." Maura says as she sees the older Rizzoli headed straight for them.

"Hey girls." She wraps them both in a hug before continuing. "Is the case getting any clearer?"

Jane just kind of growls. "No, and it is getting annoying." She guides Maura to a table. "Hey Ma, gotta minute?"

"Sure." Angela starts to show some concern at how nervous Jane starts to act. She sees the tension ease a little when Maura places her hand on Jane's arm in a reassuring gesture.

"Well, we just wanted to talk to you for a moment. To tell you something….. a change." Jane runs in her hand thru her hair. "We, I mean. Maura and I are kind of together." She slowly raises her had to take a look at her mom's face.

"Oh, Thank god." She wraps the girls up in a group hug shocking them both, more Jane. "I was beginning to wonder if you two would ever figure it out."

"What?" Jane says a little louder than she intended and then looks around the room to see if anybody was looking.

"Well, for two intelligent women, you two can be awfully dumb." She giggles and the faces the girls are now making. "You two take care of each other so naturally. And the looks you give each other, I almost need a cold shower sometimes." Both the detective's and the ME's jaws drop. "Oh, and if you don't think anybody is looking at you, you each just drink the other one in."

"Okay Ma, that's enough. I guess that means you are okay with it." Jane is really starting to blush now. "Wait. Then why were you always setting me up?"

"Well, I couldn't wait around and hope you figured it out. I thought maybe if one of you could be spurred into action it would be Maura when she was jealous. You are always the protector and it has never changed when she dated someone." Angela states it so matter of fact.

"Me." Maura responds in awe.

"Ma, what if I had actually settled for one of those guys? Did you ever think of that?" Jane was trying to keep her voice down, but was coming close to losing that battle.

"I never thought about it. You're so stubborn, I just assumed you would never settle and live out a friendship with Maura if nothing else." Angela shrugged her shoulders.

The "new" couple looked at each other and Maura couldn't help the smirk as Jane rolled her eyes. They held each other's hand for a moment not paying attention to the giant grin on Angela's face.

"We gotta get back to work Ma." Jane stood and placed her hand on her girlfriend's back. An act that became natural so many years ago. Angela wrapped them both in a hug again beaming as the pair left the café.