Author's note: thank you very much for all the reviews and messages!

Chapter twelve: Thanksgiving And Fluorescent Lipsticks

Maura smiled, which immediately made Maddie open her big dark eyes wide and kick the air with her feet. The baby stretched an arm and tried to grab a curl of blond hair.

Success.

She pulled on it with a strength that made Maura wince in pain. The scientist instinctively went for her hair and pulled back. In vain. Maddie was stronger than she was at this game.

Don't panic now, Isles. Don't even think you are allowed to panic. This won't happen. You cannot lose a very basic little battle against a seven-month-old baby. This would be ridiculous.

"Do you need some help?"

Someone giggled in her back. She turned around and politely smiled at a very amused Margot while a mortified Lydia rushed to her daughter. She caressed the back of Maddie's hand, planted a kiss on top of her head. Magic. The baby opened her fist and let go of Maura's hair.

"I'm sorry, Maura. She does that to me all the time. It's TJ who found the trick. She likes caresses..." Lydia offered an apologetic smile to her sister-in-law and took Maddie in her arms. "They always try to catch everything at this age."

Maura nodded and felt stupid. She had failed. Lydia had solved the issue right away when she had almost panicked. It was humiliating.

Here is the proof that you wouldn't be a good mother, Isles. You lack the instinct it takes for it.

Feeling Maura's embarrassment, Lydia laughed; lightly.

"She's my second child. Everything's easier because I have experience thanks to TJ. It was hard for me at the beginning. When I found out I was pregnant..." Lydia blushed. She didn't need to remind Maura of the context. "... It's only when I talked to my own mother and I solved my issues with her..." She shrugged. "That's when it became easier. You can't be a good mother if you haven't made stuff clear with your own one; if you aren't in peace with yourself."

Lydia's remark touched Maura more than she would have imagined. Jane didn't stop saying that her brother's wife wasn't the brightest bulb in the box but she had actually gained wisdom since she had given birth to TJ and Maddie.

She was responsible, now.

"What are the three of you doing in the nursery while everyone's waiting in the living-room?" Jane spotted Maddie and ran to her niece to cover her with kisses. "Hey... The four of you, I mean! Hello little cutie! Look at you in your beautiful dress..." She pulled on the piece of clothing. "You're gorgeous. Small wonder why your big brother's so proud of you!"

As Maura observed her wife interact with the baby, she couldn't help but smile. She loved what she was seeing. It made her melt. Jane loved her niece, her nephew as well. She was good with children.

Unlike you.

Maura swallowed hard and forced herself to smile.

"Then let's go back to the living-room. The meal is probably ready, now. You must all be starving."

She turned on her heels – walked to the door of the nursery – then sped up her pace in the corridor as if to leave behind her doubts.

...

"What a big table we have, this year. I'm happy to have everyone here to celebrate Margot's very first Thanksgiving!" Angela winked at the student. "You have to try a bit of everything, every dish. That's a very Rizzoli tradition."

Snort. Jane raised an eyebrow and murmured between clenched teeth.

"Yeah sure. And the best way to put on ten pounds within two hours."

Angela's genuine smile vanished.

"I heard you, Janie."

The interaction made Constance laugh. She had decided to postpone her flight for Paris to the very next day in order to spend Thanksgiving with Maura.

Her impromptu stay in Boston had turned out to be an excellent idea. She and Maura had talked a lot during these past two weeks. Many things had been said, and explained. Many things that now led them to the pleasing sensation to be a bit closer. They were catching back little by little on all the things they had missed out.

"Would you like some wine, Margot?" Bottle in hand, Constance smiled at the French girl only to realize that most of the table was staring at her in disbelief. "What? She is French and it is a day... That calls for celebration. I didn't propose her to try the latest drug on the market."

Maura's loud and nervous laugh took the attention away from her mother. Needless to say that she didn't have the artist's carefree attitude when it came to American habits. She wasn't strict either – and didn't mind if Margot had a glass or two during the meal – but she wasn't as direct about it as her mother and would never be.

"By the way, Maura..." Constance filled Margot's glass and looked back at her daughter. "I've left a note for you on your desk. It is aunt Leonie's phone number. She might give you tips for these little parties you seem to like."

"Oh boy." Maura buried her face in her hands. Her mother was really becoming good at playing the mother card in front of an audience. Perhaps she should herself find inspiration in all this the next time she saw Leo. "I told you that it was a Halloween party and nothing else. Margot was even there!"

Maura's embarrassment level: medium.

"And I was dressed up as a nurse, Constance. This isn't the kind of outfits you find at..." Suddenly realizing that a dozen of people were looking at them, Jane began to stutter. "These parties." And not really better... How was she supposed to know how it worked? "I mean I don't think so!" She paused and faced a heavy silence. "Is it?"

Maura to the rescue. The scientist gently patted her hand and shook her head.

"No, Jane. Unless your outfit is made of leather or something less... Classic... Than what you were wearing. You were simply wearing a very basic costume."

Jane nodded.

"The hell are you talking about?"

Everyone looked at Tommy. He seemed a bit lost. Jane swept away the question with a gesture of the hand and barely repressed a sigh. Talking about libertinage during the Thanksgiving meal was definitely a first. And probably a last.

"Nothing you need to know about." Especially with TJ watching a cartoon on television a few feet away from them. "Just a misunderstanding. Now pass the sweet potatoes. I'm starving!"

End of the libertinage conversation.

"TJ! Where did you get that?" Lydia ran to her son and took off his hand some lipstick. She went to clean his face but frowned as she didn't see anything. "It's... Transparent?"

The little boy giggled and pointed out Jane.

"It's aunt Jane's."

Jane swallowed hard. She had never changed her mind so fast. Why had she even wanted to give up the libertinage conversation? Obviously, her nephew had found something that made her feel quite a lot more mortified.

Like a tennis game of some sort, all the gazes turned back towards her. Tommy, Jane. Jane, TJ. TJ, Jane. And Maura who had pulled on her dress to cover her chest.

Except people were only looking at the scientist with a certain distance.

"It's ahem... It's not gloss. It's..." Jane bit her lips. "It's... Fluorescent?" She closed her eyes and made a face.

She had read about it in the edition of Cosmopolitan that she had "borrowed" at the Dirty Robber a while ago.

It had sounded weird at first but then she had liked the idea; and the perspective of being able to kiss Maura all over her body without people to notice it. Unless they turned the lights off, of course. Then her boldness would clearly appear.

She opened back her eyes only to see that everyone was now staring at Maura. It hadn't taken them long to understand the use of such unusual lipstick.

That was the reason why Jane had insisted to stop by a comestic store during their Provincetown getaway. She had then revealed the surprise to Maura later on in the evening.

"You know that I am open-minded and I have actually seen a lot in my life but I have to say that your couple rituals are... Unusual. I didn't think you were so creative, Maura." Constance grabbed her glass of wine and raised it to her daughter.

Maura's embarrassment level: very high.

"Ma'! What are you doing?"

In the meantime, Angela had managed to get the lipstick from Lydia – had applied on some on her lips – and was now kissing the back of her hand before covering it with the other and see if it worked in the dark.

"Well, we didn't have that when I was your age, Janie. So I'm curious about things couples use, these days." Amused, Angela put the lipstick down and winked at her daughter. "Don't let your toys out when children are around, Jane. Rule number one of parenting."

Jane mumbled between clenched teeth but missed out Maura's sudden blushing at the parenting remark.

"Except we don't have kids, ma'. We have a dog and a tortoise instead. And please, don't tell me I'm supposed to keep this away from them as well..."