A/N: So, this is the second to the last chapter. In my last note, I asked that you don't hate me. In this one, I ask that you don't burn me at the stake for heresy and crimes against Rizzles. :)

Jo Friday had slept in Jane's bed. The weather was unusually cold for a September morning, so somewhere in between the moment she had told Maura to stay in the guest room and the moment Jane woke up, her beloved terrier had made her way underneath the covers with Jane instead of sleeping at the foot of her bed. The warmth from Jo Friday's body was a source of comfort for Jane. She wanted to remain in that position, but her dog started wiggling underneath the covers and gently scratching Jane's legs. When Jane refused to get out of bed, Jo Friday made her way up to Jane's pillow so she could lick her face until Jane got out of bed. Had her dog not been hungry, Jane would have preferred to remain in bed until the noises in the kitchen had ceased. Why the hell is she still here?

Jane hesitantly made her way over to the kitchen, but Jo Friday scampered ahead of her. Her tail started wagging when she saw Maura open her bag of food and pour some into her dish along with fresh drinking water. When Maura spoke to Jo Friday, Jane had reached her limit. Maura's voice annoyed her. Maura's smile annoyed her. Everything she had once loved about this woman now annoyed her.

"What are you still doing here?" Jane asked, her tone startling Maura. "I told you to leave before I got out of bed."

"I thought you might be hungry, so I made some breakfast for you."

"Like a good wife?" Jane asked. "Why don't you have your new woman spend the night at your place so you could make breakfast for her?"

"You're my woman, Jane," Maura insisted. "I was hoping we could talk. I'm sorry about what I did, but that will never happen again. I'll call her right now and tell her I can't see her anymore."

"Get in the shower," Jane commanded. "Get in the shower and then we'll talk. If I'm going to be near you. I don't want you smelling like another woman."

The water was running in the shower when Jane noticed Maura's phone on the kitchen counter. Out of curiosity, Jane grabbed her phone and was relieved to see a picture of Bass as her wallpaper instead of some other woman. Some things never change.

As Jane looked at the picture of Bass, she saw an incoming text message from a woman named Lisa. Without going into Maura's inbox, Jane was able to read a preview of the message. "I can still taste you" was what flashed at the top of her screen. There might have been more to the message, but Jane didn't care to read it. That little preview was all she needed. She remembered the papers on the coffee table and checked to see if they were still there. Maura hadn't put them away yet, so Jane used the rest of her time alone to make sure they were filled out properly. She decided that she wanted this divorce when Maura told her she was going to date another woman, but after seeing that text message, Jane was absolutely certain getting a divorce was the only way to solve their problem. Sam had hurt Jane. Jane had hurt Maura. Now, Maura was hurting Jane. What's next?

Maura didn't have a change of clothes, so she borrowed a pair of yoga pants and a tank top from Jane. Her make up was off and her wet hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She smelled like a combination of cherry almond lotion, lavender shampoo, and cocoa butter body wash. It was an unusual combination, but the scent was intoxicating and Jane had to suppress every urge that told her to hold Maura. Ever since before they were married, Jane had loved Maura's fresh out of the shower scent. If the circumstances were different, she would have held her close as she placed delicate kisses on her neck, but regardless of the memories Maura's comforting scent evoked, Jane knew she couldn't give in.

"Lisa sent you a text message," Jane said calmly. "That woman can still taste you. Maybe you should tell her to rinse her mouth out, unless she wants to savor you. I know I never want that taste in my mouth again."

"Jane—"

"No," Jane interrupted. "It's my turn to talk right now. You disgust me, Maura. You know what I went through and then you agree to go on a date with another woman. When I asked questions about her, you said you didn't think it was right for us to be friends until I accepted the fact that you were going to date other women. I was upset, but I left it at that and I was going to give you your space. Then you fuck this woman and want to spend the rest of the night in bed with me? I was raped, Maura. I know I've never said it outright, but didn't you think of that? Your wife was raped and you willingly fuck some other woman instead of trying to help me get through this. I would have been more accepting of a date and a goodnight kiss, but you fucked her on the night of your first date? Maura, we didn't even do that after our first date and we already had feelings for each other. As much as we both wanted to give in that night, I knew it would be better if we waited. This woman obviously has no respect for you if all she wants is to get you into bed. She is nothing compared to me and now you know what you're missing out on. Have all the sex you want now, but just know that as exciting as it might be, it'll never be what we had."

"I want to help you get through this," Maura insisted. "But, I understand if you want us to go through with the divorce. I'll give the papers to Cheryl, my attorney, and she'll take care of the process. After that, I'll start the paperwork required to change my last name back to Isles. Just keep in mind that I love you, Jane, and I know that doesn't mean anything right now, but someday it will. You and I are meant to be together. People who know nothing about us can see it in the loving glances we exchange. We're going to find our way back to each other, Jane."

"If it's meant to be, we will," Jane told her. She had wanted to stand her ground, but within that statement Maura had made, Jane was able to find remnants of the woman she had fallen in love with. "We just keep hurting each other, Maura, and it has to stop. I'm so drained right now and knowing you had sex with another woman just made it worse. Right now, it's just unforgivable."

Maura wiped her eyes and mentally prepared herself for what she was about to say. "I'm going to start applying for other jobs."

"Maura, no," Jane said to her. "You love your job. You don't need to leave on account of this."

"I do," Maura insisted. "I need to get out of Boston, maybe even out of Massachusetts. I can't stay here when everything reminds me of you and the life we had together."

"I'm sure whoever you work for next will enjoy their time with you. We'll miss our Queen of the Dead."

Maura was grateful for the levity Jane had brought to the conversation when she used her nickname, even if it was short-lived. "Jane, I know I have no right to say anything, but I'm jealous of the woman you'll be with next."

Jane scoffed. "After everything I've been through, I'm not even thinking about women right now. I'm still legally married to the one sitting next to me and I've told you before that I don't plan on marrying another one."

"You will," Maura insisted. "And she'll be beautiful in every sense of the word. You'll love her so much that you'll wonder how it was possible to love anyone before her. By that time, if I'm mentioned it will be in passing and I'll be referred to as your first wife. I'll be nameless and faceless. There will be no pictures of us together, even in a box stored away in your closet, because you'll be so absorbed in her. She'll give you Baby Rizzoli and you two will raise a family together and grow old together, just as we had planned on doing. What bothers me the most is not that you'll love her, but that she has yet to meet you. She doesn't know it at the moment, but she has so much left to look forward to. No woman is ever the same after being with you. We exist in three phases: our lives before you, with you, and after you. I'm starting the third phase right now and she's lucky enough to be in the first phase. She can look forward to meeting you, your first date, the first time you tell her you love her, your proposal—maybe she'll even marry you at Fenway Park. I'm sorry I didn't do that, Jane."

"Now isn't the time to be sorry about that," Jane said as she held Maura. "Before this happened, we had a good life together—a great life together. There was so much love, Maura, but we're going to get through this and we're both going to be okay. You're never going to be nameless and faceless with me and there will still be all of the memories we've made. I could never just mention you in passing. Before you, I didn't know what it was like to love a woman so much that I physically ached when we were apart. Now, I know that's possible. I may or may not experience it again, but I'm grateful to have experienced it at least once in my lifetime. Like you said, if it's meant to be, we'll find our way back to each other."

"I love you, Jane."

"I love you, too." Jane knew it was a bold move and maybe even uncalled for, but she leaned in and pressed her lips to Maura's. It was their last kiss and both Jane and Maura wanted to prolong it as much as they could.