Hey. I'm sorry for the late update but I was sort of busy with work. So I hope the ones who stick around are still there. As usually only the additionally characters are mine (this is only 'sam'), the rest belong to the usual ones.

I know i make a lot of mistakes in this story, but if there are unusual many this time or if it is not understandable, it's not my fault. You can blame it on the heatwave we have to struggle with right now. We have 37°C (that's like 98°F if that's important) and that is 10°C beyond what I'm used to in the summer ;-)

Guess there only will be one or two more chapters for this story.

Hope you enjoy though.

Jane had spent the night at Maura's. After her revelation she had tried to act as normal and comfortable as possible, though Maura had recognized the change in her behavior. Jane had excused that with nearly everything, work and stress and the time of the year and month and Casey. Anything that was far away enough from her own feelings. She had seen the awareness of her lies in Maura's eyes but the medical examiner hadn't pushed her for answers. Early in the morning Jane had left, again with an excuse, something she couldn't even remember. After she had gotten home she went for a long run and added a workout with her punching bag, both to calm her down and distract her mind from inappropriate thoughts of her best friend, which seemed to be ever present since yesterday's evening. But no matter how intense her physically workout had been, it didn't seem to help a bit. So she ended on her couch switching mindlessly through the television channels. Jane had tried convincing herself that in the light of the day and without Maura at her side her feelings would be less intense. She had hoped that if she would rethink her realization she could come up with another conclusion, that she could explain her feelings for Maura as plain friendly. But that wasn't the case. The more she thought about the medical examiner the surer she became, that what she felt was way beyond friendship. She sighed and checked her watch again, the tenth time in an hour. It was 3 in the afternoon, which meant Maura's date just started. Jane had this strange feeling in her gut since last night, but imaging Maura on a date with the other doctor, amplified it. Guess that's what they call butterflies in the stomach. But not the sweet and nice ones. These are the ugly ones, who make you wanting to constantly throw up. She stood up and almost ran to her fridge to get a beer, her last attempt to get rid of her frightening feelings.

Maura had met Sam at the coffee shop near her favourite park. They had bought cups to go and were now strolling around between the grass fields and trees before they sad down on one of the benches. They had again talked about anything and everything until Sam made a reference to a movie Maura didn't know. The medical examiner frowned and apologized. "Sorry, Sam. I don't know what you are referring to. But I can look it up." She searched for her cell phone in her purse to google Sam's comment. Maura didn't like to not know what her dialogue partner was talking about, and her experience showed that not knowing easy pop culture references offends most people. Though she didn't really know what this meeting was about, she did know that she liked Sam and that she didn't want to reject her by her weirdness.

Sam placed her hand on Maura's forearm to stop her from searching her cell phone. "Don't ask google about it."

"But I want to..."

"You don't have to know everything, Maura." Sam smiled affectionately. "Actually I think, that the opportunity to gather whatever knowledge we want by searching in google, at any time we want, makes life less fantastically."

Maura stopped searching in her purse and sighed. "Most people expect other adults to know certain things about some special movies, though I never quite know which movies are recommend to know. It seems to be sign of social compatibility between two persons."

Sam laughed. "Yeah I know. But it's a bad value to estimate compatibility, isn't it?"

Now Maura had to smile too. "Though, you seem to be very knowing about this kind of things."

"I have a lot really geeky coworkers. I guess I have to know a lot of movies and computer games and this stuff to understand them. But it's not really useful and necessary to know these kind of things."

Maura frowned again. "You think so? So how can one distinguish between useless and necessary knowledge?"

"I dunno. Might depend on the social groups you are interacting with. But a good approximation could be a venerable encyclopedia. But only a printed version. Looking something up in a real book with real paper seems more important than to search the Internet." Sam grinned again.

"I have a printed version of a great encyclopedia at home." Maura stated enthusiastically while remembering an incident, where Jane had called her collection of lexica a great waste of paper and space. "Would you like to see them?"

Sam burst into laughter. "Maura ..."

It took Maura a second to understand the physicist reaction, but then she joined laughing. "Oh. That might have sounded like a strange pick-up-line."

"Yeah it does. But I'd love to see your library, Dr. Isles."

"Wow Maura, that's a quite impressive collection of literature." Sam and Maura were standing in Maura's office, both with a glass of red wine in their hands. Maura had offered Sam a beer but the other doctor stated that wine and books would match better.

"Yes. I love reading. Especially..."

Before Maura could finish her sentence there was a loud knock on the back door, which was opened directly after. "Maura?" Angela Rizzoli called.

Maura flashed her visitor an apologizing smile and went into the living area. "Angela. Nice to see you."

"Maura, Darling. Sean... Lieutenant Cavanaugh and I just talked about having a barbecue tonight. It's such a nice weather today. Not too warm anymore and not too cold, just perfect. We wanted to invite Barry and Vince and Jane and..." It was then, that the Rizzoli matriarch recognized the other woman and the glasses of wine the women were carrying. "Oh, you have a guest. I'm sorry for interrupting. I didn't know."

"You're not interrupting, Angela. I've showed Sam my library." Maura's thoughts wandered off. She had looked forward to meet Sam today, but since Jane's strange behaviour the last night she had doubted that she actually should meet her. It had felt as if she was betraying her best friend. Even though she had enjoyed Dr. McMorrows company, right now she felt somehow caught.

There was an awkward silence and only when Sam took a step forward, extended her hand and said 'Hallo. I'm Sam.' Maura was retrieved from her thoughts and her good manners took over. "I'm so sorry. Angela, this is Dr. Sam McMorrow. Sam, this is Angela Rizzoli, Detective Rizzoli's mother."

As Angela took the still offered hand, the doctor said: "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Rizzoli."

"Oh, it's Angela since you are a friend of Maura. But nice to meet you too. So you are a doctor? Like Maura?" she asked excited. As long as she was living in Maura's guest house she had never met a female friend of the medical examiner except for her own daughter.

"Oh no. I'm not a medical doctor. I'm a physicist."

"Oh, physicist? Like Einstein?"

Sam smiled sympathetically. "No one's as extraordinary as Mr. Einstein. But we all try our best."

Maura stepped in: "Sam helped us with a case a while ago."

The eldest Rizzoli became even more excited. "That's so interesting. I'm in a hurry right now. But would you like to come to our little barbecue too? You're sure welcome."

Sam shortly glanced at Maura, then focused back at Angela. "I'd love to, but I'm not sure if I can make it. There are a few things I should take care of in university. But I'll try."

"You're just like Maura and my daughter. Always working, even on a Saturday evening. Speaking of, Maura, have you talked to Jane today? I tried to call her several times but she doesn't answer her phone."

"I haven't talk to her since this morning, Angela. I'm sorry." Maura still felt uncomfortable.

"Na, never mind." Angela checked her watch. "Oh, I have to go. See you tonight, Ladies."

Maura kept starring at her back door, already closed after Angela left. 'Jane hasn't answered her phone? Hopefully nothing has happened to her. She seemed confused when she left this morning. Maybe she is with Casey. It's her day off after all. And maybe she tries to solve her problems with him and if they do they will be here tonight for the barbecue and will be flirting and holding hands and...' She felt a hand on her elbow.

"Maura? Hey! You're alright? You have zoomed out."

Maura shook her head. "Oh, I'm sorry, Sam. I usually am more concentrated on a date. What have you said?"

"This was a date?"

They moved to the kitchen counter and Maura was pouring another glass of wine. "It wasn't? I'm not really accustomed to dating women." She took a big swig from her glass to lessen her tension and sat down.

"I don't know. You tell me. I thought that you and Detective Rizzoli have a... a... thing? So I wasn't sure if this was meant to be a date like in, you know, dating." Sam said.

Maura studied the woman in front of her, who stood in her kitchen, the wine glass in her hand and an expecting look on her face. "Jane and I do not have a... we aren't...there...there is nothing..." Maura couldn't finish her sentence, because she herself didn't know if there was a 'thing'. She had been sure, that her feelings for the detective were unrequited and that she should open up to the idea of moving on. That had been one of the reason she had stayed in contact with Dr. McMorrow. But Jane's tender but strange behavior lately and especially last night let her questioning her earlier estimation. She borrowed her face in her hands and mumbled: "I'm sorry, Sam. But I had the feeling that you were... we were flirting somehow since we met. I apologize if I misinterpret the situation, but that's why I called it a date."

"That wasn't a misinterpretation. I've been flirting with you." Sam grinned and sipped her wine.

Maura looked up confused and frowned.

Sam must have seen the confusion on Maura's face because she answered unspoken questions: "Sure I have been flirting with you Maura. I mean, look at you! Who wouldn't? But that doesn't mean that the coffee we shared was a date. One can flirt without being on a date. On the other hand one can do not flirt on a date. But that would be a really poor date. And, Maura, I can flirt with you even though I had the impression that you are in some sort of relationship with Detective Rizzoli. That might be a bit suicidal if Detective Rizzoli is as possessive as I think she is. But it's just a little flirting, not even very obvious or offensive. I like you but I'm not head over heels in love with you, so it's just some fun, it doesn't have to mean anything. But I guess it's more complex for you than for me, since you are in an undefined something with her and I'm in a quite defined nothing."

Maura sighed. "Thank you for your understanding, even though I might have raised your hopes."

"I know we don't know each other this long, but if you want to, you can talk to me about what's going on between you and your detective. That is, if I get a beer before."

"Jane Clementine Rizzoli!"

Jane startled and jumped off her couch, whereby she knocked down the empty bottles surrounding her. "What the fuck, Ma? What the hell are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same. Are you sitting here drinking at the middle of the day?" Angela studied her daughters face. "And have you been crying, Janie?"

"What? No..." It was only then that Jane felt the wetness on her cheeks. Furiously she tried to wiped away her tears. "No, Ma! I just... had something in my eyes." She grabbed the bottles and moved to her kitchen to throw them away.

"Janie!" Angela had followed her. "Don't you think it's a bit early to drink?"

"You know what? No, Ma. It's actually right the time for another one. You want some, too?" Jane asked with dry sarcasm and opened her fridge to get another beer. She opened it and drowned demonstratively nearly half of it. "Again, Ma. What are you doing here? Can't you just call or at least knock on the door?"

"I have, Jane. But you haven't answered your phone or the door. I was concerned, obviously with good reason." She had started to clean up the counter.

Jane went back to the couch to check her phone. Five missed calls. Three from Ma and two from … Casey. Fuck. I spent the last hours thinking about my love life and haven't even thought once about him. Fuck. But there is no call from Maura. Seems she enjoys her date. Damn. "Okay. Sorry for not picking up, Ma." she slumped back in the cushions. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, Sean and I..."

"Sean? Ma? Cavanaugh? Really?"

"Yes, Jane, Sean and I would like to have a barbecue tonight. At Maura's. And we wanted to invite you."

"Oh really? Have you talked to Maura about this? Because she is busy today. She's on something that is not a date." she replied again sarcastically.

"No, Janie. She is not. She's at home and as a girl's talk with this nice Sam doctor friend of hers. I've invited her, too."

"Well, Ma. You might not believe it, but that's her date." As soon as the words left Jane's mouth, she regretted them. No matter how much she hated Maura meeting this women, and no matter how much she was hurt and confused and sorry for herself right now, there was no reason to throw Maura under a bus driven by her catholic mother and by doing so destroying the relationship Maura and her mother had. She knew how much Maura loved her mother. Oh shit. She jumped to her feet again and with three big strides she stood next to her mother. "Ma. I..."

Angela didn't respond, just dropped the cleaning rag and grabbed the edge of the counter with both hands.

"Ma, listen to me, I..." Jane tried again.

"Oh, thank god!"

Now Jane was confused. "Ma have you heard what I said?"

Angela rolled her eyes. "Sure Jane. I'm old but not deaf. You said that Maura has a date with this other doctor."

"Yeah, Ma. Date, like dating. Like gay or whatever. Like sin."

Angela's gaze shot up and focused the detective. She lifted a finger at Jane. "Don't you ever dare to call my Maura a sinner."

Her mother's finger was only inches away from Jane's face and she knew the older woman too well to interrupt her right now. So Jane just nodded.

"Jane, Maura is the most caring person I have ever met. She took care about me after the jerk of your father left me, and she took care about your own brother after he … you know and she has done so much for you, even though you don't know. She has been and still is like a saint to our family. You know how bad her choice is when it comes to men. You've met these bastards. So, yes, thank god, that she is open to find her luck with women. And that is not a sin. Damn, we are living in the 21 century. There are Christian schools which are accepting homosexuality." Angela started to underline each word with a hit of a towel on one of Jane's upper arm: "I've. NOT .raised. You. as. a homophobic!"After her rant Angela stopped to study her daughters face. There were tears again and her expression softened. She lowered her hands: "That's not the problem, is it?"

Jane sobbed. While she was investigating her feeling for her best friend Maura she had constantly wondered what her family and friends would think about her falling in love with a woman. She had always had to fight against rumours about her being gay, because of her sports and her job and her way to dress and she had always been afraid of people talking about her. But her catholic mother standing in front of her and making a summation pro homosexuality seemed to make it all bearable: "No Ma, that's not it. It's..." She broke and sobbed again.

"Janie, talk to me. I'm your mother. No matter why Maura's date is bothering you, you can tell me."

Jane couldn't do anymore then to shake her head as her phone rang again. Without looking at the caller ID and without avert her gaze from her mother she answered: "Rizzoli."

"Hey sweetheart. It's Casey. How are you doing? I know, that you've tried to slow things down a bit. And I do understand this. I have forced things. But this near dead situations in war and the surgery and rehab, I know better than anyone else how important ever single moment in life is. But I'm trying to do things right here. And we haven't seen each other for nearly a week now. So what do you think about dinner tonight? Just dinner, you and me, and a few candles." He chuckled.

Jane's gaze didn't not waver from her mother's eyes while she answered: "Casey. Right now it's a bad moment." Right now she didn't had the nerve to do a breaking-up talk with him and that was what she wanted to do to him. "I have to go. There's a family thing at Maura's tonight. I'll call as soon as possible." She hang up before the army soldier could answer.

Angela sighed as she heard the excuses from her daughter. It had always been difficult to talk to Jane. But she had an idea what was troubling her daughter and she wanted to give her as much reassurance as she could. "Listen, Janie. I love you. You're my daughter. I will always love you no matter what. If you don't want to tell me right now what is going on, that's okay. But please remember, you are not the one who just sits around without doing something. I don't know what is bothering you, but please, my daughter, start acting now... after you had a shower and a strong coffee." And with that said she left.