A/N: Okay so a few things...1) This took a while because Spring Break was like one giant hangover. Also, I know it's comparatively short but it's more of a bridge for the next few. 2) I'm hoping this makes up for the complete and utter fuckery that occurred in tonight's season finale. 3) So no one is confused I inserted in the last chapter the fact that Maura has the kids this weekend is because Alice told Ian she was taking her brother to the park where their mother "conveniently" was. Anyway, I hope this makes you feel better after that...episode.

"S-Sorry. I was…joking." She quickly grabbed her water and took two large gulps. Jane squeezed the glass between her fingers before she finally put it down and awkwardly coughed with her eyes down cast.

"Of course." She finally looked up at Maura who was pushing the lettuce around on her plate.

"So, you got the kids today, that…that's great."

"Dad's not all that smart sometimes so…" Alice said as she glared at Jane over her glass. Jane only nodded her head and turned to Jacob who was obliviously scarfing down his fries.

"Yeah, well he'd have to be to-" leave your mother. In hindsight of her current situation Jane thought better than to finish the sentence. She had only meant to tease her boss with what she said, but the way it came out…even she knew was overkill for light teasing.

"So…Jacob, do you play any sports?" The boy excitedly nodded his head dipping his last fry in ketchup.

"Yup! I love baseball!"

"Oh, cool. Me and my brother's used to play all the time. We still have little games…when we have time off." She glanced back to Maura to gauge her response but the woman seemed lost in heavy thought as she peered down at her plate.

"Really! Maybe I could play with you guys sometimes. My coach says I need to work on my curve ball. You guys could teach me how to do that, right?"

"Well-"

"Jake, really? That's why you have a father. Ask him, instead." Jane looked to the girl next to her who was looking back at her with a knowing look in her eyes. She sighed and gave a tight lipped smile to Jacob. She decided to ignore Alice; thinking that the last thing she needed was an angry Alice Isles on her back.

Jane sighed heavily and shook her head sitting back in her desk chair. Her head was pounding, because of the work load they had that week and the reoccurring memory of that lunch. It had been nearly a week since hear lapse in judgment had happened and she couldn't get the conversation and it's awkwardness out of her mind. Ever since that lunch, she noticed that Maura had become reserved around her. Not in a way that seemed as if she was mad at her or sad for some other reason; she just seemed to always be deep in thought.

One day Jane had walked into the office after having paged Maura twice without her answering. She had looked through the small area of glass wall to see that the other woman was sat staring at her back wall. She had called out Maura's name and when she still didn't answer she walked over to her and tapped her on the shoulder. The woman nearly jumped out of her skin and pushed away Jane's concern with a half-assed excuse of being stressed out.

Now Jane sat at her desk wondering if Maura was still stuck on the memory like she was. She chanced a glance into her office to see the woman with one hand holding her head and the other holding several documents. She looked distressed so Jane stood from her desk and walked into the office.

"Ms. Isles is…everything alright?" Maura quickly glanced up and swiped away a few tears that had stained her cheek. Jane walked further into the office to stand in front of the desk and gazed down at her.

"Yes, Jane everything is fine. Thank you." Not wanting to pry she straightened her face and looked out the window at the darkening sky. She was about to turn and walk away when Maura spoke up again. "Actually no, I'm not. I just…I just received my official divorce papers for me to sign."

She slapped the papers down on the desk and buried her head in her hands. Jane silently swayed back and forth not knowing exactly what to say. They had only ever mentioned the divorce a hand full of times and all seemed to come back and bite her in the ass. Remembering that she did say that she would be there if she needed her, Jane sat down slowly in the chair.

"Is there anything I can get you?" Maura shook her head, still buried in her hands. "Do you want to talk about it?" She didn't move for a second; then she lifted her head to address her assistant.

"Yes. I would." They both sat uncomfortably for a long moment. Jane wasn't sure if she should be the one to open up this conversation in this instant. She really didn't know how Maura was feeling or how she was reacting to the news and didn't want to say the wrong thing to upset the woman. Maura on the other hand was taken the silence in stride, trying to swallow the lump in her throat before continuing.

"Jane, would you care to join me for a drink?" the brunette's eyebrows shout up at the request. Jane wasn't positive what it meant, but she decided to just go with the flow. "It's just if I'm going to talk about this, I'm going to need a little…encouragement."

"Sure. How about the Robber?" Maura smiled at her as she stood up and collected her things.

"I'll meet you there."

The envelope that held the divorce papers sat between them on the table. Maura had yet to utter a word other than to order herself wine and she didn't seem to want to say anything as she sat with her hands together in her lap, lost in thought.

"So…do you wanna talk about why you're getting divorced or…?" In the fifteen minutes that they had been sitting there Jane had been thinking of things to talk about that weren't too sad or pertained to work. What she had thought up was much more eloquent than what had come out of her mouth.

"I…well I'm sure you know by now that he had multiple affairs. But we also had years of back and forth between us. Constant arguing and manipulation…it was too much. When I received these random photos of him with other women in various acts I finally confronted him about it."

Jane slowly nodded her head and tried to keep her face from showing the complete and sheer shock that she was feeling. "Do you know who sent them?"

"I have my suspicions. My mother never liked him. She didn't even want us to get married in the first place and she even made me keep my maiden name."

"She made you?"

"Well, when we got married I was only twenty-one and still in college, but…that's another story. Anyway, she said that she would cut me off financially if I didn't keep my name." Jane frowned at that. She wondered why Maura had gotten married so young and then wondered how her mother could threaten to do something like that. Aren't weddings supposed to be joyous?

"I suspect that mother had an inkling about the affairs and hired a PI to follow Ian around. He actually tried to deny it until I showed him the pictures."

"What did he say when he realized you had proof." Maura took a refreshing breath and looked upwards as if trying to remember exactly what was said that day.

"He said…that it was partially my fault as much as it was he's."

"Wow, that's-"

"I mean I don't get it. I know I work a substantial amount but, I was right there. Why did he need to look elsewhere for…that? I was right there and he never even touch-" She quickly glanced down and bit her lip to compose herself. "Plus, someone had to support his kids and his healthy spending habits."

"Doesn't he have a job?" Maura scoffed and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. Jane followed the movement of her delicate hand with her eyes until it disappeared under the table again.

"He did. Ian was a doctor and he worked a lot with doctors without borders in Africa."

"What happened?"

"He got into a little…trouble and we both decided it would be better for everyone if just retired early. Now he does volunteer work at a med clinic a couple of days a week." Jane digested the information and decided to press her luck a little.

"Can I ask you something? If you don't want to answer, it's totally fine."

"Of course."

"Okay, well I get that he works less than you do and all of that, but knowing about the affairs and his whole career situation, I can't understand why any judge in his right mind would grant him custody of the kids."

"Jane, before you started working for me, I worked a hell of a lot more than I do now. There were a lot of soccer games and band performances that I missed because of it."

"Yeah, I get that. It can be hard on a kid. But there has to be something else. I mean you said yourself that you cut down. So what is it?" Maura brought her hands to wrap around the base of her wine glass and stared down into the dark liquid.

"When we first discussed the custody trial, I practically begged Ian not to bring it up, and he agreed. But I guess his lawyer convinced him to write it in his final statement…" The brunette tilted her head waiting for the other woman to continue. She took a hefty gulp of her wine, finishing it. They sat quietly until a waiter refilled Maura's glass and she cleared her throat.

"About four years ago, when Jacob was six…we we're in an accident. Ian had called me to tell me that he wouldn't be able to pick up the kids, because he had to work late…with Victoria…

I was already having a horrible day and had forgotten a sketch at home that I needed that evening for a meeting. I rushed to the school to pick them up and I was going to swing by the house to grab the sketch before going back to work." She took another large swig of her drink downing half of it.

"I was scrambling when I picked them up and I was in such a hurry that when…when I reached to buckle Jacob in…" Jane watched as the woman seemed to lose her breath and she reached across the table to grasp a slightly shaky hand. Jane's breath hitched when Maura griped her hand in a vise hold.

"I always check it, even if I do hear the buckle click, but I was in such a rush that…and I was driving so fast and it was raining really hard. I didn't even see the car coming…I was driving to my home one second and the next thing I knew, the car was spinning and I c-couldn't get control of the wheel."

She was crying now. Tears streamed down both cheeks and this time she made no effort to wipe them away. She only gripped her glass tighter in her left hand as she brought it up to her lips and completely finished her second glass. Jane could only look on in deep concern and understanding as she still held the woman's hand.

"Maura…it was an accident."

"I didn't c-check the damn seat belt and I should have! If I hadn't been rushing to work and worried about missing some damn m-meeting more than my own child's safety maybe…maybe I-" Her voice was rising and people were beginning to stare. Trying to dissipate some of the attention from their booth, Jane stood and slid into the booth next to Maura and wrapped her up in her arms.

"The other c-car hit us on Jacob's side and the impact was so hard…and he's seat belt wasn't set properly and it came a loose and he…he-"

"Shhh, Maura. It's okay." Maura pushed away from Jane to look at her. Though the tears had continued to fall, her voice was reduced to a soft whisper.

"No it's not okay…he was in the hospital for nearly two weeks with two broken ribs, a broken arm and a concussion," Jane closed her eyes against her words and clenched her jaw. Damn.

"It's not okay, because none of that would have happened if I wasn't rushing to work in the rain and if I had checked to see if my son was safe…It's part of the reason Alice stopped talking to me for so long."

Jane wanted to say something comforting. Something that would make this situation better, but she could tell by the tone of the other woman's voice that she had completely accepted it as the screwed up situation it was and nothing would change her mind so she settled for erasing the woman's tears with her thumbs.

"And it's also not okay for me to keep blubbering all over my assistant like this," She said trying to lighten the mood. Jane smiled and sat back to just stare at the woman in front of her. Even puffy eyed, red cheeked, slightly buzzed Maura Isles was absolutely breathtaking.

"I told you…I'm here."

"I know. But really, I'm done with all of this self-pity. I just need to grow a few." Jane chuckled finally breathing freely and getting up to sit back on the other side.

"Maura, it's actually grow a pair."

Hazel eyes grew wide and filled with mirth. "Close enough. In fact…" She reached over to the envelope in the middle of the table and opened it. She rummage around in her purse, before her assistant pulled a pen from her jacket pocket. Maura smiled and gratefully took it.

"Even assisting when you're not on duty."

Jane shrugged her shoulders and smirked. "I'm always here to assist." Maura smiled as she took a deep breath and put the pen to paper. She didn't hesitate once as she swiftly signed her name on several lines before folding the papers and putting them back into the envelope. She glanced back up at Jane with a full grin on her face.

"Whoo! There it goes."

"There it goes," Jane declared, smiling at the beautiful twinkle in the other woman's eyes. Maura glanced around for a while before her gaze landed back on the brunette across from her.

"What now?"

"Now…" Jane said downing her beer and raising her hand for another as well as a refill for Maura, "we drink."

Maura felt lighter. She walked around with a slight bounce in her step. The following week, was a new custody trial and despite Ian's fight, the judge had agreed with her. Though she didn't get complete custody, she did get joint. They had received a different judge this time who had applauded Maura's efforts in cutting back her work hours as well as being the sole financially stability of the family and scrutinized Ian a little more than the last judge did. He even looked at the event of Ian not answering the phone when Alice got into trouble at school.

Her and Jane had went out for a celebratory lunch that following day and she felt relieved in knowing she had been redeemed as a parent after telling her assistant about the car accident. The kids started staying over three nights a week, including every other weekend and Jane could tell how much happier her boss seemed. Having her kids seemed to give her more energy and it seemed she wasn't the only one who noticed. Even some of her optimistic energy had rubbed off on her clients. The commissioners of the Parker project had even thrown in a few extra thousand bucks to help with anything in the budget.

After seeing her children off that morning, Maura came bustling into work and stopped at her assistant's desk. Grabbing her coffee she smiled down at Jane. "Good morning, Jane!"

Jane put her phone call on hold and glanced up at Maura. She failed to keep the contagious smile from forming and happily greeted her. "Well, good morning, sunshine. How are you?"

"I'm great! Guess what."

Now Jane definitely couldn't hide her smile at the woman who was virtually vibrating in front of her. She was a far cry from the strict, up-tight woman she had practically feared three months ago.

"What's that?"

"I assisted Jacob with his art project last night. He had to build a model of his dream playground, and he asked me for help."

"That's really awesome, Maura."

"Isn't it? Well anyway, I have some even bigger news once you get off the phone. Just come into my office when you finish up." Jane only nodded. The woman strode into her office and she brought the phone back up to her ear.

"Hey, Ma. I'll have to call you back." She walked into the office and Maura wasn't even seated yet. She glanced up in surprise putting her purse away.

"That was fast."

"It was just my Ma." Maura nodded as she sat in her seat and pointed for Jane to take hers. "So what's up? What's so exciting?"

"Well…" she said lacing her hands on top of her desk, "How do you feel about Las Angeles?" Jane squinted her eyes as a smirk crossed her face.

"How do you want me to feel about LA?" Maura laughed and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Come on, Jane. I'm serious."

"I don't know. I've never been so…"

"Well, Jane Rizzoli. Pack your bags." Jane tried to comprehend what was going on. She was going to LA? But why? She wondered if Maura had decided to start her own company and wanted her to follow her there. Then she wondered, hopefully, if she was being sent on vacation. No, that can't be right.

"What…for?"

"There is a four day conference that I usually attend for architects. This year they are focusing on those who study Victorian styled structure. It's usually held in Michigan, but they changed the location this year to attain more attraction."

"Oh…I-"

"There will be quite a few lectures including various architects. We don't have to go to all of them, but I would like to go to most. Oh! And there is apparently a city tour of the historic structures of the city as well as…what's wrong?" Jane had been staring at her with a crazed look on her face.

"Huh? Oh, nothing just taking it in."

"You can't second guess this job now, Ms. Rizzoli. You're already knuckle deep in my private stuff." Maura only realized that her half-baked joke failed when she noticed Jane's eyes go wide.

"I-I meant my life. My private life. Sorry, I-"

"No. It's fine." Jane stood suddenly nearly tripping over her feet to get to the door. Passing by Maura's little word faux pas, she realized that she would be spending an entire week with Maura. Are we sleeping in the same room?

"Ms. Isles, I think I'm just gonna go set up…you know the hotel stuff-"

"Oh, no don't worry about that. I had J…James, no…Jason…my last assistant set it up for all of us already." Maura simply shrugged her shoulders at forgetting her last assistant's name.

"All of us?"

"Yes. The children are coming with us. We leave Friday night." Jane reached up behind her and grabbed the handle on the door to steady herself. She felt a little dizzy realizing that she would be spending an entire week not only with Maura, but her kids as well. This made her nervous. Especially the fact that she had not seen or spoken to Alice since the awkward flirting incident. I can barely handle one Isles.

"Okay. Sure. I'm just gonna…"

"Jane, are you okay?"

"What? Yeah. If you need anything…" Jane walked out the door leaving a bewildered Maura behind. She slumped in her seat and tried to soothe the oncoming migraine. She wondered how in the hell she was going to endure an entire week of Isles family. Sighing she picked up the phone and dialed.

"Hey, Ma. Listen, I'm not gonna make it to Sunday dinner."

A/N: Also, you guys make me so happy with your reviews! Let me know what you think:)