A/N: Really sorry about the delay guys. Between finales and moving to another city, I had zero time to do much of anything. On the bright side, I am finished with Uni for the summer! Anyway, here is part one of the date. Hope you enjoy! Reviews are always nice.

"Hello?" Jane discarded the open folder onto her boss's desk as she suddenly stood up, turning her back to the golden-haired woman.

Maura, not unused to these abrupt interruptions, simply sighed and looked on as her assistant walked away, before spinning back around to face her. "Yes, uhm…" The brunette locked eyes with her. "Can you hold on for just a second?" she said, needlessly raising her index finger out of habit.

Jane drew her phone away from her ear, covering the receiver with her free hand as her lips tightened in a simulated smile. She seemed to hesitate for a moment before addressing Maura. "I have something to take care of. It'll only be a minute," she assured, not really sticking around for a response as she replaced the phone against her ear and ducked out of the office.

Maura distractedly gripped her sketching pencil between her teeth as she contemplated Jane. Although random phone calls were a common and minor disturbance, the architect would have had to be blind not to find Jane's behavior a little suspicious. That was the fourth time in the past hour she had to step outside to answer what was clearly a personal call. Having been less chatty than normal all morning, Jane appeared to have her attention unevenly divided. If she didn't know better, Maura may have thought Jane was doing something suspect on the down-low, but being the smart woman she was, and knowing Jane as well as she did, it didn't take long for her to put two and two together.

The first hint was when Jane casually suggested Maura keep her plans open for Friday night. And now, the private calls... The vague text messages… The preoccupied behavior… All of it could only mean one thing.

"So," started the tall brunette as she charged back into Maura's office without any preamble, snapping the older woman out of her thoughts, "I'm gonna head over to the construction site and make sure everything's running smoothly. Need anything before I go?"

"Oh, right. No, I'm fine. I'll grab something on the way back. Just let me gather my things." Maura reached for her purse as she got up. So many details had to be gone over with the contractor that day because although they had predicted the Parker Project to be in commission for an entire year, at the rate they were going it wouldn't take much longer. It was both daunting and exciting, but she couldn't wait for the end of the day.

"No!"

Maura froze, genuinely startled by Jane's outburst. She slowly put her purse down on the desk as she regarded the woman before her, who was now blushing profusely. "No?" she echoed with an eye brow quirk.

"Well, not no… just, no. You know… no." Jane shrugged in punctuation, indicating that this all made sense to her somehow.

Maura sat back in her chair, head unsurprisingly tilting in incomprehension. If she wasn't mistaken, the word 'no' had but one meaning, yet Jane's spontaneous display of tone and register had her second-guessing her own understanding of the simple word. Was there some social cue she had missed?

"Listen," Jane sighed walking closer and faintly rolling her eyes at herself for talking in circles, "It's just that… it's pretty chilly outside and… you've got those new designs to work on anyway without having to go across town for something I can easily take care of. I don't want you to, you know… tire yourself out. Yeah, it's only morning and I don't want you burning out before... Just let me handle it."

A teasing smile broke out on Maura's face. "Are you calling me old?"

Jane instantly scoffed at the idea. "Of course not. Far from it."

"Oh, so I'm a child who needs to take naps in the middle of the day," she baited, her playful side curious to see just how flustered she could make Jane before she cracked.

"That's not what I meant. Maura- I know you're a grown woman. I just…" she shrugged, at a loss for words. Clearly Jane was trying to work her way around the truth, but she could see it was only making her more questionable.

Finally done with torturing her poor assistant, Maura stood and sauntered to the other side of her desk and stopped before Jane with coy eyes and her bottom lip sucked between her teeth.

"Jane."

"Mm," said Jane's mouth as her eyes greeted other features her hands longed to meet. Maura's body made it very hard for the Italian to take things slowly and not just have her way with her on that desk right there and then.

"This concern of yours," said Maura as she reached up with one hand to tuck a lock of hair behind the brunette's ear. "Does it have anything to do with…" she trailed her hand down a well-developed arm, "… me having to keeping my schedule open for tonight? Or the date you promised me two days ago?"

Maura tried hard to conceal her smile when Jane's throat bobbed as she swallowed dryly. "No, it doesn't," she said.

"Hmm..." was Maura's only answer as she brought both arms up and around a tanned neck, while Jane's hands instinctively found their home on the blonde's waist. Once Maura had Jane's attention back at eye-level, a manicured eyebrow quirked in a challenge softened by traces of a smirk.

Jane cleared her throat but dared not look away. Maura watched the troubled eyes of the woman who held her. Her eyebrows furrowed in thought as she calculated how to go about this. Maura smiled up at her and pulled herself closer and it was like she could physically feel Jane's resolve breaking away. When an embarrassed smile spread across thin lips and brown eyes met hers again, Maura knew that she had won.

Jane then sighed into a groan. "Fine, you got me."

The older woman let out an airy laugh as she pulled Jane into a brief hug. "So, it's tonight? You're taking me out tonight?"

Pretending to be annoyed at her, Jane grumbled some more. "If you must know, then yes. That was the plan. But it was supposed to be a surprise, Maura, and you kinda ruined it. Happy?"

Maura pursed her lip hard trying not to laugh at the pout that adorned Jane's face. It was rare that Jane would show this more vulnerable side of herself, but Maura thought that it was absolutely adorable. Leaning up she put a few chaste kisses to her lips, effectively replacing that pout with a smile.

"I think it's sweet that you tried to surprise me, but I think you should know that when my children tried to throw me a surprise birthday party, I figured it out strictly by the tone in which they said 'Hello' to me the prior morning… And you were quite obvious."

"Jeez." Jane huffed as she threw her head back and chuckled. "Fine. Since you already know… I would like to take you out tonight. Is that okay? I mean, with the kids and everything."

"It's actually perfect timing. Jacob has a sleepover at a friend's house, and Alice is going to the movies with one of her friends. Her curfew isn't until 1 a.m. so I don't expect her home even a minute earlier."

Jane snorted, "Yeah, I bet."

Internally, she grimaced as the thought of Alice entered her mind. What would Alice say if she knew they were going on a date? She hasn't been shy thus far about expressing her distaste for the concept of Jane and Maura flirting, let alone dating, so who knows what would hit the fan if and when she found out they were going ahead without her blessing.

"Hello?" Maura squeezed the muscles of Jane's neck to get her attention back to her. Once the fog cleared and Jane refocused on her, Maura asked, "Where did you just go?"

"Uh, nothing- nowhere. Just thinking about the date."

"Speaking of which, what should I wear?"

"I don't know. You always look like you're about to do a photo shoot, so whatever's fine."

Maura rolled her eyes as she eased her way out of her assistant's grip. "Well, are we going to dinner, or are we going to be outdoors…? Jane, I need details. This," she gestured down to herself, "doesn't just happen on a whim."

Jane smirked as she stalked a little closer to get rid of the unnecessary gap between them.

"It sure looks good, though." She slid a finger up the side of Maura's grey dress, but- "Hey! What the…" she pulled back instantly at the sudden whack on her knuckles, shaking the slight sting away with enough exaggeration to elicit no sympathy from her boss.

"This is very serious."

"No, it isn't! Look, you can wear something kind of like you have on now. Okay?"

"Thank you. Now was that so hard?" She laughed when Jane childishly nodded her head and stuck her tongue out. "You know, I can think of a better use for that tongue of yours right now."

Taking that as an invitation, Jane leaned down with a devilish grin to press their lips together only to be stopped by a hand against her chest. "…but as much as I would just love to indulge in that fantasy right now, I'd hate for us to start something we can't finish. We should head to the construction site."

Maura swiftly stepped away, grabbing her purse and headed for the door.

"Yeah, we should…" Jane said, a little deflated as she turned around. Then, she suddenly remembered something. "Wait, no Maura! You're supposed to stay here. Maura!" She exclaimed, following the woman's retreating form to the elevators. "Man, she's good."

It was while standing naked in the middle of her dress closet – the clock ticking away, counting down the last sixty minutes until Jane was meant to pick her up – that it suddenly dawned on Maura. I haven't been on a date in over a decade!

She pressed her hand against her forehead trying to soothe the oncoming stress headache that threatened to seize her brain from struggling to decide on what to wear. Since getting out of the shower (after dropping Jake off at the Wilson's), she had been spinning in circles going from this dress to that dress and still not being satisfied with any of her options. It was very rare that she felt uncomfortable or out of love with the way that she looked in something she bought, because after all she bought it for a reason. But she wasn't just picking an outfit to wear for the sake of being dressed – she wanted to wow Jane and have her eating out of the palm of her hand by the end of the night.

Considering her own current state of undress, she was tempted to boycott clothing altogether, knowing she would definitely achieve her desired result... But then they'd never get to the 'date' of it all, so no.

Maura was about to sift through her dresses again starting from the back when something caught her eye. Eureka. She gasped and practically hopped over to the other side of her closet to grab the outfit off the rack. Walking up to the full length mirror near the door with the item pressed against her form, she stood back and admired it. With a content nod, she bounced back into her bedroom and gently placed the dress on her bed.

It wasn't lost on her that she was acting like a giddy schoolgirl going on her first date ever, because that's exactly how she felt. Jane just had that thrilling effect on her somehow. After untying her robe, she quickly slipped on her underwear as her mind dwelled on the light feeling in the pit of her stomach. She hadn't felt this feeling in quite some time, and so, resolving she deserved to let herself indulge in the gentle tug of her heart, she danced around her room like a lovesick teenager before slipping on her dress.

It was only when the muscles of her face began to ache that Maura realized she had been grinning for the entire hour while she got ready. She laughed at her own behavior and sat on the bed to slip her shoes on when she heard a brief but boisterous knock on her unlocked door.

"Mom, Nicole is-" Alice froze in the doorway with her mouth agape.

"Is Nicole already here to pick you up?" asked Maura as she stood back up.

Her daughter silently but openly appraised her from honey-blonde head to Louboutin toe. She looked both stunned and impressed. "This is so unfair. You're showing me up even with your stay-at-home clothes. This is getting ridiculous."

Maura just laughed. "Don't be daft, honey. You look beautiful, as always," she said, walking over to her younger doppelganger dressed in a simple light-blue top, dark skinny jeans and heels, pulling her into a one-sided hug. "Just make sure you're back by curfew and please be safe, okay?"

"I'll try not to choke on the popcorn," was Alice's half-hearted retort as she watched her mother walk back to her armoire to triple-check her make-up and don her jewelry. When it became clear that Maura wasn't in a sharing mood, she cleared her throat and stepped a little more into the room. "So, you look… nice."

Maura lightly laughed as she looked at her daughter through the mirror. "Why thank you. As do you."

"No, I mean really nice… where are you going?"

Frowning in thought, Maura only shrugged her shoulders. "Honestly, I have no idea."

The teenager gave her a sideways glance, mouth poised to speak when her cell phone chimed to alert her that if she didn't drag her butt out of her house right then, she would be out a ride. Deciding to interrogate her mother another day, Ali sighed. "Okay then. Enjoy the cage fights or whatever. See you tomorrow."

"Have fun!"

She gave a quick wave before she dashed out of the room and downstairs.

When Maura heard the front door slam closed, she let out a relieved sigh. She knew that if her daughter had stayed any longer she would have asked the one question she didn't want to answer. Who are you going out with? And that would have been disastrous. Or at least she thinks so. There was really no telling where exactly Ali stood on the topic of her recently divorced mother dating… another woman… who works for her. Maura made a mental note to have a conversation with both her children about this as soon as she and Jane had things figured out.

Soon after Maura busied herself with tidying up her closet – which looked like Vogue threw up all over her carpet – she heard the doorbell ring. Jane.

Her stomach suddenly tightened as blood rushed away from her limbs. If she was nervous before, her anxiety rocketed up the Richter scale. Maura slowly passed her bedroom mirror on her way out before descending the stairs on shaky legs. Taking a deep breath, she reached for the knob and twisted the handle.

And there, on the other side of the threshold, stood the tall, dark and handsome Jane Rizzoli. Damn, she was gorgeous. In snuggly fit white jeans that spanned the length of her endless legs, and oxford shoes to match the dark blazer over her indigo V-neck shirt, Jane handed a bouquet of purple lilies over to her date with a well-deserved smirk.

"I got these for you."

Maura almost swooned as she brought them up to her nose to inhale the floral aroma. How did Jane manage to be both sweet and sexy at the same time? She leaned into Jane for a chaste kiss on the lips before parting with a coy giggle. "Thank you. Come in while I put these in some water."

Jane followed her in, shutting the door behind herself before trailing her through the house and into the kitchen. Eventually settling her hip against the kitchen island, she lightly drummed her fingers on the counter as Maura turned her back on her smoldering gaze while she took care of the flowers. Her fingers stilled.

"Maura."

She shivered at the sound of her own name, rendered immobile in her spot in front of the sink as Jane made her way over and stopped just behind her; far enough not to touch, but close enough to share body heat. Maura felt a hand swipe her hair over her shoulder before soft lips made contact with her lightly freckled skin.

"You're breath taking," whispered Jane against her skin, goosebumps rising to meet her.

Maura's spine hummed with electricity as her skin tingled outwards from the spot where Jane's mouth had caressed her bare shoulder. She had only worn this navy blue little number which stopped about mid-thigh once before, and with the attention it was getting her from Jane right off the bat, Maura wasn't sure they'd make it out the door.

"Thank you," she whispered over her shoulder to lock eyes with her companion. "It seems we have a thing about matching."

Jane chuckled, stepping back to look down at her own outfit then back at Maura. "Seems we do. But hey, great minds think alike, right?"

"Indeed they do." The blonde turned and pecked Jane on the lips once again before she walked the flowers to the island and displayed them in the center. They really were beautiful and it had been a while since anyone had been thoughtful enough to buy her fresh flowers. After being married for so long, one often forgets what it's like to be courted.

"Are we ready to go?" asked Jane, running a hand through her hair as she tried to reign herself in before she lost sight of the purpose of the night. But damn, Maura had her salivating already.

After locking her front door, Maura felt Jane's hand on the small of her back as she proceeded to guide her to the car. Maura leaned into the slight contact, liking that constant link between their bodies.

She thanked the other woman for chivalrously opening the door for her and gently shutting it, and if Jane's swagger as she made her way to the driver's side was anything to go by, she was rather pleased with herself.

They drove in comfortable silence for a few minutes before Jane cleared her throat and chanced a quick look over to Maura, who was contently staring out onto the road ahead of them. "So, how are the kids?"

Maura looked up over to her assistant and felt her heart swell. They were going on a date and Jane was asking about her kids. That made her feel complete gratitude to the other woman who was constantly asking her how her children were. It showed that she cared as much about them as she did Maura.

"They're great. I think Alice suspected I had plans tonight, but she didn't say anything about it."

Jane nodded her head. They were still in the calm before the storm. "What did she say?"

"She asked me where I was going, and I told her that I didn't know, because really, Jane," she turned slightly in her seat, "I don't have any idea where we are going."

The brunette glanced at her travel companion. "Oh no, I am not falling for that again. Let me have at least this surprise."

Maura absently squeezed Jane's thigh, mischief shining in her hazel orbs. "Not even a hint?"

Jane laughed at Maura's underhanded tactic. "Okay, I will tell you that we are almost at our first destination."

At that, Maura's ears perked up and the wheels in her head began to turn. "First destination? So there will be several?"

The woman behind the steering wheel simply lifted her right hand and mimicked zipping her lips and throwing away the key.

Letting Jane win this round, Maura decided that not having complete control might not be such a bad thing just for tonight. Not with Jane, anyway. Tonight, Jane was the boss.

The valet caught Jane's car keys as she tossed them at him on her way to open the door for her lovely date. They had pulled up at a tall, dark glass building where the night owls milling around, dressed in what her daughter once described as 'hipster' clothes, laughed with their friends and filled the early night's air with merriment and anticipation. For a second there Maura worried that they were at some kind of hip, young night club where she would be considered a MILF or cougar. Not that she was against the club scene. In fact one of her favorite things to do was to dance; but Jane didn't strike her as the type. And for a first date?

The door opened as Jane stuck her elbow out for her to take and then led her to the guarded door. Jane strutted up to the slightly bulky man with a clip board. As they got closer she could see a broad smile stretch across his face. When they made it up to him Maura could barely believe her ears.

"What's up J-Rizzle?"

"Sup, P-Man!" Then, letting go of Maura's elbow, Jane and the large man with the clip board began a very complex sequence of hand movements that Maura could barely recognize as… a handshake?

"What are you doing here?"

"Came to check out the show. You seen it?"

"Yeah, man. It's pretty dope."

"Cool. Persey," she turned to Maura to pull her a little closer and wrap her arm around the smaller woman's waist. "This is Maura."

"Oh…" he smirked and took the small delicate hand in his and gave it a small squeeze. "So, this is the little lady?" He looked at Jane who hit him with an incredulous stare. He simply chuckled and looked back to Maura who was blushing and said, "It's very nice to meet you."

"Likewise, Persey," replied Maura rather demurely.

"She's so elegant. What the hell she doing with you, Rizzoli?"

"Shut. Up."

Maura watched on in amusement as Jane slightly shoved the man who let out a booming laugh. "Just check the list. Rizzoli, plus one."

"Oh, I know you're on the list. I've been waiting for you all night just to bust your balls." Jane gave her friend a pointed stare for being so crude in front of her… woman…her date…her Maura Persey gave Maura an apologetic look. "Pardon my French."

"No, it's… it's fine."

"Anyway," Jane interjected, "P, it was good seeing you, man."

"You, too Rizz. And again, it was nice to meet you." He unhooked the velvet red rope to allow them entrance and what Maura saw was not what she expected.

White walls lined the large room, adorned with different works of art ranging from haunting photography to vivid paintings. They were clearly at an exhibition of some sort, and judging by what she could see, Maura could tell that the artist was outrageously talented. She didn't know quite where to look first.

As they approached the middle of the room, a man sauntered up to them with a huge grin on his face. He reminded Maura a lot of her last assistant, with his tight fitting jeans, skinny tie, and thick rimmed glasses. "Jane! What are you doing here?"

Maura looked up at Jane in amazement as she stepped up and gave the man with a serving tray a pat on the arm. "Obviously I came to see the show."

"Oh, well you won't be disappointed. She really outdid herself this time." He handed Maura and Jane a glass of champagne each. "Listen, I have to go, but we totes need to catch up." He leaned into Jane's ear but deliberately didn't lower his voice. "And the first thing on the agenda will be your gorgeous arm candy over here." He winked and disappeared.

Jane's attention suddenly focused back on Maura. "So… do you like it?" She gestured to the room at large.

Giving the art gallery another round look, Maura smiled and enthusiastically nodded her head. "It's incredible. I had no idea… And you seem to be fairly popular around here... J-Rizzle?" she teased.

Jane threw her head back in laughter and grasped Maura's hand in hers as they began to walk around the gallery for closer inspection. "That's because I used to work here when I was getting my degree… And literally no one calls me that but Persey. He's nuts."

"You are deceptively complex. I do not understand you." Jane smirked at this.

"You would if I were a building."

With a straight face Maura wondered, "You think so?"

Jane just rolled her eyes and smiled. "Maybe."

Maura chuckled and pointed over to a particularly striking painting of a pregnant woman sitting in a rocking chair with a young child pressing his ear to her stomach. When they walked over and she started expressing her joy at seeing such a painting and how much it reminded her of how Alice behaved when she was pregnant with Jake, she noticed that Jane didn't really comment much.

Moving over to next picture of two teenagers kissing on a swing, Maura noticed that Jane was hesitantly looking around. "Jane, is everything okay?"

For a second she looked like she was going to brush off her concern, but decided against it. "Is this okay?"

"What, the art gallery? Oh, Jane I think it's wonderful. It has actually been a long time since I've been and you picked just the right show. I'm having a wonderful time, really," Maura tried to reassure the woman.

"I'm glad you're having a good time, but… I was actually talking about… this." She lifted their joined heads.

Maura only smiled and squeezed tighter before kissing Jane firmly on her mouth. "Yes. That is definitely okay with me."

Jane grinned back. "Okay, so I had to pull some strings to get us in here so last minute and if I don't go say hello to a few people I'm gonna get my ba… in trouble. But look around and I'll be right back." She kissed the woman on top of her head and rushed through the crowd.

Maura took in all of the scenery and thoroughly enjoyed all of the pieces she browsed. They were absolutely outstanding and she wondered if any of them were on sale. She was about to walk around the corner to the more graphic pieces when a velvet curtain caught her eye. Walking closer, she saw that the curtain blocked the entrance to another smaller room.

Looking around to see if anyone was paying attention, she debated whether or not to explore what was in the room. If they didn't want anyone to enter, it would say so, right? She took a breath and began to pull the curtain back.

Maura gasped when she was pulled back from behind, slamming against a hard body. Before she could turn around she felt warm breath wash over her and a familiar raspy voice filtered through her ear.

"And just where do you think you're going, Ms. Isles?"

Maura placed her hands around Jane's arms that encircled her waist and leaned back into her heated body. "I was just checking this room out. Is it off limits?"

A low chuckle emanated from the woman as she buried her nose into Maura's neck. "Definitely not. Least of all to you," she whispered.

Maura shut her eyes and savored the feel of Jane. "Mm… What does that mean?" she asked, slightly out of breath.

Wordlessly, the tall woman slipped away from behind her and offered her hand, which Maura quickly took only to be led right through the curtain and into the mysterious room. As soon as her gaze landed on the artwork in the middle of the room, her hand flew up to her mouth.

She distractedly let go of the Jane's hand and moved closer to the drawing, gravitating towards it like a magnet. It was a framed sketch of a woman lying in a bed. Her eyes were closed and she was underneath the covers with a little boy tucked into her side. They both seemed serene in the moment as they clung to each other.

Maura clutched her chest as her heart struggled to leap out of her chest and she let a few silent tears slide down her cheeks when she realized that the picture was of her and Jacob. She felt a hand graze her shoulder and she spun around to find Jane smiling down at her.

"Did you…?"

The brunette licked her lips looking back at the drawing and nodded her head. "The night of the whole allergy scare I couldn't get the kid out of my head. So I got up in the middle of the night to check on him and I found you. You were both smiling and I just… I couldn't resist so…"

"You are…" Maura shook her head, struggling to find the words. "Thank you."

Jane ran a thumb across her wet cheeks, her face showing nothing but adoration. "You're welcome. Believe it or not, I actually had a few offers on it, before I explained that it wasn't for sale. I'll have them shipped to your house after the event is over."

"Them?"

That's when Maura realized there was another one.

"Go 'head," bolstered Jane.

For as much as the first picture had a tranquility about it, this one was bursting at the seams with joy. It was of Maura and Ali laughing together.

"This one I did from memory. It's very rare I see you like this, or even Ali… So you like 'em?" Jane's answer came in a simple tug of her neck and a long lingering kiss to her lips. When she pulled back the other woman nuzzled her head into the Jane's chest.

"I love them. This is the nicest gift anyone has ever given me."

They stood there rocking back and forth to the soundless music playing in their heads and the steady thumping of Jane's heart. After a while, the taller woman leaned down to take Maura's lip between hers. They leaned closer into each other and Maura stood higher on her toes to and angled her head deepening the kiss. With a small moan Jane leaned back.

"What do you say we get out of here?" she husked.

"You're taking me home already?" Maura said teasingly as she wrapped her arms around Jane's middle and pulled their legs together. They hadn't even eaten yet, although it felt like she was already eating out of the palm of Jane's hand. Talk about role reversal.

Jane chuckled, thinking I wish. "All in good time. There is still so much left to do."

Maura beamed. She had already given the night a 5 star rating so it didn't even matter what they did next... but she was curious. "Then lead the way."

"Yeah, I'm the Captain now. C'mon."

A/N: Quick unrelated note: If any of you are a part of the Swan Queen Nation, feel free to hit me up about that finale, tho. You might be interested to know that i'm currently working on a piece for our two lovely ladies. PM always open:)