A/N: Here comes the rating change folks! (towards the end) If you're young and impressionable make sure you get someone over 21 to read the next couple of chapters to you. ;oD

CHAPTER TWELVE

The little cabin that Maura had found for them in Rockport, Maine was compact but the tasteful décor and large windows made it feel much more spacious, connecting them to the bay view outside and a vast, serene swathe of water dotted with small boats.

It was the best the doctor could do at such short notice and despite wishing they had something a little more luxurious, she was happy just for the quality time alone with her best friend.

They had made the journey in just over three hours without stopping and Maura was glad to be out of the car. The coastal location was close enough to home that travelling – and contending with midday traffic - hadn't been a problem but it was far enough away that they wouldn't be discovered or interrupted. She was glad now that Jane had insisted they pack and leave almost immediately.

Jane had been unusually quiet during the drive, just staring out of the passenger window and clutching Maura's free hand in her lap. Something monumental had obviously happened and though Maura knew they'd have to talk about it eventually, she didn't want to push. The detective always talked more openly when given the chance to do so in her own time. It wasn't like her to stew though, so every little sniffle that the blonde caught and the brunette tried to cover up caused more concern and she squeezed Jane's hand hoping to provide some comfort.

They'd barely dropped their bags onto the only bed in the cabin when the detective's walls had crashed down around her feet and she'd cried openly, the weight of the day's events falling away. Maura had wrapped her up in strong arms and patiently waited, the silence broken only by sobs and loud breaths as one hand rubbed at Jane's back and the other tenderly cupped the back of her head.

Now, with Jane's tears drying and her breaths evening out, the doctor couldn't help but ask, "Do you want to tell me what happened, Jane?" She released their embrace and leaned back, allowing Jane the space to wipe her face and rub a finger under her nose.

"Yeah," she nodded, still sniffling. "Yeah, I do."

The two sat heavily on a small couch underneath the window and Maura reached for Jane's hand, rubbing her thumb encouragingly across knuckles and soft, tanned skin.

"I've ruined everything, Maur', well… almost everything, and now my parents hate me." One glance at Maura's expression, full of concern and confusion, made her clarify the major points in one quick burst, "It's all over the precinct, that Susie saw us kissing. Ma found out, Pop disowned me, and Casey left after trashing the apartment." Starting to cry again, Jane croaked out the most hurtful of all the insults that had been flung at her, "I'm sick, apparently, a disgrace and a sinner."

The cold fingers of guilt slithered under Maura's skin and tears welled in her eyes. "Jane, I -"

The brunette stared straight ahead, "Everyone at BPD will find out I'm the dyke detective they always thought I was -"

Maura fought down the lump in her throat, tried to release Jane's hand as she stood to put space between them and whispered brokenly, "I'm so sorry," but Jane held on.

Looking up into the blonde's dejected face the brunette knew Maura was blaming herself. "But as much as I'm terrified right now… of the fallout… at the prospect of losing more friends… I don't feel sick, I feel… relieved."

The doctor relaxed a little at that and sat back down.

Jane smiled before continuing to speak softly, "I'm sorry for the way this all happened, it's not ideal by any means, and I'm sorry if it causes you any problems by association, but… I'm not sorry… that Casey is gone… and I'm not sorry for kissing you."

Maura's eyebrows shot up and she squeaked, trembling, "You aren't?"

Tears began to race down the blonde's pale face as Jane professed, "Being near you… kissing you… is the only thing that's felt right in a long time." Maura was holding her breath as Jane finished, "I loved kissing you… I love… everything about you."

Stifling a sob that was her heart's way of trying to escape the confines of her chest, the doctor shook her head, "But I thought… you said everything was ruined, I mean you -"

"Almost," Jane blurted. Smiling through her own tears, the detective reached up to wipe her thumbs across the blonde's wet cheeks, "I said almost everything. Not you, never you. But you ruined stuff too y'know."

Jane rested her forehead against Maura's and the doctor's eyes fluttered shut, her mind replaying recent memories. Whirling recollections sent her dizzy; the swoop of her stomach the first time their lips met, the skipped beat of her heart as they were caught, the sting of her eyes as Jane had left, left the room, left her reeling.

Strong hands slipped down to caress Maura's delicate neck and Jane breathed, "You ruined me the second you kissed me back."

A ragged sob escaped her this time and the doctor didn't care. She smiled through broken breaths and opened her eyes to find Jane beaming at her. She lifted a hand to gently stroke Jane's face, her eyes sweeping over every inch, every line, and as Jane's face turned to press lips into her palm she whispered, "I should never have left."

The brunette's response was instant, "I should never have let you."

There was no fight from the blonde, no want to run, no reason to refuse when the detective next spoke, there was only willingness, wishing and want.

"Kiss me."

oOo

It was a couple of hours later when, with Jane's head safely burrowed in the crook of Maura's neck and two strong arms latched firmly around her torso, the doctor had decided they couldn't stay like this forever.

They'd made out for a while, sweetly, slowly, and talked for a while longer. Jane had even managed to close her eyes for twenty minutes with Maura hypnotically stroking her hair.

"I think we could both do with some fresh air. Would you like to go for a walk with me?"

Outwardly, Jane grumbled, her disgruntled expression meant to convey her dissatisfaction at their parting, at having to release one another from their embrace, and not at the act of going for a walk, which she inwardly thought was quite a romantic invitation.

Maura chuckled at the detective's impressive pout and muttered, "Come on. I'll get your jacket." Swatting a long-legged thigh, she twisted her hips and made to get up, forcing Jane to unfold herself and do the same.

Several additional crying bouts over events in general, and her mother's behaviour more specifically, hadn't helped the usual huskiness that left Jane gravel-throated, and she coughed gently before asking, "Do you think we could grab something to eat?"

Neither of them had stopped to grab lunch amongst all the commotion, nor had they picked up any groceries on the way. The doctor scolded herself internally for the oversight until the humour of it washed over her a second later; as in life, as in matters of the heart, she was never quite so woefully unprepared as she was when it came to Jane Rizzoli.

She turned to the other woman, smiling, and offered a leading hand, "Of course we can."

oOo

A short stroll turned into a substantial walk, and they soon found themselves exploring far more of the shoreline than planned, albeit still at a leisurely pace. Dinner had been plates of delightfully fresh seafood at a little shack, where eating without utensils was acceptable if not preferable and both women had never felt more sated and at ease.

The long walk back was just as pleasant and the couple chatted easily, their fingers intertwined or their elbows linked the entire way. A chilly breeze had rolled in with the setting sun but they didn't hurry. Never short of something to talk about, their little cabin had snuck up on them without warning, the evening over far too soon. With dinner well digested and the world put to rights, Jane's world at any rate, they headed inside.

With little to do but turn in for the night, Maura swept up her overnight bag and disappeared into the bathroom.

Usually she hated waiting, but as Jane flicked through the channels on the little television in the corner of the room she waited calmly, patiently. She waited for the nervousness to start, for panic to suffuse her limbs, she waited for the rush of adrenaline to urge her to flee, for uncertainty and niggling self-doubt to tell her this wasn't what Maura wanted, that she wasn't good enough. But it never came. And she wouldn't run.

She wanted this, deserved it, and she knew Maura wanted it too, believed it in her every muscle fibre. She was good enough, they both were. They'd been good enough for each other since the beginning but neither them nor anyone else had ever seen it. So many years wasted that Jane wasn't about to let anything, including herself, get in the way of making the best of this and having every precious minute count.

Maura exited the bathroom amidst a billowing cloud of steam, "Bathroom's free."

Springing up from the little couch, Jane ran her eyes over the familiar sight of her best friend in silk pyjamas, before grabbing a small bag of toiletries and grinning, "Be right back."

Short minutes later Jane walked back into the room, fresh faced, skin glowing, and wearing only her matching black underwear. Maura looked up from where she sat on the bed, cross-legged atop the sheets, reading a magazine, and sucked in a startled breath. "Oh."

Jane walked straight towards the bed, determination permeating the room with every step, strangling the air in Maura's lungs. As her knees hit the comforter and she crawled up to meet Maura face-to-face, planting her hands beside Maura's thighs, she smiled sweetly and said, "Hi."

Flinging the magazine onto the floor, Maura leaned back slightly, holding her weight on her hands, and Jane followed by leaning further into her personal space. Hazel eyes dragged the full length of Jane's beautiful body and she suddenly remembered to breathe, "H-Hi."

Sensing she'd knocked the blonde a little off balance with her uncharacteristic forwardness, the brunette paused awhile, running a hand over Maura's cheek, sweeping golden locks behind her ear and letting her fingers linger. "Nervous?"

"No," Maura replied quickly, before correcting and dipping her eyes in embarrassment, "Yes." Reaching up and latching onto Jane's wrist, she added, "I'm nervous about this, but not that it's you."

Leaning in to close the gap, Jane barely brushed Maura's lips with a kiss, "Me too."

The detective was about to lean in again, pushing the doctor further back on her hands, when a palm at her chest halted the movement. Maura's voice was firm but still gentle, offering a final escape and insuring her own heart in the process, "Jane, are you sure about this? I've only been back a few weeks."

Jane opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out, the irony of how naïve she'd been when she'd first heard about Pike had just hit her square in the chest. It was true. Maura had left a long time ago and had only recently returned, so it seemed too soon for such strong feelings to have developed. Maybe there had been something there before, maybe not, she had no time to waste dwelling on it, she felt this way now and the rest didn't matter. A dark eyebrow rose and she smirked, still hovering over the smaller woman, "A very wise friend of mine once said… 'sometimes you just know, y'know?'"

Maura lay back then, suitably reassured, before reaching up and pulling Jane's body to hers. She spoke in a breath that passed between their smiling mouths, lips brushing, "I do know."

Jane settled fully atop the doctor, kissing her passionately and pressing her body into the mattress. Hands roamed over Maura's soft curves, sliding over silk-covered shoulders, gliding over shimmering ribs and nudging the undersides of plump breasts.

Planting her knees either side of Maura's thighs, Jane sat up, her fingers smoothing over the warm skin of Maura's abdomen and toying with the hem of her ruby pyjama top.

Anticipating its removal, Maura reached to turn out the bedside lamp, but Jane stopped her.

"Don't," she whispered.

With the detective's fingers wrapped around her wrist, the doctor allowed herself to be pulled up, effectively sitting with the brunette straddling her lap. It had been a long time since she'd been this vulnerable and it took great effort to remind herself that this was Jane, not Ruth or Ian, who was currently asking to strip her of her last protective layer.

"I want to see you."

Maura breathed and, after a short pause, nodded softly. Warm fingers left her body and she raised her arms, closing her eyes as the article was swept up and quickly discarded over the side of the bed, revealing her nakedness underneath.

Jane wasted no time in crashing their lips back together, mumbling, "You're gorgeous," amidst licks and nips of teeth. The breath left Maura's lungs in one great burst as Jane quickly removed her own bra, pressed their breasts together and pushed them both back down into the bed.

As the brunette's mouth took a detour across the blonde's jaw, moist lips sucking at her earlobe and meandering down her sensitive neck, Maura gasped and squirmed with delight. She palmed Jane's shoulder blades and pulled her ever tighter, and as Jane's hips shifted and a leg pushed in between Maura's, the smaller woman couldn't help but shudder.

"Oh god," she moaned. "I've dreamt about this since…" She didn't know when, if she was honest. She frantically worked her way backwards, analyzing memories, trying to find a time when she hadn't been inexplicably drawn to the brunette in some way. There wasn't one. "Since -"

Jane stole the words right out of her mouth and their eyes locked as Maura nodded once, "Since that first day in the café."