Author's Note: I currently have this story genre set at hurt/comfort and romance. That may be a bit misleading. There's friendship, there will be a little angst (as any good story has) and drama. -dkc
Chapter Two
Watching Maura approach her mobster father as Lt. Cavanaugh held a gun to his head was extremely emotional for Jane. There was adrenaline, fear and pride pumping through Jane's veins as she watched her best friend tell Paddy Doyle that the love of his life was about to testify against him. She couldn't begin to imagine how Maura was feeling knowing that she had essentially coerced Hope into testifying against Paddy and Hope was doing it for the daughter she thought had died. Jane had pulled Maura back as she and Korsak reached Cavanaugh to take his gun. Her fear disappeared, but the emotions raging inside her did not.
As they sat at the Dirty Robber eating sweet potato fries and drinking, Jane wanted Maura to know how proud of her she was, but she didn't know how say it. Only Maura could make Jane feel like a timid, dumbfounded teenager. Instead, she fell into the easy banter with Maura that had been a constant throughout their friendship.
They talked about Cavanaugh and whether he would have pulled the trigger. Maura teased Jane by suggesting she was pulling up a study on violence in men's rooms on her tablet. They joked back and forth, a carefree tone to their dinner that had been missing over the last few weeks. Maura ordered dessert at Jane's insisting and they dug into it with the two spoons Maura requested. Jane's grin could not have been wider as she ate the sweet concoction that her best friend had ordered for her.
"Is something going on between Angela and Vince?" Maura asked casually causing Jane to choke on the bite she'd taken.
"Ma? No!" Jane was defensive if only because she hated thinking about her mother having any sort of personal life.
"We haven't spoken," Maura's face revealed the disappointment that was still on the surface after Angela gave Cavanaugh the video that could have kept her locked up.
"Still?" Jane pushed the dessert plate toward Maura offering her the final bite.
"It's complicated," Maura smirked at Jane knowing that she was using a line Jane was fond of using in situations like this.
"Isn't everything with my mother?" Jane watched as Maura took the final bite, her tongue briefly appearing to lick the spoon.
Jane felt a heat move through her body as she watched the slight action of Maura's tongue. The memory of kissing Maura the night before caused Jane's face to flush. Jane shook her head slightly and then signaled the bartender for another beer.
"Do you want something?" Jane asked her friend. "You can't be satisfied by that water you're drinking."
"Hmm… I actually think I'd like something more…" Maura was looking for the exact word to describe the drink she wanted.
"Stiff?" Jane interrupted her.
"Yes!" Maura smiled.
When the waiter delivered Jane's beer and took away their empty dessert plate, Maura stopped him.
"Can I get two shots of Bully Boy whiskey?"
"White or straight?" the waiter inquired.
"Straight."
"Yes ma'am," the waiter returned to the bar.
"Shots? Is that a good idea?" Jane questioned.
"Why would it be a bad idea?" Maura tilted her head and gave Jane a look that told the detective her friend needed this tonight.
"At least chase it with a beer," Jane winked at Maura.
As the waiter returned with Maura's shots, Jane ordered two additional shots and two more bottles of beer. Maura couldn't help but smile when Jane reached for one of Maura's shot glasses and threw back the honey liquid.
"Oak?" Jane asked, certain Maura would know the origin of this particular spirit.
"Very good, Jane."
Maura swallowed the liquid quickly, but not as smoothly as her friend. She reached for Jane's beer and took a drink of it before handing it back to her friend. Jane's fingers covered Maura's briefly as they completed the exchange. Jane looked up into Maura's eyes and saw something there that resembled the look she had seen on the doctor's face the night before just before they kissed.
The waiter delivered the rest of their drinks and Jane quickly threw back the shot. Maura watched the brunette's throat as she swallowed the burn.
"I don't think this whiskey was designed for shots," Jane plunked her glass down on the table.
"No, I suppose not. The caramel notes would be better savored," Maura commented before throwing back her own drink and then placing the glass on the table much more gently than Jane had.
The two women then focused on the beer that sat in front of them. They watched their surroundings and were entertained by the looks on the faces of other patrons who were coming into the Dirty Robber for the first time since the new management took over. Many patrons were sniffing the herbs on their tables.
"Would you like to come over tonight?" Jane asked, surprising herself and Maura with her boldness.
"I would love to," Maura answered quickly.
"We'll need to stop and grab wine, I'm out," Jane said before finishing off her still chilly beer.
"We don't need wine," Maura told her.
"The great Dr. Isles is going to drink beer twice in one night?" Jane teased.
"Only with the great Detective Rizzoli," Maura smiled.
As Maura finished the remainder of her beer, sipping slowly, Jane found her breath momentarily taken as she felt Maura's calf rub against her own under the table. Jane chalked it up to the alcohol the doctor had consumed in short order.
"Would you like to walk or catch a cab? I'm not sure either of us should drive."
"A cab," Maura answered.
Jane pulled out her phone, dialed the familiar number and asked for a cab to come to the bar. She was told a cab was en route and would be there in a few minutes. Jane stood and reached for the jacket Maura had taken off at some point while they were eating. She turned back to give it to Maura and found the doctor holding out the mint plant to her.
"Again with the plant?" Jane drawled.
"Mint, Jane. Not just any plant. Fresh mint is more effective than any gum or breath mint currently on the market."
There was a twinkle in Maura's eye. Jane suddenly realized why Maura was suggesting she take a leaf or two of mint. To appease her friend, she grabbed a stem and popped it in her mouth.
Jane held out the jacket to her friend who stepped into it. She was attempting to calm her nerves. She had no idea what Maura was expecting. They made their way to the door, Jane guiding Maura with her hand at the small of her back. The second they stepped outside a cab pulled up to the curb.
"Rizzoli?" the cabbie asked from a rolled down passenger window.
"Yup," Jane reached out to open the door for Maura.
As the two friends slid into the cab, Maura placed her hand on Jane's thigh and giggled as the cab had to dodge an inebriated patron who was attempting to catch up to his friends across the street. Jane knew that Maura only giggled like that when she was drunk or nervous. Jane suspected both were the culprit now.
When they arrived at Jane's condo, Maura paid the driver and climbed out of the cab as Jane watched her, completely distracted by curves she had never let herself truly appreciate without feeling guilty.
"Jane?" Maura's voice pulled her out of her trance. "Are you coming?"
Maura was biting her lip to keep from grinning at Jane. Jane caught up to Maura and opened the outer door for her before leading the way to her own door. As she put the key in the door, Maura's hand touched her shoulder and nearly caused Jane to drop the keys.
"We need more alcohol," Maura announced as they entered the condo.
"I don't object," Jane said as she made her way to the kitchen cupboard. "Beer or bourbon?"
"Hmm… both."
Maura sat down on Jane's couch, kicking off her heels and pulling her legs under her. She'd already shrugged off her jacket. Jane brought two glasses and the bottle of bourbon then returned to the kitchen to grab the beer. She sat the beer down on the coffee table and took off her suit jacket while kicking off her boots.
"Here," Jane said as she handed Maura the first glass she had poured.
"Thanks," Maura smiled at Jane as she took the glass and sipped it.
"Taking it easy now?" Jane teased at how Maura approached her bourbon.
"Thought I better," Maura took another sip. "I don't want to embarrass myself."
"When have you ever?" Jane did not sip her bourbon, but instead let it all burn as it slid down her throat in one gulp.
"Need I remind you that you found me passed out on my couch, completely disheveled with no memory of the previous night not long ago?" Maura raised an eyebrow.
"That was not the result of bourbon," Jane reminded her.
"No, but one morning of you finding me passed out in my clothes is enough for a lifetime."
"You'd rather I find you passed out without your clothes?" Jane realized that what was meant to sound teasing was more flirtatious than anything else.
Maura didn't say a word as she held Jane's gaze over the top of her glass. Their eyes did all of the talking. The doctor bit her lip as the detective licked her lips.
"I saw something on your face that morning," Maura broke the silence.
"Shock?" Jane said, realizing her voice had dropped to a lower rasp than it was just a minute before.
"No," Maura tried to remember the exact look on Jane's face as she found her best friend passed out on the couch. "Something else."
"Concern?"
"Yes, but that isn't what I was referring to."
Jane hoped that Maura didn't see jealousy on her face that morning. She realized afterward that she had been slightly jealous at first of the man who had enjoyed Maura enough to leave her passed out on her couch. The memory of that feeling caused guilt to wash over the detective.
"Jane?" Maura caught Jane's attention. "Disappointment."
That got Jane's undivided attention. She abandoned her drink and slid closer to Maura, placing a hand on the doctor's thigh.
"Maura, absolutely not. I could never be disappointed in you. And certainly not because I found you passed out on your couch."
"You weren't disappointed that I'd been careless?" Jane's dark eyes were burning into Maura's as she began rubbing circles on Maura's thigh.
"Believe it or not, Maur, you're human. Everyone makes mistakes. But that night you did nothing wrong. You were lied to. You were a pawn in his game. You were not to blame for that night."
The doctor's face had dropped at the mention of the man who had turned her life upside down. Tears began falling down her cheeks.
"Oh, honey," Jane wrapped her arms around Maura's shoulders and pulled her against her chest.
Maura's tears began falling more rapidly. She unfolded her legs and curled into Jane.
"I could never be disappointed in you, Maura Isles. Never."
"Do you think Paddy and Hope are disappointed in me?" Maura choked back a sob.
"If they are, they're blind. They have no reason or right to be disappointed in you. And what do they matter? They don't know you as well as the rest of us," Jane's hand left Maura's shoulder and tangled in Maura's hair, tilting the doctor's head toward her own, their temples meeting.
"You mean you," Maura mumbled. "Nobody knows me like you."
Jane didn't know how to respond to that, but it didn't matter. Maura's sobs became more intense. Her body trembled. Jane held her tight and let her cry. Maybe this is what Maura needed. Jane thought Maura needed the alcohol to numb the pain, but it turned out nothing could numb the pain of the last several weeks.
"You've never given anyone any reason to be disappointed in you," Jane hummed against Maura's head as she continued to hold her best friend against her.
Maura continued to sob into Jane, the one place she knew she could find comfort, safety and solace.
To be continued…