Author's Note: Thank you all for making me feel better about this piece. It's the first one I've written that I haven't been 100% confident with from the get-go. Your reviews (and encouragement) have been greatly appreciated. -dkc
Chapter 7
Jane was carrying a bowl of dinner rolls to the table when she saw red out the corner of her eye. She turned to see Maura entering the room, stunning in the shirt Jane suggested. Jane couldn't prevent the smile from breaking out on her face. Maura blushed when she made eye contact with Jane.
"You look nice, Dr…uh…Maura," Frankie said as Maura approached the kitchen island.
"Thank you, Frankie," Maura smiled.
Jane returned to the island, standing shoulder to shoulder with Maura as Frankie, Frost and Korsak got settled at the table. Jane was disappointed she wouldn't be seeing her nephew, but knew Tommy was working and it was Lydia's night with T.J.
"Here they are!" Angela's booming voice carried her into the room as she carried a stack of cloth napkins. "I'd forgotten I'd put them in to wash."
Angela handed the napkins to Frankie who was not folding them to meet Angela's specifications. Angela took them back from his hands and folded them herself, earning the matriarch an eye roll from Frankie.
"Earlier? Too much?" Jane whispered the question as she leaned her shoulder against Maura's.
"Not at all," Maura quickly responded. "Perhaps too little."
The smirk on Maura's face made Jane blush now. Maura leaned against Jane as well and they simply stood there smiling as Angela finished folding napkins.
"Janie! Get the ham out will you?" Angela demanded.
"Ma! Where's the 'please'?" she groaned, but obeyed.
Maura joined Frost, Frankie and Korsak at the table, sitting in one of the two seats that allowed her to have her back to the wall. She knew Jane preferred these seats so she didn't have to be asked by her mother to keep getting up to fetch things. Frankie sat at one end of the table, Korsak at the opposite end and Frost directly across from Maura.
"You do look very nice, Maura," Frost smiled at the doctor.
"Thank you, Barry," Maura busied herself with pouring wine for everyone at the table.
Jane and Angela delivered the remaining dishes of food to the table and took their seats, Jane next to Maura and Angela next to Frost, closest to Korsak. Everyone began dishing up their plates, Angela asked Frankie to say grace and he obediently did as he was told. Angela knew better than to ask Jane. In fact, Angela hadn't asked Jane to do anything religious since Jane's first encounter with Charles Hoyt. Whether Hoyt is when Jane lost her faith or not, it was hard to know.
"Maura, thank you for letting us all have dinner here. I am glad we can get things back to normal," Angela said, smiling at the doctor.
Angela's comment made Maura tense a bit, something Jane picked up on immediately. Jane reached under the table and grasped Maura's hand. She gave it a gentle squeeze.
"You know you are all welcome here anytime, Angela," Maura answered.
"Like you could get rid of Janie if you tried," Frankie teased his sister who glared at him.
Frankie's teasing broke the tension and Maura felt herself relaxing. Jane felt this, too, and released Maura's hand so they could both eat. Though they were no longer holding hands, both women took every opportunity to gently touch the other and steal looks that only the other could interpret.
The table feel into easy conversation as Frankie talked about his new assignment with the drug unit. Jane refused to take the bait regarding Detective Martinez and Maura could only smile. It truly felt like any regular Rizzoli family dinner and Maura was grateful she had Jane by her side to help her through the tension. Korsak smiled at Maura as he caught her gazing thoughtfully at Jane. Maura blushed, returning her focus to eating. Once they had all finished with their plates, Angela began clearing the dishes, waving off Korsak when he attempted to help her. Jane poured everyone more wine.
"Maura, honey, would you help me with the dessert plates?" Angela asked from across the room near the kitchen sink.
There was a slightly terrified look on Maura's face for a second as she actually considered turning Angela down. However, Maura was nothing if not polite. She stood, smiling half-heartedly at Jane and walking over to assist Angela. The two women dished up dessert, one handling the sweet treat, the other placing a fork on each plate.
"Maura, I hope you know how truly sorry I am and how much I wish I could take it back," Angela leaned toward Maura, speaking in an uncharacteristically hushed tone.
"It is behind us, Angela," Maura said, knowing it was partially true and therefore not something that would cause her hives.
"I wish that were true, but I know you are still hurt. Please know that I was simply trying to protect Jane. I was trying to keep her from having to make a career-ending decision," Angela said.
Maura caught Jane's eye from across the room. The brunette had nothing but worry on her face. Maura's eyes spoke to Jane when words couldn't. Jane read the pain in Maura's eyes, but also knew that Maura accepted whatever was being said as a necessary part of the mending process between she and Angela.
"I know that Jane is your daughter, Angela, but I only wish you'd thought to protect us both," Maura was somewhat ashamed of her honesty.
"You are right, Maura. I should have tried to protect you both. I wish I could take it back. That isn't how life works, though, is it?"
"No, I suppose it's not."
"I hope you know that I love you like a daughter, as much as I love Jane even, and I regret that moment in my life more than nearly any other in my adult life," the weight of Angela's statement hit Maura particularly hard.
"Thank you, Angela."
The doctor couldn't say anything more, both because of the emotions threatening to spill out of her and because Jane had come to her rescue in the kitchen. They three women delivered the dessert plates and rejoined the men's ongoing conversation.
"You okay?" Jane leaned over and whispered to Maura.
Maura nodded slightly, but didn't make eye contact with Jane for fear that the tears she was holding in would spill without reservation. Instead she simply pressed her thigh against Jane's and slowly finished her dessert.
Once everyone had finished their dinner and conversation petered out, Korsak and Frost excused themselves, thanking Angela and Maura for the dinner invitation. Frankie helped Angela put away the leftover food and then kissed his mother on the cheek before waving goodbye to everyone. Jane and Maura hadn't moved from their spot at the table and by now Maura had reached for Jane's hand. Simply holding Jane's hand was giving her the emotional support she needed.
"Would you like me start on the dishes, Maura? I've placed all the plates and silverware in the dishwasher," Angela asked.
"No, Ma, we'll get it," Jane answered for Maura.
"If you're sure, I'm going to call it a night then," Angela said as she headed to the door that would lead her right out onto the patio and to the guesthouse.
"Goodnight, Ma," Jane smiled at her mother.
"Goodnight girls. Thank you again, Maura," Angela's smile was superficial, weighed down by how sorry she was for hurting Maura.
"Goodnight, Angela," Maura said, using every bit of her energy to hold in the tears she felt building.
As Angela left the house, closing the door behind her, Jane found herself letting out a breath she'd been holding for the sake of her best friend.
"That wasn't so bad," Jane said, attempting to be sarcastic, but knowing there was unnecessary tension throughout dinner.
When Maura didn't answer, Jane looked at her friend and saw the tears now spilling down her soft cheeks. She quickly wrapped an arm around Maura's shoulders and pulled the doctor into her.
"It's okay, sweetie," Jane cooed.
Maura allowed the tears to spill out until she was frankly too tired to cry anymore.
"Let's do the dishes in the morning?" Maura both stated and asked.
"Of course," Jane responded, continuing to hold Maura tight to her.
After allowing Maura to simply hold on to her for a while, steadying her emotions, Jane stood and offered a hand to Maura to lead her up to bed. Tonight they wouldn't talk. They would simply crawl into bed, Jane holding Maura close, as they both drifted off to sleep. They had survived family dinner and Maura was finally on the road to mending a relationship that had taken a hard hit. There weren't many certainties for Maura, but she knew one—Jane. Jane would be by her side as she continued to navigate this development in her relationship with Angela, just as Jane had been by her side for every twist and turn over the last several years.
To be continued…