Maura extends a dinner invitation
Maura's viewpoint
I was sitting in my office reviewing my report on Crystal Williams, the third sniper victim, when a message popped up on my computer's calendar, reminding me that I was supposed to call Natalie Dearing.
Jane and I had agreed that we would invite Natalie and Anastasia to dinner, they seemed like a nice couple and we knew hardly anyone here in L.A. I felt it was good to meet new people, especially for Jane, as she was likely to feel the distance from her family in Boston more than I did, although I did miss Sunday dinners in the Rizzoli family home.
I opened up the internal telephone directory and searched the Dearing's before placing a call. Unfortunately it went through to voice mail, so I left a message asking her to call me and hung up, turning back to the report.
I made some notes to talk through with my subordinates as part of their professional development; I had tentatively tagged at least two of them as having the potential to become Chief Medical Examiners and I take the mentoring role seriously. I was deep in thought when I was interrupted by a knock on my door.
"Come in" The door opened and Natalie looked in.
"Hi Maura, you wanted to see me?" I blinked at her for a moment before remembering what I had called about.
"Natalie, please, come in and have a seat" She settled in one of the new lounge seats I had ordered and I sat next to her.
"Hey, these are new; and nice" I smiled, pleased that she had noticed the change. "It's been a busy week, how have you been?" I nodded, it had been.
"Not too bad thank you, although Jane is starting to complain that I am getting home later and later, which I find ironic, given her work patterns when she is busy" Nat smiled.
"That sounds familiar. Ana gets tied up in her work and I have to nag her to not skip meals, to come home at a reasonable hour, to get a good night's sleep" She shrugged. "I don't like the nagging wife look but someone has to take care of them, god knows they won't"
"I have been successful over time in getting Jane to improve her dietary habits, but she tends to slide into bad old habits when she is consumed by a major case"
"Yeah, Ana starts eating junk food and candy when she gets bogged down in a case; so Jane's just as bad?"
"Unfortunately yes, I've told Jane that coffee, donuts, burgers and beer are not essential food groups, despite what her fellow officers may think" She snickered at my choice of words.
"Well, someone has to look after them, obviously they're not" I smiled.
"That in fact was why I called you earlier" She cocked her head to one side.
"Oh?"
"Yes, we were wondering if you both might like to come over for dinner this weekend. It gets both of them away from work and we would hopefully have a relaxing evening, as long as we get no calls" She smiled happily.
"Maura, we'd love to. Which night suits?"
"Is Saturday suitable?"
"Sure is, we'll be there"
"Won't you have to check with Anastasia?" I asked "She might be working" Natalie shook her head decisively.
"No, I'll just tell her this is how it'll be. She knows better than to argue with me on stuff like this" I smiled, remembering how Jane might complain but she usually went along with whatever I planned. "Besides, she would love to come"
"Then it's agreed, Saturday night, about 6 PM?"
"Sure, can you text me the address?" She handed over a business card with her cell number.
Natalie leaned back in her chair, obviously in no real hurry to wrap up.
"So, how are you finding the new job?" I paused for a moment, looking for the right words.
"It's intense. Back in Boston we had a smaller team, both in the M.E's office and in Homicide, but we also had a smaller work load. Here it's a much busier, larger team" Nat nodded, obviously interested. "I'm glad I have several assistant medical examiners to assist me, as I would not be able to handle all the workload that passes through the office without them" She nodded for me to go on.
"I love the opportunity, and the challenges that come with a bigger role, but I don't like the time it's taking, keeping me from getting home on time" I smiled at her.
"I have found that I enjoy being home when Jane arrives, making sure that she is coming home to a home, not a house" Looking over at Natalie I smiled a bit wistfully. "Doesn't sound terribly liberated does it?" She grinned back at me.
"Hell, we're both in open, committed lesbian relationships, in love with the best looking women I know, can't get much more liberated than that" Well, when she put it that way… I smiled.
"So, how is your job going?"
"It's both easier and harder than the one I had in Seattle" She sighed. "On one hand, as senior media liaison I'm not stuck with the boring jobs like updating the LAPD Wikipedia page or writing speeches for the Chief to the local Rotary. On the other hand, the role is senior enough that I get called for all manner of issues, all of them major, and everyone assumes I'm here to wave my magic wand and make all the department's bad media problems magically vanish" Her mouth quirked.
"I'm certain Pope thinks I can just wander in front of the camera's, shake my booty and hey presto, positive coverage" I laughed at both her words and her expression.
"Well, it is a nice booty" She tried to look offended, but I caught her trying to hide a smile.
"Doctor Isles! I'm shocked. Have you been checking me out?" I tried to look innocent.
"No, but I hear the comments in the corridors as I pass. I believe that it's currently, what's that Twitter term? Ah yes, 'trending' right now" Natalie looked appalled, though I could see the gleam in her eyes.
"Trending eh?"
"Mm huh" I nodded, enjoying the game.
"Well I suppose I should be flattered, that somewhere out there people are commenting on my 'booty'. On second thoughts, that's kinda creepy too" Natalie rolled her eyes at me, which immediately reminded me of Jane, who does exactly the same thing, especially when she is either annoyed or playful.
"Well I wouldn't sit too smug there Doctor Isles, as I can attest that your 'trending' right now as well"
"I am, how?" She grinned.
"Ana told me that she wandered into a situation yesterday. Apparently a number of narcotics guys were having a discussion about who had the best ass in the department, with yours and mine both in contention, along with Chief Johnson's and Commander Raydor's amongst others"
I was intrigued, but wasn't too surprised; I knew that I had been the subject of similar discussion back in Boston. Back there however it had been kept quiet, mostly because everyone knew that they would have to deal with a very pissed Jane Rizzoli if she caught them.
"Me? Well I suppose I should be flattered, however I cannot imagine that Anastasia would have taken it too well, hearing her partner being openly rated like that. It's a good thing Jane wasn't there. What happened?" She laughed.
"It seems that they hadn't been very discrete and Commander Raydor had heard what they were discussing before she rounded the corner. Apparently she was in the middle of expressing her displeasure rather forcefully when Ana walked into it" I smiled at the thought of Sharon Raydor in full on attack mode; I had already heard some stories about the intense Force Investigation Division chief.
"I suspect they will be a bit more discrete next time, or at least check around corners first" I paused as a thought occurred to me. "I'm rather surprised that neither Jane nor Anastasia were in contention, they are both beautiful women"
"Yeah, but they tend to go in for slacks and jackets, which do a better job of concealing their assets than what we normally wear"
"Well, I'm rather pleased that they remain our secret, rather than a subject of community discussion"
"That's not going to last though, especially with the LAPD's annual Benefit Ball coming up reasonably soon" I frowned.
"I wasn't aware that it was coming up. When is it?"
"Last Saturday of next month; I was told by Belinda, Chief Pope's secretary, that as senior staff we are expected to attend"
Oh, Jane won't like that, but she won't leave me to attend alone"
"Well, I can imagine that she would look hot in a nice dress"
"She would probably prefer her uniform, she hates getting dressed up at the best of times, let alone in a dress" Natalie shook her head.
"No go I'm afraid, dress code is formal, not uniforms, tuxedos for men and gowns for women" I smiled for a moment, my mind a long way away, to a formal night back in Boston I was brought back to earth by Natalie.
"Hello Maura, you there?" I snapped out of my reverie and focussed on Natalie.
"Sorry"
"Where did you go, must have been someplace nice, judging by that look on your face" I laughed.
"Not long after we started formally dating, I had to go to a charity event and bring a partner, the invitation just said tux or gown, without specifying genders so Jane wore a tuxedo. I think we scandalised a few people" Natalie nodded slowly, her eyes half closed.
"She would have looked sensational, given she's so tall and slim" She considered the thought for a moment. "Hot too, very hot"
"Yes, I had to rescue her from the attentions of quite a few men AND women who obviously agreed with you" She laughed happily.
"Nothing quite like getting a bit territorial to let them know how we feel. It reminds them who they belong to. Ana says she loves seeing me get all possessive when someone tries to pick her up when we're out"
"Well, I have to say Jane was… appreciative of my efforts to protect her honour" I could feel my cheeks redden at the memory.
"I hope I get the chance to see you doing just that at the ball, it's a shame the tux won't get a repeat performance though" I raised an eyebrow.
"It's still sitting in the closet, waiting for another opportunity"
"Damn, that's an evil image. Now I'm thinking of Ana in one" She shivered, partly for effect. "Thank you Doctor Isles, now I have to go back to my desk with that image in my head, while I try and do some work"
"Always a pleasure Miss Dearing" Laughing she stood and headed for the door, turning as she reached it.
"Saturday at six; we'll see you then" Winking she turned and strolled out.
I sat back and smiled as she pulled the door shut after her. I liked Natalie, she was happy and fun and nice. I found myself looking forward to Saturday; it should be a good night.
Sighing, I turned back to the pile of paperwork on my desk, wishing it was Friday afternoon.