The dinner party prelude at Maura and Jane's
Anastasia's viewpoint
I smiled as Maura opened the door on the very nice, upscale house in a nice part of Westwood they were renting.
"Hi Maura, I'm not too early am I?" Maura smiled warmly, reminding me once again exactly how lucky Jane was. The green blouse and cream linen pants did the same job, especially given how well they highlighted her frankly, quite spectacular figure.
"Of course not, please come on in". Maura stepped aside and swung the door wide, allowing me to step in and get a good look at the house, which was stylishly furnished.
"Nice place you have here Maura, I like the wooden floors" Maura smiled again
"We were fortunate to be able to rent this house. It had just come on the market, I inspected it and made an offer then and there and was lucky enough to be accepted immediately. I suppose the owner was happy to see a doctor and a police officer moving in. The agent told me that they were worried some Hollywood type would rent it and have wild parties".
Looking around the house I thought the rent must cost most of my salary. It tied in with the Mercedes SLK convertible with Massachusetts plates in the driveway, someone, probably Maura, wasn't short of money.
"Could you leave your shoes by the door please. Heels are quite noisy and aren't particularly good on the wood"
We padded on bare feet through into a large open plan kitchen and living area, where Jane was lounging up against the island bench in jeans and T-shirt. She turned an easy smile at us both.
"Hey Ana, you want wine, beer or something else?"
"Beer is fine thanks" Jane wandered over to the fridge and extracted a bottle, popping the cap before handing it over and then, after a moment's hesitation, reached under the bench for a glass which she passed over as well.
I noticed a look passed between Maura and Jane, with the corner of Maura's mouth quirking up slightly, as if she was holding in a smile. It was at that point I noticed that Jane was drinking her beer straight from the bottle. Hazarding a guess as to what had just played out in front of me, I took pity on Jane.
"Thanks Jane, but I might drink straight from the bottle like you do, I know it's silly but it tastes better that way" Jane broke into a huge grin, while she slyly glanced at Maura from the corner of her eye.
Maura threw Jane a resigned look, yet another in a very long series I guess, tempered with a quiet smile, a look I recognised. Natalie and I passed it back and forward several times a day.
Maura picked up her glass of wine and led us over to a set of low and comfortable sofas.
We talked shop for a while, waiting for Natalie to arrive. She had been held up with a gang-related drive-by shooting but had rung to say she was due soon. Waiting for a lull in the conversation, I jumped in when one appeared.
"There is one thing I should mention before Natalie gets here" Maura looked concerned.
"Oh, does she have any food allergies? I should have checked first, I'm sorry. There should be nothing in tonight's meal which would trigger any of the more common allergic reactions, like peanuts, shellfish or soy, although there are some less common ones that I should have asked about…" I held up my hand as I broke in on her apology.
"Whoa Maura hold up, it's nothing like that, neither of us have any allergies that I'm aware of, I'm sure that dinner will be wonderful. Besides, Jane was bragging about what a great cook you are yesterday" Maura actually blushed slightly.
"Well, I do like to avoid poisoning my guests; it would be bad for my reputation as a host" Jane smirked as she turned to look at Maura where they sat close on the couch.
"Besides, people might think you were trying to create work for yourself" She smiled at me. "At least there's nothing coming out of the dead fridge tonight" Maura gave Jane a playful smack in return.
"I have more than enough work thank you Jane, without looking for more, especially with friends"
"The dead fridge?" I asked, curious. Jane shook her head.
"You don't wanna know, trust me"
"Oh, OK, well anyway, about Natalie…"
"Yes?"
It's just that you've probably noticed that Nat's a very touchy-feely kind of person at the best of times". Jane lifted an eyebrow at me, an expression I had once heard called 'The Spock', but could just as easily have been called 'The Jane', she did it so well.
"Yeah, I'd noticed, so?"
"Well, when she's happy and likes the people she's with she gets more so, plus she tends to get a little flirty. I just wanted to warn you in case it might make you a little uncomfortable" Maura smiled back at her.
"Oh it shouldn't, Jane and I have been told we are very tactile as well" Maura smiled as she looked down to where Jane's hand rested on her thigh and laid her own on top of it.
"I'm just pleased that she will be happy to be here with us" Maura turned and looked at Jane, who nodded.
"Thanks guys, I love her to death, but I just wanted to warn you so that it didn't get awkward" Jane leaned forward.
"When you said she gets flirty, how much so?"
'Teasing mostly, nothing serious, it's not a power or guilt thing either, she's not trying to make me jealous and react; more a playful thing with people she likes" I took a breath.
"Some people have taken it the wrong way, or get embarrassed that my girl is flirting with someone else" Maura nodded.
"Well, we promise not to take it the wrong way, as it's all in good fun" I felt a smile break out on my face as relief flowed through me. I hadn't really been worried but it was good to be sure.
"Thanks, both of you, we like you a lot and I didn't want to have anything happening without a chance to warn you first" Jane waved my thanks away.
"No, like Maura said, we're good" Maura nodded in agreement.
"You and Natalie have both been very kind to us since we arrived, we didn't really know anyone here and it's good to have friends. We're both glad you're here and that you reached out to us"
"Well, we both know that it's not easy, a new job, a new city, especially when it's new for both of you. It's been the same for Nat and I; you can never have enough friends"
"It's all new to us and we only had a small circle of family and friends back in Boston. Well, mostly Jane's family, although they made me part of their family long before we got together" Maura smiled a bit sadly.
"Family is one thing I do miss out here. Jane's mother makes the most divine Italian food, I still get the occasional cravings for her gnocchi" Jane squeezed Maura's thigh, getting a gentle slap on the wrist in return.
"Don't you dare tell her that Maura, she'll be on the next plane out here" Jane looked over at me.
"My mother is the overbearing Italian mother from central casting, while I miss her lots, I don't miss her barging into our place at all hours and seeing things a mother shouldn't see her daughter doing, especially on an island bench top". She shook her head at the memories, while Maura favoured her with a small smile, no doubt remembering that occasion as well.
I winced in sympathy, thinking about a few incidents in our past when Nat and I hadn't been as discreet as we should have been.
"Point taken, not long after Nat and I first got serious, her then roomie walked in to find us going at it full bore on the rug in front of the fireplace. I wasn't sure which of us was going to die of embarrassment first. She moved out not long after and I moved in"
Maura leaned into Jane and smiled.
"Unfortunately, Angela Rizzoli is as curious as her daughter and a lot less hung up on sex than Jane"
"Excuse me?" Jane leaned back from Maura and tried to look appalled.
"Well you were at first. At least until we worked some of the kinks out" Jane looked fondly at Maura, a goofy grin appearing.
"Funny, I seem to recall it was you who worked some kinks in, not out. Not that I'm complaining mind" Maura actually blushed, at which Jane let out a loud laugh, which didn't help Maura's composure
"I don't think Anastasia needs to hear about that thank you Jane"
I couldn't resist teasing Maura, who looked adorable as she blushed.
"Why not, after all were all friends here? No secrets between friends" Jane just smiled broadly, leaving Maura to blush even deeper.
"I don't think we're quite that friendly Anastasia" I couldn't help myself, as I burst out laughing, getting a wink from Jane in return.
Just then the doorbell rang, saving any further embarrassment. Maura jumped up suspiciously fast and headed for the front door.
She returned shortly after with Natalie in train, in bare feet but still wearing her work suit.
I got up to kiss her, she looked a little tired but I got a warm kiss and a murmured 'love you' as we moved back to the sofas. Undoing her jacket, she laid it over the back of a chair before sitting down.
"Would you like something to drink Natalie?" Maura was already heading to the kitchen as we settled down.
"A wine would be lovely Maura, white if you have some please" She curled up on the sofa, tucking her legs under her while looking graceful as she did. I reached out and placed an arm around her shoulder while she leaned into me.
"Bad?" Nat looked over to Jane and nodded.
"Drive by, three gangers hosed down on a busy street in front of young kids playing. No one saw anything of course. Thanks Maura" She smiled up as a wine appeared in front of her.
I said all the right things about asking for the community's help, witnesses to come forward and so on, but frankly, I felt I was wasting my time" I frowned; this was a bit flat for Natalie.
"You never know, someone may come forward, it's just a bit early to tell"
"I know, I just watched as the uniformed officers pointed out that the bullets sprayed straight out only a few inches over the heads of a couple of ten year old kids" Jane grimaced, obviously she had seen that before.
"If they had hit the kids we would all be down there now, definitely a Major Crimes case then" Maura handed Nat a wine glass and she took a sip of it.
"Mmm, this is lovely wine Maura, thank you" I watched Maura perch on the arm of the lounge next to Jane, who slipped an arm around her waist. Tactile wasn't the word; they were joined at the hip. A feeling I could easily relate to, especially as Natalie leaned back against me and entwined our fingers.
"You're most welcome Natalie. They have some wonderful wineries here in California; producing white's easily the equal of anything from France."
"I like a good white, I wouldn't mind finding out the name of this one". Maura smiled.
"Of course" Just then my stomach rumbled, quite audibly. Natalie looked at me, eyes wide open.
"I heard that" Jane laughed from the other sofa.
"So did I" Embarrassed I shrugged, trying to casually pass it off.
"I was tied up in a meeting with the Bureau for most of lunch time; I had coffee and some crackers" I could feel a scolding coming on.
"Anastasia, what have I told you about eating regular meals. You promised me you would eat regularly, no matter what" Nat frowned slightly. "I don't want you getting sick again"
"I normally do, today was an exception. I'm sorry" I leaned over to kiss her cheek, trying to close the subject, but her expression suggested that I wasn't successful.
"You're health's more important than some meeting. Surely the FBI can afford sandwiches if they make you work through lunch in some stuffy conference room"
"Natalie's right Ana, while breakfast is the most important meal of the day, by the middle of the day your body's energy supplies are becoming depleted, leaving you tired, sluggish and irritable. It also makes it harder to concentrate, your attention to detail and ability to make cognitive leaps and undertake complex problem solving decline, in addition to having a deleterious effect on your overall health and well-being if you have a pattern of skipping meals. In fact a recent study by researchers at the Sorbonne suggests that…" I looked over at Maura as she suddenly stopped, seeing Jane squeezing Maura's waist.
"Maura, your Googling again and all Ana wants is some food. Plus I do too and I did eat lunch today, as you well know, seeing as it was with you" Maura smiled an apology at me and got up, walking over to the kitchen as I shot a grateful glance at Jane for getting me off the hook..
"Dinner's almost ready; hope you like Coq au Vin, its chicken in red wine sauce"
"It sounds wonderful, lead on"