It had been a few months since their first family dinner at Maura's and the two had decided to make it a recurring thing. They would come together every Sunday to share a meal and just relax with family and friends. Everything seemed to be going well so far and they recently had a new addition to the family. Jane's dog. Jo Friday. Maura was smitten with the little creature the moment Jane introduced them and demanded that Jane brought her over every time she was at the honey blonde's house. Thankfully for both of them, Bass and Jo seemed to get along just fine.

Jane had been spending all of her free time at Maura's, only stopping at her apartment if she ran out of clean clothes or needed to grab something else. Maura had been thinking about making it official and asking Jane to move in with her, but she wasn't sure the Detective would say yes. She had learned by now that whenever Jane didn't feel obliged by something she was fine with it. So the honey blonde was afraid that asking Jane to move in with her would be too much of a commitment for her girlfriend. There was only one other way. To let Jane ask. So she would be quiet and just be patient. She was good at that.

Luckily for her, she didn't have to wait that long. Jane left one morning to grab something from her apartment before going back to Maura's when the Doctor got a distress call from the Detective, demanding that she'd come down to her place right away.

Maura, thinking something was very wrong dropped everything she was doing and rushed out of her house, drove like a maniac and pulled up at Jane's apartment. She found the brunette sulking on the sidewalk. Stepping out of the car, Maura surveyed her surroundings, finding the building sealed off with tape and men in suits walking in and out of it frequently. Walking over to Jane, she turned questioning eyes at her girlfriend.

"Jane, what's going on?" Sad eyes looked back at her and Maura was suddenly reminded of Jo Friday. The two quickly adapted each others traits.

"The building's sealed off. They won't even let me in my own apartment!" She screamed the last part at one of the men that headed inside. He merely glanced at her, before shrugging and continuing his way. Jane huffed, obviously displeased with the reaction she got.

"I swear if I had my gun and badge on me I would…" She let her sentence trail off, before sighing and turning to Maura.

"Apparently someone called the damn pest control when they saw a damn rat. And now they've sealed the whole building off because they found a nest in the basement. They don't know when I'll be able to go in and grab my stuff." Maura let her eyes wander over to the men walking in and out.

She frowned. There was no way there would be so many men if it was a simple pest situation. Telling Jane that she would be right back, she walked up to a man who looked like he was in control. Or who might know more of the situation than he'd let on.

"Excuse me." Maura waited patiently for the man to turn around.

"Sorry Miss, the building's closed off. I need you to turn around and leave the premises." Maura merely cocked an eyebrow, before rummaging through her purse.

"I'm sorry." Finding what she was looking for, she smirked at the man. "Dr. Maura Isles, Chief Medical Examiner of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. I'd like to know what's going on. Because this is clearly not a case of pests in the basement. And before you answer you should know that I have connections far higher than your boss. So if you are even thinking about lying than I strongly suggest you think twice." She had a sweet smile on her face the whole time. The man swallowed, his eyes going wide with fear.

"Well, uhm." Maura smiled as the man stuttered, trying to regain some of his masculinity. Clearing his throat, he tried again. "You're right. We did find a nest in the basement, but we also found traces of asbestos. We didn't want to worry the tenants before we know for sure if it's dangerous or not." Maura nodded, a thoughtful look on her face.

"And is it?" The man sighed, clearly not in the mood to deal with her right now. Too bad. She thought, feeling herself glow with pride.

"It seems so. Or at least it's dangerous enough to have the tenants move out for an infinite amount of time."

"What about their belongings? My girlfriend lives here and she would like to grab some things from her apartment. She's a homicide detective." Maura didn't know if that small piece of information would do them any good, but when she heard the man sigh once more she knew she might have just gotten lucky.

"She has to suit up and she can't take anything that my men say she's not allowed to. Got it?" Maura nodded, smiling appreciatively at the man.

"Thank you."

When she returned to Jane, she saw the Detective glare at everything around her. Maura rolled her eyes. She could act like a two year old at times.

"Jane?" Jane's eyes found hers and the annoyance immediately disappeared, being replaced with love and adoration. Maura felt her insides squirm. She could still make her feel all giddy with one look.

"Yeah?" Maura snapped of out of her haze, seeing Jane wait for her to continue. She blushed slightly.

"You can go in. But you have to suit up and you can't take anything those men say you can't." Jane frowned.

"What the hell? For a couple of pests?" Maura shook her head softly, reaching out a hand to calm down the Detective.

"There are traces of asbestos Jane. They're not sure when you're allowed back in. If you are at all. So be sure to grab enough things for a couple of weeks, maybe a month or two." Jane's eyes were wide as she took in this information. Her eyes went from the building to Maura's a few times, before a defeated look settled into her brown orbs.

"This was my first place Maur." The Doctor smiled understandably at Jane.

"I know. But I'm not saying you're not allowed back in ever Jane. It's just going to take some time." There was a beat of silence before.

"What if I don't want to?" Seeing the surprised look in Maura's eyes, Jane elaborated.

"I mean… we've practically been living together already. Why not… make it official?" Jane was nervous, fidgeting with her hands. Maura was ecstatic. Her waiting had finally paid off.

"Yes!" Jane felt her girlfriend barrel into her and the familiar scent of one of Maura's expensive shampoo and something that was just Maura entered her nostrils. She breathed in deeply, never getting tired of that smell.

"I guess it's settled then?" Maura nodded vigorously, leaning in to claim Jane's lips with her own.

"Now go grab your things. I'll be waiting here. You can fill two cars." Jane laughed at Maura's frazzled state. She looked like a child who had just been told they were going to Disney Land and couldn't wait.

"I'll be back as quick as I can."

Jane had grabbed all of her clothes, underwear, toiletries. She didn't bother bringing anything from the kitchen or bedroom or anything else. Maura had everything. All she needed to bring was herself and her clothes. She actually already had a toothbrush at Maura's, but she just brought it anyway. She hesitated at the doorway of her bedroom, her eyes fixated on the closet. It was hard to carry everything and she was glad she had some suitcases stashed in her closet. Sighing, she went back to the closet and squatted down, reaching out to grab her old friend. She smiled softly. Nancy wasn't going to be lost like this. Stuffing her friend in her bag, she made her way out of her apartment, stopping to momentarily stare at everything. She wasn't allowed to take any pictures, but they promised that they would call her when they were processed and free of asbestos. Swallowing back the tears, she took one last shaky breath before closing the door.

So many memories. It was the first place she had bought. She had been over the moon when she got it, almost too eager to do everything herself to take her parents' help. Many family dinners were held here, sleepless nights, nights of watching baseball games. But most importantly, the dinners she shared with Maura. And their first kiss. Awkward and one-sided, but deemed as their first kiss. Jane smiled, glancing at her door one more time before leaving the building, watching her girlfriend waiting impatiently. The Detective laughed as she took her suit off and grabbed her bags. She had never seen Maura look impatient. It was the sweetest thing she had ever seen.

"Do you have everything?" Jane nodded, popping open her trunk to stash her bags in there.

"Except for my pictures, but they would let me know when they're processed and free of any bacteria."

"Asbestos isn't a bacteria Jane. It is a fibrous mineral that has been used for ages in everything from construction to clothing. It was once considered a great building material because of its heat resistant properties among other things." Jane's eyes were wide and she slowly looked down at her clothes.

"So… I'm basically wearing a cancer inducing 'fibrous mineral'?" Maura rolled her eyes. Leave it to Jane to make everything dramatic.

"You'll be fine Jane. Now… let's go home?" The question made everything about asbestos and what-not clear from Jane's mind and she smiled.

"Let's go home."

Angela was out of her house immediately when it was apparent Jane was bringing a lot of things into Maura's house. Jane groaned when she saw her mother barge into their home and demand answers. All Jane was did was smile. The thought of it being her home too… it was an amazing feeling.

"Jane!" The Detective blinked lazily, her eyes slowly focusing on her mother.

"What?" Angela glared at her daughter.

"Don't you what me? I asked you a question."

"And…?" Angela sighed exasperatedly, shooting a Maura a look that said 'are you sure you want to live with her?' Maura merely smiled and shrugged.

"When are you getting married?" Jane's eyes had never been bigger than they were right now and she dropped the bag she held in her hand.

"Wha? What are you talking about? We're moving in together, we're not getting married!" Angela just looked at her daughter.

"Well, then hurry it up. I'm expecting grandchildren very soon." With a last huff and a smile Maura's way, she left the two women alone. Jane turned to Maura, her mouth hanging open. Maura giggled as she closed the distance between them.

"You know how she is Jane." The Detective snorted, turning to glare at the front door.

"She's not going to stop nagging us."

"Jane?" The Detective merely hummed, her eyes still fixed on the door. Maura reached out hand, turning Jane's head to look at her.

"I love you." Jane stopped breathing, her eyes glazed over and she just stood there, looking like a complete fool. Maura frowned. What had just happened? Did she move too fast? No, that couldn't be it. They were moving in together for Christ sake. Maura was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she almost missed Jane's reply.

"I love you too." The smile that broke out on both their faces was enough to light up a whole town.

"You scared me there for a moment. You completely zoned out on me." Jane shook her head, bringing Maura closer to her.

"Sorry. I was just… taking all of this in. I never would've thought I would end up here Maur. I never thought anyone could make me this happy. That anyone could love me like you do and that I could love someone as much as I love you. You have no idea how happy you make me Maura Isles." Maura had tears in her eyes.

"I think I do. I never thought that I would be able to love someone after Garrett. I even used to believe that no one would want to, but then you came along and… you hated me." They shared a laugh.

"I never hated you." Maura nodded at Jane's statement before continuing.

"I know. But… you didn't exactly like me. And when I pushed myself into your life by cooking for you I never thought it would make us be friends. And then you had to go and ruin that by kissing me." Jane blushed. Maura was getting better and better with sarcasm and jokes. She was picking up on her traits fast. "And I never would've taken the next step if it wasn't for my mom and you pushing me. And you even stayed by my side after I told you everything that happened with Garrett. I'm ashamed to admit that I thought you would run." Maura ducked her head, hiding her blush and tears.

Jane lifted her chin, locking their eyes together. She was almost knocked over at the amount of emotion that was staring straight back at her and she had to swallow to get herself under control.

"It crossed my mind. I'm not going to lie about that. Running was always my way of dealing with things. But after that night and seeing you so broken… that changed. Running would only make it worse and it would make you think that I didn't care about you. And I didn't want you to think that. You changed me Maura. You make me a better version of myself and I'm grateful for that every day. I'm grateful for you." Both had tears streaming down their faces. "God I love you." With one last sob/laugh, they tightly embraced each other.

"Now enough of this smut. Let's get settled in and then I'll cook for us." Jane wiped at her eyes, trying to grab a hold of the last straw of dignity she still held. Maura nodded, reaching over to grab a tissue from her desk. Jane rolled her eyes. Of course. Grabbing her bags, she placed a kiss on Maura's cheek, before making her way to their bedroom. Again, the smile appeared and everything seemed to disappear from Jane's mind.