Author's Note: Thank you very much for all the reviews and messages, I'm really happy to see that you're enjoying this story so far.

Chapter Six

The evening had been perfect until Maura had suggested Jane to spend the night over because she had drunk too much to drive back to her place. Besides, Jane had showed up with Jo Friday. Thus she didn't have a reason to head back to her apartment straight away. Lucy hadn't made any remark but Maura had noticed the smile that had played on her friend's lips. A smirk that didn't fool anyone.

Maura had been very careful during the dinner. She had made sure to choose her words with an impeccable wisdom in order to avoid any double-entendre. Even offering Jane to spend the night at the Beacon Hill townhouse had been deprived of any meaning. They often stayed together after a meal. As a matter of fact, it was something that they had always done, way before that night of March that had changed everything.

"She's nice." Jane walked out of the ensuite bathroom and headed towards the master bed. The night was hot and Maura had refused to turn the AC on, much to Jane's despair. She wouldn't sleep well. Even less next to Maura whose presence was usually enough to arouse Jane more than needed. "But I don't want her to take me to the jungle."

Jane was a city girl. She was born and raised in Boston. Her definition of nature had very little to do with what Lucy had to face on a frequent basis. She wasn't made for trees that were so high that you couldn't see the sky anymore. She hated bugs and coming across some exotic snake was not on her bucket list either.

Maura had settled in bed almost twenty minutes earlier. She had waited for Jane to get out of the bathroom with a mix of nervousness and hope that she couldn't explain. Lucy had gone to bed too. The house was now quiet.

"You don't know what you're missing. It's an incredible experience to spend a few days in the jungle... Even if the nights are anything but quiet. It often takes people aback. The jungle is loud at night. Very loud."

Jane nodded but she had already lost focus as she had noticed the pale inch of skin that appeared between Maura's silky top and her panties. She had kissed it more times than she could remember. She knew what Maura's skin tasted like, how hot it was under her hands. And smooth, very smooth.

"How do you do this? How do you manage to go from a five-star palace to a night in the jungle? You're one kind of specie, Maura Isles."

Maura's adaptation to her environment had always surprised Jane. It didn't make her green with envy but it piqued her curiosity enough for her to wonder how her friend did it. Maura never complained. She accepted what she was given before getting the best out of it. She was a happy-go-lucky woman.

The exact opposite to Jane.

"I simply don't take silky negligees with me. You know, the kind that you keep on staring at as if you were hunting your next prey."

They were both in bed for at least ten minutes now and nothing had happened yet. They had talked but they hadn't kissed nor had they tried to undress each other yet. Jane couldn't remember when it had happened for the last time. They always went at it whenever they were alone in a room. Even more in a bed.

Yet neither of them felt the urge to do anything now.

"One more reason for me to never go to the jungle with you." Jane rolled on her side. She slid a leg between Maura's and rested a hand on her friend's stomach. She let the pace of Maura's breathing rock her for a while. "I like these silky tops."

As a matter of fact, she liked everything about Maura; from her tops to the way Maura bit her lower lip when she reached her climax. A warmth then spread throughout Jane's body and it made her feel incredibly serene.

They had made love in Maura's office earlier in the day but this wasn't enough of a reason for them to not have sex again tonight. Yet for a reason that neither of them could really explain, their sexual arousal didn't push them towards each other now. The moment was oddly sweet and the atmosphere was different. It was even relaxing.

Maura's smile vanished against Jane's lips as she leaned over to kiss her friend. The touch was soft, and delicate. It wasn't carried by any eagerness. She slid a hand on Jane's neck before the tip of her tongue brushed Jane's.

They kept on kissing for a while. Slowly. Quietly. And once they were done, they drifted off to sleep.

...

Jane stopped running as she reached a bench that was available. It was early in the morning but many Bostonians were already out strolling along the Charles River. The temperatures were still cool enough to be bearable. Within two hours, everyone would be hiding from the sun of July.

She stretched her arms above her head before stretching her legs. She had woken up very early. In Maura's arms. The fact they were still fully clothed had made her panic so she had got up to go for a run.

The irony of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks. She shouldn't have dreaded waking up in bed with her clothes on. The opposite could be a source of stress, but not wearing a shirt and a pair of boxers.

The scene was too close to something that wasn't supposed to happen. She and Maura were sex friends, not romantic partners. There was a big difference between both contexts and at no moment were they supposed to go from having encounters with each other to developing a romance of some sort.

She had hoped that running would relieve the weight that pressed on her shoulders but even after a thirty-minute run, she still felt awkward about what had happened in the morning. Or better said, about what had not happened.

They weren't tired the night before. They could have had sex. It was the scheme she and Maura followed since March and it was great. It was what they both wanted.

"Fuck it."

Jane resumed her running. She wouldn't stop until her anxiety became a blurry memory. She had the day off but wished nothing but to go to work. At least working on her case would prevent her from thinking about things that she refused to see.

She only stopped running once she reached the cafe where she often ordered a drink when she walked by the Charles River. She opened the door and walked inside.

"Good morning, Detective Rizzoli. How are you, today?"

Jane gave Louise a smile. The barista didn't even need to ask Jane the kind of drink she wanted. On a hot day, Jane always chose a frappe and Louise knew it.

"Great, thank you. How are you?

Jane observed the young barista and realized that she looked like the Marguerite Duras victim. Both women had the same traits, the same thin lips. Jane swallowed hard as an icy shiver ran down her spine in spite of the hot temperatures. Her lips began to tremble and she looked down immediately.

Louise didn't notice anything.

"Not bad... Hey, listen..." Louise took a deep breath. She looked at Jane with a very poor self-confidence. "I have tickets for Boston Rock Festival. Would you... Ahem... Would you like to go with me?"

A surge of adrenaline rushed through Jane's veins. She had always wanted to go to this festival but she had never been able to attend it. She paid for her drink and grabbed her frappe. She was too busy at work. As much as she needed some time off, she was working on a case and she simply couldn't afford to have a break.

Many officers and detectives managed to balance their professional and private lives. Jane didn't. A sentiment of betrayal towards the victims and their families passed underneath her skin if she ever dared to have fun while trying to solve a case. It wouldn't work.

"I'm pretty busy. I'd love it but... I've got work to do. Plenty of work. Maybe next time!"

Louise didn't seem to take Jane's answer badly. She politely nodded before giving Jane a bright smile. Other customers were waiting for their turn. She glanced at them then she shrugged at Jane.

"If you ever change your mind..."

Jane walked out of the cafe. She had wanted to take Maura to Boston Rock Festival for years just to see her friend among a crowd of people who barely knew who Yo-Yo Ma was.

And then it hit her.

Louise had just asked her out. Jane swallowed hard. It hadn't even crossed her mind until now. Too focused on what had happened in Maura's bedroom earlier in the morning, she had missed out the way Louise had asked her on a date.

"What..."

Confused, Jane began to walk her way back to the Charles River. Nobody had asked her out for such a long time that she had forgotten how it worked. Even more with a woman. Maura was the only one who had caught her attention for more than twenty-minutes. The others had been blurry crushes, fantasies that had never really come true.

Louise was a first. A very confusing one.