When Maura opened the door for her Jane had trouble finding the correct manner in which to process oxygen. "Maur—a" Was what came out, nothing like the smooth and casual greeting she had practiced in her bathroom mirror, or her hall mirror, or her rare-view mirror, just a strangled somewhat flattering kind of grunt. Jane hadn't even recognized it as her own voice for a split second. She almost dropped the cleaned casserole dish she was holding in her hand partly because her palms were sweating so much from the short drive over. The ME grinned. "You're cheating, c'mon!" Jane finally managed to catch herself and motioned to the flowy maxi dress with deep colors of gold cinnamon, midnight blue and crimson, and the plunging neckline that was going to be an issue.

She looked like she was a going to buried with a Pharaoh or sacrificed or something equally flattering yet mortally dangerous.

Maura frowned as she stepped aside for Jane to enter her house before closing the door behind her. "This is casual."

"You look like you're going to an opera!"

"This is hardly the right material for it, feel." She offered a patch of the material to which Jane fingered before letting it go and shaking her head. "See?"

"Oh I can see alright." She motioned to her cleavage which Maura laughed at. "C'mon Maura you're setting me up to fail, put those away!"

A bit of a blush mingled with her applied variety. "Jane I feel perfectly comfortable in this, this is casual for me."

"You'll be cold." She warned.

"I have a coat."

"What about for inside the restaurant?" Shouldn't there be some shawl thing to go along with it? There was always a shawl.

Maura tilted her head and examined her friend closely; she hadn't exactly followed the control either. The detective was wearing a crisp dark navy button down, one she never wore for work. Maura could tell by the slightly silken material of it. A leather jacket, her boots and her "going out" black jeans and if she paid an even closer eye (which she did) Jane had even take care to wash her hair and put on a little foundation. Hardy casual, but very interesting. They both wanted to look nice for the other. "Jane?"

She was talking. "—It's not exactly—what?"

"How do I look?"

Jane blinked. "How do you look?" She asked it incredulously. Maura nodded "Maura you look gorgeous, you always look gorgeous that's the proble—" She caught on. "Oh."

Maura nodded slowly. If they were trying this they had to try this. "You look very nice as well." She took the cleaned dish out of Jane's now fidgety hands and moved to bring it into the kitchen for Angela. "Now I just need to get a shawl."

Jane turned and watched her carefully. "Can we start over?"

Maura chuckled and stepped barefoot toward her hall where the stairs were. "I'll only be a moment more, Jane."

Jane nodded and moved into the living room. She took off her jacket and rested it on the couch before sitting down herself, because she knew well now that "Only a minute" meant a realistic ten minutes and she knew better from all those other times Maura had insisted she'd be "only a minute."

This wasn't like any of those times though.

Jane dried her palms firmly in her jeans and then checked the time on her small silver wristwatch. They had more than enough time for their reservation and their movie but she wanted to get Maura out of this house as soon as humanly possible to avoid—

"Janie!?"

Jane sat up quickly. "Frankie!" Her voice changed and she wore a twisted sort expression of guilt and happiness.

Her younger brother strolled into the living room all grins clad in light blue jeans and a worn grey shirt. He was holding a beer. The sibling in her wanted to point out that he had better replace it because Maura only bought those for her, but seeing as she really didn't want to call upon attention to herself even being there to pick Maura up she kept her mouth shut and watched the icy beverage perspire in one of her very own Red Sox coozies.

Frankie came over to stand behind the couch and capped a brotherly hand on her shoulder. "I really thought you'd call more."

Jane looked up at him and managed to smile through her anxiety. "Well sometimes we all need a break."

"You gonna fight this suspension? I mean they can't put it on your jacket, its horse shit."

"Watch your mouth!" Angela emerged from the back door near the kitchen and Jane's smile turned grimace.

"What is Tommy here too?" Jane stood now.

Frankie shook his head. "Nah, but I am babysitting TJ with Ma."

"You're babysitting TJ?" Jane pointed at his beer. "Drunk?"

"This is my only one!" he protested in that high pitched Frankie sort of way. "Plus Janie he's not even here yet."

She put her hands on her hips. "And who died and made you babysitter, I babysit TJ."

"We." Maura's voice could be heard near the door correcting the detective. She came into the room with a shawl over her shoulders and holding a black leather handbag.

"Wow, Maura." Frankie nodded. "You look great."

"Thank you, Frank."

Jane resisted the urge to bop her brother behind the head. "Don't call him Frank."

"Where are you two going all dressed up?" Angela asked pointing to them both as she leaned against the kitchen island. She noted with motherly suspicion that her daughter had ironed her shirt.

Angela's question was ignored as the three continued.

"Tommy reached out to me early today, Jane." Maura folded her shawl over her arm.

"Yeah and Maura said you two weren't available so it's cool uncle Frankie for a change, give it up Janie." Frankie chuckled at the not so pleased look his sister wore.

Jane was trying to decide which issue to handle first. "First off I'm the only cool relative the kid has." She looked over to Maura. "He asked you?"

Maura nodded as she placed the shoes she was also holding with her shawl down and slipped into them making her grow an impressive inch. Though she were as anxious to get out of there as well she couldn't help be amused. "Do you recall scheduling the last four sittings?"

Jane thought for a moment and allowed herself to be amused as well. She motioned to Maura but looked at her younger brother. "I didn't tell you that Maura's my new personal assistant?" Frankie shook his head. "It's great really, she organizes my calendar and I never have to look up how to spell another word ever again."

"As if you did before." Maura shook her head.

"I wonder if Nina would organize my calendar for me." Frankie mused.

"What calendar?" Jane reached for her leather jacket to put it on.

"Where is Nina anyway?" Maura asked looking around. Work had been so busy she missed their stolen coffee breaks.

Frankie shrugged. "Out with some girlfriends."

"Where are you two off too?" Angela asked again.

Jane shook her head. "Dinner, Ma."

"You look very nice, Janie." Angela crossed her arms and leaned back some.

Jane narrowed her eyes at the compliment but Maura grabbed her arm to stop any further comment. "Doesn't she? I thought it would be nice."

Frankie nodded slowly. "Well if TJs not asleep when you guys come back come in alright? I'm sure he's gonna wanna see you two."

##

"Jane it slipped my mind."

"Nothing slips your mind."

"Do you really believe that I would keep you from your nephew whom I adore mind you." Maura was surprised to have Jane follow her around the passenger's side of her unmarked car and open it for her to get in. The ME stood to face her, the door slid in between them but they remained face to face.

Jane sighed. "No."

"Are you disappointed that he didn't ask you?"

Jane shook her head. "I guess I never noticed that he'd go through you first." Why? Maura was pretty much family but why not just ask her himself?

Maura nodded slowly. "I did."

"You know something I don't, Dr. Isles?"

Maura smiled seeing the stitch of frustration leave Jane's features completely. "Perhaps."

"Get in the car so I can close the door for you." Jane pretended to bother.

Maura did as she was told but when Jane got into the driver's side and buckled her seat belt she couldn't help but point something out. "I wonder if you hold doors for all your dates." Knowing that Jane had only really dated men.

Jane shifted the car into drive and mentally thought out the route towards the docks before looking over at Maura. "What like with Dean?"

She noted interestingly enough that she hadn't brought up Casey or Davies. An observation for another time. Maura nodded. "Yes, like Agent Dean."

Jane chuckled at the idea of it as she drove. "No."

"And you do for me?"

Jane glanced at her. "Well you're Maura."

"A woman?"

"Yes a woman, and Maura."

Maura hummed. "I am perfectly capable of opening doors for myself you know."

Maura was perfectly capable of many things. If anyone knew it it was Jane. "I know, but…I don't want you to."

"You don't want me to?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Maura, I've always opened doors for you."

"Not car doors."

Jane shrugged. "Well that's like another level of respect isn't it?"

"Is it respect or chivalry?"

"Aren't they the same?"

"You respected Gabriel, but you never opened a door for him."

"God don't call him Gabriel." Jane groaned. "And can we not talk about my exes on our experiment?"

Maura chuckled. "I just found it interesting."

Jane took one hand off the wheel to motion with it for emphasis. "It's how I was raised, Maura. You do it for women you y'know.." She flanked a hand at her. "Want to make feel special and feel important and…y'know that's just it." She capped her hand back on the wheel and kept her eyes forward now. Why did she always have so many questions?

"I see."

They were silent for a few blocks.

"It doesn't offend you does it?" Jane asked glancing at her friend.

"No no, it's… nice to know what it means to you." She thought for a moment. "I would like to open the car door for you when we arrive."

Jane nodded still keeping her eyes forward. "Okay, we can do that," and so when they finally found a parking spot on the side end of the Salem street Jane pulled the keys out of the ignition and looked over at Maura. "Here we are."

Maura nodded looking out the window trying to figure out where they were going before jumping to attention and quickly gathering herself so she could get out of the car and open the driver's side door for Jane. The whole ordeal kept them blushing furiously and laughing all the same.

"Mademoiselle." Maura put an arm out for Jane.

The tall woman shook her head and allowed herself to be assisted. "You're liking this way too much."

Maura grabbed a hold of Jane's arm and wrapped hers in it and grinned. "I see now why men do it."

"Why?" Jane managed to auto lock her car and slip the keys into her pockets before pointing up the block to a restaurant in the distance. "There."

The evening was dark and cold, the air dry, and though Salem street was an off shoot to a main avenue of bars and restaurants bustling with activity their route was remotely calm.

They began the walk. "Its empowering." Maura nodded after struggling to find the right word. Jane smelled nice, different.

Jane nodded. "Yeah you do feel like you're doing something."

Maura nodded to herself. She was trying to mentally note everything so she was ready for the questionnaire but throughout the night she would come to realize that she was caught with moments just like this where she forgot to remember and instead just took a pleasant stock of their surroundings and Jane's facial expressions, it was like the part of her brain that processed complete thought and transferred it to long term memory (her limbic system) had decided to malfunction. She could only recall how Jane smelt on that walk, and how that mixed with the dampness of the pavement from a brief cold shower that afternoon, or Jane's right eyebrow and how it remained in a degree creased the entire evening, and how she thought it were cute.

Something instate told her that this wasn't a chiari malformation back pedal, she was just… enjoying their time.

"Aren't you going to ask me where we are going?" Jane asked impatiently. Maura had been silent for a block so.

"No." The doctor put simply.

"So it's not Oyster Bar."

"Oh."

"It's just around the corner from it though." The continued to walk until the passed the trendy oyster spot on Salem with the line running aside the building. "I think it's owned by the same people though, Maillard." Maura chuckled. "What?"

"A seafood restaurant called Maillard, I've never heard of it." Jane gave her a look. "Maillard reaction is when amino acids and reducing sugars brown and crisp. It's usually reserved for referring to steak though. Scallops ironically enough have enough sugars to caramelize but that's a whole different chemical reaction." She nodded.

"I don't think they have steak here, Maura.'

"I wonder if it's because their more popular restaurant is so close."

Jane thought on it, the menu looked good online and she was sure Maura hadn't been there since they just recently opened for business that fall, and because the tables weren't clothed with the finest of linen. Maura loved to go out to those types of places, but the medical examiner often cooked her own food at home. The price was right and they had these cozy booths that offered some privacy so Jane figured it was worth a shot.

The restaurant itself reminded her of a shoe box. Dusted with a stringing of tasteful white holiday lights the back restaurant wall was made of complete glass leaving an amazing view of the water at night and casting a sort of darkness to the place. The décor was finished to look like an old fisherman's vessel, all dark and sodded with iron accents to replace the Rodgers anchors.

"Reservation for two, Rizzoli." Maura unlinked their arms. "We're a little early."

The young hostess nodded and pressed a few buttons on her touch screen and then smiled up at them. "No problem, please follow me." She grabbed two of the single page menus and led the way to the back of the restaurant near the window to a tiny leather booth for two.

"Jane this place is magnificent." Maura looked around as they sat in and their hostess placed the menus in front of them. "Very romantic, not cliché at all."

Jane chuckled and grabbed for her menu. "Well it's…" She shrugged not really knowing what to say. What? It's were I take all my best friends on our first date. Didn't really sound right. "I knew you'd like it." She watched as Maura took off her coat and got situated.

Maura smiled at her. The dim lighting making her hair seem even more golden. "I'm so excited."

Jane chuckled. "Well don't get too crazy over there I don't think they have anything fancy, but I figured a couple lobster rolls and maybe some shrimp?" She looked down at her menu. "They have crab too."

Maura had her menu on the table to look down at. "Let's get a little of everything."

"Okay."

"There is even a small cocktail list."

Jane flipped her menu over. "Where?"

"Right below the lobster rolls." Maura looked up and blushed when Jane looked back down quickly. Had she been staring? The idea of it drank her up and suddenly Maura was made very aware of the notion that Jane found her attractive.

Jane was busying herself with reading the menu allowed. "… Inspired by seasonal ingredients from local farmers and distilleries…"

"Jane."

"The margarita sounds good." Jane kept her eyes on the menu. She had been caught. She curled her bottom lip in and made a face of distracted indecision, one so cleverly placed would often work, but this was Maura. "Yup?"

Maura leaned forward and touched her friend's arm across from her. "It's okay to look."

Jane motioned to the menu without looking up. "I'm looking, they've got a martini here too that sounds pretty good but I won't have one. I have to drive. What do you think would happen if one of the guys pulled me over—"

"At me."

Behind the menu the doctor could see just Janes eyebrows knit and wanted to chuckle but held it in. "You were, right?" Jane dropped the menu and looked straight at her pointedly.

"Maura."

"Do you feel wrong for it?"

"No."

"But you do notice…"

"How can I not notice them?" Jane motioned to her cleavage. "We need to get two extra menus for them." Maura laughed loudly. "It's not funny. Whatever happened to this control?"

"Do you find that you can't control—"

"Oh shut up."

Maura's ears burned with blush but she couldn't help but continue to laugh. She honestly really enjoyed the dress and never got to wear it. She had no clue Jane would be so bothered by it, or rather her in it.

"It's perfectly natural. Isn't it why we are here?"

"No Maura, we're here because for whatever reason you talked me into talking to myself about this thing I swore I never talked to myself about, not your… your—"

"Breasts?"

"Yes!"

She played offended. "Not even little about them?"

"You're my best friend; I can't exactly look at them."

"Well what would you do on a regular date?"

"I try not to date men with a wrack like yours."

Their waters came and Maura found she was incredibly thirsty. "I should hope not." Their atmosphere had returned to its relaxed ease though. "If you found something physically attractive in a man, how would you show interest?"

"What like his lengthy metacarpals?"

Maura chuckled "Precisely."

"Well…I'd…." She shrugged not really knowing. "I don't know. I wouldn't ogle him though."

"When you look at me Jane I feel appreciated. Ogling implies a lecherous manner."

"Maura."

"It's true."

"Maura it's just…" She shrugged again. "New…new to notice things I had always noticed but never really…"

"Wanted to notice about your best friend." Jane nodded. Maybe there was some more figuring out to do, but it was nice to have Jane so open about how she was feeling. They were quiet for a moment. The ME secretly wondering how much information she could pull from the openness, the detective praying they would stop talking about her breasts. With an internal sigh of relief Maura picked up her menu again and began to browse it. Jane watched for any signs of resuming the conversation and when she found none she looked at her own menu. "Would you like to split a lobster roll?" Maura asked after reading the description and thinking she might want to try it.

Jane shook her head as she read. "Split? No, I want a whole one."

"You do remember how you felt after eating all that movie theater candy last weekend right?"

Jane paid her no mind. "We should also get some stone crab, I read the mustard here is really good."

They ordered all they could imagine they might want to eat, a glass of Picpoul Blanc for Maura, a bright and wheaty beer for Jane. Their drink order came almost immediately.

"Delicious." Maura smiled after taking her first sip. "How's your beer?" Jane was wiping of a cute foamed mustache with the back of her hand.

"Perfect." Maura nodded and Jane nodded and then they both began to chuckle. "Maura this is a little weird." Jane leaned forward toward her as if sharing a secret with her best friend and not the woman she was on a date with.

"I have to admit. I think we know each other too well to ask the usual first date questions."

"Do you have any siblings?"

"One, A half sister." She watched as Jane sat back in the small booth and relaxed putting her right arm onto its back. "Also only one kidney." She picked up her wine glass and nodded at Jane's apparent shock. "Mhm." She took a sip of her wine. "You?"

"Nope."

Maura chuckled. "Oh c'mon, how do you introduce your brothers?"

"I say I have two of them, and it's hard sometimes because they're still potty training." Maura continued to laugh. "Then at some point my date realizes their grown men, and that's another joke right there."

"Very good. It shows your insistent need to poke fun."

Jane reached for her beer. "I would ask you your favorite color but we don't have all night."

Maura motioned. "Some have made that mistake."

"Aha, see I'm ahead of the curve."

Maura only smiled. "Quite."

"How was work today?"

"Are you asking me or Korsak?"

Jane made a twisted face to which Maura laughed at "I'm asking you, obviously."

"You know you should just call him."

"He hasn't called me."

"He wants you to rest."

"It's a test."

Maura took another sip of her wine. "I wasn't aware."

Jane shook her head. "No Maura like a fake test." She put her glass down and leaned her elbows against the table. "He wants to see if I can handle not being involved in everything while Im gone, butting in."

She smiled softly. "Unless you have remote access that I'm not aware of I'd say you've taken this all… oddly well."

Jane huffed. "It sucks."

"You haven't called him though."

Jane shrugged. She supposed, she hadn't realized. "I haven't called Frankie either."

"What does it mean? I wonder."

Jane circled the rim of her beer glass with her finger before picking the glass up again and then putting it down. "Speaking of phone calls—"

"Alright here we have the shrimp and crab cakes to start." Their waitress interrupted to put the two dishes between them along with two share plates. Out of habit both women stacked the small share plates and pushed them to the side. They always just ate off of each other's plate; the small nudges toward polite, impersonal sharing were always lost on them.

Maura put her napkin on her lap and used a fork to reach out to cut a small crab cake in half for an even more manageable bite. "Phone calls?"

Jane was already wiping her buttery fingers off onto her napkin and trying to correct her table manners for date appropriate ones as she chewed the perfectly grilled piece of shrimp deliberately. "Um, yeah." She brought her fork out and tried to imitate the delicate divides Maura was working with her own instrument. "I got a call from Davies."

"Oh." She hoped it hadn't sounded as surprised as she was.

Jane was too busy trying to navigate her own reasons for bringing it up that she hadn't noticed. "To schedule my psych eval."

The ME brought her fork to her mouth and paused. "I wasn't aware a he were a recruitment agent." She teased before eating.

Jane shrugged. "Pass me the lemon?" Maura handed her a small wedge on the side closet to her as she chewed. "Thanks…" The table fell quiet as Maura took her time to count her chews and Jane spritzed lemon juice thoroughly on a single piece of shrimp. "He's not, he's just being…"

"Interested." Maura nodded.

Jane couldn't read her expression but for some reason she knew Maura was messing with her. She groaned. "I guess." She took a bite of shrimp and then motioned to Maura dramatically. "Which by the way you have to help me prep for, I really don't think I'd pass on my own."

She chuckled. "Jane it is a psychological evaluation, there shouldn't be any peroration necessary."

"Well…" She waited to finish chewing. "I still need help with it. You've done one before right?"

Maura reached for her wine. "Years ago for volunteer work, this is hardly the same."

Jane shook her head. "Well I'm taking it in New York so you said in a month right? I have some time."

"You'll come with me?"

The smile Maura expressed was one that made Jane laugh it was one that she hoped to see more.

Jane nodded. "Why not right?"

Maura took care to calibrate her excitement. "We have so much to do!"

"Maura—"

"And I'll have to now make sure I get you a ticket to my panel—"

"Orrrr I can go see the Rangers play?" Maura's face fell. "While you do that science thing…" She gave her a look. "Ah c'mon."

"It's my first time being invited to panel in the area of forensic pathology. Tasha is coming."

"That's because I haven't invited her to the game yet." Jane nodded.

Maura smirked knowing full well that Jane Rizzoli would be there. "I'm confident she will take my side."

Jane huffed but smiled at her friend before taking a gulp of her beer. "Alright but hockey is a must, you may as well tack on checking out a few breweries too, especially if your panel is before nine AM."

"Ooh and the Bronx Museum of Arts and The Guggenheim all have new winter rotations that I've read about." Jane opened her mouth to say something but ended up jumping slightly in her seat. "What is it?"

Jane put her beer down and reached into her back pocket. She narrowed her eyes and then motioned the cell phone to Maura. "Dispatch."

Maura shook her head. "Well that can't be right, aren't you suspended?" She put her wine glass down and reached for her hand bag. She had four missed calls.

"Rizzoli." Jane answered her phone with a frown. "Listen Kennedy I'm— What?" Jane shot out of her seat and motioned for Maura to get up. "Where?" She "I'm on my way—No-Yes, she's with me." Jane hung up and was reaching in her back pocket for her wallet to put some cash on the table to cover their meal.

"Jane, what is it?"

"Maura we have to go."

Maura watched with increasing concern as Jane carelessly threw more money on the table than even responsibly necessary in a controlled panic. "What is it?"

"Ma's been in an accident."

Maura grabbed her shawl and then the car keys out of Jane's hand as they turned to leave. "I'm driving."