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Jane slowed to a jog, then a walk, stopping to turn when she noticed Maura wasn’t beside her anymore. That’s when she saw her stopped completely, hands braced on her knees, and breathing like she’d just sprinted a marathon and not just ran a couple miles.
“Hey,” Jane said, soft but still a little breathless herself as she walked back to her. “I know this is hard right now but you’ll feel better once you’re back in shape. That surgery-”
Maura straightened slowly, too slowly to mean anything good was about to happen and Jane’s mouth snapped shut. “Excuse me?” Maura said, her voice going clinical in that way that meant Jane was about to regret her entire existence. “Did you just imply that I am out of shape?”
Jane blinked, already knowing that she messed up with her wording but currently fresh out of ideas on how to get out of trouble. “I-what? No, I just-”
“Or,” Maura interrupted, raising a finger and pointing it at Jane, her brow quirked, “were you calling me fat?”
“What?” Jane actually laughed, which in hindsight, was probably the stupidest thing she could have done here and she instantly stopped when she noticed Maura looking like she was going to kill her right here in the middle of the park. “No! Maura, you had major surgery-”
“Oh, so now I’m fat and fragile.”
“That is not what I said.”
Maura folded her arms, offended on a molecular level now. “You said I would feel better ‘once I’m back in shape,’ which implies I am currently what, Jane?”
Jane pressed her lips together, already losing this battle, and thought about her next words carefully. “You’re…recovering.”
“I see.” Maura gave a tight nod, her jaw clenched. “Well, Detective, since my apparently fat physique offends you so deeply, you can sleep on the couch for the foreseeable future.”
Jane stared at her, throwing her arms up. “You’re kicking me out of my own bed because you think I called you fat?”
“You said I was fat.”
Jane frowned deeply and shook her head. “I absolutely did not!”
“You said it with your tone.”
“My tone?” Jane asked slowly, her voice dripping with annoyance. “Maura, you’re the one who decided to go for a run like three weeks after getting a kidney yanked out!”
“It was donated,” Maura snapped. “Voluntarily. You’re welcome, humanity.”
Jane snorted despite herself. “Yeah, I’m sure humanity appreciates you threatening your wife over cardio too.”
Maura turned on her heel and started to make her way back to the car. “Enjoy the couch, Jane.”
Jane narrowed her eyes and huffed. “Yeah, well…enjoy your…circular shape,” Jane muttered.
Maura gasped like she’d been shot, her mouth dropping open, but she kept storming away, not giving her wife the satisfaction of seeing her reaction.
*
After a very solo lunch later that afternoon, Jane walked into the bullpen with a coffee in one hand and a smirk she hadn’t even tried to hide when she saw a certain someone at her desk.
Maura was already there, sitting stiffly in her chair, posture perfect, expression icy, and very deliberately not looking at her.
Jane stomped to a stop right next to her chair, smirking when she didn’t get a response to her loud footsteps. She gently brushed Maura’s curls off her shoulder before running her hand down the back of her head and leaning down to kiss the top of it. Maura could be pissed all she wanted but Jane wasn’t going to allow that to stop her from being affectionate with her wife. “Afternoon, Doctor.”
No response.
Jane raised her eyebrows as she took a sip of her coffee and glanced at Frost who looked away quickly, not wanting to be a part of what was happening. She then looked down at Maura again. “Did you eat lunch after you ditched me?”
Silence met the question but after a beat, she shook her head a bit.
Jane smiled softly, now knowing what she was after. When Maura was upset she liked to eat one thing and one thing only. Peanut butter. Who would have guessed it was her comfort thing? She also really liked strawberry jelly. Jane just so happened to really enjoy the same thing and had always kept a jar of peanut butter swirled with strawberry jelly in her desk. A little snack in a desk that Maura grew to appreciate. “I had to move it to the break room when I needed drawer space last week for files. I forgot to move it back. Let me go get it.”
Maura looked up at her and before she could open her mouth, Jane rolled her eyes and nodded, setting her coffee on her desk. “Yes, I will wash a spoon.”
Maura nodded once before she took Jane’s coffee cup and drank a sip. “Good. It’s the least you can do for being an emotionally abusive spouse.”
Jane slowly raised her eyebrows and gave Maura a look. “Emotionally abusive? Really?”
“You body shamed me during physical exertion.”
Jane groaned in frustration. “I did not body shame you.”
“You implied I lack physical adequacy, Jane!” Maura yelled, drawing a little attention to them, some of the other detectives now smirking because they knew what was happening. Jane was getting in trouble with the wife and was in the doghouse.
Jane leaned down and looked into Maura’s eyes. “Holy crap!” She whispered through her teeth. “I don’t think they heard you outside. And I implied you just had an organ removed, that was it.”
Maura shrugged and set Jane’s coffee down. “Details.”
Korsak, who had absolutely been listening, leaned around his monitor. “For the record, Doc, you don’t look fat.”
Maura and Jane both turned slowly toward him and fixed him with matching glares but for very different reasons.
“Lie to me again, Lieutenant, and I will use your skull as a demonstration model,” Maura said viciously.
Jane raised her eyebrows and nodded. “And don’t hit on my wife while you’re at it.”
Korsak held up his hands in surrender and went back to quickly typing on his computer.
Maura looked up at Jane, always loving when she got all possessive but she couldn’t let that distract her now. “You don’t get to be possessive right now. You are on probation.”
“For what??”
“For being a terrible wife.”
Jane turned the chair towards herself so she could put her hands on either armrest and get right in Maura’s face, dropping her voice. “I love you. I did not call you fat or mean to imply you’re out of shape but I am honestly very sorry if it came out that way. I think you’re beautiful and I know you’re in shape. Okay?”
Maura hesitated a bit before she spoke. “Your apology is currently under review.”
Jane couldn’t help but laugh just softly and shook her head. “Yeah? What’s the deciding factor going to be?”
Maura shrugged a bit.
Jane smiled warmly and kissed her forehead before she stood up. “Let me get your peanut butter.”
“I’m taking it down to the morgue with me,” Maura said defiantly.
Jane smirked as she walked to the break room. “I just lost custody of my snack.”
*
The next morning, the crime scene was already swarming with uniforms, CSU techs, the usual chaos. Jane ducked under the tape with a grunt that was a little louder than necessary. “Oh my god,” she groaned, one hand pressing dramatically into her lower back. “I think I threw out a kidney,” she said with a smirk and a sideways glance at Maura.
Maura, who was walking next to her in heels that defied both logic and OSHA guidelines, didn’t even look at her as she beelined for the body. “Ha. Ha. I wasn’t aware kidneys were located in the lumbar musculature. You’re being melodramatic.”
“I slept on the couch, Maura. The couch. Do you know what that thing has done to my spine?” Jane asked as she pulled on a pair of gloves.
“Yes,” Maura replied, finally glancing at her. “It has supported it. Poorly, apparently.”
Jane scoffed. “Wow. No sympathy for your injured wife?”
Maura tilted her head. “You forfeited sympathy when you critiqued my body yesterday.”
Jane groaned in frustration and titled her head almost all the way back, speaking to the sky. “I didn’t-”
“You implied it.”
“Did not!”
“You toned it,” Maura shot back. “Your tone implied it.”
Jane huffed as she stood up straight and rubbed her back again. “I hope you’re happy. I’m in pain.”
Maura’s expression didn’t change, but there was a flicker of something smug. “You’ll feel better once you’re back in shape. Sleeping on the couch is like major surgery,” she said with a quirked eyebrow, looking over Jane before she crouched near the body.
Jane froze and looked at Maura equal parts impressed and annoyed. “Did you just-Did you just use my own line against me?”
Maura raised her brows innocently. “What? I’m encouraging your recovery.”
Jane muttered something under her breath and took a few stiff steps forward, exaggerating every movement. “Ow. Ow. Ow. Oh yeah, that’s bad. I’m gonna need like a brace. Or a medic,” she said as she stood over Maura. She leaned down a bit, hands on her knees, and whispered her next words dramatically. “Or maybe a new wife.”
Maura hummed as she examined the bullet wound on the victim. “I’m sure there are many candidates eager to tolerate your condition.”
Jane glanced over her shoulder. “You volunteering to help me screen them?”
“I’d prefer to conduct background checks,” Maura said dryly. “Ensure they’re qualified to handle chronic complaining.” She punctuated her statement by glancing up at Jane and batting her lashes before looking down at the body again.
Jane grinned despite herself and stood back up, resting her elbow on her gun. “Wow. You’re really still mad, huh?”
“I am not mad,” Maura said crisply.
“Like hell. You told me my love is under review. That’s mad.”
Maura rolled her eyes and started in on her preliminary report, ignoring Jane. “Male, mid-forties, blunt force trauma to the head. Time of death approximately-” and thats when she felt it. The sharpest pain shooting through her back, taking her breath away, her hand moving instinctively toward her side, the other bracing herself on the concrete.
Jane’s entire demeanor shifted in an instant, the dramatics and the sarcasm vanished as she crouched next to Maura and put her hand delicately on her back. “Hey, you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Maura said quickly, too quickly. “It’s just residual discomfort. Entirely expected.”
“Maura,” Jane whispered, her tone soft.
“I said I’m fine, Jane.”
Jane didn’t argue, knowing that this woman hated to appear weak. They were similar like that. She watched her for a second longer, then nodded once. “Okay,” she whispered before she stood.
Maura inhaled through her nose and let it out through her mouth before she focused and went back to examining the body, her movements just a fraction slower than usual.
It wasn’t until she was finished about twenty minutes later that she noticed her wife was gone. She slowly stood up and looked around and that’s when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and saw Jane and smiled just a tiny bit despite herself at seeing her. Stupid Jane being the stupid love of her life.
“I’m right here,” Jane said warmly before she held out a small paper bag and a paper cup. “Just giving you space.”
Maura looked at the items. “What’s this?”
“Peace offering. And before you say anything, no, it’s not because you’re ‘fragile’ or ‘out of shape’ or whatever charge you’re filing against me today.”
Maura took the cup slowly. “What is it?”
“Tea,” Jane said. “The weird herbal one you like. The one that smells like grass and judgment.”
Maura stared at her. She actually kind of was the best spouse but she couldn’t let her know that just yet.
“And,” Jane added, lifting the bag slightly, a growing smile on her lips, “a peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich. Crusts cut off. I asked. Twice.”
Maura’s lips pressed together, but the edge in her expression softened just a little. “So you went to a café during an active investigation? One in which you’re leading?”
“I delegated,” Jane said slowly with her hands raised. “I’ve been right here the whole time, looking at the bullet casings and gun we found in the bushes. I sent one of the uniforms to get it with clear instructions. He wants to make detective by the end of the year and snack runs are part of that process. Then when he came back I waited until you were done with the examination to give them to you. So…take that, bossy.”
Maura rolled her eyes. “I am your boss,” she muttered as she looked down at the bag, then back at Jane. “You’re still sleeping on the couch.”
Jane sighed. “Accepted. But please eat and drink and take a break when you’re feeling that residual pain.”
Maura sighed before she took a sip of the tea. “It’s the correct one.”
“Yeah,” Jane said with a nod, her hand dangling the bag in front of Maura. “I pay attention to my wife. What a shock.”
“…Not really a shock actually,” Maura said with a little more warmth in her voice and made eye contact, a silent thank you as she took the sandwich.
*
That night, the house was quiet, lights low, and city noise humming faintly through the windows. Jane dropped onto the couch with a dramatic groan, one arm flung over her eyes. “Ah yes,” she said a little loudly, “my new home. Love what I’ve done with the place.”
Upstairs, a drawer shut a little harder than necessary and Jane smirked to herself. “Yeah, yeah. Message received,” she called up as she shut off the lamp and reached behind her to adjust the pillows. She shifted some more, trying to get comfortable as she grabbed the throw blanket and tugged it over herself. “This is fine. Totally fine. I like couches. Big fan. Great for spines,” she muttered to no one in particular.
A while later, Jane had just started to drift off when she heard footsteps. “If you’re coming down here to evict me from the couch too, I’m filing for divorce,” she said tiredly without opening her eyes.
When no response came, just the sound of footsteps, Jane cracked one eye open and barely had time to register Maura standing there before she very deliberately lifted the throw blanket and climbed onto the couch and on top of her, tossing the throw back over them. Jane let out a surprised “oof” as Maura settled across her, careful but firm, her head tucking against Jane’s shoulder like this was the most natural thing in the world because it really was. What was unnatural was sleeping apart. “…Hi,” Jane said after a beat.
“Hello,” Maura replied as she snuggled in more.
Jane blinked down at her, a tired smile forming as she let her hands rest on Maura’s back and rubbed slow, soft circles. “You kicked me out of our bed.”
“Correct.”
“And now you’re what, repossessing me?”
“I am utilizing available resources,” Maura said calmly, shifting slightly so she was more comfortably draped over Jane.
Jane snorted. “Wow, how romantic.”
Maura huffed softly against her neck. “You’re warm and I’m cold.”
Jane simply smiled and closed her eyes again, her hands slipping under Maura’s silk night blouse to gently scratch her back in the way Jane knew she loved. She was practically purring now and that made Jane a very pleased woman. After letting the silence stretch between them, she opened her eyes and glanced down. “You doing okay with everything?”
Maura nodded slightly. “I am…improving. I am still upset that Hope and Cailin really don’t seem to care about what I did to help but I realize that the fact I did the right thing, I saved a life, is enough for me. And the pain is definitely less serious. Getting better every day.”
“Good,” Jane said with a growing smile.
Maura shifted just enough to lift her head and look down at her. “Your back doesn’t really hurt, by the way.”
Jane gasped. “Wow. I confide in you, I show vulnerability-”
“You exaggerated your symptoms for dramatic effect.”
“I am in pain,” Jane said with a clearly not in pain shimmer in her eye.
“You were in pain,” Maura corrected. “And miraculously cured the moment I laid on you.”
Jane grinned. “Yeah, you’ve got that effect on me.”
Maura rolled her eyes. “Flattery will not expedite your return to the bed.”
Jane sighed. “Figured. I’ll just live here now. Maybe build a pillow fort. Start a new life.”
Maura hummed. “You’d need planning permission.”
“From who?”
“Your wife.”
Jane barked a laugh. “Of course.”
Another quiet moment passed, softer this time.
Maura’s fingers curled slightly into Jane’s shirt as they simply looked at each other, a peace surrounding them. “…You did bring me the correct tea.”
Jane smiled, gentler now. “Yeah, I know.”
“And all the peanut butter offerings.”
“You don’t have to call me a hero like that,” Jane teased.
Maura ignored her snark. “It was thoughtful.”
Jane tilted her head, watching her, her eyes crinkling as she smiled. “Uh oh. You’re thawing.”
“I am not thawing,” Maura said, but there was no real heat behind it now and she couldn’t help but smile just a bit. “I am maintaining a controlled emotional recalibration.”
Jane grinned. “That’s the most Maura way you could’ve said ‘I’m getting over it.’”
Maura huffed and then, finally, pushed herself up.
Jane blinked. “Oh. Okay. Was that it then? You just came down here to what, emotionally confuse me and leave?”
Maura stood, smoothing her shirt. “Get up.”
Jane frowned, a little nervous. “What? Why?”
Maura grabbed her hand and sighed as she tugged her. “Get up, Jane.”
Jane let herself be hauled upright, stumbling a little as Maura pulled her toward the stairs. “Wait, wait,” Jane said, resisting just enough to be annoying. “I thought I was banished. Exiled. A couch person now.”
Maura turned back to her, expression composed but eyes softer than they’d been all day. “You are reinstated for three reasons. I am cold and want cuddles, the couch really isn’t all that comfortable to sleep on, and I miss you being around me. It’s conditional of course.”
Jane lit up. “Oh, of course. Good thing I love conditions. What are they?”
Maura started up the stairs, still holding her hand. “You will refrain from commenting on my body unless you’re complimenting it.”
“Done,” she said as she slapped Maura’s ass, smiling when she heard her chuckle a little.
“You will acknowledge that I am recovering from major surgery.”
“Already do.”
“And,” Maura added, glancing back at her, “you will continue bringing me appropriate beverages when I am displeased with you. Oh, and restock the peanut butter and jelly supply in your desk.”
Jane laughed. “Oh, so this is a system now.”
“It is,” Maura said simply.
Jane let herself be pulled up the last step, smiling. “Yeah, alright. I can work with all that.”
*
The next morning, BPD hadn’t even fully woken up yet, phones half-ringing, paperwork half-started, coffee very much needed. Which is why it took exactly three seconds for everyone to notice when Jane walked into the café, Maura, holding her hand. No, clinging to her hand.
Jane didn’t even try to hide her grin. It was smug, soft, a little dopey, like she’d just won something and planned to enjoy every second of it. “Morning,” she tossed out casually as they walked in.
Maura stayed tucked at her side, fingers laced with Jane’s, her other hand lightly gripping Jane’s arm like she had no intention of letting go anytime soon.
Korsak looked up first and blinked and then blinked again. “Well I’ll be damned.”
Frost followed his gaze and immediately leaned back in his chair, relief evident on his face. “Oh thank god.”
Jane stopped walking at the comments. “What?”
Frost gestured vaguely between the two of them. “You’re not fighting anymore.”
Maura frowned slightly. “We were never fighting.”
Korsak snorted. “Doc, you threatened to weaponize my skull.”
“That was a proportionate response,” Maura said calmly.
Jane squeezed her hand, barely holding in a laugh as she kissed her temple. “She’s had a rough couple days. I worked her tension out last night, though.”
Frost made a face. “Okay, wow. That’s a lot.”
“Don’t be jealous,” Jane shot back with a smirk.
Maura rolled her eyes. “She just gave me a back massage while we talked, Detective Frost,” she clarified, smiling a bit. He didn’t need to know they did the very thing he was thinking right after.
Behind the counter, Angela froze as she walked out from the kitchen, her eyes widening as she took in Maura and Jane touching again. “Oh my god,” she said, lighting up. “You two made up!”
“We did not make up. There was nothing to make up,” Maura said automatically, still in denial she fought with her wife over something so stupid.
Angela leaned on the counter and laughed. “Honey, you’re practically wearing her today when yesterday you told her you wanted a divorce for emotional abuse.”
Maura glanced down at where she was, in fact, still attached to Jane’s arm, and smiled a bit, looking back up. “I might have been a little dramatic.”
“No! You?!” Jane asked playfully causing Maura to gently smack her and smiled even more, starting to feel better not just about herself physically but also emotionally. Even if Hope and Cailin never talked to her again she would always have the Rizzoli clan and Korsak and Frost. Her family.
Angela shook her head, smiling as she slid two cups across the counter. “Here. Coffee. For the both of you. On the house, because I cannot deal with another day of whatever that was between you.”
Jane took one and handed it to Maura, holding the other one. “We weren’t that bad.”
Korsak laughed out loud, “You were that bad.”
Frost added, “Worse, actually.”
Maura sighed and shook her head. “Your observational skills are deeply flawed.”
Angela leaned closer to Jane and said in a not so quiet whisper, “She’s still a little pissy.”
“I can hear you,” Maura said, standing right there.
“I know, sweetheart,” Angela said as she reached out and gently pinched Maura’s cheek, making her laugh softly.
“Alright, that’s it. I’m officially relieved. I was about to stage an intervention,” Angela said with a bright smile.
Korsak raised his coffee. “To domestic peace.”
Frost nodded. “Seriously. Don’t scare us like that again and please watch what you say from now on, Jane.”
Jane rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling as she started to lead Maura toward the elevators.
Lunch that afternoon found Maura swamped. She had back to back autopsies and no time for a real lunch break, just a quick kiss and hug from Jane and then she was back at it.
Jane walked across the street to grab lunch for herself and for Maura. She put her wife’s food on her desk, planning on walking it down to her after she ate real quick. She just unwrapped half her sandwich when her phone buzzed. She glanced down, expecting something work related but was pleasantly surprised to see Maura’s name.
“Are you busy?”
“Never for you. Are you dying or just missing me?”
There was a pause.
“I would like you to come to my office.”
Jane leaned back in her chair, grin spreading. “That sounds very official.”
Another pause, longer this time, and Jane could practically see Maura overthinking the wording. “I’m taking a break from my autopsies and require attention from you.”
Jane actually laughed out loud and Frost looked over as he ate his sandwich. “What?” He asked.
Jane shook her head, already standing, grabbing Maura’s food. “Nothing. Emergency.”
Korsak squinted. “That didn’t sound like an emergency.”
“Oh, it is,” Jane said as she started to walk towards the elevators. “For me. Very important wifely duties.”
“By all means go then! Please don’t anger Dr. Isles ever again!” Korsak pleaded.
A few minutes later, Jane nudged open the door to Maura’s office with her shoulder. “Delivery,” she announced with a smile.
Maura looked up from her desk and immediately, visibly, relaxed at the sight of her detective. The absolute peace and warmth just seeing this woman could bring her was really a little insane. Jane was her person and going a couple days being upset with her was too much. She had time to make up for. “Hello,” she said simply, like she hadn’t just summoned Jane with the emotional equivalent of a bat signal.
Jane held up a bag. “Brought you lunch. And before you ask, yes, I checked. It meets your many, many requirements.”
Maura stood, smoothing her blouse, trying for composed, but she didn’t even know why she tried. She failed the second she got close enough and just leaned into Jane, full body weight lean.
Jane laughed softly and tilted back a bit as she hugged Maura with one hand, keeping her up. “Wow. No warning, huh? Just straight collapse.”
“I did warn you,” Maura said, already tucking herself against her, her arms tightly around her. “I said I required attention.”
“Yeah, I thought that was, like metaphorical.”
“It was not.”
Jane set the bag down on her desk and wrapped her other arm around her, her fingers tangling in her hair a bit. “Noted.”
Maura didn’t move away, if anything, she leaned more and closed her eyes.
Jane tilted her head and looked down at her, gently cupping her cheek. “You gonna eat, or are you just gonna use me as furniture?”
Maura considered that. “Both.”
“Good answer,” Jane said before she pulled back enough to grab the food, guiding Maura to the small couch, sitting down and pulling the food out. “Alright, come on. Eat,” she said as she patted the spot on the couch next to her.
Maura sat, very close, and immediately angled herself into Jane’s side again. Jane handed her the container. Maura opened the container and saw her absolutely favorite sesame chicken salad and took a bite, perfectly calm now.
Jane watched her for a second, fond and amused, and then she shifted.
Maura blinked as she chewed. “Where are you going?”
“No where,” Jane said soothingly as she slid to the opposite side of the couch and reached down, gently slipping Maura’s heels off and brought her feet into her lap.
Maura sighed in absolute gratitude and moved to lean back against the other arm of the couch, wiggling her toes a bit. “Thank you.”
Jane smiled as she started to rub slow circles into the arch of her foot. “You’re on your feet all day. Figured this would help.”
Maura melted completely, shivering a bit when Jane’s nails softly tickled her skin. “Oh,” she breathed.
Jane grinned. “That’s right. Forget you married a great massager, did ya? It must be my long bones that makes me so good,” she said teasingly, remembering a compliment Maura had given her years ago before they expressed any real interest in each other.
By the time Maura finished eating, she looked different. Looser, warmer, and more like herself again. Then, without a word, she shifted, turning and carefully lowering herself so her head rested in Jane’s lap.
Jane didn’t hesitate to gently run her fingers through Maura’s hair, tugging just a bit on some of the strands. “Have I ever told you how proud I am of you? What you did for your sister? You always put others before yourself and sometimes I look at you and wonder how you do it. You’re like…my hero. And before you say something, that was sincerity. You really are the most wonderful person I know.”
Maura sniffled a bit and closed her eyes, smiling gently. “Thank you…” she whispered. “And I’m sorry. I’m sorry for overreacting. I was taking out how hurt I was on you. I know you would never call me fat.”
“I’ll be your punching bag anytime if it means I get an extra clingy Maura out of it for a while.”
Maura laughed softly and hummed. “Thank you for being able to handle me so well.”
Jane laughed softly and gently scratched Maura’s head. “I don’t handle you, hon, I’m here for you. Big difference and it’s my pleasure. Always. Thank you for trusting me to be your person. I love you.”
“And I love you.”