Author Notes: I wrote a little one-shot inspired by a couple of songs by Lady Antebellum. I know I have other stories to write, it's been a busy/tiring week. I got back from camping/a festival at 4am one morning because my sister was in labour and she had the baby that night. So it's all very exciting and wonderful, and I'm now an aunty for the first time. So writing has been the last thing on my mind, until a song inspired this. I'll get back to everything else soon. Thanks for your patience, and enjoy this piece of fluff.

"How do I look?" Jane asked, adjusting her bow tie in the mirror.

"You look very handsome," Maura said, stepping between her and the mirror and reaching out to adjust the tie. "You really suit the masculine look."

Jane raised an eyebrow. "You saying I look like a man?"

"Of course not." Maura trailed a hand down the lapel of her jacket. "You look beautiful, and unlike some people, you are well suited to a three piece suit."

"Nice save," Jane said. "You ready?"

"I am."

Jane held an arm out at her side and Maura took it, slipping her arm around Jane's as they made their way across the small room through the door.

"Are you two ready?" Angela asked, handing Maura a small bunch of flowers. "Nina's nearly done."

Maura's face lit up. "How does she look?"

"You can see for yourself in a minute." Angela frowned. "I really wish you'd worn a dress, Janie."

Jane scowled. "You know how much I hate dresses. Besides, Frankie asked me to be his best man, not his best dress."

"I don't know why he couldn't just ask Tommy."

"Tommy's lived across country for years," Jane said. "I know you might want to believe he and Frankie are as close as they were as kids, but they're not. I work with Nina and Frankie, I see them both every day."

"They could have made you chief bridesmaid."

"Ugh!" Jane rolled her eyes and turned away from her mother, pushing one finger into her mouth. Maura let out a small chuckle, then cleared her throat.

"You look beautiful Maura, doesn't she look beautiful, Janie?"

"She looks like she always does, Ma," Jane muttered, fiddling with the cuffs of her shirt. Maura's eyes narrowed, a hint of sadness seeped through the excitement.

"She's coming!" Angela squealed, holding the door on the other side of the entranceway open.

Nina ran her hands down the front of a crisp white dress, the long skirt gathered at her feet. She stepped across the carpet rug, her heels leaving the briefest imprints as she glided across the floor.

"You look stunning, Nina," Maura said, kissing her softly on the cheek. "Congratulations."

"Thank you."

"You really do look amazing," Jane said, following Maura in kissing her cheek. She ran a hand across her shoulder. "I can't believe you're actually marrying my brother."

"Is he here?"

"He's been standing up front for ages," Angela said. "Where did Korsak and Al go?"

"We're here," Korsak said, reentering the chapel. "Al and I were having a quick cigar before the main event."

"Dad!" Nina said, staring at the man beside Korsak. He shrugged his shoulders and wrapped his arms around his daughter. "I thought you'd cut down?"

"It's a special occasion, are you ready to become Mrs Frank Rizzoli?"

Nina scoffed. "I'm ready to become Ms Nina Holiday-Rizzoli, none of this Mrs Frank."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he said. "All twenty first century girl."

Looking round the door into the main room of the chapel, Angela pulled her head back into the entranceway with her two thumbs up in front of her. The music started. Korsak reached an arm out to Angela, who took it, and they walked through the doors, taking each step at a time. A few moments later, Jane and Maura followed.

"I know I didn't say it earlier," Jane said. "But you really do look beautiful."

"Thank you," Maura said, forcing her smile to disguise the movement of her lips.

"I mean it, like you usually look amazing, but today you look extra hot."

"Hot?" Maura asked, raising her eyebrows. "We're not supposed to talk during this part."

"Who says? You look stunning and you know it."

"That's very kind of you to say, Jane."

Once they reached the front of the room, Jane stood beside Frankie and Korsak, whilst Maura stood beside Angela. They all turned with the rest of the congregation to watch as Nina and her father walked down the aisle.

x

"People keep asking me why Frankie asked me to be his best man," Jane said, holding a glass of champagne in one hand and a couple of note cards in the other. "For one I'm definitely not a man, and for two, we've not always been that close. He's my kid brother and he drives me insane. But he's my kid brother, and I love him."

"I love you too, Janie," Frankie said, nodding to her from his spot down the table.

She stared around the room, taking in the faces staring back at her, until her eyes landed on Maura on the other side of the happy couple. She felt a lump in the back of her throat. She swallowed a mouthful of champagne and continued. "Love is special. It doesn't come along every day, so when you meet someone that means everything to you, you've gotta embrace it."

Glancing back down to Frankie and Nina, Jane smiled. "I think anyone who's watched Frankie and Nina together will know that they're an amazing couple. They're a fantastic team. If they were the Red Sox they'd be doing a lot better this season than they actually are."

The room erupted into laughter. Jane stood a little taller and returned her gaze back to Maura. She looked at her note card for prompting, then shook her head and dropped them back on the table. The edge damp with perspiration. Her eyes fixed on Maura's. "I always thought love was a myth, just something they made up for children's stories. It's only in the last few years that I've realised love isn't as simple as the stories make out. You don't really know where you'll find that special someone. It might be unexpected, it might scare the hell out of you, and it might be really difficult to tell them how you feel. What if they reject you? What if you kiss them and they freak out like Nina did the first time Frankie kissed her? But what if telling them how you feel is all you need to be the happiest you've ever been?"

She lifted the glass up in front of her, turned to look around the room then back down at Frankie and Nina. "You two took the risk, and it paid off. So, I want you all to join me in raising a class to Mr and Ms Holiday-Rizzoli."

The room erupted, glasses raised, Jane's words repeated. Her eyes drifted back to Maura, the crease between her eyebrows creased as she followed the group celebration. Jane's lips curved at the sides, her heart thumped in her chest. She sat down as Frankie and Nina stood up, blocking her view.

x

"So, thank you everyone for coming and making our special day even more special." Frankie placed his champagne on the table. "Now we've done with the toast and speeches, we'd like you to join us in our first dance."

He held out a hand and Nina took it. Together they walked across the room towards the dance floor. Jane watched them move together, the song played out over the room, as fast paced as the movement of Frankie and Nina's hips. They span and twirled around the room. After a few minutes, and the end of the song, everyone clapped and cheered. Another song followed, Jane sat back in her chair and sipped on a fresh glass of champagne. Couples got up, people swirled together.

The lights dimmed part way through the second song, people continued to dance right through the upbeat tracks. When a slower song came on, Nina slipped close to Frankie and rested her head against his shoulder, moving with the melodic tune.

"May I have this dance?"

Jane turned at the sound of Maura's voice beside her. A slight crease settled between her eyebrows as she stared down at her. They both knew Jane didn't like to dance, least not the slow paced couple songs that provoked kisses and embraces.

"Okay," she whispered, standing up and following Maura across the dance floor.

She held a hand out and gripped her fingers, the sweat coating her palm made it a little harder to grip Maura's hand. Maura stepped closer, and rested a hand on Jane's hip.

"You look nervous," Maura said.

"I'm fine," Jane replied.

She glanced away and focused on the movement. Maura's face was so close she could feel her breath on the side of her face, could feel the electricity moving between their fingers. Jane watched Frankie and Nina, laughing in the distance.

"Why did you look at me when you made your speech?" Maura asked.

"I didn't."

"No." Maura placed a couple of fingers on her cheek and she turned her face, their eyes fixed on each other. Jane swallowed, a lump settled in her throat. "You looked at Frankie and Nina, then me, then Frankie and Nina, then me...but you looked at me when you were talking about love, and you looked at the happy couple when you talked specifically about them."

"What are you saying?"

"What are you saying?"

Stepping back, Jane lowered her gaze. Her body was alive with emotion, her fingers and toes itched for something more than retreating back into herself. When Maura gripped her hand and lifted it up between them, Jane lifted her eyes back up to Maura's. She felt like she was going to be sick. Her stomach twisted and turned.

"You could have just told me."

She shrugged, pushing the nausea down. "Told you what?"

Maura glared at her, her expression softened quickly. "Jane."

Maura reached out and pushed her hair back behind her ear, their eyes fixed together again. Jane couldn't look away, but she couldn't continue to stare at Maura like that. Not there, not surrounded by a crowd of family and friends. She swallowed, wincing at the pain in her throat.

"If it helps," Maura said, trailing a couple of fingers across the side of her cheek. Jane's eyebrows pulled together. Maura moved closer, so close that Jane could see her lips right there in front of her. She licked her lips, her eyes moved between Maura's pupils and her lips. Right there in front of her, too close. She watched them move slowly, heard her speak. "I understand exactly what you were saying, it's how I feel too."

"Come with me," Jane said, grasping at her hand and tugging her out of the room. She pushed open the door into the corridor, not stopping until they hit the garden outside. Under the light of the moon, their fingers still pressed together between them, Jane leaned in close, her eyes never lowered from Maura's.

Maura stared back. "What are we doing?"

"What do you think?" She wrapped her arms around her, pulling her into her arms, as her lips landed on Maura's. It took a moment for her to respond, what felt like the longest moment of Jane's life. The hints suggested Maura felt it too, but until her mouth responded to her touch, she doubted the reality of their moment.

x

The comfort of the bed was overshadowed by the nervous energy emanating from the act of lying beside Maura. After the initial kiss, they'd gone back to her room and lay on the bed, side by side, and there they lay in silence. Jane cleared her throat, but the words disappeared into the ether.

"Did you have something to say?" Maura asked.

"Nah," Jane replied.

Maura rolled onto her side. "Are you sure? You haven't said a lot since we kissed."

"I dunno what to say." Jane turned and faced her. "I dunno what happens next."

"What would you like to happen next?"

"I wanna kiss you," Jane said, her breathing labored as she considered the feel of Maura's tongue dancing with her own. The taste of her lips lingered on the edge of her mouth, the touch of her hands on her cheeks like ghosts.

"What happens after you kiss me?"

"What do you think should happen after I kiss you?"

Maura cleared her throat. "I think we should go back to the party and celebrate Nina and Frankie's nuptials."

"Is that it?"

Maura laughed. "Would you rather I jump on you naked?"

Jane let out a low, guttural groan and rolled onto her front, her eyes trailed across to Maura's face. "Yes."

"We disappeared early," Maura said. "Perhaps if we show our faces a little longer, then we can make our excuses and…do whatever you want to do."

"Isn't it a bit soon?"

Maura raised an eyebrow. "That depends on the time frame you're considering."

"We kissed for the first time half an hour ago, we're about to kiss for the second time. I've never had sex with someone so quickly."

"Never?"

"Nah." Jane shrugged. "Have you?"

"When I needed to."

"Needed to?"

"Immunoglobulin A, Jane."

"Immuno-what?"

Maura sighed. "We have discussed this, albeit many years ago."

"The sex thing that makes you happy?"

"It boosts your immune system," Maura said. "How long have you felt this way?"

"Does it matter?"

"Perhaps."

"Since the day I met you."

"You didn't know me the day you met me."

"Okay, a few months later. But it all started then."

"So, it's not quick," Maura said, edging a little closer, until their noses almost touched. She raised a hand to Jane's cheek. The feel of Maura's fingers trailing across Jane's skin sent a shiver down her spine. "Some people would say it's really, really slow. You've waited for years, after all."

"I like those people," Jane whispered, her breath hitched in her throat. She closed the space between them, breathed in the scent of Maura's skin as she captured her lips again, tugging and fighting to get closer, their fingers trailed across skin, their mouths merged. Eventually Jane pulled away once more. "Why didn't we do this sooner?"

Maura smiled, her fingers circled Jane's cheeks. Their legs tangled up together, Jane trailed her leg up and down Maura's bare thigh. "I wasn't aware you wanted to."

"Oh God," Jane muttered, leaning back in closer, the tingling sensation of Maura's touch reached down through her body. "How long have you wanted to?"

"Whilst I don't know the exact date you realised how you felt, I would estimate as long as you."

"Why didn't you tell me? You know I'm bad at this."

"I didn't think you felt the same way," Maura said. "You know I'm not very good at picking up on social cues, and romantically charged social cues are no different. I assumed I was the only one who felt something."

"Doctor Isles doesn't make assumptions, she bases everything on fact and reasoning."

"Reasoning suggests I should not make assumptions, but the way human beings behave I have learnt to believe a negative unless I gain confirmation of a positive."

"You are so sexy when you talk like that."

"Is that why you always tease me?"

Jane nodded as she closed the gap again, her fingers tangled up in Maura's hair, pulling her in close as they continued to kiss. She rolled over on top of Maura, whose bare leg slipped between Jane's. She moaned into the embrace.

"If you were a man," Maura said. "I'd be able to feel what that moan means."

"If I was a man, I'd have jumped you already," Jane said, peppering kisses across her face, along her chin and down to her shoulder. She pulled away, untangling herself from Maura. "Let's go back to the party before I don't want to leave this room."

"Are you sure?"

"God, no," she said, interlinking her fingers with Maura's. "All I can think about is you, naked, on this bed. But let's go back to the party. The sooner we go, the sooner we can come back, and I can see what's underneath your dress."

"You've seen what's underneath my dress before," Maura said.

"Not like this," she said, leaning in close, desperate to kiss her again. She stopped, her lips millimeters from Maura's. She glanced up into her eyes, the curve of her lips spread across her face. Lifting her lips up to Maura's nose, she kissed it lightly, then pulled away. Her whole body groaned as she walked away from the bed.

It was going to be a long evening.