Author Note: Thank you to tkent for the great prompt! It seems this idea took me further away from the original prompt than I could have imagined and I have about 9000 words for you. So, I've split it into three because, from my own experience as a reader, I know reading a lot on a computer screen in one go can be tiring. I'll put the rest up over the next couple of days. I am still working on my others, I just wanted to finally get this one finished as I've been dipping in and out of it for a little while!

"Whatever you do, don't talk about work," Maura said as she descended the staircase. Jane opened her mouth to respond, but the ankle length dress hung loosely around Maura's heeled feet, and hugged her right on up to the bosom.

She couldn't breathe. She held out a hand to Maura and let out her breath. "You look…stunning."

"I was about to say the same," Maura said, her fingers rested on Jane's palm.

"This old thang," Jane laughed, her eyelids fluttered coyly.

She didn't dress up, as Maura knew all too well. She hated the formality of evening gowns, and underwear that pinched her skin. Not to mention the shoes that nipped her toes, and crushed them at the front.

She placed a chaste kiss against the corner of Maura's mouth. "I mean it. I'm gonna be the luckiest girl in the room tonight."

"Just, please," Maura repeated. "Don't talk about work."

"I'll try." Jane let go of Maura's hand as she reached the bottom step. "But it's not my fault Internal Affairs are fussing around. I did nothing wrong."

"You might have done nothing wrong, but the Sinclair Foundation Awards are a prestigious event for local causes. They do not look highly upon police corruption."

"I'm not corrupt!"

"I know that." Maura reached up to the shoulders of Jane's dress and fiddled with a fold in the material. Jane stood tall; being with Maura, attending her most important annual events, made her feel like it mattered so much more to make an effort. She trailed her fingers down Jane's arm, leaving a shiver travelling through her body. "It's not your fault what's happening at work. When powerful people are accused, it leads to them utilising their contacts to secure a release. We both know how it works. Tonight, I need you to not mention it."

"I won't." Jane grabbed her purse from the bench and slipped her cell phone into the pocket. "But wha'do I do if someone asks me about it?"

"Refrain from entertaining them."

"Which means?"

"Divert their attention to something else."

"Divert attention, gotcha," Jane said, hiking up the side of her own long skirted dress and heading for the door. She pulled her hand back from the handle, tucked her pursed hand around Maura's back and crashed their lips together. Maura responded, her mouth merged with Jane's. When she stepped back, Jane gasped for breath. "Since you said we can't do that, either, I thought I'd get it in now, while it's still okay."

Pursing her lips, a smile crept across Maura's face. She cupped Jane's cheek, brushing her thumb across her face. "Later tonight, I hope you'll join me in compensating for such a lack of intimacy."

Jane raised an eyebrow. "You mean I get laid?"

"You get laid."

Purring, Jane leaned in close. "Say that again."

"You get laid?"

"Yeah, it's sexy coming from you."

"Why?"

"Because you're so proper," Jane said, brushing her lips briefly against Maura's. "I'd rather you said you'll fu…"

"No swearing, Detective Rizzoli," Maura said, pressing a finger to her lips.

Jane grimaced. She loved saying it aloud, if only to remind herself that she was blessed. Six months in and she still couldn't quite grasp the words to explain just what it meant to share her life, and her bed, with the hottest doctor in town.

"Later," she whispered, kissing Maura's finger and tugging open the door.

x

Jane handed the server her empty glass and took a fresh one from his tray. She swallowed another mouthful. It was good champagne. But mostly, her nerves were affecting her ability to think clearly. She lingered by Maura's side. The room was full of men in penguin suits and women dressed to the nines in the latest couture and fancy jewellery that surpassed Jane's mortgage in value.

"Slow down," Maura whispered, passing behind her, her arm draped across her back as she moved to her other side.

Jane cleared her throat and remained in the same spot. "You might have been better asking Frankie, or Kent."

"Neither Frankie, nor Kent, are my girlfriend." Maura took the glass out of her hand before she could take another sip. Jane opened her mouth to complain, but Maura interjected. "Besides, you've been to functions before."

"Not like this. Not as your girlfriend."

"I don't have to introduce you as such," Maura said, placing the glass on a server's tray as they walked past. Jane moved to grab another one but Maura batted her hand away. She grimaced. "I'm perfectly happy to introduce you as my friend and work colleague, if you'd prefer."

"I don't prefer." Jane took a cursory glance around the crowd. She didn't know anybody. "It's just…it's different."

"I don't see how."

"I feel like people are staring."

"People are staring," Maura said. "But not because of you. They're staring because the grapevine picked up the news about my relationship status. Given that there has always been an assumption that I am heterosexual, people are curious as to whether you are, in fact, my girlfriend."

"So, you've gotta introduce me that way," Jane said.

"No, I don't."

An older couple approached them. The man kissed Maura on the cheek, his hand trailed slowly across her back, followed by the woman. Jane searched the room for a fresh glass of champagne.

"Mr and Mrs Hopkins, this is Jane Rizzoli."

"Good evening, Ms Rizzoli," Mr Hopkins said. He held out a hand. Jane took it, taken aback when he planted a peck on her cheek.

"Jane is my," Maura began, her eyes trained on Jane's.

"Girlfriend," Jane said, ignoring the lack of comfort she felt at her admission.

Being with Maura was easy, when nobody was watching. In a room full of people, she didn't know how to feel. Especially when she knew none of them. Had they had the same conversation at a BPD function, she might have felt differently. Then again, she'd seen the way male cops treated female cops in relationships with other women. The less said about it the better, as far as she was concerned.

"The rumours were true," Mrs Hopkins said, raising her eyebrows at Jane.

Maura smiled politely. "Yes, I am in a relationship with Jane. We're very happy together."

"It's wonderful to see you smile, dear," Mrs Hopkins said.

"She smiles all the time, Marjorie."

"Not like that she doesn't."

"If you'll excuse us," Maura said, giving Marjorie's shoulder a squeeze. "I have a few people I'd like to introduce my girlfriend to."

"Dance with me later, won't you?" Mr Hopkins asked. Maura nodded, looped her arm through Jane's and they walked away.

"How do you feel?" Maura asked, stopping beside the bar.

"Like I'm gonna puke." Maura narrowed her eyes. "Maybe not that bad, but I don't think I'm cut out for this kind of place. Look at 'em all, Maur, they're stunning and I'm…me."

Maura leaned in close, her lips millimetres from Jane's ear. She rested her palm against her spine, sending a shock of electricity through Jane's body. "You are the most beautiful person in this room tonight, you could be wearing your sweats and I'd still want to fu…"

"Doctor Maura Isles!" a man said, his booming voice cut through her words. Jane turned and leaned on the bar, her knees weakened by Maura's presence and her words. She ignored them as he scooped Maura into his arms, watching through a small mirror on the other side of the bar. "You owe me five minutes of your time."

"Can it wait? My girlfriend and I were about to order drinks."

Jane turned and waved, her shoulders hunched. She stepped as close to Maura as she could get, partly hidden by her body.

"I'd heard you were bringing a…woman tonight," he said.

"Jane, this is Seran Ross, he's chair of the Boston Art Foundation board and a dear friend."

"You're the lucky lady." He smirked, his eyes lingered a moment too long on Jane's chest. She glanced down, then back up, catching him turn his attention away. "Maura, please, five minutes."

"Okay." She moved her hand along Jane's back. "I have something to discuss with Seran, keep yourself occupied for five minutes and then we can take our seats at the table."

"But," Jane began, but Maura had already stepped away.

The crowd swallowed them whole leaving Jane alone. She leaned back against the bar and searched for Maura, to no avail. She'd vanished. She twisted 'round and waited for a server to appear. When no one came, she slipped behind the bar and crouched down in search of something decent to drink.

"Martini. Dry," someone shouted over her head.

Jane stood up, a bottle of Scotch and Vodka in her arms. "Sorry, I'm not a server. I was just…looking for beer."

The man rolled his eyes. "Beer?"

"Yeah, you know, the hoppy stuff, tastes like crap if it's been stored wrong." Jane shrugged, placing two Scotch glasses on the bar top. "I got Scotch or Vodka. I guess I could try to make a Vodka Martini, but I hate vermouth, so I never make it right."

Without so much as a word, he disappeared off in the other direction. Jane rolled her eyes and poured herself a Scotch. She dropped a couple of ice cubes into the glass and took a sip. She spat it back into the glass. As revolting as ever. She crouched down in search of something to add to the Vodka.

"Are you here with Doctor Isles?"

Jane stood up at the sound of the man's voice. She forged a smile and held out her hand. "Yeah. I'm Jane."

He stared down at her fingers, coated in Scotch. She grabbed a napkin and wiped it off, but he seemed uninterested in shaking it.

"I'd like to speak with you," he said, walking away.

She stared at his back, unsure of what to do. She glanced around the room in search of Maura, in search of an answer to the questions she had running through her mind.

"Follow me," he said, loudly enough for her to hear.

Placing the bottles back behind the bar, Jane followed the man out into the hallway. She glanced back at the open doorway, desperate for Maura to return from wherever it was she'd gone and save her from whatever God-awful conversation she was about to have with the man standing in front of her.

"You're the detective, aren't you?" he asked, running a hand through his light brown hair and staring into her eyes.

Jane shrugged. "Yeah. That's me."

"People are saying you're her girlfriend?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Wha'do ya mean why?"

"Why are you two together?" Narrowing her eyes, Jane opened her mouth but the words escaped her. "You make a considerable amount of money less than her each year, isn't that right?"

"I…guess."

"And you walk around in sweat pants like they're meant for anything other than the trash."

"How do you…"

He continued talking, ignoring her question. "Why are you together when you're such different people?"

"Opposites attract," Jane said, grinning. Her smile quickly faltered as he stared back at her. "I love her."

"Do you know Frederick Stephenson?"

A lump formed in the back of Jane's throat. She didn't know what to say. Maura had given her strict instruction not to discuss work. "Do you know Donald Duck?"

Folding his arms across his chest, he grunted. "Is that supposed to be some sort of joke?"

"Yeah." Jane cleared her throat, but it didn't much help strengthen her resolve. "Yes, I know Frederick Stephenson."

"Maura may be able to turn a blind eye to what her little Revere girlfriend does." He stepped closer, filling all space between them. Jane stood a little taller, her eyes fixed on his. "But her people know better. What works against one, works against all. We do not tolerate corrupt police personnel at our functions."

"You probably don't get police personnel at your functions," Jane said, rolling her eyes.

"I beg your pardon."

She scoffed. "I may be from Revere, but that don't make me stupid. So, I wasn't born on the right side of Boston, makes no difference to Maura."

"Well, it should." He edged closer, his tobacco scented breath lingered in the air, brushing against Jane's ear. "Frederick Stephenson is a good man; you'd do well to remember that."

Ignoring all advice to not talk about it, Jane turned to face him. "You think I pay any attention to threats?"

"I don't make threats, Detective."

"No, of course not."

"You and Doctor Isles are from different worlds. You do not belong here and you do not belong in Doctor Isles' bed."

"Too bad it's not your choice, ain't it?" Jane asked, smirking.

He stepped closer still, forcing Jane to step backward. Her back collided with the wall and for the first time since he'd invited her to talk, she felt fearful. His arms held her in place. "You'll never be good enough for her. Deep down she knows that and it's only a matter of time before she quits playing games and finds a man who understands her."

"You homophobic jerk," Jane shouted.

Placing his hand over Jane's mouth, she sunk back against the wall. Her heart raced, her eyes darted back and forth. Trapped against the wall, Jane slouched down as his fingers travelled up the side of her dress and his lips pressed against the corner of her mouth. She let out a moan, more shock than any sense of enjoyment. He laughed, the sound increased in volume against her ear. "We all know it, Detective Jane Rizzoli. Even if you wanna think it'll all work out, it won't. Save her the heartache. You and her are not meant to be."

x

The dress dropped around her ankles. Jane stepped out of it, unhooked her bra and panties and slipped on a BPD t-shirt and sweatpants. She felt better having changed, but a layer of grime still coated her skin where the man had kissed her, whether imagined or otherwise. She threw herself onto the couch, flicked on the television and cracked open a beer. She didn't even want to go to the stupid function in the first place. The Red Sox were playing the Yankees and there was nothing Jane hated more than missing that; except maybe rape, and murder; and hurting Maura.

She shut off the television and leaned back against the pillows. Her phone buzzed repeatedly on the table. Ignoring it wouldn't make the problem go away, but it made her feel a little saner.

She sipped her beer. The distant sound of her neighbours' music distracted her. Jane closed her eyes and listened to the melody. If she didn't know any better, she'd have thought it was Maura listening to music in her office at work.

Rubbing fresh tears from her eyes, Jane cursed loudly, shouting out word after word until her throat ached. Why did she let him get into her head? After everything, her own self-doubt over whether she was good enough for Maura. It was like he knew which buttons to push and he held them down until she broke.

Maura was at the awards alone. She'd brought a date, she'd introduced her to people who meant something to her, and this was how Jane repaid her, by leaving? She knew, she understood the rules. You were supposed to turn up with somebody, even if that somebody was the cab driver.

A loud knock pulled Jane from a nap. She opened her eyes and squinted, attempting to readjust to the lamp light. The knock turned into a bang. She sped across the room to open the door.

"I'm sorry," she said, when Maura pushed past her and into the apartment.

"Have you been here the entire time?"

"Yeah." There was no point in lying now. "So?"

"So?" Maura's voice grew louder, her eyes bugged, glistening. Jane's heart ached. "You agreed to come with me to an important function in my social calendar, then before it even began you disappeared without a word, and I find you at your apartment. Why?"

"I wasn't feeling it," Jane said, shrugging.

"You weren't feeling it," Maura repeated. She narrowed her eyes. "You came with me. I gave you the opportunity to say no weeks ago. You got dressed up, which I know you dislike doing, and you came all that way. Then you left."

"Stop telling me what I did," Jane said. "I know what I did."

"Really? Would you care to explain it to me?"

"I came with you, then I left."

Maura stared at her, the tears on the surface of her eyeballs formed and skirted down the edge of her nose. "You embarrassed me in front of every single person I know."

"Not every person."

"I told you the pressure there is at these functions." She wiped her face. "You agreed to be my date. We agreed I would introduce you to people in my social circle."

"But I'm not in your social circle," Jane said, reaching for her half empty beer.

"That's why I needed to introduce you."

"So that they can turn their noses up at me and treat me like some underling?"

"Pardon?"

"I didn't embarrass you, Maura," Jane said, swallowing the last remnants of beer. "I left. If you felt embarrassed, that's on you."

"You clearly don't understand how these events work." Maura shook her head, her eyes wide. "The Sinclair Foundation Awards are an important part of my calendar. You know that."

Jane rolled her eyes and headed to the kitchen for a fresh bottle of beer. "I also know that most of the people in that room tonight don't give a crap about you."

"Don't you dare try to tell me that they do not care," Maura shouted, gliding across the room like she was on a ballroom floor. "You are the person who left me, who abandoned me without even saying goodbye. I was worried sick. I missed half the awards being presented trying to track you down and I left early."

She cracked a bottle open on the edge of the counter and shrugged. "It's not a big deal."

"It is to me."

"We really are from different worlds, aren't we?" Jane asked, stepping back.

Maura frowned. "We're both from Earth."

"Not that," Jane scoffed. "Social circles, social bullshit. You and me, we're not from the same place."

She didn't dare look her in the eye, for fear of how much it would hurt to see her cry. Jane focused on the beer in her mouth. She swilled it around and swallowed.

"Just go home, Maura. I embarrassed you in front of your friends tonight and, you know what, I don't care. They're nasty people."

The break in Maura's voice crushed Jane's heart. She spun the bottle around on the counter, watching the label blur as Maura spoke. "Those people have done more for society than you could even begin to imagine."

"By throwing money around at fancy parties?" Swallowing another mouthful, she felt dutch courage take over. "Per-lease."

Gritting her teeth, Maura's voice came out harsher than previously. "Is that supposed to be a personal insult to me?"

"No, Maura." She wrapped her hands against the counter and finally looked her in the eye. It took everything to push the tears aside before they could fall. "You're not like them."

"I am exactly like them," Maura said.

"You're not."

Maura lowered her head, fresh tears slipped off the end of her nose. "I thought we could have a nice night out, the two of us. I wanted to show you off, and you ruined my evening. I am furious with you right now."

"Then go home, Maura, nobody's keeping you here. Go back to your stupid party and your nasty friends."

"Are you trying to ruin our relationship?"

"I think it's already ruined," Jane said, sitting back down and turning on the television.

"Jane, please," Maura begged, her voice broke again as she stepped closer.

"Close the door on your way out," Jane said, waving a hand and changing the channel.

"Fine." Maura turned tail and fled from the apartment.