A/N: Another submission for the Booth Express Jan/Feb challenge. Sorry about some of the weirdness…blame it on willgirl, who made the guidelines for the challenge. Speaking of willgirl, I want to give her a shout-out for some awesome feedback and a bit of research help too. Thank you, sweetie! And some of the credit for this fic goes to my friend, jerseybones, for being a truly amazing sounding board. Love ya, honey! And thanks goes to my friend, luli, who gave me the idea for the final tweak for the story. This is a songfic, by the way, using the Bryan Adams song "Everything I Do", one of the most romantic songs I've ever heard.

Lonely Hearts

Brennan was examining some particularly gruesome remains when her cell phone rang. It was nearly six in the evening on Valentines Day and everyone else had already taken off, headed for romantic dinners and some quality time with their significant others.

"Bones, are you still at the lab? Up to your elbows in some festering corpse? Or examining some thousand year old bones?" Booth asked without so much as a 'hi'.

Brennan rolled her eyes and picked up a pair of forceps to pick some fibers out of one of the victim's apparent wounds. "I've started on that John Doe you brought me this afternoon, Booth. What else would I be doing?" She picked up an evidence bag and put the fibers in it.

"Well, it is Valentine's Day and I thought maybe you'd be getting ready for a date," he said, privately happy she wasn't.

"No, I'm not currently dating anyone," she replied as she bent close to the remains again.

Brief pause while he controlled the urge to shout 'yes!'. "Yeah, well, nobody should be alone on Valentines Day."

She frowned as she turned to make a brief notation in the file on the tray next to her. "Why?" she asked absently as it occurred to her that the victim may not have been murdered at all. Maybe he died as a result of contracting some disease, she thought, and made another note to have Cam run tests on the remaining tissue for any possible clues.

Another pause. "Uh, well…that's just…sad," he said finally, trying to keep the smile out of his voice.

"It's just another day, Booth. At one time it had a deeper meaning, but commercialization has distorted it. Now it's just another so-called holiday designed to line the pockets of the greeting card companies, jewelers and florists," she said, still distracted. She picked up a probe and used it to push aside a piece of the victim's clothing, exposing another apparent wound. "Why are you so worried about me? I thought you had plans with Rhonda," she said, leaning in to look closer. The wound was too wide to be made by a conventional knife.

"Well…no, she uh…" Booth said and Brennan straightened a bit and her brows drew together as she sensed something in his voice, pulling her attention from her work.

"Did she break up with you?" she asked bluntly.

"Well, it was more of a mutual parting…" Booth said low, unwilling to divulge any details. He went on in a brighter voice, changing the subject. "Anyway, what do you say? We're both free and you know my hatred for being alone. Why don't you pick up some Wong Foo's and come over and we'll watch this movie I've been dying to get you to see. Just 'cuz everyone else is paired up, doesn't mean we have to be alone," he coaxed. She could almost hear the charm smile on his face and a smile tugged at her lips.

"Okay," she said as she realized her partner needed her, suddenly looking forward to the evening ahead. "I'll be there in an hour and a half. But no action flicks, okay? I'm not in the mood for explosions and car chases."

"Oh, don't worry, I know the perfect movie," he said mysteriously.

They settled in front of the T.V. with the take out cartons. Booth wouldn't tell her which movie he had put in, so it wasn't until the title flashed on the screen that she found out. She turned to look at him with her brows raised.

"Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves?" she asked doubtfully.

He wore a deceptively innocent look. "What? I thought you might enjoy the historical aspects, there are some awesome sword fights, and Alan Rickman is pretty funny." Her doubtful look didn't waver. "Come on, Marian really kicks ass in this version. I think you'll like it," he coaxed.

She sighed and relaxed, picking up the fried rice. "Fine, it's your T.V.," she said without enthusiasm. He pressed play and picked up the moo shoo pork, settling back to watch.

"Hold on," Brennan said at one point. Booth hit the pause button. "Robin Hood did not rob from the rich and give to the poor," she stated unequivocally.

Booth rolled his eyes. "Sure he did. Everyone knows that," Booth said patiently.

"No, the true Robin Hood was nothing more than a common highwayman, stealing for his own profit. That aspect of the myth was added later so the common people wouldn't hate him."

He almost groaned with frustration. It was going to take forever to get through the movie if she was going to argue every historical point. "Is there any subject you don't know everything about?" he asked rhetorically.

She pursed her lips at him and raised an eyebrow. "I don't have a T.V., so I have more time to read. My interests are quite varied."

"Tell you what, how about we watch the whole movie and then we can discuss all the historical inaccuracies," he said.

She sighed and shrugged. "Like I said, it's your T.V." She settled beside him, a cynical look on her face. He hit play again, secretly amused. He knew she was going to take issue with the historical aspects of the movie, but he had a surprise for her that he hoped would distract her from a lengthy and frustrating debate. Leaning back, he divided his attention between the screen and surreptitious looks at her face. Several times she opened her mouth to say something, only to close it after looking at him. He had to admire her self control. He didn't think she had it in her.

The final scene drew to a close and Booth leaned towards her. "Listen to the lyrics of this song," he said softly. "They express my feelings perfectly."

She darted a sharp glance at him, then looked away as the song played over the credits.

Look into my eyes

You will see what you mean to me

Search your heart, search your soul

And when you find me there, you'll search no more

Don't tell me it's not worth trying for

You can't tell me it's not worth dying for

You know its true, everything I do, I do it for you

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise and she turned her head to find him watching her intently. She swallowed hard and looked away again.

Look into your heart

You will find

There's nothing there to hide

Take me as I am

Take my life

I would give it all

I would sacrifice

Don't tell me it's not worth fighting for

I can't help it, there's nothing I want more

You know its true, everything I do, I do it for you

"Booth, I—" she began, looking at him again, but he held up a finger with a shushing sound. Her eyes locked with his and she found it impossible to look away as his gaze drew her in. A flush spread up to her face and she forgot to breathe at the look in his eyes. Tearing herself away, she stared blindly at the screen.

There's no love like your love

And no other could give more love

There's nowhere unless you're there

All the time, all the way

Suddenly Booth started singing along, his voice deep and stirring. He wanted her to look at him again, but maybe it was better if she didn't. He didn't know if he could finish if she did.

Oh, you can't tell me it's not worth fighting for

I can't help it, there's nothing I want more

Yeah, I would fight for you, I'd lie for you

Walk the wire for you, yeah I'd die for you

You know its true, everything I do, oh, I do it for you

Brennan sat there, apparently mesmerized by the credits rolling up the screen and Booth sat patiently waiting for her to finish processing the idea in that damned logical brain of hers. Finally, just as he was considering doing something to elicit some kind of reaction from her, she turned her head and gave him a stunned look.

"Are you sure?" she asked, her eyes searching his. He wasn't sure what she was looking for, but he hoped she found it because he couldn't help her since he was having a hard time forming a coherent thought as he looked into those beautiful eyes. Swallowing, he nodded slightly.

Evidently that was all she needed, because she leaned forward to kiss him softly. He jumped slightly, surprised at how quickly she had made that final leap. He closed his eyes to better enjoy the sensations, her soft lips and the unique scent of her. He kept them closed for a moment after she stopped kissing him until she spoke, breaking the spell.

"What now?" she asked with a frown as a dozen questions swirled through her mind.

"You think too much," Booth muttered before tilting his head to take her lips again. She opened to him, aching to taste him, her tongue sliding along his and causing him to groan. She pulled away again, struggling to gather her scattered thoughts, but Booth seemed to have run out of patience.

"Booth, please, how can we—" she began, only to have his lips cut her off again. He nibbled at her mouth, and all the questions evaporated as his arms came around her, pulling her across his lap and folding her close. She sighed as she was overwhelmed by the most amazing feeling of safety and comfort. He trailed kisses up her cheek to her ear and nuzzled her earlobe, his ragged breathing sending goose bumps chasing down her arms. Her eyes rolled back in her head as desire slammed through her and she slipped her arms up around his neck to bring him closer. She sought his mouth again, opening wider and offering more of herself, clutching at his shoulders as a tight knot of need began to build in her belly. She could feel his erection against her hip and that ratcheted her own desire up ten more notches.

Things were getting out of control, Booth thought. Her legs were moving restlessly and he could tell by the way she was moving against him that they needed to stop before they reached the point of no return. There was no doubt that they wanted each other badly, but he really wanted to take a step back. What he wanted from her wasn't going to start with a sudden roll between the sheets.

Loosening his arms, he lowered her to lie in the crook of his arm. She blinked up at him dazedly, her pupils wide and her face flushed, her lips swollen by his kisses. A smile kicked up a corner of his mouth at the frown between her brows.

"Are you okay?" he whispered.

"Yeah…why did you stop?" she asked, a little bewildered.

"I think we need a break," he said, then dropped a quick kiss on her lips.

She groaned with frustration. "Why?"

He sat up and shifted her to sit beside him. "How about another movie?" he asked, standing to go over to his DVD collection. She watched him, puzzled by his abrupt mood change. "Have you seen the new Bruce Willis movie?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder. Her look told him she either didn't know who Bruce Willis was, or she was still trying to adjust. Maybe a combination of both. He wisely chose to keep his amusement hidden.

"Do you have any documentaries?" she finally asked, apparently catching up.

Booth snorted. "Noooo," he replied. "How about 'Frequency'?" he ventured. "It's a very interesting take on time/space distortion."

Pushing her hair behind her ears, she folded a leg up under her. "I guess. If you're sure you don't have any documentaries."

Booth rolled his eyes and turned to put the disc in the player. "Tell you what, next time you can bring one of your documentaries over, okay?" He came to sit back down beside her, not quite as close as she wanted him to, and picked up the remote.

She sighed. "I don't have any DVDs, Booth." He darted a disbelieving look at her. "No T.V., no DVD player, remember?"

Shaking his head, he put down the remote as the movie started and reached to thread his fingers through hers. "That's why they have Blockbuster," he said.

"I don't have a membership," she argued.

"Get one," he said bossily. She opened her mouth to argue further and he cut her off. "Watch the movie, Bones." She did, but she made him regret his choice of movies as they argued far into the night. After all, time/space paradoxes have spurred many a debate. Not that they needed an excuse.