Booth drummed happily on the steering wheel as Christmas music played on the radio.
His Christmas spirit had returned. Standing in the snow with his son, watching Bones' face light up at the sight of the Christmas tree was the exact kind of magic he had been telling his partner about, the kind that made this time of year so special. His faith in the world had been renewed and nothing could dampen his spirits. Not the cost of last minute plane tickets to Vermont to return Parker to his ex and not that fact that his partner said that kissing him was like kissing her brother.

Okay, well that second thing was a bit of a bummer, but nothing he couldn't handle. To him, it had been a good kiss. A really good kiss, one that had thrown his world a bit off kilter. However, Bones' reaction made it clear that any spark he felt was one-sided.

So that was that. Their relationship was still solid as their casework showed. In a few days, he would forget all about it and things would go back to normal.

Still singing along with the radio, he pulled into a parking space by the diner, stopping to get some dinner. Entering the restaurant, he was pleasantly surprised to see a familiar head bent over his usual table. He slid into the booth as his partner looked up.

"Bones, what are you doing here? I thought you were headed to Peru?"

"It was a hassle to change my flight….and I thought maybe I should take some time off." He smiled at her; maybe he and Angela had finally gotten through her thick skull. He grabbed an extra fork and snagged a piece of her pie. "Hey! I was eating that!"

"Yeah, it's delicious." He ordered a cup of coffee and took another piece of her pie. She nudged the plate towards him, condoning his theft. Despite the bit of awkwardness between them after their mistletoe kiss, this was their natural habitat and they fell easily back into old patterns.

"How was Christmas with Parker?"

"Wonderful, thanks. Christmas magic," he said, winking at her.

"Speaking of Christmas magic, thank you so much for the Christmas tree. The girls loved it." She focused on her step-nieces' gratitude instead of her own because it was all wrapped up in the surge of emotion she felt when she looked out the trailer window and saw Booth. The moment had been so wonderful, so truly magical, that it was overwhelming to her rational mind.

"I'm glad. Parker and I had fun doing it."

"Oh, and I have your present at the office."

"Ooh, present! Let's go over after we finish the pie!" Having spent Christmas with his son, he felt like a child a little bit himself. Brennan laughed at her partner and agreed. They finished the pie and coffee and went outside.

It was snowing again, little white swirley flakes which weren't really sticking to the ground but still made a lovely sight. As they walked, making small talk about Parker's Christmas presents, Brennan scooped up little pieces of the older snow, surreptitiously forming a snowball in her glove. She slowed her pace, dropping back in order to whip the snowball at her partner.

"Hey!" Booth cried out when the ball of ice smacked him between the shoulder blades. "Not nice, Bones!" He scooped up some snow and tossed it back at her, but she avoided it by ducking behind a car before sprinting the short distance to the Jeffersonian. Booth skidded on the ice behind her, so when he finally caught up she was in the lobby of the lab, safe from any potential snow attacks.

"Nice, Bones. Attacking your partner at Christmas."

"Christmas was yesterday," she retorted.

"It's still Christmas time until I get my gift!" he argued back.

"Fine!" She rolled her eyes and walked over to her desk, picking up a red envelope and handing it to her partner.

"Merry Christmas, Booth." Trying his damnedest to ignore the way she bit her lower lip as she waited for his response, he ripped into the envelope. Inside the card were 2 VIP tickets to a Capitals v. Flyers game. "I thought you could go with Parker."

"Thanks, Bones! These are great. Parker will love it." He leaned in and gave her a hug. "I love them. Thank you."

What was meant to be a quick, appreciative guy hug promptly turned into something other when he realized her soft body was pressed against his in almost the same spot where she had kissed him a short time ago. Suddenly, his mouth went dry. His tongue darted out to wet his lips as he considered what it would be like to kiss her again, to show her that kissing him could be a lot different to kissing her brother.

Not always the most sensitive to emotional climates, even Brennan could sense the change in Booth's mood. The tension between them, which had been nonexistent just moments before, had ratcheted up dramatically. He let one hand drift lower on her back, not letting her back away, while the fingers of the other skimmed her jaw line, tilting her face up to his. "Booth, what are you doing?" she whispered, her voice catching in her throat.

"I'm going to kiss you," he whispered back.

"But I took the mistletoe down," she protested weakly.

"I know." Then, his lips were on hers, soft but demanding. His fingertips stroked over her cheek, encouraging her to respond, as he prayed silently that she wasn't about to kick his ass into next Tuesday. His fear was relieved when her lips parted slightly beneath his. He took advantage, gliding his tongue over her lower lip, tempting hers to come out and play.

Once again, Brennan's hands slid to the lapels of his coat, pulling herself up to him, keeping his mouth firmly on hers. He leaned further into her, sending her slightly off balance as she was up on her toes. Quickly steadied by Booth's strong arms as she stumbled back a bit, he guided her back to lean against her desk.

Their lips parted for a moment, giving them both a chance to suck in air before they crashed together again. Mistletoe, steamboats, professionalism, lines not to be crossed: all was forgotten except for the feel of lips against lips. The desk providing support behind her, Booth pressed into his partner, his tongue sliding wetly along hers. She was soft and pliant against him and he could feel tingles up and down his spine. There was no way she wasn't feeling this too.

A loud crash broke the two of them apart and their eyes shot guiltily over to the night security guard. He had stumbled over some lab equipment in his haste to avoid interrupting the pair. Noticing that he had been spotted, he rushed to explain his presence.

"Dr. Brennan, I'm so sorry….I saw the light….I thought you were on vacation…I didn't mean to…"

"It's all right, George. We weren't…." Her face was bright red and Booth was blushing too.

"I'll go…I'm sorry." The security guard backed away quickly leaving the partners in awkward silence.

"It's getting late. We should go." Brennan said softly.