Disclaimer: I don't own them, I didn't create them, and I don't profit from the, but I most certainly enjoyed the lovely moment under the mistletoe.

Author's Note: This is a post-ep fic for "Santa in the Slush" and it's dedicated to Ashley and Mariel because they both rock and all of us should hope to find someone as wonderful as Booth someday (maybe even under the mistletoe for Christmas).

If she had been a fish, Angela Montenegro would have resembled a large mouthed bass as she stood there with her mouth gaping open at the sight that had just played out before her eyes like a silent movie. She had simply wanted to check with Bren on the tissue markers for their dead Santa Claus to ensure that she could go ahead and recreate a representation of the man's face with the Angelator, minus all of the Santa trappings, but as she approached the forensic anthropologist's office she had stopped dead in her tracks.

She blinked hard just to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

But clear as a summer day in Fiji she could see Bren pointing up at something that looked suspiciously like mistletoe; and not just a little sprig either; judging by the size of it, it could have been the entire plant. And if it wasn't strange enough that Bren would have mistletoe hanging up in her office at all, she was standing underneath it as if it was the most normal thing in the world while she talked to Booth and Caroline Julian, the US Attorney prosecuting her father's case. Somehow pointing at the giant hanging festive sprig seemed to be Caroline's cue to shove Booth right towards Bren, and Angela's eyes widened even further as she realized that neither one of them planned to step out from underneath the mistletoe.

If Angela suddenly had hopes that they would exchange more than a simple peck on the cheek her wildest imagination could not have foreseen the caliber of the actual event. What started off as a simple press of lips to acknowledge a holiday tradition very quickly went from a little spark to a fully engulfed bonfire of a kiss; and as Bren gripped Booth's lapels to pull him in even closer Angela's jaw dropped further and any squeal that might have wanted to escape at that moment was short circuited by the disbelief at what she was witnessing.

Apparently, Caroline Julian was shocked too even if it seemed that she had been the one to instigate it because shortly after the atomic kiss ended she wandered out of Bren's office shaking her head in disbelief and mumbling something about flotillas of steamboats under her breath.

Angela still hadn't found her voice by the time a very dazed looking Booth walked right on by her without saying a word, his fingers touching his lips as if he was still trying to verify what had just happened.

Angela finally shook herself out of her trance and marched right into Bren's office to get to the bottom of just how this Christmas miracle had happened, "You kissed Booth." She crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently as she stared down her friend and waited for her to say something.

Brennan glanced up and felt a sinking sensation deep in the pit of her stomach; she hadn't realized that any would have witnessed the kiss, least of all Angela and right now when she was still having difficulty remembering the names of the bones in her fingers she wasn't sure she should say anything; her mouth seemed to have a mind of its own, "There was mistletoe."

Angela raised her eyebrows skeptically, "Sweetie, that was no caught under the mistletoe kind of kiss," She studied her friend for any hint that she might finally admit what the whole rest of the world seemed to already know about her and Booth.

"No, we were underneath the mistletoe...it's a traditional holiday custom to kiss someone when you're caught under the mistletoe," Brennan hoped that Angela would just drop it; it was no big deal, surely people did this all the time during the holidays.

"Booth was pushed," Angela hadn't really intended to reveal that she'd seen the entire thing unfold, but then again, maybe if Bren was confronted with the facts she'd admit that she'd enjoyed it; it sure as hell looked as if she'd enjoyed it and quite frankly it looked like Booth did too.

"It was the only way Caroline would agree to arranging for a trailer for Dad and Russ to spend Christmas together," Brennan certainly hoped that she sounded far less flustered than she felt, she hadn't intended for the kiss to get quite as intense as it had, but then Booth had seemed just as eager as she had, maybe even more so and that thought threw her for a circle, or lap or whatever the hell the saying was.

"Bribes are good; wish I'd thought of that one, I could have had the two of you in a lip lock a long time ago," Angela had a delighted smirk on her face that was only tempered slightly by a hint of disappointment that Bren hadn't yet admitted that she'd wanted to kiss Booth anyway.

"Angela, Booth and I are just partners...kissing him was like kissing my brother," Brennan didn't really believe that at all; her lips were still tingling from kissing Booth and quite frankly, if she was being honest with herself, she wanted to do it again.

Angela scoffed, "Your brother, I don't think so. Bren, if you kissed your brother like you just kissed Booth you'd need therapy." That had most definitely not been a brotherly kiss at all and if Bren thought she was going to buy that line, she was sadly mistaken and in great need of a class in Sales 101.

"I'm in therapy, with Booth," Brennan really hated psychology, but at times Dr. Sweets actually made sense and it had helped their partnership even if it was an annoying intrusion on her schedule.

"Couples therapy, because you two act like you're a couple, without couple things like kissing and sex...except now you've kissed," Angela looked rather pleased with herself for putting that little argument together and hopefully Bren would get the hint that it would be ok if she and Booth just admitted it and then took it on to its natural conclusion.

"Partner therapy, to help our partnership...our professional partnership," Brennan knew that she had Booth had crossed some sort of line a long time ago because they spent almost as much time outside of work together as they did working in a professional capacity, but they still hadn't crossed that line.

Angela let out a soft laugh, "You just keep telling yourself that; you enjoyed kissing Booth," There was no denying that fact; she'd seen Caroline's face; hell, she'd seen Booth's face, and she thought she was a pretty damn good judge of a great kiss when she saw it herself.

"It was a pretty good kiss," The truth was, her head was still spinning a little from that kiss, Brennan glanced up at Angela again and put a determined expression on her face, "But we were under the mistletoe and I was doing it so my father could have a Christmas to remember."

Angela offered her a knowing smile, "Sweetie, trust me, you're going to have an opportunity to kiss Booth again, but next time, there won't be mistletoe or a US Attorney around to push you into doing what you've wanted to do for a long time. Just promise me, when that moment comes, don't try and rationalize it away. You and Booth are meant to be together." With that, Angela turned and walked away, she could ask her about the tissue markers later after her head had returned from orbiting Planet Booth.

As Brennan watched Angela walk away and her words sank in, she reached up and touched her lips, replaying the kiss with Booth over again in her mind. She let out a soft whisper that only she could hear with a little hope and a little fear all mixed together, "I hope you're right, Angela."

The End