I'm terrified of posting this story. Because 1) it's been so long since I wrote anything 2) writing season 1 Booth and Brennan is harder than I thought and 3) My Secret Santa is the AMAZING razztaztic, who not only wrote me the best SS story last year, but wrote plenty of other incredible ones before and after that and is one of my favorites writers here (seriously, if you didn't yet, go read her stories).
I know that there are some things she doesn't like on Bones (hello, Mama Booth) and there are some places I didn't want to go in this story, but this is a tag to "The Man in the Fairway", and no matter how much I tried not to go there, those characters wouldn't let me. (I sound crazy, right?)
MJ, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year! Thanks so much for making us laugh and cry with your great stories (and your tweets… especially the Bones Live tweets… they are the best! Hahaha).
Also, thanks to my friend Biba79 for organizing the Secret Santa and helping me whenever I went to her desperately asking "Do you think she'll hate this?".
Ok, this is the longest author's note ever, so I'll just close my eyes, hope for the best and click "publish".
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The bar was a little eccentric, but kind of cozy. As she looked around searching for him she saw a couple kissing in a nearby table and a group of young people probably celebrating the end of the week. She'd promised Jesse that she'd meet him here after deciding it would be a good thing to take her parent's files for Booth so he could take a look. Meeting Jesse made her think about all that happened again. It made her think that maybe, just maybe, she could find something. She'd been working with Booth for months now, she'd seen enough cases already to know that her partner was better than any other agent she'd met before. Definitely better than the cops who first handled the case. Maybe he could find something that no one did before. See something that no one else had caught before. Getting the files and taking them to him wasn't as hard as she thought it would be. Brennan did not like to talk about her parents, but somehow she knew that she could trust Booth. The way she felt so comfortable around him lately scared her a little.
"Hey." Jesse waved at her from a table near a window.
"Hi." She smiled and took off her jacket, hanging it on the chair in front of him and taking the seat.
"So, did you take the files to him?" He asked.
"Yes, he is going to take a look." She said, not wanting to go much further on the subject. As much as she felt a little connect to Jesse because of their similar situation about their parents, she did not feel comfortable enough to talk about it with him. She accepted his invitation for a drink because he seemed like a nice guy and he had looked so sad when she told him they confirmed the remains they found were not his father's… besides, he was only staying in town for another evening and seemed like he could enjoy some company for the night.
"That's good. I hope he'll find something everyone missed." Since they were on the subject of Special Agent Seeley Booth, Jesse thought it would be a good time to ask her about her relationship with her partner. "So, what is it about you and Agent Booth?"
"What do you mean?" She reached for the menu. "He's my partner. We work together on the cases the FBI needs assistance from the Jeffersonian."
"You're telling me that nothing has ever happened between the two of you?" He asked doubtfully.
"That's correct." She looked down and pretended to go over the drinks' names, never one to be good at lying. Her eyes came across a drink named Brave Bull, which had tequila among the ingredients. She almost laughed. Memories of tequila and rain and a kiss she tried so much to forget came to her. She pushed the thoughts away. It had been a mistake and they both seemed to silently agree it would be better to pretend it had never happened. "Booth is my partner, nothing else."
"He seemed pretty jealous the other day." Jesse took a sip of his drink.
"Jealous?" She raised one eyebrow. Why would he be jealous of her?
"Yes, I thought he'd punch me in the face just for looking at you." He smirked.
"You're really seeing things that don't exist." She laughed it off. "Booth was not jealous. We don't even like each other. We fight all the time and he irritates me on a regular basis."
"But still, your work with the FBI has been incredible ever since you two partnered up."
"We work well together. Despite his cockiness and big ego, Booth is an excellent agent." Brennan called the waitress and asked for a mojito. Then, her attention was back to Jesse again. "Do you really want to talk about Booth?" She shot him a bright smile, desperately not wanting to talk about her partner.
"No." Jesse smiled back. "I just don't want to get in the middle of anything."
Brennan snorted. "Don't worry, you're not."
…
Brennan was trying to work on her book when Angela entered her office the next morning. Her first book had been such a success that her publisher wanted to turn it into a series and she was supposed to send her editor the manuscript of the new one by the end of the month. Handling her job with ancient remains, her work with the FBI and writing the books sometimes drove her crazy, but she had to admit she loved being always busy.
"You look happy." Angela noticed. Her friend was a morning person and always the first one to arrive at the lab every morning, but something about her was different today.
"I am."
"Hot date last night?" Angela wiggled her eyebrows hoping for a juicy story.
"I went out last night. It was not a date, though." Brennan thought it was important to point out.
"Can you tell me with whom you went out last night then, in this not date that left you smiling at 9 in the morning?" Angela asked with a smirk. "Oh, wait. It wasn't Booth, was it? Oh my God, did you two finally sleep together?"
"No!" Brennan looked at her friend like a second head just came out of her shoulder. "Why does everyone think there's something between us?"
"I could tell you, Sweetie, but I doubt you'd listen." Angela sighed dramatically. "And well, he is single now."
"And that doesn't change anything. We work together, Angela. That's all." Brennan looked back at her computer, really not wanting to talk about Booth and the supposed "thing" that everyone seemed to think was there between them.
"Okay, party-pooper. So… who was the guy?" Angela sat down in the chair in front of her.
"It was Jesse Kane."
"The guy who thought our victim was his father?" She asked. "The one who tried to kiss you in this office?" Angela pointed to the floor with her index finger.
"Yes. And before you ask, he did not try to kiss me again last night."
"Now, that's a shame." Angela murmured.
Brennan looked at her confused.
"Jesse is very pleasant, not to mention very pleasing to look at." Brennan commented. They talked for almost two hours, and it had been a long time since she talked for so long with a man that wasn't her partner. All that happened with Michael a few months ago just increased her distrust in man. Jesse decided to stay in DC for a few more days and they agreed to meet again. "I've realized that we have a lot in common besides our parents disappearance. We like the same books, and we have very similar taste in music."
"That's good, sweetie. It's been a while since I saw you so happy after a night out with a guy. I'm happy for you."
"Thank you. We are going out tonight again. Jesse wants to take me to dinner in this restaurant he heard is incredible."
"Hmmmm, seems like it could get serious." Angela smirked.
"I doubt that very much, since he is leaving in a few days." Brennan said absently, her attention back to her book. "Not that I'm interested in getting in anything 'serious' anyway…"
…
"Hey, Angela, have you seen Bones?" Booth walked in the lab looking around for his partner, but she didn't seem to be at the platform.
"She's at her office. But if you want to catch her, you should run." Because she liked to stir a little fire, she added. "She's got a date tonight."
"Bones' got a date?" Booth asked, feeling suddenly annoyed. "With whom?"
"Jesse Kane." Angela tried not to smile as she noticed that he closed his hands into fists. This will be fun.
"That guy is still in DC?"
"Apparently, yes." Angela said. "And he's seems very interested in Brennan. It's their second date, even though Brennan will not admit the first one was a date."
"Bones went out with him?"
"Yes, yesterday." She shared the information. "She looked very happy about it this morning."
"Well, then I better run before she's out of here."
He walked pass Angela not bothering to say goodbye.
…
The curtains were closed and he decided not to knock, as the door wasn't completely closed. He entered her office quietly and Brennan didn't notice his present. She was sitting in her chair, staring at her monitor screen very focused while she tried to put on her earrings. He couldn't see her outfit very well, but he didn't need her to stand up to know the dress she was wearing showed way more skin than he was used to see from her.
"Hey, there, Bones." He greeted her, forcing a smile on his face.
"Booth!" She yelped and turned around startled. "What are you doing here?"
He was speechless for a moment. She was gorgeous, he knew that. But tonight… tonight she was simply stunning. Her auburn hair was shiny and flowing around her face in perfect curls. Her make up was carefully applied, the black shadow making her eyes stand out even more than usual and her lip gloss making her mouth shine.
So kissable.
"Booth?" She called him out of his reverie.
"I'm sorry." He shook his head a little bit, wanting the thoughts to go away, but it felt like lately that was all he could think about. His partner. Talking to her. Looking at her. Kissing her. "I started looking into your parents' file and I think I may have found something. But I need to ask you a few things before I dig up more."
"What? What is it?" She stood up and he realized her little black dress ended up right above her knee, showing a lot of her long legs.
She'll kill me.
"I can't say anything yet, I'm not even sure if it's really something and I don't want to give you any false hopes, about anything…"
"If you found anything about my parents, you have to tell me." She walked around the desk and stood in front of him, her high heels making her stare right into his eyes.
It's been thirteen years. Thirteen years of knowing absolutely nothing. She wanted to know, she had to know.
"It's nothing, really, just a few suspicions. I'll share everything with you as soon as I have anything, alright? I promise." He took a moment to eye her up and down. He gulped. "Besides, it looks like you're already busy tonight."
"As a matter of fact, yes, I have a date tonight. But if you found anything about my parent's disappearance, I'm sure he'll understand if I get there a little late."
"Jesse Kane." He said with a bit of snark.
"How do you know that?" She looked surprised.
"Really, Bones? You're going out with that preppy guy?"
She did not like his tone.
"He's not preppy, in fact, Jesse is-"
"Come on, Bones. You heard that woman. He even admitted being a jerk in college."
"People change, Booth."
"…Then, he made a living out of the disappearance of his father." He continued. "Besides, I still don't trust him and how he gets all his information. You shouldn't go out with him."
"Excuse me?" She snorted. "Who do you think you are saying whom I can go out with or not?"
"I'm your partner and, let's be honest here, it's obvious that you don't have the greatest taste in man…" He saw the ire in her eyes as he said that.
"I cannot believe this. You're the most unbelievable man I've ever met." She hissed. "You're my partner. We work together. You don't have any right to give your opinion about the people I go out with or much less who I chose to date!"
"Really? Because in these few months we've worked together there was your ex, Peter, who I heard, wasn't the best guy out there. Then, of course, there was the great Michael Stires that, no offence, was a big asshole."
"What's got into you?" She looked at him confused. This was not normal behavior from Booth's part. "You believed Jesse when he said he didn't kill his father, you even got him out of jail…"
"Well, right now, I just don't like the guy, okay, Bones?" He let out a breath, a little defeated. What was this thing between them? Why was he acting like a teenage boy whose crush was going out with someone else? "I bet he tried to use his sad dad story to get into you…" He murmured, but she heard him.
"It's easy for you to judge, you grew up with loving parents." She said between teeth.
"Loving parents..." He snorted and took two steps back, turning around so she couldn't see his face. "How about this, Bones. My sweet daddy beat the crap out of my mom, sometimes he didn't even bother that he did it in front of me and my brother. And then, when he got tired of hitting her, he came to us. He was constantly drunk and, while he was hitting me, I'd just hope he'd pass out. Or maybe that I would pass out. As long as it stopped." He sat down on her couch and ran his hand through his hair. "One day my mom got tired of being a punching bag and ran away. Alone. So, yeah, pretty great parents."
"Booth..." Gone was the spark of angry from her eyes. She looked so sorry for him that he regretted telling her about his past immediately. Her pity was the last thing that he wanted. It'd been years since he'd talked about his parents. He was so mad at her, so angry at the idea of her going out with another man that he lost his mind. "I'm sorry... I... I didn't know..."
He looked away from her, not standing being pitied at. Why did he tell her that?
Brennan didn't seem to notice that he didn't want to talk about that anymore, though. She was never one to let a subject go, he should know that by now.
"How could... how could she leave and not take you with her? If she knew..." She shook her head in disbelief.
"She was trying to survive, I guess..." He shrugged. He didn't like to think about that. It angered him when he found out his mother left him. That she didn't take him and Jared with her. Especially his brother, who was just a little kid.
"But you were a child, you were defenseless." She was suddenly pissed off at a woman she'd never met. "A mother should never leave her children behind."
Her own mother did leave her behind. But she didn't know in what circumstances. She still didn't know what had led Christine and Matthew Brennan to disappear. She liked to believe it was something bigger than them, that they wouldn't do just that. She knew her parents. They loved her. If there was something she never doubted, it was their love for her. And that was what made her never stop hoping.
But Booth's mother? She ran away to save herself and left two helpless boys with the man she was escaping for. A man she knew was dangerous, a man that hurt her boys. Brennan did not have children, but she knew that if she were in the same situation, she would never be able to do that. With any human being.
"How did this end up being about my parents and my crappy childhood?" He finally lifted his head to look at her face. She was staring intensely at him.
"I'm proud of you, Booth."
"What?" He was surprised.
"You. Until my parents disappeared, I had what you could call a great life: a loving mother, a great father who shared my passion for science and a brother whom I adored. But you... you had to watch your father hurt your mother, and then you and your brother... and to know that she went away and left you behind... Most children in this situation could have rebelled and maybe even follow on their father's footsteps... It's not unusual for children of alcoholic parents to become alcoholic too."
She noticed him wincing. She didn't mean to hurt him.
The idea of being the same as his father made Booth shiver.
"You're not, Booth." She sat down next to him on the couch, her hand reaching for his. Brennan didn't understand this sudden need to touch him, but she felt like she needed him to know that she cared.
"There were days that were worse than others... And I'm not saying I didn't screw up a bunch of times. But I had my grandfather with me. After mom left, he kicked my dad out of the house and raised Jared and me. I wasn't that good of a teenager and I don't know what I would have done if it wasn't for Pops." He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He started stroking the top of Brennan's hand with his thumb without noticing. "And Bones... I don't think I've ever told you this, but I'm also very proud of you. You might have had a great childhood, but you had your life turned upside down in one night. You had everything and then you were left with nothing. And still, you worked your way out of that. You studied, got into a great university, got three doctorates and became the best anthropologist in the world." He smiled at her, then his smile started fading when he remembered a not so beautiful part of her days in foster care. "And you went through some pretty awful things..." He noticed her gazing away. "I'm sorry, I read your files."
She shook her head. She did not want to remember that awful night over a decade ago. "Nothing happened."
"Bones, if that man wasn't already dead, you can be certain he'd be right now, because I'd go after him." She didn't doubt him when she saw the look on his face. Her heart started beating faster and she looked away.
"I stopped him before he could do anything." She stared down at her hands feeling like a 16-year-old girl again. "And he went to jail after that, he was never able to hurt anyone again."
"You're the strongest woman I know." He touched her face, stroking her left cheek with his thumb. She looked so delicate, but he knew how tough she was underneath that softness. He knew everything she went through. And she survived. She became the best in her field all by her own merits. He felt so lucky that he was the one who got to work with her by his side everyday. In moments like this he thanked God for not letting his screwed up parents ruin his life.
"Did you ever hear about your mother after she left?" She asked suddenly, needing to change the air in the atmosphere.
"No." The spell was broken. His hand fell from her face.
"Did you ever look for her?" She was not going to let that go, was she?
"No." He looked up at the ceiling. He hated talking about his mother even more than his father.
"Why? You're FBI, you could…"
"I've always thought that if she wanted to talk to me, if she wanted to see me… she'd come for me." He shrugged, hoping they could talk about something else. "She didn't. And it's not like I'd want to see her again. Not after what she did with us."
"I'm sorry."
"Well, I'm here now, right?" He shot her a crocked smile. "I think things turned out pretty fine. I got this job and now I get to work with the smartest scientist in the world, although she can be a pain in the ass sometimes… not to mention infuriating…"
"Booth…"
"But she's also so beautiful…" He was staring so intensely at her that Brennan felt all her blood rushing up to her face. "Sometimes we go for days without a case and I want a dead body to show up just so I have an excuse to see her again."
"So, you are the one who misses me." She grinned, pointing a finger at him. "You just admitted it."
"I do." He smiled, that charm smile she accused him of trying to use on her and that she told him didn't really work on her. She wasn't so sure about that now. "Don't go out with that Jesse guy, Bones."
He said that so suddenly and so desperately that it startled her out of her reverie.
"Why?"
"Because…" He leaned toward her a little. "When we first met, I told you I felt we were going somewhere."
"We were inebriated, Booth." She reminded him, one eyebrow raised. "And then you said you hated me."
"Correction: you said you hated me." This time he was pointing at her. He creased his forehead. "Did you really?"
"What?"
"Hate me."
"At that moment, I think so. I was pretty angry at you." She said thoughtfully. "Then, it was mostly annoyance. I just wanted to forget you, but you kept calling me and bothering Zack."
"I couldn't get you out of my head." He admitted.
"Why?"
"Because something changed in me, Bones, the moment I saw you for the first time." He was so close to her that she could feel the heat from his body. "You moved me. In a way no other woman did."
"You said I was a cold fish…" She accused him.
"You said I was a superstitious moron." He accused back, although neither of them tried to move away from each other. "I just wanted to piss you off so you'd talk to me. Even if it would be through spat words. You're not a cold fish, Bones." His tone went softer. "You're not even close to cold… once we get to know you, the real you…"
"What? I am the real me."
"Yes… you are. Lovely, smart, strong, brave and all heart." He took her hands in his. "And I'm so glad I get to see that part of you."
"Booth… I really… I have to go." She took her hands back and tried to get up from the couch, but his hand caught her wrist before she could move.
"It can't be just me." He said. "Damn it, Bones, don't you feel it too?"
"Please, stop." She begged.
"Stop what?" He let go of her.
"Looking at me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you want to kiss me."
Her words made him look down at her lips and suddenly all she could think about was having his lips on hers just one more time. She never really forgot their kiss outside that pool house. It tasted like tequila and rain and Booth. She remembered he'd been an amazing kisser and it took all of her strength to do the rational thing and take a cab to her apartment. Alone. Later, once she was sober again, she could remind herself what an asshole he was for firing her. A good kisser asshole, but still an asshole.
"What if I do?" He asked in a whisper.
She didn't know who moved first, but before she knew what was happening he was kissing her and she was kissing him back with everything she had in herself. It felt even better than the other kiss and she let her mind go numb for a while.
"Booth…" She panted when they let go of each other. "We can't…"
He kissed her swollen lips, pretending not to hear.
"…We work together." She continued between the kisses.
"We'll find a way…" He kept kissing her, not wanting the moment to end. He wanted this for so long… "Bones?"
"Yes?" She said out of breath.
"You're not going on a date with him, are you?" He touched his forehead to hers, breathing heavily.
"Did you kiss me just so I wouldn't go out with Jesse?" She leaned back to look at his eyes.
"No."
"Good." She kissed him this time. "Then I'm calling him and saying something came up. I'm sure he'll understand."
Booth wasn't so sure about that, but he wouldn't be the one to point that out. One man's win, another's loss. It was not everyday he was the one winning. And this was Bones…
"I'll be right back." She left her office to make the call. Calling another guy in front of Booth to cancel a date felt a bit weird.
She was back less than five minutes later.
"All good?" Booth asked.
"Yeah. He seemed a bit disappointed, but he was really nice about it." Brennan said. "He wanted to reschedule the date."
"And?"
"Well, he's leaving in a couple of days, and I'm really busy with my book, so…"
He smiled. She was not going on a date with him again.
"It's a shame that you got all dressed up like this just to go home." He said.
"Are you asking me on a date, Booth?" She squinted her eyes and looked at him amused.
"Would you say yes if I was?"
"If you come up with a good suggestion…"
"Well, I know this great Italian place…. They have really good pasta…Or…"
"Or what?" She asked, more than a little interested in that "or".
"Or we can go to my place and I can cook you something." He grinned. "I'm a very good cook."
"I don't know if I trust that statement."
"Then you should come and see for yourself."
"You have incredibly unhealthy eating habits." She reminded him. "It will be very surprising if you don't have a heart attack before you turn 50."
He rolled his eyes.
"Just trust me on this, okay, Bones?"
"Okay." She pursed her lips. "But we're not having sex."
"Whoa." He let out a laugh. "Way to go right to the point, right, Bones?"
"Don't say you were not thinking about it."
"Were you?"
"Of course." She said. "But I don't think we should do it tonight."
"Whatever you say, Bones." He pointed a finger at her as he reminded something. "Also, no tequila."
"I like tequila."
"Oh, I know you do. But I think we better stay away from it tonight."
"If you can't hold you liquor well… because you know I have excellent-"
"Bones." He cut her off. He really didn't think tequila was the best choice for their first date. "I have this very nice bottle of wine just waiting to be opened."
"I do enjoy a good wine." She thought a bit about it and nodded.
"Thought you would." He smiled. Thank God. "So, ready to go have the best meal of your life?"
"I am quite hungry."
She got her bag out of the hanger while he reached for her coat, helping her to put it on, the action so easy it was like they did that everyday. Booth stopped on his tracks when he noticed Brennan was staring at him and not moving.
"What?"
"Nothing." She smirked. "I like you, Booth."
"I like you too, Bones."
More than you can imagine.
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Please, give me credit for not writing "You're a good man, Booth." ;)
Happy Holidays, everyone!