Chapter 2: Catching Up to A New Reality

Neither of them slept late the next morning and by early afternoon they were approaching the city limits. Booth dropped Brennan off at her apartment building and for the first time in seven months he found himself returning to a home that didn't have Brennan's things mixed casually with his own. She was insistent that the most efficient use of their time was to check in on their apartments separately and meet back up later. Max had been living in her place and she wanted to check in on him.

Booth, meanwhile, found himself with plenty of time on his hands and nothing to do. Apart from having to open some windows to stir the stale air, Booth found things in good order. Jared and Padme had been keeping an eye on everything for him and it was clear his sister-in-law had kept up with the dusting and light cleaning during that time too. Even his fridge had been stocked and there was a note welcoming him back and inviting him and Brennan out to the Founding Fathers for dinner later in the week.

It wasn't long before he became restless, then lonely. He knew she'd be back later and that the plan was for them to sleep at his place, but things felt much less stable beyond that. Aside from avoiding any talk of a wedding date, his fiancee had definitely balked at the thought of getting their own place in DC. Clearly the notion that they would give up their leases hadn't occurred to her and it seemed as if she was unsure what to do in that regard. Add to that her indecisiveness of whether to stay in DC or not, and Booth was starting to question where they stood.

His phone rang, shattering the silence and he pounced on it as soon as he caught the ring-tone, "Hey, Bones! You doing okay?"

"I'm fine," her smile could be heard across the line. "My father and I have had a highly enjoyable afternoon."

"Great!" he couldn't resent the happiness in her voice.

"Yes," she agreed enthusiastically. "We're going to dinner in a few minutes."

"Oh," his heart sank a little, though he mustered up as much of a supportive vibe as he could for the remainder of the conversation.

He spent the next three hours idly flipping through channels and working his way through a box of Captain Crunch. Finally unable to stomach his restlessness any further, he grabbed his keys and headed out.

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Although not kept quite to her high standards, Max had taken good care of his daughter's apartment in her absence. What she didn't know was he'd taken off work when she'd called to tell him she was returning. Half of that time he'd spent cleaning and the other half pacing the floor with nervous anticipation. Sometimes he felt like he was walking on eggshells when it came to his Tempe and while he acknowledged his mistakes had caused the breech in trust, it didn't stop him from trying his best to make this right.

When she finally walked through the door his breath caught in his throat. She was tired and road weary, but she tucked her hair behind her ear like her mother, smiled widely at him like she had was she was a little girl, and ran into his arms when he opened them. He held her just a tad longer than dads with a daughter in their mid-thirties normally do, but neither of them cared.

There was a glow on her face and a softness in the way she spoke now that both pained and comforted him. He wished his Ruthie could see what a fine woman their little girl had become; that she would be there with him to "ooh" and "ah" over this first Brennan grandchild. To his delight, Tempe had questions – numerous questions – about what her mother's pregnancies had been like and what she kind of baby she'd been. They talked for so long, Max suggested they discuss it further over dinner.

"You seem very invigorated tonight," she commented, sipping at her club soda as dinner drew to a close.

"I'm with my beautiful daughter, who's having my grandchild," Max returned with a cheeky grin. "I'm the happiest man on Earth."

"While I doubt that's quantifiable," she chuckled, "I'm glad you're happy. Booth seems to be quite pleased as well."

"Of course he is!" Max smiled nostalgically, "I remember how giddy I was when we found out about you. Your mom couldn't get me to shut up about it."

They shared a laugh and picked at their desserts for a little longer before he suggested they head out and take a short walk. . It was a crisp, clear night as they went along, taking in the sounds of a city far from being at rest. All of a sudden she ground to halt and stared straight ahead.

His arm felt the loss as she separated from him and began quickly walking away. It was only then Max spotted the other man, coming out from the crowd of people and moving swiftly to meet her halfway. Max watched Booth's face light up with pure joy as he enfolded Temperance in a tight hug.

Passerbys gave them a wide berth and after a few long seconds, Max's eyes met Booth's and the older man conceded that his daughter was no longer only his to love. With a small salute, he turned and walked away, knowing that she was in the arms of the only man he trusted to take care of her.

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"I missed you," Booth told her when they finally pulled back.

She laughed, "It's only been seven hours, Booth, not seven months."

"Felt like it," he insisted.

Her eyes rolled, then she looked around, "Where did my father go?"

"Home, probably," guessed Booth, settling his arm around her waist. "Did you two have fun tonight?"

Brennan nodded brightly and the more she shared how much insight Max had given her, the less Booth begrudged them their time. The couple walked a bit farther before they settled on a familiar flight of steps.

"Seems like forever since we've been here," he observed as she sat loosely in his arms.

"Yeah."

"Anything exciting happen to you since then?" he asked as if he didn't know the answer.

She looked up at him questioningly, but played along, "I was kidnapped for a time, but I escaped with the aid of a younger man."

"Did you fall for him?" Booth smirked.

She bit her bottom lip to contain a giggle, then shook her head, "We were far too busy concentrating on escape. There was no time or inclination for sex or romance. Why, did you fall for someone?"

It took a second for him to recover from that mental image, but when he did he shot back with a sly smile and a shrug, "Kinda."

"Is it serious?" her question was still light, but laced with a trace of confusion.

"As a gas attack," his voice rumbled low in her ear as he pulled her to him, his hand coming to rest on her tiny baby bump.

Understanding dawned and her face lit up with playful glee once again, "That's very serious, indeed. Do you have a picture?"

"Yep," he nodded cockily, plucking his phone from his pocket and popping up the latest ultrasound picture.

"Beautiful," Brennan breathed, moving her hand to lay beside his.

For a long moment neither of them spoke, but quietly contemplated all that had changed since they'd left and what changes still lay ahead.

"I find I'm looking forward to seeing everyone," Brennan said suddenly, rising to her feet to leave.

"Whoa, there, Bones, where are you going?" he caught hold of her arm.

"To the lab," she said as if he should know better than to ask.

"About that," he said, helping her to her feet. "Apparently we're not the only ones who've changed." She looked up expectantly, waiting for him to go on, so he did. "If you'd bothered to call anyone today," he teased, "you would've known Cam's not at the lab any more."

"So where are we meeting?" she asked impatiently, feeling this was no time for games.

"Hoover conference room in an hour," he smirked.

"And if you hadn't run into me here by chance how would I know this?"

He laughed and threw his arm around her, steering her in the right direction, "I would've called."