"Oh, I, I'm the one who's here tonight,

and I don't wanna do it all in vain."

- Elvis Costello, Miracle Man

The next afternoon Charlotte stood in the doorway of Booth's office with her hands on her hips, "I prefer the fatigues to the suit but that's just me."

Booth started to smile before even looking up from his desk, "I heard you were in town."

"I do get around." She slowly made her way into his office and took a seat across from him. "I was surprised you were gone when I got back from London – you still had five months left."

"I'm sorry, it just…it couldn't be helped. There was a problem with my team and I had to come back." He looked her over – she was honestly the only thing he could say he missed about Afghanistan.

Charlotte shrugged, "Don't be sorry. I had fun with Tucker, I mean not you know the kind of fun I had with you but…It all worked out."

"Good to know." He stood and rounded the desk, sitting on the edge in front of her, "I heard you're writing a book about your experiences over there, how's that going?"

Charlotte tucked her hair behind her ears, "It's not. Sitting in a room all day with my lap top isn't my idea of a good time."

Booth nodded, "I know, Charlie."

"But on the other hand it's a fantastic offer and it's a story that should be told so...I really don't know what I'm doing right now."

He leaned forward and smiled, "What about tonight? What are you doing tonight?"

She twitched her mouth side to side and then confessed, "Honestly, I was planning on laying in bed and catching up on my Hulu queue. Lame, I know but I have two days before I'm back on the road and I don't know when I'll have time again."

"Do you want to get dinner first? Around 7 or so?"

"Sure, I'm at the Mandarin Oriental."

Booth whistled, "That's quite the step up from a tent in the desert."

"Hey, it's on the publisher's dime." She sighed and stood, "I gotta get to a meeting. See you tonight?"

"That you will." Booth grinned as he watched her leave. He shook his head as he sat back down at his desk, Charlie Townsend was in town…

B&B

Shortly after 7pm Charlotte was awoken by a knock on her hotel room door. She quickly rolled out of bed and grabbed her phone, checking the time. "Sh#t!" She exclaimed as she quickly made her way to the door. She started apologizing as soon as she opened it, "I am so sorry. I fell asleep and slept through my alarm. I'm a mess."

Booth smiled and took in the sight before him. Charlotte's thick red hair was tousled and the tight, vintage Lou Reed t-shirt and short boxers she was wearing accented her curves in a very fetching way.

He stepped into the room and grinned, "It's ok."

Charlotte closed the door behind him, "I can be ready in like 15 minutes if you don't mind waiting?"

He looked around the expansive suite and then his gaze landed on her. "I'm not really hungry – are you?"

She bit her lip and shook her head, "Nope."

Without a thought in his mind he moved toward her. He wrapped one arm around her waist and slid the other into her hair, pulling her close. "We could resolve that unfinished business we always talked about. No more sneaking around in the middle of the night, having to be absolutely quiet."

She shivered from the rasp in his voice and intensity in his eyes. She had no choice but to fall closer to him and wrap her arms around his back. "I'm up for that." She cooed. "I'm up for anything."

He smiled against her lips before collecting them with her own. With one gentle push they started to stagger to the bedroom, never losing contact.

Much later in the night they laid side by side, spent and quietly collecting their breath. After several minutes passed Charlotte quietly confessed, "I went to Arlington today."

Booth rolled over and propped his head up with his arm, "Sambo?"

She mimicked his movement and faced him, "Yeah, I left him some Tabasco sauce."

"I-I haven't been yet. I'll go soon…I just…"

"I know." She reached out and smoothed her hand down his cheek. "Tucker's wife had the baby, a little girl. They let him set up a webcam so he got to see the birth – that was an amazing day."

"I can only imagine." Booth leaned his forehead against hers, comforted by the fact that he didn't have to explain anything to her about his time away. She knew it all.

He rolled over on his back and pulled her with him. She rested her head on his chest and they slowly drifted to sleep.

In the morning, Booth woke up and rolled over in the large bed. Charlotte had moved to the other side at some point in the night and was curled up on her stomach, her naked back revealed to him. He watched her sleep and tried to keep himself from wondering what the night had meant and what she thought about it all. Seeley Booth was trying for once to just enjoy the moment.

Later in the evening after Booth and Charlie had spent the day in and out of bed, catching up on the men they had in common thanks to war and eating room service, Charlie approached Booth in the bedroom with papers in hand.

"I'd like you to read my story."

Booth smiled, "Sure…" He took the pages from her, "Who else has read it?"

"My publisher, Tucker – it made him cry."

"Well, Tucker is crier by nature so…"

She sat on the bed next to him, "Yes, I know. And the only other people to have read it are the good people at 'Time' magazine, it's going to be their cover story in a few weeks."

"That's amazing. Congratulations"

"Yeah, it's a pretty big deal for me. So, read it and I'll go in the other room."

Booth leaned back in the bed and within the first paragraph was transported back to the desert.

A few minutes later Charlotte walked back into the room to grab her phone. "Oh my god."

He looked up from the pages, "What?"

"Who knew that there was nothing sexier on the planet than a hot guy in nothing but boxers reading my words in bed?" She shook her head and took her phone off the dresser, "Continue."

Booth laughed as she walked back out of the room and started a heated phone conversation with some guy named Lou.

Just as he finished reading he heard his phone vibrating in his jeans in the floor. He scrambled to pick it up, "Booth…."

"Hey, it's me. We have an ID on our victim, but it's odd..." Brennan began, sounding distracted.

Booth pulled himself off the bed and stood by the window, hand in his hair. "Odd how?"

"We found him through dentals in the Armed Forces Database, but everything else is classified. Way above my clearance and even above yours, Booth. We're at a dead end." She sighed in frustration. Booth knew she was at the yellow lights on the hissy fit scale just by the tone of her voice.

"Alright, Bones. Relax. I'll call my boss and see what we can do, and then I'll head to the lab."

Brennan paused for a moment. "I...don't want to interrupt your weekend, Booth. I can call you if-"

"Bones. This is my investigation, too. If you're working it, I'm working it. It's okay. I'll be there soon."

"Alright. I'll see you soon. Bye, Booth."

"Bye."

After hanging up with Brennan, Booth pulled on his clothes and waited until he heard Charlotte end her own conversation before heading out to the sitting area. He found Charlotte engrossed with something on her lap top screen, "I gotta go – work."

She looked up at him and nodded, "Oh, ok."

"I-I don't know how long it'll take but…." He trailed off, not knowing what he wanted to say.

"But what, Seeley?"

He shrugged, "I could maybe…I don't know, I guess I could come back when I finish up."

Charlotte smiled at his awkward wording, "I'll be up late. Lou, my editor, just gave me a ton of revisions so I'll be fiddling with those most the night."

"Ok." He walked to the door and paused with his hand on the door knob, "By the way, that was the most realistic thing I've read about the war – it's very impressive."

She offered him a high-watt smile, "Thanks."

B&B

"So what you're telling me is that we have no leads, no suspects and a strange ID on the vic, correct?" Booth huffed in frustration, running his hand through his hair distractedly.

Angela nodded in tandem with Brennan, understanding Booth's ire but not the intensity behind it. "I really am sorry, Booth. I checked every database we have access to, the guy isn't in any of them but the AFDB...and even that is heavily classified. It's like he doesn't exist beyond that."

"I know Ang, thanks. Really. I'm just…frustrated and exhausted. I was...never mind. I'm sorry." Booth turned on his heel and walked off the platform, heading for Brennan's office.

Hodgins looked at Angela and Brennan, eyebrows raised. "What's wrong with him? He is much touchier than usual today."

Brennan shook her head. "I don't know, let me talk with him." She headed down the stairs of the platform, following Booth into her office and closing the door behind her.

Cam stepped up to the two remaining on the platform, questioning look on her face. "What's going on?"

Angela frowned. "I don't know. Booth seems stressed about something."

"Hmm." Cam watched as Brennan drew the blinds to her office. "Well, whatever it is, Brennan will get to the bottom of it, I'm sure."

Inside Brennan's office, Booth lay back on her sofa and tried to relax. He didn't know if he was frustrated by the case or the confusion he felt about his night with Charlotte. He watched dispassionately as Brennan closed and locked her door and drew the shades, beginning to feel even guiltier for being so abrupt with her and the rest of the team. And when she finally sat down next to him, inquisitive look on her face, the guilt rolled in full force.

"I'm sorry, Bones. Honestly. I'm just frustrated and tired. Usually, we have something more by now."

"I'm the one who is sorry, Booth. I feel like we let you down."

"Nah, you never let me down, Bones. I haven't gotten any good leads on the investigative side, either. And with the guy's info being classified, we're stuck. This whole case is just a cluster-uh, a mess." Booth gave her the first genuine smile she'd seen on him since the case started, and she felt something tense in her chest begin to release.

"So, if you're feeling a little better…would you like to go get a drink?" She watched, confused, as Booth blanched.

"I uh…I would love to, Bones. But I…I have…. have plans tonight." Booth wondered why he suddenly felt bad about that fact.

"Oh. Okay then…." Brennan smiled slightly, standing and heading for her desk. "Charlotte Townsend?"

Nodding, Booth stood, suddenly wanting to be anywhere but in that office. "Yeah. Um, she's leaving in the morning for Portland so… I…need to get going. I'll see you Monday?"

"Sure, Booth." Brennan's stomach flipped as she watched him leave. "Have a nice weekend."

Booth strolled out of the lab under the watchful eyes of Cam, Angela and Hodgins.

"Well, whatever's bothering him is still bothering him." Angela observed.

Cam scoffed. "How on earth can you tell? He looks more relaxed than he did when he went to Brennan's office."

Hodgins shook his head. "Nah...something's different. Not wrong...just..."

"Different." Angela agreed. "He looks less burdened, but...not. It's hard to explain, it's just a feeling I have."

"You people try too hard. Sometimes a banana is just a banana." Cam shook her head and walked back toward her office.

B&B

After going to the Hoover and putting in requests to the have the victim's records unsealed, Booth headed back to the hotel. Checking the clock on the dash he wondered if it was too late but decided he had to at least say good bye to Charlotte. He knocked on the door and was pleasantly surprised when she answered the door with a smile and no hint of being tired.

"I was wondering if you were coming back."

"I said I would." He flopped down on the couch and sighed, "Sorry it's later than I thought. This case is…It's pissing me off."

She smiled as she sat down next to him, tucking her feet underneath her, "Not a problem, I actually got a lot of work done while you were gone."

"Wanna go down to the bar and get a drink?" The truth was all Booth wanted to do was go to bed but he wasn't sure that she was up for a repeat performance of the previous night.

"There's booze here and my flight leaves at 7 in the morning so I probably shouldn't stay up too much later."

Booth nodded, "I'd like to take you to the airport."

She stood without saying a word, moved behind the couch and leaned down to whisper in his ear, "Then you should just stay here tonight."

He turned his head just in time to see her walking toward the bedroom, stopping to peel her shirt off in the doorway without looking back at him.

B&B

The ride to the airport the next morning was quiet, neither of them knowing what to say about the weekend they spent together. Booth parked the SUV and looked at Charlotte, "Where are you headed after Portland?"

Charlotte sighed and smiled, "I don't know. You know how it goes, any port in a storm."

Booth nodded and they both slowly exited the vehicle. He grabbed her bag from the back seat and started walking with her. She turned and took her bag from his shoulder, "I can make it to my gate by myself."

"Ah, I'll walk with you."

They made their through the airport and with a flash of his badge Booth was able to walk her up to her gate. He paused for a minute and grabbed her arm. She turned with a grin, "Yes Seeley?"

He tilted his head and was surprised by the words that poured out of his mouth, "I, uh, I'd like to be your DC port."

Charlotte glanced down at her feet and then up to his sincere brown eyes, "I could probably come back in a week or so… Nothing's definite with me but I could try…."

He smiled and stepped closer to her, "Give me a call when you know, Charlie."

She nodded, "Ok…I've gotta board now." She cupped his chin, "It was a good weekend, thanks"

"No, thank you." He dipped his head down and brushed his lips against hers.

Charlotte pulled back with a sweet sigh, "I'll call you, Seeley."

Booth nodded and watched her walk away, as soon as she was out of sight he began to wonder why he asked her to come back.