Note: Sorry for the delay. My dad unexpectedly passed away, and the last couple of weeks have been chaotic to say the least.

Disclaimer: I don't own them.

"Booth!"

Land was visible off the port side of the boat when the cry rang across the deck. At the sound of his name, Seeley looked up. "Yeah?"

"The captain wants a bath before we reach port. Haul some hot water to her cabin."

Booth set down the rope he had just coiled and headed to the galley. He ducked through the doorway of the galley, finding it deserted except for one man.

"Excuse me?"

The man turned, a broad smile on his face. "That's something I don't hear very often." He walked over, throwing his arm around Booth's shoulders. "Come in and be welcome! What can I do for you, young man?"

Booth allowed himself to be dragged into the room. "I'm here for some hot water. I'm supposed to bring it to the captain's cabin?"

"Aw, yes, of course." The cook gestured at the large pot of water on the wood-burning stove. "The fire is out but I think you'll find that the water is still pleasantly warm. Let me just fill some buckets for you."

He picked up a large bucket and walked towards the stove. When two buckets were full of water, he handed them to Booth. "Here you go."

Booth took the buckets and made his way to the captain's cabin. When he reached the closed door, he set down one of the bucket and knocked. From within the cabin, he heard the captain's husky voice. "Come in."

Booth opened the door and walked into the cabin. The captain was stretching languorously, clearly naked under the thin sheet. "Good morning, Seeley."

Desperately trying not to gawk at the sensual image of the captain in the bed, Booth managed to squeak out, "I … you … I have your bath water."

Brennan stood, gesturing to the metal tub at the end of the bed. "Mmm. Thank you, I do want a bath."

He walked over and poured the first bucket into the tub. He had lifted the second bucket when the captain spoke again. "Just half of that one – you'll need the rest to rinse my hair."

In his surprise, he almost dropped the second bucket. "What?"

She walked over until she was beside him and placed her hand on his shoulder. "You don't mind staying to help me, do you?"

While Seeley was searching for words, she lifted her foot, testing the water with her toe before stepping into the tub. She sank back, resting her calves on the edge of one end of the tub and leaning back against the other end. From her reclined position, she smiled back at him, nodding at the bar of soap on her desk. "Can you get that for me?"

Seeley lifted the soap and held it out to her. She laughed, asking, "Don't you want to help me with that?"

He went to lower himself to the floor, but she stopped him. "You'd better take your clothes off. I'd hate for them to get wet."

Uncertainly, he removed his clothing, folding it neatly before setting it on her desk. When he was as naked as she was, he picked up the soap again and knelt before the tub.

She was leaning back against the end of the tub, her eyes closed and her hair trailing in the water. He dipped the bar of soap into the water then soaped her arms, taking care to touch her only with the soap. When he had finished, he dipped the washcloth in the water and rinsed the soap off of her arms.

Her arms clean, he moved to her feet, soaping and rinsing them before moving up her legs. When he reached her upper thighs, he moved to her torso, washing her abdomen.

When he finished, she smiled. "You can touch my breasts, you know. You have before."

His gaze snapped to her face, but her eyes were still closed. "I didn't want to … "

At his words, she opened her eyes and sat up. "You didn't want to touch me?"

Sure he could see a faint look of pain in her eyes, he stumbled over his words. "No! I just wanted … I didn't want you to think I expected to touch your … I just …"

Her smile returned as she leaned back. "You can touch me."

Booth reached out, tentatively running the soap over her breasts. At his gentle touch, she sighed contentedly. He took his time, enjoying seeing her nipples harden in response to his touch. When he could delay no longer, he took the washcloth and carefully washed the soap from her breasts.

As she relaxed against the end of the tub, he moved to wash between her legs, taking pleasure at watching the emotions flickering across her face.

When he finished, he asked, "You wanted to wash your hair?"

She opened her eyes and ducked her head under the water before sitting up so that he could reach her hair. He moved to the end of the tub behind her and massaged the lather into her hair. Satisfied that it was clean, he said hoarsely, "Stand up."

He was struck again by her beauty as she stood, water running down her body. He stood as well, picking up the bucket of warm water as he did so. Patiently, he rinsed her hair, making sure that every inch was free of soap. When he was done, he reached over and handed her a towel.

She took it and wrapped it around herself. When it was firmly fastened, she took his hand and stepped out of the tub.

Seeley picked up the brush sitting on the desk and walked behind her. He worked the brush through her hair, carefully untangling the knots until her hair lay smoothly against her back. As he worked, she admired the picture the two of them made in the small looking glass attached to the wall above her desk.

When he finished, she spun to face him, dropping the towel to the floor. Saying, "That was nice", she stepped into his arms, raising herself onto her toes to kiss him.

It only took a couple of steps to reach the bed, and soon they were lying side by side. As they exchanged gentle kisses, they used their hands to leisurely caress each other's body. Eventually, Brennan moved her leg over his and he entered her. Booth found himself under her spell yet again as they moved in tandem.

They were both approaching their climax when the door opened. Booth was facing away from the door and he started at the sound, only to be distracted by Brennan's kiss and her whisper of "It's OK". Soon, he forgot about the quiet sound and lost himself in her again.

Booth was so caught up in experiencing this new, tender side of Brennan that his orgasm caught him by surprise. She followed him over the edge and he pulled her close, nestling his head in her neck.

As their heart rates slowed, they pulled apart, both of them rolling onto their backs. Brennan smiled up at the man standing by the bed. "Did you enjoy that?"

Sully smiled back. "It's pretty clear that you enjoyed that."

"Oh, I did."

It took Booth a second to realize that Sully had been the one who had entered the room. "You knew he was here?"

Brennan stretched from head to toe, sighing. "Yes, I saw him. I didn't want to distract you." She leaned over him, pressing a quick kiss to his lips before standing and walking unselfconsciously over to Sully. "Sully, did you want something, or are you just here for the entertainment?"

"I heard you are planning a visit in town."

The captain nodded. "Yes. I have somewhere I need to go." She turned to pick up her hairbrush. Sully put his hand on her shoulder, spinning her to face him. "You don't go anywhere alone. I can't go with you – I need to take care of selling some of our cargo – but you don't go anywhere without two of our men with you." He gestured towards Booth, still lying stunned in the bed. "Take him and at least one other. Promise me."

The captain's back stiffened. "I can take care of myself."

Sully pulled her into his arms. "I know you can, Bren, but I'll worry. Promise me."

Reluctantly, she nodded. "I promise."

* * *

As the small group walked along the dock, Booth tried not to stare at the unusual sight of the captain in a dress. She looked so … normal. She could have been someone he had met at a party back home instead of the fascinating pirate captain he had to admit he was falling for.

The carriage Sully had arranged was waiting at the docks when they arrived. As he climbed in, Booth's mind raced. Where were they going? Soon, they were on their way. As they traveled the dusty roads, the captain sat quietly, clearly anxious about their errand.

Soon, they arrived at a quiet church on the edge of town. The carriage stopped and the three of them got out. Jack remained by the carriage as Booth silently followed. The captain led the way, bypassing the church to reach the graveyard. There was a slight breeze, and the air was filled with the scent of the wildflowers growing between the graves. The captain walked confidently, clearly familiar with the graveyard. When she reached two graves near the back of the graveyard, she stopped. Booth stood back, allowing her to mourn in private. After several minutes, she spoke, her voice thick with tears. "I promised my mother I'd visit her. It's silly, really. It's not like she's here."

Booth stepped forward. Uncertain about whether he should put his arm around her in this public place, he settled for standing beside her, their arms touching. "I think it's good that you visit your mother."

She gestured at the second grave. "That's my brother. They … there was a fever. I got sick first. My mother nursed me. For a couple of days, they thought I was going to die. Then I got better. " She laughed bitterly. "The day after I started to recover, my mother got sick. It was my fault."

"I don't believe that."

She pulled away, walking angrily towards her brother's grave. "His death was my fault, too. He caught the fever from me, but he wasn't strong enough to fight it."

Booth followed her, pulling her into a hug. "It wasn't your fault. You didn't want them to die."

She struggled briefly in his arms before collapsing against him. "No, I didn't want them to die."

When she finished crying, she pulled back. He handed her his handkerchief and waited as she wiped away the traces of tears. When she finished cleaning up, he asked, "Are you ready to go?"

She nodded, and together they turned to walk back to the carriage.

As they were about to climb into the carriage, a carriage traveling briskly on the other side of the road clattered to a stop. Booth and Jack spun around, ready to meet any threat, only to see a finely-dressed brunette woman hop out and run across the road.

"Joy? Is that really you?"

The men watched in shock as the captain was enveloped in a hug by the young woman, who was still talking a mile a minute. "I can't believe you're back! I didn't think I'd ever see you again! How are you doing? You have to come for tea so that we can catch up!"

When she finally stepped back, they saw the captain nodding. "Hi, Angela. Yes, I'll come for tea, but I'll have to bring Seeley and Jack."

Angela linked arms with the captain, leading the way to her carriage. She shot a dazzling smile at the two men. "You can ride with us and your carriage can follow." As she led the way to her carriage, she leaned over to whisper, "They're handsome."

The women climbed into Angela's carriage and the men scrambled to join them. Soon all four of them were in the carriage.

Angela kept the conversation going as they drove, pointing out sites of interest in the town. Before long, they arrived at Angela's house and settled into chairs in the parlor. Again, Angela kept the conversation going. After asking the captain if she was married (which resulted in a horrified "No!"), she explained that she had been married briefly, but her husband had died unexpectedly soon after the wedding. She winked, saying, "Being a widow suits me much more than being an unmarried girl."

She leaned forward, eyeing the two men. "I don't suppose either of you need some … recreation?" She turned to the captain. "You don't mind, do you?"

Booth felt his heart sink when she replied, "No. They just work for me. They can do whatever they want, as long as they're off duty."

A slow smile spread across Angela's face. "So how long are you in town for?"

The captain smiled back. "We leave tomorrow morning. They need to escort me back to the boat, but after that they're free to do whatever they want. Just don't wear them out, I need them ready to work tomorrow."

Jack spoke first. "I'm in."

Booth was relieved. Jack's agreement would take the sting out of his rejection. "I can't. I'm going to stay on the boat tonight. Sorry, ma'am."

The conversation soon veered into safer territory, only slightly hampered by the flirtatious looks being exchanged by Angela and Jack. Finally, the afternoon reached a close and the three pirates made their exit, Brennan promising to visit Angela the next time she was in town.

Angela walked them to their carriage. Booth climbed in first, holding out his hand to assist the captain. Once she was safely seated, Angela leaned over to press a quick kiss to Jack's lips. "Hurry back."

He smiled, saying, "Oh, I will", before climbing into the carriage.

So … I'm thinking one more chapter (jealous!Booth), but I'm open to suggestions.