A/N – Thanks for the reviews… keep 'em coming! I need to know if I'm on the right track. For this one, I know the military stuff is probably not right—call it poetic license.

Chapter 4

Temperance Brennan looked at her watch for the third time in fifteen minutes. Booth had left early that morning to go out to the Army base and finalize his discharge, so she hadn't been able to reach him to let him know she had to cancel their lunch plans. It had been a while since she'd been in a relationship, but she was pretty sure one shouldn't advise one's significant other that you were going out of town by voicemail or text- especially when said significant other was Seeley Booth.

If all went well, she could get in to New York City, have her meeting and be back in DC by dinner time. She took out her phone again as they began the boarding call for her flight. When she reached the boarding gate and he hadn't picked up, she hung up without leaving a message. She handed the agent her boarding pass and boarded the plane. Once she settled in her seat, she took out the phone and sent a text message. She put the phone away and took out the notes she'd compiled with a tentative synopsis of her next book.

The flight would take just over an hour; she should be able to get the outline and proposal put together as soon as she was able to take out her laptop.

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"I have to decline, sir," Booth said to the officer seated across from him. "But I feel that I have fulfilled my duty of service. I served my country during Desert Storm and I understood the need to utilize my skills in the past year, but my life is no longer in the military."

"You're a fine soldier Sergeant, and it will be a real loss to send you into the private sector."

Booth acknowledged his words with a slight nod.

"Thank you, sir," he said. "But I've devoted my professional life to serving the citizens of this great nation by taking murderers off the streets."

"A noble pursuit, son," Colonel Jeffries said, standing and reaching out to shake Booth's hand. "Should you ever change your mind…"

"I won't, sir," Booth answered firmly yet respectfully as he shook the older man's hand.

He gathered his things and made his way out to the car. He checked his watch and realized he'd be late in meeting Bones for lunch. He picked up his phone from where he'd left it on the console and noticed that he had several missed calls from his partner. He continued to scroll through until he came across a text message from her.

Gone to NYC. Be back as soon as I can.

"New York?" he said out loud. "What the hell is she doing in New York?"

He proceeded to send an answering message. He closed the phone and dropped it back down into the console as he pulled the car out on to the road.

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Brennan was having coffee downstairs from her publisher's office waiting while they went over her proposal. She was more than a little annoyed that she had been summoned to Manhattan only to be left waiting while they read the proposal. She could have sent it via messenger or email and saved herself a lot of time and trouble.

Her BlackBerry chimed indicating she'd received a text message, and she smiled when she saw that it was from Booth.

On my way back to DC. Call me.

After reading the message, she attempted to call him; but the call went directly to voicemail.

"Booth, it's me," she said. "We seem to keep missing each other. I'm sorry for missing our lunch, but I'll be back in DC by about six. Maybe we can get together then?" she asked. There was a long pause as she debated on how she should close the message. "…Bye." Embarrassed at not knowing what to say, she hung up quickly and dropped the phone on the table in front of her.

Why would he tell me to call and then turn off his phone? She wondered if he was ignoring her, angry that she hadn't called to let him know she was going out of town. She gulped down the rest of her coffee and gathered her things. She'd been kept waiting long enough. She wanted to finish the meeting and get on the next flight back to DC.

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Booth's stomach was growling. Since he didn't have to rush back into town to meet Bones, he decided to pull off at a roadside diner and grab a bite. He glanced over at the dashboard clock and wondered why she hadn't called him. He was concerned about why she'd run off to New York without a word, and he hoped she wasn't scared and running from their fledgling relationship.

Sitting down at a table by the window, he pulled out his phone and set it on the table while he looked over the menu.

"That's not gonna help you much here, hon," a gum-smacking waitress with an ancient beehive hairdo said, pulling his attention to where she stood next to the table.

"Huh?"

"That phone," she said, nodding. "This here's what they call a dead zone. There's no cell reception for miles."

"Great," he said, rubbing his temples. This was turning out to be one hell of a day.

"What can I get ya, handsome?" the waitress asked.

He looked up at the woman. She had to be seventy if she was a day. He read her nametag.

"I'll have a burger and fries, Gracie," he said. "And a coke."

"Good choice, cutie," she said. "I'll be right back."

"Hey Gracie," Booth called out to her retreating form. "How's the pie?"

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Brennan rushed through the airport terminal. It had taken much too long for the ticket agent to change her flight. She only had a few minutes now to make it on the flight. If she didn't make it to the gate, she'd be another four hours in getting back to DC. She arrived at the gate just as they were closing the door.

"Wait!" she called out. "I need to get on that plane."

"I'm sorry, ma'am," the gate agent said. "But the plane is being prepared for take-off. We'll have to see if we can get you on a later flight."

"No, you don't understand," Brennan told her. "I just got on this flight. I really need to get back to DC…"

"Once the door is closed, ma'am," the agent interrupted her, "there's nothing we can do."

"Wait!" The other gate agent, who was sitting behind the counter stood up. "You're Temperance Brennan."

"Yes," Brennan answered. "I am."

"The author?" the first gate agent asked.

"Yes," the agent who recognized her answered. "Hold on, Ms. Brennan." She went to pick up the telephone next to the door.

"Dr. Brennan," Temperance corrected, watching while the woman spoke animatedly on the phone.

She hung up the phone and then opened the door, stepping over to the podium to sign Temperance into the flight.

"Here you go, Dr. Brennan," she said. "Your seat is waiting; we just need to get you on the plane."

"Thank you," Temperance said, following the young woman down the jetway. She realized in all the rush that she wouldn't be able to call Booth and let him know she was on her way home.

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Booth sat on his couch, slouched down with his feet on the coffee table and a pile of papers on his lap. He hadn't been able to get in touch with his partner all day, and decided to use the time by getting a jump on his reinstatement paperwork.

He looked up at the clock on the DVR, and it was nearly five o'clock. Brennan said she'd be back in town by six. He couldn't imagine why she ran off to New York, but he was more concerned by the fact that she seemed to have been avoiding him all day.

She knew he was driving back from rural Virginia, She might have figured that he was out of cell range when she called and try to call back. He picked up the phone to call her. It was no surprise when the call went directly to voicemail.

"Bones," he said on the recording. "It's me. I hope you're on your way back here. It's been some day, huh? Maybe we can have dinner and talk about it? Call me when you get in."

There, he thought. That wasn't too threatening, was it? The last thing he wanted to do was to come off as smothering or controlling enough to give her an excuse to run.

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Temperance climbed out of the cab and walked up the steps into her apartment building. She stopped to say hello to the doorman, and made her way upstairs. She dropped her bag and her laptop just inside the front door and walked in to the kitchen.

She set the mail down on the counter and retrieved a bottle of water from the refrigerator. Glancing at the clock on the microwave, she saw that it was after six. She went out to the sofa, sat down and put her feet up on the coffee table. She reached for the phone and dialed Booth's number.

"Booth," he answered.

"It's me," she said.

"Bones, thank God," he said, hoping that didn't sound as desperate as he thought it did.

"Are you all right, Booth?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired I guess. It's been a kind of crazy day."

"I know the feeling," she said, leaning back against the sofa and closing her eyes.

"You have to be tired," he offered. "New York and back in a day?"

"My publisher called shortly after you left and summoned me into the city for an emergency meeting regarding my next book. I'm sorry I couldn't reach you, I tried to call."

"It's okay, what was the emergency?"

"There wasn't one. They just wanted to see my proposal and plot outline. It was a complete waste of my day, Booth. I had to sit in Starbuck's for an hour while they read it. I guess I didn't have to sit at Starbucks," she went on. "I could have stayed in the lobby with the teenage receptionist staring at me."

He smiled despite himself; she was cute when she rambled.

"I couldn't get a hold of you before I left," she said. "And then we kept missing each other… I didn't take time to call on my way to the airport because I was trying to get on an earlier flight… I almost missed the flight, and when I finally got on the plane… it was too late to call. I didn't even have time to send a text."

"I'll bet in all that running around Manhattan, you didn't find the time to get anything to eat, did you?" he asked.

"I had some pretzels on the plane," she answered.

"You've had a rough day," he said, "and you need to eat. Why don't I pick up some Thai and we can compare notes on our crappy days?"

"Sounds good," she said.

"I'll be there in forty-five minutes."

"See you," she replied.

"Yes you will….bye, Bones."

She hung up the phone and went back to pick up her bags by the door. She took them back to the bedroom and changed into yoga pants and a tee shirt. She pulled her hair up into a messy knot on the top of her head and padded barefoot back to the kitchen.

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Booth actually felt nervous as he knocked on the door. Stop being stupid, he told himself. How many times had he showed up at her door with Thai food at the end of a rough day?

She opened the door and he couldn't tear his eyes away. She looked casual and comfortable and he didn't think she'd ever been more beautiful.

"Hi," she said, leaning in to kiss him as she took one of the bags from his hands.

"Hi," he answered, closing the door behind himself and following her into the kitchen.

"This smells great," she told him, setting out the food on the table that was already set. "You always know what I need, don't you?"

"I try, Bones. I try," he said, going to the refrigerator and pulling out two beers.

"So how was your day?" she asked. "Did you get everything wrapped up with the Army?"

"All done," he answered. "And they won't be asking me to come back."

"Really?"

"Really," he said, sitting down. "It was a long day, and a long drive back. I stopped for lunch at this little diner. Their pie was almost as good as the Royal…"

She lifted an eyebrow.

"Almost," he repeated with a grin.

They sat down to eat and an awkward silence fell over them. They ate in silence, stealing glances when they thought the other one wasn't looking until finally she spoke up.

"Are you mad at me?" she asked.

"What?" He was stunned. "No, why would I be mad at you?"

"Because I left town and didn't tell you, and I then I didn't talk to you all day…"

"You had a hell of a day, babe," he said gently, reaching out to take her hand. "You had things to do… you don't have to answer to me."

"But since we're… we're in a relationship now…"

"Just because we're in a relationship doesn't mean you have to check in with me, Bones."

"You weren't upset that we didn't connect today?"

"I missed you," he said. "And yes, playing phone tag can be frustrating. But that doesn't give me any reason to be mad at you."

He shook his head, smiling.

"What's funny?"she asked.

"I thought you might be upset with me."

"What?" It was her turn to be incredulous. "Why?"

"I thought maybe you were avoiding me… that you thought I was smothering you or something."

"I guess we both have a lot to learn about being in a relationship, she said.

"I guess we do."

Later, they were sitting together on her sofa enjoying each other's company and soft music from the stereo.

"When do you report back to the FBI?" she asked.

"Monday," he answered.

"Do you have much more to do to get ready?"

"No, not really. I'm almost finished with the paperwork… why? What's on your mind?"

"Do you think Rebecca would let you take Parker out of town for a few days?"

"I don't know," he said, waiting for her to continue.

"I really need to see Russ," she said. "But I don't really want to leave you just now… so I was thinking you might like to go with me. But I know you need to spend some time with Parker… and I promised him that I would, too… Russ and Amy have a great little place by the beach, and I think Parker would get along well with Emma and Hayley…"

"Slow down," he said, smiling as he wrapped his arms around her. "I think it's a great idea. When would you want to leave?"

"First thing in the morning."