A New Secret

Chapter 7

Monday morning Brennan was at her computer answering emails when Angela rushed in, fairly vibrating with excitement. Brennan smiled at her friend, bracing herself for the barrage of questions. Booth had called Angela on Saturday after their talk, bursting with the news.

"Sweetie!" Angela exclaimed with a huge grin, coming behind the desk to grab her into a bone-crushing hug. Finally letting go, she perched on the corner of the desk. "Let me see!" she demanded, grabbing Brennan's left hand. Leaning close she examined the ring so carefully, Brennan expected her to pull out a loupe so she could do a more thorough appraisal.

Booth had chosen the ring carefully. He knew a traditional solitaire would be impractical, given the number of times she had to pull on latex gloves over the course of a work day. With that in mind he had chosen a beautiful gold band with a recessed center diamond, surrounded by twin swirls of tiny sapphires and diamonds above and below.

"Ooooh, sweetie, it's beautiful! He has really good taste. So, do you love it?" she asked as Brennan took her hand back. Brennan held out her hand and looked at the ring, smiling.

"Yeah," she said softly. Her face reflected calm contentment. "He said the sapphires reminded him of my eyes," she said with a fond smile.

"Mmmm, who knew he was such a romantic?" Angela asked wistfully. Her smile turned thoughtful. "What made you say yes?" she asked gently.

Brennan looked at her and sighed. "I thought about what you said, that relationships are about compromise, and I knew how much it meant to him." She firmed her lips. "I decided it was petty to withhold that happiness from him, when he makes me so happy. Sometimes I forget for long stretches, like when I'm working, but then it hits me all over again and I'm amazed that he loves me." Her tears filled with tears suddenly. "He loves me, as stubborn as I am, as unlovable as I can be sometimes. And beyond all reason, beyond all logic, I suddenly knew, deep down—he'd never leave me."

Angela gave her a mock stern look. "Took you long enough to realize it," she teased. "I've known for a long time. He's a forever kinda guy, heart and soul."

Brennan swiped at the tears that had fallen. "After that, my reasons just didn't seem that important any more."

Angela grinned. "Damn straight! So, when's the wedding? Do we have time to do it up right?" she asked. Brennan rolled her eyes.

"You and Booth, I swear! He wanted a church wedding with all the traditional trimmings, but I told him I draw the line at the church. So he wants to get married in his parent's home."

Angela clasped her hands, trying to contain her excitement. "That sounds great. You haven't said when."

"Four weeks. Is that enough time?" Not that she really cared about all the little stuff Angela was going to insist were essential to the success of the wedding, but she didn't want to disappoint her friend.

Angela frowned. "It's gonna be tight, but it's doable. Leave it to me, I'll make sure it's perfect. First thing we have to do is find your dress."

"Shouldn't we wait? We don't know how big I'm going to be by then—"

"Don't worry about that, I have a particular style in mind that will be great no matter how big you get. How about we knock off a little early and go looking today?"

Brennan sighed. "I don't know, Ange, we still haven't finished examining that murder victim—" she began.

Angela wasn't going to stand for any excuses. "C'mon, Bren, there's no time to lose. We have a wedding to plan in just four weeks." She hopped off the desk and almost skipped to the door. She turned, the grin back full on. "This is gonna be fun!"

Brennan smiled and shook her head. What had she gotten herself into?

BBBBBBBBB

To Brennan's relief, they finally found the right dress in the fourth shop they visited. She'd lost count of the number of dresses they'd looked at, though this was only the third she'd actually tried on. Angela seemed to have a very clear idea of what she was looking for, and Brennan let her guide her. She didn't really care what the dress looked like—she trusted her friend's judgment—she just wanted to get it over with. Angela made a last adjustment and stood back, grinning like an idiot.

The dress was ecru and had an empire waist. The underskirt was a straight satin sheath and the overskirt was made of exquisitely wrought lace that fell softly to her feet. The bodice had a straight neckline with spaghetti straps overlaid with a lace jacket with delicate cap sleeves and a standup collar that accentuated her slender neck.

Angela sighed happily. "It's perfect," she declared.

Brennan fingered the lace and turned to gaze at her reflection. She had to admit, it was really lovely. And the empire waist would hide her condition. Not that she was ashamed of it, but she preferred not to accentuate it either. She smiled at Angela's reflection.

"Yes, it is. I love it."

Angela turned to the saleslady who was hovering nearby. "We'll take it."