Chapter 9

Friday

9:31 PM

Taking her by the hand, Booth crossed the thick grass and walked towards the large structure. As they reached the white, marble steps, Brennan saw the yellow caution tape that was wrapped around the entire building. Tourists passed by. Some stopped, grumbling about the tape keeping them from their destination. Others just kept walking. Brennan looked around, confused. She had never seen the monument closed before.

"Booth, what are we…"

Booth picked up the caution tape as if he belonged there. He held the tape up for Brennan to go underneath. She didn't move.

"Are we at a crime scene?" Brennan asked. She looked down at the high heels she was wearing. They definitely were not good shoes to be wearing at a crime scene. She wondered why Booth hadn't just told her that they were working.

Booth laughed. "No, Bones. This isn't a crime scene."

"Then what are we doing here?"

"We are having date night."

Brennan still felt perplexed. She wondered if she was misunderstanding something. She did not like surprises. She always liked to be in control.

"Are we supposed to be here?"

"Yes. Now, are we going to stand here all day or are you going to go under the tape?"

Brennan looked around one last time before she ducked under the tape. Booth immediately was at her side. He held her hand as they began their ascent up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. As they walked together slowly, Booth playfully bumped her hip with his.

"Hey!" Brennan exclaimed, nearly stumbling. "Heels, Booth. I'm in heels."

"And they look damn good, too." Brennan rolled her eyes. Booth brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. "Don't worry, I'll catch you if you fall."

"You better."

They continued walking up the fifty-eight steps. When they reached the top, Brennan barely saw the impressive statue of the sixteenth president. She was too busy concentrating on something else; something that wasn't usually in the middle of the Lincoln Memorial. All Brennan could see was the intricate table set up in front of the statue. It was a small table, covered in a deep red, linen table cloth. It was set with gold-rimmed china and matching candlestick holders with glowing white candles in the middle of the table. A wine bottle sat chilling on ice. Two chairs were on either side of the table.

Brennan looked over at Booth. Booth hadn't been looking at the table or the statue of Abraham Lincoln or anything else but her. He hadn't stopped staring at her. He wanted to see her reaction to the setup and he wasn't disappointed. He saw the sparkle in her eye as she took it all in and the awe on her face. All of his nervousness disappeared. Step one was complete. She was impressed.

"Booth…I…" She didn't know what to say.

"You like it?" Booth asked, putting his arm around her waist.

"This is...this is beautiful."

"You're beautiful." He saw a tear leak from the corner of her eye. Booth immediately kissed the tear away. "I didn't mean to make you cry."

"No...I…I'm not crying."

He brushed another tear away.

"Could have fooled me."

"I'm not crying because I feel sad. I…they're good tears. Very good tears."

"I like good tears."

"But how…" Brennan felt speechless. It was rare that she was at a loss for words, but she didn't know what to say. No one had ever done anything like that before for her. "How did you do all of this?"

He shrugged. "I know a guy who does security at some of the monuments. He owed me a favor."

"You got him to shut down the Lincoln Memorial just for us?"

"It was a very big favor. And, if anyone asks, they had to close the memorial for routine maintenance."

Booth chuckled, making Brennan giggle.

"This is amazing. Thank you."

He kissed her on the top of the head. "You're welcome."

She turned to face him and reached for his lapels. She pulled him towards her and kissed him.

"Thank you," she repeated against his lips. "But, you didn't have to do this. A dinner at a nice restaurant would have sufficed."

"Not tonight. Tonight's special. Tonight's about me and you and this place. This place that brought us together." Another tear rolled down her cheek. Booth brushed it away with the pad of his thumb. "I made you cry again."

"Good tears," she reminded him. She wasn't usually a crier, but she was overcome with emotion. She knew without a doubt that she loved him and he loved her and it felt more right than anything ever had before.

Booth put his hand at her lower back. "Shall we?" They walked over to the table. Booth pulled out one of the chairs and Brennan sat. He helped push her closer to the table before making his way to sit across from her.

"I hope you're hungry," he said. He reached beside him into a wicker basket. He pulled out a silver, covered tray. "Because we have enough food to feed an army."

"That probably isn't quite accurate. I imagine it would take quite a bit more food to feed an entire army."

Booth pulled the cover off the tray, revealing a pile of steamed dumplings. Brennan smiled. "Thai?" She asked.

"I knew it was your favorite."

"From Thai Palace?"

"Would we get Thai from anywhere else?"

This time Brennan laughed out loud. There they were in an exclusive, gorgeous location dressed exquisitely eating Thai food. It was perfect.

"I love you," she said.

Booth leaned over the table to kiss her. "I love you too."

Booth put the dumplings in the middle of the table between the two candlesticks. He reached into the basket again and pulled out a silver tray of pad Thai. Three more trays were brought onto the table before Booth pulled the bottle of wine out of the ice bucket. He poured Brennan's glass first and then some into his own glass. He held his glass up, obviously making a toast.

"To date night," he said.

"To date night," she repeated, clinking her glass against his. They each took a sip.

"Well, dig in," Booth said.

They each scooped food onto their plates and began to eat. They fell into their usual rhythm. They talked about work and the house and the usual things. They argued over who would eat the last dumpling. They reminisced about the past and otherwise just enjoyed each other's presence. They spent over an hour just eating their meal. As Brennan finished off her last bit of pad Thai, Booth quickly downed the rest of his wine. He was trying to give himself liquid courage to ask her what he knew he needed to ask her. With dinner over, he knew it was his time. Booth stood up and walked over to her so that he was standing next to her.

"Booth, what are you..."

"Dance with me," he stated. It wasn't exactly a question. And it certainly wasn't the question he was going to ask, but it was a start. He wanted to feel her in his arms.

"What?"

"Would you dance with me?"

"But there's no music."

"We don't need music."

He held out his hand. She took the napkin off her lap and put her hand in his. He helped her to her feet. He led her away from the table and put his right arm around her waist. She put her hand on his back and let him wrap his fingers through her left hand.

"You are so beautiful."

"You said that already."

"Well, some things bear repeating, especially when they're true."

He pulled her close to him and they began to sway. It wasn't as much a dance as it was them clinging to each other and moving rhythmically back and forth. But Booth was right, they didn't need music. They just needed each other. Brennan nuzzled against his neck, leaving her head leaning on his chest. His left hand traveled down her arm and snaked around her. She looped her arms around his neck. They were barely moving. Booth could feel her sigh. He knew she was happy. He knew it was time.

"Bones?"

"Mmm?" She answered almost sleepily.

"Do you love me?"

She looked up at him.

"You know I love you."

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course I trust you. Why are you asking me this?" She looked confused. Booth took both of her hands in his.

"I love you, Bones."

"I know that. You're...you're scaring me Booth. I..."

"Just let me get this out," he stated. He took a deep breath. "I love you. I didn't even know what true love was until I met you. And I know that you don't believe that love is forever. You don't believe that humans can be monogamous and you think that marriage is unnecessary and I know that you're afraid of what might happen in the future, but, I'm not, Bones." He took another breath, trying to slow down his words. "I believe that when you find that person…that one person who makes your life complete, that one person you can't live without…that love can be forever. And you're it for me, Bones. You're the one who makes my life complete. You're the one I can't live without. You're the one I want to spend forever with."

Brennan opened her mouth to speak, but she was silenced when Booth let go of her right hand and got down on one knee.

"I love you, Bones. All I'm asking is for you to trust me. Trust me that this will work. Trust me that this is forever. You've always trusted me with your life, now trust me with your heart." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a black jewelry box. He opened it and revealed a round, solitaire diamond. "Would you marry me?"

Brennan gasped. She stared at the ring. Her mind was swimming. Booth was right, she didn't believe in marriage. She thought two people couldn't really commit themselves to each other for the rest of their lives because no one could predict the future. No one could say for sure that two people could still be in love years after they agreed to spend the rest of their lives together.

But then her mind cleared. She stopped thinking about what she had always believed to be true and started thinking about what she knew to be true. She loved Booth. And, although she couldn't predict the future, she trusted him. She trusted him enough to know that they would love each other for the rest of their lives.

"Yes," she said, finally looking at him.

"Yes?"

"Yes, I'll marry you."

Booth stood up. He looked into her eyes, trying to see if there was any doubt behind them. There was none. He crashed his lips against hers and kissed her hard. She slipped her arms around his neck as lifted her by her waist. He swept her off her feet and twirled her around. It was cliché, but he couldn't help it. He was so ecstatic, he couldn't hide it. She had said yes.

"Say it again," he said.

"What?"

"Say yes again."

"Yes," she repeated.

He put her back down on her feet. "We're going to get married," he said out loud as if he couldn't believe it.

"Yes we are."

"You and me, husband and wife. I never thought I'd be able to say that." He looked deep into her eyes. "You're not scared?"

"I have to admit, I am a little…scared," she admitted.

"Bones…"

"You got your say now let me have mine," she interrupted. Booth took a deep breath. He reminded himself that whatever she had to say, he could take it. "I never believed that I could love someone forever. I still don't know what the future will hold. Nobody can know that. And it scares me to think that everyone I have ever loved has left me."

"I'll…"

She put her finger against his lips, silencing him. "I know you won't leave me. I know that now. I trust you. I trust that you won't leave me. I trust you with my life. I trust you with my heart. I'm not going to run, Booth. I promise you that."

"Can I speak now?" Booth asked, sensing she was done. She nodded, giving him permission. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

"And I'll never leave you."

"I know." Booth leaned down and kissed her again. "Booth?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I have the ring now?"

Booth hadn't realized he was still holding it. He took the ring out of the box and slipped it on Brennan's finger. It fit perfectly. Brennan held her hand out, admiring the ring.

"What do you think?" He asked. The ring was the one thing he was most unsure about. It was difficult pegging Brennan's style. He wasn't sure if he should go with traditional or something different. In the end, with Angela's help, he went with traditional. He just couldn't help it. He loved tradition.

"It's beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you. I can't believe we're going to get married."

"I don't think it is that unbelievable. It is something that the majority of adults do especially if they are in a committed relationship as we have been."

"Yeah, but this is us. Could you honestly say when we first met that you thought we would get married?"

"Of course not. Nobody can predict the future."

"I love you so much." He kissed her. "Are you ready for dessert?"

Brennan's eyes lit up. "Dessert? What is it?"

Booth made his way over to the table. He took one last tray out of the basket. He took the cover off and showed her the dozen chocolate dipped strawberries inside.

"My favorite," Brennan said.

"Your favorite. I told you this night would be perfect."

Brennan put her hands on his chest. "You know what would make it more perfect?"

"What's that?"

"Taking our dessert to go."

She raised her eyebrows and he got her meaning. "I like the way you think."

Author's Note: So, I know everyone was really looking forward to this chapter and I hope it didn't disappoint. Thank you for reading!