AN: SO sorry for the delay. Finally have power back after over 21 inches of snow! Here is the next installment. Hope you enjoy it!

Joints

"Booth?" Temperance groaned as she walked through the apartment door on a Friday evening.

Booth looked up from his position on the couch. He had left work earlier than she had to spend the afternoon with Parker. The current caseload was light and he decided he would rather spend time with his son and bring some paperwork home to do over the weekend then spend the beautiful summer day inside the Hoover.

Unfortunately for Booth, Parker was a ball of energy who didn't want to waste a minute of what was left of the good weather. From the minute Booth had picked him up Parker had a list of things he wanted to do. They started with basketball in the park. Booth loved shooting around with his son, however, Parker was growing up and was a much better match on the court. Booth didn't want to admit that he was almost 40 and that his son could beat him so he may have done more than his bad back and poorly healed feet could handle.

Next up was rollerblading. Although it was better on the back, it did nothing for his feet. Then Frisbee where a diving catch really wrenched his back. And that only took them up until three in the afternoon. Booth was looking forward to the new baby. It would be a distraction for Parker and most importantly, it would give him another ten years to be 'Dad: the unbeatable superhero'.

Putting aside his own aches and pains he sat up as Bones entered their apartment.

"Hey. What's wrong?" He could tell by just the way she said his name but looking up and seeing his bedraggled girlfriend, he knew she had a rough afternoon. He watched as she trudged to the bedroom and sprawled out on the bed, not even bothering to take off her shoes.

"It hurts."

"What hurts?"

"Everything. My lumbar spine is not handling the additional weight well. And the same for my feet – the talus, cuboid – just everything."

At this point Booth had finally made it to the bed and lay down beside her. "I'm sorry." Booth rolled over to face her and took the hot pack he had with him, passing it to Brennan. "Here, I'll share."

"Thank you," she said as she rolled over so that her back was to Booth. He placed the heat pack along her back and cuddled up behind her. They didn't often curl up like this together and Booth loved the chance to wrap himself around her. When they slept, especially now that Brennan's pregnancy was more pronounced, they tended to stay on their own side of the bed. At the office and in the field they tried to keep a professional distance from one another even though everyone was well aware of their new relationship status. Life was so busy that they rarely had a chance to just be together like this, be intimate without having sex.

As they both lay there, soaking up the comfort from the other person, they drifted off to sleep.

About an hour later Brennan rolled over to face Booth. He had woken up a few minutes before her and greeted her with a smile. "Hi."

"Hello. Thanks for sharing the heating pad," she answered back with a smirk.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes. I may take a hot bath though, try to relax my muscles."

"Mind if I join you?" Booth asked with a kiss to her lips.

"If I remember correctly, there is more than enough room for two adults in that tub of yours. Although we may have to leave the comic books and beer hats behind." Brennan got off the bed and headed for the bathroom to start the tub.

"Hey, I will not apologize for the comic books and beer hat. But if you were in the tub with me, I may be distracted enough to leave them behind." Booth joined her in the bathroom and started undressing.

As she settled into the warm bath waters and leaned against Booth, Brennan let out a long moan. "I love this bathtub."

"Do you want me to leave you alone with it?" Booth asked sarcastically.

"Why would I want to be alone? I just said that you should join me? Do you want to get out?"

"No, Bones, it's just a saying.

"Oh. You know, I used to have some pretty vivid dreams about you and this tub."

"Oh yeah?" he said with a smile.

"Yes ok course. Seeing you in this tub…"

"You mean seeing me out of the tub. I distinctly remember you taking a peek."

"Booth, I am an anthropologist and a grown woman, you were not the first naked man I had ever seen."

"Let's not talk about other naked men in your life while we are sharing a tub."

"You have nothing to worry about, Booth. You are quite the male specimen."

"Thanks, Bones."

"Anyway, a large bathtub has to go on the list for the realtor."

"That list is getting long."

"I think that providing him with a comprehensive list will greatly speed up the process of finding a suitable home. We only have 22 weeks in which to find a home, purchase it, and move in. After I finished up the reports this afternoon I talked to the realtor and to the accountant. Trying to speed up the process. I just want it to all get done and be over with."

"Shhh. Just relax. Everything will work out. Even if we have to live here for a month or so after the baby is born, we will make it work. Let's just enjoy the bathtub while we still have it."

With a nod, Temperance rested her head against his shoulder and let the stress of house hunting and being pregnant melt away. If all else failed, she would just pay for the tub to be moved to the new house.