Well, here it is, the final chapter :(

TWO YEARS LATER

Walking down the sidewalk, Booth stopped in front of the floral shop that started it all. He stepped closer to the door and reached for the handle, his movements lacking the hesitation they had a couple years ago. Pulling the door open, he walked into the shop, the little bell announcing his entrance.

The door leading into the back swung open and a petite, redheaded woman in a dirt-smudged apron walked into the main part of the store. "Can I help you with anything, sir?"

His back was to her as he checked out the floral arrangements on display. He turned at the sound of her voice, instantly recognizing it, even though it had been a couple years since he last heard it.

Marcy blinked and took off her glasses. After blowing on the lenses and wiping them clean with her shirt, she slipped her glasses back on. "I think I need a new prescription because there's no way I'm seeing things correctly."

He smiled at her, one that oozed charm, and walked up to the counter. "I'm back and need some flowers, Marcy."

"Well, you came to the right place. What kind?"

"Daisies and daffodils."

"Ah, I was hoping you'd say that." She paused. "You're not still trying to convince yourself you're not in love with your friend, are you?"

He shook his head. "No, I love her more than anything, and guess what?"

She raised an eyebrow. "I'm stumped. What?"

"She loves me too." He laughed.

"So what's the occasion?" she asked, going behind the counter and picking up a piece of ribbon that was lying on the counter. She looped it around the vase containing red and pink roses and began tying it into a bow. When he didn't answer, she looked over at him and winked. With the bow tied, she stepped back to admire her work and then disappeared into the back.

While she was gone, he took another look around. He stuffed his hands into his jeans' pockets and shuffled his feet, trying to keep his mind off tonight. His heart was already racing and his palms were starting to sweat.

"Josie's beginning your order now." She paused and waved a small white card in the air. She set it down and placed a pen on top of it, sliding both to the opposite edge of the counter, closer to where he was standing.

He padded over to the register and picked up the pen. He stared at the blank white card, much like he did the first time; however now, he knew exactly what he wanted to write, he just needed to work up the nerve to actually write it.

"How long have you been together?"

"Today's our two-year anniversary." He let out a breath and hunched over, shielding the card from Marcy as he penned his message.

"Congratulations. Two years, wow."

He slipped the card in the provided envelope and tucked the flap inside.

"I'll go see if your arrangement is ready." She walked into the back and returned, hugging a vase of daisies and daffodils.

He smiled, watching Marcy tie a bow around the vase and slip the card inside the bouquet; they were beautiful.

"Would you like these delivered?"

He nodded. "Yes, to the Jeffersonian."

"Temperance Brennan, right?"

He nodded. "You've got a good memory."

"Eh, business is slow, not many names to remember." She laughed. "And I've kept the address right here in this book just in case you came back." She paused. "Because I like you and you're a returning customer, I'll give you these for 50% off."

"Thanks." Once he paid, he put his credit card away and stuffed his wallet back into his pocket. "Bye, Marcy." He waved and headed for the door.

"I hope to see you again soon. Let me know if she says yes."

He looked at her over his shoulder and flashed her another smile before he left the shop.

Brennan was hunched over a table in one of the bone rooms, doing a last minute examination of their latest victim. They solved the case yesterday afternoon, but she was just double-checking everything for the report. She had been staring at a groove on the distal end of the victim's left femur for nearly twenty-five minutes. She didn't want to admit she was distracted, but she was. She was having a difficult time focusing on anything other than her dinner plans with Booth later that evening. He would be there soon to pick her up and she was a bit apprehensive about seeing him.

Booth had been acting strangely for a week now, but when she confronted him about it, he just said it was nothing, that he was fine, that they were fine, and then quickly changed the subject. She wasn't normally any good at reading people, but this was Booth. She had always been able to tell when something was wrong and now that they were living together and had been for the past eight months, it was getting much easier.

He was keeping something from her, that she was sure of; she just didn't know what that something was. She was trying not to jump to any conclusions, but she was worried. Sighing, she turned her focus back to the laid out skeleton.

She was just setting down the bone when she heard a knock on the doorframe. "Just give me a minute, Booth."

"Uh, Dr. Brennan?"

She looked up to see Todd, the security guard, standing just outside the room with a vase of daisies and daffodils in his arms. "Oh, Todd, hello." She pulled off her gloves expertly and tossed them in the bio-hazard bin before walking over to him and reaching for the flowers. She smiled, burying her face in the petals, inhaling the sweet mixture of scents. "Thank you." She set the vase on a nearby table and plucked the card from its clip. She removed it from the envelope and opened it. She glanced down, reading the text to herself, Will you marry me? –Jasper. She blinked and looked up, nearly jumping back when she saw Booth standing there. "Booth," she gasped.

Booth stepped closer to her and took the envelope from her, setting it down beside the vase. He reached for her hands and smiled, swallowing hard. "Bones, this whole thing started because I wanted to make you feel better, because I wanted you to know that someone cared about you and I tried so hard to convince myself I wasn't in love with you. We were partners and friends and I knew how you felt about monogamy and relationships in general. I was too afraid to make the first move because I was scared you'd turn me down. I wouldn't have been able to handle that; it would've hurt too much."

"Booth," she interrupted.

"Please, just let me say this."

She nodded.

"I love you and I'm so glad I stopped lying to myself because the last two years have been amazing, Bones. Nothing's really changed. We kiss now, hold hands, and make love, but our relationship isn't much different than it was. We still bicker, annoy the crap out of each other, and you're still the person I want to tell everything to, even the bad stuff. We're still partners and best friends, but we're so much more now and I never want to go back. I love going to sleep and waking up next to you. I just love being around you; it doesn't even matter what we're doing. I love that we can talk to each other about anything and everything, that we do, and I just can't imagine my life without you."

She cleared her throat and blinked, feeling tears welling up in her eyes.

"I've thought about this for a while and I kept telling myself not to do it because I know how you feel about marriage, but I—I want to marry you, Bones. I want to spend the rest of my life with you by my side." He gave her hands a squeeze before letting go and reaching into his jacket pocket. He pulled out a small box and cracked it open.

She gasped; she knew that ring.

"I'm not going to get down on one knee and you don't have to wear it, but—."

"How? Where?"

"Your dad gave it to me."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Before you yell at me, I didn't ask for your hand in marriage, Bones. I know you'd kick my ass if I did that. I didn't go to your dad to ask permission to marry you, okay? I just thought he'd like to know what I was going to do before I did it. He gave me the ring, said it was your mother's, and that he knew she'd want you to have it. Even if you say no, it's still yours."

She took it from the box and held it with her fingertips, staring at it.

"Bones?"

She swiped her hand against her cheek and met his gaze through blurry vision. "I—."

"Will you marry me? Will you be my wife?"

She looked at the ring again, a few more tears making their way down her face. She swallowed the lump in her throat and curled her right hand around the ring.

He thought his heart was going to jump out of his chest. "Say something, Bones, anything, c'mon, I'm dying here."

She remained silent for another few seconds before she looked at him and smiled. "Yes."

His eyes widened. "Yes?" he asked, his voice catching.

She nodded. "Yes."

He stepped more into her personal space and wrapped his arms around her, still clutching the now empty ring box. He dipped his chin and closed his eyes when his lips first lightly grazed hers.

She slipped her arms around his torso and tilted her head just a little to the side. She parted her lips and deepened the kiss. A moan escaped from deep in her throat and she shifted her hips.

Desperately needing to breathe, he broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers, his nose nudging hers. "Say it."

"Say what?"

"Say you'll marry me."

"I already did."

He shook his head. "No, say the words."

She furrowed her brows and pulled away, his arms still around her waist. "Why?"

"Please? I just want to hear you say it."

She sighed, but indulged him anyway. "Fine." She smiled. "Yes, Booth, I will marry you." Before she had a chance to react, his lips came crashing down on hers. "Why did saying it make a difference?"

"It just did," he murmured. "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered, her breath brushing against his lips as they continued to kiss.

He groaned, pulling her flush against him. "We have to get going. We have reservations at—." He trailed off when she started kissing down his neck. "Bones."

She sighed, but continued to kiss him, making her way back to his mouth. "Five more minutes." She tugged on his lapels, pulling him closer.

He was just too damn happy to protest and as five minutes turned into ten, then twenty, then sixty, he couldn't make himself care about their dinner reservations.

They stopped kissing briefly to make the trek to her office and soon collapsed on the couch, resuming what they had been doing for the past hour, this time with a little less clothing.

THE END!

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