When they made it home from the diner, Antonia was sleeping soundly in her car seat, and Temperance wasn't far behind. Her head bobbed lightly against the head rest and she turned her eyes to Booth as she smiled sleepily at him. "Hey." He said softly, watching her tip her head forward, her hand moving to her mouth as she yawned into it.
"Hey." She said sleepily. "Why am I so tired?" She said, sighing as she turned her head, looking out the window for a moment as she reached her hand down and unbuckled the seatbelt, her gaze moved to Booth, who leaned over and dropped a kiss on her nose.
Booth said nothing as he ran his finger across her temple and kissed her lips tenderly. "I love you." He whispered. "Why don't you go ahead, get into the apartment… get ready for bed, and I'll get sleeping beauty and carry her upstairs and tuck her in."
"I don't know if I want to go to bed just yet." She said, watching him tip his head in concern. She gave him a sweet smile and shook her head. "I just mean… because I had that nap earlier, and if I go to bed now, I may not sleep through the night. It's only a little after eight." She yawned again, and Booth smiled at her as she climbed from the car. "I think I'll just get a nice big glass of wine and sit on the couch with a book or something." She said as she closed the door and started walking toward the stairs.
Booth watched after her for a moment, surprised by her last words, he quickly climbed from his seat and opened the back door, carefully unfastening the sleeping little girl, he pulled her into his arms watching to ensure she didn't hit her head as he tucked her on his shoulder, closed the door and hurried toward the apartment, the car locking behind him as he pressed the keyless entry button. He hurried as he climbed the steps of the apartment, surprised that he ended up right behind Temperance as she stepped into the apartment slowly. "What's the hurry?" She asked as he moved past her, and smiled.
"Go get changed…settle on the couch, and I'll settle Toni into bed, and then join you… I'll get the drinks." He said as she gave him a confused look. "What? I can't do something nice for you?" He asked with a playful grin. She leaned up and kissed his cheek, taking a lazy deep breath against his skin. He turned toward Antonia's bedroom and she turned toward her bedroom.
She walked into her room and slowly shed her clothing, feeling the dull aches in her muscles and the sleepiness that she had been fighting all day long, her mind was drifting back to the case. She pulled a pair of sweatpants from her drawer, pulling them on quickly as she opened the bottom drawer and pulled out one of the t-shirts that he had slipped past her guard and kept in her bedroom, even though the move in wasn't official. She tugged it over her head and walked into the bathroom to wash her face, listening to the low sound of Booth's voice in the next room, she closed her eyes and smiled a little. It was as if he had always been there, and she'd smile a little brighter knowing that he had.
It had been a little over three months that he had been back, but sometimes she just found herself reveling in the fact that he was alive, closing her eyes and simply appreciating his presence. She never told him that she would do it, though sometimes when he was talking, he'd catch her with that faraway look on her face, dropping a kiss on her cheek, he'd rouse her from the daydream, and her cheeks would instantly burn with embarrassment, and he'd tease her for a moment or two before continuing his conversation.
There were just little things about him, that she'd find herself thinking about, and when she looked back up from washing her face, she found that she was smiling, the sound of Antonia's voice sleepy and soft joining that of Booth's in the bedroom. She wiped the water from her face, and turned from the bathroom, slowly making her way to the bedside table where she grabbed the book she was currently reading and trailed slowly through the bedroom to the door. She walked out into the living room and made her way to the couch, tumbling herself onto its cushions, she just cracked the book when he appeared around the corner of the hallway.
"Snug as a bug in a rug." He said, watching her brow furrow as he smiled. "It's a saying, Bones." He said, watching the confusion clear, he could see that she wanted to ask, but he continued toward the kitchen. "I'll be right back with our drinks." He said with a smile.
When he walked back into the living room, he wasn't carrying two glasses of wine, however, but two mugs of steaming tea, and she opened her mouth to protest. "The wine didn't smell right." He said as she gave him an unconvinced look.
"I just opened that bottle a day or two ago." She said, watching his eyebrows rise as he handed her the tea.
"Tea is better for before bed… its herbal, so no caffeine, and it has a nice minty scent, take care of that bad breath." He teased.
"I do not have halitosis, Booth." She said, taking the tea, she sighed as she brought it to her lips and let the warmth of the steam warm her face.
"Whatever you say, Bones." He said with a smile, as he settled on the couch, grabbing his own book from the table beside the couch, he tugged the blanket from the back of the couch, and covered their feet as he settled across from her, watching a soft smile tugging at her lips as he caught her gaze for a moment, before they both returned back to their reading.
Temperance thought that she would be the first to fall asleep over her book as they lie comfortably on the couch, but sure enough, Booth was the first to drift off, his head against the back of the couch, his book crushed against his chest with his finger lingering on the last page read. She watched him for a few minutes, his eyes fluttering in an obvious dream, and couldn't help but wonder how often he had nightmares, for his sleep patterns since he had returned were very odd, and she often wondered what woke him from his short slumbers.
She pulled her legs from the couch slowly, careful not to wake him as she stood and lifted the two mugs from the table in front of her. She let her eyes remain on Booth for a moment as she passed him, his breathing regulated and slow as she walked to the kitchen and placed the mugs in the sink. She was rinsing them out when she heard the slapping of two tiny feet against the tile floor.
Temperance turned around and was greeted with a tiny pouty face. "Mama?" Antonia whispered.
"What are you doing up?" She asked tenderly, she watched the little girl rub her eye with her fist. "Did you have a bad dream?" She asked, wiping her hands off with the hand towel, she placed it next to the sink and reached down to lift the nodding girl into her arms, her head was instantly tucked onto her shoulder. "What was it about?" She whispered to the little girl. "Do you remember?"
"No." She whispered into her mother's neck as she carried her into her bedroom and settled on the rocking chair across from her daughter's bed, cradling the little girl in her arms.
"You don't remember?" She asked again, watching the little girl shake her head. "It's okay…" She whispered. "Bad dreams come and go… but we just remember that they're just a dream… right?" Temperance asked, watching the little girl nod sleepily against her mother, her eyes drooping sleepily. "Mommy used to have bad dreams all of the time… and sometimes she still does… dreams… they're just a manifestation of our fears, our worries, our thoughts and desires. So when we have a bad one, it's just our silly minds playing tricks on us."
"Sneaky bad dreams." Antonia mumbled sleepily as Temperance rocked her, leaning down to kiss her forehead.
"That's right… sneaky bad dreams." Temperance whispered, rocking the little girl back and forth.
"Mama, will you sing my lullaby?"
"Of course I can sing you your lullaby… did I ever tell you who taught me that lullaby?" She asked, watching the little girl's eyes meet hers. "Your daddy taught me that lullaby… he was putting his little boy to bed, and I could hear his voice, whispering through the hallway."
"Parker." Antonia whispered.
"Yep… Parker."
"Parker is a nice boy." Antonia replied.
"He is… and I think… that he'll make a great big brother…" She said, giving her little girl a bit of a tickle, she buried her face in her mother's chest and giggled slightly, letting the little girl settle in her arms, Temperance began to hum a familiar tune. After a few moments, her hum turned into the words of the lullaby, slipping across the nighttime air peacefully as she rocked in the rocking chair. It didn't take long before the little girl was asleep, and Temperance could feel her own eyelids becoming heavy. She was starting to fall asleep when she felt a pair of strong hands pulling the bundle from her arms, and she nearly moved to hold her tighter, when she heard Booth's voice calming her worries, her eyes opened to see him lifting the little girl to her bed, tucking her in gently, he kissed her forehead. "I could have done that." Temperance whispered.
"You could have… but I'm selfish… so I wanted to do it." He teased her, watching a smile lift on her lips. "You're next… want me to carry you to our bed?" He asked, holding his hand out to her, she gave him a wry smile.
"Only if you want to lose a tooth." She teased, putting her hand in his, he pulled her up from the rocking chair and directly into his arms.
"I think it's worth the risk, honestly." He whispered, kissing the top of her head, holding her close. "Let's get you to your room…"
"Our room." She whispered, stepping forward with his arms still around her, she playfully led him from their daughter's bedroom and toward their bedroom, and sweet dreams.
