"I love you, Bones." He whispered sincerely. He wasn't sure if it was the liquor or his words, but before he could take a breath, she had pressed her lips to his, her hands moving up to rest on his face as he tightened his grip on her and kissed her back.

She moved her hands to the back of his head, entwining her fingers in his hair that she knew would soon be cut even shorter as she dug her nails gently into his scalp, listening to the soft, tender moan from his lips as his hands gently kneaded her back. As his hands slipped back and forth over the light fabric of her shirt, he could feel the soft flesh beneath warming to his touch, taste the scotch on her tongue as it traveled languidly through his mouth, exploring its depths.

"Mm… Bones?" He whispered, groaning when her hands moved down, dancing at the hem of his shirt, she slipped her hands over his hot flesh and raked her nails over his skin, feeling the chill run through his body as her fingertips pressed into his skin. "Oh, God… Bones… we have to stop." He whimpered, holding her tightly so she wouldn't get the wrong impression.

"We don't have to stop." She whispered, lifting his shirt, she shifted slightly, resting her head on his bare chest, she turned her head and kissed his skin softly, running a finger over his nipple as she kissed his chest again and again. "We are two consenting adults…and we obviously have feelings for one another." She said, pulling her fingernails across his abdomen, she felt him squirm.

"Bo-ones!" He almost literally squeaked her name out as his hips pushed up involuntarily. "We have to stop. Bones, please?" He whispered, panting. He felt her stop, his skin cold from lack of contact suddenly, and it was as if the room was filled with a sudden burst of cold air, as she pulled his shirt down and pushed against his chest in an attempt to get up. "No." He said indignantly.

"Let me get up." She said stubbornly, her face scrunched in a scowl of frustration as he held her tightly. "Booth, let me get up!" She exclaimed.

"No." He said stubbornly. "You're not getting up until you talk to me about this."

"There is nothing to talk about." She snapped, her cold, blue eyes slamming into his soft brown eyes full force, a fierce fire engulfing them. "I attempted to initiate a physical connection, and you declined. I accept it, and now I want to get up!" She snapped, pushing against him harder.

"Bones, you're not going to run away!"

"I'm not running away!" She screamed in his face, punching his chest with her fist, his hold on her loosened as she gave one final push from him and rolled quickly from the couch, surprised when she caught herself and stood quickly, a rush of dizziness came over her as she held her head and stumbled. She noticed he stood after her, and immediately she put her hand out to stop him. "Don't!" She exclaimed, her voice was dead serious, and he stopped his forward motion. "Do not attempt to stop me."

"Bones, you're drunk." He whispered.

"So are you." She growled, staring angrily at him.

"You're not driving drunk."

"I'll take a cab, thank you." She said, turning sharply as she started to walk across the apartment, the sting of tears in her eyes as she looked for her coat.

"Bones, don't go." He said, walking after her as she paraded around his apartment. "Bones, please? Please, Bones!" He exclaimed, finally grabbing her arm tenderly, she whirled around and pushed forward, her chest slamming into his as she glared coldly up into his eyes.

"This wouldn't work anyway." She growled. "You're going to Afghanistan, I'm going to Maluku. If we started something now, we'd be apart for a year. It wouldn't last, there's no point in starting something that will be over in a little under two weeks. The only thing it'll bring us, is pain." She managed to growl, his hand still on her arm, their eyes launching a fierce battle of control.

"I want to make love to you." He whispered simply, sincerely, his whole heart lay before her, and the fire in her eyes was lessening as she fought to keep her composure. "I want to make love to you every day until we're apart. I want to touch you, and kiss every inch of your body so that I can memorize it… so that when I am alone at night, I have that… I have you. I need you to love me, Bones. I need to feel you, hear you, touch you, taste you, smell your skin."

"Then why…?"

"Don't leave." He whispered. "Please?"

"Booth." She whispered. "I don't… understand."

"You will…" He swallowed. "Just… come to bed with me." He whispered, giving her arm an encouraging tug. "I stopped us because…I don't want there to be any clouds."

"I don't know what that means."

"Scotch, Bones. I don't want our first time to be dulled by the taste, and smells of liquor. I want to be intoxicated by you, and only you." He whispered, feeling her arm pull from his hand, he thought he had lost the fight. He watched a movie play out in her eyes, those crystal blue sparkling orbs dancing over his features, his chest, the sincerity in his stance. She was reading him just then, reading his emotions, his truth. He had once told her that Sweets was like a human lie detector test, but she was most definitely the only person that could read him, she could decode him like a spy with a code book, unlock his heart with nothing more than a simple smile or laugh. She had him wrapped around her little finger, and when her mouth opened just a bit, he held on just a little tighter.

"You want me to stay?" The question was whispered so quietly, that he thought he had imagined it.

"Please stay."

"But no… sex?"

"No." He shook his head. "I don't want there to be any question of regret."

"I never regret my decisions. Even with the cloud of alcohol, which you refer to… I always know what I want, and I never do what I don't want to do, ever."

"I know that, Bones."

"I'm stubborn."

"Oh, I know that, Bones." He said, a hint of a smile on his lips.

"And sometimes… I over react."

"I know."

"Because I have never known anyone who even comes close to loving me the way that you do, and it scares me."

"Don't be afraid." He whispered. "Trust me."

"I trust you." She whispered.

"Then stay with me tonight. Stay with me every night until we part ways… stay with me, Bones."

"Seeley Booth, are you begging me?" She whispered, his first name slipping from her lips easily as she allowed the corner of her lips lift just slightly.

"Would you think less of me?"

"Never."

"Then I'm begging you. Stay."

Stay, stay right where you are…one false move, and it could all be over. The light above her was fading, and there was still silence above her. There was still the fear that all was lost, and she knew that the earthquake that shattered the world around her was massive. She scolded herself. She had agreed on one more month, and she only had one more day. One more day and she would be going home with him, one more day and that day was almost over and she wasn't with him. She had insisted on completing this task. She had insisted on going into the dig site before she left for the airport, and now where was she?

Buried alive. Alone, with nothing more than her bag and its contents, and the dust and dirt that had settled around her. It was the first time in her life that she regretted her decision, the first time that she knew that he had been right. She should have never come back. She should have gone home with him, she should have stayed.

The morning sun filtered into the small, unfamiliar apartment, and when he opened his eyes, he knew that the rest had been dreamless and perfect, and the person in his arms was the testament to that fact. She lay curled into him, her hands clutching his shirt, her breathing a bit ragged, though he was sure it was just another effect of her painful experience with the fever that had ravaged her body. He was sure she was asleep until he felt her fingers kneading the fabric of his shirt, and a tiny whimper escape her lips.

"Baby." He whispered, his voice low and soft.

"Did I wake you up?" She whispered.

"No."

"I missed you." She said, pressing her nose into his chest for a moment, she rested her ear on his chest.

"I missed you." He replied, holding her securely against him as his arm snaked around her and he held her close. "Are you listening to my heart again?" He whispered.

"Yes."

"Its still there." He teased, feeling her move against him, he knew she had some kind of witty retort for him, and she was holding it back. "What?"

"I know why it sounds differently."

"Why?"

"Because… when I lie my head on your chest… my own heart rate rises… I can hear my pulse in my ears, so when I press my cheek against your chest…"

"You hear both of our hearts."

"Beating together." She whispered. "Always together." She said, pressing her head against his chest again, she felt content, happy, and so very warm as the world around her melted into nothing but him, and their heartbeats. "I love you." She whispered, as they drifted back into a dreamless sleep, together.