A/N: Disclaimer Repeat - I do not own any part of Bones. This is just for fun. ;) This was written a while ago. Some of the dialogue might give you a clue as to around what time period.

Apparition – a ghost or unexpected appearance

The esteemed forensic anthropologist and best-selling author, Dr. Temperance Brennan sat at her desk in the quiet Medico Legal lab at the Jeffersonian. She was busily typing up a report when the musical ring of her cell phone shattered the silence of her office. "Brennan," she answered, then smiled when she heard the voice of her partner. She ended the call just seconds later, still smiling, after agreeing to meet him at the diner for dinner.

She shut down her computer and prepared to leave when a soft voice said, "He must be very special to you, Tempe."

Brennan's head snapped around in search of the vaguely familiar voice. She found its source nestled in the corner of her couch. She stared, shocked, confused, and more than a little frightened. "This is not possible," she managed to choke out of her closed throat.

The woman smiled. "And yet we converse." She patted the cushion next to her. "Come sit with me, Tempe. You know I'm not here to hurt you." She tucked a long strand of auburn hair behind her ear and sent Brennan a pleading look with her clear pale blue eyes. "Temperance, please."

Brennan stepped hesitantly toward the woman who must be a figment of her imagination. Maybe I have a tumor like Booth's. That could be the only possible explanation. Brennan perched herself at the other end of the couch and stared cautiously at the apparition of her mother. "You can't be here," she told her.

Christine smiled lovingly at her daughter. "Let's not worry about that right now. I'm here to help you, Sweetheart."

"Help me? I don't understand. Help me with what, exactly?"

Christine shook her head. "Not yet, Tempe. I want to talk about the man on the phone. Tell me about him."

"Booth? You want to talk about Booth?" Brennan smiled. Now was her one chance to talk to her mother about how she felt about love, marriage, family, and Booth. "What do you want to know?"

"Oh, the usual." Christine's smile grew wider and she cocked her head to the side. "You know, what he's like, if he treats you well, how long you've been in love with him, and what you're going to do about it?" Brennan's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Well?," her mother questioned.

"Should I start with the first question?" Christine nodded. Brennan sighed. "Booth is… Booth is fiercely overprotective. He can sometimes lean toward overbearing with his alpha male tendencies." A small laugh escaped her. "He's incredibly sweet and thoughtful. He's a wonderful, caring father. Booth is…wonderful."

"Does he treat you well?," Christine asked.

"Booth treats everyone well." She laughed again. "Well, everyone except suspects." She looked down at her hands clasped together in her lap. "Booth treats me better than anyone's ever treated me. He would never consider treating me any other way."

"Good. You deserve the very best, Tempe. And it sounds like you've found it. Now, how long have you been in love with him, and what do you plan to do about it?"

Brennan heaved a big sigh and leaned back. "Sometimes I feel that a part of me has loved him forever. But I think I realized how much I loved him and that I was in love with him when he stepped in front of the bullet meant for me. As for what I'm planning to do… Nothing. I can't do anything. He only feels love for me in a professional, atta-girl kind of way. He told me so himself. So, you see, I can't tell him. It would hurt too much when he told me he doesn't feel the same."

Christine reached out and touched her daughter's shoulder. "Would you live like this for the rest of your life? Wanting him, aching for him, loving him, but not being with him the way you want?"

Brennan shook her head. "At least this way I get to be with him, even if it isn't the way I want. This is better than not having him at all," she reasoned.

"Bull. It's not better. It's torture. Any sane person can see he's just as in love with you as you are with him. You have to tell him, Temperance. Tell Booth that you love him." With those words, Christine rose from the couch to stand before her daughter. She bent to kiss Brennan's hair and faded into nothingness.

"Bones? Bones, wake up." Brennan opened her eyes to see her partner smiling down at her. "Hey, sleepyhead. You ready to go home?"

Brennan sat up and made room for Booth on the couch. He sat down next to her and she smiled. Her mother wasn't here; it must have been a dream. "I thought I was meeting you at the diner."

Booth gave a small shake of his head. "No, but we can go grab a bite if you want. Angela called and said you were ready to go home. And because I drove you to work this morning, I came to drive you home." He leaned over to bump his shoulder to hers. "Come on, Bones. If you want to go to the diner, I'll let you buy me some pie."

"Tell him, Temperance," her mother's voice sounded in her head. Booth stood and walked over to get her coat. "Booth," she called to him. He stopped and turned to face her. "I have to tell you something."

"Okay," he walked back over to her. "Shoot, Bones."

Brennan smiled. "You know I dislike when you tell me that." He gave her a crooked smile, and she swore if she weren't already sitting down, she would have fallen. She sighed, wiped her suddenly clammy hands on her thighs, and gulped down the lump of apprehension blocking her throat. She let out a nervous laugh. "You should probably sit down."

Booth dropped to the couch beside her and covered her clenched hands with his. "You're starting to worry me, Bones. Is something wrong?" His dark chocolate eyes questioned her.

"Whether the information I have to tell you is good or bad, is a matter of opinion." She turned to face him and held his hands to hers where he'd covered them before. "Booth, for some time now, I've… Booth, I…" She should just tell him and be done with it. Do it fast, like ripping off a band aid. "I love you. In fact I'm in love with you, and I have been for quite some time."

Booth stared at her, thinking he must have heard her wrong. "What?" She looked up to meet his eyes, and he saw the uncertainty clouding the pale blue pools. "Bones, do you know how long I've been waiting to hear you say that to me?" She shook her head. "When I woke up from my coma, I was absolutely sure of two things. That my name was Seeley Booth and that I was in love with you." His fingers rubbed circles on her wrist. "I thought those feelings would fade, I was told they would. But they didn't. They only grew stronger. And I grew more sure of those feelings with every passing day." He smiled at her, giving her the smile he saved just for her. "I know now that I loved you before my surgery. That I must have loved you for a very long time. Because I can't remember when I didn't love you."

"Do you mean that, Booth?"

"Have I ever lied to you, Bones?"

"No, I don't think so." A smile broke out on her face. "You really love me?," she asked before she leaned in and kissed him.