Hey, guys, sorry for the delay. I was lucky enough to have to get a cast for my wrist and it is somewhat difficult to type with that restriction. Please let me know what you think of the chapter.
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Booth followed Brennan into the conference room and pulled out one of the two remaining chairs for her, slipping into the one beside her. What he had to tell these people was bad enough, he had no desire to be standing at the head of the table being stared at while he did it. Slipping one hand under the table, he gripped Brennan's hand and glanced around to find everyone's excited eyes riveted on them. But even vibrating with excitement the squints were still squints, quietly, patiently, respectfully waiting for an explanation. He truly hated to burst their bubble but, unfortunately, he didn't have a choice.
"What I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this room," Booth said, his eyes moving from squint to squint to let them know how serious he was about this. Booth almost laughed when they collectively leaned forward and several opened their mouths to ask questions but managed to restrain their avid curiosity, in typical squint fashion. Except for the single non squint in the room.
"So spill already," ordered Angela, "and just so you know, I don't do camping so I'm going to require more adequate accommodations than tents," she threw in impishly, batting her eyes at him, feeling unaccountably cheerful since at least attempting a full confession of her sins to the partners. Everyone in the room laughed and a lot of the tension evaporated, even from Booth and Brennan.
"Yeah, Ange, I'll get right on that," Booth tossed back, giving Brennan's hand one last squeeze then releasing it and turning his attention to the briefing. "Three years ago, a group from a private summer camp in Virginia was taken on an overnight camping trip by two of the counselors. When they didn't return the next day, an extensive search was organized and every inch of the mountains around the camp were searched but they never even found a trace of their campsite, much less any sign of the kids or the counselors."
"How many kids?" Hodgins asked quietly, in the overpowering silence of the room.
"Five," whispered Brennan. "Five," she repeated after clearing her throat.
"Somebody found them and they're dead," Angela guessed in a whisper but everyone in the room knew they wouldn't have been called in if the kids were alive.
"Yes," Booth said bluntly.
"We don't know that, Booth," Brennan interrupted, her need to be precise overruling her need to get this over with.
"You're right, Bones," he allowed, meeting her eyes with a soft smile. "What we do know," he continued, turning back to the ominously quiet squints, "is that 3 days ago, a man was arrested for illegal hunting and a human skull was found in his possession. The local coroner already had dental records on the missing people from the camp and identified the skull as belonging to one of the counselors."
"That's awful and deeply disturbing in a Deliverance kind of way," conceded Hodgins, "but how do we know this counselor didn't fall off a cliff or something?"
"The gunshot to the back of the head was a good clue," Booth told Hodgins sarcastically, then scrubbed a hand over his face. "Sorry," he offered and Hodgins nodded, knowing how much Booth hated cases involving kids. "When the hunter led the authorities back to where he found the skull, they started to dig and uncovered what appears to be a mass grave."
Everyone looked at Brennan expecting her to vocally object to her crime scene being compromised but she had gotten that rant out of her system in a stunned Hacker's office. Booth had strutted out of the office behind her sure that Hacker would never make another advance on Brennan now because she had scared the crap out of him with her tantrum and Booth couldn't really blame the guy for his reaction. Dr. Temperence Brennan in a royal snit was something to behold. Brennan simply blinked back at everyone and Booth went on. "This mass grave happens to be on federal land so that automatically makes it our case."
"Why all the secrecy?" asked Wendell.
"Because the media will be all over this as soon as it gets out," Sweets supplied. "The FBI and the local authorities don't want a repeat of the circus from three years ago until we're sure what we're dealing with."
"He's right," seconded Booth, "people will be crawling all over that mountain so I need you people to get in, do your thing and get out." Brennan saw the confusion on some of the interns' faces and knew they needed to hear this in their terms.
"We will be taking the mobile lab, exhuming the remains and attempting identification on site. In essence, we are taking the lab to Virginia. That's why all of you are necessary," Brennan supplied and Booth noted how the interns relaxed and nodded at having their roles so specifically identified. "I'm not sure of the accommodations," she said with a glance at Angela, "but I am certain that considering the reason we'll be there, we'll make due." Angela knew Brennan had meant the comment to be factual, not insulting but, in light of why they were going on this trip, she was a little ashamed of her concern for her own comfort. "I will reiterate Booth's request that you don't discuss this case with anyone outside this room, not even the other people in the lab." Brennan didn't threaten but, then again, she didn't have to, these people had the utmost respect for her and the interns were in awe of her. Booth knew they wouldn't betray their mentor. With a nod in Booth's direction, Brennan indicated that she was finished.
"Okay, we don't have any idea how long this will take but we need everyone to go home, pack a bag and meet back here in three hours, at 5:00PM," he specified, checking his watch. Holding up his hand to stall the questions coming his way, he motioned toward Cam. "Bones and I have to go but Cam has details on what you need to pack and we'll see everyone back here at 5," he said hurriedly, pulling back Brennan's chair and shooting Cam an apologetic look for throwing her to the wolves. Rolling her eyes, Cam waved them off and turned to field the questions being shot at her.
"Okay, people," she said loudly, holding up her hand for quiet, "we don't have a lot of time to finish getting everything together but we have a long drive ahead of us, so you're going to have to hold your questions until then. My understanding is that the terrain is pretty rough and we will be doing some hiking, so please pack comfortable clothing and shoes. Now, I need everyone to go give Clark a list of what they're working on here and get going. Oh, and be sure to take a jacket, the nights get cold in the mountains," she called after the departing interns, feeling very much like a den mother about to take her scout troop on a field trip.
"Yes, Mom," giggled Angela and Cam turned with a wry grin of her own to face the three people left in the room. Biting her lip, she internally debated whether to mention that Angela, Sweets and Hodgins needed to shelve their plotting for the moment. She really, really didn't want to have that conversation but she couldn't have the three of them continuing with their pranks while they were on a case. She honestly thought they were all professional enough for that not to happen but she just couldn't take that chance.
"Funny," she acknowledged Angela's comment. "I need you three to behave yourselves and lay off Booth and Brennan while we work the case," she said in her sternest I am the boss voice, noting the insulted looks on all three faces with some amusement.
"We would never compromise a case for personal reasons, Cam," Sweets objected. Hodgins and Angela nodded their vehement agreement.
"Besides, they know all about what we were trying to do so we don't have a choice but to give it up," Angela piped in honestly.
"What, exactly, do they know?" gasped Cam, her eyes widening in panic that her secret had been revealed to Booth. The other three exchanged a surprised look, not realizing until that second that they weren't entirely sure what the pair knew. Daisy hadn't been that specific.
"Um, I guess we don't know exactly what they know other than that we're trying to get them together," Hodgins admitted, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
"And that they're going to try and convince us that they're involved so we'll back off," Angela chirped helpfully.
"What?" asked Cam, her brow furrowed in confusion. "That doesn't sound like them at all. I would think they would just confront us and tell us to back off."
"I would normally agree with you, Cam," Sweets spoke up, "but I think they want to teach us a lesson in the process of discouraging us and such a diabolically simple plan has Booth written all over it," he surmised. Cam didn't necessarily agree but she wasn't going to argue the point, she had too much else to do.
"Yeah and you guys should be prepared because they've already started," Angela warned. "They saw me following them into Brennan's office and got all snuggly and they were good, too."
"Ah, so they've decided to use visual aids instead of just making an announcement," Hodgins nodded approvingly. "Simple but effective. Smart but I wouldn't expect anything less from Dr. B."
"How do you know they were pretending, Angela?" asked Cam. She listened with wide eyes as Angela patiently recounted their encounter with Daisy earlier that day, surprised that Daisy would rat out her heroine. But she hadn't been there and she trusted the other three to be able to tell if the excitable Ms. Wick had been lying.
"Are we going to pretend to believe them?" Hodgins asked, his voice rife with amusement.
"Not me," Cam said instantly, "I'm still out of this thing," she added.
"Me either," snorted Angela.
"I don't think confronting them about it right now is a good idea. None of us need the added stress," Sweets agreed thoughtfully. "I would have to say that until this case is over with simply ignoring any overt acts to convince us they're a couple would be best." He didn't add that he would be keeping a close eye on the partners, extremely interested in just how far Booth and Brennan would go to convince them they were a couple now.
"I'm good with that," Hodgins concurred. "Should we say something to the interns so they don't say anything to Booth and Brennan?"
"Oh, please," laughed Angela. "The interns are terrified of Brennan and Booth has a gun. Trust me, Hodgie, they aren't going to comment on anything those two do." The other three pondered that comment for a long, silent moment and finally had to agree that Angela was most likely correct.
"Now that the important stuff is decided," Cam said wryly, "we have a job to do so let's move it, people." Nodding, they filed out of the room, all four feeling traces of lingering amusement at the thought of how surprised Booth and Brennan were going to be when no one even noticed they were pretending to be a couple. That could certainly prove to be worth a few laughs and with a case this awful looming before them, they could use all of those they could get.
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"Booth, I really think it might be best if you meet Jared and I go back to the Jeffersonian and help Cam organize everything for this trip," Brennan said a little fretfully 20 minutes later. It wasn't that Brennan was afraid of facing Jared after Booth had broken the news about them. But she couldn't help being a little nervous that Jared's enthusiasm for the relationship might have waned a bit since last night and Brennan had no desire to face the stress that would induce on top of the demanding case they were currently facing. Oh, who was she kidding? The simple truth was that she hadn't been entirely comfortable in Jared's company since that disaster brought on by their date and she would just as soon avoid him. But that wasn't possible any longer and she was going to have to get used to that.
"Let Cam do her job, Bones." Booth ran a soothing hand down her back and pushed open the door to the Founding Fathers, scanning the interior for his brother. Spotting him and Padme seated at a table in the back, Booth raised a hand in greeting then turned to Brennan. "Jared is happy for us, Baby," he said, smoothing a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "And even if he isn't, it's none of his business. I love you and you love me and that's all that matters here." Taking her hand, he gave her such a beautiful smile that her heart melted in her chest. "Okay?"
"Okay," she nodded, not even aware of the brilliant smile that spread across her face. Taking a deep breath, she allowed him to lead her across the room to join Jared and Padme who had their heads close together.
"Would you look at that?" Jared whistled through his teeth, his eyes locked on his tough FBI agent of a brother so gently smoothing the hair back from his partner's face. Jared had known that Seeley cared about Brennan, even back when his sense of competitiveness had kicked in and he had made a play for her himself. Stupid, but then he had done a lot of stupid things back then. He'd made the mistake of not realizing how deeply his brother already loved the anthropologist and he still felt guilty for the damage he had done. In fact, before he had met Padme, he'd had no idea how deeply he could feel for someone other than his family and he had just assumed Seeley felt the same way. But looking at his brother and Brennan now, he suddenly knew that he still had no idea exactly how much his brother loved the woman he was smiling at so tenderly and he would be truly lucky if he ever experienced that depth of emotion.
"I think it's sweet," Padme interrupted Jared's musings and Jared turned his head to smile at her in much the same way Booth had just smiled at Brennan.
"My brother isn't sweet," he argued, attempting to explain how he was feeling, "he's a badass former sniper who puts away sick freaks for a living."
"He's in love, Jared," Padme said softly, leaning closer and taking his hand.
"Yeah, I can see that," Jared conceded with a grin. Gnawing his lower lip, he suddenly wondered if saying something about the psycho stalker ex would be the best thing to do at the moment. "Maybe we shouldn't say anything about his ex coming around his apartment."
"Why?" Padme asked, genuinely puzzled. She and Jared had talked about it and decided that if Booth and Brennan had trouble headed their way, they deserved a heads up. Looking at them now, Jared wondered if his brother would see it that way or if he would simply think Jared was trying to come between them again.
"You know what our childhood was like, baby, and I guess I just never considered that either one of us could open up to anyone, not enough to ever be like that," he reiterated, pointing at Booth and Brennan. Padme regarded him thoughtfully, not getting what he was trying to tell her.
"And?" she queried.
"And I almost messed that up," Jared confessed the one thing he had never told her because of his guilt and shame over what he had done. Oh, at the time he had felt neither because he had generally been too wasted to care about much of anything. That wasn't entirely true, he admitted to himself, he had known that his brother had the hots for the good doctor and something dark deep inside him had reared its ugly head. He had seen something that he liked but, more importantly, something he could snatch from his brother's grasp and he had gone for it, regardless of who got hurt in the process because he had known it wouldn't be him.
Since he had gotten sober, he had come to understand that he'd had a lot of anger built up inside him. Anger at his father, his childhood and even his brother, as stupid as that sounded considering Seeley had spent most of his life protecting his little brother. But things were on their way to being good, really good, with Seeley now. For the first time ever, they were equals, adult brothers who had come to terms with their past and were now reaching out to each other and Jared was suddenly uneasy about throwing a wrench into that, even with the truth.
Padme patiently waited for Jared to expound but he didn't and she still didn't understand. Looking toward the door, she saw that Booth and Brennan had stopped at the bar, presumably, to order a drink but they didn't have a lot of time.
"How did you almost mess that up?" Padme needed him to cut to the chase here.
"I tried to date Temperence," he confessed as it was one of the seven deadly sins but Padme was still confused. Dr. Brennan was a beautiful woman and Jared trying to date her didn't sound all that bad.
"Jared, I'm sorry but I'm just not getting whatever it is you're trying to tell me and we don't have a lot of time," she pointed to where Booth was impatiently tapping the bar, obviously in a hurry for the arrival of their drinks.
"Okay, then," Jared took a deep breath and focused his full attention on his fiancé, knowing this was the worst thing he would ever have to tell her about himself. "I knew how Seeley felt about her or at least I suspected and I didn't care. No," he stopped himself, determined to be completely honest with her, "it wasn't anywhere near that innocent. I liked the package," he admitted, dropping his eyes, "but deep down I was jealous." Jared flinched as he said the words aloud for the first time.
"Jared, everyone gets jealous of what their siblings have sometimes. It's nothing to be ashamed of," Padme reassured him softly, linking their fingers and smiling at him softly.
"Sometimes you give me way too much credit," he said, returning her smile. "But the truth is that I saw how much he cared about her and I was afraid that if he loved her like that, he wouldn't love me as much, wouldn't be there to bail me out when I needed it. I was selfish and cruel and I simply didn't care who got hurt as long as it wasn't me and, until I met you, there was no chance of that because I didn't care enough about anyone else for them to have the power to hurt me."
Padme saw the worry in his eyes that what he had just told her would lessen him in her eyes somehow and her heart melted. That wasn't going to happen, she loved him too much to let juvenile behavior in the past affect their relationship and she thought she might just be able to make him feel a little better about what he had done. "Jared, that's not true," she scolded softly. "Don't you see that you loved your brother maybe a little too much?" Jared's brow furrowed but Padme could see that he was listening. "Jared, you thought of him as your father. It was only natural that you would be jealous of anyone else in his life, anyone who might take some of his attention away from you. But you know that wouldn't happen. You're the one who told me that your brother had always had your back and always would and you have to know that won't ever change. He'll always love you, Jared, and we should be glad that he's found someone who can make him happy," she finished softly, gazing into his eyes and seeing how much he wanted to believe her.
"Thank you," he said softly, reaching out to stroke her cheek.
"You're welcome but I only told you the truth," she grinned, "and I won't say anything about the psycho stalker if you don't want me to, but you should think about it. They should know they could have trouble headed their way." Jared nodded to indicate he was considering her words, not really sure what his decision would be.
"What trouble?" Booth asked.
"What psycho stalker?" Brennan asked simultaneously. Padme's and Jared's heads jerked around and their mouths dropped open as they realized the choice had been taken from them.
"What trouble, Jared?" Booth repeated, pulling out a chair for Brennan then seating himself and taking a long sip of the coffee in his hand.
"I'm guessing it has to do with the psycho stalker, Booth," Brennan said helpfully.
"Yeah, baby, I'm guessing you're right," Booth smiled at her and took her hand, linking their fingers, really liking the freedom to touch her in public as much as he wanted. Jared and Padme looked at each other and snickered, thinking Brennan had made a joke. Looking back at Brennan's bland face and Booth's raised brow, they saw they were wrong.
"All righty then," Jared drawled, "so what's up, Seeley?"
"That's what I'm wondering, Jared," Booth returned. "I'm waiting to hear about the psycho stalker," he clarified just in case Jared didn't know what he was talking about.
"Some chick showed up at your apartment this morning and mistook Padme for your girlfriend. It wasn't pretty," Jared shrugged and Padme winced at his bluntness. Despite his earlier sharing of his feelings, Mr. Sensitivity he wasn't.
"Who was it?" Booth asked, after sharing a puzzled look with Brennan, having no idea who would have done something like that.
"No idea," Jared returned. "We just assumed that it was one of your exes."
"Doubtful," murmured Booth, "I haven't been involved with anyone in a long time, Jared." Turning to Padme, he asked, "What did she look like?"
"Tall, slender, dark, wavy hair, brown eyes, bad attitude," Padme supplied concisely. Booth and Brennan shared a baffled look, that description didn't fit any of his exes. "And she kept calling me sweetie," Padme added as an afterthought.
Booth and Brennan blinked at each other, that little clue telling them exactly who the psycho stalker was. "Angela," they breathed together.
"Whew," Jared whistled, just managing to keep his mouth shut but the half admiring, half condemning gaze on his face told Booth exactly what he was thinking.
"I didn't sleep with Angela, Jared," Booth snapped, holding Jared's eyes. He didn't like the implication and wanted his brother to understand how wrong he was.
"Okay, okay, I believe you," Jared held his hands up in supplication. "But why would she go all Fatal Attraction on Padme if she wasn't jealous?" Jared asked, genuinely curious.
"It's complicated," Booth said, surprised to find himself more exasperated than angry at Angela's antics. Yes, he was upset that Padme had been the recipient of her snit fit but he couldn't help but feel that it wouldn't have happened if he and Brennan had just come clean with the squints and that went a long way in quelling his anger.
"I don't know what that means," Brennan whispered, leaning toward Booth and placing her hand on his shoulder. Booth turned his head to smile at her and just like that, they might as well have been alone in the room. Jared rolled his eyes but Padme lightly slapped his arm and gave him an admonishing look. She thought it was adorable.
"It's a movie," he leaned closer to whisper back, his finger reaching up to stroke down her neck in the process. "I'll explain later," he said, getting even closer to nuzzle her cheek with his nose.
"Ahem," Jared loudly cleared his throat. "Ouch," he squealed an instant later when Padme's foot bounced off of his shin.
"Padme, I don't know what to say except that I'm really sorry that you got pulled into this mess," Booth offered sincerely, pulling away from Brennan with a regretful sigh.
"Me, too," said Brennan softly, utterly shocked at Angela's actions. She had known that Angela was determined to get her and Booth together but, even for Angela, actively attacking Booth's "girlfriend" was carrying things too far. She also felt a niggling of guilt that it wouldn't have happened if they hadn't all been playing games with each other. "What, exactly, did she do?" she questioned, not sure she really wanted to know.
Brennan listened in wide eyed astonishment as Padme recounted her meeting with the psycho stalker from Hell as she so fondly called it almost word for word.
Booth winced at the juicier parts. "I'm going to kill her," he growled, his exasperation being speedily replaced by anger.
"Why would she do something like that?" asked Brennan, even more confused now that she had heard the mean, hurtful things Angela had said. That didn't sound like her best friend at all.
"I have no idea how Angela's mind works," Booth responded. "I doubt that anyone does but she, no doubt, did it to break me and my pretend girlfriend up so she could get us together," he hypothesized to Brennan, forgetting they had an audience.
"I concur," she nodded after a moment's consideration. "But it was ill conceived of her to think we wouldn't eventually discover her subterfuge." Padme and Jared's fascinated gazes went from Booth to Brennan trying to follow the conversation.
"True," conceded Booth, "but this is Angela we're talking about here. I doubt that she considered long term implications before she acted." Brennan mulled that over and nodded her agreement.
"Oh, God, she's turned him into one of them," Jared moaned, dropping his head into his cupped hands.
"One of whom, Jared?" Brennan asked in a voice dripping with icy disdain. She had heard Booth whine about her and the other squints turning Parker into one of them in just that tone of horrified outrage enough to know exactly what Jared meant and she was offended. As she had so often told Booth in the past, there was absolutely nothing wrong with being a scientist. It was an honorable, rewarding profession and she was proud to be a part of that world. Plus, she had gotten pretty good at messing with people, if she did say so herself, and Jared needed an attitude adjustment.
"Umm, what?" Jared's head snapped up at Brennan's tone and he eyed her warily, swallowing hard. Padme's eyes widened, too. Brennan looked pissed and she didn't imagine that would be pretty for her fiancé.
"Don't scare the boy, Bones," Booth chided, using the phrase she often used on him regarding Sweets.
"Fine." She shot him a disgruntled you never let me have any fun look. He winked at her and his eyes warmed, promising to let her have all the fun she could handle later and she was appeased. In fact, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the erotic promises his were making.
"Ahem," Jared cleared his throat again, shooting Padme a smug look that he'd had the foresight to turn sideways in his chair so she couldn't kick him again. She reached out and pinched his arm just so he didn't get too cocky. "Yeah, hi, remember us?" Jared grinned at Booth and Brennan as they finally tore their attention away from each other and looked at him.
"Smartass," Booth grumbled into his coffee but he was smiling.
"I concur," Brennan smiled into her own coffee and Padme burst out laughing. She was growing more and more certain that she was going to enjoy having these two as in-laws immensely.
"Funny," Jared mock scowled at them all but his eyes were twinkling and he was thrilled to see his big brother acting like a teenager in love. He was even more thrilled to see Brennan acting the same way. Those two were solid. "Care to explain why Angela thinks you have a girlfriend other than Temperence?" he asked, his casual tone of voice belying his burning curiosity.
"Not really," replied Booth instantly, squirming a little at how juvenile it would sound if he tried to explain the whole thing to Jared who would, undoubtedly, laugh his ass off.
"That's cool," Jared conceded. It wasn't but you couldn't push Seeley into telling you something. He did everything in his own good time. "So, what did you want to talk to me about that couldn't wait until dinner?" he asked, checking his watch and seeing it was almost 3:30.
"Jared, I'm really sorry, but Bones and I have a case out of town. We won't be able to make dinner. In fact, we have to get going soon so we can pack and get back to the Jeffersonian before 5." Booth met Jared's eyes levelly, hoping that his little brother could see that he was genuinely regretful. He had been looking forward to getting caught up with the stable man that was replacing the lost, selfish, self destructive little boy Jared had been for so long. He had also been looking forward to getting to know Padme better, knowing that her presence in Jared's life was responsible for at least some of the positive changes he could see.
"Bummer." Jared was surprised at how disappointed he was to hear that he wouldn't really get to spend any time with his brother while they were in town. "We could stay through the weekend if you'll be back by then," he offered and Padme nodded her agreement, fully supporting Jared's attempt to connect with Booth.
"We would really love that, Jared, but we'll be out of town at least several days. There's no way we'll be done by the weekend," he looked at Brennan for verification.
"I have no way of knowing for sure, of course, but considering the facts I was given, I'm estimating we'll need a minimum of 4 to 6 days to excavate the remains without risking the destruction of any evidence," she confirmed with a nod, not bothering to go into how a multitude of factors could influence that estimate.
Padme patted Jared's arm at his disappointed expression, offering him silent comfort and support. She knew that he was frustrated but she also knew that he and Seeley would have time to work on their relationship later and she could see that they were both trying. It might take a while for them to get where they both wanted them to be but they would eventually get there.
Jared took comfort from Padme's presence and knew that his brother didn't need a guilt trip from him for simply being one of the things Jared most admired about him, a man who took his responsibilities to others seriously. Once upon a time, he wouldn't have hesitated to express his discontentment and lay it on thick but he wasn't that person anymore. "I'm disappointed but I understand," Jared conceded quietly and Booth could see the truth of that statement on his face. His little brother was finally growing up.
"I'm disappointed, too, Jared," Booth assured him truthfully, "but this is what we do." He gestured between him and Brennan. "I can't just blow that off, not even for you." The old Jared would have been insulted, taking offense at the implication he would expect Seeley to choose him over his job. Hell, the old Jared would have expected him to do just that.
"It's fine, Seeley," Jared grinned, a little uncomfortable with how deep this conversation was getting. "In fact, you guys better get going if you don't want to be late."
"You're right," Booth agreed, glancing at his watch and hastily finishing his coffee. "You're welcome to use my place and stay as long as you like but we really do need to get going." He stood and pulled out Brennan's chair. Brennan smiled up at him then turned to Padme.
"Booth and I would like for you to have dinner on us even though we can't be there. I've made arrangements at CityZen and you have reservations at 7:30 so please go and enjoy yourselves," she told Padme, unaware of the stunned look on Jared's face or the pride on Booth's.
"Thank you, Dr. Brennan," smiled Padme graciously, "we would be delighted to accept your generous offer." Brennan nodded and stood, turning to Booth.
"What's wrong?" she asked at the look on his face.
"Nothing's wrong, Baby," he said softly, brushing the hair back from her face. "You just continue to surprise me every single day." Without taking his eyes from Brennan's face, he waved at Jared and Padme and turned his partner toward the door, his arm sliding around her shoulders. "It was really sweet of you to make them reservations at one of the most romantic, most expensive places in the city."
"I thought it might make up for the fact that they wouldn't get to spend any time with you while they're in town," Brennan returned practically, not even realizing that six months ago she wouldn't have worried about making anything up to Jared and his fiancé.
"Thank you for going to so much trouble." Booth smiled down at Brennan as they pushed through the bar door.
"It wasn't," she began then caught herself, "you're welcome," she smiled back at him. She had been working on how to simply accept a compliment or thanks without a discussion or protest, something that had been a real issue for her in the past.
He grinned and squeezed her shoulders. "You know," he mused, opening the door of the SUV for her to get in, "I'm really sad about that too." Brennan slid into her seat and looked up into big, brown, puppy dog eyes sparkling with mischief and darkening with the heat of desire as they roamed over her.
Brennan blinked up at him innocently and bit back a smile. "Are you suggesting that I should attempt to make you feel better, as well?" she queried flirtatiously.
"Mmm hmm," he murmured, leaning closer, his finger softly tracing over her collarbone.
"So you want me to make you a reservation at an expensive restaurant?" she teased.
"Not exactly," he demurred, his finger sliding toward her cleavage. "I had something besides food in mind."
"Like what?" She batted her lashes at him and he couldn't resist leaning down and rubbing his nose against hers but he knew better than to kiss her right here on the street in broad daylight. They didn't have time to get arrested for public indecency and that might be a concern if he kissed her like he wanted to.
"Oh, I have a few ideas," he whispered into her ear then nipped the lobe, his hands clenching with the need to touch her as she moaned and leaned toward him. "I'll tell you all about them when we get to your place," he promised with a quick kiss to her neck, making himself pull away and shut the door before he embarrassed them both. Hurrying around the SUV, he hoped she could pack fast because he was going to need every second of the time before they left to demonstrate a couple of those ideas.
