The December wind was chilly as Booth and Brennan left the Hoover and strolled down the sidewalk to the diner. The street that ran in front of the restaurant boasted holiday banners hanging from the lamp posts, and the store windows were brightly decorated with lights and tinsel, enticing passersby to window shop as they walked along.

Pausing in front of a bookstore, Booth smiled as he pointed at the seasonal display showcased in the front window. "I bet your new book is on everybody's Christmas list this year. I know I asked Pops to get it for me."

"Really?" Brennan glanced at Booth, amazed at his statement. "You want one of my books as a Christmas gift?"

"Yeah, of course I do. You know I always read your books when they come out." Booth shrugged as he turned away from the window. "I love'em…"

"I knew you read them, but to ask to receive one of my books as a gift…" She smiled shyly as she considered his words. "...it strikes me as quite an honor, that's all."

"Well...it's my honor to be friends with such a renowned author, you know?" He grinned as he nudged her with his elbow. "It's kinda cold to be standing around out here. How about that coffee?"

Drawing her coat closer against the sharp breeze, she nodded in agreement. "That sounds good."

The diner's doorbell rang merrily as they stepped inside. Pointing to a table, Booth put his hand in the small of Brennan's back to guide her along the way.

She looked up at him with a stunned expression. "Booth?"

Pulling his hand back quickly as if he'd been burned, he cringed in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Bones...force of habit, I guess…"

"Oh…it's not a problem, Booth." Seeing his chagrin, she quickly apologized. "I'm sorry...your hand...on my back...um...that's not what I was talking about." Blushing slightly, she pointed to a coat on the back of one of the chairs. "I think this table is already occupied…"

"Right." Pinching his lips together, he led her to another table. "Here we go…"

After seating themselves, they both slipped out of their coats and gave their order to the server. After thanking her, Booth cleared his throat and stared out of one of the diner's picture windows. "So…"

"So…how was your trip to Philadelphia this past weekend?" Brennan paused as the waitress brought their coffee and some cinnamon rolls. "I thought you weren't going to be back in DC until this afternoon."

"It was great. Me and Parker had a great time." Booth stirred some sugar into his coffee as he continued. "And yeah, the original plan was to come back to DC later today, but I changed my mind since the weather looks iffy. We took the late train last night, and then I took Parker to school this morning."

"I see." That explains why my gift delivery plan wasn't completely successful… "How is Pops?"

"He's fine, other than being disappointed about not seeing you." Trying to smile, Booth stared into his mug. "For some reason he thought you were coming with us."

"Maybe some other time." Brennan ran her fingers around the rim of her cup. "I'd like to see him again."

"Well, he's coming to town in a couple of weeks to see the school play that Parker's gonna be in." Smiling proudly, Booth laughed. "Parker's gonna be Blitzen, the reindeer." Hesitating slightly, he cut a section from his roll. "Um...maybe you could come watch him perform, if you want...I mean, it's just a little kids' play, but I know he'd be thrilled. I think he misses you, Bones."

"I'd love to come, Booth. Will you text me the details?" Brennan finished her coffee and picked up her purse. "I need to get back to work…"

"Oh no, you don't." Booth took her hand with a teasing grin. "You can't leave yet. You never did tell me why you were at the Hoover this morning."

"Yes, I did...I said I had to drop off something at the mailroom." Averting her gaze from his dimpled smile, she sat down on the edge of her chair. "It was nothing, really."

"But you said it wasn't anything for a case, so…"

"That's the truth." Feeling slightly annoyed at his questions, Brennan pulled her hand away. "Why is it your business anyway? Can't I conduct my own affairs without your approval?"

"Bones…," Booth whined softly. "What was it?" He pouted a little bit before continuing. "Why are you keeping secrets from me? We're partners, right? We're supposed to tell each other things. Please don't shut me out…"

Sighing softly, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine. It was Parker's Christmas gifts."

"His Christmas gifts? Why not just bring them up to my office?" Booth sat back in his chair, watching as Brennan chewed her lip. Her silence implied the answer, and he groaned quietly. "Oh, I get it. You didn't want to talk to me. You wanted to get in and out of the Hoover without seeing me, right?"

She vehemently denied his allegations. "No, that's not it at all, Booth. It's just that I knew you'd be busy, and I didn't want to interrupt you with something so trivial."

"Too busy to talk to you? I don't think so. C'mon, Bones...you should know better than that. I'd never be too busy for you, no matter how trivial the reason. You could drop in to talk just because you were bored, and I'd be fine with that, okay?." Pushing his plate away, he sighed softly. "You were trying to avoid me."

"Booth…" Brennan puffed out a sad sigh. "...I'm sorry if my actions this morning appear that way to you...as if I was avoiding you. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. It's just that this…" She gestured towards him and then herself. "...this situation between us is so confusing, and I find it difficult to know how to handle things appropriately. I assume we're still friends, but…"

Booth took her hand again. "Of course we're still friends, Bones. No matter what, we'll always be friends." He pursed his lips slightly, pausing before continuing. "And yeah, I get that things between us are confusing for you. They are for me, too. But I don't think things are gonna get better if we keep avoiding each other, okay? We need to talk to each other...you know, so we can figure things out."

Trying to smile, Brennan relaxed a bit. "I suppose that's true. After all, I don't want our work relationship to suffer…"

Work relationship? That's not what I was thinking about, Bones…

Booth cleared his throat nervously. "True. We do need to think about that, too, so I tell you what...let's me and you go out for dinner tomorrow night, okay? It'll be...kinda like a date...like a first date… like the first date for the new 'us', whatever that is. Maybe that way, we can sorta start over, okay? We can go anywhere you want for dinner…just name the place."

"Having dinner together like a first date? Hmm...that's an intriguing idea." She hesitated for a minute before nodding in agreement. "Fine. Let's come here."

"Here? You can go anywhere you want on our first date, and you want to come here?"

"Yes, because there's something I want you to see after dinner."

"What is it?"

Brenan gave him a coy smile. "Meet me here for dinner tomorrow and I'll show you."

Intrigued by the mystery she was offering, Booth nodded. "Fine. So unless we have a case, I'll see you at 7 o'clock tomorrow evening."

"It's a date." Brennan reached for her purse and stood up to leave. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to the lab. I'll talk to you later. Don't forget to text me the details about Parker's play."

"Sure thing."

As he watched her leave, Booth tried to remain calm, but he felt as if his heart was going to burst.

"Yeah...it's a date.," he said to nobody in particular, pumping his fist in victory. "That's right...it's a date!"

A/N: Yes, I know it may be frustrating because I'm taking things slowly, but I had to use 31 words, and they each have their own chapter! We'll get there, I promise! Laura