Sorry, this update took a little longer than planned. Life came in the way in the form of a daughter with her husband's visit for some days.

Booth was walking up and down the line of the baseball field where Parker was playing his Little League game. Now and then one of the youngsters would make it to third base where he was coaching and he'd be set in motion, arm swinging in a big circle as he shouted for the kid to go-go-go.

On the other side of the chain-link fence, a father of one of the boys was yelling to his son. This man caught his attention and he couldn't help but look back over his shoulder at him repeatedly. He had a baby with him, carrying the baby in one of those baby backpacks in front of him. Little arms and legs dangled while the baby slept peacefully against his father's chest.

A thought crossed Booth's mind. If they were successful this time and Bones was pregnant, that could be him carrying his baby while he watched Parker play. How would Parker react to becoming a big brother? Right now he had all of Booth's attention. When they spent time together it was just him but that wouldn't be the case when he and Bones had a baby. What would Parker think of his arrangement with Bones? He might not think anything of it now but when he got older, old enough to understand relationships, what would he think of the fact that his dad wasn't together with the mother of this baby either? God, what kind of role model was he being to his son?

Booth was trying to stay focussed on the game but his head wasn't in it and he totally missed it when Parker came up to bat. It wasn't until he heard the cheers that he looked up to find his son rounding second and heading straight for where he stood by third base. He rushed the boy standing on third to home and yelled for Parker to keep running as the other team tried desperately to get the ball home before his son got there.

The excitement died down and the inning ended, Booth watched the boys from the dugout, but his mind wouldn't let go of his situation with Bones, the questions kept coming. How would he juggle it all? Would he have Parker one weekend and the baby the other one, alternating? How would they get to really know each other as brothers or brother and sister if he had them on different weekends? That didn't sound good. Would Rebecca be flexible about Parker's weekends or would she be even worse than she was now? It was already hard to get time with him. Would this make it harder?

Maybe he would have both of his kids on the same weekends. Babies have different needs than little boys. His mind went back to when he had Parker as a baby. Those times were precious to him but he couldn't help wondering how he would meet both of his children's needs at the same time. Booth immediately felt overwhelmed. When the baby was little that might be really hard on Parker. He might feel like he wasn't as important or loved, not understanding that a baby needs more attention.

He felt sick to his stomach all of a sudden. There was so much they hadn't thought through. He needed to talk to Bones. These questions had to be addressed. It wasn't just about her and her baby, the one they were trying to conceive. Parker needed to be considered too. And not just Parker, him, his needs, his life with Parker, and this new baby would need to be considered also. It affected all of them. Surely she'd understand that. At least he hoped she'd understand that. God, he couldn't handle another situation like he was in with Rebecca. Bones knew that. She'd had a front row seat to that whole mess.

That familiar sense of frustration and anger was boiling up again, building. Intentionally or not, Bones was making decisions that impact his life too and she wasn't including him in planning for this new life. Yes, she'd told him he could be involved, but that only meant for her baby. As far as he knew Parker was never a part of her considerations. How could he not be bitter about that?

There was some part of him that hoped against all hope that they weren't successful this time around so they could have some more time to think things through. Plan. Address the things that didn't strictly affect just her and the baby. He wanted the baby, he really did, he wanted it to be her baby, but he wanted it under different circumstances. He wanted to have it all. The baby, the woman, the family, a life shared, their life, together. How could he communicate all that to Bones? More importantly, how could he communicate that to her without having her turn tail and run from it all.

"Booth." He was startled back to the baseball game by the coach barking his name loudly. "Man, you with us?"

"Yeah, yeah, of course."

Booth headed out of the dugout, taking his position back at third base. He cheered the boys on, encouraged them, kept them running, sending boy after boy on to home base, but his mind wasn't in it. He couldn't stop thinking about Bones.

Last night was still so fresh in his mind. How they were together, how perfect and right it all felt. Every now and then flashes of their evening invaded his thoughts. He loved her, he was absolutely sure about that, but what about her? He was confident that she felt the same but admitting that was another thing altogether. Would she ever be brave enough to love him back? It felt like his life was a mess and he had no idea how to fix it. All he could do was take it step-by-step, trying to catch everything life was throwing at him and deal with it one thing at a time.

§§§

Tuesday morning brought a new case. Which seemed promising until Booth called Brennan to see if he could pick her up on the way to the crime scene. She told him no. She planned on riding in the Jeffersonian truck. She never rode in the Jeffersonian truck. Never. He understood immediately what that meant. She was avoiding being alone with him. With a heavy heart, he climbed into his SUV to drive to the scene alone.

They arrived at nearly the same time. Booth jogged over to greet her, catching her just as she climbed out of the truck, and after a short, "Morning, Bones," they shared an intense glance. It was fraught with emotion and flashes of a night of passion. It was the first time they'd seen each other since their Friday interlude and insecurity about how that would change things between them was obvious in both of their eyes. Sadly, they couldn't talk to each other about it. So, in between awkward glances, he filled her in, giving her all the information he already had on the case.

Walking away from the truck he felt her short intake of breath when he placed his hand on the small of her back to guide her to the place where the body was laying.

Was she already withdrawing from him, regretting their evening, feeling uncomfortable because of his touch? He was irritated by her reaction. Irritated and worried. Little did he know his assumptions were wrong. It was quite the opposite actually. She welcomed his touch, it reminded her of their intimacies and sent a warm feeling rushing through her body. Did he feel the same? She wondered and turned to look into his eyes but she was too late. He pulled away, choosing that moment to cover his eyes with his sunglasses.

They had no time to address any of these troubling thoughts with a crime scene that needed their full attention.

The case kept them busy the whole of Tuesday until late evening and into Wednesday. At lunchtime Booth sent Brennan a message to meet him at the diner to exchange information. He could have just gone to the Jeffersonian, he knew that, but he was desperately looking for an opportunity to talk to her alone. Brennan, on the other hand, was desperately trying to avoid that very thing. She wasn't ready, she still didn't really know how to approach him, her mind still full of vivid memories. There was a gigantic pachyderm in the room any time she was near him. She had heard Angela use this expression and thought it was very clever, she liked it quite a bit.

Booth was hopeful when she accepted his lunch request. He even got to the diner early, hoping to put to rest some of the awkwardness they were both feeling. So he was more than a little surprised when Brennen arrived at the diner with Angela in tow. Brennan saw the flash of disappointment in his face. Closing her eyes momentarily she felt a pang of guilt knowing she was hurting him. Then watched as he did what Booth did, he played along, greeting both women with a big, warm smile.

They ordered their meals and Booth gave them the latest update on the case. When their food arrived they started eating hungrily. Brennan reached over and grabbed one of Booth's fries, popping it in her mouth. It was a little thing but instantly set him at ease. At least that hadn't changed between them, he thought. Angela noticed the tension between the two from the moment they walked into the diner. Watching the two carefully. They'd become very quiet but were doing that thing they did, talking but not talking. Busily speaking in their own silent language, just staring into each other's eyes.

Angela had no idea what they were saying, which was very frustrating for her, but it was still fascinating to watch and there was definitely communication going on. She wondered if they even realized they were doing it.

Booth: Why did you bring Angela, I wanted to talk to you privately.

Brennan: I was afraid. I still don't know what to say to you.

Booth: Don't you trust me?

Brennen: I do, but I am finding this situation very unsettling.

Booth: I know you do. That's why I wanted to talk.

Brennan: I cannot get Friday evening out of my head.

Booth: Oh, Bones, me too. I still can feel you, all of you.

Brennan: I cannot forget how you touched me. And not just my body.

Booth: Yeah, I would love to touch you again, feel you under my fingertips, around my….

Angela chose that moment to remind them both of her presence. "Hey, you two, I'm still here. Hello, you can stop with your eye sex now."

Angela had a smug grin on her face. Booth and Brennan were used to her choice of words but regardless Booth and Brennan simultaneously jerked their heads in Angela's direction then looked away, a look of guilt crossing quickly over their faces.

Angela chuckled. "Gotcha." she stood up from the table. Brennan rose from her seat too giving Booth an apologetic glance.

"We need to go." Brennan motioned in Angela's direction. "We'll call you when we have more details on the murder weapon." She gave Booth one last smile and left the diner. Booth sighed. It felt like she was fleeing his presence and he didn't like that at all. This wasn't good.

They closed the case Thursday afternoon and met at the Founding Fathers for a case-closed drink. Angela, Hodgins, Sweets, Cam, Booth, and Brennan were all there. The night was everything it needed to be. They laughed a lot, the banter back and forth was light hearted, it was a great way to celebrate a closed case and the end of the week. Shortly before midnight, the party broke up as people decided to call it a night. Booth accompanied Brennan to her car hoping to finally get a chance to talk to her without an audience. It was the first time they'd been by themselves in what felt like forever.

"Hey, Bones," Booth began as they arrived at her car, "I missed you this week." His voice was soft and caring, almost sad. She looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Booth." She shook her head. "You've seen me several times this week and talked to me multiple times a day." She opened the driver's side of her car. "So your words make absolutely no sense to me." She looked him square in his eyes trying hard to sound believable.

He sighed. "Come on Bones, you know exactly what I'm talking about." He stepped closer to her. "I think we need to talk, don't you agree?" He saw fear rising in her eyes but couldn't allow her to distance herself from him any farther, no matter what reasons she might come up with. "What do you think of meeting for a drink tomorrow night, maybe dinner?"

She shook her head. "Booth, I can't. I have plans for the weekend." She looked at him directly, watching the sadness grow in his eyes. "It's not like that." She spoke softly, answering his unspoken fears. "I'm leaving tomorrow morning to drive to Russ and Amy's. Hailey's 10th birthday is on Saturday and they're having a big family party for her." She moved to get into her car. "Dad is coming with me, so you don't have to worry about me driving the whole way by myself."

Booth couldn't let her go like that. It felt like she was running from him and he felt his desperation building. "Bones, please, just ...just give me one more minute." She stepped back from the car, turning to him again. "Bones." He grabbed both of her upper arms, feeling desperate to get his message through to her. Taking a deep breath he let his hands slip down until he was holding both of hers. "I need us to be okay, you know, I can't let you go like this when everything feels ...feels off between us." His eyes sought for hers. "Understand?" He nodded to her, waiting for her to nod back. When she didn't he continued to speak. "We're okay, right, please tell me that I'm not wrong here." He squeezed her hands. She felt a knot form in her throat so tight she wasn't sure she couldn't speak, so she decided to nod instead.

And then she let herself fall forward into Booth's chest. He instantly enveloped her in his arms. "God, Bones. We'll figure it out, I promise." He let his hands run up and down her back holding her close. "We're partners. Partners stay together, they don't run when things get complicated." He leaned back to look into her eyes. "We're going through this together, remember, we have to do it together. Please don't shut me out. Please don't run." She locked eyes with him.

"Okay. I promise, Booth…I don't run..figuratively speaking." She gave him a small smile. "But I really need to go now. We have to leave early tomorrow morning." She felt like he needed more. "This trip has been planned for weeks, I'm sorry that I forgot to tell you about it. I'm not running."

He let her slip out of his arms. "Okay, Bones." But he still had his hands on both of her shoulders. "Have fun with your family." He winked at her. "Tell Russ and his family hi from me."

She gave him a nod and turned to her car but Booth grabbed her by her arm and drew her back into his arms, then he bent down and pressed a soft, lingering kiss on her lips.

"Drive safely."

With a smug smile on his lips, he turned around and walked to his car. For some moments Brennan stood dumbfounded on the sidewalk. Then she sat down in her car with a big smile on her face.

§§§

On his way home Booth thought about what Brennan had told him when they parted. She was going to meet her family. How would it be if she had his baby but they were not a couple? He never got to be with Parker when he visited his grandparents, Rebecca's parents. Rebecca never came when he and Parker visited Pops.

Parker had these two separate families and they would always be separate. They were never all together at once. Would this be their new baby's fate? Brennan would take their child to Russ' and they would have family gatherings he would never be a part of. Would he only hear about what happened when his kid told him later, like Parker did, all second hand?

And he wasn't sure if Brennan would come with him when he visited Pops, taking the baby with him. It was different with Bones, she liked Pops, Pops liked her. So maybe. But he wasn't sure. Would this baby share the same experience as Parker, always having two different sets of families? Separate. Never a true family holiday or gathering with everyone. The thought of that made him almost sick with sadness for this baby he wasn't even sure had been conceived yet.

He didn't want that for this baby, he wanted the whole family thing now more than ever. He wanted them to go together to visit Russ, to visit Pops. Holidays spent together, not fighting over who gets their child on Christmas, Easter, or Thanksgiving. It was enough that he had to deal with Rebecca, he didn't want to have these arguments with Bones too. And he certainly didn't want these questions ruining the friendship and partnership he had with her.

They seriously needed to talk. Next week, he would talk to her next week when she got home from Russ', that was his plan.

§§§

Brennan and her father, Max, were on their way back to DC after spending the weekend with Russ' family. Max was driving while Brennan sat staring out of the window. Max looked over at her with concern. It seemed as if she had been deep in thought the whole weekend. Something was bothering her, that was obvious to Max.

He took a deep breath, ready to address her obvious distance. "Tempe, you have been awfully quiet this whole weekend, what's up?" He gave her a short glance. She turned her head.

"No." She sounded defensive and she knew it, so she jumped to persuade her father otherwise. "Dad, I don't know what you are talking about." She shook her head, wanting Max to believe that he was wrong about that.

But Max wasn't going to give in that easily. "Tempe, I know you." He quickly gave her one glance then looked back onto the road. "You're never this quiet when we're together. Something is on your mind." Max flashed another short glance in her direction. "Am I right?"

Brennan let out a long, deep sigh but didn't say anything. Max knew his daughter very well and had a feeling where this all was coming from and exactly how to ferret it out of her. "Is everything okay? I mean at work," and after a short pause he added, "with ...Booth?" That got a reaction from her. She suddenly jerked her head in his direction.

"Why do you think that there's something wrong?" She frowned at Max. Max grinned, he obviously hit the nerve.

"So it is about Booth?"

Brennan didn't want to give in so she shook her head vehemently then answered. "No."

Max groaned. "Tempe, you are not telling the truth and we both know it." But she kept her mouth shut, her arms now crossed in front of her in defiance, showing that she didn't really want to talk about it anymore.

Max saw a sign for a gas station up ahead and decided it was a good time to gas up and take a break. Plus, he could use this time to talk to his daughter without the distraction of driving. He drove to the parking lot, set the car into park, and turned to Brennan.

"So, what's up?" She sat there staring out of the windshield, still unwilling to talk. So Max decided to push her a little. He also looked out into the parking lot, hoping to ease any pressure she might feel, and addressed her directly.

"You know, I had a talk with Booth some months ago while you were working on that case with those burned bones. You know the one when you fired me." He grinned remembering how bossy she was at that time.

"Dad." She didn't say any more than that but he knew she was listening carefully so he continued.

"I asked him if he was sleeping with you." Brennan instantly turned toward Max as a look of horror and indignation washed over her.

"Dad, how could you? That is none of your business." She shot him an angry glare.

"Oh, Tempe, it was my business because I thought I might be the barrier that was standing between the two of you getting together." Max finally locked eyes with her. "You know that he loves you, right?" Brennan looked shocked, how did her father come to this conclusion? She shook her head.

"Dad, you're wrong."

"I have eyes, you know." He smiled at her. "I see how he looks at you when you're not paying attention." His voice became very caring. "He loves you, Tempe, there is no doubt about that." And then Max took a wild guess. "And I think you love him too. Am I right?" He looked at her expectantly. "And for your information, he told me that he thinks you're beautiful." He gave her a loving smile. "And you should have seen his eyes when he told me that."

Brennan looked down at her lap. She was confused about her feelings and everything Max had just told her didn't help, on the contrary, it made everything more confusing and harder to compartmentalize. She couldn't seem to sort it all out. Was she in love with Booth? She had asked herself this question multiple times over the last few days and still didn't have an answer. She needed time to process that. There was a small voice inside of her that wanted to admit to her love for her partner but then the rational side of her would instantly kick in, arguing hormones cause attraction and that love doesn't actually exist. She let out a deep sigh but still didn't say anything to Max. She only stared back into her father's eyes which were full of concern.

"Booth told me months ago that he wasn't sleeping with you." Max took a deep breath. "What would his answer be if I asked him now?" He saw a short flicker in Brennan's eyes but then she looked away, staring out of the window again. Her voice was very small.

"I don't know how to answer that question." Max scoffed.

"Sweetheart, there is nothing complicated about the question, the answer is yes or no, it's simple." Brennan shook her head.

"I disagree. There is nothing simple about that question." A light blush covered her face. She couldn't look at her father.

"You know, Tempe, this is normally something you'd talk to your mother about but she's not here."

"Dad." She talked over him, hoping he'd stop what increasingly felt like an assault.

"Hear me out here. She's not here and I think this is one of those things where you need the advice of a parent. Baby, I'm all you got, so please, humor me."

She didn't look at him directly but she didn't protest either, which he took to be as good as an invitation to continue."So let me put this another way because it seems that you aren't quite sure how to define the situation." He shifted in his seat to match her own position, trying to ease the awkwardness of the topic in hopes that she'd talk to him. "Let's start with the easy part. We'll simplify it, alright? Did you and Booth have sexual intercourse?"

She still didn't look at Max, which was understandable, but she did answer eventually. "Yes." It was a short answer and she didn't offer anything more. So Max tried again.

"Was that a one-time thing or did it happen several times?" Brennan gave him a short glance, then looked away again closing her eyes momentarily.

"I would say ...four times." As serious and embarrassing as the conversation might be for his daughter Max felt the need to suppress a light chuckle.

"You would say, huh?" He bent over and took her hand. "But you didn't like it?"

"No." She shook her head. "I mean yes, I liked it." She looked down where her dad's hand rested on hers.

"I think that's the problem here." She finally looked up to Max.

"I don't want to feel so much when I'm with him. I don't want to be hurt again."

That stung, but Max knew where that came from and had to accept responsibility for causing his daughter that lasting pain. She paid a high price for his failures. He drew her into his arms. "Oh, Tempe, he is a good man. I told him that and that I want that for you. You deserve happiness with someone you can trust." He stroked her hair as he held her tight. "Please allow yourself to be happy, to love and to be loved:"

She looked up at him. "I'm scared." She wiped a tear from her cheek. "It's overwhelming." She didn't tell him more, he didn't need all the details about their deal and how it was turning out different than planned. "And it's complicated."

Max chuckled. "Oh, I don't think so." He pulled back and leaned against his seat again. "I think you're making it more complicated than it needs to be." Max pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her. "I told you years ago that if you find someone you can trust you should hang onto him. I think you can trust Booth, don't you?"

She looked up to her father, wiping her nose with the handkerchief. "Yes, but I think I need some time."

Max patted her knee. "And that's okay. I know you need to think things through. But, Tempe, let him love you." He winked at her. "Now, let's get some gas and head home." He pointed one finger at her. "It's your turn to drive, your old man is tired. The grandgirls wore me out."

AN: Thank you for your nice reviews, they mean the world to me. So don't hesitate to let me know what you think of this chapter… and I promise you, the next one will be a big one again.

I also need to give a big thank you to my Beta dgschneider who always finds some time to go over my story while publishing one of her own.

Here is another story of hers you might check out. It was love. The story dealt with the whole Hannah situation but with a much better outcome than on the show, much better.