Thank you for bearing with me, and thank you to those who have submitted reviews. I really appreciate that you take the time to review, and I love to hear your thoughts. I'm sorry this has taken some time, I had some large deadlines and have not had much time for anything else. I hope you enjoy this - more smut, more cute B+B. Enjoy this one, because soon, it's going to get messy. DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bones. I wish I did.

Brennan saw Booth's car at the entrance of the car park, and finally stopped pacing. She'd left the lab a little earlier than planned, not wanting to keep him waiting, but ended up being far too early. Pacing helped to pass the time. She was not used to being this excited about seeing someone. She always looked forward to seeing Booth, but it was different now. She had removed the dam holding her feelings back. She started down the steps as Booth's car pulled to a complete stop, but his door opened before she'd made much progress. Booth moved with purpose, climbing the steps two at a time.

"Booth?" Brennan paused mid-step. She knew the particular grin on his face, it meant trouble, "what are you doing? Wait, wait, wait, Boo-"

Roaring playfully, Booth picked her up and threw her over his left shoulder with ease like she were nothing more than a messenger bag. Clutching onto his suit jacket for dear life, Brennan struggled, cursing.

"Hiya Bones."

"Put me down, Booth. Now!"

He started walking down the steps towards the car, "hmm. No."

Irritation surged from her belly, "Booth, I am the world's foremost forensic anthropologist and I will not be abducted from my place of work-"

Booth snorted, "oh come on, I'm not abducting you."

"Good luck discrediting the CCTV they use at your trial," she griped, spotting her bag on the step where she had been standing. "Can you please put me down so I can retrieve my bag?"

He turned, making Brennan feel queasy, "oh, I'll get it."

"No!" She exclaimed as he climbed the steps towards the Jeffersonian again, his shoulders poking into her abdomen, "Booth, I swear-"

"Good joke by the way, Bones," Booth interrupted again, turning back around to face the car. "There you go."

She choked on a gasp, "you're making me pick up my own bag right now?"

His shrug pushed into her stomach, "you can reach if I squat down, can't you?"

"Unbelievable," Brennan grumbled as he bent his knees. She could just reach the strap of her bag, snagging it with her index and middle fingers. As Booth straightened his legs, she slapped his ass as hard as she could.

He yelped, but his voice was full of sultry humour, "I didn't know you were into that sort of stuff, Bones."

Brennan couldn't help it. She burst out laughing. Booth descended the rest of the steps, feeling as bouyant and carefree as he ever had. Brennan was still laughing when he opened the passenger door and finally put her down. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she smacked his chest.

"What is wrong with you?" Brennan asked, smiling broadly.

"Don't know what you mean," he replied nonchalantly, eyes sparkling.

She gripped the lapels of his jacket, pulling him closer, "I swear to-"

"God?" He butted in.

Brennan's face scrunched for a moment, like she'd encountered a bad smell, "you are utterly infuriating."

"Guilty," he breathed, closing the gap.

The irritation Brennan felt dissipated immediately, happily drawn into the supple strength of his kiss. They forgot where they were and that they might be seen. Booth held her firmly by the waist, adjusting his grip so she could curve into him and deepened the kiss, unable to hold back a quiet groan as her tongue met his. His fingers, prying under the waistband of her trousers to brush the small of her back, made Brennan dizzy, and she nipped at his lower lip with her teeth. He responded by pushing her back against the car, protecting the back of her head with his hand. Booth had spent all day thinking about this moment, counting the hours until the meetings and paperwork were done and he could go to her. He'd considered using his sirens to cut through traffic, but realised he shouldn't push it. It was tempting, though. Very tempting. Finally needing to take a breath, Booth pressed his lips to her forehead. Brennan dropped her hands, hooking her fingers through his belt loops.

"I missed you," Brennan told him, eyes soft and inviting.

Booth brushed her hair behind her shoulder, touched by her openness, "I missed you too." Another kiss, "sorry I carried you cave-man style."

"Don't say cave-man, Booth," Brennan retorted, getting into her seat.

He raised his hands in surrender, "Sorry, sorry! I know it's not accurate." He noted Brennan's surprise, "I do listen to you, y'know."

"When you want to, you mean."

"Always, Bones. Always."

He closed her door, and they returned to Brennan's apartment, chatting about their respective days. It was mostly Brennan talking while Booth drove, but he liked to listen to her talk about her work. He enjoyed hearing all the squinty words he didn't understand, listening to the cogs of her mind as she described the remains, the details of their life she could see from the tiny marks and scratches she found. It was pretty awe-inspiring to listen to what she could uncover. She had once said that she saw a face on every set of remains, that she felt she helped to restore their lives. Booth was amazed that she managed to hide such a lovely heart. All the while he reminded himself that she had given that heart to him. The hand on his leg attested to it.

By the time they arrived at Brennan's place, it was seven-thirty and Booth was starving. They decided on Thai food, and Booth ordered their usual while Brennan took a shower. She left Booth in the kitchen and entered her ensuite, undressing quickly before stepping under the scalding hot stream of water. She shivered as the intense heat chased the cold from her bones, tipping her head back to wet her hair. Angela's words replayed in her head. Be open. Be honest. Don't overthink. It was all easier said than done, but Brennan felt that she was doing her best. She hoped it was enough. Booth seemed happy–actually, he seemed much more than happy. She felt it too, the sense deep down that their relationship was meant to be this way. Relationship. She imagined it was a conversation they needed to have at some point. Booth was not a casual man, and that was not something she wanted with him. The idea of him with someone else made her skin crawl. Similarly, the thought of herself being with anyone else produced the exact same effect. Brennan did not want to share Seeley Booth in any way, physically or emotionally. She wanted him to be hers. Only hers. The statement made Brennan tearful, wary of the intensity of her own feelings, weary from the last few weeks with Broadsky hanging over them. She looked down at her hands. Sometimes all she could see was blood, even when she knew there was none. Booth's blood. Mr Nigel Murray's blood. Death and loss, and longing for the day she would not have to fix things that were broken. Sometimes, Temperance Brennan felt that she was quite alone in the world.

"Okay if I join, Bones?"

But of course, she was never really alone. Not when she had Booth, and he called her Bones. She could tell from the quiet tone of his voice that he was asking if she needed time by herself. He somehow knew she was upset without her saying a word. Brennan nodded, meeting his gaze that conveyed the depths of his concern.

He joined her, taking her outstretched hands in his, "Temperance."

She closed her eyes, dipping her head and leaning into him. He tucked her head beneath his chin, arms wrapping round her without hesitation. She was also Temperance to him. She was only just realising how many facets of herself that Booth knew, and loved. She was the scientist, the genius, the fighter; the friend, the partner, the lover...more things than she had ever thought she could be. More than she allowed herself to be before Booth came into her life. His friendship alone had changed everything. Brennan smoothed his back with her hands, hugging him more tightly and savouring the just how solid and there he was.

"I saw Angela today. She gave me some advice," she said against his shoulder.

Booth rested his cheek on her hair, "yeah?"

"She told me that I should be open and honest with you, even when I'm afraid to be."

"That's good advice. I've gotta agree with Angela there. I think honesty is the most important part of a relationship," Booth said, instantly regretting his last word. Now was not the time. The last thing he wanted was to cause her any more stress, force her into a conversation she wasn't ready to have.

Brennan leaned back, making sure she could see Booth's face, "I want you to know that the thought of having intercourse with another man is very unpleasant to me."

Booth felt like he was being asphyxiated by an invisible iron hand. The sensation disappeared after a shocked, silent moment, "uh, that is a very unpleasant thought for me too. Please, y'know...don't do that."

"I find I feel the same way when I think about you with other women," Brennan continued. A flicker of pain crossed her face, her watchful eyes suddenly sad.

"Hey, no. You..." Booth tried to find the right words, "you are the only person I want, Bones."

She had to be completely certain, "romantically?"

Booth nodded, almost incredulous that she had to ask, "yes. I want you, romantically. Just you and me. Working together, sleeping together, being together. All of it."

Human hearts categorically did not flutter but Brennan felt hers try in response to Booth's words. The sincerity in his face shone, his steady gaze quashing the largest part of her anxiety. A smile crept onto her lips, the crooked one that Booth couldn't resist. It was infectious, he couldn't help but return it.

"So, we are agreed that, for now, we are not sleeping with other people," Brennan replied.

For now. Booth didn't like that, but maybe that's all that was needed at the moment. He was so painfully aware that this was new territory for her, and even this kind of commitment was a huge step in the right direction. It would have to do, for now. "Yes. No one else, Bones," he said. "Just you."

A quiet minute together, enjoying the water and their embrace. Then, Booth's stomach growled, and they remembered their food was on its way.

Booth quickly donned the pyjamas from the previous night, and went to grab his phone. Brennan took a little longer to get dressed, drying her hair with a towel before finding some comfortable pyjama shorts and a long sleeved top. Just you. She hated to admit how long she had wanted to hear Booth say that, in that way. How long had it been a reality before she'd allowed herself to notice that Booth loved her? Maybe Angela was right. Perhaps it had been since they'd first met and not in the last three or four years as Brennan originally thought. She saw Booth in the kitchen, impatient for food, gently tapping the side of his phone against the counter-top. She smiled at the familiar sight of him, somehow new in her eyes. She hoped their arrangement was enough for him. Brennan meant what she had said, she really didn't want anyone else, but she knew Booth wanted more than a temporary state of being. He wanted the relationship, the 'forever' that, until recently, Brennan had believed to be a fantasy. Could she see it when she looked at him? She didn't know. Her heart raced sickeningly fast and her hands shook. She was going to have to get used to that sensation. As she went to join Booth, a knock sounded at her front door.

Ten minutes later, they were sat side by side on the sofa, knees touching just like old times. Booth was basically inhaling his food while Brennan ate more leisurely, her stomach knotted with lingering anxieties that wouldn't shift. It was an improvement, but still an issue. She was trying not to focus on it, instead trying to enjoy the normal evening she was having with Booth. It was a relief that not everything had changed about them. It was through hundreds of evenings just like this one, ones where they spent time together, eating good food and talking that they had such a strong bond.

"How was your meeting with Hacker?"

Booth swallowed a mouthful, leaning forward on his knees with a fork in one hand, and a box of Thai food in the other. He grimaced, "I've had better. Hacker wasn't happy that I went in alone. He said taking a team in with me would've been more efficient."

Brennan huffed, "Even with a broken hand, Broadsky is lethal for anyone who isn't you. Any team you took in there would have been picked off, one by one."

"I know. It could have been a total nightmare," Booth muttered, brow furrowed.

"You made the right choice, Booth," Brennan reassured him.

Her voice was so calm that Booth felt it as strongly as if she'd touched him.

"I'm glad you think so, Bones," he snatched a glance at her face, finding her already looking at him. He saw how much she trusted him, and it felt like his entire body warmed beneath her gaze. "I've still got paperwork to do. It's probably going to take me the rest of this week to sort it all, and Hacker wants a review once it's all filed."

Booth would be very busy over the next few days in that case. Brennan felt childish asking, but she couldn't stop herself.

"Will we still see each other? I wouldn't want to be a distraction when you have work to do," Brennan really didn't like how fragile she sounded. She lurched back and forth between blissful calm and turbulence.

Booth discarded his carton on the coffee table, "of course we'll see each other. You can distract me anytime."

She felt an urge to remove herself. Was it embarrassment? Shame? Brennan was troubled that she didn't know. She stood and took her empty carton to the bin, rinsing her cutlery and staying by the sink. Booth watched her. Her back was perfectly straight, her shoulders back, and her head tilted away from him to avoided his gaze. For a moment she stayed facing the taps, and then turned around and leaned against the edge of the sink with her arms crossed. Booth stood immediately. He was an expert on body language, especially hers. She was inviting him to her. When he was stood in front of her, she still didn't look at him. Booth was reminded of the many times they had been this close since the beginning of their partnership, nearly nose to nose, the atmosphere between them charged and crackling with anticipation. Until two days ago, they'd never been able to act upon it. Even though it was Bones who had finally pushed them over the edge, he could tell that she was still governed by the fear of failure.

Keeping quiet, Booth stepped a fraction closer. He could feel the heat of her body. A shiver of longing raised the hairs on his arms. Brennan sighed, eyes closing, arms falling to her side. Booth came even closer, their foreheads nearly touching.

Brennan tried to drown out the frightened voice in her head. She was sick of it keeping her from Booth. He was in her grasp, always kind and always loving. She opened her eyes and met Booth's gaze, which was hooded and somehow reaching for her, asking her to give in. Brennan acquiesced. She pressed her lips to his without warning, revelling in how Booth responded so quickly and eagerly. He tasted like spices and warm sun, and she curved into him, desperate for more. Gasping breaths between kisses whilst Booth lifted her and carried her to the bed, hard and ready. Just as he was about to lay her down on her back, she wriggled out of his grasp and slipped her hand beneath the waistband of his trouser. Booth kissed her harder, a nearly strangled groan against her mouth as she wrapped her hand around him and stroked firmly.

"Temperance..."

"Lie down."

He did as he was told, letting her push him down onto his back. Brennan straddled his hips, raising her top over her head and dropping it down the side of the bed. Booth drank her in hungrily, instantly sliding his hands up from her thighs to her waist. She didn't let him linger there long, wrenching his hands from her body and pinning his wrists to either side of his head. Booth inhaled sharply, more turned on that he thought was possible.

"Am I not allowed to touch you?" Booth asked breathlessly. Brennan hovered above him, biting her bottom lip and thinking.

"Not right now," she replied. "I want this to be about you."

"This?"

She shushed him, releasing his wrists and leaning to kiss down the side of his neck. Hot, open-mouthed kisses that were achingly slow and deliberate, the hand that wasn't supporting her weight meandering over his bicep, up his forearm, briefly clasping their hands together before pulling away. Booth relaxed into the bed, concentrating on the feel of Brennan's lips trailing down his chest, her hands caressing his abdomen, tracing the lines of his ribs. Her touch felt like the wind carving a soft path in sand, and Booth couldn't slow his breathing as she descended lower. She kissed a line over his left hipbone, catching his eyes as she pulled at his trousers. They were quickly discarded, and Booth's eyes rolled back in his head as her mouth finally covered him. After a second, he opened his eyes but only managed a quick glance before he knew he had to close them again. He would not last more than ten seconds if he watched. He tried to list the saints, an attempt to distract himself from the swirl of her tongue and the steady motion of her hand. A low hum in her throat made him groan quietly. After a minute, he could already feel the tell-tale signs building, beads of skin breaking out on his skin, the rush of heat at the base of his spine. Not yet, he wasn't done yet.

"Bones," he begged, struggling to catch his breath, "come here. I'm not gonna last."

Brennan crawled her way back up his body, one hand instantly in his hair to pull him to her. Booth arched up to meet her kiss, inflamed, slipping his tongue between her lips and grabbing her hips to squeeze. His nails dug into her skin, and Brennan hissed in pleasure. Encouraged, Booth flipped them over, spreading her legs. His fingers teased her core, testing if she was ready while he kissed and nipped at her bottom lip. Brennan grabbed at his shoulders, writhing in anticipation. She needed this feeling. Seeing how much Booth wanted her calmed the nagging thoughts in her head. She couldn't deny the evidence. His complexion was flushed, his pupils dilated and irises darkened, hooded, as they raked over her. The rivulets of sweat on his panting chest, the harsh breaths from his parted lips as they kissed her over and over. Brennan couldn't believe she had gone so long without this. She reached down between them, moving him into the right position when Booth got the hint. He grinned, a grin that made Brennan's head spin.

"Booth," she said. It was a command.

He knew that tone of voice. He was done teasing, and kissed her again as he slid inside her. They both groaned, intoxicated by the other. They started to move at once, not able to take it slow, compelled to move faster and harder. Booth knew this side to them existed, the raw, unfettered version. He experienced it in the way they fought, in the ways she pissed him off and challenged him. He felt it now in the way she dragged her nails down his back, and bit his lip. All he could see was the stormy blue of her eyes, and the way she undulated beneath him, around him. His senses were blind to everything else but her; the slickness of her body, the fragrant scent of her hair mixed with the feverish warmth of their lovemaking. He was encompassed, addicted to the sound of her voice as she tightened around him. God, he'd never seen anything so beautiful as her. He maintained his pace, winding his fingers into her hair and watched without shame when Brennan shattered into pieces around him. As her gasps and sighs eventually quietened, he kissed her deeply.

"We're very good at this," Brennan laughed breathlessly, kissing him again. "You are very good."

"Only 'good'?" Booth repeated, "I'm not okay with that."

Booth pulled away and slipped an arm under her waist, lifting her up with him. She let him guide her around until she was on her knees, facing the headboard. She felt Booth's chest press against her back, and his hands glided from her shoulders to her wrists. Covering her hands with his, he placed them on the top of the headboard. Brennan let out a shaky breath, feeling every line of him against her. She pushed her hips backwards into his, angling a glance over her shoulder to find herself nose to nose with Booth. His breath tickled her cheek, and she pressed herself harder against him.

"You're driving me mad," he murmured in the space between them. One arm wrapped around her waist, the other hand swept the small of her back and slipped down between them, between her legs. Brennan's hands gripped the headboard like a vice as Booth rocked his hips slowly, his tip at her entrance, providing just enough friction to frustrate her and not give any satisfaction. He wasn't disappointed by her reaction. She made a small noise of consternation. She wanted him but had no way of closing the distance, held in place by her hands in front of her and Booth's arm firmly around her waist. She couldn't move.

"I don't mean to," she rasped, not thinking straight. Her arms shook.

"Yes, you do."

He thrust upwards, her sensual laugh cutting off, turning into a cry of relief. Booth tightened his arm around her waist and started to lose himself, his forehead resting against her temple, his lips by her ear. She felt his ragged breaths, his clutching hands and reached round to cup the back of his head. With her other hand still grasping at the headboard, supporting her weight, she rolled her hips in steady circles. Sharp spikes of pleasure stole her breath, the slamming of Booth's hips against her quickly bringing her dangerously close.

"I'm-" she managed to choke out. She couldn't finish her sentence.

"I'm there too," Booth rumbled, sounds he didn't recognise falling out of his mouth. He felt like he'd been set on fire and was burning up.

Bones let out a small cry, one that made Booth thrust harder, and then she was collapsing around him, pulling at his hair and moaning. Booth followed quickly, hit with a wall of ecstasy so strong that he bit down on Brennan's shoulder, nearly howling as pleasure surged through his body like it would never stop. The moments after were silent, Booth and Brennan quivering and breathing deeply. Neither one moved, until Booth suddenly realised what he'd done.

"God, Bones, I'm so sorry!" He stared down at the teeth marks on her shoulder, "I don't know why I did that."

Bones turned her head, brushing her nose against his, "it's fine, Booth. I actually...quite liked it."

Booth still wasn't convinced, "I've marked you."

"I know, that's why I like it."

They lay down together, sore and sated. Side by side, with Booth's arm slung across her waist, Brennan couldn't think of a time she'd be happier. Concern still lined Booth's face, and she smiled reassuringly.

"Stop worrying."

He grinned wryly, "are you sure it's alright?"

She shuffled closer, tucking herself into his side and nuzzling his neck, "absolutely."

A few more moments of silence as their breathing slowed and their bodies cooled. Brennan felt the pleasant heaviness of her limbs and splayed her hand across Booth's chest. It was a peace she was not accustomed to.

"I denied myself this for a long time," Brennan whispered. Booth looked at her, puzzled. She sighed and gestured to him, "You. This. I forbade myself from this for so long and I find I am irritated by my actions. I wish I had not been such a coward."

"You've never been a coward, Bones," Booth assured her, bringing her hand on his chest up to his lips. He dusted kisses across her fingertips, eliciting a small smile from Brennan. "You weren't ready, and that's okay. Don't beat yourself up about things you can't change. It's all done now. I'm just grateful that we are where we are, now. I mean, look at us, I think we're doing well."

"Very well," she admitted after a moment.

Booth raised an eyebrow, "I'd say amazingly, actually. Not to toot my own horn or anything..."

She frowned, "You play the trumpet?"

"It's an expression, Bones. It means that I think I did better than you're letting on." The ghost of a smile played at the corners of his mouth, "It sounded like you were enjoying yourself anyway."

Brennan leant up on her elbows, and gazed down at him, "a very astute observation, Booth."

He smirked and kissed her firmly, "what can I say, Bones? I'm F.B.I."

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