Disclaimer: I'll give you two guesses
Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews! You all actually gave me some ideas without even realizing it, so thanks for that, too. I hope you're all enjoying the story so far, and I hope that my bad typing and lack of stellar writing skill hasn't brought you down too far. :-) And now, off we go...
While Temperance was at her office pouring over the file for the new case, Angela and Meg were sitting her apartment, planning ways of dumping Booth, debating over the content of their fight, and brainstorming ways of getting them together.
"I guess I could tell him the truth; that I'm breaking up with him because he's in love with one of my best friends."
"Yeah, but he'd just deny it. I mean, he won't even admit to her that he's crazy about her, why would he admit it to his girlfriend? And, on top of that, if he's angry enough at Tempe, losing his girlfriend over her will just make things worse."
"I guess I could just pick a fight with him and dump him over that."
"Yeah, but that will wound his pride. We need to figure out a way for you to dump him that gives him enough confidence to get closer to Brennan."
Meg thought for a moment. "I could start the fight by claiming that Tempe told me they kissed in her office."
The two laughed at the outlandish idea.
Meg looked pensive as the two sat in silence. "I could always just stay with him for a while longer. Push him closer to Tempe, and eventually get him to cheat on me."
Angela looked slightly shocked. "You would be willing to do that?"
"Well, no, but it was an idea."
They smiled at each other. "You know, Jack had an idea about locking them in a room together…" The pair laughed again.
"Why don't I just give him a generic break-up? You know, 'it's not you, it's me', 'I'm not at a point in my life where I can handle a codependent relationship' and all that other crap."
Angela nodded thoughtfully. "I guess that's the best way to go. I don't see where we have many other options."
Meg agreed and took a deep breath. She picked up the phone, Angela picked up the extension so she could listen, and they dialed Booth's number.
He answered on the second ring. "Booth."
"Hey, Seeley, it's me." Meg did her best to make her voice sound tentative and unsure.
It worked. "Hey, Meg, what's up? Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, it's just…I need to talk to you about something."
"Sure, what?"
"I just…I don't know if…" she sighed, as if out of frustration. "Listen, Seeley, you're a great guy…"
Booth had been with enough women to see where this was headed. "Oh. I see."
Meg sighed again. "Look, it's not you, it's me. I was thinking about it, and I realized it's just selfish of me to date you. I mean, I'm going to be leaving before to much longer to head back home, and it's not fair to you if I just string you along. I just don't know if I'm at a point in my life where I can fully commit to a real relationship."
Booth listened, quietly. Partway through her speech, he heard his call waiting beep. He quickly glanced to see who it was. "Bones" flashed across the screen. He opted not to answer.
"I'm really sorry, Seeley."
"Hey, it's okay, I mean, we had fun, right? If you don't want to do this, we don't have to." He hesitated for a moment, thinking. After a moment, he decided to try his luck. "Are you doing this because of Bones?"
His question took Meg by surprise. She quickly looked at Angela for support. Angela just stared back at her, also unsure of how to answer.
"Um, well, um, what if…I mean…why would you ask that?" 'Well played,' she silently berated herself. 'Very articulate.'
Her fumbling response answered Booth's question. "She told you that we should break up, didn't she?"
Meg was stunned. "What? No! No, no, no, she had nothing to do with this. This is all me."
By the sound of Booth's breathing, Meg knew he didn't believe her. "Seriously, Tempe didn't even know I was thinking about doing this. She's not involved. I'm the bitch."
Angela looked at Meg, her eyes awash with confusion and amusement. "You're the bitch?" She mouthed silently to Meg.
Meg rolled her eyes and shrugged. "I panicked," she mouthed back.
When Booth spoke again, his voice simmered slightly with the anger from his earlier fight with Temperance. "There's nothing going on between Temperance and I, Meg. She's just a colleague. I don't know what she's told you, but that's all we are." He pronounced each word carefully and slowly, as if referencing a specific event.
Angela and Meg looked at each other again. A mutual question went through their minds: What is Booth trying to hide?
"It's got nothing to do with her. Seriously. I just don't feel like this is the right time for a relationship for me. I'm really sorry. I hope we can still be friends."
The conversation wrapped up quickly, and Meg and Booth said their goodbyes and hung up the phone. Booth sat for a moment, quietly, thinking back through what had just happened. He noticed his phone blinking, alerting him that he had a voicemail, and he dialed to listen to it. It was Bones. She left him a very formal, articulate, cool message about the case and hung up quickly. He felt irritation at her clipped tone, but somehow her words didn't inspire the rage they had earlier. He thought for another moment before picking up the phone and dialing her number.
Angela and Meg stared at one another after hanging up the phone with Booth.
Meg spoke first. "So, do you want to pump Tempe for information about what Booth was trying to hide while we're at dinner?"
"No, it's her business; we should just let her tell us whenever she feels ready."
There was a beat of silence before Meg replied. "Really?"
"Oh, no, we're definitely going to grill her."
Temperance arrived in the apartment about a minute later, and apologized for being so late. She had planned to arrive sooner, but going over the case file had made her lose track of time. Her friends told her not to worry about it as she hurried to her bedroom to change. They both looked at one another, silently going over ways to breech the topic of Booth. Unfortunately, they could not find a convenient means of entering the conversation, so they let it go for the time being. They left for dinner shortly thereafter.
The Italian restaurant that Booth had recommended was excellent. The three drink wine, reminisced about college memories, and laughed often. They were all having a great time, but Meg and Angela were finding it difficult to work Booth into the conversation. They knew if they were going to get Tempe to tell them anything, they would have to make it seem that the topic had come up organically, naturally. They bided their time, waiting for an opening.
Temperance provided it for them. "So, what's Booth up to tonight?" she asked Meg. Her eyes betrayed her; she hadn't wanted to talk about Meg and Booth, but she knew that she should. After all, he was her friend's boyfriend, and she was giving up a night with him to spend with her.
Meg jumped on the opening. "Actually, I don't know. I ended it with him this afternoon."
Tempe looked surprised. "You did? Why?"
"He just wasn't right for me," Meg replied, shrugging dismissively. He's head over heels for another girl.
Angela knew that this was the perfect opportunity to get Tempe to open up. If they handled this carefully and tactfully, they might be able to get some real information about what had been going on. "So, what's been up with you and Booth these last couple of days?" Screw tact and carefulness, the suspense was killing her.
Temperance sighed. "Nothing. We've been over this. We had a disagreement. That's all."
Angela wanted to slap herself. They were still getting nowhere. Meg chimed in at Tempe's response. "I think we should have some more alcohol."
Tempe smiled. "So, you're thinking that if you get me drunk, I'll tell you what happened?"
"It seems logical to me," Angela answered.
Tempe had to laugh. "Why can't you guys just let it go? It wasn't a big deal. What do you want me to say?" That I almost kissed him? That I wish I had kissed him?
"Oh, c'mon!" Meg whined. "I just broke up with him! Aren't we supposed to sit around and talk about how much we hate him now? Telling us about the fight and what a jerk he is would be perfect for this conversation!"
Temperance shook her head again. Meg and Angela were frustrated. They finished dinner, paid the check, and headed back to Temperance's house. They didn't let the subject drop; Temperance continued to dodge their questions.
Eventually, the dynamic duo admitted defeat for the evening. "This isn't over!" Angela vowed, as she headed for the door.
Temperance sighed wistfully. "Oh, but if only it was." The three laughed as said their goodnights. Angela headed back to her apartment, while Tempe and Meg, who was still firing random questions to Brennan, changed and settled in to sleep off the day.
Temperance arrived at her office at 8:00am the following morning. She grabbed a cup of coffee on her way in and spent the first half hour of the morning talking to Angela, Hodgins, and Zach. They exchanged their usual banter, divided up work for the morning, and finally split apart to start their various tasks. Temperance was working on her final evaluation of the Egyptian skeleton so that it could be sent back to it's own country for burial. The remains had been less than noteworthy; though they were old, Temperance's study of them had shown they weren't ancient, and they were mostly likely the bones of a common man, aged 40-49 when he died. At 10:00, when she was finishing up her report, Booth swept into the lab.
"Dr. Brennan," he said, curtly, when he saw her.
She looked up from her paperwork. "Agent Booth."
"Are you ready to go?"
Temperance paused. "Go where?"
He looked confused for a moment. "To Chincoteague. I left you a message last night. We're supposed to go down there today so you can look at the bones."
Temperance gave herself a mental head slap. She hadn't thought to check her messages after she had ignored Booth's call. "Oh, right, that. Um, yeah, I guess I'm ready," she surveyed her table quickly. She was almost done here anyway. "Zach!" She called as she brushed past Booth.
"Yes, Dr. Brennan?"
She spoke to him as she walked toward her office, shrugging her lab coat off her shoulders. "I have to leave for the day. Can you please see to it that the Egyptian bones are catalogued and then prepared to be sent back to Egypt?"
Zach nodded. "Of course."
Temperance paused, remembering. "Oh, and I was supposed to work on the skeleton from China today as well." She hesitated, looking over at an expectant Zach. His eyes lit up when she spoke. "I'm sure I can trust you to work on that." She handed him the appropriate forms. "Go ahead and go over them. I'll check them over again when I get back."
Zach unconsciously puffed out his chest at her vote of confidence. "Absolutely, Dr. Brennan. I'll get started right away."
Temperance had to smile at his enthusiasm. "Thanks, Zach." She grabbed her bag and headed out her office door to meet Booth, who was waiting outside her door.
It was about a four and a half hour drive to Chincoteague, and most of it was passed in an uncomfortable silence. Booth and Temperance didn't know what to say to each other; they were still irritated from the confrontations of the past days, but both were also too tired to argue. Booth's mind was still running over his break-up with Meg, still trying to dissect what Temperance might have told her, while Tempe sat back, wondering if Booth knew that she knew about the ending of his relationship with Meg. Uncomfortable with the silence, Booth turned the radio up and the two wordlessly listened as the radio squawked the sounds of static, guitars, and pounding drums.
When they reached Pocomoke, MD., Booth announced that they were only a half hour away. Temperance was grateful for this fact; she desperately wanted to get out and stretch her legs.
Booth felt the same way. "There's a Taco Bell up here," he said, as he pulled the SUV off the highway and into a turn lane. "Let's grab some food."
Temperance just nodded in response. They climbed out of the car, spent a few minutes stretching their cramped legs, and then ate quickly and quietly. They climbed back in the SUV to finish the trip.
They stopped for gas about ten minutes later at the MD/VA state line, and then continued on their way. Although Chincoteague was in fact an island, it was reached by a series of bridges through the marsh. The trip was long and tedious, but the scenery was pleasant enough. Temperance gazed out her window. The Eastern Shore wasn't a rich area, but it had it's attributes.
They arrived at the Refuge and, after identifying themselves, they were immediately taken to the remains. They hadn't been moved from the woods, though there had been people watching them closely for the past few days. Since they were an isolated area, it was difficult to procure a competent recovery team to gather the evidence.
Temperance slipped on her gloves and began to look over the remains. They were, in fact, human, just as the preliminary evaluation had said. The remains were scattered over a small area of the woods, but the skull was obviously missing.
"Who has access to this trail?" Temperance asked, looking up the park ranger, a kid who looked to be about 20.
He shrugged. "Everyone. It's a federal park; open to the public. People walk and bike these trails all day."
It wasn't the answer Booth had been hoping for; a lot of traffic meant a lot of suspects. "Well, they aren't going to be walking this one for a while, at least not until we've had a chance to clear the area." He looked at Temperance. "It's definitely not an animal?"
Temperance nodded, looking back down at the bones. "Definitely human. I found—wait a second." Something caught her eye, and she kneeled back down in the grass. "This bone shows signs of osteoporosis," she said, staring at the small whitish object in her hand.
Booth failed to see the significance. "Yeah, so?"
She looked up at him. "The pelvic bone is male. Though it's possible for men to get osteoporosis, it's unusual."
Booth was quiet for a moment.
"And, on top of that, the bones are those of a young male—late teens to late twenties would be my best guess right now. This bone is significantly older."
Booth continued to stare at her. "So, you're saying…"
"We have the bones of at least two different people."
Temperance and Booth spent most of the day at the refuge. Tempe had to do most of the recovery on her own as she was the only one who really knew what she was doing, but she and Booth did manage to find a few people to help. They called a nearby hospital and arranged to have the bones sent to their morgue for the night; at 8:00pm, they were still working on searching the scene. Lack of light forced them to finally stop, much to the relief of the now very tired people who had be recruited to help them, and they arranged to come back the next day to finish the recovery.
Booth looked at his watch. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not wild about the idea of driving five hours back home tonight, just so we can get up and daybreak to hall our asses back down here again."
Temperance nodded. If they tried to head home now, they would get about two hours to sleep before they had to leave again; they had arranged to come back to the site at 6:30am the next morning. "Well, we're in a tourist town, let's just go find a hotel."
And so, they began their search. By 9:00pm, they had been laughed out of five hotels.
"It's almost the end of June. There's no way you're going to find a room on this island without a reservation, much less two rooms," they were told.
Finally, one hotel proprietor came through for them. "Listen, I don't have any rooms tonight, but if you folks are going to be stuck here for a few days, I might be able to help you."
Temperance and Booth looked at one another and shrugged. They both knew that being stuck here for a while was likely. "What do you have?" Booth asked.
The man looked back at the computer screen. His face was lined with age and obvious years of smoking, and he had a generally haggard appearance, but his hotel did look very clean. His voice had a heavy Southern accent when he spoke. "I'll have a room available tomorrow. It's the best you're going to do without a reservation."
"One room?" Booth asked.
The man nodded. "Yeah, but it's got two beds."
Booth sighed. It was their only option. "Fine. We'll take it."
The old man smiled at them. Temperance cut in. "What are we supposed to do tonight?"
The man scratched his chin. "Well, you're sure as hell not going to find a room tonight on this island. If you want, I'll let you park in my parking lot, and you can sleep in your car. I'll let you use the facilities in here for showers and such."
Temperance and Booth nearly groaned at the idea. Seeing their faces, the old man sympathetically shrugged. "Sorry. It's all I can do."
Temperance and Booth nodded. They knew the man was being kind to them; it wasn't like he had to be kind with them to ensure their future business—there were no other hotels with rooms available. "Thanks," Booth said. "And if it isn't too much trouble—do you maybe have some toiletries we could use? You know, razor, toothbrush…?"
The man smiled. "Of course. I'll get Lauren to get you folks whatever you need."
They worked out the finer details of their arrangement, and then headed back to the SUV. They grabbed a quick dinner, and Temperance called Meg to let her now that she was going to be on her own for a few days. After this, she called Angela, explained the situation, and asked her what her thoughts were on taking a trip to bring her and Booth some extra clothes.
"We're going to need you and Hodgins down here anyway," she explained. "I need help with recovery; there's more bones we need to look for."
"Sure, Sweetie, we'll come tomorrow."
"Thanks, Ange," Temperance replied.
There was a beat of silence. Then, "So, you're spending the night sleeping with Booth?"
Temperance glanced over at the Booth as they walked down the street. He was distracted and obviously not paying attention to her conversation. Temperance sighed. "Yes," she replied.
"Mmm-hmmm," Temperance could hear the smile in Angela's voice. "Have fun, Sweetie."
Temperance stifled a groan. "See you tomorrow," she said simply, and clicked off the phone.
This is the point in the story where the readers review.
