Brennan stood next to the table reading over Zack's notes, her eyes flicked furiously over the words on the page and he sat waiting expectantly for her corrections. When she simply nodded her approval and handed the notes back to him, to say he was stunned would have been a gross understatement. As he watches her making her way back to her office Jack pats his back.

"Must be that time of the month Zack, she'll come back with something for you to correct in a few hours… don't worry."

Zack watches after his mentor for a moment longer and then turns back to the table to finish examining the bones. Jack smiles and shakes his head before slouching onto a chair and concentrating on the microscopic images in front of him.

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Brennan sits at her desk and stares unseeingly at the monitor in front of her. She'd been wondering if it were best to avoid Booth completely but had quickly dismissed the idea. She knows that ignoring Booth will only make their working relationship much harder than it is already.

Flicking the monitor off, she glances at her watch. After a few seconds of pondering, she pushes up from the desk grabbing a manila file from beside her keyboard. If she is to maintain any semblance of normality, she may as well start now by briefing Booth on the team's findings so far. Grabbing a jacket from the back of her chair and shrugging out of her lab coat she heads out of the door.

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Booth stands at the stove frying eggs with a towel slung over his shoulder. Work had been slow today and so he had taken off a couple of hours early and headed back to his apartment, he really wanted to clear his head and now, even after being home for those couple of hours he is no clearer. The phone starts to ring and he picks it up form the counter behind him and cradles it between his chin and shoulder as he continues to cook the eggs.

"Hello?"

"Booth?"

"Bones? Is that you?"

"Yeah, is this a bad time?"

He closes his eyes, he hates that she would ever think there could be a bad time but knows that he deserves her question. "Course not. Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I went to the bureau, but you weren't there."

"That's coz I'm here Bones."

"Well we've established that Booth. I just thought you might have wanted an update on the lab's findings."

"Yeah, sounds good. Why don't you swing by my place?... Or I can come by your's later?"

There is a beat of silence as she contemplates and he forgets to stir the eggs for a second as he waits for her reply. "I'll come by just now. It shouldn't take long."

"Okay, I'll see you when you get here." He hangs up the phone and lays it on the counter beside him, looking quickly at the eggs in the pan he shakes his head. Carrying the pan to the garbage can he empties the contents in and places the pan on the stove turning it off. He walks over to his fridge and pulls it open, staring inside he is quickly dismayed to find it bare. Picking up the phone again he hits speed dial and after a few seconds smiles.

"Hey, I'd like to order a pizza."

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Getting out of her car she stands and takes a few seconds to glance warily at the font door. Only last night she was here, ready to let the man on the other side into her heart, tonight she is here determined to keep him out of it. On approaching she knocks quietly and is startled when the door opens immediately. Lowering her hand she forces a smile, the moment is awkward and she can sense his unease with the situation which, oddly, makes her feel better. He ushers her in and closes the door behind her. She stops in the hall, feeling suddenly like an intruder, but his hand on the small of her back guides her into the living room.

"Sit down Bones."

She obeys silently and sits with the folder in her lap, he sits next to her, their bodies close but not touching. After a moment of silence Booth puts a hand on her arm causing her to jump, she smiles apologetically at his confused expression and hands him the file.

"You okay?"

"Yes" she lies. She feels anything but okay, her heart races and her stomach is churning with anticipation, anticipation that she glumly admits is pointless. The man sitting next to her, flicking through their latest case file, the one that she has only just begun to understand her feelings for - is and will remain unobtainable. She won't allow herself to be pulled into the complication of relationships. Just thinking about his undefined relationship with Rebecca is enough to convince her that she would only end up regretting acting on her impulses. That's all they were, impulses. Desires, urges, chemical reactions. In her mind that's what lust is…. So why, when she understands the basic biology of humans is she unable to categorise the feelings that he stirs in her?

Booth closes the file and smiles at her impressed. "You guys have done great. We didn't expect to have the IDs so soon. When will we have the last ID?"

"Zack's close to making an ID now, did you read that part where Sims and Collins were dead before the explosion?" He nods. "Both died of gunshot wounds to the head. The cranial fissures surrounding the wound show that they were shot at close range, could be suicide. We're investigating the possibilities."

"Amazing." She looks up to see the soft expression on his face as he regards her. "I always find it amazing how you can do that… from a set of bones."

"It's my job." The sound of the doorbell causes her eyes to snap up and glance at the door behind her. She pushes herself from the sofa and picks up the now discarded file. "I should go… You look like you're expecting someone."

Booth stands up and smiles reassuringly. "I'm not expecting anyone… I ordered pizza. Stay here." He pushes up and goes to answer the door, she peers around him as though to check the validity of his statement.

Her ease quickly disappears as she remembers the feeling that seeing Rebecca had stirred in her last night. She doesn't want to experience that feeling again, or the smug smile that Booth's ex had worn as she'd made her excuses for showing up on his door step so late. She watches him walk into the kitchen with the pizza box and decides that she can't stay here for another second if she is to maintain her resolve. Striding to the door she is about to reach for the knob when she feels his hand on her free arm. She turns to look at him and sees his questioning glance.

"I need to go Booth." He nods towards the pizza.

"Stay have something to eat." His grip on her arm is gentle but insistent. She glances at the pizza and then back at him, his charm smile is starting to appear at the corners of his lips and she shakes her head. The smile stops creeping up his face and his eyes seem to search hers for something, she is unsure of what, or whether or not he has found it but some sort of emotion passes through them and it's leaving her breathless.

"I can't." She goes for the door knob once more but in one swift movement from Booth she finds her back against the door, his body pressed to hers and his face millimetres from her own. The file falls to the floor and she feels it land against her foot, before she has a chance to protest his lips have found her own and his hands have taken up residence in her hair.

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