He woke to a warm weight on his chest and inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of her shampoo and whatever made her uniquely Bones. Turning his head slightly to see the clock, Booth sighed, knowing he was going to have to wake her soon.
It was such a marked contrast from the last time he'd woken to her in his bedroom that it took several moments for reality to completely set in.
They'd spent more time awake than asleep during the night. More than once he'd drifted off before waking and reaching for her again. Partially because of desire but also because he found it hard to believe she was there with him. She met him with equaled passion each time and Booth was once again awed by the turn this month had taken.
The fingers not wrapped around her traced along her shoulder down her arm all the way to her hand. She shivered slightly but didn't wake, so he dropped his hand on top of hers and pressed it to his chest before he bent his head slightly to press a kiss to her hair.
"I love you," he whispered. "Too much for me to put into words."
Awake now, she turned her head and pressed a kiss to his bare chest. "I know that, Booth," she said softly. "I don't doubt your feelings."
Her head was still down and he couldn't see her face. "I'm glad. But I'm still going to tell you every chance I get."
"And I'm not going to stop you," she said immediately. All her fears about this moment and his feelings for her were gone. "Do we have to get up?" she asked, turning sleepy eyes up toward him.
Turning to look at the clock again, he calculated how quickly the two of them could get ready, knowing he was going to have to take her back to her apartment. "If we're going to work, yes," he said, unable to keep the grumpy tone from his voice. There was nothing he'd like more than to just stay in bed with her. "Maybe, you should bring some clothes here and leave them," he suggested carefully. "I know you have a few things here, but maybe a work outfit or two."
He kept his breathing slow and even, giving her time to think about it, always worried he was going to push her too far, too fast. Eventually, he hoped, the automatic fear that she'd just up and leave would fade. He couldn't claim he trusted her if he couldn't trust her heart too.
"Rationally," he argued, smiling when her eyes brightened, "it would mean we could stay in bed longer because we wouldn't have to go back to our own places before work."
Her blue eyes were considering as she looked at him and Booth was sure she saw everything he was trying to hide. "Would you do the same at my place?"
"If you want me too, Bones."
Dragging her naked body up his, she gave him a blazing hot kiss. "I want you to. Now," she said, smiling wickedly at him, "I want something else."
~OOOOO~
"We still have a couple of gifts left," Booth mentioned at lunch. He was digging into a piece of apple pie, ignoring the look of disgust that crossed his partner's face. Despite all the changes, she still didn't like cooked fruit.
She was finishing her own meal, including half of the fries that she'd moved from his plate to hers. It reminded him of their first lunch in the diner, when that one stolen fry had been part of the path that led them to where they were now.
Many times he'd imagined how it would be between the two of them, if they ever committed to each other completely. None of his fantasies ever lived up to the reality that was Temperance Brennan.
The look in her eyes, the feel of her skin beneath his fingers would always be the best gift he was given during this Christmas season. Waking with her next to him, everything she was surrounding him, made all the difficulties and separations worth it.
The previous evening hadn't ended the way he'd expected it to. But the moment was theirs and they'd taken it.
"We're supposed to save the final gift for the party," Brennan reminded him. She'd made her decision about what it would be that morning. After reluctantly leaving his bed. "Though, I will have to give you another fake gift. I can't give the real gift at the event."
Booth paused in the middle of cutting another bite. "Why?" he asked, though he suspected she wouldn't tell him.
Refusing to answer that question, she continued with another topic. "I would prefer not to go to the party at all," she admitted, hoping he'd let her reason for saving the gift drop. Everything about the exchange had been private until this point and she wanted to keep it that way. "Social situations make me uncomfortable. I know I don't always conform to what is expected when it comes to small talk. I don't understand the intricacies. Why don't people just say what they mean?"
He shrugged and finished the final bite of his food. If she didn't want to talk about the gifts that remained, he wasn't going to force her to. He'd see her reasoning for the secrecy when she gifted them to him. "The people who love you, treasure you, understand your small talk just fine. And I'm not only talking about me. But as for the party, if you don't want to go, then we don't have to go."
"But we signed up for it." His solution was too simple to work. Could they get away with that?
He snorted. "No we didn't. And we already know who our Secret Santa is. Isn't that the purpose of the final party? To find out who's been giving you the gifts? We can have our own party at your place. Or mine." There was no missing the suggestion in his voice. "That gift will be a lot better than anything that will happen at the party."
His very literal, blunt scientist actually blushed at the tone of his voice. So many unexpected joys, being more than just a partner with Temperance Brennan.
They'd promised to keep it professional during the work day. Otherwise he would have leaned across the table and kissed her senseless.
Unbeknownst to him, Brennan was thinking the same thing. She'd learned that while Booth didn't like talking about intimate acts in public, he was very different behind closed doors. Rising and leaving his bed this morning had been more difficult than she expected it to be.
She'd never done permanent and long term. But it was tempting to think about the future when it would be spent with the man across the table from her.
"Are you going to bring an overnight bag?" she asked. "Are we having a sleepover?" Her voice was the exact opposite of his, innocent and factual.
Her ability to joke and do so successfully still surprised him. It seemed to be something she could only do with him, outside of work. In the Lab, she remained the serious and rational woman she'd always been. "Do you want me to?"
The smile she gave him made her answer clear even without words. Booth returned the look, then leaned toward her. "I want you to do lots of things."
She brushed her fingers across the back of his hand. "I would still like to attend the Jeffersonian Holiday Party," deciding she needed to end the suggestive talk before it went too far. Thinking about private time with Booth was proving to be very distracting. "Would you like to escort me?"
He sputtered. "That wasn't a serious question, I hope. There's no way any other guy is escorting you anywhere." Her eyes sparkled and he let himself fall into their depths before bringing himself back. "Is there a reason you want to go to that one and not the other?"
Though he'd just reminded himself about public displays of affection, he still reached across the table and took her hand.
"Yes," she said honestly. "There is something I want to show you that evening. I should have the arrangements made by the night of the party." She looked down at their joined hands and decided she was okay with it.
Intrigued, he squeezed tight before letting go. "Is it at the Jeffersonian? What you want to show me?"
"It's a surprise." When he gave her a look she'd seen on Parker's face more than once, she smiled but shook her head. "You'll find out that night. You will just have to wait."
Knowing how stubborn she could be, he gave up graciously. But he knew he'd be spending too much time trying to figure out what it could be.
Glancing down at his watch, he stood and threw enough bills on the table to pay for both of them. "We better get going. I'll drop you off at the Lab."
~OOOOOO~
Returning back to the office, Booth sent the sketch of their unidentified skeleton back to Angela and asked her to run it. He could have done it himself, but she was faster at that sort of thing. If the state boys were annoyed, that was their problem. Booth wanted this cleared from his desk before the holiday.
Deep in a stack of expense reports, he was cursing numbers he couldn't make match up when a welcome knock interrupted the work. Looking up in relief, he waved Charlie into the office.
"I will pay you overtime if you can explain why this isn't working." He gave the papers a frustrated shove. "What difference does it make if the numbers are a little off?"
Assuming Booth didn't really want an answer, Charlie put a wrapped package on top of the papers. "Maybe this will distract you. Your girlfriend sent it over."
Booth cringed at the title. "Don't let Bones ever hear you say that," he warned. The woman could certainly keep her secrets. She hadn't even hinted at lunch that one of the final gifts was on its way to his office.
Charlie nodded solemnly. He might not be intimidated by Booth, but the same couldn't be said about Dr. Brennan. "Heard you guys put on quite a show at the FBI Gala."
Groaning, Booth tore his eyes from the gift and moved them to Charlie. "What did you hear?" Did he care? Not really. But gossip in the offices was as bad as that of a high school. He could only imagine what was flying around the halls.
Motioning toward a chair, Charlie sat when Booth gave silent approval. "When the rumors made it to me, you were practically ripping each other's clothes off on the dance floor." As Booth's eyes darkened, Charlie laughed. "I'm assuming they were a little exaggerated."
"Just a little," Booth said. It had been a few more nights before that happened. And even then, their clothes had remained in one piece.
"I'm happy for you guys," Charlie said, forcing Booth to stop thinking about his previous night. "I'm glad you're talking again. And doing more than that, if the rumors are true."
Booth wasn't sure he could take credit for the beginning of it. If it wasn't for the email from Bones and a little interference from Angela, would he have picked up the phone?
It had taken too long after Hannah left. Or, like Bones, he simply needed time. And she'd been gracious enough to give it to him.
Seeing that Booth was a million miles away, Charlie stood up and tapped a finger on the center of the gift to get his attention. "Don't screw this up, Booth. You'll never recover." Leaving the office, he kicked Booth's door closed behind him. He knew his boss well; Booth would want privacy to open that gift.
"Isn't that the truth," Booth said. Charlie couldn't hear the response but he didn't need to. Booth knew he was right.
"Well," Booth said, happy for the excuse not to go back to the reports. "What did you get me this time?"
