A/N: sighs in relief FINALLY!!! I'm done that chapter. Sorry guys if it took a long time for me to update but I had so much trouble writing this chapter, it's unbelievable. Anyway, I hope you like it. Lots of angst coming up in the next chapters. Be prepared!

The scenery zoomed by as the SUV sped down the freeway, the trees merging into a dark green blur. Temperance stared out the window, her eyes following the ray of trees until she felt herself becoming cross-eyed. She distractedly tapped her fingers on the folder on her lap, her mind miles from the road leading to Evelyne Courteau's best friend's home. Angela hadn't come in today, Hodgins claiming she hadn't slept well the previous night. She had received the news with a sinking feeling. She had wanted to tell Angela about her decision while she still felt confident in her own arguments. Waiting longer would make it harder to break the news. She knew Angela would be devastated and just the thought of hurting her friend was hard enough.

Then, just as she did every time she thought of the subject, she began fidgeting in her seat.

"Are you okay?" Booth asked, concerned.

Temperance jumped, startled out of her thoughts.

"Whoa! A little jumpy, are we?"

Temperance glared at him but said nothing.

"What's up, Bones?"

"Nothing."

Booth glanced briefly at her.

"I was just thinking, Booth. That's all." Temperance added, feeling accused of lying.

"I didn't say anything."

"No but I know what you were thinking."

"And what was I thinking?"

"You were thinking that I was lying."

"Were you?"

"No."

Booth chuckled.

"What?"

But he said nothing, an amused smile still lingering on his lips.

"What?"

He turned to face her.

"Nothing, Bones." Booth replied before looking back at the road.

Temperance watched as the bizarre smile lingered om his lips. She frowned before turning back towards the window, back to her thoughts.

She didn't have the courage to tell him about Angela's favor. She knew he would be up for the idea, saying that it would make her best friend really happy and she couldn't bare to disappoint him as well.

Booth left the freeway and slowed down. They were on their way to visit a friend of Evelyne's. At least this would help her take her mind off her decision.

It was a small, modest house. The outside, ivory white, with greenish shutters at the window reminded Temperance of a time in her childhood. A similar house, at the top of a sandy dunes, where her family spent one month out of the year. July: her favorite month. Time spent on the beach, only a few yards from the front porch, was Temperance's earliest memory. As she climbed the steps leading to the front door, Temperance wondered what had become of their summer house.

Booth knocked and, from the open living room window, Temperance could hear the muffle sound of music. Soothing music. Almost depressing. The partners exchanged glances.

"I think you better ring." Temperance said.

Booth nodded and did so.

Almost instantly, the music coming from inside the house stopped. Footsteps echoed out the window and reached their ears. Seconds later, the front door opened to reveal a small, young woman. Booth introduced them and the woman stepped aside, welcoming them in. They then followed her to the living room, which was as modest as the outside of the house was.

"It's not much, but it's home." Vivian Summers said as she looked around the room.

"It's beautiful." Temperance assured her.

Booth, stunned by her response, quirked an eyebrow. Temperance glared at him.

"Have you been living here long?" Booth asked, as the trio took a seat.

"A little over a year, right after my boyfriend left me."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Booth replied.

But Vivian shrugged.

"It's no big deal. I guess he just wasn't the one."

Booth nodded.

"And how long have you been friends with Evelyne?"

"Since we were children." Vivian replied, her eyes filling with tears. "I was the first to move to the US. I wanted to get away from my family. My parents and I weren't in the best of terms and they argued all the time. My ex-boyfriend already lived here. We met through the Internet, met up a few times and we just clicked. When he found out about my troubles at home, he offered me to come live with him. So I did. It was very difficult being separated from Eve. One day, on the phone, I joked about how she should come live with me. She laughed but then, four days later, someone rang the doorbell, I opened the door and it was her. My boyfriend wasn't too happy to see her there but he let her bunk with us for a couple of weeks. Then she met a guy, Chris. He was sweet, really sweet with her. I was really happy for them."

"We've already spoken to Chris. He did seem like a very kind man."

Vivian nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Where are you two from originally?" Temperance asked.

"Montreal. All my family is still there and so is hers."

"We've contacted them about the funeral." Booth informed her. "They should be coming down in the next couple of days."

"Who would do something like that?" Vivian asked, more tears falling from her eyes. "Evelyne was the most amazing woman I've ever met. She was so kind, always ready to help others, always in a good mood. She was always there for her friends, no matter what. She was more than my best friend. She was like a sister to me."

Booth looked over at his partner then back at Vivian. He smiled sympathetically at her.

"We're trying to figure out what happened to your friend. That's why we need to know if there is anything you could tell us that could help us catch her murderer."

"I just don't know anybody who could. How did she die?"

Booth turned to his partner and stared into her eyes, warning her to be tactiful.

"We're not quite sure yet. We think she might have been poisoned but the toxin screen results haven't come in yet. We're still waiting."

"How long?"

"We don't know."

Vivian nodded.

Silence fell over the room. Temperance looked over at her partner, asking him silently if this could be their cue to leave. But Booth shook his head.

"Was the baby with her?"

The question took them by surprise. But before either of them could see, Vivian went on.

"I told you that my boyfriend left me a year ago. You see, I had been with him for almost six years, since I was seventeen. I wanted to get married but Jason, well, wasn't up for the idea. He came up with having a baby, instead. His philosophy was that what better than a baby to seal two lives together forever? I have to admit, he did have a point. Anyway, we tried but we were unlucky. After a few tests, we discovered that, together, we were infertile. It didn't mean he could get a woman pregnant or I couldn't carry a child, it just meant that, together, it was impossible for us."

Temperance fidgetted in her seat. She could see where this was going. Booth didn't seem to notice.

"There were the usual options for us: surrogacy, sperm donor, adoption. Jason didn't like the idea of having a child that was half-mine, half-some-other-man's. Adoption was on our list but we decided to try surrogacy first. I immediately thought of Evelyne. I gave her some time to think about it, of course, but it didn't take twenty-four hours that she was calling me back, telling me she had made up her mind. We weren't rich, Jason and I, but we had good friends. When they heard that we were trying to get a baby, our friends and Jason's family, along with us, gathered up enough money for the implantation."

"But Evelyne was only five months pregnant and you said your boyfriend left you a year ago. What happened during the other seven months?" Temperance asked, confused.

"Bones..." Booth muttered, under his breath.

Temperance ignored him.

Vivian chuckled.

"There was always something. It took a few months to gather up the money. Then, when we finally had it, Evelyne became sick. She caught a real bad pneumonia on her way back from visiting her parents in Montreal. Even after she was cured, she was still tired. Another two months passed and Jason was becoming restless. He demanded that we find another surrogate. I refused. Who else could I ask? Evelyne was the only person I trusted enough to entrust such a favor to."

Temperance gulped.

"Anyway, he got angry and took off. I never heard from him again after that. I still keep in touch with his family, especially when we finally got around to do the surrogacy thing. The embryos were ready, we were just waiting for Evelyne."

Temperance nodded.

"Evelyne just went for it?"

"Yes." Vivian replied, confused as to why she was being asked that question.

Booth, too, seemed surprised.

"She told me that she loved me and that she would do this for us. She said she didn't even have to think about it. I told her that I appreciated her answer but that I really wanted her to think things through. After all, she would be pregnant and all for someone else."

"And what did she say to that?"

"She said she knew all of that but that she also knew how happy it would make us, making her happy as well. She joked, saying she agreed to be godmother. She would have been anyway, but I still found it funny."

"What made you decide to have children?"

"Bones." Booth said, embarrassed by her question.

"What? I'm just curious." Temperance whispered, in reply.

Vivian chuckled.

"It's okay, Agent Booth. I don't mind. To answer your question truthfully, Dr. Brennan, it's love. Love made me want to have children. I've always been amazed at the connection that seems to be between a mother and her child. Even though my parents and I don't talk, I was really close to them as a child. Even to this day, when I'm sick, I still want my mother. I still wish she was here with me, making me chicken noddle soup and just... being there. Now that's a powerful feeling. I wanted the chance to experience that, to give birth to a tiny human being, raise it and watch it grow up to become, what I hope, was going to be a really good person. It's every mother's dream."

Temperance nodded.

"Does that answer your question?"

"Yes. Thank you."

Vivian smiled.

"Well," Booth said, as he got to his feet, "I think we're done for today. If you think of anything else, just give me a call."

Vivian extended her arm and grabbed the card Booth was holding out her way. She nodded before getting to her feet and showing her visitors to the door.

Temperance was about to climb down the stairs when a thought hit her. Making sure that Booth was further ahead and wouldn't hear her, Temperance turned around. Vivian was still standing in the doorway, watching them leave.

"It was a boy, by the way."

Vivian gasped as more tears shot to her eyes.

"Daniel." Vivian whispered.

Temperance frowned.

"I'm sorry?"

"We were going to name our son Daniel. Evelyne thought it was a beautiful name."

"It is."

"What was that all about?" Booth asked as Temperance sat down in her seat.

"I told her it was a boy."

"And?" Booth asked, worried that Temperance had opened up a not-yet-completely-healed wound.

"They were going to name him Daniel."

Booth frowned but didn't say anything more.

A little more than two hours had passed when Temperance hung up the phone, hands shaking and feeling light-headed. She sat down, face in her hands, and tried to calm her racing heart. She had just informed Angela of her decision.