A couple of days before Christmas, Booth and Brennan were lounging on their bed, snuggled up together. Brennan moved and hooked her leg over his, lifting her head from his chest and kissing his jaw. Her hand slid up his shirt-clad chest and came to rest on his shoulder. She pushed herself up and pressed her lips against his as her hand curled around the nape of his neck.

Booth tightened his hold on her and moaned as her tongue darted out and wet his bottom lip before she bit down ever so gently. "Mmmm," he mumbled, his hand moving upwards and disappearing into her hair.

She pulled back and exhaled, laying her head back on his chest.

He continued to stroke her head, lightly massaging her scalp with his fingers. "Feeling better?" he asked; she had mentioned a headache earlier.

She nodded. "Yes." She blinked her eyes open and tilted her head back so she could look at him. "I'm sorry about Parker."

He sighed. "It's not your fault. It sucks, but what can I do? Rebecca already made plans and when I talked to Parker he sounded really excited about going snowboarding in Switzerland."

She hid her smile in his neck and nodded.

"How can I compete with snowboarding in the Swiss Alps?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Booth. Parker would be just as excited, if not more so, to spend Christmas with us. He may be a teenager, but you're still his hero and he loves you. If Rebecca hadn't already planned and paid for the vacation, I'm confident that he'd choose you over snowboarding."

"Maybe you're right. I just miss him so much, you know? It's been eight months since he was here. I wished he lived closer."

"I know." She pulled his t-shirt out from where it was tucked into his jeans and slipped her hand beneath it, immediately beginning to trace his muscles with the tip of her index finger and dragging her nail across his warm skin. "You said something about New Year's?"

He nodded, a smile forming on his face. "Yeah. Rebecca said they might be coming to the States for New Years. There's no definite plans yet, but she told me it was most likely happening. I don't want to get my hopes up, but I can't wait to see him."

She stopped and rested her hand flat against his abdomen, just below his bellybutton, her ring and pinky fingers overlapping the top of his jeans.

"Do you think Angela would mind if we skipped the annual New Year's party this year?"

She shook his head. "I don't think so. Why?"

"If Parker does end up coming, I want to do something small, just us. We'll probably only have a few days together and I don't want to waste any of that time."

She nodded. "I can see that." She sat up and stretched, swallowing a yawn. "I'm going to check on Christine. It's been very quiet around here." She let out a chuckle and got out of bed. She slipped on her jeans and tucked her feet into her slippers before leaving and heading to their daughter's bedroom.

He lay back and folded his arms behind his head. Letting out a breath, he allowed his mind to begin planning their New Year's, even though Parker visiting wasn't a sure thing yet.

Brennan tip-toed down the hallway and paused in front of Christine's open bedroom door. She poked her head in and smiled, finding her daughter sitting at her desk humming 'Deck the Halls'. Raising her fist, she quietly knocked on the door. "Honey?"

Christine twisted her body around and waved. "Hi, Mommy."

Brennan stepped fully into the room and approached the desk. "What are you doing in here?"

"I'm writing a letter to Santa."

"Do you need help?" Brennan knew her daughter was advanced, but the little girl still struggled with her letters and spelling and hadn't fully master reading yet.

Christine shook her head. "Nuh-uh."

Brennan looked over Christine's shoulder and peered down at the piece of paper.

Christine quickly folded her arms over the letter. "No peeking, Mommy. I won't get what I want if you see my letter 'fore Santa does." She quickly folded the paper and stuffed it into the pre-addressed envelope. "I need a stamp."

Brennan nodded, noting the empty right-hand corner of the envelope. "I believe I have some in my office."

"Are you coming with Daddy and me to the Mall?"

Brennan shook her head, guiding her daughter down the hall and stairs. "No, I am not."

Christine pouted. "Why not?"

"Your father has yet to buy me a Christmas present so he is prohibiting me from accompanying you two to the Mall since he's convinced it will ruin the magic of Christmas if I were to accidentally find out what he got me. I told him it was unnecessary for him to buy me a gift in the first place, but he insists he has to." Brennan paused. "I'm going into work for a few hours while you two go shopping."

"We're gonna see Santa."

"I know."

"But he's not the real Santa."

Brennan opened her office door and slipped inside. She went over to her desk and rummaged through the top left drawer, looking for the roll of stamps she always kept in there.

"It's okay, though, 'cause he's friends with the real Santa and I know he'll get my message to him. Nobody's s'posed to see him 'cept for the elves at the North Pole and Mrs. Claus. Daddy says it ruins the magic."

Brennan rolled her eyes, her back still to Christine. "Of course he thinks that," she muttered. She found the roll and peeled off a stamp. "Here you go, Honey."

Christine skipped over to the desk and took the stamp from her mother. "Thank you, Mommy," she said, sticking the stamp to the envelope.

"You're welcome."

"Bones? Christine?" Booth called down the hallway. He stopped in front of the open office door and stepped inside. "There you two are." He smiled at Brennan and then looked down at his daughter. "You ready, Princess?"

Christine nodded, holding up her letter. "I got my letter, Daddy."

"Go put your shoes on."

Christine ran out of the room, leaving Brennan and Booth alone.

Booth walked over to Brennan and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Got any idea what you want for Christmas?"

Brennan rolled her eyes. He had been asking her that for the last two weeks. "Booth."

"I know, I know. You don't want anything. But c'mon, Bones, there's gotta be something."

She shook her head. "I already told you it's not necessary. I have everything I could ever want, right here," she added after a short pause. Her eyes twinkled as she said that and she smiled at him, her hand pressed against his chest, her thumb gently brushing against the sweater he changed into.

"Bones," he groaned, their faces so close that his nose brushed against hers. He glanced at her lips and then back to her eyes. Swallowing hard, he exhaled, his arm snaking around her waist and tugging her to him. His gaze settled on her lips once again and he leaned in closer. Just as he was about to kiss her, Christine came bounding down the hallway and into the room.

"Daddy!"

He jumped back, turning around to face his daughter, missing Brennan's disappointment. "Are you ready?"

Christine nodded. "That's why I'm standing here, Daddy."

He chuckled. "Okay, Angel." He gave Brennan a goodbye peck on the lips. "If you think of anything, and I mean anything, you want for Christmas, give me a call, okay? Even if you think it's stupid and unnecessary or whatever."

Brennan nodded. "I will."

"We'll be back later."

"I'll follow you out."

They all headed to the front door, Booth and Brennan grabbing their coats, and Brennan exchanging her slippers for her shoes and then helping Christine button her coat up, since she had attempted to do it herself and had missed a few. Booth gave Brennan another kiss before she got into her car and watched her back out of the driveway. He still had no idea what she wanted for Christmas and he wanted to get her something good, something she really wanted but would never expect, since she had just given him the best present he'd gotten in a while, possibly ever gotten.

He nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the blaring car horn. He turned around, finding Christine looking at him through the driver's side window. Shaking his head, he walked closer to the SUV and pulled open the door. "Backseat, Princess."

Christine climbed into the back and buckled herself into her car seat.

Booth got in and looked at her in the rearview mirror. "So, what do you think we should get Mom for Christmas?" he asked her as he started the car and shifted it into drive.

Christine kicked her legs back and forth. "Does she like Barbies?"

Booth smiled. "I don't think she wants toys, Angel."

"How 'bout a bracelet?"

"I don't think so." He sighed, keeping his eyes on the road as he drove towards the Mall.

Her attention was pulled from the conversation to outside the car window. She pressed her hand to the glass, her eyes bright. "It's snowing!"

He smiled, stopping at a red light, watching the snow fall, and thinking about what to get Brennan.

Three hours later, Booth and Christine were standing in line to see Santa. She tugged on her father's sleeve and sighed. "How much longer, Daddy?"

Booth adjusted his grip on the shopping bags and draped his free arm around her shoulders. "Soon, Angel. We're almost there, see?"

She looked around the woman in front of them and nodded, smiling as she could see Santa sitting in his giant red seat and the elves handing out candy canes.

He hoisted her up onto his hip and kissed her head. He sensed she was getting tired and decided to pick her up to avoid a meltdown. They had been in line for over an hour already and had spent another two walking around the Mall before that, shopping. Some of the other children in line were crying or screaming or otherwise causing a scene and he was trying to avoid that at all costs.

She leaned against him and sighed. "I wanna see Santa, Daddy."

"I know, Honey. Only a few more minutes." He paused. "Do you want to play a game?" Distraction always worked.

She nodded. "Uh-huh. Let's play the alphabet game!"

"Okay. Categories or no categories?"

She shook her head. "None."

"I'll go first. A, hmmm, Apple," he said, pointing to the illuminated sign a few stores down.

"Um, B?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

She frowned and then her eyes lit up. "Blue!" She poked his sweater, which happened to be a deep navy color.

"C, huh?"

She giggled.

"I'm stumped. C, that's a tricky one."

"Daddy!"

"What?"

"Me! I'm C."

"Hmmm?"

"Christine, me." She pointed at herself with both thumbs.

"Oh, I get it. Your name starts with C, doesn't it?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

"Smarty pants."

"Mommy says I'm smart, but it's got nothing to do with my pants, Daddy," she said, her chin tilted up and her hands on her hips.

"Is that so?" He kissed her head again and stepped forward in line. "It's your turn, Angel. D."

"I know. I'm smart, 'member?" She beamed. "Daddy starts with D." She paused. "Your turn. You've got E."

"What would I do without you?

"You'd be fine 'cause I wasn't always here," she answered.

"Riiight." He looked around and then focused on her. "Elf."

She shrugged. "I don't wanna play anymore."

He nodded. "Okay."

"Daddy?" she asked, looking through her purse for her chapstick.

"Yeah?"

"Why is Santa fat?"

"Because he eats too many Christmas cookies," he answered automatically, smiling as he remembered Parker asking that same question when he was younger.

"Oh." She shook her head and tugged on the sleeve of her pale pink shirt. "I'm gonna give him carrots. It's not healthy to eat so many cookies."

"If he gets the carrots, what are the reindeer gonna eat?"

"They can have the cookies 'cause they're exercising, Daddy." She paused. "I hope Santa doesn't get stuck in the chiminey."

"You're next," he told her when he saw the little boy in front of them hop up onto Santa's lap.

"Yay!" She bounced and didn't calm down until she was sitting on Santa's lap. She looked at the man in the red suit and smiled. She reached up and he flinched when she touched his beard.

"Watch it, Kid," he muttered.

"Don't worry, Santa. I'm just fixing it." She adjusted the crooked beard and shifted on his left leg. "I know you're not the real Santa. You're just his friend. But I won't tell anybody."

"Ho, ho, ho," he said in a deep voice.

She laughed. "You're funny."

"What do you want for Christmas this year, Little Girl?"

"My brother."

"Hmm?"

She looked down at her hands and fiddled with the Bobby charm on her bracelet, a present from Parker. "He lives really far away with his Mommy and my Daddy really misses him."

"What's your brother's name?"

"Parker."

"Anything else? A toy maybe?"

"Uh, a telescope and a construction set with a toolbox and everything. A real toolbox."

He raised an eyebrow and turned towards the camera. "Smile, Kid."

She looked at the camera and smiled wide, wrapping her arms around Santa's neck just before the flash went off. She slipped off the man's lap and ran to where Booth was waiting for her. "All done, Daddy."

He took her hand, reminding her subtly to say thank you to the elf when she took the offered candy cane. "Let's go home."

"Is Mommy gonna like her present?"

"I hope so." He smiled down at her and they headed for the exit and to the SUV.

Booth lifted a sleeping Christine out of the car and made his way to the front door. He fumbled with the keys and grumbled when he dropped them. He attempted to bend down and pick them up but Christine squirmed and mumbled against his neck, halting him. Not wanting to wake her up, he straightened and remembered seeing Brennan's car in the driveway. Before he had a chance to knock, though, the door opened and Brennan stepped towards him, taking the little girl. "Long day?" She carried Christine inside and to her bedroom while Booth went to grab the shopping bags from the car.

Booth hid them in the hall closet and went to search for Brennan. He found her kneeling by Christine's bed, tucking her in. "She was a real trooper."

Brennan glanced at him before pressing a kiss to their daughter's forehead. She stood up and left the room, pulling the door closed as she did. "Did you find everything you needed?"

He laughed, "Yes, Bones, I did, no thanks to you," he teased, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Did you get any work done?"

"As a matter of fact, I did."

He squinted his eyes and stared at her. She was lying, but he couldn't understand why. "Hmm."

"What?"

He shook his head. "Nothing." He led her out to the living room and plopped down on the couch, pulling her down with him.

She laughed, landing on his lap. She hooked her arm around his neck and kissed him.

He wrapped her up in his arms and kissed her back. "You just lied to me," he whispered against her lips.

She pulled back, her eyes widened. "Wha—how—no, I didn't."

"Yeah, you did, but for the life of me, I can't understand why. You didn't go into work today at all, did you?"

"Of course I did."

He brushed her hair out of her face and continued to stare at her.

She nodded. "Okay, no, I didn't. The Jeffersonian is closed until the 5th."

"What were you doing while we were at the Mall, then?" He paused. "Getting me a present?" He winked at her.

"Maybe," she said, playing along. She tilted her head in the direction of the hall when she heard a door squeak open and footsteps coming towards them.

"Bones, I'm starving."

Booth's eyes widened, his mouth dropping open. "Wha—how—but—?" He swallowed, glancing towards Brennan and then back to the hallway. "Parker?"

I'm thinking this will be a short story...probably only two more chapters. Hope you liked this one. :)