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Chapter 7

That night, Brennan found she couldn't fall asleep. She couldn't shut out the remains and the violence the bones showed her. She crawled into Booth, felt his arms instinctively close around her. She felt so tired, but she just couldn't fall asleep.

Booth had decided to let Brennan work her way through the experiences of that day, but when he realised that it was past midnight already and she was no closer to falling asleep than the moment he had joined her in bed, Booth decided a different approach was needed. "Brenn, what's wrong?"

"Can't fall asleep," she whispered as she rested her head on his chest.

"Why not?" he asked her quietly, gently massaging her neck. She was very tense. He wondered why he hadn't noticed that sooner.

"Because of the remains," she replied. She didn't realise how tense she was until Booth's fingers nearly hurt as he tried to massage her neck.

When she winced, he simply laid his hand over her neck, allowing his body heat to warm her muscles. "It's not good to keep these things inside, Brenn. Why don't you talk to me about what you found out?"

She decided that this was a good time to let go of the rules they'd set and talk about work. "There were a lot of injuries, even to the bones. Once I started noticing them, there was just this air of violence around the remains. All of the recent injuries were peri-mortem. Your victim was beaten to death in a sadistic way, Booth. I even found marks on the bones consistent with electroshocks. I think that, eventually, he received a blow to the head which killed him. There was just... so much pain, and such willingness to inflict pain. It scared me."

He couldn't blame her, of course it would scare her. It scared him, too, what people were capable of inflicting on one another. Booth realised it must've brought back memories of the circumstances in which they had been forced to move, ten years ago. "If you want to stop, just tell me, Brenn."

"I can't stop. The least I can do is let you know what happened to him, so you can hopefully find his murderer, or murderers."

"Darling, you can always stop," he reminded her gently. "How can I help?"

She thought about it for a while. "You could help by putting whoever's responsible in jail. That would help. Make this world safer, one bad guy at a time. Right?" she looked up at him in the dark.

"I will. And you're right. That's why I do what I do, but darling, what can I do for you to make you feel better? Before we went to bed, our daughter told me to take good care of you, because you looked pale. I know you're not okay."

"I don't know if there's anything you can do. I need to stop thinking about it, but I don't know how." Her hand found his in the dark and interlaced their fingers.

Booth squeezed her hand tenderly and leaned over her. It was dark in their room, but he managed to find her lips. Kissing her softly, he scooted closer and pulled her against his body, deepening their kiss.

She kept their entangled hands close to her heart as they kissed. She tried to focus on him, the sensation of his lips against hers. She needed more. Her tongue slipped through her lips, licking his bottom lip, asking him to deepen their kiss more.

Booth instantly complied to her request and parted his lips. A groan rumbled softly in the back of his throat as they kissed lazily, and he gave himself to her. He was hers. And he would give her whatever she needed.

She suddenly found what would distract her enough to be able to fall asleep. She slowly pulled her fingers from his, but kept his hand pressed over her heart, then pushed it a little lower to cup her breast. Her leg slipped over his and she pushed her hips into his. "Make love to me," she whispered.

Booth nodded and softly caressed her breast, cupping the weight in his palm. He moved his lips to her jaw, tracing a line of kisses down to her neck. Booth sat up, pushing the duvet away from their bodies. He reached for the hem of her nightgown and pushed the fabric higher, then over her head, baring her to his gaze. It was too dark in the room though, so he got out of bed and walked to the window. Opening the curtains, the light of the moon and the stars illuminated her soft, pale, creamy skin.

Brennan watched as he quickly took off his boxers, his penis already semi-erect. She welcomed him back in her embrace, curling her body around his, finding his lips on instinct as she kissed him. "I'm so glad you're here," she told him softly.

"I'll always be here, no matter what," he promised her. "Is there anything specific that you want or need tonight, darling?" he asked her in between kisses.

"If I'm able to relax, a massage," she requested, "And to relax, I think I just need this." She reached for his penis and closed her fist around it, gently hardening him. "We don't need to take long tonight," she told him softly. "In the end, I just need to be able to sleep," she smiled apologetically.

Nodding, he slipped two fingers inside of her body, stimulating her as he allowed her to heighten his own arousal. His lips found hers once more as he set a deep, yet slow rhythm.

As the endorphins started to course through her blood, her brain couldn't help but focus on the physical pleasure only. Slowly, she began to relax. "I'm ready," she breathed after a few minutes.

She released him and he withdrew his fingers from within her. Booth positioned himself over her, resting on his forearms and his knees as he slipped inside of her. Tenderly, he cupped her breasts in his hands as he pressed soft kisses to her shoulders and he started to move within her.

She wrapped her arms around him and her leg around his waist, quickly setting the right angle for him to enter her body, rubbing against her most sensitive spot. She raked her fingers over his back, squeezing his buttocks, encouraging him.

"I love you," Booth whispered as she set the pace and he followed her. Booth didn't hold himself back and soon he was panting, his muscles straining due to the exertion. "God, I love you," he whispered before he took her lips in a demanding, passionate kiss.

Often, it were his words combined with the physical sensations that pushed her over the edge. He told her he loved her more than once a day, and every time she felt that his words came straight from his heart. His love for her was palpable, but never more so than in these moments, when they made love to each other, completely focussed on one another, sharing the sensations. She pressed her lips against his, their bodies merging, becoming one. She loved him back. She loved him so, so much.

The love she poured into their kiss left him breathless. Booth reached for her hands and entangled their fingers. "Let go, baby," he asked her.

Her skin was connected to his, there was warmth between them, love immersing them, and after a few more thrusts her love for him coursed through her, dragging her body along into orgasm.

Her orgasm triggered his own and he grunted softly as his seed was released deep inside of her body. He rolled them over, so he could rest his body on the mattress next to her, disconnecting their bodies.

She always felt a small loss when their bodies pulled apart after such an intense connection, but he was always right there to take her back into his arms. "I love you," she sighed happily.

"I love you, too." He hugged her to him as he regained his strength. After a few moments, he released her softly. "I'll be right back." Booth stood and reached for the duvet, tucking her in. He disappeared into the bathroom, where he grabbed the massage oil and wet a washcloth, so he could clean her up. He knew she didn't mind, but when they made love without a condom, he made sure that she felt clean and cared for by the time she went to sleep. He returned to the bedroom and sat down on their bed, pushing the duvet back.

She hooked her hand behind his neck and pulled his face to hers as he gently drew the washcloth between her legs. She kissed him, relishing in the connection that was still there.

After he had tenderly wiped his seed from her body, he quickly rinsed out the washcloth and put it in the hamper in the bathroom. Booth returned the bed and gently rubbed Brennan's belly. "What part do you want me to massage?" he whispered quietly. The only goal he had now, was making her fall asleep.

"My back," she replied, rolling over to give him access to her very relaxed, very sated body.

Since he was aware of the fact that it was easier to fall asleep when it was completely dark, Booth covered her legs and bottom, before he got up to close the curtains. Once the room was plunged into darkness once more, he returned to the bed. Pouring some oil into his hands, he rubbed them together, warming the oil, before he placed his hands on her back. "Are your eyes closed?" he whispered.

"Yes," she replied softly, longing to feel his hands on her bare skin.

"Good, please don't fight falling asleep, darling." Booth placed his warm hands on her shoulders and started the massage. He could feel the knots of stress in her muscles, but he didn't work on dissolving them, just loosened them up a bit. Dissolving them would take more time and wouldn't be painless. And at this point, he was only interested in soothing her to sleep. As his hands caressed, soothed and warmed her body, he comforted himself with the notion that he would have more than enough time tomorrow night, during their date, to shower her with the attention and care she deserved.

She reached back with her arm and gave his hand a squeeze, thanking him, before folding her hand back underneath herself and closing her eyes with the intent of falling asleep.

About twenty minutes later, Booth finally felt her relax. When her breathing evened out, he tucked her in. The oil would get stuck on the sheets, but the quality of her sleep was more important. He got up to wash his hands. Then, he returned to bed. Now that she was asleep, his sleep came easily as well. It made him happy that they were always able to fulfil each other's needs, whatever they may be.

We hope this was to your heart's content, if so, let us know! Next time, we'll learn more about Alex. Hope you'll stay with us!