A/N: I love the obsession with Brennan's hand that Booth has during the infamous "Tough Man" hand grab. But even before that moment in the scene, he keeps sneaking a peek at her hands as they talk to Sweets at the table. It slays me.

OOOOO

Dec. 13th: Jena_always chose the word "tittynope". Which, if your brain is in the gutter from writing smut all month, you'd think goes right along with Dirty December. But actually, it means "the small remnants left over". Huh, who knew, right?

OOOOO

It was official: there was something wrong with him.

Correction: there was something seriously wrong with him.

There had to be. There was no other rational explanation for the unexpected and unwanted thoughts coursing through his mind.

Okay, maybe not unwanted.

But one sight of her hands should not have instigated this ridiculous fascination he was now tripping over. After all, he had seen her hands a thousand times before and he had never once thought about them.

Ever.

Zero thoughts.

Until today.

It had to be a byproduct of his tumor. There was no earthly way that a normal, well-adjusted man could sit here and have the thoughts he was having about those hands, especially one who had spent the last few years of his life watching those same hands dive into decaying bodies on a daily basis.

Yet, when he had stopped by her office to pick her up for lunch, she was lotioning her hands and for whatever reason, he had suddenly lost the ability to speak. He had fantasized about how that pale skin would feel against his skin, so soft under his lips.

No.

He shook the feeling and stared up at her face again, trying to pay attention to the scientific mumbo jumbo she was spouting.

Hey, remember that time she flayed open a corpse and wore its hand like a glove? That was disgusting.

He used that motivation to focus up for a few minutes before she played dirty and reached for the pepper and brushed against his hand. He sighed.

Of all the things to fixate on. Her hands? Really?

He couldn't avoid them, no matter how hard he tried. He was burning with desire to just intertwine those fingers in his and bring that soft flesh up to his lips. The tip of his tongue was longing to explore her fingers and suck one lightly into his mouth. And oh God, the thought of those dexterous hands sliding up and down his stiff…

"So what do you think?" She asked as she stole a French fry off his plate and popped it in her mouth. He watched her chew for a second before smiling.

"Sounds great." He said, completely at a loss for what she had just asked him. She laughed at him and shook her head. "What did I just agree to?" He asked, knowing he was caught.

"I asked if I could have a kidney." She grinned. "What are you thinking about so intently?" It took every fiber of his being to not blush as he shook his head.

"Nothing important." He said. "I'm just distracted today." He said as he reached for his glass of water to cover the lie.

"I noticed. You keep pushing the tittynope around on your plate." She said as he choked and sputtered water over his side of the table.

"I'm sorry." He coughed. "The what?"

"The tittynope. The small pieces of leftovers?" She said as she motioned with her hand to his plate. "You keep pushing them around aimlessly." She furrowed her eyebrows as she began to analyze him. "There isn't anything wrong with your brain again, is there?"

God, you have no idea, he thought.

"No, Bones. They tell me my brain is fine."

Although I don't believe them, he added mentally.

"So why are you distracted?" She asked.

"There's just a lot going on right now in my life, you know, the tumor and all that. I've got a lot on my plate."

"Your plate is practically empty; we just discussed it." Booth smiled but didn't say anything. He knew when she was playing dumb just to make him feel smart and this was definitely one of those times. The small smirk at her own cleverness gave her away.

"Hey Bones?" He said as he pushed his plate aside.

"Yes?" She responded.

"I'm really lucky to have you." He said as he reached out for her hands and held them in his. She looked down at their hands, affectionately clasped together, before glancing around. It was too much PDA for the diner and while he didn't care, she did so he released her hand and waited for her reaction to his statement.

"I feel the same way, Booth." She said as she unconsciously wove her own fingers together to replace the emptiness that his had left.

And for the first time, Booth considered the possibility that maybe she did.