Hey readers! You rock! Especially those who left reviews. THANK YOU!

I know it took me pretty long again to update, but here we finally are!!!!

Chapter 29

After having returned to Brennan's apartment, the forensic anthropologist changed into more comfortable clothes. She was looking forward to a few hours of rest and relaxation on the couch.

She had just pulled a loosely fitting sweatshirt over her head, when she heard footsteps approaching.

"How are you feeling?" Seeley Booth asked her, snaking his arms around her waist from behind her.

"A little tired." She replied, leaning into his warmth, her back against his muscular chest. "And… glad."

"Glad?" He asked and pressed a kiss against her hair.

"Yes. I like your parents and they seem comfortable enough with our relationship and the fact that we're going to have a baby." She answered and turned in his arms, resting her head against his shoulder.

"Yeah." Booth whispered. "That's great, isn't it?"

"Mhm." She made, closed her eyes and simply inhaled his male, comforting scent.

"Bones, can I ask you something?" He asked and something in his tone made her pull back a little.

"Sure." She answered, eyeing him curiously.

"We… should probably sit down… " He jerked his head in the direction of the living room and a hint of a frown appeared on her face. He seemed so serious… a slight feeling of nervousness made her eyes widen, when he took her by her hand and led her to the couch. "What…. is something wrong?" She asked, worry in her voice.

"No… it's just….." He hesitated and took in a deep breath and the intense look of his eyes made her squirm a little. "It's just that you said something before… and I'm not sure if you were serious or not."

She blinked, not quite sure what he was talking about.

"About…. Marriage." He said, his voice a little hoarse. "You said…. We hadn't talked about it and that's true, we never had that conversation…."

"I know. I thought…. You proposed to Rebecca because she got pregnant and she refused you…. I understand you wouldn't care to risk repeating that experience, so I never initiated a discussion about it." She explained, her voice levelled.

His eyes widened upon hearing her words. "Bones…. The reason I never started to talk about it is, that I thought you didn't believe in marriage. You called it an…. Archaic and nowadays useless institution or something like that."

"Two people don't have to get married to express their love for each other." She immediately gave back.

"So, you don't believe in marriage." He stated.

"I didn't say that. I don't believe in the necessity of marriage for a couple to prove how much they mean to each other. I love you. Marrying you would not change that." She said matter-of-factly. Booth stared at her, not sure what to make of her words. What the hell was she saying? Was she totally opposed to the idea of marrying him or not?

"So, I don't think marriage is necessary for you and me to prove what we mean to each other" His heart sank a little, he had not quite realised that her words during the meeting with his parents had given him hope, but he felt how it left him again. She continued. "But… I gave it some thought. I know it would mean a lot to you… but that's not a good reason, right? You'd think I was making a compromise and you wouldn't want that. " He blinked. Thankfully she didn't wait for an answer. "But I'm pregnant. We're going to have a child…A responsibility. " She took in a deep breath. "The accident made me realise how fragile things we take for granted can be…. In case something happens to me, I want you to be able to raise our child without having to file for parental custody first. Without having to prove you're the father first. I understand that this is maybe not the romantic reason for marriage you'd like, but… it's an important reason nonetheless. Important to me. I want our child to be safe."

Seeley Booth stared at her, stunned and speechless for a moment. "So….. you would like to get married?" He asked, hesitantly.

"You shouldn't feel obliged to ask me now, after I told you that. If you don't want to, I'm okay with that. I just think it would provide more safety for our child's future." She said.

"You would marry me?" He asked again, still dumbfounded.

"I thought I just made that perfectly clear." She arched an eyebrow at him.

"God. ….God." He stammered. "I never even thought you'd consider it." A huge smile suddenly appeared on his face. "And it is so very you to find a practical reason."

"You're not upset about that, are you?" She asked, a little worried.

"No." He shook his head. "This is you. I always thought marriage is a wonderful way of commitment, but I was aware you wouldn't see the need for it. That's okay, I never thought you'd want to marry me, I knew that and accepted it, because having YOU in my life is far more important than that…. But now…." He gazed at her, his eyes shining bright with wonder, amazement and love.

Suddenly he knelt down in front of her, startling her. He took her hand in his. "I love you. I love that you're thinking ahead like that, wanting to make sure that our child is safe, no matter what. I love you for being honest and saying marriage is not important to you, although it's maybe not romantic. I love you for being so stubborn sometimes, for being blunt and reasonable…. I love you for talking to the baby when you think nobody is listening." He winked at her, when she blushed." I love you for who you are, Temperance, and I want you in my life, forever. Will you marry me?"

Tears stung her eyes and she had to swallow hard, or she would have cried instead of saying the words she wanted to say. "Yes. I will."

Booth's happy smile made her heart jump. He hugged her, then kissed her passionately. "I love you." He whispered and she smiled, her eyes brimming with tears and said the words back. "I love you."

He pulled back a little and watched her face, saw how a single tear escaped her eyes and brushed it away with his thumb. "If I had known you were thinking about it, I would have asked you weeks ago. And I would have planned it and given you something romantic."

"You know I don't need romance." She answered. "But…. What you said, Booth… it was romantic. Beautiful."

He kissed her again. "I would have given you a ring….. will you… would you wear my ring, baby?" He asked, a little anxious…. After all, an engagement ring was a symbol…. Maybe she thought he would want to visibly stake his claim over her or some other anthropological thing.

"I don't need a ring. … But I would love to wear your ring, Booth" She asked, hesitantly.

"You're not afraid I would be…. staking my claim or something like that?" He asked, just to be sure.

She smiled at his concerned words. "I agreed to marry you. Why wouldn't I want to show it? And it would mean something to you, right?"

Booth kissed her again, hungry for the contact. "Yes, it would mean a lot. We're going to buy a ring as soon as possible, okay? Whatever you want."

"There is this beautiful one carat… platinum ring I saw…." She started and laughed when her new fiancé visibly paled but nonetheless managed to nod bravely.

"I'm kidding, Booth. I don't need an expensive ring with a big diamond you can't afford. It's just carbon anyway. Something sensible will be more practical… something I can wear under my gloves and don't have to take off for work. After all, the idea is to wear it all the time, right?" Brennan asked and the FBI agent could hardly believe how lucky he was. "Yeah… until the wedding at the very least. Speaking of which…. When do you want…."

"Before the baby is born. I think the wedding should be…. as soon as possible. You'll probably think it's vain… but I don't want to have to waddle … and look like a barrel at my wedding." She gave the barely visibly bump a doubtful look. "I know it is our baby and I should be proud…."

"But every bride wants to be as beautiful as she can be on her wedding day, because it is something memorable. Seems you have a romantic streak too." Booth winked at her. "I'd marry you on the spot, Temperance. I'd also marry you nine months pregnant when – just for your information - you'll be just as beautiful and look nothing like a barrel." He pressed a soft kiss to her temple. "Whenever you want, Bones. You choose."

She frowned a little. "Angela and Jack managed to put together a very impressive wedding within one week."

"Yeah, because Hodgins is stinkin' rich." Booth threw in. "And they didn't actually get married…"

"Saturday in four weeks?" She suggested. Booth did a quick calculation in his head. "That would be 23rd of December…. nearly Christmas."

"Oh… right…" She hesitated, thinking that he wouldn't want the wedding to intrude on a religious holiday, racking her brain for an alternative. Too soon would mean a lot of stress. Four weeks was already stressful, but less? But waiting too long was no option either. The sound of his voice interrupted her thinking.

"It's perfect." He smiled at her. "You'd have a happy memory. A happy memory for Christmas time. We could celebrate Christmas as husband and wife. Because of the holiday we'd have a few days for us…. Not exactly the honeymoon I'd love to spend with you, but you're not allowed to drive too far or fly…so…."

Brennan gave him a long, intense look. "Thank you." She said her voice thick with emotion.

Booth frowned a little. "What for?"

"The happy memory. You're right… that's a wonderful idea." She sniffled a little, tears once again threatening to fill her eyes. "23rd of December it is, then. We have a lot of things to… take care of."

"I don't want you to wear yourself out, Bones." He gently touched her cheek. "Angela will be thrilled to help you, I'm sure… and I don't need something fancy. I only need you."

"A small ceremony. With your family and mine." She sighed. "Which narrows it down to… my brother… since Dad is in prison."

"Your brother… and Amy and her girls, right? They're family too… Angela, Jack, Zach… they're all your family, Bones." Booth said soothingly.

She considered it for a moment then nodded. "There's more than one kind of family, right?"

He smiled upon hearing her repeat the words he once had said to her. "Right. Besides…. We have our own little family now." Gently he laid a hand on her stomach and whispered. "You heard that, little one? Mommy and Daddy are getting married. Don't make Mommy sick on the big day, okay?"

"I doubt he or she will understand you, Booth." Brennan said with amusement in her voice.

"Ah… that's something we'll have to work on." Booth grinned at her.

"It will take a considerable amount of time until our child will be able…" She started, but he silenced her with a kiss. "Not that. You calling me Booth."

"Oh." She nodded. "Right. It would confuse our child. I'll work on it, Seeley."

He smiled at her. "I love you, Temperance Brennan. You know that, right?"

"I love you too. I'm not going to give up my last name, though." The forensic anthropologist said. "Temperance Brennan-Booth. That's all I can offer."

He chuckled. "You don't have to use a double name, Bones. You agreed to marry me, you suggested our child will bear my last name…. That's more than I ever hoped for."

"Angela…. Angela said that having the same last name would make it probably easier for Parker to accept his younger sibling. I agree. And I'll take the double name, Bo…Seeley. It's going to show that we're a family." She said.

Seeley Booth smiled at his fiancée, amazed by her and her decision. "I know you won't admit it,….but you're a sucker for romance, too." With that, he kissed her deeply and kept her too busy for quite some time to object to his statement.

Hah. FLUFF; FLUFF; FLUFF. It's all pink and fuzzy and warm now, right?

Hope you liked it, please let me know!!!