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Olivia finished tying her dark sneakers and stood in front of her bathroom mirror. Dressed completely in black and her hair pulled back into a pony tail that was covered up by a hood that was attached to her form fitting jacket, she flexed and stretched her limbs, testing the wounded areas to see if they would hold while she went out on her own secret mission. Satisfied that her body would definitely hold she quietly exited her bathroom and made her way to her bedroom window that she had left open all day so that no one would hear her open it. Bracing herself at the sill she stepped up into the window and then without over thinking it, leapt to a large branch that was just a few feet away and carefully swung down until her feet touched earth. Squatting down and being as still and quiet as she could she listened for the agents who were stationed to watch them.

After a few cracks and footsteps she confirmed they were out of her path of escape and slouched off behind some bushes and over the fence in a flash before they could take note of her. Olivia half jogged and walked a mile before she felt safe enough to wave a cab and get a ride for a large portion of the trip. The cab took her several miles before it pulled over and she walked a few more blocks to stand in front of a quiet brick bungalow.

The light in the living room was on and she saw him hunched over on the sofa. He looked so sad and defeated and Olivia's heart lurched in her chest at the sight of him. She bit her lip in anguish as she fought not to storm up to his door and spill all the truth – that he had saved her and she was alive and missing him.

"I'm guessing he's not your brother," a quiet and sympathetic voice came from behind her.

Olivia twisted and got into a fighting pose, ready to take on an army of attackers but only saw Booth. She scowled at him and crossed her arms, readying a very different kind of defense.

"Why'd you follow me?" She asked bitterly. She wanted this moment alone to let her shields down and see Peter, even if he couldn't see her.

"It's not safe to be out on your own, Dunham." Booth said, allowing her the space she so desperately needed for the moment.

"I think I can take care of myself," Olivia said, her defenses slowly dropping. She didn't have it in her to be angry not when Peter was so close and she was losing the time she could be watching him.

"Is he your partner?" Booth asked, trying a different line of conversation.

Olivia went back to staring at her partner through the large window from her place across the street and nodded. "Yeah. He's a scientist slash ex-con and the smartest person I've ever met. Quite the FBI combo, right?" Olivia snorted and shook her head at the irony.

"My partner was a scientist as well," Booth said, stepping up beside her to look in the same direction as her. "Too smart for her own good and always getting into trouble."

Olivia glanced up at him and saw the look of a man who was clearly in love with his partner but didn't say anything more. They waited in silence for a few minutes as she watched the man she was slowly falling for staring down at his coffee table, clearly stressed and tired.

"We should go before he looks out the window and sees you," Booth said, feeling bad for tearing her away from this chance to see her partner, but it was getting dangerous, staying here in the open.

"I know," Olivia said, still not able to take her eyes away from him. Sighing she forced herself to turn toward Booth and gave him a grim smile. "Shall we?"

Booth gave a dark chuckle before also turning. He gave one last glance at the old house and his breath caught in his throat. A tall and slender woman had walked into the living room with two wine glasses and as she got closer to the window he knew it was her.

Her hair was pulled back into a sloppy pony tail that had a pencil stuck through it and he could tell from the distance that her slow movement probably meant she was tired and not sleeping well. Booth gripped Olivia's shoulder to halt her and continued to stare into the window his sordid case partner had been staring into.

Olivia turned and looked back to see the beautiful woman hand Peter a glass of wine and to see him laugh then presumably thank her. She grimaced when Booth gripped her shoulder even tighter, knowing it'd bruise, but not caring because it fit her mood perfectly. It would seem her partner had moved on to another while she was away.

"That's her," Booth whispered from beside her. "But what is she doing in Boston?"

Olivia relaxed a bit and realized that maybe they weren't seeing each other.

"Maybe they're working the field end of this case?" Olivia threw the idea out tentatively.

"Yeah, right. Two squints in the field while the agents sit in the background doing the paperwork." Booth snorted and almost laughed.

"Well why not? I can only speak for Peter, but he's really good at interrogating and he's always had my back when chasing down suspects." She felt rather then heard the pride for her partner in her voice and couldn't help the smile that crept onto her face. "If anyone is going to help solve this case, it's him."

"You haven't told him you love him yet, have you." It was more of a statement that had Booth grinning from ear to ear at her mild blush.

Olivia just stared angrily at the window that framed so perfectly her partner talking to this other scientist. Maybe if she never admitted it out loud, it wouldn't have to be true.

Without another word the duo began the walk back to their shared house so they could get some sleep before tackling the case files again tomorrow. They had to be missing something that could help them solve this case.

Once they were back to the house Booth helped boost Olivia back up into the tree and once up she held her hand down to help him up as well. They both climbed the remainder of the tree to the window and they sat on the limb closest to the window. Olivia was about to make a swift head first dive through the window when she felt a hand on her arm, keeping her gently in place.

"Olivia, I know this isn't the greatest situation to be in overall," he paused and caught her gaze. "But, for what it's worth; I'm glad it's you that's stuck here as well even if neither of us wants to be here at all. You're clearly a very good agent and person."

Olivia grinned at him and then finally allowed herself to smile. "You're not so bad yourself, Seeley." She turned and once his hand dropped she made a quick leap across the short gap and landed in her bedroom into a summersault and to her feet.

Olivia watched as Booth considered doing the same and she shook her head in mirth. He'd make much more noise trying to do what she did, so she got close to the window and held her hand out as far as it would reach and he took it and made a long jumping step onto the sill and finally stumbled in.

"Good night, Dunham." Both said as he crossed her room with only a glance back and out her door.

"Good night, Booth."