"Nothing of me is original. I am the combined effort of everybody I've ever known."

~Chuck Palahniuk (Invisible Monsters)

Chapter Three: Rock and a Hard Place

"You should have told me before you went to him."

"I didn't go to just him, Charlotte."

She pushed past him and made her way into the living room. "You knew about my past with him, it's all in my file…I just, dammit, Gus!" She held her hands out, palms up. "This is hard enough without having to face yet another failure from my past."

Gus walked around where she stood frozen and headed for the bar at the end of the room. "Well, I don't know about you, but I could use a drink."

Charlie whipped around and stared. "What do you mean, you could use a drink? It's not like you have to face some unpleasant memories this evening!"

He turned and gave her a rueful shake of his head. "Well, funny you should say that…"

She recognized that look. "Really? You know them? Him?"

After filling two tumblers with amber liquid, he crossed back to her and led her to the sofa. "Yes. I was tasked with bringing a case to them, for reasons I cannot divulge, of course. It turned out to be…an interesting evening."

With barely a look her way, Gus recounted the first time he had been introduced to the team at the Jeffersonian Institute and their FBI agent. Except for an occasional exclamation of disbelief and a chuckle when he explained how Booth had gotten into the lab, she remained silent throughout. Charlotte watched, intrigued, as Gus lost eye contact with her as he finished the story. She eyed him curiously, "That's not all. What are you leaving out?"

With a longsuffering sigh, he told her how Booth had taken out him and his entire team in order to give Dr. Brennan enough time to do her last experiment.

Charlotte's hand flew to her mouth, "I-I just can't see that. I mean….really?"

"Yeah, cuffed me to the railing and flipped my ass right over it. Not one of my finer moments." He smiled sheepishly, "But I gotta say, it's probably for the best that you can't picture the man responsible for your safety being overpowered by anyone."

Her mouth quirked a bit, but she managed to keep the smirk off her face. "Well, he was a US Army Ranger. He does have mad skills."

"Yeah." He rolled his eyes, the memory of being bested by a much smaller opponent still stinging a bit. "Anyway, that's the last time we discuss this, and it goes no further than this room, okay?"

"Oh, definitely. Who would believe me anyway?"

B&B

As Booth maneuvered his Bureau-issued black Cadillac CTS-V through the streets of DC, Brennan stole quick glances at his profile, noting the set jaw and intense stare. She knew, from years of studying his unique facial tics that he was not only thinking deeply about something, but that whatever it was he was turning over in his mind was irritating him enough to make his teeth grind together.

"Booth? Do you want to discuss it?"

"Not particularly."

"Is it the case or the fact that it's Charlotte? Because I can understand-"

"Bones…"

"I know, you said that you were fine with all of that, but on some level I think that it is bothering you. I told you that it doesn't bother me in the least." She raised her eyebrows in question as he turned quickly to glare at her.

"I know you trust me, Bones."

Brennan caught the slight blush to his cheeks and sat back in surprise. "You don't trust yourself? Is that it, Booth?"

"No!" He pulled to a stop light and turned fully towards her, taking her hand and holding it tightly. "I have no doubts about myself whatsoever, Temperance. None. And I understand that you know that. And I appreciate that you trust me, I do." He took a deep breath and looked forward as the light changed and they began to move again. "It's just…look, I know that you're not the type of woman who would give in to a useless emotion like jealousy, but sometimes…"

"You wish I were. I get that."

Booth expelled a breath and nodded. "Stupid, right? I have a wife who trusts me implicitly and I can still find a reason to complain."

"No, it's natural. In order to feel wanted, sometimes it's nice to see your mate being possessive of you." Brennan smiled slightly, secretly loving that primitive side of her husband that few outside their inner circle were privileged to see. "And if it's any consolation, I was jealous of Charlotte. I can admit that now."

Booth glanced at her, eyes wide. "You were? You never said…"

"Because it would have served no purpose, Booth. Yes, I was jealous of Charlotte, because at the time she had you. And of course I couldn't say anything then, because at the time you were hers. Hers." She took a breath, remembering that brief moment in their lives where everything changed. "And I hadn't thought to tell you since because; well…I just assumed you knew how I felt. You usually do."

"Bones…" He turned the wheel and continued on before speaking. "You have to know…I was never really hers."

"I know that now."

"Good. I love you, you know."

"I love you as well. So please don't feel lessened if I don't display the usual alpha female posturing that goes along with this type of situation. I know you're mine, Charlotte knows you're mine, and we are three grown adults who are perfectly capable of handling this situation with maturity. Besides, I feel like I owe this to her for being there for you back then. Anthropologically, we are the sum total of our experiences, good and bad. And since I am very attracted to your sum total…"

Booth chuckled. "Yeah, okay. I get it." He gave her that sidelong glance that never failed to set her heart on fire. "I'm yours, warts and all. And you're mine."

She reached for his hand and tangled their fingers together. "Most definitely."

Booth squeezed her hand once in response, then relaxed his fingers and gestured to the case file she had started with information on the Speaker. "What did you find out about Woods? Anything we didn't already know?"

Brennan shook her head. "Not really. Clayton Woods, age 44. Moderately wealthy family with substantial political pedigree. Graduated from West Point in 1992, became a Congressman from Pennsylvania, taking over his father's longtime seat, in 2003. His first wife, Michelle, died in a car accident less than a year later. In 2009 he was named Speaker of the House, and in 2012 he married Charlotte Townsend, who, at the time, was a reporter for CNN." She closed the folder and sighed. "We'll get more from the dog's mouth, but for now that's all we have."

Booth grinned, loving how no matter what they went through as a couple, some things never changed. "That's horse's mouth, Bones."

"Oh. I thought that sounded slightly insulting. Although 'horse' really isn't any better…"

"Okay, Bones. This is it." Booth said, cutting her off smoothly while indicating the large double brownstone in front of them. "Ready?"

"Only much as you are." She moved to open her door.

"Then let's do this."

August 12, 2011 7:45PM: Blue Parrot Grill, Washington, DC

She has been out with Arcilla the last two nights. She behaves shyly around him, blushing at his touch and eyes sparkling at his words. This is not who she is and he is not what she wants, she'll see that very soon.

I almost feel sorry for him. Because no matter how often or easily she smiles at him he should be aware that those smiles belong to me.

She belongs to me.