Thanks to all who have put this story on alert, and especially those few people who have reviewed it. It helps to know what readers think of a story and to get feedback (hint, hint!) I have come to the end of this one, but it was a sweet ride along the way.
Just for clarification – this is my story, but sadly the show belongs to Fox.
CHAPTER 5
The Hodgins estate was decorated to the hilt for Halloween. This was the first year that Jack and Angela were throwing a Halloween party, and with Angela's input, and the help of a small army of event planners, decorators, caterers, and god knew who else thrown in to the mix, the place had been transformed from the quiet home of a conspiracy theorist mega-millionaire, to Dracula's castle. Booth and Brennan had been over a few days earlier, to check out the decorations and help calm down the nerves of one incredibly rich bug man and an overly-excited Angela.
It seemed Ange was second-guessing the design, and so Jack had enlisted Dr. Brennan's help to get her settled and out of there. It had worked – mainly because Brennan didn't understand half of what Angela wanted to do, and in the end Ange had gotten frustrated and the two of them left to go do some costume shopping. Jack said a silent thank you to Brennan as they'd walked out down the hall and to the front door. That left Booth and Hodgins alone in the estate, so naturally they grabbed a beer and headed to the rec. room. While playing a game of pool (no bets allowed) Hodgins told Booth what his and Angela's costumes would be. He would be Dracula, and Ange was dressing up as Elvira, mistress of the dark.
Angela had tried to talk Booth into coming as Angel, a modern-day tv vampire, but he said he'd never cared for the show when it was on, so he nixed that idea. Booth told Jack that he and Brennan would be coming as a Prohibition-era gangster and a flapper. Brennan had wanted to dress as Wonder Woman once again, but Booth had delicately told her that four years in a row with the same costume was enough, and she had to come up with another costume. This way, she got to dress in another persona – it would almost be like going undercover!
The big day arrived and Booth and Brennan were the first guests at the estate. They had planned to arrive early to help with any last-minute situations that might come up; Jack was just glad to have someone around to help calm down Angela's nerves.
While Jack and Ange were putting the finishing touches on their costumes and makeup, the B's walked around the inside of the mansion from room to room. Brennan took note of the decorations, and what embellishments were where; most rooms had some kind of drinks available, and it appeared there would be food tables interspersed as well. The staff who would work the tables were all in the kitchen area, so the couple had the rooms to themselves still.
Most of the rooms had been darkened to add atmosphere. Cobwebs hung from corners, and the lighting muted with the help of multiple candelabras in the rooms instead of lights – no self-respecting monster would be caught dead in a brightly-lit room, after all! Organ music played out over the speakers in the room, and as Brennan walked out of a lounge room and into the hallway, Booth snuck up behind her. He pressed the toy Tommie gun to her back and in a quiet, sultry voice, said "hold it right there, lady. What'da ya think you're doing here?"
Brennan slowly turned towards the gangster and gave him a look that said she wasn't afraid of him or his gun. She grabbed hold of his tie and pulled him to her waiting lips. After giving him a blood-rushing lip-lock, she said "I'm here for a party, mister… what about you?" At that, Booth couldn't keep in character any more, and he broke out into a grin.
"Bones, you really like taking on another persona, don't you?" As he asked the question, he leaned in and stole another kiss. It was meant to be a quick little peck on the lips, but when he reached in, Brennan had grabbed his head, weaving her fingers through the short hairs on the back of his neck, and deepened the kiss. As their lips and tongues dueled, Booth unconsciously turned his partner and backed her up against the hallway wall. Booth moved his lips from Brennan's mouth, to her long, slender neck and began to nip and bite and kiss her, making Brennan softly moan. Soon Booth's body was pressed against hers, and she was pressing back into him. She felt a sharp jab on her upper thigh, and realized that he'd slung his gun back over his shoulder, so this was another weapon he was using on her instead!
The idea of making out in the hallway was exciting to her and she didn't want to stop but knew they should. When Booth brought his hands up from where the had held her hips still, traveling up the length of her tight black gown and gently cupping her breasts, Brennan knew they needed to either stop right then and there, or find the room they would be staying in for the night and well, stay there for the night! "Booth, we really should stop now. We came here early to help Ange and Jack out" she said with a frustrated sigh as their foreheads leaned against each other. She wanted him as much as he wanted her, but she knew there was always later that night to take care of their needs. For now, she needed a little space to help calm her racing heart down. As she looked up at Booth, she saw his eyes dilated and his breathing rapid. It was nice to know that she caused that reaction in him!
They could both hear staff moving about, carrying trays of food and drink and various party items. Brennan's eyes followed one of the staff as they brought a small fountain down the hall. She watched as the man put the object in a room two doors down from where they were holding up the wall, tucking away the information for use later on.
They separated their bodies from each other and linked fingers as they moved up the hallway towards the grand ballroom. A glance into a small room off the hallway showed other staff getting food and drink in place. They walked over and each got something to drink –Booth asked for a beer, while Brennan took a glass of ginger ale. She didn't know if she could handle alcohol right now. She was unsure that if she drank a glass of champagne, that she might end up dragging Booth off to a dark corner. As appealing as that thought was, she knew she needed to be around to help Angela get things started.
As they made it into the kitchen, they spotted Ange finishing up a glass of champagne. "There you two are!" she said excitedly. "I thought you'd run of somewhere or got your neck sucked by a vampire!" At that comment, Booth blushed a bit. To hide his embarrassment, he turned away from the artist. He was saved when Jack entered the kitchen area with Cam and Dr. Linder. They had dressed as mummies, both in matching costumes. Before Brennan could comment, Cam said "no doctor Brennan, we are not dressed as Anok and Matise. We are portraying mummies from one of your favorites, The Curse of the Mummy. This time however, the mummy brought a date." They all laughed, and Cam assured Brennan that she had told her date about Brennan's love of the movie in question.
They six of them chatted for a bit, and then Jack and Ange moved towards the entryway to greet the other guests that were arriving. Booth and Brennan talked with Cam and Paul for a bit, wandering through the rooms and taking in the decorations and all once again. They nibbled on various foods – Booth going for the sandwiches and more filling stuff, Brennan picking up some carrots and veggie sticks that were cut to actually look like fingers. She was good – she didn't call them phalanges tonight, nor did she criticize the shape of the digits. She was simply enjoying herself, and letting the scientist have a rare night off.
As they turned to go into another room, the two couples split up and it was just Booth and Brennan in one of the parlor rooms. As they made their way through the door, Brennan spied the fountain she'd seen earlier. It was now fully functional as a chocolate fountain. There were strawberries and other fruits to dip into the molten chocolate, and Brennan couldn't resist. She walked immediately over to the fountain and put a few pieces of fruit and some biscotti-type cookies on a plate.
She picked out a bright red, juicy-looking strawberry and called out "Booth, would you come here please?" As she called to him, Brennan had taken the succulent piece of fruit by the stem, and held it under the stream of dark chocolate cascading down the sides of the bowl. She turned it some, to ensure the confection covered the whole piece of fruit. A tiny bit of red could be seen on the top, followed by the green leaves and stem. Booth had been looking at the paintings on the wall – real ones, not props for the party, but stopped and made his way over to where his beautiful partner was standing. He stopped a few steps away to admire her in her flapper outfit. It showed off her curves to perfection, and Booth felt his other gun begin to twitch once again. He just couldn't help it – now that he knew what she looked like beneath that dress, and he knew how her skin felt to his touch, he couldn't stop thinking about her and wanting her.
As the gangster made his way next to his flapper girlfriend, she drew the chocolate coated fruit to his mouth. As she held it for him to bite, they locked eyes and became lost in their own world; Brennan's hand holding the strawberry in mid-air, Booth with his mouth open but his eyes glued to the brilliant blues of his love. After a few seconds, the dangling strawberry fell off of its stem. Booth shot his hand out and caught the confectioned piece in the palm of his hand. As they both followed the path the berry had taken they moved in closer to each other. Brennan reached for Booth's hand and picked up the coated piece of fruit and brought it up to his mouth. Again they were held by the other's gaze, but Brennan was able to bring the food to his mouth. Without taking his eyes off of her, Booth bit into the offering. A drop of strawberry juice escaped, but Brennan's hand had been underneath it and she caught the sweet liquid.
Booth brought the palm of her hand up to his lips and sucked the juice off. He then licked her palm, in a long, sensual swipe of his tongue that went from the tips of her fingers to her wrist. As he stroked over the center of her palm, Brennan couldn't help the involuntary gasp that escaped between her lips. "You're not the only one who likes to play with sweet things you know, Bones" he said with a smirk on his face, and a hungry look in his eye.
At the challenge Booth had just thrown out to her, Brennan reached for his hand and examined it as if it were a piece of evidence in her lab. There was a glob of chocolate that ran from the center of Booth's palm, halfway up his index and pointer fingers where the strawberry had rolled when he caught it. Brennan separated the two phalanges and sucked one, and then the other, into her mouth. She used her tongue to twirl around each of them, doing a sensual dance with her tongue and his fingers. She moved them both in and out of her mouth, as if she were sucking on a candy cane. Booth let out a low growl as his eyes closed involuntarily. He couldn't move, even if he'd wanted to; his feet were glued to the floor and all he could do was stand there and let her lick his hand as he became unbelievably aroused.
After cleaning up his fingers, Brennan used her tongue and teeth to scrape the chocolate off of his palm; and Booth was again helpless to stop her if he'd wanted to. As she finished up, she looked up into his dark-chocolate eyes (yes, they were the same color as what was in the fountain) asking "would you like another piece of fruit, Booth?"
"Hell yes, Bones" was all he said. When Brennan reached for a slice of peach, Booth stopped her hand. "You are the fruit I want, Bones. I just thank God that you are not forbidden fruit any more to me." He said it in earnest, but Brennan didn't get the biblical reference at first. The quizzical look on her face was so cute that Booth couldn't stop the chuckle and grin that broke out over his face. As Bones began to speak, she was cut off by a warm, chocolate-tasting pair of lips overtaking hers. They explored the inner depths of each others' mouth, and finally broke apart to take in a breath.
Brennan clung to Booth's upper arms and leaned her head against his chest. Booth rested his chin on the top of her head, and as he tried to calm his breathing down he heard Brennan say 'that was the best chocolate kiss I've ever had! Hershey has nothing on you, Booth." They both laughed at her joke, and Booth put his arms around her and hugged her tightly to his chest. They stood there for another minute, before some of the other guests came in the room. The couple parted, but stayed close.
A few hours later, all the other guests were gone and Booth, Brennan, Ange and Jack sat on a long sofa in the library. They had switched to evening drinks – the ladies drinking sherry, while the guys nursed a brandy. "I hope you had a good time tonight you two" Angela announced. She had been busy acting as host, and didn't get to spend much time with them. "You know I would have loved to have been following around with you two – I love that you can be a couple, instead of "just partners." Of course Ange had used her fingers to make the quotation and then she laughed at her comment. They all joined in and all four knew that the partners moniker had been a cover for many years, until they were ready to take that next step. Booth pulled Bones in for a hug, and the room got quiet.
Once their drinks were finished, they decided to call it a night. The new couple was staying at Hodgins' estate for the night. Angela and Jack took the glasses to set on a tray, and as Booth and Brennan began to walk down the hallway they put an arm around each other and held close. They came upon the room that held the now quiet chocolate fountain and stopped to look at it. Booth leaned in to whisper into her ear, and asked Bones "do you think you'll get hungry for a late-night snack?"
Almost before Brennan could answer, Angela came up next to them. She hadn't heard the question Booth had asked, but as she looked into the parlor and spied the chocolate fountain a grin crept up on her face. By now Jack had joined them, and as Ange looped her arm in his, she told the bug man, "I might be in the mood to do a little drawing in bed tonight Hodgie… what d'ya think?" The smile on Jack's face was enough of an answer for her, but they began walking down the hall.
Booth and Brennan had yet to move with the other couple, they were standing in the hallway glancing at the chocolate. It had begun to solidify, and that seemed to make up Booth's mind for him. "Come on Bones" he spoke in a quiet, sexy voice. "I don't need candy to take my sweet to bed. Let's go get naked, explore each other, and see if we can't break the laws of physics." Brennan thought she'd never heard anything quite so delectable before, and as they walked on down the hall, the pull she had on Booth's arm was all the answer he needed. Candy had brought them together, but now all they needed was each other. It really was a sweet way to end the evening.