Wow. So many reviews, I'm really overwhelmed. THANK YOU! So glad you like the story so far, although - OF COURSE – there had to be yet another misunderstanding between Booth and Bones… But now, let's see how they'll deal with it.

Under cover(s) – 10

Brennan wordlessly opened the door to her apartment, not inviting Booth in…. knowing she didn't have to.

They had to write down their impressions of the evening as long as everything was still fresh in their heads. He knew it and she knew it. But she still remained silent and he still hovered in the doorway, waiting for her to invite him in. She hadn't really talked to him for the most part of the drive to her apartment and he knew something was off.

"What are you waiting for?" She said, her voice clipped. "We need to write everything down."

Booth sighed inwardly. A heartfelt invitation would sound differently, wouldn't it? Was she pissed? Upset? Just tired? He didn't know, so he just took off his shoes and placed them beside hers, then walked towards the kitchen table, where the Freeport-file was waiting for them, right where they had left it before driving to Sinner's Palace.

Wordlessly, Brennan vanished in her bedroom, presumably to change into more comfortable clothes. And a good thing it was, too, Booth decided. He was not quite sure if he would have been able to keep his mind off her long enough to actually think straight and write down anything, not to mention anything coherent.

He reached for the notepad and started to scribble down names and a quick description of the people they had met. He even drew the table they'd been sitting at and noted who had been sitting where. The FBI agent was angry at himself for having forgotten two names, but he hoped Brennan would be able to fill in the blanks. Staring at his notes he suddenly realised she'd been gone for a while….Frowning, he looked over to the closed bedroom door. "Bones?" He asked. "You coming?"

There was nothing to be heard and he shrugged, thinking that maybe she just needed a little more time to change.

He knew that he needed something too. A drink. Remembering that he'd already had a glass of wine earlier he sighed and decided to go for coke. Hoping his partner had something like that stocked, he reached for the handle of her fridge, then hesitated. Realising he never had helped himself to a cool drink out of her fridge since it had blown him up once, he had to swallow hard. It had always been her getting the drinks. He blinked and shook off the sudden feeling of discomfort. He gripped the handle, just as he heard a sound behind him.

His partner was standing in the doorway, Temperance Brennan, all traces of Roxy erased. She wore comfortable pants and a loosely fitting blouse, her hair still a little tousled, but not quite as wild as it had been before. She had removed the make-up, too, he noticed. And he had to smile. Sure, the Roxy-look had been sexy, but he preferred the woman he knew, the woman he'd grown to respect and love.

"Welcome back, Bones." He smiled at her and part of her anger melted away upon seeing his genuine and warm smile.

"Something to drink?" She asked as casual as possible, while crossing the room towards the fridge, where he was standing.

"I wanted to look if you've got Coke in there." Booth explained and opened the door, then heard her suck in breath audibly. "Something wrong?" The concerned look he gave her, made her feel warm inside. He may not feel desire for her, but he cared about her, that much she knew. It had to be enough.

"It's irrational." She started and brushed a strand of hair out of her view, a nervous gesture. "But …." Brennan stopped, catching herself. What was it about him that nearly made her blab out things that were not only irrational, but simply stupid and somehow embarrassing? Not to mention long over and dealt with!

"You remember how your damn fridge blew me up. I do, too. But how are the odds somebody snuck a bomb in here – again?" He tried to make light of it, although he himself had been hesitant before.

Somewhat relieved she nodded. "I know. It's stupid." Booth heard the embarrassment in her voice and shook his head.

"No, it's not. It's not easy to…. forget that somebody evaded your home like that. I guess it's really normal you still think about it from time to time." Booth gave her another warm smile, his voice soft as he asked. "Coke for you too?"

She simply nodded, not able to answer. He thought she couldn't forget the fact that Kenton had evaded her apartment and placed a bomb in her fridge, but he was wrong. The picture that still sometimes haunted her, came up in nightmares, was of him. Of Booth lying unconscious in front of her fridge, flames and smoke surrounding him.

Wordlessly she took the can of coke out of his hand and moved towards the table to study the list he'd already made. "You've been busy." She commented, shuffling through his notes.

"Figured it would be better to start as soon as possible. Wouldn't want to keep you up longer than needed." He yawned. "You remember the names of the couple that sat next to Andrew?"

She nodded and added the names to the scheme he'd drawn of the table. "Rick and Caroline Harris."

Booth's eyes narrowed. "How do you know their last name?"

"I'm good, admit it!" Brennan teased him, trying to forget about the discussion they'd had in the car earlier.

"You're the best." He agreed obediently. "How did you find out about their last names?"

"Hers. But I suspect she took on his name. I knocked over her purse and helped her put the stuff back in again, when I was on my way to the restroom. I saw her driver's license." Brennan explained with a sly grin.

"I'm impressed. Very slick." He gave her a long look, then nodded approvingly. "You really did great today, Bones. You've been very convincing as Roxy."

"I told you I'd be able to play a role, Booth. I can distance myself when necessary." She agreed, a smile tugging at her lips upon hearing his compliment.

A shadow seemed to fall over his face at her words, though she couldn't imagine why what she'd said could have caused him any grief. After a moment, the odd expression faded again and he simply nodded.

"Yeah. I know." His voice was somehow flat, then he cleared his throat again. "Let's see what else we remember, okay? It's late."

Brennan nodded and went through his notes, adding a few details here and there or correcting minor mistakes.

Booth watched her all the while, his heart aching a little. Yes, he knew she was great at distancing herself.

That's why she had suggested Roxy and Tony having sex. And because he feared she'd really be able to 'stay Roxy' with him in her bed, with him in HER, he couldn't even consider it. He couldn't, he wouldn't.

But still, he found himself once again admiring her body, her face… the way she was chewing on her lower lip while working on the list. He was crazy about her. About Temperance Brennan, his partner, the socially awkward squint.

Roxy Walker was flirtatious, socially apt, parading around in sexy clothes, with sexy make-up with those glasses he had talked her into wearing on the tip of her nose. Sexy, yes, outrageously so.

But she was not what he wanted. What he wanted was sitting right in front of him… and still out of reach.

Soooooo. I did make it a little better, right? She's not really pissed at him anymore, only a little hurt. Which is bad enough, but hey, I'll fix that, too.

And upon many requests I had Booth remove part of his clothing. Heheee, I know only the shoes, but hey, better than nothing ;)

Please let me know how you liked this update!