See? I promised I would update sooner than I did last time, and I was true to my word. I felt badly about making you wait for so long, and I didn't want that to happen again. For all those who comment anonymously, please know that if I could respond and thank you, I most definitely would. And for those who have added this as a Favorite Story, thank you so much for your support! Every time I see one of those Favorites notifications, I get a lovely warm feeling. Of course, all of you are wonderful, and your feedback is so lovely, really. I do hope you enjoy this!

THE BET

Brennan quickly turbaned one towel around her dripping hair and snatched another, knotting it around herself as she hurried down the hall. Damnit, Booth. He was banging on her door, and if she didn't answer it within ten seconds, then he'd…she heard the snick of the locks being disengaged and sighed in annoyance, swiftly crossing the room and yanking the door open. "Booth –" His arms were around her in the next moment, his hungry lips stopping her planned lecture on patience before she'd even started. Instead, a muffled exclamation was all she could manage.

"Mmm, I missed you…and wow, do you smell good." Quickly setting down the tray of coffee he'd brought, he walked her backwards in the direction of the couch. Spinning at the last second and falling backwards, he pulled her down onto his lap. He nuzzled her neck like a hungry dog and locked his fingers together behind her as she squirmed against him. I really missed you.

"How could you possibly miss me? I only left your apartment five hours ago…" Shoving in equal parts at her slipping towel and his clever hands, she softened momentarily as his lips found a particularly sensitive spot where neck met shoulder. Just before she completely forgot where she was, she snapped her focus back to him. "Why are you here? Do you realize it's only six-thirty in the morning?"

"I haven't seen you in five hours, that's why I miss you…if you'd stayed, I wouldn't have to drop by at this ungodly hour so I can get my hands on you. And can I just say that it was very considerate of you to be wet and naked when I got here. Makes my job that much easier." He took a deep, life-sustaining breath, taking her in as well. Better than coffee, he thought, his mind spinning. She smelled and tasted better than coffee. It was amazing. If he could just have this every morning, he might never drink coffee again. His skilled fingers began twitching at the edges of the terrycloth barrier.

The knot in her stomach formed as the knot in her towel loosened. Her heart began to race, and she relaxed against him, settling on his chest. Suddenly, deplorably needy, her hands began to clutch at his shoulders. "So you came here for a booty call?"

He chuckled, beyond amused with her. "Of all the pop-culture terms you don't know, that's the one you pick up from me. Figures." Reaching up, he snagged the towel on her head and yanked, toppling it sideways. Her slick, dark hair swung free, the wet curls teasing him with their fragrance. "I'm here to take you somewhere."

Swiping at the damp tendrils in her face, she sat back abruptly, suspicion on her face. "I have work to do this morning, Booth. If we're going to dinner with Angela and Hodgins this evening, I have to write the next chapter of my book. I'm not going anywhere." She began to wriggle again, but was merely pulled back down. "Booth…"

"Well, now, Bones, this is the way I see it. Either you come with me, and we have some fun, or I stay here with you and we have some fun. I'll let you decide, how's that?" Dropping a kiss on her nose, he fiddled with the towel again, and finally succeeded in tossing it aside. His thumb casually rubbed her nipple, drawing a gasp from her, and his eyes met hers. "Take your time."

How was he able to do this to her? She stood strong in all situations, could rarely be swayed from what she wanted. But with Booth it was all so different. It had been different, she had to admit, since they'd met. He'd always seemed to possess some type of power over her, had always been able to make her see things from more than just her point of view. She shuddered at the feel of his hands on her, but also at the evidence of just how strongly she responded to him. "Where did you want to take me?"

"Can't tell you. It's a surprise. But you'll definitely have fun, I promise. This is right up your alley. Come with me." Spotting the indecision in her eyes, he pushed just a tad harder. "Please?"

She shifted uneasily in his arms, unwilling to admit she'd already changed her mind. But she had, and knowing him, he most likely knew she had. "Well…I suppose I could write tomorrow instead of today…"

"That's my…great, you won't regret it. Now," he continued as he stood, lifting her to her feet, "go get dressed. We should hit the road before too much longer. I reserved a time, and I don't want to lose it." Placing his hands on her hips, he gave her a gentle push to start her on her way. "C'mon, hop to, Bones."

Pausing in mid-retreat, she turned back to him, not bothering to clutch the towel in front of her. "If you refuse to tell me where we're going and what we're doing, then what do I wear? I'm not good at deciding what to wear for a surprise."

"Sorry. Thick canvas pants, Bones. A t-shirt and your strongest, lightest hiking boots. Make sure the boots are broken-in, though. And you should pull back your hair." He chuckled at the confused look she threw at him, but angled his head and quickly stopped laughing when she turned and walked down the hall away from him. Damned if that wasn't one hell of a fine view. His eyes darted to the clock, and then back to her. Flipping open his celphone, he dialed quickly, speaking softly into the phone. "Hey, Reggie, it's Booth. Can we push our time back by about half an hour? Something's come up and we're gonna be a little late." He smirked at the squawking voice coming out of the phone. "I know, I know, but can you do it? Hey, thanks. I'm sorry I ever called you a jarhead. Ha ha, yeah, you're really funny. I'll see you in about two hours, buddy. Thanks." Disconnecting, he tossed the phone on the couch and headed toward her bedroom, quickly shedding his jacket. "Slight change of plans, Bones."

*****

"I really wish you'd tell me where we're going." Brennan drained the last of her coffee and carefully folded it into the trash bag. Truthfully, she barely needed it. Her entire body was still tingling from when he'd come into her bedroom. She smiled at the memory, but carefully hid it before turning to face him. There was no need for him to know how he affected her. "I do much better when I have time to prepare for something new beforehand." The scenery sped past; trees and new housing developments and streams. They'd been on the road for half an hour, and nothing she'd done or said had persuaded him to reveal their destination. They were traveling south on Interstate Ninety-Five. That was the only thing she knew for sure. "If our positions were reversed, you'd be nagging me mercilessly to tell you where we were going."

"Bones! Enough! I'm not going to tell you, and that's that." Inordinately pleased, he smiled at her after passing a horse trailer trundling along in the center lane. "Wow, you really are nosy, aren't you? I did not know that about you."

"I don't like surprises, and therefore, people know not to surprise me. I feel I should tell you now - if I don't like your surprise, I'm going to be very unhappy." Feeling unaccountably mulish, she crossed her arms and fixed her most intimidating stare on him. Not that she expected it to be at all effective. She'd tried before, but he seemed completely immune to it.

"And as a result, I'll be very unhappy. I get it, Bones. You know, maybe you didn't like them because they weren't the right kind of surprises. C'mon, give it up. Just enjoy the ride, okay? I promise you, I'm not gonna surprise you with something you wouldn't like. Believe me, you'll like this."

Frustrated and needing to keep her hands busy, she twisted around and pulled the Strickland file off the back seat. She paged through it, glancing in surprise at the new notes tacked inside. "You found out more about Lederson?"

"Yeah, got a call early this morning, a lead on his possible whereabouts, as well as another potential victim."

"In D.C.?" Scanning the papers he'd tacked to the cover, she quickly deciphered his scrawling notes. "Warm Springs?"

"Billy's contact said Lederson was known to frequent that area, and I spoke with the sheriff out there – they had an unsolved case that matches the particulars of Strickland's murder. Which means," he said with a smile, "You and I are going on a road trip."

She gaped at him in disbelief. "Booth! I'm not dressed to examine a victim! I don't have my kit, and what's in the truck isn't sufficient. I can't believe you would just drag me to a case with no warning –"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" He flapped his hand in her general direction to stop her. "Hold on for a minute. We're not going out there now. They have to exhume the body, and they need a court order for that. The sheriff's facing resistance from the family, so we won't be going there until Wednesday or Thursday, at the earliest, and more likely the week after. Besides, Warm Springs is within spitting distance of Kentucky – I would have taken Sixty-Six to get there."

"Oh…" Fidgeting, she hazarded a glance at him, relieved to see that he was looking back at her, his lips twitching. "Sorry."

"Geez, way to jump to a conclusion, there, Bones. What the hell? I would never do that to you." Eyebrows lifted, he looked over at her again. "You do know that, right?"

She sighed uncomfortably. "Yes, I know that. It's just that you said road trip, and we're on the road now, and I don't know where we're going, so it seemed like a logical deduction. I am sorry, Booth."

He chuckled. "Don't worry about it. I suppose it is partly my fault for not telling you where we're going. We're almost there now - soon you'll know everything." When she didn't answer, he knew she was busy feeling nervous. That wouldn't do, at all. He'd talk about the case – that'd get her mind off her nervousness. "Hey, when we do go to Warm Springs, you'll have to pack a bag – we'll probably be there for at least two days, maybe three. Can you get the time off of work without a problem?"

"It should be fine. Zach can handle anything that comes in until I get back, and I can always link remotely with the lab if they have any problems."

"Good." Spotting his exit, Booth exited the interstate and headed east on Fuller Road. He could feel her looking at him, and knew she'd caught on to their destination. He smiled inwardly. She might know where they were going, but not what was going to happen when they got there.

She slid on her shades when the change in direction brought bright sunshine beaming through the windshield. "We're going to Quantico?" When he merely nodded without looking at her, she studied him carefully. "Are we helping some friends of yours at the base?"

"Nope."

"Come on, Booth! What's going on?" She just barely resisted grabbing him by the arm. He was doing this on purpose, now. He knew she was desperate to be told what he had planned. Then she had a thought. Perhaps if she was nice, he would tell her. "Please?"

"Oh, don't even start that. That won't work on me." But he wasn't so sure when she leaned closer, trailing her fingers along his leg. "Bones…" He couldn't resist turning his head toward her. The warm, golden light was drenching her, bringing out the red in her hair and darting behind her glasses, making her pale eyes seem even lighter.

"What?" Mischievously, she moved her index finger in ever bigger circles. "I'm just asking a question, that's all. There's nothing wrong with that." She felt his thigh muscle twitch under her fingertips and knew she was getting closer. "Is there?"

Her calm, smoky voice was hypnotizing him, causing chills to run up and down his body, and only the fear of driving the truck off the road kept him focused. "You know what's wrong with it – besides, we're here." Swinging into a parking spot, he killed the engine and grabbed her wrist. "Stop it, before you kill me. I'm going to show you why we're here. Come on."

She followed him across the blacktop to a large, well-maintained outbuilding. Stopping at what looked to be a tightly-secured door, he pressed the small buzzer button, holding it down for several seconds before following up with a series of hammering blows to the door itself. A snort of laughter burst from her lips as she stared disbelievingly at him. "I thought you only did that to my door."

"Nah, Reggie and I go way back. If I don't make a lot of noise, he'll never wake up and we'll be standing here all day." He finished the sentence in a near-shout, obviously intending to be overheard.

The intercom spit up a chunk of static, and a cocky voice burst forth, the west Pennsylvania accent clear as day. "That has to be Seeley Booth. No one else I know pounds on a door that way." Another spurt of static ensued, followed by a series of buzzes, snaps and clicks.

Booth seemed to be satisfied with what he heard, and, nodding in satisfaction, swung the door open and motioned her inside. "Reggie! You awake, you lazy bastard?"

"Seeley! How the hell are you?" A burly, uniformed man with a neatly mowed plot of bright red hair and a wolfish grin descended the stairs, briefly shaking Booth's hand before engulfing him in a massive, almost brutal hug.

Booth clapped his hand on the other man's back before shoving abruptly away, grinning widely. "Don't call me Seeley, you fuckin' jarhead…"

Brennan watched them trade insults for a moment, until her innate desire for knowledge overcame her. "What's a jarhead?"

Both men swung around to face her. "A jarhead's a Marine. Reggie was a new Marine when I was in the service. We elite troops called 'em jarheads. Reggie, this is my partner, Dr. Temperance Brennan. Bones, Lieutenant Colonel Reginald Albrecht."

"Nice to meet you, Dr. Brennan." Restraining himself, Reggie politely shook her hand. "Oh, what the hell…" He tugged her forward and enveloped her in a similarly bone-powdering bear hug. "It's great to finally meet you. All Seeley here does is talk about you anymore."

"Uh…it's nice to meet you too…" She could barely breathe; the man was like a boa constrictor. But he was certainly friendly. Unbidden, her lips curved, and she finally returned the embrace wholeheartedly. "Booth talks about me?"

"Yeah, all the time, can't ever get the guy to shut up –"

"Reggie," Booth warned firmly, "that's enough of that." Firmly extricating her from the redheaded straightjacket, Booth pulled her a safe distance away. "Just ignore him, Bones. Reggie likes to live vicariously through me, since he has no life."

"I do too! Just last week I stole a tank. Drove it right on down to the water, and all."

Both men grinned, and Brennan couldn't help but smile as well. It had been quite a while since she'd seen Booth this happy. "I guess you've known each other for some time."

"Yeah. Reggie and I met during the war and, well, we got along pretty well."

Reggie mimicked the thumping of his heart with his hand. "It was true love."

"Shut up, you moron. Anyway, we spent some time over there together – special ops stuff - and when I left the service, Reggie decided to make the Marine Corps his career. He just transferred here last year, was brought in to run the Road, and we've been trading insults ever since." Knowing better than to relax his guard around his friend, Booth carefully stretched his arms. You never knew when Reggie would decide to gut-punch you, just for the hell of it. "This is Bones' first time here."

"First time?" Reggie frowned in confusion, looking back and forth between the two of them in disbelief. "No way. How'd she pass Academy?"

Booth shook his head quickly. "Nah, Bones isn't FBI. She's a Forensic Anthropologist at the Jeffersonian Institute in D.C., and she's the main reason my arrest record is so good."

She moved automatically to protest. "Booth, that's not true, you're just as accomplished –"

He interrupted her easily, shushing her with a wave of his hand. "Don't listen to her. She's brilliant – she can look at a skeleton and tell you everything about who the person was when they were alive."

"Oh, so that's why you keep calling her Bones. You always were one for nicknames – and pounding on doors." Reggie focused all of his attention on her. "Are you as good as he says?"

"Booth's last statement was inaccurate. I can't tell you everything about the victims from their remains. I am very good at my job, however, which is why I was hired by the Institute. Booth said you run the Road? What is that?" She began to speak again, had intended to continue, but Reggie swung angrily back to Booth with a fierce scowl. She was slightly taken aback – the transformation from easygoing friend to intense warrior was just as sudden with him as it had been with Booth, the few times she'd witnessed it. The metamorphosis was actually rather fascinating.

"What the hell, Seeley! You brought her out here as a surprise? Are you insane? You can't send her out there just like that!"

"Jesus Christ, Reggie, stand down!" Booth rolled his eyes helplessly toward the ceiling. "What is this, National Knee-jerk Day?" He held his hands up in mock frustration. "It's nothing she can't handle, believe me. You don't know her background."

"Alright, that's it!" She stepped forward, jabbing a finger sharply into Booth's chest. "Why…are…we…here?"

His most winning smile firmly in place, he surreptitiously rubbed the spot she'd poked. "Welcome to the Yellow Brick Road. Dorothy."

"I don't understand – what do you mean, Yellow Brick Road?" She frowned at them in consternation as they both began to chuckle. "Am I supposed to know what you're talking about right now? Because I can assure you, I don't."

"You wouldn't understand - not unless you're a Marine or an FBI agent." Stepping forward, Reggie opened his mouth to explain, but grunted in surprise as Booth's elbow found his gut.

"I'll explain it, Reggie." He smiled at her. "The Yellow Brick Road is the FBI Academy's obstacle course. It's a part of the fitness trials that every new agent has to pass, in order to graduate from the Academy. You either run to the course or back from it, unless you're a glutton for punishment, and then you run both ways. But that's nearly ten miles in all, plus all of the obstacles."

Still frowning, but this time in concentration, she crossed her arms. "What kind of obstacles?"

"Rope climbs, walls, bear traps, trenches, cargo nets – and barbed wire. I come out here to run the course every month or so, just to keep my hand in the game. It's a good indicator of whether or not my workout regimen is good enough, or if I need to kick it up a notch or three. I thought you might be interested in trying it out for yourself." Mirroring her posture, he folded his arms and canted his head to one side, eyes narrowed. "So – what do you think? You game?"

For the longest moment she remained motionless, simply throwing an intense stare at him. Slowly, ever so slowly, her eyes began to gleam, and a hungry, almost ferocious expression spread across her face. "I'm game."

Laughing loudly, Reggie clapped her on the back, almost knocking her down in the process. "She's got a pair, I'll give her that. She better be as good as you say she is – or do I need to have the evac on call?" He stepped back hastily when she rounded quickly on him, but not quite quickly enough.

She had his wrist in a restraining hold in the blink of an eye, twisting it just a little bit too much. She gave it another light tweak, pleased when his eyes widened. "Oh, I'm good enough, Reggie, you can bet your ass on that." Releasing him, she casually walked away and began stretching. "Are we going soon?"

When he was able to breathe again, Booth wiped his streaming eyes and thumped his friend's shoulder. "Maybe you should keep that evac on call, Reggie – for you."

"Wow – well, I never met a doctor with those kind of moves. You got yourself a good one here, Seeley." Squatting down before Brennan, Reggie began loosening her laces. "Here. You're gonna want to tuck your pants inside your boots – there's a lot of mud and water out on the course, and this'll help keep you dry, and protect your legs. Make sure you lace these tight – you'll be running, and loose laces cause sprains and strains. You know the deal, Booth," he threw over his shoulder. "At least twenty minutes of stretches, upper and lower body, if you're doing the course first. If you're running first, at least ten minutes of stretching now, and ten more before you start the course. Make sure to stretch your back – we get lower back injuries here the most. You running out or back, Seeley?"

"Bones? What do you want to do?"

Pausing mid stretch, she considered the question carefully. "I believe I'd prefer to run back afterward."

"Okay, back it is, Reggie. Where can we hook up with the transport?"

"The usual place, just across the lot. Truck should be back in ten; they're humping back the ones who couldn't make it. Might have one broken ankle in the lot – didn't lace tight enough, probably. Dumbass." Satisfied with the state of Brennan's laces, Reggie stood again, towering over both of them as they continued to prepare. "Hey, Booth. Got a couple of bogey spots out there. The bear claw is really slippy – had at least three people do a header on it so far today. Too much mud."

Booth stood and began working on his hamstrings. "Yeah? What else?

"The water's a little deep out there. That heavy rain two days ago hasn't drained yet. You both up on your tetanus shots? Lotta ways out there to get scrapes or punctures. Can't let you go out without it." As they nodded their assent, he dropped his businesslike demeanor, and the wolf grin reappeared. He walked over to Brennan and took her hand again. "Good luck, Dr. Brennan. Do me a favor? Kick his ass out there. He gets a little too arrogant for his own good, and needs to be brought down a peg."

"Hey!"

Brennan ignored Booth's outburst and focused directly on Reggie. "Thank you. I know what you mean – I'll do my best."

Booth ignored Reggie's loud guffaw and stepped in between them. "Okay, chuckle time's over. Let's go, Bones – we don't want to miss that truck." Once again facing his friend, he shook his hand, and then lightly slapped his cheek. "Nice to see you again, jarhead. Say hello to Wendy for me."

"Will do. You two have fun out there, and don't get killed, okay?"

The door clapped shut behind them, and they began the trek across the large lot to the loading station. The morning seemed almost too quiet, now that they were no longer in Reggie's presence. "I swear, that freakin' jarhead has the energy of ten men. I keep telling him to come work for the Bureau, but he's a diehard career man. There's no budging him."

She listened to him closely. She'd wondered for some time if, despite Booth's pain at what he'd had to do in the Army, he missed the life and the people. It was clear to her now that he did miss it. She supposed that military and wartime situations fostered close relationships by necessity. But he didn't miss it enough to be unhappy. That much was also plain.

They stretched for several more minutes, alone and with assistance from each other. Just as they were finishing, a distant rumble revealed the approaching transport. She looked, but was unable to see it. In the quiet surroundings, it could still be a mile away. Glancing around, she realized that the entire area was deserted. Heart pounding, she stepped up to Booth and grabbed his hand. "Booth?"

"Yeah?"

"I like my surprise." Looking around one more time, she quickly lifted up onto her toes and dropped a brief, sweet kiss on his lips. Before he could grab her, she turned and walked away with a saucy swing of her hips, tossing a challenging look over her shoulder. "And I am going to kick your ass out there."

A wide, silly smile spread on his face as he watched her begin to stretch again. It was all coming a bit easier for her now. He was so glad. Glad for her. And God, he was gone. Yep, totally gone. He perused her for another moment, and then continued stretching. He needed to make sure he was warm when they started. There's no way I'm letting her kick my ass. "Hey, Bones."

She glanced over at him while she stretched her back. "Yes?"

He held her eyes for a long moment, his smile sharpening into something quite a bit more determined. "You'll be eating my dust."

I don't know about you guys, but I know I'd have a heart attack about 100 yards into that course. I might chance it though, if Booth was there to...ahem...revive me...okay, BAD writer! See, this is what happens to me in the middle of the night. If you enjoyed this and want to drop me a line, I'd be thrilled to hear from you.