Okay, I know I said this wouldn't be up until tomorrow, but I finished early! Yay!

The knock came in the middle of the night. Brennan woke up almost instantly, a surge of adrenaline pushing her up and off the bed within seconds. She swung open the door and found him, right there on her doorstep.

"Booth."

"I asked her to marry me."

She swallowed. "Do you want to come in?"

He walked past her without looking at her eyes and stood facing the opposite wall. "She accepted," he announced.

She crossed her arms over her chest and fought against the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Congratulations," she said. The words felt like gravel in her mouth, scraping up her throat and over her tongue.

He turned to her and was in front of her in two quick strides. "You don't mean that," he accused.

"Yes," she said, "I do."

"No, you don't" was his instant contradiction. "I know you, Bones," he said, moving closer. "I know you. This is killing you, standing here, congratulating me on being in love with another woman."

"You don't know me, Booth." Her voice was calm, steady. "You haven't known me for a long time."

The words fell like a weight against his chest. "I know you," he said, but his voice was softer now. "I knew you," he amended, because she was right. He didn't know her anymore, not really. Not in the intimate, aching way he used to. "I loved you," he breathed roughly. "God, I loved you so much."

He was so close now. Close enough that she could smell him and feel the heat of his body and hear the rough way he was breathing. "I think I loved you, too," she said, the admission slipping from her lips after years of holding it in.

"Bones…"

She closed her eyes at the name. Her name. The one he gave to her. "What are you doing here, Booth?"

He didn't answer her. He lifted his hands and rested them on her arms. Trailed them down to her elbows and back up over her shoulders. Pushed his fingers into her hair and tilted her head back. Bowed his head forward and pressed his lips to the hollow of her throat.

Her eyes slid shut. Her hands smoothed across his chest. "God, Booth," she moaned. "Please, don't do this to me."

He stilled at her words, but she gripped his shoulders, because she could feel him now and she hadn't been able to feel him so long. His stubble was rough against her neck, but his lips were soft, his kisses warm. And she loved him. There was that. She always had that.

"Bones." He whispered her name across her skin. Lifted his head and looked into her eyes.

"Just…" She trailed off. Shook her head. She missed him so much. "Just hold me, please? I want to remember what it's like." I want to have you, just for a moment, before you're gone again.

He nodded silently and pulled her closer. Settled his arms around her waist. She pressed her face into his chest and breathed in deeply. He smelled just the same. Felt just the same.

She missed him so much.

His hands were tracing circles across her back. She could feel the heat of his palms through the thin fabric of her t-shirt. "How long have you had this?" he asked quietly, referencing the FBI shirt she was wearing.

She smiled softly. "Do you remember that night when we decided to walk home from the park and it was raining and we sprinted back here and—"

"And you gave me that 'Science is Cool' t-shirt that you'd gotten at a conference, because mine was soaking wet."

She nodded. "I kept your shirt. I...I meant to give it back. I washed it and dried it, but I…" But then you found Hannah and it was all I had left of you.

"Don't worry about it, Bones," he murmured into her hair. "You keep it. It looks better on you anyway." She smiled and pressed closer to him. He tightened his arms around her. "Do you want to know a secret?" he asked her.

"Sure," she said softly, lulled by his presence, his arms, his voice.

"I kept your shirt, too."

It was nothing really. It was a shirt. It was one night, a long time ago. But something in his voice—the sincerity, the memory, made her breath catch. "You did?"

"Yes," he admitted. "I kept it because…because it was yours." And it was all I had left of you. "It was squinty and nerdy and you all over. It smelled like you for a long time. Not anymore, but…"

He trailed off and she tensed in his arms. Pulled back slightly. "Booth?"

"Yes."

"Don't marry her."

He stared at her. He watched her. They stood there, looking at each other, for a long time. She could hear the clock ticking on the wall. The hum of the refrigerator. The thud of her own heart and this fact, this thing that she had—that she loved him.

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She tilted her head up and his lips brushed across her nose, her cheek, the corner of her mouth. "Okay," he breathed, close enough to kiss. "I won't."

—BB—

The sun was rising when he came back. He found her in her bedroom, asleep on top of the comforter. She opened her eyes when he walked in and stood at the foot of her bed. She watched him as he shrugged out of his jacket, stepped out his shoes, pulled off his shirt and pants. She watched him as he lowered himself onto the bed and moved up towards her, pressing kisses to her ankles, her knees, her thighs, her stomach, her neck. "You're back," she said simply, arching into his touch as he trailed his hand up her side, his thumb brushing the edge of her breast.

"I'm back," he confirmed.

He gripped the edge of his old t-shirt and pulled it over her head. Drew her warm, naked body against his. "I missed you," he breathed into her lips.

She smiled. "I missed you, too."

Adorable much? I really liked writing this one. I think that really, all Brennan would have to do is tell Booth she loves him and he'd be there in a heartbeat. Sure, he loves Hannah. But he loves Bones so much more. Hannah's just a rebound, a fill-in because the woman he truly loves is a wee bit emotionally retarded. (Sorry, Bones, but it's kinda true.)

I hope it won't take something like him proposing for her to see the light, but you never know… Anywho, REVIEW please!