Note: I have company. For three weeks. Updates will be sporadic at best.
What if: Booth's gambling problem had made it impossible for him to join the FBI?
AU? Yes
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"Ah, Dr. Brennan." Dr. Goodman gestured at the guest chair in his office. "Have a seat."
Brennan sat, perching on the edge of the chair. "What is it, Dr. Goodman?"
Goodman leaned forward and rested his elbows on his desk, his fingers touching. "It has been brought to my attention that you are receiving death threats as a result of your planned excursion to Guatemala."
"What? No."
One eyebrow raised. "Did you not receive a letter in yesterday's mail from someone who said – and I quote – 'Cancel your trip or you won't live to regret it?'"
Brennan folded her arms across her chest defensively. "Well, yes."
"And a threatening phone call two days ago?"
"Yes. But I hardly think someone would try to kill me for doing my job."
"I'd like you to cancel your trip."
Brennan shook her head vehemently. "No. I can't do that, sir."
"Very well. In that case, the Jeffersonian will arrange for the appropriate security."
"But ..."
"You will cooperate. If you do not, your leave will be revoked and you will not go to Guatemala."
Brennan's lips thinned. "Is that all?"
"For now. I will arrange for your security team to be in touch before noon."
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"Excuse me." Brennan's voice was frosty as she glared at the interloper sitting in her chair, feet up on the desk.
He grinned at her and swung his feet to the floor. "You must be Dr. Brennan." He stood and held out his hand. "Tim Sullivan. You can call me Sully. I'm the day shift."
"Day shift?"
"Yeah", Sully answered. "Security team? You were supposed to be informed. I stick with you from 7 am to 7 pm, then the boss takes over for the night shift. So until 7 tonight, just consider me your shadow. Where you go, I go. Don't worry, you'll hardly know I"m here."
"That seems unlikely."
Sully laughed. "I'll do my best to stay out of your way."
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Booth followed the security guard through the dark lab.
It was futuristic, filled with strange machines and gleaming steel, the kind of place where you'd expect to find some guy in a spacesuit perform an autopsy on a little green alien.
They walked towards a glass-walled office. The shades were drawn, but he could see light spilling out through the edges. He could hear the rumble of Sully's voice, and the answering feminine laughter. The security guard knocked on the door, and Sully answered. "Hey, boss."
"Sull."
Sully stepped back to allow him to enter the office. She sat on the couch, hair up in a pony tail, wearing a blue lab coat, black slacks, and some extremely ugly shoes. Sully nodded at him. "Bren, this is Booth. Booth, Dr. Brennan."
"Nice to meet you, Dr. Brennan."
"Yes, I'd imagine it is."
Sully couldn't quite mask his grin. "Well, see you in the morning. Have a good night."
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He would have preferred to do the driving, but she was the client, so when she made it clear she wanted to drive, he gave in.
He was on full alert once they parked, and they couldn't get into the building fast enough to suit him. Once he'd checked out her apartment, closed the blinds, and locked the door securely, he was able to drop his guard just a little.
Her fridge was empty – if you didn't count some old hot sauce packets, a few apples, and a bag of carrots – so they ordered in. While they waited for the food to arrive, she disappeared into the office while he sat on the couch and leafed through magazines that he couldn't begin to understand.
The doorbell rang, and he yelled for her to stay back while he answered the door.
Naturally, she didn't listen, which led to an all-out fight while the food got cold. The fight ended when she grabbed one of the containers of food off the coffee table and stomped off to the bedroom, slamming the door behind her.
He spent the night on the couch, wishing she had a TV.
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The pattern was the same for the next few evenings. He'd meet up with her and Sully – at the lab, outside her karate class, at the firing range - and find her laughing and happy. As soon as he arrived, he could see her become more aloof, more reserved.
It made him want to get under her skin.
But he was there to do a job, and it was more important that he keep her safe than that he make her laugh.
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He met them at the lab on Thursday. She was actually ready to go, so they all walked out together – Sully on his way to … wherever he was going, Booth and Brennan en route to her apartment. They were three steps out of the door on the way to the parking garage when he heard a shot. He dove towards Brennan, knocking her to the ground. Sully pulled his weapon and ducked behind one of the pillars.
There was no second shot, just an old car, limping out of the structure.
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On Saturday, he couldn't face the thought of another evening spent on her couch while she worked. He hunted her down in her office and asked what she normally did for fun. She looked uncomfortable at the question, finally answering, "My work keeps me very busy."
"What, bones?", he answered. "It's Saturday night. Don't you ever go to a movie or go dancing? Play mini-golf or poker? Something just for fun?"
From the look on her face, it was clear that she didn't.
"Come on", he said. "We're going out."
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An hour later, they were racing go-karts. He'd called in a couple of his men to help reduce the risk of being in such a public location, and they were shouting encouragement from the sidelines as she threw caution to the wind, pushing the cart to its limits as she sped around the course. It took everything he had to keep up. When they tumbled out of the carts, they were both laughing with exhilaration.
They moved to the rock climbing wall, and again she led the way, even trying some awkward trash-talk as she made it to the bell at the top of the wall seconds before he did.
They ate funnel cake and too-greasy fries, then sat on a bench and ate ice cream cones as the sun set.
When it got late, he sent his men home and they drove contentedly through the dark streets.
As soon as they walked through the door of her apartment, the spell was broken. She disappeared into the bedroom, and he flopped down on the couch.
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Over the next week, they started eating together. She told him stories about her job, and he could see why she was so good at what she did. He told her about his decision to start his own business. She talked about her trips to Tibet and Guatemala. He talked about his time in the army.
She wasn't his usual type, but he really liked her.
Not that he could do anything about it, since he was still her body guard.
And then, one night, she kissed him, and asked him to join her in her bedroom.
Saying no was the hardest thing he'd ever done.
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"Boss?"
"Ugh", Booth grunted, still half-asleep.
"Is there something I should know about you and Bren?"
"What?" Booth sat up in bed, the covers pooling at his waist. "No."
"OK", Sully said doubtfully. "I'm just wondering because she's said no the last seventeen times this squint she works with asked her out, and today she said yes. Might want to wear a suit tonight so you fit in at the restaurant."
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He sat at the table, his best female bodyguard across from him, and wondered how they could justify charging $34 for a tiny serving of mediocre pasta.
Lily, like him, was able to make small talk while staying aware of her surroundings, and they chatted as they kept their eyes open for any threats towards the woman sitting three tables away.
She looked like she was having fun, laughing and playing with her hair. The poor squint probably thought he'd be taking her home tonight.
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Booth managed to time it so that he and Lily left the restaurant about thirty seconds before Brennan and the physicist. They lingered outside the door, pretending to have a hard time saying goodnight. When Brennan and her date walked towards the parking lot, they followed, appearing to anyone looking to be focused only on each other.
A car drove by, and out of the corner of his eye, Booth noticed the headlights glance off a piece of metal.
He started to run before he consciously realized it was a gun.
He could hear Lily taking control of the scene as the bullet knocked him to the ground.
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By the time he could breath normally again, he could hear sirens in the distance. Lily had pushed Brennan back inside the restaurant, so he picked himself up off the pavement and went to join them.
It took a couple of hours to answer the officers' questions. Brennan's date pulled her off to the side after he talked to them, then took off, leaving her sitting in a chair near the door. When he finished talking to the police, he walked over.
"Hey." He crouched down beside her chair. "How are you doing?"
"I find that the adrenalin has worn off, and I'm extremely tired. It's to be expected."
He covered her hand with his. "You're going to be fine."
Her chin went up defiantly. "Of course. There is no reason why I wouldn't be. However, I would imagine you'll be sore for a few weeks. I expect you have a couple of bruised ribs."
"I've had worse."
"You're lucky you were wearing a bullet-proof vest."
He shrugged. "In my line of work, it pays to be prepared for anything."
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Sully followed Brennan into the conference room. Booth was already at the table, along with the detective from the local police.
Booth spoke first. "You don't have to do this."
"Do what?"
The detective leaned forward. "We want to catch this guy."
"If by 'this guy" you mean the person or persons who are trying to kill me, I want to catch him, too."
"We have a plan, but we'll need your cooperation."
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Sully and Brennan walked into the hotel. She had a scarf over her hair and was wearing big sunglasses, in an obvious attempt to avoid recognition. He kept his hand on her back, and tried to rush the check-in process along.
They got their room key and made their way up to the fifth floor. Five minutes later, Sully walked through the lobby, whistling a catchy tune.
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The door to room 714 opened, and Brennan sat up in bed.
"Hey."
At the sound of Booth's voice, she turned on the bedside lamp. "You're bleeding."
Booth looked down at his stained shirt. "It's not mine."
"So?"
"We got him." He smiled.
She laughed in response. "So that's it? I get my life back."
"That's it", he confirmed. "There's just one more thing."
"What is it?"
"Will you have dinner with me tomorrow?"
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Thoughts?