A/N: the song for this chapter is Harry Nilson's "Without You". Please remember this story is AU, so some of the actions of the characters may seem a bit extreme...but that's what makes AU fun...

No, I can't forget this evening

Or your face as you were leaving,

But I guess that's just the way the story goes….

Booth lowered the hockey stick as he stood gaping at his visitor. "What the Hell….why are you even here, Camille?" He turned his back to her and walked a few paces away before angrily turning to face her again. "I mean, who just shows up unannounced on New Year's Eve? Seriously...did you ever think that I might have plans for this evening?"

Cam casually stepped into the apartment and shrugged off her coat. "You really should check your personal email more often, Booth." She laughed mirthlessly as she threw her coat on a chair. "I sent you a message two weeks ago, remember? I said I wanted you to let me know if you were going to be busy on New Year's Eve, because I was going to be in town and I wanted to return your key. Since I didn't hear from you, I thought you wanted me to come see you." She held the keychain up and then tossed it to him.

"Yeah, I saw the message, but there was a reason I didn't respond, Cam...I didn't want to see you again. You're a smart woman...you should've been able to figure that out. You could've saved yourself a lot of trouble if you had mailed me the key. Maybe you should've called me to make sure you were welcome."

Cam pretended to pout a little bit as she sauntered over to Booth. "I just wanted to surprise you for the holiday, but you don't seem very happy to see me. Now my feelings are hurt. And to think I picked out my outfit just for you…." She did a model twirl to show off her very short, very revealing, and very tight black dress and her 3 inch stiletto heels. "Do you like it?" Cam realized that Booth wasn't paying attention to her and she turned to see what was distracting him.

"Oh...I get it now...you have company, don't you? Naughty boy...did you forget I wanted to spend the evening here?" Cam smiled and arched her eyebrow as she nodded at Brennan. Picking up the empty wine glass from the coffee table, Cam turned back to Booth. "Wine and jazz...you sure know how to entertain a lady. Are you having a good time this evening, Dr. Brennan?"

Brennan blushed furiously as she quickly found her jacket and purse. She stammered a bit as she put her jacket on and checked her purse for her keys. "I need to be going anyway, Booth...it's late…" She avoided looking at Cam as she moved toward the door. "I'll get my salad bowl later. Thanks for the spaghetti…and everything else...it was fun."

"Everything else?" Cam smirked as she turned toward Booth. "You've been busy tonight, haven't you, Seeley?"

Ignoring Cam, Booth moved in front of the door to keep Brennan from leaving. "Bones, wait. You don't need to go right now. Cam's not staying…" He put his hand on Brennan's arm to stop her but she pulled away. "Come on, Bones...please stay…"

You always smile but in your eyes

Your sorrow shows….yes, it shows...

"I can't stay. I really have to go...I'm tired." Brennan smiled weakly as she turned back to Cam. "Nice to see you again, Dr. Saroyan. Happy New Year. Good night." She held her hand up to interrupt Booth's protests. He could tell she was struggling to control her emotions, and he reached out to hug her. "No...please don't. I'm not going to stay. Good bye, Booth." She darted out the door before he could stop her.

Booth stepped out into the hall, hoping to keep her from leaving, but she was already gone. He angrily came back into his apartment and slammed the door. He picked up his phone to make a call. "Come on, Bones….pick up...please pick up...DAMN IT." Ignoring Cam's laughter, he tried to call Brennan again, pacing the room as he waited for her to answer her phone. "Bones...I need to talk to you...call me as soon as you get this...please…"

"Really, Booth? Begging? From what I can remember, you wanted to be the one who made someone beg…" Cam laughed again as he tried to call Brennan once more. "She obviously doesn't want to talk you right now. She's an intelligent woman. She knows she can't compete with me." Cam tried to put her arms around Booth's neck but he moved out of her reach as he put his phone to his ear. "Oh come on, Booth...you know you want me...I always help you burn off that excess heat that comes from working with Dr. Brennan, don't I? Remember that case with the dead guy dissolved in the bathtub? She had you all hot and bothered, talking about outlets for satisfying your biological urges, but who actually helped you get over your 'frustration'? And you loved every minute of it when I 'helped' you…I think I 'helped' you two or three times that evening."

"Yeah, but giving into those urges turned out to be a mistake, didn't it?" Booth collapsed onto the sofa and sighed as he rubbed his hand over his eyes. "That does pretty much sum up our relationship, doesn't it, Cam? Sex partners...when one of us was horny, the other one helped take the edge off. But that's all it was, wasn't it? Did you ever love me? Because I'm not sure I actually ever loved you….not like that. We were good friends, and we should've left it at that..."

"Don't give me that shit, Seeley. You enjoyed the sex as much as I did. I don't understand why it has to be anything more than that…" She sat down next to him and looping her arm through his, grabbed his hand. "Remember the night after Brennan took off with Sully, and you were so angry with her? Who helped you calm down? Who dried your tears and helped you forget all about her?" Cam leaned over to whisper in Booth's ear. "Hot, angry sex with you is simply sensational...she doesn't know what she's missing…God, I'm getting all wet and tingly just thinking about that night..." She ran her fingernails down his chest and drew circles on his shirt above his nipple. "C'mon...you know you like it that way...remember?"

Booth pulled his hand away from her. "Stop! It's not gonna happen like that tonight, Camille. I'm not angry at Bones because she left tonight. I am, however, angry at you for barging into my home uninvited. You need to get your things and leave."

Cam stopped running her fingers across Booth's shirt as a new thought suddenly occurred to her, and a sly smile spread over her face. "This is because you've got the hots for Dr. Brennan, isn't it? You're trying to get her into bed with you, and there's no room for me anymore…Do I really have a reason to be jealous of her?"

But Booth wasn't listening. He was trying to call Brennan again. "Bones...please...come on...please call me back…" He hung up and leaned back on the sofa again. How had his evening fallen apart so quickly? One minute he was kissing the woman he loved, and the next minute all Hell had broken loose. He turned to Cam as she continued to talk about Booth lusting after Brennan. "You need to leave, Camille...you need to leave right now." He pointed toward the door. "Now."

"It's after midnight, Booth! Where am I going to find a place to stay at this hour?" She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "I can just stay here with you tonight…."

"No...you have to leave. Maybe you should've thought about where you were gonna stay before you showed up here uninvited. I don't care where you go, but you can't stay here. What if Bones decides to come back and you're still here? She's already upset with me…" Booth moved away from Cam and began pacing the floor as he tried to call Brennan again.

"Booth….Are you just angry with me, or are you really in love with Dr. Brennan? And seriously...do you think she can ever love you the way you want her to? She has no concept of how to love someone like that. With her it's all logic, and no emotions." Cam picked up her coat as she walked toward the door. "Don't worry about me. I'll call a cab. I think I can stay with some friends here in town tonight."

Booth continued to ignore her as he left another message for Brennan. "I'll see you before I go back to New York, Seeley." She paused for a few seconds, watching as he continued to pace the room. "Good night, Booth…."

oooooooooo

No, I can't forget tomorrow

As I think of all my sorrow

When I had you there and then I let you go…

Booth lay in his bed on the morning of New Year's Day and stared at the ceiling, trying to decide what to do next. God, things had gone to Hell quickly. He played the scene over and over again in his mind...what if he could've stopped Bones from leaving...maybe he could've convinced her to stay...maybe the rest of the evening would've been as wonderful as the first part of the evening...they were enjoying each other's company...they were dancing, and then he had kissed her and she hadn't pulled away...he knew she had felt something for him….they could be so good together...and then, disaster struck….Cam showed up to crash the party, and Bones ran like a scared little rabbit without giving him a chance to explain….

And now Bones wasn't answering her phone, and it seemed like she wasn't going to call him back even after he'd left what seemed like a hundred messages. Dammit! He'd seen the tears in her eyes last night as she left...he knew she didn't understand that his relationship with Cam was over for good. He had to talk to her…He had to explain everything….

I can't live, if living is without you,

I can't live, I can't give any more….

He sat up in bed and glanced at the clock. Jesus...it was already 10:30. Yawning and stretching, Booth made his way to the shower, hoping to wash away the combination of anger and despair that lingered in his mind. Bones wouldn't be able to avoid him forever. He'd make her listen to him, and then he'd explain everything...he'd make her understand….yeah, like that would work. It was practically impossible to make Bones do something she didn't want to do. Okay, what was plan B? He had to come up with something... Booth pulled on some beat up jeans and a ratty sweatshirt and walked into his living room to clean up after last night's fiasco. The wine glasses were still on the coffee table, and the movies were still sitting there in their cases just waiting to be watched again. He smiled to himself as he remembered Bones snuggled up next to him, softly snoring as he tried to concentrate on When Harry Met Sally. It was a good thing he'd seen it before...he'd been distracted by having Bones so close, nestled against him, her soft scent soothing him, her soft hair tickling against his chin… Oh yeah...plan B...maybe he'd camp out on her doorstep and refuse to leave until she'd let him explain….wonderful. Why not just become a stalker?

Booth was startled from his musings by the sound of the doorbell. Great...probably Cam again. He was going to have to be firm...he had to make Cam understand that they were over. Booth shook his head, wondering how he'd ever thought she was the one he wanted. He threw the door open, ready to scold whoever was standing there.

"Bones! Wow, I'm so glad to see you. Please, come in. I've been wanting to talk to you. Listen, about last night…"

She interrupted him. "I just came by to get my salad bowl, Booth. I need it for tonight." Brennan stood in the hall outside the apartment, her arms crossed over her chest. She stared at her shoes as she spoke to him. "I'm in a hurry, so if you could go get it for me…"

"I think it's still in the dishwasher. Come on in, and I'll get it for you." Booth held the door so she could enter the apartment.

"No, thank you. I'll just wait here." Brennan stuck her chin out defiantly. "I'm in a hurry, Booth. Just bring me my bowl."

"Come on, Bones...I don't want to leave the front door open so all the cold air comes in, and I don't want to close the door in your face, either. Just come in for a few minutes while I unload the dishwasher and I'll get your bowl, okay?"

Brennan paused for a few seconds before nodding in agreement. "Alright...but just for a few minutes. I'm going to Angela's house for dinner tonight, and I'm supposed to bring a salad."

"I understand." Booth ushered her in. "Have a seat. I'll just be a few minutes here…" He went into the kitchen and began putting the dishes away. "Hey, listen, Bones...about Cam…"

"Do you have my bowl?" Brennan stood up and moved toward the door.

"Yeah, it's here, but I want to talk to you for a few minutes, okay? Please? Just give me five minutes…" Booth walked over to where Brennan stood and took her hand in his. "I want to tell you something…."

"I need to go, Booth." She avoided Booth's intense gaze. "I have to make a salad for dinner this evening."

"Bones…listen…" He tilted her chin so she was looking at him. "Please…."

"No...I have to go..."

And now it's only fair that I should let you know

What you should know….

"Okay, okay, I know...you have to go. But just listen for a minute. I didn't invite Cam to come over last night. She showed up on her own. I didn't want her here. I wanted to spend my evening with you, not her. We were having fun last night, weren't we? You said you enjoyed yourself, right?"

"Booth...yes, I enjoyed myself, but…"

"Okay then….I want you to know that Cam doesn't mean anything to me. Nothing at all. We never had a real relationship...we were just satisfying biological urges, you know? But you...you're important to me...I care about you, Bones.…"

Brennan pulled her hand away from Booth and shook her head. "I don't want to cause any problems between you and Dr. Saroyan, Booth. She seemed unhappy that I was here with you last night. I think she was jealous…"

"Yeah, maybe she was jealous, but I want you to listen to me for a minute. C'mon...come sit down here." He gestured toward the sofa as he sat down in his chair. Brennan cautiously perched on the edge of the sofa and pinched her lips together. "Okay, Bones...here's the way it is, okay? Cam and I used to date. That's true. But remember I told you we broke up, right? She was just having fun, but I knew I wanted a more permanent relationship with someone...someone I could spend my life with. And now..."

Brennan fidgeted with her bowl as she listened to what Booth was saying. Finally she interrupted him. "Then why is she still pursuing you, Booth? Anthropologically speaking, she's an alpha female, and she's claimed you as part of her territory. I'm not in a position to interfere with that." Brennan rose from the sofa and picked up her purse and the salad bowl. "I have to leave. I have things to do before I go to Angela's this evening."

"No." Booth was growing desperate. Bones was rebuilding the walls around her emotions that he's been trying to dismantle. "You don't understand, Bones. I want you to interfere in that relationship. I want you to claim me as part of your territory. I want to belong to you…"

Brennan brushed a tear off her face as she moved toward the front door. "I don't think that's a good idea, Booth." She inhaled sharply to cover her sob. "I think I'd be more comfortable if we have a strictly professional relationship. Thank you for washing my bowl." And with that, she was out the door before Booth could stop her.

Stunned, he sat on the sofa, trying to decide what to do next. He couldn't believe it...had he really come that close to having the relationship he wanted with her, just to lose her again? That wasn't going to happen. He wasn't going to give up that easily….

I can't live if living is without you…

I can't live, I can't give anymore…

Can't live if living is without you…...

Don't worry...things will work out eventually...but it may take a while...