Universe 2 (April 2010 cont)
"Temperance. I arrested Max Keenan about three years ago and sent him to trial." She jumped back in shock. "You're the FBI Agent who arrested him?"
She got up from the sofa and walked to gaze out the window. Booth's shoulders slumped as he remained seated. All he could think was 'This is it. We're never going to get to tomorrow.' After a minute, she turned around and walked back to take her seat next to him again. She took his hands in hers and waited for him to raise his head so she could look into his eyes. "He didn't blame you Booth." He sputtered. "Wait. Wha... What do you mean? Are you saying you knew who I was before we 'met' two weeks ago?" His face had taken on a stricken look. He didn't know what to think. His brain was reeling. All of a sudden she realized that he had drawn the wrong conclusion. She shook her head several times. "No Booth! No! Let me explain. When Russ told me the jury had reached a verdict, I sat on the top steps outside the courthouse, because I couldn't stand to hear them say 'guilty'. Eventually, people started leaving the building and I looked up to see my dad and Russ leaving together. After telling me that he had been acquitted, Russ pointed to the bottom of the stairs and pointed out the FBI Agent who arrested him. I looked down and saw the back of a man in a black suit - I'm now thinking it must have been you. I looked back up at my father and he told Russ that he didn't blame the agent, that he was just doing his job. I looked back down and…you…were gone. His response made me feel a little bit better about my dad. At least he wasn't blaming anyone for arresting him, putting him on trial."
Booth was feeling a little better, but was still agitated. "Temperance. I know your father was acquitted, but I saw the evidence and I believe he killed two people." Temperance nodded. "I think you may be right. I still don't know how I feel about my father. I visited him a couple of times when he was in jail, but tried to hold back my emotions. I know that if he did do this, he was doing it to protect his family. He pops into town a few times a year and it's always nice to see him, but I can't say I've really reestablished a relationship with him. He tells me that he has stayed on the right side of the law, and I do believe him. What can I say Booth? He's my father." They looked at each other wordlessly for a minute. She spoke in a whisper. "Is this a deal breaker for us?"
He pulled her into his arms "God no Temperance. You are not your father. You had nothing to do with any of his crimes. I'm so sorry that you missed out on the life you should have had. I'm angry at your parents for putting you through all you've endured. And I'm sorry I scared you a few minutes ago when I misunderstood you." She hugged him tighter. "Are you sure you can be with someone who has this baggage?" He laughed. "Oh, you just wait. In a few minutes I'm going to tell you about my baggage. Let me pour some more of this champagne. I think we need it." She took a long sip. "You know, there will probably come a day when you will have to meet my father. How will you feel?" He laughed. "Well, technically, I've already met him." She rolled her eyes. "But I know what you mean. I think it would be okay. Thinking back to the case, the two men he was accused of murdering had killed many innocent people. And he was protecting his family. Plus, he was tried and acquitted by a jury. And I do remember him being a real gentleman. Charming even. Yeah, I think I would have mixed feelings too."
She took another sip of her champagne. "Tell me about your baggage." He thought for a few seconds and then started telling her the story of his father and his alcoholism. That he was drunk a lot of the time when Booth was young. And that most of the time he was a mean drunk. He often slapped Booth's mother or knocked her down. Starting at a young age, Booth tried to protect his mother but often ended up battered and bruised himself. When he was eight years old, after a brutal attack, his mother left their home and never returned. About six months later, his grandfather, Pops, found out that Seeley and his younger brother, Jared, were living alone with their father. He knew how volatile his son could be, so he moved in to try to protect his grandsons. But by the time Seeley had turned ten years old, even Pops couldn't protect them from their father's fury. And that's when his father left and never came back. "Temperance, the day after my father left, my life changed completely. Pops was the loving father we never had, and we found ourselves living in the type of household we always envied when hanging out at friends' houses."
She had been listening intently to his story and interjected. "Do you know where your father went? Do you know why he never came back?" Booth nodded. "I didn't have those answers until very recently. Pops is living in an assisted living community about an hour away and I visit him about once a month. I often take Parker with me because he loves visiting his Pops. Last year we were talking about my father and he revealed that he was the one who threw him out of the house and threatened to have him arrested if he ever returned. I was so thankful that he did that for us, but my father was his only child and I know that it must have been painful for him."
Temperance laid her head on his shoulder. "Well, we are quite a pair, aren't we? How have we managed to become such well adjusted adults?" She looked up into his eyes. "Are we well adjusted?" He chuckled. "Yes, I would say we are. You have three doctorates, are a well respected forensic anthropologist, an author of how many best sellers? I was an Army Ranger and now a Special Agent for the FBI. I'd say we are doing pretty well for ourselves. You know, I think this might be another area where we complement each other." She looked thoughtful. "How so?" He smiled at her. "It seems like you had a really good childhood, parents who loved you. They had reformed from their criminal ways while raising you and your brother in Chicago. But that all changed when you were 15 years old, and you had a rough go of it until you finally settled into your career. I, on the other hand, had a miserable childhood until the age of 10 years old. Then Pops took over and I had a great, normal life after that. We sort of complete each other." He looked at her with raised eyebrows looking for validation. She laughed. "Well, it's a bit of a stretch, but I can see your point."
A thoughtful look crossed her face. "Just talking about all this brought up something I've never considered. All through my teenage years and even in my 20s, I had no interest in a social life. Even now, I have a very tight, but small circle of friends. Looking back, I realize that my parents had no social life at all in Chicago as I was growing up. They were very much in love and spent their evenings at home together, but never had friends over to visit. And I always wondered why the neighbors all had cousins, aunts, uncles, visiting them, but my parents said that they were both the only child in their family. I now know that my mother had two sisters who I never met. It makes sense to me now - the no friends, no relatives. My parents were doing everything they could to keep our family hidden, anonymous, in the middle of Chicago. I think maybe I took my cues from my parents and didn't look to socialize. That was fine with me because learning and studying were what drove me. I don't know why it's taken me so long to put all that together."
Booth pulled her into his arms, she wrapped her arms around his waist, and cuddled into his neck. He started running his hands through her hair while he kissed her temple. "Maybe two broken people coming together can assemble the pieces into a stronger whole." Temperance kissed him on the shoulder and looked up at him. "You know, there is a Japanese method of repairing pottery called Kintsugi. Gold powder is used in the seams of the repair to highlight, instead of disguising the cracks. These pieces are more valuable than a similar piece of unbroken pottery because they see value in the imperfect. I think maybe we both have been broken and have been repairing the cracks alone. Perhaps, together we can help each other filling in those cracks to make the repairs even more beautiful than before we were broken."
Booth pulled back so he could look into her gorgeous eyes. "Temperance. That might be the most beautiful thing anyone has ever said to me." He leaned in and gave her a long, sweet kiss. Then he dropped his head to her shoulder. "I don't know about you, but I'm mentally exhausted - but I also want to be close to you. I think we can share that big bed tonight - I just want you to hold you and wake up with you." She nodded. "I'd like that."
He used the small powder room off the sitting area and she used the en suite to prepare for bed. When she walked into the bedroom, he was sitting on the bed dressed in a t-shirt and sweat pants. She was wearing a rose colored satin two piece pajama set. He let out a low wolf whistle, which made her laugh. She climbed in next to him and he pulled her into his arms. "This is nice." He gave her a long, slow kiss and tucked her head against his chest. It only took a matter of minutes before they were both sound asleep.
Booth woke up and saw that it was daylight. He knew the moment he opened his eyes that it was Temperance he was spooning because he had dreamed of her all night. His second thought was embarrassment because he realized he was sporting morning "wood", and he didn't want her to wake up and get the wrong impression. So he slowly pulled his hips back a few inches to break the contact and then closed his eyes again and just enjoyed the feeling of having her in his arms. It took another 20 minutes or so before he felt her starting to stir. She rolled over on her back and smiled up at him. She whispered, "Good morning." He leaned down and gave her a long kiss. "Good morning." She laid her head against his chest and cuddled into him, and they just laid there for about ten minutes in a comfortable silence. He finally stirred and asked if she was ready to get the day started.
They went out and had a long, relaxing brunch. There was a lot of talk about the emotional discussion from the previous night. They were both relieved to have disclosed all of their dirty laundry, as well as learning so much about each other in one night. The entire exercise had brought them so much closer. She told him how happy she was that he had shared her bed last night. He asked her what she was looking forward to most at the reunion? "Well, there are a handful of classmates who made my life miserable, so I'm interested in finding out if they made anything of themselves. And there are a few I'm hoping to see and catch up with. But you know what I really want to see?" Booth raised an eyebrow. "I want to see the school. See some of the classrooms, the lab, the cafeteria. See if they're as I remembered them." She stopped suddenly. "You don't suppose they will have the rest of the school closed off so I can't wander, do you?" Booth chuckled and leaned across the table. "That won't be a problem. You see, there's this badge that I always carry that will get me into any building, anywhere. Stick with me kid!" She just laughed and shook her head, her eyes sparkling. "I think you have made me laugh more in the last two weeks than I have for my entire adult life." His warm brown eyes made her melt. "I think that is my reason for living now - to keep that smile on your beautiful face."
A/N For those of you waiting for the true M content, you will get plenty of it in the next two chapters. I plan to have them posted in the next couple of days, and have the story complete before Christmas weekend.