A/N Last night lit the match. The details of last night will come out as we go. The match makes it to the fuse here. The explosion comes next. Please hang in there with me. I think it comes together in the end. Thanks for reading and reviewing. -Kalli

Booth finished up his morning testimony without any surprises or issues, which is the best he could hope for. He had a small window before they reconvened for the afternoon session. He was deciding on a lunch plan when the text came in.

Charlie: Dr. B in your office. Been there for a while. Fell asleep.

So that was weird. He decided to pick up sandwiches for both of them and headed back to see what was going on. Charlie caught him as he entered to tell him what he knew.

"She got here a few hours ago. I went to check on her and see if she needed anything – she didn't look great – but she was asleep. I closed the blinds and the door to give her some privacy."

"Hey thanks, man," Booth offered, and headed into his office.

The scene looked just as Charlie had described it. She'd pulled the chair closer to the wall and had her head leaning on it. She had circles under her eyes and no make up. A tiny scratch on her face. Walking up from the garage he thought of ways to wake her – a lot of them were surprises meant to startle or embarrass her a little, but once he saw her he didn't have the heart. He was so excited when he heard she'd come to see him, but now his gut told him something was off.

He quietly approached her, putting down their lunch. He closed the door and open the shades to the outside windows to brighten the room just a hint. Then he very gently ran the back of his fingers against her upper arm to wake her, when she very suddenly wrenched her body, putting her back against the wall.

"Bones, it's just me."

She closed her eyes, refusing to make eye contact, and regained control of her breathing.

"Sorry," she finally got out.

"You get any sleep last night, Bones?"

She shook her head. "The new project. We are coordinating with teams from around the world and we've had video conferences at all hours. I guess my body is having a hard time adjusting."

She smiled a smile he recognized as the one she gives when she doesn't want him to worry. It wasn't real, and it wasn't working. She raised her hand to push her hair back off her face and as she did he saw the bandage on her arm. He caught her arm gently in the air and looked at it, but she pulled it away.

"A broken glass," she offered with no other explanation. Her hand touched the small mark on her cheek and he assumed they came from the same source.

"Need to see someone about it?" he asked as casually as he could manage, but she shook her head.

"It's nothing."

He backed away to give her space. Focusing on food he opened up the bag and set the sandwiches on the table laying out lunch. Sometimes when she ate she just started talking. He thought it might work, because she walked over to the table and took a bite, but she immediately put the food down and put her hand on her stomach as though even that one bite was enough to make her sick. She crossed back to the chair he found her sleeping in and sat down again, this time with her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands.

"Booth," she started. And stopped. Then she tried to start again. Then she stopped herself.

"Whatever it is, you can tell me, Bones."

She nodded in agreement, and he hoped it was enough to get her going.

"I didn't have enough information to assess a situation. I think maybe I need your perspective."

"Anything," he said calmly, no hesitation. He tried to reassure her with eye contact, but she still wasn't looking at him. "Whatever it is we can fix it."

"You can't know that."

"I can if we do it together."

He looked at his watch. He didn't mean to. He was supposed to be back in court and checking the time was a reflex, but that split second was all it took. He watched her resolve falter and her mind change. It was like an energy in the room that he could actually feel.

He kicked himself as she stood up and said words so fast and mumbled that he could barely make them out. Sorry. Mistake. Fine. Later. And she made a break for the door when he gently put a hand on both her arms between her elbows and her shoulders and steadied her, reassured her.

She froze under his touch and Booth couldn't decide it he should let her go because of her agitation or hold on to her forever because of his own, but in the end she took the choice away as she closed the distance and hugged him.

"Talk to me, Bones," he said softly as he wrapped his arms around her.

She stayed with her face buried in his chest for another moment, and then she cleared her throat.

"Not now."

"I'm worried. Please."

"You need to be back in court this afternoon. Let's talk in the morning."

"I can make time for whatever it is."

He pulled back from her to see her face, looking to share his confidence and resolve.

She shook her head.

"Bones if something's wrong, if you're in trouble, you need to tell me. Let me help," he pleaded.

"I just need to get through today. I have a lot of work on the paper, and meetings late tonight at the Jeffersonian to connect with research teams in Asia. Let me get through that. Can we just talk in the morning? And then I have breakfast meeting - I'd like for you to go to with me."

"Like I said, anything." Something tangible he could do was like a lifeline to him.

She nodded and he saw her transform herself to leave the office, completely unwilling to let the bullpen see her off her game. He watched her leave, fighting the urge to follow her. He was pulling his thoughts together, trying to understand the source of her distress without any outside information.

But the only thing he kept coming back around to involved McGowan, and he felt anger rising in his chest.

He needed to talk to someone who knew Danny in a different context than he did, but he didn't really know any of Danny's girlfriends, so he wasn't sure where to go. Well, he only knew one, but it was so long ago. Right now he would try anything to get out ahead of whatever this was, so he went to his car, and drove to Rebecca's office.

"What are you doing here, Seeley?" was the curt greeting he got as he entered. He wasn't surprised.

"Is this about your schedule with Parks? You're supposed to see him next weekend. Wait, are you here to tell me you can't take him? I made plans, Seeley. I need you…"

Booth put his hands in front of him in surrender. "Nothing at all like that. I'm happy to have him for the weekend. Rosie is dropping him off after school next Friday, right?"

"Right," she confirmed as she calmed down a little.

"But I needed to ask you something and I wanted to ask you in person."

"What is it? What's going on?"

"When you and Danny were together…., "

"Danny?" Rebecca's face was pure confusion.

"Danny McGowan. When you were with Danny before you and I got together, did he ever .." He couldn't believe it. He could barely say it. "Did he ever hurt you?"

"Danny. Wow. What? No – we were never together. Did he tell you that?"

"He always said you guys were serious before he introduced us."

"No – I mean, a few drinks. Dinner one night. One good night kiss with absolutely no spark," she said to diffuse his tension.

"But he never hurt you."

"No. Never," she said. "What's wrong?"

"It doesn't matter," he stated, trying to not get her worried or involved.

He wasn't sure if her answer made him feel better or worse. He was certainly relieved that Rebecca hadn't been hurt, but the nagging suspicion that there was something happening with Danny and Bones wasn't diminished. And as he nodded, offering no context for his concern and headed to the door, he felt Rebecca's hand lightly grip his forearm, and when he turned to her the look on her face was dark and her eyes were distant.

"He scared me, though. Once."

"Can you tell me what happened?"

"Maybe it was nothing. I don't know. Parker was tiny, you and I had just split, and Danny showed up one night. He was weird. Tense. Maybe drunk. He didn't touch me – he mostly complained about you leading a charmed life. I can't say what it was, but I had my cell phone in my hand to call you. I remember that. If he hadn't left I was about to call you. And things were bad between us then, so you know that wasn't my style. I told myself that if he ever came around again I would talk to you about it, but he never did. It wasn't something I could put my finger on or put into words, but I remember the feeling – so uncomfortable, not knowing what he was going to do or say next. He said 'what does Seeley have that I don't?' It scared me."

Booth rubbed his hand up and down her arm once, a gesture meant to thank her for the information and for telling him the story so long after it happened. They would always share Parker, but they weren't close. She could have just dismissed him. He told her to call if Danny showed up or got in touch, and she agreed without questioning why.

Climbing back into the truck he made it to court for his afternoon appearance. Sitting there waiting he had an uncomfortable churn rising in his stomach. Maybe a little ringing in his ears. Rebecca's words were on repeat. Something she couldn't put into words. Something she couldn't put her finger on. Being uncomfortable. Those were exactly the same things Bones said about Danny back at the beginning- back when he mocked her people instincts and pushed her at another man to keep his own love for her a secret.

After court he drove past the Jeffersonian. After making sure his partner's blue Prius was safely tucked into her place in the lot, he went back to the Hoover building.