137A flame crackled in the fire place as Booth sat lounging in an easy chair. He held a book in his hands, but his eyes never met the page. He was locked on the beautiful vision in front of him. Tempe sat curled in Bones' lamp on the sofa. Both were fast asleep.
After several more moments of gazing, Bones began to stir but quickly stopped, realizing what she held in her arms.
"What time is it?" she inquired.
"I think you both conked out on chapter four of The BFGs. That was about three hours ago."
"Have you been sitting there staring the whole time?"
"Nope. I managed to get through five whole pages before I realized that watching you two was more interesting than anything in this book."
Brennan gently stroked her daughter's hair, "She's so perfect."
"She's absolutely perfect."
"She's you," Brennan mumbled, a slight smile escaping her lips.
"She may look like me on the outside…but on the inside, there, she's all you Bones."
"You say that, but I don't see it."
"You will. Just give it time," he said.
"Booth…I wish the whole world were just this room. That sounds so ridiculous and utterly impossible, but wouldn't that be lovely?"
"Nothing has to exist beyond this. It's just you and me and Tempe. Forever."
"Not forever. She'll grow up and she'll go to college, and get a job, and get married."
"I'll be here…I want to grow old with you."
A momentary pause enveloped the room. Brennan broke the silence.
"Do you want to get married?" she asked.
Booth's mouth dropped slightly in disbelief, "You want to get married?"
"I didn't say that. I asked if you wanted to get married."
"I would love to marry you…but I don't need to get married to be happy."
"Why do you think people get married? I understand the tradition of it all and I understand the history, but in today's world, why does anyone need to actually get married?"
"Well, I guess it's because it creates a bond that's truly unbreakable. That's the really beautiful thing about love. When you love someone, you are agreeing to stand by that person for the rest of your life. You're agreeing to love them no matter what, good hair day or bad hair day, no matter what. Getting married is just a way of sharing that with everyone. It's a way of saying I love this person more than anything and I'm going to keep loving them forever."
"If marriage is truly unbreakable people would be together forever. There would be no divorce or heartbreak or pain."
"Not everyone is meant to get married or be together. When it's right, it works."
"How do you know if it's right?"
"I don't think there's a sure fire way. People say that you just instantly know, like there's some magic shock that tells you this person is the one, but I don't think I really believe that. I think that you just find someone who gets you, someone who accepts you for exactly the person that you are. If they've seen you at your best as well as your worst, and they still love you and they still want to be with you, well, I don't think you get much more "right" than that."
"I never wanted to get married."
"I know. You told me that a long time ago."
"What if I changed my mind?"
"Are you changing your mind?"
"I am…I know I'm not much of a traditionalist, but I believe that the male in the relationship is supposed to actually pose the question in an official capacity."
Booth looked into her eyes, stood up and walked over to the coffee table directly in front of the sofa. He sat down gently on the table top and reached out for Brennan's left hand, her right still clutching her daughter to her chest.
"Since you came here, sometimes, I wake up a little early before you get up, and I stand in your door way and watch you sleep. And every morning, I wonder how I could ever be lucky enough to have you in my life. You have changed me in so many wonderful ways and all I want to do is spend every moment of our life together trying to make you as happy as you make me…Will you marry me Temperance Brennan?"
"I wasn't expecting you to ask right away but since you have, I would like to say something before I give an answer."
Booth smiled, "Anything."
"I want you to know that your proposal was wonderful, but you've made some critical errors."
"And what are they exactly?"
"You've never gotten up before me."
"You knew I was standing there?"
"Always," she whispered, a smile emerging on her face.
"And you're not lucky Seeley Booth. You and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time."
"And how do you think that happened?" he asked, grinning.
"It was a happy accident. Science is full of happy accidents. Why can't love be filled with them as well?"
He stood up slowly, and leaned over to meet her eyes. "You say happy accident. I say luck."
And with that, he kissed her softly on the lips, lingering for only an instant. He picked up Tempe from her arms and began to carry her up the stairs.
"Seeley?"
He turned to her carefully, not wanting to jostle his daughter awake. "Yeah Bones?"
"I'm keeping my name."