144Hello. Yes, I know it's been over 2 months. My new job at work has been frentic (although very enjoyable) and we've just put our house on the market, so lots of time at weekends has been spent decluttering and tidying. Plus my dad has been ill and back and forth with hospital appointments which is always a worry. The muse has been present but my state of mind for creative writing hasn't, so the poor thing has been sitting about waiting for me to get with the programme. To help me I watched a lot of S3 and S4 episodes on the train to and from work and at various other quiet moments.
I'd like to say some thank yous. To all of you who have reviewed, followed and favourited (please keep 'em coming) - I apologise for the lack of personal responses but I assure you, every constructive, or positive review is cherished. Thank you so much.
To the great DharmaMonkey, thank you for the prompt, and to all the tweeps on Twitter, I'm loving the interactions on there, thanks for the welcome under the new name.
But most of all, I'd like to thank Jen, my beta, for being thorough in her work, lovely, and supportive, especially by keeping me on the straight and narrow. Makes all the difference and so glad we've become friends over the last 7 months!
There is more to come from me, my ongoing Neil Finn oneshots, a possibly ressurected story (clue, it's 3 years old and the only other thing not marked "complete", lol) and I know that, having seen the finale, that the enormous amount of love between Brennan and Booth has left me once again in love with them being in love, and my muse loves that. Bravo ED, DB and the writing team. Whatever season ten holds, I think it's going to be wonderful! (...and scary, and frustrating, and when is Emily Deschanel going to get a decent wardrobe again - she's got a fabulous figure and I wish wardrobe would flaunt it!)
We're almost at the journey's end for this story. I appreciate it's been a long time coming, but I really hope you guys enjoy the final chapter. I manged 5,000 words of what I hope is not complete drivel, I hope that repays your patience.
Like I said, I am in love with Brennan and Both being in love. I am a hopeless romantic. I think that's fairly clear from this chapter. ;)
His eyes were closed. Every bone in Seeley Booth's body felt as if it were made of concrete, heavy and immobile. He ached, almost immeasurably; and yet, this depressing feeling was completely and utterly tempered by the warm body wrapped around him and his knowledge that the reason for this pain was entirely inflicted by a night of love-making that left him in no doubt that this morning's discomfort was all worth it. Whilst Brennan hadn't quite uttered those Three Little Words as yet, she'd dropped some serious hints that her feelings were definitely heading in that direction. After their conversation on the topic, Booth had expected it would take a fair amount of time for Brennan to reach that point and had left it alone beyond his own declarations. But Brennan, as with everything, had an incredibly steep learning curve, especially when she wanted something. And she'd wanted him bad.
Several weeks in and the sex was still mind blowing. And for both of them, pleasingly frequent. Barely a day had passed where they'd not had some sort of sexual contact at least once, usually more. She'd not ceased to amaze him. And (Booth liked to think) that he continued to dazzle her too. He'd never known intensity like it and neither had she. As much as Brennan was loathe considering whimsy, even she had begun to think that laws of nature were being broken when they made love, such were the power of the feelings that it created and the outcomes in her body. The more time went on, the more she thought of it as making love and less as plain old "coitus". What had started in Jamaica as an accident of physical attraction, and then turned into the beginnings of an addiction, now stood as a full-blown obsession with each other. And in this obsession was a constant desire to satisfy the other over and over again. For Brennan, as she did when she put her mind to any task, her mind was set to ever more ingenious ways to make Booth happy, both emotionally and physically. For a woman who was a self-proclaimed rationalist, this was quite some change of heart.
That Brennan had allowed herself to fall fully into the warm lapping waves of a relationship with Booth was more a surprise to her than it was to Booth. He knew her learning curve. He knew that underneath the cool logical exterior was a passionate heart, because, from that very first case, he had seen through her facade and witnessed that passion for her work, himself; to claim justice for each and every victim she encountered. Most of all, he knew that she loved him, even if she wasn't able to say the words yet. It was all in the way she looked at him, kissed him, laughed with him... and gave herself to him in their most intimate moments. Of course, sex was a big part of that, but it was way more than just the physical element of their relationship. Brennan had opened up to him emotionally too, which Booth knew had been a huge deal for her. And yet, for Brennan, it turned out that to let Booth in to her metaphorical heart had been the easiest thing in the world, because over the course of those few weeks, it dawned on her she'd been doing that from the very beginning anyway.
When the realisation first came it hit her with the rush of a gale, almost blowing her off her feet. But as she began to confront her feelings, the wind calmed and she found she was still grounded. In that dying breeze, the remaining cobwebs of doubt and fear blew away, and she was left staring into a future she could have not foreseen but had craved more than she'd realised.
For Booth's part, he'd been with her each step of the way so far, gently holding her hand in every respect, which was a comfort for what was still new to her, despite her willingness to learn; especially when he was just a telephone call or a hug away. Having been partners first made it a whole lot easier too, and just as Booth had told her, the best part was that she no longer had to close off her feelings of attraction to him. They still flirted and bickered incessantly, especially in front of the squints and FBI teams, partly to keep everyone off the scent, but also because it was also damn fun to do so, and if there was one thing she knew how to do well, from an emotional standpoint, it was flirting with her partner. However, if they were alone and she wanted to kiss him, she could just kiss him. They'd agreed that public displays of affection were off limits at his office, but that didn't stop them making out in the Tahoe once in a while. There was a corner of the Jeffersonian car park that Booth had worked out was not covered by the security cameras... They'd also had the occasional lapse in Brennan's office late at night; nothing x-rated, but certainly brow-raising antics for anyone who'd have caught them, lips locked, hands roaming through hair, clothes creased.
The only person who really wasn't fooled by anything was Angela. She had known from the second she'd set them up for that trip that this was only going to end one way, and she knew all of Brennan's "tells" when she'd been with a guy. Combine those two facts and Ange had their relationship pegged for what it was, and she was delighted. For now though, she would say nothing but enjoy watching them pretending to the world that they were not hopelessly in love. It wasn't easy though. She had had to hold herself back on several occasions when she'd caught them glancing at each other - the tiniest of looks, a brush of hands that was clearly not the old partnerly safe hand on the back. One time, when she'd gone into Brennan's darkened office, at about nine at night without knocking, to drop in some papers, she just saw the silhouette of two heads pull away from each other. When Brennan and Booth had turned to see where the noise had come from, Angela had to stop herself from smirking, as from the light outside the glass walls illuminating them just enough, she could make out their ruffled hair and rumpled clothes.
"We dozed off doing the paperwork", said Booth, a little too quickly.
"Of course you did", said Angela with no hint of irony in her voice and as straight a face as she could muster.
"Yes. Paperwork." Brennan made the point of collecting and straightening the whole five or so pieces of paper on the table in front of them.
"No problem. I will just drop off these papers to go with the other ones", and with that Ange plopped the actual two hundred or so pages of casework in front of them. "You might want to order some Thai with that lot," she called out as she walked off. "Looks like you'll be having a long night." She nearly blew it with a salacious comment but caught herself just in time. "I'm going home." And she smiled broadly to herself as she walked back to her office to collect her things.
In Brennan's office, a few awkward seconds passed.
"Do you think she saw us?"
"Nah, was too dark... I'm sure she doesn't suspect a thing."
"Really?" Brennan was unconvinced. Booth had a feeling that Angela probably knew everything going on between them, but for the sake of keeping Brennan quiet it was easier to go down the diplomatic route.
"Really, Bones," and he paused, looking over is shoulder at the now dimmed lab lighting. "I think they've all gone. Now can you come back here...?" It went quiet again, other than the sounds of giggling fading into slow languid kissing noises.
They'd started slow this particular night, some ten weeks after they'd returned from Jamaica. Still on the sofa, bottles of beer for them both as they watched the action movie unfold in front of them. The grins they gave each other after another ridiculous and improbable car chase had finished with the usual tangle of metal and smoke, soon melted into serious gazing, eyes locked together, everything else blanked. Though they didn't touch each other at first, the film was temporarily forgotten.
She tipped her head slightly to one side as she studied him watching her.
He looked at her lovingly, smiling slightly as he watched her seemly functional analysis in her eyes betrayed by what she would claim were evolutionary mating responses, but they both knew what she was really thinking and feeling. A couple of beers down and her brain had loosened a little.
"What?" He feigned shock.
"I was just looking." said Brennan, bashfully.
"At what?" He chuckled.
"Your eyes." She breathed. "They are just so... brown."
"All the better to see you with." And his gaze back at her intensified.
"And I like your prominent mandible."
"My chin?"
"Yeah. Well, jaw bone, but close enough."
"All the better to seduce you with." He wriggled his eyebrows.
"Seduce me, huh? And are you quoting a child's nursery story at me?"
"Did you not know the story of Red Riding Hood, Bones? Wolf ate her all... up." And Brennan's pupils dilated at Booth's innuendo, and Booth's responded to her with the same.
The tension pulled them closer to each other... but before lips could touch, the film distracted them noisily again in turns by some more colourful language and loud revving of car engines. Brennan threw her head back and laughed at the film, and at them, and Booth was absolutely and hopelessly drowned in love for her, pulling her directly into his arms. As had become common in recent days, she didn't seem unhappy with his unilateral decision and immediately snuggled into him in response, melting into him like butter into warm toast, as she popped her feet under her and rested her head on his lap. As they cuddled up, Booth felt an immense sense of satisfaction. He was getting closer to that ultimate domestic bliss he longed for. She was the answer to his every question. He stroked her hair and leaned back, relaxed and happy.
As for Brennan, a fleeting thought of turning around to fellate him sprung into her head but they were so comfortable and his touch so gentle that she realised it wasn't quite the right time for sexual congress (yet) and she understood their present situation required some general intimacy rather than something sexual. Besides, he seemed happy enough as he was and she felt pleased that she must have had some input as to his current demeanour. However, by the end of the film, her own urges far from calmed, she couldn't help herself from instigating something. She pulled herself up, surprising him as she put her hand on his shoulder. The other hand went to his chin and as he turned to meet her eyes again, she pulled him in for a deep kiss. He smiled again as they met and then as her tongue met his lips, his mouth parted. They both languished in the sensation.
Booth pushed Brennan back onto the sofa and he went forward with her, his mouth leaving hers and moving south towards her neck, targeting a patch of her pale skin visible through the top button of her blouse that was already conveniently open. Booth ran his tongue along her collarbone. Brennan's hand moved to the back of Booth's head where it settled, ruffling his hair as he continued his own ministrations on her. She felt him pause, and then more buttons being loosened before his hands and mouth moved to her breasts, her bra now accessible to Booth through the open blouse.
"You have such beautiful tits," he murmured as he bit gently through the bra, making her jump just a little. "You know," he continued, "I could spend a day just lost in these...doin' nothing else, just playing with them."
"You'd get bored eventually" she sighed and then couldn't stifle a small throaty chuckle.
"Nah, they're like racing cars or baseball," he responded between kissing and nibbling along the edge of the lace. "Never get bored with those, either." And he squirmed his hand around to Brennan's back to unhook her bra; once there, deftly managing with one hand and unlocking his prizes. She let out a moan as his lips now met naked flesh and he took advantage accordingly.
In some moments when she was alone, Brennan would analyse how things had changed since they first stepped on that plane to Jamaica. She would feel angry at herself at how she was putty in his hands, how much he affected her and how she needed to wrest back control of her emotions and get the hell out of Dodge City. (She knew that reference from years of her dad and Russ watching re-runs of Gunsmoke.) But as soon as he would call her, or walk into the room, any such thoughts were extinguished. And actually, being Booth, he wasn't asking her to change in any other way than to return his love and let him in. He'd made the point over and over again that he loved her because of who she was, not despite it.
Now overruled by the flush of hormones screaming 'take me' and her heart pounding at the joy of the touches of the man she desired upon her, whilst Booth's obtrusion on her breasts continued, it dawned on Brennan that when her guard was down, she was a lot closer in her behaviours to a typical woman (as per the many respected studies on Western women in her age group) than she would have previously admitted. Although she continued to abhor many of the tabloid women's magazines that Angela would occasionally purchase; their obsessions with weight, clothing choices and people famous for nothing more than fulfilling the previous two criteria and then placing themselves at every photo opportunity imaginable for the pursuit of being criticised in those very magazines they were actively courting.
Whilst she was drifting off into this critique of modern female culture, what was then most apparent to Brennan was that in the intervening period, Booth's head and hands had started venturing a whole lot further south. A point confirmed by the way her yoga pants were being removed most efficiently.
"Booth?" Brennan sighed as he kissed the insides of her thighs, lifting one of her legs over his shoulder to get better access. "Do you want to take this to the bedroom?"
"Quite happy here, Bones." Booth replied between kisses as he nuzzled her cotton panties. She lay back for a few moments enjoying the sensations, before sitting up slightly on her elbows and staring down the sofa at him.
"Not that I'm complaining Booth, but you seem to enjoy cunnilingus greatly. Why?"
"You wanna know now?"
"I was just curious."
"Why does this not surprise me," he mumbled to himself under his breath before addressing her. "Really?"
"Yes. I've not been with many men who are keen on this activity and I was curious as to why you take such pleasure from it." He pulled up, sat back on the sofa and pulled her legs onto his lap, where he stroked her calves gently as he spoke.
"Well, firstly it's probably a 'thing' in the same way that you seem to be perfectly happy giving me awesome blow jobs. Do you have a reason you like doing that?"
"Well," Brennan considered for a moment. "I like the effect it has on you. You enjoy it."
"Precisely! You get a kick out of pleasuring me. That's nice. Thank you."
"You're welcome. And I know you have very powerful orgasms from them."
"Yeah." Booth's eyes closed in pleasurable memory for a moment. "And so do you when I go down on you."
"That's true," and for one moment Brennan's eyes glazed over as she realised she'd just stopped him from giving her exactly that.
"And I like that it's an intimate act, Bones. It makes me feel closer to you."
"Well, there is that aspect also. I concur with that sentiment." and she smiled at him before her face took on a slightly more sinister look. "And there is the control element."
"Control element?"
"There have been numerous series of studies on oral sex and control dynamics between sexual partners."
"Oh-kay, one to explore another time." Suddenly Booth decided that this conversation was going down a route he was ill-prepared for at this juncture, not that he wasn't willing to discuss it with her when they'd been together for a while longer. Not that he wasn't up for some kinky stuff, but they were still getting to know each other and for now, he just wanted to know what made her tick.
"You don't want to talk about this anymore?"
"I'd rather be doing than talking."
"Oh."
"Maybe we should take this to the bedroom after all..."
"Well I did suggest that in the first place and you didn't want to."
"Well that was before the Spanish Inquisition on my drivers for orally pleasuring you."
"I don't think the Bible directly mentions oral sex Booth, nor would it have been criteria for conducting torture by the Catholic Church in that scenario."
"Well that's a relief, or I'd be at confession several times a week." He grinned and she rolled her eyes. "You know," and he moved her legs so he could be get up, before pulling her with him, "I would really like to continue where we left off five minutes ago. Come on..." and he kept hold of her hand as he led her to his bedroom.
Booth finished what he had started easily enough. It didn't take long to bring Brennan back to where she'd interrupted him and he took great pleasure in completing his task, rewarding her with a shuddering orgasm, leaving her dumbstruck.
"Oh. My. God." The words left her lips after an eternity, uttered slowly as her mind came back from its temporary but glorious shutdown.
"You liked that, huh? Thought you didn't believe in God." Booth smirked as he reappeared at her side having made his way up her now sated body. "I think I might have lockjaw after that", and he rubbed his chin for effect.
"Well, maybe I can help you with that," she said seductively and gently kissed along his jaw line. He closed his eyes.
"Mmmmm, all better. You have magic lips. Anything else you wanna help me with?" he sighed happily.
"Well, I know you have quite a tumescence down here," and she ran her hands down to his crotch. He moaned.
"Well my immediate previous activity tends to generate that effect."
"You are however, still wearing far many too many clothes..."
She divested him of his t-shirt and jeans before they commenced an intense sexual battle of wills to see who would be controlling this bout. It got fairly athletic, in part to release the burgeoning tension they'd built up over the course of the evening but of course they were both stubborn as mules and neither would give the other quarter. Competitive lust: it was dirty and sexy but they had a lot of fun, and appeared to have reached a draw involving a lot of sweaty body parts and mutual satisfaction. Sated, they slept for a while before a siren passing by outside woke them both.
"What time is it?" asked Brennan groggily. She'd been in a deep REM cycle dreaming of flamingos on bicycles whilst a dog accompanied by playing jazz standards on a piano. She'd noticed that since she'd been having regular sleepovers with Booth that her dreams had been far more pleasant than before they'd met, albeit somewhat odd at times.
"About 2 AM," responded Booth after he'd rolled over to look at the glowing alarm clock. He kissed her on the temple initially with an assumption that they would go back to sleep, but she rolled onto him suggestively and made it clear that sleep wasn't an option.
"I am awake now. I had my sleep pattern disrupted and I need endorphins, such as those released during sex, to go back to sleep," stated Brennan, matter-of-factly.
"Well when you put it that romantically," laughed Booth, "How can I refuse?" Brennan pouted at him and looked disappointed.
"You don't want to?" Booth smiled at Brennan and softened his voice.
"Sure I do. When it comes to you, I always do", and he kissed her gently on the lips.
"Good," and the next thing Booth knew Brennan was kissing him anything but gently and her hands were everywhere.
"In a hurry, Octopus Lady?"
"Yes..."
Fifteen minutes and a thorough, although to-the-point go-around later, and they were wrapped up in each others' arms, dozing off again.
"Well that was nice..." Brennan mumbled into Booths chest, "...and I'm all sleepy now."
"Yep. Goal achieved. Another happy customer."
"Are you sleepy, Booth?"
"Getting there."
"That's nice..." and the next thing he knew, he could hear her breathing even out as she settled. It took him less time than he expected to follow her into slumber.
There was clearly something in the air that night as two hours later another set of sirens wailed outside and the partners awoke, simultaneously groaning and uttering their displeasures. Whatever was going on must have been fairly close by as the noise continued for several minutes. Brennan sat up irritably.
"This is ridiculous."
"Is it a full moon?"
"Scientifically there is no sound evidence that the additional pull of the tides at full moon affects the water in the human brain to cause the condition known as lunacy, although that is where the term comes from."
"Wow, does your brain ever switch off?"
"Only during orgasm. Actually, technically, it appears to be only during orgasms from you. I realised that soon after we started sleeping together. I never remember it happening to me before and my memory is quite excellent." Booth could not help but puff his chest out somewhat at this small but significant revelation. It seemed to also be somewhat of a turn-on. This time Booth decided he was awake and took the initiative. He looked up at her, grinned and said:
"Would you like me to switch off your brain again?" It took a moment for Brennan to cotton on but despite her poor interactional abilities for certain activities, when it came to sexual situations, she was actually quite good at it, all things considered.
"You can do that?" she sounded in awe and she gave him her best wide-eyed look of wonder. He knew she was playing along and he loved that.
"Yeah. Would you like to see me do it?" he said, cockily.
"Do you think you can succeed? I am a tough customer..."
"I am really good at switching your brain off. I'm gonna start by doing this..." and he wasted no time getting to work, beginning with pulling her down onto him, giving him access to her back, running his fingers up and down her spine. Several heated kisses later and they were both more than ready to engage. He'd navigated them to joining so she was soon impaled onto his hardened shaft, but when Brennan went to move, he stopped her, shaking his head.
"Let me do this."
Booth went slowly. Hands went down to her lower back, where he spent an age just stroking her, relaxing her muscles, just occasionally giving the gentlest of thrusts to satisfy their mutual need to have the friction between them. When his fingertips lingered at the base of her spine, it sent tingles out all down her legs and across her back. He knew just how hard to press his fingers and where to stroke her. It was beautifully frustrating for Brennan, but Booth was a master of self-control. He proceeded to give her a blow-by-blow account of everything he was doing to her, and it drove her crazy. She found herself hypnotised by his voice, and the sensation of his body against hers. She found herself letting go and letting him take her where he wanted this to go. It was very liberating.
He kept talking to her, whispering in her ear every time he changed his movements. Still attached, he pulled them both up into a sitting position so she was on his lap. He moved his hands first to her waist to steady her, and then to her breasts and did the same there as he had done with her back, gently caressing and kissing them all at once, whilst she held her arms around his neck. Still the slow gentle thrusts continued and he made sure he just did enough to keep the tension going. She did her part thrusting back into him on cue, so they continued in slow, steady rhythm. She couldn't quite work out where it was all going, but it felt extremely relaxing and sensual. This continued for a considerable amount of time. Every so often he would check on her, glancing into her eyes. She seemed a little dazed, but was still with him. Despite his joking, he wanted her to understand how much he loved her, and this was a way he knew she could understand.
Then he put his hands under her bottom for better leverage and brought her close into him so their chests were pressed together he whispered into her ear again.
"Baby, are you ready? I'm going to speed up now." She nodded enough for him to know she'd registered it. "I need you to come with me."
He pushed up into her, speeding up his movements as he did so. He wrapped his arms under her more tightly and kissed her hard. She dropped her own hands onto his back and held on for all she was worth.
He began to thrust much harder into her, and truth be told, after a couple of minutes his back was starting to twinge, but the sensation between them was sublime, and the reactions he was getting from her were just what he wanted. From their sitting position he could achieve a deep penetration and with his strong arms holding her as he thrust into her firmly, her responding in kind, they were destined for a glorious end.
Brennan had lost the power of thought some time before they got close to finishing, but when they reached the point of no return, instead of her brain just shutting down, something even more incredible happened. She saw a bright white light, and for one second she thought she could see the entire universe in front of her eyes. It was completely overwhelming and unlike anything she'd ever experienced previously, even with Booth. Booth had given her the most beautiful gift, and she wanted to give him the same back. She loved him. Of that she was now sure and could admit to herself. Brennan felt completely open and utterly wonderful, but although she knew how she felt, she had no ability to utter the words in her brain at that point. Her body fell pliant into his arms as her brain fell back to Earth.
Booth seemed to roar through his orgasm like a warrior on the field of battle. The pressure of a long build up and the relief that he could finally empty his load gave way to a searing rush of pleasure, further enhanced by the final noises he heard from Brennan before she fell almost limp into him. He couldn't help but release that vocally, and a tiny sentient part of him was glad that his apartment had good soundproofing, because they'd possibly broken some local government decibel limits in the proceeding few minutes.
He had just enough left in him to pull the two of them back to a prone position and he cradled her as they effortlessly fell asleep again.
And so Seeley Booth awoke several hours later with a sore back and heavy limbs, but a happy and full heart. His lover was draped across his naked form, warming him to the point where it might have been bordering on uncomfortable if he hadn't been so darn happy. In one hand, he cupped her ass, whilst the other was left behind his head, his elbow sticking out sideways against the pillow. As she stirred, he kissed the top of her head, and after a few seconds to regain consciousness, she lifted up her head and smiled a sleepy smile at him.
"Hey Gorgeous, you sleep OK?" Booth asked her, his own voice still thick with the early morning. Brennan nodded. "'Cause I slept like a baby. That last time was... I gotta tell you Bones, I ache all over, but making love to you last night was the single best thing I've done for a while. That was spectacular." And he closed his eyes in a relaxed fashion.
As Brennan woke, the first thought she had had was the immediate thought after the last one she'd had during the middle of the night before. She only had one thing to say to him, and it was the thing she'd been thinking for forever but had not had the guts to say. However, with the events of the previous night, something had finally tipped her over the edge. Somehow she was finally ready. She steeled herself to say the words, but as they came out of her mouth, they sounded the most natural thing in the world that she could have said to him.
"I...love you," she stuttered the words before composing herself and saying it again more confidently. "I love you." And as his eyes opened in wonder, she gave him a coy smile.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
And we are done. Positive and constructive reviews are really appreciated. Thank you. x