Disclaimer: I don't own Bones. If I did, Booth and Bones would have been making sweet love by now…

Spoilers: Probably. I'll be safe and say that there are spoilers through season 4.

A/N: This one's going to be a multi-chapter story. I'm pretty sure I know where it's headed, but you never do know, do you? Enjoy!

It wasn't supposed to be like this. This trip was supposed to be fun; a couple of lectures at the local university, a conference with a few of the anthropological experts in the area, perhaps a spa day. Most of all, Temperance had been greatly anticipating time to relax. Apparently, that was not going to happen, she thought as she gazed across the table at her dining companion.

He was, admittedly, gorgeous with his thick blonde hair and clear green eyes. His features were well defined; strong chin, sharp cheekbones, straight nose. He was tall and fit and neatly dressed. He was just as unendingly arrogant and self-centered as he had been in college.

This was the second date she'd been forced to sit through since she'd run into him on campus two days ago.

"So, that was how I got into teaching." He laughed to himself; a nice, low sound, very attractive. Very much grating on her nerves.

"Lord knows there aren't enough great cultural anthropology professors in the world."

She smiled politely and nodded her agreement, all the while wishing she were anywhere but here.

"Listen, Logan, it's been really great catching up with you, but I've really got to focus on my commitments while I'm here in Vermont."

He nodded like he understood. "Of course, of course." Then kept right on talking. "My brightest student reminds me a lot of you when you were her age; brilliant, eager, and self-disciplined. Not to mention the fact that she takes crap from no one." He smiled a brilliant smile, all white teeth and hard lips, and Temperance found herself smiling back. This was part of the problem, she supposed. He'd say one slightly complimentary thing and she'd find herself getting sucked in by his natural charm and good looks. Just like it had been in college. But she was more experienced now; no longer the naïve grad student so focused on her work that she ignored his presumptuous tendencies. She was older now, not so much wiser as more in touch with humanity. She liked confidence in a man, but she could only handle so much of his self-promotion before her head started to pound.

"Tempe? Are you alright?"

She looked up into his concerned green eyes and forced a smile.

"Fine."

"Good," he said, placing money on the table to cover their meals. She'd tried to insist on splitting the bill last night, but she'd lost that argument. She wasn't about to start it up again, not with the headache now tip-tapping at her temples.

He walked her to her rental car and waited while she beeped it open and slid into the driver's seat. Then, he stepped between her and the door and leaned down to eye level.

"How about drinks tomorrow night?"

She had half a mind to turn the car on and step on the gas. Who cared if he got caught by the slamming door? The look on his face would be absolutely worth it. She mentally shook herself. That was no way to behave. She'd clearly been spending too much time with Booth. That thought brought a smile to her face which Logan must have misinterpreted as consent because he leaned in, kissed her on the cheek, and stood.

"Great, I'll pick you up at your hotel around nine, then?"

She blinked up at him. Had she just agreed to another date? Godamnit, Temperance, pay attention.

"Logan, I really can't…"

"Would ten be better? You could meet me there if you like…"

She wished she were standing up so that she could face him head on, but he was standing so close to the car that it was impossible for her to get out without ending up plastered to his chest.

"I have to focus on my lectures and the conference," she insisted.

His smile was belittling. "Tempe, you need to loosen up. Afraid to have a little fun? You know you always have a great time with me." He chucked her under the chin and stepped away from the car. "We'll compromise. I'll pick you up at 9:30." He waved and disappeared into the dark parking lot.

Temperance shut the door, started the car, and slammed down on the gas peddle.

It was time for a more direct approach, she decided the next evening as she waited for Logan to arrive at her hotel. She'd simply tell him that she wasn't interested in him. He'd get the picture and leave her alone. Right?

Wrong.

"Of course you are, Tempe. You just don't know what you want. Luckily for you," he smiled that smile parents give children who think they're getting ice cream for supper. "I do."

"Excuse me?"

"Come on," he said, tugging on her elbow to get her out the door. "Let's go get that drink."

She yanked her arm from his grasp, crossed her arms, and regarded him through narrowed eyes.

"I think you'd better leave," she stated.

He looked extremely confused. For a fairly intelligent man, the guy sure was dense. "What are you talking about? We're going for drinks."

"You," she said, poking a finger towards his wide chest, "can go for as many drinks as you desire. I am going to stay here and relax."

"Tempe." She was really starting to hate that name. "If you want to relax," he said through that cocky grin, "I'll help you relax."

Her mouth opened in surprise and she just managed to suppress a gasp of outrage. Of all the…

But then again, he was fairly attractive. And if she remembered correctly – which she knew she did since she had an I.Q. of over 150 – he had been fairly decent in bed.

"You're thinking about it," he said smugly. "Just give in, Temperance. You know you want me."

She stared up at him. Unbelievable.

For one more moment she contemplated using him to satisfy biological urges, then the moment passed and she shook her head.

"No."

"We'll see," he said. Then he took her arm once more. "Now, let's go get that drink."

She thought about kicking his ass, but that would take too much energy and now that she thought about it she really could use a drink.

"Fine," she said, "but I'm driving myself." She grabbed her bag, shut the door and strode off down the hallway. She heard him chuckle from behind her and gritted her teeth.

An hour later she was very close to pleasantly buzzed and Logan's hand was on her thigh. She stared down at it.

"Remove that," she muttered.

His lips quirked and he slid his hand higher. She grabbed his wrist, twisted, and was gratified to see him wince and pull his hand back.

"I'm not interested," she reiterated.

"Of course you are."

She took a long sip of her black raspberry Smirnoff and looked up at him.

"I'm a lesbian."

He laughed. "We both know that's not true."

"You haven't seen me in years," she pointed out. "It could be."

He leaned in close and pinned her with a gaze. "No lesbian I've ever met is so in touch with her feminine sexuality as you. Not around men anyway." His eyes caressed her body and she suppressed the urge to knee him in the groin.

"I have a boyfriend," she said.

"No, you don't."

"How do you know?"

"Because if you did, you wouldn't have agreed to go out with me in the first place."

She gasped in indignation. "I was merely catching up with an old friend."

"Lover," he said, his voice low and soft and rumbling.

"What?"

"We were lovers."

She stared at him for a moment. "We were sexual partners, but that isn't the point. The point is that it wasn't a date."

"Then why are you here with me now?"

Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times while she tried to formulate an answer to his ridiculous question. Finally, her eyes narrowed. "I tried very hard not to be," she shouted, then stood from the bar stool and reached for her purse. She placed a twenty on the bar and turned away.

"Temperance."

"Good bye, Logan, have a nice life."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Tempe," he called. She could hear that smug smile all over his voice.

And see her he did. He showed up at the lecture hall at lunch time, just as she was finishing her speech and dragged her down to the cafeteria. She reminded him that she had a boyfriend, and he pointed out that this was hardly a date and her boyfriend couldn't possibly mind. She was fairly certain he was only humoring her.

The next day she tried to hide from him. It was juvenile, she knew, but he was starting to drive her insane. He located her in one of the faculty lounges and she followed him to the open-air courtyard merely so that he couldn't embarrass her in front of the other professors.

"Just, please, leave me alone, Logan. I really haven't got time for this."

"Haven't got time to eat?" He asked and she had nothing to say to that so she ate her salad and ignored him for the rest of the afternoon.

Short of telling him that his arrogance and controlling nature annoyed the hell out of her, Temperance was at a loss as to how to get rid of the man. He was like a damn parasite and she had no clue how to remove him.

That night she decided that if she was going to make it through the next week and a half with her sanity intact, she needed help.

Angela answered on the second ring sounding just as upbeat and perky as always.

"Angela Montenegro's office. Angela speaking."

"Hey, Ange, it's me."

"Brennan," Angela squealed. "How's Vermont?"

"Vermont is great, Ange, but I could use your advice."

In her mind, Temperance could see her friend sit up a little straighter, her smile grow a little wider.

"Okay, shoot."

For the next ten minutes, Temperance explained the situation with Logan. She wasn't sure what Angela could do from D.C., but her friend always seemed to have the answers to relationship problems. It was either this or call Sweets, and that was so not happening. On the other end of the phone line, Angela was still silent.

"Ange?"

"Shh, I'm thinking."

Temperance tried not to fidget.

"Have you tried just telling him that you're not interested?" Angela asked.

"Of course, Angela. I'm not totally incompetent."

"Just checking," Angela soothed.

There was silence for a few moments, then Angela spoke.

"You could tell him you're a lesbian."

"Tried it. He said something about feminine sexuality. He obviously didn't believe me."

"Did you try telling him you have a boyfriend?"

Temperance slouched back on the bed. This was not helping.

"Yes," she sighed. "He pretends to believe me. However, he still will not leave me alone."

Angela whistled under her breath. "This one is dedicated, Bren. Maybe you should just give him a shot."

Temperance sat straight up in bed. "I will not give him a shot. I gave him a shot in grad school. He is conceited and insolent and controlling…"

"Alright, alright, sheesh." Angela was quiet again for a moment.

"Come on, Ange, just tell me what to do. You always have the answers to these types of things."

"I'm thinking, I'm thinking." Angela sighed. "Tell you what, let me sleep on it. I'll come up with a plan and call you in the morning."

"I have to be at the university by nine."

"I'll call at 7:30, then," Angela reassured.

Temperance allowed herself to relax slightly. "Thanks, Ange, I really appreciate your help."

"No problem, Bren. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Yes, tomorrow. Oh, and Ange, please don't tell the others about this."

Angela laughed. "Of course, Bren, I won't tell the others."

That night Temperance dreamed that Logan was chasing her through the dimly lit hallways of the university. Angela and some unidentifiable shadow were waiting for her at the other end, urging her to move faster, but she never got any closer, they were always out of reach.

She woke at quarter to six; fifteen minutes before the alarm she'd set. She wasn't sure why she'd bothered setting it, she never used one at home.

She went about her morning routine; shower, hair, bit of makeup. She dressed in well-fitted charcoal slacks and a floaty cream-colored blouse. She attached a purple beaded necklace – a Christmas gift from Angela – around her neck and went to make coffee.

It was 7:45 before she began to worry that Angela wasn't going to call. But her friend had never let her down, so she ignored the panic and sipped her coffee.

By 8 o'clock, she'd decided that Angela must have overslept and surely she'd call soon; she had to be at work by 9 o'clock herself, after all.

At 8:15, Temperance started trying to convince herself that she didn't need Angela's help to get rid of Logan. She'd simple…she'd just…

She shook her head and slipped into sensible black heels. She had to leave in 15 minutes. Perhaps Angela would call her en route.

At 8:30 she opened the door to the hall and almost walked into the fist which had been poised to knock. Her eyes slid up from the lean waist to the broad chest…

"I swear to god, Logan, I…"

…right into the brown eyes of Seeley Booth, where they froze.

A/N: Don't forget to let me know what you thought!

Oh, and quick question, any of you super-fans know if Booth went to college, and if so where and for how long? I couldn't remember if it was ever mentioned in the show. Thanks a bunch!

And before you ask, Tempe's not at the university that she attended. She's at some unnamed university in Vermont. It just so happens that one of the guys she went to school with (and slept with) is a professor at the same university.