A/N: Hello, all. =D I am very excited to get the ball rolling on this sequel, so I'm really hoping you all enjoy the first chapter. I'm going to warn you all now, the beginning will be fluffy, and this story will probably be fluffy for a little while, but there is going to be some pretty big angst at some point in the middle. I'm not really sure when yet.

To all of you who haven't read 'Getting There', you'll probably want to turn back. If you want to read this one alone, then I guess you can, but there will definitely be some things that you won't understand if you didn't read 'Getting There' first.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Bones. It belongs to Fox, Hart Hanson, ect. Basically a ton of people who aren't me. xD This is strictly for entertainment purposes, so there's not copyright infringement intended here.

Chapter One:

"Always Means Always, Temperance"

"So, sweetie, are you ready to explode yet?"

"I beg your pardon?"

Brennan and Angela were sitting in the Royal Diner having a late breakfast before work, which Angela would still argue that Brennan shouldn't be going to at all anymore, being seven and a half months pregnant. It felt like only a few weeks ago, little Christian Seeley Booth was only a tiny bump, able to be hidden by certain styles of clothing, but now his presence was very much known everywhere she went. It was almost as if every time she went out now she got at least one person asking when the baby was due, and she was growing very tired of all of it. She was growing tired of the baby kicking her constantly, the way she waddled when she walked, how often she had to go to the bathroom, and most importantly how she felt like her husband didn't find her sexy anymore, considering she was as big as a house.

"The baby. It's gonna pop out any minute now, right?" Angela rephrased.

"I still have over a month until I am due," Brennan reminded her, taking a bite of her eggs, "trust me, I wish I was going to 'pop' any minute now. I am so sick of being pregnant."

"You've just got to ride it out, like an earthquake," she told her, "trust me, when the baby is born, you're going to miss being pregnant."

"I don't think so, Ange," her tone was flat when she spoke, "and as much as I would like to complain about Booth right now, I don't think it would be appropriate, considering I haven't seen him in two weeks."

Angela had almost forgotten about Booth's little two-week-long FBI trip to Minnesota before Brennan mentioned it.

"Have you talked to him lately?" She asked.

"I spoke to him last night, but only briefly," she rolled her eyes when her friend gave her a disapproving look, "he's not there for personal pleasure, Ange. He has work to do. He can't just stay on the phone with me all night."

"I bet he's going nuts not being able to be here with you right now, so late in the pregnancy and all."

"Yes, and he is making it very well known that he is annoyed with it," Brennan's tone had a bitter twinge to it, "he complains about having to go out of town for work, yet he isn't the one with a baby kicking at his stomach every five minutes."

"So just because Booth isn't pregnant he can't be upset about something?"

"I am just sick of people complaining about petty things. My back hurts constantly, I can barely stand up from any place too low to the ground without help, and my husband doesn't even find me attractive anymore. How do you think I feel?"

"Of course Booth finds you attractive," Angela had to laugh at her overly sensitive pregnant mind, "he loves you."

"How could he be attracted to me when I look like this?" She asked, gesturing towards her stomach, "I'm no longer his 'sexy squint', I'm some overweight woman who he happens to be married to."

"You're having a baby, Bren. I don't think he finds your baby weight as repulsive as you do. And besides, even if you did just get a little chubby, it wouldn't change his opinion of you."

"Well I just want to give birth already," she crossed her arms stubbornly over her chest, "and I'm sorry if I snapped at you, Ange. I'm horrible to everyone lately. I snap at you, I snap at Booth, I snap at Ricky."

"Ricky deserves it," Angela muttered under her breath.

"Ange," she warned.

"I'm sorry, but I just, can't stand that man," she seethed.

"He's so kind. I don't understand what you don't like about him. He's been nothing but nice to all of us, and you and Hodgins continue to act coldly towards him."

"I hate to break it to you, sweetie, but the whole 'nice guy' thing is just an act," Angela took a sip of her water before continuing, "he wants to get into your pants."

"When I'm seven and a half months pregnant?"

"Well obviously after the baby is born," Angela rolled her eyes, "and I swear, if he even tries to mess things up between you and Booth, I'll-"

"Nothing is going to happen," she set her fork down unceremoniously, "honestly, Angela, do you really think that lowly of me? Do you think I'm just some, tramp, who'll sleep with whomever she's currently working with? Because, in case you forgot, I'm married," she held her hand up to show her the ring, reminding her of her relationship status, "to Seeley Booth. And I love him."

"I wasn't saying-"

"I don't care what you were saying," Brennan cut her off sharply, wincing in discomfort when the baby kicked at her again, "just stop. Ricky is my partner now, and there's nothing you can do about it. You can kick and scream all you want but it isn't going to change things. You know I'd rather be working with Booth, but I can't, and I've adjusted."

"Wow, Hurricane Temperance hitting D.C.," Angela had been letting her off easy lately, knowing she was only cranky from the hormones, but was growing quite sick of her attitude, "I understand you're pregnant, but you need to cool it with the attitude. Go home and take a hot bath or something."

Brennan sighed and placed her hand on her stomach, hoping it would relax Christian a bit, since he was being relentless.

"I can't, I have to meet with Ricky so we can put our notes together," she stood up slowly, tossing her money onto the table, "I'm sorry for yelling at you, Ange. I really am."

Angela smiled, unable to stay mad at her for too long.

"Apology accepted," she smiled up at her.

Brennan smiled back.

"Breakfast is on me. I'll see you when I get back to the lab."

"Alright. Bye, sweetie," she told her, touching her friend's stomach gently with the tips of her fingers, "bye, Christian."

Brennan laughed lightly as she gave Angela a small wave before leaving the diner. All of her friends had been obsessing over touching her stomach lately, wanting to feel the baby kick or just talk to it, and she honestly didn't mind. She figured she would, the thought of having people constantly touching her not seeming appealing, but, since they were her friends, and their intentions were good, she didn't mind. The only person who she spent a lot of time with who hadn't tried to touch her stomach was Ricky, and that was probably because he was afraid Booth would break his hand if he did.

But she was proud of how good Booth was being with her having a new partner. He had been supportive, and he never complained, which she was thoroughly surprised by. The worst thing he had done so far was misinterpret Ricky's 'is she good?' question, and nearly broke his jaw because of it before Brennan explained that he meant professionally, and not sexually. The thought of her husband managed to make her feel gloomy again. She missed him, more than she was willing to admit, and, at the moment, the only thing she wanted was for him to come home.

"Okay, Ricky," Brennan laughed, as she held the phone between her shoulder and her ear, putting the plate she just cleaned back in the cabinet, "yes, I'll see you tomorrow," she laughed again, "no, I'm not going to go into labor while we're working," she paused as he spoke on the other end, "okay. Goodnight, Ricky."

Brennan hung up her phone and set it on the counter as she dried off her hands and went into her bedroom to change. It was strange being in the apartment without Booth. The space was so representative of him, and when she went to go lay in their bed, she half expected him to be there. After she turned the light on in the room, she unbuttoned her dress shirt and shrugged it off her shoulders, replacing it with one of her husband's t-shirts before she changed into sweat pants and climbed under the covers. Even though midnight was not extremely late, it was later than she had been staying up lately, so when she laid down, she began to drift off within minutes. And as she fell asleep, she heard her cell phone ring, but was already too far gone to even care.

Brennan had been asleep for about an hour and a half when she jumped up, startled out of her sleep by the sound of the front door opening. Her breathing was erratic, and her heart was pounding, as she heard it shut again. Cautiously, she slipped out of bed, smoothing out the shirt she was wearing as she quickly grabbed her hard-covered book off the night stand, just incase she needed to defend herself. As she opened her bedroom door, making her way silently out to the living room, she could hear the far off sound of, what sounded like, a gun being unloaded. She felt around the wall for the light switch, her heart pounding as she flicked it on. Without saying a word, Brennan dropped her book and threw her arms around the man standing in the doorway with the duffel bag.

"Hi," Booth laughed, dropping his bag on the floor as he stumbled slightly backwards from the impact of his wife, "hi, Bones."

"You're home," Brennan murmured into the fabric of his shirt, "I missed you."

"It's late, baby," he kissed her head softly, stroking her hair, "why aren't you asleep?"

"I woke up when you opened the door. I get nervous when I'm the only one here."

Brennan looked up at him with adoring eyes, cupping his face between her hands and pulling him down so their lips could touch for the first time in two weeks. She sighed into the kiss, urging his lips apart with her own, smiling when he happily complied. She pulled away only to start tugging on the buttons of his shirt, managing to get a few open.

"Mmm, Bones," he groaned when she kissed his neck, helping him out of his jacket, "Bones, I love you, and I missed you, but we can't make love."

"I know," she sighed, pulling away from his neck, to look at his face, noticing, only then, how exhausted and worn out he looked, "are you okay, Booth?"

"I'm fine," he promised, "it's just been a long couple of weeks."

"I'm sorry," she stroked the side of his face comfortingly, "if you need space..."

"No, Bones, I don't need space," he laughed lightly, hearing her let out a small sound of shock when he lifted her up into a bridal style position, "come on, up you go."

As he carried her back to their bedroom, Brennan pressed her lips back against the side of his neck, unable to get enough of him that night. Even though she could feel the cords in his neck relax under her lips, she couldn't help but notice the small sounds of discomfort he made.

"You know, I'd appreciate it if you didn't grunt like you're lifting a truck while you carry me."

"I'm sorry, Bones, but you're just getting a little heavy for this," he chuckled, grateful that she left the door to their bedroom open as he carried her inside and set her on top of the covers.

"Well I never asked you to pick me up."

When she was settled on the mattress, Brennan reached for him again, only to be disappointed when he didn't comply with her wishes.

"Let me change first," he requested, seeing her nod as he began to shed his clothing, aware, in the room that was only lit by the little bit of moonlight shining through the window, that he was being watched by his wife, who was lying propped up on her elbow, watching the way the muscles in his back rippled when he pushed the dress shirt off of his shoulders.

She was slightly disappointed that he didn't decide to go shirtless that night, as she watched him pull the black t-shirt over his head. Knowing that she should probably stop just creepily staring, she struck up conversation.

"What did you do in Minnesota?" She asked, able to hear the 'click' of his belt buckle being undone and the sound of the zipper on his pants lowering.

"Absolutely nothing," his tone was bitter, as he stepped out of the dress pants and tossed them into the hamper in the corner of their room, "there is absolutely nothing to do there other than freeze to death."

"Well you're still here, so I'm having a hard time believing you froze to death," she slipped herself under the covers, hating when he confused her like this.

Booth huffed as he pulled on a pair of grey sweat pants.

"It's a hyperbole, Bones. Just take my word for it, in the middle of nowhere in Minnesota, not a great place to take a vacation."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Brennan closed her eyes as she turned back onto her side, smiling subconsciously when he joined her and she felt his arms wrap around her waist the best they could with her belly in the way. She took his left hand and looked down, admiring the ring on his finger.

"Can you lay on your back?" She asked, after only a few minutes of cuddling.

"Why?" Booth asked, skeptically.

"Because this isn't very comfortable for me anymore, and I'm assuming it isn't comfortable for you anymore either, considering you have to stretch your arms all the way across my stomach," she explained, "just lay on your back and I'll rest my head against your chest."

"If you say so," he complied, turning over onto his back, feeling her turn as well to rest her head against his chest, his arm instinctively finding it's way around her shoulder, "better?"

"Yes," Brennan slid her hand up the front of his shirt, pressing her palm to his abdomen.

He initially jumped a little at the feeling of her cool hand against his warm body, but quickly adjusted, as she rubbed his skin in small, slow circles.

"You're really into me tonight," he laughed lightly, feeling the muscles in his stomach tense when she scratched her nails gently against where her hand was resting.

"I missed you," she reminded him, "you were gone for two weeks. That's the longest I've gone without seeing you in a very long time."

"It's almost been a year," his voice was soft and soothing in her ear, "how crazy is that? Valentine's Day is in a little over a month."

"February 13th of last year was the last night I slept alone, aside from the last two weeks, and when I was kidnaped, and when we had to pretend to be broken up and you got blown up and put in the hospital, but I don't think those count, because we didn't choose to sleep alone."

"Nah, those don't count," he agreed, "February 13th was the last time we slept alone."

Brennan sighed as she thought back on their relationship, kissing the top of his fabric covered chest softly. She turned his hand over to examine the tattoo on the inside of his wrist, pressing a soft kiss to the ink.

"I wish we didn't have to work tomorrow," she said aloud, using her finger to trace over his tattoo after she kissed it, "you shouldn't be working tomorrow. You're exhausted and need to rest."

"I'll be fine," he assured her, "I'll get rested up tonight."

"It's already two in the morning," she reminded him, "so, even if you fell asleep right this second, you'd only get four hours of sleep."

Booth laughed and ran his fingers through her hair, tilting her head up so her lips could meet his in a soft kiss.

"Don't worry about me, baby. I'll be fine."

"Booth, we've been together for almost a year and have been married for almost four months, yet you still insist on calling me baby, no matter how many times I ask you not to."

"I'm sorry, Bones," his voice was apologetic as he kissed her again.

Brennan responded physically, rather than verbally, kissing him again, making sure to keep it soft, not wanting to get either of them too worked up, considering they couldn't be intimate again until after Christian was born. When he encouraged her lips apart with his own, she gently broke their contact, running a hand over the side of his face.

"You should sleep," she whispered.

"I probably should," he reluctantly agreed, kissing her forehead, "but, uh, let's do lunch tomorrow. Wong Fu's?"

"Oh, I can't, I'm having lunch with Ricky tomorrow," she said, casually, unable to see his smile fade, since her eyes were already closed.

"Ricky," he kept his tone light, forcing a chuckle, "you two are getting, close."

"I like him, he's very kind," she told her husband honestly, speaking again after a short pause, "Angela hates him because he's not you. And she makes it very known. I feel bad for him, in all honesty. He's nice to her, and the rest of the team, but they don't seem to like him."

Booth was silently grateful that they hadn't all just forgotten about him. He thought of them as his squints, after all, and apparently they saw it the same way.

"They'll just need some time," he told her, his fingers running absentmindedly through her hair as they lay together, "they didn't like me at first either. They'll warm up to him."

"It's been two months, Booth," she reminded him unsurely.

"It took them more than two months to get used to me. Hell it took you more than two months to get used to me. But with Ricky, you guys are pals already. Lucky him. He didn't have to go through the hate period."

"Booth, don't get jealous. It's very unattractive."

"Jealous? Who's jealous?"

"You are."

"Bones, I'm not jealous," he laughed lightly, kissing her head once again, "we don't work together anymore, so what? I'm well aware of who you come home to at night," he opened his eyes and looked down at her, seeing that her eyes were open now as well, looking up at him, "you don't cuddle up with Ricky like this, or run your hands over his stomach the way you're doing to me now. And honestly, Bones, I'd rather have this than a partnership."

"Me too," she agreed, turning her head so she could kiss his chest again before she laid her cheek back against his chest, closing her eyes once again, "I love you."

"I love you too," he assured her, twisting a lock of auburn hair around his finger, "and I always will."

"Always?" She asked softly, "What if we broke up?"

"Always means always, Temperance," he promised.

"Then I will always love you too," she smiled, nuzzling the crook of his neck softly, taking a few minute pause before she spoke again, "Booth?"

"Mm," he mumbled, in his half asleep stage.

"I would like to go to dinner with you tomorrow night, since we can't do lunch."

He smiled, a small chuckle rumbling his chest.

"Okay, Bones," he mumbled, and with those last words, the two of them drifted off into a long awaited sleep.