And Easter eggs, and New Year's wine.
But when my heart finds Christmas, my eyes will shine like new.
A fire crackled merrily in Tempe's fireplace. Parker was passed out on the floor, his mouth open and his pirate hat sitting haphazardly on his head. Russ and Zach sat on the floor watching 'It's a Wonderful Life', Angela was talking to her dad, and Hodgins was swapping conspiracy theories with Matthew. Temperance looked over the group with a soft smile playing on her lips. None of them could possibly know how much this day had meant to her. She had family again.
All the days are kind to me
But fall too far behind to see.
But when my heart finds Christmas, I hope it finds you too.
Temperance looked over at her couch and watched Booth. He had been trying valiantly to stay awake for the past two hours, but finally succumbed to sleep. Tempe walked to a hall closet and grabbed a blanket. She brought it back to the living room and draped it over the sleeping agent. She brushed a hand over his cheek and watched as he leaned in to her hand and sighed. As she pulled her hand away, she was surprised to find someone at her side. Angela was looking down at Booth as well.
"Ange, I know that you were somehow behind all of this."
"Hey, guilty as charged, Sweetie. I just couldn't see someone who was so in love lose the one thing that meant the most to them."
"You mean you didn't want him to lose me."
"No Bren, I didn't want you to lose him. If you stayed with David, he would have been forced to move on, and you would have lost him. I couldn't have that."
"You knew, this whole time that David was going to propose, didn't you."
"Yes."
"Angela."
"Yes, Sweetie?"
"Thank you."
She pulled her best friend into a hug, but let go before Hodgins could notice and make an inappropriate comment.
Let the angels sing around us,
Christmas time is here.
Let our children's love surround us,
Laughing and filled with cheer.
Tempe moved to the fireplace, and gently picked Parker up from the floor. The little boy stirred, but did not wake up. She carried him down the hall to a spare bedroom and placed him in bed, took off his shoes and puller the covers over him. She glanced down at the sleeping child and brushed a hand gently through his unruly hair.
"You're a good kid Parker." She whispered into the room before shutting the door and returning to her living room.
"Sweetie, we're going to go. It's getting late, and none of us have had any sleep in over twenty four hours." Angela had her keys in her hands. Zach, Hodgins, and Angela's father, Billy were at the door.
"Oh, okay, just drive safe, and Merry Christmas." She smiled as they left, but felt a pang at having them go. The day had been perfect, and she didn't want it to end. She felt Russ approach and stand next to her.
"Are you leaving too?" She tried to hide the disappointment in her voice. Russ put his arm around her and pulled her into a hug.
"Much as we should, we came with Booth, so we're here until he leaves."
"Which is why we want to borrow your car." Matthew said as he approached the little group.
"What? Why?" She looked hurt. Even her dad and brother wanted to leave.
"To give you and Booth some alone time. You've had interference from everyone today, and haven't had a chance to just be alone. We're both still here for a couple of days Tempe, we just want to get out of your hair for awhile." Russ said. She smiled at him and shook her head.
"My keys are in my purse. The key with the black face is the one to Booth's house. He gave it to me when he worked on a case out of state."
"Gotcha." Russ winked and went to retrieve the keys. Once they were in hand, the two men gave Temperance a hug and left the apartment. As the door shut behind her, Tempe's hand went up to the silver necklace around her neck. She gently touched the dangles, each one mimicking her mother's belt buckle and sighed happily.
My heart told me once before
To find my dream and search no more
And when my heart finds Christmas, I hope it finds you too.
Tempe stepped away from the door and tiptoed to the couch. Booth slept on, turning onto his side. She crouched down next to him and reached out to caress his face. As her hand touched his skin, his eyes opened and a slow, sleepy smile spread across his face. The only sounds came from the crackle of the fire, and the movie on TV. Tempe and Booth held each other's gaze, neither one speaking.
"What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You want the moon? Just say the word and I'll throw a lasso around it and pull it down. Hey. That's a pretty good idea. I'll give you the moon, Mary." Jimmy Stewart's voice drifted out into the room.
"What is it you want Tempe? Do you want the moon?" Booth asked her in a hushed tone. He reached out one hand and brushed a silken strand of hair away from her face. She closed her eyes and felt his fingers dance lightly down the side of her neck and caress the skin around her necklace.
"Since it would be impossible to find a rope that would encircle the moon in such a way as to stop it's rotation and pull it towards Earth, then no, I don't want the moon."
Booth chuckled at her response. Leave it to Temperance to think of science right now.
"Well then, what is it you want? Tell me, and I'll be sure to get it for you."
"Booth…Seeley, all I want is you." Her response was quiet, so quiet that Seeley almost didn't hear it. He was suddenly nervous. God, I feel like a nervous teenager. His hand snaked back up to her hair. He ran his fingers through the auburn strands, never taking his eyes from her. Slowly, ever so slowly, he brought her to him. Her eyes fluttered shut, and her lips parted slightly in anticipation. He stopped just millimeters from her lips, his heart beating erratically in his chest. Never had one moment felt so erotic, and yet so innocent at the same time.
"You have me Temperance, now and forever." He whispered. Temperance shivered from the chills cascading through her body. She tried to breathe, but found herself incapable of the instinctive movement, and Booth hadn't even kissed her yet. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she moved the hair's breadth between them. The contact was so electric; the air around them seemed to crackle.
She placed her hands into his hair, running her fingers through its thickness. Without breaking contact with her, Booth sat up enough to encircle Tempe with his other arm and guide her to the couch, her body lying across the length of him. He slipped his hand from her waist and slid his hand up along her body until it cupped the side of her face. His fingers danced along her soft skin as the kiss deepened.
Temperance felt every little movement live a wave washing over her body. She felt each touch, each shift, each caress as its own independent movement, but all of it combining to make her skin almost hum. Finally, they broke apart with the need to breathe. She touched her forehead to his and gasped for the breath that she had been fighting for.
Unable to speak, Booth guided Tempe's head to his chest and caressed her hair. She could hear his heart hammering in his chest, matching the beat of her own heart. With a sigh, she closed her eyes, a smile playing on her lips. Booth's words rang through her head as she drifted off into contented sleep… You have me Temperance, now and forever.
A/N: And that, my friends, is what they call the end. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope the kiss lived up to your expectations. With that, I bid you all an au revoir, and hope to see you at my next story.