"You're avoiding me." Her voice carried in clear, low and sexy as always from the doorway.

"What? Huh? No..." Nice, Seeley. Way to sound convincing. "No... just, all the criminals are on vacation and I've been doing department reviews..." I had, actually, but I'd finished this morning, and I had no idea what I was going to do with the rest of the week that would keep me away from the lab.

I hadn't spoken to her since I'd punched out her date last Friday night, in the Jeffersonian parking garage. Jack had pulled out some beers from the fridge at his station after she'd left for her date, and we'd gone up to the lounge to yak about hockey-- he was working late anyway, since Angela was away, and God knows my Friday nights are spent in front of the TV these days. Anyway, I honestly just happened to be coming out into the garage when I saw him pushing her up against her car, clearly wanting more than a goodnight kiss, and she was clearly uninterested. I knew well and good she could handle herself, but I just snapped, and the next thing I knew I was standing over him, waiting to see if he'd try to get up from where I'd laid him flat. She'd looked at me, inscrutably, and suddenly I couldn't stand the idea of explaining myself, so I just turned and walked off, back to my car. I'm a fool. And I've been avoiding her ever since.

"Well, I was kind of under the impression you might not want to see me."

"Why? Because you punched out a date before I could?" The corner of her mouth quirked, her eyes sparkling. Oh, good, she wasn't mad.

"Something like that, yeah." I rubbed the back of my neck as I looked at her.

"Well, if you'd called to apologize for denying me the pleasure of laying out the handsy bastard myself, I would have accepted it."

"I'm sorry, Bones."

"It's okay," she replied, then entered the office, shutting the door. "But listen," she continued, as she walked over to me and around my desk. "I need you to promise me something."

"What," I managed not to squeak, as she strode right into my space, the heat of her body palpable, and oh God, the way her hair smells and that perfume she wears. As if I needed to wonder why I'd punched that bastard in the first place. Her bottomless eyes stared up at me.

"You've got to stop acting like a jealous boyfriend," she said, her voice low and husky and if she would just talk like that all the time I could never walk again because I was getting hard just watching her lips move. Shit. She'd finally called me out on it. I can't promise her that-- it's impossible. At least the jealous part, and that was precisely the problem. I wasn't her boyfriend, though that was an asinine word that couldn't possibly describe the things I wanted from my partner. Shit. And she was waiting for a response. I can't lie to her and promise that. I've got to say something, though.

"I'm sorry, Bones. Really."

She was relentless, and leaned into my space a fraction more. "Now you're avoiding the question." Damn, when did she pick up my patented 'shut Bones up by invading her space' move? I swallowed. Shit. She had me cornered in my own office. Some tough guy I am.

"I... um ... look, Bones, I really am sorry." Really sorry I ever put that damned line there in the first place. I'm an idiot.

Her mouth quirked, and she leaned in, her mouth less than an inch away from my lips, and then breathed out, saying, "I believe you, but you're still not explaining why you're behaving like a child when all you have to do is say, 'Gee, Bones, I really would prefer it if you didn't go out on any dates with anyone, ever, because I don't want you going home with anyone but me, and I hereby erase that stupid line that I drew.'"

"Wha?"

"Just say the last part," she murmured, her breath hot and damp on my face.

"I hereby erase that stupid line that I drew," I repeated, mesmerized by her lips. Oh God, I'm going to wake up any minute now, with a raging hard-on, alone in my bed again.

"Good boy," she whispered, "you can kiss me now."

Oh God, in my office? With Stella, the FBI's biggest gossip, sitting outside? Although it was bad enough already, her standing on top of me while I gaped like a fish. What the hell.

I grabbed her by the arms and pulled her that last half inch into me, her hands grabbing my jacket lapels as I bent my head to kiss her. Jesus, she tasted as good as I remembered from Christmas, except this time there was no Caroline standing right there, looking on. Just the office gossips, but why was I thinking about that when oh, my God, I'm really kissing Bones and I've got my tongue in her mouth and she's not biting it or punching me and oh, Lord, her tongue is in my mouth now and her hand's on my ass, which is good, because I have no idea how my hand got up her shirt, but her breasts feel even better than I thought they would, and she has the softest lips I've ever kissed, she tastes perfect.

"Eh... hem," came a voice from the doorway. What?! I'm going to kill whoever it is.

Breaking the kiss, she kept her hand on my ass as she turned to look at our rude interruptor. I, meanwhile, was paralyzed, both with horror at being discovered, by him, as well as by the fact that my hands, naturally, were not interested in moving, at all, away from her breasts.

"Hello, Dr. Sweets," she smiled. "Sorry we're running a bit late, I stopped by to get Agent Booth and we got into a bit of a discussion."

Sweets looked flabbergasted, which was good, because that's certainly how I felt. His mouth moved, but no sound came out. And then, I could speak.

"Yeah, you know what, Sweets? We'll have to reschedule, today. I think Bones and I have a private session to attend to." His jaw dropped even wider, so I ignored him and went back to her lips.

"Now where were we," I murmured, as she pulled my head down, her lips crashing into mine, her tongue tangling with mine in her mouth. Oh, yeah, right there.