Stale air circulated around the beige colored waiting room. Women in all stages of pregnancy quieted their children and rubbed their protruding stomachs while fathers-to-be sat next to their wives doting on their every whimper or flipping through the out dated magazines. Dr Temperance Brennan sat in the row furthest from the receptionist window with her lap top open and her fingers clicking wildly as she returned e mails and typed up a report. Her partner, Special Agent Seeley Booth, sat next to her thumbing through a case file silently.

"Bones, there seems to be similarities to the injuries suffered by this victim and the ones that we saw on the Echols case." Booth said as he held up a crime scene photo to get a closer look. They had solved the Echols disappearance several weeks ago after body showed up by the side of a highway.

"I already have Mr. Nigel Murray looking into it. I was not going to bring that up until I was certain. You have been much more attentive to detail lately. I must admit that I am impressed." She responded never looking up from her computer. Booth sat the photo down and turned his attention to stare at her.

"Thank you for the back handed complement, Bones."

"What? I was just saying that you have seemed to be more apt to locating patterns lately. It's a good thing, Booth."

"Bones-

"Dr. Brennan?" A perky blonde called from the mahogany doorway to their left, cutting off Booth.

Brennan looked up from her computer to the doorway and groaned. The same nurse always led her to her exam room and the entire way she would actually coo at her. It was irritating and uncalled for. Whether her level of annoyance was hormone induced or not was irrelevant. She put away her lap top and pushed herself up from the blue and black framed chair she had been occupying while Booth closed the file in his hand and made a beeline for Miss Perky. With a sigh and a head shake she followed suit.

"Hello Mommy! How are we feeling today? Is our baby happy?" Miss Perky asked with virtually no pauses in her exorbitantly excited voice.

"I suppose, I have no current signs of discomfort." Brennan said with her best attempt at faux politeness. It was a tactic that Booth had been trying to work on with her and a skill she hoped she was acquiring.

"OOOO! Isn't this so much fun?" Miss Perky squealed with excitement as she reached out to touch Brennan's stomach. However, with lightning quick reflexes she ducked out of reach, clutching her slightly bulging belly.

"Oh! I'm sorry." Miss Perky said looking stricken by the reaction. She took Bren's weight and led her to the exam room without another word. In fact it wasn't until she gave Booth a once over before closing the exam room door that she even looked at the couple again.

"Bones, what was that?" Booth asked the moment the door latched.

"She had no medical need to touch me." Bren responded as she hoisted her body onto the exam table.

"She just wanted to feel the baby. This is an Obstetrics office, Bones."

"Just because I am pregnant does not give people the right to touch me, Booth." She said exasperated while she looked around the light blue colored room. Booth was sitting in a chair picking at the sonogram machine in the room not paying any more attention.

It seemed so peaceful here, a place where a woman and her baby could bond without the pressures of the world. It was the only place that Brennan allowed herself to really fell the emotions of her pregnancy and awe at the miracle of becoming a mother. Looking over at Booth, who was still oblivious, she allowed herself to indulge in amazement at the situation.

There was a time not that long ago when she was not really sure that she would get to experience this. Booth had his reservations about being her sperm donor, and try as she may she knew that he was the only person that she would want to help create this life within her. He was not only aesthetically pleasing, but he had a gentleness that she hoped he would pass on to their child. She wanted her child to be brilliant but also to have the people skills that she lacked. Booth was wonderful with people, he had no trouble putting them at ease and making them feel comforted and protected. It was a feeling that she experienced first hand every time she was with Booth, and it was the one thing that she could never give to their baby.

Their baby was another issue altogether. He had refused to father a child with out being a pivotal part of his or her life while Bren would rather not complicate things more than need be. It was not that she was opposed to having Booth around, in fact she could use the help, but there were deeper reasons behind it that she did not fully understand. This, of course, only made it harder to explain to Booth. They had reached a suitable agreement in which no boundaries had been violated before she went to the clinic some months ago. Booth was to have as many paternal responsibilities as he would like, after all there was no reason for her child to go fatherless when there was a great role model readily available. There did not have to be romantic ties between the two parents to show their child a loving family. At least that is what Bren kept telling herself. Hopefully one of these days she would actually believe it.

The knock at the door pulled her out of her thoughts and jarred Booth away from the sonogram monitor, which he had currently been fidgeting with.

"Come in." She called out. The door opened to reveal a tall curly haired brunette in a crisp white lab coat and sensible black pumps.

"Good Morning Dr. Brennan," She said with a warm smile in Bren's direction. "Agent Booth." She finished with a nod in his direction.

"Hey, Doc." He said with a smile.

"How are you feeling today?" The Doctor asked.

"I'm starving." Booth responded.

"Booth, she was talking to me." Brennan snapped, irritated that he did not automatically pick up on it. "I'm well, Dr. Lark, thank you."

"How is the morning sickness?" Dr. Lark asked as she moved to start her preliminary examination. One if the traits that Bren liked the most about the doctor was her ability to distract from the actual exam with questions.

"It's a touch more sporadic but still quite frequent. I believe that my Co-workers will be glad when I'm not throwing up all of the time. It is really starting to hinder my work." She said as the doctor took off the blood pressure cuff and wrote the statistic in her chart.

"That is an understatement." Came Booth's reply. Both women ignored the quip as the doctor pulled up a rolling stool from the side of the exam table and tool a seat facing the expectant parents.

"To be honest with you, Temperance," She said, "there is a good chance that you may not be able to handle the sight or smells of a dead body for the duration of your pregnancy. I suppose, though, I can give you something for the really rough days. Only take this in severe emergencies, but it should take the edge off. How is the stress level these days?"

"It's nothing out of the ordinary, I'm just really behind. Booth says that I needed to relax a little more." She responded.

"You do, Bones; you can't keep running like this, it's going to catch up to you." Booth chimed in. While Brennan was oblivious to it, Dr. Lark caught the loving look he shot his partner. She smiled discreetly then turned her attention back to Bren.

"I'm a little concerned about your blood pressure. It's a little higher than I would like to see, but given the circumstances and morning sickness I'm not concerned yet. I do want to monitor it, however. I'm not asking you to do to much, just make sure that you are taking time to relax a little bit, Okay? Daddy, I am putting you in charge of making her take a little time every day to rest and recoup. It's hard on the body to support two people and it needs all the help it can get from you." Dr. Lark said as she stood and handed Brennan her prescription.

"I will do my best, Thank you Dr. Lark." Booth said raising from his spot to come and shake hands with her.

"It's my pleasure, Seeley. Take care of them" She said nodding to Brennan.

"I can handle my self." Brennan stated as she got down from the exam table. "Thank you Dr. Lark."

The Doctor nodded in approval and exited the room leaving the parents in her wake. Brennan picked up her purse and looked towards her partner who was already carrying her laptop bag over his shoulder and holding the door for her. She walked under his outstretched arm and into the hallway, only muttering "I'm hungry." On her way past.

Booth watched her retreating from a split second, smiling at the sheer thought of what he had gotten himself into.

2

"Bones!" Booth called out as he entered his partner's apartment with his spare key. The lights were on and there was low music coming from some corner of the living space but Bones was no where to be seen. He looked at the kitchen counter where a cup of half finished tea was getting cold and her lap top sat open. She had to be here somewhere. Turning on his heels he headed down the hallway in the direction of one room that she had been spending a significant amount of time in as of late. Poking his head around the open bathroom door he was rewarded with sight of his small partner hunched over the toilet retching.

He reached out and pulled her hair away from the soft angles of her jaw bones and rubbed her back gently. He could feel the spasms take her over as she emptied the contents of her stomach until there was nothing left. Her small hand then reached up and pulled the lever to flush and she leaned back against the cool porcelain of her giant tub. Booth was right there in her face brushing her bangs from her clammy forehead as she sat there catching her labored breath. Bren's eyes fluttered closed as he ran his cool hand along her fiery skin and for a split second she forgot where she was, her mind going blank and her body enjoying the calming sensation.

"Are you alright?" Booth's voice was an octave lower than usual, his words slow and deliberate. Her watery blues eyes opened to meet his warm brown ones and she exhaled and nodded. They sat there, on the tiled floor of the bathroom; till the world stopped spinning and her chest quit heaving. It was only then did Booth scoop her up into his strong arms and carry her into the living room where he deposited her onto the plush red couch.

"Thank you." She called out to him as he walked into the kitchen, picking up the cold cup of tea along the way. There was a time not long ago when she would have scolded him for coddling her this way, but as of late she just let it happen. It made him happy and she felt horrible most of the time anyway. What is a little comfort among friends?

"Anytime, Bones, besides you heard Dr. Lark today. I need to take care of you." He said as he came back into the room with a sprite in one hand and a bowl of oyster crackers in the other. Brennan reached out, taking the crackers and soda from her partner as he joined her on the couch. Booth pulled her feet into his lap before she could tuck them under her, rubbing the soles of them gently.

It was a different projection of their relationship when they were in the sanctity of their apartments. Since embarking on their shared journey of parenthood they had booth blurred the edges of their friendship slightly. Booth took on all the roles that a husband would in the normal scenario of a nuclear family, and Brennan allowed it. That in and of it's self was a great feat of strength.

"Don't get overprotective of me, Booth." Bren said.

"I'm not, you just need a little help." He said though he could feel his jaw clenching as he picked up the remote the flat screen TV she had purchased a few months ago. One of the snags they had hit along their path to parenthood has been the brain tumor Booth was diagnosed with last may. It had been right after she first asked him to father her child.

He had lived with her in the early days after his surgery and she had nursed him back to health. First guiding him through the darkness of amnesia and then helping him to re-learn things that seemed fuzzy. Now he was returning the favor, giving her the greatest gift of all, motherhood.

She had made great strides in her ability to handle emotions. She kept her self in great health, looking at things in a very logical way. One must be as healthy as possible to function as efficiently a possible. Yet still there were levels of emotions that she was not able to digest. It was hard for her to trivialize something so powerful, though she would never admit it. It was then that he would help her through the feelings, easing her discomfort at the unknown. It also allowed him to feel like a part of the situation as well. She was so good at keeping the proverbial front door closed sometimes, that Booth needed to find a way in the back.

"Have you told Parker yet?" Bren asked as she popped a cracker into her mouth. Booth sighed as he settled on a channel and went back to lightly rubbing the ball of her foot.

"I'm going to tell him this weekend. Rebecca is dropping his off at my place Saturday morning." He said his thoughts fleeting to his son and ex-girlfriend. She had been on him to tell them the news, but he was procrastinating. It wasn't his reluctance that scared him so much as the reason for it. Though it was getting more and more difficult to hide as Bren grew and with Christmas just around the corner, he was going to be spending more time with Parked and her together.

"Have you told her yet?" Bren looked down at her bowl.

"I'm going to tell her when I tell Parker. I wanted to do it all at once."

"Will it be a problem?" Had he actually heard uncertainty in her voice?

"No! Why would it be?" He was perplexed and intrigued to see where this conversation was leading.

"Anthropologically speaking, there will be competion between the care providers to maintain their status in your life." She popped another cracker in her mouth and chased it with the soda.

"Wait, Bones, are you being serious? Rebecca and I have not been together for the better part of three years. Is this your hormones talking or are you jealous of Rebecca?" He smiled at the look of true revolution that crossed her face.

" What? Booth, I have no reason to be jealous of Rebecca." Though the slight flush in her cheeks gave her away.

" You know what? I think you might be."

" You are being… I am not jealous." A smile cracked on her face even as she said it. As her mood changed the ridiculousness of the situation became more apparent to her.

" Bones, you have nothing to worry about. I am here the help you be the mom that we both know you will be. " He reached towards her putting his finger under her chin and forcing her to look at him. His eyes held amusement, wonderment and something else that she could not place. All she knew was that she saw it in his eyes frequently, and she was fairly certain that it was the driving force behind all of his actions. That realization alone was enough to keep her from questioning it.

3

" Why are we here ?" Brennan asked as she slammed the suburan's door shut.

" We have another body, Bones." Booth said as he fell in step with her placing his hand in the small of her back.

"Where?" She asked looking around the dead field.

"There" Booth pointed at several tall dead plants to their left. The cool early November air blew around them as they made their way to the crime scene.

" Do they think it is related to the Echols case as well?" she asked. They had discovered that Booth had been correct last week. There were a vast number of similarities in the case they were working on and the one they had just put to bed. The only issue was that they had arrested the perpetrator in Kelly Echols murder and he was currently residing in a padded cell. This meant one of two things, either there was a second killer or there was a copy cat on their hands.

" Wouldn't you say it was best not to leap to conclusions with out solid evidentiary support, Bones?"

" I am comfortable linking the two based on what we have uncovered thus far." She said pulling on her rubber gloves. It was then that the smell hit her nostrils. Rotted flesh was all she could smell and see causing her stomach to turn and her mouth to salivate. She swallowed hard willing herself to keep the bile down.

"Keep it together." She silently willed her body.

" Are you alright, Bones?" Booth stood in front of her watching her face contort and her jaw tense. She managed to get out a tight nod in his direction.

" Are you sure that you are alright? You look a little green." He prodded taking a step closer to her.

She opened her mouth to re assure him, only to lose control of her efforts. Managing an "Oh God" right before she threw up her bagel from that morning, the one Booth had bought her, all over the front of his suit and open pea coat. He was standing there, looking shocked and frozen at her, several other agents stifling their giggles behind him.

"Sorry. Does anyone have a napkin?" She asked with her hand covering her mouth. At that moment a hand from somewhere thrust a napkin into her hands, which she used to wipe her mouth. Booth stood there still frozen while she cleaned herself up.

" Um, Bones?" He asked trying to keep his own gag reflex from kicking in.

" Oh God, I'm sorry. Here." She thrust the napkin at him. Booth just shook his head and turned to the rest of the agents on the crime scene.

" Pack it all up. Ship it off to the Jeffersonian. We have to go." He said shrugging off his vomit covered pea coat and using it to wipe off his suit the best he could. "Could I also have an Evidence bag please?" He called as he started to march off with Bren in tow. She had a feeling that she would have to make up for this in a big way.

****

Back at the Jeffersonian

" You threw up on Booth?" Dr. Camille Saroyan asked with a hint of amusement in her voice.

" I was not able to control it." Brennan said as she stood a few feet from the autopsy table where Cam was working.

" But you threw up on Booth." Cam said placing a liver on a scale. Brennan looked away as she felt the familiar roll in her stomach.

"You threw up on Booth?" Angela Montenegro asked as she walked through the silver door with a clip board in her hands.

"I could not help it." Bren said a little more lightly.

"It's not your classiest moment, Sweetie." Angela said with a light laugh.

" Let's just focus on the case. I need those bones when you are finished." Brennan said as she turned on her heels and left the autopsy room in a huff.

" She's such a pleasure to be around these days." Cam said with a shake of her head.

"I can't believe she threw up on him. I would have paid money to see his face." Angela laughed.

" Would you like to hear the best part?"

" Oh, in the worst way."

" He brought her breakfast this morning when he picked her up." Cam laughed aloud this time with Angela not far behind.

" What's so funny?" Booth's voice sobered both women in an instant.

"Seeley, you look good." Cam snorted.

" Oh. Hahaha laugh it up ladies." Booth shook his head as the two women burst into laughter again.

" I have to go." Angela said in between laughter as she turned and exited the room her laughs trailing after her down the hall. Booth turned back to Cam who tried her best to look composed.

" Where is, Bones?"

" Oh, don't be a sour sport, Seeley. It's funny now that it's over." Cam said as Booth turned red with embarrassment.

"Yeah, it's hilarious." His sarcasm rang through loud and clear. After years of being his friend and his lover for a brief time, she knew him inside and out. She could see his conflicts even when he could not.

" Look, I told you this whole thing was a bad idea." She said setting her scalpel down.

" It was what she wanted, Camille." Booth ran his hands through his hair nervously.

"What about what you want, Seeley? You can not tell me that this is it."

" It's not the way it looks."

" Then how is it? Look, what you and Dr. Brennan do in your personal lives is your business, but as your friend, you really need to take a step back here and look in the mirror."

"She has taken care of me, Cam. This is what she wants, it's the least I can do for her."

Cam slammed her hands on the table. This was getting out of control. He could hide his feelings from himself but she could see them with absolute clarity. " You would have done it long before this, Seeley and you know it."

" I can't help it."

" I seem to be hearing that a lot around here, from both of you. You are in love with her, and you have been for years. Look, I've said all I can, I won't interfere. Just do something for me. Think about your feelings, really face them. Do not wake up in fifteen years and wish your life had been different." Cam's voice was softer now, more kind in a way. She looked at the man in front of her then the dead body on her table. " Life is short, Seeley, don't waste it on something you can never have."

Booth only nodded as he turned to leave. Cam's voice rang in his ears, though her words seemed scrambled in his head. It wasn't until he was half way down the hall that it all made sense.