What Goes Around

5. Avoid and Conquer

Angela was the last one to leave. Cal stayed to help her clean up a little.

"I like your friends," he said.

"I think they like you, too," she commented with a smile. Tying a knot in the green garbage bag, she went to put it by the front door.

"I'm not sure about your partner, though."

"How so?"

"Well..." Cal rounded up the empty beer bottles. "At one point, you went to the kitchen, and he called me Callister."

So all men were stupid that way!

"And he said you called him Seeley, so you're even," she tried to joke. "Booth just likes to tease."

Was he teasing her in the kitchen? Was he serious? Of course he wasn't.

She dimmed the ceiling lights.

"He told me he liked you," she reassured him.

"He did?" He sounded really surprised.

"Yes. He told me I chose well."

Cal smiled and put his hands on her hips.

"Good."

He noticed she was biting her bottom lip.

"What?"

Brennan took a deep breath.

"He also said you thought he and I used to... uhm... be an item."

"For a minute there, yeah. You two look like you know each other so well."

"We might know each other, but we don't understand each other at all."

"Plus, you bicker a lot," he laughed.

"We work together all the time, of course we'll argue."

"You seem really close."

She heard in his voice that he was simply stating a fact, not passing judgment.

"We've been through a lot, that's all."

She was glad Cal hadn't mention anything about chemistry. So, Booth was wrong. Not everyone could see it. If it even existed.

"I know it's important to you that I like him," he said, kissing her head.

"He's... He's an amazing person."

"You're an amazing person..." he said, averting the subject.

"Are you spending the night?" she asked, unsure what she wanted his response to be.

"I can't. I have an early flight in the morning and my suitcase is not packed yet."

She felt relieved, which probably meant she still wasn't ready.

"How long do we have to stay here?"

They had been stuck in this car for two hours in these stupid, uncomfortable car seats.

"As long as it takes," he replied.

"Couldn't we have taken the SUV?" she whined.

"So that everyone who sees it knows we're Feds?"

"We could have taken my car, then."

"Sure, a luxurious convertible is so common in this creepy part of town."

She sighed. They had talked the case through and through. What else was there to do?

"What are we looking for exactly?" she asked for the 4th time.

"I told you. I'll know it when I see it."