A week before Christmas...2009

"I hope they have liquor this year," Prentiss said.

"Just what I want," Reid shot back. "To drive a drunken Prentiss home."

She slapped him on the arm. "Don't even pretend you have plans tonight," she said jokingly.

"Would you believe me if I did?" he asked.

She stopped in her tracks. "Do you?"

Reid grinned. "Well, no, but…"

Prentiss rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm. "Let's get going."

JJ knocked on Garcia's door and walked into her office. "You heading down?" she asked.

Garcia groaned. "No. I have to work on this," she said. "I can't believe my system crashed. My system. This would only happen to me."

"Yes, because I believe no one else on the planet has ever had their computer crash before," JJ teased.

Garcia tore her eyes away from the screen and grinned at JJ. "When I'm stressing, I have a tendency to be overdramatic," she admitted.

"You don't say," JJ said sarcastically.

"You should go," Garcia told her. "It only happens once a year."

JJ rolled her eyes. "Like I want to rub elbows with the other agents. So many of them think that the BAU is a joke. They like to look down their noses at us. You know, attending a work Christmas party should be optional. I could be home with Will and Henry."

"How is my little man?" Garcia asked, changing the subject to one of her favorites-her godson.

JJ smiled softly, the way she always did when conversation turned to her son. "No so little," she informed Garcia. "And you would know that if you ever came to visit."

Garcia sighed. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I'm a horrible person."

JJ shook her head. "Not a horrible person. Just a horrible godmother," she corrected with a grin.

Garcia scoffed. "What's the difference?"

JJ laughed. "Not much. All right, I'm off. Do you want me to bring you anything? Eggnog? Fruitcake? Some of that cheese with nuts on it?"

Garcia laughed, knowing her friend was looking for any excuse to escape, even if it was just for a few minutes. "I should be fine," she said.

"OK," JJ said. "But I'm telling you, fifteen minutes, and I am so out of there. I wish it had been my computer that had crashed."

"Still me fixing it, Sunshine," Garcia reminded her.

"Can't a girl catch a break?" JJ said on her way out of Garcia's office.

"Look at you all worked out," Prentiss said, looking Morgan up and down appreciatively as he joined them in one corner of the room.

Derek gave her a strange look and Reid rolled his eyes.

"I'm pretty sure that's the tequila talking," Reid explained.

"I've had one drink," she said, defending herself and wrinkling her nose. "You're still all sweaty."

"Work Christmas party or working out?" Derek said sarcastically, holding up his hands as if they were scales. "I'm not gonna miss a work out because of some stupid mandatory party."

"Of course you aren't," Prentiss agreed dryly.

"Hey, you were just checking this bad boy out," Derek reminded her.

Now it was Prentiss' turn to roll her eyes. "It was a joke, Morgan. And I guess you don't know how to take one."

Hotch approached them, loosening his tie. "Is it just me, or is no one fraternizing with us?" he asked.

Reid shrugged. "It could be that we're not fraternizing with them. You know, people tend to stick with what's familiar to them—"

"Hey," Derek interrupted. "No profiling, Kid."

Reid nodded. "Right. Sorry."

JJ walked up with a glass of eggnog. "Is it just me, or are people ignoring us?" she asked, her eyes darting around the room.

"Thank you!" Hotch exclaimed.

"You're…welcome?" JJ said as a confused look crossed her face.

"I just asked the same question," he explained.

"Oh," JJ said as understanding finally dawned.

Derek looked around. "Where's Garcia?" he asked.

"You didn't hear?" Prentiss returned.

"Hear what?" he asked with a hint of agitation in his voice.

"Her computer crashed," JJ informed him.

"Really?" Derek said raising an eyebrow as a smirk spread across his face. "And how is momma takin' that?"

"Not with a grain of salt," JJ told him.

"That's why I came down early," Hotch told him.

"That and the wine," JJ said, looking at the glass in his hand.

Hotch didn't say anything, just took a swallow of the wine.

Forty five minutes later, Derek managed to sneak away without anyone seeing. He stepped onto the elevator, a glass of wine in each hand with a plate balanced on top of one of the glasses. He could only hope that the sprig in his back pocket didn't fall out. He used his pinky to hit the floor he needed, and then made his way to Garcia's office. "How's it coming?" he asked when he walked in.

She sighed, turning around. "Not very good, Derek! It's gonna take—" She stopped midsentence and pointed to the plate he was holding. "Derek?"

"Yeah, Baby Girl?"

"Is that chocolate chip cheesecake?" she asked longingly.

His eyes were dancing as he looked at her. "Yes, it is," he told her.

"For me?" she asked sweetly.

"Only you," he said softly.

"Oh, Derek Morgan. You are my knight in shining armor," she said as she walked towards him, arms outstretched. She wrapped her arms around him and he stood as still as he could so he wouldn't drop anything. She pulled away and took the plate from him, then went and sat down.

He placed the wine glass next to her and then took a seat himself, flinching when she moaned at the taste of her cheesecake. He couldn't help it, he grinned, too. He thought it would stop after the first bite, but she made the same sound after the second and third.

He cleared his throat. "Garcia you do realize that this isn't your last meal, right?"

The fork in her hand froze halfway to her mouth. "Have you ever had chocolate chip cheesecake?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I'm not a cheesecake fan," he told her.

"And this isn't just cheesecake," she informed him, holding her fork out towards him.

"No," he said, shaking his head.

"One bite," she ordered.

He glared at her, but opened his mouth anyway. She grinned as she moved the fork towards him.

He wasn't sure if it was the cheesecake, or the fact that Garcia was feeding it to him, but the second it hit his tongue, he decided it was the best damn thing he'd ever tasted. He grabbed her wrist when she retracted the fork, closing his eyes as he chewed and then swallowed, eliciting a grin from her.

"Are you gonna let go of me?" she asked in amusement.

"Garcia?" he said, opening his eyes.

"Yeah."

"You…are…going to share the rest of that with me, right?" he asked.

She grinned at him. "Of course I am. Payment for stealing for me in the first place."

He moved his chair closer to hers and they alternated bites until the cheesecake was gone. When they'd finished it, Garcia sighed appreciatively and took her glass of wine off the counter and sat back as far as her chair would go, taking a sip of her drink. "Thank you for that," she said sincerely.

"You're welcome," he replied.

"How did you know that chocolate chip cheesecake is my favorite?" she asked.

He sat back in his own chair, his hands behind his head. The motion caused his shirt to mold to his upper body, but as usual, he had no idea how damn hot he looked.

"I listen when you talk," he said as if he were offended.

"Yes, you do," she agreed, looking him up and down. "So, I see you got your work out in today."

He rolled his eyes. "It was just a way for me to skip out on some of the festivities. You crashed your computer so you could get out if it."

Garcia grinned and put a hand to her chest. "I would never," she said sarcastically.

He grinned back at her. "Oh, you so would," he said, standing up and kissing her on the cheek. "Thanks for sharing your cheesecake," he said.

"Thanks for stealing it for me," she returned.

He took her now empty glass from her hand and the empty plate on the counter. "I should probably get back," he said in a bland tone.

"Yeah, me, too," she said her eyes returning to her computer screen. But something in the seat that Morgan had just vacated caught her eye. She snapped it up and looked at it. "Morgan?" She stood up and lifted her hand in the air to bring it closer to the light so she could study its contents. "What's this?"

He lifted an eyebrow at her. "Mistletoe," he said with a grin. "And would you look at that? You're standing right underneath it."

Garcia looked up and she was, indeed, holding it above her head. She could feel her cheeks darkening as she brought her hand quickly down to her side. But it was too late. Derek dropped the glasses and the plate back down onto the counter.

"You know what that means," he said roughly, stalking towards her.

She meant to move, she really did, but she never got around to it. When Morgan reached her, he dropped his hands to her hips. "We can't break tradition," he said just as lips came down onto hers. He kissed her softly and then she pulled back, stepping away from him.

Her eyes widened and she smiled nervously at him. He couldn't help but smile back. He'd never seen Garcia like this before. Of course, that could be because they'd never kissed. "That was hardly a kiss," he whispered.

"Well, what were you expecting?" she asked in a shaky voice.

"A hell of a lot more than that," he said in a teasing tone.

She stood there for a moment studying his face—she wasn't sure if he was kidding or if really wanted to kiss her again. When it was clear that he wanted her, she took a hesitant step towards him and placed her hands on his shoulders. He stood there unmoving, hands by his sides, making it clear that the next move was hers.

She lifted her face to his and unable to restrain himself, he met her halfway, his lips crashing down onto hers. She moved her hands down and tugged his t-shirt out of his jeans, anxious to touch him. Her hands found his waist and she ran them up his chest, then back down and around to his back, caressing him softly. He pulled away momentarily. "Damn, girl," he said thickly. Her hands were soft and he wondered how in the hell she knew to touch him in just the right spots.

His lips found hers again, her mouth opening instantly beneath his. When his tongue found hers, he felt her sink into him, her arms tightening around him. He lifted his hands to the sides of her head, as if to hold her still, deepening the kiss. When it became clear that it was a stop now or never situation, Morgan forced himself to pull back. "Now that was a kiss," he said, and then, "I've been looking for a reason to do that for a loooong time."

His eyes met hers, and he knew that if he wanted, they could do it again. But it was too risky while they were here at work. Once was already too much. But how was he supposed to help himself when she came prancing in every day wearing those sexy earrings—he loved her earrings—and those short skirts?

"Just so you know for next time," she told him, "No reason needed."

He grinned at her as he turned to walk out. God, she'd tasted so good. Just like woman mixed with seconds on the cheesecake. And the way her hair had been sticking out on both sides from his grip, well that was something he was never going to forget.