AN:

Timeline: Early in show, before Jack, Will or Henry came along so it makes for Elle and Gideon on the team as opposed to Rossi & Prentiss, which doesn't really matter considering they're only peripheral characters here at best.

This is definite M territory, the original is already posted over at twcs. I may tone it down a little here, will probably be some grammar changes but probably no significant changes. Please do not read if you are too young or offended by such subject matter.

Disclaimer: No affiliation or ownership of anyone or anything related to the show or network. Which is probably a good thing considering the things I do to them when they visit my sandbox.

Chapter 1

"This is a little weird." Elle Greenway confessed to Derek who was sitting on her left as they sat at a table in the back yard of the Hotchner home. Amused as they sat watching their boss make an effort at using the grill, glad to see that Gideon was taking on an assisting role as the two men worked together.

The agents had been surprised when it was apparently Haley's idea to invite her husband's team over, determined to get to know them better as she had personally extended the invitations before even telling her husband. He had not realized what was going on until the agents started coming to him asking how they were expected to respond. He had been put in a difficult position and was as surprised as they were but knew he was in a spot where he no longer really had a choice. So he went along with it and told them they could accept, trying to act as if he had been in on it from the start, though being profilers they had easily sensed his initial reluctance and had likely picked up on his frustration about his wife not consulting him. Hotch hated it when Haley played these little games with him where she manipulated things a certain way and then tried to make it seem as if he had input once his options were effectively limited.

"At least she's sitting at the table with JJ and Reid," Morgan responded quietly. "From what I can tell underneath that nice hostess exterior, there is one formidable woman." He shared the beginnings of his profile. While they had agreed not to profile each other so far that rule didn't explicity apply to family members, at least it had not been stated aloud as of yet.

"Of course, Hotch would want to marry someone who could stand up to him." Elle shared her opinion, also feeling fortunate to be sharing a table with Garcia and Morgan as opposed to the wife of their unit chief. They were still adjusting to seeing him out of a suit and tie, not to mention the apron as he and Gideon continued to wrestle with the grill.

Despite the awkwardness of the situation the evening passed pleasantly enough as the agents were able to take advantage of being together outside of a case to enjoy some camaraderie as well as the hamburgers, hot dogs and few side dishes that Haley had prepared.

As the evening wore on as the agents continued getting even more relaxed as they chatted and drank their beers, starting to get more used to seeing the domestic side of their leader. It was hard for them to believe how much time had passed as the sun began to set. Haley grabbed a lighter and proceeded to cheerfully light the citronella candles she had placed on the tables before she moved to light the few torches already placed in the yard.

Hotch watched his team relaxing and had to admit it hadn't been as uncomfortable as he had initially thought it might be to have them in his home, though he was still a little suspicious of Haley's behavior. She had often seemed jealous of his team and the time he spent with them as compared to the time he was at home. So this sudden urge to have them all over had mystified him. But while he may have run things at the office, he knew at home the roles frequently seemed reversed as she frequently won any power struggles that may arise there. As he watched her laughing at the table with Reid and JJ, he was also curious why she had been so attentive to JJ, she had not excluded the other agents so much, but it was obvious to him who had his wife's primary interest. He felt a pang of guilt and then of fear, wondering if somehow his wife had sensed his attraction to the younger woman, despite his best efforts to hide it. He could only hope that it had more to do with the fact that JJ was the team member she had the most contact with when she had to call and try to track him down.

As the evening shadows lengthened the team members seemed to unanimously take that as an indication they could finally leave, despite Haley's ongoing insistence that they could stay as she had indicated the table still holding leftovers from the cookout. They hastily consumed a little more of the food before taking the opportunity to bid their farewells. Reid was the first to leave, followed by Garcia.

JJ looked at clock, wanting to leave but it seemed Haley had other plans as the woman kept chatting with her. The blonde agent desperately tried to catch Elle's eye when the brunette stopped by to bid their hostess goodnight. But it did not appear that it would be that easy to extricate herself as Elle made her graceful exit while Haley continued to prattle to JJ about her hopes for motherhood. JJ had initially found herself glad to get to know her bosses wife better, since until now they had typically only exchanged occasionally terse words on the phone. She didn't mind the relationship building but it had been a long day and things seemed to be dragging a bit at this point as JJ felt she had run out of things to say well over an hour ago, but Haley had seemed genuinely interested in hearing more about her background and also what had led her to the FBI.

JJ noticed that Hotch was still chatting with Gideon, apparently getting ready to walk him to his car as the two men returned to the house and walked out the front door, leaving now only the two women in the yard with the scent of citrus in the air. JJ finally decided it was time to make her own excuses and move to leave despite the older woman's attempt to keep the conversation going.

"I've really enjoyed this but it's getting late, I should get going," JJ said diplomatically, but Haley apparently had different ideas.

"I'd like you to stay," she said silkily as she reached out her hand, it's softness on top of JJ's surprising her as she momentarily froze.

"I'll be honest with you," Haley began, still speaking as calmly as if she were discussing the weather, but the presence of her hand, despite the lightness of the touch, kept JJ in place.

"Aaron and I have been married for almost 10 years now. I've been trying to get him to open himself up to a new experience, that's why I invited you all here tonight, to watch and see which one of you it should be. It's obvious to me he's attracted to you." Haley continued to speak calmly as she watched JJ blink in surprise already trying to form the words of denial to respond to the accusation.

JJ stared at the blonde, alarm bells ringing in her head as she managed to speak without stuttering. "I really think this is between you and your husband." She said, hoping she was the only one who had heard the tremor in her voice. All she received in response was feeling the soft hand caressing hers again, this was the only warning she got before the married woman leaned forward and pressed her lips to JJ's. The agent had never considered herself attracted to other women aside from a few college experimentations while traveling with her soccer team, but there was something compelling about the intensity of the kiss. JJ felt paralyzed yet yielded and then responded when she felt the tip of a tongue brush against her lips.

"You're kissing your boss's wife, at his home, stop it!" Her mind screamed but Haley's grip on her cheek and neck pulling her deeper into the kiss was firm.

"What the hell?" Hotch's angry exclamation caused them to break apart suddenly as he walked into the yard, his dark gaze and obviously furious eyes flitting from one to the other, not sure what he had walked in on as he had anticipated sending the last agent home so they could finally get the evening over with.

JJ cowered and tried to look away but all she noticed in response to Hotch's anger was his wife's countering look of amusement. "Oh relax Aaron, Agent Jareau and I have just been getting to know each other better." She said in her bemused tone as she continued to stroke the young woman's hand. JJ yanked her hand away as if she had been burned as she began to rise and gather her purse. Haley may be used to dealing with her husband's moods at home but JJ still had to work with the man and she was not going to do anything to jeopardize their working relationship any more than she already had.

"Aaron, I want JJ to stay with us tonight." Haley stated plainly as she grasped the woman's wrist to stop her attempted departure. Time seemed to stop as the married couple stared at each other, JJ felt like the only one moving as she turned to see Haley's look of fierce determination doing silent battle with the hard and unreadable look on her bosses face.

She held her breath, sensing the battle of the wills, fascinated about who would win. Not because she desperately wanted to spend the night but because she had never seen Hotch back down to anyone and couldn't fathom the concept that he would. She finally gathered the courage to speak, prepared to say that she had a say in this also and as flattered as she was she was going to have to decline the offer. But the war seemed to end just as she opened her mouth.

"Fine," his deep voice finally said, still sounding harsh as his eyes glittered dangerously as they rested on the two women before he walked away.

"His bark is worse than his bite dear," Haley said with a smile of triumph as she continued to cling to the wrist of her prize. "So, where were we?" She questioned but JJ didn't respond as she scanned the yard to see her boss moving around picking up the remnants of the evening, his movements suggesting that he was still angry, not that she could blame him. His wife had just essentially shown him up. in front of one of his subordinates, she was almost sure there would be some repercussions in the office but could now fully relate to the feeling of being between a rock and a hard place as she felt like a pawn caught between two powerful forces.

When she eventually turned to look back into the mesmerizing eyes of the woman still holding her wrist she tried to think of what she was supposed to say next, still hearing the alarm bells that were ringing in her head yet were being effectively muted by the soft fingers now massaging her wrist.

"So am I allowed to ask what your little game plan is here?" The tone of the unit chief over JJ's shoulder almost caused her to jump as she had not even realized he was behind her. She fought the urge to turn and look at him, watching Haley instead as she quirked an eye at her husband.

"As I said, I want her to stay here, with us, share our bed." She said clearly. "You should be flattered dear, isn't it every man's fantasy to have two women tending to his needs?" Her voice seemed soothing as she obviously worked to woo her husband into the idea.

"But she's my subordinate Haley," he ground out, his voice sounding rougher to JJ's ears than it had before.

"So, aren't you the one that told me you're good at compartmentalizing?" She responded easily, apparently very used to sparring with her husband. "Don't even try to tell me you don't want her, I knew it before I even met her." She threw what appeared to be the final needed blow as JJ could feel the tension in the air change.

"How?" She heard her boss almost gasp in surprise as she herself felt a wave of shock. He may not have done a good job at hiding his attraction from his wife but he had done a hell of a job hiding it from her she realized. So much for her belief that what she had thought of as a schoolgirl crush was apparently not as unrequited as she had initially believed.