JJ adjusted her shirt nervously. She hadn't told Hotch the reason she had requested time off, she didn't want to admit to anyone that she had failed in her marriage. And so she had run to the only person she was certain would understand at this point.
Hesitantly, she knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Finally, the door opened, and she smiled in relief. "Jayje! What brings you here?"
"I had to escape. Henry's with my mom. Can I hole up with you for the next couple weeks, Emily?"
Her friend nodded and beckoned her inside. Once she was behind closed doors, she held out her arms to Emily, hoping she would take the hint. Emily smiled gently at her and wrapped her up in a tight hug. "Oh, JJ, what is up?"
She shrugged as she felt herself being led into another room. They sat heavily on a soft couch, and she burst into tears, burrowing close to Emily, to the warmth she gave off. "Will, Will left us. He couldn't deal with the fallout of everything that's happened recently."
"Cheeto Breath, what haven't you told me?" she whispered in JJ's ear as she began to rub her back in soft circles.
"Curtis destroyed Erin. He forced her to drink, and then he forced her to take his awful form of MDMA. She's been in rehab ever since she woke up from her coma. One of us has been by her side constantly, but Will couldn't deal with that. He didn't understand how I could feel such compassion for her. But I had to give her compassion, she didn't deserve what Curtis did to her. How could he not see that?"
Emily shrugged and then tugged her closer, kissing the side of her head. JJ sighed softly, turning her head and blindly seeking out those soft lips. The kiss was everything that she had imagined it would be, even though it was over much too quickly. JJ felt her brow wrinkle in confusion when Emily pushed her away gently. "You shouldn't do things like that, Jayje."
Those low, cruel, words caused JJ to burst into loud sobs, and she stood, blindly heading over to a window so that she could stare out it. She felt more than heard Emily come up behind her and she tugged her shoulder away as Emily curled her hand around it. "Leave me alone, I should never have come here. You made that clear enough."
"Oh, Jayje, look at me." She shook her head and pulled even further away from Emily, unable to bear the thought of her near. "You're hurting. I'm not going to let you make a mistake when you're hurting. What if you regret what happens while you're here?"
"I could never regret any time that I spent with you," she softly replied.
"I won't come back with you."
"And I won't stay here with you. I just want a soft time of healing." Finally, she turned and looked at Emily, not caring if her eyes were red and puffy. "That's why I ran to you. I knew that I could find my place once more with you. Hotch has Beth, Rossi has Strauss, Garcia has Kevin, and here I am, alone. I need you, even if only for a few brief days."
Emily cocked her head to the side. "You forgot Morgan and Reid, honey."
"They'll probably always be bachelors. I'm used to them being single." A few more tears rolled down her cheeks and Emily reached out to wipe them away. Unconsciously, she leaned into the touch, relishing the feel of her fingers. "So, would you offer me some comfort?"
A dark look of desire flickered across Emily's face and JJ smiled as she closed the distance between them and kissed Emily once more. This kiss seemed much more lush than the first kiss, and she sighed as Emily closed her arms around her waist, pulling her flush against her body.
The sign turned into a moan as Emily slid her hand up to cup her breast, her thumb absently rubbing against her nipple, making it tighten into a hard peak. Aggressively, she pushed Emily back until they fell against the sofa and she straddled the woman, tugging the t-shirt she wore up her body and throwing it to the ground.
Emily wasn't wearing a bra and JJ feasted on the sight of her pale breasts, tipped with small, pert nipples, so unlike her own breasts. Bending down, she placed soft kisses across the skin of her upper chest, enjoying the way her skin jumped beneath her lips. She had just captured one stiff peak between her lips when Emily slipped her hands beneath the waistband of her pants to cup her ass, squeezing the flesh as best she could. "Two can play at the game, Jayje," she panted out, pinching her ass in response to JJ nipping delicately at her nipple.
Releasing her breast, JJ rested her head against the firm flesh, bringing her hand up to trace the shamrock brand that marked Emily's skin. "Well, can we take this game to the bedroom? I think I'm going to want some more space to play in."
Emily nodded and they got up. JJ held her hand out to Emily, wanting the contact with her. The walk to the bedroom didn't take very long, and once the bedroom door was closed, Emily pushed her back against the door, kissing her torridly as her nimble fingers made short work of the buttons on her blouse, fairly tearing it off her body in her eagerness to feel her.
JJ lost her bearings as she came to focus on the feel of Emily's hands and lips roaming up and down her body. Soon, though, she was approaching orgasm and she tightened her thighs around Emily's head as the crest swept over her.
Collapsing back on the bed, she fought to regain her breath as Emily slithered up her body, wrapping her up in a tight embrace. "Are you feeling better now, Jayje?" she asked, resting her head on JJ's shoulder.
"Yes, a little. You know, I didn't even bring any luggage with me, just my purse and some money. I don't know what I was thinking. I just had to get away from home for a bit."
Emily nodded and began to rub her back in soft circles. "That was how I felt at the end, there. I had to leave all the bad memories behind. Doyle ruined my home for me, and I had to find some place where I could make new memories. Memories that didn't include the threat of one of my friends getting shot in the head by a sniper, or constantly looking over my shoulder in fear of being attacked by an anonymous henchman."
"We could have protected you."
Emily pulled back and smiled at her sadly. "No, you couldn't have, my sweet lost girl. Doyle took out my old contacts, one by one, and they were seasoned agents, accustomed to international intrigue. Reid would never have been able to hold his own against men like that, and neither would you. And if they had gone after Garcia? I would never have been able to forgive myself."
"That is such bull and you know it."
"Is it? I saw how you reacted when Henry was in danger. Yeah, you kicked her ass, but she was off her game, distracted, thinking two moves ahead when she should have been focused on the end results. Had you gone up against the men in Doyle's employ? We would have been burying you and Will."
JJ was hurt by Emily's words, and she pulled away, turning to face the wall. "You don't know that."
"And say that to Declan's nanny. She was murdered by people out for vengeance. And if I had gotten you caught up in that world, fuck, I would never have forgiven myself. Those were the type of people I was connected to, due to the nature of my work. Doyle tracking me down, despite everything I had done to protect myself and my loved ones, just showed me that I had to get back in the game at the international level. It wasn't fair to you or the team to ask you to take on the responsibility of looking over your shoulders every time you went outside."
From the sound of her words, JJ knew that Emily was crying, and she felt her heart break. Turning back to her, she let her own tears wet her cheeks as she reached up and wiped away a few of those tears. "I could have lived with that if it kept us all together. Maybe if we had had your eyes on this Replicator nonsense, Erin wouldn't have gotten hurt in the first place. Blake let her feelings cloud her judgment too often."
"My own feelings probably would have clouded my judgment had I stayed."
"Really?"
Emily shrugged. "Maybe not. I could tell that Strauss was changing, before I left. She wasn't as snappish, or unhappy. And those looks she and Rossi shared were a sight to behold. So, maybe not. You could have called me at any point."
"You were busy."
"That is true. It is also true that Clyde would have pulled some strings and helped me figure out things for you. You should have remembered me." JJ nodded and closed her eyes, not wanting to see the faint accusation there.
"I'm sorry." Emily said nothing for a few long moments, and then, JJ felt her lips press gently against hers. "I wish I could go back and change everything."
"Everything happens for a reason, Jayje." She kissed her once more. JJ nodded and snuggled in close to Emily. "How long do we have together?"
"Twelve days."
"More than enough time to get your heart healed up before I send you back there. And you could always make a go for Reid. You two would make a good couple."
JJ giggled a little and nuzzled her face into Emily's shoulder. "Maybe. He might not be ready to date anyone just yet, though."
"Then be the friend he needs until he is ready to get back out on the scene." She nodded and yawned, enjoying how Emily tightened her grip around her waist, holding her close. "I know how much it can mean to have a friend to turn to."
"But you never turned to me."
"No, I turned to Morgan. He never looked at me with those sad blue eyes." JJ sighed a little, rubbing her cheek against the soft flesh of her shoulder. "I could never stand to see you sad, Jayje. Ever."
"I never liked it when you were unhappy either. Are you happy here?"
"More than I thought I would be. Clyde has been a great help in that regard." JJ pressed her lips to Emily's chest and then yawned once more. "Go to sleep, my little lost girl. I'll still be here in the morning."
"All right, sleep tight."
"And I won't let the bedbugs bite." JJ giggled a little as she felt Emily kiss the top of her head gently. She let sleep steal over her, safe and content in Emily's arms, even if it was for only a short time. The lost girl had come home.
