Author's Note: This was written for whiteswan's birthday (just a few hour late!). Happy Birthday, Emily!
BEGINNING
"JJ," Hotch said, entering the conference room as lightening lit up the room.
"Hotch!" JJ gasped, both from his appearance in the room and the lightening strike.
Hotch closed the door and shut the blind. He walked over to the window where she was watching the storm. He itched to touch her, but settled for speaking instead. "The plane's still grounded because of the storm. They're hoping we can head out in a few hours. You've been avoiding me."
JJ shook her head, a bit stunned by the change of subject. "No, I haven't."
"Yes, you have," he argued. "You've been avoiding me for the past two weeks. You make sure that someone else is with us at all times. The few times that I've attempted to pair us up on this case, you've found a way to get out of it. You're so skilled at it that I don't even realize that you've done it until I'm riding in the car with Reid!"
"I think you're just being paranoid," JJ told him. She attempted to pass him, but he grabbed her shoulders. She shivered at the contact. "Hotch, let me go."
"No," Hotch replied, firmly. "I'm not letting you leave until we talk about this. Why are you avoiding me?"
JJ lowered her head. "I already told you that I'm not."
Hotch sighed. "Is it something that I did or said?"
"Of course not."
"Is it something with Jack? Did he do or say something when he was there a few weeks ago?" Hotch asked. Henry and JJ had been spending a lot of time together recently.
JJ raised her head suddenly. "Of course not! Jack was a sweetheart as always!"
Lightening lit up the sky as Hotch searched her face. "Is it Will? Did he do something? If he's making this divorce difficult in anyway, I want you to tell me right now! I won't stand for it! I-"
"Hotch!" she shouted to stop him. "He hasn't done anything. To me. He hasn't done anything to me."
"Henry?" The fire in Hotch's eyes nearly made her stand back.
"Henry's fine. I'm fine," JJ assured him, though she felt oddly aroused at the thought of Hotch beating the hell out of Will for her and Henry. She took a deep breath. "When I went to drop Henry off at Will's a few weeks ago, I... I saw someone leaving his house." She bit her bottom lip. "I saw Beth and it was clear that she had spent the night."
"Oh," was all he replied. After a few moments, a smile grew on his face. "That's it? That's why you were avoiding me? Because you didn't want to tell me about Will and Beth?"
JJ nodded. "I couldn't be the one to hurt you."
Hotch pulled her into a hug, surprising them both. "You didn't. Beth and I broke up about a month ago."
"What?" She pulled back from him, slightly. JJ smacked his arm. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I was afraid you might hit me," he deadpanned. He flinched when she raised her hand to do it again. "Okay, okay. I didn't want to see the pity in anyone's eyes when I couldn't hold onto another relationship." He paused. "How are you doing with the Beth and Will thing?"
JJ shrugged. "I'm not jealous if that's what you're thinking. Will and I were over a long time before we were actually over. I never should have married him. I guess that's why they tell you not to make major decisions after a traumatic event. I'm ready to move on so why shouldn't he?"
Suddenly aware that his arms were still on her shoulders, Hotch became hyper aware of JJ. The sweet lavender of her shampoo invaded his nostrils. Her skin felt like silk under the tips of his fingers where they lay on her neck. The hitch in her breath as he continued to take in her crystal blue eyes caused his own heart to speed up. Hotch licked his lips, longing to taste her.
"Hotch," she whispered, careful not to break the spell between the two of them, "are you upset that Beth is sleeping with Will?"
"No," he answered in equally hushed tones. "I'm ready to move on."
JJ inched closer to him, running her hands up his back. "And do you have someone that you'd like to move on with?"
Hotch nodded. "She's beautiful and smart. She's tough and determined. She takes my breath away just by walking into the room. There's just one tiny problem; she works for me. It would be one thing if we were just co-workers, but-"
"What if I told you that the director owes me a favor?"
"That would have to be a pretty big favor," he commented, his mind wandering over different scenarios that would cause the director to owe JJ such a favor.
JJ nodded. "He owes me." She glanced away, briefly. "Hotch, I like you. I like spending time with you. I used to ask for your help on cases long after I really needed it just so I could be with you."
Hotch chuckled. "I used to ask for your help sorting through cases when you were the liaison long after I knew you could do it on your own just so I could spend time with you."
"Confession? Henry only asks to see you guys about half the time. The other half, I casually mention it to him until he runs with the idea," she admitted.
"I do the same thing!" Hotch exclaimed. He moved one of his hands to cup her neck. "We're quite a pair, aren't we?"
JJ nodded. "Hotch, I'm going to kiss you now. I'm going to kiss and might even let you get to second base. Then, you're going to ask me out to dinner on Friday night. I'm going to pretend to think about it before accepting, but I'll actually be jumping up and down inside."
Hotch grinned. "You have this all figured out, huh?"
"Only the beginning. The rest is up to us."
THE END