Penelope hasn't stopped looking at his chin all through lunch. Derek doesn't know why, but she won't stop and it's starting to drive him a little crazy. God knows there's enough stuff in her office that she could focus on something else for a while. After ten minutes of unwavering attention, he drops what's left of his sandwich on his plate and leans forward with a frown.

"Okay, spill it, baby girl. What's up with you today?"

Penelope leans back in her chair, her eyes wide for a moment like she's going to pretend she doesn't know what he's talking about, but when he arches an eyebrow, she shrugs. "It's the goatee."

Derek runs his hand over his mouth, smoothing his facial hair. "What about it?"

"It's just," Penelope pauses and slowly circles her fork in the air. "It kind of reminds me of Rossi."

Of all the answers Derek would have expected, that isn't on the list. His brows draw together and his frown deepens. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I guess that's just something I associate more with him than you. Or was that what you were going for? I know he's impressive, but you get plenty of respect without trying to look like him, my chocolate god." Garcia takes a bite of her salad, and Derek doesn't know what look he has on his face, but her eyebrows shoot up and she leans forward earnestly. "I'm not saying it's a bad look. Just that you could be a little less obvious with the hero worshiping."

"What?" Derek sputters. "I'm not-I mean, I don't-" When Penelope just takes another bite of her salad and calmly chews, he shakes his head and stands. "You know what? We're not having this conversation.

As he's walking out of the office, Penelope calls after him, "Aw, studly, don't be offended! I'm totally not judging you for your man crush!"

The next day, after Derek walks into the office with a perfectly smooth face, Penelope pauses by Spencer's desk and hands him a folder.

"Thanks again for that," Spencer says, nodding minutely toward Derek as he walks away from them toward his office. Penelope perches on the side of his desk and grins.

"Think nothing of it, sweet cheeks. I'm on your side. He looks better without it."

Spencer looks up from flipping through the papers in the folder and smiles. "He really does. Now, is this everything or are you going to show up with a shoebox tomorrow?"

"Nope, that's everything you need to do my taxes. As always, it's a pleasure doing business with you," she says with a wink.


Thank you for reading! Feedback is overwhelmingly appreciated.

Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me.

Written for the daily drabble exercise I do on my LJ. Answers the prompt "Reid hates Derek's beard."