The Valentine Tradition

Disclaimer: Not Mine

It was the incessant giggling that finally drew him into the dining room. The table was littered with the remnants of their school Valentines. But that wasn't what captured his attention. It was the tenting of sheets and blankets strewn across the room all in haphazard fashion. He looked at the room in surprise for a minute then complained loudly, "Hey, I can't believe you guys started without me."

He smiled as he recalled how their tradition began.

They had gotten back from Jacksonville early in the day after a rough couple of days on a case. The team had wanted to go and unwind with a few drinks. He'd been completely on board with the idea until JJ begged off telling them she had to go home to help Henry with his Valentine's. When he'd groaned she flashed him a smile. "You forgot, didn't you?"

He winced and admitted. "I didn't even pick up any cards."

"Don't worry. We were having a tough time deciding what to get. I have the Avengers, Phineas and Ferb and Scooby Doo. I'm pretty sure that I can help you out."

The relief on his face was evident. "Thank God. I just had a mental picture of running to Target, Walgreens, Giant, and who knows where in search of cards."

"Why do men always wait until February 13th to decide to prepare for Valentine's Day?" Emily scoffed.

"Prepare? We don't prepare for it." Morgan stated. "We do what we can to avoid it, then we have to scramble because we know that if we don't honor this stupid non holiday, we won't be getting laid."

"You are so charming, how is it you're still single?" Emily asked, rolling her eyes.

"I'm just saying. It's a holiday created by the greeting card companies. One obviously spearheaded by a woman."

"It's a celebration of love you cynic." Garcia announced, joining the fray.

"As much as it pains me," JJ stated, "I'm going to have to agree with Derek on this one." She laughed as her female counterparts gasped. "What? I want a man that's going to love me all year long, not just on February 14th."

"You go girl." Derek grinned. "That's a tall order, what exactly does love you all year long entail?" He wagged his eyebrows at her as JJ blushed.

"Shut up. I'm not referring to sex. Although..." She broke off with a laugh. "No, I just want someone that is going to appreciate me all the time. You know, maybe flowers just because. A chocolate bar when I'm having a bad day. Watching a mushy movie with me or taking a bubble bath with me in the interest of romance."

"Breakfast in bed would be nice." Emily added. "Maybe a full body rub."

"Oh, I'm a sucker for lingerie." Penelope threw in. "And I love it when they compliment my attire, ooh, and open doors for me."

"Exactly." JJ agreed. "And it shouldn't be confined to one day out of the year."

"Let's get back to the sex." Derek laughed. "Obviously you all want a tiger in the bedroom."

The three of them looked at his posturing and busted out laughing. "Right." Emily snorted. "I'd settle for a man that is comfortable around the female anatomy."

JJ nodded her head and added, "That's as worried about making sure I get taken care of as he is about his own end game."

"And one that doesn't roll over and fall asleep within seconds of reaching that end game." Penelope concluded.

Rossi snorted at the expression on Hotch's face. "I think this is where you apologize for all men for your failure to procure Valentine's for Jack's class party." He slapped his back. "I'll be sure to think of you while I sort through the droves of desperate women at the bar that don't have a significant other for this all important holiday that are going to settle for a little 'Rossi' loving." He grinned wickedly at the ladies. "And I solemnly promise to make sure that their end game is as satisfying as my own."

"You should come with a warning." Emily noted.

"Oh I do, it's visible once you unwrap me, I'm willing to let you see." He offered pleasantly.

Emily snorted, "Yeah, I think I'll pass."

"One day, Bella." He slipped his arm around her back as he guided her out of the office. "I do know my way around the female anatomy."

"So does Reid but I'm not planning on sleeping with him either."

Surprising them all Reid responded. "I have read the Kuma Sutra and I know all of the erogenous zones."

"You're peaking too soon, save that for the bar, Pretty Boy." Derek slapped an arm around his shoulders. "That is definitely something you want to work into conversation."

JJ shook her head as the five of them disappeared from sight. "Aren't you glad you don't have to suffer through that anymore?"

"What do you mean?" Hotch asked.

"Well you have Beth now."

He wondered if it was just his imagination but he could have sworn she flinched a bit just then. "Actually, Beth and I decided that the long distance thing just wasn't working. Looks like you're the only one of us that doesn't have to worry about it." He told her as she rooted in her purse not meeting his eyes.

"Actually," She swung her eyes up to his and confided softly, "Will and I have decided to divorce."

The announcement stunned him. "What! When did that happen?"

JJ hesitated for a second before admitting, "He moved out over Veterans Day."

"Jesus JJ that was three months ago." He thought back wondering if there were signs he missed or just plain ignored.

"I know." She lifted her shoulder. "I didn't know how to tell anyone."

"We're your family you know that you can tell us anything." He stated firmly.

"Really? How long has it been since you and Beth stopped seeing one another?" She asked pointedly.

"Since the last time I visited and she was already engaged with another gentleman caller." He confessed.

"She was cheating on you?" She growled.

"We never really defined our relationship." He realized how lame that excuse was as he said it.

"Did she feed you that line of bull? Please." She slapped the item that she'd found in her purse in his hand. "You need this more than I do. You cannot tell me that she wasn't aware that you would assume that your relationship was exclusive. She knew darn right well you weren't schlepting it to anyone else while you were dating her. She better hope I don't run into her anytime soon. I have half a mind to take a trip to New York." She shut up when she realized he was grinning at her. "What?"

"Thank you for being indignant on my behalf."

"I'm not indignant, I'm pissed." But she grinned back. "She didn't deserve you."

Choosing to let it drop he went back to their original topic. "So Valentine's Day cards."

Her eyes widened. "Right." She glanced at her watch. "Do you want to swing by and get them?"

"Why don't you and Henry come over for dinner? You're saving my ass, the least I can do is feed you."

"If it comes in the form of take out from that Chinese place by you then you've got yourself a deal." She grabbed her purse. "I'll go and pick up Henry and the cards and be at your place by 5:30?"

"Sound's good." He watched as she left the office in a flurry then he looked at the shiny little heart she had left there. Dove chocolate. Smiling he opened it and read the message. "Forget the rules and play by your heart." Chuckling he rewrapped the chocolate and slipped it into his coat pocket. It was already after four, he had some work to do.

JJ and Henry arrived at the Hotchner residence seconds after the food was delivered. "Oh my God that smells good. I'm starved." She announced while unwrapping both herself and Henry from the elements. "Did you know that it is snowing? I don't think I heard that forecast."

He took both coats from her to hang in the closet. "Maybe they'll get it right this time. What are they predicting?"

She giggled over at him. "Probably clear skies."

He led them into the kitchen where he set the table and placed the takeout. "Let's eat while it's hot." Dinner was a fun affair. It was always his favorite part of the day when he wasn't traveling to sit and enjoy that brief amount of time with his son. He found that adding JJ and Henry to the mix only added to his pleasure. He looked up and discovered JJ watching him. "What, do I have something on my face?"

She shook her head. "No, it's just, I don't think I've ever seen you smile so much." She smiled back at him. "It's nice."

"It's kind of hard not to smile when I listen to them talk." His eyes met hers and they shared a brief understanding. They both saw too many horrible things in their line of work. It was nice to take joy in the simple things like two boys giggling over the antics of a cartoon show they were discussing.

When they finished eating JJ offered to help Hotch clean the kitchen but at his suggestion she found herself in the dining room supervising the Valentine production. Both boys had lists to work off and due to Jack's suggestion that they pick and choose from all their choices there were no arguments over which boy got which box.

Hotch joined them after putting away leftovers and clearing all of the plates. He entered the room just in time to see Jack sliding a Valentine in front of JJ. "Thank you for help me and my dad tonight Miss Jareau."

She glanced up at Hotch with a pleased smile before leaning over and hugging Jack for his offering. "Oh Jack, you are so welcome." She dropped a kiss on his head that had his cheeks turning pink. "I'm glad I was able help out. Thank you both for dinner."

"I hope that you're okay with accepting our hospitality a little bit longer." Hotch said causing JJ to look at him with a puzzled expression. "I had the news on while I was cleaning up. We're under a winter storm advisory, JJ. The roads already look horrible you and Henry are going to need to stay here tonight." The announcement brought a whoop of celebration from the boys.

"But…"

"No buts about it, Jay. Look outside. Those little flurries that you had on your way over have turned into a blizzard." The boys quickly jumped from the table and headed to the window, JJ wasn't far behind. They looked out onto a world that was blanketed in white fluffy snow. The sky was light gray and the snow was coming down fast and furious.

"Can we build a fort, Dad?" Jack asked.

"I don't see why not." Hotch announced as JJ swung around to him. "You know that they'll have cancelled school by the time we go to bed." It was just the two of them left standing by the window as the boys had raced off to gather supplies the minute Hotch agreed to the fort.

"It's probably okay enough for me to make it back home if I leave right now."

"Don't be silly." He slung an arm around her shoulders and turned her in the direction of the noise. "You play your cards right and you might even get to see the inside of an all guy fort."

"You say that like you think I haven't before."

He raised a brow.

"I'm not telling." She laughed. "Man, I wish I would have gone with my first thought and pulled on a pair of sweat pants instead of jeans. I hate sleeping in clothes."

"Clothes are optional inside my fort." Hotch whispered seductively in her ear before pulling away from her completely and going to assist the boys. She stood there for a moment in stunned silence. Had he really just said that to her? She looked over to where he sat laughing with Henry. She'd almost convinced herself that it had been a figment of her overactive imagination when his eyes met hers and she recognized the heat in them. Holy cow. He was flirting with her. It took all of a second for that realization to go from shock to delight to pure panic.

"Are you okay, Miss Jareau?" JJ snapped out of it to find Jack staring up at her, his little brow puckered in worry.

She gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'm fine, Jack. I've never built a fort before."

Accepting that excuse he took her hand. "Don't worry, I'll help you." He led her over to where they had amassed what she was sure had to be all the pillows and bedding in the house. "Dad will help too, you can even sleep with us if you want, but if you don't I'm sure dad would let you share his bed."

Hotch watched as she was once again charmed by his son. He was crossing the room when Jack made the last comment that caused JJ to turn beet red. He couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips or his quick reply. "Absolutely, and please, I have the same clothing policy for my bed too, whatever you're comfortable with."

"You should sleep with Hotch, mommy, I don't want you hogging the fort." Henry announced, carrying a pillow that was almost as big as he was.

Hotch sobered when he noticed the panic in her eyes. "Hey, I'm teasing you. I'll sleep on the couch. Or I'll take Jack's bed." He reached down and squeezed her hand. "I would never intentionally do anything that made you uncomfortable."

He was teasing. It was a joke. She went from panic to disappointment. "You didn't." She answered back, cursing her beating heart. "I just.." She looked up in his eyes and was rewarded by the heat she'd seen earlier. He might be downplaying his comments but he couldn't hide his attraction.

"JJ?" He prompted when she continued to stare up at him. Unconsciously she licked her lips which had his head bending towards her; his breath was mingling with hers when a tug on his pant leg brought him back to focus.

"Hotch, I need you to help me." The little boy maneuvered himself between the two adults. "I don't know how to build a fort."

Taking a breath and step back Hotch leaned down and scooped the boy up. "Henry, my boy, you're in luck. I am an awesome fort builder. If they gave out awards for fort building I'd take first prize."

JJ smiled as he strode away yammering with her son. Her heart finally stopped pounding in her chest. They'd almost kissed. They'd been seconds away from kissing. God she had wanted him to kiss her. Her lips still tingled in anticipation. What the hell was wrong with her? She ran her hands through her hair in frustration. Nothing was wrong with her, he was an attractive man. He was funny, sweet, adorable with his son. She watched as he instructed Henry how to tie the sheets. Heck he was adorable with her son, she sighed. He bent over and her eyes landed on his rear end. Good lord the man knew how to wear a pair of jeans. Crap! What was she thinking?

"Are you sure you're okay?" Jack asked, "You have a funny look on your face."

"What?" JJ turned to realize that Jack had been studying her.

"You look like you're scared, kind of." He said thoughtfully. "Maybe not scared exactly, more kind of like when the teacher announces that we're having a test and we didn't know about it so we're kind of surprised and a little scared because maybe we don't know if we're going to pass."

The analogy had her grinning. "Are you planning on joining the BAU when you grow up Jack?"

"I don't know." He shrugged. "Maybe. I'm a pretty good soccer player I might want to do that too. They make a lot of money." He confided.

"Well, if money is your motivator you don't want to work at the BAU." She advised.

"Do you want to talk about what's bothering you, Miss Jareau?" The little boy asked politely.

"Why are you calling me Miss all of a sudden Jack? You always call me JJ."

The boy wrinkled his nose. "We had a lesson on manners, sometimes old people don't like it when you use their names it's disrespectful."

His explanation had her hooting with laughter. "Please make sure you call Dave 'Mr. Rossi' the next time you see him and give him the same explanation."

He looked at her with confusion. "Huh?"

"Never mind." She ruffled his hair. "Just call me JJ, okay? Even though I'm old you've known me all your life, you're allowed to call me JJ."

"Are you two planning on helping or are you going to spend the night talking. Henry and I aren't going to do all the work." Hotch yelled across the room.

"You're tying blankets together, how hard can that be?" JJ grumbled, walking with Jack over to where they stood. However, it didn't take long for her to join in and assist in turning their dining room into a tented city. "I've never done this before." She admitted.

"Well, here's to a night of firsts." Hotch said, winking over at her from his spot on the floor.

"Can we watch a movie, too, Dad?" Jack asked, yawning widely.

Hotch looked at his watch. It was 8:30 they'd been playing for almost two hours. "We should probably check the news. I doubt you'll have school tomorrow but we should find out for sure." One by one they crawled out of their fort and headed to the family room.

Hotch turned on one of the local channels and sure enough, along the bottom of the screen cancellations were running. They were showing the closings in Maryland at the moment but considering the number of them it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that their school district would be on the list. He looked at JJ. "One movie?"

"Maybe a short one." She suggested.

"Maybe we could turn out the lights and you could tell us a story?" Jack suggested.

JJ smiled. "That is a brilliant idea, Jack." She knew that Henry wasn't going to last long. They went into Jack's room for the boys to get ready for bed. Luckily they found a pair of pj's that Jack had outgrown that were almost a fit for Henry, then one by one they crawled back into the fort. Henry was asleep in a matter of minutes. Jack followed shortly after.

"How about a glass of wine?"

JJ glanced over to find Hotch watching her. The boys lay between them.

"Oh, okay." The almost kiss flittered through her brain. She followed him out of the tent once again unabashedly staring at his butt. Before she knew it they were in the kitchen and he was pressing a wine glass into her hand. "Thanks."

"Can I ask what happened?" He questioned, leading her back into the family room and sinking onto the couch.

JJ knew what he was referring to and shrugged. "Nothing, really. It was kind of like an epiphany. One day we just realized that while we loved each other we weren't in love with each other. I don't think we would have ever gotten married if it hadn't been for him getting shot and my absolute relief that he was okay. I mistook that for something else. My life with Will was comfortable but there were no butterflies, no anticipation." She sighed disappointedly, "and it was like that for him too. I think what drove it home was the fact that he had a new partner that did instigate those feelings."

"He's already moved on?" Hotch inquired, surprised by the thought. He looked at the woman in front of him and wondered how anyone could willingly walk away from her without a fight.

JJ smiled. "Yeah, she's a nice girl. I met her over Christmas."

"That was fast."

"Not everyone moves at our snail pace." She joked. "I mean your pace and my pace." She flushed, "Not ours." She finished lamely gesturing to the pair of them. Her eyes flared as he removed the glass from her hand and set both his and hers on the coffee table. "What are you doing?" She squeaked, as he maneuvered her into the corner.

"What I've dreamt of doing for eight years." He moaned slightly as his mouth made contact with hers, lightly his lips just barely grazing hers, softly, then his tongue swept out and licked at her lips causing her to gasp, giving him the opening to sweep into her mouth and plunder it's sweetness.

He tasted like wine she thought as she tangled her hands in his hair. He'd released her mouth and was currently working on her neck. She realized that she had moved from the corner to become the aggressor as she pressed into him.

"Am I moving too fast?" He asked as his hands palmed and kneaded her ass.

"We appear to still be fully clothed so I'm going to say no." Her lips cruised over his collarbone. She squealed as he lifted her with ease. "Where are you going?"

"I'm taking you to bed, where I have every intention of getting you naked and indulging in several other things I've dreamt of doing with and to you." He paused. "Unless you have a problem with that."

"You are moving kind of slow." She complained with a giggle.

He hurriedly moved to the bedroom where he came to an abrupt stop. "How do you feel about a bed with no bedding?"

Apparently she'd been accurate in her assumption that Henry and Jack got all the sheets and blankets in the house. She looked over at him and laughed. "We'll all be naked together."

"I have other sheets." He balked, thankful that the mattress pad at least remained.

"What was it you said earlier? It's a night for firsts." She splayed her hands on his chest.

"I like a girl that's a bit adventurous." He told her pulling her close.

"Oh then you are going to love me." She promised.

Much later as JJ tried to catch her breath she looked over at him. "That was…"

"I hope you're suitably impressed at my knowledge of the female anatomy." He said smugly.

"I might be a little scandalized." She responded. "Just how…"

"Don't ask questions you don't want to know the answers to." He leaned down and placed a lingering kiss on her mouth.

"I'm pretty sure I want the answer." The idea of him doing the things he'd done to her with a bunch of other women wasn't sitting well. She was actually a bit jealous, which was completely irrational.

He kissed away the little worry lines on her brow and told her. "I read. A lot."

"You got that from a book?" She asked, incredulous.

"I spend a lot of time alone, JJ." He looked at her curiously. "What, do you think I pick up strange women and bring them home with Jack here?"

"No." She answered without hesitation. "No, I just, I mean…" She blew out a breath. "That was incredible, perfect, I don't think…" She chuckled and looked at him embarrassedly. "My God, I'm rambling." She looked at him intently. "It's never been like that before." She finally admitted.

He looked at her for a second before capturing her mouth in a sweet kiss. "For me either."

"What are we going to do?" She asked, worriedly.

"Well," He dropped a kiss on her nose, "I'm going to catch my breath and then we'll go back to some other things I want to try."

"You're not being serious." She admonished him. "This is serious."

"This is very serious."

"Don't make fun of me."

"I'm not." He rolled over and got off the bed. JJ watched as he made his way over to the closet and opened the door. She frowned as she watched him reach for the suit he had worn earlier in the day and pull something out of the pocket before turning and walking back to the bed. "You gave me this today. It inspired me."

"It's a piece of chocolate." She scoffed.

"The message inside inspired me." He waited until she unwrapped it and read the words.

"Soooo you decided to take me to bed because I gave you a piece of chocolate?" She stated sarcastically.

"I decided to stop worrying about the rules and follow my heart. I wasn't kidding when I told you I've dreamt about kissing you, about making love to you, I've watched you for years but there has always been something that stopped me, my marriage, your marriage, whatever, there is nothing to stop us right now."

"Except for our jobs. You're my boss. Oh god, I slept with my boss." She groaned, covering her face with her hands.

"Strauss is leaving, I've already applied for her position and I have every reason to assume that I'd be a shoe in for it." He responded easily. "I'm tired of coming up with reasons why this," he indicated the two of them, "Won't work. I'm ready to come up with solutions to make sure it does."

Her perfectly shaped lips parted in surprise. "Oh."

"I take this very seriously." He reiterated.

Her smile sent his heart racing. "Well then, have you caught your breath yet?" She asked him.

"What are you doing?" JJ asked as she looked up at him from her spot on the floor.

"Just remembering the first time we made a fort."

"Mom!" Henry's voice could be heard but there was no sign of him. "She keeps pulling down the fort can't you get her out of here?"

"That's why we should have a no girl rule." Jack could be heard saying. "Oh, come on, Anna, MOM!"

"Don't look for me to save you, you just said no girls." JJ told him.

"You're not a girl, you're mom." Henry argued.

"Mom is most definitely a girl." Hotch argued back crawling in after his family. "You know that Anna just wants to be in here because you guys are." He told his sons as the little girl who looked so much like her mom continued to terrorize the fort. "It's time to hit the lights and settle down for bed. We didn't get a storm this year."

JJ smiled as the boys quickly scrambled to their make shift beds. Her smile widened as their sister made a big production of crawling in between the pair.

"You're going to tell us a story, right Dad?" Jack asked pleadingly.

Twenty minutes later Hotch looked across the sleeping lot to his wife. "Are you ready to continue this tradition?" He whispered softly.

"I am." She pulled something from her sweater pocket and stretched across the kids to place it in his hand before turning and crawling out of the tent, confident that he would follow.

Hotch smiled down at the shiny heart in his hand. Curious, he unwrapped it. 'Go ahead, have another.' He stared at it for a minute puzzled before following her out. "I don't get it." He announced.

She smiled. "I had to go through a lot of candy to find a message that would work."

He shrugged, reaching for her. "I'm going to need another clue."

"Some profiler you are." She laughed as she took his hands and settled them on her abdomen. "Have another, Aaron." She watched as realization kicked in.

"Are you serious?" He questioned as his hands molded her stomach.

"We are definitely going to need a bigger fort next year." She confirmed as he let out a whoop and scooped her up. "I'm going to guess that you're okay with the idea."

"I'm going to show you just how okay I am with it. I am going to worship your body…" He paused as he stepped into their room. "Jeez, I thought we told them they to stay out of our room?"

JJ turned and looked at their bed, stripped of everything but the mattress pad, and laughed. "It is a tradition." She grinned up at her husband.

Thanks for reading! No matter how you celebrate Valentine's Day (if you even do) I hope it is great.