So I seem to be on a bit of a Will/JJ kick at the moment and playing around with the start of their relationship. I'll be the first to admit this is pure cheese and feel good fluff. Sue me.
This is what I think should have happened after the credits rolled on Jones (Season 2x18)
-CM-
We're both off the clock. Let me buy you a drink before you leave.
JJ couldn't help but smile when she glanced at her cell over her go bag. It was a bold move, one she wouldn't normally make, but there was something about the detective that made her want to put herself out there.
After they'd arrested Sarah Danlin, she couldn't shake the feeling that she'd be missing out if she left without a word. It would have been so easy to head back to the station and pack the case up. To get on the jet and leave the flirtation in New Orleans. Leave it as something she could dredge up in her daydreams, leave his voice as something she could draw on during late nights when sleep evaded her…
It would have been so easy.
Instead, she saw Will - Bill, he used Bill - standing near his car looking pensive and decided that maybe easy was overrated.
Maybe it was the effect of the city. Fast and loose, the carefree atmosphere, colour bursting everywhere. But JJ was feeling brave.
She couldn't shake the feeling that had settled over her from the moment she locked eyes with LaMontagne. JJ wasn't naive enough to think it was anything more than attraction. She's had a thing for pretty boys for a long as she can remember.
The way her skin was on fire when he stood just behind her while they were undercover in the square. The way the electricity buzzed through her veins when he locked eyes with her and that southern drawl washed over her. She was surprised she wasn't a puddle of mush on the floor by this point.
JJ tapped her thumbs against the screen for a moment, weighing her words.
Sure. Flight isn't until 9am tomorrow. My only condition is the bar sells food.
Putting her cell on the desk so that she didn't watch for a reply, JJ unzipped her go bag. Since taking the lead Hotch always specified the minimum contents of their go bags. And today she was thankful.
Three work outfits. A normal set of clothes. A fancy undercover outfit.
A casual undercover outfit.
JJ wasn't sure what this was tonight, but she didn't want to look like an FBI agent while doing it.
She grabbed her outfit - it was nothing fancy. Just a simple day dress, mint green with a low-key floral design. Paired with her flats, she looked like any other tourist enjoying the atmosphere.
For one night, she wanted to be like any other girl.
Before she could change, her cell buzzed making her start. JJ wouldn't admit the speed that she moved to grab it.
I could never let a pretty girl go hungry. Meet me at Maley's in half an hour. It's right down the block from your hotel.
JJ remembered driving by the restaurant on the way back to her hotel and made a mental note to ask Will how he knew she'd been considering there for dinner.
She quickly finished changing and sent off a quick text to Spencer letting him know that she was going out to try some authentic Cajun food and she'd see him in the morning. That would buy her a few hours at least.
With one last glance in the mirror JJ tried to taper down her smile and remind herself that he was just another guy. She could do this.
…
JJ found Will easily when she entered the bar - he's standing talking to the barman, giving her the opportunity to appreciate the view. He had changed into something more casual - dark jeans and a button down shirt - and when he laughed at something the bartender said, she felt the butterflies reawaken in her stomach.
Taking a deep breath, JJ walked up behind Will and placed a hand in his arm. "Hey."
Will turned, flashing her his crooked half smile, before making a gesture to someone further down the bar. Leaning in, he placed his palm lightly on the small of her back, "What can I get you to drink?"
JJ was suddenly aware of how thin her dress was, zeroing in on the heat of his palm. Relaxing into his touch, JJ smiled, "White wine. Large."
"Is that how they play it in Pennsylvania?"
Will's grin was teasing, but JJ gave him a soft elbow to the side regardless. "My wine and I can always go somewhere else."
JJ looked around, realising just how crowded the bar was. There was a waiting area off to the side where there were at least twenty people sitting with buzzers. "Think we'll get a table?"
"Maley's is the number one sports bar in the city. It's packed almost every night. But luckily for you, the owner's family." The man Will gestured to earlier appeared as if on cue, with two menus and a warm smile. "JJ, this is my big cousin Terry. Terry, this is SSA Jennifer Jareau from the FBI. She's been working with me on the serial killer case."
"Pleasure to meet you, chere." Terry reached out to shake JJ's hand. He was slightly taller than Will, but you could see the family resemblance in the set of their shoulders and across the eyes. "Good job, stuff like that's bad for business. Will tells me you want to experience the real New Orleans before you head home. And if I might say so myself, this is a great place to start."
Once they were settled in their booth and had given Terry their orders, JJ was quickly distracted by the tv mounted in the wall. Will showed her how to switch between channels, and she didn't look to check his reaction when she whooped at finding the second half of the Redskins game.
"Seriously," Will tilted his head to catch her eye. JJ was fixated on the defence of the touch line, and only raised an eyebrow at him as the Redskins made a foot of progress, "The gods must be laughing at me right now."
"And why's that?" JJ reached out to grab a few peanuts from the bowl on the table.
"Because of course you like football, and carbs, and rather than worrying about my day job you carry your own gun and kick down your own doors." Will shook his head in disbelief, "I don't know how you're still single because you, Miss Jareau, are perfect."
JJ expected to be taken back by his words. Instead, she smiled sadly and looked around the bar. "You want to know why I'm still single?"
She glanced around the room, looking for a perfect example. She noticed a man by the sliding doors to the balcon. He was glaring at something across the room, gripping his glass so tight she could see his knuckles turning white. Following his line of sight, JJ saw her opportunity, leaned in towards Will and lowered her voice, "For one, it's a Saturday night and I'm still at work. But then you have the perils of working so closely with profilers."
She pointed to a couple standing at the bar. They were in their late 20s, the girl was standing too close to the guy, grabbing his shirt while he laughed with a waitress. "Look at that girl there in the pink shirt. She doesn't trust her date, so she's marking her territory. He's doing his best to push her away, make himself look available to other potential suitors."
"Yet every time he makes eye contact with Mr Leather Jacket over there," she inclined her head in the direction of the man she noticed first, "he moves to take up more of her personal space. Because although he doesn't want her, he doesn't want to share."
"I didn't know you were a profiler?" Will - she needed to stop calling him that, even in her head - whispered as he leaned in. He didn't seem put off by her words, instead he seemed genuinely intrigued.
"Oh I'm not," JJ laughed as she shook her head, but didn't move back in her seat, "I've just picked up a few tricks over the years."
Maybe more than a few tips. She'd even looked at taking the profiling courses. But she liked her job, and didn't trust anyone else to do it properly. Besides, she still had a few years before she hit the minimum age threshold for the unit. It was unlikely that the Bureau would make the same exceptions for her as they had for Reid.
"So you don't date because you see through all the crap guys pull to get a girl like you to give them the time of day." He raised an eyebrow in challenge, and JJ could tell he didn't believe her.
She supposed it was understandable. What had he called it - a culture thing. Here, it was nothing to send a drink to a guy sitting with a girl. She doubted that Will had ever had to work for a woman's attention - and if he did, she probably wasn't flying all over the country at a moments notice.
Long distance took on a whole new meaning with this job.
JJ reached down to grab her fork, needing something to do with her hands - something that wasn't grabbing his. "This job makes you naturally suspicious. Throw in the fact I'm more likely to be out of the state than in it, you don't get many serious offers."
"And I am thankful for that."
…
A few hours - and a lot of wine - later, Will was walking JJ back to her hotel. JJ had stopped thinking about playing it cool before their starters had even arrived. With Will - she'd stopped trying to correct herself and he seemed to like it - it was easy. The conversation never stalled.
He seemed genuinely interested in her job, in her career aspirations. And likewise, she found it interesting that if he wasn't a cop he'd be in business with his cousin. The fact that he spent his weekends volunteering - rebuilding the city, coaching his little cousins soccer team - it made her feel all warm and fuzzy. She'd volunteered on and off for years, mostly supporting at risk teenagers. It was nice to have something in common other than their jobs.
After dinner, they had relocated to another bar by the beach, cuddled in a booth and had cocktails with sparklers. Will made her feel comfortable, and the way he looked at her...she was willing to take the chance. She let him wrap his arm around her, let herself lean into his embrace, let herself think about what would happen if this lasted more than one night.
Because she wanted more.
They'd danced. She couldn't remember the last time a guy she'd been interested in had asked her to dance - strangers grinding on her in clubs didn't count, although she'd love to let Will try that - hell, she couldn't remember the last time she'd had a date go this well.
And this wasn't even a date. Was it?
As they came to the front of her hotel, JJ checked her watch and felt her stomach drop a little. 1am. She was going to be dying come 6am when she got up for their flight. She tried to convince herself that that's all the knot in her stomach related to.
Just hangover flying.
Not flying away from Will.
She could do this.
Turning to face him, JJ stepped just out of his embrace and smiled, "Thanks for tonight. I really enjoyed myself."
"So," Will reached out to grab her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. JJ's smile widened as she stepped back into his personal space, pulling his hand around to rest on the small of her back. Clearly, she wasn't the only one who was affected. Given the imminent departure, she'd take everything she could get, "Have I managed to convince you that New Orleans is more than just a breeding ground for serial killers?"
JJ tilted her head to the side, pretending to think about it, "Definitely. I might need to come back just to try the rest of your cousin's menu."
She definitely needed to come back. For more than just his cousin's food.
New Orleans had always been on her bucket list. Specifically, New Orleans at Mardi Gras, but she was open to more experiences. She'd heard good things about the zoo, and one of her friends from college still raved about the French Market. Given the right incentive, she could be here as often as possible.
"That may have been part of my plan." Will brought his other hand up to circle her waist, "Show you the real city. Make it impossible for you to stay away."
JJ was pretty sure her heart stopped at that one. This couldn't be real.
Things like this didn't happen to her.
She waited for her instincts to kick in. The ones that pushed people away instead of letting them in. The ones that sounded like her ex boyfriends that said she didn't deserve something this good.
The ones that said she should back away and try to maintain a professional relationship. That sleeping with local law enforcement was Morgan's gig. That she shouldn't make it awkward in case they came back.
The voices stayed quiet.
JJ's smile widened as she decided on her next move. She took one final half step closer to Will so that there was no space between them, and wound her arms around his neck. If her insecurities were giving her the night off, she was going to take full advantage. "And what was the other part? I think I need more convincing."
Will chuckled, and it did strange things to her insides. "Well I was hoping it wouldn't come to this…." He didn't break eye contact as he cupped her cheek, running his thumb across the skin.
JJ leaned into his touch and let her eyes flutter shut, enjoying the intimacy of the moment. He hadn't even touched her yet and she was melting. She sensed, rather than felt him lean in. The heat radiating from his skin, his nose just brushing her skin, his breath grazing over her lips, "Tell me to stop and I will."
Ever the gentleman, JJ thought wryly.
Although, if he was this considerate fully clothed, she had high hopes for less pg scenarios. Even this tension was close to killing her.
Making a noise of disapproval, JJ leaned forward and closed the gap.
She wished she could say the kiss started off chaste and escalated from there - like the stereotypical RomCom that Penelope loved to bring out on movie nights.
Instead, the moment their lips touched it was like electricity jolted through her body. She didn't know what it was, but she needed more. Winding her arms tighter, pulling herself impossibly closer, anything that could feed the fire. Before she knew it, her back was against the cool brick wall and Will's hands were in her hair.
Eventually, they had to break away for air.
Breathing heavily, JJ smirked, "Run that by me again? I think I need more convincing."
Will's smirk matched her own as he leaned in to place a soft kiss against her throat, "Liar."
A car door slammed shut further down the block, popping their bubble of self-contained exhibition. Reluctantly pulling away, Will reached to lace his fingers through hers as he guided her towards the entrance.
JJ's mind was a blur. Her rational side was telling her to slow down and say goodnight, while her impulsive side wanted to drag him upstairs without caring who heard. The clock hanging over their heads was clouding her judgement, but even then she wasn't clear what the right decision was.
While Will didn't seem like he wanted to do a Morgan on her, she could never be too careful.
After all, she was leaving tomorrow.
And she wanted as much as he could give before then.
Stopping outside the doorway, Will tugged on her hand and she stepped willingly into his embrace. With the moment broken, this was far more chaste than their last few minutes. However, something about the move felt far more intimate.
Sighing, Will rested his chin on top of her head and held her tighter, "I'd have never forgiven myself if I didn't ask you out tonight."
"I'm glad you did." She would have regretted it too. Regardless of what happened next, she could allow herself tonight.
"You still need to go home tomorrow." JJ wasn't sure if she imagined it, but she thought he held her tighter as he spoke.
In that moment, JJ made up her mind. This job didn't mean she didn't get a life. It didn't mean she had to miss out on dates like this. She was probably in a better position than most people to do long distance.
She was rarely more than a four hour flight away. California, New York and Nevada were three to four hours away. Texas and Florida were less than ninety minutes. It would take nothing to grab a commercial flight instead of the jet.
"I'm meant to have four days off in two weeks…" If things went well, Will would just need to get used to having her stuff around. She pulled back enough to throw him a look from under her eyelashes, the invitation clear, "Case dependant, you could show me that view you mentioned earlier."
"It's a date."
Seeing Will's grin - grin, smirk, she wasn't sure - made her feel like she was eighteen again.
It made her feel like they actually had a chance at making this work.
It was a chance she was willing to take.