Emily had never had as much fun as she had during her first week back in DC. She'd spent time with all her loved ones, got some much needed relaxation, and locked Rossi away in the box she reserved for unwanted emotions. She hadn't seen him since that first night, and after his words to her, that was quite alright.

Tonight, however, JJ and Penelope had organised another team night and he was going to be there. It was her own fault, Emily knew. She hadn't told either of them what he'd said to her, and she'd told Penelope not to treat him any different. What she didn't understand was why he'd agreed to join them. Would it have killed him to make up some random lie about a date, or a book signing, or anything that wasn't torturing Emily with his presence?

They were having a take-away and movie night, apparently, at JJ's house. Henry and Jack were both staying overnight with Jacks Aunty Jessica, so they were child free, which meant drinking was going to be on the agenda. Emily had already laid claim to the spare room at JJ's, something Penelope found amusing.

When asked why she found it amusing, Penelope explained to Emily that when these nights happened, the guest room belonged to whoever passed out first.

xxxx

Emily sat down on the couch, wedged tightly between Morgan and Rossi, much to her displeasure. She'd been helping JJ clear the pizza boxes in the kitchen, and JJ had beat her to the last single chair, leaving Emily with no choice. She'd tried to convince Morgan to sit in the middle, to no avail, so here she was.

As Penelope started the movie, Emily settled in closer to Morgan, overly aware of the body heat Rossi was omitting on her other side, but doing her best to ignore it. As the movie progressed, along with the beers and wine that kept being handed around, she sunk into the sofa, the happenings on the screen finally catching her attention enough to distract her.

She didn't realise he was leaning in to her, until she felt his breath on her ear. "I'm sorry," he whispered, the words barely audible to make sure no one overheard. She didn't react, just shifted slightly away from him, her eyes remaining on the screen.

When the movie ended, Emily breathed out a sigh of relief, hoping that with the lights on, she'd be able to move and mingle with the others, far away from Dave. Unfortunately, the others had other ideas, as Penelope immediately started another dvd playing.

"Princess, not that I'm complaining, but if you get any closer to me, you'll be sitting on my knee," Derek muttered.

She laughed, unable to help herself. "So let me sit on your knee," she replied, to the amusement of the others. She heard Rossi growl quietly beside her, the sound masked by the laughter in the room.

"Emily, have you finally been overcome by the attraction of my Hunkalicious Honey?" Penelope asked, grinning.

"He wishes," Emily snorted. "I'm getting cramp, this couch isn't built for three. I'm going to get a drink, I'll be back," she said, standing up and moving to the kitchen before anyone could question if she was alright.

"Do you want me to pause the movie?" Penelope called.

"No, I'm sure I'll catch on to it," Emily replied, standing against the kitchen counter. She poured a glass of water and sipped it, the coldness of it soothing her. She listened as the others settled down again, and sighed in relief. She wondered how long she could get away with staying in the kitchen before someone came looking for her.

Not long, in any case, as the door opened before she could even finish the thought. Dave closed the door quietly behind him before he moved over to the opposite counter to the one she was leaning against.

"I meant what I said, Emily. I'm sorry about the other night."

She nodded. "Okay."

"That's it?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

"What do you want me to say, Dave?" she asked tiredly. "I'm not going to play whatever game it is you're playing. I have a week left, and I'm planning to enjoy myself. I don't need to spend it arguing with you."

"I didn't mean what I said," he muttered. "I was angry."

"For a reason I don't want to know," she replied calmly. "I don't want to know what I did to make you hate me, I just want you to leave me alone."

She saw him wince, and felt a little guilty for causing it, but she'd told him the truth.

"I don't hate you, Em."

She shrugged. Tipping the remaining water in her glass into the sink, she put the glass in the dishwasher. "Feel whatever you want to feel, Dave, it's none of my business any more."

He grasped her arm as she walked passed him to exit the kitchen, and pulled her back. "What if I want it to be your business?" he asked huskily. "What if I want everything about me to be your business?"

She shook her head, pulling her arm free. "You broke up with me, and then slept with our boss. You lost any and all right to want anything from me."

"I know what I did, Emily," he said, and she could see the pain in his eyes as she looked at him. "I can only tell you I'm sorry. I made a mistake, a big one, and trust me, I'm paying for it every single second of every single day."

She felt the fight drain out of her. She was so tired. She'd tried so hard to settle all of her feelings for Dave into neat little packages in her mind, to rid herself of his presence completely, and it had worked for the most part. She built herself back up, fought the uphill struggle of day to day life, and she'd been doing well.

Trust him to ruin all her hard work within five minutes.

Turning away from him, she left the kitchen, and walked down the hallway, putting her shoes on quietly and grabbing her jacket from the peg she'd hung it on. She was almost out of the door when JJ caught her leaving.

"Where are you going?" JJ asked quietly, knowing that Emily wouldn't want the attention of the others on her at the moment.

"Back to the hotel. I'm sorry JJ, I'll call and explain tomorrow, okay?"

"You can stay here. The guest room is all made up, I'll make sure no one bothers you."

Emily shook her head. "I need to go, I need some space. Really, I'll call you in the morning," she said, already moving out the door. JJ watched her go, before she turned to find Dave just behind her, watching Emily leave.

"I don't know what you did, but you fix this, right now," she snapped at him, gesturing to Emily. "I mean it, Rossi. Whatever you've done, you make it right."

Dave nodded once, before he followed Emily out of the door, catching the cab she'd just climbed into before it drove away. She startled when he climbed in beside her, and he saw the tears pouring down her face.

"Please, Emily. Just... let me come with you, give me five minutes at the hotel. If you never want to see me again after that, I'll leave you alone, I promise."

She hesitated for a minute before nodding her head, telling the driver to take them to her hotel. They didn't speak during the ride, Emily trying to get herself under control, while Dave tried to think about what he could say to her to make her understand why he'd done what he'd done.

xxxx

She held the door open for him, and he closed it quietly behind him. He watched as she walked into the connecting bathroom. He waited patiently, staying on his feet, not wanting to be presumptuous about sitting down, even on the hard stool at the small table for two in the corner of the room. She came out five minutes later, and he noticed she'd wiped away the small amount of make up she'd been wearing and tied her hair up into a ponytail.

He'd seen her do the same thing a hundred nights before in his own bathroom.

She waved her had vaguely at him to speak, sitting on the edge of the bed as she did so. She was staring at the floor by his feet, and he could see how tense she was.

"I broke up with you, because I was terrified," he said without preamble. "You... You make it so easy to love you, Emily, and I did, I do love you. I fell for you so hard, so fast, and I was so scared that any minute I was going to fuck it all up."

She looked up to meet his eyes, but didn't say anything.

"Its what I do, Em. I fuck relationships up. I didn't... I didn't want to lose you completely, and I figured that if we broke up then, you'd still be in my life. You'd still be on the team, and eventually, maybe we could even be friends again. Three divorces under my belt, Em, and not a single one of them hurt more than telling you I didn't want to be with you any more."

"And Strauss?" she asked, her voice little more than a whisper.

"I didn't sleep with her."

"Don't fucking lie to me, David Rossi, Garcia saw you!"

"No, she didn't. She saw Strauss leaving the same hotel I was leaving. Nothing happened that night, I swear to you. She was in the bar, I bought her a drink. I drowned my sorrows in whisky, she... I don't know what she did. I think I saw her in the restaurant, but I don't know. I saw her the following morning, and when I run into Garcia, I didn't even think about it.

When the rumours got back to me, I didn't deny them because I think I wanted you to believe them. If you thought I'd jumped into bed with her, there was no chance you'd want me. I knew, if you'd come to me, I'd have got down on my knees and begged you to come back to me."

"So, the other night, that was what? You trying to tell me how much you loved me?" she asked, bitterness marring her tone. His words were hurting her, because she knew he was telling the truth. He'd never been able to lie to her.

"I was angry at myself for my reaction when I saw you in the office. Since you... Since we broke up, but more so since you moved to London, I've struggled. Aaron's pulled me off cases because of my temper, I've had to do desk duty on and off. Then, out of nowhere, you were there and everything just hit me all at once. I've treated you disgustingly, and I'm truly sorry for it, Emily."

She shook her head. "I still don't know what you want from me, Dave. Why now? Why not when you found out I was leaving? I would have stayed, you know. For you, I would have done anything."

She watched him crumble before her eyes as he slid down the wall he was leaning on, tears falling from his eyes. She wanted to go to him, she wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him everything was going to be all right. But she couldn't. Because she didn't know if things could ever be all right again. More tears slid down her own face as she watched him.

"I don't know what to do without you," he replied, his breath hitching. "Every day, Emily, I wish you were here. I miss you. I love you. I can't live without you."

"I... Dave, it's not that simple," she told him, her words thick with emotion. Unable to watch him sitting on the floor so broken any more, she shifted from the bed to the floor, sitting down in front of him. "I live in London, now, Dave. It's not like we can just pick up where we left off."

He reached forward and pulled her closer, so she was sitting between his legs, his arms around her. She knew she should have pulled away, but there was something so... right, so natural, about him having his arms around her again that she couldn't bring herself to move. "I'll retire again. I'll come to London. I'll go anywhere you are, Emily. I'll do anything you need me to do. Just don't... please, don't leave me."

She fell against his chest as sobs shook her body. His heartfelt plea stabbing her in the chest. He held her close, and she didn't know how long they sat there, both crying, on the hotel floor.

She felt his breathing even out as his emotions calmed slightly. She pulled back, just enough to meet his eyes with her own. His were red and puffy, and she'd bet her life that hers were the same. She could see he was as worn out as she felt, and for a moment, she wondered about asking if he wanted her to call a cab for him. He seemed to read the thought straight from her mind.

Making no attempt to move, he said, "I should go. You need to rest."

She nodded. She didn't move either, just stared at him. Eventually, he dropped his arms from around her, and she moved back, allowing him to stand. He held out a hand to help her up and she took it, keeping hold of it as he walked to the door, opening it slowly. He walked out of the hotel room, turning back as she leant against the door frame.

She hadn't let go of his hand.

He lifted his other hand to her face, gently caressing her cheek before he tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. "I do love you, Emily. More than anything in my entire life."

She nodded. She believed him. "Stay," she whispered.

He blinked twice. "What?" he asked, his voice hoarse.

"Not to, I mean, I don't," she trailed off, shaking her head at herself. "Stay," she repeated, her voice stronger. "Just to sleep. I want... I need you tonight, Dave. I need to know that this happened, that it wasn't just a dream."

He nodded slowly. "Okay."

"That's it?" she asked, repeating his earlier words back to him.

"I'll do anything you want me to do, Emily. I meant that."

He stepped back into the room, and she let go of his hand, closing and locking the door. He sat down on the edge of the bed, not making any move to undress as she gathered her pyjamas. Before she entered the bathroom, she looked back at him.

"Get in bed, Dave. I'll be back in a minute."

xxxx

He was waiting for her when she exited the bathroom. She saw his clothes, folded neatly, on the chair at the dressing table. He was wearing his t shirt, and she knew he'd still have his boxers on. She climbed into bed, and he looked at her for a moment, before tentatively stretching his arm out in invitation. She smiled slightly, and settled in against his shoulder, her arm moving almost automatically to his chest. His arm wrapped around her back, his other hand moving up to lie over hers on his chest.

Everything was so natural, it scared her. How easily she'd fit back into their sleep routine, how right it felt to feel the movement of his breathing under her head, to feel his heart beating beneath her hand. She realised how... empty, she'd felt since the last time they'd lay like this. She felt complete in a way she hadn't since he'd broken up with her.

She felt her eyelids dropping as she concentrated on his breathing, and before she knew it, she was asleep. Dave listened to her breathing even out, felt her head get heavier against his shoulder. He tightened the arm around her slightly, pulling her as close to him as he could without her being on top of him. He'd never dreamed, during the months she'd been away, that he'd ever have the chance to feel her so close to him again.

He also knew, as he lay there in that hotel bed, that he'd do anything to make sure this was how things were every night. He didn't know how he would convince her, but he would. He had to. His life, literally, depended on it.