A/N: Thank you all for the reviews. I really loved writing this and I'm glad you guys liked it too. Here is the Epilogue. I hope you'll like it!

Disclaimer: I own Bethany.

PART TWO

He sat on the couch and brought her to sit on his lap, snuggling her closer to his chest. She pressed her lips on his neck up to his jaw and smiled when he groaned and tightened his grip on her. "Do you really have to go tomorrow? Can't you stay another couple of days?" He asked quietly.

She sighed and shook her head regretfully. "I can't. I have to get Bethanie back to London. I couldn't even have brought her on this trip. I had to ask permission from the social worker. I have her for only six months. I have to wait another six to make things permanent and have total autonomy to move, travel, do whatever I want, you know".

He nodded sadly leaning in to give her a kiss. "I understand…" He tilted his head to the side considering something. "Well… I have some days off to take and Jack is on summer break… if you don't mind having two American boys visiting for a few days we could go…"

She grinned at him. "Are you serious?"

"Of course. I've never been in London and I'm sure Jack would be thrilled too…" He said smiling at her.

"Of course I don't mind Hotch. Although, there is still something we need to talk… what about Jack? How do you think he'll react to us being together?" She asked anxiously.

"Okay, first of all. Do you think you can call me Aaron? I mean, we already kissed a lot, we are making plans to the future… I'm not your boss anymore. I'm your… boyfriend? It's weird, I'm old to be a boyfriend…" He said wincing, making her chuckle.

"Okay, Aaron… And I don't think you're old. Not at all…" She said eyeing him up and down, eliciting a blush from him.

"Sure, whatever…" He murmured, ignoring her wicked grin. "Anyway, second of all, I will have a talk with Jack to explain him everything. But he's older, more mature. I'm sure he'll understand and be happy for me. He's kind of obsessed with my happiness…" He said chuckling. "And… he always liked Miss Prentiss…"

"He's a very sweet little boy…" She smiled.

She snuggled closer to him again, tucking her head under his chin, playing with his tie and enjoying the feeling of his fingers caressing her back and her hip. She sighed and heard him murmur. "What are you thinking?"

She didn't want to have serious conversations right now. She didn't want to spoil what they were just starting to build together after so many years wanting. But she knew they needed to talk about it. They couldn't ignore the elephant in the room. She still ran the Interpol's Office in London and he still ran the Behavior Analysis Unit with the FBI in Quantico. They still have 3.665.18 miles between them. They still have two children to consider before taking any decision. They still have so many things to make everything go wrong.

"I'm thinking about how many things we still have between us…" She murmured and heard him sigh.

"I know, sweetheart". He said quietly. "And I know we won't be able to solve anything right now or be together permanently right now either. But I think we can find a way to make things work until then and when the time comes, make the decision that will be the best for all of us".

"How Aaron? How can we be together and not be together at the same time?" She asked sitting straight to look at him properly.

"We're not teenagers anymore Emily. I trust you. I know it will be terrible with the distance sometimes but I know that we're mature enough to respect each other. And with the lives we have? Honestly babe, with the routine with the job and our kids, just having someone to call, to send a text or even just to think about when things are rough is everything…" He argued with her.

"I know…" She nodded knowing that he was right. "There are days when I just want to give up. I feel like I don't have anyone to talk, to share things… it's hard. It's lonely…"

"Exactly… It doesn't have to be anymore…" He said kissing her. He devoured her mouth with passion, trying to make it up all the years they wasted because of their fears and stubbornness. "It's so good to be able to do this… to have you here, so close… to be able to touch you and kiss you and feel you…" He said trailing kisses all over her face. "I love you so much, Emily… my Emily…" He said reverently, looking at her face and her body. "You're mine…" He breathed. "You're finally mine…"

She hummed and kissed him back thoroughly, enjoying the feeling of his hands on her, of his body under her hands like she always wanted. His chest was so firm and strong, his shoulders so hard and his hair so soft and smooth. She ran her hands all over him, her mouth mapping all the contours of his mouth, savoring his taste of coffee and peppermint. She never wanted to let him go.

They parted breathlessly, panting heavily and leaned their foreheads together. "Please, tell me you're willing to make this work…" He whispered hopefully.

She looked at him and saw the want in his eyes. She still couldn't believe that this man was here, pleading her to give him a chance. "Of course I want to, Aaron…" She whispered. "I'm just scared…"

"What are you afraid of?" He asked frowning.

"What if we can't make it? What if we start this at distance but never being able to take it further? It's not just me anymore. I have Bethanie and what if I let her get used with you and then we don't work? She already workship the ground you walks. I can't let my baby girl be broken-hearted, Aaron".

He smiled at her. "You're really a mother". At her frown he continued. "A parent always put his children first. You're a great mother, sweetheart. I understand your concerns, Emily, and I can't say to you that we won't have problems, that we won't fight or even that we'll make this last forever. Hell, I was married for almost twenty years and one day I came home and my wife had left me". He took a deep breath. "We'll fight, we'll have to make sacrifices and someday we'll have to decide which one of us will have to leave everything behind and move". She nodded and looked down. He pondered how to continue. "I… I've been thinking lately about taking the retirement package I was offered when Haley passed away…"

She snapped her head and looked at him in disbelief. "What?"

"I've been thinking… I've been doing this job for so long and it already costed me so much, you know. Jessica took Haley's place and practically raises Jack alone and that's not right. I lost almost his whole childhood and I don't want to lose his adolescence too. And I'm tired. Honestly, I'm almost forty-six and I don't sleep right, I don't eat properly. I don't know what is like to have time for myself, you know. I'd like to have time to enjoy things, to read things that don't have serial killers in it. I'd like to be able to promise things to my son that I will actually accomplish. I'd like to take him for a trip, to play football with him without being called away on a case or don't have time to take him to eat ice cream after. I think it's time for me to put the Agent Hotchner on stand-by and be Aaron, the father, the friend, the partner".

"I never thought I'd hear you say that you want to retire". She said shocked.

"I think the wisest thing it's not finding out what you want to do but to realize when you should stop. I'm in the BAU for more than thirteen years. It's time to move on… there are things in life that are more important".

"Wow…"

"Yeah… Of course I can just give up. It will take time… I have to train someone to replace me and make sure everything will be okay without me… But when I leave, I'll be able to move…" He trailed off.

She took a handful seconds to understand what he was saying. "You mean to London?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah… I know it would be a huge adjustment for Jack and that's my big concern but I think we can do it… what could become a problem is Haley's family because even though it's my right as his father to take him wherever I want I know they would feel very much his absence. Especially Jess, so I'd have to work this with her for a while… make her understand, come up with some arrangements to ensure her contact with him…"

"Aaron, wait, wait a minute". She stopped him. Was he seriously considering moving across the ocean with his eleven-year-old son to live with her? "I don't want you to jump in any decisions. It's a huge chance for you and especially for Jack and you can't. Jessica will be devastated not having him near, it's not fair, she already lost her sister, he's the only thing she has from her…"

"I know that Emily but I have the right to live my life too and I can't be away from my son". He reasoned.

She looked at him for a second before whispering. "You're really serious about this, aren't you?"

He frowned at her for a second. Couldn't she see that he really wanted to be with her? He straightened and took her hands in his. "Emily, do you know the first time I knew I felt something more for you?" She shook her head slowly. "When I heard Morgan shouting for me at the bullpen and I found that you were on that compound with that sociopath. I knew right then that the tightness I was feeling in my heart wasn't normal. It wasn't something I should feel if you were just a subordinate. And when he was beating you… the prospect of living in a world where you weren't in it? It was hell, Emily. It was just too much. It took every single skill of compartmentalization for me to calm down and not burst into that place and kill that son of a bitch and take you out of there".

"Aaron…" She whispered tearfully.

"And with the years I just grew fonder and fonder and you were always so amazing… everything you did for me after Foyet. Everything you did for me and Jack after Haley died… you simply didn't give me any other option but to love you. And that's why I approached you and let you in more… I knew that I could never risk your career trying something so I was happy just being your friend… having you near…" He caressed her cheek and wiped a tear that fell. "And when Doyle happened… I was so scared. I thought we wouldn't make it. I thought I was going to lose you and it was just so much to bear… that's why I did what I did. I had to protect you, not matter what it costed".

"I'll be forever thankful for that…"

"And I'd do it again. I love you Emily. We wasted so much time. I'm tired of that. I want to be with you… I want to live my life with you and raise our children together. I want to be the fatherly figure on Bethany's life and I want you to be it for Jack. I want us to be a family. I want it all… If you don't, I'll understand. But I'm making everything clear right from the beginning".

"I want that too. But I don't want you to move…" She said.

"Em…"

"I want to come back". She said looking at him.

"But what about your job? It's Interpol!" He exclaimed.

"I know. And I've been doing it for almost four years and it didn't fill the whole I had in my chest ever since Doyle". She confessed. "Bethany did it. And now, you. And that's what I need. I can get a job back here again. If we'll constitute a family I'd rather it be here. There I don't have anyone besides Bethany and she doesn't have anyone besides me. And she's younger. She would adjust the change better than Jack. And he wouldn't lose contact with Jessica. Also, I miss my family. The team became my home. I miss it. Living here again I would see them more often. I don't know if I would go back to the BAU, probably not. Not with my daughter. It's too dangerous. But there are other options…"

"Are you serious?"

She nodded. "I am. I have to wait the six months for Bethanie but it's probably the time I'll need to sort everything out on Interpol. Then I can move back. What do you think?"

He looked at her expressionless for a few seconds before letting his lips turn up into a big smile. "I think… I think I want to marry you".

"W-what?" She chocked.

"Will you marry me, Emily Prentiss?" He asked looking straight to her tearful eyes.

She chocked a sob and launched herself to him, kissing him fiercely. "Yes, of course… I'll marry you. God. I'll marry you!" She said chuckling.

He smiled at her and tucked her back to his chest. "Then, Mrs. Soon-to-be-Hotchner" he started and she sobbed again "we have six months to plan the rest of our lives".

She smiled and snuggled closer to him. She had finally found her prince.

SIX MONTHS LATER…

"C'mon Bethanie! We have to go! Our flight leaves in ninety minutes!" Emily shouted to her daughter, looking across to the room to see if they weren't forgetting anything.

It took six months, as planned, but she was finally going home. Bethanie's adoption was finished and she had the right to take her wherever she wanted without asking permission. She had talked to Clyde right after she got back from DC and although he was a little disappointed for losing her again he was supportive and helped her to find a replacement and train him to take her place when she left.

During these months she couldn't do any other trip to DC because of Bethanie but Aaron made sure to spend at least a couple of days every month in London. He only brought Jack the first time and another one because of school but the boy was completely smitten with his now step-sister and had accepted Emily very well.

They used every resource they could to keep in touch daily. Due to the time difference they used to call each other on specific hours, to catch up, talk about their day and talk with the children. Aaron tried to call every night on Bethanie's bedtime to tell her stories and wish good night and the girl would always wait anxiously for it. She always talked about her Daddy Prince to everyone on school and everyone who wanted to hear.

Of course they had their rough times. They fought sometimes, mostly because of Emily's insecurities but they always found a way to fix things.

Their worst fight was one time when Bethanie got really sick and had to be hospitalized. Emily called him but he was in the middle of a hostage negotiation and didn't see it until almost four hours later. When he called back, stressed because two of the hostages were killed and the unsub had almost escaped, Emily answered hysteric, accusing him of not being by her side when she needed and asking what kind of father he wanted to be to her daughter when he wasn't there when she cried for him, scared in a hospital bed.

And he yelled at her saying that she wasn't being fair, that he was just doing his job and didn't know that his Annie was sick. And she shouted back saying that he always put his job first and that was why Haley had left him and she was glad that she had find out early.

And later that night, when she was sitting in the uncomfortable visitor chair beside Bethanie's bed, the door opened and a very tired and messy Hotch stepped inside the room and knelt down beside her. 'How is she?' he asked with glassy eyes and she just couldn't not fall in his arms and cry on his shoulders, whispering that she was sorry, that she was just scared for their daughter and she didn't think anything of what she had said to him, she was just frustrated. And he took her face in his hands and apologized for not answering that damn phone and for not being there for her. And they spent thirty-six hours beside Bethanie and when she was released they went home and he stayed another two days with them.

And right before he was leaving to catch his flight back he took Emily into his arms and kissed her fiercely right in the middle of the boarding area and he said to her that she was what mattered to him, along with their kids, and he was already training Morgan to replace him because the job wasn't important anymore. His family was. And she cried and said she loved him more than anything and she couldn't wait to be with him forever.

And now here she was. Her things all packed and dispatched and in less than twelve hours she would be in his arms and it would be finally permanent. She looked at the silver ring with a princess-cut diamond and smiled at the thought that in fifteen days she would have another ring on her finger, a ring that would mark their commitment and love. And she would finally be Mrs. Aaron Hotchner. She seriously didn't think that life could get any better.

"I'm ready mommy…" She heard her little girl saying coming downstairs with a small pink bag on her back and her Snow White doll crushed in her chest.

She smiled and picked her up, taking her hand bag and going to the door, counting the minutes to see their princes.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHP

Hotch was pacing the arrivals area, looking at his watch anxiously. They should be arriving at any minute and he couldn't wait. Finally the six months had passed and Emily and Bethanie were coming home definitely. They had passed through some rough times like he predicted but they managed to work through everything and stick together.

Emily had quit the Interpol's Office and got an offer at the Academy. She accepted because it was the less dangerous job she could get on the Bureau and it had fewer hours so she would be more at home.

Hotch had finally retired and Morgan had taken his place as Unit Chief. He couldn't be happier. The first day he had after his retirement he woke up after eight-thirty for the first time in God knows how many years. He started a Vonnegut book that Emily had recommended and actually used his kitchen to cook a real meal. He ate slowly, savoring his food and not just chewing and swallowing. He went to pick Jack at school and then the two of them went to the movies and had pizza for dinner after. And he was home to put his son in bed and when he lay on his own bed that night he felt so light and happy that he knew he had done the right choice.

"Daddy!" He heard her voice before he saw them and his face lightened up into a huge grin.

He looked for them and finally saw her toothy grin and she was running towards him, her pink flower dress floating and her ponytail swaying from side to side and then she was in his arms and he felt his heart swell with love. "My sweet princess!" He breathed into her hair and closed his eyes, smiling contentedly.

"Hey you". He opened his eyes and was greeted with the most beautiful smile in the world. He hooked Bethanie on his side and pulled her into his arms, still not believing that he was holding his two girls and they didn't have the clock against them, that they were here to say and never go away again.

"Sweetheart". He whispered into her ear and didn't even bother to hide the tears that were polling on his eyes. He was just so happy. "I can't believe you're finally here…"

"Me neither…" She whispered back and pulled away to look at him. Her face was so beautiful, her eyes were glowing and he couldn't wait. He brought her mouth to his in a sweet kiss, filled with love and gratefulness.

They pulled apart and he knew, in that moment, with both of them in his arms, that everything was right where it supposed to be.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHP

Later that night they were curled up on their bed, both kids in their rooms sleeping already after a family dinner and two movies on the couch. "I really like this house…" She whispered to him. He had surprised her, bringing them to this five-bedroom house and not his old apartment like she expected. He said he had too much time to plan their life together after he left the BAU and he couldn't let his two princesses live into his small and boring apartment. So he went house hunting and when he found this one he just knew that they would live there.

"I knew you would…" He whispered back. "You're really not mad that I bought this without you?"

She looked up at him and smiled. "Of course I'm not… it was really sweet. And it is honestly everything that I've ever wanted on a house".

He smiled at her and kissed her, because he finally could do it, because she was finally here, because he was finally happy, because he finally had his family complete. When they made love that night, when he felt her soft skin under his fingers and heard her moans muffed by his kisses he thanked God for giving him another chance, for allowing him to find his happiness with this woman and for showing him that sometimes fairy tales were real. He had the proof right now. And he was going to live his happily ever after…

THE END