Chapter 4

"Maybe he'll just try to sweep you off your feet now," Garcia said with grin that seemed entirely too cheerful in JJ's opinion considering the situation. "Not helpful," JJ quickly replied.

"He wouldn't do that, he knows like the rest of us that this is mainly a problem between you and Will. Just keep it simple," Prentiss advised, attempting to be more practical, "he's a profiler, he doesn't need a long explanation about why things like this happen, just apologize and let it go. He probably doesn't want to talk about it anymore than you do." She finished confidently.

JJ nodded thoughtfully as she rose from her position on the floor and went to the sink to try and refresh her appearance, thinking that this advice sounded solid as she started mentally practicing an apology that included a vague mention of relationship troubles with Will, hoping that Hotch wouldn't take it further.

JJ tried to ignore the looks of the BAU men as she walked up the stairs, hoping her knees didn't look as shaky as they felt as she approached the closed door to Hotch's office. She had seen enough from her quick look at the bullpen to see that Morgan and Rossi were definitely looking amused as well as curious, while Reid seemed to be in one full analytical mode. She could also tell they were definitely hungry for more information as Garcia and Prentiss entered and were quickly pulled in to a huddle with the other agents. JJ was tempted to roll her eyes but in her heart she wasn't as worried about the team, it was facing the man who had starred in more than one of her night-time fantasies and now knew about it that that caused the butterflies to start swarming in her stomach.

She almost turned to run after her almost tentative knock when she heard his brisk "come in," but instead managed to steel her nerves, opening the door, stepping inside the office before quickly shutting the door behind her before taking the same chair that Will had vacated a few moments earlier. She didn't speak at first as she silently studied their unit chief, looking for signs of anger as she tried to remember what it was she was going to say. Not sure at the moment if the fact that the blinds were still closed made her more nervous or relieved. She was glad there would be privacy for their conversation but she also wondered what the overactive team imaginations below might be envisioning happening between them.

"I'm not upset JJ," Hotch replied to take the guessing game out of it, seeing her cheeks begin to flame again as she gnawed for a moment on her lower lip. Hotch took a moment to watch the very uncharacteristic nervous expression of a woman who typically was able to handle the most nosy reporters and vicious killers with relative ease.

"I can't tell you how sorry I am for this whole mess," JJ finally blurted out after he had spoken and allowed the floodgates to open.

"Don't worry, I'm flattered," Hotch said with a disarming smile trying to ease the rising tension he felt in the office as the walls already seemed to be getting smaller by the moment. He had meant for it to be calming but quickly realized his comment had only made her more uncomfortable as her eyes suddenly seemed fixated on the nameplate on his desk. "I know these things happen JJ, I'm not going to take it personally and see no reason it should interfere with our usual working relationship." He tried a more professional tone as he blatently ignored the small voice in his head that was clearly telling him how personally he would like to take it.

"I know, that's what Prentiss and Garcia told me," JJ sighed, "they even told me they did the same thing, but I still feel ashamed. When he didn't immediately respond she looked up to see a look of surprise on his face and realized how what that had sounded like. "Not about you that is, about Morgan and Rossi, oh shoot," she turned red again realizing that she had blown the simple apology approach to pieces and had now outed the fantasies of her two friends. She was relieved though when she heard a small chuckle from her obviously amused boss. "Well there you have it, apparently we all do it, just a result of too much time spent together." Hotch said lightly, secretly glad that the women had confided in JJ and helped put it in perspective, he could really care less who they were thinking about as long as it didn't interfere with team performance.

"We all do it?" JJ repeated a portion of what he had said, her voice taking on a questioning tone as she raised an eyebrow and studied her boss, suddenly remembering what Emily had said about the men being just as guilty. She was rewarded to see the slightest flicker in his eyes that showed he was now a little unnerved. Hotch felt the room temperature seem to rise a little more as he realized what he had said.

"So, you've dreamed about one of us?" JJ said, feeling devilish for a moment as she pushed the issue, happy for a moment to have the focus off her and seeing Hotch suddenly looking much less self-assured. It felt good to turn the tables sometimes.

"I don't think we need to pursue that particular subject," Hotch replied quickly, already swearing to himself that even if he were on his deathbed he would never admit that he had fantasized about the beautiful blonde in front of him more times than he could count or that the thoughts started long before he was technically a free man.

His answer only served to confirm JJ's suspicion and she watched him closely as he held her gaze, she wondered who it might be, but realized she had pushed it far enough and let it drop, she really didn't want to know anyway she realized, knowing she would probably feel jealous of whomever it was, but she had to admit it felt good to have taken the focus off herself, even for a moment

"Thank you for talking to Will," She finally said, changing the direction of the conversation much to Hotch's relief. "Will and I will be having quite a talk tonight I'm sure," she sighed as she thought about the man that had turned her day into such a train wreck. "We've been having problems for a while, I think we're headed for at least a temporary separation," JJ continued to share as Hotch listened silently, he felt the urge to reach out to her and offer some comfort but in light of the morning he kept his place, glued behind his desk as if his life depended on it.

"I can explain though about what happened, Will wouldn't hear it but I think it makes sense from a basic psychological standpoint," JJ began, feeling the urge to try to get things straightened out with at least one of the two men directly involved as she again pushed back the small voice that kept telling her to shut up and leave.

"You can if you like, but you really don't have to," Hotch murmured, torn because he selfishly wanted to hear how he had come to be a part of her fantasies, wondering if it would compare to his own, yet knowing for the sake of propriety and his future sanity it would be best if they dropped it right then and never pursued it further. He mentally cursed himself for leaving her the option as she settled a little deeper into the chair, apparently poised to continue.

AN: Thanks again for the reviews. I realized I left out Reid since there's a mismatch on the number of men/women on the team but he'll get a mention later. The humor will start cranking back up in the next couple chapters, have to have a few serious moments scattered about.