Hotch followed Prentiss in the bar, taking note of the dark and dingy surroundings. It had been a long time since he had been in a dive like this, and he suddenly felt very overdressed. When they reached the table, he removed his jacket and tossed it around the back of the chair.

"This is where you get the best pizza in town?"

"I know what you're thinking, Hotch, but just give this place a chance. You'll thank me for it later."

'Uh-huh." he smirked, reaching for the menu.

"No, you don't need that. I've been craving this pizza all week."

At that moment, a waitress stopped by the table, and Hotch could tell they were familiar with each other.

"Yeah, we'll take a large pizza with pepperoni, mushrooms, onions and anchovies..." she glanced up at Hotch, and seeing the face he was making quickly amended the order. 'Make that half with anchovies, and a pitcher of draft beer."

"Sure thing hon. We've been wondering where you've been lately. Good to see you again." she leaned down to whisper in her ear "And I'm glad to see you brought some company this time."

After she left, they started making small talk about everything ranging from Jack and his soccer games to to the construction outside of Quantico. Emily was relieved, it was starting to feel normal again, like the last month had not even happened. She hadn't seen him smile this much in months. She knew that something was still bothering him, but he was obviously pushing it aside and relaxing so she wasn't going to bring it up again. Neither even seemed to notice the tall dark haired man coming up behind them. He sported a weathered leather jacket, and a nice scar above his right eye. Without warning, Emily felt a hand on her shoulder and instantly the hairs on her neck stood up. Of all the gin joints in all the world...

"Emily Prentiss...so nice to see you. How long has it been?"

She didn't even have to turn around, she recognized that thick New York accent right away.

"Not long enough." she mumbled and twisted to try and get away from his touch.

"You know, I was going to call you, really I was." she could hear the barely restrained anger in his voice. "Funny thing, that number you gave me...it was for the Chinese Restaurant on 38th street. And I thought to myself, it must be a mistake, because why would Emily give me the wrong number?"

"Probably because she didn't want to to talk to you, did you ever consider that?" Hotch said sternly, giving him the signature glare.

"Who the hell are you?"

"I'm SSA Aaron Hotchner with the FBI. And I think you need to leave."

"Ha." he scoffed. "Am I supposed to be impressed with that? Are you going to flash you badge too?"

"I don't need my badge to take care of the likes of you." Hotch said, getting to his feet.

"Whoa, whoa guys..." Emily said, trying to diffuse the situation. "Eddie, aren't you already on suspension from the force? I don't think you need any more trouble right now."

"You think I'm afraid of HIM?"

"I think you're drunk and need to back off."

His fists were clenched and his jaw was tight. Emily could see the anger building behind his eyes, but to her surprise he seemed to give up. Almost too easily.

"Yeah, okay." he said, his tone still angry "We can settle this next time."

"There's not going to be a next time, Eddie." she said in a dismissive tone.

"Yeah. We'll see. When your guard dog here is not around." he grumbled, then turned and walked back towards the bar.

Hotch let out a heavy breath and sat back down, still glaring in Eddie's direction.

"Friend of yours?" he asked sarcastically, trying to break the tension.

"A very bad blind date. A friend of mine at the state department set me up with him. Said we were a perfect match. Not sure what that means she thinks of me..."

The waitress returned, placing a pitcher of beer and two frosted glasses in front of them. When she was gone, Hotch grabbed the pitcher and started filling the mugs.

"So what happened?"

"Nothing really." she answered while taking a rather long sip of beer. "But not for his lack of trying. He's one arrogant SOB, and he's got one hell of a temper, especially when things don't go his way."

"So he's one of the 'worse than Viper guys, huh?"

"What?"

"When we were working that one case, you said you had dated guys worse than Viper."

"Oh," she was surprised that he even remembered the conversation. "Yeah, he's one who qualifies. i don't know what it is, sometimes it seems like that's the only type of guy I manage to attract."

If she only knew, he thought.

For the first time that night, there was an uncomfortable silence, and Emily took that as her cue.

"You know, the pizza will be here any minute. I'm just going to the ladies room to wash my hands." she said, pushing her chair back. "And don't you start eating without me."

"I won't." he smiled.

His eyes followed her as she walked towards the restrooms in the back of the bar, and then turned briefly towards the obnoxious jerk that had been harassing her. He was downing shots, and talking rather loudly with the drunks around him. Hotch wished he had gone with his first instinct and thrown him right out of the place - literally - but he didn't want to embarrass Emily. She was obviously somewhat of a regular here, and he also knew that she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself.

Part of him knew that he was crazy to put himself in this position. When they were in the office or out in the field, it was much easier to control the situation. Sure, they had been out together before, but always with the rest of the team. This was different. This was a side of Emily that he always suspected was there, but never really got to see. And he liked it. He felt those feeling creeping up in his chest again, and whether it was the exhaustion setting in, or the alcohol, he just didn't feel like fighting them right now.

The waitress came back, interrupting his thoughts, and slid the pizza on the table in front of Hotch. He had to admit, it smelled heavenly.

"And here's a couple of plates and some silverware. Anything else I can get you dear?"

"No, I think we're good, thanks."

"Ok, well if you need anything else, just holler. "

Until he smelled that pizza, he hadn't even realize how hungry he was. Thinking back, he realized it had been over 12 hours since had anything to eat. He snagged a slice, tossing it on his plate. He wasn't sure how long he could hold out without eating, so he glanced up to see if she was on her way back. His heart stopped for a minute. Not only did he not see Emily, but a quick glance around the room told him that Eddie had suddenly disappeared as well. In a flash, he pushed his chair back and practically ran to the back of the bar.