A/N: For those who are curious, this fic has 22 chapters. What you're probably waiting for doesn't happen until that final chapter. (;
The last pancake ended up burning, and by the time they finally settled down to eat, the rest were cold. For Reid it didn't really matter because he typically drowned his pancakes in syrup, anyway. The moment the first piece touched his tongue, the Omega moaned before abruptly cutting the sound off as Hotch's brown eyes flicked up to him. His face flushed as he swallowed, and he offered a tentative smile. "Sorry. They're just... really good."
Hotch smiled slightly, murmuring, "Jack likes to claim I make the best pancakes."
"Jack is right. Most places don't make them fluffy enough, but these are perfect," Reid complimented as he took another bite. After swallowing he added, "I think you've ruined pancakes for me."
A soft pink hue colored Hotch's cheeks, and the Alpha studiously avoided Reid's gaze. "I'm glad you like them," he answered, his voice a bit more gruff than normal.
Reid smiled to himself, and they ate the rest of their breakfast in comfortable silence. When he was finished, he stood and grabbed his plate, cocking his head and asking, "Are you finished, Hotch?" as he reached for the other man's plate. It was empty but there was still one pancake left on the plate Hotch had stacked them on.
"Yes, but I can take care of the dishes, Reid," Hotch replied, his hands moving to grip his plate almost protectively.
Reid snorted and gently pulled at Hotch's wrist. "You made breakfast, Hotch. It's only fair that I do clean-up. That's one of the things you'll have to get used to if we're living together for three months." Hotch stared at him stubbornly, and Reid frowned and stared back. There was no reason for Hotch to clean the dishes.
After a long moment, the older man muttered, "It seems we are at an impasse."
The Omega bared his teeth in frustration. "You're being ridiculous, Hotch. If I were a guest, I could understand this sort of response, and even then I would probably argue with you over it. But I am not a guest, which means the circumstances are different."
"I'm not going to sit around uselessly, Reid," Hotch rejoined firmly, and Reid immediately shifted into a less aggressive stance as understanding washed through him.
"Hotch." He gently brushed his thumb along the inside of the Alpha's wrist. "You are many things, but useless is not one of them," he reassured fervently. After a short pause during which he ran through several ideas, he offered a tentative smile. "What if I let you dry the dishes after I wash them?"
The older man's gaze shifted to the side as he deliberated, and then his brown eyes settled back on Reid as he nodded. "We can do that."
Reid swiped his thumb over the pulse point in Hotch's wrist one last time before pulling his hand away. "All right. Grab the plate with the pancake on it, as well, then," Reid ordered as he turned on his heel and headed back into the kitchen. He turned on the faucet, allowing the water to get just the slightest bit hot before he plugged the sink strainer into the drain and nabbed the dishwashing liquid, squeezing out a liberal amount before returning the bottle to its place behind the sink. Hotch came in a moment later, setting the dishes and his mug on the countertop before moving to Reid's other side and pulling out a clean dishtowel.
As water and suds filled the sink, the Omega rolled his pajama sleeves up to his elbows before turning to grab the bowl, pan, and spatulas Hotch had used to make the pancakes. He put them on the counter with the other dishes and briefly checked the temperature of the water before turning it a little cooler so he didn't scald the more sensitive skin on his forearms. He chanced a glance at Hotch to find the older man watching him quite intently with a smile playing at his lips.
It was rather unnerving, and Reid squirmed slightly before he could stop himself, his cheeks heating quickly. "What?" he queried, and Hotch's head tilted.
"Even after everything else that's happened, you still blush over the littlest things," Hotch commented, and Reid was fairly certain that wasn't in response to his question.
"You were staring at me like you were about to shove me against the counter. I don't know if I would call that something little," Reid retorted, his gaze shifting back to the sink where he quickly turned the faucet to the other side and altered the temperature to be a little hotter again.
Hotch's soft laugh hit his ears as he picked up one of the dishes and dipped it into the sink. "All right. Then how about when you corrected me on the most likely gender for your potential mate?" The back of Reid's neck prickled with heat, and he felt the warmth extend all the way to the tips of his ears. He remembered the situation quite clearly because—"You were straddling me with my knot still swollen inside of you, and telling me you preferred males was what you were shy about." Hotch's voice was pitched low, and Reid's skin buzzed pleasantly at the mixture of the Alpha's tone and words even as he felt his face, neck, and ears burn darker.
Reid coughed and finished cleaning the plate in his hands, rinsing it off and practically shoving it at Hotch. "You've made your point, and I honestly don't know the answer, so can we please drop the subject?"
"Of course," Hotch answered pleasantly. Reid wasn't sure if it was actually Hotch or if it was the bonded Alpha teasing him, but even if it was Hotch, he was willing to allow it. He knew he should have told the older man what he was doing the night before, but he had gotten so used to experimenting in order to analyze reactions that he hadn't even thought about the fact that he was involving another person in them, and as such how Hotch was reacting internally hadn't even crossed his mind.
Hotch's words from earlier came unbidden, and Reid swallowed around the lump that had formed in his throat as he blindly passed the plate he'd just finished cleaning to the other man. Hurting Hotch was something he had never wanted to do, and he hated the fact that he knew it would happen again before all was said and done. There were bound to be several instances where Reid couldn't react the way Hotch would want or need, and Reid could only hope that their situation didn't affect their work relationship so badly that they couldn't be coworkers anymore.
That thought was best saved to fret over later, however, so Reid did what he did best and shoved it away to be dealt with at a different time. He concentrated solely on the repetitive process of washing dishes, and it wasn't long before he was handing the last item to Hotch. When Hotch had put it away and come back to the sink, the older man asked, "Is that everything?"
On a stroke of impulsiveness, Reid eyed the suds in the sink before smiling impishly and replying, "Almost," just before he flung the soap bubbles at the dark-haired man. Hotch blinked in slight shock, and Reid took advantage of that to flick more of the white foam at him just as Hotch's eyes narrowed, a playful growl rumbling in his chest as he reached for the younger man. Reid squeaked and darted around the corner, putting the bar between him and his superior. "Hotch," he attempted to implore, his soapy hands held up placatingly, but the Alpha simply growled again and quickly followed Reid's earlier path around the counter, causing the Omega to yelp and start running instinctively.
He almost made it to the half-bathroom before he was knocked to the floor, Hotch's warm and unyielding frame pinning him to the ground. "And where are you going?" the older man growled into his ear, teasing the shell of it with his tongue and causing Reid's lungs to burn as his breath caught sharply in his throat. He could feel Hotch's hard length against the curve of his bottom through his pajamas, and he held still as Hotch sucked on the tip of his ear, his teeth teasing the skin.
Reid berated himself as he waited; he knew better than to run from an Alpha. Not including a heat, a chase was probably the biggest turn-on for Alphas—and even Omegas, if they were running in a comfortable situation, usually with a sexual partner. Reid had done it twice, and he was fairly certain if he ever found a mate, it would become a weekly or monthly routine. There was just something oddly thrilling about being caught and fucked against whatever surface he'd landed on or whatever surface was nearby that always managed to infiltrate the sporadic wet dreams he had. And given his new-found appreciation for marking and biting (that he'd never allowed prior partners to attempt), he was really going to enjoy the fantasy of both of those situations combined whenever those dreams decided to grace his presence again.
Hotch's low growl was accompanied by a thrust of his hips, and Reid inhaled sharply as he realized his hole was wet with slick because he had allowed himself to be distracted. He could smell his own scent of vanilla in the air, and the accompanying crisp scent of cinnamon and cloves made his nose twitch. Hotch's teeth and tongue were teasing the skin on the back of his neck, and it was steadily growing more difficult to fight the urge to give into the Alpha.
"Hotch?" he whispered hoarsely.
"Hm?" the older man hummed against the nape of his neck. The fact that Hotch responded at all gave Reid a little hope.
Clearing his throat, the Omega replied, "I'm getting soap and water on the floor."
Hotch's low chuckle sent a spark of pleasure down his spine. "You didn't seem to care in the kitchen."
"I'm sorry for flinging soap suds and water at you," Reid answered, almost relieved at how lucid Hotch seemed to be.
"I highly doubt that," the dark-haired man retorted, and Reid felt Hotch nip the nape of his neck. "And because I know how you think, I could smell your fear when you realized you were aroused. I'm not sure why I couldn't smell it last night."
A quiet sigh escaped him as he relaxed underneath the older man. "That means you're either almost out of the fresh bonding stage or are completely out of it. You couldn't smell my fear last night because... Well, to put it simply, the Hotch part of you was cut off from the Alpha part of you. When you're more Hotch, you allow your Alpha to take control, but you keep it on a short leash. It's actually rather fascinating to watch. But when you're more Alpha, like during certain points of a heat or during the fresh bonding period, the leash is jerked from your hands, and you're left chasing after it and watching everything unfold.
"Omegas experience it, too. You've probably witnessed several of mine, but you didn't notice it at the time. When I first joined the BAU, I practically tripped over myself trying to please you because you were the only Alpha on the team. I covered that reaction when I wasn't being ran by instincts, using Gideon because he was my mentor. Don't get me wrong; the Reid part of me wanted to make him proud. But I don't think I would have tried as hard if the Omega part of me hadn't reacted so strongly because I was around an Alpha consistently for the first time in my life.
"And then there were the few Alphas we ran into when working with LEO's. Most of them left me alone when you were around because they knew better than to impede on what they considered your turf—and my Omega would never disrespect you like that, so it was a lot easier to ignore them—but when you weren't around, there were a few instances that I don't really like to think about."
Hotch growled low in his throat, and Reid was surprised when the Alpha's weight lifted off him before he was roughly turned onto his back. He stared up at Hotch's livid expression as the older man snapped, "And you never told me?"
A soft chuckle escaped him, and Hotch's eyes flashed angrily before widening in shock as he reached a hand up and skimmed his knuckles against Hotch's jaw. "I debated on it for a while, but you had a lot on your plate back then. The rest of the team stepped in to handle things whenever I couldn't do it by myself, so it wasn't like I was without options. Now I don't even need anyone to step in on my behalf." He smirked as he added, "There was one incident I always wanted to tell you about, though."
Hotch quirked a brow and was silent for a long moment. Reid waited, knowing Hotch was studying him, and his smirk turned into a grin as Hotch sighed almost resignedly. "I feel like I'm going to regret asking this, but what happened?"
"It was one of the last ones before I started dealing with the LEO's on my own, which probably isn't surprising. I'm actually a little surprised no one told you. I can't remember why I was at the station alone, but I do recall being nervous because there were a few more Alphas there than at most the other precincts. They were all being the stereotypical Alpha, which was already irritating me because it bugged me that idiots like that were the reason Alphas get such a bad name when I knew several who weren't that way.
"Anyway, they followed me out of the conference room at one point because I mistakenly believed they wouldn't try anything in front of the other officers. One of them grabbed me and laughed at my attempts to wrestle away from him before making a remark about how I was more than willing to bend over backwards to do what you wanted, so why shouldn't I be the same for him? I wasn't aware of what he was insinuating until he elaborated just a bit more, and that was when I went from irritated to livid in the span of a second. The officer didn't realize it, and then he said something even more demeaning about you, and my Omega growled and took over.
"The next thing I knew I was being restrained by Betas because I had bitten and clawed at the Alphas who had tried to pull me off the other officer. When Morgan and the chief returned, there was quite a bit of explaining to do, but the chief was on my side. He laughed and clapped me on the shoulder before telling everyone that was what happened when you disrespected an Alpha that an Omega was loyal to. Morgan complimented me for injuring so many of them, but he suggested we keep it from you just like we had all the other altercations. I pretty much sulked the rest of the day because my Omega wanted to tell you how good I'd been and no one would let me," Reid explained, mostly musing aloud by the end.
He wasn't expecting Hotch to suddenly bend down and capture his mouth in a hot, bruising kiss that had him gasping. "You can't just say things like that," Hotch groaned against his lips, biting at the lower one before soothing the slight burn with his tongue. Reid moaned softly, allowing Hotch's tongue to tease his for a moment before he gently pushed at Hotch's shoulders. Almost immediately Hotch lifted his head, and Reid caught the grimace before the older man could cover it.
"Don't apologize," Reid murmured before Hotch could say anything, squirming slightly in an effort to non-verbally request for the dark-haired man to get up. The floor was starting to become quite uncomfortable. Hotch quickly moved off him and stood, extending his hand for Reid to take. With a grateful smile, the Omega slipped his hand into Hotch's and allowed the older man to pull him to his feet.
"I'm a little surprised you were willing to stay on the ground for so long," Hotch commented.
Reid smiled shyly as he gently pulled his hand free. "It didn't really register until after I was finished with my anecdote," he admitted, shrugging one shoulder. "Have you forgotten how easily I fall asleep in weird places? I've grown accustomed to being comfortable on almost any surface. The floor in your hallway is easily one of the more comfortable ones."
"Is that so?" Hotch was watching him with an almost fond expression, and Reid felt his face flush slightly.
Clearing his throat, he tugged at the hem of his pajama shirt. "Um, I know it doesn't exactly make things better, but I wanted to apologize for... well, sort of treating you like an experiment last night and earlier this morning. I should have told you, and I know I broke your trust."
Hotch furrowed his brows confusedly, which only succeeded in confusing the younger man as well. "Reid, it would take a lot more than that for you to break the trust I've had in you for the last seven years," the Alpha retorted, his lips twisting into a wry smile. "I'm sure my outburst didn't seem like it, and I'm sorry for handling the situation in such a manner. It simply caught me off guard at the wrong time."
Reid frowned, studying Hotch for a long moment before nodding, even though he knew he would be silently trying to make it up to the older man until he was satisfied that he deserved Hotch's blind trust in him. "All right, and I'm not sorry you handled it the way you did. I needed to know about that, or we could have had much bigger problems on our hands." After another silent moment passed between them, Reid prompted, "Why don't you call Jessica and tell her we'd like to see Jack this afternoon while I get cleaned up, and then when I'm through, you can shower? We can have our discussion after that."
"That sounds like a good idea. And maybe you can prepare me for what sort of reaction to expect from Jack?" Hotch suggested in return, and Reid smiled.
"There's a wide range of responses that could occur, but I think we can deliberate which ones are most likely and go from there. If he doesn't behave in the manner we expect, then obviously we'll need to improvise based off—" Reid was startled by Hotch's calloused fingers pressing against his lips, and he felt his eyes widen as he stared at the older man.
Hotch smiled and gently instructed, "One thing at a time. Go take a shower, Reid."
Reid could only nod speechlessly before doing as ordered.