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Author's Note: Special thanks to Angels-heart1, ilovetvalot, HGRHfan35, Lenika08, p95000, H.I. Fanfction, jenny crum, DreamerChild88, criminalmindsfan7, Oricke, Illunaisol, Dance Elle Dance, and thekeeperoftime for the reviews! This is not a normal pairing of mine so I appreciate all the encouragement!
Chapter 7
Rossi paced in front of his door for the fiftieth time in the past two hours. He hadn't heard from JJ or Hotch since they left to take Henry to meet Will nearly three hours ago. As the time ticked by, Rossi felt all his uncertainties from the previous night creep back in. He tried to tell himself that he was being ridiculous, that with as angry as JJ was at Will that she would never take him back. He tried to tell himself that Hotch would look out for her, but that only led to thoughts of JJ and Hotch alone, working through her issues, growing closer, shutting him out.
"Get a hold of yourself," Rossi muttered to himself. He knew Hotch would never hit on JJ. He knew Hotch wouldn't do anything to hurt either him or JJ and that, in his own way, he was rooting for them to... well, Rossi wasn't exactly sure what Hotch was rooting for with them, but he knew it was good.
Rossi's pacing stopped when he heard the beautiful sound of JJ's laughter out in the hallway. He hurried from the doorway, but kept close enough to hear what was going on outside. He was startled when he heard JJ's voice outside of Hotch's office.
"Thanks for coming today, Hotch," she said. In Rossi's mind, she had laid a hand on Hotch's arm. "You really made it easier by being there. Will was on his best behavior."
"He always did seem a bit intimidated by me," Hotch replied. Rossi could see in his head Hotch drawing nearer to JJ.
JJ chortled. "That's putting it mildly. Seriously, though, I think your presence kept his temper under control. I am honestly starting to believe that Will and I will be able to work out a custody agreement."
Rossi's heart dropped as he imagined Hotch placing a hand on her shoulder. "You know, if there's anything you need, anything at all, you can come to me. I'm an old hat at this."
"I guess you are. I just... can't thank you enough. I-"
"No!" Rossi shouted, rushing out of the office as he got up in his fantasy, seeing JJ standing on her toes, one hand on Hotch's cheek about to kiss him. He froze when he realized that the reality was that Hotch and JJ were standing nearly three feet apart carrying on a normal conversation.
JJ glanced at Hotch before turning a concerned gaze on Rossi. "Is everything okay, Dave?"
Rossi closed his eyes briefly, embarrassment racing through his veins. "I just realized that I'm out of coffee, the, uh, good stuff I got from Indonesia." He turned and quickly walked away from them.
"Dave, wait!" JJ called after him. She squeezed Hotch's hand in thanks before jogging after Rossi. She caught him outside of the kitchenette. "I thought you'd want to hear about what happened at the meeting."
"I did. I do," Rossi affirmed. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. "So, how did it go?"
JJ rubbed her eyes. "I think it went really well. He seemed to understand why I'm uncomfortable with letting him be alone with Henry right now. He's agreed to meet in a neutral place for visitation for a few hours Monday and Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons."
Rossi frowned. "That's going to take up a lot of your time."
"It is, but I think it's better than panicking every time Will takes Henry that he's going to run off with him. We're going to see how this arrangement works for a few weeks or so and if it does, we'll revisit Will taking Henry on his own. As long as that goes well, we'll establish a routine and have it done in the courts," JJ explained.
"Sounds good," Rossi explained, "but I'm still going to have someone look into him, just in case. I know you told me last night that you wanted to wait, but-"
"I should probably be an adult here and tell you that you should respect Will's privacy," JJ told him, "but, frankly, I'm too scared for that. But, do me a favor and only tell me if you think I absolutely need to know what's going on."
Rossi stuck out his hand. "Deal."
JJ laughed as she shook it. "Thanks, Dave, for everything."
"I thought you weren't going to thank me anymore."
"I'm working on it," she joked. "Anyway, I need to get to Garcia before she grills us all. She thinks there may be an available apartment in her building, too."
Rossi covered up a groan by clearing his throat. "I've been thinking about that, Jayje, and I really think that until things are settled between you and Will that you guys should just stay with me."
JJ bit her bottom lip. "This could drag on for months or more."
"I understand that," he said. "I really don't mind. I love having you guys there. I just think that Henry's pretty settled-"
"Thanks in no small part to that room you set up for him."
Rossi grinned. "He's going to be going through enough changes with the custody arrangement so why not wait until everything's done to move him again."
JJ studied his eyes. She could see the sincerity there, but saw something else, too, that she couldn't quite pin down. "You're right. It would be better for Henry if we stayed in one place for awhile. I'll stop looking for somewhere else to live for now."
"Good. I'm glad that's settled." Rossi's smile grew wider and he could feel his heart beat stronger when her lips upturned to match his. "Now, go see Garcia before we're both in trouble."
"I'll see you later," she laughed before heading off towards Garcia's office.
"Count on it," Rossi whispered, watching him go.
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"And Will really agreed to that?" Garcia asked after JJ explained the afternoon meeting.
"He did. I think it helped that Hotch told him that he planned on being there every step of the way," JJ said. "Will was always kind of scared of Hotch."
Garcia scoffed. "I'm sure that Rossi will just love that, too."
JJ paused. "What do you mean?"
"Oh, sweetie," Garcia sighed. "You may not be ready to admit that your feelings for Rossi run more than platonic, but let me guarantee that his do."
"We're friends; that's all," JJ protested, but her mind drifted to last night when the two of them sat cuddled on the couch.
Garcia patted JJ's knee. "You keep telling yourself that."
JJ felt annoyance grow in her stomach. "I'm telling you it because it's true."
"Do you know that he paced his office the entire time that you and Hotch were gone? He tried to hide it from the rest of us, but he did a horrific job of it," Garcia explained, patiently. "That was after he spent a full five minutes staring at the elevator after you left."
"I-" JJ took a deep breath to sort out her thoughts. She knew it was pointless to argue with Garcia once she got an idea in her head. "Even if he does have 'less than platonic' feelings towards me, that doesn't mean that I feel the same. And even if I did," she cut Garcia off when Garcia opened her mouth to counter, "I just got out of a long-term relationship and I am nowhere near ready to jump into another one. Neither is Henry. Besides, Will and I agreed that we would bring any significant others around Henry for a long time."
"And I suppose living with yours would break that?" Garcia teased.
JJ shook her head, rolling her eyes. She opted to change subjects slightly. "So, Rossi's going to hire a private investigator to research Will."
"That's a good idea," Garcia said, emphatically. "You agreed right?"
"I did. You don't think I'm being paranoid?"
For a second time, Garcia scoffed. "When it comes to my adorable baby gumdrop, I don't think you can be too paranoid. And if his father tries anything, anything at all, Jayje, I just need five minutes on the computer."
JJ's eyes grew wide as she stood. "Thanks, Garcia, but I'd rather keep your hands clean. I'm going to get back to work."
"Have fun."
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"I expected you early," Hotch commented, dryly when Rossi knocked on his open door.
"You were expecting me?" Rossi shut the door and sat in one of the chairs.
Hotch put down his pen and smirked at Rossi. "It seems that every time I talk to JJ these days, you're right behind her, trying to glean some sort of information."
Rossi sulked. "I am not trying to glean anything."
"Sure. So, what can I do for you, Dave?" Hotch asked.
"I'm hiring a private investigator to look into Will. I want to make sure that he's not setting JJ up to grab Henry and take off," Rossi told him.
Hotch nodded. "That makes sense."
Rossi leaned forward. "You think so?"
"Dave, child custody can get ugly real fast," Hotch explained further. "And JJ is clearly scared that he might take off with Henry. She's a reasonable person, even throughout this whole ordeal so far, so that tells me that there's a reason she thinks that, even if she's not sure what it is."
"I've also asked her and Henry to stay with me until at least things are settled with the custody arrangement."
"I see," Hotch sighed.
Rossi rubbed his face. "What?"
Hotch fiddled with the pen on his desk. "It makes sense to keep Henry's life as steady as possible right now, but I can't help but worry about what this is going to do to you and to JJ. This isn't the right time to get involved."
"I know that," Rossi replied, hastily.
"Do you?" It was Hotch's turn to lean forward. "It's going to get harder to keep your feelings buried the longer that they stay with you. Are you prepared for that?"
Rossi stood. "I'll do whatever's best for JJ and Henry."
"Just don't forget yourself, Dave. You matter, too." Hotch stopped him as he hit the door. "And Dave? Next time, come up with a better excuse for interrupting a very innocent conversation between JJ and me than I ran out of the good coffee."
"Yeah, yeah," he mumbled, strolling out of the office. He was in for a bumpy ride.
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