A/N: Oh my God you guys, WOW. That is all I can say about the feedback on got on the last chapter! So many reviews and so much amazing feedback. solveariddle, charmony, HPForever-after, x-MJ-x, phoebe9509, Amaranth Moon, greengirl82, miaa29, Rolfy, HGRHfan35, krisphoenix, bgreen0207; you guys stunned me with the incredible reviews and thoughts on the last chapter.

Phoebe9509 was lucky reviewer number 50, and her one-shot will be posted by Sunday. I meant to have it up by today but my job got in the way this last week and some amazing opportunities have come up. :)

To Michelle, my lovely beta and friend, thank you SO much for everything you do for this story and for me. To greengirl82, for your continued inspiration, thank you so much!

This chapter follows along the two episodes of 3x08 Lucky and 3x09 Penelope. You should be able to see where my bits fit in with the episodes. :)

READ AND REVIEW PLEASE! I'd love to hear where all of you feel this should continue to go. Any ideas you feel like throwing my way or anything in particular you wish to see, is always appreciated. Please note that the next chapter will be M rated, so be prepared! :)

Disclaimer in Chapter 1!


"Your heart just breaks, that's all. But you can't judge, or point fingers. You just have to be lucky enough to find someone who appreciates you." - Audrey Hepburn

She hadn't stopped feeling nauseous since they'd figured it out.

She could stare into the eyes of the worst criminals in the world and not flinch; but introduce cannibalism and all of sudden any control Emily Prentiss had over her stomach disappeared. She dry heaved into the jet's toilet once more, the force of the motion straining her ribs and causing tears to glisten in her eyes, before she flushed the toilet and wiped the corners of her mouth with a tissue. She splashed some cold water on her face and took a deep, calming breath before opening the door and jolting slightly. He was leaning directly across from the door, arms folded over his chest, eyebrows raised in concern.

"You okay?"

She sighed and closed her eyes, tilting her head and licking her lips. She shook her head slightly and laid a hand over her flat middle, "Just a little queasy."

She looked up at him and let one corner of her mouth quirk upward, "Makes me wonder if I should look into vegetarianism. No potential human flesh consumption."

He flashed her a dimple for a moment before it disappeared and was replaced with his regular stoicism, "We should get you some ginger ale and crackers. It might help settle your stomach."

She raised an eyebrow and smiled as he shrugged, "It worked for Haley when she was pregnant with Jack."

Emily's soft chuckle filled the small space they occupied as she reached forward and rested her hand on his forearm, her thumb stroking his skin gently, "I'm just upset from the case, Aaron. I'm not pregnant. Nor do I expect to be pregnant anytime in the foresee-able future." She smiled warmly as her hand slid into his and uncrossed one arm from his chest. She tugged him closer by their joined hands and kissed his cheek gently, "Thank you for the concern, though. This knight-in-shining armor act is kind of sexy on you."

He chuckled and pressed his forehead to hers, "It is, huh?" She hummed her agreement as he pressed his lips to hers gently. He tucked his body in behind hers, his hands resting on her shoulders as he guided her to the bench seat in the back of the jet andlaid her down on it; his suit coat bunched up and acting as her pillow. He knelt down next to her head and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

Her eyes met his and she tucked her lips into her mouth for a moment before cautiously reaching a hand forward and touching his cheek, silently mouthing 'thank you' before closing her eyes and curling her limbs close to her body as she sought to sleep on a pillow that smelled of her lover and coffee.

His body settled into the seat across the way from her, and he sat back, watching her sleep contentedly. The way the black lashes of her eyes fanned delicately over her soft alabaster skin, and the soft flush of her face as she dreamed made his stomach climb in his chest; she was undeniably beautiful and no matter how much he looked at her, he still could not not wrap his mind around how lucky he seemed to have become.

The soft pressure of someone taking the seat next to him, pulled him away from studying her and he nodded at the blonde taking the seat next to him. Her eyes danced between the two of them and she furrowed her eyebrows together, "I think everyone heard her throwing up a few moments ago. Is she okay?"

He nodded and swallowed the lump in his throat as he glanced back at her, "Yeah, she's fine. The case just… upset her stomach a little. She'll be okay." He nodded and sighed before turning back to the blonde, "Are you okay?"

She shrugged and tucked her feet up beneath her body, her head turning to look out the window into darkness, "I guess. I'm just… It never fails to stun me. People are capable of anything."

He narrowed his eyes at her in confusion and turned his body to face her more, "JJ?"

She kept her eyes out the window and scratched her forehead before running a hand through her hair, "It just sucks sometimes, Hotch. We're constantly surrounded by this darkness; I don't understand how you manage to stay so objective all the time."

He dropped his eyes and flicked a glance at the sleeping brunette across from them before looking up at JJ and giving her a rare glimpse of his quarter smile, "I try to find the light in my life when I'm not at work. You need to find that thing that doesn't seem to be affected by all this."

He sighed and his smile grew a little more, "Someone told me recently that part of being objective is being human." Memories of Emily speaking that line to him, desperately trying to make him understand came back to him as he looked at the blonde with soft eyes, "It's not easy, JJ. Hell, I'm still working through it, but you'll get there. You will. Just try to find something to keep you human."

JJ nodded and looked at him with glistening eyes, "Is it Jack and Haley?" He hummed his confusion and tilted his head at her question. She smiled and shrugged, "Your light. Is it Jack and Haley?"

He took a deep breath and released it slowly before giving a slow contemplative nod, "Jack's part of it."

JJ's lips pursed as she smirked at her unit chief with interest, "Can I ask what the other part is?"

Hotch raised an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes, "Just cause you ask, doesn't mean I'll answer."

JJ nodded slowly and tucked her lips into a tight line, "Got it. Topic dropped." She smiled warmly and sighed, "I'm going to go try to rest. Get some sleep, Hotch." She moved smoothly from the chair and headed over to the opposite side of the plane where Hotch could make out the form of a sleeping Reid, and Rossi and Morgan talking softly. He turned his heavy gaze back to the sleeping woman across from him before stretching his long legs out in front of himself, crossing his arms over his chest, and tilting his head back to rest on the back of the seat.

. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... …

The apartment felt empty.

They'd spent every free moment together since their decision to be serious about what was going on between them, and right now, as she entered her apartment alone, she realized how empty everything seemed without him. She dropped her go bag by the door and set her house alarm before heading into the kitchen and grabbing a bottle of water out of her fridge, taking a long swig of the cold liquid before leaning back against her counter and sighing. She looked around her, at the immaculate apartment that looked more like a spread out of Ikea than a lived in space and chewed the corner of her lip in thought. His place was no better, but at least it would eventually have signs of life; toys would end up squished between the couch seats, children's books would be mixed in on his shelves with his John Grisham novels. She licked her lips and finished her water before deciding that she was thinking way too much about the future. She headed up to her bathroom, leaving her cell phone on the counter and hopped into a hot shower, scouring away the case and her concerns, and just letting the scent of lavender and vanilla surround her. She emerged from the shower close to an hour later, the time having escaped her as she relaxed and groomed.

As she was finishing blow drying her hair her phone began to ring and she reached over and grabbed it. She smiled seeing his image come up on her phone and answered playfully, "You still at the office or did you want to meet up for some late night chow and sex?"

Silence answered her and she looked down at the phone curiously and then pulled it back to her ear, "Aaron?"

His sigh sounded loudly through the phone and she felt her stomach tense, "Aaron, what happened? Is everything alright?"

She was grabbing clothing and getting dressed faster than she ever had before, as he spoke, "Emily, Dave's on his way to come get you."

She froze in mid-motion and took a deep breath, "Why?"

She could picture him, hand on his hip, coat pushed back and pacing in his office as he spoke, "Gar… Penelope was shot tonight. They called me as her supervisor… she's on her way to the hospital; we all are. I sent Dave for you. He should be there shortly."

She dropped onto her bed in shock, her eyes staring straight ahead but unseeing as she tried to wrap her mind around it, before his words settled in, "Aaron, I can drive."

He cleared his throat and sighed, "I'd rather have him come get you. I know you and the girls are close. I don't want you or JJ driving right now. You wouldn't be able to focus and I don't think the team could handle being down two members…" she dropped her head and ran a hand through her freshly dried hair as he took a moment before continuing in a low soft tone, "And I know I couldn't handle something happening to you right now, so just get in the car with Dave and I'll see you there."

She couldn't help the sad smile that grew on her face at his admission before he hung up. She grabbed a blazer and her purse and rushed down to meet Dave in her parking lot, not wanting to waste any time in getting to where she was needed most.

. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... …

It was all a blur.

The last 4 days had been nothing but a solid blur of quick showers, quick changes, drive-thru or carry-out food, quick naps, and hospital visits. He gripped the two large cups of coffee from Starbucks in his hands as he approached the conference room at the BAU. He couldn't stop thinking about the terror on his team's faces as they sat in the waiting room, the guilt that had been eating at Morgan these last four days was slowly starting to seep into all of them and he knew that right now, that was the last thing they needed. He stepped into the conference room and smiled, seeing the brunette woman sitting at the table, her hand supporting her head. He would've thought she was reading if it wasn't for the soft heavy breathing he heard being emitted from her plump red lips. He walked over quietly and set the coffees down on the table in front of her, before resting his hands on her shoulders and shaking her lightly, his thumbs rubbing the base of her skull.

She blinked her eyes open and smiled when she saw the coffee and smelt his cologne from behind her. She groaned and dropped her head back, enjoying his caresses for a moment before shrugging her shoulders, signaling for him to release her. He quirked a smile at her as he grabbed his coffee and sat down next to her, "You okay?"

She nodded and reached for her coffee, taking a sip and humming her appreciation. Her eyes met his, glowing in gratitude, and her lips curled into a slight smile against the plastic lid before she took another sip. She set the cup down and shrugged, "I'm just frustrated. This whole thing is…" she ran a hand through her hair and shook her head, "I want to fix it. I want it to be over for her. Nobody deserves to be scared for their life like this. Feeling trapped like there's no place to go." She swallowed and looked to the ceiling, fighting to keep her feelings at bay. She licked her lips and closed that Pandora's Box in her head and looked at him, "I hate knowing that this bastard is out there and people are telling me I can't get him."

Aaron smiled and touched her hand resting on her knee, his thumb caressing her knuckles, "We're not going to let it stop us, Emily."

She rolled her eyes and scoffed, "I know that. I do, and I'd do anything to help her. I just… It's infuriating."

He nodded and squeezed her hand gently, his lips a thin line. He felt for her, knew how hard he'd take it if he was in her shoes and she was the one who'd been shot. His eyes darted to the door as Dave stepped in, cell phone up and jaw tight with concern. "We have a problem."

Emily's eyes lifted to the other male and she turned her hand under Aaron's entwining their fingers and gripping his hand tight as Dave took a breath and shook his head, "He went to her apartment. Shot a cop, tried to shoot Morgan. Went back to finish the job."

She felt Aaron's eyes on her as she squeezed his hand. She swallowed and grabbed her coffee, dropping his hand and stood, "I'm going over there."

Hotch nodded in agreement with her as she breezed past Dave in long purposeful strides. He followed behind her moments later with Hotch hot at his heels.

. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... …

She could've kissed him.

Right there, in front of the whole god damn team of BAU profilers, she could've kissed him; all because he was letting her stay with Penelope and be an active part of trying to catch the guy. He'd actually heard her. He was making an effort to please her. She turned to Garcia with a sly grin and set her hands on her hips, "Where's your computer?"

Penelope smiled and pointed into her bedroom before letting Morgan help her up from the chair and heading into the room followed by the other two agents. Emily turned to the two men and raised an eyebrow, "I don't think so boys. Go entertain yourselves. She only needs one log-in at a time."

She sat down next to Penelope on the bed and leaned over, giving her everything she'd need to log into the FBI site as 'SSA Emily Prentiss'. She smiled at Pen as the confirmation screen came up and touched her knee gently, in a sign of trust. Penelope reached over and grabbed her hand gently, "Why are you doing this?"

Emily looked at her with confusion all over her face and shrugged, "We're a family, Penelope. This is what we do."

Penelope shook her head and nodded to her computer, "Why are you letting me use your name first? If we get caught…"

Emily smirked and squeezed Penelope's hand, "If we get caught, I'll take the heat for it. They're not going to fire me. They know the hell that would come down upon them if that happened."

She winked at her and slid off the bed heading into the living room and picking up one of the graphic novels on the table by Morgan. She smiled at him and punched his shoulder gently, "How you holding up?"

He sighed and ran a hand over his face, "It's killin' me. Her being here… like this. It's killin' me, Prentiss. I can't handle it."

She nodded and rubbed her hand over his upper back, "She's going to be fine. Come on, Morgan, she has a team of FBI agents looking out for her; and it's the best team." She shrugged and patted his back tenderly, "You did good. Playing rouge cop and all."

He chuckled lightly and she smiled at him before opening the graphic novel and beginning to flip through it, barely processing anything that she was reading as she listened to the incessant typing in the next room, followed by little mutterings from their tech savvy blonde cohort.

Morgan's eyes lifted from the volunteer sheets he was reading at her mutterings as he leaned around trying to see into the bedroom, "What is she doing in there?"

Emily turned another page on the novel and kept pacing in the form of a figure eight, "Do you really want to know?"

. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... …

Her heart dropped into the pit of her stomach as the live video of the BAU came up on Garcia's screen.

He was there, in their office, where just hours prior Aaron thought Garcia would've been safe. Then it hit her, like a freight train of concern, Aaron was in the BAU. She watched the footage unfolding with her jaw slack, Morgan's call to Aaron and subsequent call to JJ just white noise as she watched things unfolding live in front of her with wide brown eyes. Her breath hitched for a moment before she was able to speak, "He knows they know."

"This is crazy. We gotta get over there."

She grabbed her coat and helped Penelope into her shawl as they group rushed to get back to the BAU. Her blood pounded in her ears as they climbed into the vehicle and began to race towards the BAU. She jolted slightly as her phone buzzed to life and grabbed it, seeing his name flickering on the screen she answered as professionally as she could, "Hotch?"

His voice spoke over the phone in cool calming notes, but as he surveyed the chaos around him in the BAU, he couldn't help but smile at the worry in her voice, "It's over. We got him." She sighed loudly in relief, and dropped her forehead into her hand, "JJ?"

He cleared his throat and licked his lips, "Yeah. She took him out. How did…"

She bit back the smile that wanted to blossom on her lips and interrupted him, "Garcia got the live feed from the cameras. That's how we knew he was in the BAU. We're on our way."

She hung up and looked at the occupants in the car, "JJ got him."

. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... ... …. ... ... …

Domesticated.

Not really a word he'd ever thought to associate with her, but tonight as she unpacked the boxes from the Chinese place on his counter top and dished out a little of everything onto two plates, it was the only word he could think of. He padded softly down the hall, removing his tie, jacket and work shirt on the way and laid them all over the back of chair in the room, before undoing his belt and pants. He was just reaching into the closet to grab his sweatpants when two small, warm hands rested on his lower abdomen and slipped under his shirt, pressing softly against the skin there. He smirked and looked over his shoulder at her, her eyes playfully tracing his state of undress, "I thought you were in the kitchen."

Her eyes returned to his as she grinned like a Cheshirecat, "I gathered as much."

He grinned at her dry tone and rested his hands over hers on his stomach, "So what are you doing in here?"

She pressed a kiss to the back of his arm and looked up at him with warm eyes, "I've been alone like that all week. Can I help it if it I wanted you to stay with me?"

He chuckled and looked around them, "I didn't leave, Emily."

She smirked and then eyed his body again, "And to add insult to injury, you started the peep show without me. I should just leave right now to punish you for that."

She slid her hands from his skin and turned to leave the room. He turned and grabbed her before she could take another step and pulled her back to him, his arms wrapping around her tight and his mouth pressing warm kisses over her neck, "You're not going anywhere, Agent Prentiss. That's an order."

She tilted her head to his and chuckled softly, "Agent Hotchner, I.."

He laid a finger against her lips. There was no smile on his mouth. He looked intent and determined and very hungry. He slid his hand into her hair and cupped her head, stepping close to her and leaving barely any space betweenthem. And then he kissed her.

He knew he should pull back, but damn, she tasted good. He knew he should let her be able to catch her breath but she merely stood there and gave him free rein over her. His mouth slanted over hers again, then he lightly coasted his tongue over her bottom lip. She groaned, and he felt a pang of arousal shoot straight through him.

He leaned back and stared down at her face. Her dark brown eyes were half closed, the thick, long lashes seeming to weigh them down. Her lips were still parted and her cheeks were flushed. He almost felt his chest puff in manly pride that he was able to make this luscious creature in front of him look like that. She batted her eyes open and looked up at him, her jaw slack and her breathing coming in soft pants. He leaned his face close to hers and grinned, "You're not going anywhere, Emily."

She shook her head slowly, slightly disorientated by the kiss and smiled, "Nope. I'm gonna stay right here." He chuckled and turned her towards the door, swatting her backside lightly to nudge her to move, "Go get comfortable on the sofa, I'll be right out."

She sauntered out of the room playfully and almost danced for joy when she got back to the space with the TV and sofa. She stared at the plated food and sighed, before sitting down and popping a couple of the buttons on her shirt open. If he was going to undress and get comfortable, there was no reason why she shouldn't either. She pulled her long hair up into a ponytail, exposing her neck for him, and kicked off her heels. She wasn't short by any stretch of the imagination, but the three inches those boots tacked onto her five-foot-eight-inch frame were nice to have. Especially when the man she was dating was over six-feet tall. She leaned back on the couch and waited for him to emerge, smiling as he finally did so in sweatpants and his plain white undershirt. She opened her arms to him as he moved to sit down by her. She tugged him over her on the couch, her body stretching out beneath his as she looked up at him and kissed him lightly.

He grinned and kissed the tip of her nose playfully, "Emily, sweetheart, the food is getting cold."

He watched her eyes twinkle for a moment as she stared up at him, her smile growing, "Sweetheart?"

He shrugged and kissed her gently, "What? Have people stopped giving pet-names to their lovers?"

She shook her head and chuckled against his lips, "I just never pictured you as the nickname type, honey."

He narrowed his eyes at her as he pulled his head away from hers, "Mocking me?"

She shook her head and giggled softly, her hand reaching up and caressing his cheek before sliding back into his thick crop of raven hair, "No, no. Not at all. It's just different, seeing you like this. It still surprises me."

His lips tilted to one side as he grinned and rested down onto her more, his firm frame pressing hers into the couch, "I like surprising you." He rested his forehead to hers and sighed deeply, "I don't know what I would've done if it had been you." He kissed her gently and shifted his weight onto one arm, the other hand reaching up and capturing her cheek, his thumb brushing her cheekbone softly, "This is still all so new; but I… I don't know what I would've done if you were the one that got shot."

She turned her face in his hand and kissed his palm. She wrapped her hand around his wrist gently, holding onto him and reaffirming him, "Hey, nothing's going to happen to me, and it's certainly going to take a lot more than some psycho with a gun for me to leave you." She smiled and stroked his wrist as she bit the corner of her lower lip before smirking and licking her lips, "What do you say, we forget dinner… and catch up on 'us'?" She pressed her body to his and slowly slid her leg up against his, her thigh resting against his hip; her hips pressing against his provocatively as her lips brushed his, "I think we both need to be reminded how lucky we've been lately."


See that blue button that says REVIEW? Please click it and leave me some feedback! Thanks! :) xx-babygurl0506