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There's not much to say except THANK YOU for your great feedback! And now, without further ado, a new chapter for you!

Enjoy!

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ReidsGirl

As always, I don't own Criminal Minds or any of the characters except for my OC's!

Chapter 36

"I swear to god Mom, if you keep cooking and baking like that I won't be able to fit into my dress and Dad will have to roll me down the aisle." Annie grimaced as she took another bite of what was her third cupcake in an hour. Leaning back in her chair she let out a content sigh as she rubbed her belly.

After the surprise at the bridal boutique she had spent the afternoon trying on dress after dress, all with the helpful advice of the girls and her mother. At one point she had gotten quite frustrated and had been close to losing hope of ever finding the perfect dress. But then she had slipped yet another white gown over her head and from the moment she had looked at herself in the mirror she had known that it was the one.

Her opinion had been confirmed by the others and after the shop assistant had taken her measurements and made sure to add a few inches to make sure the dress would fit her once their wedding day arrived, they had all gone out to dinner to celebrate. Spencer had been more than curious when they got home and had bombarded her with questions on how the dress looked. But she had kept her mouth shut, she didn't want to give him any clues.

That had been almost two weeks ago and tomorrow her mom would leave for New Hampshire again. At first it had looked like Caroline wouldn't get a chance to say goodbye to Spencer. The team had left for a case in Texas two days earlier to try and find yet another serial killer terrorizing a small town in the southern state. But this morning Spence had called to tell her they were already on their way back. Annie was not only happy they would get to spend one last night with her Mom but also that he would be back in time for the doctor's appointment she had scheduled for this afternoon.

Her mom would join them and she hoped it worked as a good luck charm. By now both Spence and her were both anxious to know if their baby was a boy and a girl. She hadn't been able to resist buying a few onesies in neutral colors when she went shopping with her mother the other day. But she knew it would be so much more fun once she knew the gender of their little peanut.

"Nonsense, you'll look beautiful." Caroline interrupted her thoughts. "Spencer will count himself lucky to have such a beautiful bride. And the way he dotes on you..." she added, recounting how her future son in law made sure Annie was comfortable. At some times she hadn't been able to hold back a grin when he started to become overprotective of her daughter.

"I know, he's been great." Annie smiled. "Since I told him I'm pregnant he hates leaving with the team. At least this time he was a bit more relaxed, knowing you're here."

"Speaking of the team, there's a dinner we need to start preparing." Caroline replied.

Annie nodded before standing up. Since it was her last night in town her mom had insisted to invite the team over for dinner. Looking at the clock she realized her mom was right, their plane would be landing soon and they still had the check up at her OB/GYN before their house would be filled with hungry profilers.

"Thanks for dropping me off." Spencer nodded at JJ as she parked the car in front of the medical center. "So I'll see you tonight?"

"Yeah." JJ smiled. "Henry can't wait to see Annie, it's been a couple of weeks. I told him about the baby kicking and he's beyond intrigued. He'll probably bombard you with questions tonight."

"We'll be happy to answer them all. In an age-appropriate manner of course." Spencer laughed as he lowered himself into his wheelchair. "So I really should get going, I don't want to miss the sonogram."

JJ smiled affectionately. She had never thought she'd see her friend this excited over something other than Doctor Who or the latest scientific discovery. "Alright then, hurry up. I'll see you later!"

A couple of minutes later Spencer maneuvered his wheelchair out of the elevator of the third floor and made his way to the doctor's office. Entering the waiting area he immediately caught sight of Annie and her mom. A smile spread across his lips as he watched her for a few seconds before she noticed him.

"Spence!" she jumped up and rushed towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing a quick on his lips. "I'm so glad you made it back in time."

"Me too." he grinned before saying hello to Annie's mom.

"I've missed you." Annie couldn't help kissing him once more time.

"Annie Barker?" the nurse's name piped up. "The doctor's ready for you now."

They all followed the nurse to the examination room where they were greeted by Dr. Lowell. Annie quickly introduced her mother before she practically jumped onto the stretcher.

The doctor quickly rubbed some of the gel on her bump and proceeded to run the handpiece over it.

"Oh honey." Caroline gasped, tears springing to her eyes as she caught sign of her second grandchild on the monitor. She grasped both Annie's and Spencer's hand in hers and squeezed them tightly.

"So everything looks perfect, the baby is growing and well-developed." the doctor announced with a smile.

"So no huge head with a big genius brain that will hurt like hell when I go into labor?" Annie chuckled.

Spencer shot her an amused smirk while Dr. Lowell and her mom laughed.

"No, but it's probably still gonna hurt like hell. Part of the process, I'm sorry." the doctor smiled. "So let's see if we can find out the gender today." she added and shifted the handpiece.

Spencer felt his heartbeat speed up and he squinted his eyes at the monitor, looking for features similar to what he had seen in the pictures in his countless books.

"Ah, there we have it." Dr. Lowell smiled and pointed at a spot on the screen. "Not so shy today the little one. Ready to find out?"

And then Spencer saw it and suddenly his heart was hammering in his chest from happiness, the grin spreading across his face so wide it made his cheeks hurt.

"Are you sure I can't help with anything?" Spencer asked as he entered the kitchen.

The room was filled with the scent of herbs and spices and his stomach growled hungrily. He had been so excited and anxious about the doctor's appointment, he had barely been able to eat when the team had a lunch of sandwiches on the way back from Texas. By now he was positively starving. But their guests were due to arrive any minute now and while his stomach ached for a snack he didn't want to spoil his appetite for the meal.

"No Spencer, I told you and Annie to sit back and relax, tonight is my treat." Caroline smiled. "Besides, everything is done."

"Told you she wouldn't let us help." Annie grinned and ran her hand through his hair.

"Like mother like daughter." Spencer winked, catching her hand and squeezing it.

"Careful there Mister." she playfully batted his hand away only to grasp it again. "You're talking to a pregnant woman. I can't be held accountable for anything I do if you keep teasing me."

"Oh yeah, Hotch warned me about that." he laughed.

"You two..." Caroline shook her head and smiled. "So when are you gonna tell the team the big news?"

"Well I want to tell them right away. But Spence wants to wait till after dinner as he doesn't want the food to go cold over the excitement that is sure to follow." Annie replied. "Kissing up to the future mother in law, are we?" she added with a wink at her fiancé.

"Don't be so sassy young lady." her mom laughed. "And that's very considerate of you Spencer."

DING-DONG the doorbell sounded.

"Oh, that's them." Caroline smiled. "Now you two go on out and I'll join you in a minute."

The first to arrive were Hotch and Jack, of course their unit chief would be the most punctual. They were soon followed by Emily, Morgan and Penelope. Then Rossi arrived and immediately started a chat about food and wine with Caroline, who had come out of the kitchen. Soon the room was filled with chatter and laughter and then the doorbell rang again, announcing the arrival of JJ, Will and little Henry.

"Annie!" Henry raced towards her but suddenly stopped in his tracks, eying her carefully, his eyes darting between her face and her bump.

Spencer watched as Annie crouched down to be on eye level with him and smiled. "Hey there buddy, what's wrong?"

Henry furrowed his brows and shot a quick glance up to his mom and then back to Annie.

"I almost forgot that mommy said I have to be careful because of the baby." he started to explain. "And that you can't pick me up like you always do."

Annie looked at Spence and grinned before turning back to the little boy. "Well but you did remember in time so it's all good. And even if I can't pick you up I can still hug you."

"You can? But maybe I will hurt the baby?" he asked nervously.

"No you won't, not if you don't hug me too tight. You are a strong boy after all." Annie laughed. "But if you're careful me and the baby would love a hug from you."

His little face relaxed and he took a step forward and carefully wrapped his arms around her neck. Annie hugged him back and smiled at Spencer, who was watching them. Henry pulled back and looked down at Annie's bump again.

"And the baby is really in there?" his voice sounded unconvinced as he pointed his finger at her midsection.

Annie nodded her head and placed a hand on her belly. "Yes, crazy, right?" she chuckled.

"Does it hurt you in there?" he asked, now truly curious.

"No, it doesn't. But it does move and sometimes even kick. I can tell you the next time it happens and then you can feel it for yourself." Annie promised.

Henry nodded his head in excitement. "Mommy said the baby will stay in your belly cause it can grow there until it's ready to come out. I was in my mommy's belly too but I don't remember. And mommy said the baby gets food too when you eat." he said, almost stumbling over his own words. "Is Uncle Spencer still gonna play with me when the baby is here?" he asked, a slightly worried tone entering his voice.

Annie looked up at Spence, forming a silent "aww", seeing her expression mirrored in the faces of the others as she took a glance around the room. JJ had her hand pressed to her heart and Annie couldn't help but smile at the motherly gesture, her hand automatically returning to rest on her belly.

"Of course I will buddy." Spencer had quickly reached them and swooped the little boy up in his arms and placed him on his lap. "We'll always play together. At first the baby will be too small to join us but when it's a bit older I bet it would like to play with you too."

"You think so? Can the baby be my friend?" Henry's eyes went wide as he looked at his godfather for confirmation, his brain trying to process all that new information.

"I bet the baby would love to be your friend." Annie chimed in as she stood up and ruffled his hair. "You are older so you can teach her all those awesome magic tricks you learned."

Spencer's head snapped up and he couldn't suppress a chuckle when he saw how Annie's hand flew to her mouth as she realized her choice of words.

"Her?" Penelope's high pitched voice broke the silence that had settled in the room for a few seconds. "It's a girl?" her wide eyes darted between Annie and Spencer. "A girl? We're gonna have a little girl?" she screeched, a few happy tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.

"So much for waiting until after dinner." Spencer laughed.

Annie felt all eyes on them and a smile creeped up her face as she nodded her head. "Yep, we found out today." she replied, her hand reaching for Spencers.

And then they were showered with hugs and kisses, cheering and laughter filling the room. The men of course opting to exchange awkard half-hugs, patting Spencer on his back as if to say "Good job."

"Congrats man." Derek smiled. "Are you sure you can handle two of them?"

"Do you even know what that means?" Penelope cut him off, her voice just a bit too loud next to Spencer's ear as she pulled him in for another hug.

"Oh god, here she goes." Morgan rolled his eyes.

"Finally a girl!" Garcia ignored him, her voice brimming with excitement. "We need to go shopping! We can get pink shirts, and little baby skirts and I saw this cute headband with a glittery flower online." she was almost yelling now.

Morgan raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth but she pointed her finger at him. "And yes, I've been googling baby stuff, don't judge me." she pursed her lips.

"You do realize your daughter will probably look like an oversized cupcake by the time this one is done dressing her?" Derek smirked.

"Oh you're just jealous someone will have all my attention soon." Penelope winked back at him.

Annie let out a snort and looked at Spencer as the two continued to bicker. They had both fully expected Garcia to react in the exact fashion she currently displayed. But Annie shared her excitement. Of course she just wanted the baby to be healthy but the news that they were expecting a little girl filled her heart with happiness. She leaned down to place a kiss on Spencer's lips.

Spencer ran his thumb over Annie's cheek as she pulled back, unable to wipe that stupid grin off his face. A daughter, he still couldn't believe it. Soon he would be a dad, a dad to a little girl that would look up to him. In his imagination she would have Annie's smile and eyes. A little bundle of joy that he would give eveything for. He would do whatever he could to make his two girls happy and keep them safe.

"So guys." Annie started as she looked at the others. "I know this is all very exciting but can we continue discussing Pen's wardrobe selection for our daughter over dinner? I'm pregnant and I'm starving." she continued with a chuckle.

"Of course sweetie." Garcia cooed, taking her arm and leading her towards the dinner table. "So, we need to talk baby room. I'm thinking light pink and purple, or maybe lilac? I don't know yet but I do like the idea of a butterfly theme and..."

And Spencer almost burst out laughing again when Annie looked back at him over her shoulder, her eyes widened in a mock expression of horror as Penelope chattered on.

Soooo, it's a GIRL! I always planned it to be a girl so you can imagine how happy I was that most of you wanted one too! :D Sorry to everyone who hoped for a boy but since they already have Jack and Henry (and of course there's Annie's nephew Jacob, who will make another appearance soon) I thought it was time for a little girl.

So not long until the wedding, I am really excited about that chapter! Do you think everything will run smoothly? Will Spencer be able to dance at the wedding? I'd love to hear your thoughts so leave a review!