"Once upon a time there was a boy who loved a girl, and her laughter was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering."
― Nicole Krauss, The History of Love
They had almost everything ready for their wedding. Almost. They weren't going to get married in a church, neither of them religious and Rossi had offered up his yard like he did with JJ and Will. The caterer was booked, the DJ was booked, Emily's dress fitting happened, the flowers were ordered, the photographer selected. There were just a few minor details to work out. They had their stag and stagettes booked - Derek's heading into Washington for a football game and some "extracurricular activities" afterward while Emily and the ladies were heading to Atlantic City a few days after the men got back.
Emily got up from her desk and walked into Rossi's office, standing in the doorway. The older man looked up and gave her a smile. "What can I do for you, Emily?"
Shutting the door behind her, Emily sat down across from Rossi and took a deep breath. "I have a question for you. Uh, a request actually." She was nervous, and Emily Prentiss never got nervous. His eyes narrowed as he waited for her to speak. "Dave, would you walk me down the aisle?" She asked finally.
The Emily Prentiss he knew was a strong, accomplished, smart, powerful woman. He had only seen that look on her face once before, when they were on the case about her friend. The insecurity. The vulnerability.
"Of course, Emily. It's an honour that you've even asked me." Getting to his feet, he walked over to Emily Prentiss, the BAU unit chief, the badass who has faced some of the worst serial killers in the face, and wrapped his arms around her for a tight hug. "Sempre amo mio." He whispered, feeling her warm tears on his shoulder. "Sempre."
Sure, she had a father, but he had been out of the picture for years, and this day was going to be about her, not Ambassador Prentiss so she didn't want to ask her mother. And besides, Dave Rossi had become a father figure to a lot of them. Pulling away, she dabbed at her eyes. "Don't you dare tell anyone I cried." Emily threatened without malice.
The older man laughed softly and shook his head. "Wouldn't dream of it." He said gently. "Are you excited for your wedding?"
Emily fixed her hair before nodding. "It'll be nice to have some permanency." She admitted. "And Derek is...Derek. He's sweet, but stubborn and pig headed at times. And just a little bit patronizing with him always making sure I'm alright."
"But he treats you well?" Rossi asked. It was obvious they were head over heels in love, but he also wanted to extend his love and care to Emily, and only Emily.
A smile crossed her face. "Of course he does, Rossi."
"If he ever doesn't you tell me." He said seriously.
"I will." Emily shook her head slightly. "But he loves me, but the offer is well appreciated." She looked down at her watch. "Alright, back to work." She stated, straightening her shirt and shoulders before walking out of his office and into hers.
Mackenzie sat on the counter as she directed Derek on the next step of what to make. His team was off for the next couple of days, and Mackenzie's cases had been quick and easy, according to her. She got home early and headed next door to help Derek with his cooking. It was true, he couldn't cook. Hopping off the counter, she showed him how to brown the meat before dropping it in the pressure cooker she had convinced Derek to buy. She walked him through chopping the onions and garlic before dropping them in alongside the meat. Adding cans of tomatoes, spices and herbs and ¼ of a bottle of red wine, she closed the lid and adjusted the time. "Now don't touch it until it goes off. And then you leave it for 40 minutes before you open it." They worked through how to make the polenta and Mackenzie left step by step instructions with times on it for Derek.
"Alright, as long as you follow the instructions, you should be good. Or like facetime me if you need help." She said checking her watch. She was still in uniform, wearing olive green slacks and a khaki shirt. She had ribbons on her chest, her hair twisted up in a braid pinned to her head.
"It's still weird seeing you in uniform." Derek said, shaking his head.
Shrugging, Mackenzie gave him a wide smile. "It probably is, but I've been wearing the uniform for almost 10 years now." She said getting her issued black shoes.
"Is it something you want to do for the rest of your life?" He asked as he walked out with her, and holding open her coat.
"I love what I do." She said sliding her arms into the jacket. "And we'll see, if I keep moving up the ranks maybe I'll be the first female JAG." Mackenzie grinned. "It's basically the highest you can get in the JAG corps."
Derek held the door open for her and pressed a kiss on the top of her head. "I'm sure you'll be able to do whatever you set your mind to, kid."
Her face lit up and she squeezed his hand. "Now make sure you follow the directions becauseI'm not coming to rescue you if you light your kitchen on fire." Mackenzie teased as she stepped out onto the porch.
Emily's vehicle pulled into the driveway and Mackenzie gave her a small wave as she headed over to her own home. Stepping out of her SUV, Emily watched the younger woman leave before looking back at Derek. "So what's Mackenzie making us for supper?" She teased, walking into their house and inhaling deeply.
"Hey now." Derek replied, leaning down and giving her a soft kiss. "I am the one cooking, Mackenzie just left me instructions on what to do. And for your information, we're having beef and mushroom ragu served over creamy polenta with a fresh salad on the side."
Laughing softly, Emily looped her arms around his neck and deepened their kiss. "Yes, that sounds like something Derek Morgan would totally make, but it sounds - and smells - amazing."
The pressure cooker went off and Derek walked over, reading the directions and let it sit while pouring Emily a glass of red wine. "So, are you nervous for our wedding?" He asked, arching his eyebrows at her. "This time, next week, we'll be husband and wife."
Emily shook her head. "Nah, not worried or nervous." She said sipping her wine. "Ready for your stag?"
They had planned their stag and stagette parties planned for the same weekend, Derek heading into Washington to watch a Redskins game and Emily heading to Atlantic city for a "Sin to Win weekend."
"Football game, beers, going out for an expensive dinner after on Rossi's dime, what's there not to be excited about?" Derek got up and put some water on the stove and turned it on, reading through the directions Mackenzie left. "What about you? Remember, I don't have enough money to bail your asses out of jail."
Laughter filled the kitchen and Emily pulled herself up on the counter. "Don't worry, I have enough money to bail myself out. The others may be a different matter…"
Derek added the polenta to the now boiling water and stirred it quickly, adding some salt, pepper, and butter but tossing in the grated parmesan cheese and stirred it quickly. Once it finally came together, he took it off the heat and then opened the pressure cooker. Using forks, he shredded the meat before plating the polenta and the ragu on top. "Dinner, my lady, is served." Placing everything on the table, he gave her a smile.
"Well, it certainly smells amazing." Emily said, taking a small bite. "My compliments to the chef." She said with a smirk. "It's really good, you can add it to the recipe book I know you and Mackenzie have been putting together.
Sitting down across from her, Derek grinned. "Well, I don't want my wife to starve." He said, taking a bite. It had been about six weeks since Derek had taken Mackenzie up on her cooking lessons and he had started gaining confidence.
If they were both home and Taala was home, Emily would head over and learned some of her own cooking tips. She hadn't had a chance to try them all out yet, but she knew that they would soon have the rest of their lives together.
"Do we have anything else to go over before the wedding? You okay with staying over at Taala and Mackenzie's for the night before our wedding? Your mom said she was gonna get a hotel room and my Ma and sisters will stay here." He said as he took a bite of his food.
"Okay with it isn't exactly the term I'd use, but I'll do it." Emily grumbled. Penelope and Tara said that it was tradition that the bride and groom didn't see each other the night before the wedding, and even JJ got in on the argument. She didn't know about her own wedding and stated that their wedding was even more unconventional than Emily and Derek's. "It's a lame tradition, but I figure I'll give it to Pen and Tara."
Derek grinned and nudged her under the table with his foot. "You'll be fine, Princess. After our wedding we'll be off to Fiji for a full ten days of fun."
Emily nodded and finished eating her plate before putting the rest away for their next days' lunches. "I'll just miss you." She said softly, as Derek finished cleaning up the rest of the plates and dishes.
"I'll miss you, Princess. But it's only for one night and then we'll have the rest of our lives together. And besides, we're going to be apart when you're in Atlantic City."
The domesticity of everything hit him as he grabbed his beer and she grabbed her glass of wine and they settled on the couch. He draped his arm around her waist as she leaned against, cuddling against his side. "Princess, you have made me the happiest man in the world." He whispered, burying his face in her hair.
Her face tilted up, the brightest smile appearing on her face. "You make me pretty damn happy too, Derek." She said, reaching up and pulling him down for a soft gentle kiss. Their lips met gently, their tongues dancing softly. There was no rush, no wanton desire behind their kisses. No, these kisses were words that their hearts felt but their mouths couldn't say. Their bodies, their lips, their tongues, their hands spoke.
After a few minutes they parted, Emily's lips kiss-swollen and pink. He looked down at her, a loving gaze in his eyes.
"I love you, Princess." He whispered, his lips brushing against her ear.
"I love you too."
Her head rested against his chest, her blunt fingernails brushing softly up and down. "By the way, Taala said that she will murder you the week before our wedding if you guys get Mackenzie into trouble." She whispered softly.
His chest shook as he laughed, his fingers in her hair. "I think Mackenzie can get herself into enough trouble, she doesn't need our help."
Emily had her overnight bag packed and waiting at the door. Taala was already over with Mackenzie, who had already dropped Noah off with one of Mackenzie's coworkers who would be watching him for the night. Emily's group was spending the night in Atlantic City, while Derek's would be returning very late. Soon the house was full of people and a huge limo pulled up.
"That's yours, ladies." Derek called out, knowing that he had booked a hummer style limo. Grabbing Emily's bag, he started to herd the women outside. Tara, JJ, and Penelope piled into the limo first, the men carrying the bags out with them. Mackenzie wrapped her arms around Taala and gave her a soft kiss. "I'll text you." She whispered softly. Their kiss was sweet and Taala pulled away with a blush. Her wife handed her the overnight bag and she too entered the limo. Derek pulled Emily into his arms and gave her a deep kiss. "I love you." He whispered against her lips. "Be safe."
Emily wrapped her arms around him and returned the kiss. "I love you too. Don't do anything stupid." Grabbing her bag, she followed Taala into the limo and shut the door. It pulled away and Derek turned back to everyone else. "Our limo should be here soon too." He said heading back inside.
Luke tossed Spencer a Redskins jersey and looked over at Mackenzie who was wearing black leggings and a tank top. "I have a shirt you could borrow." He offered. Mackenzie shook her head and pulled out a maroon shirt that had on the front "Washington, your team name is racist" in large yellow letters. SIghing, Derek ran his hands over his head before pulling on a Bears jersey.
"Don't look at me like that, Alvez." Mackenzie stated as she went and grabbed her shoulder bag. "I refuse to wear a jersey that perpetuates racist stereotypes. But I do like football and like pissing off racists even more." Her grin spread from ear to ear.
Rossi shook his head and pulled on his own Bears jersey. "You, piccolo, are a handful."
"Non sono sicuro se dovrei essere insultato o meno." Mackenzie grinned and opened the door. "The ride's here." She called, tugging on her sneakers.
"Why'd you even invite her?" Luke mumbled to Derek. "Thought a stag was a men only trip?"
The older man gave him a sharp glare. "It's for my friends, and Mackenzie is a friend." Derek said locking up the house and setting the alarm. "She's a good friend and I want her here." Heading out to the limo, he caught up to the rest of the group and opened the door. Rossi, then Spencer, and finally Mackenzie slid in. He shut the door and looked at Luke. "If you don't want to be here, that's fine, you can leave."
Grumbling, Luke opened the limo door and slipped in, Derek followed and shut the door.
Rossi had already broken out the scotch in the minibar, passing one to Derek. Spencer opted for a cooler, Luke a beer, and Mackenzie a sparkling water. Spencer had all of the stats of the game laid out and was starting a discussion with Mackenzie as to who he thought was going to win based on his statistical analysis.
"So, you ready to be an officially taken man?" Rossi asked, watching the three younger adults argue about the stats.
"So damn ready." Derek replied, sipping the scotch. "Honestly, I never thought that I would want to be married - that I would be a lone wolf forever, that I would be a bachelor forever. But…."
Rossi tipped his glass silently. "Emily happened."
"Yeah, she happened." Derek agreed. "Y'know, it just started with us having sex. Like after a really hard case we'd get together, get really drunk, and have sex. Then Doyle."
Nodding, the older man stayed silent, allowing Derek to continue.
"Then I didn't ever want to lose her." Derek said quietly. "And then she said she was going to fucking London and I had to tell her that I was in love with her."
The limo had gone quiet, the three younger adults falling silent. Finally Reid spoke up. "No, it was a lot longer than that, Derek." He said quietly. "Before Emily died. Remember when I talked to you on the jet about you two? I wasn't kidding. I know that it took a lot longer to actually get together, but did you ever wonder why things didn't work out with anyone else? Not just for you, but for Emily too?"
Mackenzie frowned and looked over everyone's face before holding up her hand. "Wait, okay, back up. Emily died?"
Spencer nodded "Yeah for about 7 months." He said with no other explanation. "You guys knew even when you weren't dating or together, or whatever, that you were connected somehow."
The limo headed into the city and to Fed Ex field and up to the box seats. Soon the drinks and food flowed freely, only Mackenzie not indulging in the alcohol. Taking her tonic water, she sat beside Derek and gave him a wide grin.
"You and Emily are great together." She said keeping her eyes trained on the game below them. "I'm not sure what's happened in the past, but you guys have the present and the future ahead of you." Tearing her eyes away from the game, she looked over at him and nudged him softly.
The beer bottle came to his lips and he took a long swallow before looking over at her. "You're right. We have now and soon I'll have her for the rest of my life." Derek's face broke into a small smile and he visibly relaxed. Picking up his phone, Derek sent a text to Emily, his fingers lingering over the screen. Knowing that Emily was busy at her own celebration, he focused back on the game and his friends.