Unfortunately, their case had ended up running until the following Wednesday, and he found himself looking forward to the jet ride home and then heading home to his lover. Still, he tried not to get his hopes and expectations up too much, since the team still needed to finish out the day in the office, finalizing their reports, before they could head home.
Aaron volunteered to drive, which meant that he was taking shotgun, and it was nice to keep up a running conversation with his best friend, finding the last vestiges of his ire fading away the longer they talked. Six months was a long time to hold on to grudges, as Erin was so fond of telling him, and their time on this earth was so fleeting. "I'm thinking about asking Beth to marry me. Even if we have to do a long-distance relationship for years before she can get a position back here, it will be worth it. I think that I've finally found the one that Haley wanted me to find, the one who would bring love back into our lives."
"And that is all that matters."
"So, are you going to ever ask Erin to marry you?"
He let out a long, low, breath before shaking his head. "I've had too many failed marriages to ever want to think about adding that stressor to our lives. If she ever mentions wanting to make things a little more permanent between us, I wouldn't say no. I just want it to be her choice."
"We're going to need to see the dentist back here," JJ said, and he caught her eye in the rearview mirror, seeing the exasperated smile on her lips. "If you're this saccharine without her, I can only imagine how you two are at home."
He winked at her before pulling out his phone to see the new message from Erin on his screen. "Dessert is sometimes better to have before the main course. And at this time in my life, I need to take any opportunity to have dessert when I can." He settled back into the seat and tapped out a reply to Erin, suddenly wishing that there wasn't a two-hour flight separating them. Thankfully, said flight was smooth, and he used the time in the air to work on the report he would be turning in to Hotch by the end of the day.
Though everything in his heart screamed for him to detour into Erin's office the moment he stepped off the elevator on their floor, he knew that he needed to look a little less obvious, instead heading straight for his office, nodding to Alex as he passed by her desk. From the knowing smile that danced across her face, he had the feeling that many stories had been shared during their time away from Quantico. Taking a deep breath, Dave quickly climbed the stairs and let himself into his office, dropping his bag near the door before heading over to his desk, his focus entirely on finishing up the report so that he could slip out early and prepare a special dinner for Erin before falling into bed with her.
It took a few soft coughs to catch his attention, and he looked up from the legal pad on his desk to see his partner sitting on his sofa, a soft smile on her lips. Dragging his eyes down her body, he sucked in a low breath to see that she was wearing a shorter skirt than normal and the creamy bit of her thigh that he could see between her skirt and hose caused the blood to immediately pool in his groin and then it was his turn to clear his throat as he adjusted how he was sitting. "I knew that you wouldn't come see me first. You'd want to get that report done so that we would have the entire evening together. Am I right?"
He nodded as he set his pen aside and got up from his desk, taking a seat across from her and picking up her hands, pressing a sweet kiss to the palms before letting out a sigh. "I may want to cook for you tonight, yes."
"Good. And then I can show off the rest of this outfit. Though you do deserve a sneak peek. Penelope's made certain that the camera in this office is otherwise occupied until I leave, so…" She pulled her hands away from his and took hold of the fabric of her blouse, pulling the halves apart to reveal the new bra that had first appeared in the text from New York. "This feels like heaven against my skin, David, but I cannot wait to take it off for you."
"You're killing me, Erin. How can I even begin to focus now, when this vision is going to dance before my eyes until we're home?"
"I'm certain you'll think of a way, darling," she murmured as she began to do up the buttons on her blouse, hiding her flesh away from his sight, much to his frustration. "Now, I need to head back and go over some last minute budget emergencies before I can even think about heading home. Until tonight." Leaning forward, she captured his lips in a searing kiss before getting to her feet and sashaying over to the door. Dave found that he had a one track mind, as he could only stare at her rear until his office door closed once more and the spell she had cast over him was broken.
Shaking his head a little, Dave rose to his feet and went back to his desk, trying to focus on his work and feeling like it was a losing battle. He only hoped that there wouldn't be too many noticeable errors that Hotch would pick up on, as that would surely give him away, and he didn't want that. Finally, he was able to sign off on the file and he set it aside in order to deliver it to Hotch before he left for the day, and then called up the manuscript that he was currently working on. His editor had backed off when Dave had explained just what was causing him to be a little late with turning in chapters. Still, he knew that he was under a time crunch, and so wanted to bang out another five hundred words on his current chapter before he headed home.
He must have lost himself in his work, as the next thing he knew, Hotch was standing in front of his desk, a bemused smile on his lips. "Erin's already left for home."
"Shit, what time is it?" he asked as he tried to clear the curtain of focus that had blocked out all distractions from his mind. "It was just two, the last time I looked."
"Well, your report is done, head home, and spend some time with your partner. Beth and I have a long Skype date ahead of us tonight, since she has a gallery opening to arrange that will eat up the rest of her week." Dave nodded as he saved his manuscript before shutting down his computer and getting to his feet. "Oh, and JJ said that Cruz's wife's favorite author is Erik Larson. I don't know if that will help you or not, but I hope that it can."
"Thanks, Aaron," he said as he picked up his bag and turned the lights off in his office. "I think that I can work with that, actually. Now, let's get home to our partners, before the night gets any later." Hotch nodded as he smiled, an expression that Dave was glad to see back on his face when they talked, since it truly felt like they would never find their way back to the close friendship that they had enjoyed. It was nice to chat with him as they walked out to their cars, but once he was driving, he called home, hoping that Erin was not too miffed that he had lost himself.
"Darling, what happened to leaving early and cooking for me?" she teased when she picked up the phone.
"I actually lost myself in my new book. I think that I managed to get three thousand words written, and I was only hoping for five hundred."
"Oh, you have to strike while the iron is hot, don't you? Well, I've already started our supper, so by the time you reach home, it should be ready, and then we can eat before we pursue more pleasant activities. How far out are you?"
He let out a sigh as he looked around at his surroundings. "Probably about twenty-five minutes? If traffic doesn't start to back up. I'll drive as safely as I can," he said, answering the question he was certain would come next from her lips.
"You know me so well. I love you, darling."
"And I love you, Topalina," he replied before ending the call, hoping that he could shave some time off his drive and be home with his love a little sooner. Still, he knew that Erin would throw a fit if he got into an accident on his way home to her, and he drove as carefully as he could, even if that meant it would take longer. A small smile formed on his face when he saw that Erin was out on the front porch, a mug in her hands. He honked his horn twice to get her attention, and she looked up and gave him a look of amused annoyance as she waggled her fingers at him. And in that moment, he was so glad to be home, with her, knowing that they had a future to build, together.