Disclaimer – I do not own any of these characters. I just enjoy making them love each other.
Previously on Resolution Diary -
"If our jobs were not an issue, would you want to be with me? Romantically."
Emily couldn't stop the laugh that left her even if she tried.
The look on Aaron's face was enough to silence her, her hand clamping over her mouth. He stared at her, confused and unsure what to say. He watched her shake her head 'no' and his worst fears became a reality. How stupid was he? To think someone as wonderful as Emily Prentiss would want to take on the baggage that was Aaron Hotchner.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered around her hands. "It's just..."
"It's alright, Emily," he said, his walls sliding back into place. "I understand."
"No, no, Aaron, really," she said hurriedly, moving up the bed and grabbing his hands, their knees now touching. "I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting that. You just surprised me. I honestly never allowed myself to explore that because I thought it would never happen. Over the last few months it's been different, though. Has it been different for you?"
He relaxed a little and gathered her hands more firmly into his. "I've always found you beyond attractive, Emily. I think, after Haley died, it took me a long time to really view anyone in a romantic way again. I agree that in the last few months something has been different between us. I think it may have been a little longer for me, but recently it's been harder to ignore."
She nodded her agreement. "It's those damn meatless burgers." She smiled when he laughed. "I feel like we've been connecting more together. The more I get to know you as a person, not just as a coworker or my boss, it's really made me start..."
"Start?" he questioned when she didn't finish, the look on her face telling him she hadn't meant to say what she did. He watched her struggle with whether she wanted to tell him but ultimately she chose honesty was best.
"Start to fall for you," she said quietly. "It was recently that I realized how deep my feelings ran."
"The Davies case?" he asked, his heart thudding in his chest.
"Maybe? Before then even. But the Davies case just really cemented that in my heart, you know?" He watched as moisture filled her eyes but she blinked it away. "It was scary, thinking I could have lost you."
"I know," he murmured, dropping one of her hands in order to stroke her cheek with the backs of his fingers, loving how she instantly leaned into his touch. "I was falling for you before you almost died."
At that, she couldn't hold back the stray tear that rolled down her cheek. He brushed it away with his thumb and she closed her eyes, not wanting to relive any of that again. She remembered how close they had gotten and she also remembered how she had destroyed it all with her choices. Things hadn't been the same for a long time but he was always there.
"It was me," she said with a sigh. "I put up a big wall during that time. I feel like we were so close and then I ruined it."
"You didn't," he assured her. "I never stopped caring for you. I wanted to give you the space to heal. I respect you, Emily, and I didn't want to pressure you into even friendship until you felt ready."
She nodded. "I know. I appreciate you for that. You were the only one who knew I was still struggling, even years later. But you never once made me feel like I was wrong in how I felt."
"I know that pain all too well. You were the one that was there for me through all of that and after, also. I can always count on you to be there when I need you and I'm very grateful for that."
A silence fell between them, Emily reeling in her emotions and Aaron taking in just how beautiful she was as she pulled herself together.
"So, why did you ask me if our jobs weren't an issue, if I would want to be with you?"
"Well, once you sign the assignment, your commanding agent is Martinez. I would no longer be your direct superior."
He watched realization come into Emily's eyes. "We would be free to date." He nodded. "Wouldn't that just be prolonging the inevitable?"
Aaron cringed at her words. "I honestly don't know. I see something in us, Emily, and I feel like the risk is worth it. My career only lasts so long; it'll only take me so far in life."
"I do understand that, but what happens in six weeks from now when things go back to normal? What happens if these six weeks between us are amazing and we don't want to stop seeing each other?"
"Then you'll gain a new teammate."
Emily looked almost as shocked as Aaron. "Hotch… Aaron. I… Excuse me?"
He shrugged. "I genuinely don't know where that came from. But I feel like that's my firm answer. If in these six weeks we develop something real and what we both think would be lasting, I'd be willing to leave my role as SSA and step down into the team. We would be free to be together."
"And if it goes terrible?" she asked, feeling as if she were in the twilight zone.
"There's a higher position available. I would accept it and rarely even see the team in a professional setting."
There. That seemed simple enough. Or at least it did to him. He watched her wrestle with it and wondered if maybe he should be considering his actions a little more.
"I couldn't ask you to do that, Aaron," she said finally.
"You're not," he retorted, shaking his head. "This is worth it to me, Emily. I never wanted to get married again, to have more kids, to bother with making things work with someone. But the more and more I think about it, the more I truly would want those things. I think you might be that person and I would regret not finding out until it's way too late."
Flashes of them, years from now, laughing in this very house with small children running around made it all sound worth it. She could see herself picking out a white dress and meeting him at the end of the alter. No where in these futures did their jobs matter. For something she fought so hard far, she was surprised how fast she could replace that with something else to fight for. Something that might be worth much more than she ever anticipated.
"I'm in."
The look on Aaron's face immediately made it all worth it. He reached out, cupping Emily's jaw and brought her in for a searing kiss. He didn't know if he was making the best choice or biggest mistake of his life, but he was excited to find out. She kissed him back enthusiastically, feeling unbelievably happy and scared at the same time. She was ready for whatever was about to come their way.
"This will be work," she said once they parted. "But I'm ready for it."
"It will be," he agreed. "I know we can get through it. I just want you to know that I'm in this for the long run, Emily. I don't want to put pressure on you, but I want you to know where I stand."
"So am I. I don't want to set ourselves up for failure. I also know that we will both know if this isn't right by the end of the six weeks. I feel like if we chose not to continue a romantic relationship, that we could be professional at work."
He nodded his agreement. "I can't imagine either of us being crazy exes."
"So does that mean that you're my boyfriend now?" she teased, the label seeming a little silly at their age.
"I guess it does. That means you are my girlfriend."
"It does," she giggled. "I haven't been anyone's girlfriend in a long time. Hopefully this will be the last time."
His eyes crinkled sweetly as he smiled at her. "Let's hope."
"How do you want to proceed with Jack?" she asked, his picture catching her eye.
"I haven't really gotten that far, to be honest." She let him marinate on the idea until he was ready to give his verdict. "I think it would be a good idea for him to see you during this. This working means that you would be around Jack almost as much as I am. What do you think?"
"I agree. I just don't want to confuse him if things don't work the way we want. He's what? Nine now?"
"Nine and a half," he said with fake dramatics. "He will be the first to correct you. I do think that it would be awkward if things go badly but he's resilient. He really has been asking for you, though. I told him about our resolution challenge and he hasn't stopped asking, so I know he'll be excited to see you."
"How do you want to go about time spent? What happens if we're on cases the entire time?"
He found it oddly attractive that she was asking direct questions. "I'd like to see you as often as we can, to be honest. I'm actually going to be on stand down with Johnson's team. He's going to be running some pretty nasty interviews so I have to monitor the techniques and the ability of his team to work together in those moments. I believe that they're last resort for emergency cases. Martinez I know has only a week or two of active on call. She's been on more cases the last few weeks and they're giving them a break."
"So basically you just want me to live here," she said with a laugh.
"I mean," he started, "I don't see that as a bad thing."
There was a moment that passed between them where they both knew they were crazy but it weirdly made sense. Aaron thought of the damage this could cause for both himself and his son, but he had such confidence in them working. She could read him well enough to see the war going on. Something in her made her want to jump in, feet first. What's six weeks in the grand scheme of things?
"If we're doing this, we might as well go all in," she agreed.
Emily wondered at what point one of them was going to say the other was crazy and put a stopper somewhere between them. Next thing you know he was going to be pulling out an engagement ring because why not? The thought almost made her laugh.
"It's settled then. We'll tell Jack you're staying here for a few weeks. He'll be ecstatic."
"What will you tell Jessica?"
He shrugged. "It's really none of her business. When this works out, I'll tell her, or if she asks, but otherwise that's not something I'm concerned with. Same with the team. No reason to get anyone else involved in our relationship."
"Our relationship," she repeated. "That sounds so nice."
"It does."
"I feel like that's fair. I'm honestly worried about JJ being able to tell a difference in me. She's always been so observant."
"I don't want to hide," he explained seriously. "If someone asks us, I will not lie, and I would never ask you to either. If it's something that you want JJ to know, I'm perfectly fine with you talking to her. I never want you to feel ashamed –"
"I wouldn't," she interjected. "I'd never be ashamed of being yours."
"I appreciate that so much. I would never be ashamed of being yours, either. I guess what I meant to say was that I would prefer to not make some large announcement to the team before we've made a firm decision. I don't want secrets between us or anyone else but I also don't want to cause issues while we're on assignments."
She nodded, understanding. "I agree. We would both look bad if the second we're apart we're announcing what we would call a new relationship. People would speculate that it had been going on long before."
He hadn't even thought of that, but she was right.
"However," she continued, "I would rather deal with the speculation than just ignoring the truth." He nodded his agreement. "If there's a situation where someone asks, I won't lie, but I also don't feel the need to elaborate on our relationship. That's sacred to me."
"I'm with you one hundred percent. I'm proud that you're now my significant other. The fact that we don't have to hide our feelings is a blessing. I also want to keep certain things private. I know you respect me, my son and what we're going to be building so I trust that you will speak on everything with our shared best interest."
"Same! I don't want to jeopardize us. I fully trust you also."
He leaned in and Emily met him halfway, kissing him gently, loving the way his lips felt against hers. They jumped apart as they heard the alarm for the front door sounding.
A/N – Thanks for reading! One word or a million, please leave a quick review! Thank you!