Chapter Twenty-Four – An Ending and a Beginning

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Spencer pulled the large suitcase out from under his bed and started packing clothes into that and his go-bag, while Susan brought another up from her apartment, along with some tote bags in a large closet box. She fit as much as she could from the wardrobe, and they hauled all of it over by the front door.

Since there wasn't much in the fridge and nothing he needed to take with him, he put it all in a trash bag to take to the dumpster.

He filled a few totes with books to take back to the house and put the rest of his toiletries from the bathroom into another tote bag. It only took a couple of hours to get it done.

Once he set the last bag by the door, he took Susan by the hand. "There's something I need your help with," leading her back to the bedroom. He held her close, kissed her, and spoke low against her. "When you told me how much you enjoyed feeling the sheets against your bare skin, I… imagined you lying naked on my bed. I want to make love with you here… before I move out."

Without saying a word, Susan got up on the bed, on her knees, watching his eyes and steadying herself with her hands on his arms. Shaking against him, she could feel how much he wanted her. As much as she wanted him.

His hands moved over her back as he kissed her. Susan lifted her arms up, and Spencer gently swept her t-shirt up over her head, pulling it off, letting it fall on the bed. Cupping her breasts over her bra, he kissed her neck, down into her cleavage, then unzipped her sports bra, slowly taking it off and dropping it onto the t-shirt. There were soft sighs and soft kisses, but no words.

Earlier, he planned on taking his time but now the urgency became intense; he wanted her now. Naked, now. Under him and writhing against him, now. Skip taking off the shoes, skip everything but drop his pants, pull off hers, and indulge in some very explicit fantasies the thought of her had seared into his brain. He kissed her, fighting to stay in control, to slow down, kissing her ear, her neck, sliding her yoga pants down her thighs, and ran his hands over her, feeling her tremble against him and hearing her breathy moans.

With a playful smile on her face, Susan lay back on the bed, propped on her elbows, pushing her shoes off with her toes next to him, then holding her bent legs in front of him.

Groaning, he slid her pants the rest of the way off and let them fall onto the floor. His hands skated from her knees, down her thighs, to her hips, pulling her panties off and tossing them onto the end of the bed, with a pop of his eyebrows and a grin.

Still holding his gaze, she moved back on the bedspread, laying against the pillows, with her legs together, demurely bent to one side and her hair splayed across his pillows. Lifting one hand above her head, she wrapped her fingers around a spindle on the headboard, reaching out to him with her other hand, calling his name softly as she trembled again.

He stood there, couldn't help but stare, thinking; She loves me. After another silent moment, Susan smiled, and that sweet blush darkened her cheeks.

Purpose gained the upper hand over urgency. Spencer kicked his shoes off, shed his clothes, and got on the bed with her. Lovely wasn't a strong enough word to describe her. Alluring, ineffable, enchanting, beguiling, and indescribable still weren't adequate words to describe her everything-ness.

Simply being near her was arousing and listening to her gasping breaths, feeling her shuddering, he knew she was just as excited. Susan made him feel powerful and powerless at the same time. Powerful, holding her, being deep inside her, her body warm and trembling against him, with his arms around her… yet he was powerless to resist her. He simply couldn't get enough of her. If she was in the room, he wanted to be near her. If she was nearby, he wanted her closer, and if she was close, he wanted to be holding her, kissing her.

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Even after their pulses slowed back to normal, they lay there, kissing, whispering to each other; with their limbs entwined.

"Is that the way you imagined me, Love, lying on your bed? Was it as good as in your dreams?" She kissed his shoulder, moving up his neck to his ear, over to his lips, in a lingering kiss.

"Better. Much better." He held her with his head against her shoulder, kissing her gently.

She sighed contentedly. Raking her fingers through his hair, she tucked a lock behind his ear.

Spencer grazed her collarbone with kisses. "I should get my hair cut before we go to Las Vegas. Maybe this time I won't get jokes when I go back to work."

"They joke about your haircuts? Hmm, interesting. Well, I've been told the team is like a family." Her hands slid slowly over his back and down his arms.

"Mmm, that feels good. Yeah, a few times. Once, I got it cut short and Hotch asked if I joined a boy band."

Susan laughed softly. "Oh really? I wouldn't mind it short, but then, I like this length, too. Not too much longer, though. They're probably jealous of your gorgeous hair." She kissed him, her neatly trimmed fingernails trailed lightly over his shoulders.

Propped up on his elbows, he told her quietly, "Those dreams I had of you dancing into my room in your pink ballet outfit… doing that… pirouette, I think? I know I've seen that move in The Nutcracker, where the ballerina's up on her toes, rotating, swinging her leg around, building momentum?"

Susan smiled sweetly. "Ah, yes… the physics of ballet. It's a type of pirouette, called fouetté."

"See, that's why I don't speak French; the accent trips me up. Well, in my dreams, you'd dance into my room and fwet-tay, ending up in my bed, but this is infinitely better since I didn't wake up alone… hugging my pillow." He gave her a slight smile. "What about your dreams?"

Susan spread her hands out over his lower back. "You wore the brown wool jacket with the suede patches on the elbows? And the striped shirt you had on for the lecture. I wasn't looking at your pants." She blushed when his eyebrows snapped up and he grinned. "Truly, Spencer. My dreams were more… innocent? Mostly kissing, back then."

"Back then?" He smiled and kissed her softly. "You make me feel incredible, like any other man worthy of love."

"Oh, you are most definitely worthy of love… and affection. Mmm, this is nice. I don't want to get up yet."

"Very nice. I'm not crushing you, am I?" He had his hands under her shoulders and whispered, "I love you," against her neck; his thumbs skimming slowly over the top of her arms.

She sighed. "I love you, too, and no, you're not…"

Resting his now furrowed brows on Susan's shoulder, he whispered, "There are moments I'm afraid I'll wake up and find out this was just another dream," as if he were afraid to say it any louder.

"I know I'm not dreaming, Love."

"Oh?" He lifted his head. "How can you tell?"

"Mm-hmm. In my dreams, I never felt the warmth of your body, your breath on my neck, or your gorgeous lips on mine. It was more like… watching a movie…"

"Yeah… I get it." He smiled and kissed her. After a few more kisses, he moved over next to her and lay on his back as Susan turned onto her side against him. He held her, and they floated blissfully into a sweet, though brief, slumber.

Spencer woke first; one slat of the blinds covering his window was slightly skewed; a beam of sunlight hit the corner of his right eye. He turned his head and kissed Susan's hair. "We should get up. You wanted to go to the Post Office?" Reluctantly, he moved over to the edge of the bed. "Would you like to use the shower first?"

"Sure. Out in a few."

As she finished and pulled open the shower curtain, about to step out onto the bathmat, Spencer walked in the open door, pulled a fresh towel off the shelf, and handed it to her.

"I prefer the bathtub and shower at your house. There's room for both of us… at the same time. I'll only be a few minutes."

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Later, they loaded everything in Susan's car and took the trash to the dumpster on the way to the post office.

Since Susan was moving out of the apartment, having her mail sent to a PO box was a good idea for security reasons. Spencer got a mailbox of his own and both filled out a change of address card.

With the paperwork completed, they paid the fees and received their mail keys. Afterward, they walked to Cho's to pick up lunch and stopped by the bakery for some croissants and other pastries before heading back to the house.

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A/N

I hope everyone enjoyed that. If you could please be so kind to leave a comment? Thanks! I'd appreciate it.

As a side note, if any of you readers have noticed, Susan feels more comfortable using 'terms of endearment'. Spencer is not quite there, yet. That's addressed in an upcoming chapter. He's getting used to being in an intimate relationship and feeling more confident asking for what he wants, without fear of being rejected or ridiculed.

Growing as a person is all about the journey, not just the destination.

G-Girl