Reid came out of the bathroom after his shower that morning. He hadn't slept at all that night, too worried to think about anything but the case. He knew they were safe here in this hotel, with his friends surrounding them, but he couldn't help but believe their killer was nearby, just watching their every move. And considering their history, Reid knew he was probably right.
It was after nine and Riley was still sleeping. She, at least, had a restful night. Fastening the last few buttons on his shirt, he moved and stood next to the bed, just watching her breathe in and breathe out, a smooth and steady pace. He had to wake her soon. Reid wanted to let her sleep, but he would not make the same mistake again. He was not going to leave her alone until they caught this killer... and probably for some time after.
He stepped into the bathroom to finish getting ready. Not a second later, however, he heard a sharp gasp and sputtering in the bedroom. In a flash, Reid ran in to find Riley trying to breath and clutching at her throat.
"Riley," He exclaimed, taking a seat next to her on the bed. She was starting to realize her air wasn't constricted, that it was all just anxiety.
"Relax," He soothed, taking her hand. "It's alright, you're safe now."
Reality was quite a shock when one woke up in a completely different place. Riley was still trying to ease her breathing as her eyes traveled around the new room, at last landing on her husband beside her.
"What happened?" She asked, confused and scared.
"You don't remember?" Reid asked. He should have known this would happen. When he would get high, he lost a substantial amount of time, with very little clues to what he had done.
"Of course I remember," She stated, but her determination faded as she considered that sentence. "I think..." She was quiet for a long time. "I..." Riley stammered a few times, getting more and more frightened. At last, she looked up and met her husband's eyes. "Oh my God, why I can't I remember?"
"Riley, I am so sorry." Reid exclaimed, inching a bit closer to her. "I never should have let you go back to the hotel, this is all my fault."
"Your fault? What are you talking about? What happened?" Riley demanded to know, so scared, her voice was shaking. "Where are we..." She moaned at that, closing her eyes a second. "And why does my head hurt so much?"
His throat began to swell and became so tight. He could barely manage to speak, giving a sort of gargled response as he replied, "Last night... the unsub got to you."
At first, she looked like she didn't believe him. When he held his ground, she swallowed her nerves before she let herself get upset. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely," He informed. Reid couldn't look at her. He felt so ashamed, he hung his head as he revealed the truth to her. "I uh... I got back to the hotel at... at midnight, just like I promised. The room looked... so beautiful. I couldn't wait to spend the evening with you... Riley, I couldn't find you anywhere. I searched for a moment and finally I realized you must be in the bathroom."
The tub suddenly surfaced in Riley's mind, like the water was filling up around her again. She had been in the bath... why, though? She had drawn that bath for the two of them. And it was for after dinner. Why did she go in there?
"I came in... I didn't see you at first. Just... your clothes on the floor and some blood... on the edge of the bathtub." At that, he looked up to meet her eyes again. They had their usual dazzling diamond dust, and he saw the recognition this time when she looked at him. "It took me a moment to understand... but you had sunk under the water... and I... I-"
"Pulled me out of the water." Riley finished, gaping a bit.
He exhaled, "Yeah." He closed his eyes a moment, shaking his head at the circumstance... the circumstance he let happen. "I got you to the hospital... I came home before the unsub must have expected, because there was no one else there."
He could see the tears forming in her eyes, and her free hand reached up to brush his cheek. "You saved me." She whimpered.
As she started crying, Reid pulled her into his arms. He felt her tears fall onto his shoulder as he cradled her, just like last night. "I am so sorry I let this happen."
"I remember," Her cries muffled by the fabric of his shoulder. "I remember getting into that bath... I remember hitting my head, but I didn't feel any pain... and then I just slipped into the water. I just laid there. I tried... I tried so hard to get out, but I couldn't move."
"I know," He whispered, gently caressing her back. He couldn't stop his own tears, no matter how hard he tried. "I thought I lost you."
They remained like that for a long time, crying quietly in each others arms. It was the longest and closest they'd been together in days. It wasn't fair it took a sadistic killer to make it happen.
Riley's breathing was calm as she pulled away. She reached up to run her hand over his face, as if to make sure he weren't some hallucination. "You weren't hurt?"
"No," Reid assured. "I got back before the unsub expected. I'm fine."
She reached over and pressed a kiss on his cheek. "Thank God," She muttered, her hand going up to run down a tendril of his hair.
Before Reid could say anything, such as begging for forgiveness, she sat back up. Riley wiped the streams from her cheeks. A grateful smile appeared on her face. "What would I do without you?"
"If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have needed saving in the first place." He said bitterly. She should be angry at him, not thanking him. "I knew we were in danger, I should have gotten us out of there. Not only did I put us in danger, I let you go there alone. If I had been just a few seconds later-"
"Stop," She ordered, just as she had last night. "This is not your fault."
"Yes it is, I knew it wasn't safe there, I knew it from the very beginning."
"I knew it longer than you did!" Riley argued. "Spencer, I knew this trip was a bad idea. For weeks, I had the worse feeling about coming here. If I had said something before the wedding, we wouldn't even be here right now. If this anyone's fault, it's mine!"
"Yeah, but..." He stopped himself. He knew she hated it when he got too protective.
"But what?" She pressed, her fear and sadness turning into anger.
Reid reluctantly revealed, "But I'm supposed to take care of you."
To his surprise, her anger melted as she smiled. "And you did... you've always been knight in shining... whatever."
He couldn't help but smile, remembering when she first called him that. "So you think it's your fault while I'm certain it's my fault."
"We're just going to have to agree to disagree." Riley shrugged, putting her arm over his shoulder. "And you'll just have to let me be eternally grateful to my savior."
Reid wasn't so inclined to make light of the situation yet. He leaned against the side of her head, burying his face in her frizzy hair. "I almost lost you. You have idea how scared I was when I found you."
"I don't know how it happened." Riley admitted, holding him close to her. "One minute I was getting the dinner ready and having some coffee and the next... it's like I'm trying to remember a dream. It's just too vague to pull anything real from it."
"And you don't remember anything else before you blacked out?" Reid asked. He pulled far enough to look in her eyes. She didn't meet his, spending a great many minutes trying to see if she could recall.
"I remember laughing." She finally said. "I laughed a lot."
"You were kind of silly." He revealed, trying not to laugh himself. "When you were at the hospital, they were able to counteract the sedative but... the painkillers... they made you a little intoxicated."
Her smile disappeared as her jaw dropped. "I was high?"
"Just a little tipsy." He corrected, lightly rubbing her shoulder to relax her. "It wasn't a big deal.
A hand went over her eyes in embarrassment and moaned, "Oh God... you've got to be kidding me."
"It's alright," He tried to convince her.
"Oh..." She pulled her hand away, looking to him with even more fear than before. "I can't believe this... I promised myself when I was younger, I'd never do anything like that again."
"You didn't do it!" Reid cried. "Someone drugged you, it wasn't your choice."
Riley sighed, meeting his eyes again, afraid to hear the truth. "Did I do anything really humiliating?"
"Well..." Just like the tears, the smile on his face was unstoppable. "You had no reservations about talking about your underwear, which Morgan and Emily found very amusing."
"Are you serious?" She whined. Despite herself, he could see she had a grin forming in her cringe.
"You also felt the need to reveal our deepest secret to the girls that I was you patient when we first slept together and when I was getting you ready for bed, you were determined to get us to move to London. And that was before you tried to have your way with me."
"Moving to London?" Riley said in disbelief. "That one I don't buy. All I want to do now is go home."
"Me, too." Reid agreed. He'd been thinking of this since she fell asleep last night. He wasn't so sure if she'd agree to it, but it took her to safety, he had to suggest it. "You can, you know... go home I mean."
Riley was confused. "No I can't."
He cleared his throat for a moment, speaking a bit tentatively. "I can call Hotch... He can have the jet ready in an hour. You could fly back and be home by tonight. At least you'll be safe."
She hadn't paused but a minute before she answered. "No."
"Riley, this unsub is targeting us. He's not going to let us go, we know that from previous experience. You could get away."
"But you won't." Riley stated. "Forget it, Spencer. Unsub or not, this is our honeymoon. And I'm not going home unless my husband is with me."
Her determination could not be denied. "Alright... but just to be safe, I don't want you to be alone. If you're not with me, I'll make sure you're with one of the team."
She seemed very relieved by that. Trying to stay cool, she nodded. "If you think that's best."
"I know it's best." He assured, but smiled again. Reid looked over her face. Even after a long sleep, she looked tired. And her eyes were a bit blood shot. He brushed a thumb on her cheek. "Other than that, you were just... silly and cute?"
"Is that all?" She wondered, a bit sarcastic.
Before he answered, he did consider something. She was in her right mind now... and Reid was so desperate to know how she really felt. "You did... mention another little thing."
"Oh, God, what?" She dreaded to know.
But Reid lost his nerve. Bringing the subject up now would be a bad idea. Even if she had changed her mind and was a bit more positive about it... talking about having children right now was the least of their priorities.
"Nothing, it wasn't important." He shook his head. "And I'm the only one who heard it, so... you don't ave to worry. How are you feeling this morning?"
"My head is killing me." She announced, rubbing her temple. "And I'm nauseas and dizzy... ugh, I haven't been hungover in a long time."
"You also have some stitches in her head." He said, lightly brushing the spot on the side to indicate them. "I'll run out and get you some aspirin and something for breakfast. What's good for a hangover? Maybe some just juice and toast?"
"Pancakes." She stated.
Puzzled, "Pancakes? Are you sure?"
With a light laugh, "There are some things you missed out on not having the full college experience. Pancakes are the best hangover food, with a lot of syrup. Trust me, I'm an expert."
He smiled, and reached over to give her a kiss on her cheek. "Okay, if you're sure. I'll go see if Emily's awake. I'll ask her to sit with you while I get your food."
"Thanks," Riley said. As he stood, she reached up and ran a quick hand through his long chestnut hair. "I don't know what I'd do without you. I love you."
"I love you, too." Reid leaned down closer, just inches from her face. "Please don't do this to me again. You've scared me enough to last the rest of our lifetime."
"I won't," She promised. Her hand reached to pull him closer and gave him a warm kiss. Sweet and gentle and filled with so much gratitude. Reid stood, matching her smiling eyes with his and got to his feet.
Grabbing his wallet and key card off the bedside table, Reid headed to the door. Turning the handle and pulling it open, he stepped out into the hall. Instantly, he stopped dead in his tracks. From where she sat on the bed, Riley could see him frozen with absolute shock.
Morgan woke up first that morning. He slept on his back with his arm keeping Emily close to him. She slept like an angel. Her ear was pressed right to his chest, soothed to sleep by the sound of his heartbeat. He knew they had to get up, they needed to meet the team in an hour. Not to mention, there was the growing matter of having to empty his bladder, but he didn't want to disturb her. She looked so peaceful.
And to his delight, she woke on her own. Not long after nine, Emily's eyes fluttered open like wings of a butterfly. She took a moment to remember where she was. Realizing where - and on who - she slept, she sat up and met Morgan's powerful, knee weakening gaze.
"Morning," She said cautiously, as if afraid what his morning reaction would be. She relaxed, however, when he gave her his usual smile.
"Morning, Princess. Sleep well?" He wondered, raising his usual cocky eyebrow.
"Beautifully," She replied, leaning on his chest as she smiled brightly at him. "I always sleep well when I'm with you."
"How do you manage to sleep without me?" He quipped.
His grin faded as he watched her shrink away from him. "I really don't know."
Emily pulled her tired body out of bed. Morgan watched her for a moment, wanting to grab her and pull her back to him.
"Prentiss," He said softly. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong," She informed, grabbing her pants and quickly pulling them on. She just needed to cover up enough to get back to her room... and start to wish this never happened.
"Yes, there is, I know you." He quickly grabbed his pants from yesterday, pulling them on as he mentioned. "You're upset about something."
"I'm only upset because we did this." Unable to look at him as she said this, Morgan knew she wasn't being truthful. "We're on a case, we should be a bit more professional than this. It's not fair to the team, it's not fair to Reid and Riley... it was selfish, we shouldn't have done it."
She buttoned a few spots on her blouse and finally turned to face him. He looked at her with such a questioning stare, she almost admitted everything. But if he knew the truth, she would lose him forever, including everything they'd built over the years.
"You know you can talk to me." Morgan said softly. He was so sincere, it was breathtaking. He was begging her to trust him, to do what he couldn't and let her defenses down. He wanted to beg her to be with him, but he couldn't get the words out. "I'm sorry I hurt you, I'm sorry you think we shouldn't be together... but I'm still your best friend. You can trust me, with anything."
Emily nodded, holding back tears. She could not trust him with this. "I know."
With that, Emily finished grabbing everything she discarded a few hours ago. She didn't have much time to shower and dress before they had to meet the team. Morgan walked her to the door, standing at the threshold. She stood in the carpeted hallway, holding her shoes and her under garments in one hand.
Her eyes landed on his bare chest. She felt much happier and giggled. Her hand brushed over one of the discoloring bite marks. "I guess I got a little rough."
"I seem to remember, Princess, I returned the gesture a few times on you." He teased, his one hand landing on her hip. Before she could pull away, he said "Emily... why can't we just forget the last few days and... go back to the way things were? I thought we were doing okay, can't get get that back?"
Emily would love that, but she couldn't stand having him with her some nights and wonder who he was with on the others, while she was all alone. She did not want to share him, with anyone. If Morgan was going to be with her, he would belong to only her. And Emily didn't believe that could ever be possible.
"I don't know," She shrugged, tormented over this dilemma. "Look, let's not worry about it right now. We'll figure it out when we get back to America. As long as we're in London, nothing's wrong."
Morgan was not pleased with all this uncertainty. But they didn't have time to argue. He was tired of arguing anyway. "That's alright with me."
Emily breathed with relief as her free hand reached up to brush his cheek, the flesh so soft under her hand. Morgan loved the gentle touch of her fingers, almost as much as her lips, which followed suit and reached up to him. Emily gave him a tender kiss, loving both his hands settling on her hips.
Their lips pulled apart and they met each others eyes, staring so deeply, they could see right through to the other's soul. Neither one had ever shared this kind of connection with another human being before. It was so powerful and greatly intimidating.
"Oh my God..." A voice cried a few doors down.
Startled, Emily and Morgan turned to look, absolutely terrified. Reid stood in the hallway, having just come out of his room. He had spotted them immediately and couldn't tear his eyes away. Their secret was out.