"David tells me that you were almost shot. Again." Erin spoke without looking up from her paperwork, knowing that it was Aaron who had entered her office by the scent of his aftershave. She was more than a little upset with him, since he she knew that he hadn't meant to be reckless, but there had still been that small moment of terror that had struck her heart when David had informed her about what had gone down before she read about it in the reports the team would file. Taking a deep breath, she signed off on the file that she had been reviewing for the Director before closing the folder and placing it in her out box and then looking up into his face. There was a hint of remorse there, and she motioned for him to take a seat in front of her, knowing that they needed to discuss this latest near-death incident.

Aaron let out a long breath as he sank down into the chair and then folded his hands over his stomach as he looked her steadily in the eye. "I had thought that my first shot would take him down without incident. It turns out that being truly painless gives a person an extra adrenaline boost that none of us expected, and that was a truly terrifying experience. I know that we put our lives on the line all the time here, but I don't think I've ever been that close in the line of duty."

"Aren't you forgetting about almost being blown up in New York City? Or when Foyet stabbed you?" she asked, reaching up to worry her necklace between her fingers as she continued to look at him.

"Those incidents weren't necessarily in the line of duty, Erin. They're just things that happened to me."

She rolled her eyes as she took a calming breath, trying to keep from losing her cool while also trying to keep her emotions in check. "I wish that I could believe that distinction, Aaron. But to me, the mother of your daughter, all I know is that every single time I find out that you've taken an unnecessary risk, my heart is in my throat. Because I have to think about how I might tell Elise that her uncle Aaron is gone, and oh, yes, he was also her father. It is something that will haunt me until we do tell her the truth, but I still don't know when will be an appropriate time to do so. Because, while she's still my little girl, she's also going to be five soon, and I want to tell her sooner rather than later? Because something could happen to either one of us, outside of this job, and then…"

"I get it, and I have the same feeling of urgency. Do you think that we could wait until after the birthdays, but before Thanksgiving? Roy said that he wants to spend that holiday with all of us this year."

"Jessica had mentioned something about that, yes. I want to, but David isn't certain that he wants to go. His sisters want us to come to Comack this year, since his oldest broke her leg and shouldn't be travelling just yet. I hate being this torn about a holiday, but I suppose that I ended up in this situation due to my poor choices."

"I know that I've told you this before, Erin, but we both made mistakes back then." She nodded. "That doesn't exactly make you feel better."

"No, though it should. I don't know, Aaron. Are there ever moments when you feel like you're living on borrowed time?"

He blanched a little before getting to his feet and coming around to her side of the desk, sitting on the edge of it as he reached out for her hand, squeezing it softly as their eyes locked once more. "Why would you say something like that?"

"Because I feel like there's this sword of Damocles hanging over my head. I am so incredibly happy with David. I love all my children so much, and yes, that includes Jack, by proxy. I've made a great friend in Jessica, and you and I are at the point where we can be emotionally open and honest like this. Everything is going too well, and I am waiting for the other shoe to drop. I can't explain this feeling, but I also can't shake it, no matter how much I try. And every time that you or David put yourself in line of danger, it almost feels like it's getting worse."

He took a deep breath as he tightened his grip on her hand. "I can understand that feeling, since it was something that I felt when Foyet was out there, just waiting and watching, seeing my get worse and worse as I tried to figure out where he was. There's nothing you can do about that sensation, other than talk to those of us who care about you. Of course, I would assume that to be Dave or Jessica, maybe even Helen or Penelope, before me, but you can talk to me. I am Elise's father, after all."

She let out a soft chuckle before choking on the sob that chased after it, clutching at Aaron's hand as she looked away from him. In one fluid movement, Aaron slid off her desk and knelt in front of her, allowing her to lean into him as she cried for a few moments. "I don't want to burden David when he has so much on his shoulders already, and Jessica already knows so much about me that I often feel she must get tired of listening to me whinge about my problems."

Aaron shook his head before rubbing her back softly. "No, she loves you, Erin. Truly. Though she's never told me anything that you've discussed, she has nudged me about certain things, letting me know what you need, even when you don't tell her what that might be. I think that she's managed to pick up a few profiling tricks from us all, since she's around us so often."

Erin laughed again as she nodded before pulling away from him and taking a few deep, calming, breaths. "I love her like she is very own sister."

"Funny, she says the same thing about you." Aaron stroked her hair lightly before getting to his feet once more and returning to his perch on her desk. "We are surrounded by people who love us, Erin, so I think that you need to reassess why you feel like you're going to experience something catastrophic. Because I know that Jessica would throttle me if I allowed anything bad to happen to you. And so would Dave."

"What would Dave do?"

They looked up to see him in the doorway, and Erin beckoned him over to her side. It didn't take him long to get there, and then Aaron was moving out of the way so that they could come together. She sighed as David's arms closed around her shoulders, drawing her close as Aaron cleared his throat. "Erin feels like there's something bad on the horizon, and I was trying to assure her that we wouldn't allow anything bad to happen to her, or you and Jessica would have my head. But you're here now, so I'll leave you two alone, while I go to pick up Jack from Jessica's."

"Sounds like a plan, Hotch," David replied as he left the office. Erin relaxed against her fiancé as he kissed the top of her head. "So, why haven't you talked to me about this?"

"Because I wasn't expecting to talk about it with Aaron. You both have so much on your plates that I don't want to add to that burden."

"You are the woman I love, Erin. Anything that you share with me will not add to my burden, it will just help lighten yours. So, I'm thinking that we have a weekend at the cabin in our future, so long as my boss can arrange it so that we can both have a few days off at the same time."

"Your boss will have to see what she can do, though she agrees that that sounds like a good idea for both of us." Lifting her head, she smiled tiredly up into his face, looking for the right words to tell him. Instead, he lowered his head and captured her lips in a soft kiss. And that really was all the words that needed to be said between them, she thought as he helped her to her feet and hugged her tightly to his chest. "I love you, David."

"I love you, too, Erin," he replied before kissing her once more, and she sighed as she thought about how good it would be to have a little time alone with him.