Erin sighed as she stepped into the elevator the next morning, juggling the coffee carrier and the bag of muffins along with her briefcase and purse. "Would you please press the six button?" she asked of her companion, and the man nodded, pushing it for her. She was already running later than normal, and she only hoped that Derek was still alone.

Finally, the elevator stopped on her floor and she hurried over to her office, dropping off her purse and briefcase before dashing out and over to Agent Morgan's office. She noticed that the light was on and she gave a relieved sigh. Reaching up, she knocked lightly on the door, listening for his answer.

"Come in!" he called out and she took a deep breath, turning the knob and entering his domain. The first thing she noticed was his head bent over a file, working away, and she couldn't stop the smile that came to her lips. "What do you need?"

"To talk." His head shot up and he looked at her in shock and confusion. "I brought your favorite coffee." Erin held out the cup holder, her smile faltering a little as his eyes narrowed in suspicion. He latched on to the shaking of her hand and stood up, going over to the door and closing it, flicking the lock closed.

"What do you want to talk about?" he asked shortly, indicating for her to sit down. Hesitantly, she took a seat, wondering where the animosity was coming from. Jennifer had told her that he would be receptive to her, after all. Setting the bag of muffins on the desk in front of her, she went to pull his cup of coffee from the holder, only to have it splash on her.

"Ouch," she hissed, hurriedly setting his cup on the desk and then trying to brush off the liquid. "Dammit." Without thinking, she set aside the other cup and pulled her blouse out of her skirt, lifting it up to look at the spot where her skin ached.

"Are you okay?" She looked up and shrank away from him a little, not feeling too safe with him so close to her. Which didn't make sense, since he had always been courteous, if short, with her. "I won't hurt you, I promise."

She nodded and then shrugged. "I think it will leave a blister. This was a thin blouse, and the coffee was really hot." She blushed when he reached out and touched the red spot. "Please, don't. This is already questionable."

Derek looked up into her eyes, a sad smile flickering across his face. "So, I'm questionable?"

"No, I am," she whispered, looking down at the floor. "I brought chocolate chip muffins for us, too." Erin brushed his hand away, tugging the blouse back down over her stomach.

Still, he knelt in front of her, and she felt her eyes begin to tear up. "I love chocolate."

"JJ told me that yesterday. She said it would be a good peace offering." She chanced a look up at his face, and saw that his brow was furrowed. "I wanted to ask you how you thought Spencer was doing. I'm worried about his well-being."

"Ah, I see." There was a softness to his voice that made her look into his eyes. "Care to share a muffin?" Erin nodded slowly, watching him open the bag and pull one out. "These are huge, I'm glad that I have someone to share it with."

She began to blush a little, nodding. "Am I really that much of an ogre?"

Derek frowned a little, somehow picking up on the hurt in her voice. Shaking his head, he pulled the top of the muffin off, handing to it her. "No, you aren't. I was just in a bad mood this morning and took it out on you."

She nodded, picking at the muffin before reaching for her coffee and taking a sip. Derek held his hand out for his cup, and she handed it over, trying to ignore the flutterings in her stomach when their fingers touched. "So, about Spencer. How do you think he is really doing?"

There was a long pause, and she looked up into his eyes. In all the years that she had worked for him, she had never taken the time to really notice his eyes, how beautiful they were, so full of light and depth. His face relaxed in a smile and she relaxed a little, too. "I think he's finding his footing once more. Last week, I wouldn't have said that, but something happened that made him want to begin moving on."

She nodded, looking away from him. "That's good to hear. Jennifer told me that the two of you were very close, like brothers. I'm glad that he has someone he can turn to in this world."

"And don't you, Erin?" His question cut to the heart of the matter, and she shook her head a little. "What happened to you and Rossi? I caught a few of the looks you threw his way, when you thought we weren't looking, and it seemed like you were falling in love with him."

"I was in love with him. He's still in love with Carolyn. I couldn't compete," she whispered, holding on to her coffee even more tightly. "After all, how do you compete with a ghost?" She sipped at the drink, needing to focus on something other than her own sorrow.

"That sucks." She nodded absently, feeling more than seeing him get up from where he had been leaning against his desk and kneel in front of her. "Erin?"

"Hmm?" she murmured, feeling a million miles away from this place as she thought about David. Looking up at him, she smiled absently, hoping the pain didn't show too much in her expression. He reached out and covered her hand with his and she sighed lightly, curling her fingers around his.

"You still love him."

"Yes. A little." She began to cry, to her horror, and he slipped the cup from her hand, setting it on the desk behind him before capturing her other hand in his, squeezing tightly. "You don't have to comfort me, I'm learning to get by on my own. My acid tongue has ensured that people will hold me at arm's length."

"But what about your tender heart?" She closed her eyes, unwilling to see what was in his expression, and shook her head. "You can't lie to me, Erin. I know your heart is tender. I saw it for the first time when we were out in Milwaukee. A tender heart reacts exactly the same way you did when you stepped on that woman's hair. A tender heart offers to give whatever boon a grieving husband might want to ask for. A tender heart goes to a wounded man and asks after him, offering him comfort for a day."

"You know?"

"I put a few things together. But it wasn't until you came here today that I knew for certain who had helped him take that first step in getting better." Derek let go of one of her hands, reaching up to cup her face and brush a few tears away with his thumb. "That was very sweet of you, you know. And indicative of a tender, caring, lovely, heart."

She shrugged slightly before gasping as he pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "Derek?"

"You looked like you needed a kiss." Sighing a little, she leaned forward to rest her head against his, breathing in deeply through her nose, his cologne tickling her senses. "Thank you for taking care of my friend."

"I would do anything to keep him here and sober. I know now how tenuous that grip can be." Derek nodded and rubbed his thumb along her cheek bone. They fell silent, the coffee and food forgotten as he comforted her without words. "Would you mind if I adjusted how we're sitting? My arms are aching."

He nodded and she slipped onto his lap, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Where's your heart at right now?"

"I'm hurting, Derek. I've talked with Spencer, with Aaron, with Jennifer, and yet, my heart still aches. I know we're dealing with that awful person stalking us, and I don't want to be a burden, but there's no one I can turn to. I miss having someone to talk to, someone to talk me down off the ledge. And my children, my dear children, they don't know how hard it is to cope with these feelings."

He nodded against her head and she burrowed close to him, feeling free enough to let herself cry against his chest. "And yet, you reached out to make certain that someone else was all right. You put the team's needs ahead of your own and that is so lovely." He kissed the top of her head and she sighed as the tears kept coming.

It seemed like they sat there for hours, but it was really only minutes before she lifted her head and pressed her lips against the firm line of his jaw. "I think I'm going to head home, Derek. I don't feel well, and I want to get this burn tended to."

"Let me take you home. It's the least I can do to make up for treating you badly this morning." He smiled winningly at her, and she found herself nodding slightly. Derek helped her up from the floor and before she could protest, he pulled her tightly to him, rubbing her back gently. "You are a lovely person."

"Thank you," she murmured, resting her head on his chest. The tender feelings in her heart scared her slightly, but she tried to stay relaxed, tried to just let herself go with it. After a moment, he let go of her before handing her her coffee cup and the bag of muffins. "I'll need to grab my purse from my office."

"All right, I'll be waiting for you by the elevators."

She nodded and stepped out of the room, quickly heading back to her office. Helen was there, and she smiled at the woman. "I'm going to take a personal day, Helen. I'm suddenly not feeling all that well. Hold all my calls and be out of the office early, if you can get away."

"Of course, Erin. I hope that you feel better." She smiled warmly at her assistant before slipping into her inner sanctuary and grabbing her purse and coat. Heading quickly over to the elevator, she smiled as she stepped in next to Derek, letting him press the down button.

"You look exhausted," he said softly as the doors closed.

"I didn't sleep well last night. I was rather nervous about this morning." He frowned a little before stepping closer to her side, his arm coming to rest around her waist. "I guess I shouldn't have worried, you're being so kind. It's just, well, I've never been the easiest person to get along with, especially to your team, and you've all been so kind to me lately."

"You deserve kindness. I know how hard you've worked. I thought I heard that you've become a sponsor yourself."

Erin felt a bright blush come to her cheeks as she nodded. "Yes. I've done better than I thought I would. I've tried to make my children proud of me once more. Once they start talking to me again, that is." His large hand began to rub up and down her side and she sighed lightly, turning in to him. "Do you know, I find it much easier to turn to people these days? I've missed out on so much by being closed off here."

"I understand. I'm glad you're letting us in, little by little." He kissed the side of her head and she smiled, welcoming the tender touch. The elevator doors opened, and they stepped out, only to run into David. He looked at them, his brow furrowing in confusion, shock, and hurt. "Erin isn't feeling well. I'm taking her home."

"I see. Is that what you want, Erin?"

She couldn't meet his eye any longer, so she looked down at the cement of the parking lot. "Yes." Stepping closer to Derek, she reached out blindly for his hand, relieved when he threaded his fingers with hers. "I'll be back tomorrow. Have a good day."

David made a soft noise in the back of his throat and stalked off. Erin slumped against Derek, and he once more stroked her side, comforting her. "I think you should take a nap when I get you home."

"I think that would be for the best," she replied, letting him nestle her close to his heart as he led them over to his car. Gently, he helped her into the front seat, and she buckled the belt as he went over to his side, quickly taking off. "Don't you need directions to my place?"

"My apartment is close by."

"Oh." She curled up as best she could in the seat, staring down at her hands. "Will you at least be gentle?"

There was a long pause and then Derek let out a long breath as he pulled into an empty parking lot, stopping the car and turning to look at her. "Oh, Erin." Reaching out, he caressed her cheek softly before leaning over and kissing her gently. "You are going to go to sleep and when you wake up, I am going to make you lunch, and we are going to talk. We are going to find you a cure for this ache in your soul."

She nodded slowly as the first tears began to slip down her cheeks. "All right." He smiled at her before kissing her once more. It didn't take long for him to get to his home, and she smiled as she looked at the duplex. "I wasn't looking for a cure, you know."

"Sometimes the cure finds us." He pulled into his parking space and turned the car off, coming over to her side and holding out his hand. "Come with me, Erin." She nodded and clasped his hand, letting him lead her up into his place.

A large dog bounded over to them, and she clutched at his arm. "Sorry, I'm not too good with dogs."

"It's okay. Down, Clooney!" He pointed away from them and the dog ran off into another room. "Were you attacked by one when you were younger?"

Erin nodded. "But, I've tried to get over that fear. He just startled me, that's all." She tried to stifle her yawn, but he still caught it, smiling gently at her.

"Here, I'll show you to the bedroom." Taking her hand, he led her down the hall to a cozy room. The bed dominated it, and she shook her head a little as she slipped off her shoes, losing several inches to him. While she did that, he pulled down the covers, and patted the mattress. "Is there anything in particular you'd like for lunch?"

"Grilled cheese," she murmured as she stretched out on the bed, pulling the sheet up around her shoulders. The pillow smelled like Derek, and for some strange reason, that relaxed her, made her feel at home. "Kiss me?"

"Gladly." He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers delicately, causing her to sigh. "Sleep well. When you wake up, I'll have some cream to put on that burn, too." She nodded and closed her eyes, wishing she felt free enough to ask him to stay, to curl up around her, to hold her until she fell asleep.

And then, the bed dipped, and his body was curving to fit hers, his arm coming to rest around her waist. Her blouse was still untucked from earlier, and she stiffened in shock as he slipped his hand beneath, his thumb moving up and down over her burn. "Thank you," she whispered, letting herself relax into the welcoming arms of sleep.