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The golden glow of the rising sun teased the edge of the blinds covering the south-facing window in JJ's bedroom. She opened her eyes, blinked, turned over to greet her bedmate and found the other side of the bed empty.

"Spence," She called out in a rough morning voice.

When he didn't reply, she grabbed her robe and hurried to the living area. "Hey, what are you doing out here?" she asked when she found him lying on her couch. He wore slacks, his dress shirt, no socks or shoes, and unhappy expression.

"Couldn't sleep, and I didn't want to disturb you."

"Want to talk about it," she asked when he slid his legs out of the way for her to sit.

She ran her fingertips through his mussed hair as Reid sighed. He linked fingers with her free hand. "I'm not sure what's bothering me. I had a – strange dream last night, and it took me off my guard."

She squeezed his hand tight. She loved the texture of his skin and the steely strength of his fingers. She'd always thought that he had the hands of a concert pianist or a sculptor, but recently, she'd come to know their gentleness, too. Reid's fingers tightened in response to her touch, and his eyes searched her face.

"I was a child again, about three and we were visiting my Uncle Daniel. He died when I was four, and my mother took it very hard. They were extremely close, and he was the only one in the family that liked my dad. Anyway, he was a teacher and very bright. He loved to play word games with me, and we'd sit together for hours with flashcards and toy letters. He never lost patience with my questions. He was kind and gentle, and I loved him very much."

"I'm so sorry, Spence. You've lost too much in your life; it's not fair."

Reid slid his fingers through her hair when she laid her head on his shoulder. "I wish I could say its okay, but it's not. He was only thirty when he died. He never got to experience love or having kids, or seeing his students progress to adulthood and beyond. It's not fair," Reid repeated her words in a choked voice.

JJ lifted her hands and wiped away tears from his face with her thumbs. She gently cupped his chin and said softly, "I think you're trying to cope with Colorado, babe."

"I don't want to drag Uncle Daniel into my traumas," he cried out. "He deserves better than to enter my dreams because my subconscious is trying to tell me I'm afraid of loss?"

She stroked a hand down his back and rubbed in circles over his ribs and up to his shoulders. "You know you're can't control your subconscious."

He tugged her into his arms, and she bit her lips to keep back tears as his body shook. "I'm sorry," he pulled back, and she saw more tears in his eyes. "I didn't mean to start our Saturday with an emotional rant."

"Babe, I'm here for you no matter what you need. I love you."

Finally, he smiled, and it lit up his face like the sun on a smooth mountain lake. He blew out a heavy breath and nodded. "Thank you, Jennifer. I love you more than you realize."

"I think I know," she said with a wink and jerked away when he began to tickle under her armpit.

"Stop it," she gasped out. "I have a gun."

"As do I," he reminded her and pushed her back on the couch.

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JJ drew on a pair of leggings, a long tee-shirt she always wore for yoga, and wandered out to the living area. "Come on," She smacked Reid's leg where he reclined on the couch after their morning encounter and after a light breakfast. "You agreed to stretch with me."

"I don't know how to do yoga," he reminded her. "I'm not properly dressed."

"We'll worry about proper attire next time. Today we're going to do a few simple stretches."

"I'd rather watch you," he complained.

"Right, so you can get worked up again and interrupt my workout with that gleam you get in your eyes when you want to throw me down on the nearest convenient piece of furniture."

"I already did that," he reminded her.

"Cute. Now stand up and follow me."

She had just enough time to gently force him to imitate her warrior pose when his phone beeped. "Damn it!"

His eyes lit up, and she huffed out an irritated breath. "That better not be work."

It was work, and it was urgent. It was a child abduction in Nevada, or more specifically, Las Vegas.

"What?" Reid asked, and his happy smile fell away when he saw JJ's expression. "It's a child abduction in Las Vegas."

"Oh," he shrugged his shoulders. "Let's get dressed."

"Babe, wait. You were dreaming of your Uncle Daniel and now we're going to your hometown for work. You okay?"

"Yes," he insisted. "I'm fine. Let's go."

She stood still after he hurried out of the room and stared at his retreating back. Two weeks after Colorado and he had to go home for a case. How could he be okay? She sighed and followed him to her bedroom. Somehow, she'd find the time to talk to him about it.

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The desert wind whipped Reid hair as he stood watching Michael's reunion with his parents. He thought about what Morgan had just said about Riley Jenkins and made a quick decision. Morgan had a point with his photographic memory, but he remembered that time in his life and how upset his mother had been. It wasn't her disease, Reid realized. Now that he was an adult and knew all there was to know about her condition, he knew it wasn't just her unstable and paranoid mind.

"Hey," JJ joined him. "You okay?"

He quickly outlined his concerns over Riley, but not his fears over his father or what he intended to do now that Hotch had agreed for them to wait to go back to DC.

"Spence, Morgan makes sense, but I trust your instincts. You know your mom better than anyone and if she believed you to be in danger, then as much as I hate to think of it, maybe you were. I know you won't feel easy about it until you figure it out."

"I guess. Look, I want to see my mom again and stay with her. I know there are shows we could go to without the team, or maybe gamble a little, but I need to see her."

"Go," she said as the team began to gather around an SUV and look their way as they talked. "We'll talk later."

"I want to take you with me, but –"

"It's okay. We'll go together, another time. I like your mom. She's amazing."

"Yeah, she is."

JJ wanted to touch him, to caress his face, or feather her fingers through his hair, or kiss him, but the team was watching.

"Hey," Morgan called. "You two going to stand over there all day long. It's Vegas, man."

JJ rolled her eyes and hurried to them with Reid following behind. "Go find your own party, Morgan."

"I intend to, Blondie." He wiggled his eyebrows and JJ shook her head. "See, Reid, I win our bet."

Reid stared at her for a minute, and her eyes silently begged him to understand. "Oh, right, well I'm a bit light on cash right now."

"That's okay; you can owe me."

"Oh, Pretty Boy, lose a bet. That's pathetic considering where we are!"

"Morgan, it's hot, and I want a cold drink," Emily interrupted their banter.

"Yeah, while we're young," Rossi deadpanned.

They piled into their vehicle and Reid watched out the window as the familiar desert landscapes of his hometown began to flash by. He looked over at JJ, but she was in conversation with Emily. He decided to lean back and nap for a few minutes.

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As always, Reid's mother astonished him with her insight into his life. She knew he'd solved the case with a positive outcome. He nearly laughed aloud when his mother calmly, but firmly announced her intention of scratching out the eyes of anyone that tried to keep him there longer than one night. He wished that JJ had been there to hear because she would've enjoyed the sentiment. He'd tell her about it one day.

He'd watched his mother finish her dinner and had accepted a plate of food from one of the aides. It wasn't five-star restaurant quality, but it wasn't the kind of fare you'd expect from a horrible state-run institution. He enjoyed it because he knew the team was eating Chinese and Reid thanked whatever power ran the universe that he didn't have to make a fool of himself with JJ watching, again. After their meal, they played more scrabble, and his mother won two games to his one victory. She began to tire, so he walked her to her room, and she listened as he read from one of her favorite books.

While his mother readied for bed, including the administration of meds she took at night, he removed a file from his bag and began to study the case of Riley Jenkins. He knew it the case by heart, now, but couldn't stop staring at the photo attached to it.

"Baby," Dianna said after she got comfortable in bed and she'd turned out her light. "Are you sure you're alright? You look tired and distracted.

"I'm fine, mom," Reid said and was glad for the cover of darkness. "I didn't sleep well the other night and –"

"I hope Jennifer is taking care of you."

"Mom?"

"Spencer, you talk about her all the time in your letters. I know you love her and that she cares for you. When are you going to bring her to see me?"

"I wanted to bring her this time, but I didn't want to make you uncomfortable."

"Darling, I want to see her and talk to the woman that makes you so happy."

"All right, we'll plan a trip out soon. I promise."

"Good. Now go to sleep."

"Yes, mom."

He didn't expect to sleep, but as soon as his mother fell silent, he closed his eyes and dropped into a dream so real, he thought he might be able to reach out and touch the objects around him. He stood at the bottom of a flight of stairs. The basement surrounding him looked like any other basement, but in this room, a man crouched over something behind the washer and dryer. The man's back was to Reid, and he couldn't see his face.

"FBI," Reid ordered and pointed his gun at the man. "Put your hands in the air."

The man rose slowly and turned with his hands up, and Reid saw the legs of a child stuffed behind the appliances, but more than that as the man turned, he recognized a face he'd never thought to see again.

"Dad?"

Reid's eyes flew open, and he sat up, breathing like a man running for his life. Something tumbled off him and hit the floor. The file folder, he realized. He'd dreamed of the Jenkins case, and now his father had a central place in the tale. Why?

He tried to get his breathing under control and thanked the Gods he hadn't cried out and woken his mother. He scrubbed his hands through his hair and lay back on the couch.

"I have to know," he said quietly. "No matter the outcome."

Eventually, he fell back into sleep and dreams he didn't remember, and when the morning light returned, he smiled for his mother, talked to her and said goodbye after declining breakfast and promising her he'd eat something and that he'd visit again. He kissed her goodbye and hurried out into the Nevada heat.

"Time to see how well I can bluff."