Three Little Words Chapter 2: Feelin' Good, a criminal minds fanfic

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Three Little Words

Chapter Two: Feelin' Good

By Ann Parker

They finished eating and were casually strolling through a local park when Morgan stated something the rest had been thinking for quite sometime. "You look really good, Reid. Better than you looked even before," Morgan stated. And he really did. He had put on a little weight as well as some muscle (that was due to Michelle dragging him to the gym with her). He wasn't nearly as pale and this was one of the first times they'd seen him in a short sleeve shirt this year, now that his track marks had faded.

"Thanks," Reid smiled. "I feel —" At that precise moment, he got knocked to the ground and landed on his back. In the shock, he had closed his eyes so he wasn't ready when something wet and slimy landed on his forehead before rolling off. He whipped his forehead off and was about to put it all together when he heard her voice.

"Cooter! What is the matter with you?" she yelled, running up. She pulled the dog off of him, revealing the victim. "Oh, well that explains it," she grinned. Reid looked up at her and smiled. "I'd apologize, but you earned that for being gone for two weeks." She offered him a hand, which he accepted. Only he pulled her down on top of him instead of letting her stand him up.

"Sorry," he replied, pushing some of the loose strands of hair from her ponytail behind her ear. "I did help catch a serial arsonist and two serial killers. Does that make up for it?" Neither noticed the looks of amusement by his team or the fact that Cooter had wandered off to suck up to the girls. For a dog that disliked men, he sure loved women.

"I suppose that's acceptable," she teased. "But I think I should still kick your ass for pulling me down."

"Yeah, but you won't," he countered, placing a hand on the back of her neck and pulling her to him.

"No, I suppose not," she whispered right before they kissed. They could have easily gotten carried away if Morgan hadn't interrupted them.

"Uh, guys, you realize you're out in public right?" he teased, causing them to unlock their lips. Reid thought he heard her mutter something under her breath as she climbed off of him. This time when she offered him a hand he actually stood up.

"So, Michelle, what are you doing out in the middle of the day playing with Cooter?" asked Emily. It was at that moment that Reid realized Michelle was only wearing a sports bra, shorts, and tennis shoes.

"What are you wearing?" he asked, suddenly becoming over protective.

She looked at him and laughed, "I thought you'd appreciate this view." And, indeed, he did. It showed off her toned midriff and lean legs, but that didn't mean he wanted anyone else to see it.

"I do, but I don't want other guys ogling you," he replied.

She smiled and tugged at his tie, "you're cute when you're jealous. Relax, Cooter barks at all men, remember?" As if on cue, two college age boys walked by and one whistled. Cooter, who up to that point was seeking as much attention from the girls as possible, turned in the boys' direction and started to bark. "See?"

Reid walked over to the dog and petted his head. "Good boy."

Michelle rolled her eyes. "Anyway, to answer your question, Emily. I was interrogating a suspect in my team's case until three in the morning until he cracked. As a reward, Wilson gave me the day off." The others nodded.

"So I guess it's a good thing I didn't call you when we landed just after midnight," Reid smirked, now standing next to her again.

"Just what were you expecting to happen at that hour?" she teased, pulling him closer. When he didn't answer right away, she added, "because I am not a booty call, Spencer Reid." Morgan almost chocked on his soda, the girls chuckled and Gideon and Hotch looked like they shouldn't be listening to this.

Reid, however, used to her sharp tongue by now – some of which rubbed off on him – didn't miss a beat. "Wait a minute, but I am? Or did you forget that night about a month ago when you showed up at my place at 4 AM after that stake out?"

Michelle blinked for a second, before responding. "Damn, I forgot about that," she grinned, pulling him into a kiss. "My place, six o'clock. Bring dessert," she whispered against his lips before stepping back from him.

"I thought I was the dessert," he retorted as she pulled Cooter's leash out from her pocket.

"Eew!" exclaimed Garcia, causing the rest to laugh. They still weren't used to seeing Reid coming out of his shell and acting his age. Michelle attached the leash to Cooter's collar and grabbed his ball from the ground. When she tugged on the leash and he didn't move, she looked at Reid.

"Puppy, puppy," he called in a high pitch voice, which was apparently enough to trick the canine to move. Although he did look around all excited, trying to find another dog.

"Thanks," she smiled. "See you guys later," she commented to the rest before looking back at him. "See you tonight." He smiled as she walked away with Cooter. He turned back to the team, grinning from ear to ear. That was just what he needed.

"Well," started Morgan, "I think Reid's new nickname might just have to be Dr. Love."

"Shut up Morgan," Reid replied as they began to walk back to their cars. Morgan roughed up Reid's hair as the others chuckled.

"Aww, our little Spence is all grown up," added JJ, lightly punching him in the arm.

"Leave him alone guys," replied Hotch, earning a smile from Reid. "Everyone has at least one booty call in their lives." That caused even more laughter, particularly because no one in their right mind expected those words to come out of Hotch's mouth.

"Hey, you guys are just jealous because I have a social life and you don't," he retorted, earning a few laughs. Sadly, that was true for some of them. As they piled into a few of their cars – Morgan and he were privileged enough to get to ride in Ester – Reid thought back to what they were talking about before Cooter jumped on him. He really hadn't felt this good in a long time. And he knew just the reason why.