Reid and Colleen were sitting in the arrival area in Pikeville airport, waiting for the passengers from Garcia's flight to disembark. Their ride to Pikeville had been uneventful and for the most part unrevealing as Reid was unable to discover why Colleen seemed to be mad at him. Colleen on the other hand tried to find out more about Garcia only to find that Reid was not very forthcoming in that aspect either, saying that Garcia could not be described but only experienced, whatever that meant, she thought.

Spencer Reid was looking at the passengers as they entered the lounge while Colleen was looking at him. All at once his face broke into the biggest smile she had yet seen from him. She had seen him smile before of course, even laugh but this was different. This smile lit up his face in a way she couldn't quite describe and her gaze followed his until it landed on the person responsible for that smile. When Colleen saw the woman in question, to say the least she was surprised. Penelope Garcia, in the flesh, was not at all what she had expected. She was, Colleen guessed, in her late twenties, of average height with a mop of unruly curly blond hair, a little on the hefty side wearing black glasses, platform sandals and a dress that could only be described as flamboyant. At the sight of Reid her face lit up with a brilliance that was electric and suddenly Colleen knew that whatever Reid's relationship was with this woman, it was deep and abiding and anyone who cared for him would have to contend with her.

They greeted each other warmly; she put her arms around his neck and gave him the slightest peck on the lips which he accepted without his usual blushing and embarrassment. This woman, it appeared had gotten beyond the barriers he built around his heart. He asked about her flight and she said it was fine. She said she had to wait a few moments; someone from the airline was retrieving her computer from the storage department. She had given special instructions for its handling.

Reid introduced Garcia to Colleen and watched with interest as the women seemed to be sizing each other up, deciding how much a problem each was going to be for the other. Garcia had noticed the way this young woman looked at Reid. God knew Reid needed somebody in his life and Garcia wondered if this young woman was the one who could accept Reid's life and all that came with it. She would watch this girl closely. What she said was, "It's really nice to finally meet you Colleen. Reid has spoken of you and your family and how much he liked you all. It'll be good to get to know you a little."

"It's very nice to meet you too." Colleen said thinking that she wasn't quite sure yet about this woman. It seemed there was nothing romantic between them. It was almost as if Garcia was a cross between a best friend, a big sister and a mama bear. Colleen got the impression that if anyone tried to hurt Reid her reach would be long and her claws would be sharp.

They retrieved Garcia's computer and headed for the SUV. Reid took out his cell phone and dialed Gideon's number. The girls heard him suggesting that since it was getting late, he would take Garcia to the motel in Brookdale and they could start out for Castleton again in the morning. The samples would have arrived in Quantico by then and they would at least have somewhere to start with the reconstruction. Gideon said he could get a ride back to Brookdale with Kyle and Roy and he would see them later at the motel. He ended the call and started the SUV for the trip back to Brookdale. It wasn't too long a drive but even so he hoped the women would play nice.

Arriving back in Brookdale, Reid suggested that they go to the diner and get something to eat so they entered the diner to be greeted by Miriam. Reid introduced Garcia and they sat down, perused the menus and decided on what they would have. Miriam went to work on their orders. "So Colleen, do you miss working at the diner?' Reid asked.

"No, you know it was time to move on to something else. I find being a deputy very interesting, especially when things like what happened today occur."

"It's nice for you, first you got to work with your mom and now you get to work with your dad." Garcia stated.

"Are you implying that I can't get a job without my parents' help?" Colleen retorted.

"No I wasn't saying that at all. I was just stating that it must be nice to be able to share the work of both your parents. You don't have to get so defensive."

"I'm not getting defensive, I just resent people coming here from the big city and putting us down because we live in a small town."

"I wasn't trying to put anybody down. Look why don't we just forget the whole thing and move on to a different topic of conversation?"

Reid was looking from one to the other like he was a spectator at a tennis match. Where had all this hostility come from? Reid realized that Colleen was just starting out in law enforcement and was perhaps feeling insecure around a lot of FBI personnel, but he didn't feel Garcia deserved to be spoken to like that. He also realized that Colleen was mad at him for some reason and he still couldn't figure out what it was and perhaps she was taking it out on Garcia.

Miriam arrived with their meals and noticed that no one was talking and that something was wrong with her daughter. 'Colleen, honey what's wrong?"

"Nothing Mom, I'm fine."

"Honey, you don't look fine to me, you look upset about something."She said as Colleen jumped up and ran past her to the ladies' room. She turned to Reid, "Did you do something to upset my girl?"

"Miriam, if I did I swear I don't know what it was. I tried to get her to talk to me all the way to Pikeville but she wouldn't say what was bothering her."

Miriam put their meals down on the table and headed off in search of her daughter. Reid started to pick at his food and looked up to find Garcia staring at him, "What!" he said.

"You really don't know what's wrong with her?"

"Look Garcia, you know me better than anyone else, so you get that my understanding of the female psyche ranks somewhere below the IQ of a hummingbird. Everything was fine and then after I spoke to you on the phone, it was like a cold front blew in and she was really mad at me and I don't even know what I did wrong."

"Reid you realize that Colleen is halfway in love with you, don't you?"

"Garcia, you're starting to sound like Morgan. I think you have been hanging around him too much. Colleen is a nice girl and a friend."

"Oh my poor blind naïve friend. That girl does not want to be your friend. Not it the way you're thinking. She wants to be your lover. Now I understand why she's mad at you and me."

"Great, why?"

"You said she got upset after our phone conversation, you also said I was on speaker, yes?"

"Yeah."

"Well then she heard all of our conversation, me calling you my pet names and saying suggestive things which I know you don't take seriously but she did. She sees me as a threat to a relationship with you which is what she wants more than anything. She's got it bad for ya buddy."

"So what do I do now, Garcia?"

"Maybe you should try talking to her and tell her that I'm not threat to her but now that I think about it you are kinda cute."

"Garcia! I can't just go up to her and talk to her about that."

"Why not?"

"Do you know how conceited it sounds if I go up to her and say there's nothing between you and I and the coast is clear if you want to sleep with me. I can't believe I just said that, maybe I've been hanging around Morgan too much." He was trying to whisper and his voice was getting higher with each word and by the time he reached the end of his diatribe, his voice was squeaking.

Garcia burst out laughing at her friend's situation. Poor Reid, he was so totally hapless when it came to things like this. At that moment Miriam came out of the ladies' room and looked at them sternly and said, "Well Miss Garcia, I'm glad you can laugh at my daughter's situation, at least someone finds it amusing." Her eyes shot daggers at Reid.

Reid was about to say something in his and Garcia's defense when Garcia piped up and said "Perhaps we should call it a night. Maybe clearer heads will prevail in the morning. It was nice meeting you Mrs. Rutherford. Come on Reid let's go."

Reid left some money on the table for the meal, said good night to Miriam and headed out into the night with Garcia.