"Are you giving Erin another lesson?"
Aaron looked up from his paperwork at Dave and gave him a small nod. "That was the plan, yes. Why?"
"I couldn't remember if you had made plans with her or not. That works perfectly, though, since I have a poker game this afternoon, and it's always good to have her out from under foot. She means well, but my poker buddies are not happy with having to placate her. How long are you usually playing for?"
"The lessons usually run an hour."
"Make it two, and I'll throw in a bonus for you."
Aaron nodded, hoping that his face wasn't showing the irritation he felt. "That will be fine, Dave. I just have to finish this up, and then I'll head over."
His best friend nodded and left the office, whistling an upbeat tune that grated on his nerves a little more than normal. Shaking his head a little, he went back to the report that he had been working on, hoping that he could finish it before too much time had passed. Just as he was signing off on it, he heard a knock on the door. "Come in!" he called out as he signed his name.
"Hotch, what is up with Erin? She is not happy."
He sighed as he closed the folder that held the file, and looked up at Penelope. "You are completely right, she is not happy. There are things that I am just now starting to see in their marriage that make me ache for her, but there is no way that I can do anything other than be a listening ear for her. You might think about calling her more often, and taking her out to lunch."
"You really are in a hard spot, aren't you? Rossi's your best friend, but it sounds like you're sympathizing more with Erin in this case."
He looked away from her, knowing that she was a great reader of people's expressions, knowing that he had to be careful how much she saw. "I am trying to remain impartial, yes, but you're right, I am siding with Erin more than is maybe prudent right now. But if we both support her, things might start to look a little brighter for her."
Penelope crossed over to his desk, taking a seat across from him and leaning forward. "I need to ask you something, and you might get angry with me for asking it, but it needs to be said. Are you falling in love with your best friend's wife?"
He wanted to deny her words quickly, but he knew that that was the entirely wrong thing to do, since it would seem like he was protesting too much. And, truth be told, he hadn't given his feelings those words before, and it seemed like there was a small kernel of truth in what Penelope said. "I can't say." She let out a small snort, and Aaron looked at her, seeing the knowing smile on her lips. "Penelope, truly, I can't say. I care for Erin, yes. She's a dear woman. But she's not in a position for me to fall in love with. And I need to keep that in mind."
Her eyes turned immeasurably sad, as if she was privy to something that he should know, but didn't, and she reached across the desk to pat his hand softly. "You really have the worst luck, don't you?"
Aaron opened his mouth to refute her words as she abruptly stood and scurried from the office. Letting out a long breath, he pushed away from the desk and stood up, grabbing his guitar case and making his way over to the elevators. Penelope waved a little at him from her vantage point at Emily's desk, and he shook his head slightly as he stepped into the car, waving back as the doors closed and he made the short ride down to the ground floor.
He had no idea how he made it over to Rossi's house, only that the he arrived safely, parking behind a number of unfamiliar cars. Aaron didn't even need to knock on the door, Bernice was opening it for him as he stepped onto the stoop. "Miss Erin is already waiting for you in the study. Mister Rossi asked me to relay to you that he would like it if you could keep the noise down to a minimum, since he needs to be able to concentrate on his game. And if you could be here for three hours, he would much appreciate that, too."
Aaron groaned a little, knowing that would mean he had to call Jessica and let her know that he was going to be later than planned. Stepping inside, he let Bernice close the door behind him as he made his way to the study, pulling his phone from his pocket as he went. Calling his sister in law, he brought the phone to his ear as he closed the door to the study, smiling slightly at Erin as he made his way over to the sofa. "Hey, Jess, it looks like my lesson is going to run later than I had planned, since Rossi wants, well, since I need to be here until six."
"Rossi's being a dick then, I take it?"
He gave Erin a quick look, seeing her lower lip quivering as she stared down into her lap. "You could say that, yeah. But he's my best friend…"
"And you will always fail to say the unvarnished truth about them, because you care too much. Fine, I'll tell Jack that you're spending some extra time with his Uncle Dave. But we will talk after supper, which I'll hold for you."
"Thanks, Jess." They hung up, and he turned his focus on Erin, reaching out to clasp her hand gently. "Your guitar isn't set up?"
Erin tightened her fingers around his hand and gave a little shrug. "I didn't really feel much like playing today. And it's not like you really want to be here for three hours, entertaining me. If you just play for me, for a little while, I can just put on some guitar music and play it lowly enough to trick David into thinking that you're still here, humoring me."
"No, Erin, I will stay, and you will get a master class today, if you truly don't want to play today." Erin licked her lips a little as she ducked her head down a little lower into her chest. "Okay?"
"Okay." He released her hand and began to get out his guitar. "Oh, Aaron, how I adore you."
He knew that he probably wasn't supposed to hear those words, so he tried to play off her words, to try and save face with her. "Is that the song you want to hear, Erin? Adore You?"
"Is there…yes. I would love to hear that song."
He smiled as he pulled out his tablet, searching for a song with that title. Surprisingly, one by Miley Cyrus showed up, and he quickly found the guitar tabs for it. Hoping that he was at least a little correct in how it sounded, he began to play it, watching as Erin curled up in the corner of the sofa, watching him carefully. "If you come a little closer, you can look at the words over my shoulder and sing along," he said lowly, wanting her nearby, for some reason that he didn't want to look too deeply into.
She nodded and scooted close to him, trying to put a melody to the chords he was playing. Her voice was soft, and yet it seemed to fill the air around him as he listened to the words pouring from her lips, and Aaron welcomed the way her head came to rest on his upper arm the longer they were in the song. "Thank you," she whispered as he pressed his hand against the strings to stop the sound.
"You are most welcome, Erin." He didn't move, not even when he felt her turn a little before pressing her lips against his cheek. "I hope that he didn't belittle you in any way."
"No, he just told me that he had found a way to keep me occupied while he was with his buddies. And really, Aaron, hope is for suckers."
He hated to hear the bitter, almost defeated tone in her voice, and he couldn't help but set aside his guitar and wrap his arms around her, holding her close as she silently began to cry. Pressing his lips to the top of her head, Aaron gently rocked her back and forth as her tears began to soak into the fabric of his shirt. "I wish that you didn't feel that way," he said before resting his chin where his lips had just touched. "And I really think that you and the twins should pick Penelope up for a long lunch tomorrow. It would do you good to get out of the house and be amongst friends, even if for a short time."
"We'll see, Aaron," she replied softly as she pulled away from him, looking up at him without wiping her eyes free from tears. "Now, would you play for me again? Something sprightly and light? That might just put me in a better mood."
"Of course, Erin," he said before stroking her face, his thumb flicking away some tears before he picked up his instrument once more and beginning to play for her.