Ok so this is around the events of the episode "Minimal Loss". By the way, Hotch and Emily still haven't gone on that date yet.
So it's October 2008, Emily is 37 and Hotch is 42.
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"A quarrel between friends, when made up, adds a new tie to friendship." – Saint Francis de Sales.
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Hotch let out the breath he'd been holding for almost three days now once he seen her emerge from the building... sure she was beat up a little, but nothing some TLC couldn't fix, and that was exactly what he was intending to give her.
He wanted to go and hug her as she walked down the steps, looking so vulnerable, but he seen her turn and call for Reid, and he knew that she wouldn't want any comfort, not until both Reid and Morgan were out safely.
He watched her as she ran up the steps to hug Reid and he was again overwhelmed, not only because all his agents had made it out ok, but also because he knew that if something had happened to Reid she'd never be able to forgive herself, and neither would he.
He looked around and seen that everyone but Jessica had made it out, he then looked and saw her mother staring right at them... he wanted to console her but he could tell from the way Emily was also looking at her that she wanted to talk to her on her own so he left, followed by the rest of the team.
He watched from a distance as she tried to talk to Jessica's mother, eventually just walking away as the events of the last three days hit her and she was overcome with drowsiness and pain, that she'd probably been ignoring, or trying to fight off for the sake of her survival.
He hovered over the ambulance as the medic treated her minor injuries, something that didn't go unnoticed by her as she shot him an "I'm fine and I'm not going to fall apart" look as the medic dressed one of her particularly bad wounds.
The second the medic told her she was ok and free to go he grabbed her arm and pulled her around to the side of the ambulance, to where they were blocked from view.
He then took hold of her other arm, holding he at arm's length and looking over her himself, as if he was reassessing what the medic had checked.
Whereas normally Emily would protest at being treated like a child, she simply stood quietly, knowing this was something Hotch needed to do for his own sanity, and she quite liked the attention she was getting as well.
"What the hell were you thinking?" He snapped after he'd given her the once over, letting his eye's linger on the bruising on her face before he finally met her eye.
"I was doing what needed to be done to save Reid's life." Emily justified, knowing only too well that Cyrus would have killed Reid.
"By risking your own life in the process?" Hotch almost shouted.
"No I wasn't risking my life... Cyrus didn't value women as much as men, he was going to kill Reid, but he didn't see me as being worthy to kill." Emily tried to reason with him.
"You didn't know that Emily... you could have died!" Hotch whispered, still angry with her, but calming down quickly now that he knew she was going to be ok.
"I know, just like you could have died in New York." Emily shot back, now getting annoyed at how badly he was taking it.
"The difference there being, that I wasn't aware that I could die. You were!" Hotch replied, trying his best not to shout again.
"Oh so you're telling me that if you'd known what was going to happen that you'd have told someone else to get in the SUV instead?" Emily questioned, already knowing the answer.
"No I... no I wouldn't have... I mean... my situation was different." Hotch finally said, already knowing that Emily was right and that he would still have gotten into that SUV rather than risk the life of someone on his team... just like she'd done today with Reid.
"Oh! Well I guess that makes you... oh what's that work I'm looking for? Oh yea, a hypocrite!" Emily snapped sarcastically, giving him a nasty look and daring him to contradict her.
"Oh so you're saying you weren't the least bit angry at me for getting blown up, no matter how irrational?" Hotch snapped back, refusing to give up that easily.
"Well I was pretty pissed at you... but the fear of losing you easily outweighed that." Emily replied, thinking back to when she seen him in the hospital and how she'd wanted to scream at him for discharging himself so quickly, but how she'd refrained only because the team was there.
At this Hotch finally let out a sigh... he had to admit that he was being a little over protective, but not without due cause.
"I was scared... damn it Emily, I couldn't even negotiate with Cyrus I was that scared! I'm sorry for shouting at you... I guess it's just three days of not knowing if you or Reid was going to make it, and I snapped." Hotch confessed quietly.
"Hotch, it's ok to lose it a little... hell I almost killed one of the doctors in New York for letting you discharge yourself... thank god JJ was there to clam me down, and stop the doctor calling security." Emily also confessed, a small smile flickering across her face at the memory.
Hotch also let loose a small dimple at the thought f this, before becoming serious again.
"Just promise you'll never do something like that again." He asked.
"I won't... unless it's necessary." Emily replied, refusing to tell him she'd never do it again, when she knew that if the situation called for it she'd do exactly the same thing without hesitation.
"God you're stubborn!" Hotch said, only half joking.
"And don't you forget it." Emily replied, smiling fully... even though it hurt a little.
"Not that I could even if I wanted to." Hotch laughed, before sobering up and giving her a loving smile.
They stood there for a moment, just staring at each other, before Hotch pulled Emily into a warm hug, wrapping his arms around her slim waist carefully so as not to hurt her freshly dressed wounds.
Emily let him support her weight as she moulded her body into his, wrapping her arms tightly around his back and burying her face into the side of his neck, inhaling deeply and revelling in the smell that was uniquely Hotch.
They stood there silently for a while before Emily felt him place soft kisses on her hairline. She smiled into his neck before tilting her head up and giving him a kiss on the side of his jaw, beside his ear.
"We need to have that dinner sometime soon you know." Hotch murmured into her hair as he stopped kissing her, and instead just relished in the intimate moment they were having.
"Mm... and sometime before one of us dies would be preferable." Emily replied, with the hint of a smile playing on her lips as she resumed her previous position, resting her head on his shoulder.
"Huh... that's the best idea you've had in a while." Hotch joked, as he pulled away slightly to examine her face once more.
"So when do you plan on having our romantic date?" Emily asked teasingly, choosing to ignore his comment about her carelessness, knowing that it was a joke.
"As soon as possible... This Friday, once we get back." He smiled.
"Sounds good to me." Emily replied happily.
"Then it's settled, this Friday... I'll give you the details when I know them myself." Hotch told her, before giving her a light kiss on the tip of her nose.
Before she had a chance to respond the calls of the team could be heard in the distance, getting gradually closer.
"Looks like we're about to get company." Hotch whispered before pulling away, and putting his professional mask back in place.
"Shall you go first or will I?" Emily asked, trying to hide her disappointment at the fact that he was no longer near her.
"You... I'll go around the other side of the ambulance so it doesn't look quite so suspicious... besides I think it's you the team wants to see right now." Hotch told her.
"I suppose... see you later then." Emily said, adding a mischievous wink before walking towards the front of the ambulance.
"You can bet on that." Hotch replied, before walking in the other direction.
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Done... the next chapter will be about their dinner date, at last... YAY. Tell me what you thought! =)