They hadn't been home for more than twenty minutes when the phone rang. "Would you answer, David? Please?" She watched him nod and then reach over for the handset, looking at the display.

"It's Reid." She smiled a little and closed her eyes, resting her head on his chest. His voice rumbled in her ear as he answered. "Hey. She's resting here in my arms right now, but I'm sure she'd love to see you soon." Erin nodded against his chest and felt his free hand stroke her hair softly. "Bring something to eat with you, too, kid. Valu-Rite has a chocolate cake on sale this week that is absolutely delicious."

She smiled a little at the thought of the sweet treat and rubbed her cheek against his chest. When they'd finished speaking, David leaned down and kissed her deeply. "What am I going to tell them? They'll want an answer to the question Alex asked."

"I will tell them that there was an unsub, and that I wasn't quick enough to save you and our child. That Cara would have been the perfect reflection of her mother, had she been allowed to grow up." Erin sighed and nodded, absently touching her stomach. "When Reid gets here, and after we eat, do you want to go to her grave? It might help if we all went."

She thought for a moment. "We haven't gone together in years."

"And I regret that. There are a lot of things that I regret about that moment in time and the ones that followed it. I knew that I loved you, and that you loved me."

"Just as I always loved you. I ran to Alan because he was the safest choice, after what happened with us. I needed someone who was the complete opposite from you. I think he always knew where my heart rested."

His hand tightened around her shoulder and she began to cry a little. "I hope he didn't treat you badly because of that."

"No, he just never quite got used to living with a living ghost. I ruined so many lives with my selfishness."

"I was just as much to blame. I should have fought for you, should have proved to you that I would have moved heaven and earth to make you feel whole once more." Erin turned in his arms and pressed her lips to his cheek. "I never really stopped loving you. I had thought, for a time, that Hannah would fill that hole you and Cara left in my heart, but then she came and went so quickly."

"And you've never had the chance to be a father." She yawned a little, trying to swallow it, as she didn't want to fall asleep with Spencer coming over soon. "Our broken parts are matching up even better these days."

"I know. And go to sleep for a little while. I'll wake you when Reid gets here."

She nodded slowly, making herself more comfortable in his arms, wrapping one arm around his back and holding on to him tightly. "I love you."

"I love you, too, dolce." He pressed a tender kiss to her forehead as her eyes fluttered closed, and she listened to him croon to her as she fell asleep.

Erin woke up sometime later, feeling two pairs of eyes watching her. "Hello, Spencer. When did you get here?"

"Just a few minutes ago. I brought the cake, just like Rossi asked. And Blake sends her apologies."

"No, she doesn't."

"Okay, she doesn't, but Hotch told me to say that. She's been suspended for a week for saying something like that, for treating you that way." He came over to her side and helped her to sit up. It was odd to be held by another man, especially with David so close to her, but the comfort he was seeking to give her was not unwelcome, so she rested her head on his chest and watched her beloved. "Are you craving?"

"Not any longer. But I suppose that I have to tell you why I reacted the way I did, so you'll know for next time, for when I feel like I'm diving off the cliff, headlong into the abyss." He nodded, and she gazed at David, watching his face closely. She could tell the moment that he shut off from them, since his face became a mask, and she closed her eyes, knowing that they could hold each later, when Spencer had gone. "So, we had a daughter. We weren't married, and it was quite the scandal."

"There's ten years between you, right?" She nodded. "Well, I can see why, some people probably thought that you were trying to get ahead in your career. That wasn't the truth, though, was it?"

"No. We were in love, and I would have said yes, had I been asked. But the pain of losing Carolyn and James was still too fresh, so I contented myself to love. And it was so sweet, Spencer, you have no idea. We spent so long picking out baby names and we finally settled on Madeline. She was a blessing to us, and then, life happened."

There was a slight pause, as if Spencer wasn't certain to prod her with questions or wait for her to continue. Erin, though, found that she would rather answer his questions, so as to give less of her memories away, and so waited for him to say something. "I'm assuming it was an unsub."

"No, kid," David said, meeting her eye steadily. "And it wasn't Erin's fault. No matter what Alex might say to you tomorrow, you must believe that. Erin was and is completely blameless for Maddie's death."

The gentle affirmation in his voice made her tear up once more, and she nodded as she took a deep breath. "And yet it pulled us apart, David. I should have fought harder for us."

"I should have done the same, and not let the bitterness take root. God, I was so furious with God, that He would take two of my children away from me, and I let that bleed into my treatment of you. I was such a fool."

She shrugged a little before finally breaking eye contact, knowing that if she continued to look at him, she wouldn't stop crying. "So, on my way to take Madeline to her one year checkup, I let myself be distracted for a nanosecond by her gurgling in her car seat. It sounded off to me, and I glanced back and as I pulled into traffic, having the green light, an oncoming truck t-boned us. I watched her die, and there was nothing I could do."

"Why would that be your fault, Erin? The driver ran a red light."

"I should have looked once more. Instead, I focused on my baby and she died because of me. I've carried that guilt for so long, Spencer, and I really think that it probably added to my problem. Instead, I just pulled away from my beloved, he pulled away from me, and when Alan offered me a safe harbor, I took it, needing some stability in my life. I had three beautiful children with him, but they could never take the place of my Maddie."

The tears that had been gathering in the corners of her eyes began to fall, and still, Spencer held her tightly, murmuring in her ear tender words. But she didn't want him at that moment, she wanted her David, and she reached out her arms, hoping he would understand the unspoken gesture.

He did, and she felt him tug her up from the couch and into a tight, loving, embrace. "I have you, dolce. Just hold onto me, I will never let you go again."