Thanks for all the reviews guys. Sorry this chapter has taken so long. I now have pretty much mapped out the rest of the story in my head so hopefully I will be able to update faster now. Please keep the reviews coming though. I adore hearing what you think. Anyway enjoy:

Chapter 16

'Believe that life it worth living and your belief will help create the fact' William James

The next two days were spent relaxing together. They lay on the beach side by side, swam in the sea messing around and walked for hours around the surrounding area. Reid loved every second of their time together relaxing, it helped Livie heal and it helped them grow closer. On their last night they decided to go out for a meal; Hotch had called saying that they needed to come back as the case loads were mounting up so they planned to leave early the next morning and hopefully would be arriving in Quantico around mid afternoon.

Reid was standing in the doorway to the patio staring out at the sea when he heard Livie descending the stairs. Turning he felt his breath catch in his throat briefly as he saw her walking towards him wearing a simple white dress with a denim jacket thrown over it and her long brown hair left loose down her back.

"Um wow you look… beautiful" he managed and she smiled gently at him "not so bad yourself" she noted and he looked down at his simple shirt and ¾ lengths and grinned sheepishly at her shoving his hands nervously in his pockets.

"Come on" Livie said and she reached for his hand "let's go." They walked the short distance into the small town at a leisurely pace hand in hand admiring the view as they did so. When they arrived at the small restaurant and had been seated and had ordered Livie looked at him with her head tilted slightly like she did when she was trying to figure something out. "What" Reid asked suddenly feeling self conscious. "Nothing" Livie said "I was just wondering… where you saw yourself in the future"

"How far in the future are we talking" he asked and she shrugged "I don't know… five years?" Reid thought for a minute, he hadn't put much thought to the future and her question caught him off guard "I don't know" he said honestly "still at the BAU I guess, I mean I have a good job there and I feel that I am making a bit of a difference, I don't see myself ever leaving" Livie smiled "what about family wise" she asked and he blinked "um what" he stammered.

She paused eying him before she asked "do you see yourself with kids?" Reid thought for another minute "one day hopefully" he said "I would love to be a father though I sometimes don't think that I would be a very good one" she gave him a sceptical look "don't be so negative Spence you are great with kids, I saw you with Sophie, Jack, Henry, even Kaylee adores you and she is tough to impress"

Reid smiled awkwardly and Livie reached out to squeeze his hand "you are great with kids Spence" she said firmly "and any kid would be lucky to have you for a father." He blushed before he smiled "what about you" he asked before he asked the question he had been thinking for a while but hadn't wanted to hear the answer to "what are your plans come the end of your internship?"

Livie like him took a minute to think about her answer and she gazed out the window before she looked back at him and responded "I don't know" she whispered "I mean before I even started my internship I applied for a job at the FBI in DC. I know the psychologist there; that helps, he said I could be his apprentice and that he would put in a good word for me. That would be cool as April is doing her forensic anthropology apprenticeship with her mom at the Jeffersonion who the FBI work closely with so I would get to see her regularly. Blair recently told me she got a position in the FBI so I would see her too. And Tali lives in DC, well she does when she isn't off saving the world – it is amazing how cheap her degree was when the FBI and NCIS are paying for it so that in return she would do undercover work for them. If I got the job at the FBI I would be able to see them all regularly, I mean I do miss them all, it would be nice to see them more often, maybe even work with them. But I haven't heard back about the position yet so maybe that means I didn't get it"

She paused and gave him a small smile "maybe if I have nothing tying me down I'll stay in Quantico a bit longer" she said thoughtfully before she shrugged "I don't know what I am going to do, I guess I am standing at some crossroads" she pondered "so many different opportunities that I could take and I don't know which path to choose"

Reid looked up at her "what about a family" he asked before he dropped his gaze to stare at the entwined hands watching as her thumb rubbed lightly over the back of his hand. He looked up to see a small smile on her face "yeah" she said "I want a family, I want kids a lot but I think I should wait a few years first "I need to find myself a good job so that I can support a child, I need to stabilize myself before I try and start a family"

Reid nodded "sounds sensible" he said softly and Livie nodded playing with her charm bracelet that hung around her wrist. "You looking forward to going back to work" she asked changing the subject and Reid shrugged "part of me is" he said "but I am going to miss just hanging out with you too" Livie grinned "same" she said softly "but it'll be good to see the team again" she grinned "Morgan and Garcia with their usual banter, Rossi and his sass, Emily and her heart, JJ and her cheesepuffs" she paused and grinned "Hotch and his non existent smile" Reid grinned "I second that" he said and Livie laughed before she leant forward slowly and kissed him.

Reid felt all of his senses except for his lips get dulled. The noise from the other diners became faint background noise. He closed his eyes as he felt her lips part slightly before he allowed his remaining senses to kick in once again. He could smell the sweet scent of Livie's perfume that made him relax mingling with the smell of food from the surrounding tables. He could feel Livie's lips, soft against his own as they moulded round his and her nose rubbing gently against his. And he could taste the wine left on her soft lips; sweet but with a slight tang to it.

He opened his eyes to see Livie's head tilted to the side slightly with her eyes closed as she enjoyed the moment. His heart rate sped up, and he felt his breath quicken as he melted into the kiss.

All too soon though it ended as they sensed the waitress approaching with their food. Livie grinned at him as she scooped up her knife and fork "lets continue that when we get home" she suggested and Reid nodded.

After they had finished their meal they walked through the little town square for a while before Livie dragged him down to the beach and they began another leisurely walk back home. Livie let out a contented sigh as she paused to tug her sandals off "god I love it here" she murmured before she took off and ran into the sea laughing as she danced amongst the waves like a little girl spinning round and round and jumping over the waves.

Laughing at her immaturity Reid stopped to watch her feeling an affectionate smile slip onto his face as he did so. Livie paused to look at him "come and join me" she cried flinging her arms out wide "er no you should come back out of the water you could get hurt" she gave him a pointed look "by what a kraken" she asked "no that is popular myth" he responded "but you could step on a jellyfish or a sea urchin or some glass that has been left on the beach"

"Ok ok thanks Mr Killjoy" Livie said and she danced back out of the water and wrapped her arms around her neck "just trying to look out for you" Reid said and she grinned "well if I get hurt you will just have to carry me" she said and she gave him a quick kiss before she ran whooping back into the water and ran along the length of the beach laughing. With a groan Reid ran parallel to her keeping an eye out for anything that might hurt her.

Thankfully Livie made it all the way down the beach without getting hurt and as they came parallel to their house she ran back out of the water towards him again. "Oh that is so much fun" she gasped in delight and Reid smiled at her. She gazed at him before she looked up at the now darken sky. "Wow" she murmured and looking up Reid saw the night sky lit up with tiny stars twinkling away. "That's beautiful" Livie murmured and Reid nodded in agreement before looking over as Livie slowly sat down and then lay in the sand staring up at the stars. Slowly Reid joined her and for a few minutes they just lay side by side in silence staring up at the stars.

Reid felt Livie's hand slip slowly into his and they interlocked their fingers and he felt her thumb trace over the back of his hand. "Just think" Livie murmured "How many people are looking up at the same stars as we are from different states without even realising that they are not the only ones" "not enough I bet" Reid said softly back "people don't take time to just notice the natural beauties around them anymore"

He glanced over at Livie and saw that she was nodding "it's a shame" she whispered "that nobody does stop to smell a flower or admire the land we live on before it is too late" she turned her head to look at him "that is why I dance in the sea" she whispered "to savour it before it is too late." Reid smiled and nodded to her watching as she shuffled closer to him and rested her head lovingly on his chest. Gently he ran his hands through her long hair as they lay there staring up at the night's sky enjoying the peace, serenity and the companionship that they shared.

XO

The next morning Reid awoke back in their villa, lying in the main bedroom under the soft sheets as sunlight streamed in through the gaps in the curtains. Livie was lying beside him still sleeping peacefully with the sheets twisting round her, her hair splayed out across the pillow.

Reid rolled onto his side to study her, marvelling at her. It did amaze him how he was so lucky to have her in his life. He was amazed that a strong amazing girl like her had seen past his awkward nerdy outer shell and seen the kind hearted man he was inside. He was amazed and also grateful to her for teaching him to be proud of who he was and not to hide his intellect.

He waited another few minutes before he gently reached out and brushed her long hair out of her eyes smiling as she mumbled and stirred before smirking. "Morning" she mumbled without opening her eyes "hey" he said back watching as she rolled over to face him allowing her eyes to slowly flutter open to smile at him "I think I might have given you a hickey last night" he whispered and her hand went to her neck where the little mark rested "oh well" she mumbled I gave you one too" she said touching his collar bone gently.

They lay there for another few minutes listening to the sound of life and the sea outside before Livie gave a small sigh "come on" she said giving him a gentle shove "if we want to be back in Quantico by mid afternoon then we should start getting ready" Reid nodded reluctantly before hauling himself out of bed and the two of them dressed and packed side by side before heading out into the kitchen to make themselves some breakfast.

After a leisurely breakfast they washed all the dishes and tidied up any mess they had made before they regretfully loaded their suitcases into the car and after locking up they began the journey back to Quantico.

Reid volunteered to drive first and as he drove down the road running parallel to the beach he saw Livie roll down the window peering out at the sparkling blue ocean smiling as the sea breeze whipped her hair around and blew it out behind her. She flung her head back breathing in the sea air before she turned to look at him "lets come back here some day" she said and Reid felt excited shivers run through him; 'some day' she had said; that suggested some time in the future. That suggested she wanted to still be with him in the future. Smiling at that thought he nodded eagerly before turning his attention back to the road ahead.

They stopped every hour or so to switch places, taking it in turns to drive talking happily the entire time. It was around three when they finally arrived back in Quantico and they drove back to the BAU as requested to check in and pick up the case files. They moved through the security and up to their floor together and when they stepped out of the elevator and into their offices they both simultaneously grinned as they saw Emily, Morgan and JJ seated around the desks chatting away. When they spotted them they also grinned.

"Hey hey the lovebirds are back" Morgan greeted as he leapt up to greet them "how was your romantic break." Livie grinned as she hugged him "yeah very romantic with my nine year old sister following us like a little puppy begging Spencer to teach her magic. She adored him" JJ laughed "well he does have a way of winning kids over with his magic doesn't he" she commented as she hugged Reid "what about your last few days spent in the Hamptons"

"How do you know about that" Livie asked and Morgan grinned "well you both are dressed in hot weather beach wear, you are both supporting tans and Livie you have a pair of sunglasses on your head, there aren't that many places to go to the beach in New York and you mentioned once before that your family has a house in the Hamptons" he grinned "profilers remember, we know everything"

Livie studied him with narrowed eyes "Hotch told you didn't he" she deduced "when he called to request us to come back I told him we were in the Hamptons so we weren't far away so he must have told you." Morgan huffed before he nodded.

"Ooo you're back" Garcia suddenly gushed as she appeared from Hotch's office with their boss and Rossi right behind her coming down to greet them "hey" Livie said "yep we're back duty calls." Hotch gave her a small smile "well don't get too unpacked" he said "we leave first thing tomorrow for a fresh case in Seattle, serial rapist and murderer" "Lovely" Livie commented taking the file from Hotch as Reid took his own.

"Lets all head home" Hotch said "we need to be well rested for this one." "Drinks first" Morgan suggested as he grabbed his bag "we need to catch up" "sounds good to me" Livie said and Reid nodded. JJ and Hotch declined the invitation saying they wanted to spend some time with their sons before they left but everyone else agreed and they all headed down to the cars and drove to their favourite bar where they all bought themselves some drinks and settled down for a talk. Livie and Reid told them about their time off whilst the others filled them in on all the ins and outs of the BAU.

After a while Morgan got up to dance with some ladies and soon looked very happy surrounded by women whilst Emily hooted with laughter at him. As they watched Reid felt Livie lean against him resting her head on his shoulder stroking the back of his hand with her finger as they listened to the playful banter around them.

"Oh he is having way too much fun with those women" Emily said looking back at Morgan. She looked at Livie "lets go have our own fun shall we" she asked and laughing Livie leapt up and she Emily and Garcia went to join Morgan on the dance floor laughing as they danced around.

"You two have gotten pretty close" Rossi noted and Reid looked at him before he nodded "yeah… we have" he said "she knows… everything about me" "everything" Rossi questioned and he nodded again "I told her about the Dilaudid" he said softly ducking his head "she found my one year medallion"

"How'd she take it" Rossi asked. Reid looked over at Livie dancing with Emily, Morgan and Garcia "better than I thought she would" he said "she told me that her feelings hadn't changed and that she actually thought it made her love me a little more." Rossi smiled "sounds like you two are perfect for each other" he said and Reid nodded "I can't imagine life without her now" he said softly.

"Have you considered the possibility that you might have to" Rossi asked and Reid looked at him confused. Speaking carefully Rossi elaborated "she doesn't have long left of her internship Reid" he said "she has what? A couple more months, then what? She might stay. She might not. She might get a new job somewhere else say… DC"

Reid looked up at him "do you know something I don't" he asked and Rossi hesitated before he responded "Hotch got a call from the FBI in DC, Livie put in an application there when she finished college. They were asking Hotch a lot of questions so they must be considering her"

Reid felt his stomach clench; Livie had told him about that application but she had assumed since she hadn't already heard back that she hadn't gotten the job. Now it turned out that they were still considering her. And if she got that job, she would leave. She would take it because that was her dream. To work in DC with her friends. And he wanted her to live her dreams.

He ducked his head staring at his hands before he looked back at Livie dancing. "You ok" Rossi asked and he nodded "why did you tell me that" he asked and Rossi sighed "because I want you to prepare yourself for the possibility that you may have to say goodbye so that you have the time to say goodbye. When I lost Caroline … I didn't have enough time to say everything I wanted to say. I just want to make sure that you do."

Reid nodded slowly and they sat in silence before looking up and forcing smiles onto their faces as the others came over laughing and gasping for breath. "Well that was fun" Emily said as she collapsed into her chair and Livie nodded, her eyes shining brightly as she dropped back into her original position leaning against Reid.

They spent the rest of their evening in blissful happiness with their friends before retiring home for the night. They stopped off at Reid's so that he could pack a go bag for their case before they headed back to Livie's apartment. Giggling Livie unlocked her front door and they both stepped in and after dumping their stuff they made their way into her bedroom and fell onto the bed. As he kissed her lips Reid could taste the wine she had been drinking on her lips as he bent over her feeling her hands sliding through his hair before they began to push his trousers down and his boxers followed soon after.

As he stripped her of her clothes and he felt their bodies push themselves together he paused and looked at Livie who was staring up at him "are we really about to do this" he asked in a whisper thinking about the promise they had both made each other not to make love in this way; they had both agreed it would complicate things and they didn't need to have sex to know that they loved each other.

Livie stared up at him before she reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind his ear "do you want to" she asked and after only a millisecond's hesitation he nodded, he wanted to, he really did after that talk he had had with Rossi. Livie smiled "then let's do it just once" she said "once to remember should I have to leave come the end of my time at the BAU, lets have one night to remember"

"I'll remember them all anyway" Reid whispered truthfully, "I know" Livie said smiling "and so will I but let's have a truly special one." Reid felt his stomach clench as she carefully began to guide him staring into his eyes the whole time before she flung her head back with a delighted gasp and Reid felt an incredible sense of delight rush through him as he kissed her chest feeling her nails digging into his back in excitement.

And there they spent the rest of their night on cloud nine, experiencing a sort of bliss and delight that they hadn't felt together before. One that could only come from sharing a part of themselves with each other.

XO

When Reid awoke the next morning he felt so content. He thought back over the evening remembering each moment fondly before he looked down at Livie to find her already awake and snuggled up against his chest. "Hey" she whispered "hey" he greeted back brushing her hair away from her face as he stared into her eyes.

She stared back as her finger traced over his chest making him shiver delightedly. She smirked as she lowered her head to kiss his bare chest "last night was amazing" she whispered "the best night I have ever had" Reid nodded "same" he breathed "I will never forget it." She smirked "you can't forget anything" she murmured before she sighed "god I wish I had a memory like yours so that I could remember every single detail of our time together… I don't want to forget a single thing"

Reid smiled as he stroked her spine stroking one of the burns lovingly until she let out a little sigh "we should get ready for work" she mumbled "we really shouldn't be late after over a week off" Reid nodded and released her from his arms watching as she swung herself out of the bed and moved over to her wardrobe to pull out her clothes and he found himself marvelling at her beauty. Her skin wasn't flawless like other girls. Her skin might not glow golden like the girls of men's dreams. She wasn't passive and mild mannered like the ideal girl. She was quick tongued and feisty. And it was everything that made her different that also made her beautiful to Reid.

Once they had eaten a quick breakfast they headed quickly to the air strip where they boarded the plane to find Hotch and Rossi already waiting, looking over the files of their case. They greeted Livie and Reid with a smile as they dropped into their seats "you're here early" Rossi commented "ah well couldn't be late after our week off could we" Livie teased and Rossi chuckled as Emily came stumbling onto the plane wearing some large sunglasses.

"Uh oh" Livie said "that doesn't look so good" Emily just mumbled as JJ came onto the plane and rolled her eyes "how much did you drink last night" she asked "well they were still at it when we left" Rossi said looking at Livie and Reid who grinned "don't judge Morgan and Garcia were at it with me too"

Everyone sniggered before looking up as Morgan bounded onto the plane looking rather perky "morning" he greeted as Emily gave him an incredulous look "how are you feeling ok you drank way more than me" she moaned and he chuckled "secret hangover cure, works like a charm" he teased making her scowl and rest her head back as the door closed and they began to move off down the runway.

As they picked up speed and took off Hotch looked at Livie and Reid sitting side by side listening intently to a groggy looking Garcia talk them through their new case in Seattle. They looked different from before their little break together. They seemed less like two and more like one. Even though they were focused on Garcia Hotch could tell that they were acutely aware of each other.

He thought about the phone call he had received from DC asking about Livie. That meant they were seriously considering her for the job. He had given her the high praise she deserved knowing that that job was a once in a lifetime opportunity for Livie. But now looking at them now he was fighting down an inkling of worry; should Livie be offered the job would she take it? Would she move to DC like she had intended all along or would she stay with Reid here in Quantico. Should someone have asked him a few months ago when Livie and Reid had only just started dating he would have said she would have taken the job in a heartbeat and Reid would have encouraged her. But now looking at them he wasn't so sure. Would she leave for the dream job? Or would she stay with her soul mate?

Hotch sighed and turned his attention back to Garcia. He honestly had no clue how things would turn out. He doubted even Livie knew what she would do. But that wasn't a pressing issue at the time. The serial rapist was. So he quickly turned his thoughts back to his job; getting inside a criminal mind.

'We must make the choices that enable us to fulfil the deepest capacities of our real selves' Thomas Merton

Hopw you enjoyed that.

I promise to try and update soon: I already have three pages of the next chapter written ;)

Please review though with any questions or suggestions. I love hearing from you all.

Thanks so much for reading this story. I love writing it and I had written half of it before I had the courage to post it fearing people wouldn't like it so i was amazed when I received all your positive encouragements. You have no idea how much it means.

Thanks again.

Mysticgirl