"Ever since you got promoted, we haven't seen each other as much lately. Now, I get the whole reassigning with the BAU and your role now, but I just thought tonight we would have a little break from everything, and just be us. You know?"

JJ's words kept swimming through Emily's head as she sat in her office. She couldn't help but think back to her wife's statement this morning. She knew JJ wasn't coming from any ill intention with her words, but it did make Emily wonder, just how much of herself had she given up for her job, and how much time for her family did she have to give up?

Emily knew how this story began, and she knew how it ended. She thought she was going to end up like her mother: preoccupied and neglectful. She thought JJ and their kids will resent her for not being with them as much as before. She thought that one day JJ will realize that she won't have enough time for her and the boys, and eventually leave her with a note saying, "I can't do this anymore". Maybe Emily was reading too much into it, but she couldn't fathom the thought of her family leaving her because she barely saw them anymore.

Her thoughts were interrupted once her office door opened. Tara entered and closed the door behind her, waving a hand to greet Emily. "Hey. Sorry, I'm late, but I think I saw Deputy Director Bailey when I came into the office. He's not as intimidating as he seems. Are you sure this man's the same one you're talking about?"

Emily chuckled. "Well, he might not seem intimidating, but trust me, he is a condescending pain in my ass. Anyway, thanks for coming in. What do you have on this investigation so far?"

Tara nodded. "Right. So, we found a shipping container with dead bodies inside, but they've decayed over the years, some of them just bones at this point. It's possible that it's happened for over 15 years, but we haven't been able to identify any vic just yet. We did, however, find a couple of trophies in the container, if that might help."

"It will. Hopefully, we could convince Bailey to approve the budgetary resources with all this. I'll brief him in a few, but in the meantime, we could head over to the shipping container and see what else we could find out."

"Alright. Thanks again." Tara began to head for the door, but heard a sigh from Emily. "Is anything wrong?"

"Yeah," Emily answered and frowned. "No. Yes. JJ and I were talking this morning before I came in."

"Trouble in paradise?"

Emily shrugged. "Ehh, I guess you could say that. We were talking. She wanted to make plans for this evening, and…"

"…And you told her you couldn't make it?" Tara finished for her.

"Yep. Oh god, I think I blew it." Emily moaned as she put her head in hands.

"Oh, come on, what makes you think that? I'm sure JJ understands."

Emily raised her head from her hands to look at her. "This is the third time I've turned her down for plans."

Tara sucked in a breath at the admission. "Ooh, yikes."

Emily sighed and rubbed her temples. "Yeah. Now, I have no idea what to do to make it up to her. She must be disappointed at me for canceling again."

"Did she sound mad?"

"No, not really, but I haven't been spending much time with her since I became section chief,' Emily confessed. "It's weird. We haven't had this problem before when I was still unit chief. It shouldn't be that much different from my position now."

"To be fair, you guys worked together a lot more when you were still unit chief." Seeing the guilty expression on Emily's face, Tara backed up her sentence. "I don't mean it like that. Look, you've got a ton going on right now as a section chief. You're not just worried about the BAU, you're overseeing other units, too."

Emily had to let those words sink in. JJ has always been her number one supporter, and she was happy that Emily had been promoted. Something didn't make sense to her, though. "Then, why would she have a problem about it?"

"That's something you'd have to talk to her about," Tara answered. "I don't want to sound like your therapist here, but do you want to hear what I think?"

Emily shrugged. "It might help."

"How long has it been since the two of you really talked to each other, not related to work?"

"I don't know. Probably when we went to one of Henry's games early this year, and we had finished things at the office. For the past three years though, the only non-work things we've talked about were our kids and when we're heading back home. And when we do get home, one of us is already there and the boys are asleep."

"That's it?"

"That's it." Emily said and groaned. "I really miss her. I miss spending time with her, Henry, and Michael. She's been nothing but supportive of me and our boys. She's been helping them out a lot now, and I am so thankful for it, but I don't want to take that for granted."

Tara frowned in sympathy. She understood what Emily was going through. Her engagement with Doug Fuller didn't last very long for this exact reason. Granted, he didn't understand her job as much as she had thought, but it didn't change the fact that she loved him then. Tara couldn't help but think, though, hectic schedules, late nights, missing out on family events and date nights. She didn't want Emily and JJ experiencing those issues any longer, especially since she had seen how happy the two were with each other.

"Could it be that JJ wants to spend time with you, not just because you two are working and coming home at different times, but because she wants some reassurance on where you both stand in the relationship? I apologize in advance when I say this, but the both of you are pretty stubborn when it comes to talking about feelings," Tara said, hearing Emily laugh at that. "But you have always been there for each other. You've had such a special and deeper connection than all of us have. Maybe that's why you guys married. You rely on each other, and would do everything in your power to protect the other person. Look, maybe you could try talk to JJ about it. I know it sounds like a corny and shitty answer, but it's the best you could do."

Emily found her shoulders relaxing as she listened to Tara's advice. She and JJ always made an effort to ensure that the other person was safe and in one piece when they came home. She thought about how JJ must've felt, though, and why she would have wanted to make time for them. She remembered JJ confiding in her before they were a couple, that she didn't believe in relationships because everyone would abandon her and she always got hurt in the end. Emily vowed from that point on, that she would do everything and anything to make sure JJ would never feel that way. She let out a heavy sigh; she must be doing that right now and didn't realize it until this moment.

"Thank you, Tara," Emily quietly said with a smile. "That helped me see things a lot better now. I'll figure something out with JJ, but thank you."

Tara reached out to squeeze Emily's arm, and smiled. "Anytime. I want nothing but happiness for you and JJ. You two deserve the best."

"Thank you. So, getting back to the investigation," Emily said, preparing to get up from her chair.

Tara nodded. "Right."

"I'll speak to Bailey, and we can head out to the shipping container. I'll meet you in a few moments."

"Got it. Good luck."