Derek had seen just how hurt Blake had been when Reid had not acknowledged her when he joined them on, after he had lost Maeve. A part of his wished that they were closer so that he could give her words of encouragement, but even though they had reached a small détente that evening they'd lost Maeve, it seemed as if it had almost been a step too far for Blake, as she had been quite standoffish with him ever since.
Letting out a deep sigh, he adjusted his seat belt and continued the drive home, knowing that he and Erin could talk over what they should do about Blake in the days to come. He didn't want the woman to feel unmoored from the team, and that was something that could very easily happen as she clung to her own lone wolf tendencies. It wasn't something that they were going to solve in a day, but he hoped that they could all come together as this Replicator was starting to unnerve him.
As he turned onto his street, he noticed a somewhat familiar vehicle slow before pulling into their driveway, and he frowned, wondering who was coming over. Erin hadn't mentioned having anyone over, and he knew that it wasn't any of the kids, since he knew what they drove quite well by this point. Unconsciously, he reached for his service weapon, glad that it was still firmly in place around his hip as he sped up a little and swung into the drive, parking in the garage and closing the door behind him.
"You're home early!" Erin called out as he entered the house, and he tried to smile, even as he felt his nerves still running high.
"I thought that I'd surprise you. Have you started making supper yet?"
"No. Why?"
"Let's head out for dinner tonight."
Erin nodded as the doorbell rang, and she looked at him. "Do you know who that is?" she asked, suddenly looking nervous, and he shook his head. "Huh. Will you go answer?"
He gave her a relieved smile as he nodded, pressing his lips against her cheek as he moved past her and into the foyer. Still, his anxiety ran high with thoughts of the Replicator showing up on their doorstep. Glancing out the window, his shoulders slumped almost immediately to see Blake standing there, looking furtive. After he'd unlocked the door, Derek still took a moment to deeply breathe, uncertain of what her intentions were. The doorbell chimed once more, and he opened the door and gave the woman a winning smile. "Can't get enough of my face at work?" he asked teasingly, and she shook her head a little as he stepped away and allowed her inside.
"You wish," she retorted, seemingly put at ease with his words. "I, I was hoping to talk to Erin for a little bit? Since it's Saturday tomorrow and all."
He nodded and closed the door behind her, flipping the lock before heading back into the kitchen. "I think that plans have changed for us tonight, Pretty Lady. You have a visitor, and I couldn't turn her away. Head into the living room and I'll make us something to eat. Do you have any preferences, Blake?"
"Whatever you prepare will be fine, I'm unexpectedly here, after all," she replied softly, and he nodded as he watched Erin's face light up with joy. "I also brought something for the baby."
That was when he noticed the gift bag in her hand, and another, softer, smile graced his lips as he nodded. "That's the first thing we've received for the baby from our friends," he said. "Thank you."
Blake nodded and gave the gift to Erin before they left the kitchen together. There was something so hopeful about the way that Erin and Blake drifted together as they walked, and he truly hoped that this was the beginning of the reset to their friendship that Erin had so desperately wanted. Shaking his head a little, Derek went back into the kitchen and began to look through the cupboards and fridge, hoping to find something that would be easy enough to make.
Soon, he had the makings of a casserole, and he started to prepare their meal. As he waited for the oven to preheat, he began to boil a kettle of water before rummaging through the tea caddy, choosing the London Fog blend that Erin favoured and placing a bag in two mugs. As soon as the water had boiled, he filled the mugs and then placed them on a tray along with a plate of cookies. He knew that Erin would be grateful that he was being a gracious host, and he smiled at that thought.
Taking a deep breath, he brought the tray into the living room, not certain of what he'd see there. Both women looked up at him, and he could see that there were silvery tracks of tears running down both their cheeks. "I thought you'd might like something to drink while we're waiting for the food to cook," he said as he set the tray down on the coffee table.
"How incredibly thoughtful, Derek. Thank you." He smiled before pressing a kiss to his wife's cheek. "Did you want to see what Alex brought for our baby?"
Derek nodded as he watched her pick up the bag. Reaching in, she drew out an adorable stuffed turtle, along with a board book. "My First Book of IPA?" he asked when Erin handed the book to him.
"It's better to start children young, since it's easier to learn IPA alongside ABCs." Blake gave him an enigmatic smile, and he frowned a little as he nodded. "And if I am so lucky as to be Aunt Alex, it makes sense that they learn both."
Those words told him that in the matter of thirty minutes, everything had shifted between Erin and Blake. His wife nodded, somehow perceiving that he had divined the truth between them now, and he grinned easily. "It will be nice for our baby to have an auntie in town."
"That's what I was telling her, Der. Now, we're still talking, do you mind taking Clooney for a walk or something?"
He nodded, knowing that Erin would be well protected with Blake there, and he kissed his wife's cheek once more before handing the book back to her. "Our meal will be ready in about forty minutes. Try to stay out of trouble until I get back."
"I make no such promise, Derek," Blake replied, merriment dancing in her eyes. He gave her a look, but she just shrugged as Erin shooed him out of the room.
Whistling for Clooney, he grabbed his dog's leash and then clipped it to his collar before putting on his shoes and jacket and heading out through the garage, slipping the opener into his pocket as he began to lead Clooney to the sidewalk. It was easy enough to lose track of time, as twilight soon settled around them, lending an ease to introspective thinking. He was glad, so glad, that Erin and Blake had made up, he just hoped that it would be a permanent situation, as he wasn't certain his wife could bear to have that friendship torn away from her once more, especially if things with the person who was replicating their previous cases ramped things up.
After about twenty minutes, Derek turned them back towards home, and he couldn't help but notice that there was an unfamiliar vehicle now parked across from their home. Frowning deeply, he began to pick up the pace, wanting to be home. Even if it was something entirely innocent, he couldn't afford to take the chance with his wife and her friend in the house alone. As if the driver sensed that he had been clocked, the headlights came on and he drove past Derek almost calmly, as if he was certain that he couldn't be traced.
Turning, Derek watched the car drive into the night, unable to get a good look at the license plate, as the lights that would normally illuminate it were dark, and the light wasn't strong enough to make out what the letters and digits were. Cursing beneath his breath, he picked up the pace a little more, finally in front of their home and then heading inside. He hoped that he wasn't breathing too heavily as he let Clooney inside, unclipping his leash before taking off his shoes and hanging up his jacket.
"You made it home just in time!"
Derek looked up to see Erin standing in front of him, a warm smile on her lips. "I thought that it was almost time to eat," he said as he hooked his arm around her waist.
"It is, and we've set the table and everything, just waiting for you to return. You left your phone here, so I couldn't text to let you know to come back." Erin rested her head on his chest before taking in a deep breath. "Alex's agreed to stay for a little bit after we eat, so that we can talk some more. I don't want you to feel like you're not wanted, but…"
"After all the yearning for reconciliation, when it's here, you don't want to let go of the happiness so quickly." She nodded and snuggled against him a little before she led them into the kitchen. "I was just told that you're commandeering my wife for the entire evening," he said with a chuckle, watching Blake blush a little.
"I didn't realise that it would be so easy to slip back into things, and there's so much to catch up on. Especially with regards to how Rossi has treated her lately." Though Blake was smiling, he could see a glint of steel in her eyes that told him she was not pleased with how the man had treated Erin. "The casserole looks delicious, though. Like something my mom would have made for us on a cold winter's evening."
"That was the inspiration." They took a seat at the table, and Erin reached out for his hand immediately. "Do you say grace, Blake?"
Another blush stained her cheeks as she shook her head. "I don't really have a personal faith. Not after what happened to Mom and Danny. And Ethan." Those last words were said so softly that he wasn't certain he was supposed to hear them. Looking to Erin for his cue, he saw her shake her head a little, and then knew not to make a comment on it.
"I lost my faith, too, over the losses in my life. There's no shame in it. I just didn't want you to feel left out when we pray." Blake shrugged a little before reaching out for Erin's hand, clasping it tenderly. "Though you're welcome to join us, too."
"Thank you," she whispered. He nodded and said a brief prayer for the food and the evening ahead of them before they dug into the casserole. He wasn't surprised to see that Erin had found some rolls in the fridge and added them to the meal, and he gladly took two of them before passing the basket to Blake. "This has been a successful day."
"It has. And I know that you're probably feeling left out at work, but I think that Reid is still just grieving Maeve, and he shouldn't have returned to work so soon. Hotch was away longer after Haley was murdered."
"Aaron also should have taken more time to grieve. I know that you're as close as family, given the amount of time you spend together, but if you just throw yourself into work in order to stave off the grief, it manifests in other ways, more destructive ways. I know that far too well." They both turned their faces to look at Erin, and she pursed her lips together. "Alex knows about the miscarriages I had before Amerithrax. What she doesn't know, what I haven't told anyone else, not even David, is that there was supposed to be another baby, after Tabitha. That loss, on top of destroying my best friend, and not knowing if my job would survive, were the seeds of an addiction that I couldn't get a handle on, not until you confronted me and started me down the path towards healing. And now, now I have you back in my life, and another chance at motherhood, and I'm so happy."
Erin burst into tears and focused on her food. A jagged silence fell over the room, and he looked at Blake, hoping she knew what to do next. The woman jerked her head towards Erin, and he nodded as he reached out for his wife's hand, squeezing it firmly. "Tears like that don't seem happy, Pretty Lady," he gently teased, and she shook her head as she squeezed his hand back.
"Lexie knows, she always did."
"Erin cries at the drop of a hat. You just have to be a special person in her life in order to be witness to them." Blake gave him a small smile before she dug into her food, and he knew that the conversation would move on from there, even if he would ask Erin more about this revelation later, when they were alone.