"So, what did you say," Reid asked as he shuffled a deck of cards.
His agility had begun to return now that he'd gotten through a nasty period of withdrawal. He smiled to himself as he watched JJ track his hands as they moved.
"I told him I'm seeing someone."
"Oh."
"Spence!"
Her blue eyes had begun to spark as he dealt out a new hand of five-card stud. He held her gaze instead of looking at his cards.
"JJ," he began. "I believe you, why wouldn't I?"
She shrugged and pushed five pretzels toward him. "Five," she said.
"Five and five more." He slid ten from his stack of snacks to the pile in the middle of the table. "You wanna quit now," he tried to be flippant and failed.
"Just deal."
He laid down new cards, and his mind began to calculate the odds of getting through the game and his discussion with JJ. He thought not good on either front as he looked at the king and the two of diamonds sitting atop the ace of spades, lying face down on the table. JJ had a pair of queens; he couldn't tell from her face if another lay unseen, waiting to beat a possible hand.
"It's your bet," Spencer pointed out.
JJ studied him with narrowed eyes as she threw in ten to the pot and twenty more. "That good enough for you."
Spencer sighed and dealt two more cards, a three of hearts for himself and a seven of diamonds for JJ. "Yes."
The slap of cards on the table and the clink of poker chips were counterpoints to their faceoff, and Spencer wondered who would come out on top this time.
The betting escalated, and when Spencer dealt the last cards, a four of spades to complete his straight and another queen – the queen of hearts - for JJ, he felt the blood pound in his ears.
"I'm going all in," he heard himself say after JJ threw in her bet. "Show me what you have."
She showed him the seven diamonds that completed the full house, which beat the straight. "Take it," he flipped over his card.
"Nice doing business with you, Spence."
JJ grabbed her coffee cup and hurried to her kitchen. He heard her slam open a cabinet, click a spoon, and close the refrigerator with a thud. He could hear her mutter under her breath until she returned with a fresh cup of coffee. He noticed she hadn't brought the coffee urn, but he decided not to comment on it.
After shuffling the cards long enough to make JJ finally meet his eyes, he began with. "I'm sorry."
"What?"
"You heard me. I wanted to tease a little but took it too far."
"Spence – I -"
"No," he held up a hand. "Let me finish."
"Alright," JJ sipped her coffee, and he noticed she looked – exhausted.
"I didn't mean to ambush you after New Orleans. I missed you. Medical leave - well, I know I brought it on myself, with slipping up a couple of weeks ago. I'm just glad I didn't lose my job or you!"
"Spence, if you think I – "
"You were there for me, Jennifer," he interrupted, and he could see the use of her full name brought tears to her eyes. "You stood by me through it all, the shakes, the nausea, the loss of appetite, the nightmares, everything. You never complained, and you told me to – as you said – suck it up when I needed to hear it. I love you to the nth degree."
When tears spilled onto her cheeks, he stood, crouched down, and kissed her until she pulled away. "I'm still mad at you."
"I know."
"Oh, God. I was afraid I would lose you, but you beat it."
"Not yet," Spencer warned. "I have a long way to go."
"Yes, but you have people like the team and the BCC."
"And," he kissed her again. "I have you, JJ. If the BCC, the team, my mom, my friends from school all disappeared tomorrow, I'd be fine if I had you."
JJ narrowed her eyes. "I get it. You don't have to oversell the point."
Spencer felt a ton weight lift from his shoulders. "Jennifer Jareau, you always call me out, and I love you for it."
"I said stop," but she laughed in a way he hadn't heard for weeks.
"So," he said after they held onto each other for a long moment. "You wanna play another hand?"
JJ squeezed his hand so tight he grimaced. "If you think you can win."
"I do, but we should add a level of interest this time."
"Oh," JJ smirked at him as he returned to his position across her kitchen table. "What's the bet?"
"We play strip poker, and the winner gets to play out any fantasy they desire."
JJ's eyebrows lifted, "You sure you're ready?"
"Oh yeah, ready, willing, and most importantly – able."
JJ grinned at him as she took the deck of cards. "My deal, and get ready to feel the burn – literally."
"Not going to happen, and when I win, you know what I'll want." Spencer shot back.
"We'll see, ante up."