Chapter Text
“If any part of this conversation freaks you out, cry uncle, and I’ll shut up, and we can pretend this never happened,” Prentiss began.
“Okay,” Hotch nodded skeptically.
“This hasn’t turned out like you thought it would.”
“What’s this?” he asked. Prentiss gave a half-smile.
“Playing house with Reid. He’s not what you expected, and part of that is okay, but you’re scared what he might be keeping from you. You don’t know when or if he’s ever going to let you inside.”
“Go on.”
Prentiss glanced across the police station to where Morgan and Reid and Rossi were gathered together, going over details of the case. Reid was sitting cross-legged on top of a desk, fidgeting around, fingers dancing as he spoke. Rossi paced. Morgan prowled. Reid’s head moved back and forth so he was able to keep an eye on both of them.
“Be patient with him. He adores you.”
“Thanks for the advice,” Hotch said tentatively.
“He plays pretend with you in bed. But every once in a while, you get a glimpse inside, usually when you’ve done something that frightens him and he can’t hide his reaction fast enough. It scares you to wonder what he’s hiding. Be patient with him. He’s scared too. Scared you’ll see too far inside, and that you won’t like him if you know all there is to know about him,” Emily continued.
“I don’t care who he’s been with, if that’s what’s going on here,” Hotch said.
“He’s afraid of letting anyone in.”
“Did you ever profile him while you were….?”
“It’s difficult not to profile him during sex. He’s quirky.”
“Yes,” Hotch agreed.
“You haven’t?”
“Of course I have.”
“What have you learned?”
“He doesn’t like for me to touch his face or his hair.”
“Yeah, but only during certain activities. I got that too.”
“Mmm. Yeah,” Hotch almost smiled, his face a blur of remembered pleasure. “But if you let him do what he wants, he’s…..wow. That’s all I have to say. You too?”
She agreed with a deep, wistful purr. “Wish I knew whose hand to shake for teaching him that.”
“Me too,” Hotch confided. They were quiet for a second before Emily continued.
“He doesn’t like sex from behind.”
“He didn’t tell me that,” Hotch frowned. “Now that you mention it, that makes sense though. It takes a bit of persuasion. But how exactly did you figure that out?”
“What?”
“You. Him. From behind?”
“Shall I be graphic?” Emily smiled.
“No,” Hotch said. “When you’ve taken him clubbing with you, you and Morgan, did anything odd happen?” Aaron worried.
“Define odd.”
“Did anyone hurt him?”
“No.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yes. I screened who he went home with before I let him leave. Morgan and I both did, but especially me. I always called him the next morning to make sure he was okay.”
“You both left before him the night I followed you three.”
“The first time ever, I swear.”
“I’m not asking for names, but what sort did he want to go home with?”
“No one remarkable. No unsubs. I promise.”
“What about that pervy couple that was pawing all over him?”
“Probably the riskiest thing that piqued his fancy, and it took several tequila shots before that seemed like a good idea to him, you may recall.”
“Has he been in a threesome before that he told you?”
“You haven’t asked?”
“No. But what if I wrecked his chance at fulfilling a fantasy?”
“He has been in a threesome. He’s been in a foursome.”
“Four?” Hotch’s eyes got wide.
“I may have mentioned that Sin to Win weekend.”
“You may have,” Hotch let his face go blank again. Prentiss chuckled softly.
“You’re dying to hear about it, but you think it’s wrong to ask.”
“I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t curious. Did you have to get him drunk?”
“He had two drinks. He was not drunk. I invited a couple friends from out of town to meet up in Atlantic City. They came in from New York. We came in from DC.”
“What sort of friends?”
“A Russian attaché with the U.N., and his companion.”
“Go on.”
“We had dinner. We had a couple drinks. We went back to the hotel.”
“You and Reid. The attaché and his companion.”
“Reid and the attaché. Me and his companion. Eventually all of us together.”
Hotch said tightly, “What kind of favor did he do for you that you felt the need to reward him so? No, I did not forget. That’s what you said before. That he did you a favor, and you rewarded him. So, what kind of favor?”
“It makes you jealous, the idea of Reid in someone else’s arms? She answers without answering.”
“I’m not jealous. I just want to know who or what I’m dealing with when it comes to understanding his demons. I know you two were together briefly.”
“Before you popped him on the nose and told him to behave. And look how fast he obeyed you. He’d do anything for you, Hotch. What more proof do you need?”
“The question remains. Reid did you a favor, and you rewarded him. What did Reid do for you?”
“He let me indulge a fantasy with him.”
“What kind of fantasy?” Hotch worried.
“Oh, now that’s where I have to draw the line,” Prentiss chuckled, shaking one finger at him. “Unless we agree to an equal exchange, you don’t get to see what’s behind that door.”
Hotch glanced back over at Reid who was watching Morgan and Rossi bicker back and forth.
“It does drive you crazy, doesn’t it? Sharing Reid. But the idea of sharing him with someone you trust, that also turns you on.”
“Insanely,” Hotch admitted, the tip of his tongue darting over his bottom lip.
“Do you trust me?” Emily wondered. Hotch’s brows were warring on his forehead.
“I trust you.” “That’s good.”
“But I have to know something.”
“What?”
“How long did you know that Reid was attracted to me?”
“Does it matter?”
“Dave knew too. He didn’t say anything.”
“I suspected for a long time, but I wasn’t positive until I made him scream your name during sex.”
Her honesty caught Hotch off-guard. His dark eyes glittered dangerously. He leaned closer and lowered his voice.
“What were you doing to him? Oh no. We are way passed looking shocked here, missy. Answer the question. How did you make him scream my name?”
“First off, it wasn’t a scream of pain. It was more of a moan than a scream. I had to get him beyond where he could control himself, that’s all. He’s kind of a screamer at heart.”
Hotch’s expression made Prentiss stop in her tracks.
“You teased him into a frenzy?”
“Ummmm. No,” she replied, puzzled. She tried to imagine how one would tease Reid into a frenzy. Take away his Doctor Who DVDs?
“Vulcan neck pinch?” Hotch mused.
“Are you going to punch me if I tell you I was pegging your boy-toy?” Prentiss murmured.
Hotch’s nose wrinkled up in distaste.
“What does that even mean?”
“I was wearing a strap-on,” Prentiss explained. Hotch made a shocked face. Prentiss grinned at him. It occurred to her that of the three of them, it was entirely plausible that Hotch was the one who had had the least amount of varied sexual experience. He had married Haley right out of school. They had been exclusively monogamous while married. Unless Aaron experimented in college with Haley’s approval, Reid might actually be the first man Hotch had slept with. If Haley and Hotch had been faithful to each other, and Reid was the first man that Hotch had slept with, it could stand to reason that Hotch had only slept with two people in his entire life. That revved Emily’s engine pretty hard – wholesome Aaron Hotchner.
“How did you convince Reid to let you do that?” Hotch mouthed, his jaw hanging open after he asked the question.
“Have you ever been in a threesome before? She answers without answering.”
“Once. It went very badly.”
“How badly?”
“Paramedics were involved.”
“Oh, my.”
“Are you offering?”
“I’m offering. Going once, going twice.”
“Accepted,” Hotch blurted.
Prentiss chuckled. Hotch smiled nervously in reply.
“There. We’ve agreed. Now what do we do?” Emily asked.
“We get Reid to play into our plans.”
“We’re going to have to be careful about this, or he’s going to see right through us.”
“We have to convince him it’s all his idea.”
“Easier said than done.”
“Not as difficult as you might imagine,” Hotch promised.