Once Gideon disappeared, Hotch wasn't all that surprised that Reid turned to him. What did surprise him was the form that all-too-necessary support took. He'd half-expected Reid to call out Jason's name in bed, but ‘Daddy' had been a complete surprise at the time. After he'd had time to think about it, of course, there'd been no mystery involved. Reid came from a broken home in which he'd had to grow up much too fast at a young age.
It was something with which Hotch was intimately acquainted. The difference between himself and Reid was his own need for control. There was violence and rage inside that he kept a tight rein on or risk truly hurting those around him. Haley had thought his distance meant he didn't care; she didn't understand that it was the only way he knew to protect her and probably never would.
At the beginning of the relationship, it had been all about the younger man's needs. And yet, as they'd continued, Hotch had discovered something deep in his heart healing as he cared so completely for his new lover. Having someone so very dependent on him stirred his already fierce protective instincts. He'd never touched Reid with anything less that tenderness and care, the other's vulnerabilities all too close to the surface, ready to be emotionally destroyed by one unkind word.
It spilled into the job. How could it not? He still sent Reid out with the others, but tried to pair him with Morgan or himself whenever possible. Hotch knew just how over-protective the black man was of Reid and used that to his advantage. He knew his lover would be safe with Morgan the way he hadn't been with J.J.
When Rossi had rejoined the unit and Reid took such an instant hero-worship liking to the man, it had been all Hotch could do not to find a way to kick Rossi out. He knew the man had his own unshared agenda, but other than the first press fiasco, the older agent had done his best to integrate. All Hotch could do was grit his teeth whenever the two wound up talking together or, more accurately, whenever Reid recited Rossi's work word for word in the way he never did about Hotch.
It made him seriously think about writing a book.
Instead, he turned his attention to making sure that Reid never had a reason to look anywhere else. He paid attention to Reid's needs and met them head-on. He kept the apartment stocked with favorite foods, favorite games, a drawer full of seriously odd scarves, and a small bear that was incredibly soft and kept in the center of their bed. And when he had Reid in their bed, Hotch took him as sweetly and gently as he knew how, filling that void inside his lover with soft words and lingering kisses. Sometimes they just made out for hours and he would bring Reid off with his hand two, three times.
There were days where his lover paid little attention to him while following Rossi or Morgan around like a puppy. Days when Reid's brilliance outshone them all. Even more days when Reid's lack of social graces caused unintentional hurts and snubs. All Hotch had to do to assuage his own needs was to get Reid somewhere private and kiss him until the other simply stood there, wanting more. Then they would go home, hopefully that night, maybe the next depending on the case, and Hotch would have free reign over that slender body until Reid couldn't even see straight, never mind think about anyone else.
Like now...
Soft kisses to the pale, smooth skin.
A hand tracing barely-there designs over the lightly defined muscles.
The taste of salt-sweat as his tongue glides ever down.
A shiver and gasp under him.
The almost inaudible begging, "Please, please Daddy, need you so much, please love me, please..." in a hitching, hungry voice all the more powerful for its nearly silent delivery.
A shudder and release, semen filling his mouth mere minutes later.
Hotch crawled back up the bed to lie beside Spencer, gathering the spent man into his arms and smiling as his lover somehow managed to curl around him completely.
"I love you," Spencer whispered, then pressed his face to Hotch's throat as if afraid of his response.
He hadn't said the words to anyone in a long time, but they seemed natural at that point in time and space... "I love you, Spencer."
END