Title: Safe and Sound
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Rating: PG-13
Table: 3 20_est_relships
Prompt: 13, Questions
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Aaron Hotchner or Spencer Reid, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

Spencer looked around the empty office with a sigh, wondering if the others noticed that he was staying later and later these days. Did they guess that he and Hotch were involved? He couldn't be sure, but he thought he'd seen a glimmer of knowledge in some eyes.

Nobody would mention it unless either he or Hotch brought it up first; Spencer was sure of that. None of their teammates would charge into their private lives, especially after what Hotch had so recently been through. But Spencer was sure that they knew -- or at least guessed.

It really wouldn't bother him if the rest of the team knew; they all knew him well enough not to believe that he was involved with Aaron because he was looking for some kind of advancement. They weren't like Strauss, Spencer thought, wincing.

He didn't like to say that he hated anyone, but she was a truly evil bitch, he thought to himself, scowling. He had been there when Emily had told Hotch how Strauss had tried to recruit her as a spy to "take Hotch down," and Spencer had been sickened at the thought.

Fortunately, Emily had been too much of a team player to do so -- and Strauss had been shown to the rest of the team for the power-hungry bitch that she was. But the knowledge that the woman was still their superior made Spencer uncomfortable.

If Strauss had the slightest notion of their pesonal relationship, she would make sure that Hotch was fired from the FBI. Spencer couldn't let that happen; even though he wanted to be more public about the nature of their involvement, he wasn't going to risk his boyfriend's job.

Even Haley knew, even though she wasn't overly pleased with the situation. She didn't like knowing that Hotch was happy with a man; she would have preferred her ex-husband to still carry a torch for her, and never be happy with anyone else.

But that wasn't going to happen, Spencer told himself firmly, looking towards the other man's office where a light still burned behind the closed blinds. Hotch was going to be with him, they were going to work the problems that Foyet had caused, and they were going to be happy together.

That might not be anytime in the foreseeable future, but he was going to hang onto that hope, Spencer told himself as he got up from his own desk and made his way to the door of Hotch's office, clearing his throat and knocking softly.

He waited until he heard the softly voiced "Come in" before he entered the room, opening the door and stepping into the office as quietly as he could. He wasn't sure if Aaron was ready to put work aside for the evening yet, but he didn't want to leave until the other man did.

"Hey," he said softly, smiling as he closed the door and crossed the room to stand in front of Hotch's desk. "Are you almost ready to go? I didn't want to leave until you did, so I could walk out to your car with you. I know you don't like being alone these days."

Hotch laid down the pen he'd been writing with, leaning back in his chair and stretching his arms over his head. "You didn't have to do that," he said, looking up at his boyfriend. "I've got to get used to walking out to my car alone. I can't let fear overtake me."

"Yeah, but it's better that you have somebody with you right now," Spencer pointed out. "Until we catch Foyet, we've got to keep you safe, along with Jack and Haley. There's no telling what he could try to do, and that includes coming after you again."

Aaron shook his head, sighing. "I don't think he will," he murmured, reaching for the papers he'd been working on, shuffling them together and slipping them back into a file. "He's already proven himself with me. No, he'll go after my family next. I'm sure of that."

"He might go after the rest of the team, too," Spencer told him, leaning forward in his chair. "Everybody's being extra careful these days, Hotch, not just you. But I don't want to leave you alone. Besides, I like being around you when we're not working."

"If you want to come over tonight, you're welcome to," Aaron said softly, his gaze returning to Spencer's face. "You don't have to beat around the bush for an invitation -- but if I know you, that's not what you were thinking of at all, was it?"

Spencer shook his head, feeling a little sheepish. It had been on his mind to ask his boyfriend if he could spend the night, but he hadn't been thinking of that first and foremost. Somehow, Hotch had an uncanny way of seeing through his words to his soul.

"I guess I was, in a way," he admitted with a slight smile. "But it's not just because I'm worried about you. It's because I want to be with you, and I want our relationship to move forward. And it's not going to if we don't spend more time together."

"It's not that I don't want to spend time with you outside of work," Aaron sighed, opening a desk drawer to store the file away inside. "But I'm starting to wonder what the others think about the two of us. I'm sure they know, even though we haven't said anything."

"They're profilers. They can probably tell just from our body language, and the way we look at each other," Spencer pointed out. "I was thinking about that, too, before I came in here. I can't help but wonder if anybody outside the team knows -- or guesses."

"I hope not," Aaron told him, reaching for his briefcase. "If Strauss knew, then I'd have already been out of here. She can deal with me being a divorced man heading this team -- but being a bisexual man who's involved with one of my co-workers who's also a man? I'd be history."

"Then she'll never find out," Spencer said firmly, standing up without taking his eyes off his boyfriend. "I'm not going to risk you losing your job, Hotch. You love this job, and this team. And there's no way that we could keep going without you."

"She might find out sooner or later," Aaron said with a soft sigh, standing up and pushing his chair back. "And if she does, then we'll deal with that when it happens. I hope it won't happen, but we have to think about it and plan for the eventuality."

"First, I think we need to concentrate on finding Foyet, and keeping you and your family safe," Spencer said, feeling that what he was saying was redundant, but unable to keep the words back. "And making sure that the rest of the team stays safe, too."

"They'll be safe," Aaron assured him, moving to the door and holding it open for Spencer to leave his office first. "They know how to take care of themselves. I thought I did," he muttered, closing the door behind them and turning to face the younger man.

"You do, Aaron," Spencer said softly, reaching for his boyfriend's hand. "Foyet was going after you. It didn't matter what you did to avoid him -- he'd have found you regardless. It's not like you're not trained to avoid trouble like that, but you had a lot on your mind."

"I let him get through the cracks -- and we both know what happened," Hotch said, his voice steely. "It's not going to happen again. I won't let him get close enough. And if he gets near my family, or my team -- or you ...." His voice trailed off, but Spencer could guess the unspoken words.

"Nothing's going to happen to me, or to them -- or to your family," he said softly, squeezing Hotch's hand reassuringly. "We're just going to have to be really careful, and watch what we do. We'll catch him sooner or later. He'll make a mistake -- and then we'll have him."

"I hope you're right, Spencer," Aaron said, his voice barely a whisper. "I don't want to be under this stress all the time. And I miss Jack. Not seeing my son is killing me. Having you stay with me so much makes up for it in some ways -- but not in every way."

"I know," Spencer murmured, squeezing Aaron's hand again before he let it go. "So, do you want me there tonight or not?" he asked, hoping that the answer would be yes. He wanted to be with Aaron, even if all they did was have dinner and sleep.

"Tonight and every night," Hotch answered, his voice soft, his eyes meeting Spencer's. They shared a smile, then leaned towards each other until their lips brushed gently together. After a quick moment, they backed away, heading for the hallway that led to the elevator.

Spencer wanted to put his arm around Aaron's waist as the elevator doors slid open and they got in, but he didn't dare. Instead, he contented himself with simply basking in the presence of the other man, and knowing that they could get closer once they were safe and sound behind closed doors.

***