"Spencer? We need to talk." Reid looked up at Erin Strauss, taking in the nervous way she bit her lip, and the way her eyes were rapidly filling with tears. "Would you mind coming to my office? I really need to do this in private."

"Whatever you want to say to Reid you can do in front of us, Erin." Her head bowed as Blake viciously hissed out her words and Reid once more felt a sharp stab of empathy for the woman. "So, spill. Are you firing him because of his headaches?"

"No, Alex, it's nothing like that. There's just a situation that has come up and I need to speak with him about it." He watched her touch her stomach softly and drew in a soft breath.

"I remember Helen telling me about this meeting earlier this morning. I'm free right now, let's go." He stood and rested his hand on her elbow, leading her from the bullpen and down to her office, ignoring the huffy noises Blake was making.

Erin was shaking by the time she opened the door to her office, ignoring her assistant, who glared up at him. If he didn't know better, the woman looked like she was ready to kill him, consequences be damned, for hurting her boss. "I'm going to be fine, Helen. This isn't his fault," she murmured softly as she closed the door, locking it to create a barrier between them and the outside world.

"I think I know what you're going to tell me. I thought you said that you couldn't get pregnant any longer."

"I didn't think that I could, Spencer. My period has been really erratic these last two years, and my doctor told me that I was well into menopause, since the women in my family tend to enter that state early. I'm sorry."

"Sorry? Sorry does not begin to cover this situation, Erin! Christ, how am I going to deal with a baby on top of everything in my life right now? You are going to take care of it, aren't you?"

Once more, Erin protectively covered her stomach with her hand, tears rolling down her face. "If by take care of it, you mean get an abortion, then no, I'm not going to take care of it. This is my body, my baby, and my decision. I want this baby and you can go fuck yourself, Spencer Reid. Get out of my office. Now!"

She was furious, he could see that and he slowly backed away from her, expecting her to lash out and hit him at any moment. Erin made her way over to her couch, sitting heavily as she sobbed. Her assistant came rushing in, glaring at him, as she sat next to her boss, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders. "What did you do to her?" she hissed as they rocked back and forth.

"Nothing, she just freaked out on me," he protested, backing towards the door.

"I highly doubt that, Dr. Reid. Leave, before you hurt her further."

He nodded as he spun on his heel, fairly fleeing the office. The rest of the team had gathered around Blake's desk and looked up at him as he entered. "Spence, is everything okay? You look really upset."

"I'm fine, Jayje. But why are we all standing around? Isn't there work to be done?" He sat heavily behind his desk, picking up the next file he needed to go over and trying to block the rest of them out. Finally, they took the hint and dispersed once more.

Reid couldn't help but look towards the elevators every so often, and finally he caught a glimpse of Helen and Erin leaving. She was still crying, he could tell by the way her shoulders shook, and another stab of remorse hit his heart. Looking up at the offices, he saw Rossi watching them as well. "Reid, come up and see me."

He was about to shake his head, but he saw the thunder of rage in the man's eyes and nodded instead, pushing back from the desk and making his way up to his office. "What can I do for you, Rossi?" he asked as he entered the room.

He closed the door and stared Reid down. "You hurt Erin."

"What does it matter to you? You guys broke up months ago."

Rossi's nostrils flared as he took a deep breath, obviously struggling to control himself. "It matters to me because I love her. While I wasn't in love with her, while things didn't work out between us, I still love her. She deserves respect and kindness. Not for you to treat her like garbage. I saw her leave here in tears. What did she tell you?"

Reid shrugged. "Nothing."

"That, kid, is bullshit. Don't give me bullshit. I know you slept with her, she told me about it. She was over the moon about feeling lovely for one night, especially after Alan called her the day before, trashing her once more."

Garcia chose that moment to peek her head in the door. "Honey, Erin's calling us. I'm going to run over and see what's wrong." She placed a protective hand on her stomach, and suddenly Reid recognized that movement. Gasping a little, he glanced between the two and finally put the pieces together. It had been almost a year since that disastrous proposal from Kevin, and while he knew that she had moved on, he had no idea that it was with Rossi.

Rossi nodded, smiling gently at her, before his gaze hardened as it fell on him once more. "If she's upset enough to call her sponsor, I want to hear one good reason why I shouldn't string you up by your balls here in the bullpen."

"A child should know its father?" he blurted out, suddenly looking scared. He did not want a pissed off Rossi hurting him.

"I suppose there is that. Penny wouldn't be very happy if I died before the kid got here."

Hearing the confirmation of his suspicions seemed to bolster him and Reid nodded. "There is that. Can I go now? I really have some work that I need to finish."

Rossi glared at him, assessing him, and he tried not to wilt or blanch under the stare. "I will get to the bottom of this, one way or the other. And if I find out anything negative, I will make certain you pay for it in spades."

Gulping, Reid stood and fairly fled from the room, scurrying back down to his desk. Blake looked at him quizzically, and he just shook his head, not wanting to get into it with the woman at the moment. It was going to be a long nine months.