Chapter Fourty

After he left, Emily headed straight into the bathroom and into the shower, partly because she needed to wash the smell of him off her body before she saw the team and partly so that she could finish crying in peace, and let the water wash away her tears as swiftly as they fell. The shower was rejuvenating, and, twenty-minutes later, when she finally stepped out of it, the only reminders that Hotch had been there at all were the slow ache between her legs and the bruises he'd left on her neck. Those, she thought, as she craned her neck to the side to see them in the mirror, would have to be covered with make-up. Rolling her eyes, she silently cursed him in her head, although her lips turned up in a tiny smirk.

Emily broke her promise to JJ. She was late.

As she stepped into Rossi's house, a feeling of home washing over her instantly, the blonde turned and a look of relief spread across her face.

"Emily!" She scolded, scooping up the skirt of her dress as she made her way across Rossi's kitchen. "You told me you'd be here early! Will and I were late, too, did you get caught up in all of the traffic?" She frowned, not even waiting for Emily's response, though Emily was grateful for that because, much as she was going to, it meant she didn't have to lie and say yes. "Supposedly there was a huge pile-up on the highway. We had to take the long way round, and then we got stuck at every red light. Is that, uh- what's that on your neck?"

"Jayje-" Emily cut her off, holding her hands up in front of her, palms facing JJ. "Calm. You need to breathe." She smiled as the blonde stopped talking, "You look beautiful, Jayje."

JJ smiled, letting out a relieved sigh, but, as soon as the smile had appeared, it was gone, sheer panic taking control of her facial features. Her brow furrowed, her lips pursing, as though she was trying not to cry. "Hey, hey" Emily took tight hold of her hand, pulling her to sit on the stairs. "Talk to me."

"I just-" JJ shook her head, the few loose curls left out of her up-do swaying softly around her angelic face. "What if I'm not cut out for marriage, Em? My mum and dad, they got divorced. I've always run away from this stuff, you know. And Will and I, we're great. We have Henry and-" Her hand dropped to the flat pane of her stomach. She stared at Emily, and Emily saw the fear growing in her periwinkle blue eyes. When she spoke, her voice came out in a terrified whisper. "I have...everything I ever wanted, Emily. Everything. How does one person get to be as happy as I am? There has to be a catch, right? I keep waiting for it all to catch up with me, waiting for the world to stop spinning beneath my feet and for everything to come crashing down."

Emily was shaking her head, JJ's words hitting her square in the chest. "You can't do that to yourself." She said, firmly, fighting the thickness of tears in her throat. "If you spend your life that way, you'll drive yourself crazy, Jayje. You've got to...find a way to make peace with the way things are, and enjoy them while you can. Because we know better than most that this sort of happiness doesn't happen to everybody." Even as she spoke, Emily was well aware of the irony of her words, well aware that JJ was voicing every fear she'd not been able to admit to.

"That's what I'm saying, Emily," JJ insisted, grabbing for Emily's hands and holding them tightly in her own. "What if my times running out?"

Emily didn't have the words to reassure JJ; they'd spent too long doing their jobs for her to lie and say everything would be okay. There was no guarantee, and both agents knew it. So, instead, Emily shook her head.

"I guess you won't know until the time comes," She told her, softly, standing up and pulling JJ to her feet. She set about straightening the few blonde curls that had come loose, and swept a thumb gently beneath each of JJ's eyes, to rid her of the mascara that had begun to pool there. "But, right now, there's a man who loves you waiting for you at the end of that aisle. And, if your time is running out, he's the one you want to spend it with, right?"

They both turned as a slow chord began, a lone violin, signalling the start of the wedding march. There was still panic in JJ's eyes as she walked into the kitchen and Emily followed. On the counter, there were two bouquets of white lilies and tiny, pink roses. JJ picked one up and handed it to her.

"You look beautiful, Em." The blonde smiled, and Emily could see her bottom lip shake with the effort.

"I'm sure I'm supposed to say that to you-" Emily retorted, with a grin, before she heard the rest of the band strike up softly and knew it was her cue. "Jayje, you're the most beautiful bride. I love you, so much, and I'm so proud of you!" She said, hurriedly, gripping JJ's hand tightly . JJ smiled, now, and straightened her shoulders, standing up proudly, and Emily knew she had said the right thing. All JJ had needed, all JJ had wanted, was her blessing. With one last squeeze of her hand, JJ ushered her towards the patio doors.

They were thrown open, adorned with large white organza sashes. Outside, the sun was beginning to set, casting a deep orange-pink hue over the garden. What seemed like hundreds of candles flickered in the breeze, and delicate petals lined the white carpet that showed her the way to the altar, tiny white lights hung between the trees, guiding her way.

Emily had never walked down an aisle before. She'd never had cousins or friends who'd asked her to be a bridesmaid, and she'd certainly never been anybody's Maid of Honour before today. All she could think, as she began the descent down towards the flowered arch, in her floor length black gown, was that she desperately didn't want to trip in front of all of these people. Morgan, in particular, would never let her live it down.

She caught Penelope's eyes as she reached the bottom step, the blonde giving her a little wave and a huge smile. Emily smiled back, lifting her chin and holding her head high as she began the walk. Spencer, too, looked excited to see her, waving, just as Penelope had. Giving them a tiny wave back, Emily felt her heart constrict when she realised how much she had missed this, them, all together. At the top of the aisle, standing with Will, was Rossi. Of course. She wondered if JJ knew about that little surprise. Then everybody's eyes shifted to behind her, and she knew JJ had appeared in the doorway.

Emily felt more at ease now that everyone was looking at JJ, and she felt her shoulders relax a little. Casting a glance around, she reassured herself that everyone was looking to the blonde. Until her eyes found Hotch.

Oh. He wasn't looking at JJ.

He was staring right at her, a dopey, stupid smile on his handsome face that instinctively made Emily smile, too. She felt her lips curve, until she was smiling at him with her whole face, eyes crinkling, a wide grin that flashed her teeth stretching her lips. He smiled brighter, then, because he'd made her smile. And then they were both grinning, like two idiots in love, like they were the only two people there.

It was one moment, barely a moment, but it was the moment that Emily knew.

She tried to listen intently to the vows that JJ and Will exchanged, but she was all too aware of Hotch, whose eyes never left her for a moment. She wanted to catch his eyes, wanted to let him know, but standing at the front of the congregation, she simply couldn't without giving them both away and drawing attention from the couple, so she let that lingering smile play about her lips as she watched JJ and Will, and hoped Aaron knew it was for him.

"Do you, William Lamontagne Jr, take Jennifer Joy Jareau to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickess and in health, for as long as you both shall live?" Emily heard Rossi asked and, though he stood with his back to her, Emily heard the smile on Will's face as he spoke.

"You bet I do!" He said, in that southern twang. There was a muttering of good-natured laughter from the congregation, including JJ, who swept a hand under her eyes, brushing away unshed tears.

"Yeah, you'd better." Rossi joked, to more laughter. "And do you, Jennifer Joy Jareau, la mia bellissima farfalla, take William Lamontagne Jr to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, for as long as you both shall live?"

JJ's eyes flickered, for just a second, but Emily caught it. They landed on hers, and Emily smiled, giving her the most minute of nods. When JJ spoke, her voice was solid, full of emotion, but strong and certain.

"I do."

Rossi's eyes were warm as he smiled at them. "Then, by the power vested in me, by the state of Virginia, I now pronounce you, husband and wife."

It was one of the most relaxed and beautiful weddings Emily had ever been to. As soon as the ceremony was over, she found herself swept into hugs by the team. Derek nearly crushed her ribs with the squeeze he gave her and Spencer immediately started babbling about the newest season of the series they'd been watching together before she left. Penelope was throwing compliments at her whilst simultaneously chastising her for not telling them about the break up.

Hotch, she noticed, kept his distance. Instead of making a beeline for her, as the others had, she noticed him making his way towards the newly wedded couple, presumably to offer his congratulations.

"She's right, princess," Morgan commented, with a frown on his handsome face, "How come you didn't tell us about your break up from Isla?"

Emily heaved a sigh. She'd known this was going to happen, and she probably deserved, karmically, to have to answer for herself, but that didn't make it any less uncomfortable. She looked from one face, to another, to another, helplessly.

"Isla was great," she told them, honestly, "But...I just, it wasn't right. There was someone else." She caught Rossi smiling at her from across the temporary dance floor that had been put into place and was grateful for a reason to disentangle herself from her friends, before they insisted on asking more questions that she knew she couldn't answer right now.

Rossi had headed straight for the bar, and as she reached his side, he handed her a short glass. When she raised her eyebrows, he gestured to it.

"Scotch on the rocks," he explained, "I thought you might need some liquid courage, tonight."

Emily raised an eyebrow at him, but Rossi wasn't looking at her, but out at the crowd of people, most of whom had gathered around the bride and groom to congratulate them. "Oh? I didn't realise ministers were allowed to drink." She teased, with a smirk, "And what do you think I need courage for?"

"The decision you're going to make. To move back home and come back to the BAU, where you belong."

"David Rossi, you never fail to amaze me." Emily told him, as she sipped at her drink. "God, that's smooth."

"You know I only have the best." He lifted his glass, and Emily smiled, clinking her own against it. "So, you admit it? You want to come home?"

Emily hesitated a moment, searching for the right words. "I'm...considering it." Truthfully, Rossi was right; her mind was made up. She wanted to come home, but knew that, in order for that to happen, there was something other than her job that she needed.

She scanned the crowd for Hotch, found him sitting at the other side of the dance floor with Morgan and Anderson. He was laughing at something one of them had said, and the corner of Emily's mouth twitched upwards. Beside her, Rossi was looking at her.

"You've got no idea how much he's missed you." He said, simply.

Turning, she saw the depth of emotion in the older man's eye. He, who had been like a father to each of them in different ways, held a special place for Aaron in his heart, and Emily knew it. She also knew, at the risk of sounding self-important, that he kept a special place for her inside there, too. Rossi, she knew, was more invested in them than any of the others would be. So, for just a moment, she let down her walls.

"I'm scared." She whispered, and all of the feeling's she'd seen earlier in JJ's eyes came rushing into her chest.

"Cara, if you aren't scared, you're not living." He told her, his eyes seeming to twinkle in that fatherly way, under the canopy of fairy lights. "But, for what it's worth, I don't think you have to be scared of this. I think you've both been through a lot: maybe the universe owes you both this one."

Emily narrowed her eyes, raising an eyebrow at him. "You don't believe in that sort of thing."

Rossi laughed at her scepticism. "Maybe, in my old age, I'm becoming more of a believer." He shrugged, genially, "Or, maybe, I'm just saying whatever I can to get you over there, talking to him. You know you're going to have to, and you know that you want to, so, what's stopping you?"

"Oh, I'm just drinking my liquid courage," She joked, and Rossi chuckled into his own drink, before tossing back the last of her scotch. "Wish me luck."

"You don't need it." Rossi's voice was low, but even as she walked away, Emily caught it. She made her way across the dance floor, holding her long skirt so that it didn't brush across the ground, and headed straight for the boys.

"Hey, guys," She smiled, as they looked up at her.

"Emily!" Anderson grinned at her, "Welcome back!"

"Yeah, I'm not really back," She waved his comment off with a smile, "But thanks, it's good to see you! Hotch, can I, uh, talk to you?"

"Sure." He looked at her, a smirk playing about his lips, a mischievous glint in his eye, and made no sign of moving as he lifted his beer bottle to his lips.

"In private." She rolled her eyes at him, knowing he was doing this on purpose, teasing her. At her words, though, he got to his feet, straightening his trouser legs. She made to walk away, to lead them both towards the more secluded area of the garden where they wouldn't be overheard, but he caught her waist just as the band struck up a chord.

"We can talk privately, right here, Em." He said, into her ear, as he pulled her close to him.

"Do you really want to have this discussion in public?" She asked, her breath tickling his neck as she spoke. He leaned away from her, dark eyes catching hers, looking at her, pointedly.

"Emily, I don't want to be alone with you, right now."

Oh.

She felt her cheeks burn, and felt that involuntary smile that kept creeping onto her face reappear. Shaking her head, Emily ducked her face, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of seeing her blush. "Right." She gave a short laugh, "Okay. Luckily, I have more self control than you do-"

Hotch laughed, this time, in response, his hand sliding from high on her back to the small of her back. "Right. Blowjob in an SUV?"

"Aaron - shut up-" She swatted his arm, laughter bubbling in her chest, and then, they were both laughing. Heartily, comfortably. Like two people who had never been apart. Like two people who had spent years and years falling into a comfortable and relaxed step with one another. She felt at home in his arms, and he held her like she was his. Anybody observing them, who didn't know better, might assume they had been in love for years, and they wouldn't be wrong. That was the moment she knew that none of the rest of it mattered. All of her fancy words and speeches, and every excuse she had been ready to give, it was all just that; excuses. For the longest time, she had denied herself happiness, had lived in her head, shut people out. The BAU had changed all of that. He had changed all of that. No more excuses.

"Yes." Emily said, when she finally stopped laughing. Hotch was still chuckling, so didn't register it at first. Emily pulled them to a halt. People had joined them on the dance floor, but she couldn't see any of them. Only him. He didn't seem to have registered what she said, so she repeated herself. "Yes."

"Yes?" He asked her, smiling. She said nothing, but met his eyes. His were still smiling, but hers were serious. His brow furrowed, but the grin remained on his lips. Then, she watched the realisation dawn as all of the tension fell from his forehead and his smile slid from his face.

She nodded. "Yes."

Emily moved her hands, running them up his arms, feeling his muscles beneath his suit, and stepped in closer to him. "I want to stay. And..." She paused, testing the weight of the words about to come out of her mouth, recognising their ability to change everything. She was about to serve her heart to him on a plate, and it was terrifying and exhilarating all at once. "I want you. And Jack. I want us."

All thoughts fell out of Emily's head as he kissed her, mouth covering hers in a kiss that said more than his words ever could. And Emily didn't care. She didn't care that they were in public, surrounded by their friends, and colleagues. She didn't care that, technically, she still lived on a different continent. She didn't care that they'd never even been on a date. Nothing about her life had ever been conventional. She had moved more times than she could count, lost her father, made and then lost friends in the blink of an eye. She had fallen in love, not often, but so deeply, to tragic ends each time. But, for once, finally, for perhaps the first time in her adult life, she felt like she had her feet on solid ground.

There were no crude remarks from Morgan, although he did glance pointedly at the hickey on Emily's neck once or twice, but she shot him a playful warning look and he backed off with a grin. There were no quippy, flirtatious jokes from Penelope. Reid didn't mull about awkwardly avoiding them for the rest of the evening. And, well, Rossi and JJ already knew. So it was easy to fall in step with Aaron, to spend an easy evening with each other, and with their family, and for everything to feel normal, even though they both knew that everything, everything, had changed, all at once, completely, and for the better.

Eventually, the guests dissipated. There was nobody left but the team, seated around one of the large tables, falling, as they always did, into that easy, comfortable conversation that came from years of knowing and loving one another so deeply. Sitting beside Aaron, their hands clasped together in her lap, her head on his shoulder, and listening to her friends talk about everything and nothing all at once, JJ at her side with a sleeping Henry in her arms, Morgan across from her, letting Spencer slowly drift to sleep against his shoulder, Emily couldn't believe she had ever left all of this behind. Their drinks stood mostly abandoned as fireflies buzzed fluttered around the candles that were starting to flicker out around the garden, and the caterers had long since packed away the food. Henry began to stir in JJ's arms, so she and Will made their excuses.

"We've gotta get this little tyke home." Will ruffled Henry's hair gently where his head rested on JJ's shoulder, pressing a kiss to the little boy's forehead.

"Thank you, Dave, for everything." Emily watched as they thanked Rossi.

"Anything for my little girl." The greying agent had smiled, and the look of pride on his face as he kissed JJ's cheek made Emily's heart weep for all of the children he had never fathered, and those he had taken under his wing as his own.

The blonde passed Henry to Will, the little boy waking up just enough to curl his arms tightly around his father's neck, secure in the strong arms that protected him, and lifted her skirt as she made her way to Emily. Getting up from where she sat beside Aaron, she met the blonde halfway across the garden, and embraced her.

"I'm so happy for you." JJ muttered into her ear, and Emily smiled against her shoulder.

"You're the bride; I'm supposed to say that to you." They stood like that a moment longer, clinging tight to each other, before Emily let her go. "I'll see you in a few days. Go and enjoy your little family, Mrs Lamontange."

"JL just doesn't have the same ring, does it?" The younger agent grinned as she turned and headed back towards her husband and child, and Emily watched her go with a smile before returning to her seat. Aaron's hand wrapped around her shoulder immediately, and she leaned into him, head resting in the crook of his neck.

"We've got to get this tyke home, too," Morgan joked, shrugging his shoulder, against which Spencer was slowly drifting to sleep. Penelope ruffled his hair in much the same way Will had done to Henry, making them all laugh as Reid blinked, confusedly, up at her.

"M'up." He said, sleepily.

"C'mon, pretty boy, time to get you home."

Hugs were exchanged, with a hard kiss on her cheek from Penelope that made her giggle, and Emily settled back in her seat as she watched them leave, Rossi showing them all to the door, leaving the two of them alone in the garden.

"Do you ever think about it?" He asked, nose pressed into her hair. She reached for his hand, winding her fingers through his on her lap, tracing patterns on the back of his hand.

"What's that?" She watched with a contented smile as JJ and Will climbed the steps of the patio, one child in Will's arms, the other growing slowly in JJ's belly, ready to make his or her appearance in a couple of months time.

"Marriage."

Her fingers stilled as she cast a dismissive glance up at him. "Steady there," She joked, though her heart stuttered in her chest. "God, take a girl out on a date first, Aaron."

He chuckled, and she felt his chest shake against her shoulder where she leaned on him. "I'm serious, Em."

Sitting up, she turned to stare straight into his eyes, and felt as though she could dive into the depths of emotion she saw there. It scared her, exhilarated her, made her heart beat faster in her chest.

"I love you." He said, simply, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, "And I want to be with you. I don't see any reason to wait, do you?"

"I love you too," She insisted, but she shook her head, "But I can think of a hundred reasons. We work together, so our relationship is already going to complicate things. We don't live together, we don't even know what that's going to look like. Jack. You've had one too many beers, Hotchner. In the morning, you'll see how crazy this is."

"This isn't a whim, Emily." His tone was so level and even that it scared her, because he wasn't backing down. "I've thought about this a lot. I've not been able to get you out of my head for over a year now. I want us. I want this. Permanently. Officially. As for work, you're right, us being together is going to complicate things. If we're married, it's less likely to do so, because they'll see that we're serious, we're not going to break the team up on a whim of a relationship. Jack adores you. Seriously," He grinned as she smiled at that comment, "I think he might love you even more than I do, and that's really saying something. And as for living together? You don't have a flat to move into when you come back. Where did you think you were going to go? We can buy an apartment, a house. Whatever you want."

Emily stared, searching for more excuses in her head, and finding none. His reasoning was flawless, and she found that she didn't want to argue against him. Having never been the conventional type, the idea of marriage had never enticed her in the same way it had for other girls she knew. Emily had never spent her teenage years cutting images of wedding dresses and bouquets and venues out of magazines. She had never hung a pillowcase off the back of her head and called herself a bride. And, as she got older, she'd never given it a second thought. But the idea of marrying Aaron? It suddenly felt as though the fireflies hovering around the garden had migrated to her stomach.

"You really do have this all figured out, don't you?" The corner of her mouth tugged up into a smile. "You realise it's insane?"

With a shrug, Aaron spread his hands. "What about our lives isn't insane? This," He shook his head, his eyes serious once more. "This is the only thing that makes sense to me. You are the only thing that makes sense to me. You and Jack. I want to start living that life, we've waited long enough."

"I want it too." She insisted, "But why does having it have to be dictated by a piece of paper? And do I have to change my name? I like my name, Aaron."

"You don't have to change anything you don't want to," He chuckled at her concerns, lifting a hand to run it through her hair, softly, tucking a piece behind her ear. "I'm just ready for you to be mine."

"I'm yours," Leaning in, she pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "You've got me, Aaron Hotchner. For better or for worse, even without a stupid ring and piece of paper."

"You know, you don't have to sign the papers." A voice interrupted them, and they both turned to look at Rossi. "After all, I am an ordained minister, and I hardly think The Almighty cares about the paperwork. Or that you care what He thinks, anyway." He said, with a pointed glance at Emily.

Turning from Rossi, to each other, they stared, speechless, Emily's lips moving wordlessly, as she tried to find something to say.

"We've got a minister. We've got a flower arch," He gestured across the garden, to the aisle JJ had walked down many hours before. "Looks to me like this is your wedding right here."

"But it won't be legal-" Emily began.

"I don't care." Hotch shook his head. "So we go to the courthouse one day, when you're ready, or we don't. I don't care. I just want to be married to you. Even if we're the only ones who know about it. Then, maybe, eventually, we have a real wedding."

"Penny will kill me if I don't give her the real wedding." Emily joked, though nothing about the situation seemed very funny all of a sudden.

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes." There wasn't a moment of hesitation before the word fell out of her mouth, and that was how Emily knew she was ready. Rossi was grinning to himself, already making his way to the arch, as she stood up and Hotch took her hand, following the older agent towards it.

They stood, hand in hand, as Rossi recited the same speech he had given to JJ and Will, and Emily heard barely a word of it as she stared up into Hotch's eyes. They were huge expanses of space, flecked with stars, as he gazed down at her, and Emily felt she could see their entire future in them.

"I don't suppose you have vows?" Rossi asked.

"No-" Hotch began to speak, but Emily cut him off.

"I'd actually like to say a few words." Both men fell silent as she spoke. "Aaron. Hotch." They both smiled, remembering the day he'd been given that nickname, "I've loved you since I was nineteen years old. Since I was that spoiled, rotten teenager who ignored you for a whole Summer whilst also trying to get your attention." Hotch chuckled at that. "I've known you as an uptight agent, as a pain-in-my-ass boss, as my best-" Her words caught in her throat, and she had to take a moment before she could continue, "As my best friend friend, as my lover. I've loved you across decades, across oceans, across continents. We've been through hell, together and apart." There was a moment, a brief second, when they both remembered it all. Haley, Foyet, Doyle. He squeezed her hands. "But you're the love of my life, Aaron Hotchner. And I promise to remind you of that every day. Even when you're being my pain-in-my-ass boss."

His eyes were wet now with unshed tears that he rapidly tried to blink away. "You've set me up for failure here, Em." He said, with a short laugh, "All you need to know is that you changed me. From the moment I met you, you changed me. Then you walked into my office years later and changed everything again. Now, I'm standing here the luckiest man in the world, and I don't know what I did to deserve you. But I'll spend the rest of my life trying to be worthy of you."

Rossi let them speak, giving them a beat of silence after Aaron had finished, to be just the two of them, to recognise the weight of what was happening.

"Do you, Aaron Alexander Hotchner, take Emily Elizabeth Prentiss to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health,as long as you both shall live?" Rossi asked, and Emily could hear the smile on his face even without looking at him.

"I do." It came out as barely more than a whisper, and as Emily watched a tear finally find it's way down his cheek, she felt her own emotions begin to overflow, too.

"And do you, Emily Elizabeth Prentiss, take Aaron Alexander Hotchner to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

Nodding, her curls shaking around her face as she did so, hands clutching Aaron's so tightly that she knew she was leaving tiny, crescent shaped marks in his skin, but that he didn't care because he was clinging to her just as tightly, Emily barely managed to speak. "I do."

"Then, by the powers vested in me by the state of Virginia, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

His lips found hers softly, gently, and Emily felt as though time had stopped around her. The fireflies were gone from her stomach; she wasn't nervous anymore, as he kissed her and she brought her hands up to rest on his face. She was sure. Sure of him, sure of their future, sure of their choices and sure of everything that had come before, which had led them to this moment. There was nothing that mattered anymore, nothing but this.

Hotch kept his eyes half open, unable to close them for fear of this moment slipping away into oblivion. He felt he might wake up, and she might be lost to him again, but her hands on her face and her lips pressed against his own were real, as real as anything had ever been. More so.

When he broke their kiss, resting his forehead against hers, he realised they were alone, and looked up to see the figure of Rossi heading back into the house. This was his gift to them, he knew, this moment alone, to be just the two of them, wrapped up in each others arms as though the rest of the world has ceased to exist. Rossi wouldn't say a word, and neither would they. Nobody need know what had transpired in the early hours of the morning, in Rossi's backyard. It didn't matter, either, that it wasn't yet legal because they knew. Symbolically and officially, for them at least. He was hers and she was his. As long as you both shall live.

And, for now, that was enough.

so, 40 chapters later, we've come to the end.

you have no idea how much all of the support this fic has gotten means to me. i hope i've done you guys justice with this ending. thank you all for sticking with me, emily and hotch, to the end.

steph x