A/N: This is my first CM fic. I'm a huge Spencer Reid fan, so it will be very Reid-centric. Takes place pre-season 8. Reviews are greatly appreciated!
xox

Chapter One

Mia Hale looked around with a satisfied smile, breathing deeply the scent of books, both old and new. Nothing made her happier than wall-to-wall shelves of books, and now she would be surrounded by them all day every day. She'd spent the past month dealing with lawyers, hashing out agreements, and signing papers, all while trying not to pull her hair out in frustration. It had all been worth it, though. She was now the proud new owner of The Nook, the most adorable little book store she'd ever seen. It was in one of DC's older neighbourhoods, and had all the charm of an old building—creaky wood floors, crown moulding, dim lighting, and a door with a little bell that jingled whenever someone went in or out. Overflowing bookshelves lined the walls and formed narrow aisles that stretched all the way to the back of the store, where, through an archway, her new office waited, crammed with even more books. At the front of the store sat a hand carved, mahogany counter, behind which sat a chair, an antique cash register, a debit machine (looking a bit out of place with all the antiques) and, of course, piles and piles of more books. Across from the counter, an old iron staircase spiralled up to the second floor, where there were more shelves, these ones laden entirely with used books, accompanied by squashy old armchairs, loveseats, and antique lamps. It could not be more perfect.

Mia flashed a bright smile at Alice, the employee who'd agreed to stay on after Mia took over, before climbing the spiral staircase towards the second floor. While she loved everything about her new shop, the second floor was definitely her favourite part. It was like a bookstore one would see in a movie, and it was all hers. Smiling softly, she moved slowly among the shelves, greeting customers happily and scanning the books as she went. As she made her way towards a shelf that housed the Bronte collection, she couldn't help but feel entirely at peace in what was quickly becoming her favourite place in the world. She'd recently returned to America following a three year stint teaching English overseas, and while she'd had the trip of a lifetime and would love to travel more in the future, she'd never felt more at home than she did in this tiny little bookshop.

About ten minutes later, she stood flipping through a gorgeous leather bound copy of Wuthering Heights with gold flourishes adorning the cover, smiling softly to herself. While she owned at least two copies of Wuthering Heights already, it was easily one of her favourites, and she was never opposed to adding multiples to her collection. The thought of her entire collection currently packed away in boxes in the living room of her new apartment had her putting the book back on the shelf and making a mental note to invest in some book shelves asap.

Wandering away from her beloved Bronte book, she glanced around, her eyes settling on a man who stood a couple aisles over, a dusty old book in hand. Something about him made her stop and, picking up a random book to hide behind, she gazed at him interestedly. He had longish, adorably messy hair, dark eyes behind a pair of horn rimmed glasses, and a strong, angular jaw line that had her insides suddenly tying themselves in knots. He wore a snug pair of dark jeans, with a cream coloured button down top and a red cardigan, sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He wore a pair of blue Converse and had a brown messenger bag slung across his body. As she watched him, his eyes flew over the pages at an alarming rate, and he had barely turned a page before he was turning another. Mia was intrigued. Setting her book back down, she smoothed the front of her dark purple, gauzy dress, brushed a dark curl away from her eyes, and took a deep breath.

"You know," a very sweet voice said suddenly, "If you slow down a bit and actually read it, you may actually get more out of that book."

Spencer glanced up from the book he was reading and found the gorgeous girl he'd been trying to muster up the courage to approach smiling up at him. He felt his breath catch in throat at the sight of her so close. Her long dark curls tumbled about her bare shoulders, blue eyes glittered up at him brightly, and her petite body was perfected by a simple purple dress that seemed to make her eyes pop. She was unbelievably beautiful, and smelled intoxicatingly wonderful. After a moment of simply taking in every inch of her, he smiled shyly.

"Actually," he said, surprised at how steady his voice was, "I am reading."

"At that speed?" She asked, arching her eyebrows incredulously. Adorably incredulously, Spencer couldn't help but notice. "Is that even possible?"

"The unconscious mind can process over eleven million bits of information per second," he explained, cringing inwardly at how geeky he sounded, "It just typically…chooses not to."

"So, hypothetically speaking, I could read that fast? If I tried?"

Spencer grinned. "I don't see why not."

The beautiful girl before him looked thoughtful for a minute, chewing her lower lip in a way that had butterflies stirring in Spencer's stomach. After a moment, she smirked. "Prove it."

"Prove what?"

"That you're actually reading this book," she said, taking the old book he'd been holding and glancing at the page he'd been reading last. He watched as she scanned the page quickly and then smiled up at him. "What's happening here?"

"Do you want a synopsis, or do you want word for word?"

"You can't do it word for word!"

The sound of her laugh made his head spin a little bit. He smiled stupidly at her and began reciting what he'd read last. She followed along in the book, her smile growing as he got further and further. After about a page and a half, she shut it with a snap and handed it back to him. He stopped reciting, feeling a slight blush creeping up his neck.

"That's incredible," she said, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "A talent like that would have come in handy in grad school."

"It did, as a matter of fact," Spencer agreed. "What did you major in?"

"English literature," she replied, "Mainly nineteenth century. You?"

"Math," Spencer said simply, choosing to leave the rest of his degrees out of the conversation for the time being. He'd found that women tended to get turned off when he came across as too intelligent. "I've always really enjoyed the arts, though."

Another breathtaking smile graced the beautiful girl's lips, and Spencer was suddenly oblivious to his surroundings, as if he had tunnel vision and she was the only one in sight. "I'm Mia, by the way," she said, "Mia Hale."

"Spencer Reid."

The two of them stood there talking for over an hour, and Spencer was embarrassingly delighted when she touched his arm seven times throughout their conversation. He wasn't overly experienced in the field of women, but he knew for a fact that repeated touching was a sign of flirtation, which was a sign of interest. She was easily the sweetest, most interesting woman he'd ever met, and he barely even knew her. Spencer was smitten by the time they decided to make their way over to the little coffee shop next door.

"Let me just grab my things and let Alice know I'm leaving for the day," she said over her shoulder as he followed her down the spiral staircase. "I'll just be a minute."

"You work here?"

"Not exactly," she smiled, "I actually own the place."

Gorgeous, sweet, intelligent, and owned her own bookstore. Spencer couldn't have imagined a more perfect woman if he tried. He waited while she disappeared into an office at the back of the store, and watched as she emerged, carrying an oversized handbag and talking quietly with a pale, dark haired girl he could only assume was Alice. They chatted for a few moments before Mia smiled and, with a quick wave at the girl, made her way back over to him, smiling happily. Wondering vaguely if he'd ever not be blown away by her beauty, Spencer opened the door for her, followed her outside, and the two of them headed for the café next door.

While Mia went to lay claim on a small round table in a quiet, cozy little alcove, Spencer ordered two cups of coffee, somewhat dumfounded by his luck. While he waited for the coffee, he chanced a glance back at where Mia was waiting patiently, a small smile playing across her perfect lips. He'd been so dreading holidays, while the rest of the team would be out of town or with loved ones and he'd be holed up in his apartment with naught but his books and his thoughts to keep him company. Now, after a spur of the moment trip to his favourite bookstore, things were looking up.

"So, we seem to have only talked about me, and books," Mia said as he took a seat across from her, setting their coffees down between them. He watched with a smile as she added just as much sugar, if not more, to her coffee than he was about to add to his own. "Tell me about yourself. What do you do?"

"I, uh, work for the government," Spencer said before taking a long sip of his coffee. Things were going so well, and he wasn't ready to ruin it by admitting that he spent most of his time thinking like some of the worst criminals imaginable. "I enjoy what I do, for the most part, but it takes up a lot of my time."

There. That wasn't entirely a lie. In fact, it was the truth. He did find enjoyment in locking away the men and women he and the rest of the team worked so hard to catch, but it had certainly managed to take over most of his life. Until today, that hadn't really bothered him. Admittedly he did regret not having more time to visit his mother, but otherwise he was content focusing on his work. Now, despite having known her less than a few hours, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with Mia.

The two of them sat, sipping coffee and chatting, laughing, and getting to know each other, completely unaware of the world around them. When it came to talking to beautiful women, Spencer normally had a very difficult time stringing together a sentence that didn't involve some extremely geeky reference or nerdy fact, but with Mia he found himself being almost charming. Mia certainly seemed to be enjoying his company, judging by her body language, brilliant smile, and infectious laugh. Before either of them had even noticed, several hours had passed, and a café employee approached them to announce closing time.

"I can't believe we just spent all day talking!" Mia laughed as they left the café. To Spencer's surprise, night had fallen, and it was quite a bit chillier than it had been when they'd first met. Wrapping her arms around herself as she shivered slightly, she smiled up at him. "I had a lot of fun today."

Spencer immediately shrugged out of his cardigan and offered it to Mia. Her smile grew slightly as she obligingly turned, allowing him to place it gently on her shoulders. She turned back to face him, pulling his sweater tightly around her shivering frame. "I had a good time, too," he said, wanting badly to kiss her, but not wanting to freak her out. "Which way is your apartment? I'll walk with you."

"Oh, don't worry," Mia shook her head, "It's a bit of a hike so I'm just going to call a cab."

"I can give you a ride, if you'd like," he offered without hesitation. "It'll save you from waiting in the cold…"

Mia thought for a moment, probably deciding whether or not she could trust an almost complete stranger enough to get into a vehicle with him. When she nodded, Spencer let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and led her to where he'd left his car. The ten minute drive to her apartment was spent chatting idly about BBC's Sherlock, a show they'd discovered they shared a mutual love for. When they arrived at her apartment, Mia handed him his cardigan and flashed one of her breathtaking smiles.

"I really enjoyed myself today," she said truthfully, "I'm very glad we met."

Before Spencer could register or process anything, she leaned over and pressed her lips against his in a quick kiss. Pulling away, she smiled softly, nibbling at her lower lip. Spencer watched as she opened the door, stepped out, and shut it again, not really coming to his senses until she'd waved and turned towards the building. Leaning across the passenger seat, which he was pleased to notice still smelled like her, he hastened to roll down the window.

"Mia!" He called, causing her to spin around. "Do you have plans for dinner tomorrow night?"

Mia beamed at him. "Not yet, no."

"Would you like to go to dinner with me?" He asked, his heart racing. "Say…seven o'clock?"

"I would love to," she replied happily. "I'll see you tomorrow, Spence."

Spencer watched as she continued on her way into the building, disappearing a moment later. He straightened up, grinning stupidly at the door she'd just passed through. Only one other person had ever referred to him as Spence before, and while he'd enjoyed it, and briefly entertained the idea of romantic feelings for his co-worker, it was safe to say her calling him Spence had never made him feel the way Mia's use of the name had. Butterflies he hadn't even known existed were fluttering around his stomach excitedly, his pulse racing, his mind an unfamiliar jumble of thoughts and emotions. Mia Hale had awoken something in him today, some unknown, secret desire, and he was certain he'd never think of anything or anyone else ever again.