When You Least Expect It | Aaron Hotchner

three

Hotch

I didn't like this plan. Not one bit.

Sending a woman to potentially face off against an unpredictable, axe-wielding, torture-crazed, beheading-loving rapist alone would never be my first choice. Especially now that we have new evidence suggesting that we may be looking at more than one unsubs.

However, Lieutenant Grey's team seem to be confident that she'll be able to pull this off and insisting that she sits this one out seemed like it would be disrespectful to the ESF. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to get the impression that I was underestimating her.

The key to this new arrangement between our teams was trust. And so, I guess I was just going to need to have faith that the ESF has this under control and that Olive knows what she's doing.

"Oh my goodness, they're all so young," Garcia openly gawks at our new allies, having just arrived in the ESF Headquarters. "I mean, I read about the background of their team, but seeing it feels different."

"Reid's the same age as some of them," Morgan points out.

"Yeah, but Reid didn't get inducted into the team when he was still a hormonal teenager," Garcia replies, "These guys have been on their team for almost over a decade. That's wild!"

"Enough," I scold, "They are not circus animals for your viewing pleasure. Not the mention that they can hear you. I don't need any rifts between our teams before we have even gotten the chance to work together. Now, behave."

We're sitting in what looks like a common room in the ESF's living quarters. I still can't believe that the team lives in the building full-time. Don't these people have families they have to go home to?

Just then, the first door on the right side of the hallway swings open and Lieutenant Grey steps out of what I assume was her room.

The sight of her stumps me. Cloaked in a deep green dress that hits the middle of her thighs and has a somewhat modest neckline, it's not what I would consider clubbing attire. Especially a sex club. That is...until she turns around to shut her room door and I see that the dress dips low on the back, stopping just about the curve of her ass, revealing the smooth skin of her entire back.

The dress seems fitting now. Even more so in that colour; green with envy. I expect she's going to get a lot of that throughout the night.

With a pair of incredibly tall heels in one hand and her gun and holster in the other, she saunters over to us barefooted, nodding at the team in greeting as she passed us.

It would be inappropriate for me to find her attractive. I wasn't one to make a habit of having relations with the people I worked with, but I couldn't deny that Lieutenant Grey awakens something in me.

I must have been staring, because the next thing I know, someone kicks me in the shin from across the table.

My gaze snaps up to meet those across from me...except, none of my team members was willing to meet my eyes, all of them looking in various directions pretending to be studying something or the other with feigned interest.

I let out an unamused grunt, raising from my seat and approaching Grey, feeling my team's collective gazes on me the entire way.

"Lieutenant," I say in greeting, "This is your last chance to back out. We can still call it off."

She rolls her eyes at me as she bends to strap her holster to her thigh and it takes every ounce of willpower for me to keep my gaze from straying.

"I'm not backing out, Agent Hotchner. Maybe it's time you give it a rest."

I clear my throat, "If you're sure."

Finally, Grey straightens out and replies, "I am." Before she turns on her heels and heads over to the kitchen area that they have in the corner of the room and pours herself a cup of coffee- she takes it straight black, I observe.

She grabs her mug, taking it with her as she heads for the door. "I'll see you guys in the garage."

I watch her as she goes, and the minute she disappears down the hallway, I hear a giggle from one of my teammates behind me.

Turning around, I shoot Garcia a glare, because there's no doubt in my mind that it was her. Except, instead of shying away, Garcia winks at me and says, "Don't worry, sir. I get it, she's totally hot."

"Garcia..." I say warningly, pinching the bridge of my nose with a sigh, "That's inappropriate."

"Hotch, I believe what's inappropriate was how you were staring at her ass," Reid supplies helpfully. Though, unlike Garcia who I could tell was only teasing me- I think- Reid looks like he actually thinks he's contributing to this conversation.

That really does it for the team though, who each snorts out varying degrees of laughter.

"Let's just get to the damn garage," I grumble, not bothering to wait for any of them before stomping off.

From my experience, the time before leaving for a job like this one is always tense, with everyone on edge with worry about how it may go. However, as I approach the garage, I could hear the thumping of music spilling out into the hallway and the sound of laughter, accompanied by someone's off-pitch singing.

The moment we step foot in the garage, the room falls quiet.

I don't miss the way their team still eyes us warily. From what I heard about them, these people are a tight-knit group and they didn't trust easily.

An awkward silence falls upon the room as our team filters inside, a stark difference between what sounded like a party that I've heard going on.

Exchanging glances, the six ESF members wordlessly return to getting ready.

I won't pretend like I haven't heard the rumours that have been going around about the team that ranged from mildly ridiculous to straight-up insane.

But that is also why I could understand why they were so guarded around us.

My eyes unconsciously track Grey as Mia fits her with an earpiece.

Feeling my gaze on her, Olive's eyes snap up to meet mine, raising a perfectly manicured brow at me.

There was just something about the way she looks at me tugs loose a dormant feeling in my chest- a feeling I haven't felt ever since my divorce with Haley was finalised, and I decided that Jack and my team should have been my top priorities.

An attraction I shouldn't be feeling...but I did.