Just this once ~ Aaron Hotchner

Arabella never meant to fall for him.

He's her boss. A single father. A man still carrying the weight of too much loss. But the night Aaron Hotchner calls and asks her to watch his son, something shifts.

It starts with Jack-movie nights, soccer games, inside jokes. But somewhere between bedtime stories and quiet cups of coffee, Arabella finds herself drawn into the spaces Hotch keeps guarded. The silences. The glances. The way he looks at her like she's the first steady thing he's allowed himself in years.

Their connection is unspoken, fragile, and slow-achingly slow.

But some loves aren't born in sparks.
Some are built in quiet moments-until they become impossible to ignore.

Just this once, she lets herself want more.
Just this once, he lets her in.
And neither of them is ready for what that means.

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#5 - aaronhotchner