4a/n: my take on how 3x17, in heat, should have ended. i hated making will a bad guy in this, but it worked with the plot so i thought why not. I know it's not exactly canon with his personality, but it's whatever.
"Charles Luvet was found floating in a Miami marina last night," JJ started. "Local M.E. thinks that he was only in the water about an hour."
"Any attempt to weigh the body down?" asked Hotch.
"Doesn't appear to be."
"Well, the dumping could be convenient, as opposed to a means of hiding the crime," Morgan speculated.
"Well, he's the third victim found in Miami in the last two months. Though the locations of the bodies are different many of the elements are the same-all males, 25-35, all travelling, all asphyxiated with no signs of sexual assault." The blonde continued to supplement the conversation.
"But tourists could mean just simple robbery," Morgan said.
"Well, there are some personal items missing…" JJ informed the team.
"He's targeting travelers for a reason," interjected Rossi.
Just then, Garcia arrived to the round table room, notably late. "I am so sorry. My alarm-I overslept-it didn't go off, I'm so sorry," she stuttered.
Hotch responded, "It's ok, everyone is allowed to be late...once."
"It won't happen again."
Meanwhile, Rossi was reading through the files in front of him and observed something strange. "You guys notice the red flag on the autopsy report?"
Prentiss had, too. "Yeah, none of the hyoid bones were fractured."
Hotch also said, "No visual signs of trauma, no ligature marks. Yet the unsub still managed to asphyxiate grown men."
Morgan theorized, "Maybe a chokehold? Wouldn't leave any signs of trauma."
Reid finally spoke up after a few minutes of silence. "It would also be a way of controlling a male. A powerful grip from behind gives the unsub all the leverage. None of these victims look out-of-shape or easy to control. In fact, they all look remarkably fit."
"Well, as I said, the recovery locations are very different. Charles Luvet was found in the water, Daniel Brown was partially buried in a shallow sand dune. Paul Hayes was stuffed into a dumpster…" elaborated JJ.
Emily noted, "It's not much of an effort to hide any of them."
Rossi again stated the obvious. "They were all found in high-traffic areas."
"Miami PD is asking for our help, considering that there are four other men missing who match this victimology," JJ relayed, displaying the photos of the other four men on the screen.
"I can dig up what I can on the victims from their hometowns," said Garcia.
"Miami is a mecca for potential targets, and anyone traveling is more vulnerable than they normally would be." Hotch said.
JJ took it from there. "Case in point, Charles Luvet, the latest victim, he was a vacationing cop."
She shifted uncomfortably here, as if she was hiding something. This did not go unnoticed by anyone at the table.
Prentiss wondered, what isn't she telling us? There's nothing about a dead cop that usually makes JJ act like this, so it has to be personal.
Her train of thought was broken by Hotch saying, "Wheels up in 30."
All throughout the plane ride, JJ acted strangely. And with two and a half hours in a small vehicle, everyone was wondering what exactly it was that was making the media liaison behave so uncharacteristically.
Meanwhile, JJ was lost in her thoughts. NOLA PD. No connection, right? There has to be no connection. There's no way he's connected. I should be fine. I don't have to see him. I don't have to explain. Just fly in, deal with the press, and fly out. No distractions.
There were distractions. Starting with Rossi and Morgan.
"Is it always this hot?" Reid complained, as two women walked by the black SUV they had just disembarked.
Morgan and Rossi were too busy ogling their backsides to understand what he wasn't insinuating.
"Every day, all day," Morgan whistled.
The older man was also partaking in said activity, and he too made a lewd comment. "That's South Beach for you."
"That's, uh, not what I'm talking about," clarified Reid. Now he was the one uncomfortable, although everyone knew why. The awkward genius never did well around women and he was too much of a gentleman to ever act like his older colleagues.
"They know." Hotch said, a smile playing on his lips.
A Miami PD detective just then walked out toward the FBI agents and introduced herself. "BAU?"
Morgan went from ogling one woman to checking out the one in front of him. "Yes," he responded, not bothering to hide his attraction to the woman.
"Detective Lopez, Miami Police Department."
"Oh, um, Morgan. Derek." The normally suave man stumbled over his words and reached out a hand.
"Tina." She shook his hand, and they held it for just a second too long before continuing. "So, thank you for coming down so quickly."
"Agent Jareau-JJ; we spoke on the phone." The woman from Pennsylvania was suddenly more relaxed than she had been previously. Thank god, she thought to herself. "These are agents Hotchner, Prentiss, Rossi, Derek, and Dr. Reid."
"I hope there's no test, because I'm lousy with names," quipped Lopez, giving both Reid and Rossi a once-over.
"Agent will be fine," said Rossi right back.
Suddenly, Prentiss noticed out of the corner of her eye a familiar face and it all clicked for her. What had been bothering JJ. "Hey, isn't that-" she started.
As soon as everyone looked where she had pointed, they too came to the same conclusion as Emily had.
JJ spun. And all that normalness drained out of her face.
"Detective LaMontagne just arrived from New Orleans to ID the cop they pulled from the bay last night," Detective Lopez explained.
Damn it, JJ thought. Just as I thought I was in the clear. This is going to be awkward. How am I supposed to... really? "Uh-Detective, it's good to see you." she spit out painfully.
"How are you? Yeah." Will LaMontagne Jr. shook her hand. "Charlie Luvet and I worked together for 7 years. We haven't' formally ID'ed him yet, but...we believe it's him."
"Sorry for your loss, man," Morgan said.
Will just nodded, and suddenly Tina Lopez was confused. "So you all know each other?"
JJ's attempt at not being awkward failed miserably. "Professionally." That's it. All she said. No elaboration, nothing. She chided herself internally. Really, Jennifer? Nice job. Now it's painfully obvious.
Will looked at her confusedly before he said, "Yeah. The BAU helped me out on a case about a year ago. Just for the sake of clarity, I'm not here to investigate. Charlie was supposed to be married this August, so if the guy that floated up last night was him, then I guess I have the honor of notifying his fiancee. So she's gonna need some answers, closure, and I'm just here to get that for her."
"Do you know why he was here?" Rossi asked.
Will answered in his distinct New Orleans accent. "He was meeting up with some college buddies to compete in a regatta. He was a big boat guy."
Hotch then said, "So he wasn't travelling alone."
"Well, he came alone. He was meeting them here."
The Italian FBI agent suggested, "We should track these friends down, see if they saw anything. And the, uh, two other victims-any potential witnesses?"
Lopez replied, "No. Paul Hayes was here on business, and Daniel Brown came down to windsurf by himself."
Reid listened and said, "So, they were all essentially alone."
Prentiss added, "The unsub watched them long enough to know that."
"Yeah, he's probably already scoping out his next victim, and I don't have a damn thing to warn people with. So come on inside. I've got everything all set up," grumbled a disgruntled Detective Tina Lopez.
The team turned to follow her into the precinct, but as they were climbing the stairs into the office, Will pulled JJ aside to talk to her in private.
"Hey, wait," he said. "What was that?"
"What was what?"
"Professionally?"
Shit. JJ looked around awkwardly, not knowing how to answer.
Will asked, "You still haven't told them about us?"
Of course I haven't. "It's none of their business."
"Where do you tell them you go every weekend?"
"I don't."
"Wait-are you ashamed, or something?" Will suddenly prompted, concerned.
Not of you-not of this. I'm ashamed of my feelings; scared to confront them. I'm confused, JJ wanted to answer. Instead, she said, "What? No. No it's just that-" crap what do I tell him, what do I tell him "-in this team, everyone knows everything about everyone. There's no privacy. My personal life is one less thing they can profile, all right? We should get up there."
"Yeah, wouldn't want your team to think something's up, would we?" Will drawled sarcastically.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, please don't do this, ok?" JJ pleaded.
"You do realize this is gonna happen every now and then when our career paths cross, right?"
"Doesn't make it any less awkward." Fuck. She'd let that slip.
"Oh. Wow. Never realized how much awkward could sound like ashamed." The detective walked away, leaving an exasperated Jennifer Jareau in his wake.
Hotch stepped out of the hotel room to call Garcia to try to find where Charlie Luvet's rental car was.
Will made his way over to where JJ was and touched her arm lightly. She was already frustrated with both how Will was acting and with how her feelings were confusing her, so she jumped to the worst conclusion. "Don't!" She hissed.
Will looked hurt, but he didn't stop sorting through the luggage in front of him. "Standing in my dead partner's room, and you think I'm in the mood for grab-ass, huh?"
When he found a piece of evidence, he answered her questions about it forcefully and when she tried to apologize, all he did was throw his rubber gloves and evidence into her hands.
JJ winced. She knew that one was her own fault, but she also couldn't help but wonder if she was just now seeing another side of William LaMontagne Jr. The side where he hid behind snark and sarcasm when he didn't get what he wanted. Maybe what I'm doing isn't wrong. Maybe Will isn't as sweet as I thought he was. Maybe I should go to the sweet and wonderful man back at the-she stopped herself short. She could not afford to think that way.
Could she?
SSA Emily Prentiss had decided that JJ had hidden her relationship with William LaMontagne for long enough and wanted to take matters into her own hands.
As they were talking about the weather, she made her first move. "At least we have something fun to look at, keep us on our toes?"
JJ was confused, a feeling she was becoming all too familiar with. "What do you mean?"
"LaMontagne." Prentiss drew out his name in an effort to seem more interested.
JJ feigned surprise and looked back over her shoulder to where the New Orleans native stood, hunched over a desk. "You think so?"
"Don't you?" She responded.
If only you knew. But oddly, she didn't feel jealous when Emily kept commenting about his looks. What's wrong with me? I should feel…possessive, protective, something!
Reid then walked by where they were standing with Rossi and Morgan, on his way to get some much-needed water.
"She really called me the skinny guy?" Reid asked Rossi. He wasn't altogether surprised, although he would have thought she would have had the courtesy to call him something else.
"Yeah, she did, kid. Don't sweat it," he replied back.
"Besides, pretty boy, did you not notice how those girls were staring at you back on the beach? I think whatever a Miami cop thinks of you doesn't matter if you've got lovin' like that lining up at your door," said Morgan.
There. JJ felt a twinge of jealousy. For the lanky, skinny, genius. The one who was currently brushing his gorgeous hair out his beautiful face. The way he does that-again, JJ had to physically stop her train of thought. I am with William LaMontagne. He is my boyfriend. That jealousy is reserved for him only. That was more to remind herself than to commit.
Reid was in disbelief at what Morgan said. "Are you serious? Of course they didn't. Did you see the way they looked at you? Did you see the way Lopez looked at you? Hell, Morgan, you were standing right next to me!" He laughed. "They were probably checking you out."
Oh, you gorgeous man. JJ thought. She couldn't restrain her mind now. How can you not see how attractive you are?
JJ forced herself to watch Will intently while they were delivering their profile. She had to keep her eyes off of her Spence. Her Spence? She'd never thought he was hers. She shook herself back to the task she'd assigned.
The blonde was hoping to see something that would crush the doubts she had about her boyfriend. Instead, the more she watched, the less she liked. She saw the man wince at his partner's name, disgust where there was once was compassion in his eyes. She watched as he internally disavowed his relationship with his partner of eight years over something as trivial as his sexuality. She watched as he unmasked the man he really was.
She regretted not letting her mind wander to her not-so-appropriate fantasies about a certain set of hazel eyes, as it had so frequently since he'd dropped his addiction and regained his spark. She wished she'd just been able to wait.
JJ walked outside and overheard Will talking to Luvet's fiancee on the phone.
She realized he avoided speaking to the other woman completely about Luvet's sexuality. She'd thought he was a good man, one who would accept and love unconditionally, especially after what he'd been through with losing his parents.
Maybe he still was. He had to be. JJ had to reassure herself. Maybe he's still the same guy. His best friend was just killed. Imagine how you would feel if Spence was killed. You wouldn't be yourself either, right? Yeah.
She went to talk to him as he finished up the call. "Hey."
"You know, sure is warm in the Bayou, but at least it cools down some at night," said Will by war of conversation. He noticed the bag and coat in JJ's arms. "What, are you leaving?"
"Yeah, I'm beat," she answered exhaustedly.
"Without saying goodbye?"
Wow. Way to be a prick. "I didn't know where you were."
Will chose to call her bluff. "Did you look?"
No, why would I? After you were such an asshole all day, all I wanted was to get away. She remained silent.
"Should I be worried?" He asked, as if he wasn't being a pretentious jerk all day. "I mean it doesn't take a profiler to see that you got one foot out the door in this relationship."
That was it. JJ'd been struggling to keep her anger in check and something had to give. "Could you just PLEASE keep your voice down?" she whispered furiously.
"I don't care if they hear us," he snarked. Loudly, he yelled "Hey, yo!" toward the entrance of the precinct, above the angry protests the blonde was making. "I'm crazy about her!" He turned to JJ then and said, "I don't have a problem with people knowing about it."
Now, JJ was beyond furious. She'd wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt but any sympathy she had had for him just minutes ago had vanished. It was all she could do to keep her response to a curt, "Well, I do." If he couldn't grant her this little thing for a bit longer, how much would he compromise in the future?
"Why?" Will asked in angst.
"Just because!" What was she supposed to say? Because you can't compromise? Because you seemingly threw away years of brotherhood over your colleague's sexuality? Maybe you should be worried, Will! "It's my business. Mine!"
Will sighed. "Are you ashamed of this?"
I wasn't sure before, but I sure as hell am now. "Yes." Damn. She hadn't meant to let that slip. This was going to be a big mess. One she didn't have time for. "We're done, Will."
She spun on her heel and started walking toward the parking lot, ignoring Will's cries of anger and demands for explanation. It wasn't in her nature to be a bitch, but she felt freer than she had since she'd made that mistake of giving a NOLA detective her business card so many months ago.
JJ owed Will nothing anymore. But would she keep lying to herself?
Another morning, another body. No Will.
As they gathered in the alley to discuss what had happened, JJ found herself staring at a certain genius a lot more than she would have liked to admit. She didn't know what was going on with her, but the butterflies in her stomach seemed to explode whenever she made eye contact with a pair of warm hazel pupils.
After she'd noted down the information of the witness she had encountered she walked back toward her team and the detective and subconsciously ended up standing to the right of Spencer. He was on one of his cute rambles and she never wanted him to stop, she never wanted that long neck to stop producing those sweet sounds. I wonder what he would sound like in bed. Kissing that Adam's apple, running her fingers through her hair, those soulful eyes staring only at her-she had to stop before she needed another pair of underwear.
She returned back to the conversation.
Reid continued, "...that differentiates itself markedly from the expectations of the individual's culture. It manifests itself in-"
Morgan interrupted him. "He's a sick dude."
JJ had to put her hands in her pockets from slapping Morgan and hugging Reid. Derek had made that angelic voice stop, although she had to admit, that sheepish look on his face was adorable. She wished he'd take off his sunglasses so she could see those beautiful eyes again.
Jennifer Jareau had no idea what was happening but all she knew was she needed Dr. Spencer Reid to be hers.
JJ was uncharacteristically proud of her Spence. Even though it as Morgan who'd talked the unsub down and Lopez who'd kept him safe, she was proud of him. Even if all he did was what he normally did: make genius connections where no one else could. She was still proud.
He'd been the one to understand that Steven wasn't switching identities by choice, that he'd been beaten, attacked, humiliated into submission, into an illness in which he'd lost all sense of self and desperately looked for someone to be.
She couldn't imagine ever feeling like that, although she felt that if she'd stayed with Will much longer, she probably would have. She never felt like that with Spence. Never.
Unfortunately, she now had to go talk to the man she'd very rudely dumped last night. JJ was not looking forward to this.
"Detective Lopez signed this into your custody," JJ said curtly as she handed over Charlie Luvet's badge to Will.
He sighed. "Thank you."
"I still can't believe it."
"That Charlie was gay?" JJ had never thought he'd admit it out loud.
"No, that he thought he couldn't tell me. That he thought he had to hide it. I mean I can't think of anything I'd have cared less about than him being gay, you know?" He looked up.
But it didn't take a profiler to see that there was no sincerity in his eyes. That these were nothing more than empty words. Sick bastard figured out why I broke up with him yesterday and he's trying to play the loving friend now? If I had any sense I'd slap him. She didn't.
"Well. He was my friend, and I loved him, and all I ever would have wanted was for him to be happy, you know?" He threw one last Hail Mary in the hopes that JJ would change her mind.
She didn't.
Will seemed to realize that she had made peace with her decision. He stood to gather his coat. "Take care of yourself, JJ," he said, and he left. She watched him walk out toward his car through the window.
Prentiss saw the whole exchange and decided it was time for her Hail Mary. She stepped up next to where JJ was watching Will slowly make his way away from the precinct. "You should go for him," she said.
"What?" JJ was not present in the conversation. She was daydreaming about a certain long-haired genius of the opposite sex. Prentiss mistook her dreamy tone about Spencer for one for Will.
"You'd make a cute couple."
JJ still hadn't realized that Emily was talking about Will, and Emily hadn't realized that JJ was fantasizing about Reid in bed.
"You know what?" JJ said. She turned and instead of heading into the lot, she headed back into the precinct. She'd realized exactly why being with Will would have turned her into a longing shell of who she was. Jennifer Jareau had been in love with someone else this whole time.
Emily was thoroughly perplexed. She'd thought for sure her plan to get JJ to admit her feelings had worked. But she followed the woman clad in pink to wherever she was going.
That destination was Spencer, who, even though it was 7pm at night, was still making himself coffee-flavored sugar. JJ walked up to him, grabbed his hand, and practically dragged him out to the parking lot, where Will was still hovering.
"Jennifer, what are you doing?!" asked Reid. "I left some coffee on!"
She didn't answer. Will's face lit up when he saw JJ marching out toward him with Spencer in tow. Was she ready to reveal their relationship to her best friend? He wasn't sure, but all he knew was his plan had worked! JJ wanted him back after all.
JJ suddenly stopped and turned to Reid, halfway between where Will's car was and the precinct. "Spence, you trust me, right?" she asked.
"Well, yeah, but JJ, my coff-" he was cut off by a pair of lips crashing onto his own. He froze for a second. Wasn't Will her boyfriend? What was she doing? Spencer moved to pull away but JJ wasn't having any of it. She put both hands on his face and continued their liplock.
Reid officially lost any thought he'd had. All he could do was pull JJ closer to him as they ferociously battled for dominance with their tongues, making them both feel things they'd never felt before. JJ hadn't with Will and Reid hadn't with Lila. This was something real-something Spencer had never thought he'd feel again. Love. And it was obvious to anyone who might have been obvious.
Will's face fell and he punched his car. His ex was kissing her best friend in front of him and it was unlike anything he'd ever shared with her. He hopped into his car and sped off, muttering words no one could understand.
Through the window too, the three members of the BAU who'd trailed JJ and Reid could see their chemistry.
"You know, I wasn't expecting that when I told you guys I wanted JJ to admit her feelings," Prentiss said.
"Yeah but it's about damn time," Morgan chuckled. He'd been secretly hoping for his little brother to get a girl, and the fact it was the girl of his dreams made it all that much sweeter.
"Yeah, what's it been, like three years?"
