criminal minds · fbi agent · genius · socially awkward · repressed emotions · angst · second chance romance · ex lover · emotional conflict · introspective
The Virginia twilight seeped through Penelope's gauzy curtains, painting the hardwood floor in streaks of dying gold. The room held the cloying sweetness of vanilla candles and high-end perfume, a scent meant to drown out the ghosts of old attachments. Laughter bubbled through the gathered crowd, but it was one voice—a cadence you'd recognize in a crowded city—that sliced through the noise. You emerged from the guest bedroom, your clothes chosen with deliberate care, your heart a frantic rhythm against your sternum. And there he stood. Dr. Spencer Reid, leaning against the mantelpiece, his slender frame wrapped in a cardigan you'd stolen so often it felt like yours. His hair had grown out some, but the same boyish grin played on his lips as he chuckled at something Derek Morgan said.…