A/N: Hello! This is my entry for the CCOAC Valentine Challenge. My chosen character was Derek Morgan, my assigned character was Erin Strauss.

These are the prompts (have to use at least three):

Candy hearts

Chocolate syrup

A dozen red roses

Edible panties/underpants

Can You Feel the Love Tonight (by Elton John)

I Wanna Sex You Up (by Color Me Badd)

The story features some mild language. There's romance between Derek Morgan and Spencer Reid, and also between Erin Strauss and Dave Rossi. Hope you like it-please review! Thanks, loves.

A law enforcement advocacy group has invited the entire BAU team to headline at a national conference taking place in New York on Valentine's Day; they are to be given an award for excellence. Strauss has okay'd them attending the event, and, in the wake of her messy divorce, decides it would be a good distraction for her to go along, too.

Morgan cast a sly look at Reid. They were in the hotel bar, and the young agent was sipping wine, completely oblivious to the heat coming from Morgan's glance. He idly swirled the dark purple liquid around in his glass, then, inexplicably, strode off to stand on the balcony with JJ and Rossi.

Morgan sighed. Being subtle was losing its charm; clearly, he was going to have to kick things up a notch if he wanted to get the pretty boy's attention. He tossed back the remains of his gin-and-tonic, then turned, ready to follow Reid outside. But, something in his peripheral vision stopped him; he could feel someone gazing at him. He swiveled and discovered Erin Strauss's eyes locked on him in a laser-like stare.

Morgan swallowed hard. Had she observed the desire that must have been evident on his face as he attempted to catch Reid's eye? Damn it, Morgan thought. In an attempt to deflect her judgment, Morgan smiled innocently, winked, lifted his glass toward her, then casually strolled out to the balcony.

I knew it, Strauss thought.

Derek Morgan had a crush on her.

"I don't know what I'm going to do, Dave." Strauss idly flipped through a stack of papers she'd brought with her as she waited for a response from the senior agent. David Rossi frowned, genuinely bewildered.

"So, you say Derek Morgan has been coming on to you?" Rossi was careful not to sound incredulous. After all, Strauss was a handsome woman. She looked good for her age, and she was strong and confident-marvelous qualities, things that Rossi found quite appealing. But, he'd never noticed Morgan behaving as though he shared Rossi's appreciation for her.

Strauss sighed. "Not coming on to me, exactly. No, he's much more subtle than that. He... flirts. Little winks and smiles. The looks he gives me. Then, other times, it's the way he acts around me-nervous, I'd say, somewhat on edge, as if he wanted to keep something from me. It's disquieting, and terribly inappropriate. I know I should speak to him, but I don't want to create an awkward situation between us." Strauss raised her eyes to Rossi's. "Do you think you could talk to him? Man to man? Tell him I'm flattered, but that it's impossible for anything to happen between us?"

Rossi shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Isn't this a job for Hotch? He's Morgan's direct supervisor."

"Oh, that would go well. Morgan would resent that even more! No, you're his peer. It would be much more palatable coming from you. Please..." Strauss smiled slightly. "I'd really appreciate it."

Rossi smiled back. She really was lovely when she smiled. "I'll see what I can do."

Her smile deepened. "Thank you."

Rossi couldn't help noticing that, when the light hit a certain way, it showed just how blue her eyes really were.

"Morgan, do you have a moment?"

Morgan looked up from the guide to local restaurants he was studying. "Sure, Rossi. What's up?"

Rossi cleared his throat. "Uh... Strauss asked me to speak to you about something, and I have to say, it's a rather awkward situation."

Morgan froze; oh, goddamn. All he needed was for Rossi to have a father-son talk with him about not wearing his heart on his sleeve as he mooned after Reid at work. Well, he wasn't going to fall for it. Rossi wasn't going to nudge an admission out of him. He steeled himself.

"All right. Go ahead."

"Morgan, look. Sometimes, working closely with someone leads to... feelings. Inappropriate feelings. Do you know what I mean?"

Morgan narrowed his eyes. Damn, had he really been that obvious? Sure, he sometimes got lost in thought as he watched Reid excitedly gesturing with his expressive hands as he explained some theory or other, but...

"No."

Rossi swiped a hand across his brow; this was already going so not-well. "Okay. Well, I just mean that, if you ever were to find yourself in such a situation, it would be advisable to... deal with it in an appropriate manner, before it impacted your work. Don't you agree?"

"I suppose. I still don't know what you're talking about, though."

Rossi nodded. "Right. Well... Never mind. I just needed to tell you that."

"Uh-huh. Anything else?"

"No, that's it."

Morgan steadily held his gaze, and Rossi nodded, then hastily stepped out of the hotel conference room. God, he hated uncomfortable moments like that. Plus, Morgan really did seem to be hiding something, but it was just so... unlikely that it had anything to do with Strauss.

Rossi smiled at the thought of the Section Chief-she really was so cute to be concerned about Morgan's feelings like that. Ah, well. Things would work out, somehow. He strolled off, a bit of a spring in his step, wondering if he might do well to ask the lady to dinner.

Morgan was in full pursuit mode. Reid had announced that he was tired and ready to go up to his hotel room for the night, and Morgan calculated that he had a maximum of seven minutes to "casually" catch up to him before he got in the elevator. A nice, long elevator ride would be the perfect opportunity for him to make his first unsubtle attempt at laying his cards on the table.

He had his bullet points ready. One, he was attracted to Reid. Two, he knew Reid was, at the very least, bi-sexual, as was he. And, three, he thought they'd make a pretty good pair, romantically. He just had to break through Reid's obliviousness and find out if there was any way Reid might feel the same towards him.

Morgan was willing to do anything, if only he'd give him a chance.

Morgan had been rehearsing his speech all evening, and the sight of Reid rounding the corner spurred him to catch up to him. And, he would have, too, if Strauss hadn't come around the opposite corner at the exact same moment. She ran smack into Morgan, who was forced to grab her shoulders to keep her from falling.

"Whoa, whoa, there-are you okay?" he asked.

Strauss gave him a deer-in-the-headlights look. "Uh-yes. Yes, I'm fine."

Morgan was breathing hard and he was slightly stunned that his prey had gotten away from him so easily. He just stood there, blinking.

"Morgan-let me go." Strauss spoke sharply. Morgan dropped his hands.

"Oh-sorry. I'm... sorry." He stared past the woman toward the closing elevator doors and shut his eyes, forcing down his annoyance.

Strauss could sense the awkwardness; had her rejection so upset him? Perhaps this was as good a time as any to put a stop to this nonsense. She cleared her throat.

"Morgan, have you spoken to Rossi lately?"

Morgan opened his eyes, bewildered. "Uh-not since this afternoon. Why?"

He looked so vulnerable; her resolve faded. She just couldn't do this to him so off-handedly. "No reason. Never mind. Well, I, uh... I'll see you tomorrow. Good night."

"Night, ma'am."

Morgan hurried past her. Maybe if he bounded up the stairs, he could catch Reid as he headed to his room. It was only twelve flights.

Strauss watched the younger man hurry away. Clearly, her studied disinterest had hurt him; her heart went out to Morgan. He really was trying so hard to be professional about this. And, she had to admit, it was a good thing she wasn't twenty years younger, or she'd be in real danger of being swept away by the handsome agent. She felt a curious mix of pride and pity-she'd had no idea she'd had such an affect on him!

She drew herself up and smiled to herself as she sauntered off to the hotel bar to meet up with the rest of the team.

Morgan hadn't been able to beat the elevator, and by the time he made it to Reid's floor, he'd already disappeared into his room. Morgan stood there panting, pondering whether or not to knock on the young profiler's door, then decided it would just be too weird. He may have given up on subtle, but he wasn't quite ready for in-your-face.

He'd try again tomorrow.

Meanwhile, downstairs, Strauss walked into the hotel bar and made a beeline for Rossi. He was seated at a table, watching Prentiss, Garcia, and JJ as they chatted and laughed by the bar. Hotch was nowhere in sight, probably already in his room. Rossi gave her a welcoming smile, and she sat down next to him.

"I thought you were going to have a word with Morgan," she said sternly.

"Uh-yeah, about that. I tried to, but... Erin, are you certain you're not misreading Morgan's intentions? I mean, when I broached the subject, he didn't appear to have the slightest idea what I was referring to."

Strauss waved a hand dismissively. "I'm not surprised. He's trying very hard to keep his emotions in check. You should have seen him just now-it was such a struggle, and he ended up just hurrying away. You're going to have to be more direct, obviously. Forget being subtle, just come right out and say it."

Rossi nodded, noting how elegant her fingers were as she gripped her diet Coke.

Morgan felt like a panther lying in wait on a hiking trail. He was determined to intercept Reid before he headed outside to grab a cab to go to dinner; his plan was to start up an easy conversation, laugh and joke a little before Reid had a chance to escape. Then, he'd manage to invite himself along, and at some point over dinner, he'd tell Reid exactly what was on his mind-and in his heart. The thought made his stomach churn a bit, but he didn't care. He couldn't keep his feelings bottled up much longer.

He was slouching against the wall next to the hotel exit when he spotted the lanky agent ambling through the lobby. He straightened up, tucked his shirt more neatly into his pants and was just about to move into position, when Erin Strauss came up behind him.

"Morgan-I need to speak with you." Strauss had spent the afternoon turning the problem over and over in her mind, and she'd decided it was no good leaving it to Dave to deal with. After all, she was the object of Morgan's affections, and she was also the boss. It was her responsibility to handle it, straight out, like ripping off a band-aid. She planted herself in front of the man, effectively blocking his way.

"Oh-uh... Huh?" Morgan had been so intent on watching Reid's movements, he'd failed to see the Section Chief approach. He turned, startled, and stared at her blankly.

"I'm just going to be honest," Strauss said. "I've noticed your attraction."

"Excuse me?"

Morgan felt a hot flood of embarrassment warm his cheeks. He thought he'd been so careful to hide his feelings-was he really that poor of an actor? Obviously so, if Strauss was calling him out here in the middle of the hotel lobby.

"Surely you understand how impossible the situation really is. Please know, I understand what you're going through. I've been in similar situations myself, back in my younger days." Strauss smiled slightly, hoping to ease the pain of being let down for Morgan.

Morgan, however, was having a difficult time envisioning Strauss in a lesbian scenario. Although, now that she brought it up... He just continued staring at her, open-mouthed.

Strauss was pleased to see that he was taking the news so calmly.

"It's a matter of professionalism. You must let this go; I'm not concerned about the fraternization guidelines, I honestly don't care about that. It's just the fact that it makes everything so awkward. You can see that, can't you? I'm so sorry to have to say this to you, but-it's my responsibility to address such matters."

"I... uh... Yes, ma'am."

"Good." Strauss squared her shoulders and nodded approvingly. "I'm so glad we had this talk, Morgan. You know how much I respect you. And, yes, it will be difficult for a while. But, things will improve, in time. You'll meet someone else, someone more appropriate, and you'll forget you ever felt this way. Trust me." She very platonically laid a hand on his shoulder, beamed kindly at him, then walked past him, pleased to have the matter settled at last.

As he turned to watch her leave, Morgan saw Reid outside, climbing into a cab.

He forced himself not to smash his hand into the wall.

Strauss met Rossi at the other end of the lobby. He was holding a dozen red roses, and when the section chief joined him, he placed them in her arms and said, "Happy Valentine's Day."

Strauss stared at them, a look of utter surprise on her face.

"Dave! What in the world..."

"Lovely roses for a lovely lady." Rossi leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her lips. Strauss blinked a few times in rapid succession and then began to sputter.

"B-but-what, I mean, when-"

"I've had feelings for you for a long time, my dear. While you were married, I never allowed myself to admit it. But, now... Well, it seems foolish to keep pretending." Rossi let that soak in, then added, "I just need to know one thing-is there any chance you might feel the same towards me?"

"Oh... Oh, Dave. I... Yes. Yes, I do." She stared into Rossi's dark eyes. "I have, for a long time."

Rossi's smile morphed into an impish grin. "Then, perhaps one day soon-we'll be able to make use of these." He handed her a plain paper bag. Strauss looked inside and then at Rossi. A slow smile crossed her face; clearly, Dave Rossi was not one for subtlety. Well, subtlety be damned.

Strauss had never owned a pair of edible panties before, but suddenly, they seemed like a very practical gift indeed.

"Reid, where are you?"

Morgan was done-it was time to cut to the chase. He gripped his cell phone and stared out the window in the direction of Reid's departure.

"I'm in a cab-I'm meeting the girls for dinner."

"Call them and tell them you won't be joining them."

"What?"

"Cancel dinner with the girls and have the cab take you to La Travatore on Main. I'll meet you there."

"But, Morgan-what's wrong? What's going on?"

"I need to talk to you, man. Please. Meet me at La Travatore."

"Are you okay?"

"I will be. I just need to talk to you."

"Well... Okay. But, you're kind of freaking me out."

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry-but, I'll explain when I see you."

"All right. Driver? Change of plans..."

Morgan clicked off his phone and went out to get a cab himself.

Reid entered the restaurant and scanned for Morgan; his co-worker strode up to greet him with a smile on his face. He'd changed into dressy-casual wear, with a soft turtleneck and crisp blazer making him look even more dashing and elegant than usual. Reid took him in from head to toe, and felt utterly bewildered.

"Hey, man," Morgan said.

"Hey. Wow, you look nice. What's all this about?"

"Let's get a table. Miss? We're ready to be seated."

"This way, sir."

After the pair was shown to a secluded booth, their orders taken, and a glass of wine set in front of each of them, Reid was barely able to contain his concern and curiosity.

"Okay, now, tell me what the heck is going on. What's so urgent that you had to hijack me from my dinner plans?"

Morgan ran his tongue over his lips. He took a deep breath, and gazed at some point beyond the edge of the booth. Then, he said simply, "Spencer-I'm in love with you."

Reid stared. He blinked. Then, he laughed.

"Okay-that's very funny. God, Morgan, when you go for a practical joke, you go all out. But, may I remind you, this is Valentine's Day, not April first." He chuckled and picked up his wine glass.

Morgan put a hand on his wrist.

"It's not a joke. I've been trying to tell you for months. I kept... I've been sending you signals, being all subtle, you know? But, it hasn't worked. And, I'm sorry to just throw this at you, but damn, kid, you are not paying attention. So, I'm going to say it again. I love you. I think we'd be good together." He held Reid's disbelieving gaze for a long moment, then faltered. "That's... That's it. That's what I had to tell you." He dropped his eyes and concentrated on smoothing the napkin in his lap. Okay, he'd been too brash; Reid was totally put off. The best thing to do now was to just shut up.

The silence was stifling.

After the long moment during which Morgan's statement sank in, Reid frowned. "Wait a minute-you're actually serious. You're... in love with me?" The words came out in a slightly strangled manner.

"Yeah." Morgan gave a sardonic huff. "And, you seriously didn't have a clue."

Reid took a deep breath and shook his head. "No, I didn't. I guess I was so busy hiding my feelings for you that I didn't notice. I'm... pretty single-minded that way, sometimes." He smiled wryly. "To my detriment, apparently."

Morgan began to grin. "Wait-you... You have feelings for me?"

Reid nodded. "Yeah. I used to think it was purely an inappropriate sexual attraction, so I just repressed it. But... It's more than that. Has been, for a long time." He laughed, abashed. "I love you, too, Derek."

Morgan thought his face would split from smiling so hard. He reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a small box of "conversation hearts," little candies with sayings printed on them. He poured a few into his palm, picked one out, then pressed it into Reid's hand. "What do you say, pretty boy?"

Reid took the heart between his thumb and forefinger and peered at it. "'Be mine.'" He looked critically at Morgan. "Kind of cheesy, don't you think?"

"Hey-it's the best I could do on the spur of the moment, given the crummy gift shop there at the hotel." Morgan took the candy heart and laid it in Reid's open palm. "But, those two little words say it all. I'm offering you my heart, Spencer. What do you say?"

Reid closed his fingers around the candy and his face eased into a smile. "I'll take it. And, I'll keep it safe." He dropped it into the breast pocket of his jacket, patted it, then put his hand on Morgan's. "Right next to my own."

Morgan gave his hand a squeeze and smiled back.

Two days later; it was evening, and the conference had come to a successful conclusion. Now, the team was getting ready to depart for home. Reid took his suitcase and headed for Morgan's room. He knocked on the door, and Morgan pulled him inside and took him into an eager embrace. At some point in the course of their long dinner together, they'd agreed to wait until they were back on familiar turf before taking things to the next level; right now, it was overwhelming enough, finally getting to know how the other felt.

"I can't wait to get home," Morgan murmured into Reid's ear.

"Me, too. It'll be nice to relax a little before we go back to work. It's hard, starting a relationship under the watchful eye of your teammates."

Morgan leaned back enough to look into Reid's eyes. "I don't want to sneak around for long, though. After we, you know-get things on track, I want to let everyone know about us."

"Oh, I agree completely. Deception isn't healthy. Although..." Reid chewed his lip, and Morgan frowned.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Well... It's just that there are policies about fraternization. What if Strauss decides to give us a hard time?"

Morgan laughed. "Hey, listen-don't worry about Strauss."

"Oh, really? Why?"

"Let's just say one camera phone plus Strauss and Rossi sneaking kisses out on the balcony equals 'no problem.'"

"Oh, my God. Strauss and Rossi?"

"Yeah! I saw him giving her roses, so I kind of kept an eye on the two of them, and sure enough..." Suddenly, Morgan frowned.

"What?"

"Do you know she had the nerve to scold me for chasing after you? Called me 'inappropriate?' And, all the while, she and Rossi are, like, 'I wanna sex you up...'"

Reid chuckled at Morgan's impromptu singing.

Just then, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" came on the alarm clock radio. The two stood quietly listening to the lyrics, just holding each other.

There's a calm surrender to the rush of day

When the heat of the rolling world can be turned away

An enchanted moment, and it sees me through

It's enough for this restless warrior just to be with you *

"Sounds like he's singing about us," Morgan said with a smile. "What do you think, Spence? Do we have a chance together?"

"I think we do." Reid rested his head on Morgan's shoulder. "I really do, Derek. At least, I know we're going to give it everything we've got."

"You know it."

A few weeks later, Erin Strauss lounged happily in Rossi's bed as he picked out his clothes for the day.

"Dave-what do you want to do for dinner tonight?"

"I was actually thinking of cooking. Maybe invite the team over-we never did get to properly celebrate our award."

"That's a marvelous idea." Strauss smoothed the bed sheet and smiled as Rossi came to perch next to her. "They're a good group."

"The best." Rossi planted a sweet kiss on her lips, then sat back and chuckled.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh, uh... Nothing."

"No, tell me."

Rossi smirked. "I was just wondering if Reid and Morgan might have a little announcement for us tonight."

"Announcement? What are you talking about?"

"Morgan and I had a long talk yesterday, on the way back from the case. He and Reid are... in a relationship."

"What?"

"Yeah! They started seeing each other right after the conference a couple of weeks ago."

Strauss blinked. She thought of Morgan's face when she'd had her talk with him. She shook her head wonderingly.

"Oh, my God."

"What is it, sweetness?"

"When I put my foot down about Morgan's attraction to me-I must have turned him gay!"

Rossi paused, his mouth hanging open for a minute. Then, he smiled.

"Well, personally, I think you did him a favor. He seems very happy, now."

Strauss nodded thoughtfully. "I've noticed that, actually." A smug expression crossed her face. "See? I told you it was just a matter of being direct. Subtlety is a tremendous waste of time when it comes to matters of the heart."

"I couldn't agree more," Rossi said as he leaned forward for another kiss. "Speaking of which-I love you, Erin."

Strauss felt a sweet rush run through her and she drew him into a tight embrace. Finally, for the first time, she allowed herself to say what was in her heart.

"Oh, Dave-I love you, too."

Subtlety be damned.

*Can You Feel the Love Tonight, by Elton John and Tim Rice.