Hi everyone! Thanks for taking the time to read my story. I always rate my stories M for violence, language, and sexual situations. I hope you enjoy – please leave comments xoxo

(xxxxx)

It was an unseasonably chilly August night, when the team arrived home from a particularly difficult case involving children. These types of cases always left a bigger impression on them. At Penelope's suggestion, Derek, Emily, J.J., and Spencer met her for dinner. At the diner, after they were all seated and placed their orders, Penelope giggled with excitement and held up something she found on the table.

"We are so playing!" she said opening the small blue and white box.

"What is that?" Derek asked looking skeptically at her.

"It's called Talk Topics. A lot of places are doing this now, so people put down their phones and actually talk to one another," she said pulling out a card.

"We talk to each other just fine," Derek said leaning back in his chair.

"Oh, don't be such a stick in the mud. This is a good one," she said reading the small blue card. "What is your guilty pressure?"

"Do we have to play?" Derek whined.

"Yes," Penelope said glaring at him. "I'll go first. My guilty pleasure is I actually enjoy watching golf. It's super peaceful and relaxing."

The group giggled lightly.

"I like to watch wrestling with Henry," J.J. said handing the card to Derek.

He rolled his eyes. "Before I say anything, if I play this stupid game, this is between the five of us only. I don't want to become the butt of all your jokes," he said.

"Why? You do it to me all the time," Spencer said matter-of-factly.

"Ouch," Emily said wincing at that statement.

Derek just looked at Spencer, who shrugged and took a sip of his tea.

"Alright, fine. My guilty pleasure is that … I … sometimes … watch," he looked down completely embarrassed.

"Oh, come on! Quit stalling and spit it out!" Penelope said rolling her eyes.

"I sometimes watch Say Yes to the Dress," he said covering his face.

Everyone busted out laughing. He tossed the card to Spencer, who was still laughing at Derek's admission.

"My sisters got me into it," he said trying to save face.

"Sure," Emily teased.

"I want to know more about that," J.J. said, her face red from laughter.

"Shut up! Reid your turn," he said.

"Uh, I guess I like to listen to pop music," he said shrugging. He didn't feel as embarrassed as he thought he would.

"Name someone specifically because that's not really a good guilty pleasure," Penelope said.

"Considering you all probably assumed I only listen to classical, it is a guilty pleasure," he started as the others nodded in agreement.

"Ok, fair point, but still pick someone specifically," Penelope said.

"Ok, umm, I guess Maroon 5," he said blushing a bit at the giggles. He quickly handed the card to Emily.

"I actually love Maroon 5," she said to him as she took the card. "My guilty pleasure is …" she looked up at the ceiling a moment thinking, "that I sleep with a teddy bear I've had since I was a baby. Don't know why, but I love it and it comforts me when I'm alone."

"Big tough guy, Prentiss likes her teddy," Derek teased.

"Big tough guy Derek's about to get kicked in the balls," she said shooting him a look.

Derek laughed as he lifted his hands midway in surrender. Penelope passed the box to J.J, who pulled a card out and read it.

"What is your hidden talent? My hidden talent is I can pee, shower, and get dressed in less than five minutes," she said. "With kids, you don't get many luxuries, so I've learned to adapt."

Derek took the card and scratched his chin in thought.

"I can write poetry," he said handing the card to Spencer, who looked at him impressed.

Spencer swirled his straw around his glass in thought. Finally, he seemed to get an idea.

"So, you know how I learned to play keyboard a few years back?" Everyone nodded. "I progressed rather quickly and started to get bored, so I taught myself how to play guitar."

"Wow, Reid that's amazing. Learning guitar can be very difficult," Emily said as she took the card.

"Yea, to master the keyboard and pick up the guitar on your own, that is impressive," J.J. agreed.

"Y'all are talking to a genius. Are you really that surprised?" Derek asked.

There was a slight murmur of agreement as Emily stared at the card.

"Alright, Em, what's your hidden talent?" J.J. asked as she took a sip of her water.

"I am actually a really good singer," she said handing the card to Penelope.

"What?" J.J. said nearly choking on her water. "No way, I've heard you do karaoke …"

"Me too," Penelope said.

"Yes, you've heard me do karaoke. That doesn't mean I actually sang. It's not hard to sound shitty," she defended.

"Alright, prove it. Sing right now," Penelope demanded.

"What? No way!" Emily said tossing the card at her.

"Why not?" Penelope said flinching as the card bounced off her arm.

"First of all, we are in the middle of a diner. I'm not singing for a crowd of people. Second, that is not part of the game. It doesn't say we have to show our hidden talents. Third, I don't sing for anyone, hence the hidden part. I did it once when I was a child and I'll never do it again," she said clearly bruised by that memory.

"Fine, but one day I'm going to hear you sing," Penelope said pointing her finger at her.

"Good luck with that," Emily said.

Penelope picked up the card and handed it to J.J.

"My hidden talent is that I can dance. I don't do it often, but when I do, I rock that dance floor," she said grinning.

"Next time we go dancing, I want to see some of that mama," Derek said winking at her.

"I don't know if you can handle it, chocolate thunder," Penelope flirted.

"Alright, alright, pick a card," J.J. said handing Derek the box.

He pulled out a card and got a huge grin on his face. "Did I mention how much I like this game?" Everyone looked at him suspiciously. "Do you have a crush? If so, who?"

"It does not say that!" J.J. said grabbing the card from his hands.

She read over the card and frowned. "It does say that, minus the who part," she said giving him the card back.

"Yea, so I spiced it up a bit. Sue me. Don't pick a celebrity either, that's too easy. It's got to be someone you actually like, that you could actually date," Derek said.

"I quit," Emily and Spencer both said at the same time.

They looked at each other, while the others looked at them.

"Oh, come on. Look I'll start. So, there's this girl, she's a doctor. I see her often on my way to work. Sometimes we talk to one another while we wait for our morning coffee. She's gorgeous, with this soft almost caramel black skin. Her eyes are this dazzling brown. I hope one day to ask her out," Derek said handing Spencer the card.

"Wow, Derek, that was actually real. She sounds amazing. Do you know her name?" J.J. asked.

"Savannah. She is amazing," he replied with a little sparkle in his eyes.

"Spence, what about you?" J.J. said looking at him.

He frowned at all eyes on him as his head dropped and he fidgeted with his napkin.

"You do like someone," Penelope said noticing the shyness.

He nodded slowly, still staring at the napkin in front of him.

"Well, who?" J.J. asked.

"Can't it just be enough that I said yes?" he muttered.

"I told you about Savannah," Derek said arms crossed across his chest.

"You also added that to the card. It's not in the initial question, therefore it should be optional," Spencer said adamantly. "Besides, nobody asked. You offered that information up freely."

"It must be someone we know, otherwise you wouldn't fight so hard to keep it a secret," Derek said as a grin stretched across his face.

"Her name is Ann," he said before handing the card to Emily.

"No, it's not. You just made that up," Derek said.

"Morgan, can we just drop it," Spencer said with a hint of anger.

"Let him go," J.J. said softly, seeing the embarrassment on her friend's face.

"If we know who she is, maybe we can help you out," Derek said trying to be more brotherly.

Spencer dropped his napkin onto the table and looked at Derek.

"I don't need anyone's help, because I'm not pursuing it," he said irritated.

"Why?" Garcia asked, with her normal concerned sweetness.

"Look, I appreciate the offer, but the fact stands that she is not interested in me and I am not going to embarrass myself by asking her out," he said. "Now, please, drop it."

His tone was enough to leave an awkward silence at the table. Suddenly, the waitress appeared and started handing out everyone's entrée. The game was forgotten and everyone broke off into mini conversations while they ate.

(xxxxx)

Emily had offered to drive Spencer home. He had remained quiet the rest of the meal and she felt sorry for him. She knew Derek didn't mean to be overbearing, but at times he could get a little carried away.

Emily glanced over at Spencer and gave him a small empathetic smile, though he didn't see it as he stared out the window.

"Don't let Morgan's bark get you down," she said gently.

"I don't. It's just annoying sometimes. He acts as though I'm not capable of functioning," Spencer replied moodily.

"He knows you're capable. He … we are all protective of you and sometimes that can come off wrong," Emily said.

"Why are you all so protective of me? I'm 36 years old. I think I've proven over the past eleven years that I'm more than capable of taking care of myself," he said offended, as he turned his head to look at her.

"Reid, no one thinks that you can't take care of yourself. Our protectiveness stems from the first day we met you. You are a rare human being and in your earlier year's people would take advantage of that. We formed a protective bond around you and that isn't something that just goes away," she tried to explain.

He shrugged and looked back out the window. Emily drove quietly for a few more minutes before turning into his apartment complex. She stopped the car and placed a hand on his knee to gain his attention. He looked at her confused.

"You are a great catch, Reid. You don't need anyone's help to tell that girl your feelings. She would be crazy to tell you no," she said smiling at him.

Spencer tried to hold back a smile, but it proved difficult. He nodded and opened the car door.

"Thank you for the ride," he said.

"No problem. See you tomorrow," she said.

Spencer shut the door and watched Emily drive away. She always seemed to understand him and knew the right things to say. That is why his heart had always been Emily's and why he'd never tell her so.