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Set three months after ‘Thanksgiving’ (one year and nine months after they met).
“So, JJ,” Penelope leant forward. “Spill! Who is the new man in your life?”
JJ groaned quietly and gave Emily a betrayed look. She should have known that Emily and Penelope’s invitation to drinks contained a hidden agenda. She was just glad that she and Tony had come up with a plan for this eventuality – she’d known she wouldn’t be able to put her team off forever.
“It wasn’t me.” Emily denied quickly from behind her wine. “She figured it out all on her own.”
“Actually, Derek told me.” Penelope admitted with a grin.
“Derek knows?” JJ asked loudly.
“Everyone knows.” Emily rolled her eyes. “Come on, JJ, how long did you think you could keep this a secret? You’ve been dating the guy for over a year.”
JJ sighed and sipped at her wine. The wine was pretty disappointing after the delicious ones Tony always managed to buy.
“So who is he?” Penelope asked excitedly. “What does he do? Where did you meet him?”
“He’s in the navy,” JJ told them. “A marine. I met him at the café I stop for coffee at every morning.”
“Cute!” Penelope exclaimed, bringing her cocktail up to her mouth.
“And his name is…?” Emily asked with a grin.
“Tony.” JJ took another sip of wine and grimaced – it wasn’t getting any nicer.
“See that wasn’t that hard, was it?” Emily smirked.
“And when are you going to introduce us?” Penelope was basically bouncing in her seat.
JJ sighed. “I can’t.”
Emily and Penelope’s eyes both widened in surprise. “Why not?”
“His job is sort of intensely confidential.” JJ explained. “I had to sign a non-disclosure form just to get to know him.”
“He’s a marine.” Emily rolled her eyes. “Don’t they just run around and shoot things?”
JJ laughed. “Yeah, I said something similar to him on our first date.”
“Really?” Emily laughed. “And he wasn’t offended?”
“He has his PhD.” JJ told them. “I think he’s pretty confident in his intelligence.”
“A marine with a PhD?” Penelope smirked. “Sounds like every woman’s dream.”
JJ smiled dreamily. “He’s pretty great!”
Penelope giggled. “You’ve got it bad, girl!”
“And you’re seriously not going to introduce us?” Emily asked.
“Not yet, anyway.” JJ answered.
“So we will get to meet him?” Penelope beamed. “When?”
“In a year.”
“A year?!” Penelope asked loudly. “But that’s a whole three hundred and sixty five days away.”
JJ sipped at her wine again and then stood up. “I’ll be back. I need a new wine.”
“What’s wrong with the one you already have?” Emily asked.
“The taste leaves a lot to be desired.” JJ made her way to the bar and ordered herself a cosmopolitan. At least Tony’s immaculate taste in wine wouldn’t have ruined that for her too.
Emily gave her a weird look when she got back. “Since when have you been a wine connoisseur?”
“Tony buys all our wine these days.” JJ answered. “And it’s made me spoilt.”
“Wait,” Penelope narrowed her eyes. “Tony buys all your wine? That almost makes it sound as though you’ve moved in with him.”
JJ bit her lip guiltily. “Um,”
“Oh my god!” Penelope was bouncing again. “That’s so exciting!”
“He moved in with me actually.” JJ clarified.
Penelope waved a hand dismissively. “Semantics. So, when exactly did this moving take place?”
JJ thought about it. “Almost a year ago, I think. It was March last year.”
“How long have you been dating him?” Emily asked in surprise.
“I met him in May two years ago.” JJ told her. “So a year and nine months.”
“I’m impressed.” Emily told her. “We didn’t start suspecting anything until around Thanksgiving that year.”
“I can’t believe it took you this long to ambush me.” JJ laughed.
“I did ask you about it a year ago.” Emily reminded her. “But then I decided to give you some space.”
“So why the ambush now?” JJ asked with smile.
“It’s been eleven months!” Emily rolled her eyes. “I figured I’d given you enough space.”
“I want more details!” Penelope demanded. “What’s he like?”
“He’s wonderful.” JJ answered with a small smile. “He’s kind and thoughtful and loving.”
“And attractive I hope.” Penelope teased.
“Definitely attractive.” JJ nodded. “Especially when he puts on his uniform.”
Penelope put a hand to her forehead as though she was about to swoon. “I can only imagine.”
“So any plans?” Emily asked. “Marriage? Kids?”
JJ thought about the question for a few seconds before throwing caution to the wind. She put her hand to the back of her neck and undid the necklace that was hiding beneath her blouse. Then she held it out for them to see, engagement ring and all.
“Oh my god!!” Penelope squealed with excitement. “You’re engaged!”
Emily reached out a hand. “Let me see.”
JJ let the ring slide of the chain and handed it to her friend. It was so wonderful to be able to share her news.
“Very nice.” Emily told her with a smile before handing the ring to Penelope. “Did he pick it out or did you?”
“It was all him.” JJ answered.
“Then I’m very impressed.” Emily commented. “It’s very you.”
“I know.” JJ beamed. “I’ve always been sort of worried that the guy I ended up marrying would buy me a gold ring, because I just don’t wear gold.”
“Its white gold right?” Penelope asked, holding the ring up to her eye.
“Yeah.”
“This must have cost him a fortune.” Penelope pointed out. “There must be at least half a carat of diamonds on this thing.”
“So tell us about how he proposed.” Emily demanded.
JJ laughed. “I took him to parents’ house for thanksgiving and then took him cycling on this little mountain biking track. Unfortunately, he hadn’t ridden a bike since he was a kid and so he fell off right into this massive mud puddle. So I tried to help him out,”
“And he pulled you in with him?” Emily chuckled. “It’s what I would do.”
“Yeah,” JJ grinned at the memory. “So we’re both sitting there, covered in mud, and I made a smart comment about how at least I didn’t have mud on my face or hair. So he picked up a handful of mud and dumped it on my head before rubbing it in.”
“Are you sure this is the right story?” Penelope asked. “Because this doesn’t sound like any proposal story I’ve ever heard.”
JJ ignored her. “And then he pulled me closer, told me he loved me and asked me to marry him.”
“In a mud puddle?” Emily question with an amused smile.
“He’s one of a kind.” JJ laughed.
“Did he give you the ring then?” Penelope asked excitedly.
JJ shook her head. “Thankfully, no. I would probably have dropped it in the mud, never to be seen again. He gave it to me when we got back to my parents.”
“What did your Dad think?” Emily questioned.
JJ smiled. “Apparently Tony had already asked for his blessing a few days beforehand.”
“Awww.” Penelope exclaimed before handing JJ back the ring. “That’s cute.”
JJ slipped it on her finger, there was no point hiding it now.
“Perfect.” Penelope sighed happily.
“So, I get why we can’t meet him.” Emily said after a minute. “But why all the secrecy? Why keep it a secret for so long if you were just going to tell us now?”
“It was Tony’s idea.” JJ told her. “According to him, curiosity has a time limit. So, if I had told you all of this a year ago, you’d probably be itching to meet Tony now.”
“We are itching to meet him.” Penelope pointed out.
“But not desperately.” JJ replied. “It’s hard to explain. Tony does this much better. Basically, he told me that as long as you were content to let me have my secret, I should leave it there. Because knowledge is a slippery slope.”
Emily nodded slowly. “I think I understand, and it does make sense.”
JJ smiled in relief.
“So can we tell people?” Penelope asked. “And by people, I mean Derek. He made me promise that I would give him all the dirty details.”
“Yeah.” JJ nodded. “You can tell everyone. I’ll talk to Hotch on Monday.”
“So we should hold off on telling people until then?” Penelope asked with a disappointed frown.
“Just ask Derek not to tell anyone until I get a chance to talk to Hotch.” JJ suggested.
“I can’t believe you’re engaged.” Emily commented after a short silence.
“It’s like a movie.” Penelope agreed. “Aren’t you worried that he might get shot or something and leave you a not-widow?”
JJ frowned at her friend. “What?”
“Penelope!” Emily elbowed her. “What kind of question is that?”
Penelope winced. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” JJ assured her. “I hadn’t actually thought about it. Tony’s job isn’t very dangerous at the moment.”
“You mean aside from all the secrecy?” Emily asked, her eyebrows raised.
This time it was Penelope who elbowed Emily. “Moving on. Tell us more about Tony. Does he wear boxers or briefs?”
JJ’s mouth fell open in shock. “Penelope!”
8-8-8
Tony was in bed reading when he heard a taxi drop JJ off. He continued reading until she got to their bedroom, before closing his book and putting it on his bedside table.
“Have fun?”
“Yeah.” JJ smiled. “They asked me about you.”
“And?” Tony asked curiously.
“I told them what we planned.” JJ answered, as she unbuttoned her blouse. “They love the ring, by the way.”
Tony grinned. “And so they should. It’s a great ring.”
“I’ll talk to Hotch on Monday.” JJ told him, slipping off her skirt and stockings.
“How does it feel?” Tony asked. “I know you were really looking forward to telling Penelope and Emily.”
“Great.” JJ pulled her nighty over her head and then put her clothes in the laundry basket. “Though at one point Penelope asked me if I was scared that you would die on me.”
Tony’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “What?”
“That’s what I said.” JJ agreed. “I’ll be back, I’m going to brush my teeth.”
“Do you want a drink?” Tony asked. “I was just thinking of making myself a herbal tea before bed.”
JJ smiled. “Yes, please. A chamomile sounds lovely.”
It only took a few minutes to make two chamomile teas, and by the time Tony returned, JJ was in bed waiting for him.
“Thank you.” JJ told him when he put her tea on her bedside table.
Tony put his own tea down, before climbing into bed beside her. “So Penelope asked you about me dying?”
JJ sighed. “I don’t know what she was thinking. One minute she’s excited that I’m engaged and the next minute she asked me whether or not I was scared that you would die and leave me a not-widow.”
Tony grinned. “A not-widow?”
“I know!” JJ exclaimed. “Thankfully, Emily got her to stop talking. But then when I commented that you’re job wasn’t that dangerous, Emily pointed out that it had to at least be a little bit dangerous with all the secrecy.”
Tony shifted closer to her and wrapped an arm around he back. “Sounds cheery.”
“The problem is, they’re right!” JJ admitted quietly. “What if you do die? What if Vance is dirty and decides to kill you? Or SecNav? And federal agents die all the time. What if you get killed by an unsub?”
Tony winced. “This goes both ways too, you know. You’re a fed too.”
“Exactly!” JJ exclaimed. “So why are we waiting to get married until this is all over?”
Tony looked down at her in surprise. “What?”
“We should get married soon.” JJ said. “We could do it in North Versailles and invite my family.”
“I thought you would want to wait until your team could be there.” Tony commented.
“We can have a big reception in a year and invite everyone then.” JJ told him.
Tony honestly had no idea what to say.
“What do you think?” JJ questioned.
“Uh,” Tony grimaced. “I think we should sleep on it. This isn’t the kind of decision that we want to make at midnight after you’ve been drinking and listening to your friends feed you horror stories.”
JJ’s body tensed, as though for a fight, and then she sighed. “Do you not want to get married?”
Tony winced. “Of course I do. You know that. I would marry you tomorrow, but I think we need to think about this some more. I don’t want you to marry me because you’re scared I might die.”
JJ snuggled against his side. “I guess. That’s not the only reason I want to marry you soon though. The girls just gave me the idea. I’ve never understood the point of a long engagement.”
“A year and a half isn’t a long engagement.” Tony pointed out.
“And I don’t want a big wedding.” JJ went on, ignoring his interruption.
“How about we talk about it in the morning?” Tony suggested. “Or better yet, in a week. Think about it some more, talk to your mom, and if you still want to do this – then I’ll contact Lucten and Pike and figure out how we can do it.”
JJ twisted around and kissed him. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
8-8-8
“Do you have a minute?” JJ asked as she stood in the doorway of Hotch’s office.
“Do we have a case?” Hotch asked, rising in his seat.
“Nothing like that.” JJ reassured him. “I just need to talk to you about something.”
“Have a seat.” Hotch offered gesturing to the chair that sat in front of his desk. “What can I do for you?”
JJ sat down and smoothed down her skirt nervously. “I was talking to Emily and Penelope on Saturday night and they mentioned that everyone knew that I have been seeing someone.”
The corners of Hotch’s mouth twitched upwards into an almost smile.
“I told them about Tony.” JJ went on. “But I wanted to let you know as well, since we’re actually engaged.” She held up her left hand so that Hotch could see the ring.
Hotch’s eyes widened in surprise. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
“When will we be meeting your fiancé?” Hotch asked curiously.
“Well, that’s sort of the thing.” JJ answered nervously. “Because of his job, Tony’s not allowed to meet you for another year.”
“He’s not a criminal is he?” Hotch asked with another almost smile.
JJ laughed. “Nothing like that. He’s a marine.”
Hotch nodded. “Thank you for telling me.”
JJ shrugged one shoulder. “Sorry I didn’t tell you before. Things are just complicated because of his job.”
“That’s fine.” Hotch assured her. “You aren’t required to tell me anything about your private life if you don’t want to.”
“I know.” JJ answered. “But we’re a team. I don’t like keeping secrets from all of you.”
Hotch smiled at her. “I look forward to meeting him.”
8-8-8
“I hear you’re dating a marine?” Derek smirked at her when they bumped into each other at the coffee machine.
“Did you now?” JJ asked with a smile as she poured coffee into her mug
“A marine named Tony to be exact.” Derek continued. “What did Hotch say?”
“Congratulations and that he looks forward to meeting him one day.” JJ stirred in a spoon of sugar.
“Congratulations?” Derek asked as he poured is own mug of coffee.
JJ turned to face him. “Didn’t Penelope tell you?” She held up her left hand for him to see.
“You’re engaged?” Derek asked grabbing her hand to look at the ring. “Wow!”
“Hence the congratulations.” JJ explained.
“I can’t believe Penelope didn’t tell me.” Derek grumbled as Spencer wandered into the room holding an empty mug.
“What did Penelope tell you?” Spencer asked curiously.
“JJ’s engaged?”
Spencer’s mouth fell open in surprise. “What?”
“Exactly!” Derek agreed.
JJ rolled her eyes. “That makes no sense. You guys knew I was dating someone.”
“Unofficially!” Derek protested. “You never actually told us.”
“Consider this me telling you then.” JJ told them with a smile as she poured milk into her coffee.
“You’re supposed to tell your friends that you’re dating someone before you get engaged.” Derek told her.
Spencer looked confused. “Who is he?”
“Tony.” JJ told him before sipping at her coffee.
“He’s a marine.” Derek added. “But that’s all we know about him and JJ refuses to introduce us to him for another year!”
Spencer shook his head. “But why?”
“An excellent question.” Derek smirked at her.
JJ rolled her eyes. “Tony’s mission is confidential at the moment.”
“Really?” Spencer eyes brightened in interest.
“So I can’t talk about it.” JJ added quickly.
“So you’re engaged?” Spencer looked down at the ring on her finger. “That’s great, JJ. Congratulations!”
JJ smiled at him. It was so nice to be able to finally tell her friends about her and Tony.
8-8-8
“So…”
Tony looked up from his book and across at JJ who was sitting next to him. “Hmm?”
“It’s been a week.” JJ told him.
Tony frowned as he tried to figure out what she meant. What had they been doing a week ago? JJ had gone out with Penelope and Emily and had come home upset about…oh.
“Right.” He nodded.
“And I talked to my mom.” JJ said. “She thinks it’s a good idea.”
“Really?” Tony asked in surprise. “But we’ve only been engaged for three months.”
“I know.” JJ agreed. “But there’s no point prolonging our engagement just because.”
“There’s also no point getting married just because you’re scared I might die.” Tony countered.
JJ sighed. “I’ll admit that the idea of you dying is what gave me the idea, but that’s not the only reason. I want to be Mrs. Agent Doctor Lieutenant Colonel Dinozzo.”
Tony rolled his eyes. “That sounds ridiculous. Patience is a virtue you know.”
JJ wrinkled up her nose. “You sound like my mom.”
“I thought she liked the idea.” Tony challenged lightly.
“She does.” JJ replied. “She didn’t at first, but when I explained all my reasoning to her she said it made sense. Especially when I promised that we would throw a big reception next year.”
“And your dad?” Tony asked.
“Doesn’t understand why us young folk wait so long to get married anyway.” JJ chuckled.
Tony laughed with her. “So you want to get married soon?”
“I do.” JJ grinned at him. “Mom and I were thinking maybe the 4th of April.”
Tony calculated it in his head. “That’s five weeks away.”
“I know.” JJ snuggled against his side. “What do you think?”
Tony wrapped an arm around her. “Sounds good to me.”
8-8-8