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Dave wanted things to be normal. Since the death threats and the security detail, he knew Erin was feeling on edge. She did a damn good job of hiding it but even her nearly patented HBIC mask was starting to slip. He knew he wasn’t making it any easier by not being around. No matter what, maintaining normalcy for Noah was essential.
The detail kept their distance and Ma'am was ever-present. Dave watched the hair come out of her brush every morning and night, at least the ones he was there. Erin was cracking and he needed to step up. The team went to Birmingham on an assessment but Rossi stayed behind. Morgan was leading the team now; the Section Chief asked Hotch to step down.
Dave tried to be three for Derek as an ear and #1, so to speak, but the two men didn’t have that kind of relationship. Prentiss was there for him and so was Hotch, even though he thought it best to stay hands off. Dave was torn; he knew the work was important. But an assessment, work on a stalled or cold case, was a bit less pressing than an active case.
His family had to be his top priority until George Foyet was smoked out of his hole and trapped. The wheels had already begun to turn on the final showdown. No one knew exactly what was coming; only that it was. They were all worried about the future but it had to end.
Tonight both Dave and Erin left Quantico early that evening. They wanted to go home and be with their son. Noah was surely happy to see them. They made spaghetti and meatballs together, had dinner as a family, and then worked on a serious Lego project. There was a lot of laughter and Dave felt the happiness in his belly.
It had only been four months but his family had settled into a comfortable life. It was a life that he never thought he’d live and one that Erin already lived. Still they held onto each other and to Noah. Whatever bumps were coming they were going to get through them together.
Later in the evening, after Noah was in bed, Dave and Erin relaxed in their bedroom. She’d just gotten out of the shower; sat on the end of the bed moisturizing. Dave sat on the loveseat working on his laptop. He’d stopped paying attention to the screen and was now fully engrossed in the woman he loved. Her hands moved slowly across her legs and then thighs. He licked his lips, imagining they were his hands.
“Damn baby.” He mumbled.
“Get your mind out of the gutter, David.” She said.
“Its not in the gutter…it’s between the sheets. It’s wrapping those long moisturized legs around my waist. Its making you say my name.”
“David. There, I said your name.”
“You can be unbearably cruel.”
“I've been practicing for years. You should be…”
Erin was cut off by the sound of Mudgie barking his head off. Mudgie was in Noah’s room. He always stayed in Noah’s room in the early part of the night. The retriever looked after the toddler until he was sound asleep. Sometimes he would come to the master bedroom to sleep and others he would stay in Noah’s room all night. Erin dropped her lotion, rushing out of the room as fast her feet could take her.
Dave was right on her heels, his laptop discarded just like his sexy thoughts. Rushing into the room, Erin saw Noah. He was sitting up in bed crying. He wasn’t just crying, he was screaming and his arms stretched out as soon as he saw Erin. Mudgie stopped barking as soon as Erin scooped him out of bed. Noah clung to her, crying.
“Bad dream, Ma'am; bad man! Don’t let the bad man get me!”
“It’s alright, sweetie.” She stroked his hair and mouthed to Dave that he’d wet himself. “Ma'am is here sweetie; I got you. I got you.”
“Bad man! I'm scared.” Noah cried.
“I know, I know, but Ma'am is here. No one is going to hurt you. Shh, it’s OK Noah.”
He held her tight, trying to control his hysteria. Dave got Mudgie off the bed and started pulling up the wet sheets. Noah wasn’t a bed wetter though it wasn’t unusual for a three year old. But the way he cried and screamed shook his father to the core. Noah knew something bad was happening and it was invading his dreams. That was unacceptable.
“C'mon sweetness,” Erin wiped his tears away and kissed his face. “We’ll get you cleaned up and put on some new pajamas. You want to wash up?”
Noah nodded. He was still sniffling and pouting. Erin also noticed he was trembling. That might be because he was wet from the waist down. It could also be that he was frightened.
His fear tore at Erin’s heart. Noah never had nightmares. The only time he wanted to sleep with Daddy and Ma'am was during thunderstorms. He loved being in his big boy bed with Muddy, as he called the dog. Now there were monsters under his bed.
She grabbed new pajamas and underwear from the drawer before taking Noah into the bathroom. Mudgie was right behind them. Dave was already going to the linen closet for new sheets. He needed some soap and water to wipe down the rubber mattress.
***
“Erin?”
“I'm alright.”
“That’s usually what people say when they're not OK. You at least need a coat…its November.”
“The cold air is good for me.”
“Baby, you're wearing a tee shirt and panties.” Dave replied. “You're going to get pneumonia.”
“Please just…” Erin sighed, unable to finish her sentence. She just held the Marlboro Mild to her lips with trembling hands, deeply inhaling.
“Baby,” he came out on the deck and wrapped his arms around her from behind.
He’d left Noah upstairs, which he didn’t really want to do, but he felt much safer in their bed. Erin had been downstairs too long and Dave needed to check on her too. She leaned on him, her breathing shallow. Dave knew her well enough to know she was seconds from crumbling.
Except that Erin Strauss wasn’t going to crumble. She was going to smoke her cigarette, straighten her back, and get on with it. Usually when she was like this Dave wasn’t allowed to touch her. Tonight was different and he was grateful. They needed to hold on to each other.
“You smell really good.” He brushed her hair aside and kissed the nape of her neck.
“I'm not wearing anything.”
“I like the sound of that.”
“You're trying to make me feel better.” Erin said, covering both his hands with one of hers.
“Yes I am. I'm always going to make you feel better. Do you know why?”
“Is it because I fuck your brains out?”
Dave couldn’t help but laugh out loud. He didn’t expect to hear that and that was one of the many reasons that he loved Erin. He’d known her forever and a day but she could still surprise him. She also made him laugh. Dave kissed the nape of her neck again.
“Come inside baby. You're shivering and I can warm you up. Nothing frisky, I’ll make you a cup of tea. You can cuddle under the blankets with Noah and get a good night’s sleep.”
“One more puff.” She replied. “I just…our little boy was petrified and I can't make that better.”
“That’s not true.” Dave shook his head. “You can't get rid of Foyet and the threats he's chosen to make. But you can always make Noah feel better. He’s upstairs right now and you should be with him.”
Taking another long drag of the cigarette, Erin plucked it into the dark night. It was only after she did it that she remembered that Dave hated that. She turned in his arms, not even bothering to hide her tears.
“I want you to get this bastard, David. I know its Aaron’s battle but Foyet is making it personal against all of us. I don’t want to be scared. I don’t want Noah to be scared. I'm angry…I'm pissed. You’ve got to get him.”
“I will; we will. I'm sorry, I never intended for any of this to happen. I don’t want you and Noah living in fear.” He kissed her. “C'mon inside, you need to warm up.”
Their arms around each other, the couple walked into the house. Dave locked up the house and put the alarm back on. He sent Erin upstairs to be with Noah. Then he went into the kitchen and put on the teakettle. It would probably be another sleepless night for Dave Rossi.
He had a lot on his mind and didn’t know how to make it stop spinning. Loss of control was not his strong suit, but it wasn’t anyone’s really. Someone threatening his family didn’t scare him as much as piss him off. He was going to find Foyet, his team was, and they were going to end this. They were going to end him.
And then Erin could sleep soundly. Then Noah wouldn’t have nightmares because he sensed his parents’ fears. Then Jack could come home and Hotch wouldn’t have to worry that his son was never going to know him. This couldn’t go on for much longer; Rossi just wasn’t going to have it. He had to find some way to get the control back. The boogeyman wasn’t allowed in his house.
***