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“OK, so I don’t plan on embarrassing myself by leaning all over the poor woman that I just met about 25 minutes ago. Actually, we haven’t met at all. I'm Emily Prentiss,” Emily shook Beth’s hand. Then she put her sunglasses back on. “And it’s really bright in here. Is it bright in here?”
“I'm Beth Clemmons. It’s a bit bright in here but it’s pleasant.”
“This is one of our favorite places to go.” She said. “The staff here knows us pretty well.”
“I'm so sorry,” Hotch said as he and Jack came back to the table. A couple of hours without a bathroom and the kid was ready to explode. “Forgive me for the lack of introductions. Beth, this is my…”
“We’re his family.” Garcia said. She was leaning on Morgan. “Don’t worry we’ll only embarrass him a little.”
“Or a lot, given the opportunity.” Morgan added grinning.
Beth smiled as Hotch and Jack sat across from her. She looked at him; he was a combination of mortified, relieved, and nervous. Not many men could pull that off but Aaron Hotchner wasn’t many men. She knew these were the people he worked with everyday. But considering how much he worked and how long it had been his profession, family was a fair assessment.
“Beth Clemmons, this is my family. That’s Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau, Spencer Reid, Derek Morgan, Penelope Garcia, and Dave Rossi. You’ve already met Jack of course. Guys, this is my friend Beth.”
“It’s nice to meet all of you.” she said. “I haven’t heard a lot about you but I definitely look forward to.”
“How did you and Hotch meet?” Morgan asked.
“We met while training in the park. He was sprinting so fast and I was trying not to eat his dust. He took pity on me and we started training together. I'm doing an MS triathlon in three weeks.”
“I can make you a sign!” Jack said smiling. “I've got a whole bunch of sparkles left.”
“That would be awesome.” She replied. “I'm going to need all the encouragement I can get, Jack.”
“Who’s having coffee?” the waitress came by with the giant carafe.
“Oh God, over here; right here.” JJ waved her arms. “S.O.S.”
“I’ll have tea.” Hotch and Beth said in unison. They smiled at each other as she pointed and called him a jinx.
“Ow, mama!” Derek exclaimed. “No pinching please.”
“Sorry sugar. I was just so excited.” Garcia replied. She pinched Dave instead and he just smiled at her.
As the waitress filled their coffee cups, they already knew what they were going to order. JJ and Emily both wanted the Hungry Man special.
“$20 says you don’t finish it.” Morgan said grinning. “I can hardly finish it.”
“I’ve been pregnant…I'm finishing it.” JJ replied.
“And I've…hell, I'm just starving.” Prentiss said. “Oops.” She covered her mouth. “Sorry, Jack Jack.”
“Agent Emily said a bad word.” he grinned and held out his palm. “You owe me 50 cents.”
“Rossi, give Jack 50 cents. I'm good for it on Monday.”
Rossi reached into his pocket. He came up empty handed.
“Does anybody have change for a $100 bill?” he asked.
“Are you serious?” Penelope rolled her eyes, pulling 2 quarters out of her purse and handing them to him. “Now you can be good for me on Monday, Peaches.”
“Be careful,” Morgan grinned. “We’re getting awful close to one of Reid’s fantasies?”
“What?” the young genius looked up from his menu.
“Guys…” Hotch sighed even though he was still smiling. “Can we order please?”
He didn’t spend much time with his team on weekends; they were in rare form. If they were in town Hotch spent most of his time being a dad. Now he was spending some of it with Beth. This was going to be a lesson for the both of them.
The server went around the table and got everyone’s order, telling Hotch and Beth she’d be right back with their tea.
“So what do you do for a living Beth?” Penelope asked.
“I'm an event coordinator. It’s a fancy term for party planner.”
“Beth also does work up and down the East Coast for her company.” Hotch said. “While she doesn’t travel as much as we do, she can rack up the frequent flier miles.”
“I also rack up the bath salts.” She smiled.
“Baths are a girl’s best friend.” JJ said. “And naps…naps are awesome.”
“Where did you guys go last night?” Dave asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Let us not forget there is a little one at the table.” Hotch said, looking at Jack. Then he was looking at Beth again. She seemed to be enjoying herself.
“You don’t have to worry about Jack overhearing anything bad.” Emily said. “Hey Jack.”
“Yes, Agent Emily?”
“Earmuffs kiddo.”
Jack covered his ears and Hotch looked at Emily.
“What have you done to my son?” he asked with a smile on his face.
“It’s just a little trick I learned watching inappropriate movies.” Emily’s smile matched his.
Hotch took Jack’s hands off his ears.
“Oh it was totally PG.” Penelope replied. “No pun intended.”
“I must have been in the bathroom for the PG parts.” Emily laughed, and then held her head. “OK, laughing is out for the time being. Coffee, however, is in.”
“We started with salsa lessons.” JJ said. “That was a lot of fun. Then we headed over to Absinthe where there was an awesome 80s glam cover band playing.”
“They were called Cinderella’s Poison.” Emily said. “I loved that. It was also $3 dollar flavored martini night. It was house vodka but it was $3.”
“After Absinthe it was…” JJ looked at Penelope. “Where did we go after Absinthe?”
“I know the DJ at this great after hours place called The Barker Lounge.”
“You know DJ Quantum Leap?” Beth asked.
“You know him?” Penelope countered.
“I met him in grad school when he was still Sam Beckett. That’s back when he was too young to be getting into the clubs he was playing. Wow, I haven’t been there in forever.”
“You're totally invited next time. How well can you handle Quervo?”
“And Jagermeister?” Emily asked.
“And Miller High Life?” JJ asked.
“Oh I'm definitely in for next time.” Beth replied.
“Be careful Beth.” Derek said. “These three take partying to a stratospheric level. They’re known in some circles as Cheech, Chong, and Penelope.”
“I'm Penelope.” Emily raised her hand. “Man, it is seriously bright in here.”
“You're wearing sunglasses, Em.” Dave pointed out.
“Will you guys even be recovered by Monday?” Hotch asked as the server came back with the tea. He picked out a nice apple cinnamon.
“I’ll be asleep until I have to report for work.” Emily replied.
“When is Will coming back, JJ?” Dave asked.
“Um…today is Saturday right? He’s flying into Dulles tomorrow morning. I guess I better be there to pick him up.”
“I’d volunteer,” Reid said. “But I don’t want to end up being there till sunrise.”
“Beep beep Spencer.” JJ leaned her head on his shoulder.
“So Beth, did Hotch ever tell you about the time we were in South Carolina?” Dave asked.
“Dave,” his Unit Chief looked at him. “I really don’t think now is the right time for stories.”
“What happened in South Carolina, Daddy?” Jack asked.
“Nothing buddy.” He was looking at Beth again. “Absolutely nothing happened in South Carolina…it was the most boring trip I've ever taken. I didn’t even remember I was there.”
“How come I don’t believe you?” her dimples really came out when she smiled this time.
“You’ve got dimples just like Daddy’s.” Jack said.
“That was one of the first things I noticed about him as a matter of fact.” Beth replied.
“One of the principle causes of dimples is thought to be a double bifid zygomaticus major muscle in the face.” Spencer said. “Most fetuses only have one as they're developing in the womb. Believe it or not but about one-fifth of the world population has dimples though with some they can be known to fade over time with facial development.”
“He’s a genius.” Dave pointed at Spencer.
“Wow.” Beth said. “I just think they’re adorable.”
“Over sixty percent of women do.” Spencer replied. “So you're not alone.”
“She’s probably really happy about that.” Morgan said, sipping his coffee.
“So I'm sure Aaron was glad to see all of you at the finish line when he came running through.” Beth said.
“You should've been with us, Beth.” Penelope said. “It was loud but it was great. We’re very proud of him.”
“Yeah.” Emily nodded. “Doing everything we do, taking care of Captain Jack, and training for a triathlon. We don’t call him Superman for nothing.”
“I'm not Superman.” Hotch replied. “I would've done a lot better with my run today if I were.”
“I think super powers disqualify you.” Beth said. “So I should be just fine in a couple of weeks.”
“You’ve trained with the best.” He said. “And we’ll do a little more before the big day.”
“It’s the bicycling that’s gonna take me down.” Beth said to the team.
“So you're doing the MS triathlon?” Morgan asked.
“Yeah,” she nodded. “I'm doing it for my dad and the people in his support group. I've already raised a ton of funds. If there is one thing I'm good at it’s the sell. You’re looking at Concord’s top-selling Girl Scout four years running. And they may be cookies but business is brutal.”
“You're from New Hampshire?” Emily asked.
“I was born and raised there. You?”
“I was born in DC but spent much of early life overseas. My parents were diplomats.”
Hotch was surprised Emily said that much. He knew she wouldn’t lie when asked directly but she also wasn’t one for talking about herself much.
“I had a good friend in college from Manchester though. I had some good times there.”
“It’s a great town,” Beth agreed. “Great bars.”
“Oh she's definitely invited to the next ladies night.” JJ said.
Two servers were back at the table carrying plates stacked with food.
“Oh thank God,” Garcia exhaled. “I thought I was going to have to eat Derek’s arm to survive.”
“Double or nothing they don’t finish those.” Dave said as soon as he saw the Hungry Man’s Special.
“Watch and learn, Rossi.” JJ smiled over her plate. The cheesy hash browns were just what she needed now. “Oh thank God for grease.”
Hotch moved Jack’s crayons out of the way and went about cutting up his French toast.
“I can do it Daddy.” He said.
“Are you sure?”
“Mmm hmm, but you can pour the syrup.”
“Deal.” Hotch smiled. “Beth do you have everything you need?”
“I'm good.”
“When do we get to tell Beth about South Carolina?” Morgan asked. His steak and cheese omelet was looking really good.
“Never.” Hotch replied. “You get to tell her about it never…ever, ever.”
“So the Crisco story is out as well?” Dave asked.
Emily began to laugh just thinking about the Crisco story.
“Oh my God, best story ever.” She put her hands on Beth’s shoulder. “No matter what he tells you…best story ever.”
“That’s a classic.” Morgan added. “C'mon Hotch, you know it is.”
“Oh Aaron c'mon, you’ve got to let me hear the Crisco story.” Beth said. “Is it PG?”
“Its something the whole family can enjoy.” Dave said.
“That’s for sure.” Spencer laughed. “Even Jack would love it.”
“Reid…”
“I wanna hear it.” Jack said. “Can Uncle Dave tell the Crisco story?”
“Uncle Dave has this way of doing things even when I don’t want him to.” Hotch replied.
“I know.” Jack giggled.
“C'mon Aaron, we’re all friends here.” Dave looked at him.
“OK, fine, one story.” Hotch relented, holding up one finger. “I seem to have little choice in the matter. Beth, please understand that Dave is also a writer. Creative license will be taken with the telling of every story you'll hear from this point on.”
“I like it already.” Instinctually she put her hand over his on the table.
The whole team saw the gesture and they saw what it did to their boss. It seemed as if Beth might be a little more than a friend. No one was prepared to complain about that. Hotch looked enraptured, which was truly a sight to behold. They all felt like he deserved some happiness.
“We were in St. Louis a while back.” Rossi began. “A group of us were pondering whether a grown man could fit through a small basement window…”
***
“I’ll take Jack with me.” Dave said as they were all leaving the diner.
Hotch was holding Beth’s hand at that point. Jack held Emily’s as he skipped along beside her. They were having their own conversation; no one knew what they were talking about.
“Are you sure Dave? I've already got you out of bed at the crack of dawn.”
“Trust me, I haven’t forgotten. But he’ll have some fun with Mudge and I'm sure Erin will be happy to see him. She’s sorry she couldn’t make it this morning but she had other plans.”
“I understand.” Hotch nodded. They were a family, yes, but there were still many awkward moments when the Section Chief was around. “Are you sure?”
“I'm sure. I’ll even let him watch Stars Wars on the big screen. That should give me time to take a nap and for you to have a little time for yourself.”
“I appreciate it. Jack?”
“Yes Daddy?”
“You want to go and hang out at Uncle Dave’s for the afternoon? I’ll pick you up later and we’ll have dinner out.”
“OK.” Jack grinned. He looked at Emily. “I gotta go, Agent Emily. I'm going to Uncle Dave’s.”
“I want you to be extra special for Aunt Erin, OK kiddo.”
“I will be.”
“Before you go tell me the coolest person on Earth?” Emily asked.
“Daddy!” he exclaimed.
“Ouch.” She said as everyone laughed. “Who's the third coolest person on Earth?”
“You are, Agent Emily!” he pointed at her.
“High five!”
Jack gave her a high five; then they hugged and kissed. He got hugs from everyone else before running over to where his father stood with Beth and Dave. The rest of the team said their goodbyes. They congratulated Hotch on a great day; a great race. Penelope rushed back to give him a hug and kiss.
“You're the best, boss man.”
“Thanks Penelope.” He smiled.
Penelope slipped Beth a piece of paper. She leaned to whisper.
“Put that number in your phone…instructions will follow.”
“I got it.” she smiled as Penelope walked away.
“I have this overwhelming feeling that I should be afraid of what's developing.” Hotch said.
“It’s a family thing.” Dave replied. “You can't live with them, can't bury them in the backyard.”
“Can I use that?” Beth asked.
“Anytime.”
“Daddy, can Beth come to dinner with us later?” Jack asked.
“Oh well,” he looked at Beth. “How do you feel about having dinner with the two coolest guys in DC?”
“I would absolutely love to.” she replied.
“Yay!” Jack bounced up and down. “C'mon Uncle Dave, I wanna go and play with Mudgie.”
“Beth,” Dave shook her hand. “It was great to meet you. Aaron’s had nothing but wonderful things to say about you but his assessment was modest.”
“Thank you so much.” when she smiled her dimples really showed. She’d probably never look at them again without thinking of double bifid something or other. “I look forward to getting to know you guys a little better over time.”
“Bye Daddy. Bye Beth.” Jack said as he and Dave walked away.
Hotch and Beth stood there until they turned the corner. Then they started walking to his truck.
“He's amazing, Aaron.”
“I'm a bit biased but I agree 150%.”
“He's really comfortable with your team.”
“They care about him.” Hotch said. “His presence always makes everyone feel better. It was a tough decision to make about whether I would let Jack be close to them. I wasn’t sure if those two separate parts of my life should intersect.
“I know Haley definitely didn’t really want that. It was nothing against the people but more about the job. In the end, Penelope said it best…we’re a family. Those six people are much more than a job to me even if I don’t always do well with telling them so. Jack deserves a family as much as I do.”
“He seems very happy.”
“I think he is.” Hotch used keyless entry to unlock the truck before opening the passenger door for her. Beth went to get in but then turned and but her arms around him.
“I've been waiting for this since you crossed the finish line.” She said kissing him.
“I have to admit that I was as well.”
“So we’ll have another for good measure.”
When they kissed, Hotch felt the best kind of dizzy. He wondered if Beth felt the same. If the way she shivered in his arms was any indication then the answer was yes. He twirled a finger through her dark hair.
“I probably need a shower.” he said.
“You're a little smelly, Hotchner, but it’s the smell of victory. You were fantastic…I'm so glad you made it back for this.”
“And we get to do it all again in a few weeks.”
Beth smiled, climbing into the car. Hotch closed the door and went around to the driver’s side.
“Are you excited?” he asked.
“I am.” She nodded. “I just have to remember that slow and steady always wins the race. Well, maybe not wins it but surely will finish. I think that Jack’s sign will give me just the motivation I need to break through.”
“He takes his arts and crafts seriously.”
“Like father like son.” Beth replied.
“I am no good with markers. Sadly I can barely make decent stick figures.”
“I just meant the dedication to his craft.”
“Oh, then yes…he is like me I suppose. So I’ll go home and shower and then…”
“You need to rest. The afternoon should be spent relaxing and then we’ll have dinner together with Jack. I’m looking forward to that.”
“Can we um, relax together?” Hotch asked.
“Most definitely.” Beth nodded.
Hotch nodded too, smiling as he drove back toward Alexandria. The race was over. He’d trained hard and had a successful finish. He also met an incredible woman. Slow and steady would win him that race. Hotch didn’t know how else to be as this relationship developed. All he knew was that he wanted to keep moving together.