A/N: Hello everyone. I'm sorry for taking so long. I explained last chapter that work is crazy at the college and now things are pretty busy at my bakery too, so my time is very limited. But I'm trying and I don't intent to give up. I just need a little patience. Anyway, here is next chapter and it will show the morning after and Jack's birthday, along with a talk between Haley and Hotch. Finally! Lol.

I hope you guys enjoy it.

Chapter 11: Affirming my priorities.

Hotch woke up a little over five-thirty, as usual. He had a morning routine ever since the divorce and, aside from the mornings he had Jack or was out on a case, he was strict to it. He'd always wake up at five-thirty, go out to run for at least forty minutes in the park and then come back home to take a shower, get into his Hotch-suit and grab some quick breakfast before leaving to work.

This morning, though, he knew something was different from the minute he regain consciousness. The sheets felt different, smoother, and the smell was different too, more flower-ish. He opened his eyes slowly and frowned for a handful seconds before remembering the night before and recognizing his surroundings.

After their late dinner Emily suggested a movie with ice-cream as desert and Hotch couldn't find strength to refuse so they just curled up on her couch with a bowl of chocolate mint ice-cream between them, watching It's a Wonderful Life. Halfway through the movie Hotch noticed Emily's eyes closing and nudged her feet, suggesting her to go to bed. When he made motion to grab his coat she offered him her guest room, since it was already over one in the morning.

He sat up on the bed with a sigh and stretched his arms and back before getting up. He had just taken off his shoes, pants and dress shirt, choosing to sleep on his undershirt and boxers, so he proceeded to dress himself again to go grab his go-bag from his car. Emily had suggested that he'd take a shower and get ready there if he had his go bag, so he wouldn't have to go home just to get changed.

Twenty minutes later he was getting out of the shower in the guest-bathroom and walking back to the bedroom to get ready. He noticed the state of his bag and crossed his fingers so they wouldn't catch a case because he only had a couple of clean outfits left. He dressed in a dark-grey suit with a white dress-shirt and a red tie, without putting his suit jacket yet.

He was just getting out of the bedroom when he heard a noise coming from the master bedroom. He approached the door at the end of the hall and frowned at the groan sounds coming from inside. He heard it for a few moments before knocking slightly at the door. "Emily? Are you okay?"

Another painful groan was heard and then the flush of the toilette. "I'm dying…" He heard her moaning from inside and winced.

"I'm coming in, okay?" He announced before opening the door. He could see her knelt in front of the toilette from the bathroom's open door. He walked towards her and knelt beside her, running his hand down her back. "Morning sickness?" He asked, wincing inwardly at the sick look on her face. Her hair was stick with sweat and her cheeks were flushed.

"Your baby is killing me inside…" She groaned as another wave of sickness made her jump into the toilette again just in time. She moaned at the dry waves, since she didn't have anything left in her stomach to throw up, hurting her throat and her stomach. Hotch held her hair back and caressed her back until she stopped and then he helped her to get up and walk to the sink to wash her mouth.

"How are you feeling?" He asked after she brushed her teeth and rinsed her mouth.

"Like crap." She muttered and he chuckled humorlessly. "This really sucks, Hotch…" She complained, leaning her body into his.

"I know it does. But it will go away. You're just getting into your eighth week. Your first semester will end soon and this phase is going to pass…" He said soothingly, his hand still caressing her back.

She nodded and looked at him properly, frowning at his attire. "What time is it?"

"Six-fifteen, I think…" He said, checking at his watch.

"And you're ready already? What time do you get up? Four?" She asked frowning and he chuckled at her.

"Nope. I get up usually at five-thirty to my morning run. My body is used to it…" He said with a shrug. "And I'm a man. I don't have as much as steps as you women while getting ready. It's just showering, drying, dressing, done."

"Oh, so that's what you do… I've always wondered how the hell you keep yourself fit with the hours you do at the office…" She said looking at him.

"Well, with the cases and the meetings I really don't have time to go to the gym often. I try to go every other week but usually I just stick with my running to keep my stamina… I'm no Morgan, but I can hold myself…" He shrugged.

"Morgan is all for show. He doesn't have to look like that to work on the field. He does one thousand sit-ups every day to get a body ready to take brainless women home to have meaningless sex. Real, confident, independent women don't get impressed with a six pack. It's good? Of course it is, I'm not hypocritical. But it's not everything…" She said walking back to her bedroom, Hotch following her. "You're no Morgan, of course, but you can take him on hand combat any time and you know that. And don't forget I saw you shirtless. You do have a six pack. You just don't display them out there to everyone who wants to see it…" She said looking back to him. "And trust me, this gets things way more exciting…" She finished with a grin.

"Well, good to know that." He said with a chuckle. "Now how about you go take your shower and get ready while I cook as some breakfast?" He asked.

"And he cooks!" She beamed with sparkling eyes. "Rocking body and kitchen skills, the whole package…" She added with a grin at his blush.

"Right, smartass." He muttered. "Banana pancakes okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine by me…" She nodded. "Please, no coffee. I don't want to risk it…" She pleaded and he nodded.

"Of course. I'll just squeeze a few oranges and make us some juice. I think I saw some milk at the fridge yesterday too…" He said.

"Yeah… I need to get some grocery done. I'm almost out of milk and don't have any yogurt or juice…" She said walking into the closet.

"Okay. I'll wait for you downstairs then…" He said walking out of the bedroom. He winced again at the image of her throwing her limbs out in the toilette and hoped that this phase ended soon enough.

He still remembered Haley's pregnancy and how miserable she was for the first thirteen weeks. There were days when she wouldn't even be able to get out of the bed. For some reason he couldn't picture Emily like that, though. Her stubbornness would never allow her to stay in bed because of some nausea. He groaned at the sudden thought of having to take her out of the field at some point of her pregnancy. It would definitely be an interesting argument, he thought.

He was just finishing the pancakes when she walked down the stairs dressed in black slacks and a green blouse with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and the color brought up her skin amazingly. Her dark hair was curled in natural waves and her bangs framed her face, making her look younger and beautiful. As usual, her make-up was almost non-existent, just a bit of mascara and a light-pink lip-gloss. He knew he was staring but he just couldn't help himself. She was glowing.

"What?" She asked with a confused frown and he blinked before looking down.

"Nothing, it's just… I looked at you and the term 'pregnancy-glow' came in my mind instantly. You look beautiful…" He found himself being honest and restrained his hand from slapping over his mouth.

Emily's fair skin gained a light shade of pink at his words and she chuckled embarrassedly. "Well, considering that I said you have a rocking body not even half hour ago, let's say we're even…"

"Agreed." He said with a chuckle. "The pancakes are ready. I made some juice. Do you want it or would you rather have some milk?" He asked putting the plate of pancakes at the counter.

"The juice, please…" She said and he nodded, pouring them both a glass of orange juice. "You're going to get me spoiled, you know… I usually just eat some cereal with milk and maybe a fruit… and that's when I'm good enough to eat something… when the nausea is too much I just skip…"

"Well, you shouldn't. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, my mom always says. You need to eat well, especially since our job is so unpredicted." He said.

"I'm not really good in the kitchen, Hotch. I know how to make some incredible lasagna and my chicken parmesan with veg salad is amazing too but that's it…" Emily said with a shrug, taking a bite of the pancakes and moaning at the taste of it. "Seriously, this is divine… how do you that?" She asked before taking another bite.

"It's very simple, my mom taught me that recipe. It's just flour, white sugar, baking powder and salt. Then you mix eggs, milk, vegetable oil and bananas in another bowl before mixing everything together. Then you just have to put in on the heated pan and watch until it's crispy on both sides, not too much, though. Jack loves it… it's his favorite…" He said with a smile.

"It's becoming my favorite too…" She said with a hum and he chuckled.

"So, do you get nauseous every morning?" He asked now with a concerned look.

"Not every morning…" She shook her head. "More like every other day… it's not usually that bad… after I throw up the first time it usually gets better… today was rough, though…" She said with a wince.

"I'm sorry for that… do the pills help?" He asked.

"They do, yeah… but I choose to take them just when it gets too bad, like today…" She said and he nodded. She ate the last bite of her pancake and finished her juice with an appreciative hum. "Seriously, though, these pancakes are amazing. And the omelet last night was too. Thank you…"

"You're welcome…" He said getting up and taking their plates to the sink. "How about if I come over every other week to make you breakfast and in return you invite me over for dinner and cook this incredible lasagna and this amazing chicken parmesan with veg salad?" He suggested with a smile and Emily grinned at him.

"Deal, buddy!" She said extending her hand for him to shake.

"All right. But, you need to promise me to do an effort to eat breakfast every day. And when you're not feeling good to cook, call me so I can come over or take you to eat something before work…" He said looking into her eyes and squeezing her hand.

"Promised." She nodded.

"Good. Now let's head to work, Agent Prentiss…" He said and she nodded, going upstairs to grab her things.

\*\*\*\

On Saturday, Hotch found himself grinning at his son's wide smile while they sang happy birthday to him. He could barely believe that his little boy was now three years old. His toothless grin warmed his heart in a way he couldn't even explain and he was so happy that he had made it today.

The team had caught a case right after Emily and Hotch got into the office on Thursday and when Friday evening came and they had no real leads to the unsub, he was devastated for missing his son's birthday party on the next day. After a rather nasty phone call with Haley, he got into his hotel room and sighed disappointed for once more failing with his boy.

Thankfully, half hour later he got a call announcing another murder and this time it was someone directly related with the killer. The overkill was evident and due to his rage he wasn't as careful as he was in the last murders, leaving a few fingerprints at the scene. Within a couple of hours they had him in custody with a full confession and the locations of another three bodies still not connected with him. It was three in the morning and usually they would wait for the morning to wheels up but everyone knew how sad he was for missing Jack's birthday, so they decided to take off immediately.

So, after getting home, Hotch managed to catch a couple of hours of sleep and at eleven he was ringing the bell of his old house, grinning inwardly at the look of surprise on Haley's face. Jack was thrilled with the surprise and jumped into his arms as soon as he saw him.

"Make a wish and blow the candles, buddy!" Hotch told him and grinned at the look of concentration in the young boy's face as he closed his eyes to make his wish. Jack blew the three little candies and everyone clapped excitedly with him.

"Pwesents now, daddy?" The boy asked excited and Hotch chuckled nodding his head.

"Sure thing, buddy, you can open your presents now…" He said and laughed when the boy cheered and ran towards the living room with his aunt. Haley started cutting the cake and Hotch walked into the kitchen, smiling when he saw his mother looking at Jack from the doorframe. "It's so good to see him old enough to enjoy opening the presents…" He said and she nodded.

"It sure is… he's so big…" Anna said with awe and Hotch smiled putting his arm around her shoulders and bringing her closer.

"Yeah… big enough to enjoy that red bicycle over there…" He said pointing to the small red bicycle already out of all the paper. "I wonder who gave it to him…" He said with an amused voice and Anna chuckled.

"Oh, shush it. He's my only grandbaby, it's my right to spoil him…" She said smacking his chest. "Well, only grandbaby for now…" She said looking at him with a smile. "How's Emily?"

"She's fine… morning sickness is awful but she's okay…" He said with a smile.

"I'm glad…" She said looking at Jack again. "He's so happy that you made it… I'm sure it was his favorite gift…" She said with a smile.

"I still can't believe I actually made it… we caught him over three in the morning… I got home at almost eight… just slept for a couple of hours before coming here… the look on his face when he saw me… I don't think I'll ever forget…" Hotch said, his voice thick with emotion.

"You are a good father, Aaron. Don't ever let what Tiffany says to you get into your head… you know how a bad father is and you're not one. You love that little boy more than anything and you'd do anything for him… your job is inconvenient, yes, but that doesn't make you a bad father…" Anna said looking at him with sweet eyes.

"Thank you, mom…"

"I'm just telling the truth, honey…" Anna said patting his cheek. Neither of them heard the back door opening and Haley coming in. "You should come over for lunch tomorrow…" Anna suggested. "I really want to meet Emily…"

Hotch smiled at her. "I'll ask her later… she's nervous about meeting you but I told her you'll love her…" He said and Anna chuckled.

"I promise I'll be nice with her… I really want to meet her…" She said and Hotch nodded.

"Who's Emily?" Haley asked with a tight voice and Hotch closed his eyes with a silent groan while Anna winced.

"I'm sorry, baby…" She whispered at him and he nodded at her, motioning for her to go to the living room. Once she left he turned around to face Haley and resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the look on her face.

"Who's Emily, Aaron?" She repeated the question.

"We need to talk about something, but I don't think now is the right time to do this. Let's wait until the party is over and Jack's in bed, okay?" He suggested and she nodded stiffly before walking to the cabinets to grab a few plates.

"Help me to serve the cake, will you?" She asked and he nodded.

"Of course." He knew he would have to tell her about Emily's pregnancy soon, he just didn't expect to be so soon. But now he really didn't have a choice.

\*\*\*\

"Okay, now can you tell me who Emily is? I didn't know you were already seeing anyone…" Haley said with a tight voice.

"I am not." Hotch said seriously. "I want to talk to you about something because it will influence Jack's life directly, and it has to do with Emily…" He started.

"First of all, who is Emily?" Haley asked again and Hotch sighed.

"You know her already. It's Agent Prentiss…" He said and saw her eyes go wide.

"Are you sleeping with your subordinate?" She asked incredulously.

"I already told you that I'm not involved with Emily." Hotch repeated exasperatedly. "Yes, we did sleep together once, but it was a one-time thing…" He said. He had already decided to tell her the Bureau version to avoid her of complaining about how dangerous his job was, since he was kidnaped.

"How honorable of you, having one night stands with your employees…" Haley said with venom and Hotch's eyes narrowed.

"Emily and I were both consenting adults and what we did together and how many times we did it doesn't concerns to you. We are divorced and I have the right of going out with whomever I want, just like you are allowed to start dating and sleeping with whomever you want." He said firmly. "Of course you know that since you started doing it even before our divorce papers were signed. Hell, even before you left…" He finished and saw her face flushing red with anger and shame.

"This isn't about me, Aaron. It's about you and your agent…" She deflected.

"No, this is about Jack. He's the only string we have and the only thing that matters." He corrected.

"Fine." She spat. "How will your one-night stand impact my son?"

"It will impact our son because it has results…" He said and saw her jaw dropping in understanding.

"You mean…"

"Emily is eight weeks pregnant with my baby…" He said with a nod.

Haley was silent for a few moments, absorbing the information. "What are you going to do about it?" She asked tightly after a while.

"I'll be there for Emily through everything and we're going to have a baby…" He said with an obvious voice.

"Aaron, are you insane? Are you seriously considering having a baby with your subordinate?" She asked incredulously.

"I'm not considering, Haley. I am going to have a baby with Emily." He said.

"I'm sure the FBI will be thrilled with that…" She said with a sarcastic voice.

"I won't be pretty, especially with Strauss, but I'll pass Emily's evaluations to Dave and, according with the rules, we won't have to leave the team because of that. Fraternization rules and just to avoid sexual harassments suits." He said with a shrug.

"So you are really doing this?" She asked again, her hands on her hips.

"Haley, I'm not here to ask your permission to anything. It's a fact, Emily's pregnant and we're going to have a baby together… we are not together romantically but honestly? I can't say that it'll never happen. Who knows? Maybe in a few months or years, I don't know, maybe we'll decide to try something…" He said. "I am here telling you that I'm going to have another child and that he or she will be Jack's half-brother or half-sister and I want them to have a good relationship…" He explained. "In a few weeks, after she ends her first semester, I want to talk to Jack to explain to him everything and I'd also like to introduce him to Emily…"

"I don't see why my son needs to have any contact with this woman…" Haley said angrily.

"You mean aside from that fact that she's my baby's mother?" Hotch asked sarcastically. "I want them to know each other because, especially right after the baby's born, I want Jack to meet him or she and I'll have to take him there… I want them to know each other and to be comfortable with each other…" He said seriously.

"I can't believe you're doing this, Aaron…" Haley said shaking her head. "Good luck explaining to our three years old son how you're going to have a baby with another woman and you're not even in a relationship with her…"

"That's my problem. I will think of something to tell him. I'm just telling you so you can be prepared for when he come home talking about his new baby brother or sister…" Hotch said dismissively.

Haley stayed in silence for a few seconds before shaking her head again. "I really didn't think you'd be capable of doing something like this…"

"Well, I also didn't think you'd be able to cheat on me or pack your things and leave without any explanation, taking my son with you, but hey, we all get disappointed with people…" Hotch remarked and Haley dropped her head.

Before either of them could say anything more Hotch's phone rang. He saw Emily's name on the screen and frowned. "I have to take this." He told Haley before pressing the in-call button. "Hello."

"Hotch?" Emily's frightened voice send shivers through his spine, not the good ones.

"Emily? What happened? Are you okay?" He asked urgently.

"I don't know…" She said between sniffs and he gripped the phone tightly.

"I need you to be more specific, Em. What happened?"

"There's blood…" Emily said and he felt his face paling. "I went to the bathroom and there's blood in my pee…"

"It's only in your pee or there's blood in your panties too?" He asked already getting up.

"No, it's only when I pee…" Emily answered.

"Okay, I need you to call Dr. Green and see if she can see us now. If not, we're going to the hospital, okay? I'll be there in fifteen minutes, Emily, I need you to stay calm until then… can you do that?" He asked putting his jacket while Haley watched him.

"Okay…" Emily answered with a small voice.

"Good. I'm coming, okay. Stay calm and I'll be there soon…" He said before hanging up. "I need to go…" He said looking at Haley and opening the front door.

"I just hope you don't neglect Jack because of this baby. I mean, it's not like you have time for him now… I can't imagine how it will be when this other baby is born…" Haley said and Hotch looked back at her with narrowed eyes.

"I won't be difficult because Emily won't stay between me and my child. She'll let me see him or her any time I want. And I would never put anything or anyone above Jack. He is my son and having another child won't change that. I came today and dedicated myself entirely to him. Now he's sleeping and I don't having anything else to do here and Emily needs me… I know very well my priorities, thank you very much…" He said before walking away and closing the door behind him, leaving a stunning and fuming Haley behind. He had more important things to worry right now.

A/N: There you go. Like I said before, Haley's a bitch here. Please, tell me what you think of this piece. Reviews are so incredible and I love the interaction with you guys. Next update will be probably only next week, unless I can find a free time between my working schedules. I'm sorry for any errors.