Chapter 36, July
Hotch pulled into his drive way. When he got out of his car he could sense something wasn't right. He looked down to Kahlan's house, but he couldn't see anyone there. He started for his porch and he heard a twig snap. His head snapped to the right. Suddenly Jack came out of the bushes yelling and running towards Hotch. Instantly, Hotch was wet as Jack's aim was perfect with a huge water gun. "Jack!" Hotch yelled as he dropped his brief case and pulled off his suit jacket.
"Ut-oh," Jack yelled and ran around the house toward the back yard.
Hotch took off after his son, but as soon as he came around the corner, he was soaked. He had run right into a trap manned by Kahlan and Wyatt. "Hey!" Hotch yelled as he tried to block the stream of water that was hitting him in the face.
They were all laughing. "I told you it would work, Jack!" Kahlan yelled as she emptied her gun on Hotch.
"Really, Jack? You're supposed to be on my side!"
"Yipe!" Jack said and ran into the yard, his black lab puppy on his heels.
Wyatt had stopped squirting Hotch as soon as Kahlan's gun was empty. Hotch stood there, dripping. "Really, Wyatt? Do you really think it's fair that your mother is standing there, dry?" Hotch asked him with a grin.
Wyatt looked at his mom and smiled.
"Don't you dare!" she told him.
Wyatt glanced at Hotch. "I would never go against you, mom," he told her seriously.
She turned to Hotch with a look of satisfaction.
"But Dad can," Wyatt yelled as he threw the gun to Hotch. Hotch caught it easily and gave Kahlan an evil grin and let loose on her.
"No!" she yelled as Hotch soaked her as she tried to get to him and get the gun out of his hands. She ended up taking him to the ground and they laid there laughing. Jack ran up and shot Wyatt. Wyatt took off running to get away from the stream, his dog following him. Hotch and Kahlan laid there watching the laughing boys and their barking dogs.
"Did he just call me what I think he called me?" Hotch asked her.
"You heard that, too, huh?" She turned and looked him in the eyes. "Is that a problem?"
"Not at all," he told her and helped her get up. "Unless it is for you?"
"Not at all," she told him as she hugged him and went back to his driveway and picked up his suit jacket.
"That was all your doing, wasn't it?" he asked her as he picked up his briefcase.
"Maybe," she told him with a sly smile. "I'm going to run home and change. We eating here or at my house?"
"We'll eat at yours. We haven't used your kitchen in a while," He told and kissed her.
"I'll give you a call when it's done," she told him and handed him his jacket. He took it with a smile and watched her walk down the sidewalk. He sighed deeply and smiled as he went in to get out of his soaked clothes.