Penelope found herself missing Erin and Dave as she sat in their pew for Mass. She knew, though, that they had needed the time away to rest and recuperate. Erin had told her just a little about how Dave was feeling, and Penelope knew that the woman was more worried than she had let on.

Still, she found it nice to have Aaron there, Jack at his side, ensconced between them. Glancing over, she smiled softly at him, feeling a warm wave of love sweep over her heart. "And also with you," she replied by rote, standing for the final prayer.

Once Father Steven had said his amen, she relaxed a little, waiting for Aaron to exit the pew. Instead, he surprised her, turning and giving her a smile. "What are you doing this afternoon?"

She blushed a little, shrugging. "I had thought about playing some League of Legends. Or reading a little. Why?"

"Because I want you to come over for lunch!" Jack said excitedly, smiling up at her widely. "Aunt Jessica and Anderson have been over at Uncle Dave's all weekend, and I want someone to talk to."

Penelope looked over at Aaron in surprise, and he shrugged a little. "Oh no, you are not holding out on me, Boss Man. Spill. Are they dating?"

There was a faint blush on his face as he shook his head. "Not that I know of. Tabitha just found herself with the two people who may be more of perfectionists than I am. At this point, I'm betting that she'll do her own homework and never ask for 'help' again."

He was utterly adorable in his use of air quotes, and Penelope couldn't help but giggle a little. "Well, maybe we should help put the poor girl out of her misery. How about we bring takeout over to them? I seem to remember that Rossi has some amazing games to play, Jack."

He gave her a crafty smile as he nodded slowly. "There is that, Aunt Penelope. So, can we, Daddy?"

She fought to keep from laughing at the way Jack turned his eyes up at his father, a pleading look on his face. Aaron's shoulders slumped a little in defeat and he slowly nodded. "I suppose that we could do that, Jackers. What should we bring them?"

"Hamburgers! Ooh, could we stop at Culver's? I love their fries!"

Jack actually started bouncing on the balls of his feet in excitement, and that was when she began to laugh, draping her arms around him as she tugged him back against her legs. "Why don't I call the others, and we have an impromptu party at Rossi's. After all, while the cat's away…"

"The mice will play," Aaron finished drily, and she nodded, beaming up at him. "All right, I'll get the food for them, you get the food for the others. We'll meet there." He leaned in and kissed her cheek softly, causing her to sigh a little. Penelope was certain that she was blushing as he pulled away, taking hold of Jack's hand.

"S-sounds good, Boss Man. We'll see you there," she stuttered as she pulled out her phone and fled from the sanctuary, hurriedly dialing Derek's number. "Sugar Bear! We're having a party at Rossi's this afternoon, and you're invited. Bring Savannah if she's not on call, okay?"

"Whoa, wait up. Why are we descending on Rossi?"

She bit her lip a little, wondering which version of the truth she should give him. "Because Hotch kissed my cheek again, and now I'm not sure that I trust myself around him. Or at least, not at the moment. Please, Der."

"Ah, you know that I could never refuse you, Baby Girl. But what about Sam?"

"What about him?" she asked, a little more sharply than she had intended.

"Well, you're still dating him, aren't you? Or has that changed since Valentine's Day?"

She felt her blush grow more pronounced as she took a deep breath. "No, that hasn't changed in the last week. We're still dating. It's just, well, it's complicated. Hotch has been my friend since forever, you know that. He's always stuck up for me."

"And I haven't?" he asked, trying to tease her.

"You know what I mean. We click, on that sweet, brother-sister level, even if we do flirt more than is healthy. Aaron and I, though, that's a different ball of wax. And I know that Jayje has a crush on him, so I don't want to get in the way of that, she's already been upset with me once this year because of that."

Penelope heard a soft cough behind her, and she whirled around to stare in horror at Hotch, a strangled gasp slipping from her lips. "Baby Girl? Penelope? What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing. Everything is fine. Listen, can you call Blake and Reid? Have them pick up my usual from Culver's. I, I might be late getting to Rossi's." Aaron went to catch her arm when she spun away from him, almost running out the doors and to her car.

"Penelope! Wait!" she heard him call out just as she reached her car, and she shook her head, slipping inside and locking herself inside. Her hands were shaking as she struggled not to cry.

Someone knocked on her window, and she glanced out of the corner of her eye to see Jack standing there, a frown on his face. Sighing, she opened the door and held out her arm to him. "Are you mad, Aunt Penelope?"

"Oh, precious, no. I just embarrassed myself."

"Okay, well, Daddy sent me to ride with, to make sure that you end up at the right place. All right?"

Jack gave her one of his winning smile and she found that she couldn't resist smiling back. "That's fine, sweetie. Get in."

He threw his arms around her, hugging her tightly. "I love you!"

"I love you, too, precious," she whispered in his ear as she rubbed his back in small circles. Hearing a throat clear, she looked up into Hotch's eyes, trying not to shiver at the way his gaze pierced her. "Everything will be okay." Though her words were directed towards Jack, Aaron was the one who nodded, and she let out a long breath as she realized that the time for talking would come much sooner than she liked.