From the moment he opened his eyes, he knew his body was going to hate him today. Working out yesterday had been a fun thing, mainly for the getting to spend more time with Emily, but from the actual working out side of things, it had been pure hell. He's itching to slam his snooze button, but he knows he has to get Jack going and manage to eat an actual breakfast this morning. Rolling over, he turns off his alarm and composes a text to Emily.

Please tell me your body

is as sore as mine is

You're definitely not alone.

Why he thought doing Insanity would be the same level of difficulty as training for the triathlon, he can't fathom at this point. The other insane thought that's running through his head is how in the world is he going to get Jack to agree to the healthier breakfast this morning. The things they have in their pantry so he doesn't have to go grocery shopping are basically the stuff to make the oatmeal recipe in the book, apart from the protein powder. Guess it means he'll have to drink an extra shake or something in the day, but he can't get any protein powder until after he drops Jack off at school so oatmeal sans protein powder will have to do.

"I don't want oatmeal." Jack whines from his spot at the table, looking at the bowl of mush and berries in front of him. "I want cheerios."

"Well we're having oatmeal today. It's cold outside, I figured something warm would be good." It's not that cold outside, but something other than saying it's healthy is the best bet with his seven year old.

"I'm not cold right now." The whine leaves his mouth almost as soon as his father's explanation does. "I want cheerios." The demand is repeated.

"If you eat your oatmeal today, you can have cheerios tomorrow." Aaron realizes Emily was right. He's probably going to have to make two separate meals for him and Jack until this challenge is over. It might be more time consuming, but listening to his son whine for 67- 66 he corrects himself- days was going to be more frustrating than dealing with making two different food choices.

Besides the breakfast debacle, getting Jack off to school was fairly simple. He had just enough time to stop by Target and pick out one of the many protein shakes, a shaker bottle, and some protein bars that had some good reviews online before he had to head into the BAU. He still wanted his coffee, so he figures he'll make coffee when he gets into the office and he'll have his first shake as his midmorning snack. Stepping onto the elevator, he lugs his target purchases with him along with his go bag, his briefcase, and his jacket that he doesn't truly need right now.

"You moving in Aaron?" Dave's voice teases him as he walks into the bullpen. "Or did you bring us treats this morning?" The older man eyes the bag with the red bullseye on it.

"Just had to pick up some stuff before work." Aaron dismisses the questions before he makes his way to his office. Usually he makes it in to the building before anyone else, but with the added stop to Target, he doesn't get to avoid the wandering eyes of other agents. They're all curious about the purchases in his hands, but holding his head up high, he makes his way towards his way to his office. Emily meets his eyes as she takes a sip from a large water bottle at her desk. He nods towards her before starting towards the stairs to his office. Mentally, he makes a note to get a water bottle too. Guess he needs to head back to Target.

Sitting down at his office, he starts to pull things out of his briefcase and places them at his desk. There's cases he needs to go over to decide if the team is heading there and there's files he needs to sign off on. But first he needs to get some caffeine in him. So after only spending five minutes in his office, he's back down the stairs and making his way towards the break room.

"Taking a break already?" He turns to find Emily standing behind him.

"Getting coffee before getting started." He pulls a mug out of the cabinet. "Want some?"

"I had some in my shake this morning."

"Your shake?"

"My protein shake. It's one of the few ways I get that stuff down." Emily shrugs. "It's not that bad, but I don't like drinking it. I highly recommend you try it out."

"I actually just bought shake stuff. It's in my office." A small smile appears on Emily's face.

"Want to try it out?"

"I'll look like a gym nut."

"It's bound to happen eventually." Emily shrugs. "But it's up to you."

"Wait here." Aaron heads back to his office for the second time to grab the shaker. He can add the powder after all the liquid is in there. After grabbing the shaker, he walks back to where Emily is waiting for him.

"Ok, so I do a mix of how much liquid my shakes call for with coffee and milk. Mine calls for 10 ounces of liquid. But sometimes I'll do ten of milk and then add coffee before adding my protein powder. It depends on the day and how much I want to drink. Do you know how much liquid your's calls for?"

"I think it's about the same."

"Do you want me to measure it for you?"Aaron nods and allows Emily to measure out coffee, milk and then offers sweetener to him, knowing how he takes his coffee. Aaron nods, not knowing how the protein powder tastes. "Just add the protein powder and shake it up."

"Thanks Emily. If only you could attack the files sitting on my desk."

"Think that falls to you Unit Chief." She flashes a smile at him. "Don't want people to think I can do everyone's jobs here." She pauses for a moment before adding, "Do you want me to come over to your place after work since you have Jack?"

"Hmm?"

"So we can get the workout in?"

"Right the workout." Aaron's voice is filled with disdain.

"It's only half an hour." Emily reminds him. "Get it in and get it done or something like that."

"I guess we can do it at my place. Jack might try to join us, well as best he can."

"How did he take the healthy eating?"

"How'd you know?"

"Because you're stubborn. So how'd he take it?"

"Not well. I had to bribe him with the fact that he's allowed to have cheerios tomorrow."

"So are you sticking with the idea of one meal for you both?" Aaron shakes his head.

"It's not worth filling my house with Jack's whines. I'd rather have a happy kid heading off to school in the morning." Emily follows Aaron as he starts to walk back to his office to get his protein powder. "Plus it's Jack. As long as he eats his fruits and vegetables, I'm fairly happy." He expects her to turn off at her desk, but instead she follows him up into his office. "Did you miss the turn off for your desk?"

"I want to see what you think of the shake." Emily says as she takes a seat on his couch. Aaron realizes he should have guessed that, but he missed that idea. Maybe he needs this shake more than he realized. He reaches over to the other side of his desk and pulls out the container of protein. He dumps a couple of scoops into the blender bottle, screws the top on, and shakes it up. He's not sure what he expects when he opens the lid, but he takes the first sip and pleasantly he's not disappointed by the taste.

"I wouldn't say it's a vanilla latte, but it still tastes ok."

"Hey! That's a win!" Emily's smile brightens her whole face.

"Whoa, did we start a workout club and no one invited me?" Morgan's voice comes from Aaron's doorway as he looks at Hotch standing at the desk with a thing of protein powder sitting in front of him.

"Something like that," Emily says with a laugh as she pushes off the couch, her muscles in protest of the activities they did yesterday. She pats Morgan on the shoulder and throws Aaron a smile as she walks out of his office.

"Do I get to know the inside joke?" Morgan asks as he sits down on the chair in front of Aaron's desk.

"It's nothing. Don't you have files to be working on?" Aaron ask, setting the shaker bottle down, hoping to not draw attention to it. Morgan holds up the case files in his hands.

"I was bringing them to you." He holds them out to his boss. "But seriously Hotch, if you're wanting to get more lean or muscular or whatever, I'd be happy to help you out."

"Emily and I just have a bet going on. Nothing more." Aaron waves his hand to try and move the words out of his office so this conversation can be over.

"A bet, you say? Now that makes it so much more interesting. What could it be? Losing weight? No you're both pretty fit already. Gaining muscle? Could be."

"Do you need something Agent Morgan? I have work to be doing and so do you." The Hotch glare comes into the room.

"I'll go bug Prentiss about this. She's more fun to mess with anyway."

"Just make sure your case work gets finished. And that you let her get her's done." It might be a slow day, but if he lets them slack off, that's the moment that they'll get slammed with cases and none of their files will get completed.

"Sure, sure Hotch." Morgan's voice is thrown over his shoulder before he leaves the office. With no more distraction, Aaron is able to actually start chiseling away at the stack of files sitting on his desk. He starts with the easier pile, signing off on everything. Most of these files it's his second or even third time reading over the files to check that everything is finally, hopefully in line. A couple of them have to go back in the pile to get worked on again. But most of them are fine to sign off on. After he finishes signing off on them he starts reading through potential cases they might take. He splits them into a few different piles- cases they could take, cases they can't take but can help build a profile, and cases that they won't be able to help on because there isn't enough information yet. It always hurts to put cases in the last pile, but sometimes there really is nothing they can do.

"Knock knock." Emily's voice interrupts his thoughts.

"Come in." He glances up from the file he was looking at for Ann Arbor, Michigan about a strangler with 5 victims. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm forcing you to take a lunch. Otherwise how are we going to get our five meals in?" Emily says leaning against the doorway with her arms slightly crossed.

"You're forcing me?" Emily nods. "I guess it's break time then. What are we doing for lunch?"

"How do you feel about sushi?"

"Is that on our meal plan?" Emily nods with a smile.

"Remember that Japanese place we went with JJ a few times? They'll make sushi with brown rice on request. So I figured sushi and salad with some edamame and some miso soup which meets our meal plan quite nicely."

"Come on, let's go." Aaron leaves his overcoat and just takes his suit jacket. The hole in his stomach is now yelling at him that it's ready for food. "So did Morgan ever get what our bet is out of you?"

"No. But why did you have to tell him we have a bet? He's been hounding me all day trying to figure it out. He could have just spent the day trying to get it out of you." Emily says as she places her hands in the pockets of her jacket as they walk down the street towards the Japanese restaurant.

"But you seem to be forgetting that I'm his boss, so he can't stay in my office all day as I remind him that he has case files to work on."

"Want to remind him that he has files he hasn't worked on all morning?" Emily asks bumping shoulders with Aaron lightly.

"Not if you're going to attack my already wounded shoulders like that."

"What that protein shake didn't help?" Emily teases ever so slightly. "Maybe you need to drink it right after your workout next time."

"We can see if that does the trick with our workout today. What are we even doing today?"

"I think it's cardio if I'm remembering correctly."

"Wasn't yesterday enough cardio?" Aaron whines ever so slightly.

"Yesterday was just the fitness test. That wasn't even the start of cardio." Emily says with a roll of her eyes. "You'll be fine."

"Sure. Sure." Aaron says as he opens the door for her. They're seated fairly quickly since they've taken a later lunch than most normal people. Emily orders for them to make sure it fits their meal plan. While they wait for food, an easy conversation flows between them about everything from work to their colleagues to Jack to their plans for possible free days if they don't have to work this weekend. Their conversation rolls through as they eat and then as they pay their bill and make their way back to the office. "How much you want to bet no one is working?"

"Why make a bet I know I'll win?" Emily replies back with a smile.

"Because I left the office?"

"No because I did." She teases easily. "You know we'll walk into Morgan teasing Reid, or Reid spouting off some fact to JJ or Garcia coming in to share some 'quick' fact with JJ or Reid and staying for hours while a test runs. And they won't even bother to run when you get back."

"But when they see you they will?"

"You said it, not me." She flashes the smile that Aaron loves seeing plastered across her face. "How late are you planning on staying today?"

"If we don't get called away, then no later than five. I want to get out of here, work out, and still be able to get food on the table for Jack by six thirty."

"Perfect. I'll wrap it up by then."

"Do you have to run home?" Emily shakes her head.

"I brought workout gear so that if we worked out at your house I wasn't delaying Jack's routine." Emily admits. It's one of the many things he loves about her. That she takes into consideration other people's schedules when planning for things and not just her own.

"Perfect, then you want to just follow me?"

"Sounds like a plan." Emily says. But before the elevator dings to the sixth floor, Aaron speaks again.

"I bet it's Morgan distracting everyone else. Trying to figure out what our bet is."

"I'll take that bet. I bet it's Spence sharing some fact or doing some physics magic." Emily looks at the numbers flicking from four to five before speaking again. "Ten bucks?"

"Deal." The elevator doors ping open and they walk towards the bullpen. When they walk in they look for their profilers to see who is distracting the others.

"To be factually honest, you have to take into account the fact that both Cinderella and Tiana are both nineteen in their movies. So technically it's a tie." Spencer's voice is preaching to the group of profilers at his desk.

"Was that ever actually stated in Cinderella or The Princess and the Frog?" JJ asks.

"I'll take my winnings." Emily says holding a hand out to Aaron. Morgan's face is pulled from the conversation in front of him.

"No way was this your bet. That had nothing to do with protein powder." Aaron and Emily don't reply as Aaron pulls a ten dollar bill from his wallet and places it in Emily's hand.

"Double or nothing by the end of the day, I'm right." Aaron says to Emily.

"No way. I know that in point five seconds he will be on my case." Emily says as she shrugs out of her jacket. "Go work. I have cases to get through and one distraction is enough." Aaron can't help but roll his own eyes as he makes his way towards his office. He shuts the door behind him, hoping to keep the distractions down in the bullpen so he can finish his work on time too.

Distractions and cases both stay outside his door. By the time five o'clock rolls around, he's actually ready to head out. He looks out the window and sees Emily packing up her stuff too. Picking up all of the things he brought into the office this morning, he gets ready to leave his office for the night. Walking down the stairs, he stops by Emily's desk. "Ready to head out?"

"Sure." She slides her arms into her jacket and picks up her bag.

"Sergio isn't going to mind that you're getting home late?"

"I filled his bowl this morning and I'll grovel to him by filling it before I hop in the shower after our workout." Emily says while they walk to the elevator.

"I'd offer you could ride with me-" Aaron starts, but Emily interrupts him.

"My apartment is the complete other direction from where feeding Jack takes place." The words leave her lips as they curl into a smile. "Feeding Jack happens to be very important so I completely understand." She opens the door to her car and sets her bag down. "I'll just follow you."

"Ok." He still feels like he isn't living up to be the gentleman that his mother raised him to be, but her joking words do help heal his wounds ever so slightly. Opening his own door to set his own bags, Aaron feels the soreness in his arms from trying to beat Emily yesterday. That soreness isn't going to go away with another workout happening in less than twenty-five minutes. While turning onto familiar streets, he falls into the pattern of driving home. The radio fills the background of his ride, but he barely listens to most of it. Instead, he tries to keep his eyes on the road instead of lingering too long on the black four door behind him, and more importantly, the driver of that car. All too soon the drive is over and he's pulling into his driveway.

"Daddy!" Jack's voice comes running from the front door.

"Hi buddy." Jack's head turns to see Emily's car pull in behind Aaron's. He doesn't even ask who it is before she steps out of the car.

"Miss Emily! Daddy didn't say you were coming over!" Jack sprints over to hug one of his favorite FBI family members.

"Probably because we didn't decide until this morning." She explains as she hugs him back.

"Did you come to have dinner with us?"

"Actually your dad and I are going to do a workout together."

"Like playing soccer together?" Jack questions.

"Sort of, but a little different." Aaron answers as he pulls the Target bag out of the trunk. "Jack, can you take this into the kitchen for me?"

"Sure Daddy!" Jack carefully lifts the bag into his hands before walking inside the house. Emily and Aaron both grab go bags into their hands while Aaron also grabs his briefcase and his overcoat. Emily follows Aaron into the house.

"The bathroom's here; you can use to change. I have to check in with Jessica and then go change." Aaron explains quickly. Emily nods before turning into the bathroom to change. Today she has a purple sports bra, a gray tank top that reads 'I Run Better Than The Government', a pair of black compression shorts, and her faithful sneakers. It doesn't take her long to get changed. But by the time she gets out, the only Hotchner she finds waiting for her is Jack.

"Miss Emily, can I read to you?" Jack looks up at her with wide eyes that mimic the ones she's seen on her best friend a number of times. Emily sets her gym bag down on the floor and sits on the couch next to Jack.

"Sure you can. Is this for school?" His blond head nods. "What book did you want to read?" He shows her the cover of the book that she's never seen before. "I've never read that. Full steam ahead Captain Jack." And that's the sight that Aaron comes out to- his son practicing his reading to the girl that he's slowly but surely falling in love with. Working out can wait til Jack is finished. Because he can't take his eyes off this sight. That and the fact that his muscles are protesting the idea of working out again so soon. As soon as the last page turns, Jack hops up from the couch.

"Thanks Miss Emily!" He says quickly before running off to his room.

"Guess it's time to work out." Emily says as she stands from the couch.

"And here I was hoping that distraction would work." Aaron reads Emily's shirt. "Seeing as you work for the government, is that really the mindset you want to have?"

"I've had it since you worked for my parents, so I wasn't an employee at the time." Emily says with a smirk. "But maybe I should wear it to the next fitness exam."

"See if you pass." Aaron says as she pulls out her laptop.

"Ready?"

"No." Aaron answers honestly, "But let's get this over with." Emily hits play and the opening montage of Insanity starts to play.

"Yo, What's up…" The instructor starts talking, but Aaron's eye catches on one little thing.

"41 minutes?" The countdown clock keeps ticking. "You said thirty minutes."

"Opps. Too late to turn back now Hotch. We've already hit play." Emily says as they start the warm up period and even get into the first few moves. "You can always give up... on the bet if it's too... much for you."

"I'm not… a… quitter." Aaron says in between breaths. Eventually even their jokes stop as they get into the moves and it starts taxing on their bodies. There's a reason this is called Insanity. Because the training is INSANE. But before the pair knows it, they're on the stretching and the workout is over. They made it through the first full workout and no one died. At least not yet any way. Aaron does find himself on the floor again, but this time Emily joins him. Both of the pair are covered in sweat and their muscles feel like shriveling up after all that work. "You have to stay alive." Aaron reminds Emily.

"Wasn't planning on dying, but why?"

"You promised to take Jack."

"That was a killer workout, but I think you're being a bit over dramatic." Emily says before adding, "Drink some more protein. I think your brain is lacking."

"Daddy! Miss Emily! Are you ok?" Jack's voice is filled with concern as he sees both of them on the floor.

"We're ok buddy." Aaron forces his aching body into a seated position to reassure his son. "Just tired from our workout."

"I think you need a shower Daddy."

"I think so too Jack. Can you play quietly while I do?" Jack nods.

"I guess that's my clue to head out." Emily says, stretching once more before sitting up.

"You don't have to, but there's only one shower." Aaron says apologetically.

"It's ok. Sergio will be expecting me."

"Who's Sergio? Is he your son?" Jack asks.

"Sergio is my cat." Emily explains to the younger Hotchner.

"Can I meet him?"

"One day, if your dad is cool with it." Emily says, leaving the decision up to Aaron.

"I think we can visit Emily's apartment to meet Sergio, but right now she needs to get home to feed him." Aaron follows Emily to the door.

"Even though the workouts suck, I'm glad I have you to do it with me Hotch." Emily throws an arm around him and gives him a sweaty hug. "This would totally suck if I was doing it on my own."

"I would have quit if I was doing it alone." Aaron admits.

"Well I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye Emily."

"Bye Jack." She calls over his shoulder and she gets a loud goodbye in response before leaving the Hotchner apartment.