August 30th, 2013 - 36 weeks pregnant
It seemed like it was happening in slow motion as Beth watched. Hotch shot the soccer ball towards the goal and it slipped through Jack's fingers nailing him square in the face. The red stream of blood started pouring down his face instantly and she could tell his eyes were welling with tears that he was trying desperately to not let fall. They were hosting a Labor Day weekend BBQ and JJ, Will, Henry, Morgan, Hotch, Emily and Rossi were all playing while she, Reid and Garcia cheered from the sidelines.
Hotch rushed to Jack's side. "Buddy, I'm so sorry." Hotch looked miserable and Beth knew he felt terribly guilty despite it being an accident.
Beth stood up as Jack and Aaron reached the porch. "I'll take him," she said to Hotch. "C'mon, bud." She took Jack's hand and led him into the house as he used his shirt to soak up the blood still coming from his nose.
She helped him onto the kitchen counter and gave him a washcloth to use to soak up the blood and carefully pulled his t-shirt over his head. She put some crushed ice into a ziplock bag and wrapped it in a towel before gently placing it over the bridge of his nose. Jack remained silent but she could see tears were starting to escape from the corner of his eyes. She just stroked his hair and held the ice while he still held the washcloth. After a few minutes he cautiously removed the washcloth and it seemed that his nose had stopped bleeding - although a bruise was beginning to form.
"You hold the ice. I'm going to get you some tylenol and a clean shirt." Jack nodded at her and she headed upstairs. When she came back down she dampened a paper towel and cleaned the dried blood off of his face before helping him into a new shirt and giving him the tylenol.
"How do you feel?" She asked him.
He just shrugged at her. "It kinda hurts."
"It looked like it hurt a lot. We'll keep doing ice and tylenol and that will help. You'll have quite the bruise to show off on the first day of school. You know, bud. When something hurts you - it's okay to cry. No matter how you're feeling - it's always okay to cry."
"Dad never cries, even when he's hurt."
"Dad cries. I know it's hard to believe, and it doesn't happen very often, but he does. And that's okay. No matter who you are or how old you are - it's okay. C'mere, bud."
She pulled him in for a hug. He sat on the kitchen counter, his arms stretched around her neck and his head resting against her chest. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close to her. After a moment he let go and he placed his hands on her nearly full term belly.
"When the baby gets here they're going to call you mom, right?"
"Well he or she won't be able to talk for a while, but when they can, yeah. They'll call me mom."
"And this baby, they're going to be my brother or sister, right?"
"Of course, Jack."
"Well I was thinking. If this baby is my brother or sister, and they call you mom, shouldn't I call you mom too?"
Beth smiled and kissed his head. "You can call me whatever you want, Jack. Do you want to call me mom?"
Jack nodded his head yes. Beth pulled him in for another hug. "Mom it is, then."
The sliding glass door leading to the back patio opened and Hotch walked in still looking terribly guilty. He walked into the kitchen and rubbed Jack's back as he hugged Beth.
"Are you okay buddy, I'm so sorry."
Jack released Beth and looked at his Dad. "It's okay, dad. It was an accident."
Hotch lifted the boy off the counter and into his arms hugging him. "Well I'm still really sorry, Jack. I never want to do anything that hurts you."
"I know, dad. Can I go back outside?"
"Sure, buddy. Maybe no more soccer tonight, though?" Hotch let him down and Jack ran back outside.
Hotch watched as he ran back over to Henry.
"Hey," Beth said to him and he turned to face her. She cupped his face. "It was an accident. Forgive yourself."
Hotch just gave her a small smile before taking her hand and leading them both back outside. Hotch started grilling everyone's hamburgers and the rest of the evening passed without incident. The team ate and talked and laughed.
"So how are you feeling?" JJ asked her. "You've got to be exhausted - I remember getting to nine months and feeling like I was dying after half a flight of stairs."
Beth laughed. "As much as I'm ready to be done I can't help but feel like this pregnancy flew by. But I'm definitely not going to miss getting winded just from going up the stairs to our bedroom."
JJ glanced around the patio and noticed that everyone was involved in their own conversations, no one was paying them any attention.
"I remember sex just seemed like so much work. Will kept trying to tell me that we wouldn't be able to postpartum so we should take advantage of our last baby free days but god. Everything aches and it's just so uncomfortable."
"YES! I mean I feel bad and Aaron really has been so good about everything but earlier this week we had to change positions half-way through because I was so uncomfortable. I felt so bad and he hasn't tried to initiate anything since."
"Girl, don't feel bad. You're growing and carrying a whole human. Sex can take a back seat for a while."
"How was postpartum for you, if you don't mind me asking?"
"It was an adjustment. I was used to being active and suddenly it hurt to sit down and I had a baby attached to my nipple every 2 hours. The first couple weeks are rough but slowly you'll find your new normal, and don't be afraid to ask for help."
Beth reached over and squeezed JJ's hand.
"Thanks, JJ. To be honest it's all kind of terrifying."
JJ laughed. "Yeah that feeling of terror in your gut, that never really goes away. You just learn to live with it."
"Oh great," Beth laughed with her. "Do you want another glass of wine?"
JJ checked her watch. "Well… technically it's Henry's bedtime soon but it's a holiday weekend so sure!"
"Penelope! Em!" Beth shouted to the other girls. "More wine?"
They both nodded enthusiastically. They all ended up in the kitchen with her to help her with the wine glasses.
"How's our little sugar plum baby doing in there?!" Garcia asked her enthusiastically while putting her hands on Beth's belly.
"Oh you know, kicking and growing, growing and kicking. You going to survive these next few weeks with Hotch at Quantico while we wait for the little babe?"
"Don't worry yourself sweet butterfly, a few weeks with the G-Man isn't enough to scare me off."
Emily just laughed and shook her head at Garcia. "It's going to be weird not having Hotch in the field!"
"Well I'm grateful you guys are willing to give him up for a bit." Beth told them.
"I think we can all agree this is way more important," JJ said and the others nodded their head in agreement.
"Have you guys thought of any names?" Emily asked her.
"I think we're pretty set on our girl name, well the first name at least. Boys' names are still really up in the air. I think Aaron wants to see the baby before we really make up our mind."
"Aw he's such a good dad, I can't wait to see him with a new little baby." Penelope gushed.
"I think he's nervous about me going into labor. He's not exactly the greatest with things that are out of his control."
"Not to mention Hotch is the type who prefers to bear pain himself rather than watch others suffer." Emily said.
"Very true. One hundred percent planning an epidural though so hopefully it won't be too bad!" Beth laughed.
The girls continued to laugh and chat when the door opened and Will came into the house carrying a crying Henry.
"Aaaaand that's my cue that it's time to leave. Love you ladies." JJ gave everyone a hug before taking Henry from Will and calming him down in her arms.
Slowly but surely their other guests gave hugs and said their goodbyes as well until Hotch, Beth, and Jack were alone in the house once again.
"Alright bud, brush teeth and get pajamas on. It's getting late."
They worked on cleaning up the kitchen before heading upstairs themselves to say goodnight to Jack. They tucked him in and kissed his head and were about to shut the door when Jack spoke up from under the covers.
"Night, Mom. Night, Dad. Love you."
Hotch smiled and shut the door behind them. He looked at Beth.
"Mom?' He asked her questioningly but seemingly pleased.
"Yeah, he decided that since the new baby will call me mom that he wants to call me mom too. Are you okay with that?"
"Of course! That makes me really happy." He told her before kissing her gently.
"Want to take a bath with me?" She asked him.
Hotch nodded yes and they made their way into the master bathroom. Beth busied herself adding epsom salts and relaxing oils into the water before standing up and removing her shirt. She got goosebumps as the cool A/C hit her exposed skin. Hotch stood in front of her and ran his hands down her arms before placing them both on her belly.
"I can't believe that this little one is supposed to come next month. I thought if I ever had a second kid I would feel more prepared. But I don't, I still feel wildly underqualified."
"You had a sucky dad. All you grew up learning was what not to do. But my dad, he was wonderful. He played with us but knew when to scold us, he taught us how to ride our bikes and change a tire. I know what a good dad looks like and you're it, Hotchner. I couldn't have picked a better man to raise kids with."
Hotch hugged her and she slipped her hands under his t-shirt and pulled it over his head.
"C'mon, the water is gonna get cold." He held her hand to help her balance as she stepped out of her shorts and into the large clawfoot tub. She leaned forward as he shed the rest of his clothing and got in behind her. Beth settled herself against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her finding a comfortable spot on her belly to rest, the silky water settled around them. They relaxed for several minutes before Beth finally broke the silence.
"Do you remember the first time we had sex?"
"Yeah," Hotch answered. "I was scared shitless."
"Well you really made me work for it, I was starting to get worried that there was something physically wrong with you!"
"Three months is not that long!" Hotch defended himself. "I wanted to be respectful."
Beth giggled and Hotch couldn't help but smile when he heard it. Her laugh was everything to him.
"I felt very respected. And very very horny." She laughed again.
"What made you think of that night?" He asked her.
"I was just remembering it fondly, that was the night I knew our relationship was going to be something more than just a fling. I knew you were different than the men I had dated in the past."
"For me it was when you met Jack and the team and just took all of it in stride. I knew if 6 profilers and my son couldn't scare you off then nothing would."
"That was like a month before you finally decided to take me up on my offer to come inside after our date, if you know you liked me that much why didn't we sleep together sooner?"
"Just because I felt that way didn't mean I could assume you felt that way! Besides it was kind of terrifying. With Haley we lost our virginities to each other - we were equally clueless. With you I knew you were going in with significantly more experience than I was."
She tilted her head against his chest to look up at him. "Aw that's a nice way of calling your pregnant fiancee a slut."
She smiled at him so he would know she was joking.
"Hey, I'm not complaining about your experience. You rocked my world that night, I've never looked back."
Beth laughed loudly. "You were pretty damn good yourself, Hotchner."
Hotch ran a hand up her bare skin and settled it in her thick hair. "Mm, I think we're a pretty good match," he said to her before pulling her hair, gently forcing her head to the side.
He kissed her neck a few times before settling in on a spot he knew she was sensitive at and started lightly sucking. Beth reached an arm back and placed her hand on the nape of his neck holding him in place.
"Aaron, that feels so good."
"We don't have to do anything tonight if you're not up for it," he murmured into her skin.
"I want to. I always want to. My body has just been making the logistics of it difficult lately."
"Let's get out of the tub, if it works out; great. If not; oh well. It's not the end of the world."
Hotch helped her out of the tub and wrapped her in a towel before grabbing one for himself. She dried herself off as best as she could before dropping the towel and wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a kiss. She slipped her tongue into his mouth before latching onto his bottom lip and sucking. He reciprocated enthusiastically and she could feel him hardening against her thigh, she was feeling determined to make sex work tonight but she knew standing wasn't the way to go. Her center of gravity was off and her feet would get puffy if she stood for too long.
"C'mon I have an idea," she told him, breaking off the kiss.
She led him back into the bedroom and she grabbed a pillow off the bed and placed it near the edge. Beth sat on the pillow before wrapping her legs around Hotch's waist and laying down. This position allowed her to relax on the bed but gave him easy access while he stood and did all the work.
Hotch kneeled to the floor and rested her legs on top of his shoulders. He kissed the inside of her thighs gently before reaching her clit. He gave it a few licks and kisses and noted that she was more than ready for him.
"Aaron," she groaned. "I want you inside of me."
He stood and she re-wrapped her legs around his waist as he sunk into her moaning loudly. Beth thoroughly enjoyed herself as they once again proved they were a good match.
