Chapter 13

December 13, 2008

--

Emily had not expected to end up at any mall on her Saturday. She had expected to get some of her lists done, some of her Christmas shopping. And for her shopping, she much preferred boutiques. Of course, it helped that the best gifts for many of her friends were found in little stores as opposed to big malls. However, Emmeline and Carissa wanted to see Santa and there was no way Emily could say no. So now, she carried Carissa in one arm while she held on to Emmeline's hand in the other.

Her agent training had her grasping Emmeline's hand probably tighter than she had to. It was hard to turn that part of her off even during her off hours and especially with children. She knew how fast a little child could go missing during the year, let alone at Christmas.

"I want that!"

Emily turned her head at Carissa's exclamation, catching sight of little puppies in the pet store window they'd just passed. "Honey, you can't get a puppy."

"Why don't you get the puppy and let us babysit when you go away?" Carissa asked, looking up hopefully at Emily.

"A puppy is a lot of responsibility," she said. "I'm away too often."

"Exactly! So it would be like our puppy!" Carissa exclaimed happily.

Emily sighed and rolled her eyes. "No, Carrie."

"Well I'm going to keep asking Santa 'til we get one," the six-year-old claimed.

Emily shook her head affectionately. "What about you, Emmy?"

"Aquadoodles," Emmeline said almost immediately.

"What are those?" Emily asked as she stopped at the end of the Santa line.

"Markers," Emmeline answered.

"Markers?"

"You put water in them and they only draw on a special mat."

Emily turned, surprised, to find a man and his young daughter standing behind them in line. "Oh."

"I'm getting them for my niece," he explained, with a smile. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

She really doubted it. A quick survey told him either that was his niece or he was a single father. And if she was honest with herselt, there was a different single father on the brain.

"Emily?"

No way, her brain thought, just as she spun to find that same man standing a few people ahead of her, Emmeline and Carissa in line. "Hey."

Sure enough, it was Hotch standing with Jack.

"Mister Hotch!" Carrie wiggled out of her arms to race ahead and secure her fists in Hotch's pants. "We're here to see Santa!"

"I see that," Hotch replied, smiling down at her.

Emmeline stayed close to Emily. Emily knew it had everything to do with the fact that their father had walked out when Emmeline was seven. The older of the two girls remembered their father walking out and though Emily and Anne had tried their best to prove to Emmeline that people didn't always leave, there had been enough people in her life that had left in the last three years that Emmeline was slow to trust. Carissa, on the other hand, trusted easily in that innocently childish way. Emily didn't mind hanging on to her niece's hand.

"…And Barbie and Bratz and Polly!"

Hotch looked confused enough that Emily smiled. She wouldn't understand what Jack would want, so it didn't really surprise her that he didn't exactly understand Carissa's long list.

"And you, Emmeline?"

The ten-year-old looked surprised to be asked a question. "Aquadoodles."

"You enjoy drawing?"

Emmeline nodded shyly.

"Why not ask for an art set?" Hotch asked.

Emily smiled, touched that he was talking to them. Then another thought managed to weasel its way into her brain. Why? Why was he making nice with two little girls that he probably wouldn't see again? Then again, hadn't they run into each other two or three times since initially meeting?

"Because it's too much," Emmeline said honestly.

"Even from Santa?" Hotch asked.

Emily tilted her head at Jack, whose head was pillowed on his father's shoulder. The boy looked almost exhausted. She saw Hotch follow her gaze.

"He fell asleep in the car. Hasn't woken up yet."

Emily's eyebrows went up. "So he's not the spitting image of you."

"I'm sorry?"

"Jack," she said. "He's your spitting image except he doesn't wake clear-headed."

--

Hotch hadn't been able to believe his luck when he'd heard a voice he thought he'd recognized. The fact that something in him had roared up at the idea that another man was standing there, his posture telling the seasoned profiler he was at the very least intrigued, was only secondary to the idea that none other than the woman who had been on his mind for the past two weeks was standing so close. So he'd called out to her.

And then she'd gone and stunned him by telling him Jack was exactly like him. He always assumed that Jack would take more after his mother, simply because of all the time mother and son spent together. Emily's words made him feel inexplicably closer to his son and he smiled. It also made him realize that the fact that he woke completely alert was something she'd noticed. He stepped out of line, taking Carissa's hand and heading back to where she was standing. It would be easier for them to chat and he wouldn't feel bad about having two other children bud in line.

"I always see Haley in him," he said.

Emily shook her head. "Totally a Hotchner."

Hotch let out a full-blown grin, cataloguing the interesting changes that overtook her face. Relaxed was the best way he liked to see Emily. At least, the best way he wanted to see her that he'd experienced before. His mind had conjured up some interesting pictures of her the previous night. "I think I'm glad."

"You should be proud," Emily agreed.

He set Jack down, a little surprised to see how quickly Emmeline reached out for him. Apparently, there wasn't a child the older girl couldn't like, but she was extremely nervous around him. "Jack's a little afraid to go up by himself," he confided to Emily.

"I'll go with him," Emmeline volunteered, having apparently overheard the adults. "If that's okay with Jack."

"What do you think, Bud?" Hotch asked, briefly crouching down to his son's size. "Do you want Emmeline to go with you to see Santa?"

Jack, finger in his mouth, seemed to seriously consider the older girl for a minute. "'Kay," he finally answered.

And that was how he ended up standing off to the side of Santa who had Carissa on one knee and Jack on the other, Emmeline with her hand on the little boy to reassure him that someone was there. Aware was an understatement for what he was feeling as he watched his son and her nieces chatter away. Emmeline still stayed quiet.

"Is Emmeline okay?" he asked her softly.

"She's slow to trust," Emily responded, knowing without asking what he wanted to know. "She was seven when her father left and remembers it. An unwelcome bout of luck hit Anne and the girls and Emmy learned to trust no one who just waltzes into their lives."

"But I was invited," he said, almost surprised at his own joke.

Emily shot him a quick, but wide smile. "She just takes time," she said. "She wants to be sure you're not going to leave before she starts to trust you."

His hand met the fabric of her shirt between her shoulder blades and very, very lightly traced her spine until his hand rested at the small of her back. "I have no intentions of going anywhere."

--

Emily shivered, looking up at the glint in his dark eyes. She'd all but decided she couldn't pursue a relationship with Hotch, but that resolve was going to be difficult if she was interpreting his body language correctly.

"Auntie Emmy! Santa said he'd bring me a puppy!"

She was jolted out of whatever trance he had her in by Carissa's enthusiastic shout. She only had a few seconds to brace herself before the six-year-old made contact with her legs. "Did he?"

"Well, he said he'd try," Carissa corrected herself. "And Emmy's going to get her markers, and Santa said dinosaurs were hard to find but he'd try and get the elves to make some for Jack!"

"Wow," Emily chuckled. "Sounds like you had a lengthy conversation with him."

"A what?" Carissa asked, reaching up to grab Emily's hand.

"A long talk," Emily corrected herself as she watched Emmeline make her way over to them with Jack. She seemed perfectly at ease shortening and slowing her step so the four-year-old could keep up with her. She saw Hotch glance at his watch out of the corner of her eye and reprimanded herself for the weird twisting in her stomach. It was Saturday. It wasn't like she was never going to see him again. "In a hurry?"

He smiled down at her. "Not at all. I just hadn't realized we'd spent forty-five minutes in line."

Emily's eyes widened. "No!"

"Jack and I did," he corrected. "No wonder he fell asleep."

Emily's body relaxed as she laughed, watching Hotch hoist his son into his arms. The five of them left the little enclosure, no one really aiming any particular way. Carissa held Hotch's free hand while Emmeline stayed close to her aunt, obviously still not all that trusting of the dark-haired man. "What are your plans for the rest of the weekend?"

"I think tomorrow we're going to build a snowman," Hotch replied, looking to his son.

Jack nodded. "Snowman!" he agreed. "In'a park!"

"I want to build a snowman," Carissa said excitedly. "Can we Auntie Emmy?"

"Today?" Emily asked, trying to mentally figure out if they had enough time to play in the park before Anne would be home. Emily knew how important it was for her friend to spend time with her girls.

--

Hotch jumped on the opportunity she'd inadvertently presented him with. "Why don't you join us tomorrow?"

Emily looked a little stunned by the offer.

"Can we, Auntie Emmy?" Carissa said, turning wide hopeful eyes on her aunt.

Emily knew those eyes. She'd given into those eyes too often to count. "You'll have to ask your mom," she replied.

"Mommy's working tomorrow," Emmeline said quietly. "Remember?"

Emily sighed. She had forgotten.

"Please Auntie Emmy?" Carissa begged.

"Come play!" Jack agreed happily.

Since Emmeline didn't speak up to anything contrary, Emily had very little choice. "Okay."

I could offer you about eight different explanations as to why this is up on the 14th instead of the 13th, but that would make a long tedious paragraph. I'm off to study for my last exam, then write chapter 14. I cannot wait until I am done. Exams and stuffy noses are the banes of my existence. Them and writer's block, but hey, we can't have everything.