Chapter 5
"Paybacks are a bitch," Rossi bellowed from the garage door entry way. Cait just shook her head at her husband and looked at Jack.
He rolled his eyes. "Mom, I know Uncle Dave." She and Aaron shared a laugh.
Dave came in and gave Cait a kiss. "Any cinnamon rolls left?" Cait held up a small plate of the one left wrapped in plastic wrap. She pulled the wrap off and put it into the microwave as Mudg bounded into the kitchen for his loves from Cait, Aaron and Jack. She pointed at the coffee pot. "That's a fresh pot; you help yourself on that."
Dave smiled. "Pot number….," he questioned.
Aaron laughed. "With this crew around here?" Number three."
Sean took his coat as Cait pulled out the cinnamon roll. Dave reached for the coffee mug tree and poured himself of cup. Leslie handed him the half and half from the fridge. Dave shared hugs with the both of them.
"I saw Matt's car in my garage last yesterday when I got home from work," he smiled. "Did he get to drive dad's last night to church?"
Aaron laughed. "Cait and I figured that one out from the get-go." Cait pointed at him. Jarrod, sitting at the lunch counter, softly whistled at them in the kitchen and nodded towards the Great Room.
Wyatt was playing with a toy that Cait had bought at the same garage sale as the playpen. It was one he could bang on that made noise. I know boys she had smiled as she had picked it out. They all looked and smiled to see how it would play out. Dave greeted Maggie and Jarrod as he sat down at the lunch counter with his roll and coffee.
Wyatt stopped and eyed the black Lab, with his graying muzzle, silently pursuing the edge of the Great Room. Beans, as usual, was in full mode of taking care of her young charge, lying next to the fire, yet keeping an eye on him. She sat up, looking at Mudg and softly barked.
Mudg ventured in still on guard about the young pup. Wyatt was on the same page, eyeing the elder statesman of the Hotchner/Rossi dog world. Mudg slowly walked in closer, took a large sniff and then backed away a step, circling Wyatt a bit. The stare down between the Rossi dog and the young Hotchner continued. Dave pulled Jack into his lap smiling.
Cait giggled. "Someone else has learned the Hotchner glare," she whispered. Aaron lightly pinched her butt. She laughed in her husband's chest.
The scene repeated again and Beans stood up, shaking herself. She walked over to Wyatt and plopped down next to him with a stretch of her body on the floor. Wyatt smiled and rubbed the fur on her back as Beans pounded her large tail on the floor.
Jack looked at Cait. She shook her head. "That's for Wyatt and Mudg to work out," she whispered.
Mudg finally went to Wyatt and sat down next to him. When Wyatt reached his hand out to pet the elder statesman, Mudg stood up. He smelled the small hand and then sat back down next to him. Wyatt patted him on the neck as Mudg wagged his tail.
With the cold morning sunshine streaming into the house, Jack's smile was even brighter. "That's just too cool," he observed.
Wyatt went back to his toy, pounding out noise and both the dogs disappeared into Cait and Aaron's bedroom. The family shared a laugh.
Cait rubbed Aaron's arm. "Can you go out into the garage and get the turkey. It should be at room temp a bit before I put it in."
Sean smiled. "I got it bro," and headed for the garage. Dave caught up with the Barkley's.
Cait's cell pinged with text. She picked it up and smiled as she read the text from Jake. You all gonna be watching me?
Hell no; I've got a dinner to cook. :D she texted back as Aaron looked over his shoulder, laughing. "He must be getting dressed in the locker room."
Jarrod shook his head. "And knowing Jake; with butterflies in his stomach the size of eagles."
Jack looked at him. "That big grandpa?"
"Yup Jack; Jake always gets the jitters while he's dressing for a game."
"I can't wait to see him play again," Jack smiled. Aaron and Cait had the NFL ticket which allowed them to see Jake start for the Packers the last three games. While they lost the game to the Bears when Aaron Rodgers got hurt and Jake stepped in, they had won the next three games with Jake playing well.
They all enjoyed their time together with the older, showered and shaved boys joining in until Wyatt howled that he was ready for his lunch. Aaron picked him up off the floor and immediately handed him to Sean, shaking his head. "I'm done changing diapers. He's all yours." Baby's urine could smell almost as bad as the poop.
Sean took a whiff and looked at his big brother. "Sean, what did you just hear about paybacks? I took care of more than one of yours. He's your son." Sean smiled and took him upstairs as Leslie got his lunch ready.
Cait got the turkey seasoned and set the oven. Maggie started peeling apples for Cait's pie. Leslie fed Wyatt, letting Jack help her. By his third bite, the other two boys watching had taken over. Wyatt giggled at the three of them battling who put the next spoonful in his mouth. When they took too long to decide, Wyatt loudly let them know. The adults all laughed.
The three Hotchner boys settled into a routine of sharing, one after the other and Wyatt got filled up as Cait put the turkey in the oven. Leslie got him cleaned up and handed the warm bottle of milk to Aaron. She pulled him out the highchair and Aaron happily took him. Wyatt drank his bottle in his uncle's arms as he stood in the kitchen, beaming at newest part of the Hotchner family tree. Cait rubbed his back, smiling proudly as Aaron proved to be an expert at getting Wyatt to burp. Sean just shook his head at the second one that got rave reviews from his cousins.
Mike grabbed Wyatt's toes. "That one came from here didn't it," he smiled.
Wyatt kicked his feet at Mike, taking more of his bottle with a smile. When he finished, Aaron set him on the floor and Wyatt took off. Aaron shook his head. "Look out world; he's loose again." Wyatt made a beeline to their bedroom, looking for the dogs. Aaron and Jack filled the older boys in on the earlier escapade with Wyatt getting to know Mudg.
"Aww man, we missed that," Matt moaned.
Aaron looked at his oldest sons. Mike rolled his eyes at his brother.
"Here's where we get the sermon that we should have been up sooner and ready." Aaron pointed at Mike and Jarrod and Dave shared a hearty laugh, looking at the boys. Mike followed Wyatt into the Great Room to get the football preview game on the TV.
Wyatt sat down in the doorway of Cait and Aaron's bedroom and looked at Mike. He walked over and kneeled down to rub Wyatt's head. "All it takes is a whistle," he smiled. He gently put an index finger of Wyatt's hands into each ear, knowing how a sound like that could affect young eardrums and softly whistled the dogs into action.
Mike picked up Wyatt and set him in the middle of the Great Room as the dogs tumbled out of the bedroom. "There ya go bud," he smiled, rubbing his head. Matt headed downstairs to get the TV on in the den to pregame show as well.
Jack looked at Jarrod. "Grandpa, there's something I've got to do." He raced up the steps. Aaron and Cait shared a smile. His brothers followed him up the steps as Wyatt crawled after the dogs in the Great Room. Mudg quickly caught on to the game.
Morgan pulled his hummer into the Hotchner driveway, with the LaMontagne's on his heels. Morgan smiled and walked to the backseat of their SUV to fish out Henry. He opened the door. "Hey little man," he smiled as Henry got his seatbelt undone. "Whoa; I think I need to start calling you Big Dog," he smiled.
"That's me Derek," Henry smiled. Morgan grabbed the blonde headed boy and set him on his shoulders to Henry's laughter.
The four of them went up the steps to the front porch and rang the doorbell. Aaron entered into the foyer, let them in and smiled as Derek ducked down so Henry wouldn't bang his head on the top of the doorway.
Aaron frowned at JJ. "Where's your mom," he asked taking her coat.
JJ smiled. "She's still working on her pie; so is Fran. Garcia and Kevin are picking them both up on their way here."
Aaron smiled. "Works for me."
Will took Henry's coat that he was about to drop on the floor of the foyer after Derek had pulled him off his shoulders. Henry took off running into the home. "Hi Uncle Aaron," he shouted as he blew by him.
Hotch looked at Morgan. "Is there some way we can bottle that energy and use it when we're out on cases?" He hung up JJ's coat and Will took care of his own and Henry's.
"Damn Hotch, I wish," he smiled hanging up his own coat. Aaron waved them all into the house with a smile.
Henry was looking around for Jack as the rest walked in. Hotch rubbed his head. "Henry, Jack is in his room. He'll be down in a second." He pointed at Wyatt who was sitting in the middle of the room, playing with another toy that Cait had bought for him matching symbols. It didn't make any noise until he did and both the dogs were keeping watch on their young charge. Henry looked at him. Hotch smiled. "Henry, that's Wyatt; and he likes to play with someone."
Henry walked in, plopped down and sat crossed legged and looked at Wyatt. "Hi Wyatt," he smiled. Wyatt eyed him suspiciously until the two dogs both came over and licked Henry's cheek. Wyatt giggled.
Cait and Maggie, on downtime with cooking walked into the Great Room greeting them all. "Where's my sisterhood of mom's," Maggie asked.
Will shook his head. "They've been texting back and forth all morning," he drawled. "And they're both still working on their pies."
JJ, pulling out of hug from Cait, looked at her and Maggie. "Penelope and Kevin are going to pick them up," she smiled. "We're here for the football," she beamed.
Just then Jack came down the stairs with his brothers. All three of them sported the away white jersey of the Green Bay Packers, adorned in the traditional green and gold. And they all wore the same number. A big white 10 was on the front.
Derek looked at the boys. "Don't tell me; that's Uncle Jake's number," he smiled. All three boys turned their backs to reveal the Barkley name across their shoulders. Jack raced to him and Derek threw him in the air and caught him. Aaron looked at Dave and they both looked at each other with a sad shake of the head of the muscular agent. "Uncle Jake sent them to all of you boys didn't he," he said, tickling Jack, making him laugh. Wyatt, hearing Jack laugh, joined in as well.
JJ put a hand around Cait's waist. "It's family time again," she smiled, looking Cait in the eyes. "Thank you," she said, kissing her cheek.
Morgan walked over and kissed her. "Thanks again Mother Goose," he smiled, pulling her into a hug. Will was waiting to do the same when Derek finished. Morgan looked around. "I don't know about all of you, but I'm watching the game in surround sound," and headed for the basement steps.
JJ looked at Cait, who shook her head, waving. "Go and enjoy the game. I've just got to put my pie together and I can do that while I'm watching up here," pointing to the TV she could see from the kitchen. The older boys followed them down the steps along with Jarrod, Sean, Aaron and Dave.
Wyatt yawned deeply and Leslie looked at Jack and Henry. "Go watch the game, you two. Wyatt has to take his nap." The boys flew down the steps with the dogs on their heels. The boys started a basketball game in the playroom as the front door bell rang again. Maggie watching the National Anthem at the start of the game didn't flinch. Cait shook her head at her mother and went to the door.
She looked through the peephole to see Emily's smiling face. Cait opened the door and let her in. Emily took her coat off and shook her head at Cait. "I can hang up my own coat," she smiled. After hanging up her coat, she pulled Cait into a hug. "Thank you again for having us here Cait. It means so much to me; hell all of us," she smiled. They walked into the home together and Emily noticed Maggie in the living room, already pacing.
Cait just shook her head. "Her baby boy is playing a violent game. She paces," Cait explained, squeezing Emily's waist a bit. "I know the feeling," she winked. Emily smiled at her, nodding her understanding. "They're all downstairs to get the game in surround sound," Cait said. "Go join them."
"What about you?"
"I'm gonna get my apple pie prepped and baking," she smiled with a wink. "And keep an eye on someone," she nodded at Maggie. Emily gave Cait's waist a tug and headed down the steps.
When Emily got into the room, she greeted everyone and then looked at Aaron and Jarrod. "Mother Goose number one is pacing," she reported.
Jarrod smiled, shaking his head. "That's Maggie; our seats at the Coliseum were on the aisle next to an exit so she could do that then," he remembered to Jake's playing days at USC.
Aaron shook his head. "Cait told me about that. Don't ask how she was when Matt and Mike were playing."
Jack and Henry stuck their head in the room and Uncle Dave shook his head. The boys went back to their basketball game.
Emily pointed at Hotch. "We got to see that about a month ago, remember?" Aaron nodded and smiled.
Matt looked at Emily. "Where's the rest of the gang?"
"Gina is a huge football fan, but she said she had some things to take care of, so she'd get here when she can. Brian was meeting up with some buddies from college last night, so I think he's probably still feeling like us girls Tuesday morning." Matt and Mike snickered.
Morgan picked up the update. "Reid isn't in to football and you know about Garcia and Kevin." They all smiled as the Packers kicked off to start the game.
"And neither is Alex," Emily smiled, "so I think she and James are enjoying some time together."
They heard Maggie hollering at the TV upstairs. "Tackle him!"
Jarrod just looked at all of them and sadly shook his head.
Matt looked at Jarrod, nodding his head upstairs. "Grandpa?"
Jarrod shook his head. "Matt, leave her alone." Aaron looked at Dave, who shrugged his shoulders.
Detroit started their first series and was on the march to score until their quarterback threw a telegraphed pass and it was intercepted. The crowd downstairs erupted with cheers. Leslie, in the kitchen with Cait, watching her put her pie together smiled at her. "Good thing Wyatt is upstairs and they're down there."
Cait smiled. "That was sorta the plan," she winked. Leslie looked at Maggie pacing as Jake lead the Packer offense on the field. Cait just shook her head.
Leslie stifled a giggle and looked at Cait. "Something I get to look forward to?" She and Sean had watched Mike's games through a video replay on Sunday from the school's website.
Cait laughed. "Teach Wyatt how to play the piano," she winked.
Leslie shook her head. "That's on you Aunt Cait," she smiled, pulling her sister-in-law into a hug. The bond the two ladies shared, loving Hotchner men was strong and unbreakable.
Downstairs, it was too quiet. Knowing Jake, they all watched silently as he took his first snap from his center, handing the ball off to Eddy Lacy, a rookie running back that had earned the starting job. He ran into a wall of Lion defensive lineman.
Matt shook his head. "Damn lineman that doesn't support his team," Matt said under his breath.
Morgan looked at him. "I read about that online," he said. "One of the Packer's O-lineman called the Lions D-line dirty players."
"Sitton," Mike said. "Jake's left tackle."
"Uncle Jake was pissed," Matt added. His grandfather looked at him. "We talk Grandpa."
The second play from scrimmage, Jake went back to pass and got engulfed by two Lions' players, sacked for a loss. The third play didn't go much better. Jarrod rubbed his face across his face. "This looks like a long afternoon."
Emily and Morgan just looked at each other with JJ and Will joining them, all thinking the same thing. This has got to be tough on a family.
Maggie was ranting in the living room upstairs. Leslie looked at Cait. "You go down and watch the game with your husband," she smiled. "I," she nodded at her mother, "will try to keep her corralled so she doesn't wake up Wyatt," Cait smiled.
"Cait, you sure?"
Knowing that Leslie was huge football fan, she smiled, rubbing her arm. "Enjoy some time with your husband."
"What about you and Aaron," Leslie honestly asked.
Cait just smiled and winked. Leslie beamed back at her and headed downstairs.
Cait got her pie in the bottom oven to bake, shushing Maggie several times to hold it down with Wyatt sleeping upstairs. The front doorbell rang. Cait was surprised to see the person on the other side of the peephole.
"Spencer, what you doing here so early," she asked with a smile, welcoming him in the door.
He smiled as Cait took his coat and hung it up. Maggie groaned in the Great Room. Spencer smiled. "To maybe learn a little more about football," he cautiously said. Cait looked at him. "If I'm a member of this family of ours, I think I need to broaden my horizons," he smiled, giving her a hug.
Cait smiled. "They're all downstairs in the man cave," she smiled. As Reid moved to the steps, he stopped, looking at Maggie. Cait shook her head. "It's a mom thing Spencer." He smiled and descended the steps.
Reid walked into the room and saw Morgan walking behind one of the couches in the corner of the room with the fireplace going. "How's it going," he asked, nodding at the TV.
"Not good, Pretty Boy." He, Aaron and Dave filled in the rest of the blanks.
Reid looked at the score in the corner of the TV. "But they're only down by three points."
"A field goal, Pretty Boy; but Jake is getting hammered." Spencer just nodded.
Yet, the Packer defense caused a turnover deep in the Lion's zone, which resulted in a touchdown as one of the defensive backs scooped up the fumbled ball and ran it in. The crowd in the man cave cheered; even Reid. They all heard Maggie upstairs. He then looked at Morgan. "That's a good thing right?"
Morgan just smiled and rubbed Reid's shoulder. Gina showed up a few minutes later, and by the start of the second quarter, the group downstairs was drinking their first beer. Brian Anderson showed up as well. He passed on Morgan's offer of a beer. "I'll pass for right now," he said.
Morgan gave the young agent his megawatt smile. "Been there, done that Brian," he said, rubbing his shoulder. Matt smiled, went to the bar fridge and pulled out a plastic bottle. He walked to Brian and handed him a bottle of water.
"Thanks Matt," Brian smiled.
Dave looked at Matt. "A little experience in that department Mattie?" Matt just shook his head. Dave and Hotch shared a knowing smile. Everyone else in the room, except Spencer, nodded their agreement. Mike, while not yet having the experience, looked at his older brother.
"So that's why when I walk into our bathroom you're sucking the water faucet dry." Matt flipped him off.
Dave shook his head. "Matthew my boy; my pride and joy," he smiled. "What are paybacks?"
Matt smiled at his uncle and gave a point to his brother. You'll get there soon. Sean looked at Aaron and laughed. Aaron just hung his head, shaking it. The team roared with laughter.
###
A/N: I know; it's American football. I've tried to keep it really bland with the specifics for those of you that don't understand. Just bear with me.
The Coliseum is LA Coliseum were USC plays their home football games.