Her Mother's Daughter - Hotchniss

chapter sixteen: here comes the sun

"Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces / Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here / Here comes the sun / Here comes the sun / And I say it's all right"

-

Bridget took her first SAT in March, about a month after her seventeenth birthday and a year after her mother "died". She came home to her family, Jack watching cartoons while her father made lunch and her mom slept in, and sighed as she sat next to Jack.

"Tom & Jerry, huh? I didn't take you for a Tom & Jerry guy," she said, making Jack giggle. Hotch even laughed, not noticing that she'd come home until he heard her voice.

"How was it, Bridget?"

"Oh, fine,"

"Yeah? You think you did alright?"

"Yeah, did fine. My mom still asleep?"

"Yeah," Jack responded.

The Hotchners had moved in just a couple weeks before, leaving the cramped apartment Hotch had lived in since the divorce. Bridget and Jack got along well; she was a lot older than him, he was seven and she was seventeen, but he rather liked having a "cool older sister".

"Cool. What are we having for lunch?" she whispered to him.

"I'm having pizza,"

"No, you're not," Hotch called, "you're having tacos, Jack, we're not getting a pizza." Bridget cracked up and felt her father staring bullets into the back of her head.

"Why not?" asked Jack in a sad tone.

"Because we're not. Bridget, do you want tacos?"

"Uh," she chuckled, "sure."

As the kids were sitting at the table, eating and talking, making each other laugh. Emily clasped her hands and rested her chin on them with a huge smile. The kids didn't notice her at first, and Hotch looked at her from the couch.

"Hey, Mom!" Bridget said.

"Hi, Emily!" Jack called through a full mouth. Emily kept smiling, frozen with joy.

"Mom, you okay?" Emily snapped out of it and nodded.

"Yeah. Yeah. How was your SAT, Bridge?"

"Fine. You slept in,"

"Yeah." It seemed was all she could really say. Hotch smiled, got up, and swept her off her feet, making her yell. He put her down on the couch. "Aaron!" she laughed. Jack giggled at the sight of his dad picking up Bridget's mom and tossing her on the couch. "What was that for?"

"You were frozen. I unfroze you." Emily adored the fun side of him. She kissed him, not too much because the kids were right there watching. "Are you hungry?" he asked her quietly. She shook her head and looked at their kids, still staring at them, snickering.

"What're you two looking at?" she asked. Bridget raised her eyebrows and laughed, looking back at her plate and Jack. Jack put his hand over his mouth and tried to suppress his giggles.

-

Later, Emily was making dinner for the four of them; the kids were in their own rooms, and Hotch snuck up behind her, putting his arms around her waist and kissed the back of her head. "Hello, beautiful." Emily turned around, cocking her head so she could smile and kiss him. "You need help?"

"Uh...no, I think I'm good,"

"All right. How was your day, darling?" he asked. Emily chuckled and shook her head, now facing away from him. "Hmm?"

"Do you know how happy I've been lately?" Emily wondered. "I love you and Jack being here. So does Bridget,"

"We love being here,"

"I...I couldn't even do anything this morning, I saw Bridget and Jack eating and having a good time. How does Jack like it now that...it's not just you guys?"

"He loves Bridget. He thinks she's really nice, and fun, and...he loves you. He loves you so much, Emily. My beautiful girl, we've got two incredible kids, don't we?" He kissed Emily and held her hips, pulling her against him.

After dinner, Emily went for a girls' night at Garcia's and Jack was in bed. Bridget looked at her dad and smiled. "What?" he asked.

"Jack thinks I'm nice and fun?" Hotch furrowed his brow. "My door was open, and you guys aren't exactly quiet,"

"You're his big sister. Of course he looks up to you. He loves you." Bridget blushed and took a couple steps back, her head turned down with a little smile. "And he loves your mom." Bridget nodded as though this was a given fact, as if to say, 'of course'.

"My mom must really be head-over-heels in love with you, Hotch." Bridget chuckled. "In sixteen years she didn't even introduce me to anyone. I can't even say for sure whether or not she dated anyone, that's how overprotective she was. Maybe it's different, 'cause, y'know...but she really loves you." She smiled at him. "Well, anyway. Night. Love you," she said, before heading into her room.

Emily arrived home around one, and Hotch was awake reading in bed. She took off her shoes and sighed, flopping down into bed. "Hey," she said quietly so as not to wake the kids.

"How was your girls' night?"

"Oh, good. You enjoy having the bed to yourself for a little while?" she chuckled. Hotch smiled and stroked her hair. She got up to take off her clothes. He watched her and she glanced at him, laughing, "Don't get any ideas, mister, I am exhausted." He put his hands up in innocence and grinned. She put on something more comfortable to wear to bed and snuggled up next to him.

"Bridget said you haven't really dated as long as she can remember. That I'm the first she's even met,"

"Mhm. I didn't wanna hurt her,"

"Said you must be 'head-over heels in love' with me." He felt her smile and put her hand on his chest.

"Maybe I am,"

"Well, I'm madly in love with you, too, Emily Prentiss." He kissed her head and let her rest on his chest.

A couple quiet minutes passed. Hotch thought she might have fallen asleep, half-atop him — which he would not have minded a bit — before Emily sighed and murmured to him, "Bridget's been having nightmares,"

"What?"

"Yeah. She hasn't told me straight-up, but I know her, and I know what it's like. She's scared to say anything to me. I gotta help her. She hasn't slept well since Doyle. I'm gonna talk to her in the morning. I don't know how she'll take it if it's me, I did this to her, anyway. Can you...can we discuss this in the morning? I don't wanna gang up on her, so just one of us, but...?" Emily fought hard to stay awake.

"I hear you. Just tell me what you need. You're half-asleep, baby, let's do this in the morning, alright?"

"Mhm..." Hotch continued to stroke her hair, lulling her to sleep, her head now resting on his bicep with his arm going down her back and over her waist. This woman. He wanted the rest of their lives to be spent together.