Chapter One
“Girls! It’s time to come down!” JC called up the steps, shaking his head when he heard what sounded like a herd of elephants coming down the hallway. He stepped back into the kitchen and came up behind his wife, wrapping his arms around her waist.
“I swear to God. I have no idea how two tiny girls can make so much noise,” he commented, dropping a kiss to her shoulder. She laughed and leaned back against his chest as she finished stirring the spaghetti sauce. Releasing her from his grasp, JC headed over to the cabinet to pull some plates down, along with glasses. He handed the plates to his wife so that she could serve the meal as he headed over to the refrigerator to pull out some drinks.
He’d turned to head back to the table when something collided with his legs. Looking down, he saw that the “something” had been his ten year old daughter.
“Hi dad.”
“Hi Abs.”
“Didja get me anything at the mall today?” Abbi had spent the entire day with her uncle Brandon and his wife, along with her cousin Crystal. She’d given her mother an entire list of things that she desperately needed, which of course translated into things that she desperately wanted.
“Nope. We didn’t get anything today. Can you set the table for mom, please?”
Thrusting her lower lip out in a pout at the revelation that her parents had completely disregarded her list, she trudged over to the counter pitifully to grab some silverware before returning it to the table. She pulled herself into her chair, tucking her legs underneath of her. She looked up when her sister entered.
“How was your day today?” JC asked, watching as Julie headed right for the fridge to pull out a bottle of water. She gave him a shrug. She’d spent the previous night over at Brianna’s had and had spent the day with her as well. He’d been surprised to see that she was home before he returned from the mall, however.
“S’okay, I guess,” she told him, taking her usual seat across from her sister. She sighed dramatically as she used one hand to prop her head up.
“Is something wrong?”
“No,” she responded, sighing loudly once more as she fixed her big, blue puppy dog eyes onto her father.
“Are you”“
“It’s just… Brianna’s going to this party tonight at Brenda Meehan’s and she wanted to know if I could go along with her and I really want to go and Brenda’s parents are going to be home, and can I please go?”
“Do you ever stop to take a breath?” JC asked, his eyes wide as he laughed. He shook his head. His daughter going to a party? He wasn’t sure that he liked that idea. “I don’t kno”“
“Did you say Brenda’s parents are going to be home, Julie?” Jen interrupted, giving her husband a glare. The sixteen year old had spent her high school career thus far at home. She’d been terribly shy and it had only been recently that she’d asked to go out and do things. Jen thought it would have been ridiculous for JC to turn her down!
“Yes. Her parents are gonna be there. It’s really just a bunch of kids getting together and hanging out, daddy. I promise.”
He sighed and looked to his wife. Inside, Julie felt like squealing with happiness. She knew the look on his face well. It was the look he always had when seriously considering a request.
“Are you going to be home at a decent time?”
He jumped at the sound of the squeal that had come from his daughter. He watched as she jumped up and ran over to him, throwing her arms around his waist before heading over to the same with Jen, much gentler, of course.
“You didn’t answer my question!” JC said loudly, trying to calm his daughter down. He couldn’t help but smile at her antics.
“Oh! Right! Well, actually, Brianna said a bunch of us can stay over at Brenda’s and I know that I just stayed over with Bri last night, but daddy, these kids never ask me to do anything and if I turn them down, they might never invite me again! Please?”
He sighed and rolled his eyes at her dramatics. As much as he thought about telling her no, he couldn’t. For the first year of high school, she’d been so miserable with Brianna being her only friend. How could he deny her this?
“I’ll make you a deal. You can go and stay over under one condition.”
He held his hand up when his daughter began to shriek again, silencing her immediately.
“I said one condition. I want you to be home early tomorrow morning. And I mean it, Julie. I’m not talking about you waltzing in here at dinner time. I want you home by 10:30 at the very latest.” With a nod, she jumped up from the table and headed out of the room to call Brianna. “Wait a minute, what about dinner?”
“Brianna said we could stop somewhere and eat!”
Sinking into his chair, JC shook his head. He was pretty sure that he’d just been conned!
~*~
“Daddy?”
“Hmm?”
“Can we go get some ice cream?” Looking away from the TV, he glanced over at his youngest daughter. Checking the time on his watch, he then turned his gaze over to Jen.
“You want to ride out and get some?”
“Oh no honey. I’m still stuffed from dinner.”
“Well, so am I, but it’s ice cream. I always make room for ice cream,” he laughed. He pushed himself up off the couch and walked to the chair that held his wife, kissing her forehead. “We won’t be gone long,” he told her with a smile.
Holding his hand out for Abbi, he smiled as she placed her much smaller hand in his large palm.
“Let’s roll.”
~*~
It was obvious when father and daughter re-entered the house that ice cream had been a big mistake! Jen watched as they stumbled inside and flopped down onto the couch. She smirked. They were too cute. Abbi was just like JC in so many ways. She followed him around like a lost puppy, wanting to be near him at all times. It was adorable.
“How was ice cream?”
“Good Lord woman, don’t ask,” he laughed. He watched as his little girl scrambled from the couch and made herself comfortable in the floor, kicking her shoes and socks off. With a grin, she laid on her back and he kicked her feet up into the air, resting them on his lap.
“Daddy, can you scratch my feet?”
From her place in the chair, Jen was absolutely disgusted. She had no idea how any two people could enjoy the feeling of someone scratching their feet! She could hardly stand it when JC offered to rub her feet after a particularly trying day. But sure enough, he began scratching away, her daughter’s content sigh reaching her ears.
“Att! You know the rules, girl. I scratch yours, you scratch me,” he told her with a grin, lifting his own feet to rest gently on her belly as she scratched away.
“Like father like daughter,” Jen said, her nose wrinkled in disgust as she pushed herself up out of the chair and headed out of the room. Gross! Feet were disgusting! She headed up the steps to shower and dress for bed, and the sound of her husband’s and daughter’s laughter at her expense was missed.
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