"Yeah." For a split second, I swore she bit her lower lip. "I'll even turn off my phone," she promised.
Before I could respond, a thrilled squeal interrupted as Faith cantered down the stairs. "A date?"
"Faith..." I tried, hoping she'd let me explain, but my daughter slammed into me, hugging me one more time.
"She's cool, and I like her, and you'd better not screw this up, Dad." She leaned back to look at me with the most serious expression she could manage. "And you'll be a perfect gentleman and impress her, and if you need any pointers on what to do, just call me. Ok?"
"I think I got this, cupcake."
She groaned out a sigh. "Dad, you're supposed to be romantic, because I like her."
"Faith," Violet tried, but the girl was on a roll.
I just held up my hand. "I kinda like her too, but you're ruining my cool here. C'mon. I gotta get you home, anyway. Your mom should be back by now, and if we're running late, you know we'll both get our butts chewed out."
"Yeah," Faith grumbled, then turned to Violet. "My dad really is a good guy. I mean, he hasn't dated a lot, and he works way too much, but I think you two are the best people for each other,ever."
"I hope so," Violet agreed, "but don't you dare go telling him my secrets."
Faith just mimed zipping her lips and throwing away the key. "Promise. Maybe I'll even get to see you next time I'm with Dad?"
"Counting on it," Violet assured her. "And you, Luke?"
"Tomorrow," I promised, steering my kid toward the front door. "Thanks, by the way, for the good day."
"Completely my pleasure."
Then I made it out. Faith had my wrist and was hauling me toward the truck, but there was a new bounce in her step. I just let her, well aware that the entire drive back was going to be nothing but a million questions. She didn't disappoint, either. We were barely through the gate before she started.
"So what's her favorite color?"
"Violet," I answered, pretty sure I had that one.
"Ok." She pulled in a deep breath. "Song?"
"Not a clue. Don't even know what kind of music she listens to."
"Well, you're going to have to fix that. It's also a good thing to talk about when things get awkward. And her favorite flower?"
I chuckled. "Honey, I don't have a clue. Why does it matter?"
"Well, what are you going to get her when you make her mad? Dad, these things are important."
I glanced over to see her roll her eyes. "Faith, the point is to not make her mad. I mean, it'll happen, but I think Violet's the kind of person who'd prefer I told her I was sorry than just bought flowers."
"But Mom says a guy has to spend a little money before he can realize how bad he's screwed up."
So that was where this was coming from. Yeah, Meredith had some messed-up ideas, but they weren't all her fault. Her mother had already been married four times and was working on the fifth. Her father moved away when she was just a little girl, and made no secret of the fact that women were only useful so long as they were pretty. Considering that she'd been getting it from both sides for her entire life, well, I gave her a little slack. That didn't mean I wanted Faith to think the same way.
I wanted my daughter to daydream about love and romance, not a life where money was used as a substitute for true happiness. I wanted her to know that material things would never replace true relationships, and that sometimes fights happened - and that it was ok. Most of all, I wanted her to know that me asking Violet out wasn't going to change her life.
"Cupcake," I started, trying desperately to find the right words, "you know me asking her out has nothing to do with your mom getting married soon, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
I kept my eyes on the road. "Well, I just figured that you might feel like everything is changing too fast. I mean, I was going to tell you about Violet, but I thought I should have a date with her first, to see if it's even a possibility."
My daughter pulled her feet up, twisting to look at me. "She likes you, Dad. I know you like her. I mean, you two were almost embarrassing at the pool."
