She opens her mouth to answer when we hear the front door opens and then immediately close. And much to my chagrin, my daughter’s face lights up like a Christmas tree.
“Hello,” Skylar sings out, only to find us a moment later as she enters the kitchen. “Guess what I found?!” She is practically vibrating with excitement as she pulls two boxes of multicolored fairy lights out of her bag. “I thought maybe after dinner we could set them up in your room. What do you think?”
Zoey flies off her chair and races straight over to Skylar. She throws her arms around her like they’re ancient besties, and I’m hit with a pang unlike any I’ve ever felt. For a moment, all I can do is blink. I’m hot and have chills. Skylar bought Zoey fairy lights for her room. It’s beautiful and terrifying. It makes me want to cross the room, thread my hands through Skylar’s hair, and kiss her crazy. But worse than that? My kid is already falling in love with her.
Fuck.
“Is that a yes?” Skylar laughs, hugging her back.
“Yes! Yes!” Zoey jumps up and down before she glances back over at me. “Do you think Uncle Micha will mind? Stephen didn’t like it when I taped lights to the ceiling.”
That’s because your former stepfather was a dick.
“I think Uncle Micha will love it. We’ll set them up tonight,so you have them as a nightlight. You need to thank Skylar for that very thoughtful gift.”
“Thank you! Thank you!” Zoey is jumping like she has springs for feet.
“It was nothing. I was passing a shop and saw them.” She looks past me into the kitchen, eyeing the dishes and pots. “Smells delicious. Is there enough for three?”
“Help yourself,” I offer, because yes, there’s more than enough for three. I might have made the entire box of pasta and doubled the sauce recipe, even if I wasn’t sure she’d be home to eat it.
“Awesome. I’m starving. Thank you.” She makes herself a bowl, and I try not to notice how she’s showered and changed her clothes and how her hair is now down and wavy and she has something light and shimmery on her cheeks and eyelids and how the purple sweater she’s wearing hugs her tits just a little too tightly. “Zoey-Zo. Tell me all about preschool, girl. I want every detail.”
Zoey is wiggling in her seat, but I point to her pasta, and she scoops up a bite and dutifully shovels it into her mouth.
“They have a really big slide,” Zoey tells her.
“Oh. Sounds like fun.” Skylar takes the seat on the other side of her, not even sparing me a glance. “What else? Is it a big playground? Those are my favorites.”
Zoey nods vigorously. “So big. It also has a bouncy bridge.”
“Cool. That sounds amazing. I’m super jealous I can’t join you.”
Zoey laughs. “Silly, you’re too old.”
“Don’t I know it. Your daddy is even older than I am. But I don’t think we’re too old to play with each other, are we, Daddy?”
I choke on my pasta, and there’s a legit moment when I think I’m going to die or that my life will be in Skylar’s handswhen I require her to do the Heimlich maneuver. Luckily for all of us, it clears with a few strong coughs.
“Daddy, you okay?” Zoey asks, worry stretched across her face.
I wipe my mouth and take a sip of my water. “Yes. I’m fine. Just went down the wrong pipe.”
“That’s what she said,” Skylar chirps, and I glare at her.
“Is there a reason you’re being… impudent?”
Her eyebrows bounce. “Big word, Daddy. And I’m guessing it’s because you couldn’t say something else. I think it’s a little deserved, no? Comes with overstepping boundaries. But since we’re both thrust into a hard situation, if I can’t beat him, I might as well join him.”
None of this should make me hard, but of course it does. My palm tingles with the mental image of putting her on my knees so I can spank her round ass red. Then we’ll see who she’s calling Daddy.
“Behave,” I warn her.
“Or what?” She bats her eyelashes at me, and I clench my fork so tightly I’m shocked I’m not bending it. “Will you punish me for being naughty, Daddy?”
Yes. Yes, I fucking will, and you’ll both love it and hate it.
“What are you doing?”
