Chapter 5

WITH A ROAR OF indignation, I jumped up and chased Addison and her water gun around the pool. That squirt of icy water was shocking on my sun-baked skin.

Addison squealed and ran, laughing at me. I liked the sound of her. In fact, I liked her a lot. There was a charming dichotomy to her; one minute she was mature, the next zany. She had a foot in both worlds, adult and childhood, and it was enchanting.

“Too slow!” she exclaimed from across the pool, smiling with success and shooting another stream of water at me.

I took a running leap and cannonballed into the pool, a huge wave splashing up and over her. She was laughing when I surfaced, her smoky eyes twinkling with delight. She was soaked. Her white bikini was stuck to her like a second skin and, almost in passing, I noticed how translucent it had become. Very slight mounds on her chest were more noticeable, with the dark shadows of her areolae showing. Below, her bottoms formed to her and I noticed the dark hint of pubic hair.

It caught me by surprise. Addison was such a diminutive girl, still well under five feet tall, and so rakishly slender, I hadn’t considered that she was going through puberty. She looked far too young. Yet, with her long jet black hair pulled back in a high ponytail and her exotic Asian looks, she was a very pretty girl.

That thought brought on more. Did she have a boyfriend? Was I keeping her away from him while she kept me company? In fact, why wasn’t she socializing with her friends? Surely she had some. Or did she?

I realized I knew so little about her, and decided it was time to change it. I’d been too self-absorbed.

Another stream of cold water hit me as I floated.

“Watch out! You’re playing with fire,” I warned her, swimming towards the edge of the pool.

Addison laughed and ran. I had to grin. She was so bright and alive, a joy to watch.

Eventually, pleasantly tired, we sat under the sun umbrella. Addison propped her feet up on a separate chair and sipped Coke.

“Do you have many friends at school?” I asked.

“Yeah, several. Why?”

“I haven’t noticed you spending time with them.”

Addison sipped her Coke again and put it on the glass-topped patio table. “I see them when you go to work. We go out together.”

“Doing what?”

She shrugged. “Sometimes we go to Starbucks. Sometimes we go to the mall.”

“Don’t you have them over here? Would you like me to host a barbecue for them?”

Her response was dry. “Not the way you cook.” Then she laughed. “Just kidding. Sure. I’ll invite them for a swim and barbecue. What will you cook? Hotdogs?”

“I’ll cook ribs.”

“Don’t,” she cut in.

“How about hamburgers?”

“Store bought?”

“Homemade.”

“Don’t,” she repeated. “I don’t want to poison them. They’re my friends, not my enemies.”

With a laugh, genuinely amused by her, I told her I would read recipes and practice beforehand to perfect my burger-making skills. Then I steered the conversation around to her interests. Fashion, music, and movies. Like a lot: books, Instagram. Dislike a lot: chores, studying.

I’d seen her end of school report. Addison was a perfect C student, neither excelling nor failing at any subject. It didn’t matter to me. It was her last year of middle school, so who cares?

What I enjoyed was her chatting. She was articulate, free and easy with expressing herself. Those qualities were far more important in my mind. And as I watched her talk, I liked her even more. I liked the shape of her face, her flawless skin, her pretty smoky eyes, and the way her mouth moved, her lips evenly matched and quite lush.

I wondered if I had an attraction to Asian women. Probably, given my wife had been of Asian descent. However, I understood how important Addison was to me. She was my world, and I experienced a new feeling - love. I quite adored her; quirky, zany, and trying to be mature. Listening to her with half an ear, I felt a rush of pride, an ache inside. I wondered why I’d been so gifted to have a daughter like her. She was everything.

Without thinking, I stood, moved to her side, bent and kissed her cheek. “You’re amazing. I adore you. Thank you for being you.”

Addison surprised me. She blushed. I left her and headed to the kitchen. There was a new blonde lager beer I wanted to sample.

ADDISON SAT FROZEN IN the chair. Her heart raced. She was disconnected. Dad adored her! It was so clear in his expression. Warm love flushed through her, a feeling of pure pleasure blossoming.

She couldn’t remember being so happy. She so wanted...

Suddenly, she had a blinding flash of inspiration. Dad didn’t remember anything! He wouldn’t remember something he didn’t do! How would he know?

Excitement made her shiver. How? How should she handle it? Her mind spun with plans, options, each thrilling her.

She hardly heard Dad talking through the evening. Sleep wouldn’t come. Her mind wouldn’t stop, ideas coming, dismissed, more arriving. She knew she’d have to be subtle, careful, but imagine if...

Addison watched Phillip take a huge jump off the diving board and cannonball into the pool. She liked Phillip. He was a bit chunky and the kindest, most considerate guy in school, never a nasty word about anybody.

Her pool party was going really well. Music blaring, with her friends yelling and having fun, it made the back garden busy.

“Here ya go,” Julia said, passing her a plastic cup of Coke on ice.