"Thank you Daddy."
She then gave me a big hug. It's always nice to be thanked, and to get a hug as well, especially when it's from your Daughter, but I had no idea what I'd done to deserve it. However, because of how she'd reacted, whatever it was, it must be something that was very important to her.
When she released me, while smiling, I asked, "Remind me what wonderful thing I've done for you."
From the look that she then gave me, I could tell that she thought that I was joking, but she decided to humour me.
"Alex can't come with me, and you, because you are a gentleman, have come to my rescue at short notice. I love you Daddy."
I could now understand why she was happy with me, but I hadn't volunteered to help her. In fact, I hadn't even known that her boyfriend Alex had dropped out. What I did know though, was who had said yes for me. It could only be her Mother, and she shouldn't have done that without speaking to me first. I then went to find her. She was in the attic. When she saw me, I got a nice smile.
"Good, you can help me find my old sewing machine."
With some anger in my voice, I said, "What's this about me going with Emma?"
"I was going to tell you, but I got distracted. My sewing machine has stopped working, so I need to find my old one so that I can finish making the curtains."
She was calm, but I was still irritated. Any other time I would happily do it for my little girl, but next week was impossible.
"Well I've got some bad news for you. I can't go. I have too much work to do. Four paintings, and all of them need to be completed by the end of the week. One of them I haven't even started."
"That might be so, but your Daughter can't go on her own. That's why I told her you'd be going with her."
Emma was twenty five. She was a confident person, and normally more than capable of going on her own. But unfortunately, two weeks ago, she'd fallen and broken her leg. It was now in a cast. She was walking with crutches, but she was unable to drive. Somebody needed to drive her to the two and a half day training course that had been organised by the bank that she worked for, and to fetch and carry for her while she was there. And if that couldn't be me, it would have to be Sophia. Emma wasn't just my Daughter, she was hers as well.
"What about you?"
Her look told me that she regarded that as a silly question, and before explaining why she thought that, she gave a deep sigh.
"I can't. I also have too much work to do, and I can't take my work with me. But you can," and then she added, "Don't you remember, that's what you did four years ago?"
How could I ever forget it? Even after all this time, I often thought about it, and always with mixed emotions. Excitement and guilt. Circumstances, not of our making, meant that I'd had to share a bed with my Daughter. So during the night, when we were only in our underwear, we'd had to be close to each other. Our bodies had touched, and we'd lost control. We'd become intimate, and it had ended with us committing the ultimate taboo for a Father and Daughter. We'd fucked. We knew that it was wrong, but it had been wonderful for both of us. However, when we'd got home, and been warmly greeted by Sophia, we soon realized the enormity of what we'd done. We'd betrayed the most important person in our life. And so it was never repeated, or even spoken about. But it wasn't forgotten!
I didn't like admitting it, but she was right. I was the logical choice, but she should have spoken to me first before telling Emma.
It was now my turn to sigh, and then I said, "OK, I'll take her."
And this time, because we wouldn't be sharing a bed, we'd be able to maintain our normal relationship of Father and Daughter.
"Good, now come and help me find that fucking machine."
Emma was a Derivatives Trader for a large international investment bank. An important job. To be able to do it, you had to stay calm when you were under extreme pressure, so that you could make the right decisions when trading very large amounts of money. And she must be able to do that, because her last year-end bonus was an eye-watering amount.
But if you were to see her now, you wouldn't believe that she was capable of staying calm.
We were on our way to the hotel. I was driving and Emma was sitting next to me. She was as excited as a schoolgirl going away for the first time.
"The hotel is supposed to be special. I can't wait to see it."
Me too. I'd been on their website, and everything, from the rooms to the restaurant, was out of this world. I couldn't remember its rating, but it was up there with the best hotels that you could find anywhere in the country. As you would expect, it was very expensive, but thankfully the bank wasn't just paying for her room, they were also paying for mine as well.
We were now outside the hotel, and that was a relief. It had been a long journey and I was tired. But Emma wasn't, and she was excited. As soon as I'd helped her out of the car, and onto her crutches, she was heading towards the hotel lobby at an impressive speed for somebody with a large cast on their leg. I had to lengthen my stride to keep up with her.
When we were inside, it was everything I'd expected it to be, and more. Marble pillars, a plush carpet, and the largest chandelier that I'd ever seen. At the reception desk was a smartly dressed young man. And he only had eyes for my Daughter.
With a beaming smile, that showed off his perfect white teeth, he said, in a French accent, "Welcome, I'm Pierre."
As Emma returned his smile, I noticed him check her out. And it was obvious that he liked what he'd seen.
"Hi, and I'm Emma Wilkinson."
It didn't take him long to find her reservation.
"Three nights, with breakfast included. I hope you enjoy your stay with us."
"I'm sure we will."