Lilianna came bouncing into the front room with excitement.
"Dad! Dad! Guess what?"
"What, Sweetie?"
"I'm going to UCLA!"
George jumped out of his easy chair and gave her a great big hug.
"That's great, Sweetie! That's so exciting!"
"Have you told your mom yet?"
Lilianna's smile briefly swept off her face as she pulled away from him and said, "No. She'll just bring me down."
"Now, Lilianna," he said sternly.
She turned an impish smile on her father. "Oh, Daddy. I know. I know."
He smiled at her and she smiled back.
"I am going to have so much fun."
"Yes, Sweetie. You are going to have tons of fun."
There was silence for awhile.
"What is it, Dad?"
"I am going to miss you so very much!"
"Mom's kept me home and I'm already 20. I need my own life and my own space."
"Yes, Sweetie, you do."
There was another short silence.
"She is going to try and get me to stay at the local community college. I'm through with that."
George didn't say anything. He'd been in the middle of these two strong-willed women before.
"Come with me, Dad."
"To LA?"
"You used to live in Southern California. You said it was an incredible experience. Show me what it's like."
He didn't say anything.
"Mom treats you like dirt."
"Now, Lilianna."
"She does!"
"Now, Lilianna."
"You are an incredible man. You need a real woman taking care of you."
"And you're that real woman?"
"I am. You do all the work. The cooking, the cleaning with me and Jolene, earn the money, everything. Let me show you how I can care for you."
"And what are you going to start with?"
Lilianna was silent for a moment. "Do you remember when I was 14 and constantly hugging you from behind?"
"I do," he said cautiously.
"Do you remember why mom was so upset?"
"I do," he said, still cautious.
"Why?"
"She said that your nipples were very sensitive and that you were rubbing them against me to excite them."
"Right. And I was! Do you remember why she smacked me the one and only time she did?"
"I do," he said, this time with sadness.
"Do you remember what I was wearing?"
"I do. A long black dress, low cut in the front."
"Do you remember anything else about it?"
"Yeah. You were nearly falling out of your dress when you leaned over."
"And you couldn't take your eyes off of my cleavage."
"I couldn't."
"And do you remember what you told me in confidence that night when I was crying my heart out after mom slapped me?"
"I said several things."
"Yes, lots of things. You told me that I had an incredible body. My tits were the nicest you'd seen in a long while. You said that you were thrilled that someone as young and sexy as me would want to show off her tits to you. You told me that there is so much to life but that sex is the sugar and spice that makes life all the more incredible. You even ran your hand over my ass at one point."
"I did."
"You know, you could have had me that night."
"I suspected that."