Part One:
Rachel's emerald green eyes sparkled at her birthday party. Her auburn hair in a high ponytail and her skin, taking after her mother, was tanned with just a few cute freckles, very different from most natural red heads. Her 5'2 frame is compact and fit. Very clearly the gymnast/cheerleader and track star one might see her to be. For being such a shorty, those thick, powerful legs propel her 117 pound body to under 12 seconds in the 100 meter. Her sweet smile beamed as she listened to her friends sing "Happy Birthday" and she blew out her candles. She smiles graciously as tears start to stream down her cheeks.
Her mother isn't dead, not in the literal sense, just figuratively. She fell victim to the grip pills and alcohol, and quickly found the needle and all the "friends" that come with it. The divorce wasn't pretty by any means, but I very fortunately was able to win the day and kept almost everything from her poisonous grasp. Its been hard on Rach. Up until about 3 years ago, they were inseparable, often mistaken for sisters. Stacy, Rachel's mother, was impossibly beautiful. We married out of highschool and she went to college while I served my country. Stacy looked exactly as young at 35 as she did when she was in high school. In fact, there were many occasions where, traveling abroad, they were both mistaken as my daughters. That's far from the case now at 38, she looks like a haggard 60 year old. What a shame.
Not that I look especially old. I just have the tell-tale grey that gives me a "distinguished" look. I'm a very fit 42 year old single father of a very popular and active teen daughter. I own and operate an extremely successful private security/private intelligence agency. I'm 5'10. 210 pounds, blue/grey eyes, salt/pepper brown hair with a touch of red. Rachel really caught the red hair gene from me and luckily the olive skin from her Hispanic/Native American mother.
She's a good girl. I really never have any problems out of her and she's truly trustworthy. She has terrific friends and their families are all very good to us. Hers is a private school, which is out of necessity, for safety reasons. I've dated off and on over the last year, found some nice companions in her friends single moms, but all casual. Nothing really that I'd consider a relationship or even potential relationship.
She smiles as she wipes away her tears sheepishly and apologizes to her friends who all huddle around her and give her a big group hug, they know why she's upset. Caitlyn has a similar experience with her dad. He fell victim to the powdered beast and almost snorted through a million dollars before her mom was able to wrestle away the construction company and get him out. Lexi's dad left her mom, for another man. So this group of friends does seem to understand how harsh life can be. She walks over to me a buries her face in my chest and sniffles. I hug her right and reassure her.
"I know Princess."
"Daddy, I wish we were more important than her drugs.." she sniffles quietly and wipes her tears away. She forces a smile and hugs me again. "I love you Daddy."
"I love you too babygirl."
She turns back and rejoins her friends, her tough little chin held high. I'm so proud of her. With her competitive cheering background and awards she's one of two freshman girls being fielded on her colleges cheer squad. Being a nationally ranked gymnast certainly has helped her keep her mind focused and her coaches are amazing. Caitlyn is the other freshman girl on cheer squad. Their college, much like highschool, has different levels of cheer. Rachel and Caitlyn were selected to be bumped up the the "varsity" squad that handles to football games and larger events. There, the freshman cheerleaders are basically a separate group who handles less noteworthy events. The program is highly sought after though, and just being selected to attend is a dream come true for these kids. Lexi is a year older, but all three girls are in competition cheer and gymnastics together and they are practically inseparable.
After a couple more hours the party is breaking up. Her friends trickle out and as usual, the three are hanging out and end up sitting at the pool, dangling their little cute feet over the edge. It's early October but still very warm out. I step out onto the deck and call down to them.
"Who lives here?" I ask and all three raise their hands and smile.
"Just checking." I smirk. "Who's cooking dinner?" They all throw their hands down and giggle.
"A house full of women and I still can't get a home cooked meal?" I ask incredulously.
"Ain't no ring on this finger!" Caitlyn waves her left hand over her head jokingly.
"Oh my gawd Cat!!" Rachel swats at her laughing. They all laugh as I roll my eyes and slip back into the house.
"Dude. Your dad IS hot AF. You know that right?" Lexi grins over at Rachel.
"Stoooop iiiiit!" She brushes the comment away, blushing. "Dads can't be hot. Handsome. But not HOT. Don't be gross."
"Ummmm no. Daddy Jack is HAWT" Caitlyn chimes in. "H. A. W. T." She spells out. "His scars are sexy. I wish he'd tell us how he got them. He doesn't ever even tell you about his work stuff?" She asks.
"Nope. He doesn't tell me anything. He never told Mom anything either. I'm just used to it. I'm glad he's not going out as much now that he fully owns the company. I like that he has an office job now." She smiles trying to change the subject.
Lexi isn't ready to give up the topic. "Allie said when he was seeing her mom she heard them doin it and you know her mom doesn't ever cuss, right? But she said her mom was cussing and screaming and she was obviously sore the next morning and she saw where she was texting Casey's mom talking about how big he is and how..."
"STOOOPPPPP. GROSSSS!!!" Rachel covers her ears and stands up to walk away, her face pointed to the ground as she plops down in a lounge chair away from the other two.
"And how she was cumming non stop from the time he put it in till he finished. She said she cummed more in one night than she had in her whole life" she continues telling Caitlyn.
"I uh...maybe Rachel didn't wanna hear all that." She smirks. "But seriously. Daddy Jack is hot..." she says wistfully.
"You two are sick!" Rachel shakes her head and calls out to them as she can still hear them, but they all three giggle as teen girls do.
After a few minutes the topic does change. They get in the topic of their competition cheer squad and share harmless gossip about who's dating who and they migrate into the house still talking and laughing. They all go upstairs and emerge a few minutes later in bikinis and fill their water bottles. "We're gonna hot tub Pop. You wanna?" Rach asks. The other two immediately encourage me. "Yeah Daddy Jack. Come on!"
I instantly cave. "Sure. I'll be right out. You guys ok if I have a cigar?" I ask.
