Chapter 1

" Alex…" Jack yelled, shaking his head as the giggling four year old ran past him and out of the bathroom. He was chasing after her a few seconds later, knowing that if he didn't get her into the bath now, she'd never be in bed by the time Erica got home. " You need to get back in here."

" No." She called back, giggling as she ran into the living room now.

" Mommy said that you need to have your bath." He called to her, seeing her run into he the kitchen now.

" You don't do it right." She told him, peeking out from around the bathroom door, " I want mommy."

" Well mommy isn't here, and daddy is the one who has to give you a bath." He told her, moving towards the kitchen doorway.

" You don't do it right." She said again, shaking her head as he neared the doorway.

" Alex," He started, but he didn't get to say much else before she started screaming.

" Alli." She said, her hands moving to her hips. She stomped her feet and scowled at him, " I like Alli better." She told him firmly.

" Alex is a much more proper nickname." He told her, shaking his head as he moved into the door way. At least now he had her unable to move from the kitchen.

" I don't like it." She yelled back at him, her big brown eyes flashing with frustration.

" Well, I do. And I am your father." He said, shaking his head, " You have to learn to do what I say."

" No." She told him, crossing her ears across her chest now, " I don't like you."

He nodded, and moved towards her, " You don't have too." He said, standing just in front of her now. " You just have to do what I say."

" No." She told him again, shaking her head

How could someone so damn adorable be so stubborn and frustrating, he wondered watching her dark brown curls bounce against her shoulders as she shook her head. It had to be all her mother. This child was so much Erica's daughter that it was scary. He had enough trouble resisting that smile that mirrored her mothers, with such accuracy that it was scary. But when she batted those big brown eyes at him, he almost lost it completely and gave into her. " Yes." He told her firmly, " You have to take a bath."

" No I don't." She fired back at him, stomping her feet again.

" You do, and you will." He said, leaning down, intent to scoop her up.

" No." She screamed this time. " No." She screamed again, reaching out and grabbing the bars of the chair as he picked her up.

" Let go." Jack told her, shaking her feet and hips which were firmly in his arms.

" No." She fired at him, gripping the wood bars with all she had.

" Let go." He commanded.

" You don't do it right." She hissed, pulling the chair with them as he tired to carry her towards the door way. " I don't like you." She said, repeating it over and over again as he tired to drag them towards the doorway.

" Alex, let go."

" Alli." She yelled at him, her voice starting to waver with tears now, " Let me go. I don't like you."

" Just stop fighting, daddy, alright." He breathed completely frustrated now.

" I don't like you." She said again, digging her nails into the wood to hold the bars tighter, " You don't do it right. I want mommy." She continued, kicking her feet against him now.

" Alex."

" No, no, no, no." She continued, shaking her body now as she kicked her feet against him, " Let me go."

" You have to take your bath, Alex. Just please stop fighting me." He said, exasperated beyond belief now.

" No." She yelled, still flaying in his arms, " You don't do it right, and I don't like you."

" Fine." He said, shaking his head, " Fine, we'll let you mother deal with you." He said completely frustrated and exhausted with the entire situation. He relented and set her back on her feet.

" I don't like you." She yelled, flashing him a scowl before she made her next move.

" Ow, son of a…." Jack yelled, grasping for the shin she'd just kicked him in. Where in the hell did a four year old get that kind of strength?

She smiled at him, giggling a little as he gripped his knee and hopped in a circle. " You don't do it right." She shot at him as she ran out of the kitchen.

" Alli?" Erica said, watching as Alli ran towards her and Jack hobbled out of the kitchen.

" Mommy." She squealed happily throwing her arms around Erica's waist as soon as she was close enough.

" Hey baby." Erica said, looking at Jack as he limped towards them, all the while hugging Alli with all she had. " Aren't you supposed to be in bed?" She asked a few seconds later, looking down at her sweet little princess.

She nodded, looking up at Erica with the biggest, brightest smile she could muster, " Yes, mommy."

Erica laughed lightly, at Alli's smile. She knew that look. She'd been giving her daddy a hard time, driving him crazy. It was something she'd been doing lately, and she seemed to enjoy the hell out of it. " So why haven't you even had your bath yet?" Erica asked, moving so that she was kneeling eye level with Alli.

" Because daddy doesn't do it right." She told Erica, looking over her shoulder at Jack after she finished.

" She didn't listen to a word I said." Jack told her, " Not about having a bath, or going to bed."

" Is that true?" Erica asked, receiving a nod in reply almost immediately.

" Yes. He doesn't do it right." She said again, " He didn't put in bubbles or the pink color, and he said no Barbie's." She said, " And he called me Alex. I don't like him, mommy."

Erica stifled a slight laugh, and looked at her daughter with she hopped were stern eyes, " Well, there really isn't time for all of that tonight. What if you just take one Barbie in place of the pink and bubbles?"
" Okay mommy." Alli sighed, not really happy, but it was more then her daddy offered her.

" Thank you sweetie." She said, smiling as Alli hugged her again, " Now, tell daddy you're sorry, and then go get your Barbie and I'll start you a bath."

" Okay mommy." She breathed, pulling out of Erica's arms, and turning to face to Jack. " I'm sorry, daddy." She offered, batting her eyes, and smiling her most enchanting smile.

" It's alright sweetheart." He said, almost choking on his words. How could he punish her with Erica not seeming to care at all that she hadn't listened to a word he said? Why did he always have to come across as the bad guy.

" I'm going to get my Erica Kane Barbie." She told Erica, turning around to place a quick kiss on her mommy's check before she ran off.

Erica smiled, watching her run into the hallway as she stood up.

" You can't always brush her bad behavior aside and let her get away with everything she does." He told her.

" She's going through a phase, Jackson." Erica started, setting her purse and her keys down on the table near the door.

" That doesn't matter, she threw a fit. Told me no. Said she didn't like me, and then she kicked me in the shin." He told her, shaking his head.

" She's a little girl, how hard could she have kicked you?" She asked, fighting back a laugh, " She's just acting out Jack, it's what every little kid does. She's going to grow out of it."

" We can't always give into her demands, Erica."

" We don't and we won't. But we have to negotiate with her. Make her feel important and respected. She'll get through it faster."

" I don't know about that."

" I do, and please, stop calling her Alex. She prefers Alli, and so do I."

" Alex is a far more suitable nickname, Erica."

" Jack, I told you, when you named her, that I would call her Alex or let her be called Alex, over my dead body and I meant it."

" I like Alex."

" Alli is much cuter, and it fits her better. Just try to give in on this one thing, please?" She asked, with a soft smile, one that she knew would have melt his heart just right.

" I'll try." He said, shaking his head.

" Thank you. It'll all work out. I promise." She smiled, taking a step towards him, " We'll have our sweet little girl back in no time." She smiled, again, leaning up to kiss him, " It's not her fault so much like her father." She laughed, shaking her head, as she started to walk away.

He was happy she didn't notice his grimace a she walked away. No it wasn't her fault she was so much like her father. It as just very unfortunate and he had to find away to make her less like her father all the time. Otherwise, all of this was for nothing. He sighed and shook his head, hoping against hope that he could stick this out, stick to the plan. Go with what he'd decided years ago. He just hoped that at some point, Alex would start to be more like Erica and less like her father, that way he could control her again.

To be continued…