Sorry it's taken so long for me to post but due to some severe health issues and the death of a friend, I've been a little out of sorts. Hopefyully, I'll be posting a little more regularly. And now, let's go shopping.
Chapter 11
Penelope kept her word as they shopped... she didn't turn Skylar into a clone. That didn't mean, however, that she didn't inject a little levity into the shopping process. Skylar did love her color green and would have gotten everything in that color if Penelope had allowed it. She managed to talk the little girl into getting other colors as well. By the time they stopped by the food court for something to eat, they had more packages than Dave thought should be legal.
"Are we done?" he asked.
"Almost," Penelope said. "There are some things we still need to get."
"Including another suitcase," Hotch said. "She'll never fit all of this into the one she has."
Dave looked at Skylar. "Feel like trying some Chinese?" he asked. She wrinkled her nose. "If you don't like it, I'll get you something else." She nodded. "Garcia, your usual?" he asked.
"Please," she smiled. He nodded then he and Hotch headed for the food.
Penelope turned back to the little girl. "Are you having fun?" she asked. Skylar nodded. "I'm glad." she said. "Everyone should have all the fun they can every day. I do. When we get back to Virginia, we'll do this again but it'll probably be for a lot more." Skylar looked confused. "Your father has nothing for kids," Penelope said. "He'll need to get you everything. A bedroom suite, more clothes, toys and stuff. Do you know how you want to decorate your room?" The little girl smiled. "Other than green, I mean," Penelope said. The smile grew wider..
Dave and Hotch returned with the food. "Your usual," Hotch said, handing Penelope a plate then setting one at his spot.
Dave placed a plate in front of Skylar. "Garlic frittered chicken and chicken chow mien," he said. "I think you'll like it." He sat down and they began to eat.
"I was just telling Skylar about the shopping you had to do when you got home," Penelope said.
"First thing I have to do is find a house,"Dave said. "Garcia, I need you to do a little research for me,"
"What's up?" she asked.
"Schools," he said. "public and private."
"If you go public, where she goes will depend a lot on where you live," Hotch said. "Private schools it doesn't matter."
"Skylar wants to do her room in green," Penelope said.
"Now why doesn't that surprise me?" Dave smiled. "I need to call a real estate agent when we get back. Hopefully, it won't take too long to find a place."
Once they finished eating, which included ice cream that Skylar insisted on getting, they went to a few more stores. Skylar got an mp4 player at Penelope's insistence, saying she would set it up for her. She promised to stay away from the heavy metal and the rap. They made a few other stops before deciding to call it a day and head back to the hotel.
Skylar fell asleep in the car on the way back to the hotel. When they got there, she woke up as Dave was taking her out of the car. He would have carried her but she wiggled to be put down. The three adults grabbed the shopping bags and the new suitcase and the quartet headed for their suite.
"Why don't you lie down for a little while before dinner?" Dave suggested, looking at Skylar. She crossed her arms and glared at him. "If you weren't tired, you wouldn't have fallen asleep in the car." She pointed at Penelope. "She and her computer will be here when you wake up," he said. "I promise."
"When you get up, we'll program your player," Penelope said. Skylar sighed and nodded. Giving her father a hug, she went into the bedroom, leaving the door open a crack.
The group spent that evening and the next day getting a few things together. Penelope spent a lot of time with Skylar while Dave and Hotch began making lists of things that needed to be done. There was one list of what Dave wanted in the new house, another one for the housekeeper, including an application. He would need to find a tutor and a therapist for Skylar.
Hotch told Dave he would take care of the paperwork for his leave. Dave said he'd only take a month instead of the full six weeks. Hotch just smiled but didn't say anything. He knew Dave would need the extra weeks, no matter what he said.
Saturday, they had lunch at a Mexican restaurant It was an all you could eat but it wasn't a buffet. The servers delivered the food to the tables. Skylar gorged herself on tacos, cheese enchiladas and sopapillas, although she had no trouble sampling dishes the others were eating.
They got their things ready to leave the next morning. They had to be at the airport at ten for a noon flight. After dinner and a movie, Dave got Skylar into bed, It didn't take long for her to fall asleep.
"So," Penelope said, leaning back on the couch, "you want to tell me what's going on."
"Very long story made short," Dave said. "Skylar's mother and I were in a relationship that didn't end well. She never told me she was pregnant. When Skylar was three, she dumped her into a psychiatric facility where she was until I got custody of her day before yesterday. Now she's coming home with me and I'll be getting permanent custody of her, hopefully getting her mother out of the picture permanently."
"Wow," Penelope said. "That's quite a story. If you like, I can do my voodoo magic on her mother. I'd be more than glad to do it."
"I don't think that will be necessary," Hotch said. He looked at Dave. "Dave?"
"I'm thinking, I"m thinking," the older man said, making Penelope giggle. "No, I guess you can't," he finally said with a sigh, "but I reserve the right to change my mind at a later date."
"Deal," Penelope said. Hotch just shock his head. "I'm going to program Skylar's mp4 player," she said, getting up. "That way she can listen to it on the plane home tomorrow."
"Change your ticket to match ours," Dave said.
"Did that last night," she smiled. "After that, I'm going to bed. It's been a busy couple of days."
The two men agreed with her. Ninety minutes later, everyone was in bed and the suite was dark and quiet.
TBC...