A/N: And we are about to get to the good stuff ;) Next couple chapters are gonna make or break this couple.
Disclaimer: I do not own Universal, Jurassic Park or any of its characters.
Saying goodbye to my father wasn't hard, but knowing it would be four months until I saw him again, that made me pause and hug him longer. He simply smiled and waved goodbye to me as he walked onto the ferry. After booking our flights, and talking with Ellie again about whose place we were hosting at this year, I left a message with my father that we'd be staying with him in Ithaca, and then we'd drive the five hours down to Maryland the next day. Owen put in the time off, and Barry said he'd cover for him this year, if they switched next year. As it was under my purview, I granted the request, having it signed by Claire as well to ensure it didn't come back as favoritism later.
The months flew by, work kept me busy through the weekends leading up to our vacation. I was up to my eyeballs in paperwork for the proposed attraction of Treetops Gazers, and Owen was ever helpful by distracting me for short periods o time with a foot rub, sex or a swim to keep my mind sharp. The board of directors was looking for ways to work around my approval, as even Simon didn't have the authority to stop me from saying no. I'm sure they wished I hadn't signed a contract renewal four years ago, tacking an extra seven on. It wasn't what I wanted with my life, and my degree, but it was my responsibility to not let Jurassic Park happen again.
When it came time to leave for the mainland, to head to the airport, Owen and I said goodbye to the girls, I said goodbye to Claire, the ACU, my Vets and the command center team. The flight wasn't terrible from the mainland to Ithaca, but Owen's steady hand in mine was also helpful. After grabbing our bags from baggage claim and hailing a taxi, we traveled to my father's house, where I was so happy I had remembered the key, because the weather had dropped from 30 degrees to 20 quite quickly. After stomping my boots free of snow and dropping my bags by the front door, I immediately grabbed the closest blanket and wrapped myself in it.
"Are you cold?" Owen teased as I shivered.
"I've been living in Costa Rica longer than you have buddy. I haven't been home for Christmas in a few years."
"Mel?" My Dad called from upstairs.
"Hey!"
"So Ellie said we are more than welcome to stay at her house, if we wanted to come tomorrow morning." He said, hugging me tightly.
"Okay. She's aware we have an extra guest?" I smiled.
"Yes Mel. He's getting the couch." Dad said, before greeting Owen with a handshake and a smile, "How are things back on the ranch?"
"Stable enough that I could leave. The girls are getting bigger, and faster."
"How are they responding?" Dad asked, taking Owen into the kitchen. I rolled my eyes as I said, "I'll take our bags upstairs then."
"They are still having trouble listening, but I'm getting closer to something. We've been watching footage of our sessions, sort of like football teams do to review their plays and what went wrong, and it's been help-" The voices cut off as I walked upstairs to my room, finding Dad had laid our sheets and blankets for me to make the bed. Putting down mine and Owen's suitcases, I brought the linens up to my nose, inhaling the scent of clean flannel.
Heaven.
And then I set to work.
After the bed was made, I yelled downstairs, "Dad?"
"Yeah Mel?"
"Did all my packages arrive last week?"
"Yes, they are in the basement."
"Thank you!" I said, grabbing my wrapping paper bin from my closet. Taking it down to the basement, I could hear Owen and my Dad laughing in the kitchen.
Wrapping up all the presents for Mark and Ellie, labeling them from Owen and myself or from Dad, I set to wrap the kids presents uniquely. All theirs was, was a piece of paper explaining they had a 5 day all access pass to Jurassic World, starting December 28th of the following year. I put the paper in big boxes, and grabbed rocks from outside, drying them off and putting them in to give the illusion of a heavy present.
"Hey," I heard as I finished wrapping Owen's present.
"Hey yourself," I smiled, noticing Owen leaning against the doorframe.
"Who's that for?"
"This one?" I asked, pointing to the present I just put a bow on, "It's for you."
"Ooooh, Whatcha get me?"
"Uh uh. Not telling. Besides, your real present is back on Isla Nublar. It's not appropriate for this visit." I whispered.
"Mmm, I can't wait." He smirked.
"Well, you can help me load these up into the car for tomorrow morning. We are up bright and early to beat the traffic to DC."
"DC huh? Can I take you out for a date while we are in the area? I know a little hole in the wall with the best Tequila."
"Absolutely sailor," I flirted, as he leaned down to kiss me. A throat cleared behind him and I giggled, "Hi Dad. All wrapped up and ready for Christmas."
"Alright. Now, I have dinner ready for you two."
"Dinner? It's only 3pm back home."
"But it's 6pm here." Dad smirked. Shrugging I said, "I'm never one to pass on free food."
We sat down to enjoy a small meal of ham, scalloped potatoes and mixed veggies. It was simple, but my Dad barely made food, so I was impressed.
"Ellie told you where to get these, didn't she?" I joked, seeing the box for the scalloped potatoes.
"You know I'm not much of a cook." Dad said, a slight chuckle on the end.
"Really? All those PB&J's growing up could have fooled me," I teased back, "I've got dishes tonight Dad."
"No, you did the wrapping, and you just finished traveling. I've got them tonight Mel."
"Would you like some help sir?" Owen asked.
"Sure, you can help dry." Dad said, grabbing his plate and getting up from the table.
"Fine! I'll go cuddle on the couch with myself, and watch television that isn't in Spanish."
"Don't you get any cable down there?"
"Satellite Dad, and I'm just glad to be back in the land of English speaking people, and normal weather." Laughing, I walked out of the kitchen after leaving my plate by the sink, and plopped down in front of the TV with the remote. Having been busy for the last 9 years, I didn't get to keep up on much. Some music, but the TV shows now were even better than what I remember. Catching onto an episode of some superhero show, I saw my Dad's laptop open, and was reading out of the corner of my eye.
"How To Tell Your Adult Child You Are Dating Someone…." I whispered to myself and closed the laptop quickly.
"Fair enough," I said to myself, realizing my Dad and I don't talk about emotional stuff all that often. Listening to him and Owen laughing in the kitchen, I realized there was a small amount of femininity to the house now. A vase of flowers on the front hutch, artwork that I don't remember Dad buying, and my room was clean. Dad wouldn't have cleaned it.
"The laundry detergent changed." I chuckled, remembering the smell of jasmine and lavender. Dad stuck to unscented soap like super glue.
"Mel, you want a beer?" Dad yelled as Owen came into my peripheral vision.
"No, I'm driving tomorrow." I said, smiling as Owen sat down with a beer for himself.
"So, where'd you meet her?" I asked after Dad sat down. He paused, looking at me.
"Boy, you don't miss anything, do you?"
"Dad, there's something different about you. This isn't like Ellie." I smiled softly.
"We met at the University. She signed up for a dig, and we started talking during said dig. She's… something else."
"What's her name? The suspense is killing me!"
"Diana."
"Okay. How old is she is my next question?" I smirked.
"She's 58." He said, showing me his phone. He had pulled up a picture of her and I smiled as I took in her features.
"She's beautiful. When do I get to meet her?" I asked.
"Soon enough. She was going to drop by the day before you left, to meet you. She didn't want to interrupt Christmas."
He told me a bit more about her, before I yawned, feeling sleepiness hit me like a train. Saying goodnight to Dad and Owen, I climbed the stairs. I was asleep as soon as I hit the pillow.
