AN: Thanks for all the lovely reviews guys, I am glad you are enjoying it.
And it won't be T-rated forever ;-) Trust me!
1st of June
Rae settled in pretty quickly and Creed was true to his word: he was not home a lot.
Though it bothered Rae a lot more than it should. The man seemed to have no interest in his daughter or perhaps she mistook helplessness for lack of interest and care.
Whatever it was, Rae wished he would be a little more involved, as fathers should be.
Zoe sometimes asked her where her daddy was, especially around bedtime. And it was up to Rae to come up with some lame excuse every time.
Though Zoe didn't seem to suffer a whole lot from lack of active parents in her life, she was thriving with Rae as a guardian and close companion these days.
Within no time Rae had turned Zoe's room into a small kingdom. The house in general was also a lot safer for a four-year old to live in. She couldn't stop rolling her eyes at some of the very obvious things that Victor Creed had not prepared for when he took in his own flesh and blood.
Then again, she couldn't blame him for it either.
Zoe's room was now a real girl's room, only not as pink as most people would expect. The walls were decorated with jungle wallpaper, animals everywhere and serene colors in the background. The girl especially enjoyed her canopy bed.
The first time Zoe entered her new room, her face lit up and it was clear that she loved it.
Also, her room was directly connected to Rae's room by an in-between door, which made her feel safe. Sometimes when she woke up in the middle of the night, she opened the in-between door and crawled into Rae's bed who never sent her away.
Within a month the little girl had grown a strong attachment to the young woman who was almost always around.
One morning Victor Creed found his daughter coloring at the kitchen table.
"Where's Rae?" he asked without even greeting his own daughter.
Zoe simply shrugged without looking up, letting him know that she didn't know.
Victor looked at his daughter. He never thought about having kids, never wanted them either because they didn't fit his life style. And yet instinctively, he wanted to take care of this little creature. Though he had no clue how to connect with her.
"So uhm..." he hesitantly starts a conversation "You like Rae? She nice to you?".
Zoe nods.
Creed drinks his coffee "Good" is all he says "So uhm... you two do fun things together then?".
Zoe nods again.
It annoys him how quiet she is. He watches her all the time, it had become one of his habits, and he saw her talking and laughing with the half-breed bitch 99% of that time...
But apparently to her own father she couldn't say one word.
"Rae takes me swimming" Zoe suddenly breaks her own silence as she puts down the crayon and looks at her father "And we saw big lions in the zoo. I think Rae has pretty hair, I think she's a unicorn princess, like in the cartoon".
He growls inaudibly. Guess this is why he never speaks with his daughter. He can't relate to a four year old. Not at all. How is he supposed to reply to this bullshit?
"Good" he simply murmurs as he forces a smile but fails.
"I love her" the little girl suddenly says.
Creed blinks, a little taken back. Conversing just isn't his strong suit.
Luckily the half-breed walks into the kitchen "Morning mister Creed".
"Where the fuck were you?" he snaps.
She raises her brows and moves a little closer to him as she lowers her voice "Let's watch our language a little around Zoe shall we? And I was getting her swimming equipment, so settle down" she replies as she holds up a back "Zoe, you all ready to go?".
Zoe nods happily and Rae lifts the little girl onto the floor, kissing her head in the process.
"Go get your jacket and then we're all set".
"No jacket!".
"Yes jacket" Rae replies sternly but with a kind smile "Go get it".
Zoe swiftly leaves the kitchen.
"Is she uhm..." he hesitates as he think about his question "She doing alright?".
Rae smiles politely at her employer "Apart from some light sleeping problems, I think she's doing fine mister Creed".
"Sleeping problems?".
"Well, in the beginning she had a little trouble settling in. She had to get used to the new environment and the fact that she now has a father instead of a mother".
"Hm" he grumbles "Yeah I guess she would've been better off with the mother".
Rae frowns "Mister Creed, with all due respect but... how much do you know of Zoe's mother?".
"Nothing, she's just some bitch I fucked once".
"Lovely" Rae replies sarcastically as she rolls her eyes.
"Then don't ask".
Rae blinks a couple of times and wonders for a second if she should tell him this. Then again, honesty is the best way to go.
"The reason I asked... is... you see the first day I arrived here, I had her room redecorated and turned into something she would like. It was filled with toys and she loved it. But she kept going on about a certain doll she had. So together, Zoe and I went to the house of her late mother to get some of her stuff and..." she takes a deep breath and really doesn't want to continue the story.
"Go on frail, is this the part where you tell me you found the doll and they lived happily ever after?" he mockingly replies.
"Hardly" she replies "The place was an absolute shit hole. My old apartment was a castle in comparison. Zoe hardly had any stuff. There were empty alcohol bottles literally everywhere. Some of them were broken. It was the most unhealthy environment I have ever seen. Yes we found the doll, and it was also the only toy she had in that house. I even found a used needle lying around".
While she was talking, his face darkened. He may not have known he had a daughter until one month ago, but now he did and no one endangers what is his.
It was a good thing the bitch offed herself, because had it been up to Victor Creed, her fate would've been way worse.
"So no" Rae continues "She was definitely NOT better off with her mother. I think she is way better off with you".
He doesn't really know what to say to this. If he had known about Zoe's existence and her life, he would've swooped her up and taken her with him way earlier. But he did not.
"Oh, one more thing. Starting September, Zoe will need to go to primary school. So you should decide on which one really. Preferably soon, like this week".
"School? At this age?" he scoffs "Can't you home school her? I thought I was paying you to take care of her".
"First of all, I'm not authorized nor fit to home school a child. Second of all, every four-year old goes to primary school. So it's not about taking care of her, because I am taking care of her" she explains, almost adding that he's the one who hardly even speaks to his own kid. "It's about learning to act socially around other people and children. She needs to come into contact with children her own age. She needs to learn how to read and write and socialize".
"Fine" he shrugs it off "So find her a school".
Rae cocks a brow "Wouldn't you like to choose one yourself? I mean... The school your child goes to... That's a pretty big decision mister Creed".
"No. Just pick one".
She takes a deep breath and exhales. She's on the edge of shaking him to get some sense into his mind.
"Fine" she finally says "I will find one then".
"Good. Cuz that's what I pay you for. And I'm busy".
She grinds her teeth together, this man is impossible. She thought perhaps he would want to be involved in a decision like this, being her father and all that.
But that is obviously too much to ask.
"Yeah I'm sure slaughtering people is a real demanding job" she murmurs as she walks off.
"What was that frail?" he calls after her.
"Nothing mister Creed, have a nice day".
"Get your ass back here frail".
She takes a deep breath, clenches her fists together and turns around to face him again.
He smirks when she does what he tells her to "You haven't told me where you're taking my daughter this morning".
"We're taking swimming classes over the summer so she can socialize a little with other children and learn how to swim. After that, we're going for ice cream and then to the park to feed the ducks. You may wanna consider joining us some day, either to the pool, or the zoo or just anything really".
He cocks a brow "Why the fuck would I do that?".
"Oh, I don't know, maybe because Zoe asked me why her daddy never wants to spend time with her? Maybe because you're all she has and your rejection is hurting her?" she eyes him intensely to see if her words sink in "So what do you say? Wanna come with and spend some time with your own flesh and blood?".
The way she speaks to him, is pushing him to the limits. If it had been anyone else, that person's throat would've been ripped out right about now.
"Can't" he replies instead "Got work".
"Yeah, I didn't think you would" she sharply replies "Guess I'll tell her you're busy. Again".
AN: sorry guys, he's definitely not going for father-of-the-year-award :-p