A/N: So it's been a few chapters since I've done an author's note. I told Sarah (my editor) that I was going to be fast-forwarding so I could wrap this up, but it doesn't seem to be happening. Everytime I try to move forward, I think of something else that I wanted to get in.
I've gotten a few questions about the Maddy/Randy story. If you read my profile page, I explained that I'm not doing it. I'm going to do another installment of this series. It'll be called, A Perfect Circle, and it will have the Maddy/Randy angle that I wanted to do and the Alli angle too. (I promise it won't be a "Fem-slash story" meaning, there won't be gratuitous lesbian sex.) I figured since Perfect talked about Chase and Maintaining Perfection dealt with Maddy, this story will deal a lot with Alli. It'll be a coming of age story and there will be drama. I've already done the banner for it, so if you're interested in what I think Alli looks like, check out my pictures on myspace. Ok, I think I'm done now. Enjoy...
xoxoxo Shanny
This chapter contains sexual content.
A Family Affair
Britain couldn't remember the last time she'd had so much fun. In two days, Dave had taken them to dinner, to the movies, roller-skating and bowling. It was no wonder that when he went back to work he was always exhausted. Trying to pack a week's worth of family time into three days was nearly impossible. It also contributed to why his girls were so enamored with him and why they could be perceived as spoiled. Although they were doted upon, Britain wouldn't have categorized them as brats. They were well behaved and good natured and she genuinely enjoyed them.
"Come on…you always watch the game with me." Dave pouted at Maddy who kept shaking her head. "What about you?" He turned to Chase who was making a face.
"Daddy, you know I don't like basketball." Chase answered looking at Alli to save her.
"I'll watch it with you." Alli's voice was quiet and she spoke with her head down. She wouldn't ever get use to Britain being there. Anything to avoid spending time with her, she was willing to do.
Dave put his arm around his youngest daughter and squeezed. "That's my girl." He didn't know if Britain could handle Chase and Maddy together, alone. "You're sure you're gonna be alright?"
"Dude, you're only a room away. Go watch your little game…we'll be fine." She smiled at him. "Really…go." Britain watched as Alli and Dave walked into the living room, then she closed the Family room doors. "Okay ladies…now that he's gone…let's dish." She sat on the floor and pulled out a bag full of cosmetic supplies. "And what better way to bond, then over make-overs."
Chase and Maddy looked at each other and smiled. They loved make-overs. In the few days they had known her they both come to really like her, Maddy especially.
"So what do you wanna know?" Chase asked picking up a bottle of nail polish and examining the color.
Britain picked up another bottle and handed it to Chase. "I think that'll look better on you." She then looked at eye shadows and handed them to Maddy. "I don't know. I wanna get to know the real Chase and Maddy. Not that fluffy sugary stuff that your dad knows." She could tell they didn't know what she meant or if they could trust her. "Do you have boyfriends?"
Both girls laughed, then Maddy spoke. "Daddy won't let us."
"Are you serious? That's bullshit." Wrong thing to say to his kids. "Sorry…I have a potty mouth." She was happy that they seemed fine with her lack of couth. "You are girls are beautiful; you should be dating by now."
"I wish…but, I won't get a date until I get these braces off." Maddy interjected.
"That's not true. I had braces." Britain smiled thinking about her braces. "Seriously, I had headgear and everything. Just ask my dad. He reminds me all the time of how much my smile cost him. But even with braces, I still had a boyfriend and he was really cute." Britain found that she loved to see Maddy smile. "What about you?" She turned to Chase. "You've got a prom and stuff, right? Do you have a date?"
Chase shook her head. "I like this one boy at school, but he doesn't know I exist. He's a football player and he's really popular and he's so cute. But he won't go with me."
"Why not…what's the problem?"
Chase shrugged. "He hasn't asked."
"So… ask him." Britain said that as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
Chase laughed. "I couldn't do that. What if he says no?"
"Then screw him. What's his name?" Britain was going to help these girls out. They were going to be Dave little angels forever if she didn't step in.
"Josh."
Britain stood up, she had a plan. She motioned for Maddy to join her and made Chase stand on the other side of the room. "Ok, he's popular right? Is he always with his friends? Good. What's the second most popular boy's name?"
"Eric." Maddy answered. "They can't stand each other."
"How do you know what's happening in high school? Aren't you like in Middle School still?" Britain was surprised at Maddy's knowledge of the older kids.
"It's one of those Catholic schools that go from Pre-K to 12th grade." Chase answered.
Britain had to revise her plan, but, that wasn't a problem. "Great…even better. So this is what you do. You and Maddy casually walk up to Josh and his friends. Stop just before you get to him and Maddy you say, 'So Chase…who are you going to the prom with?' And then Chase, you answer Maddy, 'Well, it's between Josh and Eric, but I was really hoping that Josh would ask me.'" Britain then turned her head and gave Chase this look and batted her lashes making the younger girl laugh.
"I can't do that! What if he says no…in front of his friends? I'll die." Chase was mortified. She couldn't ask a boy out.
"He won't say no. If he ignores you, his friends will think he's a chump. If he says no, then his rival gets a shot at you. He'll say yes…trust me." Britain reached over and grabbed a handful of popcorn and munched happily. She had solved the problem of a date. This parenting stuff is a piece of cake.
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Throughout the evening, Dave could hear giggling coming from the family room. He wanted to know what was going on in there, but he didn't want to intrude, besides, the smell of nail polish was killing him from where he sat. It was a wonder that they hadn't all passed out from the smell in the Family room. "Peanut, you don't have stay out here with me if you don't want to. You can go in there." He watched Alli shake her head. "Britain's really nice. I'm sure she'd like to spend some time with you."
"I don't want to." Alli answered looking back at the television. "Besides, Mommy said that she's too young for you. She said not to get too use to her being around because you'll find some way to screw it up."
Dave wasn't about to tell Alli about her mom. Emily and Alli were like two peas in a pod; they were exactly the same. Anything that Emily said, Alli took as gospel. "Just because Mom doesn't like her, doesn't mean that you can't. I'm not going to force you to be friends with Britain, though."
"You're not gonna make us sleep at her house like you did with Angie, are you?" Alli questioned quietly.
Dave looked at Alli and frowned. She really didn't take to break-ups well. It took a long time for Alli to warm up to people and when they were gone, she took it hard. Even though Alli didn't really care for Angie, she still got use to her being around. "No Peanut, I'm not." Dave hugged his daughter and kissed her head. "I just wanted you guys to meet her, because I really like her."
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"Can I ask you a question?" Chase asked Britain while putting rollers in her hair. "How old are you? My mom said that you're a child."
Britain smiled and tried to think of something pleasant to say about Emily. "I just turned 25 in April."
"I'll be 14 next month." Maddy answered looking up from Britain's toes. "I think my mom's jealous. She still likes Daddy." Maddy recognized the look on Britain's face. She could tell that whatever her mom and Britain discussed in the house wasn't pleasant. "Are you sleeping with him?"
"Maddy!" Chase yelled. It was a damn good question, just not one that should be asked.
Britain thought about it. She wanted to be honest. "It's ok, I don't mind. Yes…I am."
"Do you love him?" Chase asked.
"We've only been seeing each other for a few months. I like him a lot. He's really sweet." It was a lie. Britain knew that she was falling in love with him, but she wouldn't admit it to herself, let alone his children. "I don't want to get your hopes up or disappoint you either…but I really like your dad and we're just seeing where this goes. I'm not trying to come in and take your mom's place or change anything that you have with your father. I'm not even trying to butter you up. I really like you girls and your father and I'm grateful that you're allowing me to spend your time with him."
Chase could appreciate her honesty. "He doesn't date that much. He's had a few girlfriends, but we didn't like them. They were phony. They talked to us like little kids."
"I won't do that. I would like to one day be your friend, that's all." Britain answered. "Can I ask you a question? Does Alli hate me?"
Maddy rolled her eyes. "She hates everybody. Don't pay any attention to her."
"My mom doesn't like you, so Alli doesn't. Even if she did, she wouldn't because of my mom." Chase was the sensible one. She was good at reading people. She continued to roll Britain's hair and she decided to take the plunge. "Have you met John Cena yet?"
Britain smiled. "Yeah…he's funny."
"Chase has a crush on him." Maddy blurted out trying to ignore the glare she received from her sister.
"I do not! Besides, he treats me like a kid."
Britain could definitely tell Chase was seriously feeling John. "John's pretty hot. I could see having a crush on him."
"If you weren't dating Daddy, would you like John?" Feeling out the competition was Chase's other strong suit.
Britain laughed. "No. I don't really like guys like him. I like dark features like your dad's."
"I'm gonna marry Randy." Maddy continued to apply polish to Britain's toes, without even looking up. She said it like it was written in stone. "He's so cute. Just wait; when I'm older, he's mine."
"He's a little old for you, no?" She noticed the defeated look on Maddy's face. "I say, go for it. Randy's really hot. If I hadn't met your dad, Randy would be the type of guy I'd go for. But don't worry, he's all yours." She gave Maddy a reassuring smile before switching positions and starting on the younger girl's pedicure.
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Britain laid on Dave's bed in her pajamas. There was so much that had gone on in one day, she just needed a minute to unwind. "Your girls are amazing." She looked over at Dave and smiled. She would've never imagined that they would be so cool.
"What are you looking at?" He asked her turning out the bathroom light.
"My toes." She held her foot up to Dave so he could see them. "Maddy did a great job. Don't they look nice?"
Dave grabbed her foot and placed a soft kiss on it. "Well, your toes were cute to begin with. And you know what would look great with your toes now?" He motioned toward her sandals. "This color would be perfect with those sandals."
"I'm not wearing those sandals." Britain shook her head and smiled. She loved it when he pouted.
It wasn't like Dave to whine. "Why not?"
"Because your daughters are right down the hall." As much as she wanted him, she didn't want to completely shock the hell out of his girls.
Dave kissed her foot again and poked out his bottom lip. "What if we promise to be quiet?"
"You haven't been quiet before when I've worn those shoes. No."
Damn it, there was a way around this. "Well what about the shower? They can't hear us from the shower." He was good at coming up with ideas.
"I'm not wearing $300 shoes in the shower! It'll ruin them." Britain may have given Dave those sandals, but she wasn't about to destroy a work of art for sex. She had standards, the line had to be drawn somewhere.
"Well what about the dresser?"
"What about the bed?" Why did he want to get all creative when his daughters were there?
"The bed might squeak and you said we have to be quiet. The dresser's on the other side of the room, it's on top of carpet…come on…" He was daring her. He knew it wasn't fair. Dave got up and removed the sandals from their shrine on the wall and dangled them in front of her. "You scared?"
Britain narrowed her eyes. Damn him and his challenges. She took off her Tweety-bird pajama pants and started the task of tying the sandals up her legs. She couldn't believe she was going to do this, not that the thought wasn't exciting. Once she had both shoes on, she walked over to the dresser and stood in front of it. "Now what?" She gave him a look that read that she didn't think he had the balls to do it. She was quickly surprised when he walked over to her and began kissing her deeply. There was no real foreplay, just his tongue in her mouth.
Dave could not get enough of her. Before he knew it, he had her undressed and bent over. It was the shoes; it had to be. They gave her enough height that he didn't need to bend down to take her from behind, they made her calves stick out and the way they tied around her legs…excited him to no end. He could watch her back arched like that forever and his hands appreciated the sting from when they connected with her backside as he lightly slapped the flesh. Taking her from behind was incredible, but he couldn't kiss her that way. Her lips needed to be on his.
He turned her around and sat her on the dresser, wrapping both of her legs around his waist. One hand stayed in her hair, holding her head steady so that he could kiss her, while the other wrapped her around her rib, so that his thumb could tease her nipple. With his forehead pressed against hers, he watched them where they were connected and the way her body accepted him matched the soft groans that she made. And when watching became too much, he slowed his movements and took the time to kiss her lips and suck on her neck.
After a while, he no longer thought about being quiet, he could only concentrate on being inside of her.
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"What are they doing?" Alli asked from in front of Dave's door.
Maddy rolled her eyes. "You're not that young, stupid." She walked into Chase's room. "Come on you pervert. Don't just stand there listening." She waited until Alli made it into Chase's room before she closed the door.
The three girls sat on Chase's bed looking at each other. They had to have a sisterly meeting to figure out what to do next. "So, do you like her?" Alli asked.
Maddy nodded. "From the sounds of things, Daddy does too. He must really like her." She smiled, knowing full well what was going on in Dave's bedroom. "She's nice."
Chase nodded in agreement. "Yeah, she is. You should give her a chance. She's really not that bad."
Alli shrugged. "But Mommy…"
"Mom and Daddy aren't getting back together. I don't care what Mom says." Chase pulled Alli into a hug. For some reason, Alli was the only one who held out hope that Dave and Emily would get back together one day. "They're over, Squirt. Daddy seems happy with Britain."
They all knew that when Dave had them alone, he would ask how they felt about her. "When he asks, I'm gonna tell him, I like her." Maddy spoke up.
"Me too." Chase replied.
"Plus wouldn't it be cool if Daddy married her? We'd have a step-mom that's a model." Maddy was already mapping out the future. "We'd get to go to Hollywood parties and I could meet Brad Pitt…"
Alli huffed. "I'm not gonna tell him I like her." She didn't care what her sisters said; she didn't want Britain to come between her parents getting back together, even if she was nice.
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Dave heard sniffling and he tried to open his eyes to find the source. He looked over at Britain who was sleeping comfortably before rolling to the other side, only to see the tear soaked face of his youngest daughter. "What's wrong Peanut?" He sat up on the bed and turned on the lamp. He would never admit that Britain was right; getting dressed for bed after they made love made sense, especially with three children in the house.
Alli cried silently and pointed to the woman that lay next to him. "I don't want you to get married again. I don't want another step-mom. I want everything to stay the way it is." At eleven years old, the concept of change is hard to grasp and Alli's black and white view of the world made it that much harder. "Mommy's gonna hate it. And she's gonna tell us not to like her and she'll get mad at Chase and Maddy cause they already do. Then she won't let us see you. Don't marry her Daddy, okay?"
Dave was confused. It was the middle of the night and he wasn't fully awake, but he understood that she was upset. He reached out and pulled his little girl up on the bed with him. "I'm not getting married, baby. Nothing's gonna change."
Britain rolled over and opened her eyes. Her heart broke for Alli.
"Maddy said you will. She's gonna change everything and you're gonna keep dating her even if I don't like her because Chase and Maddy do." Alli's cries turned into sobs as she buried her face against her father's chest. "Why can't you just love Mommy? She loves you, we love you. Why do you have love her too? She's gonna take you away, isn't she? And you're gonna have kids with her and not love us anymore. And when you get off work, you're gonna stay at her house and not see us, right?"
Britain sat up; she didn't want Dave to answer that. She didn't want to know if Dave loved her. That wasn't part of the deal. "Alli…I don't want to change anything. I'm not trying to take your Daddy away. I don't wanna be your Mom either." She noticed the way Dave tried to stop her from talking.
"Peanut...don't cry. Daddy's not going anywhere." The more he talked the harder she cried. He would do anything for her not to hurt and take away her tears.
"Alli, I love my Daddy a lot. And I would hate it if he had a girlfriend and I would really hate it if he made my mom unhappy because of it. And I probably wouldn't like her very much, just because she wasn't my mom." She reached out and stroked the girl's hair. "But, you know what? I love my Daddy enough to want him to be happy. And if he had a girlfriend that I didn't like, I would try, just because she made him happy. I wouldn't have to like her, but I would still give it a shot. How about you? Can you give me a shot?"
Alli looked at Britain and wiped her face. "I don't want to be your friend."
"Then how about we just be polite enemies?" Britain stuck out her hand toward Alli.
She nodded and shook on it.
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Alli slept between Dave and Britain; this was definitely a day to remember. Neither one could sleep after that conversation. Instead, they looked at each other around the girl sleeping between them. Dave reached out and touched Britain's face. I love you. "Thank you." He whispered.
Britain grabbed his hand and kissed his palm. I'm in love with you. "Anytime."