Daddy Dearest

Chapter Three

Oh God, how am I going to get through this night without ogling him like a slack-jawed village idiot? Within the enclosed space of his car this afternoon, I could barely keep myself from squirming in my seat. He smelled like a combination of leather, bergamot, sandalwood, and something minty. I wanted to climb over the center console and straddle him, so I could bury my face in his neck and kiss him all over. I couldn't tell if the cramping I felt below my belly was due to my period or the horniness I was experiencing. But my body was overheating and my skin became super-sensitive to the touch. When he put his hand on my leg, I almost begged him to go higher and touch the spot throbbing between my thighs. I'm convinced now that I would have spontaneously combusted had he done that.

We pile into the family van with Mr. and Mrs. Davenport up front, Madison and I in the middle row, and the twins and Noah in the back. I'm sitting directly behind Mr. Davenport because Madison always insists on sitting next to me and holding my hand. I don't have siblings, so I see her as my little sister. She is just the cutest thing, with her big green eyes and curly red hair. This afternoon, she went into Charlotte's room as I was braiding her older sister's hair and asked if I could do her hair, too.

"What did I say about entering my room without knocking, runt?" Charlotte yelled.

Seeing the stricken look on Maddie's face, I gave my friend's hair a sharp tug and mumbled an unapologetic "sorry" when she yelped. "You are so mean to her. She just wants to hang out with us, Lottie."

Charlotte sighed and looked at her little sister before patting the spot on the bed next to her. "Sorry, Junebug. I'm just in a bit of a bad mood. Come give your big meanie sister a kiss and a hug?"

Madison's face lit up and she ran up to the bed and jumped up on it, so she could wrap her skinny arms around Charlotte's neck and give her a kiss. "I forgive you." She grinned at us, displaying the gum area where her two front teeth should be. "Daddy said you have to help me get ready."

At the mention of their dad, my heart began beating rapidly and I felt this heat come up from my chest all the way up to my cheeks like open flame. Jeez, this crush is getting out of control. I'm sure he's been noticing what a spaz I've been acting for the last year or so. But that's assuming a lot, considering I probably don't rate very high on his scale of things to think about. Ugh, why won't it go away? I love hanging out with his kids and the Davenport house is practically my second home, so it's really inconvenient for me to be feeling this way.

Charlotte says it's because I'm finally coming into my womanhood, for which I bashed her across the face with a pillow. I never really had crushes, even when Charlotte started getting boy-crazy when we were eleven. The boys at school notice me and some have even asked me out, but I've never really been interested enough to take them up on it. Besides, Nancy is a little strict with me when it comes to stuff like that, but she's never really had to worry about it, since I've only ever hung out with the Davenport twins and a handful of other select friends at school, all of whom are geeks and nerds like me and Charlie.

"You need a boyfriend," Charlotte declared as she started to brush her little sister's hair. "And you need to branch out. It's not healthy that you've been hanging out with the same dorks since sixth grade."

"She doesn't need a boyfriend," piped up Maddie. "She has us. A stinky boyfriend would just take her away from us."

"Shut up, runt. If you want to hang out with us, you have to be quiet. And didn't mum warn you about butting into conversations you're not a part of?"

Maddie giggled. "Ha-ha, you said 'butt'."

"Good one, mei-mei," I said, chuckling. "Lottie, you need to chill out about my lovelife. Do you ever hear me talk about it when you don't bring it up? No. I don't need a boyfriend. Besides, you should talk."