Blended Family

Lin

A/N: Check out my new fic From Where She Came, where V's contacted out of the blue by the kid she gave up for adoption at birth!

Watching how Pippa was with a sick Joey was making me fall in love with her more. Joey wasn't her kid, but she was being very loving and gentle with her. Her body was pretty achy and so Pippa would run her baths then rub lotion onto her back. It obviously wasn't something I'd be comfortable doing and it was an incredibly motherly thing for Pippa to step in to do. I loved that Joey had become that comfortable with her.

I walked in one afternoon to find Joey laying on the couch, her head propped up in Pippa's lap as they talked softly. Pippa was playing with her hair and Joey was fighting sleep. As I walked closer, I could hear Pippa begin to gently sing to her. She had such a beautiful voice. Joey may have been fifteen now but it did the trick. I softly sat down on an opposite chair as Joey faded into sleep. I just watched Pippa, in awe of her beauty.

Pippa continued to gently stroke her hair, then looked at me. "Hey," she whispered.

"Hey," I answered back. "Good day?"

She nodded. "I think she's feeling a bit better. Still needs her sleep though."

I nodded and stood up. Joey slept like a log when she was sick so I carefully scooped her up and carried her down the hallway to her own bedroom. I laid her down and pulled up the covers, then pressed a kiss to her forehead.

I returned to the living room where Pippa now had her feet propped up on the couch. I gently picked them up, sat down, and set them in my lap. Immediately I started working my thumbs into the soles of her face. She groaned and closed her door eyes.

"That feels so good," she moaned.

I chuckled. "You haven't even been chasing kids today."

"I had to wear heels," she told me. I picked up her foot and pressed a delicate kiss to her toe. She smirked and closed her eyes, relaxing as I worked at her tired feet. I had to chuckle when she soon fell asleep. I hoped Pippa didn't find it creepy that I watched her sleep for a while.

___

A week passed quickly and Joey was on the mend a bit more. She was still too tired to go back to school full time. She argued with me Saturday morning as we waited for Alex and Jack to arrive back from their grandparents.

"Dad, I haven't been sleeping that much," she said as I made a sandwich in the kitchen.

"You've been sleeping ten hours at night," I countered. "And taking a nap."

"But that's better than before!" she argued.

"Yes," I chuckled. "But I don't want you to push yourself too hard and get worse again. We'll try half days this week."

She groaned and rolled her eyes, then stormed off. Pippa came out with a load of laundry and piled it into the washer. Just as she was finishing the doorbell rang and she answered it. It was Jack, Alex and their grandparents.

"Pippa!!" Alex ran to her Pippa picked her up gleefully. She planted kisses all over her face.

"I missed you!" she told the little girl as she giggled. Jennifer walked in with Jack in her arms, with her husband not far behind.

"I missed you too!" she said, then caught sight of me too. "Win!"

She was passed off and again showered with kisses all over her face.

"How did it go?" Pippa asked them, gently giving Jack a kiss on his cheek. Jennifer didn't look like she was quite ready to let him go yet.

"They were great," Jennifer reported. "We had a good time."