Her secret

Chapter 8

Linda laughs even more. She can barely sit up on her chair anymore. Her daughter's giggles make it really hard for Veronica to stay serious and of course Linda copies her father

"You too Missy. No peanut butter for me. No thank you!"

Linda giggles but then all of the sudden her smile fades. "I miss dancing mommy"

"You dance?" Archie asks with a smile on his face.

"I do ballet. I'm very good and it's so much fun but now that we don't live in New York anymore, I need a new dance studio"

"I'm working on it honey. Mommy just got a lot to do at the moment" Veronica promises. She knows how much her daughter loves to dance. That's why she went to one of the best dance studios in the country. She feel terrible for taking her daughter out of it but she needed to leave New York. Linda will be happier in Riverdale, safer. She will do whatever she can to find a dance studio near them that Linda feels comfortable in.

"Okay" Linda sighs but suddenly her eyes light up. She swiftly turns her head to Archie and looks up to him. "Daddy, do you want to see my tutus and dance costumes?"

"Of course! Show me!"

"— when you're done eating" Veronica interrupts before Linda can get up. The little girl groans but puts another cracker sandwich into her mouth.

"I don't know why but this is a very Lodge thing" Archie chuckles "did you dance too when you where a kid?" he asks Veronica.

"I did"

"Ballet just like me" Linda giggles. "I wanted to be just like mommy and now I love dancing too"

Archie's eyes wander to Veronica who looks at her daughter with a wide smile on her face. She looks so proud. He can't describe the feeling he gets when he looks at Veronica and their daughter but it's an amazing feeling.

"Stop starring at mommy" Linda says with a bossy undertone, one that reminds Archie a lot of Veronica. "That's rude"
His cheeks turn deep red when her chocolate brown eyes suddenly look back at him. Her little giggle only makes him blush even more.
Veronica bites the inside of her lip to keep herself from giggling again. Archie is just as cute as he was when she fell in love with him and the girl who now stares at them is living proof of the feelings they once shared.

"Mommy?"

"Huh?"

"I know it's a special costume but can I show daddy the black dress with the feathers?"

"Sure"

"What's the special dress?"

"I was the black swan in swan lake"

"Woah! That's amazing honey" Archie smiles.

"Thank you! But mommy said the dress was very expensive so I need to be extra careful"

"Makes sense" Archie nods

The next hour and a half Archie watches his little girl dance all her solos and favorite dance moves. She changes into at least 10 different costumes and explains every detail. Veronica loves how interested he is and Archie loves how bright Linda's eyes shine. He's so happy to have her in his life now. He can't even understand how he was able to live without her but he's also upset because with every passing day, he realizes how much of her life he missed. All the birthdays and dance competitions, her first day of pre school, her first steps and first word. He will do anything to make sure he will never miss one of her milestones again. He will be the best dad he can be. His role model is his own father. No one was better than Fred Andrews.
Every day with Linda is amazing. After all the dancing, the three of them go the park to play outside or Veronica watches them play with a smile on her lips. She always knew Archie would be an amazing dad. The love he had for her was already so strong that she can't even imagine how much he must love his own flesh and blood.
He doesn't mind to push her higher and higher on the swing or dig in the sand with his hands. Veronica gets three 'special Linda and daddy mud pies' before the little girl gets bored and wants to play something else.
Before they go back to the Pembrooke, Archie buys pizza and ice cream for everyone. They have a little picnic in the park just like Veronica and Archie used to have when they were teenagers. Veronica absolutely loved picnic dates.
Linda dramatically explains to Archie that her feet are too tired to walk and of course he can't say no so he picks her up and and carries her all the way back to the Pembrooke.