Fish Out of Water

FOOW-Pt-4

"Where is he?" Joss asked, putting her hand to her hips and tapped her foot in a comical gesture.

"Who?" Mac asked as he added more French dressing to his salad, not having told Joss about his date yet, it was only 5:30. He had plenty of time.

"My father. The father who specifically told me to keep my nose clean while I was in the great white north. The father that told me to not rock the boat. The father that was quietly angry that I..."

"I didn't say sleep with anyone." Mack said forcefully, and then softened, "I said get involved in the project. Now sit down and stop being a drama queen."

"Drama queen, you'd know all about that, you married her."

"Now I'm raising her kid." Mack muttered and they both laughed. They ate in silence, finally Joss got up, depositing her dishes in the sink.

"I'll do the dishes later; I'm going to take a bath." Mack nodded, looking down at his food, thinking he was going to get fat eating two dinners. He listened to her going up the stairs, a hot sigh on his lips.

14 ******

Joss was in the huge old claw bathtub, it was big enough that she could fit the cheerleading team in there with her. What a thought.

"Joss?" Mack was at the door. An old habit from childhood that had stuck through her teenage years, Mack wondered if he'd be old, using a walker and still going into the bathroom to receive counsel from his daughter. Whenever Mack had something important to talk to Joss about, he'd sit on the toilet, while she sat in a hot bath relaxing. Mack was sure that sometimes she was the adult and he was the child.

"I'm naked!" Joss yelled in jest, he grunted pushing the door open, creeping into the steaming room.

"Certainly hope you're not dressed in the tub. So..." He stopped. Rubbing his hand through his hair and Joss fell into her therapist mode.

"Yes father." Her voice stern yet filled with her usual humor.

"Oh being funny?"

"Funny looking."

"Beautiful is how you look. You are not funny looking." Mack reminded her and was rewarded with a grunt as she began to shave her legs. The curtain drawn around the tub, he heard the scraping of razor on skin and smiled. "I have a date."

"OUCH!" Joss yelped, dropping the razor in the still hot water. Her skin the color of a cooked lobster as Joss dabbed at the bloody scrape on her leg. "What? With who and are you paying her?"

"Oh, you are so funny tonight."

"Seriously?" Joss pushed her nose out of the curtain and looked across the room at her father who was fidgeting uncomfortably on the toilet. He nodded. "Wow."

"Wow? I am still a very attractive man." Mack said in his defense.

"To say the least."

"I have had many offers."

"To say the least." Joss repeated, pulling the curtain back into place.

"You remember your mom's friend, Lara?"

"The red head? The one with the ice blue eyes? Oh dad..." Joss began and he grunted.

"Don't start. She's very nice."

"And hot." A pause from them both, and then Joss added. "Um dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Does she have a kid?"

"I don't know."

"Well if she does and they look like her, set me up?"

"JOSS!" Mack bellowed and Joss laughed.

"Dad you gotta get out. Have fun, you don't gotta marry the chick. At least go out and have some fun. Ya not looking to replace mom. I'm old enough to know that, so how about you just enjoy huh?"

"So said the mini Yoda."

"Before you go..." Joss began letting the sentence hang.

"Yeah?" Mack asked knowing something was coming. He could feel it in his bones. Joss had an odd sense of comic timing.

"Go upstairs in my night stand, second drawer, there are some condoms there, grab a few huh? Just in case..." Joss eluded.

"Josslyn Mackenzie WADE what are you doing with condoms???" He asked, his face growing redder by the moment.

Joss pushed the curtain aside and gave him an odd look. "You gave 'em to me."

Mack stood up, turning on his heels and started to exit the room.

"Funny, you have gained an odd sense of humor since we've moved here. I'll be back later."

"Take your time! You're not the one that has a curfew!" Joss called back, and then added. "Sense of humor, must be the cold, that's it. It's freezing my brain. Some people can't hear because of the cold and I've got cold humor syndrome...." Joss said to herself, leaning back, closing her eyes, and relaxing.