Never Ending Story #1

The Homecoming

Tight jeans molded to a rangy figure drew her glazed eyes down to the bronzed ankle playing hide-and-seek with the demin and sandle leather.[sara] Slowly she allowed her eyes to trail their way back up, lingering briefly on the stress points that had faded the denim to nearly white. Soft blue cotton slouched over his waist, unbuttoned and untucked, the white t-shirt beneath it only hinting at the strength of his chest. As her eyes focused on the lean column of his neck, Marlo realized with a jolt that she was deliberately avoiding looking at his face. [added by Cissy] Even as she imagined herself slowly running her fingertips back and forth on his soft t-shirt, she wondered how long he would let her pretend she didn't know who he was. [added by Cathy] Slowly she made her eyes wonder up his throat, past his full kissable lips, to his startling blue eyes. [added by Nisee'] What she saw there made her breathless. The passion in his fiery gaze was all for her! Excited and a little frightened by the intensity of her reaction to him she slowly [added by Gayla] raised up on the tips of her toes and balancing one hand on his hard bulging muscular shoulder she traced her fingertip over his bottom lip. [added by gayla]

As she was tracing his lip, he captured her finger and began to slowly suck .He then began to use his tongue to trace circles around her finger, all the while gazing hotly into her turquise eyes. [added by Nise'] Marlo's heart began to race and she broke out into a sweat. Slowly she lowered her feet to the ground. He bent his head down so as not to break his hold on her finger. [added by Nisee'] She gently tugged her finger out from his gentle grasp, and traced it along his smiling lower lip. Then, she traced his dimples, and down to his chin. Next she reached around his neck to pull her lips to his, and just as they met, a sound came from the doorway.

"Mommy, who's that?" Marlo jumped from James' arms and turned to face her daughter.

"Lisa, honey, I want you to meet James." She looked up at the man, who stood bewildered on her porch. "He's your father." [added by Jules]

The little imp's intensly blue eyes clashed with Jamese's. The man and the child apprised each other in sillence for a moment. Then she looked at Marlo.

"I like him better than Nick, and Charlie, and Richy for my papa. Let's keep this one!" Then she looked back at James and asked with a sweet, innocent, and equally false smile, " Do you like children, James?"

James' eyes became pale gray with anger and repulse. He was fighting nausea looking from Marlo to Lisa. It couldn't be true, it just couldn't! [added by Kacmor] Seeing the stunned look on both her daughters face and James's, she closed her eyes as if in prayer then opened them with a small sigh.

"My father?" Lisa repeated.

"Yes, honey. Why don't you go play with your friends while I talk to James. We will talk later about this. Okay honey? Marlo asked with a small smile to her daughter.

"Okay." Lisa said, though she has many questions in her eyes. Marlo watched her daughter walk off the porch and go play with her friends. She then turned to James and saw a different heated look then the one that was there only a few moments ago. "Good." she thought "I can handle this much better."

With an intense amount of anger in his voice James asked "How could you keep my own daughter from me?"

"Well", she thought "at least he knows Lisa is his and not his brothers. So much for small favors."Marlo opened her mouth to expalin...[added by Nance] "When was I supposed to tell you, eh?" she spat out, "before or after you volunteered for that stupid top-secret mission in Bucara-whatever?"

"Bucaramanga", he corrected absentmindedly. "Hey, how did you --?"

"Doesn't matter. You disappear for years, and now you come waltzing back into my life expecting everything to be just peachy! You, my dear, don't have ANY rights whatsoever. She may not even be your daughter as far as you know."

James sent her a look that was meant to freeze her. "I want a blood test, a DNA test, the works. If she's mine, I'm taking her from you."

Marlo smirked, "Exactly how do plan to manage that?"

James answering smile was full of disgust. "Honey, there is no court in this beautiful land of ours that will let you keep her. She lives in a trailer park, you expose her to a long line of wanna-be daddies, you don't have a job..."

"You bastard", hissed Marlo. [added by Kacmor]

James looked at Marlo without any expression, his face, as if carved from stone. For him, everything of value was said. There was nothing more to add.

Staring intensely into his eyes, Marlo took a deep breath, and whispered "Never! I'll kill you first."

Not even a blink of his eyes betrayed the sick feeling that was slowly rising in James' stomach. Nothing, absolutely nothing, could've more convinced James that Lisa was indeed his child, than those few whispered words.

"Mommy, Robert wants me to be the dinosaur again, and Susie wants to dig me up. I don't want to play anymore. He tickles." The girl looked her four years now, like she should. Just little, sweet, and tired. Not that 4-going-on-35 gold-digging vampish creature that was there just a short while before. Something was tugging at James' heart through the frozen barrier of hurt and surprise. He wanted more than anything to hold her tiny form in his arms.

"Run to the bathroom, sweetie. It's almost your bedtime. I'll be along shortly." Lisa went inside without another word, but turned her head in the doorway, and flashed James a bright smile and a coquetish look from under her black fringe of eyelashes. A pang of pain stabbed James.

"Alright. I can figure out that you would sleep with my brothers to convince them of their parenthood, but who the hell is Rick?"

Marlo shot James an icy look, turned her back to him, went inside, and slammed the door.

A chat with his brothers was way overdue, James thought. That was for sure. They had some serious explaining to do. [added by Kacmor] On his way to his brother Nick's house James cooled down. He had asked Nick and Charlie to look after Marlo before he left for his last assignment. They wouldn't have then betrayed him by sleeping with Marlo.. He had a child, a beautiful little girl. James couldn't believe it. Hamiliton and crew had more to answer for than he originally thought. [added by shy]
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He pulled in his car into Nick's driveway, and shut off the engine. Nick always left the back door open, and this time was no different. He must have had a million questions rolling through his mind as he made his way into the living room, where Nick was sprawled on the couch, watching football, popping a Dorito into his mouth every now and then. The first one that popped out was "Who the hell is Rick?"

Nick shot up in his seat. "Nice to see you to. Welcome to my home. How was your trip? I've been all right..."

"Cut the chit-chat. Who is Rick?"

"Down boy. There's only one Rick I know. He's a Pediatrics grad student. He volunteers alot at the hospital. And, he takes care of Lisa."

"Has he been seeing Marlo?"

"I should hope so. He's her brother."

"Are you?"

"Am I what?"

"Sleeping with Marlo."

"I don't know what gremlins have been whispering in your ear", Nick laughed, "I think Cheryl would slightly object."

"Who's Cheryl?", snapped James.

"Your soon-to-be sister in law. But she doesn't know it yet." Nick leaned over to the coffee table, and picked up a velvet box. He picked it up and tossed it to James. James caught it and opened it.

"Nice." said James, to much caught up in his own problems to really care.[added by Jules]

"I knew this last trip was going to be a loser. But that is what is was supposed to be, a quick last trip. How was I to know she would get pregnant?" James was definitely bewildered.

Nick chuckled. "Okay. Let me see if I remember correctly. You saw her, you went nuts and wouldn't stop until she dated you, then you spent a LOT of time with her..."

James groaned. "God, it was so intense. I couldn't stop thinking about her for three months and nearly got my head blown off twice. Why didn't I consider pregnancy? The wonder would have been if she didn't get pregnant!" [added by Susan]

Nick looked angrily at James.."what did you do? Go over there and see your daughter, then before Marlo could tell you anything you jumped to all sort of conclusions?Tell me you didn't just leave without spending any time with your daughter. Tell me if I'm getting warm here."

"Well, what was I supposed to do? Say"Why Marlo I'm overjoyed you kept my daughters existence a secret but that's okay with me and by the way are you sure she's my daughter?"" James asked with an angry scowl.

"You were way out of line,James. You owe Marlo a big fat apology. And if I was you I would do it soon before the others find out how much of an ASS you have been." Nick stated. As he finished talking a car door was heard slaming in the yard. [added by Nisee']
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The TV in the small living room was on, but the sound was turned down, as it was left after Lisa's nightly dose of cartoons. Marlo was sitting on the sofa, hearing nothing, and seeing nothing. She was deep in thought. -so that's how James' return was going to look like-, she thought bitterly to herself. -It serves you right for letting your dreams run wild. You thought your prince will come, and right all the wrongs.- There was a strong knock on the door. Marlo snapped out of her trans, and ran to the door, preparing herself for round two. She looked through the peephole, and, without hesitation, opened the door.

Ricky burst in, excited. "Hi, Sis. I just talked to Charlie, and he told me that James is back."

"I know. Oh! Don't I know it!"

"What happened?" asked Ricky, shutting the door behind him.

"He came by, and before I caught my breath, Lisa came out. I was tounge-tied, and I mummbled something about Lisa being his daughter. While he was recovering, Lisa goes, and pulls a Jessica Rabbit on him! The looking him over, the eyelashes, the accent, everything! And she tells me that she likes him better for a father than you, Charlie or Nick, and that we should "keep" him."

"Don't say!" Ricky couldn't stop the glimmer of amusement from reaching his eyes.

"God! I thought the earth would split open, and swallow me right there! He decided that I was raising a slut -- like mother, like daughter."

"He can't be that stupid."

"I wouldn't call it stupid. He never thought highly of me; it's easy to fall back into old habits."

Ricky combed his blond hair with long fingers. Marlo looked at him, and continued. "He wants to determine her fatherhood, and take her away."

"He can't pull that off!!" Ricky shouted in disbelief.

"He doesn't know it yet. He thinks he's rescuing his innocent child from a bummish slut of a mother. But even so, it hurts that he would want to take her away from me."

Ricky walked over to Marlo, and wrapped her in a warm, loving hug. "Well," he said "you have to admit that the guy's trying to do right by his daughter." After a long silence, Marlo sighed, and said "I suppose there's that." The warm feeling of no longer being alone broke some of Marlo's tension, and she burst out laughing. "You should have seen James' face! What a hoot! Lisa's performance was priceless. She batted those eyelashes of hers, looked James' over head to foot, and back, and asked him in a low voice "Do you liiiike chiiilllldreen, 'James'?" He looked like he got hit in the stomach with a slegde hammer!"

Ricky gave a crack of laughter. "I'm telling you, that niece of mine is going to get an Oscar someday."

"And a Fred, an Adam, and every one else she wants." Marlo smiled, then continued, "It's a shame he wasn't here two months ago, to see her when she was doing her "Porky Pig" voice. He would have thought she stuttered! Why did she have to like Jessica Rabbit, NOW?"

Ricky gave Marlo an encouraging squeeze, and said, "Don't worry. It'll turn out OK." With a final pat on her shoulder, he wandered into the kitchen. "You have any beer?" [added by Kacmor]
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James woke up the next morning, feeling groggy, and disconnected. He scratched his head, thinking, HOPING, that yesterday was all a dream, but the motel room wall, and the packed suitcase by the door told him he was back. That meant that he had spoken to Marlo. He sighed, and walked into the bathroom. Half an hour later, he was thinking of how he would appologize to her for what he said. He wanted to figure out how to make her forgive him. He wanted to figure out how the hell he was going to get her to move out of that horrible trailer park, and in with him. He wanted...he didn't know what, yet. He had only a few days before he would have to go back to San Francisco, where his company's main divisional company was. Until them, he was free. He hoped it was enough time. He went over to the chair, where the pants he wore yesterday hung. He went into the pocket, and he pulled out a small velvet box. He smiled. He wondered what Nick would think if he knew he bought a similar ring for Marlo. He put the box into his pocket, took the keys from the table, and left the room. He was going to give Marlo another house call. Hopefully, it would go better this time. [added by Jules]
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Marlo felt a lump laying beside her. She laid real still til she felt some movement. She slowly turned over and confronted the intruder.

"Good Morning Mommy" Lisa stated. She looked adorable with her head laying on the opposite pillow. Looking at her, Marlo got choked up. She thought, How am I supposed to try and fight James? He has all the money, but I would die without my daughter.

Marlo smiled at Lisa,"What would you like for breadfast, pumpkin?" she asked.

"Mommy, will daddy be at breakfast?" Lisa asked,"I really want to talk to him. Then I want to play horsey with him like I do with Uncle Nick and Uncle Charles?"

Marlo was startled for a moment,"No Lisa, James won't be at breakfast"

Lisa sighed,"Mommy why do you call him James if he's my daddy?"

"Yes,Marlo, why do you call me James if I'm daddy?" James asked.

Startled, Marlo looked to the door and found James leaning against the doorjam. He had his arms crossed across his chest and wore a frown. Those beautiful turquise eyes blazing with a yet unknown emotion as he stared at Lisa. "How did you get in here?" she asked.

"I met Rick downstairs and he said to come on up. He thught he heard voices in here and thought you were already up."

"Well I'm not so, you can just go back dlownstairs until I get up." Marlo stated angrily.

"Mommy why are you angry with daddy?"Lisa asked"He doesn't have to leave does he mommy? Doesn't he want to stay with me?" The tears were apparent in Lisa eyes and in the quiver of her little voice as she asked.

James' face paled as he listened to his daughter talk. It hit him with the force of a ton of bricks, this small creature was his daughter. He started to shake and his voice was not steady as he answered"Lisa,honey, I'm not going anywhere. Sweetheart you have no idea how much I want to be with you." With that said James turned his gaze upon Marlo. "I'll wait downstairs for you. We have alot to discuss." With that he unfolded hisself from the doorframe and walked out of the bedroom.

Marlo put her arm over her eyes and thought, Now why do I have this feeling that nothing is going to be the same again. [added by Nisee']
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James went down the stairs to the kitchen. No sooner had he sat in the chair he heard soft footsteps behind him. He slowly turned around and found himself face to face with his daughter. He swallowed hard and tried to remember how to talk.

Lisa beat him to it"Are you really my daddy?" she asked.

She was standing in the doorway of the kitchen gazing at James with those soulfool eyes.

James aswered"Yes Lisa I'm your father." Just daying the words made James' heart beat faster and his head feel light.

Lisa edged closer to James, keeping her gaze on his. [added by Nisee'] James squated down to her eyes level. "Do you think you could give me a hug?" he whispered. [added by Kacmor]

Lisa smiled brightly, and wrapped her tiny arms around his neck. James lifted her into his lap.

"So, sport," he said, his eyes shining, "what do you want to do today?"

"I'm hungry. Can I have some ice cream?" Lisa said, making a pout.

"Nope. Afraid not."

Lisa was abviously disappointed. "That's what mommy would say."

"Well, I can still make a mean omlet."

Lisa's eyes widened. "What's an omlet, and why would you want to make it mean?"

James gave a crack of laughter, confusing Lisa even more. "An Omlet is...well...I'll show you." He set Lisa down on a chair, and got up. He went to the refrigerator, and opened the door. Thank heavens Marlo had eggs in the house. And, after more looking, he found some cheese, and celery, and some leftover chicken. When he looked up, carrying these items to the counter, he saw Lisa's eyes flickering with interest. She was watching his every move.

"Lisa," started James,smiling, "do you like salt?"

Lisa nodded emphatically, "Uh-huh! It tastes really good with apples."

James made a face. Lisa giggled.

"Then you'll love this."

After beating the eggs, and mixing all of the ingrediants together on the pan, James placed a nice, toasty, perfectly-salted Omlet in front of Lisa.

Lisa looked at the plate in wonder. "Is it mean?" she asked.

James laughed. "Just a little."

Lisa smiled, and tried to put a portion of the food onto her fork. James sat down next to her, and took the fork away from her. He deftly cut a bite tiny enough for her, cooled it down by blowing on it, and fed it to his daughter. Lisa chewed happily, and said, "Mahvilous dahling! Simply mahvilous!" James smiled.

"Mmmm! Do you have one of those for me?" came Marlo's voice from the doorway.

James looked up, and saw Marlo in her day clothes, hair neatly tucked into place, standing in the doorway.

Lisa swallowed her bite, "Mommy! Jam-uh-daddy's mean omlets aren't mean. They are really good."

"I know, honey. I can smell them."

James got up, and handed the fork to Marlo. "You take over, and I'll make you another one."

Marlo took the fork. "OK." She smiled.

Seeing her smile was even better than seeing her feed their small daughter. James couldn't stop grinning the whole time he was preparing the omlet. [added by Jules]

"Are you going to take me to pre-school, Daddy?" Lisa asked. "I want to show you to my freinds."

James looked at Marlo and said, "If it's okay with your Mommy, it's okay with me."

Lisa climbed to stand on her chair and waved her arms. "It's okay with Mommy, isn't it Mommy? That way when Sean gets here, he can just stay and have his meeting with you. He'll be glad not to have to drive me to pre-school, then come back here to keep you company."[added by stella]
The smile on James face slowly faded away. He turned cold eyes to Marlo "Sean?" he asked.

"Yes, he is always here with mommy. I like Sean he's soo funny." Lisa said with a gigle. "Mommy, can I take Pooh bear to school with me today?"

Marlo answered without taking her eyes off James, "Sure sweetheart. Why don't you go up stairs and brush your teeth. You have to leave in a few minutes. And do not forget to brush your hair."

"I won't" Lisa said with a small pout. Brushing your teeth was not fun and she wanted to stay with her daddy.

Lisa slowly left the kitchen dragging her feet.

After Lisa went up the stairs, the silence in the kitchen was thick enough to cut with a knife. [added by Nisee']

James leaned back against the counter arms crossed over his chest his stance arrogant and demanding. "And Sean would be...? Marlo set the fork down making an effort to appear casual. She wasn't sure why James was here, she just knew it did not bode well for her. He already thought the worst of her. She spent most of the night knowing she had to fight him for her daughter and knowing it was more than likely a useless battle. Frustration and bitterness made her answer "None of your business." She stood to carry the dishes to the sink seeking distance between them. One long muscular arm snaked out and grapped her wrist, startling Marlo so, she dropped the plate causing it to shatter on the floor.

"Who is Sean?" James ground out between clenched teeth.
"None of your business" Marlo repeated.

"It is my business if he comes by every day to 'keep you company', when MY daughter is exposed to, to..."

Marlo yanked her wrist from his grasp. "To what? she shouted. "To do wild and decadent things all day long while Lisa is at preschool?" Do you think I send her just so I can have uninterrupted time with one of my many lovers?"

"I don't know what to think" James shouted back. "I don't know what to think if you won't answer a simple question. Now who is Sean" he all but roared at her.

Lisa's shout made both adults swing towards the door. "Noooo!" she wailed. [added by Margaret Tyer] "Why are you yelling at each other? Mommy, why is Daddy mad at you? Is he mad at me too? Please stop!"

As Marlo fell to her knees and folded Lisa in her arms James crumbled next to them and tried to enfold them in his arms. "No Lisa I'm not mad at you honey. Your mom and I are having a disagreement but it has absolutely nothing to do with you. Sometimes grownups do argue about things but this has nothing to do with you. I would never be mad at you just when I found you. We're going to get to know each other and do things together and be real pals. Would you like that?" [added by cib]

Lisa sniffed once, looked at James, and nodded her head slowly, blinking away a tear. "Yes, daddy, I would." She sniffed again. "Why are you fighting?"

"Nothing, honey. Really. I was telling your father who Sean was."

Lisa turned to James, who now stood up, lifting Lisa to stand on one of the chairs. "Sean is mom's friend from work. He takes me to school every day. I like him a lot. He told me a lot about aliens. And dinosaurs. And Pooh. Do you hate Sean, daddy? Why?"

James looked from Marlo to Lisa. "No, honey." he said "Say, shouldn't you be dressed? You're still in your PJ's."

"Yeah, but I brushed my teeth. And my hair."

"And it looks lovely. But you should put on some clothes."

Lisa smiled, took a mighty hop off the chair, and ran out of the room, giggling.

"You nosey suspicious jerk!" Marlo hissed. James was too stunned to say anything. The absolute fury in her eyes left him without words. "You sleezy, dirty-minded, ill-mannered louse! How DARE you assume that I would be having a tordid affair with a four year old girl to take care of? How could you think that I wouldn't be competent enough to take care of a child? What gives you the right to insult me? You think that I'm a slut, having an affair with a sleazy motorcycle-riding child abuser! You think that I'm an unfit mother. A harlot. A cheep gold digging, trailer trash redneck whore. I've got news for you. I took great care of Lisa. I loved her since the day I found out I was pregnant. You left, and I managed. And you ask anyone, they'll tell you. But you don't give a damn. You're so certain that I am evil, that you can't even wait for a damn explanation. You don't think that I could actually know someone nice enough to act as my car, since I have no money to buy one myself. Yes, that's right. I work two jobs, just to support myself, and my daughter, and to save up for her college fund. Sean is my friend from my daytime job. He drives Lisa to school, and then comes back for me, and he drives me to work. There's your damn explanation. Now get out, sit in the car, and I'll send Lisa out to you when she gets back."

James sat down in the chair, getting stunned. He looked at his hands, and sighed. When he looked up, an apology on his lips, Marlo was gone. [added by Jules]

As he sat there in stunned amazement, he felt like he'd be run over by the proverbial Mack truck. Was that Mt. St. Helens that just dumped twenty tons of lava on his head? Why was he acting like such a jerk when all he wanted to do was coax her into his arms and back into his bed? He couldn't believe the riptide of emotions that he was feeling; shock, amazement, grief at having missed so much of his daughter's life but uppermost such joy. Marlo had had his baby; his daughter. How had she managed to go through that alone? And Marlo, surely she wouldn't react that strongly to him if he meant nothing to her; would she? He had to get away and explore the feelings slamming through his soul. He would take his darling little girl to school and then he would go somewhere to think and try to adjust to the changes that were going to occur in his life. Surely, he could win Marlo back. He had loved her for so long, surely there was still hope for them; especially with Lisa as the fulcrum of their lives. Lisa, he still could not get over the fact that he was a Daddy. God, how did one be a Daddy? [added by cib]
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Marlo went upstairs wiping tears off her face. She couldn't believe how much of a jerk James was being. She remembered before he left how nice he had been, and sweet. Damn him anyway. So her life wasn't great,but it was hers and she had Lisa. Nothing could compare with that. NOTHING!!

Marlo headed for Lisa's room. As she approached the door she could hear talking. Marlo tip-toed over to the door, and peaked around. There on the floor knelt Lisa by her bed, praying.

"Please God let mommy and daddy stop fighting, and please let daddy move in with us to be a family like my friends have."

Marlo slipped away from the door, down the hall to her room and closed the door. She leaned her head against the door and thought, Now what am I going to do?. [added by Nisee'] Marlo knew that Lisa's performance in the kitchen was a result of watching Scarlett in Gone With The Wind. The quick, easy tears and the pretty little pout as she begged them to stop fighting. She remembered waking up after dozing during the movie to find Lisa enraptured in the movie last week. But her little girls prayers were not for show. Marlo had taught her daughter to respect God, to thank Him for her blessings and not to ask for anything frivolous. So what was she going to do.

James was waiting to take his little girl to school. God only knew what performance the little minx would pull with her father. Marlo could only hope that whatever it was, it wouldn't give James any more ammunition to take Lisa away from her. "Then" Marlo thought to herself "All I have to do is find way to tell my daughter that Daddy will not be living with us." With a deep sigh Marlo straightened and muttered "Yeah! Right! After all tomorrow is another day."[added by mags]

As she opened the door and started down the stairs she prayed, Oh God give me the strength and endurance of Scarlett. Not her selfishness or pettyness but the strength and endurance to go on with the daily struggle and to get through whatever is going to happen with James. God, you know I really love him but how do I cope with life, Lisa and now James on top of it? You know there's nothing I want more than to have the stable, loving relationship I thought we were heading for before James disappeared from my life. What I wouldn't give to be able to have him belong to Lisa and me; to be a real family and have him share the load of life. Don't forget the joy Lord, let there be joy for Lisa with her daddy, please. She's such an puckish little girl with her flair for dramatics and unquenchable laughter. And is there anything in heaven or on earth that can compare to the sparkle in her eyes when she scrunches up her nose and looks at you as she's getting ready to burst into giggles and throw herself in your arms. Please don't let that joie de vivre dissapear in the mess that is sure to develop now that James knows she exists. Please Lord, give me strength. [added by cib]

Taking a deep breath, Marlo braced herself for yet another confrontation with James. But on the way to the front door, she stopped. James hadn't gone to his car as she requested. Instead, he had discovered her mini gallery - pictures of Lisa from when she was a baby. Lisa arriving from the hospital, Lisa blowing the candles from her first birthday party, Lisa in her Halloween costume, all set for trick or treating. James picked up her favorite photo - Lisa's first Christmas, all wide-eyed with wonder at the small Christmas tree that was all she could afford that year. As she watched a single tear slowly trickled down James' cheek. The sight of that tear gave her pause. True, life was a struggle, but she had Lisa. She would never exchange all those memories she had while James, well, he had missed his daughter's birth and all the important milestones in her young life. It might not have been by choice but life often doesn't give you choices. But it can give you a second chance. Dare she grab this chance? Dare she risk getting her heart broken a second time?

"Mummy, I'm ready! Is Daddy still here? Is he still going to take me to school?" Looking into her daughter's expectant face, she saw her answer. Yes, it was worth the risk. Remembering the tear on James face while he looked at the picture, she thought "Maybe, just maybe, everything will work out!" [added by marie84]
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James slowly walked from the kitchen to the living room. He couldn't believe that what a jerk he was being. Every time he opened his mouth he insulted Marlo, when all he wanted to do is grab her and never let her or Lisa go again. James stopped walking when he found himself in fromt of the mantle. There were dozens of photos. As he looked closer he realized they were mostly of Lisa. Lisa's life wihtout him for so many years. He slowly picked one up after. "I can't believe that this precious child is mine." he thought. "I missed so much".

A photo at the end of the mantle caught his eye. He walked over and picked it up. The photo was of Lisa, obviously on her first Christmas. He noticed her sparkling eyes and baby fat cheecks. The excited way she was waving her arms at the tiny Christmas tree. Looking at the picture, he never noticed the tear that ran down his face or Marlo watching him. [added by Nisee'] Lisa's voice drew Marlo's attention from James. She stepped between father and child to give James a chance to compose himself before their daughter saw his tears. "Yes, honey. Your father is still here and he's still going to drive you." She cast a quick look at James who had turned his face away, and was dashing the tear from his cheek.

Turning back to the two most important females in his life, even if they didn't know they were, he smiled. "Are you ready, Lisa?" Marlo could see the shadow still in his eyes, and wondered just what they were going to do about this situation. She loved her daughter, and heaven help her, she had never stopped loving this man.

James met Marlo's eyes and strove for a light tone that didn't fool Marlo for one second. "Where, exactly, is this school, Marlo?

Just as Marlo opened her mouth to give him directions, there was a knock at the door.

"Sean," squealed Lisa grabbing the door nob and swinging the door wide. "Come meet my daddy." [added by Sissy] Sean entered the room and picked lisa up in a big bear hug. He extended a hand to James and said "Well it's finally good to meet you at last! I'm Lisa's........... [added by Laura Goldsmith]

End Part One