What Daddy Needs 4

Phoebe stuffed her science book into her back pack and then stood up and slung one strap over her shoulder. Outside the door she paused to look at her schedule. She hated the first day at a new school and it was always worse when they came in the middle of a semester. Someone bumped into her as kids moved quickly through the crowded hallway on their way to the next class.

“What do you have now?” a male voice asked close to her ear.

Startled, she took a step to the side and collided with another hurried fellow student. The boy beside her laughed and grasped her upper arm to steady her and pull her out of the flow of traffic. Phoebe smiled at the fair haired boy that had been sitting next to her in Earth Science.

“English,” she said. “Room 238.”

“Murph,” he said grinning down at her. “You’ll like him. Everybody does. I’m Tyler.”

“Phoebe Cashe,” she said extending her hand.

Tyler shook the offered hand looking down at the petite, dark haired girl. “Cashe?” he asked raising his eyebrows. “As in your dad is the new Brigade commander at the base?”

Phoebe nodded as he took her bag.

“Well, come on,” he said. “My old man will kick my ass if I let the Colonel’s daughter wander around school lost.”

He strode off and Phoebe followed him through the hallway back to the main wing. Tyler took the stairs to the second floor two at a time and Phoebe ran to keep up. He stopped in front of the door to her class and handed her the backpack.

“I have social studies,” he said pointing to a classroom across and down the hall a bit. “I’ll meet you back here after class if you’d like to have lunch with me.”

“That would be great,” she said smiling gratefully.

A huge grin spread over Tyler’s face. “Okay. See you after class.”

Phoebe turned to enter her room with a bemused smile. She crossed to the teacher’s desk and sat her bag down to look for the slip that all her teacher’s were supposed to sign. She pulled it out and handed it to the good looking dark haired man sitting behind the desk as the warning bell rang.

He looked up from the papers in front of him, his dark brown eyes sliding down over her before returning to her face. “Phoebe, right?” he asked as he took the slip of paper and scribbled his name on the fourth line.

“Yes,” she said taking the textbook he held out to her.

“I’m Mr Murphy,” he said. “Murph if you like. Jamie. Hey, you.”

Phoebe laughed and he grinned at her.

“It looks like you get a front row seat,” he said nodding toward the only empty desk in the room.

Phoebe sat down and he stood to begin the class.


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Justin sat sat on a stool at the counter chattering about the friends he’d made at school that day as Phoebe pressed the pizza dough onto the rectangular baking stone. She smiled and nodded as her little brother rambled on.

She turned to grab the jar of pizza sauce from the counter behind her and saw her dad leaning in the doorway. “Hi, Daddy,” she said smiling brightly. “How was your day?”

Jake straightened away from the door frame as his daughter got a glass from the cupboard and poured four fingers of Scotch.

“Not too bad,” he said smiling down at her as she handed him the glass. “You’re making pizza from scratch?”

Phoebe smiled at her father’s incredulous tone of voice. “The dough is a mix,” she admitted. “All I had to do was add warm water.”

“How was school, Justin?” Jake asked launching his son into another round of chatter.

Phoebe was just sliding the baking stone into the oven when the phone rang. She turned to answer it as her dad picked it up himself.

“Cashe residence,” he said briskly.

He turned toward Phoebe and she shivered at the tightly controlled anger she saw in his eyes. Silently he held the phone toward her. As she reached for it he let it fall crashing to the counter. She picked it up, watching her dad cautiously as he took another deep swallow from the glass of Scotch.

“Hello,” she said quietly.

“Hey,” the voice at the other end of the line said cheerily. “It’s Tyler.”

“Yes,” she said unable to tear her eyes away from her father’s.

“I know it’s a school night, but a few of us are going to the movies and I was just wondering if you wanted to come, too,” he said.

“I really can’t,” she said. “Sorry.”

Jake drained his glass and sat it on the counter sliding it toward Phoebe. She picked up the bottle and refilled it for him.

“Okay,” Tyler said, the disappointment evident in his voice. “I guess I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

“Sure,” she said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She hit the button to end the call and laid the phone down on the counter. She glanced at her dad before turning to the refrigerator to get the bag of salad and bottle of ranch dressing. He was still glaring at her icily.

“Justin, go wash up for dinner,” he ordered without taking his eyes off his daughter.

Justin slid off the stool and ran toward the stairs. Phoebe got three plates and salad bowls from the cupboard and sat them on the counter. She started to pour the salad into the individual bowls trying to ignore the cold anger radiating from her dad.

He slowly rounded the counter to stand beside her and set the glass down. Phoebe took a deep breath and turned toward him. Jaw set, she looked up defiantly.

“Boys calling, Phoebe?” he asked menacingly as he backed her into the corner of the counters behind her.

“Daddy, he’s a friend. He’s just a nice guy that helped me find my way around school today,” she said breathlessly.

Jake leaned against her. His hands glided up over the curve of her waist to close over her breasts. “Did you let him touch you?” he asked her, his voice dangerously soft.

She shook her head, wincing as he pinched her nipples hard through her thin tee shirt. He squeezed her right breast painfully as his other hand slid up to her throat to force her head back. She grabbed his wrist with both her hands as his fingers pressed into her neck.

“Who do you belong to, little girl?” he asked, his lips close to her ear, his breath fanning her hair.

“You, Daddy,” she whispered huskily. “I belong to you.”

Jake’s lips brushed his daughter’s cheek before they found her mouth.