One Big Happy:

"I was surprised, almost shocked, when Claudia called me and asked to meet me for lunch at what was probably the only Bistro that we had not visited during our almost religious raids of the downtown eateries. Claudia. Who came out of nowhere. Turned my life upside-down. And then disappeared. Torrid. Insatiable. Inseparable. A constant force pressing against me for three months. A sexual hit-and-run. And here she was again. Three years later, asking for a meeting. The kind of woman one is not likely to soon forget. She was at an outside table, dazzling in the sun. Radiant as always. That was to be expected. What I did not expect was that she was not alone. She was in the company of a young woman, every bit as shapely and desirable as she was. She gave me an air kiss then sat back down. We got rid of the small talk easily then moved to the uncomfortable silence. Then she introduced the woman seated next to her. She said that she was my daughter. I did my best not to choke on my drink. Claudia never had a sense of humor, and yet she smiled, obviously amused. The woman seated next to her was obviously at least 22 years old. What she was saying was fantastic. Ludicrous. Impossible. And yet once it was said, my imagination grasped on the idea and ran with it. Wasn't there, I thought, just a hint of resemblance around the eyes? A particular familiar coarseness in the wave of her hair? A continued to talk to Claudia, stealing glances at her companion. The strange, silent woman looked at me, drilling me with her eyes as she sipped her tall mocha. The way that her lips wrapped around the tips of the two red straws standing in it was nothing short of obscene. I swear she timed it so that she drank only when my head was turned towards her, so I could see her cheeks pouching in as she greedily sucked the liquid down. The look that she gave me was anything other than daughter-father. I squirmed in my seat. Uncomfortable. A shoe bumped mine under the table and I withdrew it quickly. Claudia just shook her head and continued to smile. The girl was obviously a relation of some sort. A sister or a cousin, maybe even a friend recruited here for a practical joke, and yet it all made sense. The one thing about Claudia is that she made sure that we made love every single night, or day. And that she insisted that we had unprotected sex. She became angry, almost violent, any time that I suggested we should take precautions. There were red flags all over our relationship. I didn't know where she worked. Never met her family. She was completely unsentimental and I never proposed the idea of marriage. Although I wanted to. Desperately sometimes. But I figured it was part of the package deal. Here I was, involved with a woman who could have had a millionaire or a billionaire on her arm, a perfect trophy, and yet here she was clutching on to me. Luck that would never happen in a dozen lightning strikes. I knew it was better if I never asked why. I finished the meal and said my goodbyes hurriedly. Claudia took it in stride. The girl rose from the table and lightly grasped my waist with each of her hands, bringing herself in for a close, intimate hug. 'I'm so glad I got to meet you, Daddy.' she whispered in my ear. I backed away, nearly stumbling over a chair behind me. Claudia picked up her purse, laughing gaily. I walked crisply out of the bistro. I don't even remember if I paid the check. Claudia must have. Claudia, I knew, I would never see again. But the girl. The girl. I knew that she would haunt me. That some evening I would turn around and find her behind me, assessing me with those dark wide eyes. She would take a step forward, forcing me into the darkness. A knowing smile. Another step. Closer. Completely in the shadows now. Then she would ask me a question, breathing heavily as she waited for an answer. And when she did. When that day happens. I hope I have the power to say 'No.'