For my thirty-eighth birthday, my wife surprised me with the gift of two tickets on a champagne flight to Hawaii. She had planned it as a sort of second honeymoon, knowing that I had vacation time coming and that I had already cleared it with my office. Without prior warning, she picked me up at work and we drove straight to the airport and spent a very enjoyable week on the island of Maui. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take our lovely fifteen-year-old daughter Rachel, who had to spend a week with her older sister, who was living on her own.

When we returned, I could tell by the cool reception that Rachel was very disappointed, particularly bitter with her mother who had planned the whole thing. My wife and I offered to send Rachel and her older sister to Hawaii over the Spring break holiday, but she turned us down. It seemed that Rachel was not angry over missing out on the trip, but rather she was very disconsolate because she didn’t get to participate in my birthday celebration. She openly blamed her mother for ruining her relationship with her ‘Daddy’. I have to admit that I was touched by my daughter’s genuine sentiments towards me. Even then, I loved Rachel with all my heart. However, I was also troubled by the apparent jealousy over my free time that threatened to divide our house.

Eventually, things returned to normal and Rachel seemed to forgive her mother. In fact, Rachel went out of her way to apologize to her and make up for any past ill feelings. In the ensuing weeks she became a model, caring daughter to her mother, never forgetting to tend to each and every task that might make her mother happy. I was startled by this sudden turnaround and I myself began to feel jealousy over Rachel’s attentions towards her mother.

Rachel had always been a ‘Daddy’s Girl’. Even though many fathers wouldn’t recognize it, I acknowledge the fact that had I spoiled her and made her that way, intentionally striving to become the number one human being in her life. I knew that she favored me over her mother. My motivations of course were always those of unconditional fatherly love. However, as Rachel developed into a very beautiful teenager, my feelings for her also underwent change.

I recall going for a walk in the neighborhood with her shortly after her thirteenth birthday. We passed a house where several young teenaged boys were ‘talking it up’ on the front lawn. I remember one of them whistling at Rachel, saying “she’s sooooo fine.” It left me startled to awaken to her physical beauty, but also very proud as the father of my little diamond girl. As she further matured, Rachel earned a following of admirers which included half the boys in her school. With her long dark-red hair which she parted in the middle and her ripe young body, I soon learned that I had in fact become the proud father of an ‘ultimate dream girl’. Now that she was fifteen, even though I still tried to look at her with a father’s eyes, I could not help but admit to myself in secret that she was very sexually attractive.

By the time that summer arrived, Rachel and her mother were the greatest of friends. It was then that Rachel brought up the subject of Hawaii once again. She knew her mother was about to make her annual summer trek to see her parents and siblings out of state. Rachel pleaded with her mother to let her stay home this year alone with me, to compensate for having missed out on my birthday party. I would be taking my usual short summer vacation from my duties as a college administrator and Rachel and I would get to spend a little time together. I secretly thought it was a great idea, as I did not get along with my wife’s side of the family. Considering the recent change that had come over her daughter for the better, Rachel’s mother could not help but agree to her request.

On my final day of work at college before the break, Rachel came to visit me in my office. She looked very cute in her short, tight denim cut-offs and tee-shirt.

“Hi Daddy.”

“How’s my little jewel?” I said, rising from my desk to kiss her cheek. “What brings you here?” She sat on my desk, her long shapely legs covering some of the paperwork I had been trying to complete.

“Oh, I don’t know. Are you getting off work soon?”

“Well honey I was trying to wrap up a few things before I leave. There always seems to be one more thing to do.” I tried to grab some of the work from beneath her, touching one of her thighs.

“Oh sorry,” she said, shifting her bottom to free some of my teacher evaluation reports on which she had sat.

“Why do you ask?” I questioned distractedly.

“Well Daddy today is your two-week break right?”

“That’s right.”

“And we can spend some time together, right?”

“Yes.”

“And we can have fun. Do things, right?”

“Rachel, is there a point to this? I’m trying to wrap up here and...”

“I’m sorry Daddy. I have something important to ask you.”

“Okay, let’s hear it,” I said, sitting back in my chair.

“Do you love me?”

“What kind of question is that? Of course. Hopelessly and forever,” I said.

“Do you understand why I was so sad for so long because I missed your birthday party?”

“Well I think I do. I thought you were over that now.”

“It’s because I love you, Daddy.” Ever so softly, she repeated, “I love you.”

“Rachel, I’m very touched. We’ll have two weeks together starting in a few hours. Can’t this wait?” I said, looking at my watch.

“No Daddy. Listen. Mom got to give you a surprise for your birthday, right? Two tickets to Hawaii?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s only fair that I get a chance to sweep my Daddy off his feet the way she did.” Rachel shifted her buns on my desk and pulled what looked like tickets from her tight back pocket, waving them happily at me. “Guess what?” she beamed.

“I don’t know, honey. Tickets?”

“Daddy, it’s: ‘a surprise, AND a PRESent’,” she intoned, in a little-girl ‘sing-song’ cadence, then nodded gleefully.

“Tickets to where?”

“Can’t tell you. Let’s go.”

“Honey I can’t just take off like that. Your mother doesn’t know about it.”

“Well I didn’t know about your trip to Hawaii. I just came home from school and Sis was there to pick me up.”

“I’m sorry about that,” I said. “Your mother was afraid you would spoil the surprise. She was really looking forward to it as our second honeymoon, you see and...”

“Don’t I get the same chance, Daddy? I bought these tickets with my own money. I’ve been planning this for weeks. It’s important to me. Because I love you. Doesn’t that count anymore?”

Rachel started to cry. I rose to comfort her, taking her in my arms with a generous hug. She sobbed openly into my chest, with genuine tears. “Rachel, my little jewel, of course it counts. It counts very much,” I said, kissing her forehead. “What kind of trip? And where did you get the money?”

“Don’t get mad,” she said. “You know that real expensive diamond necklace that grandmom left me? I sold it.”

“Rachel, no.”

“I did it for you.”

“But Rachel, that was the one thing you loved more than anything in the world.”

“It was the number two thing, Daddy.”

“Oh my little darling,” I said, clutching her again to my chest.

I locked my office early for the short summer break. Downstairs, Rachel’s older sister was waiting to drive us to the airport. I made her promise to call her mother as soon as she got home, as I didn’t know when I’d get the chance. We made it just in the nick of time to catch the 3:10 p.m. flight to New York.

Rachel and I had two adjoining seats near the window. She shrugged her shoulders and smiled shyly at me as we buckled ourselves in for the flight. We held hands as the plane took off into the golden sun.

During the flight, I lifted the armrest between our seats and Rachel leaned her upper body over and onto me to sleep, her head and shoulders in my lap and arms. I rubbed her forehead as she went off to dreamland, like I was used to doing when she was a little girl. Bending over her, I continued stroking her long richly lustrous hair, a complex mixture of deep sumptuous reds and luxuriant browns, the colors of an autumn forest. After several minutes, she opened her moist hazelnut eyes, raising herself high enough to give me a brief kiss on the lips which startled me.

“What was that for?” I asked.

“I love waking up in your arms,” she said, closing her eyes once again and contentedly cuddling herself back into my lap.

“New York. The Big Apple. I haven’t been there in years. That’s my surprise, hunh.”

“Can’t tell you,” she said with a sleepy smile.

At the airport baggage claims, we rushed to pick up the two suitcases Rachel had packed for us. I followed along, puzzled at her hurry. Once outside, she hailed a Yellowcab and handed written directions to the driver. Sitting in the backseat of the cab, I welcomed the cool blast of the air-conditioner, as New York was very hot and humid. After a while, Rachel fished in her purse for a pair of sunglasses, even though it was almost dark outside. Trying them on, she cuddled up against me in the back seat, speaking in an excited whisper.

“What do you think,” she asked me, modeling the sunglasses. “Do they make me look: glamorous?”

“Rachel, where are we going?” I asked. I noticed that our taxi was heading out toward the New York docks.

“Do they make me look: mysterious?” she again whispered to my ear.

“Rachel, what’s happening?”

“Do they make me look: beautiful?” again excitedly whispering.

“Rachel, what’s this all about?”

“I told you, ‘a surprise, AND a PRESent’,” she ‘sing-sang’ loudly. Whispering again, “Well? Do they?”

“Do they what?” I retorted.

“Make me look beautiful?” she said again in a whisper. “You’re always calling me your little jewel, your diamond girl, your little this and that.” Looking into my eyes with a demure little smile, she then removed her sunglasses and set them down next to her on the back seat of the cab. “Am I beautiful?” she said, in louder tones.

“Rachel, I want some answers.”

Whispering, she continued, “So do I Daddy. Do you find me attractive? Lots of guys do. But you never say anything.” My face froze into place and I couldn’t answer her, afraid of my own words. I could only look deeply into her eyes. “Well? Don’t you have anything to say?”

Suddenly, I heard the jarring sound of a big ocean liner whistle as we rounded the corner. There, in front of us was a white, shiny, single-stacked Loveboat docked at the pier, its many lights appearing almost like Christmas decorations. Activity surrounded the gangway, a few hundred feet away. We pulled to a stop.

“Oh no, Rachel. No. No. No.”

“Isn’t it great, Daddy?”

The cabbie immediately got out and Rachel scurried after him with her purse to the rear of the vehicle. I was left in the back seat looking from the ship back to Rachel and back to the ship again, consternation plastering my face. I exited the cab, tripping over my feet in my hurry to confront my daughter. The cabbie was removing our suitcases from the trunk.

“Rachel, no. Please don’t tell me you have tickets for that.”

“Okay, I won’t.”

“So that’s what this is all about.”

“Can’t tell you yet Daddy, but you’re getting warm: ‘a surprise, AND a PRESent’.”

“Rachel honey, I can’t do this. How much did this cost?” Rachel had just finished tipping the cabbie and he jogged back to the open driver’s side door of the cab. I motioned to him, trying to get his attention as he reentered his cab and started his engine. “Hey, wait!” I shouted. The cab driver stopped his engine and looked over at me. I held my arms up to him, palms down; he nodded. “Rachel, I can’t let you spend this kind of money. This must have cost a fortune.”

“Worth every penny,” she said, arranging her purse.

“Well you’ll just have to get your money back!” I shouted angrily.

“Too late. No refunds,” she said nonchalantly.

“We just can’t go. I won’t go.” I picked up my suitcase and looked at the cabbie, pointing to it. He came back out and approached us. My daughter grabbed the suitcase from my hand and threw it hard to the ground.

“You have to!” Rachel said, with tears in her eyes and despair in her voice. “Look at Sis, Daddy. You guys don’t even talk any more since she moved out. Is that going to be us in three years? I know one day I’ll lose you. All I’ll have left is the times we had together. I want this to be the best time. You’ve given me so much, even my own life. I want to do something for you. For us. Please don’t throw this back in my face. I love you. Money doesn’t matter. What matters is that I love you. So much it hurts.”

My Rachel threw herself into my arms. I have to admit that I was having a hard time holding back the tears. As I held her tightly to me, I felt closer to Rachel than I had ever felt to anyone else before, including my wife. With my free hand, I motioned for the cabbie to leave. He shrugged and went back to his hack, gunned the engine and pulled out. Removing her arms from around me and sniffling back her tears, Rachel softly said, “Oh no, I left my sunglasses in the cab.”

I felt my jacket pockets for a handkerchief. Rachel produced a green silk scarf from her purse and gave it to me with which I dried her tears. The loud whistle of the luxury liner blasted again. Rachel suddenly threw her arms around my neck and kissed my lips and I found myself kissing her back. I then slowly took down her arms and moved my lips to her forehead, feeling very awkward, attributing the moment to the deeply emotional experience we had just shared. She took the scarf from my hands and dabbed at the pink lipstick smear she had left on the corner of my mouth. She smiled as she did this, still sniffling back her tears as I blushed.

“Well, I guess we just have to go see about my surprise. Right?” I said, trying to regain my composure.

“‘A surprise...”

“‘AND a PRESent’”, I said, finishing her sing-song phrase with exaggerated emphasis. She laughed, warming my heart. I grabbed her by the back of the head and drew her to me as we started walking to the ship’s gangway, a few hundred feet away. Up ahead, it appeared as though the gangway was about to be detached, as ship’s personnel surrounded it and a man in a white Captain’s uniform hurriedly waved at us.

“The suitcases,” she said. “Hurry.” I shook my head at myself and hustled back for them, picking them up. I then ran back to catch up with Rachel who was already jogging toward the ship. As we arrived at the ship’s gangway, it looked as if we were among the last to board. Rachel said, “Just a minute. I want this to be a surprise, so I want you to put this on.” She showed me the scarf I had used only moments before, as she folded it into a blindfold, holding it up to me.

“Are you sure about this?” I asked.

“Positive.” She went behind me and put the blindfold across my eyes. I was still holding up the suitcases.

“This feels kind of foolish. Are you sure this is necessary?”

“Daddy, ‘a surprise, AND a PRESent’. Please.”

“You mean there’s more, Rachel? Honey, please no more surprises.”