Coming up with a plan was simple. He seemed to be full of ideas these days. That evening after dinner, Chip mentioned to Ettie that he wanted to run to the grocery store to get protein shakes so that he could begin his diet in earnest the next morning. As he had hoped, Ettie offered to go pick them up for him. He loved that his wife was so accommodating. She would be gone at least thirty-five minutes, he figured, since the store was almost fifteen minutes from their home. Plenty of time for him to be inspired by Lydia’s protein power cheer.
Chip stood in the driveway and kissed Ettie goodbye sweetly. After he watched her depart down Chinook Drive, he turned and went back into the house calling Lydia’s name.
“Yes, Daddy?” she answered as she came out of her room.
“Let’s go ahead and get you ready for bed while Mommy is at the grocery store. Are you ready for your bath? I can use my watch to time you tonight and see how long you can hold your breath underwater.” Lydia was ready for a bath; her energy level increased as she got enthusiastic about trying to beat her record for holding her breath. She brushed her teeth first with her Cinderella toothbrush, then she began undressing while Chip turned on the bath water and plugged the drain. Her cheerful voice rose and fell above the sound of the rushing water as she chatted about whether she could beat it. Chip didn’t hear what she was saying; he was studying the firm virgin lines of her seven-year-old figure and feeling a mounting excitement about what he was going to ask her to do next.
The bathtub was halfway filled with warm water when Chip turned off the tap and interrupted Lydia’s chatter. “Do you remember your Protein Power Cheer, Lydia? The one that you did for me this afternoon?”
Lydia giggled, “Of course, I do, Daddy.”
“Would you do it again for me? It was so special, and I loved the dance that you did with it. Could you do it again right now?” Chip requested cunningly.
Lydia’s face lit up with pride. Her happiness that her dad had enjoyed her cheer dance enough to want to see it again shone through her blue-green eyes. There wasn’t much space in the small bathroom, but she happily started singing her song and going through the motions she had choreographed with an extra bounce in her step. Chip watched her with delight. Here was the pornography he had perused for all those years—now it was moving and alive! The desire he felt rippling through him like wildfire needed an outlet. He ached to touch her, to hold her close, and to kiss her soft skin.
When her cheer dance ended, Chip did not resist the voice of caution in his spirit. He opened his arms wide in an invitation for a hug. Lydia moved into his arms without resistance. Her heart was beating quickly from her exertion, and Chip held her close enough to feel its quick rhythm through his white undershirt. He held her tight and still for a long moment. Hugging Lydia this way was the high point of his week because for the moment he felt unconditionally loved. No one was expecting him to perform, fulfill a duty, or complete a task perfectly. All week long, he felt that his comrades and his wife expected that of him. He basked in this moment which felt the way he had always yearned to be loved.
Even more, the hug was a new thrill. He resisted the sexual urges surging through him so that Lydia would have a reason to trust him. He would remain a gentleman. He viewed himself as a Christian man after all. It was just a hug, he decided, and a hug was a completely fatherly gesture. No one would ever know the rush it gave him. If his wife or a friend questioned him, he could explain to anyone who had a problem with it that a naked hug was simply a boundary issue. He lied to himself so convincingly that he felt there wasn’t anything intrinsically wrong with this type of hug. It was nothing compared to what his mother had done to him.
He simply stroked the warm skin of Lydia’s back and told her how much he loved her cheer. He pressed his mouth against hers tasting the freshness of her minty breath. As she stepped into the steaming water, Chip made up his mind. A naked hug would have to happen again—repeatedly. The name “birthday suit hug” popped into his mind. Yes, that’s what he would call it. He and Lydia could have an inside joke called the “birthday suit hug;” he would wait until the next time he hugged her to tell her the name for it. That could be his surprise for her. He loved giving his girls surprises.