“You don’t have to do that,” Annais said with a sigh as Piers filled her kitchen sink with suds and water.

“Nah, I don’t,” he replied.  “But I want to so you don’t have to.  I know you’re a busy girl, Ann.  You shouldn’t waste your little bit of free time worryin’ about rubbish like this.”

She said nothing, but held her arm and rubbed it.  She didn’t have to speak for Piers to pick up that she felt guilty that he was cleaning for her.  It was no secret to him by now that being champion ran her ragged and left her with very little energy.  She didn’t spend much time at her cottage, and Piers didn’t feel it was right that she should have to use the little time she had to enjoy herself doing something that he had no issue doing for her.  Now that he was retired from the league, he had all the time in the world.

“It’s alright, love,” Piers assured her.  “Let me take care of you.  I enjoy it, honest.  Marn calls me ‘Mum’ for a reason…  ‘S just what I do.”

Annais laughed aloud at this, then took a step closer and stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

“Thank you,” she said.  “It means a lot.  I don’t know what I did before you.”

“An’ I don’ know what I did before you,” he said as he grabbed a rag and began to scrub a plate.  “Well…  Mostly just mope about.”

“Yeah, same,” she giggled as she lingered by his side.  “Um…  Need any help?”

“Nah, I’ve got it handled.  Just go sit back an’ relax.  How about find us a movie or somethin’?”

She nodded, then headed into the other room.

Piers hummed to himself as he washed the dishes.  It felt good to be able to help Annais out.  Seeing how relieved and grateful she was filled his chest with warmth.  It was way too early in the relationship to start thinking about such things, but he couldn’t help but swear to himself that if she ever moved in with him, that she’d never have to lift a finger… unless she wanted to, that is.  He ended up daydreaming, but was tore away from his domestic little fantasy at the sound of Annais over in the next room.

“Hey, Daddy!”

Piers nearly dropped the plate he had been washing.  Did he hear her right?  Daddy?  Where did that come from?  Did offering to do her chores for her earn him a nickname?  He had to say, he liked hearing it far better than being called Mum.  He wiped his hands on a dry dish towel and peeked out of the kitchen.

“Need somethin’, Ann?”

The wide-eyed, slack-jawed look Annais shot her boyfriend was one of horror and utter disgust.  She put a finger over her lips, then pointed at the phone that was up against her ear.

“Hm?  Oh, yeah,” she said into the phone.  “Piers is over.  He was just wondering who I was talking to…”

Oh, bleeding hell.  She was on the phone with her father!  She didn’t have the call on speaker, but the man was loud enough for Piers to hear now that he was in the same room.  He immediately burned with shame.  He went to slink back to the sink, but she stopped him.

“My daddy says ‘Hi,’ Piers.”

“Oh, um, ‘ello, sir,” he said shyly, causing Annais to laugh.

“He said hello back.”

“‘M just… gonna finish these dishes before the water gets cold,” he mumbled.  Annais nodded and let him walk off.

He could drown himself in that bloody sink.  He hoped like hell that he didn’t embarrass her.  He didn’t want that to be her father’s first impression of him.  He didn’t even know why he thought she was talking to him.  Sure, they were the only two in the cottage, but she had never called him anything like that before or even hinted at it.  He had been called it by girls in the past.  He never much knew how to feel about it, and hated how he perked up hearing it from Annais.

Piers was trying not to eavesdrop, but he couldn’t help but overhear her half of the conversation.  He'd never heard the girl sound so lively.  She had jokingly called herself a daddy’s girl before when telling him about her family.  Having never before heard her interact with her father, Piers didn’t realize how true that statement was until now.  She truly sounded like she was chatting with a best friend.

Annais wandered back into the kitchen about the same time that Piers was drying and putting away everything he had washed.

“Do you want to watch a scary movie?” she asked.

“Hmm…  You wanna hold me while you watch a scary movie?” he joked back.

She began to laugh.  “Yeah, sure.  You about done in here?  Anything I can do?”

“Nah, nothing,” he said.  “Just finished up actually.  Ready to watch this movie?”

She nodded, and he guided her out of the kitchen and back into the living room.  The two of them settled down on her couch.  Annais sat in the corner; Piers lounged by her side with his head in her lap.  After a few clicks, the movie started.  Piers tried to pay attention, but the moment her fingers started threading through his hair, he found himself drifting off.

“Oh… Piers?”

“Yes, Ann?”

She paused long enough for him to crack open his eyes.

“For the love of God, please don’t ever answer to ‘daddy’ again,” she said with a slight frown.  “I’m not into that.”

Piers’s embarrassment from earlier returned in full force.  His finger hooked the charm of his choker and he tugged it as he twisted away from her.

“Sorry about that,” he mumbled.  “I was bloody confused.”

Annais laughed.  “It’s okay.  I was just worried he heard you.  It’d probably hurt his feelings if he thought he’d been replaced.”

“We wouldn’t want that.  ‘M tryin’ to stick around.  Don’ want your Pops havin’ any reason to hate me.”

“I’m trying to keep you, too…  And not just because you do my dishes.”