it's just history

 Jay let Hope stay with Ivy for Christmas even if it was his weekend. He wanted Hope to be there for all the big happenings. Besides, he hadn't done a whole lot for Christmas and yet he'd promised his Mom he'd invite her high school boyfriend's daughter over. She just so happened to work for the same company as he did.

Not that he knew Lindy, but since she didn't have any place to go...

"You mean, it was a blind date Christmas?" Misty had asked later, thinking this girl might be scared. How could she even want to do such a thing? Jay shrugged even now. Evidenty, Lindy didn't think that way.

So it was just dinner, baked chicken with the fixings. Enough for two. She brought no-bake oatmeal cookies and fudge. It was kind of nice and he wasn't really trying to impress her. Besides, they'd talked about home. They'd gone to the same school. Even knew some of the same people. For all he knew, she might have been a long-lost sister. 

He told Misty this. Of course, there was nothing romantic. After all, he drove a forklift and she got sent from one warehouse to another to help out. They hardly knew each other. But she lived alone. He lived alone.

"How long did she stay?" Misty wanted to know.

"I don't know," honestly Misty gave him a fret about it. "Long enough to do the dishes."

"You made her do the dishes?" She made it sound as if it was his fault that she hadn't called.

"No." Jay swelled a frown and a wince. Seriously, this talk with Misty was getting him peeved. "I washed the dishes."

Of course, there was the thought that Lindy was actually family. Family his mother would not speak of. 

And then it finally hit him just why Lindy was so important. Of course, he wouldn't dare tell Misty nor even Slater. Lindy must have been Lenny/Daniel's sister. After all, the only man his mother had ever spoken of was that high school boyfriend of so long ago.