Yeah, a good potential step-parent understands how important the child is and either likes the child pretty easily (and vice-versa) or realizes it's not gonna be easy but is okay with that, and is very kind anyway.

I'm lucky in the sense that my daughter is a big extravert and she likes people easily unless they're mean. But when she first met my now-husband, it was magical. She and I met up with him at a bookstore. He read a book of her choosing to her in a funny way and she laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed. It was interesting actually, because he didn't even know he could be good with kids before then -- he'd never really had a chance to be around them.

The next time he and she were together was also at a bookstore -- one with a toy section. While I was looking at the history section, she dragged him off and asked him to buy her toys. lol. He said, "These ARE great toys, but shouldn't we ask your mom?" and that was the first time she saw us as a team.

Pretty soon after that, she'd ask me every day after school, "Will [now-husband] come over?!! Will we go anywhere with him?"

They have an amazing relationship.

I couldn't accept anything less, and I definitely couldn't have accepted anyone who believed my daughter was "getting between us." I never would have married him if I didn't think he was a good thing in her life.