Page 13 of Learning Little Lizzie

His apartment was more spacious than she’d expected, and she could begrudgingly admit it would be nice to have some space to spread out and watch tv that wasn’t overrun with other college students. That was assuming, of course, she was allowed to watch tv.

Clutching her brand new teddy bear to her chest, she looked around the apartment as reality set in. And in reality… she had no idea what her new reality was. There were bound to be new rules, new expectations, new everything. Less than a day into her new life and Samuel Eaton had already turned everything she knew about her life on its head.

Where would she eat? Would he have rules about what she was allowed to eat? Would she be allowed to watch tv? Join in the Ranch activities? How often would he allow her to hang out with her friends?

There was freedom on the Ranch, because she knew exactly where all the lines had been drawn, how far she could push without actually stepping outside those boundaries. Now those boundaries had vanished, and she was lost in a sea of the unknown with not so much as a life vest in sight.

She wasn’t even aware of how heavily she was breathing until he stepped in front of her, worry etched into the furrow between his brows. “Eliza. Look at me, little one.” When her eyes met his, he smiled, and the smile eased some of the pressure in her chest. “Deep breath in through your nose. That’s a good girl. Hold it for me, just like that. And let it out through your mouth. Very good, little one. Can you do that for me again?”

The band around her chest continued to loosen as he walked her through the breathing exercises. Until finally, she could breathe again on her own without feeling like she was drowning. Humiliation stepped into the void panic had left behind, and she was halfway tempted to run all the way back to Master Derek’s office and tell him she’d changed her mind and she was definitely leaving this time.

But then Samuel smiled again and brushed a lock of hair that had come free from her ponytail away from her face, and everything in her settled at that simple touch. “Why don’t you and your bear go have a lie down. We can unpack and talk about things when you’re feeling more up to it.”

“I don’t need a nap.”

“It’s a bit late for one, anyway. I was thinking you could rest for a bit while I finish bringing your boxes in, then we could go down to one of the restaurants in about thirty minutes, have a nice dinner together. How does that sound?”

“Italian?” Normally she ate in the cafeteria, so getting to eat in one of the upscale restaurants at the Ranch was a treat. And pasta was her favorite food group.

“Whatever you like.”

“Okay. Um. I should probably unpack, first.”

“There’s plenty of time for that. Go lie down and I’ll come get you when it’s time to go down for dinner.”

For once in her life, she was too tired to argue. So she carried her bear to the bedroom he indicated was hers and stretched out on a bed twice the size of her dorm room bed. Curling up on top of the plain-white comforter, she buried her face in the bear’s fur and promised herself that no matter what happened, she would not cry again.

He gave her the thirty minutes and was relieved to see she seemed more herself when he told her it was time for dinner. The panic attack from earlier had apparently worked itself out of her system for now, but it was certainly something for him to keep an eye on.

Tucking that bit of information in the back of his mind, he watched her as they made their way back down to the golf cart they’d commandeered for her move, and as they rode back over to the main building.

She really was beautiful. But beyond that, he was starting to see just how fragile she actually was. Not that she’d admit it, of course, and he had a feeling she’d tear him to shreds for daring to suggest it.

But beneath the bold, brassy exterior there was a very scared, very needy Little girl. He’d underestimated how difficult this would all be for her because he’d relied on Derek’s assessment that she took everything in stride. That nothing could rattle her.

He wouldn’t make that mistake again.

The Rawhide restaurants appeared to be as world-class as advertised, and even Eliza seemed to perk up as they settled into their booth.

“I would have thought the novelty of Rawhide’s cuisine might have worn off by now,” he said with a grin when she rubbed her hands together in what appeared to be absolute glee before picking up the menu.

“Normally, I just eat in the cafeteria with my friends. Which is delicious, don’t get me wrong, but the restaurants are next level.”

“Well, order whatever you like. It’s on me.”

She looked up, narrowing her eyes slightly. “You can’t buy me things all the time, you know.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not…” Cheeks pinkening, she glanced around before leaning in and lowering her voice. “I’m not really your Little girl. And you’re not really my Daddy.”

“On that, we very much disagree. The only difference I see in our dynamic is the lack of a sexual component.” For now. He’d already decided that he wanted to pursue something deeper than a guardianship role with little Eliza. But that could wait until they’d learned a bit more about each other. Until she’d learned to trust him.

“Okay, but still. You don’t want anyone thinking you’re giving me special treatment.”

“I don’t think that will be a problem.” As he’d promised Derek, it would soon be abundantly clear to both her and her fellow students that Eliza was being held to a much higher standard than the average Rawhide University student.

“If you say so,” Eliza grumbled with a roll of her eyes.

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