Page 11 of Learning Little Lizzie

Okay, well, if he was getting one, it couldn’t be too much of a Little thing, right? He was a Daddy, after all.

Doing her best to ignore the sting of humiliation this entire process had brought on, she scanned the wall. And when that Little girl inside her screamed, she had to fight the urge to run forward and scoop up the most perfect stuffie that had ever existed.

“You said I could have whatever I want?”

Samuel’s lips twitched. “I did. Do you see something you like?”

“I do, but…” Her gaze returned to the stuffie, and she nibbled on her lip as she debated what to do. It was so simple, and not really all that special. But that was part of what she loved about the little brown bear peering up at her from the sea of unicorns and other fantastical animals. Even the most ordinary of things deserved to be loved, right?

“Eliza. Look at me, please.”

The tender tone shocked her more than anything else he’d done so far, enough to have her obeying the command without a second thought. “Sir?”

“Part of what I enjoy about being a Daddy is spoiling my Little girl a bit,” he explained, a smile tugging at his lips. “You’d be doing me a favor if you indulged me.”

Okay, well, when he put it that way. She had been a bit of a pill all day, so maybe she could do him this one tiny favor.

She reached for the little brown bear and nearly sighed at how soft his fur was. So soft, she couldn’t resist nuzzling her cheek against its fur as they made their way to the checkout.

Some of the clothing was covered by the allowance she received every semester as a Rawhide University student, but it didn’t come close to covering everything they’d purchased. The rest, Professor Eaton had charged to his account, which made her feel a little guilty for how much of a brat she’d been.

Eliza Bennett didn’t do guilty.

“Why did you spend all that money on me?” she asked when they piled their purchases into a golf cart. “I didn’t exactly earn it.”

“Some things don’t need to be earned. And I told you, I enjoy spoiling my Little girls.”

“But I’m not?—”

“For the foreseeable future, you are very much my Little girl, Eliza. The sooner you accept that, the happier I imagine we both will be.” Unlike back at the stuffie wall, his tone was firm, making it clear he was not inviting any further argument.

Crossing her arms, she slid down in her seat with a huff. “Whatever. As long as you don’t expect me to put out or anything just because you bought me some clothes and a silly bear.”

“That isn’t the nature of our relationship. And even if it were, I would never expect sexual favors in exchange for a gift.”

“You’d be the first.”

In yet another surprise in a seemingly endless parade of them, he reached over to grab her hand as he guided the cart to the dorms. “I’m sorry you haven’t been treated well in the past, Eliza. I know that makes it difficult to trust me.”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You did, actually. But we don’t have to talk about it just yet if you aren’t comfortable.” The smile he sent her way was easy, if a bit smug. “We have plenty of packing to keep us busy for the next little while.”

“Great.”

CHAPTER 5

“But I don’t understand. Why do you have to leave?”

Kylie Nichols, Eliza’s dormmate for the past two years sat on her perfectly made bed, her eyes brimming with tears as Eliza tossed her belongings into boxes. Their third roommate had graduated last year, and they were waiting to see if they’d get another, or if it was just going to be the two of them.

She wondered if Kylie would be moved to another room, or if she’d get the whole place to herself now.

“Because Professor Asshole said I had to and apparently he owns me now.”

Watery eyes going wide with horror, Kylie slapped a hand over her mouth to smother her giggle. “You really need to learn to watch your mouth,” she said when her laughter faded. “He doesn’t look like the type of man to put up with your brattiness.”

“He’s not, and you wanna know what the worst part is?”

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