Page 61 of Auctioned to Dr. Daddy

Tears form in the corners of her eyes. She blinks hard, trying to keep them from falling. It doesn’t work. A single tear breaks free, spilling down her cheek. I wipe it away with the pad of my thumb.

“You mean it?” she asks, something so soft and wanting in her voice.

It’s enough to have me lurching forward, crashing our mouths together in the most passionate kiss yet.

This isn’t about getting off or having fun. This is about using the kiss to prove that I meant everything I said, in a way that words can’t do. There’s a whole world of promises in this one crash of the mouth, in the way that we press ourselves together.

Her shoulders hit the stone wall behind her, and her arms wrap around my neck. I kiss her until she’s breathless, and then until I’m breathless, and then a few beats of the heart past that. We part with a gasp, our hearts hammering in our chests. Her eyes are wide, and her lips are kiss swollen.

But I can tell from the glint in her eyes that she believes me now. She knows that I was being honest when I told her I loved her.

“Okay,” says Demi, the word almost breathless.

“Okay,” I repeat, and then I kiss her again, and again, and again until there’s nothing left for us to do. I could spend hours doing this with her, just pressed to her, mouthing at the side of her neck, but I don’t want to risk Tabitha waking up in a strange house on her own. She’s still too young for that.

So we make our way back toward the guest house, fingers twined together. Demi keeps looking at me, mouth pulled up and twisted into a bright smile.

“What?” I ask.

Demi just smiles brighter, bolder, and finally, she says, “I was just thinking… I love you, too.”

Three simple words, but they really do change the way that the entire day looks. There are no clouds out today, the storm is long gone, and the sun feels amazing as it beats down on us. We only let go of each other when we get to the porch.

I head up first and go to the spare bedroom where Tabby’s laying down. She pops up the moment that I open the door.

Tabitha asks, “Can we do the horses now? Please, Daddy? Please?”

“Why don’t you go and ask Demi,” I tell her.

“Okay!” She hurries past me and into the living room, where Demi is waiting. “Horses?”

“Manners,” I chide, following after her.

Tabitha is so excited at the idea of seeing the big animals, she’s practically vibrating. I can see how she has to fully collect herself, and even then, her words come out quick and fast, “Can we see the horses?”

I’ve never seen Tabitha so excited over anything. Not dolls, not the zoo, not coming to work with me for the day. She’s always a little quiet, a little subdued.

Guess that’s just one more reason why I need to buy this farm. It looks like Apple Green is the one place where both of my girls can find a little solace.

“We absolutely can,” says Demi. “Come on, let’s go.” She takes Tabitha’s hand and leads her toward the door, calling over her shoulder, “You coming, Nate?”

“Come on, Daddy,” says Tabitha.

Teasing, Demi calls out, “Yeah, come on, Daddy!”

I roll my eyes but head after them. We don’t go back to the barn, which I’m thankful for. Instead, Demi leads us to a field just on the other side of the large white stone building. A large, gray donkey is grazing beneath an old oak tree.

Demi helps Tabitha climb up onto the three-plank fence, her little feet on the second board, and her chubby arms on the top. Then, Demi stands behind Tabitha, holding her steady, so there’s no chance at all that my little girl can lose her balance and topple to the ground.

“That’s Debbie. She’s a donkey, and she’s kind of mean,” says Demi. “But hang on, watch this.”

Demi gives a low, sharp, single-tone whistle. In the back pasture, the heads of two horses snap up. They take off toward the fence at a gallop, their hooves pounding against the ground. They kick up dust when they skid to a stop, just in front of the fence.

Tabitha squeals with happiness. “Can I pet them?”

“You sure can,” says Demi. “Hold your hand like this.” She offers out her own hand for Tabitha to see. All of her fingers are tightly together. “And you can pet Bella’s nose. This one here, that’s Bella.”

Bella is clearly old. Even I can see the white hairs speckling from the once golden chestnut coat. She has the kindest eyes that I’ve ever seen in an animal; and that’s saying something, considering that I’m still not much of a pet guy.

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