Page 36 of Daddy's Little Cupcake

Charlotte let out a sigh. “I did know,” she whispered.

Silence. That’s all Charlotte heard for what felt like several minutes, but she knew it was only a couple of seconds.

“Do I need to remind you about safety?” Finn asked.

Charlotte shook her head because she knew that it was dangerous. She knew she shouldn’t have done it.

“Can you explain to me why you didn’t tie them when you found out it came untied?” Finn asked.

She knew no matter what answer she gave, it wasn’t going to be good enough. There was no excuse that was good enough for why she didn’t tie her shoe.

“I wanted to find someone to talk to. There’s no one at the front desk, and I didn’t want the cupcakes to sit out for too long in the heat,” Charlotte said. “I didn’t think I was going to trip and fall until Mac said something to me. He scared me, and I flinched back.”

She was hoping that maybe if she explained what happened that he wouldn’t be disappointed or mad at her. Or, well, super disappointed and mad. She knew that he was already a little disappointed and mad for what she did.

James would be too, if he knew. Hopefully she didn’t have to tell him what happened. She didn’t need him fussing over her.

“Next time your shoe comes untied, stop immediately. Your safety comes first,” Finn said.

“I didn’t want to place the cupcakes on the ground. That would’ve been nasty and unsanitary,” Charlotte tried to explain even more.

James had taught her only to put the baked goods on a counter or in the fridge. No where else.

So much for trying to obey James and his rules. Now she disobeyed Finn’s rules. She didn’t know which rules to go by anymore.

None of them were her Daddies, and she knew that, but that didn’t help any. Charlotte knew that both of them wanted to keep her and the shop safe.

“I think it would’ve been okay for a couple of minutes since they were in a closed box,” Finn said. “I just want you to be safe and not get hurt.”

It warmed Charlotte’s heart that he wanted that for her. Not many people in Charlotte’s life had ever wanted her to be safe.

As Charlotte thought about that, tears sprang to her eyes. She didn’t know how to deal with so many people caring about her all at once. Diana, James, and now Finn all cared about her.

“Why the tears?” Finn asked, a look of concern washing over his face.

Charlotte didn’t want Finn to know that she had so few people who cared about her. She felt embarrassed by it because everyone else she knew had a whole family and more who cared about them. She just had three people, and none of them were blood related.

“Charlotte,” Finn said as he cupped her face. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m just really sorry,” she sobbed out.

Finn wrapped his arms around Charlotte and held her against him. She felt safe and comforted in his arms. She never wanted to leave his embrace, but she knew she couldn’t stay there forever.

“It’s okay. You’re okay now, and you know not to do it again,” Finn said.

He pulled away from her and gave her a smile. She loved his smile, they always brightened up her day.

“I’m sorry I made a mess in front of someone. I didn’t mean to embarrass you,” she whispered, not looking into his eyes. “Sorry for also calling you Daddy without your consent. I know we’ve talked about me becoming your baby girl, but we haven’t fully agreed on it yet. It wasn’t okay for me to do that.”

She felt bad about that. The guilt from calling him her Daddy was weighing down on her. She didn’t know it at the time, but she loved it when she called him that. It felt so right, and she wanted to continue.

“Charlotte, can you lift your head for me?” Finn asked.

Charlotte closed her eyes and looked up. She didn’t want to actually look at him, and he didn’t say he had to. He just wanted her head to be lifted.

Finn chuckled. “I should’ve known you would do that. Can you please look at me?”

She shook her head. She didn’t want to.

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