Page 34 of Daddy's Little Survivor

“Thank you so much. I’ll see you soon!” Michael said as he walked out of the shop.

Michael quickly walked to his car and got in. He didn't live far from the club, but he wanted to get home as soon as possible and see Monroe. He had only known her for a couple of days, yet she had found her way into his heart, and he cared for her. He wanted her.

It didn't take long for Michael to get to his house. Her car was still here, but she couldn’t do much with it. He had taken the car keys and put them in the kitchen, in plain sight.

Unlocking the door, he walked in and listened for Monroe, but it was dead silent. Had she left?

His heartbeat increased as he walked to the kitchen and then to her room. Nothing. She wasn't here and he couldn't help but worry about her. Was she okay on her own out there?

It wasn't safe in Springfield at all. There were a lot of trafficking places, and he didn't want her to get picked up. Michael should have made sure she was safe. He should have told her that it was a dangerous place and a woman shouldn't walk alone.

He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths in. What did he need to do first? He didn't know her last name or really anything about her. He could go to the police, but he didn't think they would do much since he didn't really know her, and she hadn't been missing for twenty-four hours.

Before he could act on anything, he heard a soft voice and turned his head toward the room where it was coming from. Very slowly, Michael started walking toward the voice. Why would she be in there? He did tell her nothing was off limits, but he didn't think he would find hers in this room.

Michael gently opened the door and peeked in. He stared in shock at what he saw.

There she was, laying on the floor playing with dolls in his nursery.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

MONROE

Monroe had thought about leaving soon after Michael left for work, but something stopped her. What he said before he left had stopped her.

He had reminded her that he wanted her safe and he couldn't keep her here, but he would like for her to stay so she could heal properly. She’d never had someone care so much about her. It was weird but it slightly intrigued her.

The first thing she had done after she decided to stay was to look around the house. She hadn't had the opportunity to look around and see if anything was alarming to her before. Michael had told her she could go anywhere, but she hadn't felt comfortable enough to explore while he was in the house.

She'd only been in the living room, her room, and the kitchen. The house wasn't massive, but there were four other rooms and she wanted to know what they were. One of them had been his bedroom, the other one was the office, the third one was almost like a storage room, but the last one caught and held her attention.

Monroe had opened the door and just stood and stared. It was her dream come true to have a room like this. She didn't know if Michael wanted her to go into this room, but he’d told her she could go anywhere in the house and nothing was off limits.

She couldn't help but slowly walk into the room and look at everything. There was a crib, a changing station, a rocking chair, a stool in the corner, toys in a bin, a dollhouse, and so much more. It had everything like the nurseries in her books.

She had never imagined it happening in real life. She thought it only happened in books, but in front of her was a room made for a Little. Did that mean Michael had a Little and hadn’t told her?

That thought saddened her, but why would he let her stay if he had his own Little? Where was she?

Monroe didn't think he would allow her to stay, to take care of her, if he was already in a committed relationship.

With those thoughts, she picked up two dolls and lay on her tummy on the ground. She hadn't played with dolls in years and couldn't help but feel giddy inside as she let her Little peek out.

“Hello, Sally,” Monroe said in a higher voice as she moved the doll in her right hand.

“What do you want, Maria?” she said in a deep voice.

She couldn't help but giggle as she continued to play with the dolls. Monroe didn't know how much time had passed since she’d first walked into the room, but she couldn't bring herself to leave. She wanted to stay in this wonderful room forever.

A creak in the floor brought her attention away from the dolls and to the door. Gasping, Monroe pushed the dolls away from her and stood up, keeping her eyes on the floor.

Michael stood right in front of her, holding a grey stuffed elephant in his hands, and she didn't want to see the anger on his face for finding her playing with dolls and going into this room.

“I'm so sorry,” she rushed out. “I, I w-won't ever come back in here.”

It would break her heart not to come back in here, but she didn't want to get beaten. She had escaped one man and she didn't want to land in the same situation.

“I-I’ll p-pack myb-bags and leave,” she stuttered out her words.

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