Page 40 of Daddy's Little Survivor

She wrapped a hand over her mouth to try and keep her cries muffled in hopes he wouldn't find her. What was she going to do? She had no way of defending herself.

It felt like forever before a pair of feet stood right in front of her. Monroe pushed her back harder against the rear of the desk, her eyes wide and breaths coming out way too fast as she watched the person bend down.

A scream bubbled out of her throat as the person’s face came into her view. It was Daddy.

His lips moved, but all she heard was his muffled voice. A sob broke through her lips as she shook her head. She couldn’t believe he would call Jared right after she told him she trusted him. She thought he was different.

She watched as Daddy sat on the floor, worry written all over his face as he continued to talk to her. He reached out for her, but she pushed herself into the desk even more.

“No!” She forced herself to speak.

He raised his hand and continued to talk to her, but she didn’t hear a word he said. She tried to read his lips, but couldn’t catch everything. All she caught was the word ‘focus’.

Monroe hugged Mr. Wiggle tighter to her chest and closed her eyes, trying to calm herself down. She needed to be calm so she could assess the situation and figure out how to get out of here.

Daddy had lied to her and she was hurt. She had trusted him and now she just felt foolish. She knew now that he really was like every other man. They were all the same and he had just proven that.

“Monroe.” She could finally hear his voice. “It’s okay, Little Bunny. Everything’s alright. No one is going to hurt you. You’re safe.”

Tears continued to stream down her face and she shook her head. She wasn’t safe anymore. Jared had walked into the room.

“Leo didn’t realize I had brought you into the office with me. If he had known, he wouldn’t have come in,” he explained.

Leo? Why was he calling Jared Leo? Did Jared know Daddy before and used a fake name? Was his name really Leo or was it Jared like he told her over six years ago?

“Leo left and he isn’t coming back. You’re safe. Can you come out from under there?” he asked softly.

“N-no,” she whispered.

Daddy gave her a small smile. “That’s okay. Can you tell me what happened?”

Monroe didn’t know if she should say anything or not. She didn’t want to anger him even more and tell Jared, or well, Leo, that he could take her away.

“Leo is Jared?” she whispered, sounding so unsure.

She needed to ask even if it got her in trouble. She needed to know if Jared was Leo or the other way around.

Daddy looked confused. “Leo is Leo. He’s one of the club owners. He retired from active duty five years ago.”

She stopped breathing. Leo wasn’t Jared, he couldn’t be. Yes, Jared was in shape, but he wasn’t in the military. He had been home every day for the past six years and he never got deployed. Didn’t most active duty members get deployed? She didn’t know anything about the military, but it would only seem logical.

“Monroe, it’s okay. No one is going to hurt you,” he said, gaining her attention.

She took a slow breath in and nodded her head.

“Can you tell me what happened now?” he asked.

“I was just,” she took a shallow breath in. “I w-was j- just playing and, and, then...”

She could feel her breathing pick up as she tried to explain everything that had happened.

“Take a deep breath,” he told her. “Good girl. My good Little Bunny.”

“I was j-just playing and t-then he came in a-and I got scared. H-he reminded me ofh-him,” she whispered toward the end.

Deep down, she knew it wasn’t Jared, but he looked so like him. She didn’t want to get taken back. Daddy had told her she was safe with him and he would protect her.

“Leo is one of the other owners,” Daddy said again. “He wouldn’t have hurt you. He might look tough, and he has a tough exterior but inside, he's a teddy bear. He's had a hard life and it's made him gruff but once you get to know him, you realize that. Yes, he is grouchy, but he cares for the people he loves. He knows you mean a lot to me and he wouldn't have barged into the room without asking if he had known you were in my office.”

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