Page 33 of Cage

“Rowie is close with all of us, but she’s closest to me and Theo. We’re the ones who found her and brought her home.”

“Wow,” I say sadly, shaking my head. “I’m a real asshole for thinking my life was so hard when it sounds like she had it so much worse. I’m so glad you found her.”

He tightens my pigtails and reaches below my armpits, lifting me onto his powerful thighs so my feet are dangling in the air.

“Look at me, firefly.”

I turn my gaze up to him, and like every other time, I’m breathless when he locks eyes with me.

“Just because your circumstances were different doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to have feelings about your upbringing. Abandonment is abuse, whether it’s on the streets or at a school. You deserved so much more than what he gave you.”

Biting my lip, I offer a small, sad smile and nod. “Thanks.”

“Let’s go check out the playroom, yeah?”

He wasn’t kidding when he said I would like it. Who wouldn’t? It’s the playroom of all playrooms. A Little’s dream come true.

My mouth has been hanging open since the moment we stepped in. The threshold is a wide arch with no doors. Just across the hall from it is another sitting room with another enormous TV mounted to the wall. Boring.

“This is…” I have no words.

I’ve imagined what a playroom would look like in my mind, but never would I have envisioned this. Someone hand-painted an intricate forest on the walls. Trees, similar to the ones I saw when we drove up to the house; birds of all kinds, and even tiny rabbits. 3D branches stretch up near the ceiling with twinklelights hanging from them like a starry night sky. A stuffed squirrel is perched near the partial trunk that appears to be coming right out of the wall.

“A magical forest,” I murmur.

Cage smiles down at me. “Go on. You can explore. We already made sure Rowie was okay with you playing in here.”

Tears well up as I take a tentative step inside. Rowie doesn’t know me, yet she’s willing to share such a special place with me. I’ll have to make sure to thank her later.

The forest theme runs all through the room, from the wooden rocking chair that looks like it was chopped up and made from small logs to the area in the opposite corner built like the opening of a tree trunk. Pillows and blankets are stacked inside it, making the perfect reading nest.

My heart flutters, and I fidget with the hem of my shirt as I take it all in. I could live in this room forever and I’d die happy.

In an opposite corner of the room, there’s a stump that’s varnished. As I get closer and squint to read the writing on it, my eyebrows shoot up.

Naughty Seat.

Sheesh. Even the timeout chair matches the theme. That was… thoughtful.

“I love it here.”

Cage steps up behind me and squeezes my shoulders. “I’m glad, firefly. I want you to spend some time in here playing.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. I’ll stay if you want me to, or if you’d rather be alone while you play, I can go do some work.”

I peer up at him, worried he might be upset. Part of me does want him to stay, but this is all so new. I’m not sure I could really get my head into it, knowing he’s watching.

He smiles, and I swear, my panties are soaked all over again.

“Tell you what. I’m going to go and do some work. I’ll turn on the baby monitor. If you need anything, call out for me, and I’ll be here in a heartbeat. Okay?”

My shoulders relax, and I wrap my arms around his waist, listening to his heartbeat as I hug him. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, baby. Stay in this room, though. If you need to go potty, there’s a button by the doorway that will call me. Understood? No leaving.”

Yes, Daddy.

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