Page 121 of Daddy's Naughty List

“Bliss.” Connor’s voice was clipped and stern. “Listen to me, babygirl. Take a breath and tell Daddy what is wrong. Who is at your door?”

Everything in her wanted to hang up. She had to have at least a tiny bit of pride. But not at the cost of her daughters. She’d do anything for them.

She’d tell Connor, and he would know what to do. He would fix everything. Even though she knew better, relief flooded her body. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor. “A lady from Child Protective Services is at my door. She says someone reported me for neglect and abuse. I wouldn’t do anything to harm my children, Connor. I promise. I swear.”

“I know that, babygirl. I need you to take another breath. Where is the lady now?”

“O-on my front p-porch.”

Rapid knocking on the front door peppered the room. “Miss Carpenter, I have allegations that allow me to enter the home with or without your permission. You need to open this door before you make your situation worse.”

Connor growled. “Fuck. Okay.” Bliss heard movement and then the slamming of a car door through the phone. “I’m on my way, babygirl. I’ll be there very soon. You need to let her in but don’t answer any questions until I get there. Not any at all. Do you understand? Do what she tells you to do but tell her you want a lawyer to be present before you answer any questions. Have you got me?”

“Y-yes, I’ve got you. Daddy, please hurry.” Bliss disconnected the phone and opened the door.

Chapter Ten

Connor

If the Darling PD had a speed trap set up on the road to Bliss, Connor was fucked. But times like this were why he’d bought a car that could do two hundred miles an hour in a pinch. If this situation wasn’t a pinch, he didn’t know what was.

Bliss was in trouble, and she hadn’t thought she could call him because he’d acted like an ass last night. He really had been trying to get to her place all day. But he had to get her car off the side of the road and to Winnie’s garage. Then Reid had wanted to talk about the meeting he’d missed.

He’d run by the store to pick up a few things he knew Bliss needed, and that had taken longer than he’d thought. Why the fuck were there so many different brands of everything under the sun that a baby needed?

On the way to his car, Connor called his friend Raleigh Stevens. He was the lawyer on retainer for Sabre Security, and he’d been a huge help when Gage’s Little girl, Breezy, was going through a hard time.

“Yeah, I get you, Conn, but it’s Saturday. There’s a limit to what I can do unless it’s an emergency. The courthouse is closed.”

“You don’t call this an emergency?” Raleigh Stevens was the best lawyer in eastern Tennessee as far as Connor was concerned. He was also on retainer with Sabre Security. “I need you out at Bliss’s house. Child Protective Services is at her house right now.”

“What the hell for? I’ve seen her with those kids. She’s an awesome mom.”

“I agree, but some asshole called in a complaint saying she was neglecting them, so they showed up about fifteen minutes ago demanding she let them in to look around. She’s terrified, and she’s there alone.”

Connor heard nothing but dead air. “Raleigh, did you hear me?”

“Yes, I heard you. I’m trying to get my shoes on. Are you close to her?”

“I’m about three minutes out.”

“Good. I’m on my way. For god’s sake, don’t let her say anything. If they said they had the right to come in, it’s serious. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

When Connor pulled up to Bliss’s house, he had a sense of déjà vu. He’d been there not twenty-four hours ago. That visit had gone to hell. He had no idea if she’d even let him back in her house. He wouldn’t blame her if she wouldn’t. But she was in real trouble, and he was the one who was going to get her out of it.

It may have been less than a day since he’d seen her, but a lot had happened since then. He’d pulled his head out of his ass, for one thing. He had a lot of ground to make up. He’d hurt her in a way he’d never do again.

He’d still kill anyone else who tried to hurt her. His chest had almost exploded when she’d called him a few minutes ago. She sounded utterly lost. And she hadn’t turned to him. He had no right to feel hurt, but he did.

A silver CR-V sat to his right. He jogged to the door, knocked once, and walked in. Bliss sat in an armchair close to her bedroom door with her knees pulled up to her chest. Her eyes were almost swollen shut from crying, and the room was silent except for her whimpers.

He went straight to her, lifted her up, and sat down with her in his lap. She tried to struggle, but at his single command of, “Still,” she collapsed back into him.

“Bliss’s lawyer is on his way,” he informed the woman sitting stiff-backed at the front edge of the couch like she thought she might catch something if she sat back. Connor narrowed his eyes. “Can you tell me what this is about?”

The woman gave him one of the bestBetty Better Than Youlooks he’d seen. She probably practiced it in the mirror.

When he held her gaze, she challenged him. “And, uh, you are?”

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