Page 21 of Daddy's Little Sunshine

They rolled off the bed and he took her hand to lead her out to the kitchen. Stopping by the bedroom door, he stopped to look at her, his eyes serious, but kinder than usual. “It’s going to be okay, sunshine. It won’t ever be like it was before, and it may hurt a hell of a lot, but it’s going to be okay. I promise.”

The ache in her chest eased a fraction more, and she gave him a wobbly smile. “Okay, Daddy.”

CHAPTER 10

Donovan

Beyond telling him what kind of sandwich she wanted, Lainey barely spoke to him the rest of the afternoon. She was lost in her own little world of sorrow, and he was completely helpless to fix it for her. Years ago, when he’d gotten wind of the experiments Rose Corp was conducting on Variants, he’d made the decision to walk away from his family and friends in hopes of keeping them safe. But it hadn’t been so long ago that he’d forgotten the pain of breaking those bonds.

His phone vibrated in his pocket and he pulled it out to check the text. It was his contact’s right hand man, confirming their meet-up for the later that evening. Good. That was settled. Now he just had to convince Lainey to stay put while he went out to discuss her future with someone she’d never met.

Piece of cake. “Lainey.” He waited for her to look at him, but her eyes stayed glued to the TV. “Lainey. Look at me.”

Her eyes flicked to the side for a brief second, but she still didn’t acknowledge him. Goddamn it, why did she have to be so stubborn? She could pout or cry all she wanted, but he needed her to listen. He pushed up out of the armchair and stepped overto the couch. Grabbing the remote from beside her, he switched off the TV.

“Hey! I was watching that!” She finally looked up at him, her face set in mutinous lines.

“You were ignoring me. What do you think happens to little girls who ignore people who are trying to talk to them?” The first hint of wariness crept into her eyes, but it was accompanied by a flicker of something else. Excitement, maybe?

“Nothing?”

“Try again, sunshine.”

Her heavy sigh seemed a little too put on for him. “They get spanked?”

That had been his original plan, but there was a hint of hopefulness in her voice that told him she’d enjoy it a little too much right now. Wracking his brain for an alternative, he smirked when an idea popped into his head. “Nope. They put their noses in the corner until they can act like they’re supposed to.” The shock on her pretty face was nearly comical, but he kept his face as stern as he could manage.

“You can’t put me in the corner!”

“If I can whip your ass, I can put you in the corner. Get up and go to the corner like I told you to.”

“No!” Glaring at him, she crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her chin up defiantly. “You can’t make me.”

He never could resist a challenge. Reaching for her, he pinched her ear between his fingers and gave her lobe a little twist.

A shocked squeal escaped her. “Ow! Daddy, let go!”

“Stand up, little girl.” He pulled just enough for her to get the point. Whining the whole time, she stood and followed him to the corner. “Hands on your head and face the wall. You’re going to stand here until your attitude improves.”

“I don’t want to stand in the stupid corner!” Arms crossed again, she stomped her foot.

“Too bad. Hands on your head, Lainey. Unless you want to be standing here with a nice red bottom?”

It was fun to watch the struggle play out on her face. Slowly, she lifted her hands and placed them on the back of her head. “That’s what I thought. Turn around.” With a little huff, she turned to face the corner. “I’m going to pull your shorts down and you’re going to stand here with your bare bottom on display while you think about why it’s important to listen when I’m talking to you. Got it?”

“No.” The single syllable was filled with attitude, but her hands stayed on her head. “This is stupid.”

Donovan tugged her shorts to her knees, and he couldn’t resist landing a sharp spank to each perfect globe. “Stay put, little girl.”

She huffed out another breath, but she didn’t move from where he’d placed her. Satisfied she’d stay put, he went back to the armchair and turned on the TV. He flipped through the channels, but he wasn’t really watching. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off his little Lainey, standing in the corner with her hands on her head and her bare bottom sporting his fading handprints.

From the moment he’d met her, something about her had pulled at him. This whole time he’d been focused on getting her out of the city and tucked away somewhere safe by herself. But maybe she didn’t have to go alone. Watching her sigh and squirm in the corner, he let himself toy with the idea of going with her. Just when he was ready to tell her to knock it off, she settled down and stood quietly facing the wall. A few minutes later, her quiet sniffles told him she’d probably learned her lesson. “You can come out now, sunshine.”

She pulled her shorts back up before turning around. Even from across the room, he could read the uncertainty on her face. Donovan held his arms open and she raced over, flinging herself into his embrace.

Still sniffling, she pressed her face against his shoulder. “I’m sorry I was naughty.”

“It’s okay.” Giving her a little squeeze, he pressed a kiss to her hair. “I know you’re sad, sunshine. But it’s more important than ever that you learn to listen to me. Okay?”

---