Page 61 of Impressing Brett

“More fun facts,” Blade says. “The will does not indicate she has to be present in Indiana for any reason. The Rutherfords are simply trying to convince her this is the case. I have no doubt they’d love for her to show up. It would make it much easier for them to somehow get their grubby hands on her father’s money.”

I agree.

“I smell a fish,” Blade growls. “I’d rather we hang tight a bit longer. I’m still digging into the Rutherfords' undoubtedly long list of crimes. If we can nail them on something big, they can spend their lives in prison without Lacy needing to be involved.”

He’s taking the words right out of my mouth. I haven’t said a single word during this entire one-way conversation. When it seems he’s done sharing, I say, “Okay. Yes. Thank you.” And then I hang up.

For a few moments, I simply stare out the window before I turn to face Lacy.

Her arms are crossed. Her brow is furrowed. She rises to her feet to face off with me. “Tell me.”

I can’t leave her in the dark. “Your instincts were correct. You don’t want to get messed up with the Rutherfords for any reason. They aren’t good men. For now, we need to hang tight and lie low while Blade and the others do their jobs.”

“Here?” she asks, brows raised incredulously as if I’ve suggested we catch and skin our own food to survive in these horrifying conditions.

“Yes, baby, here.”

She glances at the bed. “Can’t I go back to my apartment?”

My fucking chest tightens. “You’re safer here. I have no way of knowing if any men Maximillian hired are still looking for you. If they are, you don’t want to be in your apartment.” I’m trying to reason with her, but all she can see is my fury.

Her shoulders drop. “Fine.” She lowers back onto the love seat as though she weighs a thousand pounds and can’t hold her body up for another moment.

I hate that she’s being so distant with me. I know it’s not personal. She’s suffering. Her head is in a dark place. She thinks if she denies her Little, she can stuff her into a closet and leave her there where no one will find out she exists and ridicule her.

It’s no way to live one’s life. In denial or hiding. Now that she’s spent some quality time in her Little space, she’s going to struggle to tamp it down indefinitely. I’ve seen people try it before. It eats away at them until they snap.

I wander back to the loveseat, open the bag of food, and pull out the contents. “You want the tomato soup or the chicken noodle, Lacy?”

“I don’t care.”

I’m not sure she’s even listening to me. I open them both and set them in front of her, handing her the spoon. Next, I open the two sandwiches—chicken salad and roast beef. I set those in front of her as well. I’ll wait to see what she wants to eat.

I open a bottle of water and set it behind the sandwiches. “You have to eat, Lacy,” I order as carefully as possible.

She jerks her gaze to me. “Stop ordering me around. I’ll eat when I fucking want to eat.” She stands and paces away from me.

I draw in breath. We’re treading on thin ice here. As her Daddy, I should not let her get away with this. But I don’t want to alienate her either. As her boyfriend, her man, I want to be supportive and helpful. Both sides of me need to hold her and tell her it’s going to be okay.

We have a microwave. The food can be reheated. First, we need to clear some of the thick air between us.

I rise to my feet and step toward her. “Come here, Little lamb.” I’m done not using that endearment. I’m done pretending it’s okay for her to ignore her Little. She needs it. She will feel so much better when she lets her Little come back out.

She flinches and takes a step back. “No.” Her voice is comically petulant. She even crosses her arms. “You can’t Daddy me. I don’t want to be Little anymore. It’s too much. I need you to stop trying to lure me into a fetish I’m not interested in.”

It’s hard not to react to her defiance. She’s slipping into Little space without even trying. It’s effortless now that she’s spent enough time there to know how good and natural it feels.

“I’m sorry for everything that’s happening to you. It breaks my heart to see you hurting. I’m going to do everything in my power to fix things so you don’t have to spend your life looking over your shoulder, but you need to cut yourself some slack here, Little lamb.”

“I’m not your Little lamb,” she retorts, leaning forward, arms crossed tight, chin jutting out.

“You’re always going to be my Little lamb,” I tell her gently. She needs me to be calm. A rock. Steady. She needs someone to love her unconditionally through this storm. I am that man.

She shakes her head. Her hair is down, and it sways around her shoulders. She would like the effect more if it were in pigtails. It’s hard to whip it around when it’s down.

I keep advancing, and she keeps backing up until she’s in the corner near the window, her back to the wall. It’s the same place she slid down into a ball last night.

“Lacy…” I set my hands on either side of her head and hold her gaze.

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