Page 20 of Taking Her Medicine

“I have a tendency to stay up way too late. It’s notthatbig a deal, but I’m more productive in the morning. If I sleep until noon it’s that much harder to get all of my work completed.”

“I’ll set a bedtime for you, but it’s flexible. If you find yourself lying in bed for three hours, tossing and turning, we’ll push it back a bit. Deal?”

“Deal.” I picked a piece of fuzz off his tee-shirt. “You promised to be my daddy, but, uh, is that outside of the bedroom too?”

“You can call me Daddy wherever you want to, Zoelle, but what’s the real question on your mind?”

“C-can I be little sometimes?”

“Yes, princess.” Aaron nuzzled under my chin. “I’d love that.”

“Phew.” It felt like a hundred pounds had lifted off my shoulders. “Can we watch a movie and finish off the pizza? I want to let what you said process before I try to digest any more things.”

“Of course. I don’t work until three o’clock in the afternoon tomorrow. I’m yours for the night.”

I kissed him again, sliding my tongue into his mouth. He cupped my cheek and returned it with fervor. I loved the way he tasted, and imagined what it would be like to belong to him forever. The thought scared me, but Aaron had kept his promises so far. It was still my insecurities and severe abandonment issues rearing their ugly heads. He cared about us, and I wouldn’t allow myself to make fear-based decisions any longer.

Aaron York was officially my daddy, and I was finally his little girl.

Chapter 6

Zoelle

I felt absolutely stupid, but I couldn’t calm down. I resorted to sitting on Aaron’s porch pathetically waiting for him to come home. My job stressed me out all day long, and I blatantly disregarded one of our rules in hopes of securing a punishment.

Obedience.

I never wanted to disappoint Aaron, but I was looking for a real response from him regarding my behavior. Consequences. I sought consequences because part of me worried Aaron would not follow through. I’d been following the rules for about a week, but after the crap I’d gone through at my job, my attempts failed.

As I shivered a little, I lamented that I hadn’t thrown a warmer jacket on; the temperature dropped significantly this time of year after sunset. Thankfully I’d worn jeans and a sweater, so I wasn’t freezing, but two hours outside when I could have waited at my house was not the brightest move.

Finally, Aaron pulled into the driveway and I met him inside the garage.

“Did we have plans tonight, Zoelle?”

You should have texted him!

“No, no, I just had a lot of shit happen today. I didn’t want to sit in my house another minute.”

“I’ve got a spare key by the backdoor in the flower garden. It’s hidden in a little frog statue. Next time just go inside where you’ll be warm.” He laced my fingers in his. “Did something happen today, kitten?”

“My job changed all of their policies. They’re pissed that I took time off when they had some sort of deadline even though I was sick. Anyhow, they did not respond well to me. And now I’ve got to work at an actual office so they can see my productivity. It’s just so stupid, becauseeverythingI do is tracked!” I tugged my hands out from his and threw them over my head. “I haven’t worked in an office since my temp days.”

“You’re this worked up about going to an office? Or is something else bothering you?”

“I broke a rule, and I didn’t even try to recover from messing it up. Instead I just neglected all of the tasks that you assigned me this morning.” I put my hands on my hips, and he gestured toward my posture.

“Why didn’t you text me, sweetheart? I could have talked to you about this earlier.”

“You were working.”

“Next time reach out to me. Don’t hold it in all day so that you sit and stew. Understood?”

“Whatever.”

“You getonefree pass. Moving forward,thatword triggers a response from me every time. In my opinion, it’s the equivalent of telling me to fuck off. Don’t say it again.” He led me through the garage and into his house, but I stayed quiet. I admired his choice of black scrubs; they fit him like he had gotten them tailored to his body even though they must have been standard issue. Still I thought about his muscles and wiped a line of drool away from my mouth. Aaron stopped short and I bumped straight into him.

Shit.

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