Page 10 of Daddy's Little Duckling

Dahlia’s Diner was a local favorite in her town. It was owned by the sweetest lady who always took care of those around her. She seemed to be the so-called mom of the folks who came into the diner.

Anytime Rae got the opportunity to visit, which wasn’t very often, it always seemed like the owner went out of her way to take care of her. She loved that since she didn’t have anyone else around looking out for her.

Raelyn normally couldn’t afford to go out for meals since she stayed on a tight budget, but she was going to splurge today and worry about any problems it caused later.

Sliding into the booth she picked up her menu and started reading over the choices that the diner offered that she could eat without breaking her budget too much while also still sticking to food that she knew was safe.

“What would you folks like to start with to drink?” the waitress that had approached asked.

“I’ll have a glass of water please,” replied Rae.

Emmett paused and looked at her before asking “Are you sure that’s the only thing you would like?”

Raelyn looked away from his inquiring eyes, because she knew that her face would betray that she didn’t want the water, but picked it cause she knew that it didn’t cost anything. She couldn’t stand the taste of water and never drank it if she had other options.

Water never tasted the same every single time that she would have it and that drove her sensory issues crazy. It never made sense to her why it was different each time.

It was like Emmett knew she was lying about picking it.

“I’ll have a glass of apple juice and a coffee and can we also get a glass of chocolate milk for her?” he told thewaitress.

Rae looked up in surprise and then grinned. She didn’t know how he knew she wanted the chocolate milk, but she wasn’t going to try and change his mind.

“If you’re ready to order I can go ahead and get that as well.” the waitress said.

Emmett asked for a stack of pancakes with bacon and sausage while Rae ordered a cheese omelet. She hoped that eggs would still be safe to eat since that was the cheapest thing she could afford off the menu.

The waitress slipped away to put in their orders and grab their drinks, leaving the couple in comfortable silence.

“How long have you worked at the nursing home?” Emmett asked her a few moments later, breaking the silence that they had fallen into.

Before she could answer, the waitress brought over their drinks and food, and confirmed they didn’t need anything else before slipping away to tend to her other tables.

Rae smiled at Emmett and answered, “I’ve been at Ivory Mountain Nursing Home for almost two years now, but I have been a caregiver for six years.”

Before she could dig into her food, Emmett pulled her plate across the table and started cutting up her omelet into smaller pieces for her and set it back in front of her.

“Wouldn’t want you to choke on any big pieces, darling.”

Blushing, Rae picked up her fork and placed a bite into her mouth. She knew instantly that she had been betrayed by the eggs. What was once a safe food, she could no longer handle the texture.

Not wanting to be rude and seem ungrateful, she tried to push through and eat the bite she took. She hoped that she was able to play off her issues without Emmett knowing, but she should have known that nothing would get past his watchful eye.

CHAPTER NINE

EMMETT

He knew something was wrong with his baby the moment she placed that bite of egg into her mouth. “What is it? Is it too hot?” he asked. Emmett watched her shake her head but could see that there was something wrong.

Puzzled and not sure what was going on, he waited until she finally swallowed the food and watched as she drank half the glass of chocolate milk that was in front of her.

“If it isn’t too hot, then what is the issue with it babygirl? I promise you can tell me.”

He could tell that Raelyn wasn’t going to give up what was going on as he continued to watch her torture herself bite after bite. Setting down his fork and pushing his plate to the side, he placed his hand over hers asking once again

“What’s going on Duckling? I can’t stand to see you struggling with something that I am sure I could fix.”

He didn’t think that she was going to answer him until he watched her eyes fill with tears and she blurted out

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