Page 26 of Her Cover Model Daddy
Drake leaned closer until they were nose to nose and all she could see were his beautiful swirly hazel eyes. “Do we really care about what anyone else thinks? It’s just you and me who matter, Lacy-girl. Okay? So, what do you think?”
Lacy’s stomach cramped at the thought of not being able to eat lunch because she was too much of a chicken to get on anescalator. “Okay, Daddy,” she whispered as she wiped the tears from her face.
In the next instant, she was flying. Wrapping her arms and legs around Drake’s body, she hid her face against his shoulder so she didn’t have to see anyone.
“Okay, sweetheart, keep those eyes closed and hold onto Daddy and we’ll be upstairs in just a few minutes,” Drake assured her.
She felt him walk forward and then stop. She focused on breathing as a strange buzzing in her ears grew so loud that it kept her from discerning what Drake was saying. It wasn’t until she felt him walking again that the buzzing dissipated and she could hear his words.
“You are such a good girl. So brave. My brave Lacy-girl,” he praised softly. “Ready to get down now?”
Lifting her head, Lacy looked around and found they were on the second floor of the mall. She’d ridden the escalator and it hadn’t tried to eat her.
She dropped her legs then loosened her arms, slowly easing her death hold on Drake. With a deep breath, she released him and locked her knees to keep from collapsing in a heap.
“I did it,” she whispered, staring at Drake in awe.
“Yes, you did. I’d never let anyone hurt my girl, not even an old escalator. Now, let’s go find some lunch for that grumbly growly tummy of yours.”
Lacy nodded and took his outstretched hand. As they approached the food court, she looked around at the many different choices and grew overwhelmed. Too many choices. Some were favorite fast foods, but there were also some new places that she thought she might like to try.
The food court was busy, but Drake pulled her to a stop in the middle of the walkway so they could see all the different choices.
“All right, Lacy-girl. What would you like for lunch?”
Looking at all the choices, ranging from hamburgers to chicken to Asian and Italian and other choices, Lacy shrugged. “I don’t know. Everything looks so good.”
She turned so she could rest her forehead against his arm. “You choose, Daddy. I don’t care.”
“How do you feel about visiting the macaroni and cheese restaurant?”
Lacy lifted her head and looked around. “A whole restaurant for macaroni and cheese?”
Drake pointed and she then saw it. “Macky’s Cheese. Let’s go,” she said, grabbing Drake’s hand and pulling him as she hurried to join the short line.
She read the menu and instructions for ordering on the wall above the workers’ heads. By the time they reached the front of the line, she knew exactly what she was going to order.
Drake looked at the variety of dishes between them and then back at Lacy. They had ordered enough varieties to feed a half dozen people, but she’d had a hard time deciding and they were both hungry. When she chose two, he decided they needed to try them all.
The only issue came when she pulled out her wallet to pay for their meals and two soft drinks. He moved in front of her and handed the cashier his bank card before she could open her wallet.
“Hey,” she said softly, pulling on his arm. “I was going to pay.”
“Not while I’m still above ground,” he said, giving her a look that had her rolling her lips over her teeth. “Why don’t you go get us a table while I wait for the food.”
She responded with a simple nod before heading to the dining area. He watched to make sure no one bothered her. She found an empty booth and slid into one side with a look at him. He nodded his approval just as their number was called.
As he carried the heavy tray to their table, he was grateful that he was finished with bare-chested photo shoots for a while. He was looking forward to eating the pasta without having to worry about doing an extra hundred crunches to keep it from showing up in pictures.
After unloading the tray, he slid onto the bench next to her, forcing her to slide over to make room.
The cashier thought he was strange when he asked for two extra bowls and several additional spoons. Handing her a spoon and setting one on the table in front of him, he placed the others on the table between the bowls filled with food.
He picked up one of the empty bowls and looked at her. “All right, Lacy-girl, where do you want to start?”
He watched as Lacy looked over all the choices and then back at him. “I think we ordered too much. I don’t know where to begin.”
“Let Daddy help?” he asked softly.
