Page 28 of Tilly's Tutus
“Well, fuck,” Carter muttered as he closed out the app and returned his phone to his pocket. His day was just getting better and better. This did not bode well for the men under his command for the next week.
Though he thought he understand their reasoning, he needed to talk to Tilly now, not in a week. He needed to smooth things over and convince her that he would take things at whatever pace she wanted.
Stalking out of the building, he worked to hold onto his temper as he went to his truck and drove to the station. After filing the reports he needed to take care of, including a notice to his superiors about the lack of leadership with the security team, Carter changed clothes and headed for the station’s gym. Since shift change had happened two hours earlier, he had the place to himself, which was good because he was not in the mood to talk to anyone.
As he worked out his frustration, Carter began to formulate a plan on how to win his Little back from her sisters while getting their blessing on their relationship. His plan did not include waiting seven days before seeing her again.
Chapter Seventeen
Tilly tossed and turned, wishing she had not agreed to being incommunicado with Carter for the next seven days. She wanted so bad to text him, call him, hell, get in her car and go see him. She needed to make sure he understood what was going on and would still want her after her outburst and her not taking his phone call earlier.
And he had called. Three times. But he had not left any messages. She only hoped she had explained the situation good enough on the rambling voicemail she’d left him after they’d loaded the SUV.
Rolling to her back, she stared up at the slowly twirling ceiling fan, and wished he was here to cuddle with. He’d made such a good snuggle buddy that BB was having a hard time competing.
She looked at her phone and wondered how upset Lottie would be if she broke the agreement and called Carter. Just as she reached for the nightstand, her door opened, pulling her attention away from the phone.
“Carri?”
Her sister didn’t say anything, just shuffled across the room and climbed into the empty side of the queen-size bed. Theycurled up together and though it wasn’t the same as having Carter’s bigger body next to her, it helped Tilly relax enough to close her eyes and go to sleep.
Two days later, she was only mildly surprised when she a big black truck followed her the last three blocks to work at five-thirty in the morning. He followed her until she pulled into the parking lot next door to the daycare center where the staff parked.
The truck pulled in and parked beside her as she was gathering her things from the front seat. When she turned to the door, she jumped when she saw a man dressed in the town’s black police uniform standing on the other side.
Pushing the door open and forcing him to step back, she climbed out and stared at him with wide eyes. “Papa, you scared me!”
“Sorry, little dancer, but I couldn’t wait until Sunday. I also didn’t want to get you in trouble with your sisters. We need to talk and then I’ll go away until Sunday.”
Tilly nodded as she led the way to the center’s front door. She unlocked it and once inside, flipped on the lights in the main lobby before leading Carter to her office.
As she turned to close her office door, Emma, her assistant, walked in.
“Open up please, Emma, and cover for me while I talk to Captain McGee?”
“Sure thing, Tilly. You’re not in any trouble, are you?”
“No, no trouble. We’ll talk about it later,” Tilly said before she closed the door and turned the lock. With Emma covering for her with the rest of the staff and kids that were dropped off early, they wouldn’t be interrupted, though she knew time was limited because from the look of him, Carter had to get to work, too.
Turning to face him, she took three steps to close the space that separated them and wrapped her arms around his middle.Burying her head into his chest, she hugged him tight, trying to push through his clothes and skin and crawl into his body with him.
“I’m sorry, Papa. I’m sorry I was mean to you on Sunday. I didn’t mean it. I love you and I’ll be happy to move in with you whenever you say.”
His arms held her tight and she felt his cheek press against the top of her head. “I’m sorry, too, little dancer. I was so excited to finally find you that I pushed for too much too soon. I also wanted you to know that I’ll wait as long as I need to in order to you to be comfortable with the idea of moving in and being my Little girl for now and for always. I love you, Tilly, and I’ll try to be patient.”
“I love you, too, Papa. For now and for always,” Tilly said, blinking back tears at the thought of not being with him for another five days. But she’d agreed to Lottie’s week of separation. “Will you come out to the house on Sunday? Then we can sit down and talk about our future.”
“All right, little dancer. As long as we’re okay now, I’ll stay away until Sunday.”
“We’re okay, Papa,” Tilly said.
Wrapping her hands around his head, she pulled it down so she could kiss him. The kiss started sweet and gentle, but quickly deepened until they had to separate in order to breathe after several long minutes.
His expression told her he was reluctant to leave, but she could hear the children beginning to arrive. “Time to go to work, Papa,” she said, being the responsible Little she was.
“Yes, but know I’ll be thinking of you all day and all night until we’re together again,” Carter brushed a kiss on her forehead before taking a deep breath and leaving. Tilly took a moment to straighten her t-shirt before she left the privacy ofher office to join the melee that was morning at the daycare center.
That evening when Tilly entered the house, her sisters stared at her like she’d grown an extra head or turned purple or something.
