Page 33 of Accepting Love

I chuckle. “Yep. Daddy’s in charge. I’ll see a lot more of your naked body than you’ll see of mine, Little one. That’s how it will always be. I promise you’ll get plenty of my body over the course of your life.”

She shifts her gaze to mine. “You really think this is going to be permanent.”

“I sure do, Little one.” I stroke her cheek. I’m stalling as much as she is. “You’re mine. I think I’ve known that for a long time. I just didn’t have any way to act on it. That window opened up this morning, and I’m no fool. I’m here to stay.”

“In my house?”

“If that’s what you want. You can come look at mine too. Or, if you’d rather, we can find something together.”

“I love this house. I spent months looking for it.”

“Then we’ll stay here. I have no attachment to mine. My only attachment is to you. My home will forever be where you are. I’ll exist to please you.” I smile. I mean every word. I hope she doesn’t think I’m bloviating.

She gives me an impish grin. “So you don’t makeallthe decisions.”

I laugh. “I will make most of the decisions, Little one. It’s the nature of being a Daddy. It’s what you crave. But we will always discuss everything important together. I might insist you tie your shoes before you go outside or drink all of your milk at breakfast, but I would never insist you leave your home, nor will I ever interfere in your career.”

She stares at me. She’s shocked, and her eyes are watery. “Am I having a dream?”

“I hope not.” I’ve wondered that a few times today myself. “If so, may we never wake up.”

“I’m scared.”

“I know. It’s a lot of change.”

“I’m afraid of losing myself. I’ve never spent as much time in my Little space as I have tonight with you.”

I furrow my brows. “Caro, your entire home is filled with Little things. Surely you’re most comfortable in that headspace and spend a lot of time there.” I reach over and pick up the cup of water I’d set on the nightstand for her. It’s in a sippy cup because I easily found them in her kitchen. “Case in point.”

She glances at the cup and back at me. “It was different before you got here.”

“I’m sure it was.”

She licks her sweet pouty lips. “I mean I think I hovered on the gray line most of the time. I let myself be Little in some things, but in others it wasn’t possible.”

“Understandable. You didn’t have a caregiver. I assume Audrey doted on you in ways that helped you be Little, but that’s not the same as having a Daddy hovering constantly.”

She nods. “No one gave me a bath. No one tucked me in. No one dressed me. Those kinds of things. I had to be big and do them myself.”

“Now you don’t have to be big anymore, Little one. You can relax in your skin in your home and let me be the Daddy.”

“I love that idea in theory, but I’m so very worried about what happens when we’re out of the house. Like tonight. I was very Little at dinner. What if a fan had approached me? I might have made a fool of myself.”

“We’ll work on that, Little one. I promise we’ll figure out something that works and gives you peace of mind.”

“Okay.” Her voice is small. She’s uncertain. “You won’t interfere with my practicing or my performances.”

“Never. My job is to make sure you take a break and eat. I hope to lessen your load when you’re not playing by picking out your clothes, arranging your meals, guiding you to make safe and healthy decisions. I want to be here for you to lean on in all things.”

“Okay.” Her voice is soft again. She’s doubtful. That’s okay. I’ll show her.

I kiss her forehead again. “Go to sleep, Little one. You need your rest, especially if you often get up in the night.”

“Okay, Daddy.” She hugs her lion as I rise and kiss her temple one last time.

“Night, Daddy.”

“Night, Little one.”

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