Page 68 of Accepting Love

I can’t keep from laughing as I reach the corner and plaster the back of her to the place where the walls meet. “What will happen if I set your feet down right here, angel?”

She’s panting now. “I don’t know. Let’s not find out.” She even lifts her feet higher.

“Is this like that old saying that if you step on a crack, you’ll break your mama’s back?” I’m growing more curious now. She’s kind of serious about her aversion.

“Maybe,” she admits. “What if I become naughtybecauseof the corner?”

I’m still chuckling. “Are you superstitious, angel?”

“Maybe…” She lifts her feet higher. “Let’s not test it, okay, Daddy?” she begs in a very interesting Little voice.

I slide my hands to her bottom, heft her up higher so she can wrap her legs around me, and back away from the corner. I set my lips on her ear. “Okay, angel. I’ve got you. We won’t tempt fate.” I kiss her neck and then nuzzle it, inhaling her sweet scent.

“Thank you, Daddy,” she responds. “Can we see the movie now?”

“Do we get to have soda, Daddy?” Leah asks. “We were all four good all day. No one got spanked or anything,” she points out.

Craig indulgently lines up four sippy cups on the island before grabbing two cans of lemon-lime soda from the fridge. He fills each cup with half a can of soda and screws on the lids. “No one is going to complain or ask for more, right?”

“No, Sir,” Amy responds.

Giana shakes her head. “No, Sir.”

Caro slides down my body until her socked feet hit the floor. She wiggles free of me and heads for the island to grab her sippy cup as if the elixir is her favorite and she’s been deprived for weeks. It’s cute. I like it.

“Did you already pop the popcorn, Daddy?” Leah asks.

“I did it,” Foster informs them. “It’s ready in the popper in the theater. Already put it in little bags for each of you. I put the movie in too. It’s ready to go. You girls said you wanted to watch the latest horror film, right?” he jokes.

I can’t stop smiling. The banter is so relaxing. Even though I’ve been a Daddy Dom for many years, I’ve never been this immersed. I’ve been living the dream for days in Caro’s house, but coming here is the icing on the cake. We’re going to have to come here regularly to recharge and enjoy the company of like-minded folks.

“Daddy,” Amy protests. “We don’t like horror movies. They give us nightmares.”

“Oh, right. Well, good thing I have a backup.” He steps aside so the girls can scamper down the stairs.

Craig slaps a hand on my shoulder as we follow them. “Seems like you two are doing well.”

I nod. “Feels that way. I keep waiting for something to go wrong, and it never happens.”

He chuckles. “Trust me, something will eventually go wrong. But you’ll manage it and move on. We all do.”

I’m starting to think maybe nothing will go wrong. Everything feels like it’s falling into place. Like the perfect puzzle that was missing a few pieces and I found them the morning I walked into Caro’s house and saw her playing the piano.

She’s truly an angel. I know she has concerns. Rightfully so. But I hope in time to prove they’re unnecessary. I’ve got her. She will be fine. She just needs to learn to lean hard on me, trust me, and know I will never intentionally let her down.

When I reach the theater, I choose a seat near the middle in the center. Craig, Foster, and Kendric do the same. The girls are playing slumber party on the floor in front of the stadium seating, arranging pillows and blankets until they’re like a giant puppy pile ready to watch the movie.

I mostly watch Caro, glancing at the screen every now and then, just enough to get the gist of the movie in case there’s a quiz later. I can’t be sure. Caro might ask me questions or want to discuss it. These are the kinds of small things I don’t know about my girl yet.

I love learning her quirks, her likes and dislikes, her habits. It’s fun uncovering details about her, but sometimes I wish I could fast forward to a time when I know every detail about her and can guess her reactions to things.

Like the timeout corner. What was that all about? I have no idea. I would like to ask, but I don’t get the sense Caro wanted to talk about it. Or perhaps she herself doesn’t know why she’s reacting so violently to the corner.

When the movie ends, there’s very little fussing on the part of the girls. They’re tired from a long day and not eager to put up an argument about bedtime tonight. From the looks on Craig’s and Foster’s faces, this is slightly shocking and unusual.

Maybe they are on their best behavior for Caro’s sake. Or maybe they simply needed a day without drama in their lives or on their bottoms.

I practically carry Caro up the stairs, keeping a hand around her and lifting her several times to be silly. When we reach our suite, I lock the doors and guide her to the bathroom.

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