Page 12 of Daddy's Little Patient

She nodded, and he lifted her easily into a sitting position with her back against the headboard.

He set the tray in her lap. “Do you want me to feed you again?”

“I would like to try.”

He handed her the spoon and watched her. Because she went slowly and wasn’t as shaky, she was able to get the spoon to her mouth better than before.

She ate the whole bowl. “Would you like more, honey?”

She shook her head. “It’s very good. Thank you.”

“Then drink your milk.”

She finished her milk, held the glass out to him, and smiled at him like she had done something miraculous, and he couldn’t help but feel proud of her.

“You did a great job. Do you need to use the bathroom?”

She looked thoughtful and then shook her head. “No.”

“All right. Let’s lay you back down, and I want to check on your inj … boo-boo,” he caught himself just in time.

He lifted her nightgown and poked around the cut. There was no redness, and it was healing very well. She also hadn’t had a fever in over ten hours. He was pleased with the way she was progressing, and he figured if she was up for it, she could shower in the morning. He’d just have to put a waterproof bandage on beforehand.

“It looks good, Baby. Do you think you can go to sleep again?”

“Yes. I’m still very tired. Is that normal?”

“Yes. You’ve been without nutrients for too long, and you’ve been hurt. The body can only take so much before it tells you what it needs.”

“My body talks to me?” she asked.

He smiled. “Yes. Doesn’t your tummy grumble when it’s hungry?”

Her eyes widened. “Yes.”

“When you’re tired, your body slows down. If you get too tired, your coordination is off.”

“That’s when I get dizzy?”

Alex nodded. “Yes.”

“And when you get an owie, your body tells you to fix it. Right?” she asked.

“That’s absolutely right. Don’t you crave certain things sometimes?” Alex asked.

“I crave fruit a lot.”

“I do, too. It just means our bodies need a little more vitamin C.”

“Would pizza count?” she asked and then grinned.

Alex laughed. “Maybe?”

“Can we have pizza?”

Looking at her impish grin, he could feel himself falling in love with her. His friends had told him how they felt at the beginning of their relationship with their littles, and he hadn’t understood how colossal it felt. He wanted to protect her from everything bad and comfort her when she was sad.

“I think we can have pizza tomorrow or the next day,” he said.

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