Page 15 of Tizzy's Little Thanksgiving

Feeling her face heating, Teresa said, “I don’t think—”

“That reminds me, there is one more gift I’m going to insist on,” Georgie cut her off.

Teresa shook her head even without having the gift specified. “I’m not gonna promise to commit a crime. I’ve told you, I can’t go to jail!”

“Well, I still say you’d rock that orange jumpsuit,” Georgie teased with a smile. “Though, you won’t get one with this gift. You do this and it’s not even going to land you anyplace you don’t want to be.”

Teresa had seen that smile a trillion times. It meant her best friend was thinking of some scheme that inevitably would lead into trouble. And just like she had a trillion times before, she knew she was going to do whatever it was Georgie had conjured up in her evil little mind.

“Okay, lay it on me,” Teresa said and Sadie, Hayleigh and Wren all jumped from their swings to gather around them.

“I’m beyond thrilled that you’ve finally admitted you’re a Little, but before you do another thing, you pull your Big-girl panties up, march yourself back inside, find Eddie, and tell him you want him to be your Daddy.”

So people’s mouths really did fall open with no sound coming out. Well, if sound was defined as something intelligent. Teresa could only stare and make some sort of uh-uh-uh-uh noise.

Georgie smiled and took her hand. “Hey, you know you want to. This is me, remember. I know you’ve been giving him googly-eyes for years. I bet you’ve been dreaming of this every single night since Eddie sentenced you to a spanking for breaking into his place.”

And every moment of every day,Teresa thought, but said, “That was your fault!”

“Guilty as charged and not sorry,” Georgie retorted with a shrug. “And, unlike you, I did get my butt blistered. But you know what else I got?”

Teresa shook her head, a bit scared to hear there was something worse than getting her ass roasted.

“It got me my Daddy,” Georgie said, all signs of teasing gone. “And, Teresa, we all want you to get the very same thing, don’t we, girls?”

“Oh, yes,” Wren said.

“Absolutely,” Hayleigh agreed.

“There is nothing more magical than finding the one Daddy who is meant for you,” Sadie said solemnly.

Warmth flooded through Teresa as she looked at their faces and saw the honesty and caring in them. Three of these women had known her for less than an hour and one most of her life. Yet they had the exact same look on their faces, each giving soft smiles, their eyes shining with a contentment and happiness Teresa had yet to find and wanted more than she wanted her next breath.

Still she had to point out a discrepancy in Georgie’s statement. “You said I won’t wind up somewhere I don’t wish to be. If I do this, and if any of those books we’ve read are even skirting close to the truth, then I believe I will find myself landing over Eddie’s lap with my butt bare.”

Four heads swiveled to look at each other and then four Littles started giggling.

“Oh, please, if you’re saying you haven’t imagined that countless times, then all I have to say is your nose is growing, Pinocchio,” Georgie said, using her hand to mimic a nose as long as her arm could reach.

“Exactly!” Wren said.

“If you don’t, then he’ll definitely be doing something wrong,” Hayleigh offered sagely.

“There’s always a chance he’ll let you keep your pants on,” Sadie said which had the other three poking their elbows into her sides. “Hey, I saidmaybe,but I wouldn’t count on it.”

Georgie took Teresa’s hands in hers. “Seriously though, if you don’t want this, if this hasn’t been your dream forever, and most definitely if my brother is not the man you want, then I understand. This is probably the most important decision you’ll ever make and none of us want you to make it unless you want—”

“I want him with every fiber of my being,” Teresa admitted softly.

Four squeals rent the air, sending the squirrels scurrying up a tree. Teresa threw back her head and added her own as she found herself bouncing about in a circle in a rather boisterous Ring-Around-the Rosie and feeling her heart filling with acceptance of being Little. It was several minutes later before they all fell to the ground, each giggling and holding onto tummies gradually settling. Teresa stared up at the big blue sky and stopped freaking out about the possibility of a spanking. Heck, she’d take a dozen even on the bare as long as it was Eddie Mayer delivering them.

Pushing to her feet, she helped the others up and then hugged each one. “Thank you so much,” she said. “I knew Georgie was my friend, but now I have three more.” Once she’d completed the round, she ran her hands down her sides to brush off the grass clinging to her jeans, only to hear giggles breaking out again.

“What?” she said.

“Nothing, it’s just that, well…” Sadie began, but couldn’t continue as giggles overtook her again.

“What she means is that’snotthe part of the body we always seem to be rubbing,” Hayleigh offered.

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