Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34268 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 171(@200wpm)___ 137(@250wpm)___ 114(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34268 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 171(@200wpm)___ 137(@250wpm)___ 114(@300wpm)
Jenny beamed. “That’d be great.” She twisted around to look at her Daddy, Adan, as he came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Can I do that, Daddy?”
“You sure can, as long as you’re polite.” He tapped her nose. “Don’t rush Annie. This is her first time at the park.”
Jenny nodded. “I know. I’ll be good.”
After releasing Annie’s wrists, Daddy spread out a blanket in the grass before releasing the rest of her restraints and lifting her up to set her on the blanket.
She was grateful when Jenny plopped down next to her. “Lily is here too,” she exclaimed. “Do you mind if she joins us?”
Lily was another Little Annie had met at The Center. Both Lily and Jenny had been adopted before Annie. Now that she had spoken extensively with Theo, she understood he’d been stalling while waiting for his house to be finished.
Jenny waved at the blond Little who was swinging really high on the swing set. When Lily noticed her, she leaped into the air, landed on her feet, and started jogging toward them.
Annie’s breath hitched when Lily’s Daddy caught up with her right before she reached the blanket. He swung her up in his arms, causing her to be eye level with him. His expression was serious. “What have I said about jumping from the swings, Lily?”
She lowered her gaze. “I’m sorry, Daddy. I was excited. I wanted to see my friend Annie.”
“Do you think leaping into the air at a dangerous height and then taking off without talking to Daddy first was a good choice?”
She shook her head, her red curls bounding. “No, Sir. I’m sorry.”
“I know you’re excited to see Annie but mind your manners. And don’t move off this blanket without my permission, understood?”
She nodded. “Yes, Sir.”
Annie was mesmerized as she watched their interaction. Even though she’d spent a lot of time with other Littles in the nursery, she didn’t have very much experience witnessing them interacting with their forever Daddies.
As Lily’s Daddy, Cristian, and Jenny’s Daddy, Adan, headed for a nearby bench, Theo leaned over and cupped Annie’s face. “I’m going to go talk to the other Daddies. I’ll keep an eye on you in case you need me.”
She smiled at him. It seemed like he understood her, which gave her comfort. After watching him walk toward the bench, she turned back to Lily and Jenny.
They were both grinning wide.
“We’re so glad to see you,” Lily exclaimed. She glanced at the Daddies. “I didn’t realize Nurse Theo was your Daddy.”
Annie sighed. “I never said anything because I wasn’t sure. He gave me mixed signals all the time. It was maddening. Finally he claimed me.” She smiled.
Jenny grabbed her hand and squeezed. “That’s so exciting. I know you don’t have permission to walk yet, but I can’t wait for you to be able to come play with us on the swings and sandbox.”
Annie glanced toward the playground and swallowed. For some odd reason it seemed daunting. There were lots of Little girls giggling and running. A few Little boys too. She was kind of glad her Daddy hadn’t given her permission to walk. She thought she’d rather crawl over and sit in his lap than anything else. It was an odd feeling she couldn’t process.
“My Daddy didn’t let me walk for a few weeks,” Lily said.
“Mine didn’t either,” Jenny agreed. She looked their direction and winced. “I think they’re conspiring,” she told Lily.
“Did they know each other before?” Annie asked.
Lily nodded. “Yeah. They’re both English Professors. Not only do they know each other, but they tend to annoy us to death correcting our grammar.”
Annie giggled. “That’s kind of funny.”
Jenny shook her head. “It’s not funny when we both get into trouble together and they make us write sentences to discipline us. If our penmanship isn’t good enough, they make us start over.”
“Yikes.” Annie wondered if her Daddy would make her write sentences. He hadn’t mentioned other forms of punishment besides spanking yet. Shaking off the concern, she asked them another question. “What do you guys do all day?”
Lily fielded the answer first. “When our Daddies are working, we go to the daycare. It’s a lot like the nursery but for more established Littles who live in the community.”
“Do you just play all day?” It was hard for Annie to imagine not working. It was foreign to her. Wouldn’t Theo want her to work eventually?
“Some Littles spend time studying,” Jenny said. “They even have private rooms where Littles can do homework or research.”
“Like school?” Annie asked.
Lily nodded. “Yep. Some are working on their GED if they never finished high school. Others take college classes.”
Jenny shrugged her shoulders. “Some just play with all the toys all day. Depends on what they’ve agreed on with their Daddies.”
Annie glanced toward Theo, finding him also looking at her. He gave a quick wave, and she turned back to her friends. As much as she loved the idea of her new life, she couldn’t quite visualize what her future looked like.