Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
“Then there is no mercy for you!” he cried.
“Daddy, stop! I’m going to pee! I’m going to pee!”
He stopped at the sound of panic in her voice. She curled in on herself. “Gotta pee. I’m not gonna make it. I’m not gonna make it.”
“Daddy will get you there.” He jumped to his feet, cursing himself. He hadn’t checked in with her for a while to see if she needed to go potty. And he should have. He knew how bad she was at reading her body’s signals. He rushed her to the bathroom and helped her pull off her pants and panties. She sat and started peeing before he got to the door.
Oh my God,” she cried. “This is the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to me.”
“Are you sure?” he asked. “It’s just peeing. I’m sure something else more embarrassing has happened to you.”
“I’m peeing in front of you. Nope. No. There’s nothing. Just let me die now please. It would be a mercy.”
Turning, he glared at her. “Do not say that.” She knew how he felt about her talking like that.
“Please leave,” she begged. “I don’t want you seeing me on the toilet. Bad enough you heard it. Oh, will the humiliation never end?”
“Nothing you could do would be embarrassing.”
“Maybe not to you . . . but I’m over here so red I could boil water if you put a pot on my cheeks.”
Hack moved out of the bathroom, waiting until he heard the toilet flush. She walked out, looking embarrassed, wringing her hands together.
He held open his arms and she dove into them.
“I’m sorry I didn’t remind you to go potty, Little girl. I’ll remember in future.”
“I should be able to remember myself! I’m a big girl.”
“No, you’re not. You’re my precious baby. Come on, it’s time for some lunch, then a nap.” He picked her up in his arms and carried her out to the kitchen.
“Can I nap in my nest, Daddy?” she asked as he set her on the counter so he could keep an eye on her while he made them some sandwiches.
“Of course you can. You can nap in there every day if you want.”
“I don’t need to nap every day, Daddy.”
“I think I might make it a rule. It will give your eyes a break too.” His phone beeped and he read through Ink’s messages. “Good news.”
“Really, what? They found the stalker? The optometrist made a mistake and I don’t need glasses? It’s raining ice cream?”
“Raining ice cream?”
“Well, it could happen. Maybe. Wouldn’t it be cool? And you told me to guess what the good news was.”
“Ahh, no, I didn’t.”
“Oh, well, it was a fun game. So tell me.”
“You don’t need to go to Callahan Security while I’m working.”
“I don’t? Yay!” This morning before they’d gone to the optometrist they’d had a video conference call with Brody. Greer had given him all of the information about the so-called Daddies she’d interacted with online. Hack still got upset when he thought about her talking to strange men. He’d even been upset about her exchanging numbers with Brody, which was ridiculous considering Brody’s Daddy was the Fox.
“Are you all right, Daddy?”
“Yes, why?”
“Um, just that you buttered your hand,” she pointed out.
He looked down at his hand. Sure enough there was butter on the top.
“Shoot.” He moved to the sink and washed it off.
“What were you thinking about, Daddy?”
“That I’m the only man you’re ever allowed to talk to. In person or online.”
And yes, he knew he sounded crazy.
“No other men? What about my brothers? Your friends? Am I not allowed to talk to them?”
“No,” he snapped.
“Daddy,” she said in a gentle voice. As though she thought he was about to lose his mind.
Too late.
He heaved out a breath. “Fine. You can talk to your brothers and my friends. No one else.”
“Daddy.”
“Yes?”
“Come here.” She held out her arms and he moved toward her. She opened her legs, letting him step between them as she hugged him tight. “I don’t want any man but you. You’re it for me. You don’t need to be jealous, okay?”
He grumbled to himself. “All right.” Although he wasn’t sure that he could promise to change.
She was his.
“Mine.”
“All yours,” she whispered. “Now, how about we celebrate this good news with a cookie.”
“No cookie.”
“Aww, why not?” She pouted.
“Because you had ice cream earlier. And besides, you don’t know the good news yet.”
“I thought the good news was that you were going to ease up on being so protective and that I don’t have to go sit in a strange place and work all day.”
“That’s part of it. But the reason you don’t have to go to Callahan Security is because Ink arranged a bodyguard.”
“A what?”
“A bodyguard. One of his guys had a job end early and he can spare him for a couple of days. Hopefully, we can find the stalker by then. If not, I’ll probably take some time off work.”