My eyes pop open and I immediately gasp at the selection he’s placed in front of me. One stuffie is an oversized version of the frog Juju rejected earlier, and I can’t help but melt a bit as I wonder if Daddy noticed the longing way I looked at the frog.
The next is smaller, but not by much. A simple, traditional brown teddy bear. There’s something… nostalgic about it that tugs at my heart, and I nearly make a dive for it.
But then I spot the third and final animal Daddy has selected for me. A hippo, but not just any hippo. She’s wearing a ballerina tutu and shoes, much like an old movie I remember my mom watching when I was little. Parts of the movie were too scary to watch, but I remember the dancing hippos and alligators. How I’d sit and track their every graceful movement, even though they were just cartoons. It’s a memory I’d long forgotten about, and I fleetingly wonder how he knew about it when I didn’t even remember.
The question is only a passing thought before I’m overcome with emotion, hugging the giant stuffed animal to my cheek. “She’s perfect,” I whisper, burying my face in her soft fur.
“There, now. That wasn’t so very difficult after all,” Daddy says quietly. “We have a bit of time before lunch if you’d like to keep looking for some new toys.”
“No. This is all I need.” Craning my head, I smile up at him, and for the first time I’m not thinking about how I got here or how I’m going to escape. There’s only me and my Daddy and the most perfect stuffed animal ever created. “Thank you, Daddy.”
“You are very welcome, little doll. Come on, let’s get some food in your tummy. Even little dolls need to eat.”
* * *
Gideon
Lunch is a relatively tame affair, as tame as it can be with three bouncy Little girls all excitedly showing off their new stuffies to anyone who will stop and indulge them. On our island, that’s pretty much everyone. Daddies, Mommies, and even another Little all stop by the table to ooh and ahh over their selections.
Isabella, for her part, seems to be feeling better than she did after her appointment with Doctor D. Which is a good thing considering our next appointment.
“Let Daddy carry your hippo, little one, so you can hold my hand.”
Pouting adorably, Isabella cradles the giant hippo to her chest. “No!”
As sweet as she looks, defiance isn’t something I can simply allow to pass. Fixing her with a stern expression, I hold out my hand. “Isabella. Be a good girl and give Daddy your hippo.”
“No! It’s mine! I want to hold her!”
I’m aware of our audience, in the form of her Uncles and their Little girls watching us, the former with a sense of amused curiosity, the latter with something more akin to horror, as if they can’t believe their friend is being so brazen in her defiance.
Neither can I, if I’m being honest. “Little girls do not tell their Daddies ‘No’, Isabella. Do you want a spanking right here in front of everyone?”
The threat lands, just as I’d hoped, and her eyes go wide as she whips her curls back and forth. “N-no, Daddy.”
“Then let me hold your hippo, little one. You may have her back as soon as we get to our destination.”
Tears sparkle on her lashes. “You promise?”
“Cross my heart, little doll.”
Sniffling pitifully, she slowly releases her grip on the hippo, holding the large stuffed animal out for me to take it from her. I tuck it up under one arm and reach for her with my free hand. “Thank you for listening, sweet Isabella. Tell your Uncles and your friends goodbye. We’ll see them again tomorrow night.”
“Bye-bye,” she says, a hint of pink rising to her cheeks, making me wonder if she’s embarrassed by her naughty behavior or by being scolded in public. A bit of both, if I had to guess.
“Dinner is tomorrow at seven,” I tell them, gripping my Little one’s hand firmly. “Don’t be late.”
Anticipation sparkles in my friends’ eyes. “We wouldn’t dream of it. Come, Victoria. It’s naptime.”
“But Daddy, I don’t need a nap!” Victoria whines, even as Maxwell lifts her into his arms and carries her to a waiting car. Jasper does the same with Juliet, leaving me and my little doll alone on the street for the first time in hours.
Which is perfect timing for what I have planned next.
ChapterFifteen
Isabella
Just as he promised, Daddy gives my hippo back to me the second we step inside the next store. Though, I realize as I look around, clutching my new treasure to my chest, it’s not really a store. I’m not sure what it is, but the lobby is painted in soothing shades of blue and gray that instantly put me at peace. On one table in the corner, there’s a small pile of rocks in a bowl with a waterfall pouring down them. The whole thing reminds me of something, but I can’t think of exactly what.
