“No.” I sigh, making the sound extra dramatic for his benefit and behind me Tori giggles again. “There’s somany. How am I supposed to choose just one?”
The look he gives me clearly says he knows exactly what I’m doing and my tummy does a funny sort of roll. Not like it does when I’m in big trouble, but more a sense of excited anticipation.
“Why don’t we see what we can do to narrow things down a bit?” he says, plucking me off the ground and settling me on his hip as he walks toward the wall of stuffies. “Your favorite animal is a giraffe, isn’t it?”
“How did you… never mind. Daddy knows everything,” I mutter with a roll of my eyes.
“Exactly right, little one. So, a giraffe, maybe. Or perhaps something more whimsical. Tori is partial to unicorns.”
“I like unicorns. They can stab people.”
Behind us, Tori gasps and when I turn my head to look at her, she’s glaring at me with all the indignation of a toddler being told “No”. “A unicorn would never!”
“I bet they would. If it was a really mean person.”
Tilting her head to the side, she seems to consider this. “Okay, yeah, maybe if they werereallymean.”
“My bloodthirsty little kitten,” Daddy whispers with a chuckle. “I know exactly which stuffie you should get.”
Carrying me down the row, he reaches for a giant stuffed lion that’s nearly as large as I am. “A fierce protector for my fierce little kitten.”
“He’s perfect!” Even more so because Daddy picked him out for me. Taking the stuffie from him, I bury my face in his soft mane. “Thank you, Daddy.”
“You’re welcome, little one. Now, let’s go see what your friends have gotten into.”
Once all of us have picked out a brand-new toy—two for me, because when we found Juju in the aisle with all the dolls I fell head over heels in love with one that I absolutelyhadto have—the Daddies take us across the street to the ice-cream parlor. Where my Daddy proceeds to prove he is, once again, the best at spoiling Little girls when he agrees to let me have three whole toppings on my ice-cream sundae instead of the one topping the other Daddies insist on for their Littles. The resulting outcry from my friends forces their Daddies to relent and allow them two additional toppings, though it’s clear from the looks they keep sending Daddy’s way they aren’t all too happy about it.
Oh, well. Someone needs to get the sticks out of their asses, and my Daddy is clearly the man for the job.
We’re halfway through our sundaes when Daddy pulls his phone from his pocket, his lips turning down in a frown as he hits the buttons to answer the call. “Hello? Yes, Millie, it’s Mr. Hawthorne.”
Millie? From Doctor D’s office?
Silence falls over our group and worry churns in my gut as he listens to whatever Millie has to say. “I see. Does he have the medicine there or do we need to have it shipped in? All right, we’ll be over as soon as we finish our ice cream. Thank you, Millie.”
“What’s wrong? Is Nelly sick?” Tears sparkle in Tori’s eyes as she looks from her Daddy to mine. “Is she gonna be okay?”
Daddy sends her a reassuring smile before turning to me. “It’s nothing bad, kitten. Just the low iron we talked about during your appointment. Doctor D has some supplements at his office and he’s going to order us some more, as well. Nothing to be worried about, little one.”
“But I feel fine. I don’t even feel tired or anything.”
“And that’s good, but we need to make sure you stay nice and healthy and strong, so you’re going to take the supplements Doctor D prescribes.”
“But—”
“End of discussion, little girl. One more word about it and you’ll be finishing your ice cream with a sore bottom.”
I’m painfully aware of our family watching, but I can’t seem to stop myself from arguing. “That’s not fair! You can’t just tell me to shut up about my own health!”
“I’m not,” he says, his tone surprisingly patient. “I’m telling you that your health matters too much for me to argue about it with you. Doctor D says you need the supplements, so you will take the supplements. There’s nothing more to discuss.”
Hearing him say out loud how much my health means to him goes a long way toward soothing my annoyance with the situation. “What if there’s side effects? What if they make me sicker? What if?—”
“Then we’ll address those issues as they arise. For now, you are going to sit and eat your ice cream, and then we are going to walk over to Doctor D’s office and pick up your supplements.”
“Fine.”
But before I can reach for my ice cream, Daddy sighs and plucks me out of my chair. Fear races up my spine, but instead of putting me over his knee like I expect him to, he settles me on his lap, cupping my cheek in his large hand. When his eyes meet mine, the depth of emotion swirling in those dark depths takes my breath away.
