We managed to talk the Daddies into a sleepover, with both of us curled up on a pile of pillows and blankets we’ve made into a sort of nest on the floor. The lights are off, and Axel has already been in once to warn us in a very stern voice that it was past time for Little girls to get some sleep. That was over an hour ago and we still haven’t managed to close our eyes.
“Tori?” I ask into the darkness after one of our longer silences.
“Yeah?” Her voice is sleepy, so I should probably let her go to bed, but I still have so many questions, and she’s the only one who can answer them for me.
“How did you and Uncle Max meet?” I’ve been instructed to call her Daddy ‘Uncle Max’, which is kind of sweet. It makes us all seem like one big happy family, and while I’m not unfamiliar with big families, the “happy” is a new element altogether.
Even in the darkness, I can see her cheeks turn pink. “Um, okay, I’ll tell you but you have topromiseyou won’t judge me.”
Well, now my interest is really piqued. “Pinkie-swear.”
We hook our fingers together and she clears her throat, her cheeks glowing even more brightly than before. “I used to work for him. Not directly, but for his company. And, um, I sort of stole some money from the company.”
“Really?” Tori might have a bit of a naughty streak, but I can’t see her committing an actual crime. “Is that why he calls you his little thief?”
“Uh-huh.”
“I was wondering about that. So, what, did you like, steal the petty cash for the office Christmas party or something?”
“Umm… a bit more than that. I embezzled a million dollars.”
Shock renders me speechless for a solid thirty seconds. “Youwhat?”
“Yeah. And it turned out to be a trap Daddy set up for me, and when it worked, he told me I could either go to jail or come to the island with him to pay for my crimes, as he put it. I chose the latter, obviously.”
“He blackmailed you?”
“Technically, I guess. But it really was the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’m a very spoiled Little girl.”
There was no denying that. “Are you happy, though? Do you miss your home? Your family?”
“I don’t really have any family left,” she says quietly. “My mom passed away a few years ago and she was really all I had. Now I have my family on the island and yes, I am incredibly, deliriously happy.”
“Even though you were forced into it?”
“Yes. It sucked at first, but honestly, I can’t imagine living any other way. I mean really, what’s not to like?” Her happy giggle fills the air. “I get to live on a gorgeous tropical island, with the sexiest man in the world who pretty much never tells me no when I want something, and I never have to work or worry about bills or anything. It’s pretty freaking great.”
“But you aren’t free,” I press. “You can’t just pick up and travel somewhere on your own or make your own decisions about things. Every bit of your life is controlled by him.”
“Yes, because flying off to Paris was totally in the cards when I was drowning in medical debt,” she says dryly. “I travel more now than I could have ever imagined before him. And yeah, sometimes it chafes when I want to do something and Daddy won’t let me, but usually it’s only because he has my best interest at heart. If it’s something that’s really important to me, he finds a way to make it happen. Like bringing you the packages from Solene personally instead of sending one of his staff to do it.”
“That was your idea?”
“Uh-huh. I wanted to meet you.”
“Why?”
“Because I love Uncle Axel and he loves you.” Her tone implies it’s as simple as that.
And maybe it is.
“He doesn’t love me. He barely knows me.”
Tori lets out a snort. “Trust me, that’s never stopped any of the Daddies I know. Once they find their Little girls, they fall fast and they fall hard.”
Silence once more falls around us, and for a moment I wonder if she has actually fallen asleep on me before she reaches for me in the dark, gripping my hand and giving it a hard squeeze. “I know it’s hard, especially when you feel like you haven’t been given a choice. But I think if you let go of this ideathat you need to be ‘free’, you’ll find that Axel’s Little girl is who you were always meant to be.”
Melanie
