Mommy. I choke on a sob, my heart shattering in my chest as the closet door opens and closes again behind her.
“Mia, baby, I know you’re in here. Come on out, babygirl, Mommy just wants to talk to you.”
Talk. Right. Talk about how there isn’t any room for me in their perfect marriage.
Well, I don’t want to talk to them, so they’ll just have to deal with it.
“Mia.” There’s more steel now in Sloane’s voice, and I have to clench my core against the sudden rush of need between my thighs. “Mommy is going to count to three. If you do not show yourself by then, you will be a very sorry Little girl indeed. One.”
Shit, shit, shit. I don’t want to talk to them, but I also don’t want to be in trouble. And really, it isn’tfairfor them to punish me if they’re just planning to get rid of me!
“Two.” A pause, and then a heavy sigh. “I really don’t want to punish you, babygirl. Please come out and talk to me.”
“You’re gonna spank me anyway!” The words burst out of me before I have a chance to even think about them, and I silently curse myself for giving away my position.
“Daddy will probably spank you for that tantrum you threw downstairs, but right now Mommy just wants to talk to you, baby.”
“Why?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why do you wanna talk to me when you’re just gonna get rid of me?”
“Oh, baby.” Light pierces my eyes as the pile of clothes is lifted off me. And then I’m in her arms, being cradled against her chest as she carries me to the pretty canopy bed in the playroom. Perched on the edge of the bed, she holds me so I’m straddling her thighs, forced to look her in the eye. “Why on earth would you think we want to get rid of you?”
Tears blur my vision. “Because you’re so happy now. And you deserve to be happy. But I guess I thought… well, Ithoughtyou wanted me to be part of your family. And I know you don’t, not really, but?—”
“Stop right there, little girl.” Righteous anger blazes in Sloane’s dark eyes, whips through her voice. “I don’t know how this got so twisted in your head, but we are afamily. Nobody is getting rid of anyone.”
It takes a moment for her words to truly register. “But… you’re so happy.”
A slow smile curves her lips. “Of course we are, baby. We’re happy because you’re here and our little family is finally whole.”
“Oh.”
“Uh-huh.” Lips twitching, she reaches up to tuck a lock of hair behind my ear. “So I don’t want to hear anymore nonsense about us getting rid of you. I’m your Mommy and Ethan is your Daddy and that’s how it’s going to be for the rest of our lives. Understood?”
The relief I feel is so stark it might have sent me to my knees if I wasn’t already on them. “Yes, Mommy.”
“Good girl. Now, I think a certain Little girl owes her Daddy a big apology, don’t you?”
Shame heats my cheeks as I nod. “Yes, Mommy.”
“Come on. Let’s go downstairs.”
Hand in hand, we make our way down to the kitchen. Daddy has already set the table and put the spaghetti—with mini meatballs, my favorite, I realize with a twinge of guilt—out for us to eat. When Mommy and I step into the kitchen, he looks over, a frown tugging at his lips.
“Are you done with your temper tantrum, little girl?”
“Yes, Daddy. Um, I’m really sorry I threw a fit. And for kicking you. I was just…”
Mommy squeezes my hand. “She was scared because she thought we were going to get rid of her.”
For the second time that evening, Daddy’s mouth falls open in shock. “Why the hell would you think that?”
“Because you’re so much happier now and I thought… I thought if you were that happy, you wouldn't need me anymore.”
Sighing, Daddy shakes his head and scoops me up into his arms. “That could not be further from the truth, angel.”
