“Good girl. Thank you for being honest with me. Daddy is very proud of you.”
“Really?” Seemingly forgetting her recent punishment, her entire face lights with joy so bright it makes my chest ache.
“Of course, baby. Let’s get your diaper back on and we can go do some shopping.”
Her nose wrinkles, but she doesn’t argue as I lay her out on the bench and wrap her up in the diaper. But as I’m helping her to her feet and wiping the evidence of her tears from her cheeks, worry creeps into her beautiful eyes.
“We can really go look at the clothes? You promise you don’t mind?”
It's then that I realize she wasn’t holding back from telling me out of stubbornness. Someone, somewhere, clearly made her feel unsafe expressing her wants, maybe even her needs.
If I ever find that person, I will rip their still beating heart from their chest for daring to hurt my babygirl.
For now, however, I’ll have to settle for giving her everything her sweet Little heart desires. “We can do more than look, baby. Come on.”
As we cross the lobby, I can feel her excitement growing. And when we step into the shop, she lets out a soft, dreamy sigh. “Everything is sopretty.”
I can’t disagree. All around the store hang Solene’s creations. Some are like the dress my Little one is already wearing, fluffy and rather impractical for day-to-day life, while there are other, more subdued options that are just as cute if not quite as… elaborate.
But watching Tabby drift from rack to rack, running her hands gently over the layers of silk and tulle, I know without a doubt that no matter how ridiculously impractical her choices end up being, I won’t be able to deny her a single thing she asks for.
A woman dressed in one of the more subdued designs steps out of the back room, her dark hair hanging in dozens of thin braids around her beaming face. “Hello! Welcome to Solene’s. I’m Jade. Are we just browsing, or…?”
“No, we’re definitely buying.”
Spinning away from the dress she’s currently drooling over, Tabby stares at me. “What? No, absolutely not. I just wanted tolook.”
“And Daddy wants to buy. So who do you think is going to win this battle, little one?”
Her twin braids fly as she shakes her head. “They’re way too expensive. I can’t own anything this nice.”
“Most of the pieces aren’t any more expensive than what you’re wearing,” Jade interjects, clearly eager to help.
But her assurances have the opposite effect. Staring down at her dress, Tabby inhales sharply and shakes her head. It takes me a moment to realize she’s having another panic attack.
Fuck.
Crossing the room in three strides, I scoop her up in my arms and carry her to one of the plush armchairs situated around the store. While she struggles for breath, I place my hand over her heart and press. It’s a move Ford taught all of us years ago, when Gray’s nightmares were at their peak.
“Breathe with Daddy, little one.” I deliberately inhale deeply through my nose, waiting for her to mimic me, and I hold the breath for a count of four before blowing it out through my mouth. “And out, slowly. Good girl.”
Glancing up at Jade, whose expression has turned distressed, I offer up a reassuring smile. “Do you have any bottled water?”
“Oh, yes.” Some of the color rushes back to her cheeks. “Yes, I’ll be right back.”
As Jade hurries off, I refocus on my babygirl. “Another breath, baby. You’re doing such a good job for Daddy.”
It takes several of those breaths for her heart to stop hammering beneath my palm, and by then Jade has returned with the requested water. Taking the bottle from her, I twist the top off and lift the plastic lip to Tabby’s mouth. “Drink.”
She obeys, sipping eagerly at the frigid liquid before I pull the bottle away and press a kiss to her hair. “There we go. Feeling better, little firecracker?”
“Yes.” Red floods her cheeks as she drops her gaze to her lap. “I’m sorry, I’m such an idiot, freaking out like that over clothes.”
“You are not an idiot, and if I ever hear you talking negatively about yourself again I will wash those filthy lies right out of your mouth before I spank your bottom red. Do you understand me, little girl?”
Silence stretches between us, with Tabby pressing her lips together, stubbornly refusing to acknowledge my threat.
It’s Jade who breaks the tension. “I’d listen to him,” she whispers. “He sounds like he means business.”
