She shook her head. He handed her phone to her and she typed into it.
“You didn’t. I deserved all of that.”
“You were shaking.”
“I just really needed a hug afterward.”
“Fuck. Sorry, baby. Let me give that to you now. You can have all the hugs you want.” He held her tight, just like she needed, until she was able to settle down and the shaking stopped. Then he fixed her onesie for her.
“That’s my good girl. You handled that so well. I’m so impressed with you. You’re such a brave, clever girl.”
“Does that mean I get a sticker?” she asked using the phone.
“Not sure you should get a sticker for being brave during a punishment,” he said. “But I do think you get a couple of stickers for being super brave when Hack was checking your throat.”
She clapped her hands. How exciting!
Cash got out the sticker chart and placed two stickers on it. Then he hugged her again and gave her a kiss on the head.
“How about we do something fun now? Would you like that?”
She nodded with a smile.
“What shall we do first? Does my girl want to make some squishies?”
Addie nodded enthusiastically.
Oh, yes. Squishy-making time.
42
Cash paused as he walked into the bedroom.
How long had he been gone? He could swear it had only been ten minutes, long enough to warm up some soup and make some sandwiches with soft bread and the crusts cut off. But as he walked back into the bedroom, it felt like he must have been gone for hours.
Because when he’d left, she’d been sitting on a plastic mat he’d placed on the floor, happily playing with a squishy they’d made.
And now she was completely covered in slime and glitter. As she stared up at him, her lower lip started to tremble, and worry flooded him. He set down the tray of food on the bed and rushed over to her.
“Oh, baby. What happened?” he asked. “Did it explode on you or something?
She nodded. “S-sorry.”
“It’s all right. You’re okay. It’s just a bit of slime and mess. There’s nothing to get all upset about.”
Her reaction seemed a bit over the top, and he couldn’t work out why. Was she scared that he was going to get mad?
She pointed at her onesie, where there were patches of slime.
“Are you upset because your onesie got all dirty?” he asked. “We’ll just stick it in the wash.”
She sniffled as tears dripped down her face. And, ignoring the mess, he sat and picked her up, putting her on his lap and holding her in his arms.
Poor baby was trembling.
“It’s all right. You’re okay. We’re going to get you changed and all cleaned up. I’ll wash the onesie. Nothing’s the matter. Nothing’s wrong. Addie’s fine. Addie is a good girl.”
He held her until she stopped shaking, and then he stood with her in his arms and carried her into the bathroom, setting her down on the counter. He turned on the shower since some of the slime seemed to have gotten into her hair.
