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“Because I’m extremely handsome, and you just can’t stop looking at me?” he teases.

“Yes, but it also feels like a tiny little weight is being lifted off my shoulders knowing he’s being watched and we know who it is,” I gently say.

“Do you think he just wanted his highchair sooner?” Daddy asks.

I look forward, giving my neck a break, and I relax into Daddy’s embrace. “I don’t know, and I don’t really want to think about him. He makes my chest all tingly and my heart rate speeds up, but not in a good way.”

“We can’t have that,” Daddy says and stands up. “Why don’t we go downstairs, and you can explore while I work on a different project?”

I turn to look at him. “You’ll really let me explore now?”

He nods. “Of course, Little Pet. I did tell you when it was just us two that I would allow you to.”

“I just never thought that it was actually going to happen. So much was going on. It always seemed like you were meeting customers, so I didn’t think that I would ever be able to do it,” I mumble.

And now I sound completely stupid. Daddy had promised me, and so far, he’s never broken his promise, so I don’t know why I thought it would never happen.

“It’s okay, Little Pet,” Daddy gently says. “I know I’ve been keeping it away from you because of the customers and not having it properly cleaned, but I want you to know that I am serious about it. When I promise you something, I am not going to go back on it.”

Daddy sets me down on the ground, and I look around. Everything is so much taller than me, and it feels a little daunting when I think about it. One wrong move and I could touch something, and it could topple on top of me. Or what if there’s an earthquake and things fall on me?

“Do you have earthquakes?” I ask.

Daddy gives me a puzzled look. “No. Why are you asking?”

“Apparently, on Earth there were earthquakes. I was just worried that if we had one, something would happen to me if something fell on top of me,” I try to explain.

Daddy squats down and places his thumb under my chin. “There are no earthquakes. Daddy would never allow anything bad to happen to you. You are far too precious for me. I’ve made sure that everything is being held down, so if you accidentally hit it, nothing will happen.”

My shoulders drop, and I smile up at him. Another thing I don’t have to worry about. I thought I would have so much to be worried about when I came to Venkoria, but Daddy has taken control of everything and made sure my worries are minimal.

“Go on. You don’t have to stay right next to me the whole time. You can wander around and look at the store. If anything catches your eye, you can let me know, and I’ll create one for you,” Daddy says.

Worry sits in the pit of my stomach as I think about looking around without him being right next to me. Sure, I was excited about exploring because I finally could, but knowing that Daddy is going to be working, and I’m going to be all on my own gives me anxiety.

“It’s ok, Little Pet. All the doors are locked, and you’ll be able to see me no matter where you go. It’s okay. You can start off small by maybe being a foot away from me while I paint a couple of things. Then you can go a little further out. Don’t think, just do,” Daddy encourages me.

Taking a deep breath, I nod and turn my body away from him. That’s the first step: him not being in my sight and me having to be okay with it. But I clench my hands as anxiety courses through me.

“I can do this,” I whisper.

“Daddy’s going to be right here the whole time. Any time you want to take a look at me, you can. And if you think I’ll help, I can tie a string to my wrist. It can be really long, so you can explore without having to worry about being too far away from me,” Daddy suggests.

Wringing my hands together, I shake my head. “I’m okay. I’m not going to go far today. Maybe just two foots, and that’ll be enough.” I giggle. “Foots.”

“Absolutely adorable,” Daddy mutters. “You do what you can, but no doing anything naughty. Unless you want a hot bottom.”

“Nope!” I quickly say. “No hot bottom for me.”

Daddy starts painting the small piece of furniture while I turn around and look. I’m not one hundred percent sure I want to go away from him too much.

Excitement and anxiety are fighting within me, trying to battle out who’s going to win and whether I’m going to go explore or not. But ultimately, anxiety wins, and I sit two feet away from Daddy, looking around.

“How are you doing, Little Pet?” Daddy asks.

“Okay,” I say sadly.

“Do you want to come help Daddy paint?”