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“See?” Daddy tucks a lock of hair behind my ear. “We never needed you to be anything other than who you were, angel. And we never will.”

“Promise?”

“We promise,” Mommy assures me. “If you never get in trouble again or if you’re naughty every single day. No matter what happens, we will always love you, our sweet angel.”

Their words seal together the cracks in my heart that have been there so long I didn’t even realize they needed to be healed. “I guess I sorta made a mess of things, huh?”

Mommy winks. “A little bit. But nothing a proper apology won’t fix.”

I turn to look at Solene, who’s watching me with a guarded expression. Hopping down from Daddy’s lap, I cross the room and take her hands, relieved when she doesn’t immediately yank them away. “I’m really, really sorry I lied and got you in so much trouble. I was scared, but that’s no excuse for my behavior. Do you think there’s any way you can forgive me?”

“Of course I forgive you, silly. You’re my bestest friend in the whole world.”

Throwing my arms around her, I cling tight to my friend as I try not to sob. “I’m really so sorry.” With my arms still wrapped around Solene, I peek at Ms. Myra. “I’m sorry I lied, Ms. Myra.”

A soft smile curves her lips. “I really think at this point you should be calling me Auntie Myra. And I forgive you, sweet girl.”

“You shouldn’t. I was horrible and I got Solene in so much trouble.”

“Luckily for my little elf, she has a Mommy who knows how to tell when something isn’t right. After you all left, we sat down to talk and even though she wouldn’t tell me exactly what happened, I was able to piece together enough information to know that something was up with you. Which is why I called your Uncle Max to have him check in with your Mommy and Daddy.”

“Thank you, Myra,” Mommy says. “We appreciate you, so very much.”

“Of course. It’s what we do on the island. We look out for each other.” Miss—Auntie Myra hesitates, looking a bit uncertain before she drags in a breath and continues. “And I would not be doing my job as Kerry’s auntie if I didn’t point out that she is going to keep feeling guilty about what happened back at the shop if she isn’t properly punished for her lies. Isn’t that right, little one?”

Several sets of eyes swing toward me and I gulp loudly. The absolute last thing I want right now when my bottom is still so sore is another spanking.

But Auntie Myra is right. And keeping secrets from Mommy and Daddy is how I got in this mess in the first place.

So I gather my courage and force myself to nod in agreement.

“Yes, Auntie. I… I need to be punished. Please?”

Chapter Thirteen

Celeste

My heart breaks at how sad my sweet Little girl looks as she asks for a punishment. There is a not insignificant part of me that wants to whisk her back to her nursery and spoil her rotten until she never again doubts the love that her Daddy and I have for her.

But I know as well as anyone that’s not how Little girls work. Even if I could get past Graham—which I doubt—I know in my heart that Kerry will never be able to forgive herself until her slate has been cleaned.

And if that means putting her over my knee for a long, painful spanking then that’s what I’ll do.

“If I may,” Dr. Ashcroft interrupts, rising from his seat. “I’m not entirely sure a spanking is going to fix any of the underlying issues. At least not on its own.”

“What do you have in mind?” Graham asks, and it doesn’t escape my notice that he moves closer to our babygirl, as if he’s determined to protect her from anyone who might wish to cause her harm.

I’ve never loved him more.

“Kerry’s issues seem to stem from a deep-seated belief that she’s not worthy of love. In her mind, she had to change who she was to find a Mommy and Daddy, and it’s going to take some very strong reinforcement to help her believe otherwise. With my own Little girl, I found that repeating positive phrases during a spanking helped a lot. She may not have always believed them at first, but over time they sank in and became a part of her internal thought processes.”

The way he speaks of his Little girl in the past tense makes my chest ache, but when I glance over at Maxwell, my friend shakes his head just enough to let me know not to ask.

“What kind of phrases would you suggest?” Graham asks, distracting me from my curiosity over Dr. Ashcroft.

“For this, I would suggest something you love about Kerry. It can be something as simple and surface-level as the way she laughs or it can be deeper than that. And since we are repairing multiple relationships, I would recommend five paddle swats per person, with each person giving her one phrase to repeat.”

“Daddy, not the paddle! I’ll be good forever, I swear!”