39. Chapter Thirty-Seven
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
DECCAN
T hey had been home for a couple of minutes and Daddy hadn’t let her go. Not that she was complaining. Echo loved being in his arms and really needed it right now.
She needed to feel safe.
Being in Daddy’s arms gave her that. She snuggled into his chest as he walked into the kitchen.
“Do you want a little snack?” Daddy asked.
His body was stiff as he held her. Something was wrong.
“Daddy?”
“Do you want a snackie, Little Bit?” he asked again.
“Are you all right?”
Worry bubbled inside of her. His voice was almost void of any emotion. Most of the time it was, but normally for her there some love. Made her feel special, but right now, something was wrong.
“Little Bit, I should be asking you if you’re all right. You are the one who had the gun pointed at you,” he gently said, sitting her on the countertop.
She shuddered, thinking about it. She had broken down in his arms once they got to the car. That resulted in them sitting for a long time while she cried in his arms.
“I know, but you watched it happen,” she whispered.
It had to be traumatic for him. She knew it would have been for her if it had been the other way round.
“Daddy is fine.” He clenched his jaw.
She cupped his face and leaned forward, giving him a gentle peck before leaning her forehead against his.
“Daddy,” she gently spoke. “Fine isn’t a good enough answer. What can I do? I don’t think I can be away from you, but if that’s what you need, it’s okay.”
Just thinking of Daddy being out of her sight made her chest tighten. She didn’t want to be away from him. If he was away, anything could happen.
“Little Bit, Daddy doesn’t want to be away.”
“Then what?”
“Daddy wants to take full control.”
“Okay.” She leaned back.
“Daddy wants to take care of you. Wash you, dress you, feed you, hold you,” he listed.
“Okay.”
Daddy stared at her.
“I want you to do that,” she told him.
“Are you just saying that to appease me?”
She shook her head. “No, Daddy. Truthfully, I think that’s exactly what I need. Like I said before, I don’t want to be out of your sight. I think I might panic.”
“Are you sure?” Daddy asked. “What I say goes.”
Echo nodded. “I’m sure.”
He wrapped his arms around her and held her for several seconds. She let out a sigh and melted into his embrace. She absolutely loved being in his arms, being safe and secure. Would she ever get tired of this feeling?
Probably not.
It had been years since she felt this safe. It had been years since she had been held by someone, and she didn’t think it would get old.
“Come on, let’s go get you into a bath,” Daddy said, picking her up from the counter.
Wrapping her arms around Daddy’s waist, she cuddled into his chest as he walked to the bathroom. This was the first time he was going to bathe her. It was a whole different experience. Was she ready for it?
“I can feel your heart beating against my chest, Little Bit. You aren’t ready for this,” he admitted. “That’s okay,”
“No, Daddy. I am just nervous.”
“Why?”
She shrugged and wrapped her arms around his neck, placing her face in his neck.
“Little Bit,” he warned.
“It’s just a different experience. I know you’ve seen me naked, but this is different. It feels a little more intimate, I guess,” she mumbled.
“Oh, Little Bit. Everything is going to be okay. Why don’t you take a deep breath for Daddy and slowly release it.”
She did as he said.
“Such a good girl. If this gets to be too much, you just say your safeword, okay?”
“Okay, Daddy.”
Daddy sat her on the counter and turned on the faucet. She kicked her feet back and forth as she watched Daddy pour bubbles in the tub.
“Ooo, bubbles, Daddy!” she yelled. “More! More!”
Daddy chuckled and looked at her. “No more bubbles. This is plenty.”
She pushed her bottom lip out and whined.
“No whining, Little Bit. That will land you over my knee.”
She sucked her lip back in and nodded. She didn’t want a spanking right now.
“Is your spanking hand itching?” She asked. She couldn’t help herself.
“No, Little Bit. It’s not.”
She tilted her head up a little.
“Ready to get undressed?” Daddy asked.
She nodded, but the nerves were running rampant in her stomach. This was becoming more real by the second.
“You’re okay, Little Bit.”
Echo took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “I’m okay, Daddy.”
He stepped toward her, grabbing the hem of her shirt and pulling it over her head. She giggled as Daddy blew raspberries on her stomach.
“Daddy!” she squealed.
Her shirt was off, and before she knew it, so was her bra. Daddy kissed her lips and helped her off the counter.
“Hold on to Daddy’s shoulder as I take your pants and underwear off,” he said as she placed her hands on his shoulders. “Right foot. Now left. Good girl.”
She was standing completely naked in front of Daddy, and it took everything in her not to cover herself up. She didn’t have anything to be ashamed of, but she was a bit self-conscious.
“You’re okay,” Daddy gently spoke. “Do you want to wash your hair tonight?”
“No, Daddy.” She wrinkled her nose.
Echo absolutely hated washing her hair for several reasons. Having it pink meant she had to wash it in cold water and not as often if she wanted the color to stay vibrant. But she hated washing it because it took so much time and effort. Something she didn’t have right now.
“Let’s put it up for you then,” Daddy said, grabbing all her hair and tying it up.
“How’d you do that, Daddy?” she asked, looking at him curiously.
“Xavier had a little sister. I braided her hair when she was younger and did other styles,” he explained. “Ready to get into the bath?”
She nodded, and Daddy picked her up and carefully placed her in the tub. Echo sighed and relaxed, loving the warm water surrounding her.
“Such a good girl. Just lay back and relax as Daddy washes you,” he encouraged. “You can close your eyes. Daddy will keep watch.”
And Echo did just that. Closing her eyes, she let Daddy take complete control as he gently and slowly washed her. He started with her feet, making sure to get every single toe clean before moving to her legs.
“Do you need to shave?” Daddy asked.
“No, I wax.”
It was a lifesaver. She had been nervous to do it the first time. After that, it was a dream. She didn’t have to think about shaving frequently. What a blessing.
Daddy moved up her legs, washing them before gently cleaning her stomach. She let out a breath of air she was holding and peeked at Daddy. He was concentrating on washing her, which made her relax even more. Echo wasn’t in the mood for anything spicy right now.
“You’re okay,” Daddy cooed at her. “I’ve got you.”
She hadn’t realized Daddy was looking at her with a smile. She closed her eyes once again and let everything fade away. Echo didn’t know how long she stayed like this, but it was heaven.
Daddy gently spoke to her as he cleaned her more intimate parts, but she just relaxed again, letting him clean her like he wanted to.
“Such a good girl,” he whispered. “Daddy is going to get you out now.”
She whined, not wanting to get out of the warmth the water was providing.
“I know, Little Bit, but Daddy will keep you warm. We can snuggle all you want.”
“Nakie?” she asked, looking at Daddy. “Skin to skin.”
“Of course, Little Bit.”
Daddy got her out of the tub. Kneeling on the ground, he made sure to dry her off and apply lotion all over her body.
“You take such good care of me, Daddy.” She kissed his forehead. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Little Bit. Thank you for being with me.”
Daddy picked her up and carried her to the bed, pulling back the covers and gently arranging her.
“Nakie!” She raised her voice.
Daddy lifted an eyebrow.
“Please?”
“Of course, Little Bit.” He started taking off his clothes, getting in after he was done.
She snuggled up to his side, loving the skin-to-skin as she relaxed. This is what she needed; he was exactly what she needed.
“My precious girl,” he whispered.
“I’m here, Daddy.”
He kissed her forehead and held her close. They lay in silence for several minutes, just enjoying each other's arms around each other.
“I heard some people came to check up on you while you and Levi were at the coffee shop,” Daddy gently said.
“Yeah, they did. I’ve got good friends,” she whispered.
She had amazing friends. What did she do to deserve them? Nothing.
“I told them.” She closed her eyes tightly.
“Told them what?” Daddy ran his hand up and down her back.
It was like he knew she was getting nervous. Why? She didn’t know. Echo had already told her friends she didn’t like being touched; she couldn’t handle it.
“That I don’t like to be touched. That my skin crawls, and it wasn't you just making up a silly rule.”
Daddy kissed her forehead. “I am so proud of you for telling them. So proud. I know that took a lot of courage.”
“It did, but I’m glad I’ve told them.” She nuzzled her face into his chest. “Can…can I ask a question?”
“Of course, Little Bit.”
“Can I go play with them soon? I used to do it quite frequently, but then everything has been going on. I’ve missed them.”
“I need to keep an eye on you. I don’t think I like you being out of sight for a while. Not after everything.”
“You can come with me,” she suggested. “Lots of Daddies do that.”
His arms tightened around her. “We’ll see.”
“Echo! You made it!” Monroe yelled. “Come sit!”
Her whole body relaxed as she walked over to them. To say she was nervous was an understatement. She hadn't seen them for several days. Daddy didn’t want her away from him. After the second day, she demanded to go hang out with her friends.
Echo looked back to see Daddy sitting on a chair; his eyes trained on her. Giving her a small smile, he nodded. Reassuring her that he was staying there the whole time and wouldn’t look away.
She was nervous about being away from him. It seemed like every single time she left him, something bad happened. Or at least, the last two times it had.
“Come sit!” Monroe patted the spot next to her enthusiastically. “Come on!”
Echo sat, and Tucker handed her a piece of paper. There was a koala on it, which made her smile.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
Grabbing a pink crayon, she started to color the fur.
“How are you?” Hedda asked, looking up from her drawing. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything is good now. He doesn’t want me out of his sight, and I don’t particularly want him out of mine either,” Echo explained.
Daddy really hadn’t wanted her out of his sight. So much so that every single time she needed to go to the bathroom, he went with her. While they were at the clubhouse, he threatened to put her in a diaper so he could talk with his men.
She had told him no. She didn’t want to wear a diaper. She had gotten him not to go with her when they were at the clubhouse since his men were there. It put him at ease, but if she took longer than a couple of minutes, he came after her.
One time, Echo had stopped to talk to someone and had taken too long. Daddy had stormed out of his office, calling out her name. Echo felt terrible after it happened. She had completely forgotten what she was doing.
“My Daddies didn’t want me out of their sight either,” Hedda said. “But mine was a little different. I wasn’t taking care of myself.”
“Daddy didn’t want me out of his sight. Kind of got hard to do things,” Monroe chimed in.
“It is, but it feels nice sometimes. Knowing that he is there for me. Someone wanting me,” Echo trailed off. “Anyway. I had a couple of people after me from my past. He took care of them. He’s just a little on edge in case something happens.”
Echo owed them an explanation. Especially since they were at the coffee shop several minutes before it had happened. Everyone around town had heard about it and people were talking. She couldn’t walk down the street without people looking at her.
Though, from what she heard, it wasn’t anything bad about her. More so, it was concerns about her or just people saying that she had been held at gunpoint. Which made Echo feel better.
“I’m glad you are okay now.” Hedda looked up from her picture. “It’s nice to finally feel safe, right?”
Echo nodded and went back to coloring. It was nice to feel safe again, not have to look over her shoulder all the time. She still did it sometimes, but it had been happening less and less.
All thanks to Daddy.
Looking up, she made eye contact with Daddy before looking at Elsha. She had been quiet the whole time when she usually said at least one thing. But as she looked at Elsha, she realized Elsha was looking at someone.
Dominic .
He was walking up to the bar, Elsha’s eyes following him the whole time.
“When are you going to talk to him?” Echo asked. “Elsha?”
Her gaze snapped to her. “Who?”
“You know who.” Echo gave her a knowing look. “Dominic.”
Elsha shook her head. “Never.”
“And why not?” Tucker asked. “I think you two would make a cute couple.”
“We can’t. It’s nothing. There will be nothing.” Elsha looked down.
Echo hummed. “I don’t think it’s nothing. The way you look at him and the way he looks at you.”
Yeah, Dominic was definitely interested in her.
“He’s not looking at me. Nothing is going to happen. It can’t,” Elsha sighed.
“And why not?” Monroe asked.
“I can’t. Just…there is nothing that can happen.”
Which Echo thought was odd, but she didn’t push it any further.
“Little Bit, time to go.” Daddy was standing in front of her.
When did he get there? She hadn’t heard him move. Sometimes, she thought he was a ballerina, light on his feet. Other times, she thought he was an elephant. There was no in-between.
“Already?” she whined.
“Daddy has to go do something, and I need you safely in the clubhouse while I do it.”
“But—”
“Please, Echo. It will give Daddy peace of mind.”
Echo sighed. “Okay. I’ll see you guys later.”
Daddy took hold of her hand, leading her out of the club.