Chapter 8
CHAPTER 8
EMILEE
T wenty minutes ago, she was over his lap getting her bare ass spanked. Now, she stood, leaning on the counter, coloring a picture while Arrow removed a pan of dinosaur chicken nuggets from the oven. Turning, he put the sheet pan on the top of the stove and motioned for her to sit down at the table. She shook her head no. Her butt didn’t hurt too much standing but she didn’t want to know what it felt like to sit.
“Sit down at the table, Kitten. I’ll bring you a plate.”
“Nuh-uh. I’d rather stand.”
“I wasn’t asking.” He raised an eyebrow in warning. Sighing, she moved over to the table, pulled out the wooden chair, and sat begrudgingly. Shifting from side to side, she realized it didn’t hurt too bad.
“I went easy on you,” he said, as if he could read her mind. She rolled her eyes. “Kitten, unless you want another taste of Daddy’s discipline, I’d refrain from rolling those beautiful eyes.”
“Yes, Daddy.”
He moved quickly, plating dinosaur nuggets on two plates alongside sliced cucumbers, green grapes and cheese puffs. “Would you like some ketchup?” he asked.
“Yes! And do you have dressing for the cucumbers?”
“I do.” He set the requested condiments down in front of her along with a glass of cold milk.
“Nope.” She shook her head at him.
“Nope, what exactly?”
She pushed the cup of milk away from her. “I don’t do milk.”
“You mean you don’t drink milk?”
“Right. That. Nope. Don’t like it.” She crinkled up her nose and scowled at him.
“Do you not like milk or is it something else? An allergy? Lactose intolerant?”
“No. It just tastes gross.”
Arrow frowned at her and pushed the glass back towards her. “Sometimes, a little girl will be required to try foods they might think tastes gross. Listening and following Daddy’s instructions are important, because Daddy only wants what is best for you. Now, if you really don’t like milk, maybe, I can put something in it to make it taste better.”
“Like chocolate syrup?” she looked up at him hopefully.
“Yes, like chocolate syrup. Take one drink and I will go get the chocolate syrup from the fridge. Kittens are supposed to like milk.”
“Silly Daddy, I’s a human not a kitten.” Whoa. Where did that come from? Her little had never felt safe to come out outside of The Citadel.
“You are my little kitten,” he said, bending and dropping a kiss on her forehead. He went to the fridge and grabbed the chocolate syrup and brought it over to the table. “Take a drink.”
After she obeyed, she made a face showing her disgust. He squirted some chocolate syrup into the glass and stirred it up before bending over her plate. He picked up the fork and started cutting her food into bite-size pieces.
Emilee gasped. “Daddy! You just beheaded my dino nugget!”
“I sure did. I’m sorry, Kitten. Let me get you a fresh dino nugget.” He snatched the dinosaur halves off of her plate and popped them into his mouth. “There, the evidence is all gone. Now you don’t have to see such a horrific thing.”
“Silly, Daddy.” He smiled warmly and sat down beside her.
Emilee devoured her food in a matter of seconds. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was. She’d gone to The Rusty Crab for lunch. The soup of the day was broccoli cheddar, her favorite. She’d been looking forward to a large bowl of it all morning. Delilah set the steaming bowl in front of her and her mouth watered, but before she had a chance to eat, Officer Mills slid into the booth across from her.
“Mind if I join you?” he’d asked, his voice low and calm. Emilee's spoon clattered against the bowl as she froze. The memory of that encounter sent a chill down Emilee's spine.
“I think we need to have a little chat,” he continued smoothly, leaning in. “About keeping certain matters to ourselves.”
Emilee's eyes darted around the crowded diner, but no one was paying them any attention.
“You know, if you told anyone about your... accident,” Mills said, “I'm quite certain they wouldn't believe you. After all, who would take the word of someone like you, a drug addict, over a respected and decorated Grand Ridge officer?”
He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. “And if you opened that pretty little mouth of yours, well... I'd make sure it was the last time. Who would question if an addict overdosed?”
Emilee's hands trembled in her lap as Mills leaned even closer.
“It would be a shame if your new friend Arrow found out about your past. About your arrest record. Not to mention what happened to your family. All those gory details... What kind of man would want to be with a woman with no family, no friends and a rap sheet?”
“Is everything okay here?” Delilah stood next to the booth, Corky standing next to her.
“Do you need assistance, Emilee?” Corky asked.
Mills stood up abruptly. “Enjoy your soup,” he said loudly, his threatening demeanor vanishing in an instant. He turned and walked out of the diner without looking back.
“Emilee? Hey, are you okay?”
Arrow's concerned voice snapped Emilee back to the present. She blinked rapidly, realizing she had been staring blankly at her plate.
“What? Oh, yeah. I'm fine,” she lied, forcing a smile. “Just thinking about work.”
Arrow studied her face, his brow furrowed with worry, Emilee knew he wasn't buying it. And she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep her secrets - or her sanity - intact.
“You aren’t lying to me, are you, Kitten? A second spanking in a short amount of time would make me believe you weren’t taking Daddy’s warnings seriously.”
“No. I mean, yes. I mean, I don’t know.” Emilee bit her bottom lip. “This is still very new and I don’t want to scare you away.”
“Emilee, I’ve been to combat and back multiple times. There’s nothing you are going to say that could scare me away.”
“But… what if I…”
“What if you what?” He put his fork down and stood up. Taking her by the hand, he pulled her up and into his arms.
“What if I did something wrong in my past? Something bad?”
“Emilee, I know about your past.”
“Wait? What?” What did he mean he knew about her past? How much did he know? Did he know about her family? What about her addiction did he know? Did he know she’d stolen from the people she loved to get her next hit? How about the number of times she’d bartered sex in exchange for drugs? Did he know how immoral she’d been? Surely not, or he wouldn’t want to be her Daddy.
“The other night, when you came here for the first time, I called Dax and asked about your background. You were a stranger staying in my house. Assuming since you were a member at The Citadel, you didn’t have any felony convictions, but needed to know you were safe.”
“So, you know?” Her heart sank to her stomach like a rock thrown in the lake.
“Know that you’ve had it unfair? Absolutely. Known that you’ve made a few poor decisions? Who hasn’t? God knows I’ve done my share of stupid things in my life. We all make mistakes. You learn more from a mistake than you do from a victory, Kitten,” he reassured her.
He didn’t mention her parents’ deaths. Did he know about that? About her sister? She shuddered in his arms thinking about it.
“I’ve got you, baby.”
“What?”
“I’ve got you. In the moments when you are shaking in fear, Daddy’s got you. When you squeeze your eyes closed, afraid of what is on the other side, I’ve got you.” He squeezed her chin, applying just a slight amount of pressure. “I’ll help you get the courage to open them again. I’ve got you in your joy, in your sadness. When you feel you are going to break into pieces, I’ll hold you together. When you feel you are about to fall, I’ll keep you up. I’m not letting you go, Kitten. I’m never letting you go.”
“But, I’m already broken.” She said the words in a whisper. He let go of her chin and took a step back as if she’d slapped him.
“Stay here,” he commanded, lifting her up and sitting her on the counter, before turning and walking around the to the other side. Had she finally done it? Said the words that pushed him away? She hadn’t lied to him. She was already broken. Broken beyond repair. How do you put shattered pieces of glass back together?
Arrow picked up the new crayons he’d gifted her. He opened the box and started tearing the paper off each one.
“Daddy! My new crayons! Stop!” He raised an eyebrow at her but continued. She watched as the paper identifying the blue crayon fell to the ground. He held it up to her, now bare of its wrapper.
“What color is this, Kitten?”
“Blue.”
“Now,” he paused and looked her in the eyes as he broke it in half.
“Daddy!!”
“Do you think it will still color?”
“Y-y-es,” she stuttered, emotion deep in her throat. “But it’s not as pretty…” she wasn’t willing to give into his lesson yet.
She watched in terror as he broke up the rest of the crayons in the pack, some into multiple pieces. Then, he opened the cabinet next to the stove and grabbed a silicone muffin pan. He put the broken crayons in each spot, mixing up the colors. He moved around her, stopping to drop a kiss on her forehead, before turning on the oven.
“Are you making crayon muffins?” she asked, perplexed.
“Wait and see.” He popped the muffin tin in the oven and lifted her off the counter. Taking her by the hand, he led her back into the living room. He sat on the couch before pulling her down onto his lap. “We can talk this through tonight as adults, or you can be my little girl and let Daddy take care of you. It’s up to you. If you want to let it all go for the evening and just spend time in your little space, I’d love to give you a mental reprieve. I’m here for you if adult Emilee needs to talk. Either way, it’s your choice and I will be happy to be either for you.”
It took her about one second to decide. “I’s want to be your little kitten.”
He dropped a sweet, tender kiss on the top of her head. “Let’s get you ready for bed and then Daddy will read you a story or two.”