Chapter 2
Holden
Y es, Daddy .
God, he’d waited so long to hear her say those two little words again. But the joy of having her call him Daddy was mingled with the fear and worry of seeing her looking so small and lost in that damn hospital bed. The sooner they got her home where she could properly rest, the better.
First things first, however, she needed to eat. It hadn’t escaped his notice how she’d balked at the idea of ordering breakfast, but he’d be damned if she starved herself on his watch.
“Did you figure out what you want for breakfast, baby?” he asked, picking up the menu that had slipped from her hands during her conversation with Sandra. “That oatmeal the nurse was talking about sounded good.”
Frankie’s nose crinkled. “I think I’ll just get the eggs.”
“You need more than just eggs, Francesca.”
Pink blossomed on her cheeks. But he didn’t feel the usual rush of pleasure her adorable blushes brought him. Because now the color only highlighted the sharp angles of her too-hollow cheekbones.
How the fuck did I miss this?
Setting aside his own frustration with himself, he scanned the menu. “What about yogurt? You like yogurt. With some granola and fruit, maybe.”
“I only like some yogurt and I don’t know what kind they have here.”
That was the first he’d heard from her that she only liked certain kinds, but then, they hadn’t spent very much time together before she’d cut him out of her life. Which was another discussion they needed to have.
Later. When she was feeling better.
“They have a few different muffin options. What about blueberry?”
Lifting her head, she jerked her chin up, and damn if it wasn’t a relief to see her usual bratty fire in her eyes. “I already said I just want some eggs. I don’t need anything else.”
Stubborn little brat. But eggs were better than nothing, and the last thing he wanted was to get her so worked up she refused to eat at all. “Eggs it is.” Dropping the menu back into her lap, he leaned in, dropping his voice to a low growl. “But just so you know, little girl, this isn’t going to fly when we get home. You will eat, or you will have a very disappointed Daddy to contend with. Am I clear, Francesca?”
“Yes, Daddy.” Unlike before, when she’d said those words with a sigh of relief, now her voice trembled ever so slightly.
Good. He didn’t want her terrified of him, but a little apprehension went a long way with his babygirl.
“Good girl. Let’s order those eggs and then I’m going to see where the hell your doctor is.”
Frankie
Staring down at the tray in front of her, Frankie willed herself to just pick up her fork. Pick up the fork, eat the damn eggs. One bite. All she needed was one bite, and then the rest would come more easily.
For fuck’s sake, they were just eggs. One of the few foods she usually had no problem eating because they were basically nothing but pure protein.
Eggs aren’t the enemy. Eggs won’t make you fat.
No. No, that wasn’t right. That wasn’t what she’d been taught. And the whole reason she was in this fucking bed in the first place was because she’d strayed so far from the things that had helped her heal the first time around.
Food is not the enemy. My body is worth nourishing.
“Food is not the enemy,” she murmured, reaching for the fork still lying on her tray.
“What’s that, little siren?” From his spot in the chair beside the bed, Holden looked up from his phone, a slight frown tugging at his lips.
“Nothing. Just talking to myself.” Shit. Now that he was watching her, she’d have to eat the damn eggs. If she didn’t take a bite soon, he’d realize something was up and then she’d never hear the end of it.
Taking a deep breath, she scooped a small bite of egg up onto the fork and brought it to her mouth.
Food is not the enemy. Food is not the enemy. Food is not the enemy.
The eggs were a bit bland, but they slid down easily, a fact she was thankful for. She waited a moment, and when her stomach didn’t immediately rebel, she scooped up another small forkful.
A knock drew her attention to the large wooden door to her room, and a moment later it eased open. The woman who stepped inside wore her dark hair up in a sleek twist, and a surprisingly bright smile that actually reached her bright blue eyes. In Frankie’s experience, hospital doctors tended to look either bored or frazzled or some strange combination of the two.
Even more surprising was the fact that Holden rose to his feet the moment she stepped inside. “Dr. Winters. Thank you for coming.”
Thank you for coming? What the hell was going on?
“Of course. It was lucky for you I have admitting privileges at this particular hospital and I was able to pull a few strings to get Francesca here placed under my care.” Shifting her attention away from Holden, her gaze raked over Frankie, leaving her with the distinct impression she was being examined without the woman ever laying a finger on her. “So, Miss Francesca. I’ve gone over your file, but I’d like to hear the story from you, personally.”
“Frankie. Everyone calls me Frankie. And, um.” Frankie’s gaze slid over to Holden, then back to Dr. Winters. “There’s not much to tell, really. I guess I just had too much to drink.”
Frowning, Dr. Winters looked down at her tablet, tapping the screen a few times before looking up again. “Frankie, do I have your consent to continue with Mr. Prescott in the room or would you prefer to have him wait outside?”
Part of her wanted Holden to leave. If he ever found out how weak she really was, he’d never want to have anything to do with her.
But if she asked him to go, that would tip him off that she wasn’t being entirely honest with him. And if he got even a whiff of her keeping secrets, he’d really go full Daddy on her.
Besides all that, there was the small, weak part of her that simply wanted him nearby.
“No. He can stay. I don't have anything to hide.”
Dr. Winters raised a brow but didn’t argue. “All right. Well, then I suppose my next question is, why are you lying to me?”
“Excuse me?” Doing her best to mask her sudden panic with righteous anger, Frankie pinned her with a glare that would have done Delphine Legare proud. “Who the hell do you think you are, accusing me of lying?”
“Francesca.”
Uh-oh. Holden was using his Daddy voice again, and when she snuck a look in his direction, he was frowning at her.
“Dr. Winters is here to help. I expect you to treat her with respect and give her your full cooperation.”
“But who is she, anyway? How do you two know each other?”
“I can answer that.” Dr. Winters’ smile returned, at least a bit. “I run a private practice that caters to a certain level of clientele. Mr. Prescott here happens to be one of my regulars, and he called me to ask if I would come examine you. He said he’d feel better knowing you were being cared for by someone he trusts.”
Despite her worry over her secrets being outed in front of him, her heart swelled in her chest at the knowledge that Holden had gone out of his way to get her the best care possible. “Oh. Um, thanks Holden.”
“No thanks necessary. I take care of what’s mine.”
Heat flooded her body, not just at his words but the fierce expression on his face when he said them. Across the room, Dr. Winters coughed slightly, and Frankie got the distinct impression she was trying not to grin.
“Now that we’ve gotten that sorted out,” Dr. Winters said dryly, cocking an eyebrow in an almost perfect imitation of the look Holden had given her so many times. “Care to tell me the real truth about what happened last night, Frankie?”
Looking down, Frankie picked at her blanket for a long minute. “There’s a lot I don’t really want to go into right now, but basically I just fell back into some bad habits I had before. I guess it was worse than I realized.” Tears blurred her vision as she looked up at Holden. “I’ll be better. I have a handle on it now, I promise.”
“Oh, baby.” Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her close, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I really thought I had control over it this time. I’m sorry.”
Her expression serious, Dr. Winters stepped up beside the bed. “Thank you for telling me, Frankie. I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you some hard questions now.”
Holden squeezed her shoulders, and some of the churning in Frankie’s stomach eased. “Okay.”
“Have you ever been diagnosed with an eating disorder?”
God. How the hell was she here again? Closing her eyes, she willed the tears back, swallowing hard to keep them from falling. “Yes.”
“Can you tell me what kind?”
“Anorexia, with a bulimia subtype. I restrict for a while and then I’ll go on these binge-purge episodes. I didn’t get to the binge portion of the program yet.”
Dr. Winters tapped the info into her tablet and offered up an encouraging smile. “You’re being so brave for me right now, Frankie. Just a few more questions. Have you ever sought treatment for your anorexia?”
“Yeah. Summer after my junior year of high school I went to rehab. It got a lot better after that, though my mom wasn’t happy about the twenty pounds I gained.”
Holden’s low growl was accompanied by Dr. Winters giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. Somehow, both gestures brought her an equal amount of comfort in different ways. Enough to chase away the tears burning against the back of her eyes, at least for now.
“Are you still in therapy, Frankie?” Dr. Winters asked softly, her voice free of any judgment or condemnation.
“No. I stopped a couple years ago. I thought I was better, but I guess not.”
“Honey, it’s not a matter of just ‘getting better’. And therapy is nothing to be ashamed of. I’m going to recommend you start again right away, both with your former therapist or someone else who specializes in eating disorders, and with Dr. Jen.”
Frowning, Frankie accepted the business card Dr. Winters held out to her. “Who’s Dr. Jen?”
A smile tugged at Dr. Winters’ lips. “She’s a kink-friendly therapist here in the city. In addition to getting help for your eating disorder, you may need someone to talk to about… other aspects of your current situation.” She sent a pointed look in Holden’s direction.
“Oh my god.” Humiliation seemed to heat Frankie’s entire body. “You know ?”
“Like I said, I’ve known Holden for many years.” Leaning over, she tapped the card. “Give her a call. I think you’ll enjoy talking to her. In the meantime, my suggestion is to get plenty of rest, let your Daddy pamper you, and just take it one day at a time. You’re a strong woman, Francesca Legare. I have no doubt you can come out on top of this again.”
With another squeeze of Frankie’s hand, she glanced over at Holden. “Walk me out?”
Clearly torn, Holden hesitated. “I should stay.”
Frankie couldn’t resist the urge to roll her eyes at his overprotectiveness. “I’ll be fine. Really. Be a good boy and walk the nice doctor to her car.”
Leaning down, Holden whispered in her ear, his voice a low growl. “Keep it up, little siren, and you will lose orgasm privileges for the next week.”
Heat flared to life between her thighs, rushed to her face. “Sorry.”
“Mmhmm. I bet you are. Behave yourself while I walk Dr. Winters out, little girl.”
Yes, Daddy. Even though Dr. Winters apparently knew the nature of their relationship, she couldn’t quite bring herself to say the words out loud, so she simply nodded.
Holden pressed another kiss to the top of her head before stepping away to join Dr. Winters as they walked out of her room.
Leaning back against her pillows, Frankie once again stared up at the sterile white ceiling above her. And tried not to think of all the ways she was inevitably going to let Holden down. Just like she did everyone else in her life.