Chapter 10
Frankie
S he lasted a full two weeks before the restlessness really settled in. Not only was she not used to sitting around a house all day doing nothing for days on end, she also wasn’t used to having her every move watched like a hawk. And not just at mealtimes either, which was bad enough with him forcing her to try one of her ‘forbidden’ foods at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. As well as the occasional snack when he thought she hadn’t eaten enough during the day. Though the few times he’d pressed an ice-cream sandwich into her hand and then teased her with his tongue, not letting her come until she’d finished her dessert had made her a fan of that particular indulgence.
And as if that wasn’t bad enough, Holden was also working from home, so she didn’t even get a break during the day so he could go into the office. Even at the rehab center she’d had more freedom, and she was sorely tempted to make a break for it.
But Daddy had made it very clear that if she broke any of the strict rules he’d put in place ‘for her safety’ as he’d put it, she would not enjoy the resulting punishment. And considering how creative he’d proven to be when she’d pushed him too far the past couple of weeks, she wasn’t really eager to put that claim to the test.
Something had to give, though. Tossing the tv remote aside instead of returning it to the basket on the coffee table where it belonged—a small act of defiance that would likely earn her a warning look and a lecture about putting things back where she found them—she shoved off the couch and stomped upstairs.
A good run would help clear her head. Daddy hadn’t let her out of his sight other than to plop her in front of the stupid tv while he was working, but surely he wouldn’t object to a workout.
She changed into a fresh pair of leggings, a sports bra, and her favorite running shoes, pausing in front of the tall full-length mirror in Holden’s closet to give herself a once-over.
And tried to ignore the churning panic in her stomach.
Had that little roll of fat been there before? She could have sworn not. Twisting to the side, she frowned, pinching the excess skin.
Yeah. She definitely needed to go for a run. Letting Holden feed her constantly without getting any real exercise was obviously taking its toll. Not that she could actually keep track of how much of a toll it was taking since he’d gotten rid of his bathroom scale the first morning he’d found her staring down at the little black numbers with tears streaming down her face, but clearly she’d gained even more weight since then.
A run, and then she’d start putting her foot down about what she was eating. No more ice cream, no matter how good the orgasms were. Just because she was in recovery didn’t mean she had to completely let herself go.
There was a small voice in the back of her head whispering that she was slipping back into the same thoughts and habits that had landed her here in the first place. That she needed to talk to Holden, to tell him what she was thinking. Ask for help for once in her goddamn life before things got to the point she had no choice but to accept help when it was offered. Again.
Ignoring that little voice, she grabbed her phone and earbuds and headed for the stairs.
“Going somewhere?”
Halfway down the steps, she stopped abruptly, heat infusing her cheeks at the sight of her Daddy standing in the foyer, his thick arms folded across his chest and one eyebrow raised.
“Um. Just… out. For a walk. Need some fresh air.” Why the hell did she say walk when she meant run? If he found out she’d lied to him, she’d be writing lines again until her hand fell off.
To her relief, he didn’t glower at the news that she’d been planning to go for a walk. The exact opposite happened, in fact. Everything about him seemed to relax and he grinned up at her. “That’s a great idea.”
“It is?” Oh, thank god.
“Yeah. We’ve been cooped up here for a good bit. A walk would do us both good. Give me a few minutes to change and I’ll join you.”
Fuck. If he came along, no way he’d let her go for the hard run she'd been wanting. But she couldn’t very well tell him she didn’t want him to come, not without alerting him that she was up to something. “Oh, um, you don’t have to do that. I’ll be fine going by myself.”
“Baby, spending some time out in the fresh air with my favorite girl isn’t exactly a hardship. There’s a park nearby with a great walking trail we can use. I’ll be back down in a minute.”
At a loss for any further arguments, Frankie forced a smile. “Sounds good.”
When he jogged up the stairs, pausing to press a kiss to her forehead, Frankie sighed and slowly made her way down to the entryway. Staring at the front door, she considered how much trouble she’d be in if she just… left.
A fuckton, most likely. It wouldn’t take him long to catch up with her, and once he did, she’d be forced to tell him the truth and then god only knew what kind of punishments he’d come up with for not only lying to him about her original intentions but sneaking out of the house.
Not worth it. Not even remotely worth it. But a walk was better than nothing and maybe if she could show him that she could handle a walk just fine he’d actually let her start working out on her own. Daily runs, maybe some trips to the gym. Though she doubted he’d let her get away with the latter without his supervision.
Helicopter Daddy, anyone?
“Ready?”
Forcing the nasty thoughts out of her mind, she turned and flashed him another smile, this time distinctly less forced. Goddamn he looked good in that tight black t-shirt and baggy gym shorts. “Well now I’m thinking maybe a different form of cardio would be better.”
“Naughty girl,” he said with a low laugh, pulling her close to claim her lips in a quick, hard kiss. “We could both do with a change of scenery, but if you’re still up for it when we get back, I could be convinced.”
“You never let me have any fun.”
Pausing by the front door, he raised an eyebrow. “I don’t seem to recall you having any complaints when you were coming all over my face last night. How many times was it? Five, I think, before you tapped out.”
Her face felt like it might actually burst into flames. “Okay, so we have a little fun together.”
“Just a little, huh? Challenge accepted, little siren.”
Oh, shit. Memories of their first time together, when he’d made her come so many times she’d lost count and nearly consciousness flooded her mind. “It wasn’t a challenge.”
“Sure sounded like one to me. And you should know by now your Daddy can’t resist a challenge.”
Fuck.
Holden
His little siren was hiding something.
What, exactly, he wasn’t sure. But he was pretty certain it had something to do with their walk. The guilty flush on her face when he’d ‘caught’ her on the stairs hadn’t escaped his notice. Neither had the way she’d been sulking after he’d insisted on coming with her.
She wasn’t sulking quite as much now, thankfully. The fresh air really was good for both of them, seeing as how neither of them were used to staying cooped up in one place for very long. But there was still something off about her attitude.
Glancing around, he guided her to the right, onto a path most people avoided when making their trek around the park. It added nearly two miles to the trail, and it was almost all through heavily wooded areas. There weren’t many people out in the middle of the workday to begin with, and he was pleased to see the wooded trail was as empty as he’d expected.
Once they were deep enough into the woods that the people sticking to the main path wouldn’t see them, he spun her around, pressing her up against a thick tree, one hand wrapped loosely around her throat and the other braced against the bark above her head. Frankie’s eyes widened, a mixture of fear and excitement swirling in her dark eyes that had his cock hardening almost instantly.
“All right, little girl. You have about five seconds to tell Daddy what’s going on in that pretty head of yours before I cut a switch to use on your bare bottom right here in the middle of the woods.” Switches, unlike his hand or a paddle, were nice and light. Unlikely to do any real damage but a thorough switching would certainly leave an impression. Honestly he was a little put out with himself that he hadn’t thought of it already.
“You wouldn’t dare!”
Tightening his grip ever so slightly, he forced her head back against the wood. “Care to test that theory, little siren?”
Her pupils darkened even further as she swallowed hard, the muscles in her throat working beneath his palm. “N-no, Daddy.”
“Then tell me what’s wrong. Why were you trying to sneak out of the house just to go for a walk?”
Anger joined the maelstrom of emotion in her eyes as she brought her hands up, her fingers digging into his hand as she tried to pull him away. “I wasn’t sneaking out.”
“Oh? Then why did you look so guilty when I asked where you were going?”
That same pretty blush as before colored her cheeks now. “I didn’t. You just caught me by surprise a bit, is all.”
“Francesca.” He let the warning infuse his words, delighted when she whimpered in response. “I am attempting to be understanding. But if you continue lying to my face, I can promise you are going to have a very uncomfortable evening. Last chance to tell me the truth.”
“Oh my god, you’re impossible .” Lip pulled up in a sneer, she rolled her eyes. “I wanted to go for a run.”
Whatever answer he’d been expecting, that wasn’t it. “Why the hell would you lie about that?”
“You’ve been so… you know. Helicoptery since I got out of the hospital. I didn’t think you’d let me go.”
Well, he couldn’t exactly deny she had a point. Still, it didn’t excuse her trying to sneak around. “I can’t say for sure I would have been fine with it. But I can tell you that I am absolutely not fine with you going the ‘ask forgiveness rather than permission’ route when it comes to your health. The rules we have in place are there for a reason, Francesca. Am I understood?”
“But I feel fine ,” she whined, pouting up at him.
“We’ll ask Dr. Winters about it when we see her in the morning. If she signs off on you starting up a more strenuous workout regimen, we can plan something together. I need to get back to the gym anyway.”
“I shouldn’t need your permission just to go for a run. It’s my body.”
Dangerous ground. He didn’t need the spark of defiance in her eyes or the rigid way she held her body to tell him he needed to tread carefully. “You’re right, it is your body. But you also just got out of the hospital because you weren’t treating your body very well, baby. I’m not going to let that happen again, not under my watch.” Gentling his hold, he slipped his hand up to her cheek, dropping his forehead against hers. “It won’t be like this forever.”
“How much longer will it be like this?”
“Just until you’re feeling better, physically and mentally. Which reminds me, you still haven’t made that appointment with your therapist.” And he’d been letting her slide on that front for far too long.
“I left a message. Nobody’s called me back.”
“Call again tomorrow, and every day until you get an appointment. If you can’t get one by the end of the week, we’ll find you someone new. But you are going to find someone to talk to, Francesca. That is non-negotiable, am I understood?”
“Yes, Daddy,” she grumbled, pouting in a way that just begged for him to lean in and sink his teeth into that full bottom lip.
Which he did, and had the pleasure of hearing her sharp intake of breath before she melted beneath him, sinking into the kiss with a quiet sigh. He kissed her, long and slow, losing himself in the taste of her, the feel of her soft lips giving way to his. Lost himself in her surrender, completely oblivious of the world around them.
A loud cough jolted them both back to the present, where a woman in an expensive jogging suit pushing an even more expensive stroller was glaring at them from the path.
“There are children here. You two should be ashamed of yourselves.”
He wasn’t, not in the least, but he offered up an apologetic smile anyway. “Sorry, ma’am. Just got a bit carried away.”
“Hmmph. Obviously. Get a room.” Nose in the air, she took off jogging again, her ice-blonde ponytail swinging behind her as she ran.
Stepping back from the tree, Holden held out his hand. “You heard the lady, little siren. Let’s finish this at home.”
With a wide, sultry smile, Frankie took the hand he offered, stepping back onto the path. “Yes, Daddy.”