Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
The heaviness of the conversation gradually receded as the afternoon wore on.
By the time Trixie and Stephanie knocked on Kelsey’s door and asked her to get in the ball pit with them, Kelsey was ready.
“I’ll be right there,” she told them.
Turning around, she shot Marco a foxy grin. “Before I meet the girls, I want you to do something.”
“Anything.”
Grabbing his hand, she said, “They have a nursery. It’s amazing. Come see it and… change me.”
Marco had dressed her a few times, but more often than not, he was busy and she just did it herself, hoping to look cute for him whenever he got home. For some reason unknown to her, he always seemed a little uneasy whenever he actually did do it.
He was a good Daddy. The role fit him. But when it came to some things—this being one of them—he seemed unsure of himself.
Which was strange because in almost every other endeavor she’d seen Marco undertake, he was not a man who lacked confidence.
Right now though, she could already tell there was a slight hesitation, even though he was going along with her plan.
Tugging on his hand as she excitedly burst through the door of the nursery, she said, “Look at that pretty dress, Daddy! The girls said I can wear any clothes I want. Aren’t they the sweetest?”
“Yes, honey. Trixie and Stephanie seem like very good friends. I’m glad you met them.”
Kelsey was about to say she was glad she did too, not only because they were amazing humans, but because the Daddy Guard saved her last night.
She decided to forego that little comment, though.
Today and tomorrow were all about fun. The hard stuff would come back soon enough.
There wasn’t any reason to even talk about it right now.
“I’ll put that on you,” Marco said, walking forward and reaching for the dress that hung inside the open closet.
“Aren’t you forgetting something, Daddy?”
When Marco turned around, Kelsey giggled as she thrust a diaper toward him that she’d grabbed from the shelf beneath the adult-sized changing table.
Now he looked really uncomfortable, and it made her laugh even more.
“What’s so funny, little girl?” he asked.
“Nothing. I’m just enjoying my time with you.”
That wasn’t a lie. She just didn’t explain that she’d noticed the lack of confidence he always seemed to have when it came to this part of being a Daddy.
“Don’t you think that one is cute?” she asked, her gaze flickering to the diaper and then back to him again. “It’s called a Mountainville Supreme. Have you heard of Mountainville?”
Taking the thick disposable garment from her, he said, “Sure. It’s a town for Bigs and Littles, right? In Oklahoma?”
“Texas,” she corrected. “And yeah. It’s just for people like us. What if we could move there one day? No one would ever bother us.”
She almost suggested they take off for the fabled city right then, and try to hide out in the mountains of West Texas. But she knew that wasn’t realistic. Marco was right—he needed to face this thing in courts.
“I’ll take you there one day. I promise,” Marco said. “But right now, I’m going to get you in this thing.” He examined the diaper. “It has little mountains on it. That’s pretty cute.”
His Daddy instincts seemed to take over as he went about undressing her. Not stopping at her shorts and panties, he tugged up on her shirt. “Raise those little arms, honey. We might as well just get it all off now since I’m going to put you in that pretty dress you picked out.”
It felt as thrilling as always to be naked in front of Marco. She would not have objected if he would have explored her body or started other activities, but she supposed right there in the shared nursery that anyone could walk into wasn’t a good idea.
And now wasn’t the time.
Perhaps that would come later.
Marco seemed to have no trouble lifting her onto the changing table. Before she knew it, she was lying flat on her back, the loud crinkling of the diaper being unfolded reaching her ears.
“Sometimes, cutie, I forget just how Little you are,” he admitted.
“Does it bother you, Daddy?”
“Not at all. But I need to do a better job of meeting your needs.”
“I think you’re perfect.”
He smiled down at her as he brought the front of the diaper through her spread legs. “Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, but I could be more attentive. I’ve been gone a lot. I’m sorry.”
Kelsey wasn’t sure what to say to that. She wasn’t going to argue—not out of the respect a Little has for Daddy, but because she agreed with him.
He was gone a lot.
She didn’t hold it against him. But it did sting sometimes.
Now he might be gone for months or even years.
Hey, don’t think about that right now. Remember, this is all about fun and the clock is ticking, Cinderella. It’ll be midnight soon and your chariot will turn into a pumpkin.
“All right, let’s get you taped up and then that dress on so you can play with your friends, sweetie.”
A moment later, her diaper was taped around her waist. Daddy put two fingers inside, tugged on the waistband, and pronounced it good and snug with a smile.
It looked like there was something else Marco wanted to do, but those moments of really embracing the Daddy role seemed to fade as quickly as they’d come on, and Kelsey sensed more hesitation.
“Come on. To the dress,” he said, lifting her off the table.
Wanting to focus on the positive, Kelsey forgot about Marco’s sudden shift in mood and focused on the cozy, comforting feel of the thick cotton between her legs.
Marco swiped the dress from the hanger. “This is going to look adorable on you.”
As he put it on her, she watched his eyes, noticing how he seemed to switch between confident and unsure within a matter of seconds, the change happening multiple times during the brief few moments.
“Even cuter than I imagined, if that’s possible.” Marco stepped a few paces back. “Twirl for me, babygirl. Let Daddy see how perfect you are.”
With an excited little laugh, Kelsey spun across the nursery floor, nearly colliding with a floor-to-ceiling shelving unit that held stacks of diapers and plastic pants.
“Whoa. Easy there, cute stuff,” Marco told her.
“You really like my dress, Daddy?”
“Of course. Now, there’s just one more thing I almost forgot—turn around, pull up your dress, and stick out that cute booty.”
“Daddy! What did I do? I don’t want spankings!”
Marco chuckled. “Not spankings, honey. Cute-diapered-booty pats.” He winked.
Kelsey obeyed and squealed as Daddy delivered on exactly what he’d promised.
“I bet you’re ready to play with your friends. Come on.”
It felt wonderful as Daddy held her hand. “The ball pit is this way,” she told him, not knowing if he knew his way around the sprawling, repurposed warehouse yet.
Once they arrived, they found Trixie and Stephanie already playing and having a blast.
“Kelsey!” Trixie called out. “Check it out. We have a rope!”
The colorful plastic orbs clacked loudly as the Little swam toward the edge of the ball pit and hoisted herself out.
“You see, just grab this right here.” She took a thick braided nylon rope off a hook that was affixed to a blue metal post that was bolted into the ground.
“It’s on a pulley system.” She pointed to the ceiling where the top of the rope was connected.
“Our friends Harrison and Stryker designed it for us. It’s really cool!
” She held onto the rope and then ran toward the pit. “Check it out!”
Trixie laughed as she swung out over the balls. Letting go of the rope, she fell the short distance and then disappeared beneath the sea of plastic.
Her head broke the surface a moment later and she said, “Now it’s your turn. Just hit that red button on that blue pole!”
Kelsey eagerly did so, and the rope began to slowly role back to the starting point with the quiet hum of a motor.
“Are you watching, Daddy?” she asked Marco.
“I’m watching, babygirl.”
With that, Kelsey pushed off and swung high above the pit, loving the feeling of swooshing through the air as she looked down and saw the blue, yellow, red, and green balls waiting for her.
“Here I come!”
She splashed down as Stephanie and Trixie cheered her on.
“Isn’t this amazing?” Stephanie asked.
“It’s the best!” Kelsey replied.
It wouldn’t last forever, she reminded herself, but right now—for this moment—she was in heaven.