Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Of all the things Fiera imagined she’d be doing today when she woke up and headed for camp, leaving Master Derek’s office with a new, albeit temporary, Daddy would not have made the list. Heck, she hadn’t even had a meeting with Master Derek on her bingo card.
But it was going to be okay, right? This was Rawhide Ranch, after all.
And just because it was unexpected didn’t mean she couldn’t roll with it.
She glanced down at the tanned, callused hand holding hers.
She’d loved it when he’d placed his palm on the small of her back to lead her outside before taking her hand.
Well, swallowing it was more like it. Like everything else about him, his hands were huge.
It was hard to believe the sexiest cowboy she’d ever seen was leading her back to her new friends.
Hopefully, she could get in some good freeze tag before they moved on to craft time.
She was practically vibrating from the stress of the past thirty minutes.
Running as fast as she could was exactly what she needed to keep from combusting.
She slid her gaze to her new temporary Daddy, trying to get a better look at him without his noticing.
At the distance she’d been the day before, she hadn’t noticed the sexy sprinkles of silver dusting his temples and beard.
She had the sudden urge to run her fingers over that beard to see if it was as soft as it looked.
Having a Daddy at Rawhide hadn’t been on her bingo card either.
To be honest, her desire for a good Daddy ended months ago.
Well, not her desire for one, but her belief that one existed.
Why was it that some people didn’t seem to care about you at all when you wanted them around, but as soon as you told them it was over, they wouldn’t leave you alone?
Erwin… wait. Turning to him, she asked, “What’s your whole name? ”
He gave her a questioning glance. “It’s Mason Grant Cody. But as I said earlier, most people call me Mace. Now it’s your turn. What’s your whole name?”
Wow! He had a name that was just as sexy as he looked.
And you couldn’t get more stable than someone named Grant.
She’d have to look up the meaning once she got back to her room.
Um… their room… as soon as someone showed her where it was.
Now, what had he asked her? Right. Her name.
“Mine’s Fiera Danielle Sharpe. It means passionate and wild, God is my judge, quick and smart. So, should I call you Daddy now?”
Yep. She said that. Just blurted it out like an idiot.
The heat blooming in her cheeks told her she was blushing.
Why did her mouth run away with her so often?
She should have waited for him to say something.
Now she had no way of knowing if he really wanted her to call him that, or if he was just being nice.
Unless he said no. She really hoped he didn’t say no.
“Of course, that’s who I am for as long as you’re here. How long are you going to be here, by the way?” His deep, rumbly voice was perfect for a Daddy’s voice. She could imagine it being firm and stern, yet kind. She’d bet he never whined. Erwin had been a whiner. No Daddy should be a whiner.
Fiera swallowed and forced her thoughts back into something resembling order. A few days, she reminded herself. A tiny, contained, manageable amount of time. Not enough to ruin her. Not enough to get attached. Not enough for disappointment to really dig in and make itself at home.
It wasn’t as if Master Mace was going to be with her forever. She’d never see him again. She’d be returning to Wilder alone.
Her chest tightened. How was that going to work? Wilder was once her safe place. But Erwin the Vermin still lived there, still lingering like a bad smell. Still sent messages that pretended to be polite and concerned while somehow making her feel small and wrong and ungrateful all over again.
What if Master Mace decided she was too much, too? What if Erwin had been right all along, and she was “extra,” her personality was “too much,” or her conditions made her “too loud and selfish”? Did she really try to make everything all about her?
Or even worse, what if Master Mace turned out to be one of those Daddies who smiled kindly but made everything about her Waardenburg Syndrome instead of about her? Sure, she had special considerations, but that was what she dealt with, not who she was.
Her steps slowed without her meaning to. Her grip on his hand tightened just a fraction. Master Mace noticed immediately.
“Hey,” he said gently, slowing to match her pace. “You okay, babygirl?”
Babygirl.
Her stomach flipped. She nodded quickly, too quickly, with a grin that was too wide and too bright. “Yeah. Totally. Just… thinking.”
His gaze sharpened, not unkind but assessing. She had a feeling Mason Grant Cody didn’t miss much, as if he were used to staring right into what others didn’t see at all. He would keep her on her toes. Now, why didn’t that feel like a bad thing?
“There’s thinking, and then there’s fretting. You, young lady, are fretting,” he said.
She huffed a little laugh. “I do that.”
“That’s good to know. Are you fretting about me?” he asked calmly.
She glanced up at him, surprised. He wasn’t smiling now, but he wasn’t stern either. Just… patiently waiting for her to share what was going on in her head.
“No,” she said immediately, then frowned. “I mean, um… yes, but not in a bad way. I want you to be my Daddy. I really do. I’m completely comfortable with the arrangement we have here at Rawhide.”
He studied her face for a beat longer than felt reasonable. He couldn’t have picked up on her worries about what would come after Rawhide, could he? She was about to backpedal on her words when he grinned and nodded. “Good enough.”
Relief flooded her so fast that her knees nearly wobbled.
“But,” he added, lowering his voice just slightly without losing his smile, “that’s what you’re not fretting over. We’re going to talk about what you are fretting over once we get back to our room later.”
Her breath hitched. This Daddy was tricky. And smart.
“And about rules, expectations, and,” he continued, glancing down at her with a hint of something dark and amused in his eyes, “about why you didn’t ask a single question in Master Derek’s office.”
Maybe it was the tone of his deep voice. Or maybe it was the two slashes that passed for dimples in his cheeks when he smiled. Whatever the reason, her tummy did a strange, traitorous little swoop.
“That conversation,” he went on, squeezing her hand, “can wait until later. But it will happen.”
Great. Her heart stuttered. Not because she was worried. Was it because she was excited? Yep. That was it. She was very worried about how excited she was.
It was time to change the subject. “Can we walk faster? I don’t want to miss any more of the game.”
She sped up, but it didn’t help much because he kept the same pace. Tugging on his hand, she said, “Come on, Daddy. If we don’t hurry, I’m gonna miss it.”
Man, he was hard to pull. Then again, her head only reached his shoulder. And he must carry the horses into the barn at night, judging by the breadth of his shoulders and his muscular arms.
She almost fell backward when he planted his feet.
“We’ll get there in plenty of time, little girl, but not if I have to take you to see Nurse MacIntosh for a skinned knee or worse.
While we’re stopped, I want you to put on your sunglasses.
You’ll give yourself a headache if you keep squinting like that. ”
“I won’t fall down. I never fall down. And I don’t know where my sunglasses are.”
Her new temporary Daddy’s brows shot up, carving lines into his forehead.
“Everyone falls down sometimes. I’m here to make sure it doesn’t happen to you on the way back to the summer camp area.
If you can’t do as I ask now, I’ll be happy for us to sit down right here in the grass until you feel you can. Is that what you want to do?”
Argh!
She’d spent ages with Erwin the Vermin, wishing he would make rules and enforce them. Now that she had a Daddy who would, why was her first impulse to push back? That made no sense.
Master Mace was really looking out for her. She couldn’t balk at the very first thing he told her to do. Glancing down, she frowned at the gravel driveway she hadn’t realized was that close. Falling on it would have been awful.
Her eyes stung, and this time it had nothing to do with the brightness of the sun.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I want to walk to the campsite, but I was telling you the truth about not knowing where my sunglasses are. I lose them all the time.” This time was especially bad because the sunglasses she’d lost were the ones he’d given her earlier.
“I’ll get you a new pair of shades before I leave. ”
His frown relaxed. “Thank you, babygirl. I appreciate your apology. I want you to have fun, but safely. And it just so happens I can help you with the missing sunglasses.”
He could? Had he picked them up because she left them in Master Derek’s office? But then her new Daddy reached toward her and slid the sunglasses from her head, perching them on her nose.
She couldn’t help but grin. “I really need to start checking there first.”
Master Mace smiled again, and it almost stole her breath. His dark eyes sparkled, and the most adorable lines formed at the corners of his eyes. “That might be a good idea. Now, let’s get you to the freeze tag game.”
Together, they walked hand in hand all the way to the small field. Sure enough, all the Littles were still running and darting around, dodging and tagging each other.
Sadie spotted her and called out, “Fiera! You can be on my team. We have to tag Wren and Daisy.”
That was her cue. Fiera surged forward, scanning the area for Wren and Daisy. At least, she tried, but strong arms locked around her waist.
“Ah-ah-ah,” Master Mace said calmly.