Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Hope
I woke up smiling. It took me a few seconds to realize why. Then it came back to me in pieces.
Master Troy’s warm voice across the table and the way he’d looked at me like it wasn’t a chore to keep me company. Not to mention he was downright drop-dead gorgeous and filled with all that Dominant confidence that made my panties wet.
As dates went, I felt pretty good about our dinner last night. In actual fact, I was feeling pretty giddy, which was ridiculous. It had been one date.
I rolled onto my side and stared at the pale strip of sunlight cutting across the bedroom wall while I clutched my new stuffed bear to my chest.
And then I reached for my phone before I could talk myself out of it.
Alas. No new messages.
Which was fine. We’d exchanged numbers, but that didn’t mean Master Troy was supposed to message me at six in the damn morning.
I definitely wasn’t going to be messaging him this early either. That just reeked of desperation in a way I was not comfortable with.
Still, I set my phone back down a little more carefully than necessary.
My mind then drifted to Master Lee.
I hadn’t seen him since our art class, and we’d never exchanged digits. Maybe I would have seen him if I’d gone to the evening social instead of on my date with Master Troy.
I couldn’t help but wonder if he’d found someone more obviously suited to him than I was. Someone who didn’t get accidentally sorted into the wrong dating program and then fight tooth and nail with themself the entire time they were with him.
The thought tugged at something uncomfortable in my stomach.
Which was unfair. I didn’t belong to him. He definitely didn’t belong to me. And our time together had been nothing but kindness from a sweet man who saw a woman floundering.
I stared at the ceiling.
I could quite honestly say that when I’d signed up for this, I might have had a bit of my namesake building up inside me, but I’d never imagined that I’d meet two men within the first two days whom I really liked and felt that I connected with.
Master Troy was steady, confident, charming, and exactly the kind of Master I would normally adore. And Master Lee was sweet, gentle, and the perfect Caregiver if I could just finally relent and admit how much I enjoyed giving in to that side of me.
I didn’t know what it said about me; I liked both of them. A lot.
Well... maybe it didn’t have to say anything. There was absolutely nothing wrong with figuring things out as it went along. There were still plenty of events to go through and—in fact—loads of potential partners to meet.
Pushing aside all these crazy thoughts, I jumped out of bed, quickly got dressed, and rushed down to breakfast. As had become my habit, I stuck to the sidelines and observed the people in the large cafeteria.
I didn’t see either Master Troy or Master Lee, but that could just be because I was having breakfast at a ridiculously early hour, more than they were trying to avoid me.
Probably.
The rest of the morning flew by, and I somehow managed to keep my cool through it.
And when I finally checked the schedule and saw my name slotted into the Littles rotation again, I didn’t freak out.
Instead, something inside me sparked. That ever-present curiosity when I thought about being Little. And excitement!
I could do this.
I would do this.
The activity room was set up differently from the first day. Low tables, plastic cups filled with paintbrushes, and a suspicious number of glitter bottles were stacked on each table.
There was a huge sign up against the wall.
Face Painting Challenge
Oh my goodness. That sounded like a lot of fun.
I smoothed down my skirt and stepped all the way inside before I could overthink it and run off. It didn’t take me long to find the table number I’d been directed to and I quickly took a seat.
I hadn’t been sitting for more than a minute when someone cleared their throat politely beside me.
I looked up and found myself staring straight into the warmest brown eyes I’d ever seen.
The man attached to them was tall. Not Master Lee tall, but comfortably broad-shouldered, with skin the color of polished teak and a neatly trimmed beard that framed a kind mouth.
His hair was cut short on the sides with tight curls on top, and he wore a soft blue button-up with the sleeves rolled to his elbows.
Beside him bounced a lively Little. He had a mop of sandy-blond curls that looked like they could never be tamed, freckles splashed across his nose and bright-green glasses that were just a little too big for his face.
He was wearing colorful dinosaur shorts and a purple t-shirt declaring him to be a Lego champion and was clutching a stuffed penguin like his life depended on it.
The Little beamed at me. “Hi! I’m Perry. Are you a Little too?”
My cheeks warmed instantly. But before I could answer the sexy Daddy spoke up.
“Perry!” he admonished before turning to me. “Sorry, I’m Tyrell Brooks,” he said, offering his hand. “And this is Perry Decker. He normally has better manners than that, even if he is a tornado at the best of times.”
I shrugged, still feeling the flush in my cheeks, before taking Tyrell’s hand and giving it a firm shake. “That’s fine. I’m Hope. And I think I might be a little.”
“I’m not a tornado,” Perry protested, climbing into the chair beside me. “I’m a velociraptor.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed, and the knot in my chest loosened a tiny bit. “It’s nice to meet you both.”
Tyrell’s gaze flicked over me once, not in the hungry way some of the Doms at the speed dating had done, but in a thoughtful, assessing way that made me feel seen.
“We’re glad you’re at our table,” he said. “Perry has been very excited to meet other Littles and has been practicing his big brother voice all morning, but we were a bit nervous about approaching someone so this makes it much easier, doesn’t it, little nuggie?”
Perry puffed out his chest. “Yup. We’re looking for a little sister. Daddy says it’s time for our family to grow.”
The words made my stomach flip.
A little sister.
My fingers twisted in the hem of my skirt before I caught myself. “Oh,” I said. “That’s... really sweet.”
Tyrell must have seen the flicker of panic on my face because his voice softened right away. “No pressure, right?” he added gently. “We’re just meeting new people. Seeing who fits. That’s what this whole circus is about, isn’t it?”
Perry nodded solemnly. “It’s like interviewing!”
I snorted before I could stop myself. “Interviewing?”
“Yes,” he said, very seriously. “We need someone who likes cartoons and snacks and bedtime stories. And she needs to be good at Lego, but not too good, because I must stay the bestest. Most importantly, she mustn’t try to steal my penguin.”
He hugged the stuffed toy tighter, glaring at me as if I might snatch it at any second.
“I solemnly swear to never steal your penguin,” I said, raising a hand.
Tyrell chuckled as Perry nodded at my solemn oath.
“What are you looking for in your interviews?” Perry asked me as his Daddy started unpacking all the face paint supplies.
Something warm unfurled in my chest, even as I felt a slight panic at the question. These two were nice. But I had no idea what I wanted anymore. I’d thought I did when I’d come here, but the last couple of days had shown me I didn’t have a clue.
So instead of answering Perry’s question, I shrugged and tucked a stray curl behind my ear. After a beat, I looked at his Daddy. “So... what’s your plan, Master Tyrell?”
His eyebrow lifted just slightly at the question. “Strategy meeting first,” he said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “Perry wants to be a dinosaur.” He said this with the “of course” heavily implied. “And I was thinking... maybe a butterfly for you?”
I blinked, frowning at him. “You didn’t ask me what I wanted. Aren’t Daddies supposed to ask?”
He shrugged. “You look like someone who should be outside flying around all the pretty flowers in the garden. Plus, I don’t know if I have anything other than flowers, butterflies, and dinosaurs in my repertoire.”
My cheeks heated at his compliment. “Okay, I’ll take it.”
“Excellent. Perry, face forward,” Tyrell ordered.
“I want T-Rex teeth,” Perry demanded, already scrambling onto Tyrell’s lap.
Tyrell caught him easily, steady hands settling him like this was something he did every day. “You’ll get T-Rex teeth if you manage to sit still long enough.”
“Pffft. That’s impossible, Daddy,” Perry informed him and I had to suppress the urge to giggle.
Perry was a lot of fun. And I could see myself getting into a lot of trouble with him.
I watched them bicker while Tyrell painted careful white triangles along Perry’s cheeks, and something squeezed inside my heart.
The way Perry leaned into him and the way Tyrell checked every few minutes that he was still comfortable.
To be honest, it scared me a little how badly I liked it. And craved it.
“All done,” Tyrell said, turning Perry toward the little mirror on the table.
Perry gasped like he’d just seen magic. “I’m ferocious!”
“You’re adorable,” Tyrell corrected.
Perry hopped down and spun toward me. “Your turn! And if you like, you could sit on my Daddy’s lap. I don’t mind sharing.”
Oh boy.