Chapter 9
MIA
What have I done?
Staring at the sunlight playing across the ceiling of Sloane and Ethan’s bedroom, I swallow hard against a rising wave of nausea. How could I have let this happen? How could I have been so weak, so fucking selfish?
“Mmm.” Beside me, Sloane stirs with a soft, satisfied hum as she rolls and nuzzles her nose against my neck. “Morning, baby. How’d you sleep?”
“Okay.” Like a fucking log. Probably the best sleep I’ve had in years. Which is just one more thing for me to feel guilty about.
“Good.” Her voice is still slurred with sleep, rough and sexy in a way that stirs my arousal even as my stomach churns.
I really am the worst fucking person.
A soft hand strokes my stomach, moving lower, stoking those fires deep inside me. I squeeze my eyes shut against the growing need and the tears burning at the backs of my eyes. “Sloane, we can’t.”
Her hand stills. “What did you just call me?”
There’s steel in her voice and my heart stutters, then races. I force my eyes open and turn to meet her stern gaze. “Last night was a mistake,” I say, ignoring her question entirely. “It can’t happen again. Ethan…”
Anger still glitters in her eyes, but her mouth curls up in a smirk. “You let me worry about your Daddy.”
“He’s not my Daddy. Not anymore.”
“Oh, but he absolutely is, babygirl. But that’s a conversation for later, when he’s home. Right now we have something else to discuss.”
Releasing her hold on me, she rolls nimbly off the bed and strides toward one of two giant walk-in closets, her lush curves swaying with every step.
Anxiety skitters up and down my nerves as I push myself up in the bed, waiting for her to return.
I should go, run to the spare room and lock myself in there, but fear roots me to the spot.
Fear… and need.
Both are pounding through my veins when Sloane reemerges from the closet holding a thick leather belt in her hands. “I told you, the next time you neglected to use my proper name I would take one of Daddy’s belts to your naughty bottom. Roll over on your tummy, Mia.”
“Sloane, please.” I swallow hard and squeeze my thighs together to ward off both the rising fear and the growing arousal. “Can we talk about this?”
“There’s nothing to discuss. Little girls who don’t follow the rules get their bottoms spanked. It’s as simple as that.”
It’s not. Nothing about this is simple. And yet, there is a part of me that latches onto her words, clinging to them like a desperate man clinging to a lifeboat in the middle of a churning sea.
Because if there’s nothing to discuss, if I’m just a Little girl following the rules she was given, then none of this is my fault. I can’t be held responsible because I’m just a baby.
Right?
That logic has more holes than Swiss cheese, but it’s enough to calm the churning in my stomach and to give me the strength to roll onto my tummy, my bottom exposed for my punishment.
“Good girl,” Mommy praises quietly, running her hand over my bare bottom.
She’s Mommy again in my head, because thinking of her that way makes it easier to believe I really am just a Little girl with no choice in this game we’re playing.
“You called me Sloane twice this morning, so we are going to spell out ‘Mommy’ twice with the belt. If it happens again after this, I will plug your bottom with ginger while I whip you. Am I understood?”
Oh, god. Even if I hadn’t already decided to submit, that threat would have done me in. I hate ginger, with a passion, and I would do literally anything to avoid that fate. “Y-yes, Mommy.”
“Good. With each lick of the belt, I want you to spell out my proper name. Do you understand what I want from you, baby?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“My sweet girl. Make sure you don’t miss a letter or we’ll have to start over.”
With that, the leather snaps against my ass, leaving behind a line of pure hellfire that has me kicking my feet and squealing at the agony exploding across my skin. “M!” I manage to yell out before she can scold me.
A second line of fire scorches my ass, just below the first. “O!”
Tears blur my vision as the third stroke lands across my sensitive sit-spots. “M!”
The fourth catches the tops of my thighs and I choke on a sob as pain engulfs my entire bottom. “M!”
When the final lick lands, overlapping the first two, I can barely get out the last later. “Y!”
“My good girl,” she croons, stroking my enflamed skin. “And what does that spell, baby?”
“M-Mommy!”
“Very good. And what is the only name you are allowed to call me?”
“Mommy. I’m sorry, Mommy, I’m sorry!”
“I know you are, my sweet girl.” Her hand continues to stroke my welts, soothing and arousing at the same time. It seems impossible I should be at all turned on right now when I’m in so much pain, but I all I want is to lift my hips and beg her to fuck me. “But we still have one more round to go.”
A desperate groan slips from me as I bury my face in the pillow. “Mommy, no!”
“Yes, little girl. You were naughty twice, so you get your bottom whipped twice.”
It’s all the warning I get before the belt snaps down against my aching bottom again. I manage to choke out each letter, once again spelling out Mommy’s name. By the time my punishment ends, I’m sobbing and sore and want nothing more than to lie in bed feeling sorry for myself.
But then the bed dips and Mommy is pulling me into her arms, whispering soft words of praise as she rubs the sting from my welted bottom. Burrowing into her softness, I cry and force out strangled promises of eternal good behavior we both know I won’t be able to keep.
Eventually, my tears fade and I’m left exhausted as I slump against her heavy breasts with a sigh.
“My good girl,” she murmurs, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “That was an awfully big cry for such a Little girl. Do you feel better, baby?”
To my surprise, I actually do. Much of the heaviness I’ve been carrying with me ever since I made the choice to call Ethan has lifted and I actually feel… good.
“Lots better,” I say, snuggling closer. “Now I’m just hungry.”
Her breasts vibrate with her laughter. “All right. Let’s go get some food in that cute tummy, and then Mommy has a big surprise for her good Little girl.”
Mia
My surprise, it turns out, is a trip to the mall. According to Mommy, I don’t have nearly enough clothes or shoes, along with a whole list of things she insists a Little girl needs.
Not that I’m protesting. It’s been ages since I could indulge my love of shopping the way I could when I was with Ethan and excitement pulses through my veins as Mommy leads me into the mall.
“Come on,” I urge, tugging on her hand as I try to run ahead.
“Slow down, babygirl,” she says with a laugh, pulling me back to her side. “We have all day to shop until we drop.”
Falling in step beside her, I let out an annoyed huff. “Okay, but you’re still walking too slow.”
My response earns me a raised brow. “Do we need to find a bathroom for me to teach my naughty Little girl some manners?”
Uh-oh. She sounds serious. “Um, no, Mommy. I’ll be good.”
“Hmm. Well, just so you know, I have some things tucked in my purse just in case, so I suggest you be on your best behavior.”
The ache between my thighs that seems to never fade in her presence flares to life. “Yes, Mommy.”
“Good girl.”
My face is still burning with embarrassment when a glimpse of pink tulle catches my eye and I stop to stare at the prettiest dress I’ve ever seen in my entire life. “Oh, Mommy, look! Isn’t it pretty?”
The dress has a fitted bodice in a pink satin a couple shades lighter than the poofy skirt. White satin ribbons crisscross the back, ending in an adorable bow at the waist, where the dress flares out into those layers of tulle.
“That is a very pretty dress, babygirl. Would you like to try it on?”
Everything in me is dying to put that dress on. But just looking at it, I’m sure it’s way more money than I can justify spending, even if Mommy is paying for everything. “Oh, no. I just wanted to look at it.”
“Nonsense. That dress is just begging for a sweet Little girl like you to wear it. Come on.”
“Mommy, no,” I whisper loudly, trying to dig in my heels as she pulls be toward the store.
Pausing in front of the door, she turns and pins me with a look that has my stomach dropping to my knees. “Good Little girls do not tell their Mommies no, Mia Grace.”
“I’m sorry Mommy, it’s just… that dress is probably really expensive.”
Mommy rolls her eyes. “And your Mommy and Daddy can more than afford it. Now, do you want to keep arguing and find out what secret things Mommy has hidden in her purse, or are you going to be a good girl and try on that dress?”
Well, when she puts it that way, I don’t really have a choice. “I’ll be good, Mommy.”
“Much better. Come on.” Giving my hand a tug, she pulls me into the store behind her.
And like an actual kid in a candy store, I stare around me in awe, taking in the explosion of color in the form of dresses and skirts and adorably frilly tops. It’s almost as if the store itself were designed for Little girls like me.
“Hello.” A woman dressed in a colorful rainbow tutu with a bright-yellow shirt emblazoned with the word “Babygirl” steps out from behind a curtain wearing an even brighter smile. “Welcome to Solene’s Off Main. Is there something I can help you ladies with?”
“Yes.” Mommy gestures to the window display. “I’m Sloane, and this is my babygirl, Mia. We have an appointment.”
We do?
The woman’s eyes light with pleasure. “Oh my gosh, yes! It’s so nice to meet you two! My name’s Ellie, I’ll be your consultant for today. Come on back with me and I’ll get Mia’s measurements.”
Ellie turns and Mommy steps forward to follow her, but I hang back. “An appointment?”
“Yes. I thought you might be more comfortable shopping somewhere that caters to our… special interests.”
“So this really is a store for Littles.”
“It is. Not that it’s widely advertised as such, but I have some connections in this world still, even though your Daddy and I stopped being super involved with the community years ago.”
Blinking up at her, I try to wrap my mind around what she’s telling me. “So you used your connections to not only find a store that caters to Littles, but make an appointment ahead of time, all so I would be more comfortable?”
“Of course. It’s a Mommy’s job to take care of her Little one.”
Emotion clogs my throat as I throw my arms around her neck and squeeze. “Thank you. This is the sweetest thing anyone has done for me in a really long time.”
“Anything for my babygirl.”
Pulling back, I bounce on my toes with a squeal and grab her hand, dragging her toward the changing rooms. “Come on! We have shopping to do!”