Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Alexis
Compared to the events of yesterday, today is downright homey.
Mommy sticks to her guns about only allowing me to make two treats in my toy oven before forcing me to eat breakfast, no matter how much I whine about yucky eggs.
They aren’t really that yucky, but it’s as though she’s tapped into some part of my brain that is still a child, so I find myself arguing mostly for the sake of arguing.
Which, inevitably, earns me several threats about the state of my bottom before I finally finish my breakfast. Mommy lets me pick out three toys to play with while she dries my hair, which is a lot more fun than drying it all on my own.
And it looks a lot better, too. I don’t know if it’s the fancy products or if she’s just better at it than I am, but by the time she finishes, my curls are bouncy and shiny in a way I’ve never managed to achieve even though I’ve been doing it myself for years now.
I could get used to this. Would I have chosen to be kidnapped by one of the wealthiest women in the world, held hostage and treated like a literal baby if I’d had any choice in the matter?
Probably not, but I can’t deny that I enjoy the way she dotes on me.
If I could somehow figure out a way to be Catharina’s baby without any of the painful punishments, I think I could be happy here.
“All right, little imp. Ten more minutes, and then we need to get ready for dinner. Your uncles will be here soon.”
Pausing the game I’ve been playing with the elaborate dollhouse in my nursery, I pout up at her. “But I’m playing.”
“I know, baby, but our family dinners are very important. There will be plenty of time for you to play later.”
“But—”
“Alexis.” My name is a warning, one that has my pussy clenching even as fear crawls up my spine. “If you want to argue, you can stop playing right now and spend the next ten minutes sitting on your naughty chair in the corner instead. Is that what you want?”
Ugh, sitting in the corner sounds boring. If she’d threatened me with a spanking I might have been willing to push my luck.
But the corner? No thanks.
“No, Mommy.”
“Then be a good girl and no more arguing.”
Heaving a deep sigh, I turn back to my dollhouse. “Yes, Mommy.”
“Good girl.”
Her praise warms something inside of me, some part I never really even knew existed that’s hungry for someone to tell me I’m good, to be proud of me. I’m still riding high on it when she tells me it’s time to put my toys away, and the high is enough for me not to argue.
When everything is tucked back into its rightful place, Mommy takes my hand in hers and leads me into my giant closet. “Would you like to see the special dress Mommy had made just for our dinner tonight?”
Now that I know everything in this closet has been tailored just for me, it’s excitement rather than fear and embarrassment coursing through my veins as I bounce on my toes beside her. “Yes, please!”
Laughing at my exuberance, she pulls down a stunning dress in a deep emerald green that I already know will look incredible with my hair and skin tone.
A sense of awe washes over me as I reach out to run my fingers over the silky material.
It’s cut just like some of the pinup-style dresses I’d saved on my computer, but in a conservative style that feels more appropriate for the toddler I’m pretending to be while on the island.
Beneath the silk are layers and layers of tulle that force the bottom half of the dress out, and I can’t wait to twirl and twirl in this gorgeous creation.
“It’s beautiful,” I say with a sigh.
“Not nearly as beautiful as my Little girl.” Leaning in, she drops a kiss on my nose that sends my heart fluttering wildly in my chest. “Arms up so Mommy can get you undressed, little imp.”
Without even a second of hesitation, I thrust my hands in the air, pulling another of those deep, throaty laughs from her that I enjoy so much as she pulls my shirt up over my head.
She barely has time to get the dress on and over my diaper before I slip from her grasp and race over to the full-length mirror.
I stop dead in front of my reflection, the vision before me blurring as I take in the beautiful girl in front of me. She looks like me, only… happier. And the deep-green silk does something to her skin, making it glow in a way I’ve never seen before.
Or maybe that’s the happiness, too.
“I look… pretty.”
“No, baby.” Sliding her arms around me, Mommy’s gaze finds mine in the reflection. “You look beautiful. The most gorgeous Little girl in the world. And you’re all mine.”
“I’ve never really felt beautiful before. I know it’s just the dress, but—”
Her arms tighten around me, cutting off my rushed justification. “The dress is beautiful because you’re in it, Alexis Paige. Not the other way around. You are, and always have been, the most beautiful girl in the world. I hope someday you’ll learn to believe me when I tell you that.”
Meeting her dark gaze in the mirror, I can almost believe it. “Thank you, Mommy.”
“You’re welcome, little imp. Do you want to come help Mommy get dressed and put on her makeup before your uncles arrive?”
“Can I have makeup too?”
She hesitates, but just for a moment before her lips curve. “Of course, baby. But just a tiny bit. Little girls don’t need all that gunk on their faces.”
“You don’t, either, Mommy. You’re so pretty.” The words come out as a sigh, because I mean every bit of it. Catharina Montgomery is easily the most stunning woman in the world, with or without makeup.
Chuckling, she presses a kiss to my cheek. “What a sweet girl you are, Alexis Paige. Come, let’s go get ready for our guests.”
Catharina
Getting dressed for dinner with my Little girl wandering around, touching everything in sight and asking a million questions is everything I’d ever dreamed of.
She’s adorable, and when I settle onto the seat in front of my vanity, she plops right down on the floor beside the stool, staring up at me with a hint of awe in her eyes as I begin the process of putting on my face.
Every few steps, I pause and include her in the process. Swiping a single coat of mascara onto her already long lashes, dabbing a bit of color into her cheeks. Not so much that she doesn't still look like the sweet Little girl she is, but enough to highlight her features.
It’s… cozy. Surprisingly so, given how much she fought me at the beginning. But she seems to be settling into her new life here on the island, with me, better than I ever could have dreamed.
I’m almost loath to pierce our happy little bubble by bringing the others into the mix. But there are traditions to be upheld, and I am eager to get my cock into my pretty Little girl as soon as possible.
“There we go.” With one final little dab of blush to the end of her adorable nose, I smile down at her. “My pretty little baby.”
“Really?” Rising up onto her knees, she presses herself against me so that we are both visible in the reflection of my vanity mirror. “I guess I do look kinda pretty, huh?”
“You look beautiful, my love. Come with Mommy now.”
Rising from my stool, I hold out my hand and she happily takes it, allowing me to pull her up to walk beside me as we head downstairs.
As I’d expected, some of our family has already arrived. Maxwell, Jasper, and Gideon are all settled in the parlor, their Little ones playing at their feet. My heart leaps at the sight of them, my family in my house, waiting for our final “Welcome to the family” dinner.
“Auntie Cat!” With a squeal of excitement, Victoria jumps to her feet and races toward me, prepared to throw herself into my arms.
Out of sheer habit, I brace to pick her up, to twirl her around as I always have. But my conversation with Alexis from this morning is still fresh in my mind, so I crouch instead, wrapping my arms around Victoria and pulling her into a hug without picking her up.
When I pull away, there’s a flicker of confusion in Victoria’s large eyes, but she doesn’t question the change.
She simply steps aside for the others to have their hugs, though I can feel her watching me the entire time.
Guilt pricks at my chest, but I quickly shove it away.
As much as I love Victoria, she isn’t my Little girl.
Alexis is my priority now, and if it helps her even a little bit to not see me picking up the other girls, then it’s a small enough sacrifice to make.
Hugs given, I rise to my feet again and smile down at my Little one. “Do you want to go play with your friends, little imp?”
She hesitates, just a moment, before nodding. “Yes, Mommy.”
“Good girl. Mommy will be right over there on the couch if you need me.”
Nudging her toward her friends, I watch as Victoria takes Alexis by the hand, dragging her over to where they’ve all been playing, seemingly no worse for wear.
Maxwell, however, is watching me with carefully blank eyes that give no indication what he might be feeling as I claim the tall wingback armchair they all know I prefer. Settling back, I lock my gaze with his, one brow slowly raising in question. “Something you want to say to me, Maxwell?”
“Just wondering if there’s something we should be aware of.”
I start to brush him off, but I hesitate, weighing the options. If it were my Little girl suddenly being treated differently by one of her uncles, I would want to know why.
“Alexis is a bit… sensitive about the fact that she’s not as petite as the other girls. So I’m trying to not rub it in her face by picking the others up when I can’t do the same for her.”
“Ah.” Maxwell’s expression immediately softens and a pressure I wasn’t even aware of in my chest loosens. “That makes sense. I’ll speak with Victoria later, and I’m sure the others would be happy to let their Little ones know as well.”
“I appreciate that. The last thing I want to do is hurt their feelings, but…”
“But your Little girl has to come first,” Gideon finishes with a warm smile. “We’ve all been there, Cat. Nobody thinks less of you for making Alexis your priority.”
“Thank you, Gideon.”
The doorbell chimes, alerting us to a new arrival, and a few moments later Gavin steps into the parlor with both Evander and Donovan close behind, each of them holding their own Little girl’s hand.
Natalie’s eyes are rimmed with red, and when Evander releases his hold on her she immediately flounces off toward the other girls without waiting for a kiss.
It doesn’t escape my notice that when she settles on the floor beside Alexis, she does so rather gingerly.
Worry creases Camilla’s brow as she tilts her head back for a kiss from her own Daddy before hurrying over to take the spot on Natalie’s other side, their heads dipping close together with Natalie shooting little glares over her shoulder as Evander joins Maxwell on the couch.
“Trouble in paradise?” I don’t even bother to keep the humor out of my voice. Evander indulges his Little girl far more than anyone else in our group, so he only has himself to blame as far as I’m concerned if she’s finally pushed him too far.
As I’d expected, his brows draw together in a scowl as he accepts the glass of whiskey Gavin has poured for him. A second glass is pressed into my own hand, and I offer Gavin an approving smile before shifting my attention back to Evander.
“Little brat thought it would be funny to hide in a damn tree. I knew she hadn’t gone far because she’s wearing her locket, but it took me an hour to track her down.
Which I only did because she fell asleep and lost her balance.
Thank god Lucas was there to catch her when she tumbled out of the tree. ”
My heart lodges in my throat at the thought of my sweet little niece coming to any harm. “I hope you impressed upon her how incredibly dangerous that was.”
Evander gives a snort of bitter laughter.
“Why do you think she’s so put out with me?
Lucas helped me suspend her from the same branch she’d fallen from and I took my belt to her ass until I was convinced she’d never do something so foolish again.
She insists she was never in any danger, regardless of her fall, so she is currently not on speaking terms with either me or her Papa. ”
“Sounds like you didn’t spank her long enough,” Donovan says with a knowing smirk, and I can’t help but think how lucky he is that Maxwell is so partial to him. Otherwise, he’d likely earn himself a knife through the ribs for insulting Evander so openly.
“Her bottom is covered with welts.” Surprisingly, Evander sighs and scrubs a hand over his scarred face. “But you might be right. I think her pride is more bruised than anything right now. If she keeps the attitude up, she’ll be going to bed with a very sore bottom.”
“I know you enjoy her antics, but you may need to tighten the reins a bit.” Maxwell’s tone is unusually solemn, even for him. “Giving Doctor D a hard time is one thing. Putting herself in danger is quite another.”
“Yeah. Yeah, I know you’re right. I just hate the thought of snuffing out her spark, you know?”
“I had the same worries about my Camilla.” When we all turn to look at him, surprised, Donovan scowls. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m not a complete monster.”
“We’re just surprised to hear you express any kind of doubt,” Jasper says with a boyish grin. “You’re always so sure of yourself, Doctor Dreadful.”
“Yes, well, part of being a good doctor is admitting you don’t know everything—would you stop grinning at me like that, Jasper, I’m being serious.
I watched Camilla’s light dim while she worked for me, and I was determined not to let that happen as her Daddy.
But, if I do say so myself, she shines brighter than ever now and I’m plenty strict with her. ”
“Hmm.” Seemingly contemplating Doctor D’s advice, Evander looks over to where his Little girl is playing alongside the others, her usual exuberance nowhere to be found. “I’ll think about it. At least when it comes to putting her safety at risk.”
“Now that we’ve got that settled.” Eyes gleaming, Jasper rubs his hands together. “We have a new little niece to spoil rotten.”