Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Cannon
The two hours I spend watching my girl watch a movie are the most enjoyable two hours I’ve ever had.
Her wide eyes. Her expressions. The way she slowly stuffed popcorn into her mouth, sometimes without remembering to chew it, until her cheeks were puffed out.
The way she carefully picked out all but the brown M&Ms one at a time.
I even fixed her a soda, even though she’s had enough sugar and caffeine to last a lifetime. I wouldn’t ordinarily give a Little girl that much soda in a day, but this is Eloise. She’s so fucking deprived. I doubt I’ll be able to turn down any food wish she ever has.
Probably I need to rein that thought in a bit or she’ll end up with cavities and an upset tummy.
By the end of the movie, though, she is winding down. She’s stopped eating and drinking, and she’s been leaning her head against my arm for ten minutes.
When I turn off the television, I lift one of her hands to my lips and kiss her knuckles. I’m getting brazen. She doesn’t balk. “You need sleep, Little one. Why don’t we get you tucked into bed?”
She nods.
I pat her thigh. “Go brush your teeth so they don’t rot out after all that candy and soda. I’ll come and tuck you in.”
She smiles at me. I want ten thousand of those smiles. I know I’m Daddying her, but she doesn’t realize it because she has no concept of the dynamic. She does occasionally cock her head to the side and narrow her gaze as if she can’t quite figure out what my deal is, but that’s to be expected.
After a few seconds, she slides off the couch and heads for the hallway.
I watch her go, my heart leaving the room with her. I thought I was a bit out of my mind when I first looked her in the eyes and lost all the air from my lungs. Who falls for someone that fast? I’ve heard of it happening to other people, but I never expected it to happen to me.
Hell, Blade knew June was his so fast that I actually laughed at him the next morning. I feel bad about that now. I’m going to have to eat crow.
I do have to take into consideration that even though June has had a very difficult life for six years—three years married to the fucker whose life ended this morning and three years hiding from him after she ran away—I don’t think she suffered as much as I suspect Eloise has.
Eloise may or may not be able to identify as Little. What if she can’t?
I know the answer. So be it. I’ve never pictured myself as anything other than a Daddy Dom, but if anyone can convince me to pull out my ancient vanilla hat and dust it off, Eloise can.
Standing, I fill my arms with bowls and cups and head for the kitchen. I drop everything on the counter and leave it for tomorrow before turning off the lights and heading for the pink room.
Wishful thinking is what led me to put that room together. Sometimes I’ve wondered if I jinxed myself by creating it without having a Little. I’ve only lived here for a year. I didn’t waste time filling that room with everything a Little girl might like. As long as that Little likes pink.
I’ll change absolutely anything Eloise doesn’t care for, including the color. It was hard to read her initial thoughts. Now that I know more, I suspect she’s never had any room of her own at all, so it’s dazzling to her. That doesn’t mean she likes it, though.
I knock on the frame before entering. The door is open, and so is the bathroom door. She steps out. She’s still dressed, but I didn’t give her much time. She’s probably only had a chance to pee and brush her teeth.
“Is there anything you need, Little one?”
She rubs her hands together. “I don’t think so. Thank you so much for letting me stay.”
“You’ll stay here as long as you’d like. Do you understand?” I want to tell her this is her home, but that sounds ridiculous, so I won’t go that far yet.
“Yes. Thank you.”
“If you need me, I’ll be in the room at the end of the hallway. I’ll leave my door open.”
“Okay,” she murmurs.
I can’t leave without touching her, so I step closer, hug her against me, and kiss the top of her head for the tenth time. She smells so good. The cherry blossoms are fresh and growing on me.
When I release her, I wish I hadn’t. My chest is tight at the prospect of leaving her in here alone, but I must. It’s not like I can ask her to sleep with me. It would make no sense.
I leave the room and pull the door closed.
And then I stand staring at it for long seconds before willing myself to head for my own room.
There’s no way I’ll be able to sleep right away.
My adrenaline is pumping. It’s still early, but I didn’t want to keep Eloise up any later.
I don’t think she’s had a full night’s rest in God knows how long.
I head for my bedroom and walk straight through to the bathroom.
After I take a quick shower, I put on a pair of briefs and loose shorts.
It’s not out of the norm for me. I wear shorts every night simply because I hate the possibility of something happening in the night and me not having appropriate enough clothing on.
A fire. An earthquake. Or, as has been the case in my Army days, gunfire or a raid.
After swiping a hand down my face, I turn out the lights and sit against my headboard. My intention is to go through emails on my phone, respond to anything that needs attention, and shoot off a few to my team, updating them on my new situation with Eloise.
It’s hard to focus. I keep watching the hallway. She turned off the light in the room, but there’s still a glow. I suspect she has left the light on in the bathroom. Now I’m kicking myself for not providing her with a nightlight.
She was in a near panic in the parking garage. I’m not sure if it was the dark or claustrophobia or both, but leaving her with no nightlight was a shit move. Hopefully, she can sleep with the bathroom light on.
After a while, I slide under the covers, still staring at the open doorway, and try to relax. I need rest. I’m trained to sleep with one eye open, but I need to sleep while Eloise does. I need to be useful tomorrow.
I’m pretty sure I eventually fall asleep, but it feels like one minute later, I jerk awake and sit upright. I’m breathing heavily as I glance at the clock. It’s two in the morning. What woke me?
I don’t like the sensation, and I won’t be able to rest until I check on Eloise. It’s impossible to ignore my gut. Something tells me she’s not okay, so I shuffle down the hallway and set an ear against her door.
There’s no sound coming from the room, and I have no reason to suspect there’s a problem. I know she didn’t leave. That’s not possible. I set the alarm as soon as we got home. She wouldn’t be able to open the door without it going off.
She’s in this room. I should walk away. I must. But the hairs on the back of my neck are standing on end. I need to see her. I’ll just quietly open the door, set eyes on her sleeping form, and back away. She’ll never know.
Heart racing for no good reason other than instinct, I slowly turn the knob and open the door a few inches. My attention goes straight to the bed, but she’s not in it. The bedding isn’t there either. It takes less than a second to shift my gaze around the room.
Suddenly, I spot her. She’s sitting in the corner of the room under the large window. She sees me at the same time and jumps to her feet. “Cannon.” Her voice is high and shrill, filled with panic.
I ease the door open farther but don’t yet enter. The pink bedspread and pillows are in the corner on the floor like a nest. Several other items are with her. Things she brought over from the shelves.
My heart stops at the sight of her.
There’s a book in her hand, but there are ten more on the floor in piles.
“I’m so sorry,” she squeals. “I…”
“What are you sorry for, Little one? I should be the one apologizing. I shouldn’t have barged in without knocking. I woke up and had a weird feeling. I just wanted to check on you. Why aren’t you in bed, Little one? Have you slept at all?”
Judging from the pile of books, I’d say she hasn’t even been in bed.
But books aren’t the only things she’s hauled to the corner.
There are dolls and stuffed animals, too.
They are lined up on both sides of where she was sitting, leaning against the wall.
One of them is now on the floor at her feet. I suspect she was holding that one.
My sweet angel was reading to her dolls.
Fuck me sideways.
“I’m sorry,” she repeats, looking around. “I’ll clean all the mess up.”
“Eloise, you’re not in trouble. No reason to be sorry. I bet you had enough soda to keep you up for a week.”
She bites into her lower lip and lowers her gaze.
I don’t know how I noticed everything but her until this moment. I shift my attention to her small frame. She’s wearing one of the nightgowns that were in the drawers. It’s a soft pink one with a ruffle at the hem and shoulders.
She’s standing in the glow of the lights from the city outside.
In fact, there’s enough light illuminating the room that I suspect she was able to read from it alone.
She must have been. But more importantly, the glow from behind her is coming through her nightgown, allowing me to see every single one of her pretty curves, including the swell of her breasts when she shuffles from foot to foot.
I swallow back my reaction.
“Are you mad?” she asks.
“No, Little one. I’ll never be mad at you. Not ever. No matter what you do, I will never ever be angry. You have free will, Eloise. If you want to sit up all night reading, then you can sit up all night reading.” I take two steps into the room, not wanting to ruin her oasis with my presence.
I can’t bring myself to simply walk away. “How many of those books have you read, Little one?” I point toward the pile. Now that I’m closer, I see there’s another pile I couldn’t see before.
“All of them,” she whispers.
I do a quick assessment. “You’ve read twenty books since I said good night to you?”