Chapter 17
COLT
Ifinish feeding my babygirl while simultaneously doing everything in my power not to let the fury bubbling in my veins overflow and spill onto her. After the day she’s had, the last thing I want is to upset her again.
After she eats, she sucks down Eli’s frozen hot chocolate with such glee I can’t help but laugh, and we spend some time just snuggling together in the glider until her eyes droop closed.
Once that happens, I rise slowly from the chair, careful not to wake her as I lay her down in her crib.
Grabbing the baby monitor, I allow myself one last look before closing the door behind me and heading downstairs.
My family has moved to the living room, where they’re all engaged in a lively game of some sort with my nieces. Not wanting to alarm the Little ones, I force a smile as I step into the room. “Who’s winning?”
“We are!” Lanie cheers, holding up her Daddy’s arm.
Axel grins down at her, and the love that passes between them is so strong I swear I can feel it filling up the room.
“Good job! I hate to disturb your game, but would you and Josie mind if I borrowed all the grown-ups for a few minutes?”
Two sweet Little girls pout up at me. “Can’t we finish our game first?”
“I promise I won’t keep them long and then you can finish up.”
“Okay.” Sighing heavily, Lanie draws out the last syllable. “Can we play with Tabby?”
“Tabby was feeling a bit overwhelmed by everything so she went to bed early. But if she’s up to it tomorrow, you have all day to play.”
“Oh.” She heaves another dramatic sigh, as if this is the most depressing news she’s ever heard, and I can’t help but chuckle. “Okay.”
“We’ll be back in a few minutes.” Leaning down, Axel presses a kiss to his Little one’s hair, and Bram does the same before my siblings all rise from their seats. “You know the rules.”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Yes, Uncle Axel.”
Seemingly satisfied they’ll stay where they’ve been put, Axel jerks his head toward the dining room. Bram stops long enough to turn on the living room monitor and grab its twin before following us to the long table where we’ve made all of our important decisions as a family.
“Is Tabby okay?” Gray asks as soon as everyone is settled at the table.
“I’m not sure.” Blowing out a breath, I rake a hand through my hair, desperately wishing for a glass of whiskey. “She’s upset because I didn’t tell her about the claiming after the vows. I think she considers it a great betrayal that I told her about the rest of the ceremony but not that.”
A quiet chuckle pulls my attention to my brother Dane, his dark eyes twinkling in the dim light of the dining room. “Nice to see she has a backbone, at least. Wouldn’t want you getting bored.”
The need to defend my babygirl rises in my chest and I snarl at my younger brother. “She isn’t boring.”
Dane holds up his hands in surrender. “I never said she was. But you have to admit when she first got here it seemed like she was afraid of her own shadow.”
Because he does have a point, I grunt in acknowledgement.
“I think something happened to her. Maybe when she was younger. Last night, when she was intoxicated, she was so… wild. Borderline reckless. Then this morning she seemed terrified to do anything wrong. The first spanking I gave her was because she didn’t tell me the water in her bath was too hot. ”
Eli frowns, his fingers tapping against the table. “Want me to call Gunther, have him dig into her past a bit more, see what he can find?”
I hesitate, but only for a second before nodding. “Yeah. Yeah, I think that’s a good idea. Maybe there’s something there that will help me figure out what’s going on in her head.”
“I’ll take care of it. I need to run some of that sourdough up to him tomorrow anyway.”
“Appreciate it, El.”
“We’ll figure her out,” Axel says confidently. “No matter what’s going on with that Little girl, you aren’t alone. She isn’t alone. She has us, and we aren’t going to give up on her.”
“I know.” And the knowing helps to soothe some of the worry churning in my stomach. “Maybe I’m overreacting.”
“Trust your gut.” The quiet advice comes from my twin as he clamps a hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “A Daddy always knows when something isn’t right with his Little one. If your gut is telling you there’s something we need to fix, then trust that instinct.”
And that nauseating feeling in my stomach settles even further. “My gut definitely says there’s something there, something deep and painful.”
“I think you may be right,” Gray says, her dark eyes somber as she nods slowly. “We could all see how upset she was at dinner. If something you did or didn’t do triggered some kind of deep, hidden insecurity, we need to know about it. She’s a Thorne now, and we take care of our own.”
Every one of my brothers nods at her pronouncement and for the first time since we sat down to dinner, I can breathe easily. “Thank you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s been a long day and I have a babygirl to go cuddle.”
Pushing back from the table, I rise from my chair, then pause, letting a smile spread across my face. “Oh, and if anyone is wondering what to get her for a wedding present… Tabby is absolutely obsessed with dinosaurs.”
Across the table, Dane’s eyes light up. “Noted.”
With that settled, I turn away and head back upstairs to my room. Tabby is fast asleep in her crib when I get there, and although I know Little girls should sleep in their own cribs, I can’t stand the thought of not having her right next to me during the night.
Scooping her up as gently as I’m able, I carry her to my bedroom and tuck her in under the covers before stripping down to my boxers and climbing in beside her. Pulling her close against me, I breathe in the faint scent of baby powder still clinging to her skin.
And I sleep.
Tabitha
I wake wrapped in a furnace. A very firm, very naked furnace.
What the heck?
As I lie there, willing my hazy brain to engage, memories start flooding back. Waking up married in Vegas. Getting spanked. Then getting spanked again. Shopping for clothes and toys. Being stripped naked and forced to participate in the most humiliating wedding ceremony ever created.
When the memory of my final punishment resurfaces, I instinctively clench my bottom cheeks, a move I instantly regret as pain flashes through my body.
My bottom is more sore than it’s ever been, and unless I’m on my very best behavior today, the odds seem high that it will be even more sore by the end of the day.
Behind me, the furnace moves, wrapping his arms tightly around my middle and pulling me up against his chest as he buries his face in the side of my neck. “Morning, little one. Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Mmm.” Sliding his hand down my body, he cups the thick diaper covering my mound and presses against my already throbbing clit. “As much as I’d love to strip this diaper off and fill your pretty pussy with my cum, we’re about to have company.”
Before I can ask what he means, the bedroom door flies open. “Chivaree!”
Oh, god. Not again.
Panic claws at my chest, but Daddy presses a kiss to my hair, his arms tightening around me. “It’s okay, baby. This is a different part of the celebration.”
“You’re not gonna…” I let the implication hang between us and Daddy chuckles.
“No, baby, not right now. This part is all about you.” He gives my hip a gentle pat. “Be a good girl and sit up so our family can give you your presents.”
“Presents!” That single word jolts me into action and I scramble to sit up in bed. We’re surrounded by our family, and every single one of them is beaming at me, like they couldn’t be happier to see me.
Which, considering how naughty I was last night, seems unlikely. And yet… here they are.
Uncle Axel steps forward to hand me a heavy, oddly wrapped package. Covering the paper are dozens of different dinosaurs, each wearing party hats, and everything inside me lights up. “Dinos!” I squeal, taking the package from Uncle Axel and running my hand lovingly over the print.
Chuckling, Uncle Axel bounces Lanie on his hip. “A little birdie told us you liked them, and we happen to have a ridiculous stash of wrapping paper in the attic because your Auntie Gray is a soft touch.”
“I am not a soft touch,” Auntie Gray grumbles, her eyes narrowing. “It’s called giving back to the community, Ax.”
Beside her, Uncle Eli grunts. “It’s called being a sucker for little kids with big puppy-dog eyes and well-rehearsed sob stories.”
Auntie Gray snarls at him, but Uncle Axel shuts them both down with a glare. “Anyway,” he says pointedly, “this is part of our tradition to welcome new brides to the family. Each of us has something for you that will help you and your Daddy have a long, happy marriage.”
Curious now, I carefully peel the tape from the seam of the wrapping paper, doing my best not to rip anything in the process.
I’m rewarded with what appears to be a large wooden cutting board.
“Um. Thank you. It’s very pretty.” I run my fingers over the gorgeous script burned into the center of the board. CT & TT. Our initials.
Emotion swells in my chest. It really is beautiful, even if I’m not really sure why we need our own cutting board.
Taking the board from my hand, Daddy bounces it, as if testing its weight and a grin stretches across his handsome face. “You’re getting better and better at this, Ax. I have a feeling this will get plenty of use.”
“Oh, do you like to cook?”
At my question, the room erupts into laughter. Daddy wraps an arm around my shoulders, pulling me close so he can press a kiss to my temple. “It isn’t for cooking, little firecracker.”
“It isn’t? What is it, then?”
“It’s a paddle, for Daddy to use when you’re extra naughty.”
Heat floods my face. “Oh. Well. I don’t think I like this present after all.”
Another round of laughter sweeps the room, and when I peek up at Uncle Axel, he’s doing his best to glare at me. The effect is somewhat ruined by the twitching of his beard that tells me he’s trying not to laugh and the tension in my shoulders immediately eases.
“Our turn,” Uncle Bram says, shouldering Uncle Axel aside and holding out a flat rectangle wrapped in the same dinosaur paper Uncle Axel used.
With the same care as before, I peel the wrapping paper from the next present, praying it isn’t another thing for Daddy to punish me with.
And when I uncover a book with a picture of a dinosaur on the front, I can’t help but let out another excited squeal.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you, Uncle Bram! I love it!”
“Josie picked it out. I told her about your love of dinosaurs and she insisted we give you this one. But there are a few more in the library downstairs if you want something else to read.”
“I’d love that, thank you.” I shift my attention to the grinning Little girl in his arms. “And thank you for picking this one out for me, Josie. It’s perfect.”
Taking the book from me to set it aside, Daddy beams at me. “Good job using your manners, little one. You’re making Daddy very proud.”
I swear every word of praise from his mouth makes me feel a hundred feet tall. “Thank you, Daddy.”
“My turn!” Uncle Dane shoves his way to the front, the biggest smile I’ve ever seen stretched across his face. “I know it can be a lot, leaving your home and your family for a new adventure. So I thought you could use a new friend.”
When he pulls his hand out from behind his back, my heart leaps at the sight of the pink triceratops stuffie. “Oh my gosh! She’s beautiful!”
Rising up on my knees, I throw my arms around his neck. “Thank you, Uncle Dane!”
“You’re welcome, little one.”
He releases me with a pat on my diapered bottom, and as soon as I sit down again, Daddy pulls me back into his arms. “It’s cute, but kinda small. Not like the one Daddy bought for you in Vegas.”
“Daddy, don’t be mean.” Cradling the stuffie to my chest, I bury my face in her softness. “She can’t help how little she is.”
“Yeah, Colt.” A smug smile tugs at the corner of Uncle Dane’s mouth. “Don’t be mean to your babygirl’s new friend.”
“I swear you’re a bigger brat than any of the Littles,” Daddy mutters darkly.
Grinning widely now, Uncle Dane lifts one shoulder in a shrug. “Probably.”
Peeking up at Daddy, I watch as he glares at his brother. My heart constricts as I wait for the harsh words, the yelling.
But none of that happens. Daddy just rolls his eyes and shifts his attention to Uncle Ford. “You’re up, baby bro.”
“I really have to start going before Dane,” Uncle Ford mutters as he steps forward to hand me a small package wrapped in the same paper as the others.
It’s a thermometer, I discover when I unwrap it and open the box. Not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings, I smile up at Uncle Ford. “What a thoughtful present, Uncle Ford! Thank you!”
As I’d hoped, Uncle Ford lights up at my words and steps back from the bed.
“And now it’s time for my present,” Uncle Eli announces, clapping his hands together. “Your wedding brunch awaits, little one.”