Finding Stella’s Stuffie (The Snuggle Street Daddies #2)

Chapter 1

‘Whoooooosh!’ Stella squealed, the wind in her face as she peddled as fast as her slender legs would allow. ‘We have the first ever Little to win the Tour de France!’

Stella giggled.

While she may have been in shape and a decent cyclist, she was never going to enter let alone win the Tour de France.

But that wasn’t important. Stella was up early and determined to have the best day.

It may have only just turned seven thirty in the morning, but the sun was very much out in Blue Rock. It was going to be another hot day, that much was clear.

With the sky a perfect and unblemished blue color, Stella had the ideal early morning motivation to push herself harder and faster on her brand-new road cycle.

I’ve got this.

I’m beating my PB.

Today’s the day I do it…

Stella was cycling to work and was determined to get to her destination quicker than ever.

After all, having just spent three thousand dollars on a new bike, she felt like she had a lot to prove.

It wasn’t every day that Stella would spend such a large amount of money, and she wanted to know that the expenditure for the extra light aluminum frame had been worth it.

Stella Streep was twenty-three and an up-and-coming executive designer executive at EcoPlay, an environmentally conscious toy company.

With her surfer-girl blonde hair and dazzling blue eyes, Stella looked like a surf pro. But it was Stella’s hard work and studiousness in the office that truly set her apart.

There was an opening higher up in EcoPlay, with the position of Junior VP for toy development needing filling. Stella knew she was young, but such was her passion for the work that she was determined to land the job and help take the company to new heights.

However, as career focused as Stella was, she had other interests too.

Stella was a committed volunteer at the local dog rescue center. Having been helping out at The Dog Den for well over a year, Stella had completely fallen in love with each and every dog she had come into contact with as they waited to be rehomed.

The truth was that Stella would have done anything to take just one of the dogs home with her, but she knew that her long work hours meant it just wasn’t doable. After all, being single and living alone meant that any dog would struggle to have enough quality time with her.

It may have been with a sad heart, but Stella knew deep down that she just didn’t have the time for her own dog. For now at least, The Dog Den dog center would have to be the outlet to meet her tail-wagging, fur-ruffling doggy needs.

However, Stella didn’t have any time to lament her lack of a canine companion. With the sleeves of her pale blue t-shirt flapping in the wind, Stella whizzed around the corner and applied the brakes.

Not only was Stella a career focused dog lover, she was also a Little too.

Deep down, Stella had always known she was a Little, but it had taken her quite some time to feel like she could express herself in that way.

During her time at college, her mind had blossomed and developed a better understanding of what it meant to be a Little, and of what it meant to crave a Daddy to look after her.

But college being college, it maybe wasn’t the best place to be honest and open about it. With the jocks, cheerleaders, and a generally pretty mainstream environment with the academic students, it never truly felt like a safe place for Stella to be who she wanted to be.

The idea of wearing a diaper or carrying around her most loved stuffie, Huggle the bear, wasn’t something that Stella could contemplate doing.

Stella would sometimes privately play with coloring pencils back in her dorm room, but beyond that the vast majority of her Little self was kept firmly under wraps and inside her mind.

However since moving to Blue Rock, Stella had gained confidence.

Blue Rock was a liberal place where generally speaking anyone could be who they wanted to be. Sure, even Blue Rock had some judgmental and mean people, but on the whole Stella knew that she could feel far more free in how she expressed herself.

With some wonderful Little friends and the Baby Bouncer club to hang out in, Stella had established a nice Little life for herself.

The only thing missing was finding a Forever Daddy to make her life complete.

Stella wanted a Daddy who knew how to have fun, someone who she could share her kinky side with and see what else might turn her on beyond just age play.

Oh, and any perspective Daddy would need to know when to lay down the law too and administer some strict, no-holds-barred spankings and paddlings too.

It might have seemed like wishful thinking, but Stella was determined to find her Forever Daddy.

However, now wasn’t Daddy time.

This was a Littles-only moment…

‘Argh! You beat me. Again!’ Stella laughed, slowing her bike down to near enough walking speed. ‘I guess I’m buying.’

Stella may have been on her way to work, but the reason she was so early was so that she could take a detour and enjoy a customary fresh juice with her Little friends.

Both Nicki and Lilah worked at successful startups just like Stella, and their early morning routine of fresh juice and gossip was an essential part of their weekdays.

‘I thought you’d got lost?’ Lilah laughed, her pixie cut chestnut brown hair looking as immaculate as ever, despite the bike ride.

‘Pfft! Three thousand dollars on a bike, and I still beat you?’ Nicki added, a big grin on her face as the morning sun topped up her olive-skinned tan.

‘Come on, you know I let you win?’ Stella said, struggling to keep a straight face. ‘Anyway, I actually arrived twenty minutes ago and just went for an extra lap of Blue Rock canyon.’

The three friends laughed.

They were all young, single, and loved their lives in Blue Rock. There was never any competition between them when it came to careers or men, their bond as friends ensuring that they always wanted what was best for one another.

Of course, this didn’t mean that there was a lack of back and forth funny comments and banter. Each one of the three friends was competitive in their own way and Stella showing up last on the first time with her expensive new cycle wasn’t going to be forgotten in a hurry…

‘So, does your ‘super-lightweight’ bike have some kind of speed restrictor on it? Lilah laughed. ‘You know, to stop you from going too fast?’

Stella shook her head and rolled her eyes.

‘Yeah, yeah, keep it coming,’ Stella laughed. ‘We’ll have to have a proper race this weekend. I’ll show you two jokers who the fastest Little cyclist in Blue Rock is.’

The three Littles took a moment to finally embrace.

It was time to get some fresh juice from Keelie’s Juice Bar…

‘Yummy, this mango and kiwi vibe is officially world class,’ Stella said, taking the last gulp of her juice.

The three friends were walking back to their cycles after enjoying a nice walk down to the ocean front with their drinks.

It had been a wonderful start to the day, and Stella felt ready to hit work with all her customary enthusiasm.

There was, however, one problem...

‘Urgh. I hope Lauren isn’t being such a poo-butt today,’ Stella sighed.

‘Forget her,’ Lilah said, her slim yet athletic build looking great in her black and red striped cycling t-shirt. ‘Focus on you.’

‘Yeah, but I have a feeling that she’s been bad mouthing me around the office,’ Stella said, a hint of genuine concern in her voice. ‘I know I shouldn’t care, but if I’m going to get this VP job then the last thing I need is my name being run down by a freakin’ so-called colleague.’

‘I agree with Lilah,’ Nicki said. ‘Focus on what you can control. Don’t waste your time speculating on what Lauren Treen may or may not be saying. Everyone at EcoPlay knows that you’re the real star of the show.’

Stella took a moment to consider the words of her friends. She knew that they were probably right but taking on board their words of wisdom was easier said than done.

‘Come on, just go with it,’ Lilah laughed, clearly seeing that Stella was resisting their advice. ‘You know that we’ve got your back. People like Lauren never win in the end.’

‘The worst thing is that I don’t even think she cares about being eco, or even about toys!’ Stella said, anger in her voice. ‘It just stinks I have to be around her.’

Both Lilah and Nicki put their arms around Stella as they walked back to their bikes. Stella felt reassured to have such good friends, but she knew that as soon as she stepped into the office, it would be just her.

I can’t let Lauren mess things up for me.

I’ve worked too hard.

I care too much to let her put me off my game…

It turned out to be a very decent day at work. Despite her fears over Lauren Treen stirring up all kinds of crap, Stella actually managed to avoid Lauren for most of the day.

This had been a real blessing.

Not only was Stella able to happily work on a new presentation she was hoping to show to the senior management board, but she was also able to have a chat with the sweet new guy who was working on the welcome desk at EcoPlay.

Stella didn’t think it was a love match between them, but it was fun to talk all the same…

He’s cute.

Maybe not exactly my usual type.

But with no Daddies in my world, I might need to be more open to something else?

However, now she was back at her apartment, Stella decided to shut down all thoughts of work and allow herself a little rest and relaxation time.

Stella’s ground floor apartment had a big, open plan living area that was flanked by two bedrooms on either side. Stella’s room was the master suite and had a generous sized bathroom off it. The guest bedroom was a little more snug but had its own walk-in shower.

All in all, the apartment was just about perfect for Stella.

When she had a friend from out of town over to stay, there was just about enough room. But on a day-to-day basis for just her, there was plenty of space.

In fact, Stella would often use the guest bedroom to store her in-progress work projects, spare bike parts, and whatever paperwork she had taken home from the The Dog Den dog center.

‘Okay… so shall I have a juice box or….’ Stella wondered out loud, momentarily blushing self-consciously as she realized how much of a cliché she must have looked. ‘Damn. Talking to myself. I seriously need a Daddy…’

Stella laughed and shook her head as she walked over to the tall, metallic refrigerator. Opening it up, Stella had to search around for the eight pack of ice-cold juice boxes that she knew was in there somewhere.

‘Jeez. I’ve got enough greenery in here to call it a second garden,’ Stella grumbled before finally pushing past a big bag of kale and pulling out the multicolored juice boxes. ‘Not that I’m complaining.’

Stella actually loved her healthy diet and environmentally conscious lifestyle.

She could easily have afforded a sports car or to eat out every night, but she genuinely loved nothing more than cycling and making her own food from scratch.

It was just who she was, and Stella was more than happy to admit it too.

Just as the juice box was primed and ready to open, Stella caught a glimpse of her cellphone flashing over by the large l-shaped couch.

Taking a quick sip of mango and tropical fruit juice, Stella walked over toward the phone and picked it up.

It was almost certainly either Lilah or Nicki, but if they thought that they were going to get Stella out for a night on the quayside bars, then they had another thing coming.

Stella was still sweating from her cycle back from work and her plan was very much to sink this juice, shower, and then indulge herself in a big crunchy salad and a golden era - 1990s of course - Disney marathon.

But rather than the message being from Lilah or Nicki, it was in fact from someone else altogether…

Yo, Stella! You still at the place over on Sunset Gaze? Logan X

Stella paused.

Her first reaction was to simply put the phone down and ignore the message altogether. It had been months upon months, possibly even closer to two years, since Stella had even heard so much as a single word from Logan.

What does he want?

Why… message now? I don’t get it.

Except… this is still somehow so Logan.

Stella and Logan went way back together.

Despite the significant age gap between them, the pair met each other at college and quickly became friends. Logan may have been a mature student with an extra twenty years in the bank over Stella, but he was very much young at heart.

While Stella was bright, conscientious with her work, and hated risk, Logan was very much the opposite.

Logan was a rebel.

He lived fast, close to the edge.

If there was even a chance of having fun then Logan simply could never turn it down.

The fact that Logan was a mature student was something that Logan had always played down to Stella. Logan always maintained that he had been too busy partying and living a wild life during his twenties and early thirties to even consider college.

This made sense, but it wasn’t as if Logan was partying any less or living any less wild when he finally did make it to college.

But for men like Logan, age was only a number. He may have been older than some of the lecturers, but that made no difference…

At college, Logan had been a stone-cold heartthrob.

With his thick stubble and blonde and brown hair, he looked every inch the bad boy. The fact that he had a long scar on his left thigh just added to the dangerous appeal.

Logan’s almond brown eyes were like deep pools of brooding soul and there wasn’t a girl on campus who wouldn’t shoot him a look of admiration or lust.

Stella and Logan had hit it off as friends from the jump.

Yes, they were very much opposites. And the age-gap was undeniable. But something about them just clicked.

Logan would take Stella to the coolest underground parties on campus and it sometimes felt inevitable that after a few beers the pair of them would fool around. Things had gotten pretty steamy between them, but Logan had always made it clear that he wasn’t looking for anything serious.

Stella had always said that she was fine with this.

However Stella being Stella, she honestly wanted more.

Truthfully, what Stella wanted more than anything was commitment.

But as far as Stella was concerned, the reality of the situation was that she was hopelessly in love with Logan, and it would never be returned in kind.

Logan was like a precious stone that Stella could glimpse at, touch, but never keep. And for a while, Stella managed to deal with that.

Just as Stella was beginning to dredge up all the old memories, and the intervening years of occasional hook ups and catch-up dinners, she heard the sound of her doorbell.

‘Huh?’ Stella said, putting her phone down and walking toward the door.

Stella wasn’t expecting anyone, and neither Lilah or Nicki would show up without calling ahead, it just wasn’t something that either of them ever did.

Stella paused and gripped her hand on the doorknob.

It couldn’t be… could it?