Daddy's Sweet Girl (Montana Daddies, #3)

by Roberts, Laylah

  He disappeared out of the bedroom so quickly, that she stood there for a full minute before she recalled the task he’d given her.

  Brush teeth. Get into PJs. She could do that.

  Ten minutes later, she stepped into the bedroom and found him sitting on the bed. He’d turned off the main light and the lamp by the bed cast shadows of stars around the room.

  “You might want to turn it off so it doesn’t wake you up,” he said, standing. He reached for the covers and pulled them back. “You look really cute in your PJs, little girl.”

  “Thank you.” Daddy hovered on her lips, but she couldn’t quite say it.

  “Did you use the toilet?”

  “Umm, yes.” She blushed.

  “Brushed your teeth?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good girl. Climb into bed now. Daddy will tuck you in then I’ve got something for you.” The bed was high and she felt like a little girl as she climbed in. She lay back with a sigh of pleasure.

  “This bed is really comfortable.”

  “I’m glad. Want me to read you a story?”

  “I guess so.”

  “Would you like some company while you’re getting a story?” He pulled something out of the drawer by the bed. At first, she was going to reject this toy the way she had the others. But she noticed it seemed a bit more worn. She reached out to touch it. Then she took hold and brought it close to her.

  “His name is Boss Hog; he was mine when I was a boy. I thought he would guard you well.”

  “He smells like you,” she exclaimed.

  “Well, I’m not sure how since I haven’t hugged him in over twenty years.”

  She smiled at the thought of a young Kent going to bed with Boss Hog.

  “He’s perfect, Daddy, thank you.”

  Kent froze and she stared up at him worriedly. “Everything okay?”

  “Everything’s fine, sweet girl. That was just the first time you’ve called me daddy. I liked it.”

  “Oh. Good.” She hugged Boss Hog tight as she snuggled in. He tucked in the side of the bed and then settled down on the bed, facing her. He grabbed the book on the nightstand. “You like Winnie the Pooh?”

  “I love him,” she said. She noticed her voice had gotten distinctly more childish, but she didn’t care. She settled in and relaxed as he read the story. He wasn’t even halfway through when her eyes drifted shut and the last thing she remembered was him brushing his lips across her forehead.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The man grinned at her evilly. In his hands he held a huge pair of pliers.

  She tried to move, tried to get away, but she was stuck. All she could do was sit there in horror as he drew closer and closer.

  “Now, which finger should I take first?”

  She woke suddenly, sitting up in bed, her heart racing, her skin clammy with sweat. Where was she? She gazed around the strange room in fright. This wasn’t her bedroom. She raised her hand to wipe her face and realized she had a tight hold on a stuffed hedgehog.

  It rushed back to her. Her trashed house. Kent. Coming to his place. Grilled cheese and bedtime stories.

  Safety. Acceptance. Caring.

  She was safe. It had just been a bad dream. She should go back to sleep. Last thing she wanted to do was wake Kent. But as she lay back, she knew she wasn’t going to be able to sleep.

  She picked up her cell phone. She’d remembered to charge it last night before she’d gotten ready for bed. It wasn’t even two a.m. She lay there for at least five minutes, staring at the ceiling. This wasn’t going to work.

  Maybe she could get up without disturbing him. Perhaps watching some T.V. for a while would help. She climbed out of bed, still holding onto Boss Hog and tiptoed her way down the stairs. She didn’t want to turn on a light and risk waking Kent so she had to be very quiet.

  Last thing she needed was to fall and break a leg. Once she got to the living room, she switched on the light and grabbed up the remotes, turning on the T.V. before climbing onto the sofa and pulling the blanket she’d used before over her.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” a sleepy voice asked.

  She screeched, sitting up with a fright as she stared at where Kent stood, leaning against the doorframe. He wore a pair of low-slung pajama pants.

  And nothing else.

  Oh, my lord, the man was ripped. She’d never seen a finer looking body in her life. Wide shoulders, a light smattering of chest hair then down his magnificent abs. And then her eyes moved lower.

  “Abby? Abby, my face is up here.”

  She raised her eyes with a snap to his face. A grin danced at the corner of his mouth.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said, mortified. “I don’t know what I...I mean, I didn’t mean to...oh hell.”

  “Abby-girl, it’s okay. I like that you were looking. Hope you liked what you saw.”

  “Oh, I did,” she said fervently.

  His grin widened. “Good. So, want to tell me what you’re doing up at two a.m. with the T.V. on?”

  “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”

  “I’m a pretty light sleeper.”

  “I’m so sor—”

  “Abby, stop saying you’re sorry. It’s okay. I’d rather wake up than not. I wouldn’t like to think of you needing me and me snoring away in bed.”

  “Oh no, you snore?” she teased.

  “Brat.” He walked forward and sat next to her. Then to her surprise, he lifted her, blanket and all, onto his lap. “All right, talk. What’s going on?”

  She squirmed around on his lap. He let out a low groan. “Baby, you got to stop moving like that.”

  She froze. “I’m sor—” She bit that off as he sent her a sharp look. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

  “Just being around you makes me...uncomfortable.” He winked down at her.

  “It does?” she said breathlessly. He really did want her that much?

  He raised an eyebrow. “Being around me doesn’t turn you on?”

  “Oh no, it does. It really does. And I wish I didn’t just say that so emphatically.” Her gaze dropped away. She was such a dork.

  He placed a finger under her chin and raised her face. “I like that you don’t hide what you’re thinking. That you’re not one of these women who pretends something she doesn’t feel. Or likes to play games. I just want Abby. Smart, sweet, kind Abby.”

  “Oh.” She melted even more. “I don’t think anyone has ever said anything that nice to me before.”

  “Then that’s a crime. Now, tell me why you’re up.”

  “I had a nightmare.”

  He raised one eyebrow. “Didn’t I tell you to come get me if you needed anything? Want to tell me why you instead snuck downstairs, in the dark, when you could have tripped and hurt yourself, to turn on the television?”

  “Yes...but...well, I thought that was just something people say. Not that you actually wanted me to do it.”

  “Abby, two things about me. I don’t offer to do things I don’t want to do and I don’t say things I don’t mean, okay? Believe it or not, I’m not that polite.”

  She grinned at that. “Okay. Sorry.”

  “I’m sorry you had a nightmare, baby. Tell me about it.”

  It wasn’t a request. She took in a deep breath, trying to calm the nerves dancing around in her stomach. “It was that man, the one in the parking lot of the diner. He was smiling at me, but it was an evil smile. And he was walking towards me with this huge pair of pliers and then he said, which finger did I want him to take first? That’s when I woke up.”

  She felt a tremble work its way through her. Then he pulled her even closer, running his hand up and down her back. “It’s okay, baby. Nobody is going to get to you. No one will hurt you. Not with me around.”

  But what about when he left?

  She buried her face into his chest to try and prevent herself from thinking about that moment. She just had to take as much of him as she could while h
e was here.

  “No wonder you couldn’t get back to sleep. But I wish you had woken me up.”

  She shrugged. “I figured I would watch T.V. until I felt sleepy again.”

  “You can’t stay up half the night watching T.V., though.”

  “I’ll keep it down. I don’t even really need the sound if you think it will bother you.”

  He sighed. “I’m not worried about me.”

  Her? He was worried about her? He really was an amazing guy. “You don’t need to worry about me. I often wake up and can’t get back to sleep. Or can’t get to sleep in the first place. I’m used to watching T.V. and falling asleep on the couch. Or I was, until Max arrived. He took up residence on the couch even though there are two perfectly good bedrooms. I couldn’t watch any of my programs.”

  “Terrible,” he replied.

  She leaned back, staring up at him suspiciously. “Was that sarcasm?”

  “No, baby. I think it really is terrible the way he just took over.”

  “T.V. helps me sleep. Makes me feel less alone, I guess. I don’t stress or worry when I’m watching it.”

  “Is there anything else you do that stops you from worrying or helps you sleep?”

  “Oh...umm...” She couldn’t tell him about that, could she?

  He already knows everything else. The man bought you onesie pajamas, the type with feet attached and a back flap. He gave you his stuffed childhood toy. He’s not going to be horrified.

  “I like to build forts,” she blurted out.

  “What?” He blinked.

  “Blanket forts. I put a few blankets over the dining table then pull the cushions off the sofa and put them under the table and then climb in. I know it’s silly, but it makes me feel safe.”

  And now she was wondering if she shouldn’t have told him.

  “Hush, it’s not silly. It’s actually a great idea. Except I don’t have a dining table and I’m not really keen on either of us sleeping on sofa cushions. I do have an idea, though.” He stood and glanced down at the blanket still tucked around her. “Will you be cold if I take that?”

  “No, I’ll be fine. Here. What are you doing?”

  “You’ll see. Stay here. I’ll come back for you.”

  She watched with curiosity as he left. What was he up to? What was this idea he had?

  Fifteen minutes later, she was watching a rerun of Friends when he returned. He reached for the T.V. remote and switched it off. She sat up from where she’d been lying on the sofa and took the hand he offered.

  “From now on,” he said as they climbed the stairs. “When you’re Little Abby and I’m Daddy you don’t take the stairs on your own at night, understand?”

  “Umm, yes.”

  He didn’t lead her to her bedroom as she’d thought he would. Instead, he steered her to his bedroom. And what she walked into was like some sort of magical dream.

  “How...how did you do this?” She moved closer to the bed. Kent had actually put the mattress on the floor, rigged up some poles over it, then draped a couple of large blankets across the poles.

  But he hadn’t stopped there. Around the entrance to the blanket fort, he’d put up some fairy lights.

  “Camping supplies. The fairy lights are something Eden bought. She said you can never have enough fairy lights. You like it?”

  He sounded almost unsure. Unlike the confident man she had come to know.

  “I love it.” Abby walked to him then slipped her arms around his waist. For a moment he stood stiffly then he wrapped her up in his embrace and held her tight.

  “Good,” he told her. “I didn’t want you to sleep on your own in case you had more nightmares, so I thought it was better to do it in my bedroom. You can sleep in here with me.”

  YOU CAN SLEEP IN HERE with me.

  Christ, thought this one through well, didn’t he?

  He stared down at Abby who was still nestled up against him and wondered how the hell he was going to manage to get to sleep.

  Get it together, man.

  He cleared his throat. He needed to be strong for her. She was coming into his bed because she’d had a nightmare because of her shitty, shitty day.

  She didn’t need him trying to get into her pants.

  “Do you need the bathroom, baby?” he asked her.

  She nodded with a yawn. He let her go and stepped back. She just stood there. Poor baby, she was dead on her feet. He turned her and gave her a small nudge towards the bathroom. When that didn’t work, he gave her ass a small slap.

  “Hey!”

  Yeah, he should have known that would get her attention. She rubbed her ass. “You spanked me.”

  “Sweetheart, in no way was that a spanking, that was a tap to get your attention. Go use the bathroom and then come to bed. We both need sleep.”

  A FEW MINUTES LATER, she shuffled her way back into Kent’s bedroom from the ensuite bathroom. The only lights on were the fairy lights and it looked romantic. She glanced down at her onesie. Yeah, she wasn’t exactly dressed for any sort of seduction. Not that she’d even know how to start trying to seduce someone.

  No doubt she’d make a complete mess of that.

  “Abby, stop stalling and come to bed,” Kent growled.

  She jumped slightly, and chewing on her thumbnail, approached the fort he’d built.

  For her.

  Had anyone ever done anything so nice for her before? As that thought hit her, so did everything else. This past week had been absolute shit. Not all of it. Not Kent. But she felt torn about that. She had no right bringing him into her life. She should have been upfront from the start and told him she didn’t have time in her life to start anything with him.

  Tears dripped down her cheeks. She hated that she was crying again. What was wrong with her? Her body rocked with sobs as she just stood there, unable to move. Where was Max? Who had wrecked her house? What was she going to do? She had nothing.

  Maybe you should just leave.

  Kent poked his head out of the tent and saw her. The frown on his face smoothed out.

  “Oh, baby. It’s all hit you, huh?”

  “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I c-can’t stop s-shaking.”

  He crawled out and walked to her, gathering her into his arms. “You... you shouldn’t be nice to me.”

  He pulled back, gazed down at her. “And why shouldn’t I be nice to you?”

  “B-because I’m a t-terrible person.”

  He made a noise of disbelief and pulled her in close, tucking her face into his chest as he rocked her gently. “Baby, I don’t know anyone better than you.”

  “T-that’s not t-true. Or you k-know some truly a-awful people.”

  He rubbed his hand up and down her back. “Why don’t you tell me why you’re so terrible, hmm?”

  “I l-lied to you. Kept t-things from you. And a-all because I was s-selfish.”

  “I’m pretty certain you don’t know how to be selfish so you’re going to have to explain that one.”

  She took a deep breath. “I d-didn’t tell you a-anything about M-max or the m-money I was p-paying off. Or that I-I might h-have to sell my h-house and leave.”

  She felt him stiffen but she wanted to get this out.

  “I t-told myself it was to p-protect you. But mostly it was b-because I didn’t w-want to l-lose any t-time with you. See, I’m horrible and s-selfish.”

  “Okay, there’s a few things there we need to address and three in the morning probably isn’t the best time to talk about them. But here’s what you need to know. One, you wanted something for yourself. That’s not selfish. Two, I’m not happy about you keeping any of this from me. You know what I expected. But I also know that what’s between us is new and scary to you so I’m going to take that into consideration when I work out your punishment for that.”

  She sucked in a breath at that, but didn’t protest. She deserved to be punished.

  “I know you haven’t agreed to a relationship like that with me
. With me as the head, with your agreement to be my Little and my sub, however you’re obviously carrying a lot of guilt, which isn’t healthy. And you need to let that go. A punishment can do that. It can wipe the slate clean. And you can forgive yourself. I want you to think about that. But lastly...”

  He stepped back and placed his hands on her shoulders. Then he leaned in, his face stern. “You are not going anywhere, understand me? I didn’t just meet you only to lose you. I don’t know where this is going, but I know where I hope it does. And for that to happen you need to be here. Preferably in this house. With me.”

  “You want me to live here?” Her sobs had long since dried up, now she was trembling for an entirely different reason.

  “I know that’s fast. But when I want something, I go for it. I don’t mess around. But I would never force you. You’re here for now, where I can watch over you and keep you safe. That’s what’s important. All right?”

  “All right.” She licked her lips. “I want you to do it now.”

  “What? Baby, we don’t have to—”

  “Please. I want it now. I feel so guilty about not telling you the truth. It’s like this lead ball in my tummy. Please, I want it over with now.”

  He watched her for a minute then he nodded. “All right, we’ll do this now. But you know there’s a few things to address. Not just you keeping things from me. I believe there were a few lies and you hung the phone up on me.”

  “Oh yeah.” She gulped. Shit.

  “Sure about this?”

  If it would make her feet better then yeah. “The slate will be clean?”

  “Yes, all will be forgiven.”

  “Then yes, I’m sure.”

  “All right then. Come with me.” He held out his hand and she slid hers into it. Then he led from the room and into the spare bedroom she hadn’t seen before.

  “I don’t want to do this in the room I gave you. That’s your safe place and there was nowhere for me to sit in our bedroom since the mattress is on the floor.”