"Huh? Hey, Angel, how are you feeling?" Terry sat up from the recliner and rubbed his face.
"Much better. Thanks for not taking me to the hospital. That would have been one more source of stress that I can't handle right now."
"I get it, kiddo. Your new daddies don't, though," he said, checking her blood pressure and skin turgor. "Much better. I'm gonna give you another bag."
"Are they on that 'daddy' road again? My God, they just met me," Baylor said, watching as he changed the IV and checked the drip rate.
"Did you know you were calling both of them 'Daddy' until you finally fell asleep?"
"If I did something that stupid, it was due to delirium, nothing more."
"Well, regardless, you're in it for the long haul now." Terry chuckled. "They are going to be watching over you like a mongoose to a cobra. No biting back, either. You are officially one of us, you poor little thing."
"They can't just adopt me because they're in the mood to spout parental concern upon someone. Tell them to get a puppy."
"They have that damn Gila monster." Terry gave a visible shudder. "She's not very cuddly, and can be nasty if she's in the mood."
"Have you been bitten?"
"By the lizard? No. But I've had other lizards that—"
"Lalalala," Baylor put her hands over her ears. "TMI, don't wanna hear it. Lalalala."
Terry poked her in the side. "It's good to see you have a sense of humor, tidbit. Do you need to go potty? I have dumped three bags of juice into you."
"Seriously, Terry? Yes, I have to go to the bathroom. What are you doing?"
"I'm helping you. You have a hook-up to your arm, remember? Easy, now." He helped her stand and supported her while she balanced herself. "I can bring you a bedpan. I have one at the house."
"I'm not even going to ask why you keep them around, but no. Shit!" Baylor grabbed his arm as she stumbled.
"That's it. No arguments." He easily lifted her up and carried her into the bathroom. Despite her protests, he had her shorts and panties down and sat her on the toilet in seconds.
"Get out of here!" she hissed, covering herself with her hand.
"Trust me, baby. I am not interested in your lady parts. You don't have the, uh, accoutrements that I prefer," Terry said, grinning as he leaned against the doorframe.
"Oh, God." Baylor rolled her eyes, her bladder oblivious to her attempt at modesty.
"Stay there for a few minutes. I'm going to get you something to drink."
"Are you trying to make me float away?" Baylor snarled. She sat and waited for the trickle to finally stop and then slowly stood, clutching the wall as she adjusted her shorts. She was just stumbling back into the bedroom when Terry, followed by Jake and Hayden, returned.
"Just what do you think you are doing, young lady?" Terry scolded, as the other two men caught the girl by the arms.
"Going back to bed. Duh."
"She's mouthy this evening," Hayden observed. "She must be feeling better."
"Well, as soon as she's back to her old feisty self, this little lady and I are going to have a very long talk," Jake said, lowering Baylor to sit on the bed. "I found your medical file with your drugs."
"Shit," Baylor muttered, looking away from him. She popped a piece of bubblegum into her mouth and refused to look at him.
"Let me guess," Terry said, crossing his arms and frowning. "Hypoglycemic? Hypertension? Brat-disorder?"
"I don't know about the last one, but certainly the first two. No wonder you've been falling all over the place. Are you crazy? Why didn't you say something?" Jake asked.
"If anxiety is considered crazy, then yes," Baylor retorted. "It was none of your business."
"It would have become my business if you had passed out while driving the other night!" Jake's voice boomed as he placed his hands on his waist. "It would have become my business if you had fallen down the stairs in my house! It would have become my business if you'd decided to take a dip in the pool and drowned yourself!"
"Okay! I get it. There is no need to shout."
"Oh, you have not heard shouting yet. When I am done with you, there will be no doubt in your mind as to the difference between me being annoyed and me being just plain pissed!" His voice rose another decibel, and Baylor flinched.
"Baylor," Hayden said calmly, scooting next to her. "Like it or not, you're sick. And, like it or not, we are all going to take good care of you. Got it?"
She looked between the three of them, her memory returning to the night before when she'd felt so helpless and alone. Slowly, she nodded and lowered her eyes to look at her lap.
"Good. Now that this is settled, we are going to set a few rules. One, you will be taking care of yourself," Jake said. "Terry?"
"I want to see your glucometer every evening before you go to bed. You are to start making a chart of your blood sugars, and follow-ups if they are off. Got it?"
"Yes, sir," Baylor whispered, blowing a bubble. It popped on her face.
"You will be joining us for breakfast every morning, and dinner every evening," Hayden added. "You said you can't boil an egg. You are going to learn to cook, and I am going to teach you. This way you have no excuse if I'm gone and can't cook for you."
"And finally," Jake's face was drawn to a stern frown, "you are going to follow a schedule and learn some accountability. I want you to come to us immediately if you are experiencing any type of unusual stress so we can help you. I promise you that a spanking will be in your future if you even think about neglecting your health again. Am I understood, little girl?"
She was startled at the clip in his tone. Her breath caught in her throat as she tilted her face away from them and nodded, feeling the warmth of a single tear roll slowly down the bridge of her nose. The truth was that she had no strength to argue even if she wanted to.
"Any questions?" Jake asked, crossing his arms.
In a tone just above a whisper, she asked, "Does this mean I can't make decisions for myself?"
"Of course not! We're not taking away your independence, Ladybug. We are simply trying to make you understand that it's time for you to focus on yourself. Your health cannot be replaced." Hayden held her hand. "You said you can't afford medical care. Is your rent too high?"
"No. I got an email from the realtor yesterday saying that the owner had reduced it to half because of the inconvenience of my neighbors," Baylor said with a smile.
"She did not!" Jake sounded appalled.
"I swear she did. I didn't even have to snitch on you either. It came out of the blue and, believe me, it was a blessing. I'm paying the same now as I did at that old place."
"That should reduce some of your stress," Hayden said. "Although I'm not too sure how I feel about the reason."
"Obviously the owner knows about your activity level. He probably assumed that you were still overseas and working the weird shifts and weren't home very much." Baylor shrugged.
"Well, I'm glad he thought of you. It was very considerate of him," Jake said.
"Yes, it was. I asked the realtor to convey my appreciation but I didn't dispute the reasons for reducing the rent." She giggled. "I'm no dummy."
Silence filled the room for a moment.
"Please, don't scare us like this again," Jake requested gently.
"Do you realize how close you were to stroking out, darling?" Terry asked, joining them. "That would have been an awful tragedy, plus it would have given your fuckhead ex and his family something to gloat about. We wouldn't want that, would we?"
"No."
"Will you gentlemen please stop swearing?" Jake said. He kneeled on the floor next to Baylor's bed and leaned his folded arms on the edge to look up into her face. "I don't want to see you become another statistic. Do you have any idea what it would do to me if I had to write up a death report on you?"
His voice held so much emotion that Baylor could not help but look at him. "Do you really want to be my daddy?" she whispered.
"I do."
&nb
sp; "And you?" she looked at Hayden. "Do you want to be my daddy, too?"
"Absolutely."
"I've already claimed the uncle position, so you don't have to ask me," Terry grunted.
She looked back and forth between Jake and Hayden. With an audible sigh, she nodded. "All right, we'll try it."
"Excellent." Jake smiled. "You're aware of what this means, don't you?
"No, what?" Baylor looked at him suspiciously.
"You owe me a day at Chuck E. Cheese. You just lost our bet."
"I hate Chuck E. Cheese," Baylor groaned, snapping her gum.
"And one more thing. Spit it out!" He held out his hand. "No more gum."
"That's not fair," she sneered. He snapped his fingers and held his hand under her mouth. "Fine. But you're a big bully."
***
Baylor sat at the dining room table and glowered at her plate.
"What's wrong now?" Jake asked impatiently.
"It looks weird."
"It's Pad Thai," Hayden said, taking a bite. "Try it."
She wrinkled her nose. "It smells funny."
"Just try it and stop acting like a baby," Jake ordered.
Baylor grumbled and timidly took a bite. She pushed the plate away and shook her head. "Yuck."
"We're not running a restaurant here, young lady," Jake scolded.
"Thai is an acquired taste, dude. Let her be. Mac and Cheese? A burger?" Hayden offered.
"Nothing. I'm not hungry."
"Okay, I've heard enough," Jake said, pushing his chair back from the table. "Into the living room."
"Why?"
"Because I said so."
Baylor stood slowly and walked by him, yelping as he planted a hard smack across her shorts. "Hey! What was that for?"
"You're being a brat. Brats get spanked."
"Just because I'm not hungry? Terry said to push liquids, not food!"
"Uncle Terry also said that you need to eat to control the hypoglycemia. He was very specific about no more missing meals," Jake said, grabbing Baylor's wrist and pulling her behind him. "Sit."
"Why are you being so mean?" She looked up at him.
"Feet off the couch. Now, listen to me. Part of this accountability means you putting in the effort to keep your promises. That means doing things like eating and checking your blood sugars without being told."
"I can't help it if I'm not hungry."
"No, but you can make yourself eat something. So, here's the deal. First, the one-bite rule. You are to taste everything before you say you don't like it. Second; every time you say you aren't hungry, you're going to be spanked."
"What? That's not fair! What if I'm allergic?"
"Are you allergic to anything?" Hayden asked.
"No, but what if—"
"You heard me. Hayden," Jake acknowledged his brother who sat on a stool to listen into the conversation, "is very generous in his patience and is willing to cater to you, but I am less so."
"I can't eat something I don't like!"
"I said I would make you Mac and Cheese, a burger, or anything else you want if what we are serving is something you don't care for," Hayden said, popping the cap off a soda and taking a deep drink. "Just tell me what you want."
"But I'm really not hungry."
"That's my cue," Jake sighed, sitting next to Baylor. He patted his thigh. "Put your backside over my lap so I can introduce you to what is going to be happening every time I hear that statement."
"No!"
"Baylor, love," Hayden spoke, "Daddy told you to do something. You don't have to like it, just do as you're told."
"But he wants to spank me!"
"He doesn't want to spank you." Hayden leaned forward. "It's part of his job to discipline you. Consider yourself fortunate that Uncle Terry isn't here. He would be using a wooden spoon on your bottom and not his hand. He's into the leather scene and used to dealing with men, so I doubt his swing is something to laugh at."
"I don't want a spanking."
"You could have avoided it had you cooperated. Over my knee, Baylor. If I have to tell you again, those shorts will be coming down."
"But—"
"Remember, you agreed to this. You need daddies to be here for you, to love on you and to guide you. Part of that," Jake pulled her reluctant body over his thighs and positioned her bottom under his hand, "means disciplining a naughty bottom if needed. And today, it is needed."
Jake's hand fell in a weighty splat across the span of Baylor's shorts. She squealed and dug her fingers into his leg, looking over her shoulder. "That fuckin' hurt!"
"One thing you need to learn right here and now," Jake scolded, landing six hard and heavy swats over her bottom in quick repetition, "is that the use of profanity while your backside is across my knee is not beneficial to your ability to sit. Say you're sorry."
"Ow! I'm sorry!"
"That didn't sound very sincere. Let's try this again," Jake said, smacking his hand sharply over the seat of her pants.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she called out, squirming and kicking to escape. "I'm sorry!"
"But are you really sorry?" Jake asked, pausing to rest his hand on her bottom.
Baylor nodded, close to tears. "Yes, I'm really sorry."
"Are you going to be a good girl and do what you promised?"
"Yes, sir," she whimpered, straining her neck to look at him. "I'll be good. I'll even try that Thai stuff again."
"You don't need to eat anything you don't like," Jake said, pulling her up to stand between his knees. "You just need to eat something. Now go sit your butt down at the table and show me that you can keep a promise. The last thing you want is to be 'knee deep in rotten kimchee' with me, okay?"
Hayden winked as he placed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in front of her. He had trimmed off the crust and cut it into diamond-shaped pieces, then surrounded it with pieces of honeydew melon.
"How did you make the melon look like flowers?" Baylor asked, staring at the plate. "It's so pretty."
"Cookie cutters. In the middle is a Maraschino cherry held with a toothpick. Do you like pretty things?"
"I've never had pretty things," she said quietly, nibbling on a piece of melon and avoiding Jake's watchful eye.
"You haven't? Why not?"
"Don't be insensitive, you jerk," Hayden said. "She told us about how she was raised, and we know her ex was a selfish, self-indulgent wuss."
"Have you ever gotten your nails done or done any of that stuff that girls do?"
"Never. I neither had the money or the interest," Baylor said, taking a bite of her sandwich. "It wasn't important."
"Well, Ladybug, that's going to change. You're going to find some interest, and Daddy Jake and I are going to get you some pretty things. We're also going to take you to some places where you can laugh and play. How does that sound?" Hayden asked, sitting across from her and wiping jelly off her cheek with a napkin.
"Scary."
"Scary?" Jake questioned. "Why scary?"
"I, well," Baylor bit her lip and looked at them, her eyes still glazed from the introductory spanking. "I don't know how."
"You don't know how to do what?" Jake asked, picking up a piece of fruit from her plate and bringing it to her lips. "Eat."
She chewed on the melon, allowing him to wipe her chin. "I don't know how to laugh and play. Not really."
"Just be spontaneous. If you are in your Little mode, you don't worry about the outcome. It's a time where you can just react. Within reason, of course."
"I don't know if I can do that. Something always stops me. Like just now."
"What happened just now?" Jake asked, holding up another piece of melon for her.
"I wanted to do this," Baylor said, nipping his fingers with her teeth.
"Ow!" Jake pulled back.
"That's my girl!" Hayden laughed loudly. "You're going to do just fine!"
Chapter Five
"You have got to be kidding," Baylor said.
"Not
a bit. Come on, try them on," Hayden urged.
She looked at Terry. "Are you going to help me here?"
"Nope. If it was up to me, you'd be wearing a onesie."
Baylor held the pink dress in the air and held it to her chest. "It's so small. And pink. I never wear pink. Ever."
"No more wearing black for you, either. You need bright, pretty colors in your life," Hayden declared. "Doctor's orders."
"A PhD in life experience doesn't make you a doctor," she answered saucily.
"No more black. Hear me?"
Baylor rolled her eyes at his 'Mr. Serious' face. "I hear you. Give me a break, guys, I can't go anywhere in this. My ass will hang out."
"We have these ruffled panties for you." Terry laughed loudly. "Oh my! Look at that face!"
"Why the hell are you making me do this?"
"Did you just swear?" Jake asked.
"The word hell is in the bible, so technically, no."
"So technically, the five whacks of the hairbrush on your backside won't hurt a bit. Go get it."
"Ah, Jake—"
"Hurry now. You know what happens if you fight me. And stop rolling your eyes at me."
She rolled her eyes anyway and stomped upstairs to his bedroom. Jake had been breathing down her neck for the last three days about 'cleaning up her act', starting with swearing. He promised that she would still be able to maintain her 'dignity'—i.e. keep her pants up—if she retrieved the hairbrush without argument. She was wearing jeans and the brush was plastic, so she was not concerned about it hurting.
"Here. Happy?"
"I am. Bend over the arm of the couch."
"In front of everyone? Jake…"
"Mind Daddy, little one. We have things to do before Matt comes home," Terry said.
"This is ridiculous," Baylor mumbled, leaning forward over the overstuffed arm rest.
"Five strokes for cussing is what we agreed on, right?"
"Yeah."
She hopped to her feet and gripped her bottom with both hands after the first stroke.
"Problem?" Jake asked.
"That frickin hurts like Hades!"
"Much better selection of words. Bend over. Four more."
Moving a Little Heart Page 6
