BABY

by Dani Wyatt

  “They don’t give a shit about you, Chloe! Why do you care what happens to them? How many nights of your sweet little life have you spent crying because of them?”

  I bit my lip. There had been way too many to keep count.

  “I know, Baby. Way too fucking many.”

  Ryder didn’t even need me to stay things out loud.

  “Then let them suffer in their own pile of shit. They deserve it, Chloe. They fucking deserve worse.”

  When Ryder smoothed the hair on top of my head with his strong hand, my eyes closed in pleasure. His protectiveness and his soothing touch—he was the Daddy I never had. The one I deserved.

  I was beginning to see it now.

  Just barely more than a day away from Mom, Dad and Trix, and I felt different. I was learning to speak up for what I wanted. Even though Ryder turned down my request on this issue, I still had the courage to say it all out loud. I barely even recognized myself.

  “Let me tell you something, Chloe. Sometimes in war, you’ve got a chewed-up rotting body part that’s holding you back from moving on. You fucking chop it off and get back up to fight the rest of the battle.”

  I bit my lip so hard, I tasted metallic blood on my tongue.

  “It hurts, it fucking hurts. And you mourn the loss, but you know it was no good for you and you needed to cut that rotten shit off. That bunch of fuckers you call family are that rotten bit of you. Chop them off. Move on.”

  The authority stamped onto his features, the protectiveness, was intoxicating. Even when his tone grew harsh, there was always tenderness in his eyes. Like he was trying to teach me, make me learn without breaking my spirit. It helped me speak my mind. But at the same time, I continued to want to be a vulnerable girl for my Daddy to nurture.

  I guess, Ryder coming to my rescue and saving me was always something I counted on.

  “I...I understand.”

  “Good girl.” He leaned over and kissed me finally, pecking my lips. After denying me the kiss the first time, I felt like I’d fucking won something. I licked my lips to taste him, because he’d left me longing for more.

  “Now, I need to drop by Nanna’s place and get her some groceries. I’m going to teach you to drive, but for the time being I’ve hired a driver for you. He’ll be here in an hour, so if you need to go anywhere, if you need to come to Nanna’s to see me, if you want a fucking tissue and there aren’t any in the house, he’ll take you. Got it? You don’t go anywhere on your own.”

  My heart twisted. My eyes dropped to the large box he was holding under his arm, all prettily wrapped and bowed. “You have to go right now?”

  “Yeah.”

  His tone was cold, but he smiled to take the sting out of it. “Promise me you won’t keep thinking about what you read on my phone. What those jerks say isn’t any of our business. They’re too fucked up with booze all the damned time to even know what they’re saying. We have our own life now and it doesn’t include them.”

  He was right. Back when we exchanged letters for two years, and stared at each other, wide-eyed, on Skype, he was always right. Ryder had a way of analyzing and solving matters that awed me...and turned me on. Even today, he was right.

  I’d begun to respect him. I also couldn’t deny that I was a bit intimidated by all the knowledge he had and the places he'd seen. Of all the wonderful things he was capable of. He awed me with his strength and his ability to take control. To protect me. To care for me.

  “This is your life now. Perfect little Chloe, surrounded by things as pretty as her. That’s the picture I want in your pretty head.”

  “They don’t fit into this picture.”

  “Good girl. They don’t. You’re too good for them.”

  I smiled and stroked the front of his shirt because it was...comforting. His strong body was so close to me.

  “Why don’t you go upstairs and check out your new wardrobe?” His gaze darted over my face, while he stroked the side of it. “I’ll go meet Nanna real quick, and when I get back, I’ve got a surprise for you.”

  I couldn't help but smile. “That box you put on the counter behind you? All wrapped up pretty?”

  “Which box?” He winked and grabbed the box, leaving me grinning at his back. I didn’t want to ruin his surprise, but I could hardly wait.

  The only surprises I got in the twenty years of my life consisted of my father breathing down my neck while I lay sleeping, and my mother smacking my hand with a hot spoon because I had borrowed a lace blouse from a friend. And Trix poking me with a pin until I bled, and laughing about it for hours.

  Ryder pulled away from me, but not before leaning in for another kiss. He held onto my hand for as long as he could, but then his fingers slipped from my grip and he headed to the kitchen door, slipping his feet into a pair of shoes before he pulled it open.

  My heart twisted in agony as I watched him leave. For the last two years, this man had given me real surprises. Sweet kisses. Little presents that I got to pick up at Nanna’s place. Books to read and soft toys to hug.

  I jumped as the kitchen door swung back open, and Ryder peered inside.

  “I’ll be back before you know it.”

  “I know.” I smiled. And I really did know. He couldn't stay away from me for long.

  He drew in a deep, hissing breath through his teeth, the rustling sound reverberating in the kitchen and making my pussy melt into a hot pool of messiness in my panties.

  “I’ll be here waiting for you, Daddy.”

  “That’s my girl.”

  My cheeks ached from smiling. Through the wide kitchen window, I watched his SUV pull out of the driveway and speed down the road. I bit my lower lip and squeezed my thighs together to soothe the sudden burn between my legs. My insides did that a lot. Squeezing and releasing, whenever Ryder was around.

  If only I had actual breasts and a tiny waist like Trix, I’d wait around naked for my Daddy and make him happy. Just thinking about the look on his face if he got back home and found me stark naked, spread over the coffee table, at the perfect height to take his cock straight in my mouth.

  My body was nothing like what he expected, I was sure of that. Ryder had his pick of girls even when he was in high school. And to think he decided to fall in love with fat, frumpy, short, Candy Cow.

  Stop. Stop thinking about that. Remember what Ryder told you. Trix lied.

  I’m perfect the way I am.

  But I was too worried about what he’d see when we finally got to be together in that way, when he finally gave me that cock completely. He said he’d been dying to shove it inside me and brand me with his heat, but I had to wonder.

  I bit my lip and looked at the white nightgown I wore, my bare legs, and then around the massive marble kitchen. And I shoved away all those thoughts. That was the poison, still in my system, the venom I’d been stung with every day of my life.

  Ryder was right. My parents didn’t belong here. They'd fuck the whole place up. They’d fuck me up, all over again.

  They simply had no place in my life.

  But he also failed to understand how much mental peace I’d been missing my whole life. He only wanted me to stay away from them. He didn’t get that I needed to make peace with them to move on and be happy.

  I’d lived my whole life being screamed at and made to feel worthless for everything—from the dark brown of my hair to the fat cow body I had.

  But I still cared about my family, as sick as that sounds. The pull was too hard. The ties that bound me needed to be undone. By me. In my way. In the end, it was the only way I could truly move on. It wasn’t about them, as selfish as that might sound. It was about me.

  Quickly, I hurried toward the stairs.

  I could be back before Ryder got back from Nanna’s. I had enough time to make the trip to the trailer park, just a few miles away, I could make them understand. Trix would get me, I knew. She wouldn’t do well with homelessness and would believe in unicorns if I convinced her that they would help her stay
off the streets. They would forgive me and accept Ryder. After all, Ryder’s money was like winning the lottery for them.

  I walked into the closet and scanned the outfits, the frilled dresses, the bows, the pretty laces and cottons and silks.

  But I was looking for something else.

  I spotted a white t-shirt on top of a pile of at least thirty new t-shirts. It smelled like heaven had freshly delivered it. Next, I reached for the jeans pile and grabbed the pair on top. Within seconds, I’d changed and passed by a mirror. Those jeans hugged my legs and gave them a shape I’d never seen before. But there wasn’t any time to check out my own ass for a few good seconds. I shoved my feet into stark white new sneakers and quickly made a high ponytail.

  I was out of the house within minutes of my decision to go, jogging down the street until I got to the bus stop.

  Panting, my eyes darted down the street. I had to return before Ryder got back. By the time he found out I’d disobeyed him, the drama would be over. My parents and Trix would stop playing their sick games, and Ryder would realize I’d been right to do this. He’d be happy that I had taken the initiative to take care of the problem.

  Right now, he couldn’t imagine what a great idea it was.

  Outside the house, I was glad to see that the driver Ryder had hired for me hadn’t arrived yet. The last thing I needed was to explain to some new employee that I was going off on my own. I spotted a bus and scanned the street for any sign of Ryder, even though I knew he wouldn't be back from his Nanna’s so soon. I took a seat on the almost-empty bus and noticed how a gum-popping teen with super-black, dyed hair glared at me. I was used to that unkind stare as a consequence of living with Trix. Even though I wanted to be brave, I recoiled and shriveled up in my seat, trying to become invisible—exactly what I did when Trix attacked me.

  After long seconds, I drew in a deep breath and decided to face her. Ryder would want me to. “Do you have a problem?” I asked the girl bravely, in a voice that came out a squeak.

  “You’ve forgotten to take the tags off your shirt and jeans. Did you change in a store and walk out without paying? Because you look scared as fuck.” She looked me up and down. “Hey, no judgment from me, girl, you do what you gotta do.”

  I reached for the damned tags, snapping them off, and holding them together in my fist. “Thanks. Sorry.”

  She shrugged as I shoved them into the back pocket of my snug, too-well-fitting jeans that were as soft as velvet to the touch.

  And it hit me. Ryder provided security, protection, love, respect, dignity and luxury all around.

  He wanted to give, and give, and give.

  And me? I’d just repaid him by betraying his trust and going off on a mission of my own.

  Just this once. Then I’ll be done.

  Chapter Eleven

  Ryder

  My Baby wanted family.

  I was going to give her family.

  Once I’d cleared my head of the worry over Chloe’s latest request, and delivered groceries at Nanna’s, I had an idea.

  Chloe was just a girl who was used to having three monsters in her life. They were the only ones she knew as family. She’d never known anything else, and I had to take it slow and steady if I was going to make her understand how toxic they really were. And that she could survive just fucking fine without them.

  For that, she had to see better. So, I helped Nanna into my car and brought her to my place.

  My initial plans for the day—that consisted solely to finally make my babygirl whole, with the shape of my cock imprinted in her pussy forever—were going to have to wait.

  When Chloe turned eighteen and I made the irrevocable decision to make her my Baby, I’d known it would take work to make her understand and embrace her role. But during the last few weeks, I’d gotten side-tracked. Chloe’s family and my newfound riches had overwhelmed me, and I’d lost track of my original plans.

  I’d grown rushed with my need to have my babygirl, rid her of that toxic cesspit that passed for a family, and start my life with her like I’d wanted for so dammed long.

  But for Chloe, I was ready to take a step back. I was going to have to teach her how it was to be loved unconditionally. I had to show her that she now had a new family. There was no rush to take her to bed anymore. I was going to be her family. She would see that Daddy was nurturing and kind and supportive and protective. Only then would she truly leave her past behind.

  I couldn’t wait to surprise Chloe as I helped Nanna up the steps of the house, giving a small wave to the driver, sitting in a brand new Audi on the drive. He looked up, nodded, and went back to reading his newspaper. To a lot of people, that would have seemed rude, but I knew better. Ralph was more than just a driver. He’d been invalided out of the service the year I joined, but he was rock solid, as much a bodyguard as anything else. I’d employed him because I knew I could trust him, and his instructions for that morning, unless Chloe needed to go anywhere, were to remain on the drive, in the car, and watch for any unwanted visitors. After all, who knew what her family might be cooking up?

  “You look happy, dear.”

  I drew a breath, looking back at Nanna. “I am, Nanna. Watch your step.” I entered the house with a smile. “Chloe, look who's here to see you.”

  I peered into the living room, fully expecting to see my babygirl bounding down the staircase in one of the new outfits I’d filled her closet with. Instead, I was greeted with eerie silence and an empty home.

  “Where is she?”

  “I’ll go check upstairs,” I said with a smile, as I helped Nanna into a comfortable overstuffed chair. But I could sense danger. I could sense that something was horribly fucking wrong.

  Taking two stairs at a time, I made my way up to the first-floor bedroom. “Chloe?” The bedroom was empty, so I crossed to the en-suite bathroom and knocked on the door. “Baby?”

  The door creaked open as my knuckles made contact with the wood. My heart raced, and I shoved the door hard, making it smash against the wall and break off its hinges. It teetered on one bit of intact hinge, creaking as shards of wood lay scattered over the tiled floor.

  Empty.

  My head began to spin, and my heart pounded so loud I swear I could hear it. The rushing blood in my temples drowned out the sound of everything around me.

  “Chloe!” I boomed as I turned back to the bed.

  My babygirl was gone. She didn’t listen to me like I had made her promise. She had disobeyed me, and I ached with the pain of her betrayal. “Baby, that’s a bad thing you did,” I said to her side of the bed.

  Grabbing my phone out of my pocket, I called the trailer park and spoke to the manager, but Edgar’s beat up old truck wasn’t parked outside his place, and there was no sign or sound of their trash selves. I thanked the manager, told him to call me if they showed up, and turned toward my desk.

  I fell into the chair and reached for my laptop. Within seconds, I was staring at the screen, my fingers flowing over the keypad. Dread sliced in my chest, but I didn’t want to think of it.

  Where was she? Was she hurt?

  If Edgar got his filthy hands on her, if he touched her, he'd be six feet under the ground within an hour. “Why didn’t you listen?”

  I was just hoping that she’d taken that beat up old hand-me-down cell phone with her wherever she’d gone. Because what I learned for a dare during my SEAL training, was going to be just the thing that saved Chloe’s life.

  “In a few minutes, I’ll have you.”

  Who knew I’d be so grateful that Edgar and Janice were too cheap to get my girl a new phone? That beat-up old phone had an outdated operating system that was as porous and holey as a coffee strainer. With any luck, I’d be able to turn on her phone’s mic within minutes, and that gave me some relief, but it didn’t take away my current torment of not knowing where she was.

  I wanted to climb up to the roof and yell out her name. I wanted to scream threats that I’d kill anyone who touched her. Imag
ining Edgar’s pudgy sausage fingers stroking her delicate flawless flesh, made my mind scream murder. She was mine. And Edgar had wanted to have her.

  I should’ve killed him when I had the chance.

  The flickering screen made my heart race. I leaned back in my chair, and tapped the Enter key brutally hard. Data began to flicker on a dark screen, and then, there it was.

  My Baby’s phone was switched on. I hit another button and a listening app began to download on her phone. My eyes were burning, but I refused to blink lest I miss something. For unbearable minutes, I watched the screen, hoping that nothing would go wrong, hoping I remembered what I’d learned. The progress bar grew, and then the download was complete. I hit the keypad again and rustling static filled the silence in the room. I was in.

  I leaned forward like a hunter, my ears attuned to every breath, every sound of the phone rustling in Chloe’s pocket. She was part of me—my babygirl—and every pore on my body was alive to the threat to her. If anyone hurt her, they hurt me.

  Edgar had been let loose on my baby like a hungry, untrained dog. And I had let it go for years because I hadn't taken her into my protection. But two days ago, I had. And now all hell would break loose on anyone who dared to touch what was mine.

  Edgar’s voice split the silence in my house as Chloe’s phone picked it up.

  “You’ve always been disrespectful to me. You turned me down, even when I made a little request to you to let me be close to you.”

  “You fucking shit!” I blared in my house, panting. My fists clenched in need to slam into the side of Edgar’s face.

  He was talking about the nights he begged Chloe to let him sleep next to her in bed. Thank God my babygirl had the strength to say no, even after she was bullied and threatened with consequences for her refusal. Edgar’s thick drawl sounded again.

  “Now you’ve made it worse. You’ve run away with that cheap fucker. He disrespected all of us.”

  “You have some nerve calling Ryder cheap.”