Needed him more than I’d ever needed anything, and that was saying something. My thighs pressed together so tightly it almost hurt, but it didn’t help. My skin felt too small, my chest too tight, and I could smell him over everything—the clean laundry, the faint sweat, the aftershave. I was going to die if he didn’t touch me.
Abby barely glanced up when I stood, Mr. Snuggles under my arm and my coloring half-finished. She just grinned and shoved a cookie in her mouth, waving me off with sticky fingers. “Go be with your Daddy,” she said, crumbs everywhere. “I always want mine when I feel small.”
My legs wobbled as I crossed the playroom. Walker’s eyes tracked me the whole way, heavy and hot. He didn’t even pretend not to notice. He just waited, arms folded across his chest, legs braced wide. Like he was holding up the whole building with his body.
I nearly crashed into him as he opened his arms.
He caught me, both hands cupping my elbows to steady me. “Princess,” he murmured, voice pitched low so only I could hear. “What’s wrong?”
I shook my head. Couldn’t say it. Just pressed my face into his chest and clung, hoodie sleeves hiding my hands. His arms came around me instantly, one at my waist, the other at the back of my head. He smelled even better up close, like cedar and warmth, and I almost whimpered.
“I want to go home,” I whispered, so soft I barely heard it.
He tipped my chin up. “Why?” Just one word, but it dropped straight into my stomach.
I couldn’t answer. My cheeks burned. I wanted to kiss him, wanted to melt into him, wanted him to…God, I didn’t even know. I just knew I needed something…him.
He must have seen it in my face, because his grip tightened. His expression changed, eyes going darker and hungrier. “Are you feeling okay?” he pressed, still careful, but there was a tension in his jaw that made my insides clench.
“I feel fine,” I managed, breath shuddering out of me. “I just…I want…” My voice caught. I couldn’t say the words. I was too scared he’d laugh, or worse, say no.
He leaned closer, so close his breath touched my ear, and whispered, “You want Daddy to take care of you?”
My knees almost buckled. I nodded frantically, not trusting my voice. My hands fisted in his t-shirt, wringing the fabric until my knuckles ached. “Please.” My voice barely made it out. “Can we go?”
He didn’t even hesitate. Just wrapped both arms around me and carried me out of the playroom, swiping up my sneakers as he passed, body pressed to mine like he was worried I’d float away if he let go. I caught a glimpse of Abby waving, braids all over the place, mouth full of cookie. “Bye, Lottie! Bye, Walker!” she yelled, and then the door closed and it was quiet in the corridor.
We made it to the car. I didn’t remember getting there, just the sudden, jarring silence of the parking lot and the way his hand gripped the back of my neck, not hard, just…there. I shivered. I couldn’t stop shivering. Every nerve ending in my body was on fire.
He buckled me in, then knelt down and pushed my sneakers on, looking at me when we were face to face. “You need Daddy totake care of you, huh?” The way he said it, the roughness in his voice, went straight between my legs. I nodded, desperate.
He shut the door, got in the driver’s side, and the whole time he drove I watched his hands on the steering wheel, big and steady and in control. I wanted them on me.
He drove fast. Not reckless, but decisive, like we both might die if he didn’t get me home right now. I pressed my knees together, dying, actually dying, because he wouldn’t even look at me, but I could see his jaw clench, the muscle ticking under his skin. The car was full of his scent. I breathed it in, dizzy.
He pulled in the driveway, killed the engine, and just stared ahead for a second. I could see how tightly he was wound. “Inside, now,” he growled. The sound of his voice made my whole body clench.
I scrambled out of the car before I could think better of it. He was suddenly right there, one hand on my wrist, dragging me up the walkway and into the house. As soon as the door shut behind us, I spun to face him. My cheeks were so hot I could barely breathe.
“Walker, please,” I begged, and I didn’t even know what I was asking for. I just needed.
He bent, grabbed my chin, and forced me to look at him. “What do you need, princess?” His voice was so deep it shook something loose in my chest.
I tried to talk, but the words were gone.
He didn’t need them. “You know what you want. Tell Daddy what you need.”
Something in my head snapped. “I want you to touch me.” It sounded wild, desperate, but I couldn’t help it. “I want to be yours.”
He shuddered, then scooped me up like I weighed nothing, arms strong and hard around my body. He carried me straight up the stairs, my face pressed into his neck, his skin hotand damp. I clung to him, legs around his waist, hugging Mr. Snuggles in a death grip. He didn’t even laugh. Just kept walking.
He sat me on the edge of his bed, hands braced on either side of my knees, face close enough that I could see every fleck of gold in his eyes.
“Listen to me.” His voice was pure command, but quiet. “I want you. I want this. But you never, ever, have to do anything because you think it’s what keeps you safe, or because you think you owe me. That will never be how this works.”
I could barely breathe. I wanted him so much it hurt, but the way he said it—that he’d still be here, still take care of me, no matter what—that did something to my insides that was almost worse than being needy for him.
“I know,” I whispered. My voice was wobbly but true. “I just…I don’t want to mess it up.”
