“Yes, Uncle Axel.”
Seemingly satisfied they’ll stay where they’ve been put, Axel jerks his head toward the dining room. Bram stops long enough to turn on the living room monitor and grab its twin before following us to the long table where we’ve made all of our important decisions as a family.
“Is Tabby okay?” Gray asks as soon as everyone is settled at the table.
“I’m not sure.” Blowing out a breath, I rake a hand through my hair, desperately wishing for a glass of whiskey. “She’s upset because I didn’t tell her about the claiming after the vows. I think she considers it a great betrayal that I told her about the rest of the ceremony but not that.”
A quiet chuckle pulls my attention to my brother Dane, his dark eyes twinkling in the dim light of the dining room. “Nice to see she has a backbone, at least. Wouldn’t want you getting bored.”
The need to defend my babygirl rises in my chest and I snarl at my younger brother. “She isn’t boring.”
Dane holds up his hands in surrender. “I never said she was. But you have to admit when she first got here it seemed like she was afraid of her own shadow.”
Because he does have a point, I grunt in acknowledgement. “I think something happened to her. Maybe when she was younger. Last night, when she was intoxicated, she was so… wild. Borderline reckless. Then this morning she seemed terrified to do anything wrong. The first spanking I gave her was because she didn’t tell me the water in her bath was too hot.”
Eli frowns, his fingers tapping against the table. “Want me to call Gunther, have him dig into her past a bit more, see what he can find?”
I hesitate, but only for a second before nodding. “Yeah. Yeah, I think that’s a good idea. Maybe there’s something there that will help me figure out what’s going on in her head.”
“I’ll take care of it. I need to run some of that sourdough up to him tomorrow anyway.”
“Appreciate it, El.”
“We’ll figure her out,” Axel says confidently. “No matter what’s going on with that Little girl, you aren’t alone.Sheisn’t alone. She has us, and we aren’t going to give up on her.”
“I know.” And the knowing helps to soothe some of the worry churning in my stomach. “Maybe I’m overreacting.”
“Trust your gut.” The quiet advice comes from my twin as he clamps a hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “A Daddy always knows when something isn’t right with his Little one. If your gut is telling you there’s something we need to fix, then trust that instinct.”
And that nauseating feeling in my stomach settles even further. “My gut definitely says there’s something there, something deep and painful.”
“I think you may be right,” Gray says, her dark eyes somber as she nods slowly. “We could all see how upset she was at dinner. If something you did or didn’t do triggered some kind of deep, hidden insecurity, we need to know about it. She’s a Thorne now, and we take care of our own.”
Every one of my brothers nods at her pronouncement and for the first time since we sat down to dinner, I can breathe easily. “Thank you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s been a long day and I have a babygirl to go cuddle.”
Pushing back from the table, I rise from my chair, then pause, letting a smile spread across my face. “Oh, and if anyone is wondering what to get her for a wedding present… Tabby is absolutely obsessed with dinosaurs.”
Across the table, Dane’s eyes light up. “Noted.”
With that settled, I turn away and head back upstairs to my room. Tabby is fast asleep in her crib when I get there, and although I know Little girls should sleep in their own cribs, I can’t stand the thought of not having her right next to me during the night.
Scooping her up as gently as I’m able, I carry her to my bedroom and tuck her in under the covers before stripping down to my boxers and climbing in beside her. Pulling her close against me, I breathe in the faint scent of baby powder still clinging to her skin.
And I sleep.
Tabitha
I wake wrapped in a furnace. A very firm, very naked furnace.
What the heck?
As I lie there, willing my hazy brain to engage, memories start flooding back. Waking up married in Vegas. Getting spanked. Then getting spankedagain. Shopping for clothes and toys. Being stripped naked and forced to participate in the most humiliating wedding ceremony ever created.
When the memory of my final punishment resurfaces, I instinctively clench my bottom cheeks, a move I instantly regret as pain flashes through my body. My bottom is more sore than it’s ever been, and unless I’m on my very best behavior today, the odds seem high that it will be even more sore by the end of the day.
Behind me, the furnace moves, wrapping his arms tightly around my middle and pulling me up against his chest as he buries his face in the side of my neck. “Morning, little one. Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
