And that Tabby isn’t ready to surrender.
Crossing my arms, I sit back and glare up at Daddy. “I wanna wear a dress.”
“Then you can’t go outside and play.”
I don’t usually use naughty words. Iespeciallydon’t call other people naughty words. But I can feel something welling inside me, desperate to be let free.
So I let it go.
“Why are you being such an–an–” The word sticks on my tongue for a moment, but then it bursts out of me with a force I didn’t know existed inside me. “An asshole!”
As soon as I say it, I wish I could take it back. Fear grabs me by the throat as I watch my Daddy’s eyes narrow dangerously before he bends down to scoop me up into his arms.
“Lanie, Josie, you two should go ahead and go play. I don’t think Tabby will be joining you for a while.”
CHAPTER 19
COLT
Well, I wanted my little firecracker back, and I sure as hell got her.
Unfortunately for her, swearing at her Daddy isn’t the kind of wild, spontaneous behavior I can allow.
Turning away from my wide-eyed family, I carry Tabby toward the stairs.
“No!” Just like an actual toddler, she wriggles and writhes in my arms, trying to escape my hold. “I don’t wanna go to my nursery!”
Spending the morning in an extended timeout should be the least of her worries, but clearly she hasn’t caught on to how much trouble she’s in. “Then you should have listened to Daddy. You could be getting dressed to go play with your cousins, but instead you’ll be spending the morning with a soapy mouth and a sore bottom.”
At that, she goes still, her eyes wide and her bottom lip trembling. “But I don’t wanna spankin’!”
“I’m sure you don’t. But you are getting one anyway. Swearing at Daddy like that was a very naughty thing to do.”
Tears sparkle in her eyes. “I was upset.”
By now we’ve reached her nursery, so I carry her into the bathroom and sit her on the vanity countertop. Gripping her chin, I tilt her head back so she’s forced to look me in the eye. I want her to see that I mean every word of what I’m about to say.
“I understand you were disappointed about not being allowed to wear one of your pretty dresses to go play outside. But sometimes Little girls have to accept that Daddy only wants what’s best for them in the long run, even if it isn’t what they want in the moment. Do you understand what I’m saying, baby?”
“I guess so,” she grumbles, clearly still unhappy with this morning’s events.
“I know you’re upset right now, but think about how upset you’d be if your dress got a stain on it that we couldn’t get out. Or if you tore it and we had to send it away to be fixed.”
The stubbornness I sensed in her earlier comes flaring back to life. “It wouldn’t! I woulda been so careful!”
“I’m sure you would have tried really hard to be careful. But Little girls can get caught up in their games and forget to be careful. And wouldn’t you be so very sad if that happened and your pretty dresses all got ruined?”
Shoulders slumping, she sniffles quietly. “Yes, Daddy.”
“So the next time Daddy tells you no about something, what are you going to do?”
“I’ll listen,” she says with a dramatic sigh.
Fucking adorable.
Leaning forward, I press a kiss to her forehead. “That’s my good girl. Now, I’m going to tell you something and I want you to listen very, very carefully. Okay?”
Eyes widening slightly, she nods. “Okay, Daddy.”
