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Before they could take a step, Nick cleared his throat, one eyebrow slightly raised in that “Daddy” look he had down so well. “Allison, aren’t you forgetting something?”
“Oh, right. Daddy, Shelly, may I please go play with Sadie and Hayleigh? Pretty please?”
How was she supposed to say no to those big brown eyes? Forcing a smile she didn’t remotely feel, Michelle nodded. “Of course, baby. Stay out of trouble.”
“I will. Thanks, Shelly!”
And with that, they were off. Oh, well, maybe she could try talking things out with Nick. If he was going to be her Sir, then she needed to learn to go to him when she was worried, right? That was what she would expect from Allie.
“All right, darlin’. I’ve got a few things I need to get done today for Derek and I need to run home and check on things there. Dinner tonight?”
A lump formed in her throat, but she managed to keep her smile in place. “Of course.”
Halfway out of his chair, he paused, his eyes narrowing. “Is something wrong?”
“Nope.”
Pushing fully to his feet, he rounded the table and cupped her chin in his hand, forcing her head back. “I hope you aren’t lying to me, pet. If something is bothering you, I want to know.”
“Nothing is wrong, Sir. I promise.”
The words almost stuck in her throat, and for a moment she thought he was going to force the truth out of her. But then he nodded and released her, and she was equally relieved and disappointed he didn’t push the issue. “Okay. I’ll see you at dinner. Behave.”
She resisted the urge to roll her eyes until he’d turned his back. Of course she would behave. She wasn’t some errant Little who needed someone to keep tabs on her all the time.
Was she?
As soon as the thought popped into her mind, she dismissed it. No way did she have some deep, hidden Little side that had just been waiting for the right Daddy to come along and show her what she’d been missing.
But she couldn’t deny the pang of jealousy she felt every time Allie called Nick “Daddy”. She had no desire to be Allie’s “Mommy,” so why was she feeling this way?
Unable to finish her breakfast thanks to the knots making a reappearance in her stomach, she pushed away from the table and wandered out of the cafeteria. What the hell was she supposed to do with her day, all by herself?
Just as she was about to give up and go back to her room, the gift shop caught her eye. It couldn’t hurt anything to go poke around for a bit, right? Maybe a little retail therapy was all she needed to get rid of the worries niggling at the back of her brain.
Allie
“You wanted to show me… the playground?”
“No, silly.” Rolling her eyes, Sadie dragged Allie towards the far corner of the playground, away from the rest of the Littles and the various grown-up types keeping an eye on them. “We needed a place to plan that wouldn’t seem suspicious if we got caught.”
“Plan what?” Already, Allie’s bottom was tingling, as if it could tell she was about to do something naughty.
“A heist.” Sadie’s eyes glittered with anticipation.
“What kind of heist?”
“The cookie heist, silly! Remember?”
Actually, she’d completely forgotten about it, with everything else that had happened since the sleepover. That night felt like a lifetime ago. “Oh, right! Cookie heist!”
“I really don’t know about this, Sadie.” Glancing around as if she expected her Daddy to jump out of a shadow somewhere and catch them, Hayleigh nibbled at her bottom lip. “Daddy’s under so much stress already, I don’t wanna make it worse.”
“Relax.” Sadie waved a hand in the air, brushing off Hayleigh’s worries. “We’re only going to take a few. He won’t even notice.”
“What if Hayleigh and I made you a doggie bag from the party? That way you still get cookies, but we don’t get in trouble.” Instinct told her Sadie was too deep in her plans to listen to reason, but Allie felt like she needed to try anyway, even though excitement was already bubbling in her stomach at the idea of forbidden treats.
“Come on, you guys!” Sadie whined, obviously undeterred. “It’s going to be fun! And even if we get caught, we can all take a little paddling.”
