Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 53081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
“I guess.”
“He’s right,” Sadie agreed.
“Yeah.” Lyra nodded. So did everyone else.
Rocco stood. “I think we all need a good night’s rest.” He reached for Sadie’s hand.
Caesar was eager to get Isla alone anyway. He wanted to assess her mental status without everyone hovering. He wasn’t entirely sure she was holding it together inside even though, on the outside, she appeared to be relatively calm.
After witnessing how relaxed she could be in the midst of a crisis, he would never be certain how she was feeling in any given situation in the future. He’d watched and admired her for hours as she’d taken care of not just his wound but Hawking’s, too.
It had turned out they weren’t the only ones with minor injuries. Kestrel had taken a hard kick to the gut, which had concerned Isla because she’d worried about internal injuries. She’d watched him closer than anyone else.
A few of the Littles had gotten banged up in their mad dash to get back into the boat as soon as the two divers had been spotted jumping into the water.
Isla had played nurse to everyone, which had given Caesar insight into what kind of a nurse she was—the best kind with the perfect disposition. If she could hold herself together when faced with multiple injuries among her own friends—who were now her family—then he suspected she was a solid rock when working with strangers.
When he stood and lifted her into his arms, she protested, “Daddy, put me down. You have ten stitches in your leg. You’re straining them.”
He nuzzled her neck and chuckled. “I’m not straining anything, Little Fish. You’re like a pile of cotton.”
“I am not.” She frowned at him.
He ignored her and held her in his arms all the way to their apartment, grinning when he paused to look at the shark on their door. It warmed his heart to know that his door—the last of the six—finally had a picture on it. It symbolized the fact that he, too, had found his Little, completing their family.
After carrying her through to the bathroom, he stood her on her feet. “Clothes off, Isla.”
He proceeded to remove his own.
She pulled her shirt over her head. “I don’t need a bath, Daddy. We just took a shower together a few hours ago.”
A shower had been Caesar’s first stop after the doctor had stitched him up. The man had put a giant waterproof cover over the wound and had left Caesar with several more so he could keep the gash covered when he showered.
There would be no scuba diving for him for at least ten days until the stitches were out and he got the all-clear. All excursions for the next two days had been canceled and rebooked, at which time Caesar and Jack would trade places. Caesar would stay on the boat, and Jack would take the divers down. They would pay a few other employees to snorkel with the guests.
The best part of all of this was that Caesar was about to spend forty-eight solid hours with his Little girl. Except for a few meetings with Kingsley and the team, he was on a two-day medical leave.
“Nope. You don’t need a bath.” He pointed toward the hamper. “What you need is to be naked.”
She finished stripping. “Maybe I should wear one of your shirts to bed.”
He also dropped the rest of his clothes in the hamper before grabbing their toothbrushes and putting paste on them. He handed her hers and stuck his in his mouth.
As he stood next to the woman he was head over heels in love with, he considered how totally normal and domestic this scene was—the two of them, naked and brushing their teeth before bed.
After rinsing and drying off on the hand towel, Caesar guided Isla toward the bed.
“Naked is a bad idea,” she murmured as he pulled the covers back.
“Naked is the only idea, Little Fish. Get in.”
“We’re not having sex, Caesar,” she insisted in her adult voice. “You’re hurt.”
He turned off the lights and climbed in next to her, pulling her into his arms and tucking her head against his shoulder.
“Daddy…”
He kissed the top of her head. “Isla. I need to touch every inch of you that I can. Stop arguing. I was scared out of my mind today. If anything had happened to you…”
Her breath hitched, but she didn’t speak.
He kissed her temple. “You’re my life, Little Fish. I never want to feel that kind of fear again as long as I live. So, yes, I need your naked body against mine, and you should also know I’m only going to wait about eight hours before I make love to you. The only reason I’m going to wait that long is because we both need sleep.”
“But—”
“No buts. It’s a shallow flesh wound. It’s not affecting my cock at all. If you’re super worried I might strain myself, I’ll lie on my back like a good patient while you ride me. How’s that for compromise?”