Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 55087 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55087 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
He rubbed her back and held her just as close. “I can’t either, Little girl. But I’m so glad.”
When she finally released him, she settled comfortably against him. “I’m a lot of work,” she whispered.
He shook his head. “No, you’re not. Don’t think like that. What happened to you was not your fault. As long as you obey Daddy and the rest of the team, trusting us to make the best decisions for you, you’ll be safe. That means no wandering off alone—ever. One of us will always be with you. If it can’t be me, it will be another member of the team.”
She held his gaze. “You can’t follow me everywhere all the time. You all have jobs to do.”
“Sadie, our number one job is protecting you. It’s what we’re here for.”
She furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, the reason Mr. Kingsley hired the six of us was to work together to protect people like you, Sadie. We’ll be taking assignments. You’re our first assignment.”
Her eyes went wide. “How is that possible? You couldn’t have known I was in trouble.”
“Mr. Kingsley knew, sweetheart,” he informed her gently. “We’re all learning that he knows a lot of things. He’s a very powerful man with lots of connections.”
“But…but I thought he hired me because he thought I would be a good reception manager. Are you saying he only hired me because I needed protection?” Tears welled up in her eyes.
“Oh, sweetheart, Mr. Kingsley knows you’re the perfect person for the reception manager position. Don’t you worry about that. You’re an important asset to this resort. Kingsley knows he hit the jackpot when he hired you. Even though it’s been many years since you worked in the hotel business, he’s well aware of your resume.”
She swiped at the tears. “Are you sure? I feel like everyone is just humoring me now.”
Rocco’s chest tightened at her admission. “No, Cookie. No one is humoring you.” He gave her a squeeze. “You’ve already proven this place is going to run like a well-oiled machine under your supervision. We’re all certain of that. In the meantime, we will all be diligently making sure you remain safe.”
She looked down at her lap and twisted her fingers together. Her lip quivered. “What about you?”
“What about me, Little girl?” He suspected he knew where this was going, and he didn’t like her line of thinking.
“Am I just a job to you? Someone you were hired to protect?” she murmured.
“Sadie…” he said in a warning voice. “Yes, I was assigned to protect you, but you know good and well you mean far more to me than that. You were already my Little girl even before I knew you were in any kind of trouble.”
“And you still stayed with me.” Tears slid down her cheeks.
“I will always be with you, Cookie.”
“Okay.”
Rocco rubbed her back for a few minutes, letting that sink in before he smoothed her hair back from her shoulder and lifted her chin. “I want to ask you about something so that I understand you better and know better what your experiences and needs are, okay?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“You mentioned that you had a bad Daddy ten years ago. Can you tell me about that, sweetheart?” He rubbed her thighs, hoping his touch would help keep her calm, even if his question might be upsetting.
She shrugged. “I was only twenty then, so I was kind of naïve and new to the lifestyle. I mean, I knew I was Little. I’d known that for a while, but I’d just joined a club, so I wasn’t wise to the accepted practices among the age-play crowd.”
“That’s understandable. Is that where you met him?”
“Yes. His name was Lance. He was older than me. A lot older. So, I stupidly thought that meant he knew things and would treat me right. For a few weeks, he sort of courted me at the club. He treated me like I was special. When he suggested we see each other outside of the club, I agreed.”
Rocco was afraid he wouldn’t like this next part, but he told himself not to overreact and scare her. Listen to her.
Sadie drew in a breath and continued. “He stopped taking me to the club immediately. That should’ve been a red flag because it kept me from learning more about the things I should’ve expected from a safe, sane, and consensual age-play relationship. Instead, he brought me to his home on weekends and ordered me around, making me cook and clean for him.”
Rocco winced. “That’s a domestic submissive, not a Little girl.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t quite know that. It took me a while, but I grew tired of serving him. I did some deeper research and realized I’d been duped, and I broke up with him.”
“I’m glad you figured it out, Cookie. I’m sorry you went through that, though.”