Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45069 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45069 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
“It’s by the door, Baby girl. I’ll get it.”
She grabbed his forearms and squeezed. “No, Daddy. I will. Sit in the chair. Let me explore.”
His breath hitched. “I’d like to help.”
She planted her palms on his chest. “I know. But I need to do this on my own. I learn better that way, and I can’t focus when you’re touching me.”
He chuckled lightly. “That part I can understand.”
“Will you let me?”
“I’ll try, but the thought of you bumping into anything or getting hurt makes my heart race.”
“Sometimes I will run into things, Damon. It happens. You can’t protect me every moment of every day.”
“I can certainly try.”
She smoothed her palms up his dress shirt until she reached his tie. He had on a suit jacket, too. She knew it was dark and the shirt was probably white. The tie was dark, too. She slid her fingers over the silky length of it.
He slid his hands up her biceps. “I need you to understand something about Alpha Protectors. My overprotectiveness isn’t unique to me. All of the Alpha males are like this. We wait our entire lives to finally have our mates in our arms, and we’re extremely cautious when it comes to their safety and wellbeing. I doubt my brother Arion let his mate’s feet hit the floor for days after he claimed her. We don’t like to be separated. The bond is strong. It’s not just your vision that makes me overprotective, Little rebel.”
She giggled. “Surely you’re exaggerating.”
“Not a bit, but I love that sound. Do it again.” He kissed her forehead.
She gently pushed away from him. “Let me explore,” she insisted.
He sighed but released her. “I’ll lose years off my life if you get injured, Olivia. If I think you’re going to get hurt, I will be on you in a heartbeat.”
“I’ll be fine.” She turned around. “Am I facing my bag?”
“Yes.”
“How far away is it?”
“Eight feet.”
“Is there anything in my way?”
“No. There is nothing in the middle of the floor in the entire house. Except your backpack.”
“Thank you, Daddy.” She knew he softened when she called him Daddy. She could feel it in the air. She would do so often to help calm him.
Holding out her hands, she took several steps forward. She wasn’t overly tentative. There was no way he’d lied to her. When her fingers hit the front door, she knew she’d reached her first destination, and she squatted down to feel for her bag.
When she unzipped it, it tipped over. The two largest items fell out onto her feet: her cane and her stuffed eagle. Her face heated. She hoped Damon wouldn’t think she was weird for bringing a stuffie with her.
“Who’s your friend?” he asked gently.
Olivia quickly unfolded her cane and popped all the sections into place before rising with her cane in one hand and her eagle in the other. She easily returned to her Daddy and held out the eagle. “This is Ava. Would you like to hold her while I explore?”
“I’d love to, Baby girl.” He took her out of Olivia’s hand. “Why an eagle?”
“They have the best vision of all the animals. She sleeps with me. I know I can trust her to alert me if there is ever danger.” It was silly, but for some reason, Olivia didn’t feel like Damon was going to judge her.
“That’s really smart. Has she ever needed to alert you?”
“Not yet. No one has ever snuck up on me, at least not that I was aware of.”
“And no one ever will. You will always be safe with me, Little rebel. Between Ava and me, you will rest easy.” His voice was serious. She detected not a hint of teasing.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Now give me some guidance. Tell me what’s around me.”
“This room is an open floor plan. To your right is a sofa. It’s at an angle with this armchair. There’s an end table between them.”
She turned around and tapped the sofa with her cane before swinging it slowly through the air around the sofa. “No coffee table?”
“I got rid of it.”
She frowned. “Why?”
“I didn’t think it was safe, Baby girl. It had sharp edges and was so low to the floor I was afraid you might trip over it.”
She drew in a breath. His intentions were thoughtful, but how much of his home did he alter because of her? “Tell me more.”
“Directly across from the sofa on the wall is an entertainment center. Behind me is the kitchen. There’s a table that seats eight and an island with four bar stools.”
She turned that direction, holding her cane out in front of her so she could let the little ball roll across the hardwood as she moved toward the kitchen area. “Are there any rugs?”
“I got rid of those, too. There are no mats either. Just hardwood.”