Daddy's Little Assistant (Daddy 9)

Chapter Eleven

He lifted her off the counter and was ready to pick her up again. She set her hand on his arm. “I want to walk.”

He studied her and then nodded and took her hand. “Okay. Let’s go.”

Kinley stiffened when she caught sight of three men. Two of them were owners, Travis and Jesse, and one was a cop. She’d only caught a glimpse of the two owners, Jesse and Cesar, a few times over the months she’d been there. They traveled more than the other partners.

Eli walked forward, shook the officer’s hand, and introduced himself. The officer, Eli, and Kinley sat down while Travis and Jesse stood off to the side.

The officer asked several questions, and when one started to make her cry, Eli pulled her into his lap. “Everything is okay, honey. Just a few more questions.”

“I’m sorry, miss. I know this is hard for you.”

She nodded and then focused on the officer.

“Okay, so he closed the door?” the officer asked.

“Yes, I told him I didn’t like that, and he ignored me. When I went to leave, he pressed against my back so I couldn’t move or open the door. I started crying and asked him to leave me alone, but he didn’t care.”

She drew in another unsteady breath.

“He pressed his … his … against me,” she stuttered. She looked up at Eli for help.

“You don’t have to say the word. The officer knows what he did.”

She relaxed. “I told him I was going to tell, and he told me he’d make someone I care about get hurt.”

“Did you believe him?” the officer asked.

She nodded.

“Would you have told Eli?”

She glanced up at the man who held her on his lap and nodded, but then she started crying again.

Eli tipped her face up farther. “Why are you crying, honey?”

“Because I kept thinking if he hurt someone, it would have been my fault.”

“No, baby. All the fault lies with Foster. None of this was your fault.”

She wanted to believe him so much, but her thoughts were still in a jumble, and she still felt shaky.

The officer stood. “I think that’s enough for now, miss. If I have another question, I’ll get in touch with you.”

Travis and Jesse walked the officer to the elevator. After he left, the two men came back and sat down across from them.

“How are you doing, chica?”

She nodded at Jesse. “Fine, sir.” She didn’t know him at all and was feeling very self-conscious. She looked up at Eli. “Can I get up now? I’d like to use the restroom.”

Eli lifted her off his lap and stood to hold her steady.

She patted his arm when he started to maneuver her down the hallway. “I can do it. I’ll be right back.”

Once in the bathroom, she used the toilet and washed her hands before she looked at herself in the mirror.

Her face was puffy and splotchy red in areas but otherwise pale. There were dark circles under her eyes, making them looked bruised.

What got her the most was the look in her eyes. It looked like she was close to a breakdown, and she wouldn’t allow that to happen. She was stronger than that. The last thing she wanted to do was let Eli think she was weak.

She splashed cold water on her face several times, and it helped her color a bit. Then she worked on the blanket she’d put over her emotions to prevent Eli from seeing them was in place. If she could just make it home, she would have the privacy she needed. She’d cried on Eli enough.

She pinched her cheeks to put some color in them and walked out of the bedroom. She froze on her way to the bedroom door when she saw Eli leaning against the bedroom doorjamb with his hands in his pockets.

She started to fidget the longer he studied her.

“I … I’m going to go home and change, and then I’ll be back to work.”

Her brows pinched together when he just shook his head.

“Eli, I want to go home,” she said a bit desperately.

“I said no.”

She gritted her teeth when she felt tears burn her eyes. “I’ll be back.”

“If you go home, I’ll take you.”

She raised her chin and tried to act confident. “I’m very capable of getting myself home.”

“Come here, honey.”

Kinley took a step back. “I want to go.”