“Fine. Although I still don’t think I need a bed time,” she added, hoping he would think that was the problem.
His low laugh told her he’d probably bought her misdirection.
“Big Little girls often have issues with bedtimes, but they’re the ones who need it the most. Otherwise they get cranky.”
“I do not get cranky,” she protested then she softened her voice. Not that Max would be likely to hear, but she couldn’t trust him. She refused to give him any more ammunition against Kent.
“You sure you’re all right?” he asked again. “Your voice sounds kind of muffled. You’re not coming down with something, are you?”
“No, I feel fine. I hardly ever get sick. I’m just under the bed covers,” she admitted.
“Under the bed covers, huh? The other day you were tucked under so only your hair stuck out the top.”
“And you were worried I would suffocate,” she teased.
“Still doesn’t seem safe to sleep that way,” he defended.
“I like it. It makes me feel safe, I guess. Is that lame?”
“Of course, it’s not, baby girl,” he said soothingly. “If it makes you feel safe then that’s what you should do. Although, you know you’d feel even safer if I was there next to you, don’t you?”
Her body heated at the thought. She knew she’d feel like she had won the lottery if he was next to her.
“Not sure there’s enough room for you in my bed,” she teased.
“Well, then, you’ll just have to sleep on top of me, won’t you? Think I might have you sleep like that anyway.”
Just the image of that had her breath coming faster, her pulse speeding up. Yeah, she liked the thought of that. A lot. “Although I don’t like the idea of having my feet hang off the end of your tiny bed. So maybe it would be better if you were in my bed.”
“I...I...”
“Too soon for that, baby?”
“Umm, yeah, it’s not that I, well, I do like the sound of that. But I...”
“I know,” he said warmly. “I said I’d give you time to think about all this and I’m going to try hard to do that. Just know that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you hide from this. I really think it’s what you need, sweetheart. You need a Daddy to take care of you, to make sure you don’t work too hard, that you don’t stay up all night watching television and drinking pop. That you have a safe harbor to come home to when life becomes crazy. I’d do whatever it took to take care of you, baby girl.”
That...that sounded like her dream. Except...
“But what do you need?” she asked him.
There was a beat of silence. “I need to be that for you. I like to be in control. I can be...hmm, not sure I should admit all this when I’m trying to convince you to give me a chance.”
“Please,” she said quietly. “I need to understand.”
What are you doing? You need to push him away. Protect him.
But if she did that, she’d never know what he wanted. What he saw in her that he desired. And it would kill her.
He let out a deep sigh. “All right. You know I was a Navy SEAL?”
“Yes,” she replied, wondering what that had to do with anything.
“When I left the Navy, adjusting to life back home, well, it wasn’t easy. I was restless without anything to do. Ranching didn’t hold much appeal. I was kind of aimless. And I felt like my life wasn’t mine to control. I didn’t want to go back into the Navy. And yet, I didn’t want to be a civilian either. I was in limbo. BDSM was the only thing that kept me grounded. Going to a club, partnering up with a submissive for a scene, that was when I felt most in control.
“Clint has known he was a Daddy Dom for a long time. I never thought I wanted that. But what I thought I wanted, well, it never satisfied me. It never brought this feeling of rightness. Not like I get when I’m with you. When I imagine taking on the role of Daddy for you.”
She sucked in a sharp breath. “Are you...are you sure that it’s what you want? What if you find it isn’t? Or I’m not what you thought I am? Or that we don’t match well? What if I’