Daddy’s Little Surprise (Missouri Daddies #6)

29. Chapter Twenty-Seven

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

RAINEY

R ainey stared at Daddy, blinking several times. Had he heard anything she said? How long had he been out there?

“Rainey? Are you okay?”

She nodded and looked away. Guilt was already starting to form in her stomach. She couldn’t tell Daddy yet. Not when she knew he wouldn’t allow her to do this.

“Baby.” Daddy cupped her face. “Talk to Daddy. Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Rainey immediately felt bad for lying. She wasn’t okay. So much was going on, and she didn’t know how to process it or what to do.

She so badly wanted to talk to Daddy and tell him everything, but she couldn’t. Not when it was dangerous. What if he came along and ended up dying because Pete was there and didn’t like Daddy? What if Pete got a look at him, and a week later, Daddy died?

She wasn’t about to do that. Daddy needed to be safe because she didn’t know what she would do if he was killed.

Dramatic, but it was true. They had only known each other for just over a week, and she was madly in love with him. He was her person, and she didn’t want to live without him.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Daddy. I’m sure.”

Another lie.

How many lies was she going to have to say before she finally told him? Would she even be able to make it to the meeting without telling him?

The ball in her stomach grew and got heavier with every passing minute. She had lied twice, and she didn’t like it.

“Come sit down. I’ll feed you, and then you can take a nap.”

“Um, Daddy?”

“Yes, Little girl.”

She moved back and forth on her feet. She had only used her diaper a couple of times, and each time, Daddy knew and changed her quickly. Was he not going to change her this time?

“What’s wrong?”

“I peed,” she whispered.

It was still embarrassing to tell him. She had only done it a coupleof times, but she tried her hardest to make it to the bathroom so she didn’t use the diaper.

“You’re okay. Let’s get you changed before we eat. That way, you are comfortable.”

Daddy let go of her face and walked over to the door, locking it. Her shoulders sagged in relief. No one would be able to come in now, not unless they broke down the door.

“Do you have a blanket?”

She tilted her head to the side. Why did he want a blanket?

“I want it to beon the ground. That way, you aren’t on the cold floor.”

Her mouth made an O shape, and she quickly pointed to the corner of the room. In a basket, she had fourblankets she got really cheaply. Were they the best? No. But they did the job.

Daddy walked over and grabbed one, carefully setting it down and taking the next two and then the lastone.

“They aren’t that soft.”

“Yeah.”

It had been hard sleeping with them. To feel the scratchy material against her skin. Sometimes, she went without a blanket so she could try and sleep.

“Baby.”

His voice was so tender and caring, which resulted in her eyes tearing up.

“I couldn’t afford a soft one,” she whimpered.

There were other things she needed more than a soft blanket. Did it make it hard to sleep? Yes, but it was a sacrifice she had to make. She needed to eat, and she was saving up money for a doctor’s appointment and giving birth. They weren’t cheap, and she didn’t have any insurance.

How was she going to be able to pay for all of it? Would she be in debt for the rest of her life?

“I’ll buy you all the soft blankets you want. When we get home, we’ll go to a website I know sells them. You can pick out a minimum of six.”

“Six?”

“Yes, Little girl. I want you to have one in each room. Then, if you want more, we can get more.”

“I’m okay with two.”

“Six, minimum.I don’t want you to trip carrying it from one room to another when you have other things in your hands.”

“I’m not going to change your mind, am I?”

“Nope. I’m glad you’ve caught on to that one.” He kissed her nose.

Rainey watched as Daddy put the blanket on the ground before pulling his shirt off and placing it down on top of the blanket.

“What are you doing?”

“It’s not going to cover all of it, but it’s going to cover some so you don’t have to feel it.”

“But it’s your shirt.”

“So? It’s just a shirt. Nothing is going to happen to it.”

Daddy took her hand and helped her lay down. She sighed and closed her eyes. It was still weird to have Daddy change her.

Pulling down her pants, Daddy undid the tabs of the diaper and took it off.

“Such a good girl. Daddy is almost done.”

He carefully but quickly started to clean her up, rubbing in some cream, before placing another diaper underneath her.

“You’re Daddy’s good girl.” He pulled the tabs, securing the diaper around her.

She giggled as Daddy blew raspberries on her stomach.

“Daddy!”

“I’ll never get tired of hearing you call me that.”

Blushing, she looked over to her left. She lifted her bottom as Daddy pulled her pants up. He was careful to help her up, holding onto her hips as she swayed.

“Dizzy?”

“Just a little, but I’m okay. I think it was getting up too fast.”

“Or you are really tired and probably haven’t had anything to drink yet. That’s why you’re having a nap.”

Rainey whined, not liking the idea. Daddy quickly pulled his shirt back on.

“Nonnegotiable. You need a nap, and you know it.”

Sighing, she sat down on her couch. She didn’t want to take a nap. Not when there was no soft blanket or comfortable place to lay. Sure, she had the couch she’d slept on for several months, but it wasn’t comfortable.

Daddy sat down at her desk chair and rolled it closer to her.

“I brought you your favorite.”

She perked up. “Chicken alfredo?”

“Yes, Little girl.”

Clapping, she bounced up and down on the couch. Daddy was a fantastic cook and told her he was determined to find foods she could eat without getting nauseous. Right now, that was chicken alfredo. She didn’t know how many times she’d had it, but she didn’t care.

“Such a good girl.”

She happily opened her mouth as Daddy held a fork in front of her. Humming, she chewed while looking at Daddy.

“I’ve got something special planned for tonight.”

Her whole mood dampened. She had told Echo she wanted to meet up with Deccan tonight to ask questions.

Swallowing, she gave him a sad smile. “I can’t do it tonight. I’m hanging out with Echo tonight.”

Running his thumb across her cheek, Daddy smiled at her. “That’s okay. I’ll save it for tomorrow.”

Forcing a smile, she nodded. She didn’t technically lie, but she did. Rainey left out that she was also meeting up with Echo’s mysterious guy.

“It’ll be even more special since tomorrow is your day off.”

“Right. I can’t wait. Can you give me any hints?”

Daddy shook his head. “Nope. That would ruin the surprise. You’ll just have to wait until tomorrow.”

She pouted and took another bite. Now she was going to be thinking about what it could be the whole night. Would she be able to sleep? This was the first surprise Daddy had given her.

“What if I get really nervous about the surprise?”

“Everything is going to be okay. You’ll love it. I know that. Trust Daddy?”

“Okay.”

She took another bite and happily chewed on it. Rainey couldn’t get over how good of a cook Daddy was. While she could cook, she didn’t have anything on Daddy.

“Will you cook for me for the rest of our lives?”

“Of course, and if you want to learn, I can teach you.”

Rainey nodded and took another bite. They talked about the rest of their lives forthe past couple of days, and she was here for it.

It made her all happy inside, knowing they were both thinking about their future and how it would look. Things could change, but she liked dreaming.

“When is your next appointment?”

Tilting her head to the side, she blinked several times. “Appointment?”

“Baby appointment.”

“Oh. Um. Well, I don’t know. I haven’t found a doctor yet since I moved here. It’s been on my list, along with money.”

“I’ll ask Michael. He may know a doctor or have a doctor at his clinic who could fit you in.”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that. I just need to find a place and call.”

“I’ll talk to Michael about it. I don’t want you to wait too long. We’ll need to come up with a plan, and they’ll need to put you in their books for when you are expected to deliver.”

“But.”

Daddy placed the food down and cupped her face. “Little girl. Let me do this for you. Let me take care of you.”

She sighed and leaned into his hands. He always managed to make her say yes whenever he did things like this.

“Please, let me do this for you and take care of you.”

“Okay,” she whispered.

Rainey closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. He had been so sweet to her, taking care of her, and making sure she was okay. What had she done? Lied multiple times but also allowed him to do something like this.

But knowing she lied overtook everything else. The guilt was weighing her down. It hadn’t even been an hour, and the guilt was intensifying. Would she be able to keep this up?

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Daddy gently asked. “You seem different.”

Opening her eyes, she blinked several times, trying to get the tears to go away. He stared at her as if he knew what she was hiding. Did he? Had he spoken to Echo and figure it out? But he didn’t know she was talking to Echo before. So then, did Echo call him? But that wouldn’t make any sense either. It hadn’t been long between Rainey handing up with Echo to Daddy walking into her office.

“I’m okay. I promise. I’m just a little tired.”

“Should you be hanging out with Echo tonight if you’re tired?”

“You said I am taking a nap today, so I should be fine. And I already promised I would hang out with her. I can’t go back on my promise.”

Daddy kissed her forehead. “You won’t be hanging out too late. You need your sleep. Earlier bedtime and a nap tomorrow.”

Whining, she pulled away from Daddy.

“But I don’t need an early bedtime and nap tomorrow.”

“I think you do.”

“I don’t. I’m not that tired,” she whined again.

“Little girl.”

Okay, that was a lie. She was exhausted, but she had been this way for over a month. Not getting good sleep and working a lot of hours did that to a person.

“Early bedtime and a nap tomorrow is nonnegotiable. Health is one of your rules. We don’t want you to have to go back to the hospital for bed rest.”

She shuddered at the thought.

“No, I don’t.”

“Then an early bedtime and a nap tomorrow is in order. I might make nap time mandatory so you are always well rested.”

“I don’t need nap time every day.”

“We’ll see about that. Right now, you do. You are exhausted and not getting good sleep at night.”

“What if I can’t fall asleep for nap time?”

“Daddy will help with that. You’ll be able to sleep.”

She looked at him skeptically. How was he going to ensure she stayed asleep? That would be a hard task.

“Daddy has a coupleof tricks up his sleeve.”

“I still don’t think I need a nap.”

“We’ve talked about this.”

More like he talked about it, and she didn’t really get a say.

“But I’m just saying. I don’t think I need them. Naps are for babies, and I’m not a baby.”

“You’re my Little girl. Daddy wants to make sure you are healthy, and sleep is part of that. You will be taking a nap every day until I say so. Health rule, Little girl.”

“But.”

“No buts. You will be taking a nap either way. You can take it with a hot bottom. Your choice.”

Rainey opened her mouth, but when Daddy raised his eyebrow, she quickly closed it. She didn’t want to have another hot bottom.

“That’s what I thought.” He kissed her forehead.

She sighed.

“Let’s get you ready for your nap.”