Page 60 of Her Hero Daddy

KANE

Knowing Tim was so close by had him on edge. He knew that Tim would have no idea where she was. Ian had confirmed there were no tracking devices or apps installed on her phone. No one else knew she was in Pinebrook, so the chances of Parker finding her were slim. But he wouldn’t feel better about any of it until he knew the asshole was behind bars.

He had to keep the mood light for Haylee. The look of terror on her face when he’d told her that Tim was only about forty minutes away had nearly killed him. He couldn’t stand seeing her so upset. He was finding as many things to distract her and himself as possible. He had already sent Luke the information that Ian provided and would make some calls after he laid her down for a nap.

For lunch, he made her a sandwich with carrot sticks and grapes. She loved eating off the special plates he had for her. Maybe he should have put her food on those plates in the first place. Feeding her was his favorite part. He picked up her sandwich several times during lunch, telling her to open for a bite. When she wrinkled her nose at the carrots, he got some ranch dressing from the fridge to dip the carrots in. She clapped her hands at that and ate them without argument.

“Okay, baby, naptime. Come on.”

Sticking out her bottom lip, Haylee crossed her arms across her chest.

“I don’t want to take a nap. I’ve been sleeping for days.”

“You are taking a nap, little girl, no arguments. You’re still healing. Let’s go.”

When she didn’t move from her chair, he moved in and picked her up, carrying her on his hip. She snuggled into him and sighed. Yeah, she needed a nap. Carrying her up to her room, he set her on the bed and found a pink cotton nightgown to put on.

“Arms up.”

She looked up at him thoughtfully. “I can change myself.”

“I know you can, but right now, Daddy is taking care of you. Arms up, baby.”

“I don’t want you to see my bruises. You get upset every time you see them.”

He knew he hadn’t reacted well to seeing her bruises, and he felt bad for that.

“I get upset because I care about you, and I hate seeing you hurt. But I promise I won’t get upset. I just want to take care of my baby girl.”

She slowly lifted her arms in the air. Kane didn’t hesitate to pull her shirt off, not wanting her to overthink it and change her mind. Once he pulled her shirt off, he noticed how much her bruises were fading, and he got a better glimpse of her creamy skin.

“I’m going to take your bra off, baby. Okay?”

He didn’t want to overwhelm her. When she nodded, he kissed her forehead as he reached around to unclasp her bra. When he pulled the material away, he couldn’t help but take in her breasts. He licked his lips and reminded himself that he was taking care of her right then, and his raging hard-on could wait. She stared up at him, her own eyes full of lust and need. He couldn’t give in to that yet. She needed to know him as her Daddy better. Pulling the nightgown over her head, he helped her get her arms in and then reached under the material and pulled her leggings down.

“Hands on my shoulders.”

She obeyed as she stepped out of the pants. She crawled into the bed, and he felt the urge to carry her into his room and tuck her into his bed. She was already snuggled down comfortably, though, and he didn’t want to disrupt that. He tucked Virgil into her arm and kissed her forehead.

Virgil. For an alligator. Where the hell she came up with that ridiculous name, he had no idea, but she seemed to love it, so who was he to say anything different.

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead again.

“You stay in bed until I come and get you. Understand?”

She nodded. “Okay, Daddy.”

He kissed her gently on the lips and rubbed her back until she was breathing softly and her thumb had found its way into her mouth. Kane went to the nursery and grabbed a pacifier and the baby monitor. When he returned and pulled her thumb from her mouth, she frowned and whimpered softly until he slid the nipple of the pacifier between her lips. He set the monitor on the dresser and carried the other end down to his office with him, where he called his brother.

“Ian called me this morning. Tim is in Bend. He sent her another threatening text.”

Damian swore and then swore some more. His brother could be just as hard-edged as he was when it came to the safety of a woman.

“I’m coming down there, and I’m bringing more men.”

He could also go a little overkill.

“You don’t need to come. I really don’t think he’ll find her.”