Page 21 of Lesson In Honesty
Another butt plopped down next to her, a second pair of hands diving in to the sand. Callie’s infectious laugh spilled over Sierra, silencing the jolt of surprise at her arrival, as she scooped her hands together and let grains dribble in a waterfall.
“Doubles the fun with two of us.” Tossing the sand in her hands into the air, Callie squealed as it rained down on them both. “You try!”
“Um…” Unsure how Liam would feel if Violet told him his submissive was caught throwing sand, Sierra bit her lip, shaking her head. Her decision was verified as the right one when Elias’s voice snapped out in reprimand.
Callie didn’t turn to look at her Daddy. Instead, she stuck her tongue out and mimicked him as he chastised her from across the room. When he was done, she glanced over her shoulder, batting innocent eyes, and cooed, “Sorry, Daddy.”
“You will be,” came the ominous reply.
Eyes widening, Sierra scooted away from the powder keg situation she felt brewing. Would it be cowardly or just plain rude to stand up and go hide in the jungle gym until the angry Daddy calmed down? Probably both, but there was no way she was getting in the middle of a dispute between Elias—who scared the spit out of her on any given day—and Callie, who seemed to take great delight in riling him up.
A hand settled on her shoulder, making her jump.
“Easy, babygirl. It’s only me.”
Tilting her head back, she stared at Liam upside down, relief swooping her up in a steely grip. She leaned back against his leg, rubbing her cheek on his thigh, and took a slow breath to calm her speeding heart. “Liam.”
“Ah-ah.” He squeezed gently, lifting a blond eyebrow in silent reprimand. “We’re in the Nursery now, little girl. Who am I to you when we’re here?”
“Daddy.” It escaped from her on a sigh, happy and sated.
“Good girl. Did you keep your promises?”
She nodded because she had, even with that teeny-tiny blip.
“Have you had fun?”
“I had the bestest day, Daddy.” She reached up, laying her hand over his. “I played and played, and had a nap, and snackies, and then—”
He laughed. “Take a breath, minx. That sounds like a productive day for a little girl. Ready to come back and be an adult for a while? Eli and Callie want to ask you for a favor.”
She really wasn’t ready. One small taste of freedom and she understood why Alicia spent hours, days, weeks expressing herself this way. There was a certain kind of peace Sierra found in submission, but this… it felt deeper, more substantial somehow.
She knew Liam looked after her as a submissive—he didn’t break her hard limits, even though he occasionally pushed them; he understood her, inside out, and pressed her buttons accordingly. With him as her Dom, she was the safest she’d ever been, would ever be.
As a Little, she could slide back into being an adult whenever she liked, but it felt as though the Dom-sub bond was evolving into something more primal, more instinctive. There were rules, boundaries, and the unspoken guarantee Liam would protect her even more fiercely than he did when she was in a grown-up mood.
“Do I have to?”
“Unleashed the Little beast, haven’t we?” Ruffling her hair first, he then gave it a gentle tug. “Come on, it won’t take long. Honestly, I think you’ll be excited once you hear what they have to say.”
Acquiesce or stomp her foot? Pouting, she decided both were appropriate, trading a foot stomp for a palm slapping on the sand, and heaving an annoyed sigh worthy of a pissed-off toddler. “Fine.”
“Would you like your surprise with a side order of red-hot bottom?”
Crap, she’d flirted with his line again, inching her toe over it, and she’d already used her free pass. Puppy eyes wouldn’t work;neither would begging, not unless she prostrated herself at his feet. “No, thank you, Daddy.”
“It was a rhetorical question, minx. I’ll give you your attitude adjustment when we get home.” Taking her hand, he helped her to her feet as Elias strode over to pluck his Little from the pit and dust off the sand she now wore like glitter.
“—troublemaker,” Elias admonished, lifting his wife from the pit. “Just can’t help yourself, can you?”
Laughing even though her Daddy’s British accent was dark and foreboding, Callie clamped her hands on his bearded cheeks and gave him a cheeky peck on the lips. In a sultry, slightly husky voice, she murmured, “I heard my Daddies love a troublemaker. More than that, they love reprimanding her when she’s a bad girl. Therefore, it’s my duty to fulfill their bad girl fantasies.”
Elias was an attractive man. The obvious age difference between him and his wife only added to the sexiness of his appeal, but the edge of darkness he wore, that subtle sadism he didn’t bother to conceal, was incredibly intimidating.
Even now, smiling at Callie, he was all dark brows and piercing blue eyes, radiating dominance as he shook his head in a combination of amusement and disapproval. “I know one fantasy I’ll be taking care of later tonight. Now, get your pretty head in the game, Callie, and put Sierra out of her misery before I scare her into running screaming from the Nursery.”
Sierra flushed deeply, horrified he was precisely aware of how he affected her.