Angus watched him warily, raising his hands out placatively. “Hey, man, sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”
Ink scowled. What was the asshole playing at? Why would he come up to him like that? “What are you doing? What do you want?”
“Everything okay with Madison?” Angus nodded down to the sub. She hadn’t moved. She had too much discipline for that. She had plenty of experience.
And he had no interest in scening with her at all.
“Nothing’s wrong.”
“Are you going to scene with her? Because there’s a bit of an issue in the Littles’ room.”
Ink closed his eyes briefly. Of course there was. “I’m not her fucking Dom. I’m not even her mentor. That was a favor.”
One he was coming to regret.
“I know, man. But she’s shut down. She’s basically unresponsive. I’d appreciate it if you could talk to her. I’ll take care of Madison.”
Shit. What kind of Dom did this make him? But Madison would recover easily, Betsy on the other hand…
“Christ. Fine. Just make sure Madison is taken care of.”
Relief filled Angus’s face. What was up with him?
“Of course.”
Ink crouched down in front of Madison. “Sweetheart, look at me.”
She raised her gaze to his.
“I’ve been called away. Angus is gonna find you someone else to play with.”
Disappointment filled her face before she quickly wiped it clean, nodding serenely. “Yes, Sir.”
He cupped her cheek. “Good girl.”
Standing, he nodded to Angus before making his way to the Littles’ room. Annoyance filled him. Couldn’t he fucking have a few minutes where he wasn’t taking care of this girl?
He paused outside the door, searching for some patience. It wasn’t easy.
It’s not her fault that Angus isn’t doing his job properly.
Besides, not like you were getting fuck all else done because you were too busy thinking about her.
He hit the buzzer. The door opened on an older woman. Angelique. The monitors must have changed.
“Ink?” she asked, surprised.
“I left a sub here earlier. Betsy. Angus asked me to come check on her.”
She blinked, looking more than a bit shocked. Then she frowned. “You know her?”
“I acted as her mentor last weekend,” he said. “A favor to Angus.”
“What is going on with that man lately?” she muttered.
Ink’s eyebrows rose.
“Sorry. He’s just acting strange. I’m just not sure why he’d choose you to be her…you know what, never mind.”
Had he just been insulted?
“Actually, it’s good you’re here. Apparently, she was doing okay when Logan was in here monitoring. Not interacting, but watching. But almost as soon as I came in, she shut down. The closer I try to get to her, the more she stiffens up.”
Sympathy filled the other woman’s gaze. “Do you happen to know if there’s any trauma in her past?”
Her voice was soft so it didn’t travel beyond the two of them. He appreciated the care she was showing for Betsy, but he wished she would get out of his way so he could get to her.
“No, I don’t. She hasn’t mentioned any triggers from her past. Can I see her?”
“Yes, of course.”
He stepped into the room, his gaze immediately searching her out. There was more of a crowd in here tonight. Around ten Littles, some with their Tops, some on their own. He saw Angelique’s two Littles off in one corner playing with each other. They shot Betsy worried looks.
She stood in the corner, her back against the wall, her eyes flitting around the room, unable to settle on one thing. Then her gaze moved to Angelique and she completely froze; she grew so tense he actually winced.
Shit.
“There’s something about me that sets her off,” Angelique murmured to him. “As long as I don’t pay her any mind, she seems to be able to cope. But I made the mistake of trying to get close to her and I’d swear she nearly had a panic attack. I got Jasmine to approach her,” Jasmine was one of her subs, “but she couldn’t get her to speak much beyond telling Jasmine that she didn’t wish to leave. I’m not sure how to help her.”
“I’ll talk to her.” He moved slowly around the room towards Betsy. She didn’t react to him, her gaze remained on Angelique. Yeah, there was definitely something about her that set Betsy off.
“Betsy?” he called out quietly as he reached her.
She didn’t react.
“Betsy, look at me.” He made his voice firmer.
Still nothing.
Shit.
As he watched her, he became aware of how rapidly she was breathing. A light sheen of sweat covered her brow and her fingers were pressed together so hard they were turning white.
If he wasn’t mistaken, she was on the cusp of a panic attack.
Fuck.
“Betsy.” He stepped in front of her, forcing her to see him. He didn’t want to touch her. She wasn’t entirely here and he wasn’t sure how she would react to a sudden touch.
“Betsy. Look at me.”
She startled, her gaze moving up to his eyes. She blinked.
“Who am I?”
Her brow wrinkled. “Ink.”
“Where are you, Betsy?”
More rapid breaths. Okay, something simpler.
“What’s your favorite color, brown eyes?”
“Black.”
Okay. That was unusual.
“What’s your favorite food?”
“Mexican.”
Her breathing was starting to ease. Her eyes cleared and some color returned to her cheeks. “Ink? I mean, Sir?”
Actually, he rather liked the sound of his name on her lips.
“That’s right. Do you know where you are, Betsy?” She looked around.
“No, focus on me,” he told her sternly. “Do you know where you are right now?”
“I’m at Fringe. In the Littles’ room.”
“Good girl,” he praised, watching as more tension eased from her shoulders. “Betsy, want to tell me what had you on the verge of a panic attack?”
She opened her mouth and he raised a hand. “Remember what I said about lying to me.”
Her mouth closed then she let out a deep breath. “I just…shoot.”
He took pity on her. “Guessing it has something to do with Mistress Angelique, right?” He moved to the side and pointed out the Domme. She glanced over at them briefly.
Betsy stiffened then forced herself to breathe out. “Y-yes.”
“Did she say or do something to scare or intimidate you?”
“No. It’s not her. I know it’s not her. She just reminds me of someone.”
Someone who had hurt her? Fuck, he hated that he didn’t know.
“Okay, brown eyes. Angelique is a club Domme, she’s also a regular in the Littles’ room. We can’t have you on the verge of a panic attack every time you see her.”
She turned her gaze to his, her eyes were swimming with tears. He laid a hand on her shoulder and she shocked him by moving closer and leaning against him.
“I have to leave?” she whispered
“What? No, brown eyes. No one is kicking you out.”
“But if I keep reacting to her like this…”
“All we have to do is work on you disassociating Mistress Angelique from this other person in your past. Take a look at her, she’s all the way over there. What do you see about her that’s different from this other person?”
And who was this other bitch? What exactly did they do to you? And where can I find them?
Betsy remained leaning against him as she looked over at the other woman. “Her hair is longer.”
“Good. What else?”
“She dresses differently.”
“All right. Anything else?”
“She smiles. And it reaches her eyes. It’s real.”
“Mistress
Angelique can look scary. She can be strict if necessary. She also has a very soft heart from what I’ve heard. There was another Dom here who got sick with cancer. He didn’t have enough insurance to cover all his bills and Mistress Angelique helped to raise money to help him.”
“Oh. That is kind.” She sucked in a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I reacted so badly. I know that she’s not her. I just…”
“You’re in a new situation. Out of your comfort zone and feeling vulnerable. Things can affect you differently than they would otherwise.”
She stared at him in amazement. “That’s really insightful.”
“I might look like I spend my time getting drunk and partying but I do have a brain.” It came out harsher than he’d meant it to.
Something flashed across her face. Regret?
“I didn’t mean it that way. I’m sorry. I’ll just…”
“No, fuck, I’m sorry, brown eyes. Sometimes my mouth talks before my brain catches up. I think that you’ve been such a good girl you deserve a reward.”
“A reward?”
“Yes. What would you like to do?”
He swept an arm out.
“Do?”
He had to grin. “Are you just going to repeat what I say, brown eyes?”
Her cheeks filled with color. “Sorry, Sir.”
He resisted the urge to run his thumb across her lower lip, to slip it between those full lips and tell her to suck.
Christ, man. Not the time or place.
Or girl.
“What would you like to play with? Your choice.”
“You mean you’ll stay with me? Don’t you have a scene to do? Oh no, did I pull you away from something? I’m so sorry.”
She started chewing her lip, looking worried.
He gave in and reaching out, slipped her lip free from her teeth, rubbing it. Christ, what was it about this woman that got to him so badly? That made him want to pull her close, keep her safe and at the same time, fuck her until they both forgot their own names.
“Your job isn’t to worry about me, understand? Your job, right now, is to have some fun.”
“Fun?” She looked like she had no idea what the word even meant. He hated that. Hated that her life might not be filled with fun and laughter.
“What would you like to do?”
She looked around, not saying anything but he saw the way her eyes lit up as she took in the kitchen area. It had a wooden kitchen, complete with pots, pans and wooden food. There were also plates and cutlery in the cupboards.
“Hmm, you know, I’m awfully hungry, I didn’t get any dinner. Think you could make me something?”
A look of uncertainty filled her face. She was less closed off in here than she was in the dungeon. Because she felt more comfortable?
He had no idea. Hell, if he could tell what a woman was thinking he’d be a rich fucking man.
“Please take pity on a starving man, Little one.” He rubbed his stomach, trying to look pathetic.
Her gaze dipped to his abs and he swore he saw her gaze light up with heat. Liked what she saw, did she?
“Okay, Sir.”
“How about in here, we try something different,” he murmured. “I don’t have to be Daddy, if that’s too much.”
“Actually,” she said quickly. “I think I…I might like that. If it’s okay with you?”
She was back to staring at the floor.
“I like it just fine, brown eyes. Now, cook Daddy some dinner. Before he starts getting grouchy.” He pretended to make a growly face and she giggled.
She paused, looking shocked. Shit. First, she seemed amazed at the idea of having fun and now she appeared dumbfounded after simply giggling.
What was going on with this girl?
“Here, why don’t we take these big girl shoes off first so you don’t hurt yourself. Sit on the floor.”
She sat down and he knelt, taking each shoe off carefully. He couldn’t resist running a finger over the top of each foot. Then he stood and helped her up. He placed his hand on the small of her back as they walked over to the kitchen area.
“What…what would you like to eat?”
“I want meat. None of those yucky vegetables,” he told her.
“You don’t like vegetables?”
“God. No. I don’t get muscles like these from eating rabbit food.”
She shook her head.
“Of course Little girls have to eat their veggies to get all the nutrients they need.”
“Oh, so it’s one rule for you and another for me?” she teased as she opened cupboards and pulled out a frying pan, placing it on the small wooden stove. All of the play equipment like this had been especially built for this room and was made for big Littles.
“Most definitely.”
“There’s nothing wrong with vegetables. Daddy.” It was said hesitantly, but damn he liked hearing her call him that.
“For you. For me, I need meat. Well, potatoes are all right.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Okay. I’ll make you some steak. Does that sound good?”
He just grunted. She moved to the fridge. It wasn’t long until the tension started to ease from her shoulders. He sat at the small table and chairs. Thankfully no one else was in this corner of the room, or he didn’t think she would be so relaxed.
“Here you go, Daddy.” She plopped a plate down on the table in front of him. He scowled down at the fake meat, fries and broccoli.
“What is this?” He picked up the broccoli, watching as laughter filled her face.
“It’s broccoli.”
“What did I say about green stuff?”
“It’s good for you.”
He sniffed at it suspiciously while she grinned. “Daddy! Just try it.”
Pretending to nibble at it, he gave her a small nod. “Very well. But for everything you feed Daddy you have to eat twice as much.”
If only he could get her to eat some real food. She actually looked thinner than last week and he didn’t see how that was possible. He hoped like hell that she wasn’t starving herself.
“I like broccoli.”
“You like broccoli?” a light voice asked.
He turned, cursing silently as Betsy immediately shut down. Fuck.
Lara stood there, staring over at Betsy with a smile on her face. She scrunched up her nose. “Vegetables are yuck.”
“They’re good for you, Little one.” Lara’s Dom, Zac strolled over slowly. Ink took note of the way he stood several feet away. He knew it wasn’t for his or Lara’s benefit so he’d obviously seen Betsy’s discomfit at having other people close.
Shit. Just when he’d gotten her to partially relax.
“Lara, baby, how about we go play with something else?” Zac suggested after studying first Betsy then Ink.
Lara’s lower lip dropped. “But I wanted to play in the kitchen.”
“Lara,” Zac said warningly. “Just because you want something doesn’t mean you’re gonna get it. You know that, young lady.”
Her lower lip trembled.
“It...it’s okay,” Betsy said. Then her eyes grew wide as though she’d just realized she’d spoken out loud. “I mean…I…am I allowed to talk…I’m sorry…” She dropped the frying pan she’d been holding and it landed on her toes.
He braced himself for a cry of pain. A screech. That would have fucking hurt.
But Betsy just stood there, frozen, her gaze on…Angelique.
Angelique was rushing over. Ink stood, ready to intervene.
“Oh, baby girl, are you all right? That must have hurt,” Angelique cooed, kneeling in front of her to examine Betsy’s bare foot.
Yep. The sternness was really just a façade, hiding her gooey inside.
“I’m s-so sorry,” Betsy managed to get out. “I didn’t m-mean to drop it. S-sorry.”
Ink stood and moved to her as Angelique froze where she was. “It’s okay, darling, I know you didn’t. I didn’t come over to scold yo
u.”
Angelique raised her gaze to Ink. He held out his hand. The older woman slipped her hand into his and he helped her stand. Then he took her place, kneeling in front of Betsy.
“Let’s have a look, button.”
“B-button?” That got her attention. She stared down at him.
Ink gently pressed down on the top of her foot. She winced slightly but otherwise didn’t move.
Her gaze was stuck on Angelique.
“Are you okay?” Lara moved up to Betsy, her hands moving around as though she longed to touch Betsy but wasn’t sure she should. “Did you get a boo-boo? Do you need a Band-Aid? They have Disney Princess ones here. And Minion ones. Do you like those? When I hurt myself, Daddy kisses it better. Do you want my Daddy to kiss it better?”
It was exactly what was needed to break the tension. Betsy turned to Lara then looked over her shoulder at Zac who was looking down at Lara, his face filled with exasperated humor.
“Umm…” Betsy said, but there was a grin twitching at her mouth. “Did you just offer to have your Daddy kiss my foot?”
“Oh shit.” Lara’s face grew red.
“Lara!” Zac said sharply. “Language.”
“Sorry, Daddy. Can I go gets Betsy a bandage?”
“Ink can take care of Betsy, Little one. You and I need to have a little chat about you listening to me, I think. Over to the timeout corner.”
Lara dropped her lower lip then she turned to Betsy. “Bye, Betsy. Hope your boo-boo feels better. Maybe Ink can kiss it better. He looks like he’d be a good kisser.”
“Lara!” Zac barked.
Her eyes sparkled and she winked at Betsy before turning and walking over to the timeout area. She sat in a big chair, facing the corner.
“Sorry about that, man,” Zac said. “Lara loves playing with other Littles but a lot of the Littles who hang out in here just want to do their own thing. Hope she didn’t make you uncomfortable, Betsy.”
Betsy shook her head. Ink ran his thumb gently over the red mark on the top of her foot. It had to have hurt, why hadn’t she reacted?
Ink looked back up at Betsy, noting her face had grown red, although amusement still danced in her eyes.
“Let’s get some ice on your boo-boo, unless you want to test the magic of my kisses?” he teased her.
She blushed bright red and shook her head.
Hero Daddy Page 6