by Rachel Burns
I knew what this meant, but the others would think something else. All eyebrows were raised as we came out of his office.
“Ladies, this is my Becky. I’m going to give her a tour of our factory. If she ever needs anything, please help her.” I smiled at them nicely as he pulled me out of the door. He had me tightly by his hand. We went back down the metal stairs. He took me down the long hall and stopped outside of two huge swinging doors. He lifted his finger and scolded me. “Listen very closely, Princess. There are dangerous machines in here. I need you to watch where you step, and keep your fingers to yourself. Stay out of the way, so my workers can get their jobs done. Do you understand?” His eyes were warning me.
“Yes, Daddy,” I whispered, so only he could hear me.
He smiled and opened the door for me. No one really looked up as we walked in. First when they noticed that we were holding hands. We harvested a lot of glances then.
Daddy explained to me about the product that we made. He always used words like we and our. He made it sound like the factory belonged to me too.
Sometimes, he passed me off to a foreman who continued to explain this or that while he took care of something or answered a phone call from his secretary. He looked extremely busy.
I felt really guilty that he had taken so much time off to take care of me. Being here made it clear why he wanted me to have a Nanny. He really did need a babysitter for me.
The tour took hours. My ears were ringing by the time we were finished.
Daddy took me back to his office. I practically fell on the sofa. He sat down with me. His hand went to my forehead.
There was a huge window that was between here and his secretaries. They saw everything.
He didn’t even glance their way. “This was a bit much for you, wasn’t it?” He looked very concerned.
“I’m fine, Daddy. I just need to sit for a minute.”
“Did you want another hot chocolate?”
I did, but I didn’t want to be an inconvenience.
Daddy seemed to sense that. He jumped up and opened the door. He called to his secretary to get us another round of drinks.
Once everything was settled, he went to his desk again. He worked and a déjà vu scene appeared. Daddy worked, the secretary served drinks and I drank and waited.
When he was finished, he came over to me and finished his coffee. He asked me how I liked the factory. I was able to think of a thousand adult questions that I could ask him but none that a little girl would ask.
“It was really large.” That was the only thing I could think to say.
He smiled; obviously it hadn’t been that dumb. “Yes, it is, Princess. Now you know where your Daddy is when he isn’t with you. You see Daddy has lots to do here. The people here depend on Daddy. He has to take care of them too.”
I smiled at him. “I understand, Daddy.”
“You’re such a good girl. Daddy needs to do a little shopping, so I want you to go to the bathroom before we leave.” He pointed to a door behind his desk.
I got up and did as I was told. I hurried, and then he went in.
I wondered about the trust he was placing in me. I could have easily have run for it or informed his secretaries.
He seemed to have thought that too because he came out very quickly. His eyes went right to mine.
I was still sitting nicely on the sofa.
Daddy got into his coat, and then he helped me into mine. He even buttoned it up for me again. He did it really quickly, but I was pretty sure that someone must have noticed that. People were going to think that we were a couple, and not daddy and daughter. He was giving people the wrong impression.
Daddy didn’t seem to be the kind to really care about that. He was probably so convinced he was really my daddy in the meantime that he took on the role perfectly.
We went out and said, goodbye. He was beaming at me proudly. I had been a good girl, thus he looked good.
I was back in his car, and we drove back downtown. He parked and got me out again. He went into a couple of stores buying one thing here and one thing there.
Daddy explained that it had been really important to him not to let malls and other major stores move into town. He was on the town council too. He knew how to keep those companies away. The downtown was alive, and the small business owners all got to keep their livelihoods.
He really was the good guy on the whole. He simply had huge problems respecting that not everyone wanted to learn how to swim. My bottom was still a little sore.
He had me back in the warm car after he had bought different pens, a couple of magazines and other little things. “Are you up to going out tonight?” he asked me.
“I guess so. What exactly does ‘out’ mean?”
“I was going to drive over to the country club and get something to eat. It’s the cook’s night off. I usually go there on Mondays.”
“Okay.”
I had figured out what he was doing. He was letting everyone know that I was there. The people should know that I was living in his house and that I belonged to him. If I were suddenly gone, then I would be missed. He wanted my status in the community to be known.
What was my role exactly?
I supposed the best way to put it was that I was his girl.
We drove out of town and into the country club grounds. I figured I would be learning how to play golf this summer. He parked, and I waited for him to get me out. He walked me in while still holding my hand.
Daddy smiled as he looked around and waved to people that he knew. He smiled at me as he said that he needed a table for two this evening.
That was the first time that I realized that I was truly giving him something back. He had sat here alone week for week and probably year for year. My daddy hadn’t found true love yet.
The waiter escorted us to a table that overlooked a snow covered golf course. The trees around the clubhouse had white lights strung up in them.
“Doesn’t it look pretty?” I proclaimed.
“Sure does, Princess. What would you like to have?” He was still grinning. He was pleased that I was falling into his routine.
I picked up my menu and looked it over. I was a meat and potato girl. I picked out several choices that I would like to eat. I looked up and saw that he was watching me. My forehead had wrinkled together.
“Is there a problem, Princess?” He already looked amused.
“What are the rules for ordering?” I whispered. I leaned in over the table, so our conversation would remain private.
“You can have whatever you want, if that’s what you’re getting at?” He had leaned in too. He was smiling from ear to ear.
“What are you going to have?” I asked.
He grinned back at me. “Millionaires. We’re millionaires. Choose whatever you want.” He leaned back again coughing slightly to hide his humor.
My forehead wrinkled up again, and I decided on steak and fries with a salad for good measure. I told him, and he smiled all the more and waved the waiter over for our order. He ordered me a large glass of skim milk too.
Once the waiter was gone, I got the itinerary for the whole week. He wanted to go swimming every morning until he felt that I could really swim. My mouth fell open at that.
“The faster you apply yourself the faster it will go. I want you to excel at it by springtime. Then you will be riding on your horse.”
“You aren’t training me for the Olympics, are you?” I had leaned in again.
He leaned in, too. “I want to have you for a very long time. I’ll keep you healthy and strong. We will do some kind of sport every day. I didn’t adopt you, just so I could ignore you.” He leaned back again when our food came.
Adopt me? I thought to myself. So that was how he saw this.
That fit.
The only thing that didn’t fit was my age.
We talked a little while we ate. I enjoyed my French fries. He was eating something a little healthier. I managed to clean my p
late, both the salad plate and the meat plate.
He looked really pleased with me. “See, it is already having positive effects.”
“What is?” I asked him.
“The sport sessions with your Daddy. You’re getting a healthy appetite.” He looked so proud of himself.
“Does that mean I get a dessert?” I smiled at him. I was still hungry.
“I suppose. The people here will think I adopted a horse, but go ahead.”
“No, I don’t want a dessert if you aren’t going to have one too.” That would be too odd.
“Fine, but only once a week. Daddy isn’t going to let you ruin your teeth either.” He picked out a fruit ice cream dessert, and I ordered a hot fudge sundae.
What was the point of pretending to be a kid if you couldn’t get the benefits of being a kid? Hadn’t I secretly wanted this all those years when I was writing Daddy stories?
My eyes must have widened as the sundae arrived because he was laughing again.
I really enjoyed it.
We talked some more. He told me that he had been an only child, but he had been molded to take over the factory from the day he was born.
His mother had died a few years ago, and his father had died when Daddy was only twenty. He had died in a plane crash. He was quiet about all that, but he didn’t seem to want to have any secrets from me either.
I commented on that.
He told me that he knew everything about me too, so it was only fair.
I leaned back in my chair, eyeing him a little. “You don’t know everything about me. No one does, only I do.” I smiled at him.
“Well, then your Daddy comes in second.” He smiled back at me. I was doing my job. The job I had been bought for. I was making him happy and less lonely.
Daddy paid for our meal and brought me back to the car very carefully. He really didn’t want anything to happen to me.
He brought me home and got me into bed as quickly as he could. His little princess needed her rest, he said.
I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Collin checked on his little princess and kissed her forehead before he went to his office to do some more work.
She had been a perfect angel all day. He could take her out. He knew that now. It was probably even good for her to know that she couldn’t go home. This was the only home she had.
He proved that he would be good to her if she were good. She was worth all the money she had cost him.
He did have other needs that she couldn’t tend too.
While he worked, he chatted on the web. He was looking for a new girlfriend. He had one on the line that was feeling overwhelmed with her every day life. Collin listened and sympathized
The two chatted until late in the night. The woman online admitted that she wanted someone to just take care of her. She confessed to being a failure in life who hadn’t amounted to much.
She even used the word guidance. Collin could help her with that.
They made plans to meet on Friday evening.
He was pleased that he could be a Daddy and still have a private life.
He would be more careful whom he let in his house now that he had an impressionable child living with him.
It was clear to him that his princess had to come first.
Chapter 14 – I’d Like You To Meet Someone
I was sitting at my piano again. Daddy was at work, and Nanny was taking her afternoon nap. I was playing, but I wasn’t concentrating on what I was doing. My eyes were focused on the window.
Daddy was going to teach me how to ride soon. I wondered if I would excel at that. I had to be extremely good to avoid a spanking. Learning to ride on a sore behind wouldn’t be good.
It seemed like I could go for weeks without any punishment, and then on one day it would happen like three times. Daddy even commented on that, ‘I see you’re having another bad day’ he would say in those moments.
He never hurt me in any other way. It had always been only his hand. He had kept all of his promises. I was safe and happy.
I started to sing along as I played. I wasn’t the type who only sang at Christmas. I sang for my soul. It was good for me. It was how I worked out stress and thought through my emotions, trying to figure out how I truly felt about things.
I had been too sad to sing before, but now I wasn’t. Daddy took good care of me. He listened to me, and he didn’t expect me to talk like a kid, but it was okay when I did.
He didn’t judge me. Unless, – I did something unacceptable, thus deserving a spanking. Those two statements didn’t really fit together, but in reality they did.
“Becky, you’re singing. How nice, Princess.” Daddy had come in. He was still in his coat, and he had his briefcase with him. He was beaming with pride.
I moved a finger over my lips to hush him. I mouthed that Nanny was sleeping.
He looked over at her and nodded.
I continued to sing softly.
Daddy left again, but he left the door open. He did that a lot when he wanted to hear me play while he worked in his office.
I was singing something nice and light.
Daddy came back and sat down on the other sofa. He was reading though papers from work. He worked really hard.
Daddy took care of everybody else. He deserved it that he went out around three times a week. Some weeks he went out more than others. This week he had gone almost every night. I simply pictured him at business meeting and not the reality of him going to the club.
Nanny woke up and looked around. She sat up and picked her book up off her chest and continued to read.
I smiled and looked down, so no one would see. I peeked up to see how Daddy was reacting. He was smiling too.
Nanny was supposed to make sure I wouldn’t run off, but I didn’t have anywhere to run to, so it was a job that she could easily slack off on. I sang a little then.
It was such a comfortable feeling of family in the living room; surprisingly none of us were related to each other.
“Dinner is ready, sir,” a maid announced and then disappeared again. Daddy helped Nanny to her feet. Then he held his hand out to me.
I bounced to his hand. I told him that Nanny had taken me out to the stable to get acquainted with my horse again today. I had taken her an apple.
I told Daddy all about this like I was a ten year old. I liked to share things with him, and he liked to listen. I held onto his hand until he sat me down. I beamed at him.
He smiled back, and I could tell that he loved me.
I often asked myself if I had been worth the money he spent on me, but I had a feeling that he thought that I was.
“Tuppence let me pet her nose too. I think she likes me,” I told Daddy.
“Of course she does. We all like you, Princess.” Daddy rang the bell and a couple maids brought in our food.
“Was my little girl good for you this afternoon?” he asked Nanny after the maids had left. He asked her this at every meal. Was Becky good for you last night, or this morning if he asked at lunchtime?
Nanny smiled at me. “She was very good, and she sang so nicely too. Becky is a very good girl.”
I nodded and looked at Daddy.
“I’m sure you were, Princess.” Daddy talked a bit about the happenings in town. I liked to listen to him too. We babbled throughout the meal.
“Nanny, I would like to have a private word with my daughter. Would you please be kind enough to give us a moment?” Daddy asked Nanny after we had finished eating.
Nanny looked really surprised. “Of course, sir.” She laid her napkin down and got up and left. I watched her leave unsure about what would happen next.
As soon as the door was closed, I looked back at Daddy. “I really was good,” I said in a soft voice.
“I’m sure you were. That isn’t what your daddy wants to talk to you about. Come here.” He held an arm out away his body. I went to him, and he wrapped it around me. “Daddy wants to talk to you about
having company this weekend. I have a friend that I really like. I want to bring her here, so you can meet her. Would you like that?”
I sighed relieved. “Of course, Daddy. That isn’t a problem. I’ll be good for you. I promise I won’t embarrass you.”
He smiled at me, relieved. He picked me up and sat me down on his lap. We had a gym in the house too. He worked out there in the mornings before he picked me up to go swimming. He was really strong, strong enough to protect me.
“If you don’t like her, or feel uncomfortable having her here, tell me, and I won’t bring her here again. You’re the most important thing to your daddy.”
My jaw dropped. I was really moved by his words. He was putting me ahead of his girlfriend.
“I love you too, Daddy.” I hugged him then.
He wrapped his arms around me and held me tightly too. “Daddy has the best little girl in the whole wide world.”
I often wondered what would happen if he got serious with someone. She probably wouldn’t understand our relationship, and they would want to get rid of me.
I wanted what was best for my daddy. I owed him.
Daddy had my horse by the reins. “Tuppence needs to be rode. She will be thankful if you take her out. You have been talking with her for a while now. She is really nice, don’t you think?” Daddy was obviously worried that I would put on a show like I had with swimming.
“Now Daddy is going to help you up. Mr. Lobs will hold the horse still for you.” He gave him the reins. Mr. Lobs took care of the horses and help out with the outside work.
I gulped a little and nodded at Daddy. I didn’t want to give in too easily, making him think that I was afraid and doing it anyway, would help me gain points.
Daddy picked me up after I had my foot in the stirrup and lifted me all the way up. I fished my foot into the other stirrup, and smiled at daddy.
Daddy smiled back and got up on his horse. He took my reins and slowly led my horse. He shouted praise back every minute.
“I sure am high up,” I commented.