Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 116760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
“Daddy! Daddy, no, stop!”
“Daddy isn’t going to stop until you admit that he’s the most handsome Daddy in the world!”
“You are! You are, Daddy! You’re so handsome. I’ve never seen someone as handsome as you. But you have to stop!”
He stilled, looking down at her.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered.
“And you’re so handsome, Daddy.”
Leaning down, he kissed her. Then he drew back. “Right, you need to pee. Then do your hand exercises.”
Boo! Hand exercises sucked.
“And then Daddy has a surprise for you.”
Ooh. Well, she did like surprises.
Twenty minutes later, she was dressed up in seventeen layers of clothes and following Corbin through the woods on a path she hadn’t taken before.
“Daddy! I don’t need this much clothing! I’m too hot.”
“It’s getting colder. They’re forecasting snow in a few days.”
“Ooh, snow! Can I go tobogganing?” she asked
“I think we can arrange that.”
“Yippee!” She jumped around, clapping her hands while he stood and smiled at her.
“You getting a bit of cabin fever, baby?”
“Just a bit. I can’t start classes until the new year, and there’s nothing to fix up or do around here.”
“Well, I think I might have something that will interest you.” He took her hand, and five minutes later, they entered a clearing where the most gorgeous cabin stood. It was similar to their cabin but larger with a wraparound porch. Smoke trailed out of the chimney.
Whose house was this?
“Now, there’s nothing structural and all the wiring and plumbing is sound. But I thought there might be a few things here that you’d like to fix up. Especially the nursery.”
“Nursery? Someone with a baby lives here?”
“Yeah. Me.”
She blinked at him, unsure what he meant. Then it hit her. “You mean this is your house?”
“Well, I’m hoping it’s going to be ours. For me and my baby.” He ran his finger down her nose. “What do you think?”
“But we have a house.” And she loved their cabin.
“Hmm, but there’s nothing there for my girl to work on. And it only has one bedroom and she needs a nursery. Somewhere for all her toys.”
“I don’t have many toys,” she whispered.
“Well, Christmas is coming and Santa will be here soon to hear your wish list.”
Oh God. That’s right. Santa came to visit Sanctuary.
“What do you think?”
“I think I want to look inside!” She bounced around, feeling so happy. “Let’s go, Daddy! Let’s go!”
Grabbing his hand, she tugged him into the cabin. As soon as she stepped in, she got the feeling of being home.
Bebe loved their small cabin, but this was . . . it was magical. Tall ceilings with wooden beams. Wooden floors that could use a sand and polish. A massive stone fireplace that just needed cleaning.
The kitchen definitely needed updating, but she could see where they could put an island. White marble countertops and navy cupboards.
Oh, it was amazing.
She went from room to room. There were three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The bathrooms needed an update as well, but it wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle.
When she walked into the third bedroom, she knew it would be perfect for her nursery.
Corbin walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “I thought that this would work as your nursery. A crib over in the corner. Wallpaper with a woodland scene with squirrels. A soft rug on the floor. Storage. Maybe a rocking chair so Daddy can feed you your bottle in it. Even a change table for when you wear diapers during your nap.”
They hadn’t gotten that far yet . . . but she could see it. She could see it all.
And she wanted it so badly.
Bebe turned to him. She could hardly believe her luck. “It’s really ours? Really? Truly?”
He picked her up and spun her around, and she put her hands up into the air, laughing excitedly.
“It’s really ours, precious girl. So, do you like your surprise?”
She wrapped her arms and legs around him. “Daddy, this is the most amazing surprise in the world. And I’m the luckiest, most spoiled girl in the world to have you.”
“That’s good. Because I’m the luckiest Daddy in the world to have you.”
48
“We need to get home soon,” Corbin told her.
Bebe turned with a pout. “Already?”
“Baby, we’ve spent all afternoon looking around Wishingbone. Snow is coming tonight. And we need to get home.”
“But can’t we go to The Wishing Well for one drink? Please?”
He gave her a stern look. “One drink.”
She smiled at him and skipped along the footpath.
Damn. He was in trouble. This girl had him wrapped around her pinky finger. There was very little that he wouldn’t do to make her smile.
But she deserved to be happy after the last few years she’d had. And that wasn’t even taking into account her life growing up. This past week, though, he’d noticed that she seemed a lot happier. As though cutting ties with her parents had relieved her of a burden.