Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 53807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
“Is this new job going to work out?” he asked, watching her face closely. He needed her to trust him enough to confide in him.
“It will. Today… Today had its challenges, but it was okay.”
“Want to tell me about it?”
“Maybe later. Right now, I just want to relax.”
“Good idea. Let’s get you cleaned up and into something comfy. Go check in the nursery. There’s a surprise in there,” Jerico shared.
“A surprise?”
“It’s waiting for you.”
He followed her into the house, catching the screen door before it could slam shut. Grinning at her enthusiasm, he walked behind her down the hall. He heard her quick gasp.
“She’s so cute!” Aspen exclaimed, as he entered the nursery behind her.
Jerico leaned against the door as she scooped the multicolored caterpillar up in her arms. He’d ordered the stuffie before going to bed that first night that Aspen had arrived. Somehow, he’d known she would love it. “What are you going to name her?”
“Bowbow because she looks like a rainbow,” Aspen announced quickly and hugged the stuffie closer.
“That’s a perfect name. Set Bowbow on the bed and she can rest while I change your clothes.”
“Mmmm,” she hummed, holding the stuffie tightly as if she didn’t want to set the caterpillar down.
“Bowbow will have to take a nap while you get clean, but I bet you can juggle her a bit while I dress you,” he suggested, and Aspen immediately nodded with a radiant smile that touched his heart.
The depth of his feeling for her resonated inside him as Jerico walked forward to hug the two of them tightly. Aspen laid her head on his shoulder and snuggled close.
“Thank you, Daddy.”
“You’re welcome,” he said, kissing the top of her head. Holding her against him, Jerico enjoyed the quiet moment.
“Daddy? Were you grilling something?” she asked a short time later.
“Soon. First, let’s get you clean and in comfy clothes.” Opening the closet, he grabbed a pair of stretchy leggings and a tunic.
Kneeling at her feet, Jerico stripped off her socks and shoes before he unfastened her jeans and pulled the denim and her cotton panties to her ankles and off. He pressed a kiss to her tummy before standing. “Do you think Bowbow could ride on my shoulder while we get your T-shirt off?”
“I think she’d love that.” With a giggle, Aspen hooked the caterpillar’s body over his shoulder. It clung in place as he pulled her T-shirt over her head.
“Oops!” When his arms lifted, Bowbow shifted, and Jerico quickly pinned the caterpillar in place by pressing his ear to the squishy stuffie.
“You saved her!” Aspen praised him, quickly assessing the situation as her head popped out of the garment. Rescuing the colorful stuffie, she held her close once again.
“Hey, maybe she could piggyback.” Aspen lifted the stuffie and placed her around the back of his neck. “Ta-da!”
“So much better, little girl. Good idea.”
Jerico unhooked her bra and stripped the lacy nothing off. “Into the shower with you,” he announced, pointing the way.
Laughing, Aspen rushed to the large bathroom off their bedroom, with Jerico trailing close behind. She placed Bowbow carefully on the vanity as Jerico turned on the water and adjusted the temperature.
“In you go. When you’re totally wet, come here and I’ll suds you up,” Jerico directed, grabbing a bath pouf and pouring some sweet-smelling soap on it. When she returned slick with water, he had to steel himself so that he wouldn’t back her against the tile and turn shower time into snack time.
“Are you mad, Daddy?” Aspen asked, looking concerned.
“Daddy’s cock thinks you’d make a tasty morsel. Trying to convince it not to poke a hole through my jeans is taking concentration.”
She stared at him for a second, and then her lips spread in a big smile. “Daddy?” Aspen drew the word out until it sounded like it had three syllables.
“You are a very bad girl,” he reprimanded her, giving her a quick swat on her sassy bottom. Her wet flesh made a very loud sound, and he suspected the liquid amplified the sting as well.
“Oh!”
“Go rinse off, temptress.”
Drying her with a towel was its own enticement. Jerico gritted his teeth and completed the job. Covering her with an oversized nightshirt was a relief and a disappointment.
“Dinner time. How do you like your steak?” he asked as she scooped up her stuffie.
“Steak? I don’t know… Medium? Just so it doesn’t moo at me.”
Chuckling, he watched her rub her tummy as if she didn’t realize what she was doing. Having steak had obviously been a rare treat for his little girl in the past. Jerico didn’t eat a lot of red meat to stay in tiptop physical shape, but every once in a while, he craved it.
“Medium it is. The coals should be perfect now. Do you want to play in your nursery or color at the table while I put the steaks on?”