Total pages in book: 173
Estimated words: 174632 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 873(@200wpm)___ 699(@250wpm)___ 582(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 174632 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 873(@200wpm)___ 699(@250wpm)___ 582(@300wpm)
Oh.
Wait.
Scratch that. He was totally that.
Think, Maggie.
How to distract him from this turn of events?
“I thought you had found my vibrator,” she blurted out.
Perfect.
You get ten out of ten for completely humiliating yourself.
Closing her eyes again, she tried to count backward from ten.
That didn’t just happen. Please say that didn’t just happen.
Ian cleared his throat.
“I’m going to need you to turn around, leave this room, and pretend you never met me.”
“Maggie,” he said in a soft voice.
What was happening right now? Ian didn’t have a soft voice. She must be delirious. Or maybe it was because this was a dream.
“None of this happened,” she whispered in a low croon. “This was all just a dream.”
“Look at me, Little Misfit.” He was still talking to her in that gentle voice.
Now it was just getting bizarre.
“You need to go now,” she told him. “We will never talk of this.”
“Look at me.”
“Nope. That’s not happening. If I don’t look at you, then none of this happened. Go. Shoo. Scram. Vamoose.”
“Telling me to leave isn’t going to get rid of me,” he informed her.
She sighed. “It’s sad when people don’t realize they’ve outstayed their welcome.”
“Maggie,” he said in a warning tone.
And there he was.
Mr. Grumpy-Knickers was back. But crap . . . that meant that she wasn’t dreaming. All of that had just happened.
“Can’t you just go?” she cried. “Haven’t I been humiliated enough?” She fell back on the bed and curled into a ball. It was too much; it really was. What she needed was a bubble bath, some soothing music, and her stuffed zebra.
And the ability to alter minds and erase memories.
Was that too much to ask for?
She didn’t think so.
“Look at me.”
Maggie opened her eyes.
Again, he reached out to touch her. And again, he pulled back.
Wow. Way to make a girl feel rejected.
“Please leave.”
“I can’t.”
Why? Because he wanted to declare his undying love for her? It was obvious he was obsessed with her.
Sad, really.
“I need to ensure you’re okay,” he told her.
Okay. That was kind of nice. Perhaps she’d just erase the last hour from his memory.
“And I need to take you to the bathroom so you can pee.”
“I don’t need to pee,” she told him.
“Yes, you do. Everyone needs to pee before they go to bed.”
“That’s not true. I never pee before I go to bed.”
He narrowed his gaze as though he was trying to figure out if she was telling the truth. She was stretching it. Just a tad.
“Well, now you’re going to start. If you need to pee during the night, I won’t be here to carry you. Unless . . .” He stared at the bed.
Was he thinking about . . .
“I’ll pee! Sheesh.” She sat up and held up her arms. “Carry me, donkey!”
“I am not a donkey.”
“Hmm, are you sure? You cart me around wherever I want to go. You make a lot of noise. And you have a bad attitude. Pretty sure you’re a donkey.”
“And I’m pretty sure that you’re seconds away from not being able to sit comfortably tomorrow.”
She gasped in disbelief. “You can’t threaten to spank me!”
“It’s not a threat. It’s a promise.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You’re my bodyguard. You’re meant to guard my body, not threaten to harm it.”
“I need to protect you. And if I deem that you’re putting yourself in danger, I have the right and duty to protect you how I see fit.”
“Pretty sure spanking me isn’t protecting me.”
“If it stops you from doing something that harms you, then it is.”
“How is calling you a donkey harming me?”
He glowered. She had him there.
“You can’t say I haven’t warned you, Little girl.”
“I still don’t think that you’re allowed to spank me. I studied that agreement and there was nothing in there about spankings.”
“But there were things about obeying your assigned guardian if they gave you an order for your safety.”
“I haven’t done anything to put myself in danger,” she reiterated.
“You cut yourself.”
“Not on purpose.”
“Fine, perhaps you have not done anything to earn a spanking. Yet.”
Yikes.
10
Finally.
She was finally starting to understand how seriously he took her safety. And that she would be in big trouble if she put herself at risk.
Relief filled Ian.
Along with a bit of disappointment. Shit. Why did he feel disappointed?
Because you like it when she argues with you. Admit it. It makes you feel alive.
Fuck. He was messed up.
Picking her up, he carried her into the bathroom and set her down on the toilet. She was far too light in his arms. He didn’t like that. No way would she be allowed to skip meals again.
Perhaps he should make it clear that it wasn’t just her physical safety that she wasn’t allowed to put at risk.
But as he glanced down at her, he noticed how pale and worn she appeared. There was something in her eyes . . . something that told him she was fighting battles he didn’t know about.