She slowly shakes her head.
“Is that something you’d like to do in the future?”
She swallows before speaking again. “Maybe.”
I eat a huge bite of the pizza before firing off another question. “I’ve seen most of your belongings. I assume you usually prefer an age range of about five?”
She lowers her gaze, fiddling with the pizza. “I guess.”
Hmmm. I don’t like that answer. It’s too vague. I’m starting to think even though she doesn’t have it in her to lie or fib, she does tend to give vague responses when she’s afraid to share something.
“You can tell me anything,” I inform her after another bite. “In fact, I’d like you to be candid and open with me, princess. I can’t know what you like and don’t like if you don’t tell me. I never want you to feel like you can’t say something.”
“Okay.”
We eat in silence for a few minutes. I polish off three slices. She finishes the one.
“Would you like another piece, princess?”
“No, Daddy. I’m full.”
I take her plate and set it on the coffee table before handing her the sippy cup. “Drink some water, Little one.”
She does as she’s told while I lean back and watch her.
When she’s finished, I set her cup on the table, noticing how she starts wringing her hands again.
I set my hand over both of hers, making her instantly calm. “You feel more relaxed when I’m touching you, don’t you.”
She nods.
“Would you like to sit closer to me?”
She nods again. She’s hesitant though.
I need to remember she has no experience with men or dating. My lips were the first ones to touch hers. “Would you like to sit on my lap?”
“Could I?”
“Of course. I would love that.” I scoop her up and settle her sideways on my lap, resting one hand against her lower back and the other over hers on her thighs.
She smiles.
“First rule. I need you to always tell Daddy when you like or don’t like something. I can’t read your mind. I don’t want you to ever feel uncomfortable or stressed. My job is to make sure you have the least anxiety possible.”
“Okay.”
“Now, let’s go back to your age range preference. I know you’ve been playing at about five, but would you like to experiment with other ages, princess?” I want to bring this subject back up because she hedged.
She meets my gaze and bites her lip.
“I noticed you don’t have any pacifiers. Do you usually suck your thumb at night?”
“Uh huh.”
“Maybe you’d like to try a paci. They make really nice pacifiers for adult mouths that will also protect your teeth. You might find they help soothe you when you’re stressed.”
“I’d like to try, Daddy.”
