Sera, though, was different. Vulnerable, yes, but also brave in ways she didn’t see yet. She wanted me here. Needed me here. And she’d stood up for Emerson. Not to mention the way she saidDaddy—not Mistress, not Vasiah, butDaddy—it hit something inside me I thought I’d buried for good. With her, it didn’t feel like a role. It felt like breathing.
Her lashes fluttered as she woke, eyes puffy but calmer. She gave me a sleepy smile, and I stroked her hair back. “Morning, little one. How are you feeling?”
“Better,” she whispered. “Safe.”
I kissed her forehead. “Good. That’s my job.”
We lay there for a while, and then I asked, “Tell me about your assignment from class. What stood out to you?”
Master E had asked them to rate places they felt safe to play or demonstrate some of their top kinks. They were to use the stoplight method to rate places. The mentors had been sent the answers, but I was more interested in what she had to say because of how new she was to the lifestyle. For me, I needed to be inside her head to understand how best to Daddy her. Especially when it came to not only the emotional standpoint, but also being able to play inside her mind safely during scenes. Getting her in either Little space or Sub space without putting a single fucking finger on her. Now that was delicious.
She bit her lip. “The yellow ones. The places where I hesitated. They made me realize… I don’t always know what I need. I think I know, but then when I stop to think about it, I’m not so sure.”
I nodded. “That’s honest. And that’s what this journey is—finding out what truly feels right, not what you think youshouldwant.”
She looked up at me, searching my face. “And the red ones… they made me nervous, but they also made me… curious. Is that bad?”
“Not bad,” I said firmly. “Curious means you’re alive, that you’re exploring. It doesn’t mean you have to say yes to everything, just that your mind and body are awake to the possibilities. That’s healthy.”
Her cheeks colored, and I tilted her chin. “Sera… what else has been on your mind? When you went to discover theLittles’ section yesterday and the rest of the main building… did something stand out?”
I hoped something had, because it’d taken a lot of convincing for me to get Derek to let me take things from the Ranch shop and set everything up in one of the multipurpose rooms on the second floor for her to see. I had to use the fact that Ezra was convinced that she was an older Little as ammunition. Exploring who she is was just as important to Derek as it was to me. That was the thing that had convinced him to let me set up my secret plan. Both Sera and I needed to know in order to help her.
She squirmed, tucking her face into my shirt. “Maybe.”
“Talk to me, babygirl. No shame here.” But I also enjoyed how shy she was being right now. I kissed the exposed side of her neck and drew her closer.
Her voice was a whisper. “The teen dress-up space.”
I arched a brow, though my chest warmed at her honesty. “Mhm. And what about it?”
I also found it interesting that the teen space had called to her when before Ezra had spoken to me, I’d assumed that her Little was younger than a teenager. The bedtime routine, the tea party, the stuffy, and even some of her tantrums. Then I’d thought about how a lot of her mood swings and behaviors reminded me of Emerson. Even down to the containers of food and not cooking for herself. The way social acceptance played a part with her. Her tantrums were more like acting out. Maybe we were finally getting somewhere with things.
“I kept thinking about… what it would feel like if you were there with me. If you saw me like that. Dressed up in clothes that made me feel more like myself. It made me—” Her blush deepened. “It made me want you. Really want you.”
Acceptance.
I hummed low, rubbing slow circles on her back. “That’s what I wanted to hear.” I kissed her temple. “No shame inthat either. Desire is a language all its own, and you spoke it beautifully just now.”
Her eyes softened, like she couldn’t believe I wasn’t angry or mocking her. I held her tighter. “Babygirl, I like hearing what stirs you. What wakes your body up. And you can always tell me, no matter how big or small it feels.”
Her confession hung between us like a fragile thread, one I didn’t dare snip by moving too quickly.
I stroked her back, keeping my voice low. “So when you were in that space, thinking about dressing up… your body reacted, didn’t it?”
She nodded against my chest, cheeks hot. “I didn’t actually do it. But the thought of it… I… I was restless the whole time. Like I couldn’t stop fidgeting. And I missed you. I didn’t even want to admit it, but I did. I wantedyouthere. Not anyone else. I also wanted you there for the first time that I completely gave in to it”
That admission pulled something deep inside me, something primal and tender at once. I tipped her chin up so she had to look at me. Her eyes were wide, pupils dark with truth and desire.
“You know what that tells me, babygirl?” I asked softly.
She shook her head.
“That you don’t just want the play. You don’t just want the safety. You wantme.All of me. My hands. My voice. My control. My approval…. Me to watch your enjoyment.”
Her breath caught, her lips parting like she wanted to deny it, but the blush spreading down her throat betrayed her.
“Yes,” she whispered. “I… I want that. I want you. Us. I, um… I want it all.”
