Page 48 of Trained By Her Daddy

“No, sir. I already know how that riveting tale will end.”

He took both sides of my face in his palms. “Yes, but since I’d never want to be accused of leaving my best fan with a cliffhanger, here’s the ending. The princess’ Daddy will lift her over his lap, peel her pajama bottoms down to her ankles and spank her adorable bare bottom until it’s good and sore—and then she’ll need to sleep on her tummy.”

My cheeks blazed at the thought. “Is it necessary to be so specific when you tell a story?”

“Yep. My little love always needs to hear the truth from her Daddy. Surprises are good sometimes, but not when they include her bottom boasting a bright shade of red.”

I bit the inside of my cheek and yawned, contemplating his words. “Can I go to sleep now, Daddy? I’m feeling kind of tired.”

“Indeed,” he said tapping the tip of my nose. “Sweet dreams, love.”

My heart was racing, my body was covered in sweat and I could hear someone screaming.

Fuck. The screams were mine.

“Lori, wake up. You’re dreaming!” John shouted, shaking my shoulders. “You need to wake up now!” Sweeping me in his arms, he cradled me close to his warm body. Slowly, I opened my eyes and finally focused on his concerned expression.

“You had another nightmare, sweet girl.”

“I know.” Only two words spilled from my mouth, and I hoped he didn’t want more of an explanation. But, of course he did.

John brushed my damp bangs aside and tenderly kissed me on the forehead. “What were you dreaming about?”

“I’d rather not think about it right now. Maybe I should close my eyes and go back to sleep?”

“Hmm. I’ve been thinking it might be helpful to either talk about your dream as soon as you wake up, or maybe start a journal. Sometimes the sleeping brain makes a better connection with what we’re feeling than the waking mind does.” His voice was so quiet and comforting, it almost put me in a trance. “Can you remember any part of the dream?”

“I’ve had the same nightmare many times, and it generally starts with lights sweeping across the ceiling. When I lived in my parents’ house, the bright sudden car headlights shining on the walls always frightened me, so I’d close my eyes and imagine I lived somewhere else. I usually fantasized about having a different daddy, and bedtime seemed to be the best time for my imagination to run wild.”

“Can you tell me another part of your dream? Maybe I can help you make sense of it.”

My labored breathing had finally subsided, but I just didn’t know if it was the right time to share that particular nightmare with him. In all honesty, I hadn’t ever shared that dream with anyone for fear of being judged. But he was waiting so patiently for me to spill my guts, and I knew he only wanted to help me sort out my problems. “Someone is coming after me.”

“I’m listening, sweetie. Tell me more.”

“Well, in my dream—I’m trying to fall asleep. But then I hear someone open the front door.”

“Did your parents lock the door at night when you were a child?”

“Sometimes they remembered, but there were plenty of times I’d walk down the stairs in the middle of the night to find it unlocked. I usually checked the front door before I’d go to sleep, because my parents weren’t too responsible.”

“I see…”

“In the dream, I’d scramble out of bed and race downstairs intending to put the chain on the door before anyone could open it. But as I crossed the living room, it was obvious that someone had already opened the door and they were inside the house.”

“Go on…”

“At first, I froze in my tracks. But then I turned and ran upstairs, heading to my bedroom for safety.”

“Ahh. It’s interesting you felt safe in your bedroom.” He leaned forward and gazed at me with intense eyes. “Did you finally make it back into your room?”

“Yes, and you’d think the dream would end there. But it doesn’t.”

“I had a feeling,” he said, smoothing a stray blonde hair behind my ear.

“When I got to my bedroom, I shut the door and locked it. There was no way for anyone to get in from the outside.”

“Well done.”

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