Page 68 of Taking Adalisa

“I need to leave.” I push off Matthias’ chest. “I need to leave and hide. I don’t want to be near him. If I leave, then he won’t be able to find me.”

Matthias sits up and shakes his head. “You arenotleaving. He will follow you until you are too tired to continue to hide. Then he will catch you and harm you. I won’t have you getting hurt. You are going to be a good girl and follow everything that I say to do. You will be safe then.”

I open my mouth to say something when he places his finger across my lips.

“No. I will not hear an argument because we are not discussing it. You are going to stay here where you are safe while I find him and make him wish he had never gotten out of prison.” Matthias pins me with a look. “You aren’t going to argue. If you do, you will end up over my knee or in time-out.”

My mouth hangs open as I stare at him. “You can’t be serious.”

“I’m dead serious. I don’t mess around when it comes to your safety. You are important to me, and I’m not going to let you go. Not now and not ever.” He gets off the bed and stands to his full height. “Now come on. We need to get food inside you.”

I tentatively take his hand, not feeling up for eating but knowing I need to. He will make me since he knows I haven’t eaten anything all day. But the thought of food makes my stomach cramp with a force, and I double over and take a deep breath.

“Adalisa?” Matthias’ panicked voice fills the room. “What’s wrong? Tell Daddy what’s wrong.”

I clench my eyes shut, not wanting to look him in the eyes. He is going to think I’m silly for my stomach cramping with the thought of eating food.

“Addy, answer me right now. I need you to tell me what to do.” He kneels in front of me so his face is below mine.

“Shh, you’re okay,” he whispers. “I’ve got you. Just tell Daddy what’s wrong so I can make it better.”

Tears form in my eyes as I look at him. Genuine concern is written across his face as he stares into my eyes.

“Come on, Little one. Tell Daddy what’s wrong. I’m here,” he coos at me. “I’m not going anywhere. You can tell me anything.”

I shake my head and stand, my stomach still protesting as I look at him. I rest my arm on my stomach, trying to calm it down, but nothing is working.

“Oh, Little one,” he whispers. “Come on. Let me carry you to the kitchen.”

Matthias picks me up before I can say or do anything. I wrap my arms around him and lay my head on his shoulder. Just this once, I won’t fight him. Until I have the energy to do things for myself.

“I’ve got you,” he whispers as he starts to walk. “I’ve got you and nothing is going to happen.”

“Is everything okay?” Nala asks.

“She just had a rough time at the store,” Matthias gently replies. “Have the groceries arrived?”

“Yes, they just arrived, and I was about to put them away.”

“No need to.” Matthias sets me on the counter but still holds me. “I’ll put them away. I need to make something for Adalisa to eat.”

“Let me know if I can do anything.” Nala’s voice gets further away.

Matthias pulls back so I can see his face. “You are going to sit here and watch me cook. I know this isn’t the same as you doing it, but I wouldn’t let anything happen to your food.”

I don’t know if I am going to be able to eat foodIeven make, not that I have the energy for that at the moment.

“I know you don’t feel like eating, but I’m going to make something light so you can eat some of it.” Matthias kisses my forehead. “Let me take care of you. You’ll be watching the food the whole time.”

I should insist on me making it, but one gentle hand placement on my knee has me looking at Matthias.

“Everything is going to be okay. We’re going to take this slowly. You just sit there and relax while I cook.” He sounds so caring and gentle.

He knows I need it, so he is giving it to me. What did I do to deserve something like this? Nothing. I have done nothing.

“I’m going to make a simple chicken noodle soup,” Matthias continues to talk to me. “I had Diego go to the store and stock up on a lot of things so we could make a variety. Sadly, this won’t have much protein in it since I figured you wouldn’t like him buying a precooked chicken.”

I nod in agreement. Every single time I walk by them I love to smell and look, but the thought of someone else handling the food makes it impossible for me to eat. Granted, everything is handled by other people, but I try not to think about it too much.

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