Page 26 of Daddy's Pursuit
But tonight, take Little Iris out and soak up every moment with her.
Then go back to work tomorrow and put Frank away. For good.
For the safety of Little Iris and all of Los Angeles.
Chapter Fifteen
“I can help with that!” Iris said as she hurried toward the stack of dishes Auntie Athena was carrying into the kitchen.
Dinner had just ended. Six other Littles were visiting the nursery today. They’d all feasted on the lasagna Auntie Caroline had baked. After that, homemade white cake was enjoyed. Iris only ate a tiny sliver of that, wanting to save room for the ice cream. Really, she could have eaten half that cake, as hungry as she still was, but she was trying to restrain herself just a bit.
It had been a long while since she’d eaten this good, though. It was hard not to scarf down every bite and then lick the plate clean.
Now, while the other Littles had gone outside, she was in the kitchen, eager to pitch in with cleanup duty.
“Honey, you don’t have to help. I’ve got this,” Auntie Athena told her.
“But… I don’t mind.”
The woman sat the dishes in the sink and looked at the Little. “But you’re missing playtime.”
“It’s okay. I played all day,” Iris pointed out. “And Jack Daddy is coming soon.”
“Oh, that’s right. You two have an ice-cream date,” Athena said. She put the stopper in the sink, filled it with warm water, and then put on a pair of blue rubber gloves. “You can help if you really want to. But sweetie, you don’t have to earn your keep around here. You don’t owe us anything. We’re just glad to have you.”
Iris blushed upon the realization that Auntie knew what she was trying to do. “The other Littles pay to be here, ma’am. And they don’t even live here! I’m just hanging out for free. I feel… bad.”
“You hush right now with that kind of talk,” Athena said. “There’s not a reason in the world why you should feel bad. But if you want to help then I appreciate it. Some of those you can rinse off and put in the dishwasher. The pots and pans need to be washed though.”
“I’m on it,” Iris said, using the other side of the sink and its sprayer to knock loose any food remnants from the plates and salad bowls.
She loaded the dishwasher while talking to Auntie.
“I’m nervous about tonight.”
“Why?”
She giggled while dropping a plate in one of the slots. “Because Jack Daddy is so hot!”
Normally she didn’t open up like this. Really, there hadn’t been anyone in her life to open up to. But she was surprised with how comfortable she felt around Auntie Athena. It seemed as if she could bare her soul.
“You’re a beautiful girl,” Auntie said. “He’s probably nervous to take you out!”
Iris dropped the last bowl into the dishwasher and turned around to look at Auntie. Still washing the dishes, Athena angled her head around to make eye contact.
“You don’t really believe that,” Iris told her.
“That you’re beautiful?”
“No. I believe you believethat. But you don’t really think Jack Daddy is afraid. Because he’s not afraid of anything.”
Athena threw her head back as she laughed. After recovering, she said, “Touché. He’s pretty tough.” A few seconds passed while the only sound was that of the sprayer sending jets of water against the glass baking dish Athena held. She passed it to Iris who grabbed a clean towel and started drying it. “But I can guarantee you Jack has thought about this a lot today. Trust me, I’ve seen the way he looks at you. And he stopped by on his way to work this morning. He’s never done that before.”
Iris finished drying the dish. “Really?”
“Yep.” Athena flicked her nose to one of the long drawers set in the cabinets across from the island where the sink and dishwasher were. “It goes in that middle one, sweetheart.”
While putting it away, Iris considered Auntie’s words.
