15. Sean

Letting Gabby go out on her own was difficult. He was on edge the entire time worrying about her. He hated the thought that she might have a panic attack while out on her own where he wouldn't be able to help her. She was precious to him, and he would be devastated if anything happened to her.

He wanted to press her for more information about what she was doing. As her Daddy, it was his job to make sure she wasn't doing anything unsafe, but he knew he had to tread carefully with Gabby. If he pushed the subject, he could potentially scare her or push her away, so he had to trust that when she said it was nothing bad or unsafe that she was telling the truth.

It was killing him not to know, though. He didn't like having secrets between them. Not that it was actually a secret because she wasn't hiding that she needed to do something by herself. She just wasn't telling him what it was.

"Hi, baby girl," he said from the doorway.

She smiled up at him, "Hi, Daddy! I missed you."

Warmth spread through him as she stepped into his embrace. She fit him perfectly.

"I missed you, too, baby. Did everything go okay?"

"Yeah, I think so. Still have some stuff to figure out."

He looked down at her with worry.

"Don't worry, Daddy. I'm just not ready to talk about it, but it's nothing bad. Just figuring some stuff out about myself."

Nodding his head, he let out a sigh. He was proud of how far his little girl had come in the short time that she had been living with him. She was brave enough to tell him what her needs were and that she needed to do something by herself and she was communicating more and more with him each day.

"Okay, baby. Just know that I am here for you when you're ready to share."

Gabby stood up on her tiptoes and gave him a kiss.

"Thank you, Daddy. You'll be the first person I share with when I'm ready. I love you."

The day of Gabby's big surprise had finally come and Sean was much more nervous about it than he had ever anticipated. It had been in the works for weeks and he had nearly told her about half a dozen times during those weeks but somehow, though, he had restrained himself to keep it a surprise.

As he pulled up to The Playground to pick his little girl up from work, his hands were sweating as he gripped the steering wheel. Being anxious wasn't something that Sean was used to, but he was sure he was just overthinking and that she would be ecstatic.

Gabby walked outside and climbed into the car, carrying her cute little puppy backpack. She was finally starting to put on some weight, though she was still tiny, and her skin was looking healthier. Sean reminded himself that he needed to schedule her a haircut since she had been complaining about how stringy her hair was and had told him she would just cut her hair herself like she always did. He told her she was not allowed to cut her own hair anymore and that he would take her in for a proper haircut. It gave him an excuse to pamper her anyway.

"Ready to go home, baby?"

She nodded, looking a bit tired. Every day after work, he laid her down for a nap in her nursery on the twin bed, pulling up the side railing so she couldn't fall off. He sensed that it made her feel more secure and Little.

When they got home, he immediately took her upstairs and tucked her in after changing her into a onesie to sleep. She liked when he put her in onesies, and she looked as cute as could be in them, so when they were at home he dressed her in them often. He smiled when she shifted onto her tummy while sucking on her pacifier and clutching Patches.

He quietly left the bedroom, taking the receiver of the baby monitor with him so he would know when she woke up, and made his way downstairs to make sure everything was taken care of and in place for her surprise.

For the next hour, he paced through the house, double and triple-checking the list on his phone that he'd made to ensure he had everything he needed. The time felt like hours as he looked at his watch several times and each time saw that only minutes had passed.

As soon as he heard movement on the baby monitor, he bolted upstairs to the nursery. Maybe he was more excited about this surprise than she would be. Then again, probably not.

"Hey, sleepyhead. Ready to get up?" he said softly.

Gabby sat up and sleepily rubbed her eyes as she nodded her head.

"Can I paint today, Daddy? I want to try the new paints you got me."

He smiled down at her, reaching out to pick her up and carry her into the bathroom.

"I don't know if we'll get to painting today, baby. Daddy has something else in store for you."

She widened her eyes as he set her down in front of the toilet and reached for the snaps of her onesie.

"What do you have in store for me, Daddy?"

Sean chuckled and lifted the material above her hips before guiding her to sit on the toilet.

"Something very exciting. Go potty, little girl, and then we'll go downstairs, and you will find out, but I think you're going to love it."

Gabby stuck her lip out in a slight pout but quickly did her business and let Sean clean her up. While he washed his hands, she wiggled and bounced on the balls of her feet.

"Come on, Daddy, huuuurry."

He took a bit longer to wash his hands, enjoying the excitement he was seeing in his baby girl. He guessed she hadn't had a lot of excitement in her life, and he loved seeing how animated she was as she waited. Picking up the towel, he dried his hands more thoroughly than needed, and when Gabby finally took hold of his hand, she practically dragged him down the stairs.

When they got downstairs, Gabby looked around as if she was trying to find whatever it was he had planned, but when she didn't see anything out of the ordinary, she looked up at him.

"Go sit on the couch and close your eyes."

Gabby looked at him worriedly, and he wondered if the thought of closing her eyes for a surprise scared her. After hesitating briefly, she sat down on the couch, took in a deep breath, and closed her eyes.

"That's my good girl. Keep your eyes closed, and I'll be right back."

Sean left the living room and went into his office, kneeling in front of the crate that was sitting behind his desk.

"Okay, little guy, you're going to make a very special little girl very happy."

The little ball of fluff wiggling inside the crate let out an excited whine as Sean opened the door and pulled him out. Carrying the puppy out of the office, Sean hoped he would stay quiet until he was able to set the pooch in Gabby's arms.

When he stepped out into the living room, his little girl was sitting rigidly still on the couch with her eyes squeezed shut.

"Keep your eyes shut, baby, and hold out your hands."

Her hands trembled as she held them out in front of her, and Sean smiled, knowing it was taking a lot of trust on her part to do all of this for him. He would make sure to thank her later. Stepping forward, he knelt, and instead of putting the puppy in her hands, he let him sniff her fingers. Gabby cringed and pulled back slightly as his wet nose came into contact with her.

"Open your eyes, baby."

She opened her eyes and stared at the dog in shock and then looked up at Sean, her eyes filling with tears.

"You got a puppy for me to play with?"

Her hand reached out to the fluffy little guy, and he instantly began licking it.

"No. I got you a puppy to keep."

Gabby's eyes widened, "What? You got me a puppy?"

Sean nodded, "Yes, I got you a puppy. He is also an emotional support companion dog. His entire bloodline has been bred to be emotional support dogs. He's already had some training, but in a few weeks, you and he will attend twelve weeks of training together so he can learn how to read you and take care of you when you need help."

Her lips began to tremble as tears fell down her cheeks.

"You seriously got me a dog? A Golden Retriever? What if I don't live here anymore? What if I can't take him with me if I move out? You can't get me a dog."

She was rambling out the questions as she stared down at the puppy and petted his soft head.

"Baby, if you don't live here anymore, he will still be yours and go with you. Emotional support companions legally have to be accepted anywhere you rent once you have the correct paperwork filled out by a doctor, which Savannah will do. I hope, though, that you won't be going anywhere and that you'll live here forever. Also, I can get you a dog because I am Daddy, and I said so."

Gabby laughed and shook her head.

"You're crazy, Daddy."

He grinned, "Crazy about you, Gabby girl. Now, are you going to hold your dog because he might start thinking you don't like him."

"I want to hold him!" she practically shouted.

Sean placed the puppy in her arms, and immediately, Gabby pulled him into her chest and nuzzled her face into his golden-colored fur. She began to sob into the soft ball of fluff, and as though the puppy sensed that he was being called to work, he nuzzled his face into hers and began licking her nose.

"I can't believe you got me a dog. I've always wanted a dog. He's the cutest thing I've ever seen. Oh my gosh, Daddy, I just can't even believe it," she cried.

Sitting down on the couch next to her, Sean pulled her into his lap and wrapped his arms around both her and the puppy.

"Believe it, baby girl. I would do anything for you. I want to give you everything you've never had, and it's a bonus that he will help you with your anxiety."

Gabby stared down at the wiggly pooch and giggled when he let out a little bark of agreement to Sean's words.

"What's his name?"

"His name is Olly."

She turned to look at Sean, "You got me a Golden Retriever, and he has my favorite name?"

"I got to choose his name. When I called the breeder four weeks ago, they asked if we already had a name in mind because they would start using the name in his training, so he already knows it."

"I still can't believe this is my actual life. I never imagined how good my life could actually be, and it's all because of you. Thank you, Daddy. I will never be able to truly show you how thankful I am for everything you've done to help me."

Sean leaned down and kissed her on the lips, gently at first but soon, he was kissing her deeply, exploring her mouth with his tongue as he cupped the back of her neck. When he released her mouth, she smiled up at him.

"Baby girl, you being the person you are is everything I've always wanted, and you don't need to thank me for a thing because you've made my life so much happier and fulfilling since I've met you. You're my girl, my everything."