17. Sean

"I cannot believe you dragged me here with you and Gabby. You are such a sucker for any Little who smiles at you," Sean said.

Damian laughed and shifted uncomfortably in the small chair that he was sitting in. When Damian had told Gabby about a place they could go and have a real tea party, Sean had been outnumbered and gotten talked into taking her.

He did think it was sweet that Damian wasn't only trying to get Gabby to understand that he wasn't a bad man, but he was actually trying to befriend her and show her that she could trust him.

When they had arrived at the tea house, she told Sean that she needed to go potty and when he offered to come to help her, she blushed from head to toe and shook her head. He realized that she didn't know just how far he would go to make sure she felt safe and cared for everywhere and anywhere.

When she came back to the table, Sean stood, pulled out a chair for her and bowed dramatically, making her giggle. They ordered their tea, and Damian ordered an array of pastries and finger sandwiches. They all sat drinking tea and eating as though they were all old friends and Gabby seemed to be enjoying every minute of it.

"Do you like working at the club?"

She nodded, "I do. Zane and Jace are nice, and I feel safe in there."

"If you could do anything in the whole world, what would it be?"

Gabby thought about that for several minutes as she broke apart a croissant and nibbled on it.

"I don't really know. I spent my whole life being told I was nothing and worthless and that I would amount to nothing that I never really thought about it."

Sean reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it. A lump formed in his throat, and he hated that she had been treated so poorly.

"Baby, you're not worthless. You're priceless, and you can do anything. I will support you in whatever you want to do once you figure it out."

"Me too," Damian said.

She squeezed Sean's hand and looked as though she might cry. When he looked across at Damian, he could have sworn the man's eyes looked a little misty as well. Not that he had any room to talk because he was feeling a bit emotional, as he always got whenever Gabby talked about her sad childhood.

"What brought you to Seattle?" Damian asked.

Gabby looked from man to man and set her tea down but kept her hands wrapped around the cup as though she was trying to keep them warm.

"I came to find my sister."

Sean nearly dropped his cup of tea at the confession. When he looked over at her, she gave him an uneasy smile.

"Sorry I hadn't told you yet. I've been trying to figure it out on my own," she whispered.

The rest of their tea party had been full of shock, confusion, and questions. Sean kicked himself for holding back on asking questions that Damian hadn't even hesitated to ask. After both men asked several questions about finding her sister, Sean noticed that Gabby went quiet, and Olly perked up and began pawing at her legs.

"Okay, baby, it's okay. We can stop talking about it. Breathe."

Sean picked up Olly and set him in her arms, which immediately calmed her as she focused on petting her furry friend.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"It's okay, baby. You don't need to be sorry. We shouldn't have bombarded you with questions."

"Yeah, I'm sorry for asking, Gabby," Damian said.

She gave him a small smile and nodded.

"It's just hard to talk about because I don't know what to expect or have any information yet. I'm still looking into it."

Sean took Gabby home after tea and got her changed into a pink snap-crotch onesie, and a pair of socks, then pulled her into his lap.

"Want a story before naptime?"

Gabby shook her head.

"Will you just snuggle me, Daddy?"

He nodded and picked her up, carrying her to the rocking chair, where he cradled her tiny frame in his arms and began to rock her.

"Are you upset with me because I didn't tell you about trying to find my sister?"

"No, baby girl. Not at all. I'm glad you told us, and I hope you know that I will do whatever I can to help you get in touch with your sister."

She reached up and pressed her hand against his chest as though trying to feel his heartbeat. When she closed her eyes, he thought maybe she was falling asleep, but suddenly her eyes opened, and she looked up at him worriedly.

"What if she wants nothing to do with me?"

He rocked her for several minutes while he thought about how to answer that. When he looked back down at his sweet girl, he wanted to give her the answer that she wanted most, but he wouldn't give her false hope.

"Baby, I can't say what the outcome will be, but I can promise you that no matter what, I will always want you. You will always have a home here, you will always be wanted here, and you will always have a family with me. Damian, Zane, and Jace will also claim you as family. You will always be loved."

She nodded and closed her eyes again, this time keeping them closed until she was snoring softly in his arms. Sean stood and carried her to the twin bed, tucking her in and giving her a kiss on the forehead before picking up the already sleeping pooch off the floor and setting him in the bed with her.

Sean sat at his desk, deep in thought about the revelation that Gabby might have a sister. If she did have a sister, he prayed that it would turn into something good if they found her. Gabby hadn't had any family after her mother had passed away and had never gotten to have the type of home life that everyone deserved.

He wondered if the solo trip she had to make was to look for her sister. He would ask her at some point, but she had gotten overwhelmed by all the questions, although he had been surprised how open she had been with Damian about her past and not knowing what she wanted to do with her life. He wondered if having the dog with her had helped, as well as the therapy sessions with Savannah. Whatever it was, he was proud of her and happy that she was slowly letting people in.

Picking up the phone, he called his friend Kane, a private investigator. He and Kane had met at The Playground when Kane had lived in Seattle, but he now lived in Oregon with his baby girl.

"This is Kane."

"Kane, it's Sean Corbin."

"I know that. I have caller ID. How's it going, man?"

Sean smiled, "Things are going pretty good. Really good, actually. But I do need some advice."

"Damian told me you've found the sweetest Little he's ever met. Which is insulting since my Little is the sweetest thing ever and he is her Uncle."

He let out a low chuckle, "Haylee does seem awfully sweet, but yeah, I did meet my own Little, and she is beyond special to me. You know how it goes when you meet the one. Your entire world changes, and you will do anything to make them happy."

"So, what are we doing today to make this little sweetie happy?" Kane asked knowingly.

Sean sighed and ran his hand over his face.

"She grew up in foster care and was told she has a sister in Seattle somewhere. How can we find her?"

Kane blew out a breath and whistled.

"Dang. Well, do you have any idea what this sister's name is? Do they share a last name? Does she know anything about the woman?"

Yeah, Sean was kind of worried that Kane would ask for specifics, and unfortunately, until he was able to talk to Gabby about it more, he had nothing that would help.

"No to all of that. I don't know if Gabby has any information. She got overwhelmed when she told Damian and me about it today, so we changed the subject."

"Okay, well, can you give me Gabby's first and last name and date of birth, and I'll start from there."

Sean gave Kane all the information that he asked for.

"How's Haylee? Everything good with her?"

"She's great, man. I've never been happier. She's a brat, but she's my brat."

"Daddy, I'm not a brat!" Haylee said in the background.

Kane and Sean both chuckled. Sean's attention was brought to the baby monitor sitting on top of his desk and he could see that Gabby was moving around in her bed.

"Hey, I need to go. Gabby just woke up from her nap. Keep me posted?"

"Roger that, talk soon."

Kane hung up before Sean could even say bye, and he couldn't help but smile at the blunt man. Kane was a good guy and a great Daddy, but he was a little rough around the edges and looked like he killed things for a living. According to his Little, he wrestled alligators as a side job.

Jogging up the stairs, Sean walked in to find Gabby climbing over the railing of her bed.

"Gabby, what are you doing, little girl? You're supposed to wait for Daddy."

"I need to go potty, Daddy. Really really bad," she whined softly.

Sean snatched her up and carried her into the bathroom, quickly unsnapping her onesie and sitting her on the toilet in one swift movement. The second she sat, she released herself and sighed with relief.

"Maybe we should start putting you to bed in pull-ups, baby girl."

"I'm a big girl, Daddy. I don't need pull-ups."

He smiled down at her and nodded.

"Okay, big girl. Just know that it's an option. Sometimes even big girls wear pull-ups to bed."

Sean cleaned her up and washed his hands before picking her up and carrying her downstairs. He set her down at the bar so he could start cooking dinner.

"How about chicken alfredo for dinner?"

Gabby clapped her hands and nodded.

"But will you use the dinosaur-shaped noodles, Daddy?"

"Of course, I will, little girl. Who would want regular pasta when you can have fun shaped pasta instead?"

She wiggled with excitement and watched him as he began to move around the kitchen.

"Will you teach me how to cook, Daddy?"

He looked over at her and studied her for a moment.

"You want to learn how to cook? Have you ever cooked before?"

Gabby shook her head and lowered her eyes to the counter.

"I've always wanted to learn. I've seen those cooking shows, and it's something that has always interested me. I asked one of my foster moms to teach me once. She threw a wooden spoon at me and told me to get out of the kitchen and leave her alone."

He could feel his entire body tense as he listened to his baby girl talk. She had been abused, ignored, and treated like she was nothing all her life. He didn't understand how such scum could actually exist in the world. He knew that when the time came for her to meet his parents, she would be welcomed with open arms. He was also pretty sure that his mom would take her under her wing and love her to pieces. His parents had lost a baby girl at birth and had never tried to have another, so he knew having a daughter would make them extremely happy, even if she wasn't blood.

"Come here, baby girl."

Gabby eyed him and got up from the bar, walking over to him with her shoulders slumped. When she stood in front of him, he leaned down and kissed her forehead, then her nose, and then kissed her lips.

"Let's cook, little girl."

Her face lit up as he found an apron and put it over her head. She was so tiny that the apron reached her shins and wrapped all the way around her, but he could see in her expression how excited she was.

"Okay, first, we need to fill a pot with water so we can boil the noodles, which is how they get soft. Then we will start making the sauce. Let me grab a stool for you since you can barely see over the counter."

She giggled at that, even though it wasn't much of a stretch. Gabby was short but he loved it so much. He often wondered if being so small helped her fall into Little space a bit easier. Giving her a wink, he grabbed a stool from the pantry and set it in front of the stove for her to step up onto.

His baby girl followed each instruction to a T, and at first, he could see that she was nervous and insecure about being in the kitchen. As they progressed with cooking the meal, he could see her becoming more confident. When they sat down to eat, Sean stared at her in awe. She might not ever see how amazing she was, but he sure did. She was beyond resilient.

"Gabby, this looks amazing."

She blushed and looked down at her plate.

"I just assisted."

Sean took her hand in his and kissed it.

"No, actually, you were the one who did all the work. I just told you what to do. So really, this meal was prepared entirely by you, and it looks and smells like heaven."

Her eyes widened, and she beamed with pride at his words.

"I guess you did just give me instructions and assist, huh. I actually cooked a meal. Wow. I can't believe I cooked something."

Sean took a bite and closed his eyes in appreciation for the delicious food.

"Oh my, this is delicious. Try it, Gabby girl. It's seriously the best alfredo I've ever had."

Gabby took a bite and moaned in pleasure as she ate.

"I guess the extra garlic I accidentally dumped in worked in my favor."

He chuckled and nodded. It really was the most delicious chicken alfredo he'd ever tasted, and he wondered if she would be as excited about cooking other things as she was about the meal they were eating. Maybe she was onto something moving toward finding her passion.

The sky would be the limit for his little girl, and he would be backing her the entire way in whatever she wanted to do.