20. Gabby

She stared at her Daddy as though he'd told her that she was growing horns. How would he know her sister? Was that whose name was on the piece of paper? Her sister's name? Madison?

"What do you mean? How do you know who my sister is?"

His hands caressed up and down her thighs as she stared into the distance, soaking in the news.

"Her Daddy is my friend, and that's how I met her."

Snapping her attention to Sean's face, Gabby was sure her chin was on the ground.

"She's a Little?"

"Yes. I don't know that I should have told you that, but yes, she is. She's a very sweet Little, and Ian, her husband, is a good man."

Wrapping her arms around herself, Gabby felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. She actually had a sister, and her Daddy even knew who she was, but that didn't mean that she would want Gabby to be in her life. What if Madison didn't want anything to do with her? Since Sean was friends with them first, he would choose them over her, right?

So many doubts and questions swirled in her mind, and she didn't know what to do next, so the only thing she did was burst out into tears.

"Hey, hey, baby, what's going on?"

Sean immediately pulled her to him and settled her in his lap, rocking and shushing her as he stroked her hair.

"What if she wants nothing to do with me? What if she hates me, or what if she is mean to me? You were friends with them first, so you would have to choose them over me, and I don't want to lose you. I'm so scared."

She was blubbering the words, but she couldn't stop crying, and knowing she was in her Daddy's safe arms made it so much easier to let go.

"Okay, first things first, I would not choose them over you. You are the person I love, and they are my friends. Unless Ian lets me put him in a onesie and read him bedtime stories, there's no comparison. Which he would never let happen because he's a stubborn ass. Besides, Ian is nowhere near as cute as you."

A fit of giggles cut through her crying, and Sean smiled down at her when she leaned back to look up at him.

"Secondly, I don't know how Maddie will react. I'm sure it will come as a surprise and possibly be overwhelming and a bit scary at first, but I don't think she'll hate you. She's been through a lot this past year."

Fingering the button of his shirt, Gabby listened to him as he soothed each one of the fears she'd had. She was still worried, but not nearly as much as she had been.

"Would you like me to talk with Ian about it first and see if he wants to tell Maddie, so she has time to digest the news before you two talk or meet?"

Gabby hadn't even really thought about the actuality of them meeting or how that would work. But her Daddy was right, giving Maddie a heads up so she had time to digest it might be better. Then, if she decided she didn't want anything to do with Gabby, she wouldn't get rejected face to face.

"You would do that for me?"

Running his thumb over her cheek, Sean leaned forward and brushed his lips across hers.

"I would do anything for you, Gabby."

"Daddy, can I take Olly outside?"

Looking up from his computer, Sean studied her. He was probably making sure she had enough clothes on to go outside, even though it was warm enough out to wear shorts. He had a thing about keeping her warm.

"In the backyard only."

Nodding her head, she skipped outside to the massive backyard with her furry friend trailing behind. He barked happily when they stepped out onto the luxurious porch with a stone fireplace and custom outdoor furniture. It was an area made for entertaining, yet it seemed almost untouched. She wondered how often her Daddy had people over before she came to live with him.

The thought of having a BBQ sounded like fun, but that meant having people over, and she didn't do very well around people. The only people she knew and trusted besides her Daddy were Zane, Jace, and Damian. That would be a pretty lame BBQ having a bunch of men and no other Littles or women to talk to.

Olly ran up to her with a frisbee in his mouth, letting her know that he was ready to play. Bending over, Gabby pulled the toy from his little razor-sharp teeth and threw it the way her Daddy had taught her, as far as she could, though it only made it about half of the length of the backyard. She giggled when Olly tried to run so fast that he tripped over his feet and tumbled in a somersault before getting back up and running after the frisbee again.

As soon as he had it in his mouth, he ran back toward Gabby. Fetch was quickly becoming his favorite thing to do other than beg for snacks. If she wasn't careful he was going to become a fat little dog, and her Daddy would find out she was feeding him a lot more treats than she was supposed to.

"Give me the frisbee, boy."

Releasing the disc to her, Olly took off running before she even threw it for him again. She smiled at the enthusiasm of the puppy and tried to throw it even further than the first time. When she released the frisbee from her fingers this time, it flew higher and further… Only when it landed, it landed in a tree at one of the corners of the yard.

Olly plopped down under the tree and barked several times, waiting for her to do something. Walking out to the tree, Gabby stared up into the limbs, trying to figure out exactly where it had landed, shushing the barking dog at her feet.

It didn't seem all that far up. Probably low enough that she could just climb up the trunk and reach it. Pushing on the trunk to try to shake the tree and make the toy fall, Gabby frowned when it didn't even move a tiny bit. She really needed to lift weights or something, so she wasn't such a wimp.

Deciding to grab a chair from the porch to help her reach the first branch, she dragged it out to the yard and stood, balancing carefully and reaching as high as she could and was just able to wrap her hands around the lowest limb. Gripping it tightly, she lifted her feet from the chair, and placed her foot on the trunk, pushing herself up. As she did so, one of her feet kicked the chair over and she had a brief moment of panic as she thought about how she would get back down to the ground. Ignoring the worry since she was already in the tree, she moved one foot and then the other, grabbing branch after branch and pulling herself up. By the time Gabby looked down again, she was much higher off the ground than she had anticipated.

Don't freak out. You're not that far up. You cannot have a panic attack in a tree.

Easier said than done as her breathing started becoming more shallow. Looking up to the frisbee, she focused on the prize and that helped take her attention away from her looming anxiety.

"Gabrielle!"

Uh oh.

Sean came out running toward the tree and stopped directly underneath her, his stormy expression letting her know that he was not happy. Her bottom clenched, knowing she was probably getting a spanking for this, but also feeling very relieved to see her Daddy there because she had no idea how she was going to get down.

"I don't know how to get down, Daddy."

She could see the panic in his face as he assessed the situation, making her own panic worsen, and her breathing became ragged and inconsistent.

"Gabby, baby, you need to breathe. I need you to listen to Daddy, okay? I have to get my ladder which means I have to leave you here alone for a few minutes. Do you have a tight hold of the branch you're on?"

Nodding her head, she tightened her hands around the rough bark until it was almost painful.

"I will be right back. Do not try to move, do you understand?"

Like she could if she wanted to.

"Okay."

Sean ran full speed around the side of the house toward the garage, and within a couple of minutes, which felt like hours, he was back with a large ladder. Leaning the ladder against the tree, he made sure it was steady before climbing up the steps so he could reach her. As soon as his arms clamped around her waist, she felt relief wash over her knowing he wouldn't let her fall.

"Let go of the branch and wrap your arms around my neck."

His tone was no-nonsense, and she did what he said without hesitation. Maneuvering her, so her body was pressed against his, she wrapped her legs around his waist and held on tight as he made his way down the ladder.

When they made it down to the grass, Sean set her down on her feet and let out a sigh of relief before his face turned furious again.

"What in the world were you doing?"

"I accidentally threw Olly's frisbee in the tree."

Hands on his hips, he glared down at her.

"I can see that, Gabby, but what I don't understand is how you thought it would be a good idea to climb up into a tree that you could fall out of and get seriously injured. How in the world did you even get up there in the first place?"

Her bottom clenched again when she pointed toward the turned over chair. The look on his face told her just how unhappy he was with her and yet even though he was all scowly and grumpy, she didn't feel scared.

"I didn't think it was that far up."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he gave her an exasperated look.

"Inside. Nursery. Corner. Now."

Bowing her head, Gabby trudged into the house and up the stairs to her nursery with her Daddy following her every step of the way. When she went directly to the corner, he followed and tugged down her leggings and panties to her knees.

"Naughty girls get to stand in the corner with their naughty bottoms on display, and then after your bottom is red and hot, you will be back in the corner in the same way."

Yeah, Daddy was really not happy.

The corner was the most boring thing in the world, and having her bottom on display felt like the most embarrassing thing in the world. Especially because she knew her Daddy was still in the room and probably staring right at her. It shouldn't have aroused her, but for some reason, it did, and that was also embarrassing. Hopefully, he wouldn't see the slickness between her thighs.

It was confusing to be aroused, but yet when they had been all over each other, she had freaked out. Really though, she hadn't freaked out until he was on top of her, making her feel overpowered and unable to breathe, just like her abuser had done to her. She knew Sean hadn't been doing anything on purpose to scare her, but it had.

"Are you thinking about what a naughty little girl you were for putting yourself in danger?"

No. I'm thinking about the wetness between my legs and the pressure I'm feeling down there.

"Yes, Daddy."

It was much too embarrassing to admit what she was really thinking about, which was the bulge that she often saw between his legs. She hadn't thought she would ever be interested in one of those, but she was sure interested in Sean's, and standing in the corner was making her even more interested in it.

You are such a weirdo. Who gets turned on from staring at a wall? Is there a kink name for that? Wall arousal?

She giggled and was then startled when she heard her Daddy's throat clearing from right behind her. When she peeked back at him, even though she was pretty sure she wasn't supposed to, he didn't look pleased.

"Something funny about standing in the corner, little girl?"

Schooling her face, she widened her eyes and shook her head.

"No, Daddy."

Clasping her wrist, Sean pulled her to the chair in the opposite corner of the room. She shuffled over with tiny steps since her leggings were restricting her movements, and she was thankful that her Daddy moved at her pace. When he sat down in the chair and looked into her eyes, she knew she was in for it.

"I'm sorry, Daddy. I wasn't thinking. I just wanted to get the frisbee."

"I understand that, Gabby, but it was very dangerous to climb the tree, let alone stand on the chair, and you know that putting yourself in danger is a big rule. You could have come and asked me to help, and I would have. But coming out and seeing you up in the tree practically gave me heart failure because if something happened to you, I would be devastated. I don't want to see my baby girl getting hurt."

Slumping her shoulders, the guilt washed over her for making her Daddy feel bad, so she nodded her head. She deserved the punishment that was coming.

"Over my lap."

Sean helped her over one of his thighs and immediately used his other leg to secure her legs from kicking.

"This is going to be a harsh spanking, Gabby. What is your safeword in case you need to use it?"

Shoot. That didn't sound good.

"Red, Daddy."

"Good girl."

The first smack rang down on her bottom, and she wasn't even close to being ready for it. Letting out a squeal of both surprise and pain, she immediately began thrashing, trying to break free of his iron grip. Another smack came down and then another, and pretty soon, they were coming so fast that she couldn't focus on anything except the red hot pain.

It didn't take long before she was crying and begging him to stop, promising to be the best girl in the whole wide world.

"You are the best girl in the whole wide world, you're my baby and my love, but sometimes even the best girls make naughty choices and end up over their Daddy's lap."

Gripping both fists on his pant leg, Gabby wished she could kick her feet, but his muscular leg allowed no give.

"I'm sorry, D-daddy! I w-won't… ouchie!... do it again. Owie, owie, Daddy!"

Tears and snot ran down her face and possibly even a little drool, but she didn't care. All she cared about was her poor bottom and her Daddy's forgiveness, but not one time during her spanking did she feel scared or abused. Instead, she felt the safest she ever had.

When the spanking finally stopped, she sobbed and lay limp across his lap as he rubbed her lower back and burning bottom.

"Shhh… You did so well, baby. I don't ever want you to put yourself in danger again, and I hope this will serve as a good reminder."

Sniffling, Gabby nodded and used her hands to wipe her face, but she didn't have enough hands for the amount of liquid that was coming out. Her Daddy must have realized it because tissues appeared in front of her face, cleaning her up before she could take them from him.

"I's so sorry, Daddy. I won't do that again."

Sean chuckled, "I'm sure you will give me my fair share of heart failure moments but just know that each time you do, you will be right in this position because I love you so much, and I want you to be safe. Now, you need to go stand in the corner for a few minutes, and then we can snuggle and watch a movie."

He helped her up, and she shuffled back to the corner of the room, the slickness between her legs even more than before, and she felt it sliding down her inner thighs. If her Daddy noticed, he didn't say anything, and she was thankful for that because she didn't know how to explain to him that she hated that spanking, but at the same time, she loved it, and her body was screaming for him. Mixed signals much?