16. Carly

Carly held her Daddy’s finger tightly as they followed their guests into the open living room and kitchen. Gabby seemed super sweet and calm, while Maddie was just as sweet but full of energy and excitement. Carly felt like she was somewhere in the middle. She was still feeling a bit shy, which wasn’t the norm for her since her job required her to be outgoing, but for some reason, she wanted her Daddy’s reassurance.

She felt small and needy, and when Damian tried to pull his hand free from her grasp to grab drinks, she stuck out her bottom lip and whimpered softly. When he looked down at her with concern, he must have realized she was feeling insecure because he pulled her into his body and kissed the top of her head.

“You’re doing great, baby doll. Stay close to Daddy as long as you need,” he whispered.

Sean lifted Gabby onto one of the bar stools, walked around into the kitchen, and began searching for cups.

“Do you want Carly’s drink in a sippy?” Sean asked.

She felt her cheeks flush, and her entire body warmed. All the men in the house were Daddies but having another man besides Damian acknowledge that she was a Little made her feel slightly embarrassed and all the more Little.

Damian had given her juice in a sippy cup before, but that was when they were alone. She wasn’t sure if she wanted one of her special cups with so many people there. Ian had already set out two other sippy cups for the other girls, so she wouldn’t be the odd one out if she did have one.

“Yes, she needs a sippy cup,” Damian said.

Her Daddy making the decision for her made her feel even more Little and way more turned on than she would have expected.

Sean nodded and went to work filling sippy cups with juice while Damian popped the top off some beers. Carly blushed and avoided eye contact when Sean handed her the lidded cup.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, sweet girl,” he said softly.

She was thankful when she heard Lainey and Keith’s voices entering the house, distracting everyone for the time being. It gave her a minute to take a drink of her juice without anyone watching her. Damian patted her bottom and kissed her cheek before going to greet the newest guests.

“You’re being such a good girl,” he whispered.

Shit. Good girl. His good girl. She was going to need a dry pair of panties before the evening was over. Carly set the cup on the counter, not wanting to bring any more attention to herself from Lainey than there already would be. Lainey had been trying to convince Carly she was a Little for so long, and now she was pretty sure there would be an “I told you so” coming her way.

“Lainey!” Maddie said, bouncing over to throw her arms around her.

Lainey must have already been in Little space because the businesswoman that Carly knew so well seemed to be non-existent and was replaced with an enthusiastic Little who was wearing hot pink leggings and an oversized t-shirt with a unicorn printed on the front.

Damian introduced Lainey to Gabby and Sean before Lainey made her way over to Carly. The women instantly hugged, and Lainey gave Carly a tight squeeze.

“I told you so,” Lainey whispered before releasing Carly.

She rolled her eyes at her friend and poked her playfully in her arm. Keith walked over and gave Carly a hug, releasing her quickly when Damian seemed to let out some sort of growly noise. Keith shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“Possessive asshole.”

Damian wrapped his arm around Carly’s shoulder and pulled her into him.

“Mine. No touching.”

All the women rolled their eyes and grinned while the other men just shook their heads. Carly never thought she would like a man to be possessive over her, but for some reason, it made her feel good inside that Damian felt that way about her. She also knew that he wasn’t being serious about it. Or at least she didn’t think that he was.

“Come on, girls, let’s go play and let these men beat on their chests like cavemen while they drink beers,” Maddie said.

Ian swatted Maddie’s bottom, making her yelp and rub the spot where his hand landed before turning to glare at him.

“You better watch it, little miss. You know what that attitude gets you,” Ian scolded.

Maddie stuck out her lip in a pout briefly before sticking her tongue out at him. Ian just shook his head and held up one finger to her, causing Maddie to go wide-eyed.

“You girls better go play before Maddie gets herself into more trouble. Carly’s playroom is mostly set up,” Damian said.

Gabby got down from the stool, and all the women gathered together as they made their way upstairs, giggling and talking loudly along the way.

Carly led them to her playroom, and all the girls looked around the room in awe.

“I love this room,” Lainey said.

Gabby nodded, and Maddie clapped her hands and smiled.

“It’s so adorable,” Maddie said.

Carly blushed and felt shy hearing compliments on a room that she and Damian designed for her Little. The room wasn’t complete yet, but it was perfect enough for her. Besides, she wouldn’t be staying at Damian’s forever, and then she would have to leave the beautiful room and return to her sad little townhouse.

Feeling a sudden sense of sadness about the thought of having to leave Damian but not wanting to deal with it at that moment, Carly turned her attention back to her friends and smiled.

“Thank you.”

“Do you have any games? We could play a game!” Maddie asked.

Carly nodded. Damian had dropped several board games into the cart when they had gone toy shopping. Opening the closet to where the games were held, the girls studied each one before finally deciding on playing Twister.

It didn’t take very long before Gabby and Carly were twisted into pretzels, giggling and trying to hold their pose while Lainey and Maddie cheered them on.

“Left leg on red,” Maddie called out, holding onto the twister spinner.

Both the girls on the floor tried to lift their left leg and stretch it over to a red dot, and just as Carly had gotten into position, Gabby lost her balance, causing both of them to tumble down to the floor.

Squeals of laughter and cheering exploded in the room, and for the first time in a very long time, Carly felt completely free and light. She had fought the idea of being a Little for so long because she thought she had to be a strong woman, and she didn’t know how she could have been seen as one if she was a Little.

But instead, she realized that when she wasn’t in Little space, she still felt like a strong badass woman, even when she was submitting to Damian and his rules. When she was in Little space, she felt vulnerable, soft, and totally free. A big part of the way she felt about it had to do with her trusting Damian and how completely safe he made her feel.

She hadn’t wanted to develop feelings for him. He was a Dom. He liked to be in complete control of the relationship, and that was something Carly had never wanted to deal with again after the way James had treated her. But Damian was different. He controlled her to make her the best version of herself, and he seemed to be her biggest cheerleader. James had controlled her to alienate her from the people she cared about and to make her feel as though she was nothing.

Would she always be a Little now? Or would she only want to be Little around Damian? And most importantly, would Damian want to remain her Daddy after all of this was over?

Carly forced all of the heavy thoughts from her mind as she continued to laugh with her friends. No matter what happened, she would never forget her time as a Little or the time she had with Damian, and she would make the best of it while she was still there.

“We should ask our Daddies if we can have a sleepover!” Maddie said.

Carly and Gabby grinned and nodded their heads, but Lainey hesitated, and Carly thought she saw something sad cross her face.

“What’s wrong?” Carly asked.

Lainey shrugged and shook her head.

“Nothing. It’s just hard not having my Daddy here. Keith has been nice, and it’s been nice having some form of a caretaker around, but it’s not the same. I miss asking my Daddy for permission for things.”

Carly got up and went to hug her friend. She knew how much Lainey loved her husband, and the more time that he was away, the harder it got for her. Lainey hugged her back, and almost instantly, Maddie came over and wrapped her arms around both of the women, followed by Gabby.

“Thanks, you guys. Sorry to be such a sap. A sleepover sounds super fun.”

The women stood in a hug for several minutes, and when they all released each other, they were startled to see the four men standing in the doorway, looking in with concerned expressions. Carly’s eyes immediately went to Damian, who was staring right back at her.

“Everything okay?” Damian asked.

Carly nodded and walked over to Damian, who instantly reached out for her.

“Yeah, everything is good. Can we have a sleepover?”

Damian raised his eyebrows and grinned.

“A sleepover, huh? I think that sounds like a fun idea. I’m fine with it if the other guys are.”

Maddie looked at Ian with pleading eyes while Gabby grinned and nodded at Sean’s questioning expression. Lainey stayed quiet and didn’t look at any of the men.

“I think a sleepover sounds fun. Lainey, do you want to stay the night?” Keith asked.

Lainey looked at him and smiled, and even though Carly didn’t really know Keith, she was happy that he was able to be there for Lainey in place of her husband. From what Damian said, Keith had also served in the marines with Damian and Lainey’s husband Evan, so they were all friends and trusted each other with their lives.

“Please, please, please, Daddy?” Maddie asked.

Her hands were clasped together in front of her as she begged her Daddy.

“I’m fine with it,” Ian said.

“Why don’t we all stay the night and have a big slumber party?” Sean suggested.

Gabby grinned up at him, looking slightly relieved.

“Slumber party!” Maddie yelled.

“Slumber party!” the rest of the women yelled.

“Slumber party,” the men repeated dryly.

The Littles all started dancing around excitedly.

“Come downstairs, girls. It’s time to eat,” Damian said.

Dinner had been loud yet fun. All the men prepared plates of food for their Littles and cut everything up into smaller pieces for them. When Maddie wouldn’t stop playing with her food, Ian just looked at her and held up a second finger. She had been mostly well-behaved for the rest of the meal after that. Carly would need to ask Maddie later what the fingers meant but she suspected it had to do with her getting her bottom spanked.

Carly enjoyed watching Gabby and Sean together. The way he was so gentle and attentive with her was the sweetest thing she’d ever seen. Gabby was adorable and so kind, yet Carly could tell that she was still a bit unsure at times, and Sean seemed to pick up on those times and would reach out to touch her or whisper something into her ear that made her smile. Carly noticed that Gabby’s dog also sensed it because he would come paw at her legs until she started stroking his fur.

Watching Damian interact with his friends and the other Littles at the table was very telling as to how he fit into his group of friends. He and the other men teased each other light-heartedly, and he was gentle and sweet to all the Littles. It made her heart happy seeing how much they adored him.

After dinner, Damian found a pair of pajamas for each of the girls to wear for the night, and when he pulled Carly into his bedroom to get her changed, she wrapped her arms around his waist and snuggled up to him.

“Thank you, Daddy.”

His arms tightened around her, and he kissed the top of her head before pulling her back from his embrace to look down into her gaze.

“For what, baby doll?”

She shrugged, tracing a finger down his chest.

“For letting me be Little and making me feel safe. I’m having a lot of fun.”

Damian grinned, making the corners of his eyes crinkle slightly. She didn’t think she would ever get enough of looking at this sexy man. He was so damn fine.

“You’re always safe with me. I would protect you with my life, and you are the best Little a Daddy could ever ask for.”

Carly swallowed the lump forming in her throat and wrapped herself around him again, wanting every moment of closeness that she could have with him. He held her for several minutes before picking her up and setting her down on his bed.

“Arms up, baby. We need to get your jammies on so you girls can pick out a movie.”