Sweet Tooth (Little Cakes, #11)(28)

“I came here to be brave,” she answered.

Tom heard his mom stand and walk toward the door. “Thank you, Mom. I owe you.”

“I’m glad I could help. Take care of her,” Susan recommended before leaving.

The precious woman in his arms never released her hold. She clung to him as if she were afraid he’d disappear. Tom brushed his fingers through her hair and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“Bunny, thank you for being brave and coming here. I’m an idiot for not even thinking about checking my house.”

“You’re not an idiot. I’m the one who panicked and ran away,” Elizabeth mumbled against his shoulder.

“Can I see your face, Little girl?”

Elizabeth peeked up at him. “I didn’t know your mom and sister are Little.”

“It’s their story to tell. Mom likes you a lot or she would never have told you. She told me you felt like family already. I’m so sorry I messed around at the table and triggered all of this. We should have skipped dinner with my family and just come home."

"I love your family. They weren’t the problem. Neither are you.”

“I love my family, too. We’re very close but suddenly, they aren’t as important to me as one very special woman is.”

“Me?” she asked.

“You. Did you get any sleep?” he asked, brushing her hair from her face.

“Yes.” She paused for a few seconds before admitting, “I slept in the nursery.”

He traced the faint line from her pacifier around her mouth. “You felt very Little?”

“Yes.”

Tom pressed soft kisses to the pattern before kissing her deeply. “I’m glad it was your safe place.”

He hated to bring the real world into their exchange, but he knew how dedicated Elizabeth was to her store. “It’s early but I bet you need to be at Nibbles & Bites.”

“Oh, crap! I meant to call someone to start opening the restaurant.”

He could see the panic growing in her expression. “Breathe. Let’s do that, and then I’ll get you there quickly. You can do this. Go get your phone.”

He watched as Elizabeth darted toward the table to grab her purse. She dug to the bottom of it before holding it up. “Oh, no. It’s dead.”

“I figured it must be dead when I kept trying to reach you last night and you never responded,” Tom said as he took it from her. He carried it to the counter and plugged it in with his charger. A few seconds later, he powered it up and handed it back to her.

“There have to be fifty messages from you,” she said, looking at her screen.

“By ten, I figured you already thought I was a madman, so I kept calling. Focus, call someone.”

Tom watched her hands shake as she fumbled with her phone before selecting a number from those saved in her directory.

“Stacy? I had an emergency this morning. Any way you could open Nibbles & Bites for me? I’ll be there as fast as I can get there.”

Tom could hear the murmur of a response and saw some of the tension ease from Elizabeth’s face. He relaxed slightly as well.

“The code to the back door is eleven twenty-three. Thank you, Stacy!”

Disconnecting the call, she looked up at Tom. “She was there already. I need to pay her more.”

“Consider that later. Now, let’s get you dressed. Where’s your bag?”

“I left it in my car.”

“I’ll go get it. Let me have your keys.” Tom stretched out his hand.

After a brief scavenger hunt, they found that Hortense had the keys in the crib. He ran out to retrieve her things and dashed back in the door to find Elizabeth naked.

“You’re testing me, Little girl,” he growled as he laid the backpack on the toybox and opened it.

“Daddy!” she protested as he scanned her body.

After almost losing her, that word meant even more to Tom. He tried to hold it together. But without sleep and a whole night of worry, his emotions were on overdrive. He pulled her against his body and squeezed her tight.

“Thank you for not running from your Daddy. Hopefully, you’ll always choose to run to me instead of away from me.”

After another kiss that left them both breathless, he helped her dress quickly. While she used the restroom, Tom jogged to the master bedroom and changed into a fresh T-shirt so he wouldn’t make deliveries in a rumpled one. He grabbed his toothbrush and stopped in the kitchen for a handful of granola bars and two bottles of water.

He stood at the door with his hands full of things to take care of her as she came down the hall. “Let’s go, Bunny. No carrot nibbles for you this morning.”

“Oh, no. The bunnies. Do they need to be fed?”

“They have dry food in their hutch. They’ll be fine until tonight. We’ll give them extra treats. Come on. Nibbles & Bites is waiting.”

He opened a granola bar and handed it to her. “Eat as I drive.” He knew she could get something to eat at the café but she’d forget to take care of herself as she scrambled to get ready for the day. This way, she’d have something in her stomach to fuel her.

“I can drive my own car,” she protested.

Tom shook his head. “Let Daddy drive you today. That way I get to spend more time with you.”