Daddy’s Orders (Silver Fox Daddies)

It was the day after my shower with Logan, and my body still felt electrified. I was seated on my balcony, my laptop open in front of me as I switched back and forth between transcribing my handwritten notes and admiring the view.

A small smile formed on my lips as I lifted my eyes from the screen to watch the waves crash in on the shore. The island was so calming, so peaceful. Part of me never wanted to leave. I found myself not wanting to leave Logan, either.

How the hell could I possibly feel such a way for a man who was essentially my warden? I should’ve hated him the same way I hated my father. After all, I was just a pawn to both of them, a doll to keep in a box to bring out whenever they wanted.

I gave the matter more thought as I sat there, my fingers hovering over the keys. Was Logan truly the same as Dad? Was one really no better than the other? With Dad, it was simple—he was a prick, and a controlling, abusive one at that.

Logan, on the other hand… he seemed different. I tried many, many times to muster up hate for him, to convince myself that he was evil but it never took. He was ruthless, sure. And after what I’d seen on the beach, I was convinced that he was also dangerous and deadly.

But evil?

Either way, I was only supposed to be there for another couple of weeks. If everything went how my father had planned for it to go, at the end of the month I’d be spirited away back to New York, to return to my bedroom prison until he saw it fit to send me off again. I took one more look at the beach, trying to burn the sight into my memory so that I’d never forget it.

A knock at my bedroom door snapped me out of my daydreaming. I rose, my ankle stinging a bit as I put weight on it.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me!” Marianne shouted on the other side of the door. “Oh, and Pearl.”

I smiled, making my way over to the door and opening it.

“Morning!” Marianne was all sunshine and smiles, her hair done up and her outfit a cute sundress and sandals. Pearl stood next to her, a tray of food in her hands.

“Morning,” I replied.

“Mind if we come in?” Pearl asked. “Brought you a little something.”

“Sure.”

I stepped aside, Pearl entering and Marianne coming in behind her so excited that she was practically skipping.

“What’s on the tray?” I asked.

“It’s breakfast, silly!” Marianne replied as she bounded over to the end of my bed and sat down. “You know, the meal you skipped today?”

“Sorry. I guess I got so into my writing that I forgot to eat. Happens sometimes.”

“Well, no meal goes skipped in this house,” Pearl said. She set the tray down next to my laptop on the little table on the balcony. Once it was placed, she lifted the lid revealing a stack of pancakes, sliced-up fresh fruit, and a mini carafe of coffee. My stomach grumbled at the sight of it, my appetite awakening in full force.

“Now,” Pearl said, dusting her hands as she came back into the room. “I’m going to take a look at your ankle. How’s it feeling?”

“Fine,” I said. “I mean, a little pain, but not much.”

“Good. And I assume you’ve been avoiding jumping jacks and wind sprints like I told you?” Pearl winked as she tapped me on the shoulder, nodding toward the bed.

“I sure have,” I replied with a grin.

I sat down next to Marianne, Pearl coming over and kneeling down in front of me. With quick, precise movements, Pearl poked and prodded my ankle. Surges of mild pain shot out here and there.

“How’s that feel?” she asked, her eyes on my ankle.

“Not great but not horrible, either.”

She nodded. “Just as the big man thought, nothing more than a mild sprain. Still a little purple here, but that’s not the worst thing in the world.” Pearl pushed herself up to her feet. “You’ll be right as rain in another few days. I’d take some ibuprofen for the pain if you have any.”

“Don’t think I do.”

Pearl nodded. “Eat your breakfast, I’ll go grab some.”

Without another word, Pearl exited the bedroom.

“OK, I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry,” I said, my eyes fixed on the food outside.

“Eat!” Marianne seemed totally thrilled. “I helped cut up some of the fruit.”

I stepped outside, gesturing for Marianne to come with me. I popped a strawberry into my mouth, chewing it as I poured some coffee. I noticed Marianne was watching me out of the corner of my eye, a look of concern on her pretty face.

“Something wrong?” I asked. “Everything has been great so far, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Marianne pursed her lips, glancing down at her feet. “It’s not that. It’s just… how do you feel? I mean, not in the way that Pearl was checking. How do you feel in your heart?”

“My heart?” Her words gave me pause.

“I don’t mean to be nosy—Logan’s always telling me not to step into people’s personal business. But you were attacked on the beach.”

I realized right away what she was talking about.

“That had to have been so scary. Plus, Marta was your friend. I bet it didn’t feel good at all to find out that she tricked you like that.”

I once more shifted in my seat. The whole subject was too difficult to think about.

“It doesn’t feel good, that’s for sure. But Logan saved me. You should’ve seen him! He was so fast, running in and punching those jerks right in the face!”

Marianne smiled. “That sounds like Logan.”

I sighed. “But with Marta… I’m not sure. I’m trying not to think about it, but when I do, I tell myself that she was only doing what she thought was the right thing.”

“Pearl always says that the road to hell is paid with good intentions.”

I chuckled, letting her malapropism slide. “She might be right. In fact, I know she’s right. I’m just glad that nothing really bad happened.”

“I am too.”

Marianne opened her arms to give me a hug that I eagerly accepted. When she released me, however, I saw that she had a confused expression on her face.

“Something wrong?”

“Uh-huh. Pearl tells me I’m not supposed to talk about this kind of stuff, but… do you have any women stuff?”

“Women stuff?”

“You know, like for your, um, lady problems.”

It dawned on me what she was talking about. I opened my mouth to tell her sure, let me just run to the bathroom. But before I said that I realized that I didn’t have anything to give her.

“You know what, I haven’t had my, ah, lady problems since I’ve been here. I’ve actually been meaning to ask Pearl.”

Marianne’s eyes lit up. “There’s lots of stuff down in the pantry storage. I’ll go find Pearl and tell her that we both need them. Is that OK?”

“That’s just fine. Thanks, Mar.”

With another smile and nod, Marianne sprang from her chair and hurried out of my room, leaving me alone.

One thought was on my mind once she was gone—why hadn’t I needed any period supplies? I closed my eyes, trying to think back when my last period was. I didn’t know the exact days, but it was definitely over a month ago. Far more than a month ago, actually.

Panic gripped me. I was late, and I’d been having unprotected sex. I knew for a fact that I hadn’t been taking the pill every day when I should’ve been. Marta had always been the one to remind me of that, and without her around…

Shit. Shit, shit, shit.

I stood up, my heart racing as I tried to wrap my mind around my situation. There was no way, no way that I could be…

Right in the middle of my panicking, a knock sounded at the door. I took a deep breath, hurrying over and opening it to find Logan standing there.

“Hey.”

Even through my worrying, I couldn’t help but notice how hot he looked in his navy linen pants and white, V-neck T-shirt.

“Hey,” I replied, trying to play it cool. “What’s up?”

He narrowed his eyes, as if unsure of how I might react to what he was about to say.

“Want to talk to your father?”