Page 8 of Daddy’s Little Duckling (Ivory Mountain Daddies #1)

CHAPTER EIGHT

RAELYN

A fter waking up this morning and showering like she always did, Rae and Bruce sat on her bed fretting over what she was going to wear for the day.

She didn’t want to wear something that would give away her Little, but she also wanted to look pretty for Emmett, settling on a lavender cotton sundress that had white daisies printed along the bottom of it.

This was one of her favorite finds at the consignment shop and she was grateful that it didn’t require any modifications to fit her sensory needs.

All the fretting Bruce and her did this morning, although it was mainly her that did the fretting, was worth it when she saw the look on Emmett’s face for the first time.

“You darling girl look stunning. Every man around us today will be jealous of me because I will have a beautiful girl to accompany me.”

She blushed at Emmett’s words and smiled at him before stepping inside to grab a mason jar for the gorgeous flowers that he brought her. How he ever knew that sunflowers were her favorite she would never know, but she did a little happy dance inside at seeing them sit on her counter.

There was nothing like the smell of fresh flowers to brighten her day. Emmett followed her inside and Rae tried not to tense up at him seeing her space. It wasn’t much, but it was hers.

The one-bedroom apartment left more to be desired, but she tried her best to make it feel like home. Calling it an apartment felt generous. Rae had to be honest with herself, it was more of a shoebox than a place someone should be living.

How it was up to code she wouldn’t know. Her’s and the place beside her had originally been one massive apartment, but the building owner had decided to do some construction and split the once existing single apartment into two.

The thin wall between her and the neighbors didn’t protect against any of the noise she heard from them. She knew quite a bit about her neighbors yet she had only met them once in person and that was on the day that she moved in.

She decorated the space with as much color as she could. She had hung twinkling lights all around to give it that magical feel and spent hours hunting around consignment shops for just the right stuff to add a little sparkle to the place.

Rae knew that she didn’t have much, but she was grateful for the space that she did have. She knew what it was like to live on the streets and not have a place to lay her head at night.

Never wanting to be in that position again, Rae never took what she had for granted because it could always disappear in the blink of an eye.

Giving the flowers one last sniff, she turned to gather her yellow fuzzy backpack that held her phone, wallet, and keys she would need for today.

After locking up behind them, Rae slipped her arm into the crease of his arm. They headed out to his truck and made their way to the diner that she had told him about.

Dahlia’s Diner was a local favorite in her town. It was owned by the sweetest lady who always took care of those around her. She seemed to be the so-called mom of the folks who came into the diner.

Anytime Rae got the opportunity to visit, which wasn’t very often, it always seemed like the owner went out of her way to take care of her. She loved that since she didn’t have anyone else around looking out for her.

Raelyn normally couldn’t afford to go out for meals since she stayed on a tight budget, but she was going to splurge today and worry about any problems it caused later.

Sliding into the booth she picked up her menu and started reading over the choices that the diner offered that she could eat without breaking her budget too much while also still sticking to food that she knew was safe.

“What would you folks like to start with to drink?” the waitress that had approached asked.

“I’ll have a glass of water please,” replied Rae.

Emmett paused and looked at her before asking “Are you sure that’s the only thing you would like?”

Raelyn looked away from his inquiring eyes, because she knew that her face would betray that she didn’t want the water, but picked it cause she knew that it didn’t cost anything. She couldn’t stand the taste of water and never drank it if she had other options.

Water never tasted the same every single time that she would have it and that drove her sensory issues crazy. It never made sense to her why it was different each time.

It was like Emmett knew she was lying about picking it.

“I’ll have a glass of apple juice and a coffee and can we also get a glass of chocolate milk for her?” he told the waitress.

Rae looked up in surprise and then grinned. She didn’t know how he knew she wanted the chocolate milk, but she wasn’t going to try and change his mind.

“If you’re ready to order I can go ahead and get that as well.” the waitress said.

Emmett asked for a stack of pancakes with bacon and sausage while Rae ordered a cheese omelet. She hoped that eggs would still be safe to eat since that was the cheapest thing she could afford off the menu.

The waitress slipped away to put in their orders and grab their drinks, leaving the couple in comfortable silence.

“How long have you worked at the nursing home?” Emmett asked her a few moments later, breaking the silence that they had fallen into.

Before she could answer, the waitress brought over their drinks and food, and confirmed they didn’t need anything else before slipping away to tend to her other tables.

Rae smiled at Emmett and answered, “I’ve been at Ivory Mountain Nursing Home for almost two years now, but I have been a caregiver for six years.”

Before she could dig into her food, Emmett pulled her plate across the table and started cutting up her omelet into smaller pieces for her and set it back in front of her.

“Wouldn’t want you to choke on any big pieces, darling.”

Blushing, Rae picked up her fork and placed a bite into her mouth. She knew instantly that she had been betrayed by the eggs. What was once a safe food, she could no longer handle the texture.

Not wanting to be rude and seem ungrateful, she tried to push through and eat the bite she took. She hoped that she was able to play off her issues without Emmett knowing, but she should have known that nothing would get past his watchful eye.