Page 3 of Daddy’s Naughty List (Dirty Daddies 2024 Anthology #4)

Chapter Three

Walt

After dropping Susan off at her apartment, he detoured to the supermarket on his way home.

What in the Sam Hill was he thinking?

Grumbling to himself, he filled his cart with things he hoped Susan would like, plus some refrigerated cookie dough and frosting. Lastly, he grabbed popcorn, a bag of cranberries, some light strings, and a small artificial tree. Unsure if he had them at home, he added a pack of needles and a spool of thread.

He wanted her to see that even the simplest of things could make a Christmas tree beautiful.

Despite his earlier pep talk to himself, she was too sweet and much too young for an old fool like him, but he couldn’t stand watching her be so afraid to dream. He told himself over and over that he was only giving her a proper Christmas, yet he couldn’t dispel the mental image of her sitting on his lap while they strung popcorn and cranberries to decorate the tree.

Fuck, he could still smell her floral perfume. The ghostly fragrance seemed to follow him as he finished his shopping and checked out.

“She’s a friend,” he muttered under his breath as he loaded his purchases into his truck. “I’m doing something nice for her because she’s a friend.”

Too bad his dick didn’t believe a word of his bullshit—especially when he caught a fresh blast of her scent from where she’d been sitting.

He wanted to give her every last thing on her bucket list, and treat her like she deserved, with all the pleasure and gentle guidance a Daddy could give his babygirl. He could erase every scar, every painful memory…

Shaking the thoughts away, he got on the road toward home. He was committed to spending the weekend with her, so he needed to pull his head out of his ass and get his house ready for a guest—including making up the spare room.

Susan needed her own space, and he wasn’t about to pressure her for more, no matter how much he wanted her in his bed.

Because he wasn’t a heathen, he stopped for coffee on the way to Susan’s place. Jake would have a buffet set up for the volunteers, so he didn’t worry about breakfast.

He parked in the spot for her apartment, then went to her door and rang the bell. To his surprise, she opened it almost before his finger left the button.

“Hi. I mean, good morning.” She gave him a tentative smile and blushed. “Sorry. Come in while I get my stuff.”

Walt bit back a groan at the way her tight jeans cupped her curvy backside. The formfitting long-sleeved t-shirt didn’t help either and he wanted to tangle his hands in her brown ponytail while he kissed her senseless.

Her apartment was sparsely furnished, with a loveseat, a rocking chair, and a small television mounted on the wall. She’d decorated it with plush pillows and crocheted afghans in a rainbow of colors. A framed GED certificate hung on the wall, alongside a few poster-sized landscapes. A breakfast bar with two stools divided the immaculate kitchen from the living room.

“I’ll help.” He reached down to grab her suitcase from the floor. “Do you need anything else?”

“I don’t think so.” She chewed on her lower lip and wrung her hands. “I’ve never gone anywhere overnight before, and I keep thinking I forgot something.”

“Everybody does that,” he replied. “Let’s make sure your oven isn’t on.”

“My oven? Why?”

“That’s usually what people are afraid they forgot.”

Covering a giggle with her hand, she glanced over her shoulder at the stove. “It’s off, so I think we’re safe.”

“Great.” He slung the strap of her bag over his shoulder. “I stopped for coffee on the way, and Jake will have breakfast waiting. Ready?”

“I think so.” She got her jacket from the coat closet, along with a hat, gloves, and a scarf. “I packed warm clothes like you asked. Carrie said she has boots I can borrow.”

“Good girl.” He held the door for her, allowing her to exit the apartment first, then waited for her to lock up. After stowing her suitcase and helping her into his truck, they got on the road.

He took a sip of his coffee, then said, “So, did you do your bucket list last night?”

“Yes Sir.” Her voice rose in pitch, and she pulled several sheets of lined notebook paper from her purse. “Is it okay if there’s more than five things?”

“It’s wonderful, sweetheart. I’m really proud of you.” He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. “Do you want to read them to me?”

“Um…” She chewed on her lower lip as her cheeks turned pink. “Yes, Sir.”

“What’s first on that list?”

“I want to buy a house. Then I want a Maine coon cat or three, plus a big furry dog. I want to learn to cook like Olivia does.”

“Not Jake?” He hid a smile but couldn’t wait to share that tidbit with Club Apocalypse’s head chef. “I bet both of them would teach you, and you probably ought to add an extra strong vacuum to your list for all the pet hair.”

“Definitely on the vacuum. I found free cooking classes on the internet too.”

“Perfect. What else?”

“I want to visit Morocco and Cyprus, and then Athens.” When he stopped at a traffic light, she held up a printed advertisement. “I want to do this Mediterranean cruise.”

“That sounds like fun. A cruise would let you visit all those places and probably a few more.”

Sobering, she shuffled the pages. “It really does, but I’m thinking the cruise might cost as much as the house.”

“Don’t worry about what things cost right now,” he replied. “You have your entire life to make those wishes come true.”

“I know, but—” She gasped and clutched at the door, letting her bucket list scatter. “Oh, no! I forgot my elf costume!”

“No problem.” He peeked into the back seat to make sure his Santa costume was there, then did a quick U-turn. “It won’t take long to go back for it.”

Without warning, Susan burst into tears. “I’m so sorry. It was the most important thing, and you asked if I had everything, and I didn’t, and?—”

“Honey, it’s okay.” Walt found a wide spot on the shoulder and parked. He jumped out and hurried to the passenger side and opened the door. “Let’s get you calmed down.”

She took a deep breath, then nodded and slid from the seat into his arms. Instead of letting him hug her, she hunched and kept her eyes on her feet. After turning to face the truck, she unbuttoned her jeans and yanked them down over her hips, revealing blue panties and the wicked cane scars he remembered from her evidence photos.

Tightening his hands into fists, he squeezed his eyes shut and forced his anger down. Just the memory of what the Shepherds had done to her had the power to send him into spiraling rage, and knowing she expected a beating for a simple mistake…

Resting her elbows on the seat, she said, “I’m ready for my punishment, Sir.”

Susan

“Oh, baby, no.”

Walt tugged her jeans up and zipped them, then turned her to face him before enveloping her into a tight hug. His spicy aftershave filled her lungs, and she wanted to bathe in it until it was all she could smell.

She’d forgotten everything she’d learned since escaping the Shepherds. Women weren’t supposed to be beaten for making a mistake. They apologized, fixed it, and moved on. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment, and she pressed her hot face against his chest.

“I’m sorry, Sir,” she mumbled into his soft cotton sweater.

“Shh. I promise I will never punish you like that.” Still holding tight with one arm, he cupped her cheek and tilted her face up to look at him. “It’s okay. Do you know why?”

She blinked, trying to stall more tears. “No, Sir.”

“It’s okay because I had to look in the back seat to make sure I remembered my Santa costume.” When she giggled, he rolled his eyes. “And we’re less than ten minutes from your apartment. It’s no trouble to go back, and I’m happy to have extra time to listen to your bucket list.”

“No.” She wriggled free of his embrace and grabbed the papers from the floorboard. “It’s all just stupid wishes, and I’m never going to do any of it.”

She heard a crack of sound before her ass lit up from a hard barehanded spank and nearly stumbled as she whirled to face him. “You said I wouldn’t be punished!”

It hadn’t hurt—well, not much, but he’d promised.

“You didn’t get a spank because you forgot your costume.” He laid his hands on her shoulders and kissed her forehead. “You got a spank because you put yourself and your wishes down. Even if you change your mind about them, your wishes are valuable, and so are you.”

“No, I’m not.”

A vein pulsed in his temple, and he cursed under his breath as he lifted her into the truck. “It’s like you want me to spank you again.”

The sting from his palm across her bottom faded into tingling warmth. She tried not to squirm but couldn’t help wishing he’d give her another spank.

How could one harmless smack affect me so much?

“I don’t understand.” Except maybe she did. Walt didn’t spank her because he got off on hurting her—he spanked her because she hurt herself.

She might have been wrong, but she didn’t think so, and it opened up a whole world of possibilities.

He sighed and reached across her to fasten her seatbelt. “Susan, I will never spank you for a simple mistake, nor will anyone else, but it drives me absolutely insane when you talk down about yourself.”

“But—”

“Stop.” He cupped her cheek and made her look at him. “You’re strong, smart, and brave. It might take time to get where you want to be, but there’s no doubt in my mind you will.”

“Thank you.” She blinked back the last of her tears. “I mean… thanks for believing in me.”

He pulled a clean handkerchief from his pocket and dabbed at the tearstains on her face. “There’s my good girl. Ready to go?”

Susan squeezed her thighs together in an attempt to hide her reaction to being called his good girl. “Yes, Sir.”

After curling her fingers around the handkerchief, he hurried to the driver’s side and got in. “So, we have a house, pets, cooking, and a Mediterranean cruise. What else is on your bucket list?”

“Um…” She shuffled through the scattered list, careful to hide the last page. “I decided I want to climb Kilimanjaro too, but I also want to do a Lake Victoria photo safari and visit Senegal.”

“Good choices.” He waited for a car to pass before getting on the road back to her apartment. “What else?”

She slid the first sheet to the bottom of the stack. “I want to visit a zoo and pet an elephant.”

“Hmm. If you’re up for a short road trip, we could go to the Phoenix Zoo. I don’t know about petting an elephant, but they have a Christmas light display.”

“Could we?” Unable to control her excitement, Susan bounced in her seat and turned to face him. “Really?”

“Sure. I haven’t been there since I was a kid, so it’ll be new for me too.” He glanced at her and smirked. “But if you really want to pet an elephant, you could go to Thailand.”

“Thailand? Where is that?”

“It’s a country south of China. They even have places where you can ride one. India too.”

“Goodness. That sounds amazing.” She scrambled for her purse and withdrew a pen to add Thailand to the page, hoping she spelled it correctly. “Maybe I need to sort my list. It’s getting really long.”

“Bucket lists should be long.” He turned into her apartment complex and parked in front of her unit. “I’d say what you have right now is a good start.”

“You think so?” Lord, Susan wanted to melt every time he praised her.

Praise kink, anyone?

Finally, after almost a year of working at Club Apocalypse, she had a real, live kink.

“I do. And remember, you can change it any time you want.”

“Yes, Sir.” Her cheeks heating, she added, “It just seems to get longer every time I think about it.”

“Even better.” Before she could unfasten her seatbelt, he laid a hand on her knee. “You know why?”

“Why?”

“Because it won’t be long before you start crossing things off.” He removed his hand, leaving her knee tingling. “Do you need help with your costume?”

“No, Sir.” She unfastened her seatbelt and opened the door, then hopped out without waiting for him to help her. “Thank you. I’ll be quick.”