Page 19 of Daddy’s Pursuit (The Daddy Guard #1)

Chapter Nineteen

Iris was not looking forward to the doctor’s visit.

In fact, she was nearly shaking by the time Jack stopped by the mansion that afternoon.

“You ready?” he asked.

She gulped and nodded, though she figured her timid stance and the way she was chewing on the inside of her cheek spoke volumes about how she really felt.

“Honey,” he said, stepping closer, “I’m not trying to be mean. We’re doing this because we care about you.”

Standing there in the front parlor with them, Auntie Athena nodded. “That’s right. When was the last time you’ve had a checkup?”

Iris shifted on her feet and crossed her arms. “Uh. Maybe… never.”

That was true as far as she could remember. Surely she had when she was a baby. But she hadn’t been to any kind of checkup that she could actually recall.

The concern in Athena’s voice was evident when she said, “Have you seen a doctor for anything?”

“Someone sort of hit me with their car about two years ago,” Iris explained. “It wasn’t bad. They just sort of scraped me on the side. Anyway, the paramedics came and they made me go to the hospital.”

What she didn’t admit was that the encounter had led to staggering medical bills. The driver didn’t have any insurance. They hadn’t even stopped to check on her, anyway. She still owed thousands of dollars to the hospital.

“I’m very sorry that you went through that,” Athena said. “But that doesn’t count as a doctor’s visit. Not the kind we’re talking about. Sweetie, you deserve to be cared for. You’re so very valuable. We just want to make sure you’re all right.”

A tear slid from Iris’s eye. It had been a long time since anyone had cared about her like that. It felt wonderful.

That didn’t mean she wasn’t nervous, however.

“This is a special doctor,” Jack said. “He has a regular practice. But then, in a back room, he has a special practice. Just for Littles.”

“Really?” she asked.

He nodded. “He’s part of the local ageplay community.”

“Yep. Lots of us use him,” Athena said. “Dr. Sellecca is wonderful. And he’s a personal friend of mine. I think you’ll love him.”

“I second that,” Jack said. “But just in case you’re still nervous, I brought along a friend to make you feel more comfortable.” He whistled and a large, hulking beast stood behind the couch, revealing itself, before it lumbered over to them.

Out of habit, Iris had been nervous at first. She’d been chased by more than one dog when out and about. It was a danger of walking most places.

There was clearly no reason to worry now, though.

The dog was massive but one look at it told her he was the friendliest creature on the earth.

“Who is this?” she asked with a giggle.

She began rubbing between the Golden Retriever’s ears. His head was so big she couldn’t cover it with her entire palm.

“Meet Benson. He’s my buddy,” Jack said.

Iris giggled again. Squatting down, she wrapped her arms around the sturdy dog’s neck and hugged him tightly. He returned the hug, and she felt a little slobber drip onto her shoulder. This just made her laugh even more.

“The doctor won’t mind Benson coming with us?” she wondered.

“Nah. Doc Sellecca loves Benson. He’ll be happy to see him. Now come on, honey. We need to get going if we’re going to make that appointment.”

Iris hugged the dog one more time and then obeyed.

But she sure wasn’t happy about doing so.

The outside of the clinic looked like any other family practice Iris had seen.

She assumed the main entrance and waiting room were much the same. But they didn’t go in that way. Instead, they parked in the alley out back, knocked on a metal door, and were greeted by a smiling woman of about forty-five or so.

Wearing pink scrubs, comfortable looking sneakers, and her dark hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, she looked like a nurse.

That was confirmed when she said, “Hey, Jack. And this must be Little Iris. So good to meet you, honey. I’m Pam. Dr. Sellecca’s head nurse. Come on in.”

Iris wondered if all the people who worked at the practice knew of the doctor’s unusual back room.

They probably did, she quickly decided. It would be hard to keep something like that a secret from people who spent five days a week there.

“And there is Mr. Benson!” The nurse knelt down, hugged and petted the dog for a moment, and then led the way inside.

“The exam room is right here, cutie. Just hop up on that table, make yourself as comfortable as you can, and I’m going to check your vitals.”

The room was brightly colored, with smiling, cartoonish animals in little shirts, dresses, and diapers painted on the wall. Some of them were holding balloons. Others were chasing butterflies.

There was a cabinet with adult-sized diapers stacked neatly on the shelves, along with plastic pants and a few other Little items.

Besides all that, there was the typical medical equipment found in most exam rooms.

The happy animals and bright colors were nice, but they didn’t go very far toward reining in Iris’s fear.

It must have been obvious, because Nurse Pam said, “Would you feel better if you could pet Benson?”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Okay. Why don’t you sit right here then.” She pointed to a chair next to the chair Jack had sat down in.

The thin white paper atop the exam table rustled loudly as Iris hopped off and went to the other chair. As if he knew exactly what was going on, Benson positioned himself right beside her. Her fears subsided a bit as she ran her fingers through his golden fur.

“Okay, let me put this around your arm.”

“What is that?” Iris asked a little too loudly.

“Oh, honey. It’s just a blood pressure cuff. Just going to check your BP.”

Iris looked at Jack.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. It doesn’t hurt,” he assured her.

Iris felt silly. She’d never had her blood pressure checked. They probably thought she was pretty pitiful. She made a mental note to act as if she’d been to the doctor before.

“Let’s just wrap this around your cute little arm like so,” the nurse said as she went about her business.

She fastened the Velcro on the black cuff and then stepped back.

“Now, think happy thoughts. You’re nervous, so your blood pressure is probably going to be a little high.

But we want an accurate reading, to see what it normally is.

Not when you’re scared. Does that make sense, honey? ”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Okay. So think about something makes you happy. What is your favorite memory ever?”

Iris didn’t even have to think about that question. “Last night I went out for ice cream with Daddy!”

She’d blurted the words before she even realized what she’d said.

Oh no! She’d called Jack Daddy! Was that going to freak him out?

But as he put a hand on her knee, she realized he was delighted.

“That’s your favorite memory,” he noted whimsically to himself. He then leaned over, gave her a kiss on the side of her head, and then said, “Just wait until we leave here. If you’re a big, brave girl we’ll go on an adventure. I have a fun surprise for you.”

All Iris could do was giggle.

Did this mean that Jack was for sure her Daddy?

So lost in thought about that, she didn’t even realize that the cuff had tightened around her arm until it was decompressing. “119 over 78. Pretty good,” the nurse said as she unfastened the device. “Okay, now, is your diaper wet?”

Iris giggled and blushed hard. She was wearing “big girl” shorts. But sure enough, she had on a bulky nappy beneath them. It was dry, though.

“No,” she finally said.

She looked at Jack to see him grinning, the affection he felt obvious in his eyes. “You’re too cute,” he muttered, seemingly speaking more to himself than her.

“Well, can you tinkle for me, honey?” Pam asked. “We need to get a urine sample and we can take it from your diaper. No need to mess with the cup or anything.”

Just then, a knock on the door jarred the Little a bit. A second later, the doctor came in.

He was a tall, extremely handsome, distinguished-looking man with dark hair that was flecked by silvering sides.

He wore dark shoes, dark dress slacks, a blue shirt, and a white lab coat.

A stethoscope hung around his neck. It almost seemed like he’d been pulled right out of central casting to play a physician role on a soap opera.

“Jack! How are you, buddy?” The doc extended his hand.

Jack stood, shook it, and returned his smile. “Better now that I’m off work for a bit and with my sweet girl.”

Iris nearly melted. So, Jack did think of her as his.

Mmm. This was a nice development.

It relaxed her a bit, too.

“Man, when you called and said you had a cutie, I didn’t know just how cute she would be. Goodness! I think she’s the cutest one I’ve seen in a long time!” The doctor flashed his million-dollar grin at Iris. “Hello, honey. I’m Dr. Tim Sellecca. It’s nice to meet you.”

Iris kept petting Benson. “It’s nice meeting you, too, sir.”

“She’s as polite as she is cute,” the physician said. “Alright. Where are we in the exam?”

“I just took her blood pressure. It’s good, too.” The nurse showed him.

“Nice! What we like to see. Okay, honey, can you hop up here for this next part of the exam? And we might as well tug those shorts off, first.”

Iris gulped.

“Go on, honey. Be a big, brave girl,” Jack said. “Remember, Daddy has a surprise for you after we’re done here.”

It wasn’t the surprise that calmed Iris. It was the fact that Jack had referred to himself as Daddy . That made her feel as if she could tackle anything.

“Yes, Sir,” she said, unbuttoning her shorts and letting them fall around her ankles. She collected them and handed them to Daddy. After petting Benson one last time, she sat on the exam table, her legs dangling off the side and not coming anywhere close to touching the floor.

“Did Nurse Pam talk to you about making tinkles in your diaper, honey?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Can you do that for us?” the doctor asked.

She nodded.

“Good girl.”

It was so hard, with three people watching her, but somehow she forced her body to relax enough to cede control of her bladder. The sound of the stream filling her diaper seemed to echo in the boxy room, and she hung her head to blush.

The three Bigs acted as if it was the most natural thing.

“All finished?” the doctor asked.

“Yes, sir.”

“Such a good girl. Lay down. We’ll take that wet thing off of you.”

She obeyed and when she was stretched out atop the table, she fought the urge to cover her face while Pam worked the tapes on the sodden nappy. Iris felt so exposed and vulnerable when it was peeled away, but oddly enough, she felt at peace with everything, too.

She was a Little at a doctor’s visit with Daddy. The world was as it should be; how she’d always dreamed of life unfolding.

“I’m going to clean you up, honey,” Pam said as she took a wet wipe out of a nearby container.

“We might as well get her temperature while the diaper is off,” Dr. Sellecca said.

What? Did that mean what Iris thought it meant?

It sure did. She found that out the moment the nurse finished cleaning her and then gently nudged her to roll over.

“Just lay on your tummy, honey. This won’t hurt. Don’t fight it, though. Relax.”

Lying on her stomach, she stared down, not wanting to see what was going on.

She could hear, though.

A latex glove snapped onto the nurse’s hand. A cabinet was opened and something retrieved.

“I’m just going to put a dab of jelly on your little hole, cutie. It won’t hurt. I promise.”

“Whoa!” Iris squealed as the gloved finger delivered the cold jelly.

“You’re doing so good,” Jack encouraged. “Daddy is very proud of you. Benson is proud, too.”

At hearing his name, the dog barked quickly. Iris giggled.

She was thankful for the moment of levity, because she was scared at what was coming next.

“This won’t hurt going in. But like I said, don’t fight it,” the nurse instructed.

“Yeow!” The long thermometer penetrated her tight hole. It was more shocking than painful. In fact, after the initial disbelief wore off, Iris found that it didn’t hurt at all.

“That’s it. We’re almost done,” Pam said.

“You sure are a big, brave girl,” Dr. Sellecca added. “In fact, when she’s done, I think she needs some candy. That is, if you don’t mind, Jack.”

“I don’t mind one bit,” he said.

“Then she’s in luck,” the doctor replied. “Because we have a world-famous selection of giant lollipops right here in the office.”

Iris smiled. Okay, maybe this wasn’t so bad. Candy sounded lovely.

“She can eat it on the way to her special surprise,” Jack said. “Because I have something planned that she’s going to love.”

Relief washed over Iris as the device was pulled from her bottom. Happiness washed over her, too, as she wondered what Jack was planning.

One thing was for certain, she realized.

She’d already received the biggest surprise. Jack was her Daddy. And he was caring for her right now in ways she’d only dreamed.

All was right in her world.