Page 14 of Koa’s Little Girl (Soldier Daddies #8)

G iana, Pippa, Aspen, and the latter’s faithful dog, Rexy, sat in the blanket fort Jerico had created for them over four lawn chairs. He’d even equipped it with a small rotating fan to circulate a breeze in the summer evening heat. The three women sat eating their concocted ice cream cookiewiches.

Rexy as usual didn’t beg for food. Aspen had explained earlier about the abuse the sweet canine had suffered from his first owner. He simply lay on the blanket close to his rescuer getting frequent pets from all three little girls.

“I love Rexy,” Giana said and took another bite of her treat.

“He’s a sweetheart. I love this dessert, Giana,” Aspen congratulated her.

“It is yummy!” Pippa agreed.

“Mmm.” Giana nodded in agreement with her mouth full.

“How are things with your daddy?” Pippa asked.

Giana held up a finger to ask for a second and finished chewing her bite. It gave her a few seconds to think as well. She swallowed and smiled. “I’m so happy.”

The others beamed back at her. “That’s awesome,” Aspen said.

“I didn’t know what having a daddy full-time would be like. I mean it’s only been a few days, but I love how much he cares about me.”

“We’ve enjoyed this break as well,” Aspen shared, waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

The woman giggled at her funny expressions.

“They won’t be sent away soon, will they? I wanted to ask when I saw Koa repacking his supplies.” Their expressions answered Giana without either woman saying a word. “I was afraid of that.”

“That’s the tough part of having a daddy who’s a soldier,” Aspen admitted.

“And the best part?” Giana asked.

“The best eye candy ever,” Pippa answered without hesitation.

“Definitely,” Aspen agreed, doing that thing with her eyebrows again.

This time, their laughter was a bit louder, attracting attention from the men sitting a short distance away.

“They’re talking about us, aren’t they?” Giana recognized Koa’s voice and heard the amusement in it.

“Oh, yeah. Talking about their daddies is a favorite topic,” Zale said.

“Only because you’re so cute, Daddy!” Pippa called out to him.

“Thank you, Kitten. Are you drinking your water?” Zale asked.

Pippa picked up her water bottle he’d reminded her to take into the fort and displayed it for the others. It had maybe a few sips missing. “Yes, Daddy. I’m working on it.” She unscrewed the top and took a big drink.

“That’s my good girl,” he answered.

“He’s always on me to drink water. Yuck. It’s so boring,” Pippa said quietly so the men wouldn’t overhear.

“I’ve drunk more milk since meeting Koa than I have in twenty years,” Giana confessed. “I’m concerned. I’m starting to like it.”

“Definitely my daddy makes healthier choices for me than I do for myself,” Aspen admitted.

“Do you feel better?” Giana asked.

“I do,” Pippa piped in. “Of course, my daddy is the medic. He takes care of everything to do with my body. Even when I don’t want him to.”

Aspen nodded sympathetically. “I bet. I always feel better when Daddy calls Zale to come over and check me out. But… after the treatment.”

“Wait. Why does Zale come over to check you out?” Giana asked.

“He is the team medic. He’s a nurse practitioner—the highest level of nurse.

Kind of like a doctor-light. He can prescribe medicine and have tests run.

He keeps the guys healthy on missions and when they’re home, too.

My daddy trusts Zale so much—and he’s great.

He helped with birth control, random things like an ear infection, and when my tummy gets wonky,” Aspen shared.

“He, like, examines you? Or just prescribes some generic type of medicine?” Giana asked.

“Examines, pokes, prods, and treats,” Aspen admitted.

Giana turned to Pippa. “Isn’t that weird?” Her thoughts jumbled inside her brain as she tried to understand and not panic.

“You mean Zale seeing Aspen naked? It bothered me in the beginning, but I realized he sees the guys naked, too. He’s seen a lot of people without clothes on, and he chose me.”

That made some sense to Giana; even so, she wasn’t sure she’d be that okay with it.

“Besides, I like Aspen. I don’t want her ear to hurt or for her to be worried about getting pregnant if she’s not ready for that,” Pippa told her.

“Zale’s great. He’s better than any doctor I’ve ever had, and my daddy can stay with me, and no one thinks it’s weird,” Aspen added.

“Is my daddy going to want me to see Zale, too?” Giana asked. She tried to keep the nervousness out of her voice. Giana definitely hadn’t considered that someone she saw frequently would get to see all of her.

“Probably, but you should talk to him about it if you’re concerned,” Pippa told her. “Daddies are perceptive, but sometimes they don’t know you’re worried unless you tell them. Littles are good at hiding their feelings from others.”

“Probably because we’re so used to hiding who we are from the world,” Aspen guessed.

“I’m glad I get to be myself around you both. If it’s okay, I need to be close to my daddy now,” Giana confessed.

“Go, Giana. We’ll come with you. I could use a cuddle myself,” Pippa admitted.

“Me too.”

In a flash, they crawled out from under the blanket. Each walked quickly to their daddy’s chair.

Trailing the others, Giana watched out of the corner of her eye and saw Zale and Jerico scoop up their Littles to sit on their laps. Neither asked any questions, but simply welcomed their little girl happily.

“Daddy?” she whispered.

“Come here, Flame. I missed you.” Koa lifted her onto his hard thighs and squeezed her gently. He pressed a kiss to that sensitive spot under her ear and asked, “You okay?”

She nodded and tucked her head into the hollow in the curve of his shoulder. The reassuringly regular thump of her daddy’s heartbeat sounded under her ear. Koa rubbed her back, not asking questions, but letting her process through her thoughts and feelings. She pressed a kiss to his skin.

“Need to go home, Giana?” he asked softly.

“No, Daddy. I just needed you.”

Koa answered that confession with a kiss on her forehead and a pat on her bottom.

Conversation hummed over and around her.

Giana could feel the camaraderie and how much these men cared about each other.

Teasing remarks were free of animosity, and the response from each man felt real. There was nothing fake here.

A feeling of calm serenity filled her. Giana hadn’t ever been this comfortable amid others.

Sleeping at the fire station was always a challenge for her.

She usually doubled up on caffeine and took power naps.

Nothing had ever happened to her. Having people around at her most vulnerable kept her from being able to relax.

The deep men’s voices blended together into an attractive hum.

“Daddy’s getting up, Flame. It’s time for little girls to be in bed,” Koa whispered to her as he tightened his arms around her.

As he stood, Giana wrapped her arms around Koa’s neck to stabilize herself. Blinking into the dim light provided by the fire pit, Giana struggled to figure out what was going on. “Daddy?”

“Hi, sweetheart. Hold on to Daddy. We’re heading home,” Koa told her gently.

“I’ll get the chair for you, Koa. Carry your Little to the truck,” a familiar voice said softly.

“Thanks, Hank. I owe you one,” Koa answered as he walked toward the corner of the house.

“I can walk,” Giana told him.

“I know, Flame. Maybe Daddy wants to carry you.”

“Okay, Daddy.” She laid her head back on his shoulder. “So sleepy.”

“Daddy kept you out too late.”

“Mmmhmm.”

He jostled her a bit as he opened the truck door. The interior light glared in her eyes as he set her bottom in the seat. Giana covered her eyes with her hands to block it out. Koa gently tugged her hands away to buckle her seatbelt when he had her facing the front.

When his heat moved away, she missed him immediately. The solid thunk of the door closing sounded next, and the light dwindled out. She peeked from under her hand only to slap her fingers back over her eyes as it flared back to life when he opened the driver’s side.

“Rude,” she grumbled.

“Sorry, little girl. I’ll put an eye mask in here next time. Close your eyes and drift back to sleep.”

“Okay, Daddy.”

It seemed only a few seconds later that darn light was back in her eyes. “Daddy!” she whined, burying her face against the seat’s upholstery.

“Come on, Flame. Let’s get you into bed.”

He picked her up. Giana wrapped her legs around his waist and looped her arms around his neck, trusting him completely. In a short time, he had showered away the remnants of being outdoors and brushed her teeth.

“Go to sleep, little girl. I’ll go check all the doors and I’ll be back.”

Turning onto her tummy, Giana drifted into dreams of sweet desserts and good friends.