Dr. Daddy Dom (Little Lake Bridgeport 2) Read Free Page B

"I needed to be home, even if it was just for a couple of hours. As for my temper, I'll remind you that I'm the laid back one here. Out with it. What did she do this time?"
    "Who said that she did anything?" Layton asked innocently, placing a tray of chili and corn bread on the coffee table and handing his brother the remote. "Did you want a beer?"
    "No, I don't want a beer. She's not here, jumping like a kangaroo for me to pick her up, you said that she's in her usual place—which is the 'bad girl' corner—and you are being extraordinarily nice to me. What did she do, and is she okay?"
    "She just took the SUV out for a little practice drive, and she's fine. Not a scratch."
    "I think I'll take that beer after all," Caine said, immediately reaching to rub his head. "How badly did she wreck it?"
    Layton quickly handed Caine a bottle and waited until he had drunk half of it before continuing. "She didn't exactly wreck it. More like… she took it swimming."
    "She drove my truck into the lake?" Caine shouted. "My brand new SUV is in the lake?"
    Layton winced. "Technically, no. She drove it onto the pier and it collapsed under the SUV's weight."
    "Oh, dear God. How the hell did this happen? Weren't you watching her?"
    "It was your idea to let her practice driving so that she could get her license, remember?"
    "So why didn't you hand over the keys to your old pickup?"
    "It's a stick. I thought it would be better for her to practice with an automatic." Layton sat down and leaned forward, with his forearms on his knees. "The tow truck pulled it out and the damages are all covered by insurance. It will be ready in a couple of weeks. I just wanted to let you know."
    Caine finished the beer and tried to keep his temper in check. "So she isn't hurt."
    "Not at all."
    "Good. Now, which question should I ask first? The one regarding why she is in the corner, or the other, regarding the reason why she drove a truck onto a wooden boat pier."
    "I think that is best answered by our darling little girl. Maybelle! Get your bottom downstairs. Daddy's home," Layton called.
    The sound of cheering reached Caine's ears and he forgot everything about his ruined vehicle the second the adorable creature with a single high ponytail flew into his arms and began to cover his face with happy kisses. He loved the tiny, incredible sprite who could make love with the passion of a woman and then enjoy the world with childlike abandon. She had brought joy and laughter to their lives, and he never once regretted the day he had first laid eyes on her.
    "I miss my Dr. Daddy Dom! I don't like you being gone all the time," she said, clinging to his solid waist and burying her face in his chest. "They need to let you come home every night instead of every three days."
    "I miss you too, baby, but I only have one full shift and a partial and then it's done. I won't have to do this again for two more years," Caine said.
    "I still don't like it and it's stupid that you have to stay there," she grumbled. "You don't like sleeping at the hospital or a hotel, and the food sucks."
    "I can't very well drive an hour each way every time I'm needed, honey. Just be patient. Everything will be back to normal soon enough."
    "Fine, tell that to Counselor Cranky Pants." She thumbed Layton.
    "I thought you two weren't fighting as much. Tell me; what did you do to make him cranky, little one?" Caine requested, pulling her to sit on his lap and lovingly wrapping his arms around her slight body.
    "I didn't do anything. It's his fault. He should have been in the corner, not me."
    Caine raised an eyebrow in his brother's direction. "His fault, huh? He told me about the truck. Is that what this is all about, Layton?"
    "Nope. Tell him the whole truth, Maybelle, and don't try to be cute."
    Fully immersed in her age-play persona, she retorted, "Tell him what, Uncle Layton? You said I could practice driving this afternoon and that you didn't need to be with me."
    "I said I couldn't go with you