“Meredith!” Alice looked embarrassed.
“It’s okay,” Meredith said. She seemed wildly comfortable with everything that was happening, and for a minute, Daniel felt overwhelmed with her confidence levels. How was it that parenting seemed to come so naturally to her? She always seemed to know exactly what to say and how to say it. More than that, she always seemed to know exactly how to connect with Alice.
Daniel worked.
A lot.
He was always going here and there, and he liked having Meredith around because she was stable and dependable. He could count on her to help Alice every day, but now he wondered if he’d been inadvertently letting his daughter down.
Shouldn’t he be the one taking her to her gaming club stuff?
Shouldn’t he know what things she liked to do?
“It’s okay,” Meredith said again. This time, it was to Daniel. “But her group does meet up every week. Since we’re stuck at home, maybe they can do a video call later and play together that way.”
“Really?” Alice asked. She seemed excited about the idea.
“That’s a great idea,” Daniel hastily agreed.
He was a Dom. He wasn’t used to giving in to the whims of other people, but in this case, well, it seemed fitting. He was used to delegating, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t take criticism or suggestions, and this seemed like a good one.
“This way, you can see your friends and play your games,” Daniel said.
“Thanks! I’m going to go build a house in Minecraft!” Alice pushed her chair away from the table. Then she stopped and looked from Meredith to Daniel. “May I be excused?”
“Yes,” they both said at the same time.
“Good.”
Alice cleared her plate and Daniel could hear the soft sound of it being set next to the sink. Then he heard Alice running through the hall and up the stairs.
“No running!” Meredith called out.
“Sorry!”
Once she stopped running and Daniel was sure that Alice was upstairs, he looked at Meredith. She had showered and gotten dressed before coming downstairs. He’d showered, too, but he’d slipped into a pair of casual and comfy pajama pants before making his way to breakfast. He could tell that Meredith liked the way he looked because she kept checking him out.
Good.
He spent a lot of time in the gym. Aside from that, most of his job really was physical. He was always out feeding the animals, herding them around, and of course, riding. He was always on the move. Daniel was the type of guy who could eat just about anything he liked and not gain anything because he burned calories like crazy.
To him, that was no excuse to have a sloppy diet, though. He hate very healthily, and he expected the same for his family. Oh, he wasn’t a total dolt. He knew that Meredith had a sweet tooth. Alice did, too. The two of them probably sneaked cookies or candies when he wasn’t looking, but he didn’t care.
Sometimes even “bad” things were okay in moderation.
Candy included.
Now, Daniel found himself alone with Meredith. She had been so eager when they were in the kitchen together. He hadn’t planned to offer his thumb, just as he hadn’t planned to spank her, but it had happened, and he didn’t regret it.
Not at all.
“How was your breakfast?” He asked her. She still had toast and some eggs on her plate.
“Good,” she said. “Thank you for cooking.”
“Anytime.”
“Is this what I have to expect now that we’re locked up together?” She asked with a little smile.