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He cleared his throat, looking nervous.

“Kent?”

“Sorry. Just hoping I did the right thing. I know how much Bun-bun meant to you and that it was painful when he was destroyed.”

She bit her lower lip. She felt like a bit of a wimp to be so upset over a stuffed toy, but she’d had him a long time.

“Well, he wasn’t repairable, you know that.”

She nodded.

“But I did grab a piece of his ear for you. Then I had Charlie sew it up.” He pulled Bun-bun’s ear from the bag. It didn’t have any stuffing and had been sewn neatly up the back where it had been ripped. “I thought you might like a piece of Bun-bun to keep. But if it’s too weird or not right then don’t feel you have to—oomph.” He grabbed hold of her as she threw herself at him.

“Baby, you’re shaking. It was the wrong thing to do?”

She reached for the piece of ear and held it to her nose, rubbing it back and forth. “No, Kent, it’s perfect. You are perfect.” She sniffled, rubbing away her tears. “I just can’t believe how perfect for me you are.”

He kissed her softly. “Only as perfect as you are for me, sweet girl.”

24

Abby sat in the fort she’d built with Charlie and Ellie. Charlie and Clint had a huge dining table and it had taken four blankets to cover it, as well as a lot of cushions. They’d snuck in some bags of sweets and chocolate and were gorging themselves. She had Boss Hog and her Bun-bun ear. Charlie had her favorite toy, Inky. Ellie had her teddy.

“Oh man, we’re almost out of the snacks. Dare you to sneak into the kitchen and get some chips,” Charlie said to her.

“Oh no, Clint nearly caught me last time,” she replied. “Your turn. It’s your house. He’s your daddy.”

“And he’s standing just a few feet away from you,” Clint said dryly, making all three girls cry out in surprise.

He pulled up the edge of a blanket and sunlight shone through. Clint sighed. “Just how much junk have the three of you had? Christ, Bear is gonna kill me.”

It still amazed Abby how at ease Charlie and Ellie were with their Little sides, but they both told her that it had taken a while and they weren’t always comfortable around other people. But then Clint wasn’t just another person.

“It’s a mess in here,” he grumbled.

“Daddy is a grumbly bear today,” Charlie told them in a not-so-quiet whisper, making Abby and Ellie laugh.

It was hard to believe she’d only been here a month. She now couldn’t imagine living anywhere else, as though this was the place she was meant to be. With people who accepted her for who she was. Little and sub. She’d put her house up for sale. There was no point in keeping it and surprisingly she wasn’t as sad as she thought she would be to say goodbye to it.

Kent had left three days ago for a business trip. She hated not having him around. The only saving grace was that he’d arranged for her to come stay with Clint and Charlie.

For years, she’d lived alone and it seemed she now couldn’t even do three nights without Kent. She’d felt slightly silly having to come stay with Clint and Charlie, but they’d totally opened their house to her. Charlie had kept her occupied with games and movies and baking while Clint made sure she went to bed on time and didn’t get too sad.

Kent was due back in the morning, though and she couldn’t wait to see him. She’d just enrolled in an online course in creative writing which started in a few weeks. Kent still didn’t want her leaving Sanctuary without someone with her. They hadn’t heard a thing from Bartolli or her brother, but he wasn’t letting down his guard.

She heard some deep voices coming from the down the hall. Her heart raced. She knew that voice. She stood without thinking and banged her head on the table.

“Owie! Ouch, owie!”

“Oh, Abby, are you okay?” Ellie asked. “Do you want me to kiss it better?”

Tears flooded her eyes and her head throbbed. Partially from the pain, but mostly because she wanted to rush to see if that really was Kent.

“I’m okay, thanks.” She crawled out from under the table just as he entered the dining room. Happiness filled her. He entered the kitchen and everything was right in her world.

“Abby! What’s wrong?” he rushed forward, concern on his face.

She felt silly as tears dripped down her face. Ellie ran to Bear who had walked in behind Kent.