Page 25 of Albel

“Little Pet.” His tone holds a warning. “Let go of Daddy’s pants before you end up over my lap with a hot bottom.”

I let go of his pants and plead with my eyes for him to stay or take me with him.

Daddy squats in front of the cage, a reassuring smile on his face. “Daddy is only going over there for a couple of seconds. I’ll be right back, so don’t worry.”

But he doesn’t understand that it’s not because he’s leaving me alone. It’s because he’s leaving me alone to be with a random Venkorian male who is creeping me out.

Daddy leaves, and I can feel the guy’s eyes on me the whole time.

“Y-yes?” I hesitantly ask as I turn to him.

There’s a small, sick smile across his face as he just tilts his head and looks at me. Gulping, I peek over to where Daddy is to see that he’s picking up the piece of furniture.

Please come back faster.

“How are you liking being your Daddy?” he asks. “Is there anything you’d change about him?”

Him not leaving me alone with a creepy person. That’s the only thing I want to change right now.

Shaking, I suck in a breath and turn my body so I’m facing the creepy male, not wanting to get a surprise attack and not survive.

“Here’s the highchair you wanted. Take a look and tell me whether there is anything that you want altered,” Daddy says.

The customer gives me one more look before he briefly glances at the highchair, nodding.

“It looks perfect. Can I take it today?” he asks.

“Yes. You already paid for everything. Unless you want me to paint it,” Daddy offers.

The man hums. “I think I might want it painted. I need to see what color she likes first. Can I come back another day?”

Please say no.

“Sure,” Daddy says, smiling. “You can message me with the color. I’ll tell you when it’s ready.”

The man nods, giving me one more glance before leaving the store. At this point, my whole body is shaking with fear.

“Little Pet?” Daddy calls.

Flinching, I look over at him, lifting my arms, wanting to be in his embrace right away. Daddy unlocks the top of the kennel and pulls me into his arms.

“Oh, Little Pet. You’re shaking like a leaf. What’s wrong?” Daddy asks.

“I don’t like him,” I wail. “I don’t want to be near him again. I don’t want to be left alone with him.”

Daddy bounces me on his hip as he coos at me. “Shhh, you’re okay. The customer isn’t here any longer. Why don’t we just calm down a little, and then you can talk to me?”

“I really don’t want to be around him. I don’t want to be left alone with him,” I repeat, hoping Daddy will understand me. “He always gives me a bad feeling. The way he looks at me is creepy.”

“You’re okay. He’s just a customer. Maybe you aren’t used to being around other Venkorians besides me and Yamal. Next time, I won’t leave you alone with him, but I can’t turn him away as a customer,” Daddy says. “He is a paying customer, and I have his piece. We also can’t report him to anyone because of just a feeling. I know. I don’t like it, either, but that’s just how it is.”

Tears pool in my eyes, and I push my face into Daddy’s chest.

“Do you want to go to the rescue center?” Daddy asks. “We could maybe see if there is a marn there to keep you company. Yamal mentioned over the phone while you were napping that it might help with your anxiety.”

I shake my head.

“Okay, Little Pet,” Daddy coos. “I understand you don’t want to talk to anyone right now. Why don’t we go upstairs and eat something? Do you want to try a new food?”