Bondage Buddies (Masters of Marquis #1) - Golden Angel Page 0,30

computer screen, working with numbers all day, she loved playing with Ana, and Ana brightened even more at the reminder.

“I’m going to pretend my new sister is here playing with me until Aunt Rae gets home.” Ana nodded her head decisively, and Domi laughed.

“Okay, have fun, sweetie.”

Smiling, Domi turned and headed back into the house just as her neighbors, Karen and Jordan, were coming outside. They didn’t have a fence between their yards, just flowerbeds, but thankfully they all got along really well. Jordan waved, and Karen nodded her greeting since she was carrying a tray full of drinks and snacks. They often sat in the backyard on nice days, enjoying the weather, so Domi wasn’t too surprised to see them out today.

“Afternoon!” Jordan called out, smiling widely and brushing some of their grey hair out of their face. Jordan was the first non-binary person Ana and Domi had met, but both of them had learned how to use their pronouns quickly. “Isn’t it a gorgeous day?”

“Gorgeous,” Domi agreed, smiling.

“Hey, Elsa, looking good,” Karen said, putting down the tray she was carrying and giving Ana a thumbs up. Ana smiled back and twirled, prompting a smattering of applause from their neighbors.

Feeling a little better now that Ana wouldn’t be totally on her own for playtime, Domi headed into the house and sat down to get to work. Being an inpatient medical coder wasn’t the most glamorous job in the world, but it was important. One missed code or forgotten rule could end up costing a hospital tens of thousands of dollars, which should have been covered by either insurance or the government. Domi liked knowing she was helping people who needed it by making sure every ‘t’ was crossed and every ‘i’ dotted, which meant she needed complete focus on what she was doing.

Which was why it took her a moment to realize the sudden, loud sound she was hearing was screaming.

“Domi! Domi!” Jordan’s voice was only slightly muffled as they banged on the back door.

Scrambling out of her chair, Domi accidentally knocked it over, her heart already pounding as she ran for the back of the house.

Ana. Something happened to my baby.

The high-pitched wail of pain had to be her daughter. Her airway constricted, making it hard to breathe, and the only thing that kept her from panicking was the knowledge Ana needed her.

“I’m coming!” Domi yelled down the hall. Jordan had already abandoned the back door the moment they saw Domi at the end of the hall and headed their way.

She burst through the back door, running straight for the line of trees at the back of the yard, and immediately knew what had happened—Ana knew she wasn’t supposed to climb the trees without Rae or Domi there with her, but she loved to climb. Domi had suspected she sometimes did when they weren’t around.

Karen was kneeling next to where Ana was lying on the ground. Jordan skidded to a stop beside them, only a few seconds before Domi did. It felt as if she’d leapt across the entire lawn in a single bound, she’d moved so quickly. Thankfully, Ana was no longer screaming, but she was still crying, great heaving sobs that only came with real pain.

“Oh, baby, baby, what happened?” Domi knelt down, reaching out tenderly, but her hands hovered, unsure where to touch.

Ana’s little face was so pale, her eyes huge in a drawn face, tears rolling down her cheeks, and she was clutching her left arm to her stomach, but she reached for Domi.

“Shh, shh, baby, just lie there,” Jordan said, getting down on their knees and pressing their hand against Ana’s head. A retired paramedic, Domi trusted Jordan’s judgment even though it killed her not to be able to gather Ana up into her arms. Jordan glanced at Domi, eyes serious and worried. “We don’t know if she hurt her neck or back, so it’ll be safer to keep her like this until the ambulance gets here with a neck brace and a backboard.”

Domi pressed her hand over Ana’s, her daughter’s fingers feeling tinier and more fragile than ever. Her heart pounded in her chest, stomach churning, and it was all she could do not to burst into tears herself.

“I’m so sorry,” Karen said, tears in her eyes, though she was doing her best to put on a brave face. She just wasn’t succeeding as well as Jordan or Domi. “She was playing well on her own, and we started talking, and Jordan