She tugged on his hand to make him stop.“But I don’t need a lot of food.I’m used to eating the bare minimum.At the convent, we had to grow our own food, so we always had to ration what we had.”
“But you don’t have to do that anymore.I don’t like how thin you are.If you were to get sick, it would take you longer to get better because your body isn’t as strong as it would be if you were closer to your normal weight.”
Angel tried to understand his point of view, but all she heard was his disappointment with her body, and she didn’t know why it bothered her so much.
He pulled her into the kitchen.“Is lunch ready, Daisy?”
The older woman turned their way and smiled.
“Yes.I’ll bring it over,” she said.
Thomas led her over to the table on the other side of the kitchen.“Have a seat.”
She froze and stared down at the chair he pointed at.“I’m not sure...”
He rested his hands on her shoulders.“Not sure of what, Sweetheart?”
“I’ve not eaten at a table and have only eaten by myself.”
She could tell she had stunned him.
His brows pinched together.“How did you eat at the convent?”
“On my cot or a bench outside.”
“By yourself?”he asked.
She nodded.
“Why?”
“When we got up in the morning, we usually grabbed whatever fruit was available for breakfast, and for lunch, we always ate a slice of bread with peanut butter on it.At dinner, the nuns had a special service that they didn’t allow me to attend, so I was given a plate and ate by myself.”
She watched the muscle in his jaw start to tick.
“I hate that you were raised the way you were, but now you’re mine, and I’m going to take such good care of you.”
She shook her head and pressed her hands together as if praying.“No!”
He ducked his head so he could see her whole face clearly.“Please don’t be frightened.I promise everything will work out, and I’ll make sure you’re happy here.”
“I don’t want you to worry about me,” she said earnestly.
He smiled gently.“I’m always going to worry about you.”
She wanted to yell, “No!”again because she just knew that if she were a burden, he would toss her out sooner rather than later.Perhaps it would be best if it happened sooner, as the more time she spent with him, the more she was drawn to him.
