“It could help her.”
“It certainly will not.” She gave him a stern look. “The fact that you do not think so means you do not spend enough time with your daughter. I thought you were going to start spending more quality time with her.”
“I said I would consider it,” he said. “But she would not enjoy that. She certainly associatesmewith her nightmares, if not her spelling.”
“You’re her father! She certainly wants to spend time with you—even if she doesn’t at the moment, she needs to.”
“Why?”
She scoffed. “You need to ask why?”
“Clearly,” he bit out. He disliked it when someone thought something was completely obvious when it clearly wasn’t. They would often act incredulous before regarding him as if he were a serial killer waiting to happen.
Marina did not get angry, however, nor did she look at him as if he were about to attack her. Instead, her expression softened. “You want her to have routine, stability, and familiarity, yes?” Her voice was gentle, but not like she was speaking to a child. Her tone made him relax a little.
He nodded. “Of course.”
“You are the most constant person in her life,” she said. “Her mother is dead, and I have not even been here a week. Her nannies do not stay very long—speaking of, I believe Mrs. Miller hinted at searching for a nanny position at a different manor, so I do not think we can rely on her for very long.”
“That is fine. I do not care for her anyway. She is too cavalier about leaving Lilly in her room unsupervised.”
“My point is that you are the only living adult that she has known her entire life. Your presence gives her stability and familiarity.”
“I never thought about it like that,” he said. “But what you say makes sense.”
She looked startled. “Truly?”
“Yes, of course. Doesn’t it make sense to you?”Why would you say it if you thought your argument was nonsensical?He wondered if she had really recovered from her fall. Perhaps he should summon the physician to make sure she did not have lingering effects of confusion.
“I—I did not think you would agree,” she said. “I thought you would just dismiss it.”
“You presented a sound argument,” he said. “I will endeavor to spend some more time with Lilly.”
She smiled in a way that lit up her entire face. “Thank you,” she said, as if he had given her a beloved present instead of just listening to her reasoning and agreeing to it.
He did his best to ignore the warm feeling he felt in his chest at the sight of her smile. Somehow, she became even prettier when she smiled, with the way her eyes practically shone with happiness. He could have kicked himself.Such useless thoughts to waste energy on. Even if they are pleasant ones.
That night, when the piercing scream reached him, Evan went into Lilly’s room like usual and woke her up. “You are safe,” he said. “That dream cannot hurt you.”
Lilly kept crying and holding her arms.Why is she still holding herself like she is cold?He looked at the blazing fire in herfireplace. He had requested the maids put an extra log in her fireplace, but it was clearly not enough.I have to send for the physician in the morning to make sure she is not falling ill.
The nanny came in then, carrying Prince William. She had an irritated look on her face, as if tending to her ward was an inconvenient task.
“You may set the dog on the bed and leave,” he told the woman. “I’ll get her settled.”If Marina is right, then I need to spend more time with my daughter. I might as well start now.
The nanny shrugged and plopped Prince William on the bed. She gave Evan a half-hearted curtsy before leaving the room.
Evan turned back to his daughter, who was still crying. Prince William jumped on her, licking her face.
“Do not crowd her,” he said, gently picking up the little dog and setting him at the foot of the bed. “Perhaps you should sleep in here from now on,” he said to the pup. “You always end up in here anyway.”
“Not his fault,” Lilly said, sniffing. She glared at her father. “Not mine, either.”
He stared at her, shocked. “I never … of course, the nightmares are not your fault.”Did she really think I blamed her for her dreams?
She flopped down on the bed, sniffling.
Evan pulled the blankets up over her. “Marina told me that you are making progress on your lessons. I am pleased to hear that.” It felt strange to say her name out loud. He thought of her as ‘Marina’ more often than not, but he had never said it before. However, calling Marina ‘Her Grace’ felt strangely formal with his five-year-old daughter.
