“I think she’s resting before dinner.”
“Oh.” Her face falls. “I thought she would be here to tell me a bedtime story. I wanted to hear her special one again.”
I have no clue what she’s talking about. “Why don’t you ask her to put you to bed? She’s in my bedroom, but knock first.”
“Okay!”
One minute later, she’s dragging a smiling Jules behind her.
“Can you tell me your parents’ fairytale story?” Claud begs Jules.
“Sure, if that’s what you want, or I can read you this book.” She holds up a book with a ballerina frog on the cover. “I bought this for you while shopping in Sag Harbor yesterday.”
“Oh, yes! The ballerina book, please.”
“What do you say, Claudina Rosa?”
She hugs Jules. “Thank you! Can Daddy read it, and you can lie down with me?” She begs with hopeful eyes.
Jules doesn’t reply; she answers by climbing into Claud’s bed.
Claud is half-asleep, so I skip to the end when she’s not looking.
“Iris’s mom tucks her in bed after a long day of dance and kisses her goodnight. I love you infinity times infinity, Iris.”
“What does I love you infinity mean, Daddy?”
“Infinity means there is no end. So she loves her so much that it goes on forever and ever and ever.”
“I see.” She snuggles into Jules’s side.
Jules’s big brown eyes rise to connect with mine. She holds my attention momentarily before reaching for my hand and linking our fingers.
Her mouth opens, and she lets out a soft whisper for only me to hear. “Infinity times infinity.”
My breath hitches, knocking me back, completely surprised.
She loves me…
“Jules, baby.” I squeeze her hand and open my mouth to tell her how much I love her, too, but Claud interrupts me.
“Well, I love you a lot of infinities, Daddy. And you too, Jules, I really love you.”
I swallow the instant lump in my throat. This is it…this is my family right here in this very room. My girls. My life.
Jules smiles tenderly at me, rubbing her thumb along my skin, then leans in to kiss Claud’s cheek. “I love you too, sugar plum.”
“Me too, my precious angel, always and forever,” I tell her, but she’s already fast asleep.
Juliette
Harrison helps me out of Claud’s bed, and we walk silently back to our bedroom.
The second the door closes, I look at him with uncertainty—not because I’m ashamed of confessing my love, but because I don’t want him to feel pressured to reciprocate if he’s not as ready to express himself as I am.
There was no plan to tell him tonight. I knew there would be a moment when I felt it in my heart to tell him, and for some reason, tonight, reading to Claud, was the time.
Everything about the moment felt right.
