Was it a damn foolish move? Yes. He knew one night of stargazing on the ridge wouldn’t make her happy. Was it likely to backfire? Definitely. Damn it all, he loved her, there was no way around it. All he knew was she needed someone. And he wanted to be that someone. Whatever she needed, whatever she wanted—he’d do his best to give it to her. He might regret it once she’d left town...but he was doing it anyway.
He turned to his girls. “You three princesses have sweet dreams. All about cookies and cupcakes, and dragon eggs, too.” He added the last with a wink for Amberleigh.
“Daddy?” Marilyn asked. “Drink, please.”
“Me, too?” Suellen asked, sliding from her bed. “I’ll help.”
Brody sighed but let Suellen help him get three glasses of water. It was a production. Marilyn needed pink, Suellen blue and Amberleigh dragon green. He filled their cups, put them on a tray and carried them back to their room—Suellen trailing behind him. She distributed their cups, taking teeny-tiny steps so she wouldn’t spill.
“Not thirsty,” Amberleigh said.
“You might get thirsty later,” Brody said, watching Suellen set Amberleigh’s green cup down with the utmost care.
“Daddy?” Suellen asked, climbing into bed again. “Dragons come from eggs? Like chickens?”
He looked at Amberleigh. “I think so.”
Amberleigh nodded.
“Eggs make babies. Cute babies.” Suellen laughed.
He chuckled.
“No.” Amberleigh frowned, making claw hands. “Dragons scary.”
Marilyn moaned. “No scary dreams.” She sniffed, her big eyes welling up with tears.
“Daddy, no,” Suellen wailed. “No scary dreams.”
Amberleigh’s eyelids drifted shut.
“No, no, now, your dream dragons will protect you,” he assured them, hoping he sounded convincing. “They keep all princesses safe and sound and watch over them when they sleep.”
“They do?” Marilyn asked, wiping a tear away with the back of her hand.
“Sure,” he said, out of his element. He wasn’t raised on make-believe and fairy tales. But seeing his girls in tears was too much for him. “I’ll bring Lollipop in here, too. He’ll come get me or Nana or Granddad. Okay?” He leaned out the door. “Lollipop, come on.” He patted his leg, watching the tiny dog barrel down the hall—a white fluffy flash that leaped up onto Amberleigh’s bed. “Better?”
Suellen nodded. Marilyn sniffed but nodded, too. Amberleigh was already sleeping, completely unaware of Lollipop nudging beneath her arm and burrowing close to her sleeping form. He turned on their princess crown night-light and flipped off the overhead. “You girls sleep sweet. Tomorrow we’ll go shopping for your birthday party next month.”
“Gonna be three,” Suellen said, holding up three fingers.
“Go to school?” Marilyn asked.
“I’ll check. We can ask Cal’s momma. She teaches at the school.”
“Ask, Daddy,” Suellen said.
“I’ll go do that,” he said. “You get some sleep and we’ll talk about school at breakfast tomorrow morning. Night, girls. Sleep tight.”
“Night,” they said in unison before he pulled the door around, leaving it cracked behind him.
He lingered in the hall. Experience had taught him to stay put for at least five minutes. The girls tended to slip out of bed and wander, wanting more water, another kiss or a bathroom visit before he had to tuck them in again. If he caught them early on, he could stop the dawdling and stall tactics.
“How’d it go today?” his father asked when he walked into the living room. His dad was working on his nightly crossword puzzle while his mother sat in her recliner, knitting needles furiously clicking. “I still can’t believe you went there.”
“Vic.” The needles stopped clicking. “Your blood pressure.”
“It went well. The county really rallied—ready and willing to make the Monarch Festival happen.” He leaned against the arched doorway. “And Mayor Draper is stepping aside.”