Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 49330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 247(@200wpm)___ 197(@250wpm)___ 164(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 247(@200wpm)___ 197(@250wpm)___ 164(@300wpm)
“No, but I wouldn’t be angry if Hannah woke me up.”
“I know darling, but she needs her sleep so she can get better quicker.”
“Daddy will she be better by dinner.”
“No honey. You’re going to spend tonight with grandpa and grandma and I’m going to stay with Hannah and make sure she gets all the help she needs, okay?”
“Why I can’t I stay too. I can help too.”
“I’m sure Hannah would love that, but they don’t allow children, honey.” I glanced at my watch, then out of the square hospital windows. It was going to rain soon and I wished my parents would hurry up and come and pick Annie up. Especially since I wanted to go back to Hannah’s bedside. Being away from her even for these few short minutes was making me feel edgy and nervous. I needed to there for her. I wanted her wake up and for me to see with my own eyes that she was fine. That everything was all right again.
“Daddy, if you want to marry Hannah, you can, you know?”
My head jerked around. “What?”
“I said, you can marry Hannah if you want. I won’t mind.”
I stared at her sweet face. It was impossible that she suspected Hannah and I were in love. We only just admitted it to ourselves. I made my voice gentle. “Why did you say that, honey?”
She gave a little shrug. “Mommy told me that all the nannies just want to marry you, and once they marry you, they will become like the evil stepmother in Cinderella.”
I stared at her incredulously. Fuck you, and your ugly heart, Daphne. “Your mother told you that?”
She nodded. “But I don’t think Hannah is going to be evil to me, do you Daddy?”
I shook my head automatically. I was in too much shock to even get my head around the horrendous idea that my ex-wife had imprinted into her innocent daughter’s head. No wonder Annie had been so horrible to all her nannies. It all made sense now.
“I don’t think so either,” she agreed solemnly.
I took both Annie’s hands in mine. “Listen to me, Annie. Your mother was wrong to tell you that. That’s not how things happen. Most nannies don’t want to marry their employers. It’s just their job to take care of children so that the kids’ parents can work. Yes, some nannies do fall in love with some of their employers, but they don’t automatically turn into evil stepmothers. Do you understand that?”
“Why did Mommy say that then?”
“Maybe she was afraid you would stop loving her.”
She looked down at her shoes. “I don’t love her that much, Daddy.”
“It’s okay, honey. You just love who you want to love, okay?”
She looked up at me. “Okay.”
I grinned at her. “That’s my girl.”
“Daddy, do you think Hannah will fall in love with you?”
I swallowed. “Would you like that?”
“Yes, I want her to stay with us forever and ever…and ever.”
It was as if all my wishes had come true. “Let me see what I can do about that, okay?”
She grinned. “I can be the flower girl.”
I laughed. Things will work out, I could feel it in my bones.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Hannah
Light flooded my eyes and I tried to blink it away.
My body felt so heavy and all I wanted to do was to go back to the soft darkness I had come from. Everything hurt. I groaned as I half-opened my eyes.
Christian peered at me closely. His eyes were rimmed with red, there were dark circles underneath them, and his clothes looked disheveled and messy. "Oh, thank God you’re awake," he said with relief, as he stood and took my hand in his. "Can you hear me, Hannah?"
I nodded a little and winced at the pain. "What happened? I remember being in the car and I couldn't stop…" I trailed off.
Christian glared. There was a ring of white around his mouth. "Daphne is what happened. She hired someone to cut your brake fluid line. I'm so fucking pissed I let you leave on your own. I’m so sorry, Hannah. I would take your pain if I could."
"Shhh," I told him softly. "It’s not your fault. You couldn't have known.”
“I should have known,” he grated out in an anguished voice.
He looked so upset it broke my heart. “Don’t,” I whispered. “I’m alive and that all that counts.”
You’re alive by the grace of God,” he said bitterly.
“How bad is it?" I asked, trying my move my shoulder and feel pain ratcheting through my body. "Everything is killing me."
"You have a mild concussion from hitting your head on the steering wheel, you broke your arm, and the rest are bruises."
I glanced at my arm. "That would explain the cast.” I closed my eyes. “Ugh…and the pain."
Christian touched my cheek gently. It felt like a butterfly wing brushing against my skin.
I opened my eyes. He looked as if he was afraid even to touch me properly because he felt I might break. Honestly, I could understand why. I felt like I would break too. My eyes filled with tears and I watched with surprise as his did the same.