“I’m so sorry.” I stared into his somber eyes. I knew that expression too well, and I wanted to hug him, but I clasped one hand around the other wrist to hold myself back.
“Thank you, but we knew it was coming.” He scrubbed at his stubble and wrinkled his nose. “Roselyn had stage four breast cancer. It spread so fast that by the time she found it, it was too late. It attacked all her organs too. Bridget was only two, and it was so difficult when her mother was gone from her. She cried every night for her.”
I blinked the pooling tears away and peeked at Bridget. She was smiling and humming the upbeat theme music of Unicorns versus Skeletons as she painted. She looked so happy. It probably seemed like a lifetime ago for Lee. Sometimes it seemed like that to me about Steve.
I understood his pain. I’d dealt with my own grief when my brother-in-law had passed away, but Abby and Tyler lived through worse. I wanted to tell Lee that I understood, but this was about him opening up to me, about his and Bridget’s loss.
“You said you had a brother. Where is he?” I stepped away from the wall and walked over to admire the second painting of roses in a vase.
He followed me. “Liam lives in New York. He’s a stockbroker, didn’t want to get into the family business. He left it all to me.” Lee didn’t sound thrilled about being the president of his company, but I didn’t ask. “How about you? Just you and Abby?”
I turned back to him to meet his gaze. “Yes. My parents are on a cruise.” I didn’t know why I’d said that. I tried to make it sound natural and not awkward. “How about your parents?”
“They like to travel as well. They’ll drop by here for Christmas, and they’ll likely visit another country. My parents worked hard all their lives and recently retired. They want to travel the world before they get too old.” He chuckled and shoved his hands in his pockets. “They have a better social life than I do. Well, I have some work to do.” He took out his cell from his back pocket and glanced at it. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.”
“Thank you.” I waved my hand toward the easel and paints. “Since you have all the materials I need, I’ll stick around to give Bridget her first lesson. And please, this is my pleasure. You’ve already paying me more than I deserve. In fact, it’s ridiculous how much I’m going to get paid for two weeks and I barely feel like I’m doing anything.”
He rested a hand on my arm and then dropped it to his side. “You’re helping me by watching Bridget. It was at the very last minute. We had many interested applicants, but Mona picked you. She did right. I trust her instincts. Always have and always will.”
“Thank you again for the compliment.” I tipped my head to the side and smiled. “Before you go, I have another question. Why does Bridget associate wind chimes with angels? Did you tell her that?”
“No.” He furrowed his brow and stole a quick glance at Bridget. “In fact, I was going to ask you the same thing.”
“I didn’t. But ...”
“But what?”
“Well ...” I bit my bottom lip and rubbed my arms, contemplating how to say it. “When I was a little girl, my mom told me wind chimes were often hung in Asian temples because they were thought to bring peaceful spirits and ward off the evil ones. We always had a couple in our backyard because they reminded her of her childhood home. Every time the wind chimes tinkled, I imagined they were the sounds of angel wings flapping and they were visiting me. Protecting me, almost. The sound gave me peace every time I heard it, and that thought helped me through some hard times. It was a reminder that everything was going to be fine. That I was on the right path.”
“That’s sweet.”
“Yeah, but those chimes drove our neighbors crazy, especially on windy days.”
Lee burst out with a full belly chuckle, a heartwarming sound. I laughed with him until my eyes watered. It wasn’t particularly funny, but his laugh brought out my own mirth. Bridget also giggled, but she lost interest and went back to painting. Then the room fell silent, but our gazes remained locked.
Desire bloomed inside me, but that was a place I didn’t want to go. Unless I was reading his steady gaze wrong, Lee might be feeling it too.
I paced to the third painting to break away from whatever was happening between us. “Maybe Mona told her about wind chimes?”
Lee gave me a sidelong glance at first, and then finally understood. “I don’t think so. The first time I heard Bridget say it was when we were playing the game. I didn’t ask her about it because ...” He glanced over to his niece, and then back to me, clearing his throat. He seemed to be struggling with words. “Maybe it’s helping her deal with the loss of her mother. I would say anything, do anything to help her. I thought about sending her to a therapist, but Mona is very good with her and has helped her in many ways. All I can do is love her and let her know I’ll always be there for her.”
I raised my hand to touch his face, but stopped halfway and dropped my hand to my side. He was such an amazing person. It was a huge responsibility to take care of a child. Few uncles would do the same for their nieces.
“She’s lucky to have you,” I said, looking at Bridget.
He shook his head. “No, I’m lucky to have her.”
My heart melted. “What about her father?”
He clenched his jaw. His expression darkened and he whispered sharply, “He walked out on my sister shortly after she got pregnant. He had another woman. I don’t know where he is and I don’t care. I would never let him get close to Bridget even if he wanted her back in his life.”
I didn’t blame him.
We had lowered our voices and kept the conversation away from Bridget, but when she turned to look at us, I flinched.
“I’m done. Want to see it?” She waved the brush toward her easel and flecks of paint splattered off the tip.
Bridget had painted stick figures of two people with long hair. Lee and I exchanged glances, and from the way he clutched his chest, I was certain his heart somersaulted like mine did.
Lee went to her and placed a tender hand on her back. “Who did you paint, sweetheart?”
She pointed with her brush. “The little one is me, and the big one with wings is mommy. We’re holding hands. Sometimes I dream about her.”
Lee kissed her forehead and caressed her face. “Your mother is always thinking of you. She’s right there, always.” He patted her heart. “And I am right here. Always.” He tapped his chest.
“I know.” She nodded with her head lowered and looked up. “Can we play Unicorns versus Skeletons now?”
If Bridget hadn’t suggested something fun, I might have. We needed something uplifting after the somber conversation. Gloom seemed to fester in the air and just like how I was here to make Christmas the happiest time of the year for Tyler, I was going to do the same for Bridget.
Lee glanced at the time on his cell and paused. Then his gaze went from Bridget to me and lingered on me. He said the unexpected words, “Well, I do need to catch up to Kate’s level.”
“You can try.” I arched a single brow, with a hint of challenge in my tone. “What about your work?”