“Where is Mommy?”
“Upstairs. I was waiting for you.” She met my eyes, her green irises so like Fee’s. She had my dark hair, but other than that, she was Fee all over, including her tiny stature. “I missed you!”
I rubbed her nose playfully with mine. “I missed you, baby girl.”
She leaned forward, pressing our foreheads together, her voice low as if she was telling me a secret. “I needs a story, Daddy.”
I tossed the rest of the cookie into my mouth, settled her on my hip, and headed up the stairs. “Then you get one.”
I paused in the door of the nursery, gazing at the sweet sight. Fee was in her rocking chair, our new son nuzzling at her breast.
“Hey, FeeNelly.”
Her luminous eyes were bright as she beamed at me. “Hey yourself, counselor.”
I strolled to the rocking chair and bent, dropping a kiss to her full mouth, then bending farther down to press my lips to my son’s head. Elsie, as usual, had to get in on the action and dropped about a hundred kisses on Brandon’s head.
I stood and cupped Fee’s cheek. “Everything okay? You look tired, love.”
“He was a little fussy today. I think he missed his daddy.”
I ran my finger over his downy cheek. “I missed him.”
I had taken two weeks off when Brandon was born and, for the first time in my life, had dreaded returning to work. I was busy and productive all day, but my thoughts often strayed to where my heart was—back home with my family.
“We’ll figure it out,” she assured me.
“I was thinking of going to a four-day week. Two downtown, two here, and one at home.” I lifted Elsie, settling her head into the crook of my neck as I rubbed her back in long passes, knowing how much she loved it when I did that. She sighed and snuggled closer in contentment.
Fee’s expression turned joyful. I loved seeing her look at me that way.
“I’d like that.”
“I’m also thinking of hiring another lawyer and cutting back more over the next year.”
Fee stroked Brandon’s head as she regarded me. “Don’t make a decision based on one day back at work, Halton. Your emotions are talking right now.”
“And I’m listening. I denied them too long.” I sighed and pressed a kiss to Elsie’s head. “I don’t want to miss their childhood. Rene pointed out that I could start taking more of an advisory approach. Sit in on meetings, help direct the cases, but not work on them. Let the others handle that part and free up a lot of my time. Do three days and be home for the rest.”
“We’d like that. All of us.”
Our gazes locked, and a silent conversation passed between us. My eyes pleaded with her to understand my need to be with her and our kids as much as possible. Her green gaze was gentle and compassionate. She gave me an imperceptible nod, letting me know she would support me no matter what I decided.
Elsie lifted her head, tapping my cheek to get my attention. “Story, Daddy.”
“Right.” I lowered her to Fee’s level. “Kiss Mommy goodnight.”
Once the kiss-fest was done, I carried Elsie across the hall to her room. Pinks, purples, and yellow reigned supreme in there. Lace, frills, and stuffed toys abounded. It was as girly as it could be. I settled into the large chair in the corner after tossing aside a dozen stuffed toys and tucked Elsie onto my lap. Her new “big girl” bed was way too small for me to be comfortable on, and I knew by experience, story time was at least thirty minutes. Elsie had inherited one other thing from me—my restlessness at night. We found keeping her to a routine helped. A warm bath, a story, and being held close helped settle her, and once she fell asleep, she rarely woke up these days. I had to admit it was my favorite time of day.
I glanced at the overflowing bookshelf. “What one, baby girl?”
“A daddy story.”
“Ah.” She liked it when I made up stories and told them to her. She also liked funny voices and lots of princesses. They were often the same basic story, but I always threw in something new. Fee assured me it was the tone of my voice and my closeness that Elsie liked the most.
I pursed my lips.
“Once upon a time, there was a princess named Fee.”
“Like Mommy!”
I kissed her head. “Yep.”
“One day, the princess went for a walk and got lost. She kept walking and looking for a friend to help her. Deep in the forest, she met a mean monster. He lived alone in a cave.”
I heard Fee’s gentle laughter drift across the hall.
“Was she scared?”
“Nope. The princess was brave, and she knew the monster wouldn’t hurt her. She was smart like that.”
Elsie furrowed her little brow, looking so much like Fee, I had to kiss her nose.
“Did he have a name, Daddy?”
“Yes. His name was Smitty.”
Fee laughed again, and I leaned back, peering across the hall. Her head rested against the back of the rocking chair, and she was watching us. She had set up the rooms so she could easily see both children from each chair, and it came in handy at night. I threw her a wink, and she shook her head.
“Why was Smitty alone?”
“He was snarly and growly.”
“How come?”
I stroked Elsie’s downy cheek. “He had a thorn in his paw nobody knew about. It hurt him all the time.”
Her eyes grew round. “Like a boo-boo?”
“Yes.”
“He didn’t have a mommy to kiss it better?”
“Nope. He was a grown-up monster.”
She frowned. “That is sad.”
I chuckled. “The princess told Smitty she was lost and needed his help. He said no, but she asked again and smiled at him. Smitty thought it was the most beautiful smile he had ever seen, so he said okay. He showed the princess how to get home, but before she could thank him, he walked away. But the princess remembered his kindness. A few days later, the princess was out for a walk again and ran into the monster. She tried to talk to him, but he was rude.”
Fee’s voice floated between the rooms. “He was egotistical too.”
I never raised my voice, although I tried not to laugh. I met her gaze again, trying to look stern. “Enough from the peanut gallery.”
She lifted Brandon to her shoulder, rocking and patting his back. I loved seeing her with our children. It made me warm inside.
Little fingers pulled at my beard. “What happened, Daddy?”
“Princess Fee was a magical princess. She had long silver hair that hid her magic wand, and when Smitty walked away from her, she waved it in the air, and it showed her the thorn that was deep in his skin.”
“And?” she asked anxiously.
“Princess Fee followed Smitty home and used her wand to make the thorn disappear.”
Elsie clapped her hands. “Then he wasn’t grumpy?”
“Nope. In fact, as soon as the thorn disappeared, Smitty turned into the most handsome prince in the world. He was charming and smooth, and Princess Fee fell in love with him. She waved her magic wand again and turned his cave into a palace.”
“Yay!”
Fee’s snicker was louder this time, and I turned to see her leaning against the doorjamb.