Maya Blake - Bound By His Vow - His Final Bargain / The Rings That Bind / Marriage Made of Secrets

‘I think she’s having a shower. I was just going past and I—’

‘You’re not on duty until the morning.’

Eliza didn’t care for being reprimanded for doing something that came as naturally to her as breathing. Sleeping children needed checking on. Distressed children needed comforting. She raised her chin at him. ‘Your daughter seemed restless. She called out to her mother. I comforted her back to sleep.’

Something moved through his eyes, a rapid flash of pain that was painful to witness. ‘Marella is waiting to dish up dinner.’ He held open the door for her in a pointed fashion. ‘I’ll see you downstairs.’

‘She looks like you.’ The words were out before Eliza could stop them.

It was a moment or two before he spoke. ‘Yes…’ His expression remained inscrutable but she sensed an inner tension that he seemed at great pains to keep hidden.

She swallowed against the tide of regret that rose in her throat. If things had been different they would both be leaning over that cot as the proud, devoted parents of that gorgeous little girl. They might have even had another baby on the way by now. The family she had longed for, the family she had dreamed about for most of her life could have been hers but for that one fateful night that had changed the entire course of her life.

‘ Mamma ?’

Eliza swung her gaze to the cot where Alessandra had now pulled herself upright, her little dimpled hands clinging to the rail. She rubbed at one of her eyes with a little fisted hand. ‘I want Mamma ,’ she whimpered as her chin started to wobble.

Eliza went over to the cot and picked up the little toddler and cuddled her close. ‘I’m not your mummy but I’ve come to take care of you for a little while,’ she said as she stroked the child’s back in a soothing and rhythmic manner.

Alessandra tried to wriggle away. ‘I want Kathleen.’

‘Kathleen had to go and see her family,’ Eliza said, rocking her gently from side to side. ‘She’ll be back before you know it.’

‘Where’s Papà ?’ Alessandra asked.

‘I’m here, mia piccolo .’ Leo’s voice was gentle as he placed his hand on his daughter’s raven-black head.

The base of Eliza’s spine quivered at his closeness. She could smell his citrus-based aftershave; she could even smell the fabric softener that clung to the fibres of his shirt. Her senses were instantly on high alert. Her left shoulder was within touching distance of his chest. She could feel the solid wall of him just behind her. She was so tempted to lean against the shelter of his body. It had been so long since she had felt someone put their arms around her and hold her close.

‘I wetted the bed,’ Alessandra said sheepishly.

Eliza could feel the dampness against her arm where the little tot’s bottom was resting. She glanced up at Leo, who gave her a don’t-blame-me look. ‘She refuses to wear a nappy to bed,’ he said.

‘I’m too big for nappies,’ Alessandra announced with a cute little pout of her rosebud mouth, although her deep-set eyes were still half closed. ‘I’m a big girl now.’

‘I’m sure you are,’ Eliza said. ‘But even big girls need a bit of help now and again, especially at night. Maybe you could wear pull-ups for a while. They’re much more grown-up. I’ve seen some really cool ones with little pink kittens on them. I can get some for you if you like.’

Alessandra plugged a thumb in her mouth by way of answer. It seemed this was one little Munchkin who was rather practised in getting her own way.

‘Let’s get you changed, shall we?’ Eliza said as she carried the little girl to the changing table in the corner of the nursery. ‘Do you want the pink pyjamas or the blue ones?’

‘I don’t know my colours,’ Alessandra said from around her thumb.

‘Well, maybe I can teach you while I’m here,’ Eliza said.

‘You’d be wasting your time,’ Leo said.

Eliza glanced at him with a reproving frown. Little children should not be exposed to negative messages about their capacity to learn. It could set up a lifelong pattern of failure. ‘Pardon?’ she said.

‘My daughter will never learn her colours.’

‘That’s ridiculous,’ she said. ‘Why ever not?’

He gave her a grim look. ‘Because she is blind.’

ELIZA BLINKED AT him in shock.

Blind?

Her heart clanged against her ribcage like a pendulum struck by a sledgehammer.

Alessandra was blind?

Her emotions went into a downward spiral. How cruel! How impossibly cruel that this little child was not only motherless but blind as well. It was so tragic, so unbearable to think that Leo’s little girl couldn’t see the world around her, not even the faces of the people she loved.

How devastating for him as a father. How gut-wrenching to think of all the obstacles that little mite would face over her lifetime. All the things she would miss out on or not be able to enjoy as others enjoyed them. The beauty of the world she would never see. It was so sad, so tragic it made Eliza’s heart ache for Leo. It made her ache for the little toddler who lived in a world of blackness. ‘I’m sorry…I didn’t realize…’

‘Will you tell me a story?’ Alessandra piped up from the changing table.

‘Of course,’ Eliza said. ‘But after that you have to go back to sleep.’ Oh, dear God, how did the little babe even know it was night? Anguish squeezed the breath out of her chest. She felt as if she was being suffocated by it. How had Leo coped with such a tragic blow? Was that why his wife had ended her life? Had it been too much for her to cope with a child who was blind?

The agency girl, Laura, came in at that point. ‘Oh, sorry,’ she said. ‘Is she awake? I thought she’d settled for the night.’

‘My daughter’s bed needs changing,’ Leo said curtly.

‘I’ll see to it,’ Laura said and rushed over to the cot.

Eliza had finished the business end of things with Alessandra and gathered her up in her arms again. ‘I have just the story for you,’ she said and carried her back to the freshly made up cot. ‘Do you like dogs?’

‘Yes, but Papà won’t let me have a puppy,’ Alessandra said in a baleful tone. ‘He said I have to wait until I’m older. I don’t want to wait until I’m older. I want one now.’

‘I’m sure he knows what’s best for you,’ Eliza said. ‘Now, let’s get you settled in bed before I start my story.’

‘Where’s Kathleen?’ Alessandra asked. ‘Why isn’t she here? I want Kathleen. I want her now!’ Those little heels began to drum against the mattress of the cot.

‘I told you she had a family emergency to see to,’ Leo said.

‘But I want her here with me!’ Alessandra said, starting to wail again.

Eliza could see that Alessandra was a very bright child who was used to pushing against the boundaries. It was common after the death of a parent for the remaining parent or other carers to overcompensate for their loss. It was just as common for a child with a disability to be treated the same way. The little girl was used to being the centre of attention and used every opportunity she could to grasp at power.

‘Kathleen is going to be away for the next month,’ she said. ‘But I think it might be nice if Papà gets her to call you on the phone while she’s away.’

‘Does she miss me?’

‘I’m sure she does,’ Eliza said. ‘Now, let’s get those feet of yours still and relaxed, otherwise my story won’t come out to play.’

‘How long are you staying?’ Alessandra asked.

Eliza glanced at Leo but his expression was as blank as a mask. ‘Let’s not worry about that just now,’ she said. ‘The important thing is that you get back to sleep. Now, let’s see how this goes. Once upon a time there was a little dog who loved to chase…’