Page 109 of Protecting You
Right. She had to ask him. He could just say no.
Couldn’t he?
No clue.
He cleared his throat. “Sorry to interrupt.”
Though they’d sounded happy enough, when they turned to face him, neither looked happy to see him.
Great. He refused to let his smile falter. “You’d better get your jammies on, Sweet Pea.”
“Aw,” Alyssa said. “But I’m not tired!”
He laughed. “Not you.” He shook his head, focusing on his daughter. “She’s a goober.”
Peri’s hundred-watt smile dimmed to sixty when she aimed it at him.
He helped Alyssa to her feet. “You’ll sleep in the sewing room.”
“I figured, but there are fabric scraps?—”
“Just pile them up and set them on the table. Mom won’t care.” He handed her the bag of things she’d bought that day. “Make yourself comfortable, then meet me in the kitchen so we can talk.” She’d been researching Ghazi all day, but he’d yet to find out what she’d learned, too distracted by Dad’s health and Peri’s care. “I’ve got to tuck Sweet Pea back into her pod.” He winked at Peri, who didn’t get his joke at all.
“Sounds comfy.” Alyssa kissed Peri on the head. “See you in the morning. Sleep well.”
He tried not to get his feelings hurt at the forlorn look on Peri’s face as she watched Alyssa leave.
Fifteen minutes later, teeth brushed and pajamas on, Peri picked out a book and climbed under the covers. “Gigi’s been reading me this one.”
It wasSarah, Plain and Tall, which he remembered from his own childhood. It had been one of Hannah’s favorites. He settled beside Peri on the bed, found the bookmark, and started to read.
He was barely two paragraphs in when Peri said, “Daddy?”
“Yeah, sweetie?”
“Is Papi going to be okay?”
He used his finger to mark his page and lowered the paperback to his lap, turning to face his daughter. Her brown eyes never failed to melt his heart. Right now, they were filled with anxiety. She hadn’t brushed her hair, and it was stringy and messy and absolutely adorable. She was everything a little girl should be.
Except happy.
“Now that we know there’s something wrong with his heart, the doctors will take good care of him. They’ll put him on medication. They’ll make sure he’s healthy.”
When she blinked, a tear slid down her cheek. “Okay.”
“Do you believe me?”
She nodded, but said, “You don’t know. Nobody can know.”
Her words were heavy with more knowledge than any eight-year-old should have. “You’re right, I don’t know what the future is going to bring. I know I have a God who loves me, and He loves you, and He knows what He’s doing, even if we don’t.”
He braced himself for a question about Megan, about how God could’ve taken Peri’s mommy away. But she didn’t ask it, not of him. Instead, she nodded for him to keep reading.
He finished two chapters, then sat with Peri while she said her prayers, which she ended with, “Please, don’t let Papi die.”
He added his own silent “Amen” to that. He shut off the light, kissed her forehead, and tucked her in. “I love you, Sweet Pea.”
She didn’t return the sentiment, never had, even though his mother had assured him that Peri did love him, that children naturally loved their parents.
