Page 91 of Whisper Sweet Nothings
twenty-five
. . .
Archer
I heldmy little girl a little longer tonight. She’d been quiet at dinner, even though she’d tried to rally for Winnie’s birthday, and Melody had always loved Valentine’s Day. But the hurtful words that Justine had said to her today had definitely taken the wind from her sails.
I’d talked to her about it, and she’d listened and nodded, but I knew that she was wounded, and it fucking killed me.
“I’m glad you came in here for bath time, too, Winnie. Bath time is my favorite. Tonight, we don’t have to wash my hair, right, Daddy?” Melody said. That little twang in her voice was like a straight shot to my heart. She was pure sweetness.
“Right, angel face. Last night we washed your hair, so tonight we’re just washing your body.”
“Bath time is my favorite time of day, too,” Winnie said as she held up the body wash. Melody held her hand out for a few pumps. Winnie and I were both down on the floor beside the tub, as my daughter had asked us both to be in here tonight.
She’d had her feelings hurt real bad, and it wasn’t familiar to her. So she was working through it.
I was just pissed off, and tempted to give Justine’s mother, Sarah Lynn, a piece of my mind, but Winnie talked me out of it.
She thought I should sleep on it, and see how I felt tomorrow.
As a parent, we’re prepared for how challenging the newborn stage is. The sleepless nights, the diapers, the feedings, all of it. Everyone talks about the difficulties that you will face.
We’re even prepared for the commitment that comes with parenting—the time, the financial expectations, all the safety issues that you need to be aware of. Again, it’s discussed all the time.
But no one tells you how to prepare for this kind of stuff. For seeing your child get hurt. For how deeply you feel that pain and desperately want to take it from them.
So I forced myself to remain calm and talk her through it. To just love her the best way I could and hope that it was enough.
“Me and you’s love bows and bubble baths,” Melody sang out, and then she chuckled.
“We sure do, those are two of my favorite things, but you know what else I love?” Winnie asked as she handed my little girl a washcloth to wipe away the water that had splashed her face.
“What?”
“You.” She smiled at my daughter. “I love you so much, Melody. And when your daddy hired me, I admitted I hadn’t been around kids much, so I was a little nervous. But once I met you, I knew I was lucky because you’re the most lovable girl in the whole wide world.”
Melody blinked a couple of times. “You and me don’t have mamas, but we’re still lovable.”
“Absolutely we are.” Winnie sighed. “Having a mama doesn’t make you lovable—it’s what’s inside your heart that makes you lovable. And you, Melody Chadwick, have the best heart I’ve ever seen.”
“I like your heart, too, Winnie.” Melody’s bottom lip started to quiver. “I felt real sad today when Justine said those things to me, because I do sometimes wish you were my real mama.”
My fucking chest tightened so much, I was doing my best not to show my discomfort. Seeing my little girl in pain did crazy shit to me.
“I’m yourreal Winnie, and I think what we have is even better than if I’d met you as a baby.”
“You do?” Melody asked.
“I do. Because we both found each other when we needed the other most.”
Fuck me.
These two owned me right now.
I glanced over at Winnie, but she was focused on my daughter. On healing her pain. On making her feel better and taking away that hurt.
“I’m happy about that.” Melody smiled and then raised her arms over her head. “I’m ready to get out and have the sweetest dreams.”
