Daisy\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
My hands trembled slightly as I gathered the broken pieces of glass from the floor. This wasn\u2019t how tonight was supposed to unfold. Everything had been choreographed perfectly\u2013the performance, the invitation to my apartment, the special ingredient waiting in my purse that I\u2019d slipped into Ridley\u2019s water when he was admiring my photography.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How had Aria seen? I\u2019d been so careful. Unless\u2026 she might have overheard my phone call earlier when I was confirming the plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I glanced up to see the little girl\u2019s eyes fixed on me, unflinching and accusatory. Normally vacant or distant, they now burned with awareness and something I\u2019d never seen in her before\u2013defiance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRidley,\u201d I said, injecting warmth into my voice as I stood. \u201cLet me take Aria to her room to calm down.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before he could object, I placed my hand firmly on Aria\u2019s shoulder and leaned down to whisper in her ear, my smile never faltering for\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ridley\u2019s benefit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNot one word,\u201d I breathed, soft enough that only she could hear. \u201cOr I\u2019ll make sure you never dance again. You know what happens to little girls who tell lies? They get locked away where no one can see them. Where they can\u2019t even see the sky.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I felt her small body stiffen under my grasp. Her fear of confinement was well\u2013documented in her therapy notes\u2013the panic attacks she\u2019d experienced when accidentally locked in a practice room last month had taken weeks to work through.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Straightening, I directed my words to Ridley. \u201cShe\u2019s overwhelmed. This happens sometimes after performances. Why don\u2019t I take her to decompress while you and Aiden wait here? I\u2019ll bring her back in a few minutes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ridley hesitated, his dark eyes studying my face with his penetrating gaze. \u201cAiden, stay with your sister,\u201d he finally said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not part of my plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cActually, I countered smoothly, \u201chaving her brother around might overstimulate her further. The protocol we use at the conservatory is very specific about minimizing social interactions during episodes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aria\u2019s breathing had quickened, her small hands forming tight fists at her sides. She wasn\u2019t going to last much longer before having a\u00a0<\/p>\n
meltdown\u2013which might actually work in my favor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDad,\u201d Aiden spoke up, his child\u2019s voice carrying a peculiar authority, \u201cI think we should take Aria home with us tonight.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not possible,\u201d I said quickly. \u201cThe conservatory has strict policies about residential students maintaining their routine, especially after performances. Breaking that routine could set her progress back significantly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched Ridley\u2019s expression harden as he stood up. \u201cAria, come with me. No one else,\u201d he commanded, heading toward the garden.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 64\u00a0<\/p>\n
No, she couldn\u2019t tell Ridley anything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The girl kept her head down, shoulders hunched like a frightened bird. Her blonde bangs\u2013so similar to her father\u2019s\u2013fell across her eyes, hiding whatever emotion might be flickering there. I needed to act quickly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAria, Dad\u2019s reasonable. Just explain your reasons to him,\u201d Aiden said, handing his sister her sketchbook.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That boy was always interfering. Too observant for his own good. I kept my smile pleasant while Aria pressed her lips together, clutching the sketchbook like a shield before slowly walking toward the door.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I moved swiftly to intercept her, bending down with practiced grace to whisper near her ear. \u201cYou\u2019re a smart girl. You know what should be\u00a0<\/p>\n
said and what shouldn\u2019t, don\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I felt a thrill of satisfaction as her small body tensed beneath my fingers. Her head snapped up, and I caught the flash of fear in those\u00a0<\/p>\n
dark eyes\u2013sharp like winter frost yet vulnerable as a trapped creature.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAria, I know you\u2019re a good girl,\u201d I cooed, my voice honey\u2013sweet. \u201cGo on now, your father\u2019s waiting.\u201d I gave her a gentle push forward, my\u00a0<\/p>\n
smile never faltering.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMiss Black, what did you say to her?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned to find Aiden approaching, his child\u2019s face set in an unnervingly adult expression of suspicion. So like his father.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAria\u2019s afraid of her father, as you well know,\u201d I replied, my voice the perfect blend of concern and warmth. \u201cI was simply encouraging her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She\u2019s a Sterling too, and eventually she\u2019ll fully rejoin the family. I just hope father and daughter can have a good relationship instead of\u00a0<\/p>\n
tension every time they meet.\u201d I smoothed my designer dress, maintaining my role flawlessly. \u201cI\u2019ll wash some fruit for you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked away, feeling Aiden\u2019s cold stare on my back. Let him look. He was just a child, no matter how precocious. I had spent years\u00a0<\/p>\n
cultivating my position in this family\u2013my relationship with Aria was my masterpiece. Through her, I would eventually have Ridley\u00a0<\/p>\n
himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
From the kitchen window, I could see them in the garden\u2013father and daughter, like opposing statues. Ridley\u2019s tall figure towered over\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aria\u2019s small form. I couldn\u2019t hear his words, but his posture spoke of impatience, of a man unused to resistance. Good. The more friction\u00a0<\/p>\n
between them, the more Aria would depend on me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After what seemed like a lecture, Ridley turned back toward the house. \u201cAiden, we\u2019re leaving,\u201d he called out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I quickly positioned myself at the counter, arranging fruit as if I\u2019d been busy preparing it. Aiden emerged from wherever he\u2019d been followed his father, pausing only to say something to his sister before they left.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The black car soon disappeared from the estate entrance. My face crumbled as I watched Aria slowly return to the house, her shoulders\u00a0<\/p>\n
still slumped.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you think you were doing?\u201d I demanded.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 64\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her small face remained expressionless, but her eyes held mine steadily. After a long moment, she spoke\u2013each word precisely articulated, as they always were on the rare occasions when she chose to use her voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI hate you most.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I laughed, the sound brittle in the quiet apartment. \u201cHate me? You should be thanking me. I\u2019m the only reason your father even visits you. Do you think he wants a broken child? A weird little girl who can\u2019t even have a normal conversation?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She flinched, but held her ground.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSleep now! We\u2019re going out tomorrow,\u201d I said, my voice hardening.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d she asked, her voice small but clear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTo the amusement park,\u201d I replied with a smile that didn\u2019t reach my eyes. \u201cYour reward for tonight\u2019s performance. You\u2019d like that,\u00a0<\/p>\n
wouldn\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Terror flashed across her face. The sensory overload of an amusement park would be overwhelming for her\u2013we both knew it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe carousel goes round and round,\u201d I continued, watching her carefully. \u201cAnd the roller coaster goes up so high you can\u2019t see the ground. Wouldn\u2019t that be fun, Aria? Unless, of course, you\u2019d rather stay here and behave.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She retreated a step, her breathing shallow.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what I thought,\u201d I said quietly. \u201cNow, be a good girl and go to your bed. Remember our agreement\u2014you don\u2019t speak, and I don\u2019t\u00a0<\/p>\n
make your worst fears come true.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
We Want Mommy, Not You, Daddy!\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 65\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
The Sky Remembered the Touch of Our Unfinished Goodbyes by Lysa Orion Rehn 64 Daisy\u2019s POV\u00a0 My hands trembled slightly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[88],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-zero-stars-for-daddy-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30463"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30463\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}