Chapter 12 #2
“But are they happy? Do they feel loved?”
“They’re children. They daenae understand.”
“They understand perfectly!” Piper’s voice rose again.
“They understand that their faither doesnae want to be near them. That somethin’ about them is so painful he cannae bear to look at them for more than a few minutes at a time.
They understand that they’re somehow failin’ ye, even though they’re just children tryin’ to earn their faither’s love! ”
“They daenae think that.”
“They do!”
Elijah flinched as if she’d struck him.
“I ken ye never meant it. But that doesnae change what’s happenin’.” Piper’s voice softened slightly. “Ye’re so busy protectin’ them from threats that might never come that ye’re blind to the damage ye’re actually causin’.”
“I daenae ken how to be what they need,” Elijah admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. “After Catherine died, somethin’ in me changed. And I… I daenae ken how to fix it.”
“Then learn,” Piper said simply. “Start small. Have breakfast with them. Ask them about their day. Listen when they talk instead of just givin’ orders.”
“It’s nae that easy.”
“It is that easy! It’s exactly that…” Piper stopped, realization dawning. “Wait. Ye said Catherine died nine years ago?”
“Aye.”
“And ye had bairns with her. Which means at some point, ye cared about her—” Piper’s face heated, but she pushed on. “At the least, ye love yer children. Ye opened yer heart enough, to marry, to have children with someone. Which means ye’re capable of love, Elijah. Ye’ve proven it.”
“That was different.”
“How? How was it different?”
“Catherine and I, we were married. It was an arrangement, but we—” He stopped. “It doesnae matter. She’s gone.”
“But yer children are here!” Piper took another step toward him.
“Right here, in this castle, needin’ ye.
And if ye could love their maither enough to have them, then ye can love them too.
Ye just have to choose to. Ye have to decide that the risk of failin’ them is worth the reward of actually bein’ their faither. ”
Elijah stared at her, his expression unreadable. “Ye make it sound so simple.”
“Because it is simple. It’s nae easy, but it is simple.
” Piper held his gaze. “Yer children need ye, Elijah. And if ye daenae change, if ye daenae start lettin’ them in, then one day ye’re goin’ to wake up and realize they’re grown and gone.
And they’ll hate ye for all the years ye wasted keepin’ them away. ”
Something flickered across Elijah’s face—pain, maybe, or fear. He opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, a slow clap echoed through the study.
Piper spun around to find a man leaning against the doorframe, the same man who’d given her directions. He was grinning like this was the best entertainment he’d had in years.
“Well said, lass,” the man said. “Well said indeed.”
Heat flooded Piper’s face as she realized she’d had an audience for her entire tirade. “How long have ye been standin’ there?”
“Long enough.” The man’s grin widened. “Ye’ve got fire, Miss Armstrong. I like that.”
“Declan,” Elijah growled. “Get out.”
“But it was just gettin’ interestin’.”
“Out. Now.”
Declan held up his hands in surrender, still grinning. “As ye wish, me laird. But for what it’s worth? I think the lass has a point.” He shot Piper a wink. “Ye’re goin’ to fit in just fine here, Miss Armstrong.”
Then he was gone, leaving Piper and Elijah alone in the study once more.
The silence stretched between them, heavy with everything said and unsaid. Piper’s face was still burning with embarrassment at having been overheard, but she refused to look away from Elijah.
“I meant every word,” she said quietly. “Even if I shouldnae have said it.”
“I ken ye did.” Elijah’s voice was rough. “And maybe ye’re right. About some of it.”
“About all of it.”
“Daenae push yer luck, lass.”
Despite everything, Piper felt her lips twitch. “I’m nae very good at nae pushin’ me luck.”
“Aye. I’m startin’ to realize that.” Elijah moved back behind his desk, putting distance between them. “Was there anythin’ else ye wanted to yell at me about? Or are we done?”
Piper opened her mouth to say something else, but she wasn’t sure what, so she thought better of it. She’d said her piece. Anything more would just be beating a dead horse.
“We’re done,” she said. “For now.”
“For now,” Elijah repeated, and there might have been the ghost of a smile on his lips. “Of course. Wouldnae want ye to run out of things to lecture me about.”
“Oh, I have plenty more where that came from,” Piper assured him. “But I’ll save them for later.”
She turned to leave, then paused at the door. “Elijah?”
“Aye?”
“Yer children are wonderful. Masie’s sharp and protective and so much stronger than she kens. Connor is enthusiastic, kind, and desperate to make everyone proud of him. They’re brilliant, both of them. And they deserve to have ye see that.”
She didn’t wait for his response. Just walked out of the study with her head held high, even though her hands were shaking and her heart was racing.
She’d just yelled at a laird. At the man who held her entire future in his hands.
And she didn’t regret a single word. Even if it meant losing her position. Even if it meant having to leave.
Some things were worth fighting for. And those two children definitely were.