Chapter 41
COLE
Icurled up in a sleeping bag with my pillow outside Rosalie’s door. If she wanted to leave, she’d have to crawl over me. It would wake me, and then… I’d keep her and Ellis.
At least I’d try to convince her to stay.
The door opened, and I sat up immediately and stared at Rosalie. It took me only a moment to see she had her suitcases packed.
“No.” I struggled to my knees. “Rosalie. Please. Stay.”
“I learned a long damn time ago that staying in places that hurt you can really ruin your life. I am leaving. I’m going to go back to Klaus’s, and then I’m going to book a flight back home. With Ellis.”
I could see that Ellis was still asleep.
Good. I didn’t want her to be a part of this.
“Please. Just… please. Fuck. Give me a chance, Rosalie. Let’s talk. God. I’m begging you. I was a dick yesterday. I was angry and trying to figure shit out. Stay. Please. I’ll do anything.”
She stared down at me, her face emotionless.
“Rosalie, can we talk?” Enzo asked, his voice soft.
I’d been begging so hard I hadn’t even heard him come out of his room.
“No,” she said. “Get out of my way. I need to get my stuff downstairs.”
“Rosalie. Five minutes. Please. I don’t want us to wake Ellis,” Enzo said, his voice calm. “You and me. My room. We can talk, and Cole can get Ellis up. If you decide to leave, he’ll have her ready to go. Right, Cole?”
“I-I don’t want you to go,” I said, sounding fucking pathetic.
“Cole, you’ll have her ready,” Enzo said firmly, his voice still low.
“I-I will. If you want to go, I’ll have her ready.”
Rosalie eyed me for a moment before she finally let out a sigh and nodded. I got to my feet and moved aside for her. She hobbled out on her crutches and followed Enzo back to his bedroom.
I breathed out, really fucking hoping he smoothed this over, and went inside her room.
I lay in Rosalie’s spot and smoothed back Ellis’s curls. She was the most beautiful little girl I’d ever seen.
I made that, I thought proudly.
Her lashes fluttered, and she stared at me.
“Hey, Ellie-Belly,” I murmured. “Good morning.”
“Morning, Daddy,” she said, hugging her bear to her chest. I knew that bear. I’d given it to Rosalie many years ago. And she… she gave it to our little girl.
“Where’s Mommy?”
“She’s talking to Enzo,” I said. “She’ll be back in a few minutes.”
She sat up and pushed her hair away from her face.
“You want to get up and get ready in case you and Mommy go to Klaus’s?” My throat was tight as I said the words.
“Is other daddy here?” Her eyes brightened.
Fuck, I hated that I hadn’t been there to be her only dad.
“No, honey. You and mommy might go home. She’s thinking about it.”
“In the plane?”
“Yes. In the plane.”
“Are you coming with us?”
“No, I won’t be going with you.”
She frowned. “Why? You’re my daddy.”
Fuck. My heart.
“Because you and Mommy have a life far away from me. I have to work.”
“Oh.” She frowned. “My daddies work, too.”
“Yeah?”
She nodded, her little face serious. “Daddy Klaus is very busy. He protects people. He protects Mommy all the time. Daddy Anson helps him. He goes with Mommy all the time. Daddy Evan works on his computer, but he takes care of me the most.”
“Are they good daddies?” I asked.
“They are the best daddies,” she said, her face still serious. “Penelope said my real daddy didn’t love me anymore, and that’s why he was gone. But you’re not gone. You’re working too! I’m going to tell her that.”
“Who is Penelope?” I asked, ready to rip this bitch’s face off for talking to my daughter like that.
“She’s in my class. She takes ballet with me. Sometimes she pushes me.”
“She pushes you? Do you tell Mommy and other daddies?”
Ellis frowned and looked down at her bear. “No.”
“Why not?”
She shrugged. “Miss Cranson says Penelope is just acting out. I don’t know what that means, but she said to come to her when she does it.”
“And do you?”
Ellis shrugged. “Sometimes. Sometimes I want to push her back.”
“I can teach you how to throw a punch.”
She blinked at me. “Like how Daddy Evan does? He has a room where he punches things with other daddies.”
“Yes,” I said tightly, not liking this guy punching things in front of her.
She nodded. “That might be fun!”
I chuckled at her reaction. She had fire. I liked that.
“I’ll show you. Come on.”
She hopped up in her pink pony pajamas and got off the bed.
“OK. The first thing you need to remember is to protect your face. Make a fist.”
She did so.
“That’s a good-looking fist. OK. Do this.” I showed her how to hold her hands and moved them for her so she was protecting her face.
I grabbed a pillow and held it in front of me.
“Punch this pillow. I want to see how hard you can hit.”
She swung on me. I braced for her tiny attack and was surprised at how hard she could punch.
“Hey, that’s pretty good,” I said.
She danced around, her curls bouncing. I chuckled at that.
“OK. Next lesson. Put your feet like this…”
And that was it. I had a princess, a ballerina, and a boxer.
She really was perfect.