For the first time in forty-eight hours, Prentice forgot about his daughter and he stared at Elle in shock.
In his memory, both recent and past, he never remembered Elle looking bad.
Decades ago, she was always bright-eyed, pink-cheeked and cheery, a healthy glow emanating from her. She wore even her casual clothes with a grace that made them stylish.
More recently, she was cool and refined, classically beautiful, her poise alluring. She wore her sophisticated clothes with a grace and assurance that made them striking.
Three weeks she’d been gone and now she looked gaunt and fatigued. She’d lost weight. Her pallor was startling. There were soft, blue shadows under her eyes. Her hair was tied up in a mess on top of her head and her blouse and jacket were wrinkled as if she’d slept in them.
Her tired eyes skittered across him and went direct to the bed.
Prentice watched as she lifted her hand, held onto the edge of the door with white-knuckled fingers and her eyes closed slowly.
He wanted to be furious at her unbelievable cheek.
He couldn’t be.
He didn’t have the energy and he didn’t have the capacity when her face filled with the worry he’d experienced gnawing at his gut constantly for two days.
He watched as she opened her eyes, let go of the door and strode into the room to Sally’s bed.
Then he watched as she reached out and touched the cast on Sally’s arm with her fingertips.
Then he watched her head turn from Sally to him.
“I’m sorry, Prentice.”
Christ. Even her voice sounded exhausted.
“Aye. I am too.”
Her head tilted slightly. “Do you mind if I stay awhile?”
Prentice shook his head. “No, she’d like that.”
And she would. If Sally was awake, she’d be in fits of glee.
Elle’s departure had left Jason moody and confused. This had only shifted (slightly) when Elle’s boxes started to arrive.
Sally, on the other hand, chose to think Elle had gone on an enchanted holiday meeting dukes and princes and talking birds and she chatted about all these magical fairytale possibilities and Elle incessantly. Her blind adoration of Elle only intensified when the boxes started to arrive.
Elle grabbed a chair and dragged it to the side of the bed. She dumped her purse on the floor, sat down and got close. Leaning forward, she crossed her arms on the bed and put her chin on them.
Then, with her head turned toward Sally, she started whispering to his daughter.
Annie moved to Prentice.
“I had to call her,” Annie said softly.
Prentice tore his gaze from the bed to look at his friend.
“Aye.”
“She came straight away,” Annie informed him.
If you told him four days ago his daughter would be knocked over by a car and Elle would come straight away, he wouldn’t have believed it. Two months ago, something happened to Annie or Fergus, if you told him Elle would come straight away, he wouldn’t have believed it.
Looking at her, he knew without a shred of doubt she came straight away.