Page 47 of Singing For His Kiss

Elizabeth grabbed a long handled wooden spoon. “No, he had to walk like this.” Elizabeth bent low over the spoon and followed James around the table, giggling as much as Madeline.

“You two are horrible teases,” Mrs. D’llessio said, collecting Madeline in her arms. “Do not listen to them, Bambina.”

“Are you going to walk like that, Maria? You’re older than Daddy is. Ancient,” Madeline said.

Elizabeth had to put her hand over her mouth to stop laughing out loud.

“Not quite yet, Bambina.” Mrs. D’llessio did a good job of keeping a straight face, but Elizabeth didn’t miss the twinkle in her eye.

“How old are you, Liz’beth?” Madeline asked.

Elizabeth straightened and placed the spoon on the table. Most days, she felt ancient. Emotionally, she guessed she was.

“A lady never tells anyone her age.”

“Can’t you tell me? Daddy wants to know.”

Elizabeth’s gaze flew to James. He sipped his wine as he studied the ceiling. Elizabeth crossed her arms and regarded him. “He does, does he? My answer is still the same. A lady never tells her age.”

“You’re not a lady. You’re a princess,” Madeline said.

“I think you’re the princess.” Elizabeth picked up the child and hugged her, enjoying the way she threw her arms and cuddled her back.

“I think she’s a princess, too,” Mrs. D’llessio said.

Elizabeth’s cheeks flushed as she looked at the housekeeper. She really wasn’t used to compliments, and she didn’t know how to reply. The look Maria gave Elizabeth was the type of look she would dream her own mother might have given her. If she’d loved her enough not to give her away when she’d been a baby, that was.

“Here’s to Princess Elizabeth.” James held his glass in salute.

“And to Princess Madeline,” Elizabeth said.

“To my two beautiful princesses.”

Madeline squirmed from Elizabeth’s arms, and she let the child down. Madeline flew into her father’s arms. James swung her through the air, and Madeline squealed in delight.

“Let’s give you a bath before dinner, shall we?”

“Do I have to, Daddy?” Madeline said.

“The quicker you have a bath, the quicker we can come back. Last one to the bath is a rotten egg!” James said, dashing from the room. With a squeal, Madeline followed him through the door.

His princesses. Elizabeth’s cheeks heated so much, it felt like they glowed. She pressed her cool fingertips to her skin, imagining them sizzle. Self-consciousness and embarrassment fused, leaving her with nowhere to look, nowhere to turn. She sat back at the table, picked up another tomato and started slicing it, wondering where the hell that emotion had come from. It was so foreign, she didn’t know what to do with it.

A warm hand pressed into her shoulder. “You blush, Cara.”

Elizabeth was surprised to find Mrs. D’llessio hunched next to her. She shook her head, “I…I’m not.”

“Mr. James. He is a good man. He says what he means.”

“He was just having fun.”

“You are a beautiful woman. If Mr. James says you are a princess, then you are a princess. Lift your head high, let people see your beauty.”

“I appreciate the compliment, Maria, but I wouldn’t go so far as to say I’m a princess or really that beautiful. He was just being nice. I’m realistic.”

“Let me tell you, there is beauty on the inside and on the outside. It is not very common to have both, most people do not, but you…you are beautiful both ways. And Mr. James, he can see that. Do not doubt yourself, and do not doubt that he says what he means. He can see what most people do not. He knows what is on the inside. If he says you are a princess, believe that. Always remember this. No matter what.”

Mrs. D’llessio patted her shoulder, then went back to her pot on the stove. Elizabeth stared at her back, gripping both the knife and the tomato as though they were a lifeline. Her mind swarmed with the things she’d done, the lives she’d ruined through David Logan. She’d been a part of what he’d done, and she’d done nothing to stop him. If James really knew what was on the inside, he wouldn’t be telling her she was a princess. He’d be putting her in a dungeon instead.

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