53 A Child’s Plea, A Father’s Choice


    “No, I didn’t,” Damien answered. “Why don’t you tell her yourself?”


    T


    “No need to apologize. The doctor said Shanice just needs rest and medicine. I’ll take


    her home now.”


    “We’re at your ce,” Beck said, turning to face her. “You dozed off after we left the hospital.”


    Cora didn’t respond. Instead, she walked back toward them with dragging feet. When she reached Damien, she looked up at him with wide, pleading eyes. She tugged at his


    hand.


    “That’s wonderful,” ra repeated, her voice slightly strained.


    “Tea?” ra offered, already pouring from a delicate porcin pot.


    “I built a model of a hydrogen fuel cell,” Cora announced proudly. “Ms. Williams said it was the best in ss.”


    “Mom’s good atputers,” Cora said, sounding uncertain, as if recalling a distant


    memory.


    Cora froze mid–step, then slowly turned around. Her eyes were bright with unshed


    tears.


    ra’s phone buzzed with a notification. She checked it and frowned at from Damien.


    “You look tired, dear,” ra observed quietly. “Are you getting enough rest?”


    message


    “Just Damien,” she replied, slipping her phone into her pocket. “Thanks for the ride. And tell Shanice I hope she feels better soon.”


    She expected him to agree immediately. Damien had always avoided visiting the Vance residence, iming difort around her family. The few times he’d apanied her had been tense and awkward.


    ra looked away, unsettled by his scrutiny and confused by his presence here tonight. This wasn’t like him at all.


    <


    153 A Child’s Plea, A Father’s Choice


    As Damien moved to sit beside Cora, ra caught her grandmother watching her with


    shrewd eyes.


    “Fascinating,” ra remarked. “And how is your work going, ra? That AIpany of yours must be keeping you on your toes.”


    “What time?” he asked instead.


    ra patted her hand. “You’ve always pushed yourself too hard. Even as a child, you never knew when to stop.”


    “I’ll have Cora ready,” he replied, ignoring her offer. “Six works.”


    “Last weekend,” Cora replied. “Dad and Vivienne helped me.”


    Cora leaned forward between the front seats. “Dad, did you tell Mom about my science project? I got an A+.”


    The acknowledgment of her skills, however small, surprised ra. She didn’t know how to respond.


    ra tried to keep her surprise from showing. “We should get going then. We don’t want to bete.”


    His response caught her off guard. “Around six? But really, I can handle it. I know you’re notfortable at my grandmother’s house.”


    ra entered her apartment and headed straight for the shower. The hot water revived her somewhat, washing away the lingering fatigue from the camping trip. <i>By </i>five–thirty, she was on her way to Damien’s vi.


    “Yes, she is,” Damien agreed, his eyes still on ra’s profile. “One of the best.”


    As soon as they entered, Cora spotted Eleanor and rushed forward. “Great–Grandma Ellie!”


    “He is,” ra confirmed, ignoring the grandmothers‘ not–so–subtle matchmaking attempt. “We’ve been friends since college.”


    Damien’s expression remained neutral, but something in his posture changed. He sat straighter, his shoulders tensing slightly.


    “ra tells me you’ve been busy with a new project, Damien,” ra said, passing him a


    153 A Child’s Plea, A Father’s Choice


    cup. “Something about renewable energy in Southeast Asia?”


    Cora’s face lit up, “Really?”


    As the evening wore on, she couldn’t help but wonder what had really prompted Damien to ept Cora’s plea to join them.


    “Vivienne knows a lot about green energy,” Cora continued, oblivious to her mother’s difort. “She said I might be a scientist someday like her.”


    ra hadn’t expected this reaction. “It was ast–minute thing with friends, sweetheart.”


    “He came to dinner herest month,” ra added innocently. “Such a charming conversationalist.”


    “I got your message about the grandmothers,” she said, walking toward her apartment building. “I can pick up Cora on my way there. You don’t have toe.”


    “Everything okay?” Beck asked.


    ra hesitated, sensing a trap but not seeing a way around it. “Yes, it was. We hiked and made a bonfire and-”


    “Cora,” Damien’s voice cut through the tension. It wasn’t loud, but it carried unmistakable authority. “Come back here.”


    Martha, one of the housekeepers, opened the door when she arrived. “Mrs. Thorne, pleasee in. Mr. Thorne and Cora are in the living room.”


    “Was it fun?” Cora interrupted, her eyes narrowing.


    Damien’s fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around his teacup.


    Before ra could answer, Eleanor interjected. “YodaVision is making waves in the industry. Arthur mentioned they’re revolutionizing healthcare AI.”


    Damien nced up from his phone, his gaze lingering on ra’s face. “You look tired.”


    Damien looked momentarily surprised that ra had mentioned his work to her grandmother. “Yes, we’re expanding our sr operations there.”


    The mention of Vivienne sent a familiar pang through ra’s chest. She gripped the steering wheel tighter.


    153 A Child’s Plea, A Father’s Choice


    “Dad,” Cora called, mercifully changing the subject. “Can you help me show Great–Grandma ra the pictures from my science fair on your phone?”


    *My grandmother is visiting yours this evening. We should take Cora together. Let me know when you’re free.*


    She kissed ra’s cheek, nodded politely to Damien, and led them into the sitting room. Eleanor immediately engaged Cora in conversation about school, leaving ra and Damien to take seats across from them.


    They arrived at ra Bellweather’s estate fifteen minutester. The grand old house sat on a sprawling piece ofnd that had been in the Vance family for generations. Eleanor Thorne’s sleek ck car was already parked in the circr driveway.


    “I am,” she admitted, too exhausted to pretend otherwise. “I just got back from a camping trip.”


    “Productive,” Damien replied. “The Singapore deal is moving forward.”


    As Beck’s car pulled away, ra called Damien. The phone rang twice before he answered.


    “Camping?” Cora’s head snapped up, her expression shifting from sullen to usatory. “You went camping without me?”


    “That’s not true,” ra said, thrown by her daughter’s sudden distress. “Rememberst summer when we-”


    In the car, Cora sat in the back seat while Damien took the passenger seat beside ra. The silence between them was thick with unspoken questions and observations.


    Damien nced at her, his expression unreadable. “You would have done well on this project. It involved programming the demonstration model.”


    ra found Cora sitting on the sofa, arms crossed and lips pursed in a pout. Damien stood by the window, phone in hand, engrossed in what appeared to be work emails.


    “Julian,” Eleanor repeated, exchanging a meaningful nce with ra. “He’s that handsome young man who co–founded thepany with you, isn’t he?”


    Damien looked at his daughter, then at ra. Something flickered in his expression- hesitation, perhaps, or calction.


    163 A Child’s Plea, A Father’s Choice


    “Hi, Coco,” ra greeted her daughter with a bright <b>smile</b>. “Ready to see


    Great–Grandma ra?”


    “Yes, please,” ra replied, while Damien nodded silently.


    “Yes,” Damien replied, putting his phone away. “I’lle


    “ra,” his voice came through, crisp and businesslike as always.


    “Julian and I have a good team,” ra said modestly.


    “Can youe along too, Dad?” she asked, her voice suddenly sweet.


    “You never take me camping” Corained, her lower lip trembling <b>slightly</b>. “You’re always too busy.”


    ra Bellweather emerged from the sitting room, her silver hair styled perfectly despite her ny years. “You’re all here. Wonderful.”


    ra blinked awake as Beck’s car came to a gentle stop. The hospital visit for Shanice had taken longer than expected, leaving her with barely enough time to make it to her grandmother’s house.


    “I thought you were upset about missing the skiing trip with Vivienne,” ra said softly, understanding dawning. This wasn’t about the skiing trip at all.


    “Fine,” he said finally.


    Eleanor Thorne, elegant as always in a tailored navy suit, opened her arms to receive Cora. “There’s my darling girl!”


    Across the room, Damien nced over at them, his gaze lingering on w..ere ra’s hand rested on ra’s. For a moment, something like cóncern crossed his features before his expression returned to its usual impassive state.


    Cora didn’t look <ol><li>up. </li></ol>


    “I guess.”


    “You never do fun things with me anymore!” Cora jumped up from the sofa and stormed toward the staircase!


    ra held her breath, waiting for his refusal. In seven years of marriage, she could count on one hand the number of times Damien had willingly apanied her to a Vance family gathering.


    <b>< </b>


    153 A Child’s Plea, A Father’s Choice


    “How was work today?” ra asked, desperate to break the awkward silence.


    “I’m fine,” ra assured her. “Just busy.”


    “Sorry about that,” ra mumbled, gathering her belongings. The fatigue from the camping trip still weighed heavily on her.


    “That’s wonderful, Coco!” ra beamed, catching her daughter’s eye in the rearview mirror. “When did you finish it?”


    Comment 0