A Christmas storm made me his

Chapter 6: Lily's Curiosity

I lasted maybe twenty minutes alone in that room before I started losing my mind.

The walls felt too close. The silence too loud. My thoughts too dangerous.

I needed a distraction. Something. Anything.

My phone still wouldn't turn on. Dead beyond resurrection without a proper charger. Not that it mattered. No signal anyway, according to Ethan.

I paced. Sat on the bed. Stood. Paced again.

This was ridiculous. I couldn't hide in here for three days.

A soft knock stopped me mid-step.

"Hello?" Small voice. Tentative.

Not Ethan. Lily.

I opened the door.

She stood there in jeans and a pink sweater, her dark hair now in two braids instead of one. She held something behind her back.

"Hi." She rocked on her heels.

"Hi."

"Daddy's in the shower. He said I should leave you alone but I got bored." She pulled her hands from behind her back. A worn teddy bear with one eye missing. "This is Mr. Buttons. He wanted to meet you."

Despite everything, something in my chest softened.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Buttons."

Lily made the bear wave. Then she looked up at me with those enormous gray eyes. "Are you sad?"

The question caught me off guard. "What?"

"You look sad. Like how Daddy looks sometimes when he thinks I'm not watching."

I didn't know what to say to that.

She didn't wait for an answer. Just pushed past me into the room. Climbed onto the bed like she owned it. "This used to be Aunt Grace's room when she visited. Before she moved to the city. Do you have a sister?"

"Yeah. Julia."

"Is she nice?"

I thought about Julia's text. Her accusation. Grow up.

"Sometimes."

Lily nodded like that made perfect sense. "Aunt Grace is mean sometimes too. But Daddy says she's just protective. What does protective mean?"

"It means she cares about you. Wants to keep you safe."

"Oh." She hugged Mr. Buttons. "Are you going to stay for Christmas?"

"No. I already told you—"

"But the roads are closed. Daddy said so. And Christmas is in like... a bunch of days. I don't know how many. More than my fingers."

"The roads will open before then."

"But what if they don't? What if you're stuck here forever?"

Forever. The word made my skin crawl.

"They will."

She swung her legs off the edge of the bed. "Do you like hot chocolate?"

"Sure."

"I can make really good hot chocolate. Daddy taught me. I only spilled it twice."

"That's impressive."

"You're pretty." She said it matter-of-factly. Like commenting on the weather. "Like the snow princesses in my books. Except you look sad. Snow princesses aren't supposed to be sad."

My throat tightened. "Well, I'm not a princess."

"That's okay. I'm not either. Daddy says I'm just Lily and that's better than being a princess anyway." She tilted her head. "Why were you outside in the storm?"

"My car broke down."

"But why were you driving in a storm? Daddy says that's dangerous. He says people who drive in storms are asking for trouble."

"Your dad's right."

"He's right about a lot of things. Except vegetables. He makes me eat broccoli but I think he's wrong about that."

I almost smiled. Almost.

She scooted closer. "Can I ask you something?"

"Okay."

"Are you running away?"

The smile died.

She looked at me with an intensity that didn't belong on a six-year-old's face. "Daddy says sometimes people run away when they're sad. He says my mom... he says she didn't run away but sometimes I think maybe she did. Because she left and she never came back."

Oh God.

"Lily—"

"It's okay. Daddy says she's in heaven. But I don't really know what that means. Just that she's not here." She hugged Mr. Buttons tighter. "I don't remember her much. Just little things. Like she smelled like flowers. And she sang songs when I was sleepy."

I didn't know what to say. What you were supposed to say to a little girl who'd lost her mother.

"I'm sorry," I managed.

"It's okay," she said again. Then, "Are you running away?"

"I don't know."

The honesty surprised me. But she'd been honest with me. About her mother. About Ethan. About things that probably hurt to talk about.

She deserved honesty back.

"From what?" she asked.

"Everything."

She nodded slowly. Processing. "Did everything make you sad?"

"Yeah."

"That's why you look like a sad snow princess."

This time I did smile. Small. Brief. But real.

"I guess so."

She hopped off the bed. Walked to the window. "The snow's really deep. We can build a snowman later if you want. Daddy doesn't like building snowmen anymore but I think he would if you asked. He's nicer to grown-ups than to me sometimes."

"I don't think your dad wants me asking him for anything."

She turned. Frowned. "Why not?"

"He doesn't like me very much."

"That's not true. Daddy doesn't not like people. He's just... what's the word? Careful. He's careful about people now. Ever since Mom left."

Died. The word she couldn't quite say.

"I understand."

"But you seem nice. You didn't tell me to go away even though I'm probably bothering you. And you have a pretty smile. When you smile for real. Not the fake one."

I blinked. "How do you know—"

"People smile fake at me a lot. After they find out about my mom. They smile but their eyes stay sad. Yours are sad all the time. Even when you're not smiling."

Six years old and she saw too much.

"You're very observant."

"Daddy says that too. He says I notice things other people miss." She walked back to the bed. Stood on her tiptoes to be eye level with me. "I noticed you didn't bring any clothes. Just that fancy dress. That's how I know you're running away. Because people who plan trips bring suitcases."

She was right. Completely right.

"You caught me."

"It's okay. I won't tell Daddy. He gets worried when people run away."

The door opened.

Ethan stood in the hallway. Hair damp. Fresh clothes. His eyes went immediately to Lily.

"I told you to leave her alone."

"I wasn't bothering her. We were just talking. Right, Ava?"

She looked at me. Hopeful.

Ethan's gaze shifted to me. Wary. Like I might throw his daughter out of the room.

"She's fine," I said. "We were just... talking."

He didn't look convinced. "Lily, come here."

She sighed. Dramatic. Trudged toward the door.

Stopped halfway. Turned back. "Do you want to have hot chocolate with us?"

"Lily—"

"Please? I'll make it really carefully. I won't spill."

She looked at me. Then at her father. Back to me.

Ethan's jaw was tight. Practically grinding his teeth.

He didn't want me there. Didn't want me anywhere near his daughter, probably. Didn't want me in his space any more than absolutely necessary.

"I don't want to intrude."

"You're not intruding," Lily insisted. "Right, Daddy?"

Ethan's eyes met mine. Cold. Hard.

"Right," he said. The word sounded forced. "You're welcome to join us."

The message underneath was clear. You're not welcome but I can't say no to my daughter.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

Lily beamed. Grabbed my hand. Her palm was small. Warm.

She tugged me toward the door.

Ethan stepped aside. Didn't look at me as I passed.

But I felt his eyes on my back as Lily pulled me down the hallway.

Felt the weight of his resentment. His discomfort.

This was going to be the longest three days of my life.