LAURA’S POV
Elina had taken over my heart without warning.
Her little hand fit perfectly into mine, her laughter like bells echoing through the Reed mansion. At breakfast, she insisted on sitting next to me. At bedtime, she demanded my goodnight story before anyone else. And every time she looked up at me with those wide, searching eyes—I forgot everything else.
The pain. The danger. The war we just survived.
“You read better than Daddy,” she whispered as I tucked the covers over her small frame.
I laughed. “He will be crushed to hear that.”
“No, he will not. I can assure you, he likes you.”
I froze slightly.
“She means he admires you,” Richard said from the doorway, arms folded as he watched us. “She talks about you all day.”
I turned, surprised. “She’s just being sweet.”
But R
