R.I.L.Y Forever by Norah Bennett Page B

asleep on his chest, clutching a yellow and brown spotted giraffe around the neck. But that’s not what had her frozen in her place, holding her breath, her eyes filling with tears. What mesmerized her was the sound of Ethan’s husky voice singing to her baby with such tenderness her heart ached. She listened to the words and recognized Billy Joel’s Goodnight My Angel . It was her favorite lullaby. She played it for Lilly often. As the words washed over her, she was unable to stay upright. She sank to the top of the stairs and listened to the words he sang. She wondered what she did to ever deserve this man.

Chapter Five
     
    Ethan finished the song and glanced up to find Julia sitting at the top of the stairs with a wistful look on her face. Her watery green eyes met his as tears slid down her cheeks. The look of longing and sadness he saw in them took his breath away. He wanted to go to his girl, gather her up in his arms, and rock her as he was doing with Lilly.
    He climbed the stairs with Lilly snuggled against his heart, sat next to Julia and enfolded her in his free arm. Julia wiped her face with the back of her hand and laid her head against his shoulder. He felt like the king of the world with Julia in one arm and the world’s sweetest baby in the other. That’s when he decided Matt was a fool. Who could have all this and walk away from it? He would kill to have all this beauty in his life.
    He kissed the top of Julia’s head and gave her a gentle squeeze.
    “Let’s put her to bed,” he whispered, nodding in Lilly’s direction.
    Julia stood and tried taking Lilly from him, but he shook his head and said, “Lead the way, boss. I’ve got her.”
    They passed a bathroom, the master bedroom, and then came to Lilly’s room. A light pink and cream hand-painted wooden sign on the door read “Lilly’s Beach Palace.” The changing table, rocking chair and toy trunk were cream-colored while the carpet was a thick sandy brown. The crib was a large, solid hardwood piece of art shaped into some kind of ship with a beautifully carved footboard and headboard and high side-panels. It was pushed against a wall that was expertly painted like the ocean in soft blues and creams with gentle waves. This gave the illusion the crib-ship was floating on a calm ocean. Above the bed hung an exquisitely carved piece of driftwood— Lilly’s Ship of Dreams.
    Beach scenes covered the adjacent walls from floor to ceiling. A soft blue sky with puffy clouds covered the ceiling while seagulls flew in the distance. The room was assembled with a great deal of imagination and love. Ethan was spellbound. He’d never seen anything like this. Lilly was one lucky little girl.
    He laid his precious bundle carefully in her ship and stood, watching Julia change and tuck Lilly in for the night. The entire time, Lilly never opened her eyes, but when Julia tried to take the giraffe out of her hand, Lilly held on and mumbled, “No, mine.” Laughing, they hurried out of the room before they woke her up.
    Ethan and Julia made their way to the kitchen in silence. While Julia warmed up their now-cold dinner, Ethan opened the bottle of wine she’d left out on the counter. She was lost in thought and he gave her space. When they were both seated with loaded plates, he broke the silence.
    “Are you okay?”
    “I’m fine. Sorry. It’s been a long day.”
    “What brought on the tears?”
    Julia hesitated and took a generous gulp of her wine. She looked down at her plate. “My nerves are pretty fried. Work was rough today. I lost a patient I’ve known for a long time.”
    Ethan reached for her hand and squeezed it. “I’m sorry, Julia. That’s always rough. In all the years I’ve practiced medicine, although I’ve learned how to deal with death, as you have, when it happens, I still feel helpless and still grieve. Death is humbling. It reminds me despite all my knowledge and skill, I’m not God.”
    For a few minutes they were both silent.