Dorian heard his three-year-old daughter Nessa calling from inside, insisting she was not a wedding present.
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Chapter 8 / 17
Chapter 8
Nessa stopped playing hide-and-seek.
Not dramatically.
She simply refused enclosed spaces.
Closets.
Large boxes.
Blanket forts.
When a delivery crate arrived, she backed away.
That angered me more than any speech could.
The trunk had lasted minutes.
Fear stayed.
I wanted it removed from the hotel immediately.
Then stopped.
Not ours.
Not important.
The object had no moral meaning.
Nessa’s reaction did.
We worked slowly.
Open spaces.
Games where she chose when doors closed.
No forcing.
One afternoon she climbed into a cardboard box voluntarily.
Then immediately climbed out.
May you like
Good.
Choice restored in seconds.
