Chapter 8
Nathaniel stood up, gently lifting Maisie and placing her back onto the center of the massive bed. He pulled the heavy duvet up to his daughter’s chin, pressing a lingering, fiercely protective kiss to the girl's forehead.
"Try to sleep, Maisie," Nathaniel said, his deep voice a soothing rumble. "I will be right outside the door, and my guards are watching the hallway. Nothing can get to you tonight. You are entirely safe in this room."
"Okay, Daddy," Maisie whispered sleepily, her eyes already fluttering shut as the exhaustion of the evening finally took hold of her small body. "Goodnight, Daddy. Goodnight, Mommy Elena."
"Goodnight, my sweet girl," Elena whispered back, her voice thick with emotion.
Once Maisie’s eyes remained closed and her breathing evened out, Nathaniel gestured for Elena to follow him toward the adjacent private sitting room. They stepped through the archway, the heavy velvet drapes muffling the sounds of the mansion. The natural, cinematic lighting of the sitting room highlighted the sheer exhaustion in Elena's delicate features. She kept her head slightly bowed, maintaining the submissive posture expected of a maid, but Nathaniel stepped directly into her line of sight, forcing her to look up.
"Why didn't you tell me, Elena?" Nathaniel asked, his voice a low, controlled murmur. "When you discovered you were pregnant, when Camille started destroying your peace and threatening you, why didn't you come to me immediately?"
Elena met his gaze, her expressive eyes shining with unshed tears. "Because I know what the Voss alliance means to your syndicate, Mr. Crowne. If I complained, I knew you would be forced to reprimand her. I didn't want to be the reason you went to war over a maid. And... she threatened my life. She threatened the baby."
Nathaniel studied her face, the fair, rosy skin pale with the trauma she had endured alone. He gently reached out, carefully placing a hand near her waist, acknowledging the heartbreaking terror she had suffered. He felt a profound, burning disgust for his own blindness. In a world full of hardened killers and corrupt politicians, this young woman possessed more integrity and loyalty than his entire inner circle combined.
"You endured unimaginable cruelty to protect my political standing," Nathaniel said slowly, the artistic tattoos on his hands flexing. "You risked everything to keep our child safe from a monster I invited into this house. I owe you a debt I can never fully repay."
"You don't owe me anything, sir," Elena whispered, her breath hitching slightly under his intense scrutiny. "I just wanted Maisie to feel loved, and I wanted my baby to survive. She misses having a mother so much, and I couldn't bear to see her hurt."
"I owe you everything," Nathaniel corrected, taking a slow step closer. He released his grip, and his tattooed fingers hovered protectively near her cheek. "You are no longer a maid in this house, Elena. From this moment on, you are under my direct, personal protection. Whatever you need, whatever you want, you have it."
Elena’s eyes widened in shock, her lips parting slightly. "Sir, I... I don't know what to say. This is all so overwhelming."
"Say you will stay," Nathaniel said, his tone shifting from the calculated focus of a mafia boss to a deeply vulnerable, quiet plea.
May you like
"Stay?" Elena breathed, her heart hammering against her ribs.
"I cannot trust anyone else with my daughter," Nathaniel explained, his dark eyes burning into hers. "And... I cannot imagine this house without you in it. I have been blind, Elena. But I see you now. I see everything you have done for us."
