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In this moment, she’s trusting me to keep her safe.

And I don’t take that lightly. Not for a second.

I carry her out of the bedroom and bring her straight into mine, the house silent around us except for the quiet sound of her breathing against my throat.

Crossing to the bed, I pull back the covers and carefully lower her onto the mattress. The second my hands leave her, it feels wrong, cold settling over my palms where her warmth had been.

She slips beneath the sheets while I pull the blanket gently over her chest.

“Thank you,” she whispers sleepily.

I dip my chin once before walking around to the other side of the bed and sliding beneath the covers beside her.

“I hope I didn’t wake Clara,” she says softly into the darkness.

“You didn’t.” I reach for the baby monitor on the nightstand and hold it between us. “She’s still out cold.” I glance over just in time to catch the small smile that spreads across Charlotte’s face as she watches Clara sleeping peacefully on the monitor.

She turns slightly toward me, her small smile slowly fading. “I’m sorry for waking you.”

I set the monitor back on the nightstand before shifting onto my side to face her. “What did I tell you earlier?” Her teeth catch her bottom lip, and my eyes track the slow way she releases it. I clear my throat. “Do you have nightmares often?”

She curls tighter onto her side, tucking her hands beneath her chin. “Sometimes.” Her voice grows quieter. “I used to be terrified of falling asleep because of them,” she admits after a moment. “I never knew if I’d wake up screaming or not. And when I did…” She goes quiet, lost in her head.

I shift closer, resting my head against the pillow. “When you did, what happened?”

Her gaze drops. “I’d get punished for waking Garrett.”

Every muscle in my body locks tight.

Rage floods through me so violently it burns beneath my skin.

That piece of shit is going to regret the day he ever touched her. For locking her inside a cage when she deserves to fly.

I close my eyes briefly, forcing myself to take one slow, controlled breath. “He’s never going to hurt you again.”

I open my eyes to find her watching me carefully. After a second, she gives a slow nod, her cheek brushing softly against the pillowcase.

“Do you ever have nightmares?” she asks quietly.

“I used to.”

“You did?”

“When I was a kid, I had them constantly,” I admit. “I was scared of almost everything.” A faint smile pulls at my mouth. “Then my father sat me down one night.”

“What did he say?”

“He told me nightmares were merely my fears controlling me. And once I understood that, I stopped having them.”

Her brows lift slightly. “And the nightmares stopped? Just like that?”

I nod once. “For a long time.” A pause settles between us before I add quietly, “Until a few months ago.”

Her forehead creases. “You had a nightmare?”

“For years, nothing scared me.” My fingers slide around the back of my neck, squeezing my muscles. “Then Clara came into my life.” I remember that day like it was yesterday. Fear and confusion overtook me as I stared into the beautiful eyes of my little girl, trying to process this life-altering news. Little did I know at that time she was about to be the best thing that ever happened to me. “And when it comes to her… I’m terrified I’ll fail her.”

“That’s impossible,” Charlotte says without hesitation. She inches closer. “I see the way you look at her. The way you take care of her.” A small smile touches her lips. “You’d give that little girl the moon and the stars if she asked for them.” A quiet laugh leaves me because she isn’t wrong. Not even close. “You love her,” Charlotte whispers. “And she knows it.” Her eyes glisten slightly as she continues, “That’s all any little girl really wants. To feel loved.”