Daddy's Little Princess

Chapter Ten - Her Own Little World, Brighter than the Sun

"How did I find you?" Asked Fernando incredulously. She shrugged, waiting for an answer. "I knew where you would be."

"How? How is that possible? The point was to never be found, to escape and live a new life."

"Exactly. So I figured out where a normal person would go if they had that much money, and ruled those out. I was only left with a few options. And also, Sauters wasn't hurting either." He mumbled the last sentence, looking out the window behind her to avoid her eyes.

"Sauters?"

"Paul, Paul Sauters. He was a friend I met in college, a New Yorker. We got in touch and I asked him to keep an eye on you while you were here. I wanted to make sure you were safe." He confessed, his eyes honest and his voice true. Alex, however, was thoroughly annoyed, ignoring the little spark of happiness she felt when she realized how much Fernando cared for her.

"How dare you spy on me!" She gasped, standing up from the couch. Fernando cowered beneath her.

"I'm sorry! I know it was wrong, and slightly illegal, but I wanted to be sure you would be able to start over here."

"Oh, so now I'm not capable of surviving on my own? Of course, pampered her whole life, how could the princess handle-"

"Alex!" He interrupted her sarcastic ranting. "Stop, please. I didn't want anything bad to happen to you." He lowered his voice and his eyes, looking angry. "I should have been here to protect you."

Her heart broke for him at the moment. He didn't ask for this to happen. She sank down into the couch next to him, curling up into his side.

"I'm sorry too" She mumbled into his shoulder. "I should be grateful that you care about me."

Fernando took a chance. He could have been making a huge mistake, but he couldn't help himself. He leaned down and kissed her cheek gently. She stiffened for a moment, but then relaxed and huddled closer to him. He closed his eyes and listened to the lulling sound of her heartbeat as it pulled them both into unconsciousness.

When he awoke, Alex was in the kitchen, wearing a big tee shirt that showed most of her arms and legs. The bruises on her skin were almost gone now, faded into a faint yellow color, so she was finally comfortable enough to wear less clothing. He watched her for a moment, absorbed in her own little world. An old radio was playing on the windowsill, some happy, up-beat pop song, and she sang along to every word, dancing around the kitchen with a wooden spoon as her microphone. She looked absolutally adorable, tossing her wavy hair about and squeezing her eyes shut to hit the high note perfectly with her clear, sweet voice. With a breezy laugh she hopped onto the table, spinning in cirlces, arms out wide and voice projecting the lyrics.

"Everything is like a white out, cause we shika-shika a shine down

Even when the when the light's out, but I can see you glow.

Got my head up in the rafters, got me happy ever after.

Never felt this way before, ain't felt this way before

Swear you hit me like a vision

I, I, I wasn't expecting

But who am I to tell fate where it's supposed to go?

Oh, this is how it starts, lightning strikes the heart,

it goes off like a gun, brighter than the sun.

Oh, we could be the stars, falling from the sky

Shining how we want, brighter than the sun."

The sun seemed to shine brighter through the open window as the song ended and she plopped off the table. She leapt onto the counter, a huge smile on her face, and reached up to snatch a box of cereal from the top shelf.

"Nom-nom-nom" She said in a sing-song voice, drowning her Cocoa-Puffs in milk and taking a huge bite. Fernando walked into the kitchen slowly, clapping loudly enough to startle to cereal out of my mouth. She sat there on the counter, eyes wide and cheeks flushing a vibrant crimson.

"Is there any chance you didn't see that?" She asked hopefully, pointing to the wooden spoon on the table. Fernando shook his head with a smile on his face.

"I thought it was cute." he said. She ducked her head down to cover the now flaming color on her face.

"My sister and I used to do that all the time when we were little." She admitted sheepishly. "Gracie and I would spend hours in the kitchen, singing along to the radio. We called them our jam sessions. The chefs loved them, said it made their food taste ten times better. Those were some of the best memories I have."

Fernando gave her a huge smile as he grabbed a bowl of his own.

"I was wondering something." He said, hopping onto the counter next to her. "Why is it that the only practical use that table seems to get is your jam sessions, because you always eat on the counter?"

"I never noticed." She laughed, shouldering Fernando.

They talked and laughed about nothing at all, sitting on the counter with a box of Cocoa Puffs. The sun sparkled on their warm skin, the radio kept their hearts pumping and their laughter light, and for a moment there was peace and joy in their own private world.