Nathanâs concern deepened.
He gently crouched down and placed his hand on her forehead to check for a fever.
âYour temperature seems normal.
Are you feeling unwell anywhere else, Destinee?â
As she hugged him, Destinee glanced toward the bed with wide, bright eyes and said, âMy brother is in your room.
I want to sleep with Mommy and Daddy tooâ¦â
Nathanâs expression grew stern.
He knew the nightmare was just a pretext for Destinee to check if Colby was with them.
If he was, sheâd want to join too.
âDid I do something in a past life that I was punished by having you two?â
He shook his head and gave a wry smile while looking affectionately at his daughter in front of him.
Destinee chuckled and whispered, âNo, Iâm your precious girl, here to bring warmth.
â
Nathan rolled his eyes silently, hoping she wouldnât cause any more trouble.
On the bed, Lucinda stirred awake.
Her long curly hair cascaded over her right shoulder.
She sat up slowly, her lovely face glowing with a sleepy beauty.
As she soothed Colby, she glanced toward the door and said, âNow that youâre here, come sleep with us, Destinee.
Itâs been ages since you slept next to me after learning to walk.
â
âAwesome!â
Destinee released Nathanâs arms, scampered over to the bed, and jumped onto Lucinda.
Noticing Colby had brought a pillow with him, Destinee paused; she then turned and playfully winked at Nathan.
âDaddy, I forgot my pillow.
Could you fetch it from my room, please?â
Leaning against the door, Nathan shook his head and firmly said, âNo, I wonât.
If you want to sleep here, you need to get it yourself.
â
Her attempt to persuade him failed.
Frustrated, Destinee climbed out of bed.
She marched over to Nathan, hands on her hips, and said in a defiant, child -like tone, âDaddy, just you wait.
Iâll get you back for this!â
Raising his eyebrows, Nathan simply replied, âOkay.
â
Destinee scowled at him and huffed.
Wary of being chased by Nathan, she sprinted upstairs to the fourth floor.
As soon as she was gone, Lucinda chuckled and shook her head.
She glanced at her husband, who was slightly irritated with Destinee and commented, âDestinee is quite the vengeful little one.
Sheâs smart too.
Be careful, or she might just outsmart you.
â
Nathan looked back at Lucinda with a touch of annoyance in his gaze and retorted, âDidnât she learn that from you?â
Trying to stifle her laughter, Lucinda gestured to him and promised, âAlright, Iâll make it up to you soon.
â
âYou better keep your word,â Nathan responded, his smile showing his contentment.
A few minutes later, Destinee dashed back downstairs, panting, clutching her pillow.