Her father peeked his head in the door. Ashley gave him a smile. He looked so unlike the father she remembered, she thought. The rich mahogany color of his hair had turned to a faded silver color. His face was haggard and his body gaunt. His eyes were dark, sunken holes above his sharp, protruding cheekbones. He smiled. "Hey, Angel."
Ashley patted the matress beside her, and he took the invitation to come sit with her on her bed. She smiled at him, and allowed him to wrap his arm around her shoulder. She nestled back into the crook of his arm. He sighed heavily. "You don't know how much I've missed having my baby girl here all these years. I've barely seen you at all."
Ashley smiled. "You come to visit me every summer and Christmas in France, Daddy."
"I know," he said. "But it's just not the same. I wish you were home at least, instead of in some strange country all alone."
"I'm not alone," Ashley lied.
Her dad nodded. "Of course not, but it seems like it to an old man like me. I just wish you had stayed here so I could have watched you mature into the woman you are today."
Ashley nodded. "I wish I could've too."
"It would have been different, wouldn't it, if you had married Taylor instead of that French girl?" he asked. Hearing him say it like that made her wince.
"Yes," she replied helplessly.
The old man sighed again, and kissed her gingerly on her forehead. "I know he loved you more than her. Everybody did. I often wonder if he regrets his decision."
"No," Ashley said softly. "Chloe was sweet as sugar. She would take care of him no matter what."
"So would've you," he quickly defended. Ashley could only shake her head.
"I'm stubborn and bossy, Daddy. You should know that," she said.
He grinned. "I do know. You're saucy, Ley-Ley. That's what makes you so special. But you would go through hell for Taylor." He paused and thought to himself. "In fact, you have. You're the only person who would actually stand by and let the love of her life get married to someone else just because it would make him happy."
Ashley's breathing caught in her throat. Tears began to fill her eyes. "It hurt so bad, Daddy," she said, the saline droplets rolling down her cheeks. "It hurts so much."
"Shhh," he soothed. "I know it does, baby. I know..."
Ashley hugged him, burying her face in his chest. "Why didn't you tell me I was stupid to let him go?"
"Because nothing you've ever done was stupid," he replied. "Taylor was dumber than hell to have let you go."
He held Ashley for a long time while she cried, until she began to drift off to sleep. He tucked her in bed and turned off her lamp. Just before he left, she said, "I love you, Daddy."
He turned, and gave her a smile that reminded her of the way he used to be. "I love you too, Angel. Good night."
"Good night," she replied. He shut the door and Ashley fell almost immediately into fitful sleep.
