Lee fell silent, feeling awkward with his excuse. He probably should have forced Valery to immediately tell him where her caregiver was. He hadn’t wanted to upset the little girl, though, especially in light of her apparent situation.
He felt a tug of sympathy as her eyes filled with tears – even living for so long with a house full of women hadn’t inured him to the mild panic that always arose when they started to cry.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I was trying to get her back home.” Pehraps he wasn’t thinking too clearly, but he could blame that on the time change which was starting to creep up on him the last couple of days.
“No, she isn’t a bother at all. Were you, little bit? We were having a nice chat.” He smiled at the child, that same open grin that often graced his face.
This woman looked so fragile and a little the worse for wear – her eyes were red rimmed and there were circles under them. “Look, can I help you get her home? It’s the least I can do for having caused you any panic.”