After dinner, the house had settled into a comfortable quiet. The dishes were cleared, the kitchen dark, the staff gone to their quarters. Only the soft glow of the desk lamp remained, casting long shadows across Leo's study.
Bella sat on his lap, her body curled against his, her new bag open on the desk in front of them. The leather was soft, still new, still smelling faintly of the shop where she had bought it. She reached inside, her fingers brushing against the notebooks she had filled that day.
"I took notes in class," she said, her voice bright with excitement. "And my handwriting has improved. Do you want to see it?"
She was almost bouncing, her enthusiasm spilling over. Her brown hair fell in soft waves around her shoulders, catching the lamplight, framing her face in a way that made her look young and fresh and impossibly beautiful. Her brown eyes were wide, sparkling with pride, her lips parted in a small, eager smile.
