"I'm so sorry for your loss, my lord," she said, her tone sincere.
He studied her for a moment, as though gauging the depth of her sympathy. Then, with a sigh, he replied, "Thank you. It's been… difficult."
Salviana nodded, allowing a comfortable silence to settle between them before speaking again. "Rose is a lovely child," she said gently. "She has your strength, I think."
Warren's lips twitched in the faintest hint of a smile. "She's stronger than she knows," he admitted. "I only wish I could… be more for her."
Salviana regarded him thoughtfully. Rumors had painted him as a neglectful father, but now, sitting beside him, she saw a man burdened by grief and regret.
His absence from Rose's life wasn't born of apathy, but of a deep, unshakable sorrow.
"My lord," she said after a moment, "it's never too late to be what she needs. I'm certain she would want nothing more than to have her father by her side."
