A/N: I love writing for these three so much. I found this on my computer and decided to give it a little rewrite since I thought it was good to use, so I hope you like this one and thank you for the kind reviews up to now.
Lucien sighed into his little girl's curls as he laid in silence on the sofa with her, her head cushioned on his chest as she laid in the gap between him and the backrest and he could feel her fiddling with the buttons on the front of his cardigan. It had been a few days now since he and his wife came to the conclusion she had the flu and she was still exhibiting little signs that she would get over it any time soon. It was torture for them both to see her so miserable. Jean had been the one, since she started feeling off, to go to her when she cried in the night. To sit and run a damp face cloth over her skin and rock her, humming to her until she practically passed out in her arms from exhaustion.
It wasn't until she set his breakfast down this morning he realized how weary she looked herself and once they had eaten he told her to go back to bed and catch up on some sleep, assuring her that he and Lynnie would be just fine.
That was hours ago now and he still had yet to hear a sound from above, rather a good indication she was sleeping well. "Daddy…" Lynette's little whimper pulled him from his thoughts, his heart sinking when he turned his head to look at her and she coughed into the palm of her hand, a harsh and rattly sound that made him wince. She was so tired, the love, but every time she tried to go to sleep her coughing would startle her awake. "Make me better now?"
He could have wept at the tremble of her voice and desperation in her eyes. "I'm afraid it's going to be a little while before you start feeling better, sweet-pea," He explained, using the hand pressed into her lower back through her nightgown to pull her further into his warmth. "I promise you though, the medicine mummy and I have been giving you will start kicking in soon and then you won't be so achy and you might actually be able to get a little bit of rest."
She gave him a mute nod, taking hold of the front of his cardigan as she huffed and her eyes fell shut.
It was killing him to see her so weak and dead on her feet day in, day out. He was so used to hearing her laugh and squeal as she ran around in the garden with her mother and watching her explore her sunroom, asking her endless questions about all her pretty flowers. He had treated people for the flu more times than he could count, of course, but now it was his own little one with it and he had to watch her struggle to cope he felt helpless and he hated that.
"I sleepy, daddy." Lynette sighed after lying in silence with him for a while.
"How about I carry you upstairs so you can have a little nap like mummy? It may help you start feeling a bit better," He ran the back of a hand down her cheek, the love he had for her deepening when she hummed her response and stretched up to peck at his cheek. He pushed himself into a sitting position then and got up from the sofa, opening his arms to her when she managed to get to her feet. Once he had her balanced on his hip, he brushed a chocolate curl from her face and let his cheek rest against her forehead as she snuggled further into his embrace with a yawn. He then started carrying her out of the room and up to bed, running his hand tenderly along her spine as he did so.
The door to the studio creaked on its hinges as he opened it after putting Lynette to bed and ensuring that she was settled, a smile crossing his lips as he walked in and his gaze fell on Jean who was sitting up in bed while sipping at a glass of water. "Hello, you." He said gently when he began to make his way over to the bed after shutting the door behind him, his wife giving him a smile as she set her glass down on her nightstand and leaned against her pillows. He sat down atop the quilt when he reached her and reached out to caress her face, reveling in her contented sigh.
"Lynnie doing all right?" She inquired when she looked at him again at feeling him stroke a curl back behind her ear.
"Oh, she's fine, just a little tired so I put her down for a nap," He replied before taking her hand in his and sweeping his thumb across her knuckles. "How are you feeling though, my darling? I apologize, I haven't thought to ask you."
"Honestly, I have a bit of a headache." She told him, rolling her eyes when he immediately felt her forehead.
He may have been her husband, but he was also her doctor and he could switch between the two with such ease.
"Jeannie, you're burning up," He told her gently, his brow furrowing as her skin was warm and clammy to the touch. "I'm going to pop down to the surgery and find you some painkillers to help with that headache. Keep taking small sips of that water, the last thing I want is you getting dehydrated." He got up from the bed and chuckled at the look she gave him as he did so. "I know you hate me making a fuss, but I am your doctor and I hate seeing you unwell."
"I know you do and I love you for caring." She reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze.
"I love you too," He kissed her forehead before turning and heading for the door. "I shan't be long. You just rest."
It took him little time to head down to the surgery and find the bottle of painkillers he was looking for and when he returned to the bedroom he failed to keep from chuckling. His wife was still in bed, but she now had their little girl sleeping soundly on her. "She said she couldn't sleep. Her head was hurting and her throat was sore, so I thought I would let her come and sleep in here for a while." She told him, her voice a whisper as she ran a hand over her hair.
"How's that temperature of hers doing, eh?" He asked while walking over to the bed.
She took an arm from around their daughter and brought her hand up to her forehead, touching it to her skin and hushing her when she whined in her sleep at the movement. "Still a bit too warm for my liking, but it has definitely come down a little since she woke up this morning," She looked up from their baby to look at her husband when he sat down on the bed again, Lucien smiling at her while he opened the bottle of painkillers before he shook two out into the palm of her hand. "Thank you." She said softly before popping them in her mouth and taking a sip of water.
Setting the glass down on her nightstand again, she leaned back into her pillow and used her other hand to smooth down Lynette's hair. "She is so perfect," She shook her head as she watched her sleep, her heart fit to burst with the intensity of the love she possessed for her as she traced the outline of her face carefully with the tips of her fingers.
"That she is," Lucien agreed. "Perfect as can be."
"Come here," She instructed, using her head to gesture to the vacant space on their bed. "Come sit with us awhile."
He brushed his lips against her brow before standing from the bed again, a smile on his face as he padded around to his own side before sitting down and moving a little closer to her so he could slip an arm around her shoulders. She leaned her head against his shoulder then and he watched her close her eyes. "Comfortable?" He murmured as he ran a hand along her arm through the sleeve of her nightshirt, feeling the built up tension escape from her body.
"Mmm, very…" She nodded.
"Why not take advantage of this time and get some more sleep while you can?" He suggested. "I doubt this little one is going to sleep long and you're going to be getting up with her again tonight, no doubt, so you could do with it." Caressing Lynette's cheek with his free hand, he felt his wife bury her face in his neck and leave a tender kiss there.
"Would you mind?" She hummed.
He shook his head. "No. You're going to end up making yourself sick if you refuse to rest and I don't want that."
"I love you, Lucien," She told him, tilting her head back on his shoulder to meet his gaze again. "So much."
"I know you do," He smiled. "I love you too."
They shared a kiss then before she settled into his side and adjusted her hold of their daughter, Lynette taking hold of the front of her nightshirt as she cuddled closer to her. It took minutes at the most for her to fall asleep with her head tucked into his neck, her breath warm against his skin and her warm weight heavy on his chest as she snored.
It was true he hated seeing his girls under the weather, but he had to admit there was always one upside to it.
It gave him chance to hold them as long as he desired and that was something he knew he'd never tire of doing.
A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed and would love to know what you thought of it with a review. See you all soon.