The Billionaire's Little Matchmaker

Chapter 6: The Artist's Eye

Sienna's second morning in the West mansion started exactly like the first—with the sound of Leonard's car disappearing down the street before the sun had barely risen. She pressed her face against her bedroom window, watching his black sedan vanish around the corner at 6 AM sharp.

He's running away from his own home, she thought, that familiar ache settling in her chest.

The house fell silent again. Elara wouldn't wake up for another two hours, and then it would be just the two of them at that massive dining table—no daddy-daughter breakfast conversations, no family warmth. Just empty chairs and the echo of what this place should have been.

Sienna had figured out the pattern already. This house was like a beautiful stage with only one actor left to perform.

After her shower, she headed downstairs to find Mrs. Chen already busy in the kitchen. The older woman gave her that same polite-but-distant smile—the kind that said I've seen too many nannies come and go to get attached.

"Breakfast in ten minutes," Mrs. Chen said, stirring porridge without looking up. "Mr. West left at five-thirty."

"Does he always leave this early?" Sienna asked, though she already knew.

Mrs. Chen nodded. "Every single day. Comes home late too." Her voice carried the weight of someone who'd given up trying to change things.

"What about weekends?" Sienna pressed gently.

"Sometimes he brings work home. Sometimes he disappears to the office anyway." Mrs. Chen's stirring became more aggressive. "That poor child asks for him every morning. 'Where's Daddy? When will Daddy come home?' Breaks my heart."

"How long has it been like this?"

Mrs. Chen paused, her expression softening with sadness. "Since Mrs. West passed two years ago. He used to be different—warmer, more present. But after the accident..." She shook her head. "It's like he died with her, and only his body came back."

Walking into the dining room made Sienna's heart sink. That enormous table could seat twelve people easily, but only two place settings waited—one for her, one for Elara. Leonard's chair at the head sat empty and untouched, like it was just for show.

Everything in this room was perfect. Crystal glasses sparkled, silver gleamed, expensive paintings lined the walls. But something was horribly wrong with all this perfection. Where were the family photos? Where were Elara's drawings stuck to the fridge? Where was any sign that a family actually lived here?

"Miss Sienna!"

Elara's bright voice snapped Sienna out of her thoughts. The little girl came racing down the stairs with messy hair and the biggest smile.

"Good morning, sweetheart." Sienna scooped her up for a hug. "Sleep well?"

"I had the best dream!" Elara climbed into her chair, eyes sparkling. "We were in this huge garden full of butterflies, and Daddy was there playing with us!"

Sienna's smile faltered. Even in her dreams, this little girl was desperate for time with her father. "That sounds wonderful, baby."

"Will Daddy have breakfast with us today?" Elara asked hopefully, glancing at the empty chair.

Sienna's heart clenched. "Daddy had to go to work early, sweetheart. But maybe we can do something fun together after breakfast?"

"He's always at work," Elara said. "I miss him."

"I know you do, honey. He misses you too."

"Really?" Elara's eyes lit up. "Then why doesn't he come home to see me?"

The question hung in the air like a challenge Sienna couldn't answer. "Sometimes grown-ups get sad and forget how to show their love. But that doesn't mean the love isn't there."

After breakfast, they went up to the playroom. It was like stepping into a toy store—shelves packed with expensive toys from around the world, fancy dolls lined up in perfect rows, a play area that probably cost more than most people's cars.

But Elara ignored all of it.

Instead, she sat in the corner with three teddy bears, arranging them in a little circle like they were having dinner together.

"Daddy will be home soon," Elara whispered to the bears in her tiny voice. "We have to wait for him, okay?"

Sienna felt her heart break as she watched from the window. Elara picked up the biggest brown bear—obviously supposed to be Leonard—and put it at the head of a tiny plastic table.

"Sorry I'm late," Elara made the bear say. "Daddy had to work really, really hard today."

Then she grabbed the smaller white bear and made it answer back: "It's okay, Daddy. I'm used to waiting."

"But I made you dinner," the little bear continued. "It's your favorite—spaghetti and meatballs!"

"Thank you, sweetheart," the daddy bear replied. "I love spending time with you."

Elara hugged both bears tight. "I love you too, Daddy. Will you read me a story tonight?"

"Of course, baby. Every night."

Oh God. Sienna pressed her hand to her mouth, tears threatening to spill. This wasn't just pretend play. Elara was trying to create the family she'd never had, practicing conversations she'd probably never get to have.

Unable to watch anymore, Sienna quietly approached and sat down beside her. "That looks like a nice family dinner."

"It is!" Elara beamed. "Daddy Bear came home early today. He's not too tired to play."

"What's your favorite thing to do with Daddy Bear?"

"Read stories and play in the garden. And sometimes we just talk about everything." Elara's voice grew wistful. "Real Daddy used to do that when Mommy was here. Mrs. Chen told me."

Sienna turned to look out at the backyard, needing air, needing something to distract her from the pain of watching this scene. The garden stretched out below—perfectly maintained, completely empty.

The rest of the day passed with stories and movies, but Sienna couldn't shake what she'd witnessed. This house had everything money could buy, but it was missing the one thing that mattered most—love.

That evening, after Elara was asleep, Sienna sat by her bedroom window with a sketchbook. She'd planned to read or watch something, but movement in the garden caught her eye.

Leonard stood alone on the back lawn, coffee cup in hand. From up here, he looked so small surrounded by all those perfect trees and manicured grass. He wasn't moving, just standing there like he'd forgotten how to live.

The moonlight hit him from the side, and Sienna could see everything—the exhaustion weighing down his usually confident shoulders, the way his head hung like he was carrying the world on his back. He looked so damn lonely it made her chest hurt.

He came home early tonight, she realized. But he's still hiding.

Every instinct screamed at her to run downstairs, to go to him and tell him he didn't have to be alone. She wanted to hold him and show him that happiness was still possible, that his daughter needed him, that he mattered.

But his words from yesterday echoed in her head: "Never think that you are anything more than an employee in this house."

So she stayed put, palm pressed against the cool glass, watching a man who looked like he was having conversations with ghosts. Maybe he was remembering his wife. Maybe he was just trying to find the strength to face another day of the same empty routine.

Her hand started moving across the sketchbook without her realizing it, capturing what she saw—a lonely man under moonlight, surrounded by beauty that felt as cold as ice. The drawing told a story that words couldn't touch, about loneliness that no amount of money could fix.

A few minutes later, Leonard finished his coffee and walked back inside. Light flickered on in his study window—the same pattern every night. Work until the early hours, anything to avoid dealing with real life.

Sienna closed her sketchbook and stared at that glowing window. He was back at his desk, back to running away from the family that needed him.

"Goodnight, Leonard," she whispered toward that distant light. "I hope someday you find the courage to come home for real—not just to the house, but to your daughter. To yourself."

That night, she fell asleep with the sketch on her nightstand. In her dreams, she saw the same house but completely different—filled with laughter and warmth and love that wasn't afraid to show itself.

But morning came with the sound of Leonard's car leaving before dawn, and Sienna knew that dreams and reality were still miles apart.

She was starting to wonder if she was strong enough for this. Or if she'd end up like all the others—just another person who'd tried to help the West family and left with fresh scars on her heart.