[@Super Duper]

Maddison's question rang in Blake's ears.
He was silent for a several seconds after she said asked him that, his eyes glued to the floor as unheard thoughts swirled through his mind.
He finally looked back to her, making direct nearly unbroken eye contact as he spoke to her.

"I do work extensively Maddison yes, six days a week in fact, though some weeks I do work seven days. Generally though, I do get Sundays off unless of an emergency of course. I'll be home at six every night of course, unless I'm held up at the office, which isn't terribly often."

He stopped for a minute and leaned back into the futon, sighing heavily.

"Of course," he continued, "that really doesn't answer your question. So, to answer it; I really don't know."

He sat back silently, hands clasped at his stomach, he let his answer sink in for a minute before continuing,"I'm not going to tell you that you'll have all my time to yourself only to disappoint you, but I won't say I'll never be here for you either. I wish I could say my job were less demanding, but I can't, and my job is important to me, it's who I am." 

He unclasped his hands and leaned forward on the futon, turning his eyes from Maddison down to the small table that sat before the couch.

"All I can assure you is this; I'll be here for you as often and frequently as I can. When I'm not here, you'll have George and Beatrice, they'll care for you in my absence. But I promise you Maddison, I'll try my best for you, I'll give you my all. I wish your mother and I could have worked things out, had stayed together so you could have had a proper family, but it just didn't work out."

He sat back once again, piling his wait against the back of the futon.
He looked back to Maddison once more and said finally,"Things will work out, everything will develop for the better. Please trust me on this Maddison. I know I wasn't there for you when you were a child, but now I have a change to change things, to make things better for you, just give me a shot."