That is not what happened.

Chapter 5 — His Smile Vanished

His smile vanished.

Completely.

For several long seconds, Luca did not move.

He simply stared down at our daughter’s tiny face, frozen, and the joy drained out of his own face as I watched, replaced by something I had no name for.

And then the vase slipped from his numb fingers and shattered against the floor, water and flower stems spilling across the tiles in a sudden violent crash that made me flinch.

My joy turned, instantly, into a cold spike of panic.