Inwardly, Eloise felt glad. She'd been careful when she slipped her arms around him from behind. When her cheek pressed against the solid warmth of his back, though, his body felt rigid. But he didn't push her away.

Even when they break away and his silence remains heavy, a warmth and happiness wrapped around her inside-out as she didn't feel shut out of it.

She watched him sit on the edge of the bed and placed her phone gently beside him before grabbing the kit.

Antonio swallowed, his eyes staring into space as he remembered something Zade was yelling about earlier. The moment when their mother had requested for him...