Page 38 of Secret Baby's Second Shot

“It’s called amethyst,” Enzo said, sitting beside her. “It’s one of my favorites.”

“Mine too!” Ava said, grinning.

“Another thing we have in common,” Enzo said softly, his voice tinged with something I couldn’t quite place.

I hovered nearby, pretending to be engrossed in a display about tectonic plates, but my attention was firmly on them.

By the timewe reached the café for lunch, my nerves were frayed. Ava had insisted on sitting next to Enzo, and the two of them were already deep in conversation when I sat down across from them.

“Do you like being a doctor?” Ava asked, her little hands wrapped around her juice box.

“I do,” Enzo said, nodding. “It’s hard work, but it’s worth it.”

“I want to be a doctor, too,” Ava said, her eyes shining. “Just like you.”

Enzo smiled, but his gaze flicked to me briefly. “That’s a big dream, Ava. You’d be great at it.”

“I know,” she said confidently.

I laughed softly, reaching for my coffee. “She’s nothing if not determined.”

“She gets that from you,” Enzo said, his voice steady.

The comment was innocent enough, but there was a weight behind it that made my chest tighten.

As we ate,Ava continued to chatter, her boundless energy making both of us laugh. But I could feel the shift in Enzo’s demeanor—subtle but unmistakable. He was quieter, his gaze lingering on Ava longer than usual, his smile fading at odd moments.

When Ava excused herself to look at the display near the café counter, Enzo leaned back in his chair, his eyes locking onto mine.

“She’s incredible,” he said softly.

“She is,” I agreed, my voice tight.

“She’s… a lot like me,” he said, his tone careful.

I froze, my heart pounding in my chest. “She’s her own person,” I said quickly.

“Of course,” he said, but his expression didn’t change.

The tension between us was almost unbearable, and I scrambled to change the subject. “She’s lucky to have so many people who care about her.”

“She is,” he said, his gaze steady. “But there’s more to this, isn’t there?”

“Enzo…” I began, my voice faltering.

He leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice. “You’re going to have to tell me the truth eventually, Summer.”

The words hung between us, heavy and unrelenting.

I opened my mouth to respond, but Ava ran back to the table, holding a small stuffed dinosaur she’d picked out from the gift shop display.

“Look what I got!” she said, holding it up proudly.

“It’s perfect,” Enzo said, his smile returning as he focused on her.

But as we left the museum, his earlier words echoed in my mind, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that time was running out.

19

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