There was a wall up when it came to Luca. She could tell the moment their discussions went off into uncomfortable territory for him. Even the most harmless questions about his high-school prom seemed to set a glaze over his eyes. The answers that followed felt hollow and inauthentic. Not necessarily that he was lying, but that his response was practiced. Claire had her fair share of practiced speeches with Jeff as he successfully hid his infidelity. She wasn’t about to make that mistake twice, even with a man who was ten times more thoughtful and charming than Jeff ever was.
“You’re a mother, tesorina, not a superhero. It’s okay to accept help.”
“Thank you.” Claire knew that, at least in theory. Putting it into practice was harder. Aside from Daisy, she didn’t really have anyone to lean on for help. Despite the messy circumstances, perhaps having Luca in Eva’s life wouldn’t be so bad. There would be someone else she could call when she needed help, and when Eva stayed with her father, Claire would get the occasional break to recharge and relax. She didn’t realize just how much she needed that until this moment. She wasn’t quite ready to just give in on the custody agreement yet, but she was starting to see the silver lining of the situation.
“I’ll stay up with her for a while if you want to go back to bed.”
Claire immediately felt anxious about his offer. It was one thing to let him help and another entirely to let him take over. She hated questioning his every motivation, but she couldn’t be naive. What could he tell the judge then? That when Eva was sick, he was the one who had to care for her? No, thanks. “That won’t be necessary,” she said, reaching to take Eva from his arms. “I was having trouble sleeping anyway. I’m going to stay up until she starts feeling better.”
Luca didn’t immediately release Eva. He watched Claire suspiciously, and she fought to swallow the onset of an unexpected yawn. “I think the sandman is ready for you now. My time will come later. We’ll be fine, I promise. Go back to bed. I’ll wake you up if something happens. Otherwise, I’ll rock her until she falls back to sleep and put her in her crib.”
Claire was resistant, but she could tell by the firm, yet gentle expression on Luca’s face that he would insist. Perhaps he was just being nice and not looking for ammunition to use against her in court. Her eyelids were getting too heavy for her to argue any longer. “Okay, thank you. I’ll leave the door open to the bedroom.”
“Good night,” he said with Eva snuggled into his arms.
She could tell that Eva would probably be asleep before she was. Not much to worry about, then. She reluctantly returned to her bedroom and burrowed beneath the down comforter. With the late night emotional highs, quickly came the lows. Before she knew it, she crashed.
The last thought as she drifted to sleep was how Luca’s lips had felt as they pressed against hers. And she wondered—would she ever feel that again?
* * *
It seemed as though she’d just closed her eyes when she opened them to daylight streaming through the window. Claire sat up in bed, noticing the bedroom door was still open and the crib remained empty. If Eva hadn’t fallen asleep, why hadn’t Luca woken her up?
Climbing from bed, she pulled on her robe and returned to the living room. She expected to find them milling around the kitchen or out on the deck, but it seemed as though things hadn’t gone as Luca planned. There on the couch under a chenille blanket, she found Luca and Eva. Both were asleep, with Eva curled into a little ball on his chest. Claire stood there for a moment, watching the two of them together. It was precious. They both made the same little grumpy faces while they dreamed, their brows drawn together and their lips pouty in sleepy consternation. She wanted to capture the memory of them together like this and never forget it.
“Good morning.”
Claire was startled to notice Luca’s eyes had opened, and he was watching her as closely as she was watching him. “Morning. You two look pretty cozy.”
Luca looked down at the infant drooling on his bare chest. “I guess so. We must’ve conked out pretty quickly after you went to bed. I don’t think I’ve moved an inch the whole night.” He sat up slowly as to not disturb the baby, groaning softly as he stretched his stiff limbs. “What time is it?”
“A little after nine.”
“Wow.” Luca ran one hand through the messy waves of his hair and shook his head. “I haven’t slept that late in years.”