The mask of professional detachment slipped over Luca's features so quickly that I might have missed it had I not been watching so intently. He gathered his documents with mechanical precision, but I could sense the wolf beneath the surface—angry, confused, territorial.
"Thank you for your time, Ms. Santos," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "My team will be in touch regarding next steps."
With a curt nod to Kade and a final, unreadable glance at Betty, he strode from the room, his team scrambling to keep pace.
"Well," Kade murmured once they'd gone, "that was dramatic."
I didn't respond, my attention focused on Betty, who was happily examining the colorful graphs left on the table. Three years of careful planning, of protecting my daughter from her father's rejection, undone in a
