The restaurant went still. Adam didn’t move. Tara’s warning replayed in his head like a siren he couldn’t shut off.
Is Dawn… trying to replace Ava?
The thought hit him hard. He looked at her again, but the warmth he once felt was now tangled with confusion… and guilt.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, his voice rough. “But I don’t feel the same way.”
The chair scraped back. Then he walked out. No explanations. No second look.
Dawn just stood there, hollow. The first time she ever fell in love, her heart broke clean, sharp, merciless. She forced a smile for her siblings, called them over, pretended everything was fine, but every step home felt like walking on shattered glass with shattered bones.
* * * * * *
At home, the kids chattered about the evening like nothing had happened, but the
