Chapter 51

"Mr. Rafael won't make it back today?"

The sparkle in Liam's eyes died out almost immediately at the news.

I knew he was trying to hide his disappointment with a blank expression, but I could tell he wasn't as unaffected as he was trying to be. His gaze dropped down to the papers in his hand, the packet of adoption papers that he wanted to gift to Achilles for Christmas. His fingers crinkled the edges of his papers as he bit onto his lower lip, lost in thought.

It tore at my heart to see him so crestfallen. I tried to reach out to him, trying to explain to him, "It's snowing too hard in New York for him to fly in today. His crew said they wouldn't be able to take off until the storm passed and they got an okay from the landing site."

But he only wordlessly pulled away from my outstretched hand. He nodded solemnly as he pulled the thick packet to his chest. He replied softly, "It's okay... I understand... It's not safe... I can always give it to him later, even if it's not Christma