~ Niamh ~
I walked into the study, and the shift in the room was instantaneous.
Massimo's attention snapped to me before I had even fully cleared the doorway, his dark, hawk-like gaze locking onto me with a weight that made my pulse skip.
Matteo didn't even wait for me to speak. The second he saw me, he tossed his juice carton carelessly onto the rug and sprinted across the room.
"Mama!" he shrieked, a huge, bright smile lighting up his face as if he were relieved to finally see me awake and standing.
My heart swelled, a sudden, heavy warmth spreading through my chest as I leaned down to receive his on-rushing hug. I enclosed him in a tight embrace, burying my nose in his hair and sniffing in that sweet, familiar scent of him.
