Shelby chuckled at their antics, her heart warming up considerably, but then Gabriel's small voice chimed in again,
"Why is Daddy crying?"
The atmosphere in the room seemed to pause entirely as Shelby stepped back. Then, she noticed a single tear gently rolling down Ian's cheek.
Even Ian himself was surprised at that reaction! He let go of Shelby briefly and brought his finger to his face as if to wipe it, but Shelby beat him to it. She gingerly and softly wiped the tear,
"I'm sorry…." Shelby whispered, knowing that she was the cause of this. Her heart ached gently. She could clearly sense Ian's distress, but it was so much more than that. His emotions were all over the place, and that made her want to mold him into herself to protect him. Shelby knew that she was in no position to do that, but that only increased the self-blame and guilt.
