Page 28 of His Best Friend’s Heat

"Shh, shh, shh, it's okay, Emma-bean. Daddy's got you."

My daughter's wails cut through the apartment like a tiny, heartbreaking siren. Her face is scrunched and red, tears leaking from eyes squeezed shut in what looks like genuine baby outrage. I bounce her against my chest, her impossibly small body vibrating with the force of her cries.