Page 14 of His Secret Wish

“Looks like they needed some extra space, so they moved a single bed in there.”

“Two people are sleeping in a single bed?”

“Yeah, but their combined age is barely double digits, so I don’t think they mind.”

“Oh, okay.” The light in her eyes dimmed a little, and it made his chest ache in an alarming way. They’d tried so long to have kids of their own, but it had just never worked out.

And every time she’d had a miscarriage, it had broken her a little more. Which, in turn, broke him. He’d hated to see her suffer so much. Especially the last time, when there were complications that had almost killed her. After that, his fear of losing her had taken over, and he’d insisted they stop trying to get pregnant.

It had been the first nail in the coffin of their marriage.

He shook his head to dislodge the memories. There was no point in dredging all of that stuff up. At least not right now. “Do we know who they put in the room at the end of the hall? It’s bigger, right?” He pointed in that direction.

She shook her head. “No one told me what the arrangements were. And I didn’t think to ask because I’m an idiot. Again, sorry for this.” She indicated their room with a wave of her hand.

“It’s not an issue, Izzy. I promise.”

The door at the end of the hallway crashed open, and a stream of kids came barreling down the hallway toward the stairs. Followed by Izzy’s cousin-in-law, Jorge. Owen stepped back to let them pass. There were six boys, ranging in age from about ten to fourteen.

“Hey, it’s good to see you.” Jorge stopped, holding out his hand.

Owen shook it, although there was a bitterness on his tongue. “You too, man.”

“As you can see, we’ve added some more to our brood.” Jorge waved in the direction of the herd of boys headed down the stairs. “And don’t forget about those two.” He pointed at the door of the closet-bedroom. “They’re the newest additions. Poor little things lost their parents in a car accident last year. Were in a group home for a bit, until we went in and rescued them.”

It took everything in Owen not to cold-cock the asshole right then. He and his wife, Yolanda, might talk it up like they were being altruistic and taking in all these foster kids because it was the right thing to do, but they actually only did it for the money. They were paid a monthly amount by the state for every kid they took in, so for them it was all about quantity. Their place was a revolving door of foster kids, and had been for years. “Yeah, we met. They’re cute little things.”

“Sure, yeah.” Jorge pulled out his phone, his disinterest clear. He didn’t even check on them, or make sure they were okay. “Anyway, I’m sure I’ll see you later.” He threw a wave at Izzy. “Oh, hey, Isabella. Great to see you, too. Talk later.” And then he was gone, striding down the stairs.

The look of abject fury on Izzy’s face matched his own, no doubt. “What a fucking wanker.” She kept her voice low, her gaze darting toward the girls’ door. She and Owen had plenty of conversations about Celia and Jorge over the years, so he knew they were both on the same page in that regard.

He chuckled, not about to disagree. “I’m going to hit the head, and then make my way back downstairs and grab something to eat. You in?”

She scrunched up her nose. “That’s such a terrible expression, but yes, I’m starving. Food would be great.”

He nodded and opened the bathroom door. Clearly, he’d been spending too much time with the ranch hands, and not enough time in the company of the opposite sex. His mother would be freaking out at him for being so vulgar. He definitely needed to do better. To be better.

After he was done in the bathroom, he waited in the hallway for Izzy to finish up. Whatever she was doing, it was time intensive.

The door to the small bedroom opened a crack, and a wide eye peered out. He didn’t make a big deal about it, just tilted his head back and whistled, like he had all the time in the world. A couple of giggles sounded from behind the door.

Izzy stepped out of the bedroom, and his tongue practically rolled out of his mouth. She’d changed into a dress that hugged all of her curves in an incredibly distracting way. The soft, smooth fabric was a deep shade of red, which highlighted the soft brown of her skin. The way the dress was designed meant the top was two sides that crossed over one another, making the neckline a deep v. Showing off her amazing cleavage to perfection. She wore a long necklace with a stone of some kind at the end which nestled right between her breasts.

He was honestly afraid he was drooling.

“Pretty.” The word wafted across the hallway from the small bedroom.

Izzy’s gaze darted to the door, and a small smile spread across her face. “Thank you,” she said, and grabbed the flowy skirt of her dress and gave a curtsey.

More giggles erupted from the other side of the door.

His stomach took that moment to growl, rather loudly. It was Izzy’s turn to laugh. She walked past him, patting his stomach on the way by. “Let’s get you some food before you starve to death.”

With nothing else to do, he followed behind her. And in that moment, he realized he’d gladly follow her anywhere for the rest of his life.