Page 36 of His Secret Wish

Claudia gave a small huff of breath and relaxed fully into the pillow. He brushed her hair away from her forehead, his touch gentle.

“I think I remember that story.” She kept her voice low as she stepped into the room, wrapping her arms around herself. He glanced over at her, surprise in his gaze. “Your mom used to read it to you guys when you were little. What was the name of it?”

“The Princess Saves Herself.” He chuckled softly, clearly not wanting to wake his stowaways. “I think she wanted us to know that our job as men was not to swoop in and try to fix things for women, unless help was specifically requested. That you are all more than capable of saving yourselves.” His gaze went soft, his brow furrowed. She was sure he was thinking about his childhood and his parents, and their fucked-up relationship.

Because, it had been fucked up. Cal had been many things, but a devoted husband and father was not one of them. Owen had often confessed to Isabella that he wasn’t sure why his mom put up with his dad’s crap, why she stayed. The only plausible explanation had been that Eloise had loved Cal enough that she was able to look past his shortcomings. His many, many shortcomings.

Owen shook his head. “Anyway,” he said, his voice even lower. Must be afraid of waking the girls. She doubted his already low speaking voice would actually wake them, but figured it wasn’t a good time to mention it. “Where did you go?”

She sat on the bed next to them, mostly so she could actually hear him. “I was hungry, so I went to get something to eat.” She indicated the girls and the bed with a sweep of her hand. “What happened here?”

He shrugged. “Honestly, I have no idea. The thunder woke me up, and I noticed you were gone, so I turned on the light. The door was open a little, and there they were, terrified and shaking, scared of the storm. I was going to get them back to their room, but somehow we all ended up here, with me telling them a story.”

“Well, that was very sweet of you.” She stood up and stretched, her muscles aching and popping in that good way. He watched her like a hawk watched a mouse, and she had the ridiculous urge to run, just to see if he’d chase her.

Not the time, Isabella. Not the time.

Right. Two little stowaways and all of that. “I’ll go and get their bed ready. You can bring them over, and we’ll put them back in their own bed.”

She turned and walked out of the room without waiting for him to reply. Rude, yes, but it was too late at night—or early in the morning, depending upon how you looked at it—for all these deep, and somewhat troubling, thoughts.

She went into the closet-turned-bedroom and snapped on the overhead light. Nothing happened. She tried the switch a couple more times, but the room remained dark. No wonder the little ones had been scared. The storm had been raging, and the light bulb had burned out, so they couldn’t even turn the light on. The room was barely a room, and she was slightly appalled that anyone had even suggested the girls stay in it, let alone actually thought it was a good idea.

Grabbing the stuffed elephant off the single bed, she headed back across the hall. Owen had managed to climb off the bed without waking anyone up, and stood there with Marissa cradled in his arms. The little girl looked tiny in comparison to his big frame.

For a fleeting moment, she imagined this was their life. That Claudia and Marissa were their daughters, and they were here as a family to celebrate Yaya. It was what she’d always pictured, what she’d always wanted. And the fact that the universe—she wasn’t sure she believed in God anymore, because how could he be so cruel?—snatched it all away from her was devastating.

Tears burned her eyes, and she ducked her head, hoping he wouldn’t see them. “The light in their room is burned out. That’s probably why they ended up here because it was the only source of light they could find in their panic.” Her voice sounded hoarse, the words tinged with sadness. Maybe he wouldn’t notice. Please don’t let him notice.

She took Marissa from him, holding the delicate little girl close. A tear slid down her cheek, but she turned to the bed so he wouldn’t see. “They can sleep here for the rest of the night, and then we’ll get everything squared away tomorrow.” Her voice had gone from hoarse to watery. He was definitely going to notice the change.

He placed a hand on her shoulder, but she shook it off. Him touching her right now was going to make her lose it. She just needed a second to get her over-tired emotions under control and she’d be fine. Climbing into the bed, she laid Marissa next to her sister, and then cuddled up beside her.

She could feel Owen’s hesitation, the moment rapidly stretching into something awkward. Without looking back or rolling over, she reached back and lifted up the blankets.

“Please?” The word was barely more than a whisper, cracked around the edges.

He sighed and then the light went off. She held her breath for a heartbeat. And then another.

The mattress dipped, and he slid in behind her. He didn’t touch her, left just enough space between them so their skin wouldn’t brush. He was also probably also partly hanging over the edge because she and the girls were taking up a lot of room.

She maneuvered Marissa a little closer to Claudia and scooted over a few more inches.

“Thanks.” His voice was quiet, like he didn’t want to break the tenuous threads that had built between them over the last few days. He readjusted his position, moving over a bit. His arm brushed against her back, and she shivered.

“I... I’m cold.” The lie slipped out before she could stop it, but she couldn’t deny she didn’t really care. Just for one moment, she wanted things to be the way they should have been. A perfect moment in her imperfect world.

“Do you want me to grab another blanket?” He sat up, and the covers slid down a bit, letting some of the warm air under the blankets escape.

“No,” she said, her voice thick. “I just want you to hold me.”

There was a pause, the room falling silent except for the sound of the girls’ breathing. She even thought he might have stopped breathing.

And then he slid over and pulled her against him so her back was against his chest. Warmth enveloped her, and she sighed and leaned into him. Another tear slid down her cheek. And then another, and another.

She tried to be silent, to not let him know she was crying, but she didn’t think she managed it very well. He pulled her tighter against him, buried his face in her hair. Pressed a gentle kiss to the back of her head.

The last couple of days had been more eventful than she was used to, and exhaustion had settled into her bones. Which was what she was blaming her emotional upheaval on. After a goodnight’s sleep, everything would go back to normal.

Marissa turned over and snuggled up to Isabella, her little head resting on Isabella’s arm. Her dark curls tickled Isabella’s nose. Her shampoo smelled like bubblegum.

Isabella’s eyes fluttered closed, tears still leaking under her lashes. It only took a moment for sleep to crash into her, turning the world black.

Just before she went under, she could have sworn she heard Owen whisper, “I’m sorry.”