Page 70 of His Secret Wish

Chapter 16

Isabella woke with a start, disoriented and groggy. She sat up. It took a moment to realize she was in the family room at Yaya’s house. Her eyeballs hurt, her tear ducts stinging. Her throat was so dry she could barely swallow. Her entire body ached like she’d run a marathon, and then had been run over by the all the other participants.

Guilt and sadness warred within her, the guilt quickly edging out the other. She owed Owen an explanation. And maybe an apology. Her freak out last night was embarrassing to the highest level.

She stood, her muscles screaming in protest. If given the chance, she felt like she could probably sleep for a month. She dragged her butt down the hallway and into the living room. People were milling about, grabbing food off the counter, and talking quietly to one another. Definitely not the same vibes as a couple days ago. There were also a lot fewer people than previously, some of the relatives clearly headed home already.

“Hey, sis.” Antonio came up and gave her a side hug, pressing a kiss to her temple.

“Hey.” She hugged him back. Her gaze skipped over the room, searching for something, although she wasn’t quite sure what.

“How you doing?” There was concern in his voice.

She shrugged. “I’m okay, I guess.”

He nodded. They fell into a heavy silence. It was obvious Antonio wanted to say something but didn’t know how to start.

She looked at him, her lips pinched together. “What?”

“I was just wondering why you were sleeping in the family room?”

Leave it to her brother to cut right to the bone. He was clearly their mother’s son. She sighed. “It’s complicated.”

The look he gave her was part pity, part understanding. It made her want to punch him. Or maybe cry on his shoulder.

“Isn’t it always?” He waited a beat and then sighed. “This weekend with Owen was a lot, huh?”

She nodded. That was the understatement of the century. “Yeah, it was something, that’s for sure.”

“Well, if you ever want to talk, you know where I am.”

“Thanks.” She gave him a weak smile, but at least it was genuine.

He stared at her hard and then gave a single nod and walked over to the group of cousins being entertained by Diego.

She wandered into the kitchen. Mami was at the sink, washing some dishes. Tia Florence was fussing with her baby granddaughter, who was chewing on a teething ring. Another of Tia’s grandchildren was sitting at the table, coloring in a coloring book.

The reality of what she’d been looking for smacked her in the belly. There was no sign of Yolanda, Jorge, or their foster kids. She glanced back into the living room thinking maybe she’d missed them. But nope, they definitely weren’t there.

Panic clawed through her, although she wasn’t sure why. Okay, so she was sure, she just didn’t want to admit it. Telling herself to relax, she walked to the sink and picked up a dish towel. Maybe they’d all just slept in. That was completely plausible.

“Good morning, mi hija.” Mami gave her a smile, but it looked as weak as the one Isabella had given Antonio. Mami looked tired, dark circles under her eyes, strain lines on her face.

Isabella placed her cheek on Mami’s upper arm and picked up a plate from the dish rack. “Morning.”

They worked in silence, which Isabella was grateful for. She didn’t know what to say, didn’t want to ask the question burning the back of her tongue.

Finally, she couldn’t wait any longer. “So, have you seen Yolanda and Jorge this morning?” She tried to keep her voice light, conversational, although she didn’t quite manage. The words came out a little too eager, a little to needy.

Mami looked at her, tilting her head, her lips pinched together. “They left a few hours ago. They had a long drive ahead, so wanted to get an early start.”

“Oh.” Isabella’s chest felt like Mami had taken the spoon in her hand and carved out Isabella’s heart. She hadn’t even gotten to say goodbye to Claudia and Marissa. “Yeah, that makes sense.” Her voice was rough, the words barely making it past her tight, dry throat.

“Are you okay?” For all her fuss about Isabella getting too close to the girls, there was real concern and compassion in the words.

Isabella nodded, not trusting herself to speak. It shouldn’t hurt this bad. The girls were never hers to begin with, so it was silly to be so upset. She blamed it on being exhausted, emotional, and completely out of sorts. This whirlwind weekend had been too much. She just needed to get back to her real life, and things would be good.

Mami finished the dishes, wiped her hands on a dish towel, and gave Isabella a squeeze. Isabella hugged her back fiercely. There was nothing quite like a mother’s hug.