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Frustration whipped through him.

It wasn’t like he had to go home often.

He had Il Nido.

“How’s Yaya?”

“She’s well,” Fiero said, sharing a look with Elodie and then grimacing. “Though she is not quite as well as I have seen her.”

Something chilled inside Gabe’s gut. “What do you mean?”

“She had a stroke, Gabe. What do you expect? She’s older, and despite what we all want, there’s no way she’ll go on forever. You know that, right?”

Gabe felt as though he had a rock boulder on his chest. “Of course,” he said quietly. “I’m not an idiot.” But they all were, when it came to Yaya. The woman who’d raised them was so much a part of their lives, he couldn’t imagine life without her. It was a possibility none of them had really contemplated.

“It would be good if you could be here for Christmas.”

I could turn it into Gravlax for Christmas morning.

He pushed Isabella from his mind. She wasn’t a part of his life, nor his plans. She couldn’t be.

“I will be, if at all possible.” He looked towards the window, where the wind was howling. “I’d have been there days ago, if this storm hadn’t blown in.”

“And then you’d have missed Isabella Moss,” Elodie pointed out with a smile.

“Exactly.” He couldn’t help the scowl that crossed his brow.

Fiero laughed. “You’re annoyed you’ve been interrupted.”

“I’m — not annoyed,” Gabe corrected.

“Yes, you are. You like to go there to brood every December, and now you’ve got company.”

“I doubt it’s a hardship,” Elodie pointed out. “She seems so fun and friendly. I’m sure she’s excellent company.”

“That’s not the point,” Gabe said, looking towards the door. No Isabella. “I come here to be alone. Completely and utterly. I do not want to have a house guest – no matter how charming.”

Gabe disconnected the call as soon as he could, feeling even less settled than he had done before.

Isabella bloody Moss. It wasn’t enough that she’d taken over his every waking thought, but now she was infiltrating his family too?

He strode into the kitchen, pulling a beer from the fridge and draining half of it before realising she was sitting at the kitchen table. Eating. Alone.

Guilt washed through him.

He took a second to study her, something flicking inside of him.

“Isabella.”

She blinked up at him, surprise on her face and then consternation. She scrambled to pick up a thick notepad and pen, standing and lifting her plate. “I didn’t think — you weren’t around. I’ll get out of your hair.”

Hell. Is that what she thought he wanted? He couldn’t say he blamed her. He’d been colder than ice since they’d slept together.

“Wait.”

She flinched a little, her eyes wounded when they met his. He sighed heavily. “Don’t go.”

She looked towards the door, as though measuring her means of escape. Hell, he’d made a mess of this.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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