Years…
The last time she’d had sex with Gabriel, she’d conceived Mila, and that’d been a moment of weakness after months of upheaval.He’d come home full of tearful apologies and promises that he’d get help and that everything would be different.Only because she’d been so lonely and scared had she given in, knowing his promises would most likely turn out to be empty.
In a matter of days, he’d been gone again.She hadn’t seen him for six weeks that time, and by then, she knew she was pregnant.At first, she’d been furious with herself for allowing that to happen, but as Mila grew inside her, she’d fallen deeply in love with the little being who would turn out to be her baby girl.Thankfully, wherever he’d gone, Gabriel hadn’t cut off the money she needed to survive.
Isla had no regrets when it came to Theo and Mila.They were the best things to ever happen to her, even if everything else in their lives was a mess.She’d done her best to keep them insulated from Gabriel’s demons.
As she ran a brush through hair that’d been mussed by Julian’s fingers while he kissed her, she couldn’t wait to see him again.
Julian…
Quite simply the kindest, sweetest, handsomest, sexiest, smartest man she’d ever met in her life, and she was completely smitten with him, even if she had no business being smitten by anyone when her entire existence was in an uproar.
Somehow, some way, he’d become the calm in the storm for her, even if she felt anything but calm when he was around.She’d never had the kind of physical reaction to a man that she’d had to him, almost from the second they first met in his office when he’d been so kind to her and the kids.Right away, she’d felt safe with him in a way that she never had with Gabriel.It was as if she could finally exhale and allow someone else to pick up part of the load she’d been carrying on her own for so long.
Not that she needed a man to come swooping in and fix everything for her and the kids.Only she could do that.But there was no reason she couldn’t enjoy something special that was all hers—and his—while she figured out the rest.At some point, when he was a little older, Isla would explain to Theo what’d happened to his daddy.How in the world would she ever make sense of it for him when she was still processing it herself?
Mrs.V cleared her throat.
Isla spun around to find her friend standing in the doorway.“Oh, hey.I thought you were lying down.”
“I lied.You know I don’t nap.”
She said naps were for babies and old people—and that seventy-two didn’t count as old.
“Sorry my arrival was poorly timed just now.”
“It wasn’t.”
“Now you’re the one who’s lying.”Mrs.V smiled as she leaned against the doorframe.“That man sure is handsome.”
“Is he?I haven’t noticed.”
Mrs.V snorted with laughter.“Sure you haven’t.I hope you’re being careful with your heart with that handsome man.”
“I’m not being careful at all.I lose all perspective and sensibility when he’s around.”
“I wanted to know more about him, so I poked around a bit online.”
“Wh-what did you find out?”
“By all accounts, he’s a brilliant attorney who cares tremendously about his clients and helping them get the best-possible settlements.He’s also a strong advocate for mediation over costly litigation that mostly benefits the lawyers, which makes him better than most in that regard.”
“That’s nice to hear.”
“It’s his personal life that concerns me.”
“How so?”
“He doesn’t seem to have one.There were photos of him at various fancy events, always with a gorgeous woman on his arm, but there’s never a second photo with the same woman.”
“There’s a reason for that.”Isla immediately felt the need to defend him.“His parents dragged him and his siblings through an ugly custody battle for ten years, not to mention what he deals with every day at work.He’s reluctant to get himself into things he can’t get out of.”
“Interesting.”
“How so?”
“Well, on paper, he seems like a great guy.But is someone who avoids commitment like the plague the right guy for you, especially in light of recent events?”
