Page 62 of His Secret Wish

But she didn’t. Instead, she took in a deep breath. “It’s fine, Mami. There’s no need to worry. I’ve got everything under control.” It was a massive lie, but her mother didn’t need to know that.

Mami took another sip of her coffee and gave her another of her raised eyebrows. It was incredibly frustrating. Isabella loved her mother very much, but she also knew the older woman could be very judgmental, and very set in her ways. Once she’d decided something, there was no changing her mind. “And what about Owen?”

The question smacked Isabella in the gut like a sledge hammer. “I’m not having this conversation right now.” Her whisper was harsh, but she didn’t regret it. Her and Owen’s relationship was nobody else’s business.

Mami sighed, her face softening. “I just don’t want you to get hurt again, mi amor.” She brushed her fingers against Isabella’s cheek. “That Owen Callahan is nothing but trouble. Always has been, always will be.”

“I know.” It was easier to agree than argue.

“Good morning, ladies.” Owen’s deep voice sounded behind her.

She spun around. He was coming down the stairs, freshly showered and looking far too handsome. There was a tightness around his eyes, though. A set to his jaw. Had he heard her and Mami’s conversation?

“Good morning.” Mami’s voice was over-the-top sugary sweet. She gave Owen one of the phoniest smiles Isabella had ever seen.

Owen stepped up behind Isabella and slid his arm around her shoulder. Automatically, she sank back into the embrace.

Mami’s lips pinched together tight, and Isabella almost cringed, getting ready for whatever her mother was about to say. But Mami just nodded at them. “I have to go and see what your father is up to. I’ll see you later.” She gave them a curt nod, and then turned and walked away.

Owen let go of her and stepped back so abruptly, she almost fell backwards. He placed his hand on her back, keeping her upright. And then he pulled his hand back like she’d burned him.

“Thanks.” She glanced up at him. His gaze had a frosty edge to it. The kind that made her shiver. And not in a good way.

He nodded, but didn’t say anything. The moment stretched on, until finally he sighed. “I’m going to grab some food.” He didn’t wait for a reply, just strode over to the counter and picked up a plate.

Isabella’s heart hurt, and she didn’t quite know why. It felt like something between them had shifted, blocking all the progress they’d made over the last few days. Not that it mattered. This weekend was a fantasy, and she gotten far too lost in the magic of it all. But it stopped now. She needed to protect herself from both Owen and her wayward feelings.

“Tia, tia, tia.” Claudia came racing over, her hands sticky. At this rate, Isabella was going to have to change her name to Tia, tia, tia.

“Yes, mi amor?” She grabbed a cloth from next to the sink and wiped Claudia’s hands and face. Then she turned to Marissa, who had quietly followed behind her sister.

“It snowed outside. It snowed.” Claudia’s eyes were wide, her smile huge.

“I know it did.” She tossed the cloth into the sink. “Do you want to go out and play in it?”

Claudia’s mouth opened, but for once, nothing came out. Clearly, she was feeling speechless. A big feat for the young chatterbox. “We can?”

Marissa watched the exchange, her eyes as wide as the plate they’d eaten breakfast off of.

“Sure. Go upstairs and put on the coats and hats and mittens we bought yesterday, and then we can go and see what all the fuss is about outside.”

Together, the girls raced to the stairs and up, Claudia chattering to her sister the whole way.

Sadness pricked at Isabella as she watched them go. Saying goodbye to them when she left tomorrow was going to be difficult. Like, heart-wrenchingly hard. Maybe Mami was right. Spending so much time with them, creating a bond with them, had been a mistake.

But she couldn’t say she regretted it. This weekend had been the best one she’d had in a long time. For many reasons.

She glanced at Owen, who was standing with his back to the wall, eating his breakfast, and being entertained by Diego and a couple of her other cousins. Most likely talking football.

Her heart took up a double time beat, her stomach twisting over and around itself again. Soon it was going to be unravelable.

She ducked her head and walked over to the buffet. It was just because she was hungry. That was why her body was acting weird. She grabbed a biscuit and slathered it with butter. It was one of her favorites, but when she took a bite, the food tasted like nothing. She swallowed it down and took another bite. That second one was no better.

With a sigh, she tossed the rest of it in the trash. One more disappointment in what was gearing up to be a weekend of disappointments. She didn’t understand how something that had started out so great could turn into something depressing so quickly.

At least she had today, where she could spend time with the girls, and make memories that would have to sustain her.

She glanced at Owen again. There were lots of memories from this weekend that would need to sustain her. And that thought made her sad all over again. Good thing she was intimately acquainted with sadness.