Tangled: A Moreno Brothers novella Read Free

better, but no way was she allowing him to
make her feel guilty about anything regardless of the circumstances.
    “I don’t know exactly, but if I had to guess, I’d say mid to late
thirties.”
    “Is he single?”
    Isabel took a deep breath, biting back what she really wanted to
ask. Does that really matter? But since she knew no matter how much he’d claim
it didn’t, it did. She may as well tell him the truth.
    “He’s recently divorced.”
    Romero stared at her now, the severity in his eyes weakened a bit
but his interest even greater. “And why do you know that?”
    Isabel shot right back without wavering, “Because he mentioned it
when I told him about needing to be home for the kids. He said he understood. He
remembered when his kids were our kids’ age and not wanting to miss out on anything.
He said I should enjoy these years because they fly by fast. Then he said now
that he’s divorced he hardly sees the kids at all and he wishes he’d spent more
time with them when he’d had the chance.” Reaching for Romero’s hand, she could
already feel the tension in his arms again. “What are you thinking?” she asked,
and he stared up at her silently for a moment. “Don’t think about it, baby. Just
tell me what’s going through your head this very instant.”
    His expression softened a bit as he pulled her down to lie with
him. “That I love you,” he said softly, kissing her nose as soon as she was
close enough. “And that I’m gonna pass out the moment we shut off the lights.”
    Isabel searched his eyes, surprised by his response. This was so
not where she thought this conversation was headed. But he smiled and it was
genuine, so she smiled, relieved that for now this didn’t appear as if it might
be an issue.
    Since they’d been married and especially once she decided to stay
home, there’d been very few incidents where his temper or suspicion of any guy
around her caused them to argue. They’d come a long way since their explosive
beginning. But then, since she’d been home with the kids, there’d been very few
times she had to spend around other men when Romero wasn’t around.
    Isabel decided this was a good thing for them. She was bound to
get back into the work force, and they were beyond ridiculous insecurities.
Obviously, Romero had grown in the years they’d been married or they might
still be discussing Elliot. Instead, Romero’s arms were already wrapped tightly
around her, and he breathed in deeply, sounding as content as she felt.
    ~*~
    Romero climbed back into bed, careful not to wake Izzy.
She’d been mumbling since he’d gotten out of bed in the first place.
    “No,” she mumbled softly. “No albondigas for you.”
    He chuckled softly, staring at her. She hadn’t done this in a
while. Her mumbling in her sleep was something that only happened once in a
great while. But over the years, he’d noticed it usually happened when she went
to bed especially tired. Last night had been so good it didn’t surprise him
that she’d slept this soundly.
    Most of the time, the things she said in her sleep had to do with
him or the kids. She’d even scolded Max once in her sleep for cussing in front
of the kids. It was always highly entertaining, and he loved teasing her about
it.
    He frowned, knowing his chuckling had woken her because she began
to shift and open her eyes. Even half awake, she was fucking beautiful, and he
had to smile. She stared lazily at him, her expression a bit confused obviously
about waking to him staring and smiling at her the way he was. “What are you
the soup Nazi now?”
    “What?” she asked, her brows pinching together.
    “Were you dreaming about albondigas ?”
    She stared at him for moment then smiled, her face flushing
instantly. Romero groaned, burying his face in her neck. Jesus, he’d
never get enough of seeing her blush. Even after all these years, it still
happened often, and Romero still found it to be one of her most