Page 159 of The Widower
So much had happened—it barely felt like less than a year since that woman walked into my mansion terrified to even look me in the eye.
“You know, I still remember how scared you were of me,” I said, stretching and staring at the ceiling.
“Hey, not scared—nervous,” she corrected quickly, pretending to be offended. “You had the worst reputation imaginable. Not exactly my fault.”
“I didn’t know how to be any other way. Not until…”
“Until what?” she pushed, eyes narrowing playfully.
“Until an annoying woman showed up—with a kid I had no idea how to deal with.”
“Oh, you didn’t know how to deal with us?So now it’s our fault?” she said, crossing her arms.
“Exactly.How was I supposed to say no to Hanna?Those big eyes, that smile, worrying about me all the time…I didn’t stand a chance.”
“So, she’s the one who won you over first?”
I stared at Isabelle, incredulous. “Do I really need to answer that? If it weren’t for her, you’d have been out of my house ages ago.”
“How romantic,” she said, rolling her eyes with a grin.
“Hanna stayed with me on the days I wanted to be alone—days I didn’t even want to think about people.But you know what the crazy part is? Every time she came over, I let her stay. And even when I yelled at her once, that little girl still stood by my side.”
“My daughter’s special.”
“Very. But what she did most—without even realizing it—was bring me closer to Joshua. I’m not sure I could’ve done it without her.”
“Of course you could’ve,” she said softly.
“Highly doubtful,” I shot back. “I’m not ashamed to admit it—she was the bridge between us. Between me and you, me and Joshua… that’s the truth. I wish I’d been the one to make that happen, but Hanna beat me to it. Now Joshua and I are closer than ever. He’s glued to me. Both of them are.”
“I know… and I’m just the leftover in this story.” She pouted.
“That’s not true. Joshua loves spending time with you.”
“Colin…”
Isabelle’s eyes filled with tears out of nowhere, and I frowned, confused.
“What is it?”
“He… he asked me something, and I didn’t know what to say.”
“What?” My chest tightened. Could it be…?
“He asked if he could call me Mom.And I just froze… then started crying. I’m such a fool, aren’t I?”
I cupped her face with both hands, feeling my throat tighten.
“Not at all. You’re so genuine it hurts, Isabelle. You don’t hide what you feel, and that’s exactly what makes you special.”
“And to think you’d still be an arrogant jerk even after we started dating…”
I laughed—hard.
“Just don’t provoke me.Something you seem to enjoy doing… even when there’s absolutely no reason to.”
“Maybe a little,” she said with a smirk.
