Garrett just nodded and ran a hand along her dresser.
“You have a way of making me feel ashamed of my life,” Isabelle said quietly as she zipped her suitcase.
Garrett frowned as he watched her. “That’s never my intention, Isabelle. I don’t mean to disparage the life you have. I just think you deserve so much more.”
Isabelle’s gut twisted and she leaned against her bed. “People rarely get what they deserve, Garrett. I hate that word. How do we determine who deserves what?”
Garrett seemed to contemplate her words. “I don’t guess I’ve ever thought of it that way before. Forgive me. I don’t mean to offend. I’ll work on it.”
When she lifted her suitcase off the bed, Garrett stepped over and took it from her. Setting it on the floor with ease, he tilted her chin up with his free hand.
“How are you doing, Doll? What do you need from me?”
She let her eyes drift closed. “I don’t know. I think I just need some sleep and maybe food. I didn’t eat much at the gala.”
Garrett frowned. “When was the last time you ate a decent meal? You left half of your sandwich in my office.”
Isabelle shrugged. “I guess breakfast this morning then.”
Garrett growled. “I have two rules that result in a spanking if you break them. What are they, Doll?”
Isabelle shook her head. “I’m not doing this here. Not with my nieces in the next room, Sir.” There was an edge to her tone as she said the last word.
He shook his head. “Fine. But we’re not done talking.”
As Isabelle nodded, Garrett’s phone rang, and he pressed a kiss to her forehead before he answered it.
“Regina, do you have anything for me?” he said, without a hello.
Isabelle looked around her room. It was tiny, but it was hers. That didn’t mean she didn’t dream of being able to get into a house where the girls could have their own rooms.
She stepped into the hallway just in time to hear Garrett say, “Thank you, Regina. Stay available in case there are problems.”
“We found a place that will hold all of you. We can leave right away.”
“Let me just check on the girls.”
Isabelle knocked on their door and waited a minute before pushing it open. They were sitting on the bottom bunk giggling as they stared at a phone.
“What are you two laughing about?” she asked, their laughter warming her heart.
“You, Aunt Izzy. You’re famous,” Catarina said as she turned the phone around.
Isabelle’s mouth dropped open as she watched Garrett kiss her on the red carpet.
“Delete that,” she hissed, afraid Garrett would come in and see.
The girls laughed. “It’s the internet, Aunt Izzy. You can’t just delete it.”
She shook her head. “Well, get it off your screen. You don’t need to be watching that.”
“It’s just a kiss. Are you going to marry him? He seems rich.”
Isabelle shook her head. “Nope. Not talking about this.”
“We’ll just ask him then.”
“You wouldn’t dare,” she said, pointing a finger at them in warning.
