Love in Bloom (De La Fuente Family 3)

She sighed. “The old Caprice isn’t coming back. I can’t do that anymore. What you see is now what you’re going to get…and when this is all over with and the engagement is broken, I have some things I need to tell you. I promised I wouldn’t, but I can’t walk away without you knowing.”

His hands tightened on the steering column as he listened to her talk and his heart thumped behind his breastbone. “My family are everything to me.”

He caught her wince at the bite behind his words and when she answered, her voice was more like a whisper. “I promised you, Mateo. I don’t want to cause any trouble. It’s a wedding—a happy occasion.”

He’d had enough of trying to work shit out. He’d take her to the house and see what his family’s thoughts were about her change of colors because he sure as hell had no idea what to think. He also needed words with his dick. He sure as hell didn’t want to be getting erections every time he glanced at her.

Chapter Six

Erin felt sick to her stomach being inside Mateo’s family home again. She hadn’t been back since she’d caused the accident at Thanksgiving. That hadn’t been planned on her part, it had been pure instinct to screech and reach out when the deer had darted in front of Kasey’s truck. She’d been in too much shock to find her voice to apologize and her tears had been close to the surface. It was no wonder everyone hated her.

She now had something else to think about though: sleeping arrangements. Mateo had been just as shocked when they’d arrived and met his stepmom, Lucia, and been told that Erin would be sharing his room because the house would be full to the rafters in a few days.

That hadn’t been on the cards and she had no idea how to deal with it, having never shared a room with the man, any man before. Well, that wasn’t quite true. She’d shared a room in hotels with Mateo a few times, but they’d always made sure the room had two bedrooms so they could avoid each other.

Mateo wasn’t helping the situation with the sleeping arrangements because all he’d done since the talk in the car was brood. Erin knew he had no idea what was going on with her regardl

ess of what she’d said, but he could at least show that he was bothered about there only being one huge bed in his room. Instead, all he’d done was agree that they were fine in his room.

Sharing a room with Mateo would have been exciting if it wasn’t for the fact that it was all an act…now it was going to make the week even harder.

She lost her train of thought as they moved closer to the kitchen. Mateo’s brothers would be around and she wondered what he’d be like around them. They all acted like big kids when together and it was something she’d secretly relished on each occasion.

Mateo walked through the kitchen door with her, for which she was thankful. Burying her nerves, she plastered a smile on her face and met the silence in the kitchen as they entered head on.

“You’ve brought a babe.” Her eyes snapped to Diego who moved toward them, his smile dropping as he drew closer. “Hell! It’s you.” He shook his head and backed into Kasey, who grabbed his shoulders and laughed.

“Stop being an idiot.” Mateo placed his hand on the center of her back and gave her a gentle shove forward.

She leaned in closer to Mateo wanting him to protect her from the others who looked as though they hadn’t seen her before, which they hadn’t.

“You’re her but you don’t look anything like her,” Kasey stated the obvious, and then laughed at himself. “Okay, let me try again. What happened to you?”

“For God sakes! She’s changed. Get over it.” Mateo shoved her into a seat at the table next to his sister, Emelia.

If there was anyone that she wanted to avoid the most, it was Emelia. His sister hated her, which as usual was to be expected. Erin just wished that it didn’t hurt as much as it did.

She clasped her hands together on her lap so the others wouldn’t see them shake with nerves. Being around his family always made her nervous but behind the Caprice façade she managed. Being here as Erin…she felt open and laid out before them.

God, she was going to puke.

“So who are you planning on insulting this time?” Emelia asked. Her husband, Dante, took hold of her hand and gave Emelia a small shake of his head.

She deserved that. She probably deserved anything they threw at her.

Clearing her throat, she admitted, “This time I’m here as myself. I know that doesn’t make much sense. I just can’t really explain. I’m sorry.”

Mateo’s brother, Aiden, sat beside Dante and glared in her direction. Her gaze moved to Dante, who frowned. Kasey and Diego looked amused as though they didn’t really believe her. Lucia and Emiliano didn’t look all that approachable.

Perhaps it was a bad idea coming here. She wasn’t wanted and had only been invited because of her ‘supposed’ engagement to Mateo. She stared down at her hands, blinking back the tears burning her eyes. Maybe she should let the engagement end now, get it done, apologize to the family and then flee back to Dallas.

The room was silent and she felt eyes on her…judging her…but she couldn’t look up, couldn’t voice everything running through her head. After a few minutes, the conversation started up at the table, which made her feel like a lemon in a bowlful of oranges. She glanced up and watched as the others talked between themselves…none of them included her. Even Mateo was talking to his father without a glance in her direction.

She kept reminding herself that how they treated her was to be expected, but it hurt. Mateo had an amazing family and she wished more than anything that Roger hadn’t stipulated how she had to act whilst with him and his family.

Even when her mom was alive, it had only been the two of them, so having the opportunity to be part of a large, loving family would be amazing. In a way, it was for the best considering that she would be leaving in just over a week.

Being completely excluded hurt her more now than it ever did when she was in her Caprice shoes. But as they continued to talk amongst themselves, she felt the tears filling her eyes…her lips wobbled as her throat ached from the silent sobs gripping her chest. She couldn’t breathe and she didn’t want them to see her like this.