Love in Flame (De La Fuente Family 5)

It doesn’t take long to sort out the checks for the two tables that we’ve chosen to benefit today.

Five minutes later, I’m settling Emelia into the car when she cups my face in her cold hands. “Be careful, Diego.” Letting me go, she settles back into the seat while I’m left floundering. My sister turns and smiles, her eyes motioning for me to get in.

She has me confused, which isn’t difficult when it’s Emelia.

Shaking my head and smiling to myself, I climb behind the wheel and pull out into traffic wondering whether or not Rae’s at home, and if she is, if she’s alone.

RAE

“Mom, what do you think of this?” Andie hollers down the hall. I pad softly toward her voice, going to see what she’s up to.

We’re settled here in my cottage again and being away for a while has made me realize just how much I love the place, it’s my home. My best friend, Aiden, and his fiancée live down the same lane, which once caused problems, but no more.

I’m making the most of having my daughter home before she heads back to school for her graduate studies. I couldn’t be prouder of Andie, even if it means I’m slightly disappointed that she’s not going to be around as often as I’d originally planned.

As I reach her bedroom door, I knock, and ask, “Am I finally allowed inside?”

Within seconds, the door is flung open and a grinning Andie is on the other side, swinging her arms widely, motioning for me to enter. Walking into her bedroom, I’m surprised at the difference. When she’d first arrived home from school, she’d told me that I hadn’t to step a foot inside her room until she’d done a complete renovation of it. Looking around now, it’s unrecognizable from the plain and cold grey walled box that it had been.

Andie has painted one of the walls purple. She has printed photographs stuck up in clusters on different sections of the walls, showing the grinning faces of her friends and me, and even some of Aiden. There are also posters, all depicting some of the world’s most beautiful sights. She has set a desk up on one side of the room, against the far wall and beneath the window with her laptop sat on the surface, stacks of books along the windowsill. Her bed is queen sized, with grey leather headboard. She has purple and white sheets to match the walls and a silver rug finishes off the room. She’s certainly put her own twist on the room.

“It’s beautiful, Andie,” I whisper, grinning and feeling close to tears. “You’ve really done good. I’m so happy you’ve made this your room.”

“I know.” She beams at me. “I wasn’t going to bother too much with me going back to school, but I’ll always come home to you, Mom. So I made the room mine.”

I pull her into my arms and hug her tightly. My beautiful daughter has the whole world in front of her and I don’t want her to miss any of it. I want her to have the opportunity to follow her heart no matter where that might lead.

Cupping her face with my hands, I tell her, “Wherever I am you’ll always have a home, but you really started living a life of your own, when you left for college…the first time.” I offer her a wry smile and wipe at her tears. “You’re going to go so far, Andie. Don’t ever doubt that.”

Andie shakes free of my hands and wraps herself around me. “What’s gotten you so emotional?” Lifting her gaze she watches me closely.

Sighing, I tell her, “I’m okay, just tired.” I smile, hoping she won’t catch on to the little white lie. In truth, I’m just missing Diego.

We message and talk daily so I know he’s home and safe but I miss being with him. We’d only spent a short time together but it had been so intense and now my heart longs for him. To see him. I’d be happy with just one glance.

“Something’s making you sad,” Andie, rightly guesses.

“I’m okay. Please don’t worry about me.” I squeeze her hands and step toward the door. “I’m in the middle of making dinner. I want you to eat with me tonight.”

“I’d like that.” She nods.

Heading into the kitchen, I smile to myself knowing that she’s going to love the dinner that I’ve already placed into the oven. Her favorite chicken casserole topped with herb dumplings is slowly cooking and it’s as well that it’s her favorite because we’ll be eating it for the rest of the week with the amount that I’ve made. It doesn’t really need checking, but I needed to escape Andie’s room because I felt too close to breaking down and telling her everything so that I could call Diego and tell him to come over.

Hearing a throat being cleared, I jump and quickly turn. My eyes widen in surprise when I find Diego in the doorway of my kitchen. I blink but he’s still there.

I shake my head. “I—”

“I needed to see you,” he whispers. The sadness behind his gaze makes my own previously held back tears begin to trickle down my face.

I look behind me and the coast is clear so I fly into his arms. He catches me, hauling me close and my feet off the ground.

My arms curl around his neck as he clenches me hard against his body, my nose dipping into the curve of his neck when I admit, “I’ve missed you so much.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” he breathes heavily against my lips.

Holding his head in place, I brush a soft kiss to his hungry lips before the kiss deepens. Our tongues slide and dance while desire unfurls in my belly for the man currently rocking my senses. Diego is all hard plains and where pelvis meets pelvis he throbs, causing my panties to melt.

“Rae,” he groans against my mouth. “What you do to me.”