Read Online Armando Returns (Barboza Brothers) by Reeni Austin - Free Book Online
Authors: Reeni Austin
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about this, okay? Especially not Mommy.”
“ Hmm.” Isaac’s lips pressed together, thoughtfully. “I’m not s’posed to have secwets. That’s what Mommy and Gwammah say.”
“ It’s only for a couple days. Then you can tell Mommy. It’s a good secret, I promise.”
“ I don’t know…”
“ No, really. You can tell Mommy soon.” Victor hesitated as he thought of a way to change his terminology and ease the situation. “Actually, it’s not really a secret. It’s a surprise. A big surprise. For Mommy.”
“ Oh! Wike a buthday pawty? With cake?”
Victor nodded. “Something like that.” He hesitated. This seemed like a much better idea in my head . Still, he pressed on. He wouldn’t feel right proposing to Cara without first talking it over with the most important guy in her life, even if it put his surprise proposal at risk. He placed a gentle hand on Isaac’s back. “I want to marry your Mommy. Do you know what that means?”
Isaac ’s eyebrows knitted tightly. “Huh?”
Victor sighed. He could already imagine Isaac asking Cara all about it when they went back to the house. He took a deep breath. “Okay. Let me think. You remember last month when Grandma married Tom?”
“ Yes. I had to walk in fwont of people. I don’t wike that.”
“ That’s fine. You don’t have to do that again.” Victor paused to think of a way to rephrase his request once again. “Okay, forget I said that. How would you feel if I was with you and Mommy for a long, long time? Like, for the rest of our lives. Would that be okay with you?”
“ Oh!” He gasped with a sudden realization. “Okay. You mean I could have a baby bwothow?”
Stunned by the question, Victor stared in Isaac ’s eyes before answering. “Yeah. Maybe. If that’s what your mom wants. Or maybe a sister—”
“ No!” Isaac’s head shook. “A bwothow!”
“ Why a brother?”
“ Because you have a bwothow. You cawed him ‘baby bwothow.’” Isaac’s face set smugly. “So I need a baby bwothow, too.”
Victor laughed. “Yes. I have two brothers.”
“ Two?”
“ Uh-huh. You already know Ramon who lives here at the ranch. But I have another brother named Armando and you haven’t met him yet.”
“ Aw!” Isaac’s lifted his hands dramatically. “I heawd of him. Okay. So I need two bwothows.”
Victor put his elbow s on his knees and hung his head in his hands, chuckling. “You don’t need two brothers.”
“ Yes. I need two.” He put a hand on Victor’s arm. “Pwease?”
Victor tried his best to rein in his surprise as he gazed at Isaac ’s pleading face. “Well, buddy, I need to talk to your mommy about it first but—”
“ Can I have one bwothow for my buthday?”
“ Your birthday? Six weeks from now?”
Isaac nodded frantically, his eyes wide.
“Uh...” Victor stammered as a flurry of thoughts ran through his mind. How in the world do I answer this question? Then he had an idea. “Isaac, I wish I could help you but it’s gonna take more time to give you a brother. But how about next year for your fifth birthday instead?”
“ I don’t know. I want—”
Victor interrupted Isaac, fearing the young boy would ask too many questions. The last thing he wanted was to turn this into a discussion of where babies come from. “For your birthday next month I’ll get you a race car instead, okay? One small enough for you to drive, with big wheels. And we can come here to the ranch sometime and you can drive it all through the fields. Just don’t take it around back to the animals because they’ll get scared.”
Isaac gasped. “Can I have a wace caw and a baby bwothow?”
“ No.” Victor ruffled the hair on the back of Isaac’s head. “I’m sorry. You can have a race car this year and maybe a baby brother next year. That’s the best I can do.” Oh shit, how am I going to explain either of these requests to Cara?
Sadly, Isaac sighed and looked out at the muddy hole where the pond once
“ Hmm.” Isaac’s lips pressed together, thoughtfully. “I’m not s’posed to have secwets. That’s what Mommy and Gwammah say.”
“ It’s only for a couple days. Then you can tell Mommy. It’s a good secret, I promise.”
“ I don’t know…”
“ No, really. You can tell Mommy soon.” Victor hesitated as he thought of a way to change his terminology and ease the situation. “Actually, it’s not really a secret. It’s a surprise. A big surprise. For Mommy.”
“ Oh! Wike a buthday pawty? With cake?”
Victor nodded. “Something like that.” He hesitated. This seemed like a much better idea in my head . Still, he pressed on. He wouldn’t feel right proposing to Cara without first talking it over with the most important guy in her life, even if it put his surprise proposal at risk. He placed a gentle hand on Isaac’s back. “I want to marry your Mommy. Do you know what that means?”
Isaac ’s eyebrows knitted tightly. “Huh?”
Victor sighed. He could already imagine Isaac asking Cara all about it when they went back to the house. He took a deep breath. “Okay. Let me think. You remember last month when Grandma married Tom?”
“ Yes. I had to walk in fwont of people. I don’t wike that.”
“ That’s fine. You don’t have to do that again.” Victor paused to think of a way to rephrase his request once again. “Okay, forget I said that. How would you feel if I was with you and Mommy for a long, long time? Like, for the rest of our lives. Would that be okay with you?”
“ Oh!” He gasped with a sudden realization. “Okay. You mean I could have a baby bwothow?”
Stunned by the question, Victor stared in Isaac ’s eyes before answering. “Yeah. Maybe. If that’s what your mom wants. Or maybe a sister—”
“ No!” Isaac’s head shook. “A bwothow!”
“ Why a brother?”
“ Because you have a bwothow. You cawed him ‘baby bwothow.’” Isaac’s face set smugly. “So I need a baby bwothow, too.”
Victor laughed. “Yes. I have two brothers.”
“ Two?”
“ Uh-huh. You already know Ramon who lives here at the ranch. But I have another brother named Armando and you haven’t met him yet.”
“ Aw!” Isaac’s lifted his hands dramatically. “I heawd of him. Okay. So I need two bwothows.”
Victor put his elbow s on his knees and hung his head in his hands, chuckling. “You don’t need two brothers.”
“ Yes. I need two.” He put a hand on Victor’s arm. “Pwease?”
Victor tried his best to rein in his surprise as he gazed at Isaac ’s pleading face. “Well, buddy, I need to talk to your mommy about it first but—”
“ Can I have one bwothow for my buthday?”
“ Your birthday? Six weeks from now?”
Isaac nodded frantically, his eyes wide.
“Uh...” Victor stammered as a flurry of thoughts ran through his mind. How in the world do I answer this question? Then he had an idea. “Isaac, I wish I could help you but it’s gonna take more time to give you a brother. But how about next year for your fifth birthday instead?”
“ I don’t know. I want—”
Victor interrupted Isaac, fearing the young boy would ask too many questions. The last thing he wanted was to turn this into a discussion of where babies come from. “For your birthday next month I’ll get you a race car instead, okay? One small enough for you to drive, with big wheels. And we can come here to the ranch sometime and you can drive it all through the fields. Just don’t take it around back to the animals because they’ll get scared.”
Isaac gasped. “Can I have a wace caw and a baby bwothow?”
“ No.” Victor ruffled the hair on the back of Isaac’s head. “I’m sorry. You can have a race car this year and maybe a baby brother next year. That’s the best I can do.” Oh shit, how am I going to explain either of these requests to Cara?
Sadly, Isaac sighed and looked out at the muddy hole where the pond once
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