Chapter 888
“Mom, you okay?” Gabriela asked.
Eileen struggled to find the right words to respond to Gabriela.
Gabriela tugged at Bryan’s pants. “Daddy, what’s wrong with Mommy?”
Bryan leaned down and whispered in Gabriela’s ear.
Gabriela’s face soon lit up, and she ran toward Eileen.
“Mommy’s having a baby! There’s another Gabriela in Mommy’s tummy!”
Eileen’s mouth twitched. She scooped Gabriela up into her arms. “No, sweetie. There’s not another Gabriela in my tummy. You’re my one and only!”
Gabriela shook her head solemnly, pointing a tiny finger at Bryan. “Daddy said there’s another Gabriela in Mommy’s tummy!”
Bryan approached and gently took Gabriela into his arms.
“Shh, sweetheart,” he whispered. “That’s a secret. Mommy’s not even three months along yet.”
Gabriela quickly covered her mouth, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
Eileen said, “What are you saying, Bryan? That’s not true. I’m not pregnant. I just… I just didn’t feel so good earlier.”
“Yeah, right,” Bryan nodded, then turned to Gabriela. “Mommy’s just not feeling well, okay?”
Gabriela giggled. “Not feeling well, and there’s no Gabriela in her tummy!”
Bryan, sensing Eileen’s rising irritation, quickly changed the subject. “So, how’d things go?”
gⱯlnσν𝓮𝓁s﹒𝓬𝗈𝗺, the heart of fiction
“Well, not so good…” Eileen began, launching into a detailed account of how she had put Maximo’s wife in her place.
Bryan glanced at Eileen’s hands, still damp from washing. “So, all that joy I felt just now was for nothing?” he asked, a hint of disappointment in his voice.
“Serves you right,” Eileen said. “You shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions before hearing me out.”
“Serves you right, Daddy!” Gabriela echoed.
“Exactly,” Eileen said, taking Gabriela from Bryan’s arms and heading toward the mansion. “There’s no baby in my tummy. Your daddy is lying. Let’s go play with your great-grandma.”
Gabriela nodded enthusiastically. “Daddy’s a liar! Daddy’s bad! I’m not playing with Daddy!”
Bryan followed them inside, his expression growing increasingly dark.
Bryan watched as Eileen and Gabriela entered the mansion, his mind already working on a plan.
Eileen recounted how she had invited Maximo’s wife to see Leyla, leaving Leyla wide-eyed with surprise.
“I thought you would only use Bryan as an excuse,” Leyla said.
“But it seems you’ve already got him wrapped around your finger.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Eileen replied, feeling that Leyla had misunderstood her point. She was simply trying to express that Maximo’s wife seemed like trouble and wouldn’t let the matter go easily.
Leyla responded, “I just want to see you shine and bring back the Vazquez family! We’ve got good genes, you know. You were a business powerhouse back in the day!”