When You Close Your Eyes

“How long is it that you’re going to be gone for?”

Lionel, who’d been folding a couple of shirts into the suitcase which sat on the bed, startled a little at the sound of Isabelle’s voice before he lifted his head, offering her a small smile.

It had been a few days, after they’d spent time working on the nursery, almost a week had passed, but with the season having reached an international break, he was due to head to Argentina for a while, something he was looking forwards to, even if he was only going to be there for a few days, he was looking forwards to having the opportunity to catch up with his family.

“I’ll be gone for about a week” he noted “But your madre, she’s coming to town, isn’t she?” he added, moving to place another shirt into his bag.

He knew that it wasn’t necessary, with a few months still separating them from their due date, the chances of anything happening whilst he was away were slim to none, but he liked the idea that Francesca would be around, even if things between him and Isabelle’s mother were still a little tense. He liked the idea of someone keeping an eye on Isabelle when he wasn’t around.

Isabelle, who’d moved to sit down on the side of the bed, nodded her head. “She is” she confirmed “My papa is away on a business trip and my mother figured that she would use her week off to come to Barcelona and spend some time with me and Grace. I’ve offered her the spare room” she added softly.

Lionel offered her a soft look before he nodded his head, offering her a small smile. “I’m glad that she’ll be here” he mused softly “I mean, I know that things between me and your madre aren’t the best right now, but I am glad that someone’s going to be keeping an eye on you” he added gently.

“You’re going to be gone for a week” Isabelle pointed out “I think I’ll be able to survive without you” she added, an impish grin on her face.

Lionel rolled his eyes, something which made Isabelle giggle softly before she pushed herself up to her feet, moving to wrap her arms around his neck softly. “You know I’ll miss you really” she mumbled gently, her nose lightly brushing against his.

“I hope so” Lionel mumbled softly “Because I am pretty sure that I am going to miss the two of you” he added, his finger lightly tapping the top of her bump.

Isabelle spared a soft look down at his hand before she shook her head, moving to press a soft kiss against his lips. Lionel startled a little, slightly caught off guard by the kiss, before he wrapped his arms around her, holding her in place for a couple of seconds before the sound of his phone reached them, causing him to duck back a little. “I have to go” he mumbled “I’ll call you when I land” he added, moving to collect his bag from the bed.

“I’d like that” Isabelle mused, a shy smile on her lips.

Lionel admired her smile for a couple of seconds before he ducked towards her, pressing a brief kiss against her lips. “Adios, Isa” he mused gently before he ducked down, moving to press a light kiss against her bump. “Adios, bump” he added gently.

Isabelle shook her head, a soft smile on her lips, before she nudged his shoulder. “Go” she quipped.

Lionel pressed another brief kiss against her lips before he ducked out of the room, something which made Isabelle shake her head, a gentle smile on her lips.

She had to admit that she liked where they were.

~#~
Fiddling with the strap of her bag, Isabelle peeked around the terminal of the airport, her blue searching for any sign of her mother. It had been sudden, Francesca’s desire to visit her two daughters in Barcelona had come out of nowhere, but Isabelle knew that she couldn’t turn her down, even if a small part of her was nervous about discussing her relationship with her mother, she knew that she couldn’t duck out of her mother’s visit.

Shifting her feet a little, she spared another brief look around the airport terminal before she felt a hand nudged against her shoulder, causing her to wheel around, her blue eyes mirroring her mother’s. “Mama” she squeaked “It’s good to see you” she added.

Francesca, who’d been scanning her daughter’s appearance, startled a little at the sound of Isabelle’s voice before she lifted her head, offering her daughter a wide grin. “It’s good to see you too, mi princesa” she mused softly.

It had been a little while, after her conversation with Lionel at Isabelle’s birthday dinner, her contact with her daughter had been a little infrequent, but she was glad that Isabelle had invited her to stay at her home, even if it did have the potential to be a little awkward at first, she wanted to make sure that things were alright between the two of them before the baby arrived or Lionel and Isabelle started to think about planning their wedding.

Isabelle offered her a soft look before she jutted a thumb over her shoulder. “We should probably go” she noted softly “I got a call from Grace earlier and she said that she’d be over pretty quickly after your flight. I’d hate to keep her waiting” she added, moving to collect one of her mother’s bags.

Francesca watched her for a couple of seconds before she shook her head, moving to wrap her arms around her daughter. “It’s been a while, Belle” she mused softly “And I have to tell you, you look amazing. You’re glowing” she fussed, her fingertips gently pushing the blonde hair off of her cheeks.

Isabelle’s cheeks warmed a little at her mother’s compliment before she shook her head. “I doubt it” she quipped.

“You look amazing” Francesca insisted warmly “And I can’t wait to hear all about my first grandbaby, but first, we should probably head back to yours. You know how your sister is when she’s kept waiting” she added teasingly.

Isabelle rolled her eyes playfully before she nodded her head, moving to step ahead of her mother as she guided her towards the exit.

Francesca followed her for a couple of steps before she shook her head, her blue eyes settled on her daughter. She knew that they had to talk, the slight sense of awkwardness that existed between the pair of them made it more than clear, but she was confident that they’d figure it out, even if she did have a slight doubt about Lionel, she was sure that she and Isabelle would be able to smooth it out.