When You Close Your Eyes

Pulling her hair up into a ponytail, Isabelle spared a soft yawn into her hand, her blue eyes peeking down towards Isla who laid on the bed ahead of her, her tiny nose twitching a little as she slept. It had been a long night, with Isla being a little fussy, Isabelle and Lionel had spent a lot of trying to soothe the little girl, but Isabelle hadn’t minded for a second, even if she did find herself slightly tired, she had enjoyed spending time with the little girl.

Allowing another yawn to fall out of her mouth, she carefully adjusted the hat which sat on Isla’s head before the sound of the door opening and closing reached her, causing her to lift her head, peeking towards Lionel who’d just stepped back inside. “Where’d you get to?” she posed.

Lionel, who’d been attempting to close the door quietly, jolted a little at the sound of her voice before he turned around, showing off the bag and the bouquet of flowers which he held in his hand. “I went to grab us some breakfast” he noted “And I thought you’d appreciate these. I mean, I know that they’re not the most expensive, but I thought that they were pretty” he added, offering the bouquet out towards her.

Isabelle admired the flowers for a couple of seconds before she stepped towards him, moving to press a soft kiss against his cheek. “They’re beautiful, Leo” she mused softly “Gracias” she added.

Lionel quirked a gentle smile before he carefully tilted his head, moving to press a soft kiss against her lips. Isabelle startled a little, not quite expecting the kiss, before she cuddled into him slightly, enjoying the kiss for a couple of seconds before the sound of Isla’s whimpers reached them, causing Lionel to duck back slightly. “Your turn or mine?” he posed, sneaking another light kiss.

“Yours” Isabelle replied, her fingers gently straightening out his hair “I’ve just finished feeding her, meaning she’s probably going to want her nappy changed” she added, offering him an impish smile.

Lionel rolled his eyes playfully before he leant into her, stealing another soft kiss before he stepped towards the bed, moving to lift Isla into his arms, carrying her towards the changing mat they’d set up. “Did Carla mention when she was likely to come by and discharge you?” he posed.

Isabelle, who’d moved to take the food out of the bag he’d bought with him, lifted her head at the sound of his voice before she shook it. “She didn’t” she noted “But it will probably be early. She seemed pretty happy with how things went yesterday” she added, placing a piece of the croissant into her mouth.

Lionel nodded his head quietly before he finished changing Isla, settling her in his arms. “I still can’t quite believe that she’s here” he mumbled, breaking the silence which had settled around them.

“It still feels strange” Isabelle agreed softly “But I am sure we’ll get used to it. We’ve done pretty well so far” she added teasingly, making room for him at her side.

Lionel chuckled a little before he settled into the seat at her side. “You know, as soon as we get home, people are going to make a lot of fuss of her” he mumbled gently, his fingertips gently adjusting Isla’s hat.

“They are” Isabelle agreed “But we’ve still got a little while before we get out of here. We should make the most of it” she added, moving to rest her head against his shoulder as another soft yawn fell out of her mouth.

Lionel offered her another tender smile before he ducked down, pressing a light kiss against the top of Isabelle’s head. He knew that they had to go home, there was no avoiding it, but he wanted to make the most of the time that they had to themselves, wanting to enjoy having his two girls to himself for a little longer.

~#~
“Did your parents arrive OK?”

Lionel, who’d been focused on lifted Isla’s car seat out of the car, jumped at the sound of Isabelle’s voice before he lifted his head, offering her a small nod. “They got in pretty late last night” he mused “But madre, she’s got a copy of our key and I offered her and my papa the spare room” he added, moving to lift the car seat out of the car.

Isabelle nodded her head gently before she stepped towards him, gently moving to lift Isla out of her seat. “Are you ready to head inside?” she posed, peeking up at him softly.

“Ready might be a stretch” Lionel quipped “Between your madre and mine, as well as Grace, I don’t think I am going to get to see either of you for the rest of the day” he added, offering her a boyish smile.

Isabelle rolled her eyes softly before Isla let out a soft snuffle, something which caused Isabelle to fuss over her for a couple of seconds.

Lionel watched the two of them for a moment before he leant towards Isabelle, pressing a soft kiss against her cheek before he dropped one on the top of Isla’s head. “I love you” he mumbled quietly “Both of you” he added, his finger gently brushing against Isla’s cheek.

Isabelle smiled a little at his words and moved to reply to him, only for the front door of the house to swing open, allowing Grace to step outside. “Are you two going to come inside at some point?” she posed.

Isabelle rolled her eyes a little at her sister’s comment before she padded up the path, leaving Lionel to collect their bags from the back of the car before he followed after her, settling them beside the door before he caught up to Isabelle, his arm gently wrapping around her waist before he guided her into the living room, clearing his throat slightly. “Do you think we could have your attention for a couple of seconds?” he quipped, pulling the attention towards him before all eyes shifted to Isla who stirred softly in Isabelle’s arms.

“Lionel, Isabelle…she’s gorgeous” Francesca breathed.

“She is, isn’t she?” Lionel quipped, a doting grin on his face.

Celia, who stood a little away from her son, admired the warm look on his face for a couple of seconds before she stepped towards him, pulling him into a tight hug. Lionel startled slightly, not quite expecting the hug, before he hugged her back tightly for a couple of seconds. “Congratulations” she mumbled softly.

Lionel smiled a little before he tugged back, returning to stand beside Isabelle who had her mother and sister fussing over Isla.

“Do we have a name yet?” Marco posed.

“We do” Lionel confirmed “We still need to pick out a middle name, but we’ve decided to go with Isla” he added, a faint smile forming on his face as the name fell out of his mouth.

“Isla” Marco mused “It’s very sweet” he added.

Lionel nodded his head in agreement before he turned, pressing a soft kiss against Isabelle’s cheek, something which made her blush softly. “I love you too” she mumbled softly. She knew that it was going to take some getting used to, with Isla around, things were inevitably going to change a little, but she was confident that they’d make it work, even if it did take some getting used to. She was sure that they’d be more than OK.