Free Winter White by Jen Calonita

her.
    Izzie took a deep breath. How could she not go downstairs when they were rearranging their whole lives for her? “Okay.”
    “She’s coming down,” Mira reported back.
    Everyone was waiting for them around the kitchen island, where Izzie’s aunt was cutting small pieces of the strudel. Barbara was talking to a man Izzie didn’t know, but as soon as she approached the table, he smiled at her. He was youngish— early thirties, maybe? —with blond hair and brown eyes. He had on a navy suit and he smelled like a mix of cigars and musk.
    “Isabelle, hi! I apologize for interrupting the evening,” he said, and shook her hand. “I just wanted to introduce myself. I’m Lucas Hale. I’m your uncle’s campaign manager for his upcoming bid for the U.S. Senate. I’ve heard so much about you.” He continued to pump her hand. She wasn’t sure how to pull away without looking odd. For some reason, she happened to glance at Mira. Her cousin was glaring at Lucas. “I hope we can help you settle in as quickly as possible. Over the weekend, we can introduce you to the press and—”
    “Actually, we were talking before you arrived, Lucas, and we think it would be good to give Izzie a few weeks,” Barbara interrupted. “Maureen and I think it would be best to explain the situation to Izzie before she’s put in the spotlight, and now is not the right time.”
    “I thought we agreed to put out a release right away so there is no confusion,” Lucas said slowly, but even Izzie could detect the annoyance in his voice. “Bill, I really think I should keep this story under control, and the best way to do that is to be the one who actually puts the story out there.”
    “I agree,” Izzie’s uncle said even as he stared at his wife’s stony expression. “Sweetheart, Lucas knows what he’s doing. This is the best way for us to stay on top of things.”
    Izzie’s aunt handed him a piece of strudel without looking at him. “Isabelle is starting a new school next week. Would it really hurt to sit on this story for a week or two? She needs time to settle in before the world forms an opinion about her new situation.”
    Izzie looked around the table, confused, but her cousins didn’t seem surprised. She was being introduced to the press? Why did they need to put out a press release about her, Isabelle Scott? She looked away, feeling uncomfortable, and caught Connor sneaking a cookie from the dessert tray.
    “I’m with Maureen,” Barbara told the group. “As you know, I will be checking in from time to time, and I really do hope you’ll make Izzie’s well-being your top priority.”
    “We will,” Izzie’s uncle said, and looked at Lucas. “This story can wait a week or two, I think. But we can finish this discussion later, either way.” Lucas nodded stiffly and waved off the piece of strudel Izzie’s aunt had offered him.
    “I think that would be best,” Barbara agreed. She grabbed her bag and keys and looked at Izzie somewhat guiltily. “I should be going. I’ll check in with you tomorrow, okay?”
    Izzie was still annoyed with Barbara, but the thought of the only person in this room she knew leaving made her chest hurt.
    “Any questions before I go?” Barbara asked gently.
    Izzie did have one. “Could someone tell me how we’re related?”
    “Well, we’re… you tell her, Bill,” Izzie’s aunt said.
    He looked down at his strudel before scooping a bite. “Your mom, Chloe, and I were third cousins.”
    Izzie tried to piece the news together. “I thought Grams and Pops were only children.”
    “Grams had cousins,” he said, and looked at Barbara. “Right?”
    “If that was what was in the report,” Barbara said after a long pause, “then yes.”
    This wasn’t clearing anything up. Even the Monroes and Barbara didn’t seem to know the family bloodline, and yet she was now in their care. Suddenly Izzie felt too tired to keep her head up. “I have work tomorrow, so I should probably get to