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“You didn’t have to buy me any presents.” She looked at Casey and then at Parker.
“We all wanted to, and we each came up with the right present for you.” Casey spoke up.
“Oh, I’ve not seen Shawn yet.”
“He’ll be along shortly.” Parker sat down on her other side.
None of them spoke for several seconds, and she looked at his present, then realized she had to start opening it. Tearing into the wrapping paper, she revealed another velvet box. Opening it up, she saw a bracelet. On the gold band read the words “For Our Love.” She frowned and glanced at Parker.
“It was the last one on the shelf, and I couldn’t get them to ruin it,” he said. “I figured you wouldn’t mind.”
“I don’t mind. Thank you.” She wrapped her arms around him, giving him a hug.
He took the bracelet from her hands and wrapped it around her wrist. “Every time you look at it, you’ll think of me.”
Which would make her think of all of the brothers.
Time passed, and with the two Smith brothers on either side of her, she felt … better. Nothing was ever going to change the fact her mother had cancer, but at least she had her friends.
Shawn finally arrived with the tiniest box of them all, and a plate with a slice of chocolate fudge cake. “Mom says that if you need her, she’ll always be there for you.”
“Just like we all will, Poppy. You’re not alone in this,” Parker said.
She nodded, tears once again brimming in her eyes. “Thank you.”
Casey wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and pulled her in close. He pressed a kiss to her head and she closed her eyes, enjoying that one touch.
“Open your present,” Shawn said. “I’ll hold your cake, and don’t worry, I won’t take any. This is all for you.”
She handed the plate to Shawn and tore open her present. This was a small velvet box, and inside was a ring. A crown on top of a heart, with two hands holding the heart. It was gold, beautiful, and she loved it.
Placing it on her finger, she smiled as it fit perfectly.
“Thank you. They’re amazing.”
Shawn handed her the cake and sat behind her. His hands on her shoulders, he massaged her back and neck, easing the tension from her body.
“We’ll take care of everything for you, Poppy.”
She enjoyed her cake, as she sat there on her birthday with the three men she loved more than anything. Her mother was dying. Her father was useless when it came to responsibility. At least she had this moment. It was all she would ever allow herself to have.
Chapter One
Three years later
It had been one month since Poppy buried her mother. Her father hadn’t even bothered to get in touch to make sure they were okay. This was why she wasn’t interested in Hank Williams, her father, because whenever it mattered most, he was never there for her. Standing in her mother’s trailer, she felt so alone. This was the first time that she’d ever felt this way. All of her mother’s possessions were boxed up with a label for them to be donated to charity.
There was a knock on the door, and she looked up in time to see Casey Smith entering her trailer.
“Shouldn’t I answer the door before you just walk in? I could have been naked,” she said.
Tears were already spilling down her face as she tried to smile at him. He pulled her into his arms and ran his hand down her back. “This is why I just walked in, babe. You’re falling apart.”
“I knew she was going to leave. The doctors gave us two years and I got three with her, but I wasn’t ready. I thought I was, but I just couldn’t handle it. I don’t … I wasn’t ready to lose her.”
He held her tightly as she cried once again. The pain didn’t go away, and everyone said it would take time, but this was too much. She didn’t want to feel this way.
Suddenly, she pulled out of his arms and wiped the tears away from her face. She had to be strong. Her mother had asked her to be.
“I better go and take this stuff to charity,” she said.
“You don’t have to do this today,” he said.
“I do. If I don’t do this now, then I never will. I’ve kept some stuff that was important to her and to me. I know she’d be happy to see this go.” She picked up the box. Such a small box for a woman in her forties. Her mother had never been materialistic. The one thing her mother had loved was the recipe cards and books that she’d kept from her own mother, and now Poppy had them.
She’d have to perfect her mother’s chili cheese bread and the cornbread recipe. There was so much she was going to miss.
