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Seth snorted. “I hear that. But I don’t regret it, and maybe you two need to hear this because this is going to take a hell of a lot of patience and sacrifice on all our parts. I love Lily and I know you two do as well. I’m okay with that. I never thought I would be. I’ll be honest. But she makes it all okay. I want her and I want her to be happy. I think the three of us can do that. ”
“Well damn,” Dillon said. “Big brother’s getting all mushy. You’re going to have me tearing up in a minute. I think I feel one getting ready to fall. ”
Seth rolled his eyes. “You’re such an asshole. ”
Michael laughed. “Just like old times. Dillon and Michael against Seth. It’s a wonder you survived to adulthood. ”
“I can still kick the crap out of you two shitheads,” Seth threatened. “And now you don’t have Mom to hide behind like a bunch of damn girls. ”
Dillon flipped up his middle finger.
“Okay, you two, enough. We have a ring to buy and a proposal to work on. I want this to be perfect for her. Her first husband was a complete fuckwad,” Michael said.
“One of us needs to go to Denver to get the ring, and it’ll look damn suspicious if we all go, not to mention I don’t want to leave Lily alone right now. ”
Dillon nodded his agreement to Seth’s statement.
“Dillon has the best taste when it comes to jewelry,” Michael said slyly. “He wears all those really cute earrings. I think he should be the one to go pick it out. ”
Dillon shot him a quelling look and Michael just laughed.
Seth smiled and turned to Dillon. “Looks like you’re nominated. Get your ass on the road early in the morning so you can be back. Michael and I will work out the rest. ”
Lily marked through yet another drawing, frustrated by her inability to get to paper the image in her head. It had to be perfect—it would be perfect before it was over.
For the past few days she’d worked with single-minded focus, drawing and redrawing and then tossing when the image didn’t meet her expectations.
She sighed and leaned back in her seat, stretching her tired back muscles. It probably looked to the guys like she was avoiding them. Like she’d sought solitude to wallow in her grief. But the truth was, she was pissed off.
Not just pissed off, but furious.
She’d done a lot of thinking. She’d done nothing else as she’d immersed herself in her art. And the more she thought, the more she realized that she would have to do something if she was ever going to move forward.
A light knock at the door startled her, and she swiveled in her seat to see all three men standing in the doorway. She quickly pulled down a blank piece of paper over her drawing and focused her attention on them.
“We have a surprise for you,” Michael said. “Can you spare us a few hours? We have something planned. ”
Intrigued and eager to get out of the house, she nodded and stood, rubbing the kinks out of her neck.
“You’ll need to change into jeans and bring along your light jacket,” Seth said.
She nodded slowly. “Okay. Give me five minutes and I’ll meet you out front. ”
She hurried into the bedroom where all her clothes were put away in the closet and pulled out one of her new pairs of jeans. She shimmied them on and then chose one of the nicer shirts Callie had picked out.
Her curls were more unruly than normal because she hadn’t taken as much care in the past days, but after a look in the mirror, she deemed them acceptable and went in search of her boots.
When she went out the front door, all three brothers were standing around the Jeep waiting for her. Michael slid into the driver’s seat while Dillon held the front passenger door open for Lily.
She smiled as she settled into her seat and Michael turned, his gaze roaming over her face.
“That’s the first smile I’ve seen from you in days. I’ve missed it, Lily. I’ve missed you. ”
She reached over to touch his arm. “I’m sorry. I know I’ve been difficult. You all have been so patient with me. ”
He shook his head. “That’s not what I’m saying, baby. I just like to see you happy and smiling. That’s all. ”
She gifted him with another smile.
As they turned around to head down the drive, she asked, “Where are we going?”
“That would ruin the surprise,” Dillon said.
Some of the heaviness weighing down on her lifted. She’d done a lot of thinking and a lot of soul searching since telling the guys the truth about her past. She knew what she had to do. Now she just had to find the courage to do it.
They drove a familiar path out of town and started up the mountain and around the switchbacks that led to their parents’ house.
She smiled a bit broader when the Colters’ cabin came into view. How quickly she considered them family. Her family. She already loved them. They’d accepted her and shown her nothing but love and unconditional support.
The guys got out and Dillon opened her door, holding out his hand to help her out.
“You’re being awfully gallant today,” she said as she stepped down.
He grinned. “I hope I’m gallant every day. ”
“Aren’t we going in?” she asked when they bypassed the front porch and headed toward the barn.
Seth put his arm around her and propelled her forward. “Nope. ”
“Oh. ”
She followed behind Michael and Dillon, Seth’s arm wrapped around her. They were all being so solicitous with her. And careful, as if she were incredibly fragile and they feared breaking her.
And in a way, she supposed their fear was justified. Her meltdown had been monumental. But freeing in a way she’d never imagined.
When they reached the barn, Seth stood with Lily while Dillon and Michael went in. A few moments later, they returned, each leading two mounts.
She glanced suspiciously up at Seth. There was no way they’d saddled the horses that quickly. Which meant that they’d been readied before they’d arrived.
Dillon stopped in front of Lily and handed Seth the reins to the horse Lily had ridden the time she’d gone with Callie. Then Dillon lifted her into the saddle and Seth handed up the reins.
She waited while the men mounted, and then Michael started toward the trail that led to Callie’s Meadow. Dillon motioned for her to follow Michael, and he and Seth fell in behind.
They took a leisurely pace and Lily was enchanted with the changes that had taken place just since she and Callie had last taken the same path.
Spring had fully sprung. The fields were a lush cover of blooms in an array of colors that were so brilliant, she itched to put them to canvas. She stared at the beauty of the meadow, trying to commit every detail to memory. She’d need to update her drawing for Callie. The meadow was alive with new growth, bursting with vibrancy that enchanted her.
The stream that dissected the meadow gurgled and was fast running from the melting snow from nearby peaks. The sound mixed with the chirps of birds and the sounds of insects, the life and breath of the landscape.
Michael rode to the stream and dismounted, allowing his horse to nose into the stream to drink. Seth slid from his horse and then reached up for Lily.
