Dreaming of His Snowed In Kiss - Jessie Gussman Page 0,19

were soon to be orphans and a mother who was dying. She wouldn’t be smiling. Not now. And especially not over Poppy and him.

“Be serious, Mom. The very last person in the world I want to be stuck with for any amount of time would be someone who’s perpetually smiling and in such an annoyingly good mood that you can hardly hear yourself think.”

“Her good mood makes it impossible for you to think?” his mother asked, with more than a little disbelief in her voice. “Don’t you mean her good mood makes it impossible for you to continue in your bad mood?”

She always had a way of cutting right to the issue. Now that he was an adult, he appreciated it more than he had as teen.

“I always gave you more trouble than any of my siblings. Thanks for putting up with me.”

Penny’s eyes widened. As well they should, probably. He wasn’t sure he’d ever said anything to his parents about that before.

Maybe it was because of Minnie, the thoughts of dying, and the thoughts of how he took the people closest to him for granted.

He supposed it was a good thing he didn’t have a wife, because he’d probably treat her the same way. He’d get used to having someone around, and there would be nothing special anymore. She’d just be there.

Until she wasn’t.

Chapter 7

Poppy slipped the apron over her head and reached for the strings, tying them in the back in an action that felt automatic as she’d done it so many times.

It was hard to get West and those kids out of her head. She’d talked to Penny later, who had told her that Minnie wasn’t expected to make it more than a few months at most.

The kids had already been through so much. Poor Warren and Garrett, and Trevor was such a sweet little thing.

Then of course there was Gabriella, a baby who would never know her mother or father.

Beyond that, West had looked amazingly handsome holding her. Even now, just thinking about it pulled her heartstrings. How could a man who was being so tender and gentle look so strong at the same time?

“Do you have a second before your shift starts?”

Miss Penny’s voice startled her out of her thoughts, and she whirled around, her hand on her heart.

“Oh my. I wasn’t paying the slightest bit of attention, and you scared me.” She laughed a little, sounding nervous but finding herself funny. How could she be so deeply in thought about a man she didn’t even like and kids she barely even knew?

Her smile faded at Penny’s serious look.

“Do you remember when you first came here a couple of years ago, you told me that you had given the church’s number to the institute where your mother was staying?”

Immediately, Poppy’s chest froze, and the hand that had dropped from her heart shot back like she could grab her heart and keep it from jumping out.

“Yes?” She couldn’t keep the trepidation out of her voice.

“There was a call last night from them.”

It could have been about Hazel, her little sister, but it almost had to be about her mother. She’d been doing well, holding down a job and taking care of Hazel. Poppy went back to Missouri, of course, to visit, for holidays mostly. Although she hadn’t made it for Christmas this year. She thought her mother was doing well. The last time she’d been there, she even thought there might be a hint of romance.

“She’s back on a suicide watch. The call was about Hazel.”

Poppy closed her eyes and clenched her fists. She couldn’t look at her little sister without seeing the sisters she’d lost. Hazel looked just like Rachel and Abigail with her fair curly hair and bright blue eyes.

Her brain was working slow, but thankfully, it was working.

“They need me to take her?”

Penny nodded. “If you can. The lady I talked to was very sensitive and understanding about your position and about how all this affects you. You’ve gone through the same thing your mother has, just from a different perspective. She didn’t want this development to ruin the life you’ve built for yourself since the accident.”

Accident. That word could encompass so many different scenarios. So many deaths.

“Hazel is not a complication. She’s my sister. Can I go today and pick her up? After my shift?”

“That’s the other thing I wanted to talk to you about.” Penny put a hand on her arm, and somehow, Poppy found herself seated in a chair facing