Page 17 of Promising Little Poppy

As fast as she had begun to look for the man, she stopped, realizing there was one huge part of the equation that needed to be factored into her plan before she could begin to put it into place. CJ needed to talk to Poppy, to see if she even wanted CJ in her life longer than the few days they had left together. Because if Poppy didn’t want to continue their dynamic, all of CJ’s frantic planning would be for naught.

The soft, melodic laugh of Amelia had her turning her head back to the other woman she had momentarily forgotten existed. “Slow down there, friend. I can see the smoke coming out of your ears. Look around, CJ. Take in the magic of this place and enjoy the holiday. Everything has a way of working out exactly as it’s supposed to. Especially at Rawhide Ranch.”

And CJ wanted to believe her.

But when she turned back to where Poppy had previously sat, the chair was now vacant, and she couldn’t help the sinking feeling that settled in her stomach as her entire world came crashing down.

CHAPTER 9

Poppy

Of all the stupid things Poppy had done in her life, this was by far the absolute stupidest.

Worse than when she was running late and accidentally loaded the dishwasher at her then-boyfriend’s with dish soap that was supposed to be used in the sink. Her boyfriend at the time called to yell at her when he walked into his postage-stamp-sized apartment to find it nearly filled to the brim with soapy suds. Poppy hadn’t used a dishwasher since, insisting on using the sink and a little good, old-fashioned elbow grease.

It was worse than when she tried to do laundry for her dad and brothers for the first time at the age of ten, mixing all the clothes and towels together instead of separating out the light and dark colors. The entire load ended up looking like it had been dyed with Pepto Bismol thanks to some new red towels, and Poppy had spent almost three months’ allowance paying back her family for the shirts, socks, and underwear that had been ruined in the form of extra chores and what little allowance she made.

But this time, as the wind whipped against her bare arms and legs, she couldn’t think of anything else as bad as what she had gotten herself into as she ran toward what she thought was the main resort building of the Ranch.

As she had sat around the table in the lobby with her Little friends just a short time earlier, she had a horrible realization that she had stashed a special Thanksgiving gift for CJ back in the safety of her dorm room at Rawhide Ranch University but had yet to retrieve it. Sure, she could have kept it in her suite in the guest wing of the Ranch she had been sharing with CJ, but she hadn’t been sure she was brave enough to want to share what she had created just yet and hadn’t wanted CJ to stumble upon it unexpectedly. Keeping it in her dorm room assured that until she was ready, she could keep the secret gift to herself.

And part of Poppy knew she should have told her Daddy instead of whispering quietly into the ear of Seth, swearing him not to tattle on her before she made a beeline for the nearest tunnel entrance and ran toward her dorm room at full speed. But she so desperately wanted to surprise CJ, and telling her that she needed to go to her dorm would have only ended with more questions Poppy didn’t want to answer just yet.

It was easy to get to her dorm through the warmth of the tunnel system, but the fear of being caught and taken back to her Daddy without what she was on her way to retrieve was too great. Twice, she ducked into a nearby offshoot, waiting for workers of the Ranch to pass her by, only moving again when she was sure the coast was clear like some kind of double-agent secret spy.

Once she completed her task, with the present that was just as much for CJ as it was for Poppy tucked safely into the pocket on her dress, she took the stairs to the main level from her third-floor dorm. Pushing out into the cold, she knew she should have gone back the way she came through the warm tunnels. But shecould still almost make out the silhouette of the main Ranch building from where she stood outside the university and knew she could make it there faster if she simply ran between the two structures. Running toward the building, she gasped when the first bits of slushy snow slipped between her shoe and foot, the icy cold taking her breath away as it soaked through her thin, lace sock.

The wind picked up, howling around her in an ominous swirl of white, oversized, fat snowflakes. Looking up, Poppy realized she could no longer see the main resort building and her heart sank at the thought that she might not be able to get back to where her Daddy had left her—back to where soon, her Daddy would certainly realize she was missing.

Tears as fat as the snowflakes clung to her lashes like tiny icicles and snot ran from her nose in the most unladylike moment of her life. Poppy’s heart was racing and she ran as fast as her short legs would allow, praying to whatever deity resided in the sky that she would soon run into a building—anybuilding—where she could seek shelter until the snow let up.

In that moment, everything Poppy and CJ worked so hard to accomplish over their short time together was forgotten. Poppy couldn’t have staved off the panic attack that smacked into her with full-force if her life depended on it. As she continued to move, she tried desperately to suck in the breath her body was demanding. Every inch of her frame shook with fear and shame and embarrassment and disappointment.

So much disappointment.

She let herself cry into the cold air around her, not bothering to hold back the sobs that came from deep within her chest to shake her entire frame almost as much as the cold air around her made her shiver.

And when she couldn’t hold it back any longer, she found the nearest bush that had been covered with fresh fallen snowand emptied the contents of her stomach behind it, vowing she would never again eat a breakfast of blueberry pancakes as long as she lived.

Using the newly fallen snow that continued to fall in droves, Poppy tried but failed to rinse out her mouth. And when she finally admitted defeat and sank to the ground, she didn’t even feel the cold snow as it packed firmly under her bare legs.

“Poppy!”

The voice was faint, but she knew it could only be one person.

Because after all, there had only been one person who had never given up on Poppy. Who would have realized she was missing and came to find her. Whobelievedin her and wanted to see her thrive unlike everyone else in her life who had been content to mistreat her and watch her fall by the wayside. And though it had been but a short time, Poppy needed that person in this moment more than she had ever needed anyone before.

“Daddy!” She mustered up the strength she could find in her weak, frigid body, yelling into the wind that whipped the storm around her. “Daddy, I’m over here!”

For a moment she didn’t hear a thing and her heart plummeted, sure that she had conjured the voice of her Daddy from somewhere in her overactive imagination. But then it was there again. “Poppy, kitten! Keep yelling for me until I get to you!”

That was exactly what Poppy did.

Over and over again, she found the strength, yelling to her Daddy who was somewhere out in the unexpected blizzard, searching for her.

And when CJ finally reached Poppy and fell to the ground at her feet after what felt like hours, Poppy didn’t hesitate before throwing herself into the arms of her Daddy, a chorus ofI’m so sorryandI never meant to disobey youfalling from her chattering, nearly blue lips.

“I’ve got you,” CJ told her, rocking her in the snow that seemed to let up around the pair as suddenly as it had begun. “You’re safe, kitten. Daddy’s got you. But let’s get you inside and warmed up, sweetheart. Come on, it’s not safe out here for Little girls to be wandering alone.”

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