I didn’t miss celebrating my birthday. Not really. Not until I saw something like this. Then I remembered the birthdays my mom had planned. The few birthdays Val planned until the one she forgot.
After that, I didn’t want to celebrate anymore. She tried to apologize, but I plastered that fake ass smile on my face and told her I understood.
And I did.
The first time.
She had just found her daughter after years and years of searching for her. What kind of bitch would I be to hold that against her? Val was a mom first and foremost. Everything she did was with her daughter in mind.
Even walking away.
She was selfless.
But then the next year she was so sad. Amber had gone missing again and Val had forgotten my birthday. I told myself it wasn’t her fault Amber had been found on my birthday. Val wasn’t my real mom. She was Amber’s. So, I let her off the hook. Told her it wasn’t right to celebrate my birthday without Thorne anyway. She didn’t fight me on it.
“Hey.”
I blinked, looking up at Cash, giving him my fake smile. The one that made my eyes wide and bright. But he frowned back at me.
“I hate that fucking smile,” he growled.
“What?” I muttered.
“Cash!” Sam, Jackass’ old lady, slapped him on the chest. “That was mean. What’s wrong with you?”
I dipped my head, not wanting Sam to see my distress. Cash ignored her and lifted my face until I looked him in the eye. “I don’t want that fake fucking smile. I want the real one. The one that tells me you’re happy because you feel something. Not the one you think everyone wants to see.”
My nose burned, and this time, the tears threatened to fall over.
He saw me.
The real me.
I gave him a watery smile. One I hoped he could see despite the threat of tears that never fell. And when he saw it, he smiled back.
“So fucking beautiful.” He kissed my forehead, and Sam sighed next to us.
“Kytten, I want you to meet someone.” Sam looked around the room, and my eyes followed hers. And when her gaze landed on a young man, my chest tightened.
I dropped Cash’s hand and slowly walked across the room until I was standing in front of him. My breaths came out fast and uneven. I felt lightheaded as I stared up into his light brown eyes. Eyes I recognized.
“You’re here,” I whispered. The tears that filled my eyes but never fell slipped out and ran down my cheeks. “You’re really here.”
He looked at me, confused. When I reached my hand up to his face, I heard Cash call my name. “ROSE!” But everything else behind me fell away as the young man’s eyes flared with recognition.
“Rosebud?” Thorne whispered in disbelief. Then I jumped into his arms.
“You’re really here,” I cried.
The music stopped, and suddenly I was ripped from Thorne’s arms. “NO!” I fought against whoever held me and I saw Cash punch my brother.
Thorne fell back against a table, and I screamed. Everything became a blur. I kicked out, hitting at the people around me, biting the hands that held me back, until the arms holding me loosened. I ran for my brother, who was on the floor, his nose bleeding from the hit.
Cash grabbed me, and I didn’t think. My instincts kicked in and, well, my foot kicked with them. Right into Cash’s dick. He dropped to the floor, and I left him there. My only focus was getting to my brother.
I kneeled on the floor next to him. “Are you ok?”
“I’m ok, Rosebud.” I tackled him again. I didn’t care about getting his blood on me. I had my brother.
