From the moment she had stepped onto the red carpet for theCamelotpremière and felt the warmth of those camera flashes like a thousand brilliant suns, Nina had thrown her entire self into becoming someone.
And for what? Forwhom?
Because it was only now, with everything she’d worked for at risk, that she realized she’d somehow missed the big picture. She’d never been in a romantic relationship. Until Maverick, she’d never been held by a lover until she fell asleep in his arms, and that feeling of being cocooned in safety was so beautiful it made her think she’d probably missed out on quite a bit. She’d never even had a girls’ night – though Markus would disagree with that – because she’d never had a female friend she’d been close enough to suggest it to.
Because it bothered her immensely, Nina promised herself that she would make more time for people going forward, no matter what happened with her career.
She was so busy mulling over her interpersonal shortcomings that she didn’t hear the faint scuffling and hushed giggles coming from outside her bedroom. But when Poppy knocked and called her name, Nina sat up in bed and turned on her side lamp.
‘Come in, Poppy,’ she said, knowing that Maverick was probably out with the horses already.
The door opened, but it wasn’t just Poppy standing outside. It was Poppy, Mav, and Sierra.
It took Nina a second to register what was happening. She stared at the brightly wrapped gifts Maverick and Poppy held and the birthday cake in Sierra’s hands, and when they started singing ‘Happy Birthday’, she wasn’t entirely sure what to do.
They came into her room as a unit, their singing loud and a little off-key. Nina found Mav’s gaze, laughingly said, ‘This doesn’t count as you singing to me,’ to try and downplay the immensity of her own emotion.
Mav just smiled. And when Poppy scrambled onto the bed, threw her arms around Nina’s neck, and whispered, ‘We made you a cake,’ Nina’s heart melted completely.
She wrapped both her arms around the five-year-old and returned the ferocious hug. ‘Thank you, Poppy.’
‘And I made you a present!’
‘You did?’ Nina said brightly, though her eyes burned with tears.
‘Yeah.’
‘Poppy, let Nina blow out her candles first,’ Sierra instructed and held the cake closer.
‘Don’t forget to make a wish,’ Poppy said solemnly. ‘And don’t tell anyone.’ She stood on the bed and wagged a small finger in Nina’s direction. ‘If you do, it won’t come true.’
Nina’s laugh was slightly watery, but she tugged Poppy onto her lap and wrapped her arms around her again. ‘Want to help me blow them out?’
Poppy seemed unsure. She looked across the room to where Mav stood, a little out the way, two huge presents in his arms. ‘Can I?’ she asked.
Nina followed her gaze, but when she saw the slightly stricken expression on Mav’s face, her own smile dimmed.
He cleared his throat. ‘Yeah, baby. If Nina says that’s okay.’
Nina tried not to worry too much about his look. She looked back at Poppy and smiled. ‘On three, okay?’
Poppy nodded.
‘One, two, three!’
Together, they blew out the candles, and even though she knew that hard work far surpassed the power of a wish, Nina closed her eyes and made one. It was spontaneous, the words flowing through her overwhelmed heart and into her thoughts so quickly that she had no time to reconsider or think of something more realistic.
The moment it had been made she opened her eyes again, slightly panicked by what she’d asked for in an unguarded moment. She looked straight into Maverick’s eyes, then quickly away again.
Her heart lurched.
Her panic reared.
But before it could grip her and pull her under, Poppy jumped off the bed and retrieved the haphazardly wrapped gift she’d dropped on the floor. She passed it to Nina with a megawatt smile.
‘You made this?’ Nina remembered.
Poppy nodded, said, ‘At school,’ and then climbed back on the bed to sit beside her.
