The Hope Chest, page 1
PRAISE FOR CAROLYN BROWN
The Daydream Cabin
“I absolutely loved this novel. With moments of laughter and tears, I could not stop reading and imagining the beautiful changes that were taking place within each character’s heart! Author Carolyn Brown’s novels always give me a feeling of hope!”
—Goodreads reader review
Miss Janie’s Girls
“[A] heartfelt tale of familial love and self-acceptance.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Heartfelt moments and family drama collide in this saga about sisters.”
—Woman’s World
The Banty House
“Brown throws together a colorful cast of characters to excellent effect and maximum charm in this small-town contemporary romance . . . This first-rate romance will delight readers young and old.”
—Publishers Weekly
The Family Journal
HOLT MEDALLION FINALIST
“Reading a Carolyn Brown book is like coming home again.”
—Harlequin Junkie (top pick)
The Empty Nesters
“A delightful journey of hope and healing.”
—Woman’s World
“The story is full of emotion . . . and the joy of friendship and family. Carolyn Brown is known for her strong, loving characters, and this book is full of them.”
—Harlequin Junkie
“Carolyn Brown takes us back to small-town Texas with a story about women, friendships, love, loss, and hope for the future.”
—Storeybook Reviews
“Ms. Brown has fast become one of my favorite authors!”
—Romance Junkies
The Perfect Dress
“Fans of Brown will swoon for this sweet contemporary, which skillfully pairs a shy small-town bridal shop owner and a softhearted car dealership owner . . . The expected but welcomed happily ever after for all involved will make readers of all ages sigh with satisfaction.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Carolyn Brown writes the best comfort-for-the-soul, heartwarming stories, and she never disappoints . . . You won’t go wrong with The Perfect Dress!”
—Harlequin Junkie
The Magnolia Inn
“The author does a first-rate job of depicting the devastating stages of grief, provides a simple but appealing plot with a sympathetic hero and heroine and a cast of lovable supporting characters, and wraps it all up with a happily ever after to cheer for.”
—Publishers Weekly
“The Magnolia Inn by Carolyn Brown is a feel-good story about friendship, fighting your demons, and finding love, and maybe, just a little bit of magic.”
—Harlequin Junkie
“Chock-full of Carolyn Brown’s signature country charm, The Magnolia Inn is a sweet and heartwarming story of two people trying to make the most of their lives, even when they have no idea what exactly is at stake.”
—Fresh Fiction
Small Town Rumors
“Carolyn Brown is a master at writing warm, complex characters who find their way into your heart.”
—Harlequin Junkie
The Sometimes Sisters
“Carolyn Brown continues her streak of winning, heartfelt novels with The Sometimes Sisters, a story of estranged sisters and frustrated romance.”
—All About Romance
“This is an amazing feel-good story that will make you wish you were a part of this amazing family.”
—Harlequin Junkie (top pick)
The Strawberry Hearts Diner
“Sweet and satisfying romance from the queen of Texas romance.”
—Fresh Fiction
“A heartwarming cast of characters brings laughter and tears to the mix, and readers will find themselves rooting for more than one romance on the menu. From the first page to the last, Brown perfectly captures the mood as well as the atmosphere and creates a charming story that appeals to a wide range of readers.”
—RT Book Reviews
The Barefoot Summer
“Prolific romance author Brown shows she can also write women’s fiction in this charming story, which uses humor and vivid characters to show the value of building an unconventional chosen family.”
—Publishers Weekly
“This story takes you and carries you along for a wonderful ride full of laughter, tears, and three amazing HEAs. I feel like these characters are not just people in a book, but they are truly family and I feel so invested in their journey. Another amazing HIT for Carolyn Brown.”
—Harlequin Junkie (top pick)
The Lullaby Sky
“I really loved and enjoyed this story. Definitely a good comfort read, when you’re in a reading funk or just don’t know what to read. The secondary characters bring much love and laughter into this book; your cheeks will definitely hurt from smiling so hard while reading. Carolyn is one of my most favorite authors. I know that without a doubt that no matter what book of hers I read, I can just get lost in it and know it will be a good story. Better than the last. Can’t wait to read more from her.”
—The Bookworm’s Obsession
The Lilac Bouquet
“Brown pulls readers along for an enjoyable ride. It’s impossible not to be touched by Brown’s protagonists, particularly Seth, and a cast of strong supporting characters underpins the charming tale.”
—Publishers Weekly
“If a reader is looking for a book more geared toward family and long-held secrets, this would be a good fit.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Carolyn Brown absolutely blew me away with this epically beautiful story. I cried, I giggled, I sobbed, and I guffawed; this book had it all. I’ve come to expect great things from this author and she more than lived up to anything I could have hoped for. Emmy Jo Massey and her great-granny Tandy are absolute masterpieces not because they are perfect but because they are perfectly painted. They are so alive, so full of flaws and spunk and determination. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.”
—Night Owl Romance (5 stars and top pick)
The Wedding Pearls
“The Wedding Pearls by Carolyn Brown is an amazing story about family, life, love, and finding out who you are and where you came from. This book is a lot like The Golden Girls meets Thelma and Louise.”
—Harlequin Junkie
The Yellow Rose Beauty Shop
“The Yellow Rose Beauty Shop was hilarious, and so much fun to read. But sweet romances, strong female friendships, and family bonds make this more than just a humorous read.”
—The Reader’s Den
Long, Hot Texas Summer
“This is one of those lighthearted, feel-good, make-me-happy kind of stories. But, at the same time, the essence of this story is family and love with a big ole dose of laughter and country living thrown in the mix. This is the first installment in what promises to be another fascinating series from Brown. Find a comfortable chair, sit back, and relax because once you start reading Long, Hot Texas Summer you won’t be able to put it down. This is a super fun and sassy romance.”
—Thoughts in Progress
Daisies in the Canyon
“I just loved the symbolism in Daisies in the Canyon. As I mentioned before, Carolyn Brown has a way with character development with few if any contemporaries. I am sure there are more stories to tell in this series. Brown just touched the surface first with Long, Hot Texas Summer and now continuing on with Daisies in the Canyon.”
—Fresh Fiction
ALSO BY CAROLYN BROWN
CONTEMPORARY ROMANCES
Hummingbird Lane
The Daydream Cabin
Miss Janie’s Girls
The Banty House
The Family Journal
The Empty Nesters
The Perfect Dress
The Magnolia Inn
Small Town Rumors
The Sometimes Sisters
The Strawberry Hearts Diner
The Lilac Bouquet
The Barefoot Summer
The Lullaby Sky
The Wedding Pearls
The Yellow Rose Beauty Shop
The Ladies’ Room
Hidden Secrets
Long, Hot Texas Summer
Daisies in the Canyon
Trouble in Paradise
CONTEMPORARY SERIES
THE BROKEN ROADS SERIES
To Trust
To Commit
To Believe
To Dream
To Hope
THREE MAGIC WORDS TRILOGY
A Forever Thing
In Shining Whatever
Life After Wife
HISTORICAL ROMANCE
THE BLACK SWAN TRILOGY
Pushin’ Up Daisies
From Thin Air
Come High Water
THE DRIFTERS & DREAMERS TRILOGY
Morning Glory
Sweet Tilly
Evening Star
THE LOVE’S VALLEY SERIES
Choices
Absolution
Chances
Redemption
Promises
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Text copyright © 2021 by Carolyn Brown
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without e
Published by Montlake, Seattle
www.apub.com
Amazon, the Amazon logo, and Montlake are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc., or its affiliates.
ISBN-13: 9781542029506
ISBN-10: 1542029503
Cover design by Amanda Kain
Dedicated to
Margie Hager and Janet Rodman,
with thanks for all the support and love you shower upon me.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Epilogue
Dear Reader . . .
About the Author
Chapter One
It’s a good place to be from,” Flynn O’Riley muttered as he looked at the bright-red T-shirt printed with “Where the heck is Blossom, Texas?” that was hanging on the wall. He scanned Weezy’s Restaurant for his two cousins, but evidently he was the first one to the meeting that afternoon.
The mixed aromas of burgers, grilled onions, and coffee filled the place, bringing back memories of his childhood when his mother would pick him up at the local diner in Blossom. He always spent two weeks with Nanny Lucy, and even as a toddler he would cry when it was time to leave his grandmother’s house. Stopping for a hot dog had started out as a ploy to keep him from crying when he left, but as he grew older, it became a tradition. One that he’d wished had never started after he was fifteen. That was the year his mother was killed in a terrible car wreck on her way to pick him up in Blossom.
He crossed the room, found an empty booth, slid into it, and tried to shake off the memory of the last time he’d sat in that same booth. Weezy’s had only been open for a little while, and he and Nanny Lucy were meeting his mother there for the first time. Before, they’d always met at a different café in town. He still remembered the smell of the steaming coffee that Nanny Lucy had ordered. He looked at the table in front of him and got a visual of the half-eaten hot dog sitting before him that day when the policeman came in and whispered something to his grandmother.
Nanny Lucy told him bluntly that his mother had died in a car wreck that morning on the way from Austin to Blossom. “I loved that woman as much as if she’d been my own daughter, but your dad didn’t appreciate a good thing when he had it.” Matthew, Flynn’s father, was her estranged son.
Nanny Lucy was a tough old girl, and Flynn had never seen her cry, not even that day to sympathize with him. He wept until he had no more tears, and then Nanny Lucy told him that his life would never be the same, but that he was strong and would endure whatever got thrown at him.
“You can stay with me until the funeral is over, but then you have to go live with Matthew,” she had said. Flynn knew better than to argue with Nanny Lucy, but anything—living in a cardboard box under a bridge—would be better than living with his dad, who Flynn was sure didn’t want him. He could count on the fingers of one hand the times he’d seen his father from the time his folks divorced until his mother died.
“But Nanny Lucy,” he argued with tears streaming down his face, “Daddy doesn’t even want me for weekends or a couple of weeks in the summers.”
“You’ll have to learn to get along with him,” Nanny Lucy said.
The next three days were a blur. The graveside service was held at the cemetery in Blossom. Only a handful of people were there. His mother had been the only child of parents who had been only children, and they were gone. The only family he had were his two cousins, April and Nessa, and then Nanny Lucy and his father, neither of which had wanted him. His father came to pick him up the very next morning. That was the year that Matthew had filed for divorce from stepmother number three, so for the next couple of years, it was just Flynn and Matthew in a fifth-floor apartment down near Bay City, Texas.
“I’m not changing my lifestyle one bit, boy,” Matthew had said when he’d shown Flynn the bedroom he would be using. “You can earn your keep around here by taking care of this apartment and learning to cook, and you are responsible for your own laundry. As soon as you’re sixteen, I’ll get you a job in the oil field business doing odd jobs after school and on weekends. Good hard work will keep you out of trouble.”
“Yes, sir,” Flynn had said, and he had borne his grief alone. He blinked away the past, coming back to the present. According to the sign on the wall, they still had coconut pie like Nanny Lucy had ordered that day. He imagined that hot dogs were on the menu, but he still gagged at the thought of biting into one. The taste always took him back to that terrible moment.
“Flynn O’Riley?” a masculine voice asked from the end of the booth.
“That’s me,” Flynn said, glad for the interruption that put an end to the sad memories.
“Paul Jones, Lucy O’Riley’s lawyer.” He stuck out one hand, pushing his wire-rimmed glasses up his nose with the other.
Flynn shook with him. “Pleased to meet you. Nessa and April should be here soon.”
“I’m a little early,” Paul said, “and I’ve got a lot of papers for you grandchildren to sign. Would you mind if we moved to that table”—he nodded toward the other side of the café—“to give us more room?”
Flynn slid out of the booth and followed the short gray-haired man across the room. Paul took a seat at the head of the table, pulled one of the extra chairs around to sit beside him, and put his briefcase on it. He flipped it open and began spreading out papers in three stacks.
A waitress came from a booth full of ladies, laid two menus on the table, and asked, “What can I get you guys?”
“Coffee and a cherry fried pie,” Paul answered, but he didn’t look up.
“Just coffee for now,” Flynn answered. “Maybe something to eat after we take care of this business, and we’ll need another menu or two by then.”
“Sure thing.” The young girl left smiling and returned in a couple of minutes with their order and extra menus.
“I’ll wait until your cousins get here to go over all this”—Paul motioned at the stacks with a flick of his wrist—“but I can tell you that Lucy’s son Isaac didn’t have a leg to stand on when he protested this will. All he did was prolong this day for six months. It had to be tough on Vanessa to take the stand against her own father. I wondered why you and April didn’t show up then. But most of all, I’m wondering why you’re here today, since I’m sure Vanessa told you the details of the will and the court proceedings.”
“I don’t know about my cousins, but I need a month away from my lifestyle to get some perspective. But if you’d have asked me to testify back then, I would have been there. Nessa and I couldn’t find April at that point, so she probably didn’t even know there was a will or that Uncle Isaac had contested it. He probably thought being a preacher put God on his side.” Flynn chuckled.
He’s not on my side, that’s for sure. I need this month away from women. Away from my father. Away from myself, he thought.
“Blossom is a good place to get away from everything, for sure, and you’re right about Nessa. The Reverend Isaac was pretty full of himself in court, but Vanessa proved him wrong. He was pretty angry when things didn’t go his way. I’ve wondered if it caused a split between him and his daughter.” Paul nodded and changed the subject. “I love the cherry pies in this place. And their hot dogs are amazing.”
“I’m a burger man myself,” Flynn said.
“They’re pretty good, too,” Paul agreed.
“I really thought Uncle Isaac would convince the judge that Nanny Lucy was out of her mind when she made her last will. He’s very persuasive and usually gets what he wants. But Nessa is tough. I imagine that she did fine without me and April to back her up.” Flynn looked up as the door opened and was glad to see that April had arrived with Nessa.
“She sure did.” Paul nodded.
Flynn was only five feet, eight inches tall, but Nessa was even shorter. Her curly red hair was pulled up on top of her head, adding about three inches, with springy curls going every which way. She marched across the floor with the same no-nonsense expression he remembered her having when they were kids. The sunlight coming through the window lit up every one of the hundred freckles on her square face, a face the same shape as Nanny Lucy’s. He hadn’t seen Nessa since Nanny Lucy’s funeral six months ago, but his cousin hadn’t changed a bit. She gave the impression that she could spit in a charging bull’s eye without hesitation.
