Prologue

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” he pleaded looking into her beautiful green eyes, their lively luster all but gone through months of radiation and chemo.

She closed them slowly before looking back into his baby blues, doing her best to hold in her tears as his began to fall. “Dale, I have to do this… I don’t have choice. Just take care of Kellen if I don’t come through this.”

“Don’t do that Paige. Don’t talk like you’re not coming out of that room. I can’t lose you, baby. I can’t raise a baby on my own…”

Reaching up with a fragile hand, she brushed his tears from his cheek. “You’re not on your own June. You’ve got Theresa and Kelley, you’ll always have me whether I’m here physically or not.”

“Mr. Earnhardt…”

He straightened and turned towards the nurse that had tapped him on the shoulder. “Yes?”

“We need you to sign some paperwork for your wife, sir. And we need to get her prepped so… If you can…”

He nodded, angry that they were rushing what might be the last moments he ever spent with his wife. “I love you, Paige. I want you to you know that. I’ll be waiting for you when you come out.”

Dale leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips, tasting his own salty tears.

“I love you Junebug…” she said softly, dropping his hand as they rolled her into the operating room.

As soon as the doors closed he wiped back his tears and went to the nurses station, signing the papers that Paige had made him promise to sign if ever in this situation. Do not resuscitate. He bit back the bile rising in his throat and tossed down the pen before joining his stepmother and sister in the waiting room.

Kelley Elledge reached out to her little brother, absently rubbing his back as they began the long wait. None of them thought it would come to this when Dale’s wife, Paige had been diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after the birth of their son, Kellen.

After years of research and fundraising, no one died of breast cancer anymore. She’d had a mastectomy and gone through the routine treatments but upon her latest check up they found that the cancer had spread into her lungs and short of a very risky surgery there was nothing they could do.

Nine months ago all any of them could think about was how happy they were that Dale had finally found someone to spend his life with and a beautiful child, the spitting image of his father except for his vibrant green eyes, to spoil and pamper.

Since when did 27 year-old women suffer from such a horrific disease?

Dale glanced at the clock on the wall realizing only a few hours had passed. They’d told him it would take at the least eight hours but her chances of survival were minimal. He just didn’t understand why they couldn’t just leave her alone. She wasn’t in pain, they’d given her so many pain killers all she ever did anymore was sleep.

And all he ever did was lay with her, holding her tightly, praying nonstop that God would just make this all go away.

The last thing any of them wanted to see was the swinging of the operating room door as a doctor walked slowly towards them, his bloodstained clothing more than they could bear.

“Mr. Earnhardt…”

Slowly looking into his eyes, Dale quickly hung his head as wrenching sobs spilled from his body.

“I’m sorry…” He added, casting glances at Theresa and Kelley before walking away.

“WHY!?!?!” Dale yelled suddenly, unable to reign in his anger any longer before storming from the hospital and out into the downpour that had so suddenly swept through the Carolinas . He looked into the storm, not flinching as hard drops of rain bit into his face. “WHY GOD!!! If you had to take anybody why’d it have to be her!?”

He fell hard to his knees on the hard pavement not caring that he’d attracted a crowd as he began to rock back and forth with his hands clinched over his heart. “Why her…”

---

Theresa stood in the doorway of Dale’s house not ready to leave as he tried to push her out. “Dale I’m not sure you need to be alone right now…”

He shook his head. “I’ve got to deal with this Theresa…”

“Dale… Look at me. It’s barely been 8 hours, it’s too early to deal with it. Trust me. If anyone knows it’s me.” She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Sweetie, you need to be with people who love you right now. We’ve been by your side this entire time and we’re not just going to abandon you because she’s not here anymore.”

He refused to look at her. He understood where she was coming from, she’d been there when his dad died and that had been sudden. They’d all watched Paige slowly die away for almost a year and now she was gone. How did he tell her that all he wanted to do right now was go upstairs and hug her pillow and breath in her scent trying to forget that she’s not there anymore. How he’ll sit on the couch and wait for her to walk through the front door with Kellen hanging halfway off of her hip as she struggles with the groceries and he’ll rush in and save whatever she tossed at him first.

“Look,” she said softly. “I’ll keep Kellen with me for a few days alright. But I really want you to try to at least come over there and spend some time with your family Dale. We love you and you’re not alone in this.”

“I know Theresa…” He pulled her into a hug and watched as she ran to her car, before closing the door and slowly taking the stairs, stopping outside of their bedroom door.

He stared at the unmade bed and the soft indention her head had left in the pillow when she’d gotten up that morning, before sinking to the floor and allowing the tears to flow.

The one woman he’d ever truly loved was gone and now all he had were memories and a 9 month-old baby boy to remember her by.

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