The Creek Series: Complete Set: Parts I, II, & III

by Abbie St. Claire

  I didn’t laugh and gave him the stink-eye. No one was going to call my baby Ointment. “Seriously, he did not.”

  “You’re right. He didn’t, but I like to see you fired up about that. Now you know why it wasn’t my first choice for a name.”

  As if right on cue, Trippe started fussing, announcing his eyes were open from his nap. He’d done really well with the time change, but his belly was giving him fits, and he was the king of farts. Tummy time with Layla was the only thing that made him happy.

  I went to get him from his crib and change his diaper. While I was in his room, I thought I heard voices…American voices. I finished up his diaper change and walked to the top of the stairs and looked at the front door. There stood Karina and Aaron.

  I squealed. Trippe cried.

  In a flash, we descended the stairs, and Karina met us at the bottom.

  “What? How? Dane?” I asked.

  “Yes. On Christmas Day, he called and offered to send the plane back for us. Aaron had to work, so we waited until he got off. I’m off until after the wedding, so we are here for the New Year’s Eve event, and oh, I have this.” She handed me a sealed note.

  My hands trembled as I opened it:

  My Dearest Love,

  I would move heaven and earth to make you happy, since you’ve made me yours. My life was completely in shambles when I met you, and even though our journey had curves, we found our way to the same path. A loving marriage doesn’t mean perfection all the time. It means we laugh more than we cry, have more celebrating moments than those of worry, and most importantly, we love our very best through everything.

  You’ve given me the greatest gift any man can possess—a child to call their own. The two of you are the light to my world.

  I trust you with my heart. I want time to stand still, so I can absorb every bit out of every moment with you.

  This is our first New Year’s Eve together, but I pray we have many more. I am so glad I gave you my heart and you gave me yours. It was the best thing I ever did.

  Yours for a lifetime,

  D

  P.S. You aren’t the only one who can plan a surprise. **wink, wink**

  I handed Trippe over to her and closed the distance between me and Dane. When I kissed his lips and pulled away, love sparkled in his eyes like glitter.

  “You knew about the lingerie?”

  “I opened the suitcase looking for room to put my stuff inside.”

  “I love you,” I whispered.

  “Ditto.”

  Epilogue

  It was the last week of July, and Dane was in a hurry to get packed for our summer trip to France. He’d taken the next month off from work for a much needed vacation. It really hadn’t taken him long to find out he wasn’t quite ready for retirement, so he’d purchased an app development firm that had just come to market with a do-it-yourself template to create your own apps. Thank God this company wasn’t based in China.

  Trippe was walking, talking, and chasing Layla. They were best friends. I was walking down the hall one afternoon while the little man was supposed to be taking a nap, yet I saw a head of dark hair moving about as a leg was going over the side of the crib. Can’t beat the toddler stage. That day, we took the crib to the room next door and put wonder-boy in the toddler bed. Since then, Layla has slept with him every night.

  I couldn’t believe our second anniversary was coming up. The last two years had been very busy with many ups and downs. We’d lost Asher this past spring. He passed away in his sleep, Evelyn by his side. Although they never married, they’d been the best of friends, and she’d made his last few months worthwhile. Trippe had called him Poppa. My heart was gripped at the thought that he would never know the love of a grandparent. I so wished we’d had more time with them.

  Karina and Aaron’s wedding was as much a celebration of love as it was a testament to her courage. Chemo was rough on her, but with the use of the chilled gel caps she wore during treatment, she lost very little hair and didn’t have to cut any.

  Why is it that hair loss is the first thing we think of when someone is going through chemo?

  When I worked in the cancer center and we started new patients, most often it was their first question. I supposed in some way, it had something to do with our identity. I had made her a promise that if she had to shave hers, I was going for the scalped look myself. I would’ve done it for her. That’s what a devoted friendship was. Not a relationship of convenience.

  After Karina’s wedding, I had some time to plan what I wanted to do with the properties in Arkansas. I couldn’t even refer to it as my home any more. I’d distanced myself emotionally from it so far that it had become a tangible possession, but not a place where I felt comfortable. After much discussion with Dane and Justin, I decided to sell it, and Justin bought both places with the contingency that I had first rights if he ever wanted to sell it.

  We never discussed what his plans were for it, but I knew he was very much wanting to have a hunting or fishing hideaway. When he turned it into a working dude ranch for troubled boys, I was speechless. We went for the grand opening, and it was hard to believe how much the place had changed. It had been over a year since I’d been there.

  The visit was as difficult in letting go of a piece of my family as it was revisiting the tragedies of my life. I knew the past no longer owned me, and I had Dane to thank for that, but the person I’d become was because of the strength my mother had made sure I had. She gave me a life filled with value, and no matter whether you were born to poverty or riches, value wasn’t something than could be bought. It was like trust. It was earned.

  What surprised me more than anything was that Justin had a large sign erected that read:

  Forgiveness Creek

  Dude Ranch

  And it sat just beside the bridge as you entered the property. The fact that he’d honored my mother with the name meant more to me that he could possibly know.

  He and his fiancée, Camryn, were living in the cabin. There were six boys and four employees living out at the ranch. The boys were taught the way of the land and were home schooled by a teacher who came out every day. I knew my mom and Stephan were smiling from heaven, happy that their desire to help people would be their legacy.

  While we were there, we paid a visit to Dr. Palmer and Sara Beth. His hips were giving him so much trouble he’d retired right after Trippe was born. Sara Beth said he was driving her nuts being home every day, and while it’d been a year and a half, he was just as restless as he had been the first day. There was no way I would ever be able to express my appreciation to him for all he had done for me, but when he asked if I was going to finish school, I said yes. To me, finishing school was finishing my promise to him.

  While I’d finished my prerequisites for Nurse Practitioner school, I’d put off applying. Dane and I had let nature take its course, but after Trippe’s first birthday came and went and I still wasn’t pregnant, I decided to make good on my promise to carry a baby for Karina.

  I asked Dr. Bledsoe what her thoughts were about my body as it related to surrogacy. Her first reaction was to remind me I’d had blood pressure issues, which we were all convinced had been due to stress, but there was no guarantee it wouldn’t return for my next pregnancy. Her second was to shed a tear at the concept that a friend would love another so much she’d be willing to go through the process. She wasn’t an infertility specialist, so she made some calls and set up a consult for Dane and me.

  Meeting Dr. Kremly was a blessing. She herself had a set of twins by in vitro fertilization, so she knew the procedure by heart from both sides. She explained all the pros and cons for us and answered all of Dane’s questions, and believe me, the man had a list. What was different about our situation was that there were only four eggs available for Karina, so should it fail, our attempts would be limited.

  Karina’s birthday was in February, and we planned to celebrate over lunch with just the two of us, while Trippe and Layla ente
rtained our husbands. When she unwrapped the silver baby rattle, her eyes misted over, but she didn’t see the card. When she finally did see it, she started reading aloud.

  Karina, my sister from some crazy, misguided path,

  You came into my world and happenstance made us roommates. You are the eloquent being that told me once I had the ‘Power.’ You’ve lifted me up and carried my soul when I wanted to end its life source.

  There are no words to describe the depth of our friendship. Blood does not make us sisters, love does.

  You are celebrating a birthday today and a year of being cancer free. I want to also celebrate the beginning of a new year and confirm my promise to carry your baby, giving yet again, life to someone so deserving.

  You have the power to say yes!

  With all my love,

  Wrenn

  By the time she reached the end, she was exploding in both tears and excitement.

  “Yes!”

  She cried, I cried, and heck, even our server cried. We drove back out to the ranch and informed the guys of the awesome news and then sat down to a very military-like discussion.

  There were legalities involved as required by the state, and the process took over a week to complete. After that, hormone therapy was started, but the implant didn’t result in pregnancy. We were all devastated, and I was afraid I’d set Karina and Aaron up for serious heartbreak. Since there were only two eggs remaining, Dr. Kremly advised Karina and Aaron that she fertilize only one of them, leaving one for a final try if the second implantation didn’t work. They agreed.

  I started another hormone cycle in May, and the embryonic transfer was successful. After ten days, pregnancy hormones in my blood continued to increase, and at the end of June, a successful pregnancy was confirmed.

  Karina and Aaron were thrilled, nervous, anxious, and beside themselves, and I was over the moon. Dane was a little jealous that it wasn’t our baby, but the sacrifice was worth it…for a lifetime.

  Dane ushered us outside, anxious to get us to France. “Honey, did you check your list? Do we have everything?”

  Layla was so excited she was getting to go somewhere in the car she knocked Trippe down. He didn’t cry, but I think he chewed her out in baby gibberish.

  “Yes, I checked the list. Yes, we got everything.”

  Everybody was loaded, and we were pulling out of the gate when I remembered something. “Wait, stop. The camera.”

  The look my man gave me was painful. “I thought you checked the list?”

  “I did. I forgot to put it on the list.”

  “You’re killin’ me, woman,” he huffed.

  “You’ll be all right.” I teased him with a wink.

  “You’re right. I will, and you can make it up to me. Did you pack that special red suitcase?”

  “It’s on the list.”

  Thank You

  Dear Reader,

  There is no greater compliment to an author than someone taking their precious quiet time to read a story that the author has crafted.

  Wrenn’s story has been in my brain for years and I hope you enjoyed reading about her journey through pain and finding the strength to overcome the obstacles out of her control.

  We all have obstacles that life throws in our path and our road is never promised to be a paved surface. It’s the cruise along the highway that matters most. The bonds of friendship that we make and the memories that come from them that we cherish until our last breath.

  As this story goes to print, I have a dear writer friend and her husband struggling every day with his fight against stage four colon cancer. Her motto is to “Live life beautifully,” and that is something they are trying to do as each day brings new obstacles. They are deeply embedded in my heart. Our plight is united and simple: If you are of age, please get a colonoscopy. It’s easy and could save your life.

  I’m thankful to the friends and relationships that have come into my life from the writing world. The notes and messages that I receive from you, the reader, are cherished—each and every one. Please feel free to send me a message or an email. I’m grateful for every note I get and invite you to become part of my circle.

  Respectfully yours,

  Abbie

  About The Author

  I’ve spent many years crafting stories in my brain. Finally, after the encouragement from those that love and support me the most, I put my first story out by self-publishing in 2013.

  That first milestone created a writing monster in me that couldn’t be stopped and filled a void I cannot explain. Each story is a true gift from my heart and a sacrifice from my soul, since I find it difficult to let the characters go.

  At home in Texas, my husband and I share our life with children that mean the world to us and include a couple of fur babies. When we aren’t busy watching sports and betting on the game, we are entertaining with friends.

  I do have a writing cave, but honestly, most of my work comes from the kitchen, the heartbeat of any home. Since noise doesn’t disturb me too much when writing, I can write and keep the pulse on the family at the same time. And… Possibly enjoy my favorite, sinful treat… Cookie dough!

  The writer-reader world is my lifeline. I’m addicted and each time I get a message from a reader, I’m thrilled. There’s quite a few stories planned for the next several months. I’m hoping the readers fall in love with my holiday romance, Cookie Swap, coming in December.

  Please check out my other titles:

  Christmas in July

  Ace’s Key

  Booty Call

  Consolation Prize

  All About The Heat

  KISS ME-THERE

  KISS ME-MY ASS

  You may follow me on Facebook, Twitter and by my newsletter. All of this information can be found on my website at www.abbiestclaire.com