Return to Corbin's Bend

by Corinne Alexander

  “Crystal please. I think I’m getting the flu, that’s all. I’m all achy and sore.”

  “Okay,” Crystal said. This was great timing. Outside there was a party in the making.

  “Crys, I’d like to go outside now and lay down. Maybe the fresh air will help.”

  “That’s fine. You stay there and I’ll get your slippers.” Crystal hurried into the bedroom and grabbed her phone. The surprise will have to be whoever is here now. She was going to send Jen a message but Carol was in the doorway. “Couldn’t you find them? They’re under the bed on my side.”

  “Of course they are,” Crystal said, shaking her head. “Come on.” She slipped the slippers on to her girl’s swollen feet, grateful that she’d taken off the nightshirt and replaced it with some giant loose pants and a t shirt.

  Jen looked around at the decorations. She was happy with what they’d been able to achieve in such a short space of time. All they were waiting on was food. They had some, but everyone that had been invited had said they’d bring a platter. “I think we’re about done. I said I’d message Crystal when everyone was here and hidden.”

  “I love this watermelon baby carriage,” Erin said. “You’re so clever.”

  “It’s easy,” Sienna said. They looked up when Crystal and Carol came through the french doors.

  “Surprise,” Crystal said.

  “What are you three doing here?” Carol asked, grinning at the sight of her friends. “Are we having a party?”

  “We’re having a baby shower you goose,” Crystal said. “It was all Jen’s idea.”

  Jen leaned over and pecked Carol on the cheek. “Crystal came to see me. She said you needed some cheering up.”

  “I did.”

  “You don’t look cheered up babe, you’re a little green.”

  “I’m fine. I just think I’m coming down with something. My back and legs are sore and I just threw up.”

  “Oh,” Jen said, looking at Erin and Sienna.

  “What oh?” Crystal asked.

  “It’s probably nothing but those could be signs of labor,” Jen said, noticing her friend screw up her face. “Do you have a contraction right now?”

  “I knew it. I knew this could be something,” Crystal said, running a hand threw her hair.

  “It’s not a contraction,” Carol whined. “It’s just a back ache. I need to sit down. She waddled over to the lounger and tried to lower herself into it but as she did, there was a giant whoosh of water.

  “Fuck,” Crystal said, pacing up and down.

  “I thought swearing was against the rules,” Carol said, wincing again.

  “Sometimes there is no other word.”

  “Ahh!” Carol yelled. “That really hurt!”

  “Okay. Don’t anybody panic,” Crystal said. “I’m going to go and get the car out of the garage.”

  “I don’t want to go to the hospital,” Carol said. “But, I’d really appreciate it if you got a towel or something and cleaned up my chair.”

  “This isn’t a joke, Carol. You and the baby could be at risk.”

  “Get the midwife then. She can take my blood pressure and do all the checks and if she says I have to go to the hospital, then I’ll go willingly.”

  “A compromise. I guess I can do a compromise.” Crystal ran inside and got a pile of towels. She cleaned up the seat and then put some clean towels on the seat.

  Crystal paced up and down, trying to think. “It seems that Rose, the midwife, is delivering another baby in Boulder. She said she shouldn’t be more than an hour and with a first baby you could be hours yet. I would really rather we went to the hospital.”

  “No fucking hospital!” Carol yelled, drawing her legs up with the pain.

  “Dr Marcus?” Jen whispered.

  “Away for the weekend,” Crystal whispered back.

  “Brent?” Sienna suggested.

  “I don’t want Brent to deliver my baby,” Carol said. “I’ll wait.”

  “I think we better move this show inside,” she said.

  “Good idea,” Crystal said. “But if Rose isn’t here in an hour, we’re going to the hospital.”

  “I think we should prepare though, just in case,” Erin said.

  “Oh God, how do we prepare?” Crystal asked. “Boil water? Why do they boil water anyway? You never see anyone using it.”

  “I think it’s to sterilize the scissors and-”

  “No one is using scissors on me!” Carol growled

  “Let’s get inside and start timing the contractions,” Jen said.

  “Good idea,” Crystal said, marching inside.

  “Didn’t you forget something?” Sienna called. “Like your pregnant woman.”

  “Oh Christ, I’m sorry, baby,” Crystal said running back and trying to scoop Carol out of the lounger.

  “Don’t,” Carol said. “It hurts. I’ll walk. Oh God, I’m leaking.”

  “I’ll fix it,” Sienna said, running behind her with a towel. “Do you have a paddling pool?”

  “Are you insane?” Crystal said. “Don’t put anymore crazy ideas in her head.”

  “Just a thought. Water births are all the rage now.”

  “I don’t think we’re going to have time to make a birthing fashion statement, hon,” Jen said.

  “What do you mean, no time?” Crystal said. “Rose said there’d be plenty of time.”

  “And usually they would but if I’m not mistaken, Carol has had three contractions on the way into the bedroom.”

  “That’s quick isn’t it?”

  “Yes, that’s quick.”

  “Oh geez,” Crystal said, fluffing the pillows to within an inch of their lives. “Lay down here, honey.”

  “Might be better if she laid more towards the end of the bed,” Jen said.

  “Do you have a bean bag or anything?”

  “Um, Bri has one.”

  “It has Barbie dolls all over it,” Carol whined, “I hate Barbie dolls. I hate that pink.”

  “We have towels, Carol. I’ll cover the pink with a towel.”

  Carol was propped on the bean bag and Crystal was holding a stop watch. “Tell me when it starts.”

  “It’s already started,” Carol grunted.

  “Right.” Crystal pressed the button.

  “You have to start it from the beginning,” Jen said.

  She turned it off again. “You have to tell me when it’s starting,” she said gently.

  “I’m trying!”

  “It’s okay,” Crystal said, rubbing her girlfriends back uselessly. “Just try-”

  “Ahh. It’s trying to get out! I can feel it!” Carol said.

  “Well keep it in, baby! You said you’d wait!”

  “Tell your son or daughter that!”

  “Everybody calm down,” Jen said. “Now someone is going to have to look.”

  “I don’t know. I think we should wait, or go to the hospital,” Crystal said.

  “Ahhh! It’s too late!”

  “I’m calling an ambulance.”

  “Oh shit!” Carol’s face went white. “Oh shit, it’s there. It’s right there.”

  “Get her pants off or I will,” Jen said.

  Crystal yanked the pants and panties off in one quick go. “Oh my-”

  The three women ran to the bottom of the bed and peered at the little circle of hair that just became visible. “So much hair,” Sienna said.

  “Well you try shaving when you’re this size!” Carol yelled.

  “I meant on the baby’s head,” Sienna said. “I’m not judging your downstairs business.”

  “Really?” Jen laughed. “Downstairs business?”

  “What do you want me to say, the C word? There’s a baby down there.”

  “Shut up!” Erin said. “Crystal, I think you should go and wash your hands. You’re going to have to catch a little baby in a minute.”

  “Pant, honey,” Jen said as Crystal ran to the bathroom.

  They all panted in time w
ith Carol, even Crystal from the bathroom. “I’m coming.”

  She knelt at the bottom of the bed. “I think you can push now,” she said.

  With a long low growl, Carol pushed as hard as she could. “Get it out!” she yelled.

  “Take a breather and then when you feel you can, push again.”

  Carol was exhausted. She must have pushed at least a million times and still the baby wouldn’t budge. “I want to go to the hospital,” she cried. “I want an epidural.”

  “Hon, it’s too late for that. Take a big breath and give us one more push.”

  “I can’t.”

  “You can.”

  “No, I can’t.”

  “If you want the pain to stop, then you have to push.”

  As the pain started to build, Carol pushed as hard as she could. Then she panicked. She’d never felt anything like that burn, she tried to clap her legs together to stop it but they were grabbed and held by her friends.

  “Push!” Crystal yelled.

  She did and this time there was relief as a new little life slid from her body, squealing indignantly from the light that was burning his eyes.

  “We have a son!” Crystal said, her eyes filling with tears. “He’s a big one I think too.”

  “Oh good,” Carol cried. “He might be tall.” She took the little bundle that Crystal placed gently on her chest.

  “He’s just beautiful,” Crystal said. “You were wonderful.”

  “Next time I want drugs.”

  “Next time?” Crystal’s mouth gaped. “Let’s just give this little boy a name first okay?”

  “I’m not ready to do that yet. Let’s talk about it with Bri.”

  “You know what?” Jen said. “We should go.”

  “What about the party?”

  “We cancelled the party. We’ll do it when you’re on your feet again,” Erin said.

  “Yeah, we’ll be back,” Sienna said. “We’ll go after Bri is delivered.”

  “You don’t have to go yet,” Crystal said.

  “No, this is family time,” Jen said.

  “Yes it is,” Crystal said, “but you three are family.”

  The End

  Constance Masters

  I am a wife, a mother, a grandmother and an author. I guess my love of writing began when I was in school. It was the subject I loved most.

  I didn’t write while my oldest children were small because I was busy raising them. Also, there was in Internet then… there weren’t many computers at all and those that -were there were not much more than glorified typewriters. The Internet and high-tech computers make life so much easier and although I still have a couple of children at home, I have much more time to write.

  Don’t miss the entire Corbin’s Bend Series!

  Welcome to Corbin’s Bend

  Return to Corbin’s Bend

  At Home in Corbin’s Bend

  Corbin’s Bend Homecoming

  Love in the Rockies

  Visit her website here:

  http://www.constancemasters.com

  Visit her blog here:

  http://creativelyconstance.blogspot.com

  Don’t miss these exciting titles by Constance Masters and Blushing Books!

  A Lie Unraveled

  Trickery

  Saving Summer

  The Grass Could Be Greener

  Double Trouble

  Becky’s Last Chance

  The One She Loves (Corbin’s Bend)

  Leading the Way (Corbin’s Bend)

  The Unexpected Series

  An Unexpected Husband

  An Unexpected Wife

  An Unexpected Nanny

  Holiday Stories

  Valentine’s Surprise (A Corbin’s Bend Novella)

  Amelia’s Outback Christmas

  12 Naughty Days, A Holiday Collection 2014

  A Hot Aussie Christmas

  Audio Books

  An Unexpected Wife

  Life’s Unexpected Gifts

  Livia Grant

  All rights reserved.

  No part of the book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

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  Grant, Livia

  Life’s Unexpected Gifts

  eBook ISBN: 978-1-62750-651-9

  Cover Design by Anthony Walsh

  This book is intended for adults only. Spanking and other sexual activities represented in this book are fantasies only, intended for adults. Nothing in this book should be interpreted as Blushing Books' or the author's advocating any non-consensual spanking activity or the spanking of minors.

  Chapter 1

  Troy Jackson looks at the time on his cell phone just before pulling out of the roadside gas station just off the Denver Boulder Turnpike. He’s not happy to see it’s already after 6pm. The Friday night traffic paired with the heavy December snowfall has slowed him down. He regrets not calling his sister to let her know he was on the way.

  ‘That’s what I get for trying to surprise her for her birthday. I guess the surprise will be on me if she’s not even home when I finally get there.’

  It’s been over six months since he’s seen his sister, Traci, and he’s been increasingly worried about her with each weekly Skype conversation they’ve had these last six months. As the only two remaining living relatives in their small family, Troy’s decided it’s about time they spend more time together. Tonight is meant to be a double celebration. Not only does he want to help his sister celebrate turning the big 3-0, but he can’t wait to see the look on her face when she finds out his transfer back to Denver is complete.

  Just the weekend before, Troy had finished moving his relatively meager collection of possessions into his off-base apartment. At thirty-four years old, it had depressed him to realize he had so very little in the way of possessions to show for a lifetime of hard work. Sure, his bank account and investment portfolio were well padded with the money saved by being a single workaholic. His computer expertise along with his ability to lead research teams had spurred his military career along very quickly, making him a rather young Captain in the Air Force. He’s proud of his contribution to his team and service to his country, yet the older he gets, the bigger that hollow hole in his gut gets when he sees his friends with their families.

  The irony is, there was a time when he felt sorry for those friends trying to keep it all together while moving from country to country, families chasing their husbands and fathers when they could. Now he knows those same men pity him as they talk about their plans for the upcoming Christmas holidays. Sure, he always gets invitations to join in his friend’s family celebrations when away from home, yet those requests really amounted to an invitation to be a fifth wheel. At least this year, he’ll spend Christmas with his sister for the first time in four years.

  As he maneuvers a curve, Troy’s SUV slips on the slick mountain road, weaving the way to Corbin’s Bend, Colorado, the small town where Traci lives. As he gets the vehicle under control, he allows his thoughts to shift back to his sister.

  He’s still in disbelief that Traci had chosen to live in Corbin’s Bend, a community populated by people who have one major thing in common, their love of spanking. Troy smiles to himself as he remembers his sister’s loud carrying on during one of the last spankings she’d received from their strict father. Only a few weeks from her high school graduation, she’d been more than three hours late for her curfew. Their parents had been nearly frantic with her uncharacteristic behavior. It was only bad luck that had Troy home from college that weekend to witness his father’s no
rmally calm demeanor shattered by worry for his daughter. After Traci had been found safe and sound, his father’s anger bubbled up, replacing worry.

  As a twenty-two year old college senior at the time, Troy had still been selfishly resenting his father’s rather strict discipline. But there, waiting along-side his parents to hear news on the safety of his sister, he’d seen another whole side of a loving domestic discipline way of life. He had watched with envy the closeness of his parents as they supported each other through their hours of worry. That was the first night Troy had finally understood the value of his parent’s consistent boundaries in his life, which had kept him and his sister remarkably grounded while allowing them the security of spreading their wings with the knowledge of their parent’s unconditional love. Unconditional love even when they did something stupid, like staying out half the night with her new boyfriend. Troy is sure his sister had not felt the same way after receiving the tanning of her lifetime courtesy of Dad’s well-worn belt to her bare bottom.

  Yes, Troy had grown up a bit that night, uncovering important revelations about the kind of relationship he wanted in his future. Little did he know just how hard it would be to find a woman in the twenty-first century who actually wanted to be guided by their dominant husband. Between deployments, he’s had little time to play the field, but even those few relationships he’s had over the years have been a shallow imitation of what his parents had. So far he hasn’t been willing to compromise. Unfortunately, as he comes up on his thirty-fifth birthday, he finds himself worried he may need to settle for ‘good enough’ soon.

  ‘If I don’t start a family soon, I’ll end up being a senior citizen by the time the kids graduate.’

  When Traci had told him of her plans to buy into the co-op community to both live in Corbin’s Bend and serve as the resident therapist, he had actually laughed at her, thinking she was playing a joke on him. He wasn’t sure such a place could actually exist and if it did, why in the world would his sister choose to live there as a single woman? The fact that she would voluntarily live in a place heralding the benefits of something she’d howled so loud over as an eighteen year old always amuses him. The only thing he’s come up with is that maybe his sister had realized how great their parent’s marriage had been after all.