Forever Awakenings (Awakenings #3)

by Lisa Bilbrey

  Forever Awakenings

  Book Three in the Awakenings Series

  By

  Lisa Bilbrey

  Copyright © Lisa Bilbrey, 2017

  All rights reserved. Published by Lisa Bilbrey 2017.

  Print Edition, License Notes

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental

  Cover design by: JC Clarke

  ISBN-13:

  ISBN-10:

  Acknowledgements:

  To my wonderful husband, Chan, who gives me the strength and encouragement to keep writing, to hone my craft, and the love of a lifetime. You’re my everything, and I’m lucky to have you.

  To my children: Cooper, Alexander, and Sophia. You’ve given me the confidence to stay true to myself and let my voice be heard. You’re my inspiration for a better future.

  To my mom and dad, thank you for boasting about me. I love you, and I’m so thankful for everything that you’ve done for me and my family.

  Michelle Keen Blansett, you are always there when I need someone to talk to, someone to bounce ideas off, and I can’t thank you enough for your friendship.

  To Kerry, Leigh, Tina, Sarah, M.B., R. E., and Rhonda, thank you for being my fans, no matter what I’m dealing with. You’re rockstars!

  JC Clarke, thank you for the beautiful artwork.

  Writing is a passion. If you haven’t found yours yet, I hope you find it soon.

  Prelude

  “What’s taking so long?” Elle muttered, mostly to herself, but when she felt Sadie’s hand slip in with hers, she knew everyone around her had heard.

  They were sitting in the waiting room outside of Ivy’s hospital room. She’d been laboring all day. At forty-one weeks, she had been more than eager for the birth of her baby. Nick had been by her side all day, never once wavering in his support of his wife.

  “Not everyone has a quick labor, sweetheart,” Helina said.

  Elle shifted her attention to her mother, who was rocking five-month-old Willow. “I know.”

  Her relationship with her mother had only strengthened over the last handful of months. They talked on the phone almost every day, and Elle had finally gotten her mother to start texting, which had been comical in the beginning.

  Once again, their family had shown up to support Nick and Ivy. Helina and James were there, of course, preparing to welcome a new grandchild, but so were Claudia and Bruce, Samuel and Lydia. Felicia and Carlos had told them they would fly out as soon as possible, and Nick’s mother Regina had been over the moon to hear she was becoming a grandmother. Gabriel was thrilled to be a great-uncle. Lucia and Aaron were there, along with Jonas and Abe, Leigh, Thomas, and Tyson, Nate and his boyfriend Zeke.

  “Mama,” Flora babbled tittering toward Elle with her arms up in the air. She’d been walking for a few months.

  “Hey, pretty girl,” she murmured, scooping up the fourteen-month-old.

  “Elle.” She turned and found Dr. Kemp standing in the entrance of the waiting room. “Ivy would like to see you, Sadie, Callum, and Derek first.”

  “Yeah, okay.”

  Elle placed Flora in Samuel’s waiting arms, before following her lovers across the hallway to Ivy’s room. Nick was propped up on the side of the bed, one arm around Ivy, while the other was holding their newborn baby.

  “Hey,” Elle said, bracing herself against the side of the bed before releasing her cane and reaching for Ivy’s hand. “You okay?”

  “I’m … I’m tired, but I’m good,” Ivy whimpered. “Nick and I wanted you to be the first to meet your nephew. This is Elliot Reid Fisher.”

  “Oh, Ivy,” Elle cried, accepting the infant as Nick placed the baby boy on her arms.

  “Elliot’s after you, of course. You’ve always been so strong, so brave. We wanted to honor you.”

  Elle sniffed back her tears as she gazed upon the baby. “Welcome to the family, Elliot.”

  One

  “Daddy!” five-year-old Willow Davis screamed just moments before she stomped into her parents’ bedroom.

  Derek Davis smiled as he looked up from his seat on the edge of the bed, where he had been putting on his new dress shoes. His wife, Sadie, had had enough of the beat up leather loafers he had been wearing for the last few years and arrived home from a meeting the day before with several different pairs to choose from. Normally, it would have irritated him that his wife had practically forced him to buy new shoes, but she was so adorable as she thrust the boxes toward him that he couldn’t argue with her and picked out a pair of dark brown dress shoes.

  “What’s wrong, buttercup?” he asked, scooping the young girl into his arms and placing her on his lap.

  At five years old, Willow Faith Davis was the definition of a spitfire. She had Derek’s dark hair and creamy skin, but Elle’s rich brown eyes. She was spunky like Sadie, but loving like Callum, and had Elle’s fiery spirit. Always a go-get-her, Willow was the first to take chances — something that Derek both loved and hated. He loved her faith that everything would be okay, but hated the heartbreak that crept over her when she faced disappointment.

  “I can’t find the butterfly hairclips that Mommy bought me. How can I start school without my hairclips?” Willow threw her hands up dramatically and it took all of Derek’s control not to burst out laughing.

  “Hmm, and you checked everywhere?”

  Willow nodded. “They ain’t in my dresser, my toy box, or my backpack.”

  Derek pressed his lips together, knowing how Elle would have corrected their daughter’s use of the word ‘ain’t’, but he found it adorable. “Why don’t we both go look for them?”

  “Fine, but it’s completely hopeless.” With a sigh, Willow slid off Derek’s lap and led him out into the hallway and into the large room she shared with her older sister, Flora.

  Flora Hope Davis was only eight months older than Willow, making them more like Irish twins. They were close, rarely spending more than a few hours apart. Where Willow was outspoken and a true free spirit, Flora was quiet and shy, more of an introvert than her sister. Perhaps that’s why they made such a good team: they countered each other perfectly.

  “Morning, Daddy.” Flora finished putting on the black and white saddle shoes she’d picked out for her first day of school and climbed off her bed, walking over to Derek with her arms open for a hug. She always loved to snuggle.

  “Morning, doodlebug.” Derek kissed the top of her head. “Have you seen Willow’s butterfly hairclips?”

  Sighing, Flora shook her head. “We looked everywhere, but they’re gone. Pretty sure a ninja came in and stole them while we were sleeping.”

  “A ninja?” Derek laughed and when she nodded, he asked, “And why would a ninja steal her hairclips?”

  “So, we can’t go to school,” Flora murmured, shifting her eyes to the ground.

  “Hmm,” Derek hummed and settled on t
he side of Willow’s unmade bed. He gestured for the girls to stand in front of him and they did with a shared look and a reluctant sigh. “Okay, girls, what’s going on?”

  “I told you: I can’t find my hairclips,” Willow muttered, chewing on the inside of her lip much like Elle did when she held something back.

  “Yes, you did, but I don’t like when my girls lie to me. Makes Daddy very sad when you don’t tell him the truth.”

  Flora’s lip began to tremble, and he saw tears swelling around the soft green. “I don’t want to go to school, so Willow and I hid her hairclips, so we wouldn’t have to go.”

  “But why don’t you want to go? You’re going to have so much fun,” he said, soothingly.

  “What if nobody likes me?” she cried, melting into her father’s arms. “Don’t make me go, Daddy. Please, don’t make me go!”

  “Shh,” he hushed her, rubbing her back and trying to hold her tight. “I know school seems scary, but it’s not. You and Willow are going to have so much fun, and everyone is going to love you. And if they don’t, it doesn’t matter, and do you know why?”

  The little girl cried harder as she shook her head.

  “Because you have each other. You and Willow are best friends, best sisters. And, besides, Elliot’s going to be there, too.”

  Flora sniffed as she leaned away from him. “Promise it’s going to be okay?”

  Derek nodded. “Daddy’s word and you know Daddy never breaks his word. Now, where are the hairclips?”

  Flora and Willow shared a look before Flora walked into their closet. She came back a moment later with the two butterfly hairclips in the palm of her hand.

  “Sorry, Daddy,” she muttered, giving them to Willow.

  “Yeah, I’m sorry, too, Daddy,” she mumbled, her creamy skin darkening.

  “It’s okay. Just don’t lie to me again. Now, you’d better hurry and finish getting dressed or there won’t be any breakfast left.”

  Derek left the girls in the middle of their bedroom and hurried downstairs. When he walked into the kitchen, he had to swallow back a moan. Callum had Elle pressed against the fridge, their mouths melded together, their hands groping, and the sounds … Oh, the sounds!

  Clearing his throat, Derek reached down and adjusted his hardening cock; the sight of his husband and wife together always got him hard. At the sound of his intrusion, Callum and Elle pulled away from each other, smug smiles on their faces.

  “Sorry to interrupt,” he groused. “But little legs will be down here soon, so you’d better cool it.”

  “Thanks for the heads up,” Elle purred, bracing herself against the fridge while reaching for her cane.

  Derek hated that she still relied on the apparatus, but she’d learned to accept her limitations and had flourished. She no longer hid behind the fears that Trixie Maxwell would find her, would take vengeance on her once again. The road hadn’t been easy for the dark haired, beautiful woman he’d fallen in love with almost eight years ago, but she’d risen above every obstacle thrown in her path with grace and determination. Her strength was just one of the many things he loved about Elle Reid Davis.

  Tall with shaggy blond hair and bright blue eyes, Callum had changed the most out of all of them. He had given up his suits for jeans and tees, dress shoes for sneakers, and spent most of his day corralling the girls, cleaning house, and making sure all the domestic chores were taken care of.

  “Coffee, babe?” Callum asked, tilting his head to the side. A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips when he noticed Derek checking him out.

  “Yes, please,” he murmured.

  Derek had struggled with Callum’s decision to become a stay-at-home-dad after Flora’s birth. They’d met in college freshman year when the University of California, Los Angeles paired them together as roommates. Derek would be lying if he said he hadn’t been attracted to Callum from day one. The man had a killer smile and a nice ass, but Derek never identified as a gay man. Men in his family weren’t supposed to lust after other men — that’s what he told himself, anyway.

  Over the years, they partied, gotten drunk too many times, and often found themselves touching each other. Hand jobs from Callum had become more intimate than the sexual relationships he had with women. Until he and Callum met Elle and Sadie, at least.

  They’d just gotten back to San Francisco after several weeks in L.A. when they decided to go to Club Venom and blow off some steam. He and Callum were just finishing their first round of beers when Derek saw Elle and Sadie on the dance floor. He was mesmerized with them, by the way they touched and kissed, loved each other with such ease.

  When they settled back at their table, Derek couldn’t resist sending a couple drinks over. The bartender hadn’t made it easy to get their drinks correct, but two hundred bucks later, Callum and Derek were sitting across from Elle and Sadie.

  That night everything changed. That night, they gave into their feelings, allowed themselves to express their lustful awakenings. That night, Derek fell in love with three people — three amazing people.

  “You’re being quiet,” Elle said, sitting in the chair next to Derek and placing her hand in his forearm. “You okay?”

  Derek nodded and covered her hand with his. “As well as I can be considering our daughters are starting kindergarten today. I just can’t believe they are old enough to be in school.”

  “Um, babe, they were in school last year,” Callum said with a chuckle. “Pre-school, remember?”

  “They were only there three days a week for four hours a day, but this is real school.” Derek groaned. “I know it’s silly, but damn, they were just born yesterday!”

  Elle laughed. “Lover, they’re ready.”

  “Oh yeah? Then why did they conspire this morning to get out of going?” Derek then went on to tell Callum and Elle about their little prank. “I mean, if they’re willing to hide their precious clips, maybe they aren’t ready.”

  Elle sighed. “They’re scared. It’s new and different. I understand why that’s hard, but they are ready. They’re too smart to be held back because we don’t want the world to ruin them. Aren’t you the one who told me that we can’t let fear keep us from living?”

  Derek opened his mouth, but promptly closed it and nodded.

  “Then let them live. They’re good girls. They can handle anything thrown at them, including kindergarten.” Callum joined them at the table, his arm wrapping around Derek and his other hand reaching for Elle. “And so can we; as we’ve proven too many times.”

  Derek shifted his eyes back to Elle, whose eyes darkened at the memories that often haunted her. Too many times she had found herself in harm’s way. First, by a boyfriend who called her a whore and slut because he hated her success, and then again by a bitter, angry woman who blamed Elle for her own shortcomings.

  Leo Donavan had broken her, and Trixie Maxwell had almost killed her — literally. Two bullets had torn through her flesh, broken her bones, and tried to end her life. Months of setbacks, including infection, surgeries, failed attempts at rehab, and Elle had struggled to regain control of her life. Struggled to let go of her anger, a struggle she still battled from time to time.

  “You’re being oddly quiet,” Elle commented, placing her hand on the side of Derek’s face. “Whatcha thinking about, handsome?”

  Smiling, he leaned into her touch. “You.”

  “Me?” Surprise filled her eyes and her lips curbed upward. “What about me?”

  “Oh, you know?” he replied coyly. “How much I love kissing you.”

  “And how much is that?”

  “This much.”

  Derek closed the distance between their lips, his hand sliding to the back of her neck. Elle leaned against him, her lips parting and allowing his tongue to explore her mouth. He moaned; the taste of their lovers still evident.

  “Oh, hello.”

  Derek and Elle ended their kiss and looked toward the doorway of the kitchen where Willow and Flora, with their hands c
overing their eyes, stood with Sadie Williams Davis.

  The stunning red-head with bright green eyes, and a killer body had been the glue that held the four of them together. Where Elle had been reluctant to pursue a relationship with Derek and Callum, Sadie had been eager to see where the foursome went. Maybe it was because she had not suffered the abuse Elle had at the hands of her ex, or perhaps, she was just ready to live her life without worry of judgement. In the end it didn’t matter. The relationship between the Derek, Callum, Elle, and Sadie had been built around love, honor, and sexual attraction. They were lovers, friends, family, and nobody could tear them apart.

  “Caught these two trying to sneak some cookies into their backpacks,” Sadie said, placing her hands on Flora and Willow’s shoulders and ushering them into the kitchen. “Said they were afraid they’d starve to death at school.”

  Derek and Callum laughed while Elle merely shook her head and reached for the girls, who were immediately in her arms. The sight of his daughters in the arms of their mothers was beautiful, one of Derek’s favorite in the world.

  “You two are the silliest little girls,” Elle said, quietly. Placing and hand on each of their cheeks, she sighed. “Nobody is going to let you starve. Daddy has packed your lunch with your favorite sandwich, some grapes, and maybe a cookie or two. I promise you’re going to have so much fun. Now, sit down and eat some of these pancakes Daddy made.”

  “Okay, Mommy,” Flora murmured, before climbing into her usual chair. Willow simply nodded and joined her sister.

  —FA—

  Half an hour later, they were parked in the large lot in front of Grover Hills Elementary School. Derek would be lying if he said he wasn’t nervous about leaving his girls, even if he knew it was the best school in the city. They were lucky that the girls had won a spot in the lottery, but Flora and Willow were little, innocent, and he didn’t want to leave them in the mouth of the beast. The world would change them, as it had everyone at one point or another.

  “Well,” Callum said, clapping his hands together and turning in his seat. “Shall we go in?”

  “Yes,” Sadie declared, opening her door and sliding out. She reached for Willow, who gave her hand instantly.