Emergence (Awakening Series Book 2) (22 page)

Chapter 43

Carson

By five o'clock in the evening I was beat. It had been a really long day. When I finally turned into the neighborhood and let my GPS direct me to the address I'd typed in around nine in the morning, I felt like it had been days since I'd been in Savannah.

Pulling up in front of a large brick colonial, I turned off the truck, stepped into the street and stretched my legs before heading up to the door.

A young boy answered the door when I rang the bell.

"Hi, is this the Larson residence?"

"Yes. Who are you?" he asked.

"Zach? Who's at the door honey?" I heard a woman call before footsteps were evident in the hallway.

A moment later a petite blonde woman stepped in front of Zach.

"Hello, can I help you?" she asked.

"Hi, Liz? I'm Carson Foster, a friend of Lou's. Is she here?"

Liz's eyes crinkled and a smug smile pulled at one side of her mouth.

"Friend huh? I doubt if you were just a friend you'd have driven all the way up here from Savannah just to find her."

I hung my head and rubbed the back of my neck, a full blown smile coming to my face. Raising my eyes back to hers I said, "You got me there."

"Come on in Carson, she's out back by the pool."

I stepped into the foyer and looked around Liz's home. Even though it was an impressive size, it was warm and homey. It looked lived in, and I immediately felt welcome. I was really happy that Lou had some place like this to come to, and friends who cared about her and could take care of her when she needed them.

I followed Liz through the house to the french doors at the back. She stopped before opening them and my breath caught at the sight that greeted me. Lou was in the pool, in a bright red bikini. Her dark hair was piled up high on her head in a messy bun. Carly was in some sort of float and Lou was pulling her around in circles while she full out belly laughed.

I opened the door and stepped onto the porch, my heart speeding up at the sight of my girls, safe and happy.

"Lou," Liz called. "You have a visitor."

Lou's head snapped in our direction and as soon as she saw me she froze, sliding her sunglasses up on top of her head.

"Carson," she said as she quickly made her way to the steps, pulling Carly along behind her.

A moment later the two of them were in my arms and my whole world was right again.

"I'm so sorry Carson. I shouldn't have left."

"Shhh. It's okay," I said as she shook in my arms, crying. Pulling back from her I caught her eyes. "Lou, the night we met was one of the best nights of my existence. Because of you I changed my entire life for the better. I love you and I love this little girl," I said, taking Carly from her. "There's no way I would ever let either of you go over something like this. If anything, it only makes us stronger."

Lou sobbed into my shoulder. "I'm so glad you came. I missed you so much Carson, and I love you more than you'll ever know."

"I take it I don't have to convince you to come home with me then?"

"No," Lou laughed, swiping at her tears. "I'd have already been on my way if it weren't for visiting with Liz. I haven't seen her since Carly was born, and I figured I'd just head back in the morning."

"Well, now that I'm here, we can afford to spend a day or two, if you'd like, and if it's okay with Liz, of course."

"Oh, it's more than okay with me! I'd love to get to know you Carson, and you know Lou is my best friend. The more time I get to spend with her, the better."

"Did you bring a bag?" Lou asked.

"Yeah, it's in the truck."

"I hope you brought a swimsuit, we've already gotten you all wet."

"Sure, I'll change and get in the pool with you," I said before turning my attention to Carly. "Hi pretty girl, can you say Dada?"

Carly smiled a crooked smile and patted me on the cheeks with both hands before leaning in and planting her open mouth on my face.

"Aww, she just kissed you," Lou said and I turned to see more happy tears sliding down her face. "Now go and get your swimsuit on before I turn into a big pile of mush watching you two love on each other."

**

After dinner with Liz, Rick and their kids that night, where they recounted stories of Lou's antics with the kids, and family vacations together, Lou and I took Carly upstairs and retired for the night.

Once Carly was asleep we both brushed our teeth and crawled into bed. I pulled Lou's body, naked aside from her panties, against mine and kissed her temple.

"Why'd you leave Lou?"

She turned in my arms so she was looking me in the eyes.

"I just overreacted Carson. You said you needed time, and I though you meant more than a few hours."

"I thought you said you'd never doubt me again after that issue with Caroline at Churchill's."

"I don't think it was you I doubted Carson, I think I doubted myself. I doubted my confidence in our relationship, and I doubted Carly's and my importance to you."

"Well, if I haven't said it enough, I'll say it again. You and Carly are the most important things in my life and I could never let either of you go over something like this. Do I wish you'd told me sooner? Yes. Do I regret meeting you, having a daughter, and falling in love with you? No. But I do need you to make me one promise."

"What's that?"

"No more secrets."

"No more," she said with a huge smile.

"Good," I said, kissing her with all the passion and love I felt for her.

Our lips met as our tongues tangled with each other's over and over again. Our hands wandered until we were clawing at each other's undergarments in an effort to get closer.

"Let me see you," I said, pulling back from her and sitting up on my knees.

She spread her long, toned legs wide and I soaked up the sight of her completely bared to me.

"You're gorgeous," I told her as I probed her with one long finger. "I love to watch your greedy little pussy pulse and weep for me. Let me watch you come on my fingers," I told her, pushing another inside her while teasing her clit with my thumb.

Her back arched as she rode my hand, seeking a release that was barreling towards her as I continued to stroke her insides.

"Carson," she groaned, her blue eyes meeting mine as she clamped down on my fingers, coming undone.

"That's it, baby. That's what I love to see."

Before she could even recover I lined myself up and pushed into her, feeling her last few contractions as I slid in all the way. As my hips met her pelvis I groaned, overcome with sensation and emotion.

As I pushed into her over and over again, driving us both to the brink of bliss, one word reverberated through my being.
Home.
This was my home, wherever Lou was, and I was going to spend the rest of my life making sure she knew just how important she and Carly were to me.

We came together, staring into each other's eyes as we slipped into ecstasy.

**

Two days later we pulled back up to the house in Savannah. I couldn't wait to see what Caroline and her friends had managed to do with her old room, and I was chomping at the bit to get Lou up there to see it too.

I climbed out of the truck and walked back to Lou's car, opening the rear door and unbuckling Carly from her seat. Once Lou was out of the car, I took her hand.

"Come on, there's something I want to show you."

Chapter 44

Lou

Walking into the house after several days away I instantly felt home again. I'd missed that feeling of contentment, but I didn't really realize how much until I smelled the familiar smells of Carson's home and felt the sense of belonging settle over me.

I slowed down in the kitchen, looking around at the island where I'd prepared dinners for Carson and myself, and at the breakfast table where we'd had food fights with Carly. I smiled to myself as I ran my hand over the granite counter tops, thanking God that I'd been brought back to this place.

"Lou? Come up to Caroline's room please!" I heard Carson call from upstairs.

With a last glance around the kitchen I set my purse down on the counter and ran up the stairs.

"What's up?" I asked walking into the room. The sight that greeted me took my breath away.

Caroline's room had been transformed. The floral valance that used to hang above the bay window had been replaced with pink gingham to match the redone cushion of the window seat. The four poster bed had been replaced with a cherry wood crib, made up with a velvety soft floral sheet of the lightest pink with a bumper to match.

A cherry changing table and matching dresser were against the far wall and there were several pictures depicting young children running and playing, rolling down hills, and blowing dandelion seeds.

When I turned to meet Carson's eyes he was seated in an old rocking chair with Carly.

"This was my mother's rocking chair when she was a child. Her father used to read her bedtime stories every night in this very chair. I want to be able to do that with Carly," he said, bringing tears to my eyes.

He placed Carly down on the floor with some soft toys and made his way across the room to me.

"Carson this is so beautiful. I don't know what to say," I said as he took my hands in his. "How did you have time?"

"I had a little help from Caroline and her friends," he told me. "Make that a lot of help." I smiled as he squeezed my hands. "Louise Katherine Evans, the night I met you, you changed my world. I have never been happier than I have these last months with you, especially since you've been staying here with me. You and Carly have made this house a home. You've made me a father. You've made us a family. So just say you'll stay. Say you'll live here with me so we can raise our daughter together. Let me take care of the two of you, and let me love you."

I couldn't form words so I did the best I could and nodded. All my dreams had finally come true. I had a man who loved me, a safe place to raise our daughter, and all the promises a future could possibly hold.

I folded myself into Carson's chest feeling that everything was right with the world.

"So, I just have one question" he said and I pulled back to look him in the eyes. He kneeled down and took my hand in his, pulling a ring from his pants pocket. "Are you free for the rest of your life?"

I laughed a full belly laugh and his beaming smile lit up the room as I launched myself at him. Our lips connected and our hands clung to each other as if we'd never get enough, and I hoped we wouldn't.

Once we pulled our faces back from each other Carson exclaimed, "Oh my gosh!"

I followed his line of sight to Carly, who was standing by the rocking chair, not even holding on.

"Are you going to walk baby girl?" Carson asked.

"Da!" she said with a big toothy grin before taking two tentative steps and falling on her bottom.

"I think she just called you Daddy," I said as Carly crawled over to us and into Carson's lap.

"Da!" she said again just to make sure we'd heard her.

"You didn't answer me," Carson said to me scooping Carly up.

I peeled my eyes away from her and met his gaze straight on.

"No Carson, I'm not free for the rest of my life," I said deadpan and his smile faltered a moment. "I'm going to marry the man of my dreams and make lots more babies with him. I'm pretty sure that's going to keep me quite busy!"

Epilogue

Lou

Carson and I were married right before Carly's first birthday and Christmas followed a few days later.

We went to Hawaii for our honeymoon right after the holidays and once we were settled into our suite, I pulled out a gift for him.

"What's that?" he asked, eyeing the envelope I held out to him.

"It's a late wedding gift," I said, waving him over to sit next to me on the bed.

"You didn't need to get me anything, you know that. I already have everything I need."

I smiled at him as he sat next to me, taking the envelope from my hands.

"I know I didn't have to, but this was important to me, and it's something I've been working on for a while."

He peeled back the flap and pulled out the folded paper inside. As he opened it I watched his mouth clamp shut in an effort to hold back his emotions.

It was an updated copy of Carly's birth certificate changing her name to Carly Evans Foster, and listing him as her father.

"Thank you," he choked out. "This means more than you'll ever know."

"I've been waiting since August to get the new copy. You wouldn't believe all the hoops I had to jump through."

He smiled and pulled me into a hug.

"There's something else though," I said into his shoulder.

"Oh yeah?"

"Here," I said, holding out a long black jewelry box.

He shook it next to his ear and then said, "I hope you didn't spend a lot of money on me."

"Just open it," I prodded.

He pulled off the lid and sat stunned, looking into the box.

"Are you serious?" he asked.

"Yes. You've managed to knock me up again, you big stud," I said, pulling out the positive pregnancy test and waving it at him.

"Thank you, Lou. Thank you for giving me everything I've ever wanted and more," he said, pulling me back into his chest.

As I snuggled into the warmth of the man I loved I felt that I should be the one thanking him. Carson had not only taken me in and given me and Carly shelter from the storm, he had given me myself back. He had shown me that true love knows no bounds and that miracles can happen if only you let yourself believe.