Authors: Stephanie Morris
Her Every Fantasy (20 page)
Kayla sighed as Ellie and Jonah snuck in a kiss. They were still an adorable couple to her. So much had changed in so little time. She looked down at the engagement ring that now sparkled on her left hand. Things had improved with time for her. Open communication was the sole reason as to why they had. There were still times when hints of vulnerability peeked through, but she loved him as much as he loved her, and he knew it. Keirra and Eric had their own share of happiness as well as Kristen and Randy. They were all at a point in their lives that they had dreamed of forever. It didn’t hurt that they were getting ready to walk down the aisle together in one month. She and her sisters had chosen a day that was special to them. It was the day that they had moved back to Baxley two years ago, the day that had changed their lives forever. A day that was more significant than any of them had ever realized it would be.
She truly was happy now, and so where her sisters. Today, they were older and wiser. Things couldn’t be any better. James and the kids had moved into the house that had been in her family for years. It had been difficult to leave Mr. Feldon by himself, but a short while later they realized that it shouldn’t have been a worry for them. Mr. Feldon’s love life had picked up. He was now dating Grace Martin, a widow who was taking good care of Mr. Feldon from the looks of things. Kayla watched the newly formed couple chat with Arthur, Charlotte, Ophelia, Stuart, and her grandparents. It was good to have them in town again. She was a little disappointed that James’s mother and stepfather couldn’t make it, but his sister and brother had. She knew that it meant a lot to James to have the support of his family. His relationship with his mother was still strained, but it was definitely getting better.
She flinched as Josh, Wade, Cody Junior, and Joel went flying by at a dangerous speed. She, Kristen, Irene, and Alexandra told the kids to slow down simultaneously. The boys heeded the warning. She shook her head and wondered how many scrapes she would have to fix for Josh. Sometimes, he tried to move faster than his legs allowed him to. The corners of her mouth tilted upward when James, Eric, and Randy appeared, each carrying a cake in her and her sisters’ direction. Everyone began to sing the birthday song, and she and her sisters moved closer to each other. She gave James a kiss on the lips as he sat her cake in front of her.
“Thank you.”
He chuckled. “No, thank
you
.”
She knew exactly what he meant. He was thanking her for taking a chance on him. Thanking her for being patient with him when she didn’t have to. Thanking her for treating his kids as if they were hers. Most important, thanking her for loving him. She looked down at her cake and actually found herself making a wish before blowing out the candles. Cutting into the cake, she laughed. It was her favorite flavor, strawberry. Keirra’s cake was vanilla, and Kristen’s chocolate. All three of them looked at the men that they loved then looked back at each other and smiling, but only Keirra said what they were thinking.
“You do realize that we are getting married in a month, right?”
Eric grinned and wiggled his eyebrows. “If it is the calories that you are worried about, I will help you burn them off.”
At that comment, Keirra cut herself a larger slice of cake, and Kayla couldn’t help but to laugh at her younger sister. The cake and ice cream were distributed freely. When she couldn’t eat anymore, she pushed her plate away before leaning over to clean Josh’s mouth, and soon realized that it was a futile effort.
A few minutes later, Marianne stood up. “It’s present time.”
Kayla shook her head. “Tell me that you guys didn’t.”
When the presents began appearing, tears welled up in her eyes. She heard Keirra sigh heavily.
“Don’t start crying, Kayla.”
She looked at her sister as the first tear fell. “I am sorry, but I can’t help it.”
Excusing herself, she went into the house and headed for the bathroom. James caught up with her there and pulled her into his arms. She melted into his strong embrace. He was smiling, and she dabbed her eyes with tissue.
“You told me that you weren’t going to cry today.”
She laughed. “I know, and I tried, but I couldn’t help it.”
It was an emotional day for her, and James knew that. He also understood what she felt. For so long, she and her sisters had been on their own with only each other to call family. Almost overnight, that had changed. For the first time in her life, she felt like she belonged. She had the family that she always wanted. James lifted her left hand to his lips and placed a kiss on her ring finger.
“I love you,” he whispered, the emotion behind the words making them mean even more.
“I love you, too.”
When she felt presentable again, she let him lead her back outside. Kristen got up to embrace her first. This time she didn’t tear up. Sitting down she joined her sisters, and they began opening their presents. Two of the most meaningful ones to her were from Jamie, Jana, Jenna, and Josh. They had posed for a family picture for her and had placed it in a nice frame that was engraved “To our mom.” To her surprise, it had been Jana who had been the first to call her mom, and the rest of the kids had soon followed. What surprised her even more was that she was able to hold her tears back as she stared at the picture. She embraced all of them tightly.
The next-best gift had come from Somer. She’d given all of them a painting that she had done of Kayla and her sisters. Somer had all of them sitting together with their arms around each other, and the picture truly resembled the three of them. She was grateful for all of the presents that she’d received.
Somer embraced her tightly. “Thank you for everything that you have done for me, and happy birthday.”
“Anytime,” she said to the blooming teenager and watched her walk away to join Jamie and Holly.
Brigette and Dan’s secret had rocked Baxley, but no one had been more affected than Trish.
When the secret had come out, Trish had flipped out, but Dan had threatened divorce and to fight for full custody of Holly.
She wasn’t sure which threat had brought Trish around, but it had been a quick turnabout. For that reason, seeing Dan, Brigette, and Trish standing together and talking had lost some of its shock value. Fortunately, Trish’s horrible behavior hadn’t rubbed off on Holly so that she and Somer were close as sisters could be. It had also sparked a friendship between five teenagers that at one time couldn’t be within the same proximity of each other.
Her thoughts were interrupted as Jamie ran up to her. “Mom, can we go hang out at Sam’s? Dad said that I have to ask you since this
is
your day.”
She smiled, happy with the fact that Jamie had become more of a teenager since Kayla became engaged to James and everyone had moved into the house. Jamie still had responsibilities but nowhere near the amount that she’d had in the past. It was hard to believe that she would only be with them for another year then head off to college. She knew that it was weighing heavily on James’s mind, but he was proud of his daughter and was willing to make any sacrifice necessary to see that she succeeded. It didn’t hurt that he wanted to have another child. She knew that if that were to happen, it would probably keep them busy enough so that they wouldn’t notice that Jamie was away.
She gave Jamie a slight nod. “That’s fine.”
Jamie reached for the keys, but Kayla held them out of her reach. “Make sure that you are home by eleven.”
Jamie gave her a wounded look. “But it’s Saturday.”
Kayla gave her a warning look. “And you are only seventeen.”
Jamie sighed in defeat. “Okay, Mom, eleven it is.”
She dropped the keys in Jamie’s hand and received another hug and kiss. “I hope that you had a wonderful birthday, Mom.”
Kayla watched the teenager embrace her sisters as well before running off. It had been a good birthday, and looking at her sisters, she knew that there would be many more to come. All of their hopes and dreams had come true. She found it hard to believe sometimes that her life was so perfect, but she didn’t take it for granted, and she never would. She and her sisters had come to Baxley to start a new life, and they had gained so much more. When she looked across the yard, her gaze met James’s, and she knew that their life together was going to be everything that she’d ever imagined because he was everything that she’d ever wanted, and all that she would ever need.
The End
About the Author
Stephanie Morris resides in Fort Worth,
www.myspace.com/stephaniemorrisbooks
or at
http://www.stephaniemorris.webs.com/
.