Waiting for Devon

by Dee Stewart

  “I promise the same.”

  Devon danced once with Reed, then stayed off her feet the rest of the evening. Everyone enjoyed the reception, especially the music. When it was time, Reed cut their small wedding cake, and they sweetly fed each other.

  At midnight Devon and Reed toasted their family and friends and wished them a Happy New Year. After heartfelt hugs and congratulations, the guests bid the Barringtons good night. Jack left with Jill and turned to wink at Devon.

  “He’s a scoundrel,” she said with a smile and gazed at Reed with love glowing in her eyes.

  “I owe him my life,” Reed declared as he held Devon close to him. “You are my life. My only love. My whole world.”

  “Reed, I adore you. I’m strong because of you.”

  They kissed long and hard. In their bedroom Reed slowly undressed his wife. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”

  “Only about a dozen times.”

  “You’re gorgeous. Especially carrying our baby.” He caressed her swollen belly and lowered her to the bed.

  Reed’s mouth, hands, and tongue explored every inch of her body. His tender ministrations brought her to multiple orgasms.

  After she did the same for him, he muttered, “I can’t wait to be inside you again.”

  “I want you inside me.” She traced I love you on his broad chest with her finger.

  “I love you so much, Mrs. Barrington.”

  “And I love you, Mr. Barrington.”

  They fell into a deep sleep, safe in the knowledge of their mutual love and commitment.

  Six months later, severe cramps startled Devon out of a sound sleep one morning. To her horror, blood soaked the sheet beneath her. She screamed Reed’s name, and he came running into the bedroom.

  “What is it, sweetheart?” He drew up short when he saw the blood flowing down her legs.

  “Call Jack! Tell him I’m hemorrhaging while I call 911!”

  Within seven minutes EMTs arrived at Devon’s house, assessed her, and rolled her outside on a gurney to a fire rescue truck waiting to transport her to SFGH. Reed rode with her. She squeezed his hand and cried, “I’m losing our baby! Oh, God, Reed! It’s happening all over again!”

  Though fear seized his heart, Reed kept calm for his wife’s sake. “Shh! Jack is waiting for us at the hospital. He’s not going to let anything happen to our baby.”

  “Listen to me, Reed! If I’m not conscious, tell Jack to save our baby before me. Do you understand? Do you?” Her eyes begged him to put their baby’s life before hers.

  “Yes, my love. I understand.”

  By the time she arrived at the hospital, Devon had lost a substantial amount of blood and fell unconscious. Reed relayed her wishes to Jack who rushed her into surgery for an emergency C-section. Though he’d called Dr. Warren, she couldn’t get to the hospital in time. Besides, Jack insisted on delivering the baby himself. Reed ran alongside the gurney, and when they reached an operating room, Jill was there to help him into a paper gown and mask so he could be with Devon.

  Before he could blink, it seemed, Jack handed Reed a healthy, squalling baby boy, then turned his attention to Devon. He needed to stop her hemorrhaging. Jill escorted Reed and the baby out of the operating room. She saw the worried expression on Jack’s face and didn’t want Reed to be there if something happened to Devon.

  Other nurses took baby boy Barrington from his father and brought him to the nursery on the maternity ward. Torn between his love for his newborn son and his wife, Reed stayed with the baby because he knew that’s what Devon would want him to do. The nurses cleaned up the infant, swaddled him, and handed him back to Reed who sat in a rocking chair. Looking at him, he saw the baby had a head full of dark hair which he inherited from his mother and brilliant sapphire eyes like his. He smiled. A future lady-killer.

  A couple of hours passed. Jack found Reed in the nursery and delivered upsetting news. “I’m sorry, Reed. Devon lost a lot of blood, and she’s slipped into a coma.”

  His heart lurched and he almost dropped his son. “Is she…will she be okay?”

  “We have every reason to believe so. She’s had two transfusions, and her color is already better. Her heart rate is steady and so is her pulse. We just have to wait.”

  Waiting for Devon to regain consciousness proved excruciating for both Reed and Jack. They alternated sitting by her side and tending to the baby. The infant needed a name, but Reed didn’t want to make that decision without his wife. Every day they prayed for her recovery and bonded even more over their mutual concern for the woman they both loved, though Jack no longer loved Devon with romantic passion. His heart now belonged to Jill.

  After three long days, Devon stirred awake. When she saw Reed sitting next to her, panic rose in her. “The baby! Oh, God, please don’t tell me I lost our baby!”

  Reed leaned forward and brushed hair out of her eyes. “Thank God, you’re awake. Jack and I have been so worried about you. Rest, my love. We have a beautiful baby boy.”

  “A boy? A son?” A beatific smile crossed her face. “Please, I have to see him.”

  “I’ll let Jack know you’re awake, and we’ll bring him to you.” Reed squeezed her shoulder and pressed a gentle kiss on her lips.

  Pure, unadulterated joy swelled in Devon when her husband placed their son in her waiting arms. She pulled back the baby blanket and examined every inch of his tiny body as tears slid down her cheeks. “He’s perfect,” she murmured. “Absolutely perfect.”

  The expression of maternal pride on her face caused a heavy lump to form in Reed’s throat and made it difficult for him to speak. “He needs a name, sweetheart,” he reminded her after he swallowed the emotion choking him.

  “I think we should name him after Jack, if you don’t mind. Maybe Taylor?” she suggested.

  “I love it. How about Taylor James? We can call him TJ for short.”

  “It’s perfect. Just like him.” She met Reed’s brilliant eyes glowing with sweet love. “Thank you. Thank you for giving me this most precious gift. And thank you for naming him after my dad. You have no idea how much that means to me.”

  Reed leaned down and wrapped his arms around his wife and his son. “I think I have a pretty good idea, my love.”

  His mouth found hers in a perfect kiss. A kiss of love. A kiss of hope. A kiss for eternity.

  Epilogue

  An excerpt from Kller’s Choice

  Book 5 Choice Series

  Jackson was gone for several hours, so he was surprised to find his frail grandmother waiting for him at the stable. He dismounted and asked anxiously, “What are you doing here, Grammy? Did you walk alone all the way from the house?”

  Devon pierced him with her deep brown eyes that reminded him vividly of Eden. “Yes, I did, Jackson. I want you to take me to the cabin. Our cabin.” She referred to her husband Reed’s cabin that was once his private refuge away from his stubborn, overbearing father, his sister’s alcoholism, and his brother’s selfish concerns.

  “Of course. I’ll get the golf cart.”

  “No. Take me on Simply Red,” she insisted.

  “Grammy, I don’t think…” Jackson began doubtfully.

  Devon tossed aside her cane. “Do as I say, Jackson.”

  Jackson lifted his dainty grandmother into the saddle and swung aloft behind her. Moving Simply Red into a slow walk, it took nearly a half hour to reach Reed Barrington’s log cabin. Through the years, nothing about it had changed. Tears filled Devon’s eyes as she recalled the steak dinner Reed had prepared for her the first time he’d brought her to the cabin. Memories of the fiery kisses they’d shared, forbidden kisses when she was pretending to be engaged to his brother Shane, making love with him, leaving him the morning after… Devon turned toward Jackson, and she began to tell him a story, a story he’d heard before but never told with such passion.

  Devon’s voice had grown hoarse by the time she brought her tale to its conclusion. “I almost died giving birth to
your father, Taylor. My first husband, Jack, insisted on delivering the baby himself when he learned of the danger I faced. I know that sounds odd, but your namesake and I and your grandfather remained good friends throughout our lives until cancer took him from us the year you were born. Your father honored Jack’s memory by naming you after him.”

  She gripped her grandson’s hand tightly as her eyes glazed and a faraway expression appeared on her face. Looking straight ahead, she murmured, “He’s here. My love has come for me at last. He says it’s time to go.” She turned toward Jackson. “A woman is waiting to steal your heart and soul, Jackson. She’s tall, proud, and beautiful with long dark hair and brilliant emerald eyes.”

  His grandmother smiled mysteriously. “Oh, I see you’ve already met her. She’s sad, lost, and lonely, but she will love you madly and fiercely. Her name…is…Lily. Lily Stone…” Devon closed her eyes and shuddered as she drew a harsh breath. “I’m coming, my love. I’m coming…” Reed’s name left her lips in a loving, wistful sigh as she took her last breath.

  Jackson felt his grandmother’s hand release her grip on his, and he stared disbelievingly at her for a moment while he tried to grasp what had just happened. He gently shook her, crying her name, but did not receive a response. When he did not feel a pulse, he set her down onto the floor and immediately began CPR, however, it was too late. His beloved grandmother, who was alive and vibrantly talking with him only a moment ago, was gone. Just gone. In the blink of an eye. White-hot pain ripped through Jackson as he held his grandmother in his arms and bawled like a baby. When he eventually regained his senses, he called 911 and reported the Barrington matriarch’s death.

  THE END

  Note from the Author

  I hope you enjoyed Waiting for Devon, the fourth book in my Waiting Game Series. I loved going back and telling Reed and Devon’s love story. I knew when I wrote Killer’s Choice I would have to include Reed’s promise never to leave Devon in their story. He said he would come back to claim her and he does. Devon’s strange prophecy of her grandson’s love story with Lily Stone just made it more exciting. Throughout Killer’s Choice Jackson often finds himself remembering what Devon said to him and cursing her, too, when Lily Stone proves stubborn, unlikable and unlovable! Killer’s Choice is the explosive conclusion to my Choice series that you’re not going to want to miss.

  Future projects include Book 5 in the Waiting Game Series, Waiting for Kerry, which is Cameron and Brianna McAdams’ eldest son’s love story and revisits the danger posed by the drug cartel that targeted Cameron in Waiting for Brianna. I am also working on a Christmas series called Christmas Springs, based on a fictional town in Montana. Look for the first book, Christmas Wishes for Holly in 2022.

  Please like me or friend request me on Facebook to see exclusive teasers for upcoming books. You can find me on the platforms listed below.

  facebook.com/dee.stewart.75033

  facebook.com/authordeestewart

  instagram.com/deestewartbooks

  twitter.com/deestewartbooks

  BookBub: bookbub.com/profile/370812207

  Amazon: amazon.com/Dee-Stewart/e/B07FYRDDTR

  Books for Sale

  The Choice Series Books 1-5

  Logan’s Choice

  Christian’s Choice

  Ben’s Choice

  Stone’s Choice

  Killer’s Choice

  Conner – A Choice Series Novella

  Link to Conner: amzn.to/3bpFOBf

  Link to series page: amazon.com/gp/product/B07NQLJR2K

  The Waiting Game Series Books 1-3

  Waiting for Brianna

  Waiting for Jaime

  Waiting for Addie

  Link to series page: amazon.com/gp/product/B0927VYWDV

  Laguna Beach Cops Series Books 1 and 2

  Fighting for Brielle

  Fighting for Savannah

  Link to series page: amazon.com/gp/product/B09299WLBP

  Books Coming Soon

  The Waiting Game Series

  Waiting for Kerry Book 5

  A Christmas Springs Holiday Novel

  Christmas Wishes for Holly

  Laguna Beach Cops Series

  Fighting for Jiena Book 3

  Acknowledgments

  First and foremost, I would like to thank my wonderful, loving husband Stan for allowing me to write to my heart’s content without complaining. You are truly my best friend.

  Nicholas, my talented and funny son, you have always been my pride and joy. Maybe one day we can write that children’s book about the red panda and the hamster.

  Mom, Bobby, Mary, Chris, Kelley, Joey, and Cristina, family means everything.

  Betsy, Carla and Sherri, thanks for being the best friends I ever could have wished for. We are more than just friends; we are sisters in the truest sense of the word.

  Wanda, my dear, dear friend and former colleague, you epitomize grace and charm. Thanks for being such an inspiration to me through the years!

  I would like to thank MJ Nightingale who has been a dear friend and colleague for more than twenty years. You are the first person I ever allowed to read my manuscripts, and I appreciate your wisdom and experience.

  Drue Hoffman, thank you from the bottom of my heart!

  Emily, I couldn’t have done this without your constant support and encouragement! Thanks for being such a great friend and brainstorming partner!

  Readers, you inspire authors to keep writing, so thank you!

  About the Author

  Dee Stewart has spent more than three decades teaching high school English. Although she enjoys being a teacher and shares her love of literature with her students, her passion is writing. She started writing at age thirteen after being inspired by Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden mysteries. In high school she was introduced to her first historical romance and fell in love with the genre. She wrote her first romance during her senior year of high school. Since then she has spent the majority of her adult life working on her craft with Logan’s Choice being her first published novel. She is looking forward to hearing from her readers. Currently, she lives in Florida with her husband and her incredibly hairy cat, Leo.