Love Renewed (Love Trilogy)

by C. S. Janey

  “I know. I’m just so shocked. I never thought Shelby would do that…” he trailed off, and she hugged him tighter. “Let’s get you home.”

  She walked to the car as he locked up. Once he got in, she placed a hand on his leg, squeezing gently.

  “It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known she would do such a thing.”

  When he said nothing, she looked out of the window.

  After a few moments of driving in total silence, she heard him sigh deeply.

  “I feel like I should have known,” he finally replied. “I made her my responsibility and not only did I fail her, but you were put in danger.”

  “It was definitely a more interesting version of our first date, that’s for sure,” she quipped, trying to lighten the moment.

  As the look on his face changed from sadness to shock at her joke, Charlotte laughed.

  “This is not funny, Sprite! You could have been killed and I would have lost you—”

  Reaching over, she cut him off with her fingers over his lips, heart clenching at his words. “But I wasn’t and you didn’t. And it will definitely be a night I’ll always remember.”

  She saw him glancing back and forth between her and the road a few times before his body relaxed visibly, his lips curving slightly under the fingers covering his mouth. When he playfully nipped the tips, she pulled her hand away and rested it on his leg once again.

  Removing one hand from the steering wheel, he covered her hand with his. “I love you.”

  She knew the words were simple, but in that moment, she was so glad to hear them.

  “I love you, too.”

  There was nothing left to be said and moments later, they pulled into her driveway.

  ~*~

  Entering the kitchen the next morning, Charlotte headed straight to the fridge as her mother stared at her from the table.

  “So tell me. How did you go from a first date to being grazed by a bullet from Shelby?” Her mother’s voice was close to a whisper.

  Turning around, her mothers pale face and wide eyes found hers. The newspaper clutched tightly in one hand, she beckoned Charlotte with the other.

  Walking over to the table, she took her mothers hand in her own as she sat down and smiled softly.

  “Don’t worry, mom. My leg hurts a little but otherwise, everything is great.”

  Her mother frowned. “Why didn’t you call me? Or leave me a note? I had to find out by reading the paper!”

  Wincing, she removed her hand, putting them together in her lap. “I’m sorry. We didn’t get back until after midnight and you were in bed. I just figured I’d tell you this morning. I didn’t know it would be in the paper so quickly.”

  “It’s a small town, Charlotte. If the mayor sneezes sideways, they report it.” With a cluck of her tongue, her mother took a sip of her coffee, one eyebrow raised.

  Chuckling, Charlotte felt her face flush. “You’re right, of course.” Getting up and pouring herself some orange juice, she looked over her shoulder. “Did you want some breakfast?”

  “Nah. I do want to know how your date went before…”

  Whirling around, she couldn’t contain the grin that escaped, her heart racing with excitement. “It was beautiful! He asked me to marry him!”

  Her mother didn’t appear to be shocked. In fact, Charlotte thought the grin on her mother’s face was bigger than her own. “That was fast.”

  “Not according to Trevin. He said, and I quote, ‘it was about damn time.’ After seventeen years, he’s not exactly wrong. And all this time he waited for me…”

  “He waited for you? What do you mean?’

  “I still find it amusing that you’ve lived in same town all the time I was gone, yet you never ran into each other.”

  “Oh we did,” she admitted. “But I never did more than nod and he always thought it was because I was mad.”

  “Ah. Well, he said he’d dated other women but nothing that serious. He even named his bar with the thought of me.”

  “Really? Ugh…”

  When her mother looked down at her hands and then back up, as if she wanted to say something, Charlotte felt a little anxious. “What is it?”

  Anna took a deep breath and patted the seat across from her. “Take a seat, sweetie.”

  Charlotte did, her stomach tightening almost painfully. “You’re worrying me. What’s wrong?”

  “I wasn’t sure how or when to tell you. Everything seemed to be going so well once you got back and honestly, I just didn’t want you to be mad at me. You were so hurt then though, I didn’t think it would do any good to tell you.”

  “Tell me what? What am I missing here?”

  Her mother looked her straight in the eyes then, the worry and regret easy to see in her own. “He called the house, the morning after you left. He told me he’d called your cell phone several times the night before, but I wasn’t hearing any of it. I was so angry that he hurt you, but it is true. He did call your phone and he did leave you messages.”

  “Oh, mom…” Taking her mother’s hand in her own, she patted it. “I was angry and you were angry at him for me being hurt. I don’t blame you…”

  Anna’s eyes filled with tears, shaking her head as spoke, interrupting Charlotte. “I told him to never call me again before I even listened to the messages on your phone. And then after I was done, I said nothing because I didn’t think you’d listen. That you would think I was helping him to make excuses.”

  Unable to bear the guilt in her mothers eyes, she stood up and hugged her. “It’s okay, there is nothing to apologize for. After all, there is nothing we can do about it now, right?”

  Feeling her mother nod, she pulled back slightly and smiled. “Besides, I got a memorable second first date.”

  Anna’s eyes widened just moments before she busted out laughing.

  “Well, at least you found that funnier than Trevin did,” Charlotte said before laughing too.

  Just then, Douglas came stomping down the steps and their day began.

  ~*~

  At the knock on the door, Charlotte looked up from the book she was reading.

  Seeing Trevin standing in the doorway, she smiled. He’d called her earlier and said he wanted to come visit, but she’d asked him to wait until she’d told Douglas about their engagement.

  So, once Douglas had woken up and had breakfast, she’d taken him aside to talk.

  “You remember the guy who came to dinner that one night with Mommy? Trevin?”

  At his nod, she patted the seat next to her and he sat down.

  “Did you like him?”

  Douglas shrugged. “He’s okay.”

  Charlotte couldn’t prevent a small laugh from escaping. “Well, mommy and him used to be best friends.”

  “Like me and Kevin?”

  Nodding, she took his hand in hers. Kevin was the only kid who played with Douglas outside of school. Even though she wished he’d make more friends, she was glad he even had just one.

  “Yes, just like that. And do you remember your daddy? How mommy and daddy loved each other so much?”

  His eyes had widened as he smiled. “Yes, and you guys loved me too.”

  “I still love you, silly!” Hugging him close, her eyes had dampened a little when he had returned the embrace willingly and didn’t pull away. “And well, even though I loved your daddy very much and I miss him…”

  Crap, how do I explain this? She’d thought, not sure how she could tell her son how much she loved someone else and have him at least slightly understand. He’s only five. I don’t know what to say!

  Then, when she had realized that she needed to just make it simple and tell him what to expect, she’d taken a deep breath and continued.

  “Mommy loves you and you’ll always be first in my life. But I want to share you and me, as a family, with Trevin. He wants to marry me and become part of our family. We’ll get married and then he’ll live with us. Are you okay with that?”

 
; With his wiser than his years eyes looking right at her for the first time ever, he’d taken her hand in his little one and patted it. “I love you too mommy. Now can I get a lizard?”

  She’d busted out laughing, promised him that they would look into finding one and he’d gone outside to play.

  Now Trevin was here and she just wanted to squeeze him. “Hey there.”

  His slow smile at her greeting awakened the butterflies and as he walked toward her, the feeling intensified. His eyes drank her in and she felt naked under it even though she was covered from nearly head to toe.

  As he sat down on the bed, she put her book to the side. Still, he said nothing, just staring at her.

  “Why are you staring at me like that?”

  His low chuckle thrilled her. “I was just imagining that we were already married and I found you sitting in bed, waiting for me, when I came home.”

  She held up a hand to halt his imminent advance, even as her face grew warm. “I have something for you…well, for us. Hold out your hand.”

  Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her engagement ring and placed it in his, even as his eyes never left her face.

  With a breathtaking smile, he read her mind and knew exactly what she wanted. As he went to one knee on the floor, she moved to the edge of the bed and sat. Careful of her bandaged leg, their current position recreated his first proposal almost perfectly.

  Taking her left hand in his right one, he lifted it to his lips, placing a soft kiss on it. The tingle he sent up her arm made her want to pull him towards her, but she refrained as he spoke.

  “Sprite. I’m so glad you are here in front of me. I’m so glad that I waited all these years, even though I had no promise of you ever being in my life again. I can’t promise I won’t make mistakes nor that I won’t make you mad - all I can promise is that I’ll do everything I can to make it right. I have loved you for seventeen years and I will love you and now your son until the day I die in what I hope is the very far away future. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife and letting me love your son as my own?”

  Sobbing, she nodded enthusiastically, unable to form a coherent response. Once he slid the ring on her finger, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, showing him the love for him that she couldn’t put into words right at this moment.

  Epilogue

  At the knock on the door, Charlotte took one last look in the mirror. With her hair half-up, she tugged on a curl and smiled as it bounced back up. Unable to refrain from grinning at her reflection, she stood up and smoothed her dress down.

  Today was her wedding day and it was everything she’d always hoped it would be.

  “Come in!”

  Trevin’s father came in, looking quite dashing in his suit. He said he wanted to give her away and since her father wasn’t alive, she was honored he had asked. It didn’t hurt that him and her mother were completely in love themselves.

  “You look beautiful,” He said with a smile. “Are you ready?”

  Laughter floated through the windows as the sun shined brightly through the window.

  “Almost,” she said as she walked over to the windows and looked out.

  When discussing the wedding, Trevin said he would love to have it in the backyard of their future home and she loved the idea as well. Both thought that spending a lot of money on a wedding seemed like a waste when they really just wanted to start their lives together. The reception would immediately follow the ceremony which seemed to please the guests as they looked forward to an evening spent drinking and dancing under the stars by the lake.

  They’d gotten the wedding together rather quickly. Here they were only a month away from when he had proposed to her again and she was about to become Mrs. Trevin Green. Just the thought brought a smile to her face and as she continued to look out the window, her smile grew bigger.

  Trevin was standing at the front of the makeshift aisle, Douglas standing by his side. When Trevin had asked Douglas to be his best man, her son had shrugged his shoulders in his usual way but had still said yes. When she’d explained the significance of Trevin’s gesture, Douglas’ smile had been priceless.

  That was when she knew that they would be just fine. This was a new beginning - one that had been a long time coming and it would only get better from here. She’d make sure of that.

  “Yes, I think I’m quite ready!” Turning away from the window, she walked over to the door and Marcius took her hand in his.

  “All right then. Let’s get this show on the road!”

  ~*~

  As Charlotte walked towards him down the aisle, his father standing straight and proud next to his future daughter-in-law, Trevin drank her in.

  Looking at her dress, he was speechless. She’d went non-traditional and chosen a dark chocolate that complemented her brown hair and dark brown eyes. With a sweetheart neckline, the dress was smooth - probably satin - and fit her snugly at the waist before flowing outward, similar to a ball gown. No lace, no other decorations. Simple, yet elegant, just like her.

  She had forgone the veil, wearing her hair loose and flowing. Her skin looked as if it were glowing.

  She’d always been beautiful in earth colors but in this, she was stunning.

  And she was all his.

  When she reached him, his father placed his hand in hers. With a grin and a nod, he watched as Marcius walked off to take his seat beside Charlotte’s mother.

  Facing Charlotte, he whispered, “You…are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”

  As she beamed at him and squeezed his hands in hers, the justice of the peace began the ceremony.

  In the bright sunlight, they promised to love each other forever, each saying “I do” with enough enthusiasm to make their friends and family laugh.

  Just before they exchanged the rings, Trevin knew it was time for the surprise.

  “Wait!”

  The justice of the peace smiled knowingly, as Charlotte stared at him with confusion.

  “Douglas, can you come stand in between your mother and I?”

  Nodding, he grinned up at his mother and stood between them as asked.

  Trevin looked into Charlotte stunned face and leaned in, kissing her gently on the cheek before turning to their very captive audience.

  “When I asked Charlotte to marry me, I promised her that I would love her and Jack’s son as my own,” he announced, putting his hand into his pocket and pulling out a box. “Knowing that Douglas will grow up to be big and strong, I had this made for him so he would always be able to wear it if he wants to.”

  Opening up the box, he heard Charlotte gasp as Douglas squealed.

  Inside was a tiny, green lizard hanging on a chain, a little replica of a gold wedding band similar to Trevin’s dangling from the hook on the lizard’s tail. Getting down to Douglas’ level, Trevin looked him straight in the face.

  “Douglas, will you do me and your mom the honor of marrying us?”

  Giggling even though they had rehearsed this in secret, he nodded and Trevin put the necklace on him.

  Standing up, he took Douglas’ hand in one hand and Charlotte’s in the other.

  Charlotte eyes were filled with tears as he looked back into her face. She mouthed “I love you” as they turned back to the justice and finished the ceremony.

  “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride!”

  Trevin pulled her into his arms and kissed her less passionately than he desired, as Douglas cheered.

  “We will definitely continue this later, Mrs. Green.”

  Eyes still shining, she brought one hand up to his face. “Yes we will. And you, Mr. Green, will make an excellent father.”

  “And husband. Don’t forget that part.”

  “Yes and husband. But, definitely a great father and you’ve got roughly eight more months until we become a family of four.”

  Trevin froze, searching her face for just a second before the joy at her words hit him with f
ull force. Picking her up and twirling her around as she laughed, he couldn’t wait to share this news with the world.

  The love of his life had come home and given him a second chance.

  And now, they were going to have a baby.

  Bringing Charlotte close, he kissed her as if they were the only two people in the world.

  Then Douglas piped up, “Mom, I love this necklace but where is my REAL lizard?”

  Laughing, they broke apart and Trevin reached for her hand as they turned to Douglas.

  They had all the time in the world to kiss later.

  Now it was time to continue building the bonds of their new family.

  Other Books by C.S. Janey

  Surrender To You

  Coming Soon…

  Love Trilogy

  Love Desired (#2)

  Love Hidden (#3)

  Following Surrender To You…

  Straight To You

  Stripped To You

  Honey To You (prequel to Surrender)

  As well as…

  Sugar Baby Lies

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  THANK YOU for reading!

  I love ALL of you & appreciate your support!

  About The Author

  C.S. Janey is a big fan of romance - writing and reading.

  The mother of one, she currently spends her days writing, reading, procrastinating, and protecting her son from himself as he pretends that he is a superhero.

  Love Renewed is her second contemporary adult romance. The first in her Love Trilogy, it can be enjoyed as a standalone novella.

  The other two books in the series, Love Desired (#2), featuring Ramsey and Arabella, and Love Hidden (#3), featuring Gwyneth and Lucien, will soon follow.

  Her first novel, Surrender To You, is also the first in a series, as well as a standalone.

  You can find all her novels, present and hopefully in the future, on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, All Romance eBooks and Smashwords, as well as those they distribute to - if applicable.